Author: Andrew Arnao

Categories
Lacrosse Men Sports

Men’s lax sinks Midshipmen

Reed Dempsey

Writer

In their Patriot League opener, the Orange and Blue ran away with an 11-2 win over the visiting Navy Midshipmen on March 2. Over the final 51 minutes of play, the Bison held Navy scoreless on a meager eight shots, while the offense posted its third straight game of more than 10 goals.

The Midshipmen came into last weekend’s contest averaging 12 goals a game and kicked off the day’s scoring in just 66 seconds after the opening whistle. Chase Bailey ’13 would then equalize the game at a goal apiece, before the Midshipmen took back the lead with 6:08 remaining in the first quarter.

During the opening period, this game appeared to have all the makings for a classic Navy-Bison battle as the Orange and Blue had an answer for each tally by the visiting squad. After the Bison took their first lead of the day on Bailey’s second goal early in the second quarter, it was full steam ahead as the Orange and Blue scored the final eight goals. Sean Doyle ’16 attributed offensive success to “selfless play and the fact that everyone was always trying to find the extra man.”

Over the final three quarters of play, the Bison defense completely shut down the visiting Midshipmen while the offense benefitted from its ability to maintain long possessions, wearing down their Patriot League foes and allowing for their defense to stay fresh.

“[The Bison] were stronger physically, winning individual battles, and [the] defense pushed their guys around whenever they did have the ball; forcing turnovers and bad passes,” goalie Kyle Feeney ’13 said.

Doyle led the Bison scoring, registering three goals and an assist, leading to an award for the Patriot League Rookie of the Week. Bailey, Todd Heritage ’14 and Thomas Flibotte ’16 added two goals apiece, while Peter Burke ’14 and David Dickson ’15 rounded out the Bison scoring, each with a single goal.

The defense was led by Alex Spring ’16, with five caused turnovers and had six ground balls, and a five-save performance by Feeney.

The 3-1 Bison continue their homestand with non-league games against Massachusetts and Drexel before heading to Easton, Pa. on March 16 for a game versus Lafayette. All three games will occur during Spring Break.

Categories
Baseball Men Sports

Baseball goes 1-3

Katherine Harris

Senior Writer

The men’s baseball team played two games against Harvard and two against No. 19 Virginia last weekend, and recorded its first win of the season against Harvard with a 7-4 victory on March 3. The Bison fell to Harvard 2-1 in extra innings on March 1, and dropped both games against Virginia 12-4 and 9-1.

“We pitchers are focused on what we can control which is keeping runners from getting on base and scoring, and we’ve had some success so far. The win we got this weekend helps our confidence in that we know we can put all the pieces together and win a game,” pitcher Bryson Hough ’15 said.

Hough started off the weekend by logging seven strong innings on the mound, allowing only six hits and one run against Harvard. But the Bison offense could only manage one run in support of Hough, thanks to a sacrifice fly by Rob Krentzman ’15 in the eighth inning. The team pushed the 1-1 tie to extra innings, but ultimately fell short of victory.

The Orange and Blue faced off against Virginia the next day. Despite the loss, the team improved offensively and seven different players recorded hits, with Jon Mayer ’16 leading the way with a two-run double and Corey Furman ’14 scoring after hitting a triple.

“This weekend was a great experience for the team. We saw some great competition and are getting closer to where we need to be … I think if we can limit the number of big innings when on defense then that would help solve a lot of our problems,” pitcher Max Kra ’16 said.  

The Bison came back with a vengeance against Harvard, and their strong effort resulted in their first win of the season. Furman once again had a strong offensive performance with a two-run home run, while Travis Clark ’13 and Robb Scott ’13 both had two doubles apiece. Dan Goldstein ’13 started the day on the mound and struck out six in seven innings, while Kra posted his first career save in the final two innings.

“The win against Harvard really was good for the team … It really lifted the team’s spirit and took some weight off our shoulders,” right fielder Matt Busch ’13 said.  

