Category: Sports

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Sports

Women’s track crushes six team field

By Eric Brod

Senior Writer

For the third straight year, the women’s track and field dominated the Bucknell Team Challenge en route to team victory in the six-team field.

In the field, Kat Folger ’12 earned her first victory of the season in the javelin with a throw of 144 feet, three inches.

“Winning the javelin throw for the first time this season was rewarding because I’ve worked very hard this year to improve my technique,” Folger said. “I had my best series of throws this year and was very happy with the outcome.”

Close behind in second was teammate Laura Rycek ’11 with a throw of 143 feet, 11 inches.

“Having a teammate like Laura is invaluable,” Folger said. “Laura is a great javelin thrower with an excellent work ethic, and she has helped me tremendously to raise my level of performance by pushing me to strive to work harder every day at practice and throw competitively in meets.”

The Orange and Blue continued their impressive season on the track, led by Emily Liggett ’12 in the 3,000 meter race. Liggett finished second in the event with a career-best time of 9:58.10.

“The whole race I just focused on staying with the leader, more so than getting a certain split time,” Liggett said. “As for pacing, the first half of the race felt very even and controlled, which probably allowed me to have more of a kick at the end.”

Teammates Sarah Moniz ’11 and Caroline Tolli ’13 finished first and second in the 1,500-meter race in 4:36.27 and 4:37.26, respectively.

Kelly Grosskurth ’12 kept the momentum going for the long-distance squad with her first place finish in the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 11:08.2.

“I learned from the previous weekend’s race that I needed to push through the last 1,000 meters when the pace starts to slow,” Grosskurth said. “The steeplechase is a race where endurance is key and going out too fast can be detrimental and the last 1,000 meters is where you have to dig deep and just stay mentally strong. So that is what I did running faster splits the last 1,000 meters.”

In the 800-meter race, Hana Casalnova ’14, Beth Braunegg ’14, Erin Holbrook ’14 and Chelsea Lodato ’14 swept the top four places.

The team returns to action this weekend in both the Penn Relays and Bloomsburg’s Maroon and Gold Open.

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Sports

Lucido ’11 sets all-time wins records

By Joyce Novacek

Writer

Lauren Lucido ’11 broke the all-time program record for both singles’ victories and doubles’ victories, but the third-seeded Orange and Blue women’s tennis team was defeated by second-seeded Navy 4-2 in the Patriot League semifinals at Brigade Sports Complex in Annapolis, Md. on Saturday afternoon. The Bison concluded their 2010-2011 season with a record of 10-11.

“As our team went into the semi-final match versus Navy, we had nothing to lose and we definitely fought with everything we had,” Lauren Rottkamp ’11 said. “Overall, the biggest lesson that we learned this year is to have a high level of intensity throughout the year, so that in important matches, each one of us can execute and perform to the best of our abilities.”

Lucido and Dumitrita Iepuras ’12 defeated a pair of midshipmen easily at first doubles, 8-1. This double’s victory concluded collegiate doubles play for the senior who ended her career with an 83-35 record in doubles. The previous best doubles record was 82-42 by Veronica Brown, who had been in the top spot of the program annals since 2006.

Lucido’s success continued in singles play where she quickly defeated Amanda Griffin in first singles 6-4, 6-4. This victory advanced Lucido into the top spot on the record list. The senior finishes her singles career with a record of 87-36, only one game over the previous record holder, Tanya Sichko, who had gone 86-40 in her career that ended in 2005.

Lucido had already set the program record for total wins on April 2 against Colgate.

Rottkamp also performed well in singles play, defeating Navy’s Stephanie Ton at third singles 6-2, 7-6. With this singles win, Rottkamp claims 12th all-time in program singles, with an overall career record of 48-43.

Despite some close competition, the Bison were not able to win any other singles matches, and, other than Lucido and Iepuras, found no more success in doubles either.

“All of the singles and doubles matches were very close, yet it was just not our day to win the overall match,” Rottkamp said. “Although we struggled in the beginning of the season with some tough matches, we learned how to fight with everything we had and we all stepped up our performance as we moved into conference play and the Patriot League tournament.”

