Author: Andrew Arnao

Categories
Bison Athlete of the Week Lacrosse Men Sports

Bison Athlete of the Week: Sam Grinberg

Billy Tyler

Assistant Sports Editor

Sam Grinberg ’15 found himself in a unique position in the men’s lacrosse game against Colgate on April 20. Trailing 7-5 in the second half to the Raiders, Grinberg, the number two goalie for the Bison, was called into the game by head coach Frank Fedorjaka to replace Kyle Feeney ’13, the 2012 First Team All-Patriot League goalie.

The Bison began the game in impressive fashion and took an early 4-1 lead in the contest, an important one for the Patriot League Tournament seeding, and seemed poised to put it away early in the second half. Colgate was not ready to give in so easily and opened the second half on a 4-0 run. With no momentum and the once seemingly assured victory slipping away, Fedorjaka decided to replace his star goalie with Grinberg, a backup who had played 29 minutes and recorded one save for the Bison this season. This bold move was made to inject some energy into the team and turn the tide to gain the victory.

Fedorjaka’s risk paid off as Grinberg put on a spectacular performance in the final 22:07 of the contest. In this span, Grinberg stopped six shots, including five in the fourth quarter, while allowing only one goal. His presence in the net also created that spark Fedorjaka had hoped for and less than two minutes after the switch, the Bison scored two quick goals to tie up the game. These goals represented the beginning of an 8-1 run that broke open the game for the Bison, who never looked back.

For his great work under adverse conditions, Grinberg was named the Patriot League Goalie of the Week. The 13-8 victory for the Bison locked up the No. 2 seed in this week’s Patriot League Tournament and also tied the team with Duke and Cornell for the most wins in Division I men’s lacrosse. The Bison will begin their Patriot League Tournament today against third-seeded Army.

Hometown: New York, NY

High School: Hotchkiss School (Conn.)

Height/Weight: 5-8/185

Stats:

Games this year: Four

Total number of minutes played: 51:47

Goals against average: 6.95 goals per game.

Categories
Sports Tennis Women

Women’s tennis wins against Bloomsburg

Andrew Arnao

Sports Editor

The women’s tennis team finished its regular season with a 5-0 home victory on April 24, topping Bloomsburg in its final tuneup before the Patriot League Tournament this weekend. The match consisted only of singles play, as inclement weather forced the match to be called before the doubles matchups.

The Bison managed to complete five contests and won all five. Elena Vidrascu ’14 started things off by recording a 6-1, 6-0 victory, followed by an easy 6-0, 6-0 decision in favor of Maria Cioffi ’16. Jen Bush ’15 triumphed 6-3, 6-0, while Christie Schneider ’15 and Stephanie Pino ’16 each recorded 6-0, 6-0 sweeps. In the sixth contest, Bloomsburg was leading for the first time all day, but the match was called in the second round and the contest did not factor into the final decision.

The Bison hope their overwhelming play against Bloomsburg will translate into success at the Patriot League Tournament, which begins Friday at 3 p.m. The Bison will travel to West Point and face off against Holy Cross in the quarterfinals. The Orange and the Blue have not played Holy Cross this year, but look to build on their 3-2 conference record as they fight for the Patriot League Championship.

Categories
Softball Sports Women

Softball drops three against Army

Andrew Arnao

Sports Editor

The softball team had a rough weekend on the road against Army, falling to its Patriot League rivals in three out of four games. The lone win was the final game of the April 21 doubleheader, in which Dana Nielsen ’16 and Cindy Cherness ’16 combined for a five-hit shutout to prevent a series sweep. The Bison also triumphed in a home game against Saint Francis (Pa.) on April 24.

Game one against Army on April 20 featured Amanda Fazio ’16 on the mound as she looked to improve her recent string of successful outings. Fazio ran into trouble in the first inning, where a pair of errors by the Bison allowed two runners to score for the Black Knights. Fazio was lights out from there, allowing only two hits through the remainder of her outing to give her a final box score of 5.1 innings pitched, two hits, no earned runs and three strikeouts. Cherness relieved Fazio in the sixth and caused the only batter she faced to pop up into a double play, keeping the deficit at two runs. However, the Bison offense was unable to come up with any runs in support of Fazio, with shortstop Cydnee Sanders ’15 recording the only hit for the Bison, and the Orange and the Blue dropped game one by a final of 2-0.