The Orange and Blue finished off their weekend against Virginia, but were unable to keep their momentum from the earlier game going in the loss. Krentzman and Busch led the offense with two hits apiece, with Krentzman driving in the only run for the Bison with an RBI single in the first inning. On the mound, six different pitchers stepped up for the team to gain some experience.

The Bison will leave for their Spring Break trip to Florida this weekend, starting off their seven-game trip against North Dakota State.

Categories
Golf Sports Women

Women’s golf opens season

Emily Evancho

Writer

The women’s golf team swung into season last weekend at the Edwin Watts Kiawah Classic in South Carolina, finishing with a collective score of 335 on March 5. Jen Lee ’16 led the team, beginning the weekend with a 79 and finishing with the Orange and Blue’s lowest score at 81.

“This weekend was rough for us, [but] considering it was our first time on grass for the season, I think we did fairly well. I think we held our own,” Lee said.

Emily Timmons ’15 and Lee carried the Bison on the first round of the Kiawah Classic. Lee jumpstarted the Bison’s performance with a par-birdie start, ending with a score of 79. Timmons followed in Lee’s path, posting 1-under par for the final five holes, giving her an end score of 80.

Bridget Wilcox ’14 pulled ahead on March 4 by shooting one birdie and 11 pars, carding a 78. Kasha Scott ’14 posted a final score of 80, helping Wilcox to aid the Bison’s concluding score of 329 in the second round.

The Bison finished the Classic with a team score of 335 on March 5. Lee struggled in the middle of her round, but ended strongly with the Bison’s lowest score of 81. Scott and Wilcox both carded 84’s, joining Lee in posting the team’s best scores for the day. They were closely followed by Timmons’ final score of 86.

“We had some stellar rounds posted by both Jen Lee and Emily Timmons which was really exciting. Even though we didn’t perform our best this weekend, we definitely are working our way towards posting up some great scores. I bet we are going to go low in Las Vegas next week,” Scott said.

The women’s golf team will return to action on March 14 for the Second Annual Bison Challenge at Paiute in Las Vegas.

Categories
Softball Sports Women

Softball wins two in D.C.

Lauren Boone

Staff Writer

The Bison traveled to Washington, D.C. to compete in the Colonial Classic this past weekend, coming away with a 4-3 win against George Washington, a 4-0 shutout over Seton Hall and a 4-2 loss to the Pirates. The two wins brought the Orange and the Blue’s overall record to 3-8.

The Bison pulled out their second win of the season in an eight-inning game against tournament host George Washington on March 1. It was the fourth extra-inning game of the season for the Bison. Due to the international tiebreaker rule, Mariah Midyette ’16 started off on second base. Thanks to a sacrifice bunt from Cheyanna Young ’16, Midyette was able to advance to third. Mallory Lyons ’14 hit the game-winning single in the top of the eighth inning to send Midyette home and defeat the Colonials.

Dana Nielsen ’16 took the win for the Orange and the Blue. She served as the relief pitcher for 2.2 innings without giving up a walk or a hit.

After several postponed and cancelled games due to darkness, the Orange and Blue were finally able to get back on the field on March 3 for a split doubleheader against Seton Hall. The Bison lost the first game, which they entered trailing 4-0 in the fourth inning, but Courtney Conover ’14 had a strong game, scoring both Bison runs with a home run in the seventh inning.

Although the Orange and Blue could only string together two runs in the first game, they were able to put four runs on the scoreboard in the second game, which was ended after five innings due to darkness.

Cydnee Sanders ’15 singled to get on base, then advanced to second on a base hit from Erin Cox ’15. Sanders scored the first run in the first inning, coming home on a wild pitch. The Bison scored their second run of the game in the fourth inning, when Young drew a leadoff walk, and then pinch runner Caryn Connors ’14 came home on Conover’s double to right center field.

The Bison scored their final two runs of the game in the fifth inning before the darkness set in. Cox singled to get on base, then scored due to fielder’s choice. Conover helped score another run due to another fielder’s choice.

“The tournament this weekend went pretty well for the team aside from all the field complications we experienced,” Conover said. “Aside from the one loss, the team worked extremely hard and got the bats rolling in our games against Seton Hall. Communication was a major aspect of our success this past weekend. It was exciting to finally beat a team that Bucknell has never beaten in past years. The team is really coming together as a unit.”