This match concluded the season for the Bison, marking the first time in seven seasons that the Bison did not advance to the Patriot League Championship. Dara Dwojewski ’11, Rottkamp and Lucido are three seniors on the roster who the Bison will miss next year.

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Sports

Bison Athlete of the Week

By Cooper Sutton

Sports Editor

Billy Eisenreich ’12

Men’s Lacrosse

 

Biography

Position: Attack

Class: Junior

Hometown: Chatham, N.J.

Major: Economics

 

Statistics

Goals: 4

Assists: 4

Shots: 7

Shots on Goal: 5

 

In the men’s lacrosse team’s epic fourth-quarter comeback last weekend, Billy Eisenreich ’12 scored four goals, including the final three goals of the game, to keep the Bison undefeated. The win keeps the Bison tied for first in the Patriot League.

Eisenreich was involved in two-thirds of the Bison offense on the day, also accounting for four assists. The eight total points is a career-high for the junior, adding to an already terrific season.

Despite being slowed by injuries, he is still having a breakthrough season. He ranks sixth in the Patriot League for both points and assists per game and ninth in goals per game.

The Bison will need Eisenreich to continue his great play next week as they take on Colgate in a game that will decide the host of the Patriot League Tournament.

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Sports

Cycling third in Eastern Conference

By Cooper Sutton

Sports Editor

The club cycling team, a week away from competing at the Eastern Championships at Penn State, is currently in third place out of 48 teams in the ECCC. The team is led by president Kelly Desharnais ’12 and Jeff Salvitti ’11, owner of the ECCC “yellow jersey” which is worn by the first place rider in the conference.

Desharnais has been an integral component to Bison success this year, not only leading the program as president but also finishing in the top five in every single race. She stands at third place among females in the Eastern Conference.

“I think a very big part of our success has come from the fact that we have the strongest women’s team in Bucknell Cycling’s history,” Salvitti said. “Never before have we had three strong women competing in the highest level of racing the conference has to offer. I think Kelly Desharnais will most likely be the number-one female rider in the entire conference next year if she continues on her current path.”

The most notable rider on the team is Salvitti, finally wearing the yellow jersey after a hard-working four-year Bison career. He took over the points lead for the ECCC at the beginning of April at the Boston Beanpot.

“It’s definitely an honor to be wearing [the yellow jersey], and he’s just been training really hard,” Desharnais said. “I know he’s been working really hard for it, and he’s hoping to do well at nationals.”

Nationals is certainly the next stop for Salvitti, along with three other riders on the women’s side. Rebekah Morris ’11 and Sinead O’Dwyer ’11 will be representing the Bison along with Desharnais.

“I have been very satisfied with my results and the fact that I had the honor to be the conference leader for a period of time, but I still have some big goals left to accomplish in these next few weeks,” Salvitti said.

The success of these riders, along with the team as a whole comes from a passion and drive within the sport of cycling, Desharnais said. Throughout the past semester, the team has been practicing very hard, even pitting its members against each other in order to improve as a team.

Earlier in the year, the team created a competition to see who could record the most hours of riding for practice. It is activities like this, Desharnais said, that inspired not only camaraderie, but also a love for cycling. By competing over practice time, the team practiced that much more.

With an improved team dynamic and a devoted group of riders, the Bison cycling team will look to find improved success at the Eastern championships and at nationals with a team oriented mindset.

“While we do have a significant amount of riders in A’s, we could not have made it to where we are now without contributions from every individual on the team,” Desharnais said. “We have had individuals from all divisions upgrading and working really hard all season long. We all train together and support each other, which is what makes us such a strong team.”

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Sports

Men’s Golf Week 11

By Colin Fields

Writer

The men’s golf team braved tough conditions Saturday to remain in contention at the Navy Invitational in Annapolis this past weekend. Ben Mattingly ’11 fired an opening round 78 to give the Orange and Blue momentum going into Sunday, despite the terrible conditions. On Sunday, Will Bachman ’12 and Jon Hartman ’13 both posted one-over-par 72’s to help the Bison finish eighth in a 20-team field.

The first round was played in rainy conditions at the USNA Golf Course. The conditions resulted in no player finishing below 73 on the first day of play. Mattingly’s 78 put him in a group of 32 players who were within five strokes of the lead. Bachman was second for the Bison, posting a 79. Mattingly and Bachman propelled the Bison to 10th place going into Sunday.

