The Laker Log. Male Athlete Of The Week Kenneth Foster Men s Cross Country

Transcription

1 The Laker Log A weekly publication of the Mercyhurst Sports Information Office October 9, 2006 Carpe Diem Male Athlete Of The Week Kenneth Foster Men s Cross Country Kenneth Foster led Mercyhurst to a dual match victory over Gannon Saturday. Foster finished first overall in a time of 28:16 as the Lakers rolled past their rival He was 26 seconds better than the second place finisher and was 53 seconds ahead of Gannon s top runner. Honor roll - Tyler Bidwell, Men s Golf; Jason Pedra, Men s Soccer; Andrew Schonhoff, Men s Water Polo; Dan Schuler, Football Female Athlete Of The Week Jaclyn McLean Women s Tennis Jaclyn McLean went 6-0 in singles and doubles play, dominating most of her competition as the Lakers went 3-0, including two GLIAC victories. McLean achieved a rare feat against Michigan Tech, winning both of her matches without losing a game. She won 6-0, 6-0 at No. 6 singles and 8-0 at No. 3 doubles. In all, she won 60 of the 73 games she played during the week with double victories over both Lake Superior State and Charleston. Honor roll - Torrie Caruso, Women s Cross Country; Caitlin Cummings, Women s Golf; Vanessa Mourey, Field Hockey; Cara Nelson, Women s Volleyball Team Of The Week Women s Tennis Mercyhurst won three matches in three days, including a pair of GLIAC matches, as the Lakers completed conference play for the fall. Mercyhurst beat Michigan Tech 8-1 and Lake Superior State in a crucial 5-4 victory. In the Lake Superior State match, Elizabeth Mullane came back from a 5-4 deficit in the third set to win 6-1, 1-6, 7-5 for the clinching point. Following those two matches, the Lakers beat Charleston 6-3 behind straight set wins from Meghan Raynor, Chelsea Downing and Jaclyn McLean. With the wins, Mercyhurst is now 8-5 overall and finished 5-4 in the GLIAC, qualifying for the eight-team conference tournament.

2 Football (1-5, 1-5 GLIAC) A big second quarter by No. 1 Grand Valley (6-0, 5-0 GLIAC) proved too much for Mercyhurst to overcome, as the `Hurst fell at Lubbers Stadium. A 39-yard field goal by Phil Scanlon at the end of the first quarter made the score 14-3 in favor of Grand Valley. The second quarter was all Grand Valley, however. GVSU scored four touchdowns in the next 15 minutes and gained 277 yards of total offense to take a 42-3 lead into the half. Martin ran for a pair of touchdowns in the period and Morrison rushed for a 66-yard score on his first touch of the game. In the second half, Mercyhurst outscored the defending national champions Redshirt freshman Joe Laffey and freshman running backs Ben Jennings (Washington, Pa./Trinity) and Demond McDonald came on in relief for the `Hurst and performed well in extended action. Mercyhurst got its first touchdown of the game later in the period. Laffey hit Schuler for gains of nine and 29 yards on backto-back plays to move the ball deep into GVSU territory. Jennings then finished the drive with a one-yard run. McDonald had the only score of the fourth period. He rushed four times for 21 yards on a 45-yard drive set up by a 19-yard punt return by David Lough. Late in the period, Mercyhurst thwarted a scoring drive by GVSU when Tim Herbener came up with his first career interception, picking off Grand Valley back up Brad Iceik at the goal line. Men s Soccer (13-2, 5-0 GLIAC) 10/4/06 A goal by Jason Pedra in the 76th minute broke a 2-2 deadlock as Mercyhurstvdefeated Oakland City 4-2. Mercyhurst got on the board first, with a goal by Matt Richards at 29:15, assisted by Pedra. The Mighty Oaks tied the score before the half, however, as Ernesto Becerra scored the first of his two goals on the day, with an assist from Adem Ali. Kurt Young (Medina, Ohio/Medina) broke the 1-1 tie early in the second half. After a long throw in, Andy Tait flicked the ball to Young who found the back of the net for his 13th goal of the season. 10/7 at Grand Valley St. L, /14 Findlay 1:30 PM 10/4 at Oakland City W, /7 at Tiffin W, /15 at Northwood 2:00 PM Becerra brought Oakland City back just four minutes later, this time with an assist from Callum Grindlay at 54:32. Pedra would put the game away at 75:23. Rabii Karanouh set up the senior, who hit a shot from 25 yards into the top corner. Sean Spangler (Ellwood City, Pa./Riverside) added an insurance goal with an assist from Young at 87:28 to end any hope of a Might Oak comeback. Daniel Mudd made five saves in net for the Lakers. The Mercyhurst men s soccer team earned its eighth shutout of the year, defeating a strong Tiffin squad 2-0 Saturday. Tiffin entered the match at 8-1 on the year and had posted wins over three GLIAC schools already. Mercyhurst, now 13-2 on the year, battled through a scoreless first half before Andy Tait scored six minutes into the second half on a pass from Jeffrey Powell (McKean, Pa./General McLane). Still clinging to that 1-0 lead, Mercyhurst put the nail in the coffin as Jason Pedra scored in the 81st minute on an assist from Kurt Young. Women s Soccer (12-2, 4-0 GLIAC) 10/6/06 In racking up an impressive 11-1 record and a No. 12 national ranking, the Mercyhurst women s soccer team had to play on the road just three times, losing its only game of the season to Quincy away from Erie. But with seven road games on the schedule to end the season, the Lakers knew that they would need to learn to win away from home. Friday, Mercyhurst learned a tough lesson in a 1-0 loss to West Virginia Wesleyan. Although Mercyhurst held a 12-2 advantage in shots over the first 45 minutes, West Virginia Wesleyan s Katie Schubert posted the only goal of the game when she took control of the ball in the 37th minute, sprinted past the Laker defense and buried her