In game two, the Bison offense was paced by Cassie Greenhawk ’13, who hit a two-RBI triple in the third and also scored two runs. However, Nielsen allowed four runs in five innings to keep the score knotted at 4-4 going into the seventh inning, where the Black Knights walked off 5-4 after scoring a run off Cherness to hand the Bison their second loss of the day.

Game three on April 21 proved to be a pitching duel, as both teams remained scoreless until the 11th inning. Unfortunately for the Bison, Army once again pulled through with the clutch hit, an RBI triple by the Black Knights allowing an unearned run to score against Cherness. The 1-0 loss did not affect another wonderful performance by Fazio, who allowed only seven hits in 7.2 innings and struck out seven. However, the Bison could only manage two hits against the Army starter Morgan Lashley, who pitched all 11 innings in the loss.

All of the cylinders finally started firing for the Bison in game four, when Nielsen and Cherness combined for their dominating 4-0 shutout. Nielsen allowed five hits over 6.1 innings, struck out three and did not walk a batter. Similar to game one, Cherness came in with a runner on base and caused the batter to hit into a double play, this time ending the game in favor of the Bison. Third baseman Colie Escobar ’15 went 3-3 at the plate, hitting her team-leading fourth home run of the year, while right fielder Kristen Zahn ’15 also added three hits and two RBI. Greenhawk scored two of the Bison’s four runs.

Nielsen also pitched well in the game against Saint Francis (Pa.), going four innings and allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits and striking out three. Bridget Gates ’13 relieved Nielsen and threw three shutout innings, allowing just one hit and recording one strikeout. On offense, Zahn drove the Bison to victory with a 3-3 performance, including an RBI single in the first to score Greenhawk and a solo home run in the third to put the Bison ahead for good in a 3-2 victory.

The Bison now enter a crucial weekend as they travel to face Patriot League rival Holy Cross for their final series of the regular season. The Bison play four games against Holy Cross, and must win two of them in order to stay in contention for the Patriot League Tournament. The Orange and the Blue will look to ride their strong pitching to victory, starting with the first pitch Saturday at noon.

Categories
Baseball Men Sports

Baseball suffers setback vs. Army

Andrew Arnao

Sports Editor

Andrew Andreychik ’16 provided the baseball team with its lone victory against visiting Army last weekend, throwing a four-hit shutout following three Bison losses to the Black Knights. The Bison also dropped two games at St. Bonaventure on April 23, despite another fantastic pitching performance from Xavier Hammond ’15.

Looking to salvage the four-game series, Andreychik took the mound following game three on April 21, and delivered with a gem. In the 5-0 Bison victory, Andreychik struck out eight and walked only one, facing just five batters over the minimum. Backing Andreychik on offense was right fielder Joe Ogren ’16, whose two-out double gave the Bison a 4-0 lead in the third inning, as well as RBI hits from second baseman Travis Clark ’13 and first baseman Rob Krentzman ’15.

The Orange and the Blue played their first two games against Army on April 20, marking their first home games against Patriot League opponents this season. Starting game one for the Bison was Bryson Hough ’15, who gave up seven runs (five earned) in the eventual 7-0 loss. Hough surrendered nine hits in 6.2 innings of work, while also striking out four and walking none. The offense sputtered behind Hough with only three Bison recording a total of four hits against Army’s Chris Rowley, the reigning Patriot League Pitcher of the Year.

Looking to get the Bison back on track, Dan Weigel ’14 delivered an outstanding performance in game two, pitching nine innings while allowing only three runs (two earned) on six hits and striking out eight. The Orange and the Blue fell in a 2-0 hole after Army scored twice in the second inning, but a bases-loaded walk from third baseman Carter Bumgardner ’13 in the fifth and an RBI single by catcher Justin Meier ’14 in the sixth knotted the score at 2-2. The score remained tied until the 10th inning, where Army finally got to Weigel and relief pitcher Max Kra ’16 for three runs. The Bison were unable to rally in their half of the tenth, and dropped their second game to Army by a final of 5-2.

“The Army series was a bit of a tough weekend for us,” outfielder Matt Busch ’13 said. “I think we came out kind of flat in the first game and then couldn’t find the big hit in the next two.”