In the final round, the conditions were much more favorable for the Bison, and the team shaved 18 strokes off its day-one total of 319. Mattingly played consistently, carding another 78 on the second day of play. Schuyler Stitzer ’14 finished with a 79 after posting an 80 on day one. The Bison had four players finish in the 70s Sunday, two more than the previous day.

Bachman’s 36-hole total of 151 was the lowest for the Bison and 16th in the field overall. Bachman and Mattingly were the only Bison able to shoot consecutive 70s on the weekend.

“I felt like I played well this weekend,” Bachman said. “The conditions were very tough on Saturday, and I played well Sunday, but compared to the field I felt like I could have done better.”

Hartman had the biggest improvement from Saturday to Sunday, shaving 10 strokes off his day one total. Hartman took advantage of clear skies on Sunday to finish with a 36-hole total of 154.

“It felt great to close with a solid 72 after playing in some very difficult first round conditions,” Hartman said.

The Bison moved up two spots after their successful final round to finish eighth for the tournament. The Orange and Blue finished third out of the five Patriot League competitors. The Annapolis course will also serve as the location for the Patriot League Championships in two weeks.

“We posted a solid team score on Sunday of 301,” Bachman said. “That score tied Navy’s Sunday score and beat Lehigh, Lafayette and Colgate for the day. The [Patriot League] Tournament should be competitive, and we will have to play well to win, but I believe our best can beat any other team’s best in the Patriot League. The championship is definitely up for grabs, but I am confident in our team’s ability to win.”

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Sports

Women’s rowing excels in home race

By Thomas Walter

Writer

The women’s rowing team had their only home competition on the familiar waters of the Susquehanna River this past weekend. The Orange and Blue won seven of nine races, racing Delaware on Friday, while competing against Colgate, Old Dominion and more Delaware boats on Saturday.

The Bison took all four races against Delaware on Friday evening. The varsity eight, varsity lightweight eight, varsity four and second varsity lightweight eight were victorious against the Blue Hens.

On Saturday, the Bison did not have the same extraordinary success they had the previous day. The varsity eight lost in a competitive race to Old Dominion. The varsity lightweight eight beat Delaware by five seconds, while the third varsity eight finished 40 seconds behind them. The second varsity eight also bested Old Dominion by 30 seconds later that afternoon.

The varsity four looked to continue their success from the previous day, but Old Dominion was too much for the Bison to handle, and they finished behind ODU. The second varsity lightweight eight once again beat Delaware and also Colgate.

“This weekend felt a lot better than the previous ones,” Madeleine Armstrong ’14 said. “We’ve been making really good changes and progress in the past few days. We are trying push that even further in the coming weeks.”

The Bison will race in the Patriot League Championships this coming weekend in Worcester, Mass. on Lake Quinsigamond.

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Sports

Women’s water polo finishes 11-16

By Scott Padula

Writer

The women’s water polo team finished the regular season at 11-16 after winning one and losing two this past weekend. In the final game of the regular season, the Bison could not steal a victory from Hartwick on Senior Day, falling to the Hawks 14-9. The Bison split decisions on Saturday, bouncing back in the nightcap to defeat Gannon 26-6 after losing to Mercyhurst 13-10 in the early game.

On Sunday in the final game of the weekend, the Orange and Blue fell to No. 12 Hartwick. Before the game, Kandis Canonica ’11, Haley Prickett ’11 and Meghan McNally ’11 were honored in a Senior Day recognition ceremony. The Hawks started the game strong, opening up a 3-1 first-quarter advantage. The Bison mounted a comeback and took their only lead in the second quarter. Hartwick responded with five quick goals of their own to take an 8-4 lead into halftime. The Bison could not overcome the four goal deficit in the second half and fell 14-9. Seniors Canonica and Prickett combined for four goals and three assists in their final regular season game as Bison. Hallie Kennan’12 led the team in scoring with three goals of her own.

