Author: Alex Wagner

Categories
Cross Country Sports Women

Cross country women second at Lang Invitational

 

Edward Louie | The Bucknellian
The Bison women’s cross country team races from the starting line at the Bison Open.

Cooper Mead
Writer

The women’s cross country team started off their season strong on home turf on Aug. 31 at the Bison Open as Maddie Dulac ’15 led the team with an 18:26 finish in the three-mile run. Dulac finished fourth overall, trailing 40 seconds behind the overall winner, Bloomsburg’s Victoria Davis.

Justine Schnell ’15 finished on the heels of her teammate with a time of 18:27, Paige Lommerin ’16 finished with a time of 18:46, Zoe Gaston ’15 finished with a time of 18:51 and Nora Adams ’16 finished in 18:56 which allowed the Bison to tally five top 10 runners.

“The Bison Open was an opportunity for some people to prove themselves. We held out our top 13 to save them for Colgate, but we did have a few runners really rise and they are putting themselves in position for some travel spots later in the year,” head coach Kevin Donner said.

On Saturday, the Bison continued their successful weekend of competition as they traveled to Colgate for the Harry Lang Invitational, finishing second overall. The Bison women were led by Caroline Tolli ’13, who finished eighth overall in the women’s 4,200-meter course with a time of 16:21.

The rest of the Bison runners weren’t far behind, with Katie Jessee ’15 placing ninth with a time of 16:28, Alison Billas ’16 placing 12th, Montana DiPietrantonio ’15 placing 14th, Deanna Godby ’16 and Beth Braunegg ’14 tying for 16th and Leah Goeke ’13 finishing in 20th.

The Bison placed second with 60 points by narrowly shifting Navy, who gathered 67 points, but lost to a Syracuse squad who tallied 24 points. Despite Navy having two runners placed above Tolli, seven of the Bison women finished in the top 20 which secured second place for the Orange and Blue.

“The women ran a very conservative race early and really came on strong at the end. The ladies at the Harry Lang Invitational ran very patient and handled the tough cross country course very well,” Donner said. “I was not concerned with the final result. I just wanted to see us execute our own race plan and to get to know the Patriot League Championship course better. Finishing second out of 10 was nice, but not our overall objective. It was a nice start and the ladies are excited about the next two months.”

The Bison will travel to Northville, Mich. to compete in the Running Fit-Detroit Titan Invitational on Saturday.

Categories
Sports

Athlete of the Week: Jesse Klug ’16

 

Courtesy of bucknellbison.com

Alex Wagner
Sports editor

Player profile

Jesse Klug

First-year

Sammamish, Wash.

Undeclared

 

Season stats:

Two starts in two games, 152 minutes of playing time

1 goal from 3 shot attempts

 

Although the men’s soccer team has not necessarily gotten off to the hot start it was hoping for, there is plenty of reason to look forward to the rest of the team’s campaign. One of those reasons is Jesse Klug ’15, who has made an immediate impact for the Bison. Just 18 minutes into his first collegiate game, the season opener against VCU, Klug scored off of a free kick delivered by Collin Costello ’13, giving the Orange and Blue a lead they held for much of the game.

Klug’s off-season preparations clearly prepared him to be effective at a new level of competition. This summer, he played for a U16 Academy team in Seattle, and participated in a camp geared towards improving college soccer players.

“I’ve never played with a group that works this hard for one another, so I hope to help the team be successful, and that [goal] just gave me confidence that I will be able to make an impact for the team going forward,” Klug said.

In addition to Klug, the Bison have already seen significant contributions made by other newcomers, including goalie Mike Lansing ’16 and midfielder Chris Thorsheim ’16. The team will look to build off of these early successes as they continue the season.

Categories
Field Hockey Sports Women

Field hockey trains hard for early season tests

 

The Bucknellian Archives
Cassie Goggin ’15 played in the match against Princeton last fall.

Sami Shein
Writer

The women of the Bison field hockey team trained hard all summer in preparation for two tough tests to begin their 2012 campaign, including one against UConn, who are recent NCAA Tournament semifinalists.

“This [was] a big game for us, but we have definitely put the time in,” said captain Tayler Siegrist ’13. 

Although they did not come out on top against UConn, falling to the Huskies 3-0, their hard work over the summer paid off just a day later as they rallied to defeat Fairfield 2-1.

“The team follows a summer workout packet and does their best to train no matter if they are on campus, at home or abroad,” assistant coach Jamie Montgomery said.