3 only shot of the game. That goal would prove to be the game-winner as Mercyhurst was unable to take advantage of a 7-4 shot differential in the second half. The Lakers got 10 shots on goal in the contest but was never able to beat West Virginia Wesleyan keeper Savannah Dempsey. The Lakers were shut out for the first time since 2004, a stretch of 35 consecutive games with at least one goal. The women s soccer team bounced back from a 1-0 loss at West Virginia Wesleyan with a 4-0 win at Charleston to improve their record to 12-2 overall. Full stats were not available at time of printing for the Laker Log. Men s Tennis (3-0, 0-0 GLIAC) The men s tennis team did not play this past week, but will be back in action when they travel to Duquesne this saturday. 10/6 at W Va. Wesleyan L, /8 at Charleston W, /15 at Northwood noon No Events Played 10/14 at Duquesne 1 PM Women s Tennis (8-5, 5-4 GLIAC) 10/6/06 The Mercyhurst women s tennis team opened an important weekend of play with an 8-1 victory over Michigan Tech Friday. The match was the first of three in three days and was a key GLIAC victory. Each team entered one game below.500 in conference play with Mercyhurst at 3-4 and Michigan Tech at 2-3. However, the Lakers won two of three doubles matches and then swept singles play, winning four in straight sets and a pair in a third set tiebreak. Jaclyn McLean(Port Clinton, Ohio/Port Clintion) was flawless on the day, winning both of her matches without dropping a game. She paired of with Jamie Sutyak to roll 8-0 at No. 3 doubles and then won her No. 6 singles match 6-0, 6-0. Sutyak was also impressive, rolling up a 6-3, 6-2 win at No. 2 singles. 10/6 Michigan Tech W, /7 Lake Superior St. W, /8 Charleston, WVa. W, /14 at Duquesne 1 PM 10/15 St. Bonaventure 1 PM With the GLIAC Tournament looming, the Mercyhurst women s tennis team was assured of a spot in the eight team playoffs. However, the Lakers did help their seeding possibilities, defeating Lake Superior State 5-4 in the final GLIAC match of the year for Mercyhurst. The win gave Mercyhurst its second conference win in two days to finish 5-4 in the GLIAC. Mercyhurst was dominant at the bottom of the lineup, making up for a 2-1 deficit in doubles play by winning the bottom four singles matches. Meghan Raynor, Chelsea Downing and Jaclyn McLean, playing in the bottom three spots, never dropped more than three games in a set as the Lakers took control of the match from those positions. Elizabeth Mullane took the clinching point, winning a hard-fought 6-1, 1-6, 7-5 match at No. 3 singles. The Mercyhurst women s tennis team completed a perfect weekend, defeating Charleston 6-3 Sunday. The win was the third in three days for the Lakers, including a pair of GLIAC wins on Friday and Saturday. Mercyhurst won a pair of close matches that could have swung the match in Charleston s favor. At No. 2 doubles, Elizabeth Mullane and Chelsea Downing won in a tiebreak 9-8 (7-2). Mullane was also involved in a three-set singles match, pulling out a 6-7, 6-1, 10-6 victory. Jaclyn McLean continued her hot play of late, defeating Melissa Carpenter 6-0, 6-1 at No. 6 singles. As well, she teamed