Nielsen (1-3) took the loss from the first game, while Amanda Fazio ’16 (2-4) took the win in the nightcap. Fazio pitched her first career shutout, only allowing nine hits and four runners in scoring position.

The Orange and Blue will travel to Texas and Louisiana to compete in several games over Spring Break. They will play Houston Baptist (March 11), Lamar (March 12), McNeese State (March 13), Prairie View A&M (March 15) and Texas Southern (March 16).

Categories
Basketball Men Sports

Men’s basketball beats Navy, advances to PL semis

 

Christian Limawan | The Bucknellian Ryan Frazier '16 attempts to juke out a Navy defender in Wednesday's quarterfinal game. The Bison won 58-42 and will face No. 4 seed Army in the semifinals on Saturday.
Christian Limawan | The Bucknellian
Ryan Frazier ’16 attempts to juke out a Navy defender in Wednesday’s quarterfinal game. The Bison won 58-42 and will face No. 4 seed Army in the semifinals on Saturday.

Eric Brod

Senior Writer

The road to the NCAA tournament has officially begun. In a historic week for the men’s basketball program, which included Mike Muscala ’13 breaking the all-time program scoring record, the Bison won a pair of games against Navy, the second a 58-42 victory in the quarterfinals of the Patriot League Tournament after defeating the Midshipmen 62-46 on March 2. The Orange and Blue have now advanced to the league semifinals for the third straight year.

In the opening round of the league tournament on March 6, the Orange and Blue dominated Navy on the defensive end en route to their third victory of the season over the Midshipmen. Muscala, who came into the game just two points shy of Al Leslie’s 32-year-old program record for career scoring (1,973), broke the record with a free throw 3:53 into the contest. The Bison also received strong play from starting point guard Steven Kaspar ’15 who finished with seven points and Ryan Hill ’14, who had a strong game with five points.

In the game, the Bison relied on a smother defense and outstanding free throw shooting to get past a tough Navy squad. Muscala, who shot 9-10 from the line, recorded his 20th double-double of the season with 15 points and 13 rebounds. In the first half, the Orange and Blue held Navy to a mere 22.2 percent shooting en route to a 26-16 first half advantage. The Midshipmen were also held scoreless for the final 5:30 of the first half.

Navy made a mini-run in the second half to cut the lead to 32-23, but the Bison responded with an emphatic 12-1 run. A key point in that span came when Navy committed a flagrant foul on Joe Willman ’13. Willman, who had 10 points and seven rebounds, knocked down both free throws and Hill scored on the ensuing possession. The Bison led by 20 after Bryson Johnson ’13, who had seven points in the game, hit a pair of free throws. The Orange and Blue extended their lead to as much as 23 points before the game was over.

For the night, the Bison shot only 38.6 percent and 2-14 from beyond the arc, but used a balanced offensive attack and were able to get to the line, shooting 22-24 from the foul line on the night.

The Bison completed one of the most impressive and memorable seasons in program history with a convincing victory over the Midshipmen on March 2. Rebounding proved to be pivotal in the regular season finale, as the Orange and Blue outrebounded Navy 35-26, led by Willman who pulled down 10 rebounds to go along with nine points. Muscala finished with nine points and seven rebounds in 23 minutes of game action.

Making his third straight start, Kaspar showed his versatility with an impressive eight points, four assists and two steals. For the game, the Bison had 18 assists on 23 made baskets.

The Bison raced out to a quick 13-2 lead on 6-10 shooting to start the game and held a 33-24 advantage at halftime. After Navy had cut the lead to six near the end of the half, Kaspar forced a steal and found Johnson, who nailed a three-pointer at the first half buzzer.

Cameron Ayers ’14, who finished with a game-high 14 points, opened the second half with two straight three’s to extend the Bison lead to 39-24, and the team led by double digits the rest of the way en route to the victory.