In Saturday’s nightcap, the Orange and Blue dominated Gannon on the offensive end to take a 26-6 victory. Seniors Canonica and Prickett led the Bison charge, scoring five goals each. Canonica also tallied five assists in the game. Canonica’s total of 10 points tied the Bison single-game record originally set by Julie McLaughlin in 2001 and matched by Aubrey Rowe in 2006. The Orange and Blue also received a strong showing in goal from Rena Heim ‘14 who posted a career-high 12 saves in the victory. As a team the Bison set several program records. Eight different Bison registered multiple goals, breaking the old record of seven. The Bison also set records in goals and assists in a single game with 26 and 24, respectively.

In the first game of the weekend, Mercyhurst jumped out to an early lead, scoring four goals in both the first and second quarters. The Orange and Blue could only post two goals in each quarter as Mercyhurst took an 8-4 lead into the half. The Bison could not overcome the deficit as they fell to the Lakers 13-10. Kennan led the Bison in points with three goals and two assists. Canonica and seven other Bison found the back of the net in the loss. On the defensive end, the Orange and Blue racked up 15 steals, while McNally and Tara Murao ’13 tallied the only field blocks.

“I think this weekend was a change of identity for our team,” Prickett said. “After the first loss on Saturday, we felt terrible. We had just lost to a team worse than us simply because they were inspired and we were not. That loss motivated us to have a strong performance and rebound against Gannon. I think we came out and did just that.”

This weekend the Orange and Blue will prepare for the Eastern Championship, which will take place next weekend at Indiana. The Bison finished fifth at last year’s Eastern Championship, the best showing in program history.

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Sports

Women’s lax falls to Columbia

By Andrew Arnao

Writer

During it  last home game of the season, the women’s lacrosse team fell to Columbia 16-7 in non-Patriot League action on Wednesday, giving the Bison a 3-12 record on the season.

After starting off the game 1-1, Columbia went on to score nine straight goals, leading to a 10-1 score at halftime. The Lions also scored to start off the second half, but the Bison offense came to life as they recorded six goals compared to Columbia’s five for the rest of the half.

Ali Carey ’14, Katelyn Miller ’14 and Sophie Kleinert ’14 each scored two goals, while Molly Ford ’14 added one. Ashley St. John ’11 led the team with three ground balls, and goalie Alyssa DeLorenz ’11 made 13 saves. Team captain Julia Braun ’11 was injured during warm-ups and did not play.

Overall, Columbia outshot the Bison 38-20 and had fewer turnovers with 11 while the Orange and the Blue had 20.

The Bison play away against Patriot League rival Colgate at 1 p.m. tomorrow in their final match of the season.

 

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Men’s lax finishes epic comeback

By Greg Stevenson

Senior Writer

Trailing by four goals with under nine minutes remaining against Lehigh on the road last Friday, the Bison men’s lacrosse team’s perfect conference record and chance for the Patriot League regular season title seemed to be in serious jeopardy. But, led by a pair of juniors, the Orange and Blue fought their way back for a dramatic 12-11 victory over the Mountain Hawks.

“I have never been a part of such a dramatic and exciting comeback in all my years of playing lacrosse,” Charlie Streep ’12 said. “I think that it is a testament to all of the hard work we have put in throughout this entire year. We are a different team that, thanks to inspiring leadership, is more mentally tough than ever, and I think that our ability to not give up in the face of adversity on Friday night really reflected that.”

Battling Navy for the last spot in the Patriot League tournament, an opportunistic Lehigh squad wasted no time in forcing an early deficit for the Bison. The Mountain Hawks scored just three minutes into the contest, and tallied two more goals before the Orange and Blue could get on the scoreboard.

Streep scored the first of his four goals in the game with five minutes left in the first quarter. The goal could not stop Lehigh’s momentum, as the Mountain Hawks would score four consecutive goals over the next 10 minutes, extending into the second quarter. The Orange and Blue found themselves down 7-1 after just 20 minutes of play, looking for an answer to the potent Lehigh offense.

That answer came from Billy Eisenreich ’12. Setting up two goals with assists and scoring one of his own, his three points would help the Bison cut the six-point deficit to four at halftime.

The third quarter belonged to the Ryan Klipstein ’11 and the Orange and Blue. Klipstein netted two goals in the first four minutes of the second half, and his third, late in the quarter, would pull the Bison within two. The hat trick gave him 25 goals and 40 points on the season, both team highs.