4 up with Jamie Sutyak to win 8-1 at No. 3 doubles. In all, McLean won 60 of the 73 games she played this weekend in singles and doubles. Field Hockey (4-6) An unofficial ranking of the toughest field hockey schedules in division II ranked Mercyhurst s as the toughest to date. After losing four games to the top five teams in the country, the Lakers have now bounced back with two consecutive shutouts, posting the latest one in a 5-0 victory over Catawba Saturday. The win moved Mercyhurst back to within one game of.500 at 4-5 on the season. Vanessa Mourey scored the first of her three goals only 2:04 into play and the Lakers were able to control play from that point forward. Mourey would add a second first-half goal and then had a second half tally sandwiched between scores from Lauren MacEllven and Haley Brochu. Julie Smith played 59:55 in goal and Jennifer Coleman played the other 10:05 to combine on the shutout. The Mercyhurst field hockey team entered Sunday s match at Bellarmine with a 152 minute shutout streak. But the Knights ended that streak quickly and went on to end the Lakers modest two-game win streak with a 4-2 victory. Bellarmine, which improved to 6-6 on the year, scored just 20 seconds into play on a goal from Michelle Esterle. That score ended the Lakers shutout streak and also was one more goal than Bellarmine scored in a 2-0 loss to Mercyhurst earlier this year. Although Mercyhurst did get the equalizer only two minutes later as Courtney Loper (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) picked up a rebound and found the back of the net, Bellarmine was not done. The Knights Megan Brake gave her team the lead for good in the 25th minute off of a penalty corner that gave Bellarmine a 2-1 halftime lead. Bellarmine s Sara Roney scored the first of her two second half goals in the 56th minute to put the Knights ahead 3-1. But Mercyhurst fought back as Erin Kelleher cut the deficit to just one in the 61st minute. With the Lakers pushing up to get the game-tying goal, Roney scored in the final minute of play to end any Mercyhurst comeback hopes. Women s Volleyball (6-14, 1-11 GLIAC) 10/6/06 The Mercyhurst women s volleyball team pushed Saginaw Valley State to four games but was unable to get past the visiting Cardinals, 30-25, 27-30, 30-19, Friday. The teams played each other at the Mercyhurst Invitational earlier this year and Saginaw won in three games, but the Lakers were more competitive this time. After dropping the opening game, the Lakers found the hot hands of Jenna Matson and Kristin Peterson in a win in game two. The pair combined for 11 kills in the game as the Lakers evened the match up. 10/7 at Catawba W, /8 at Bellarmine L, /14 at Slippery Rock 7 PM 10/6 SVSU L, /7 Northwood L, /13 Gannon 7 PM Matson ended with a team-high 15 kills and Peterson finished with 13. Julia Butler added 40 assists and Cara Nelson had 17 digs to move into third place all-time at the school. Despite a losing streak that would hamper the morale of almost any team, the Mercyhurst women s volleyball team showed extreme resolve Saturday against GLIAC foe Northwood. Although the team fell to 6-14 overall and 1-11 in conference, the Lakers battled numerous times before eventually succumbing 25-30, 30-19, 30-20, 24-30, After a strong opening game in which Mercyhurst hit.345 to win 30-25, the Lakers began to find things tough. Northwood went all of game two without an attack error and continued to play well in game three to build a two-game to one lead. Mercyhurst went on a 13-1 run and cruised to a victory to send the match to a deciding fifth game. Northwood looked to be in control in the clincher, holding a 12-5 advantage, but Mercyhurst battled back again. The Lakers went another big run, closing the gap to before Northwood finally put down the winning point. Jenna Matson led Mercyhurst with 14 kills and 19 digs, while Julia Butler had 42 assists and 18 digs. Cara Nelson moved into second place in career digs, posting 15 for the Lakers. Kristin Peterson also pushed her name into the record books, moving into fifth place in career kills with 10.