Game three on April 21 also turned out to be a tough one for the Orange and the Blue as they once again lost in extra innings, this time 3-2. Similar to game two, Army took a 2-0 lead in the second inning, and the Bison tied it up 2-2 thanks to a pair of RBIs from Bumgardner. As the game went into extras, starter Dan Goldstein ’13 gave up his third run of the game in the eighth inning, but the Bison could not return the favor in their half. Goldstein still recorded a complete game, allowing 10 hits and striking out four in eight innings of work.

Following the Army series, the Bison hit the road to face St. Bonaventure in a doubleheader. The Orange and the Blue were blasted for 10 runs in game one, with Krentzman driving in right fielder Corey Furman ’14 for the lone Bison run in their 10-1 defeat. Game two featured a near no-hitter from Hammond, who came within two outs of the impressive feat. Unfortunately for the Orange and the Blue, a one-out single in the seventh ended the no-hit bit, and St. Bonaventure rallied for three runs to walk off against the Bison 3-2.

Currently fourth in the Patriot League standings, the Bison will host Lafayette this weekend in their final series of the season.

“We have Lafayette [this] weekend and that will be big for us,” Busch said. “We need to come out strong for all four games and get headed in the right direction for the playoffs.”

Seniors will also be honored prior to game one, which will begin at noon Saturday at Depew Field.

Categories
Beyond the Bison Sports

Beyond the Bison: Sports News Across the Nation

Julian Dorey

Staff Writer

“Know Your Place”

Patriot’s Day in Boston–a day to celebrate the men who fought for this nation’s freedom oh-so-many years ago. A day where the ultimate physical prowess headlines as the city of Boston’s greatest celebration: the annual running of the Boston Marathon. At 2:50 p.m. on April 15, the happiest of days was torn to pieces with the hollow boom of two pressure-cooker bombs, two cowardly instances of terrorism, two moments of unthinkable carnage. A day meant for celebration and sports (the Red Sox had played as well and won earlier in the day) turned into the worst showing of domestic terrorism since another sunny day in September 2001.

As the world watched in horror, the people of Boston, particularly those standing closest to the scene on Boylston Street, sprung into action and did all they could to help the poor souls injured in the tragedy. In the end, thanks to the work of heroic EMT’s and the Good Samaritan citizens of Boston, all but three lives were saved. Still, though, three too many died and dozens of others will now be forced to live the rest of their lives without some of their limbs.

In moments and times like this, the leisure side of life takes a backseat. Suddenly arriving five minutes late for a dinner seems trivial. A couple dollars lost in the stock market isn’t as disappointing for a trader. A parking ticket doesn’t rile an offender up like it usually does. And sports, perhaps the most common of all American leisurely tastes? They cease being a life-or-death proposition for the diehards (pardon the pun). And nowhere did we see better unity, understanding and passion than in the world of sports.

On April 17, the Boston Bruins took the ice against the Buffalo Sabres. After a moving pregame tribute, the usual national anthem singer came out to do what he always does: sing our nation’s tribute song while the fans stand with their hands on their hearts. Only this time, he was cut off pretty quickly. Within seconds, the entire stadium broke out in unison and summarily took over the song from the performer. The sound shook the ground and ran chills up the spines of anyone watching. The players on both teams loved it as our nation’s unity and will to stand together shined through.

Even fans of the New York Yankees, sworn enemies of the Boston Red Sox fans, showed their support during these dark times. Not long after the national anthem was sung by all at the Bruins game, Yankees fans belted out the lyrics of “Sweet Caroline,” the traditional Red Sox song. An illumination of the Boston “B” also appeared next to the Yankees logo at Yankee stadium, with the words “United We Stand” between them.

And less than 16 hours after the whole saga ended with the apprehension of the suspects believed to be responsible for the bombings, the Red Sox had a game to play against the Royals in Fenway Park, the Cathedral of Boston. And, once again, the world of sports proved that they “get it.” In yet another moving pregame ceremony, the team played an emotional video tribute to the victims of the past week and to the courageous law enforcement officers who took down those responsible. Then, the team brought out three people closely tied with the tragic events to throw the ceremonial first pitch—including one man who almost died from blood loss in the hospital.