“They tried to play a lot of different defenses against us and we moved the ball around well for the most part,” Ayers said. “We have seen a variety of defenses this year and I think if we keep being aggressive on offense and make the right plays we should have success on Wednesday.”

The Bison will look to advance to the Patriot League Championship tomorrow when they take on Army in the league semifinals.  Game time is set for 4:30 p.m. at Sojka Pavilion.

Categories
Basketball Sports Women

W. basketball rallies to defeat Navy

 

Heather Oros | The Bucknellian Shelby Romine '14 drives to the lane in the women's basketball team's 55-48 upset win over Navy on Senior Night.
Heather Oros | The Bucknellian
Shelby Romine ’14 drives to the lane in the women’s basketball team’s 55-48 upset win over Navy on Senior Night.

Ajan Caneda

Copy Editor

The women’s basketball team concluded its regular season with a remarkable 55-48 Senior Night victory over Navy in Sojka Pavilion on March 2. Seniors Ashley Baxter, Alyssa Dunn, Lindsay Horbatuck, Felicia Mgbada and Rachel Voss were honored before the game and all five seniors were in the starting lineup for the Orange and Blue.

With the win, the Bison clinched the sixth seed in the Patriot League tournament, finishing with a 14-15 overall record (5-9 in conference play).

“Senior Night brought a mix of emotions. Before the game, Coach [Aaron] Roussell told us that we had a chance to make that night one to remember and that simple realization really motivated us to fight hard for the result we all wanted so badly,” Dunn said.

Navy started the game with momentum from the three-point line, draining three straight shots from behind the arc to gain an 11-2 lead. Mgbada opened with seven straight points to keep the Orange and Blue within striking distance, and Audrey Dotson ’15 sunk a three-pointer to cap a 10-0 run for the Bison, giving them their first lead of the game.

“My mindset was that it was Senior Day, it might be the last time our fans get to see us play and a lot of people came out to support us. We started out slow, but once we got the nerves out and a little sweat going, there was no stopping,” Mgbada said.

The Bison continued to keep up the defensive pressure, holding Navy without a field goal in seven minutes of play. The Orange and Blue were down 26-23 at halftime, but shot 50 percent from the field (10-20), while holding the Midshipmen to 28.6 percent shooting (8-28) in the first half, including 5-18 from behind the arc.

“We knew that Navy was going to shoot a lot of threes, but we wanted to minimize those as much as possible while contesting the ones that they did get,” Dunn said. “As a team, we also focused on neutralizing their inside presence and we all did a great job making the game difficult for their post players in the paint.”

The Orange and Blue began the second half on an 18-6 run. Katherine Harris ’15 started the blitz with a three-pointer, while Dotson contributed eight points to build a 41-32 lead. Navy kept the game within single digits, but the Bison’s balanced effort guided them to the win.

Dotson was the leading scorer with 17 points on 7-8 shooting. Mgbada added 13 points and Horbatuck continued her strong post play with 11 points and 16 rebounds. Her 299 rebounds this season places her second on the program’s single-season rebounding list. After a strong performance by all three forwards, the Bison set a program record with 1,227 rebounds this season.

“Coach [Roussell] said to us before the game that this game has the chance to be a highlight of our career, winning a huge game on Senior Night. We all fed off of each other’s energy and when we started hitting shots in the second half there was no looking back from there. That game was a true example of a team effort,” Horbatuck said.

Two Bison players were recognized for their regular season achievements. Shelby Romine ’14 was named Second Team All-Patriot League, while Horbatuck received Academic All-Patriot League Team honors. Horbatuck led the Patriot League in rebounding (10.3 RPG) and Romine finished third in league scoring (13.4 PPG).

Categories
Sports Water Polo Women

Water polo drops two on road

 

Raffi Berberian | The Bucknellian Mackenzie Ferry '14 takes a shot this past weekend for the women's water polo team. She scored one goal in the Bison's close loss to Harvard.
Raffi Berberian | The Bucknellian
Mackenzie Ferry ’14 takes a shot this past weekend for the women’s water polo team. She scored one goal in the Bison’s close loss to Harvard.