5 Men s Golf (GLIAC) 10/2/06 The Mercyhurst men s golf team finished in a tie for sixth place at the ECAC Division II Championships, hosted by LeMoyne. Brendan Flood led the Laker contingent with a two-day total of 149, which tied for 13th. Mercyhurst tied for sixth with a two-day total of 607 in a tightly packed field. Just 12 strokes ahead of the Lakers was the champion, C.W. Post, with a 595. The Pioneers claimed a six-shot victory over second place Pace, but just 11 shots separated the second and 11th place teams. Bryant was third at 602, Le Moyne fourth at 604. Assumption claimed fifth with a 606 and Goldey-Beacom matched the Lakers 607 score. Flood continued his hot play to pace Mercyhurst. Fresh off his individual victory at the Great Lakes Regional, Flood shot a seven-over 149. That tied him with three other golfers for 13th in the 94-player field. Kyle Waddell tied for 23rd with a 152 (+10). Tyler Bidwell was two strokes back in a tie for 33rd. Craig Bishop shot a 155 to place tied for 41st and Steve Barr s 156 tied him for 48th place. The Mercyhurst men s golf team finally shot the round it was capable of but it came too late as the Lakers finished ninth out of 10 teams at the GLIAC Championships this weekend. After shooting 319 and 317 during the first two rounds of the event, Mercyhurst put together a strong finishing round with a 301. Four Lakers shot in the 70s but it still put them 25 shots behind Wayne State for eighth place. Grand Valley State won the championship with an 881, 10 strokes better than second place Gannon. Tyler Bidwell closed the tournament well, shooting even par over the final two rounds, but an 84 during the opening round kept him from competing for the individual crown. Brendan Flood ended with a 74 and Kyle Waddell had a 76. Craig Bishop shot 78 and Matt Maloney 81 in the final round. Women s Golf (GLIAC) The Mercyhurst women s golf team struggled during day two of the Vulcan Invitational, hosted by California (Pa.), finishing fifth out of eight teams at the event. The two day total of 742 was 11 strokes behind Laval for fourth place. Caitlin Cummings finished in a tie for 10th place with an for a 175 total. Alex Spoerndle ended with a 96 on day two for a 181 total and Carolyn Halinda had a 94 for a 185 two-day score. Kaitlin Brody shot a 103 for a 201 total. Mattye Laurer had a 105 and Abby Letson shot a 118 on day two in individual action. Men s Water Polo (9-3, 5-0 CWPA) 10/4/06 The Mercyhurst men s water polo team continued to add to its record long win streak Wednesday, defeating Penn State Behrend The Lakers have now won nine in a row and improved to 5-0 in the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA). Mercyhurst jumped on top of Behrend early, building a 9-4 lead after two periods. But the Laker defense struggled in the third period, allowing seven goals as Behrend clawed back to within two at Mercyhurst, however, closed the door with a 2-1 fourth period for the win. 10/2 at ECAC Champ. T6th/19 10/7-8 at GLIAC Champ. 9th/10 10/15-16 Mercyhurst Invite TBA 10/6-7 at California Pa. 5th/8 10/10 at Allegheny Invite TBA 10/4 PSU Behrend W, /10 Gannon 7 PM Andrew Schonhoff, fresh off of becoming Mercyhurst s all-time goal scoring leader, posted a team high four goals and added two drawn ejections. Zach Bell and Jorge Montero added three goals each, while Kevin Riordan had three assists and a steal.

6 Men s Cross Country (GLIAC) The Mercyhurst men s cross country team had little difficulty in defeating cross-town rival Gannon Saturday. The Lakers had six of the top eight finishers in winning Kenneth Foster cruised to the victory, winning by 26 seconds in a time of 28:16. Teammate Josh Peterson was next in 28:42, 27 seconds better than Gannon s top finisher, Mike Mion, who placed third. Matt Deragon ended fourth in 29:29 and Kurtis Billig was sixth in 29:59. Mike Humphrey placed seventh in 30:10 and Nate Smith was eighth with a time of 30:15. Jon Lyons finished 10th in 30:27, followed by Kevin Szczepanski in 30:55. Caleb Gnage was 16th in 31:34 and Kevin Flanagan was 17th in 31:46. Derek Hoerner placed 19th with a time of 32:55 and Andrew Rusnak was 21st at 33:05. Women s Cross Country (GLIAC) The Mercyhurst women s cross country team got a strong boost with the season debut of top runner Victoria Caruso Saturday, but it still left the Lakers just a bit short in their dual match with rival Gannon. While Caruso ended second overall and Katie Jarocki, who has been Mercyhurst s top runner so far this year, finished third, Gannon edged out the Lakers Caruso s time of 20:31 was 14 seconds behind race winner Brittany Zaborowski, while Jarocki ended only two seconds behind Caruso. Samantha Colvin finished fifth overall with a time of 20:47 but the race came down to the next few runners. Gannon s fourth and fifth runners edged out Mercyhurst s and the Knights came away with the win. Carrie Franze placed ninth in 22:07 and Amanda Ehrbar was 10th in 22:16. Laura McCarthy ended 14th in 23:04 and Sara Rex was 15th in 23:12. Allison Babcock was 19th in 23:51, Nicole Lesnick 20th in 23:58, Jessica Pachlhofer 21st in 26:31 and Emily Donovan 22nd in 26:57. Women s Hockey (2-0, 0-0 CHA) The women s hockey team did not compete last week, but will be back in action this weekend when it hosts Clarkson over the weekend. 10/7 at Gannon W, /14 at Slippery Rock Inv. TBA 10/7 at Gannon L, /14 at Slippery Rock Inv. TBA No Events Played 10/13 Clarkson 7 PM 10/14 Clarkson 2 PM Men s Hockey (0-0, 0-0 AH) The Laker men s hockey team defeated St. Clair College 8-1 in exhibition action Saturday. Ben Cottreau scored a natural hat trick in the third period to lead Mercyhurst. The team opens regular season play this weekend at Ferris State. 10/7 St. Clair (Exh.) W, /13 Ferris State 7 PM 10/14 Ferris State 5 PM