Finally, to cap it all off, Red Sox legend and fan favorite, David “Big Papi” Ortiz, took the stadium microphone and spoke to the city that has adopted him. In a perfectly delivered, genuine speech, Ortiz gave the fans there that day and everyone watching around the world reassurance that, in the end, everyone in America, even Yankees fans and Red Sox fans, stand together, and that no force of evil can ever drive them apart. They were brutally honest and beautiful words from a man who wasn’t even born in this country. Yet, like so many other players, coaches and executives in the sports world had proven in the wake of the bombings, the sporting world understands its role.

Games are not life and death. There is a winner and loser. They are there to entertain. It is great to see that everyone still seems to understand that—especially during the most difficult of times.

Categories
Lacrosse Men Sports

Men’s lacrosse comes back in 13-8 victory

Reed Dempsey

Senior Writer

The men’s lacrosse team travelled to Hamilton, N.Y. on April 20 to face the Colgate Raiders. Four assists from David Dickson ’15 and an 8-1 second half run propelled the Bison to a 13-8 win and secured the second seed for this weekend’s Patriot League Tournament.

Sean Doyle ’16 opened the day’s scoring with an unassisted tally at the 9:54 mark, but the lead only lasted for two minutes as the Raiders added a goal of their own to level the contest at one.

Doyle again found the back of the net, sparking a three-goal Bison run that included goals by Ryan Joseph ’15 and Thomas Flibotte ’16. The 4-1 lead would hold for just a minute as Colgate scored with just under two minutes left in the first quarter.

Early in the second quarter, the Raiders took advantage of a man-up situation, following a pushing call against the Bison, pulling the game back within one. As time was winding down in the first half, Kyle O’Keefe ’13 took a feed from Alex Spring ’16 and fired off a shot that crossed the goal line as time expired, bringing the score to 5-3 in favor of the Bison.

In the opening eight minutes of the second half, the Orange and Blue surrendered four straight goals and the lead.

“We had some unforced turnovers during that stretch which we really could have limited. Some Colgate defensemen made a couple of nice plays and picked off a few passes … we just weren’t moving our feet hard enough and it cost us for a little,” Dickson said.

Head coach Frank Fedorjaka then pulled his all-league goalie, Kyle Feeney ’13, in favor of Sam Grinberg ’15. Grinberg was no stranger to this move, having replaced Feeney in a win against Drexel a year ago, making 11 saves and leading the Bison to victory.

“When I first got in, we were down 7-5, and I basically told the defense that we had Colgate where we wanted them,” Grinberg said. “The whole season we have battled back from deficits, so even after giving up four straight, I think the team was still confident that we would make a run and take the lead back.”

In the minutes following the switch, Doyle reignited the Bison offense off of a Chase Bailey ’13 feed, before Tom Black ’14 added a goal of his own on an extra-man opportunity, tying the game at seven.

Colgate then found the back of the net on its first shot against Grinberg, but the Orange and Blue defense then settled down, limiting the Raiders to just seven shots during the final period of play, and Ryan Gutowski ’13 dominated faceoffs down the stretch.

On the offensive side of the field, the Bison exploded for six goals, including two from Bailey and individual tallies from Todd Heritage ’14, Peter Burke ’14, Doyle and Flibotte.

“[The team] just got back to the basics and started to play loose but also with a sense of urgency,” Dickson said. “We ran a few set plays that worked beautifully and then our offense just started to flow.”

During that final 8-1 run, Dickson tallied four assists. Dickson ended the night with 42 assists total this season, a new Bison single-season record.

With the win, the Bison secured the second seed for this weekend’s Patriot League Tournament and will face Army Friday at 4:30 p.m. in Bethlehem, Pa.

Categories
Men Sports Track & Field Women

Records fall for track & field team

Emily Evancho

Staff Writer

The men’s and women’s track and field teams both had a successful weekend at the Bucknell Team Challenge on April 20. Along with the men’s first-place and the women’s second-place victory in the team standings, both teams also broke school records, including women’s Kim Nagotko ’15, who claimed school records in the 100 and 200 meters, and men’s Christian Lupica ’15 and Luke Webster ’13, who broke their records in the 110-meter high hurdles and discus, respectively.

“Both the men’s and women’s team had a very competitive meet between the other big schools that were there and the weather conditions,” Nagotko said. “Regardless of it all, we performed our best and proved to ourselves and the Patriot League that we are ready and nothing is going to get in our way of us bringing home two championships.”