Billy Tyler

Assistant Sports Editor

The women’s water polo team faced two tough opponents this past weekend in the team’s final matches before Spring Break. Despite their strong efforts, the Bison were unable to come away with a victory in either match, losing 13-9 to Harvard on March 2 and 11-3 to George Washington on March 3.

Against Harvard, the Bison came out strong in a back and forth battle. After a thrilling first half, the score was tied 5-5 with neither team seeming to have the advantage. As the second half began, Harvard took the advantage and rode an 8-4 second half to the victory. The Bison still saw several great performances from key players. In goal, Rena Heim ’14 had 10 saves, which is her fourth double-digit save game of the season. The nine goals scored by the Orange and Blue came from seven different players, with Stephanie Ovalle ’14 and Krystle Morgan ’13 leading the offense with two goals apiece. Julianne Valdes ’14, Mackenzie Ferry ’14, Tara Murao ’13, Hannah Sunday ’16 and Barbara Peterson ’15 also scored individual goals against Harvard.

After the tough loss, the Bison looked to record a win against conference foe George Washington and repeat their solid, balanced team effort from the day before. Unfortunately, this did not happen as George Washington had an early 4-2 lead after the first quarter and were able to maintain it until the end of the match. After the two goals in the first quarter, the Bison were unable to score again until they managed their third and final goal in the fourth quarter, while George Washington’s offense took off with seven more goals to put the match out of reach.

With these losses, the Bison drop to 3-4 on the season, with a 1-2 CWPA Southern Division Record. The team will now prepare for its 11-game Spring Break trip to California, which will begin at the Cal State Bakersfield Roadrunner Invitational.

Categories
Club/Intramural Men's Squash Sports

Men’s squash places third in division at Nationals

*I trust that Andrew knows all this info, but just a heads up, none of us could find this information anywhere.

Andrew Arnao

Sports Editor

The men’s squash team participated in the CSA Nationals tournament last weekend and defended its No. 3 seed in the Conroy division, defeating Johns Hopkins 6-3 and Georgetown 5-4 while falling to Stanford 9-0. As a result of their efforts, the Orange and the Blue improved their national ranking to No. 27 overall.

The Bison kicked off the weekend as the No. 3 seed in the Conroy division, the fourth of seven divisions in the tournament. The Bison started off the quarterfinals by defeating No. 4 seed Johns Hopkins, and advanced to face No. 2 Stanford in the semi-finals. Though the Bison did not record any wins against Stanford, their subsequent victory over Georgetown resulted in the Bison achieving third place in the Conroy division, successfully defending their seeding.

Top performers for the Bison included Hayden Radovich ’15, Mike Gagnier ’16, Henry Gadsden ’15 and Rod Maier ’14, who each won matches against Johns Hopkins and Georgetown.

The Bison’s national ranking for club squash teams improved to No. 2, behind No. 1 Stanford. The Orange and the Blue also improved their overall national ranking to No. 27, an improvement from No. 34 last season.

The men’s squash team will look to build on its recent success in the coming months as they host several more tournaments in their brand new playing facilities, including the Patriot League Championships in January 2014.

Categories
Beyond the Bison Sports

Beyond the Bison: Sports News Across the Nation

 

Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons Roy Halladay fires from the mound. A resurgent year from Halladay could do wonders for an aging Phillies team.
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Roy Halladay fires from the mound. A resurgent year from Halladay could do wonders for an aging Phillies team.

 

Julian Dorey

Writer

“All Due Respect”

One of the looming questions heading into the 2013 MLB season is the future of Phillies pitcher, Roy Halladay. For five years or so, Halladay was considered the best pitcher in all of baseball. He had a nasty cutter, an over-powering fastball and a changeup that fooled the likes of Manny Ramirez and Miguel Cabrera every time.

Over his 15-year career, Halladay has a record of 199-100, a cumulative ERA of 3.31 and 2,066 strikeouts. Considering that he played on many bad Toronto Blue Jays teams for 12 seasons, not to mention in the American League East, the toughest division in baseball, those numbers are hard to believe. But then again, this is why experts considered him to be the best.