In the fourth quarter, the Mountain Hawks were poised to put the game out of reach for the Bison. Lehigh’s Dante Fantoni completed a hat trick of his own to push the lead to 10-7. The Mountain Hawks would score once more in the quarter before going cold for the last 11 minutes of the game.

As quickly as the Mountain Hawks’ offense went silent, the Bison turned up their offensive pressure for one last push for an improbable, come-from-behind victory. Down by four, the Bison called on juniors Streep and Eisenreich to win the game for them.

“We knew Lehigh was going to be a tough league opponent, but we did not expect to be down that late in the game,” Jordan Nies ’11 said. “Still, at no point in the game did any of us think we were going to lose.”

Streep started the comeback with consecutive goals, the second coming at the 5:48 mark. Eisenreich would follow up with a goal just 23 seconds later to cut what was once a six-point lead for Lehigh to just one.

A minute later, Eisenreich found the back of the net again, this time to bring his Bison all the way back from the brink of defeat to tie the game at 11.

The comeback would be complete when Eisenreich, with 1:40 left, escaped his defender and netted the game-winner for his fourth goal and career-high eighth point of the contest.

With their perfect conference mark still intact, the Bison will head to Colgate tomorrow for a duel with the Patriot League’s only other undefeated team. The game will essentially be a one-game playoff for the right to host the conference tournament starting next weekend.

“In our four years, our senior class has faced off against Colgate in a lot of high stakes games, so this one is nothing new for us,” Nies said. “We’ve developed a great rivalry with plenty of bad-blood. I’m looking very forward to beating them on their home field and bringing the Patriot League Tournament back to Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium.”

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Sports

Softball splits series with Holy Cross

By Lindsay Regruto

Staff Writer

Alex MacLean ’13 earned Patriot League Softball Pitcher of the Week while Alison Ford ’11 smashed a grand slam with a career-best seven RBIs in two games to leading the softball team to a 2-2 split at Holy Cross last weekend.

MacLean posted a 2-1 record for the week with a 2.67 ERA. The sophomore now totals 92 strikeouts, with an overall career total of 184. While MacLean led her team defensively, Ford’s grand slam put it ahead for the win in their first game on Saturday.

The Bison were unstoppable offensively on Saturday, defeating the Crusaders 14-6 in the first game of the series. The Orange and Blue wasted no time and had two runs on the board by the top of the first. Holy Cross answered with four runs of their own to take an early 4-2 lead. The Bison rallied quickly in the seventh inning to retake the lead. Jessie Snyder ’11 had a two-out, two-RBI double to tie the game. RBIs by Lauren Fry ’11 and Ford increased the gap, and the second inning ended with the Bison ahead 7-4. Bridget Gates ’13 retired the side to hold the Holy Cross offense at bay.

Ford crushed a pitch for a grand slam to center field, bringing the Bison to a decisive 11-4 lead in the third. The Orange and Blue closed the game with two more runs, allowing Holy Cross only two more as well. Snyder and Fry also had a big game at the plate with Snyder going 3-4 and Fry 2-3 with four runs scored and three RBIs.

The Orange and Blue continued their winning streak with a second win 4-3 over the Crusaders on Saturday. Holy Cross took an early lead in the first, putting one run on the board. The Bison came back with four runs in the second to take the lead 4-1. The Bison offense tried to rally later in the game but was unable to put any more runs on the board. The defense only allowed the Crusaders one more for the rest of the game, giving the Bison their first back-to-back Patriot League wins of the season.

The Orange and Blue were unable to sustain their stellar offense, falling 4-2 to Holy Cross in the first game on Sunday. Holy Cross was the first to clear the goose eggs off the board posting four runs in the first three innings. An RBI by Fry in the third brought Sam Rollandi ’11 around the bases to shrink the gap. The Bison kept swinging but could not turn any hits into runs until the sixth. The Orange and Blue scored one more run in the bottom of the sixth to make it a two-run game. It was not enough, and the Crusaders took the win.

The Bison also dropped the last game of the series to Holy Cross 2-0 on Sunday. Neither team started off strong–the game remained scoreless until the fourth inning. The Crusaders posted two runs in the top of the inning. They would be the only runs for either team, giving the Crusaders a small victory over the Bison to end the day.

The Bison will be back on the field to host Lafayette tomorrow and Sunday.