The men’s team captured its fifth consecutive team title at the Bucknell Team Challenge, overshadowing second-place Penn State by 179 points. Lupica ran home with victories in the 400-meter hurdles (55.11 seconds), and in 110-meter high hurdles, with a record-shattering 13.96 seconds. Justin Hicks ’13 also excelled with wins in the 100 and 200 meters. Webster threw past his own school record in discus to land a mark of 172-3. Kevin Keller ’15 also dominated in the long jump with a mark of 23-10 1/4.

“Our jumps and sprints are very dangerous. We have the potential to do something that’s never been done before,” Keller said.

The women’s team placed second in the team standings with 128 points, falling behind only Penn State by 95 points. Bison victories came in the distance events from Caroline Tolli ’13 finishing first in the 800 meters (2:12.42). Tolli also helped to pull the win in the 4×800 with a final time of 9:56.81. Abby Monaghan ’13 grasped the third Orange and Blue triumph for the women’s team in discus 150-5. Nagotko also finished third overall in the 100-meter (12.05), and second in the 200-meter with 24.59 seconds. Sasha Hornock ’13 seized the third spot behind Nagotko in the 200-meter.

“This was a great weekend for all athletes across the board. Men and women had outstanding performances,” Hicks said. “As our Patriot League Championships are quickly approaching, our team is excited for a great meet and it’s showing through all of our great times and marks. Hopefully we can continue our success and carry this speed into the Patriot Leagues Championships.”

The men’s and women’s teams will compete again in the Penn Relays and Bloomsburg Maroon and Gold Invitational this weekend. After these events, both teams will move on to the Patriot League Championships beginning on May 3 in Bethlehem, Pa.

Categories
Lacrosse Sports Women

Women’s lax loses contest to Marist

Lauren Boone

Senior Writer

The women’s lacrosse team ended its season with a 14-11 loss to Marist on April 20 at Tenney Stadium. Marist took advantage of a quick start, ending the Orange and Blue’s three-game winning streak, despite four goals and three assists from Katelyn Miller ’14.

The Red Foxes started off strong, scoring seven unanswered goals in the first ten minutes of play. Despite the shaky start, the Bison picked themselves back up, scoring four goals in a row. Madison Hurwitz ’13 assisted a goal to Ryan Wenk ’13 before scoring a goal of her own, while Miller scored a couple goals from free-positions. After tightening the score to 7-4, the Bison let up four more goals to the Red Foxes before the end of the first half.

Only 23 seconds into the latter half, the Red Foxes scored another goal, increasing their lead to eight. The Bison were able to outscore Marist 7-2 throughout the rest of the half, but were unable to make up enough ground to come away with the victory.

In the statistics round-up, the Bison led 31-27 in shots, forced 17 turnovers and were tied 18-18 on ground balls. The difference was made by the Marist goalie, who saved a total of 15 shots, compared to only seven saves for the Bison.

“Going into the game against Marist, we knew one of the main things we needed to do was win the draw,” Miller said. “We were unsuccessful in the beginning, which caused us to be down by a large deficit, but we never stopped fighting and had a great comeback, making the score within three goals. We had some great caused turnovers on defense and attack was working really well together towards the end of the game, but unfortunately we simply ran out of time. It was really emotional knowing it was the last game we will ever play with Madi, Adrienne [Wendling ’13] and Ryan, but I think this team has really improved since the beginning of the season and I think we are going to be even better next year.”

Miller ended the season setting career bests for herself, logging a total of 52 points, with 39 goals and 13 assists. Hurwitz also broke personal records this season, with 22 assists and 48 total points. She finishes her Bison career with a total of 129 points.

Categories
Men Sports Tennis

M. tennis goes 1-1 at PL Tourney

Lauren Boone

Senior Writer

The men’s tennis team travelled to Syracuse, N.Y. this past weekend for the Patriot League Tournament. The third-seeded Bison swept the Lafayette Leopards 4-0 on April 19, securing their seventh consecutive trip to Patriot League semifinals, where they fell 4-3 in a close match against second-seeded Lehigh on April 20.