I am purposely mentioning “considered” in the past tense because of Halladay’s unfortunate 2012 season. After injuring his shoulder in the end of May, Halladay did not return to action until July and by his standards was largely ineffective for the final two-and-a-half months upon returning. His 4.49 ERA in 25 games started last season was by far the worst output he produced since the very beginning of his career.

At age 35, many fans and analysts alike have fairly brought into question whether or not the 6-foot-6-inch power pitcher has dominant velocity anymore. They question if his body is starting to break down, as it does for many other MLB players of a similar age. Halladay’s Phillies are an aging bunch on the back end of what has been a great run over the past six years, and 2013 may just be their last realistic chance to make a hard push for one more title behind Phillies greats like Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley and Carlos Ruiz.

In order for that to happen, Halladay must be his old self. It is critical that he enters the season healthy and ready to set the tone that he’s back to being the same old “Doc” (as he is affectionately known) Halladay. With perennial Cy Young contenders Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels joining him in the rotation, a dominant year from Halladay could mean a boatload of Phillies wins coming from this loaded pitching staff.

Halladay’s progress is off to a good start in spring training where he made his first exhibition start this past Sunday against the reigning AL Champion Detroit Tigers. In two innings of work, Halladay worked his way through the Tigers’ batters with just 22 pitches and had solid velocity on the fastball that had everyone so worried at the end of last season.

New Tiger and long-time AL All-Star Torii Hunter called Halladay’s stuff “filthy” and added that “If [Halladay] gets better from here, it’s scary.” That’s some quality praise for a guy who is looking to put a subpar year behind him.

Spring training games are just underway and the regular season opener is still a month away, but if Halladay can continue to progress, stay healthy and show the old life he had on his fastball not so long ago, then look out. Because the Phillies will be giving the NL all they can handle.

Categories
Men Sports Swimming & Diving Swimming & Diving Women

Swimming comes in 2nd, 3rd

Edward Louie | The Bucknellian Jennifer Brennan '14 performs the backstroke at the Patriot League Championships. The women's swim & dive team finished 2nd in the competition.
Edward Louie | The Bucknellian
Jennifer Brennan ’14 performs the backstroke at the Patriot League Championships. The women’s swim & dive team finished 2nd in the competition.

Thomas Walter

Senior Writer

The Orange and the Blue swimming and diving teams had solid finishes in the Patriot League Championship this past weekend, with the women securing second place behind Navy and the men finishing third behind Navy and Army. The women secured four individual titles on Saturday and a strong performance from Mike Nicholson ’14 helped each team into the rankings.

On Feb. 21, Kelly Pontecorvo ’14 broke the school record in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 4:50.26 seconds. The 400 medley relay consisting of Emma Levendoski ’16, Alanna Nawrocki ’16, Lauren Perry ’15 and Emily Wright ’14 also broke the school record by almost a full second, with 3:45.83. 

The Orange and the Blue won three more gold medals on Feb. 22. Tara Boyle ’15 won gold in the one-meter dive, Levendoski took home another gold in the 100-meter back and Perry took a gold in the 200-meter free. By the end of day two, the Bison trailed Navy by 113 points and Colgate by 24 points.

Day three on Feb. 23 saw Pontecorvo, Levendoski and Perry all win their third gold medals of the weekend. In addition, Katie Hetherington ’15 won her first gold medal and was named Female Diver of the Meet. 

Nicholson has rewritten many of the Bison record books already and continued to do so last weekend. On day one, the two-time All-Patriot League selection broke his own school record in the 200-yard individual medley, going on to finish in third in the event with a time of 1:48.81. Nicholson, along with Matt Hadley ’14, Trevor Reitz ’14 and Christian Treat ’13 finished third in the 400 medley relay.

Day two saw Nicholson and Treat break more school records, but the Bison still lost ground to Navy. On day three, Nicholson rewrote the history books again as he tied for fourth in the 200 breast, marking three consecutive nights in a row that Nicholson broke school records. Despite his efforts, the Bison were unable to surpass Army for second place.

The Bison will continue their 2012-13 season at the ECAC Championships this weekend at Harvard.