As during the regular season, the Bison quickly won the doubles point against Lafayette.  No. 1 doubles team Aidan Lynch ’14 and Evan Zimmer ’13 won their match 8-2, while Octavio Canibe ’15 and Kelly Morque ’13 ultimately secured the doubles point with a victory at No. 3 doubles 8-4. Nick Bybel ’16 and Josh Katten ’13 also won their doubles match 7-2.

The Bison carried the momentum into the singles play, with Zimmer, Katten and Canibe all defeating their opponent in straight sets to claim the overall victory for the Bison. Bybel, Morque and Kyle Rosen ’14 also secured wins for the Bison, but their victories did not factor into the final score.

Although they were able to defeat Lafayette in the quarterfinals, the Bison fell in a highly competitive match to the second-seeded Lehigh Mountain Hawks. The Bison defeated the Mountain Hawks 4-3 during regular season play, but Lehigh managed to get their revenge.

No. 1 doubles team Lynch and Zimmer lost their match 8-4, while No. 3 doubles team Canibe and Morque pulled out an 8-3 victory. In the final doubles matchup, the No. 2 team of Bybel and Katten fought hard, but dropped the match 9-8 (3), giving Lehigh the doubles point.

In the singles play, the Bison were unable to make up for lost points. Bybel won his No. 1 singles match 6-2, 7-5. Morque fought a three-set match but ultimately came out on top (3-6, 7-5, 6-4) at the No. 2 singles spot. Zimmer easily won his No. 3 singles match, recording a score of 6-2, 6-4. Katten lost his match 6-1, 6-1 at No. 4 singles. Rosen also lost at the No. 5 singles position 7-5, 6-3. Finally, Canibe lost the No. 6 singles position in a close three-set match 2-6, 7-6, 6-4. 

The Bison concluded their season on April 24 with a 6-0 win at home against Bloomsburg. None of the Bison lost any match ups, as the Orange and the Blue finished with a 15-8 record. Though the Bison will be losing Katten, Morque, and Zimmer, a young core of talent will hopefully allow the men’s tennis team to improve on their record next year, as well as take a step closer to the ultimate goal of winning the Patriot League Tournament.

Categories
Golf Men Sports Women

Women’s golf takes second at PL Champ.

Billy Tyler

Assistant Sports Editor

The women’s and men’s golf teams competed this past weekend at the Patriot League Championship and Navy Invitational, respectively. The women finished in second place, narrowly missing out on a win, while the men slipped in a rough final round and ended their event in 16th place.

The women’s golf team hosted the inaugural Patriot League Women’s Golf Tournament at the Bucknell Golf Club. After two tight days of competition, the final result was not decided until the final few holes when Lehigh edged out the Bison by three strokes for the Patriot League title. Lehigh started the day with a five-stroke lead, which grew to 11 early on in the final round, but a late comeback by the Bison fell just short.

The Bison were led by three of its members. Bridget Wilcox ’14 opened the tournament with a three-over-par 73 and closed the tournament with a four-over 74 to claim the individual runner-up, only five strokes behind the individual champion. Wilcox was closely followed by Lauren Bernard ’14 who shot a 75 in the final round and tied for third individually despite playing through a painful foot injury that has left her sidelined for most of the season. Kasha Scott ’14 also played very well for the team and finished the tournament by going one-under-par in the final 10 holes to shoot a 76 on the day. The three juniors were recognized for their efforts with spots on the All-Patriot League Team.  Additionally, the head coach for the Bison, Kevin Jamieson, was named the conference’s Coach of the Year.

The men’s team, meanwhile, was taking on tough competition at the Navy Invitational in Annapolis, Md. The weekend began on a high note for the Bison, who found themselves in eighth place in the 21-team field after the tournament’s first round on April 20. The team’s score of 304 was slightly behind those of Navy and several ACC schools, and was ahead of all other Patriot League teams competing in the tournament. This result came from solid rounds by Schuyler Stitzer ’14 with a 77, Peter Scialabba ’15 with a 76, Jon Hartman ’13 with a 78 and Dan Bernard ’13 with a 73. Unfortunately, this momentum did not carry over to the final round, which did not see a single member of the team exceeding his score from the previous day. The team’s final round score of 331 dropped it to 16th place.

While the women’s golf team has finished its season, the men’s golf team will look to rebound this weekend at the Patriot League Championship, which will be hosted by Lehigh University.