Kelsey Mucelli ’15 stayed on campus all summer and trained with strength and conditioning coordinator Jerry Shreck and later teamed up with Rachel Misko ’14, Erica Perrine ’14 , and Vickie Resh ’14 to play in the USA Field Hockey program on the New Jersey High Performance Squad.

Rigorous team training started on Aug. 9 with three practices a day at Graham Field. The morning practice consisted of many drills to sharpen their skills such as dribbling, passing and shooting. The nighttime practice was dedicated to game-like situations such as scrimmages and working on plays. The mid-day practice was a combination of the two. Additionally, running was interspersed throughout all the practices to keep the girls in top shape and to make sure they beat opponents to every ground ball.

Not only did the girls run and condition to be in top shape, but they fueled their bodies in other ways to feel strong and energized.

“We always tried to feed our bodies with the right food,” Siegrist said.

There was no unified diet, but each player looked out for themselves to provide their body with proper nutrients. The team recognizes that there is definitely an increase in competition this year, but it has only motivated them to train harder, stay focused and take care of their bodies. The Bison dedicated themselves to an environment of zealous training, teamwork and camaraderie, which is sure to pay off this upcoming season.

Categories
Rowing Sports Women

Bison rowing dominates spring & summer

 

Edward Louie | The Bucknellian
Men’s rowing teams propelling themselves along a 2000-meter race against Drexel at Shamokin Dam last April.

Thomas Walter
Staff writer

Both the men’s and women’s rowing programs finished the spring season and entered the summer with a very successful couple of months.

For the seventh consecutive year, the Orange and Blue’s women rowers won the Patriot League Championship. Head coach Stephen Kish noted that a key to winning was the team’s training regimen.

“The championship is always exciting. It’s always a challenge and a question to see where we stand. We’ve established a history of success now, but our training is about more than pushing ourselves to be better than our fellow competitors. We train to be better than ourselves, day in and day out,” Kish said.

In many ways, winning the team championship at the Dad Vail Regatta was even more impressive than their Patriot League success.

“Dad Vail is one of the biggest regattas in the country and we won total girls team points. It was very exciting for us as a team to win total points,” Allyson Rivard ’14 said.

The men’s rowing team also had strong finishes at both the Eastern College Athletics Conference (ECAC) Championship and the American Collegiate Rowing Association (ACRA) Club National Championship Regatta. At the ECAC Championship, the Varsity Eight finished sixth overall while the second Varsity Eight placed second for the silver in their event. Next, the men’s crew team headed to ACRA Club National Championship Regatta on May 26. They won silver in the Varsity Eight final, while setting a new 8+ record time for the Bison. Head coach Al Monte was pleased that the team’s hard work showed when it mattered most.

“We set out to have our fastest race possible and leave it all out on the race course–to realize our potential when it mattered the most, and I believe we accomplished that goal,” Monte said.

Connor Corwen ’14 also notes that this year has the potential to be another great season.

“I am very excited to see how this year pans out. It looks very promising as we have had many freshman walk on to the team that might be able to contribute right away. After last season, I know there will be no boundaries to our rate of success,” Corwen said.

The men’s and women’s squads look to build off their recent accomplishments and continue their success this coming season.

Categories
Men Sports Water Polo

Men’s water polo to focus on strategy, leadership

The Bucknellian Archives
The men’s water polo team rallies team morale before a match last season.

Alex Wagner
Sports editor

After establishing a solid foundation in the 2011 season under then first-year coach John McBride, the men’s water polo squad is looking to continue improving as they implement a new philosophy.

Following a respectable 15-10 record last year, the Bison return their four top scorers Alex Nowlin ’14, Brian Barron ’13, Julian Colina ’14 and Jack Else ’14 as well as starting goalkeeper Matt Napleton ’13 for the season. These five leaders will look to continue their success after helping the Orange and Blue to go 5-3 in the 2011 postseason.

The focus early on in the 2012 season has been intense physical conditioning. There have been two practices a day in preseason, with the morning practices often focusing solely on conditioning. Work in the weight room and hill runs also accompanied the usual work in the pool, adding up to very demanding workouts.

As with many teams, the focus more recently has shifted to developing strategy and philosophy. In addition to the new focus on giving maximum effort at every training session, the team will look for especially strong leadership from older players. Barron and Napleton, the only seniors, were elected captains before preseason began. Seven juniors add more important experience to a young squad with six freshmen.

The highlights for the upcoming season include three exciting weekends in Lewisburg: the Bison Invitational (Sept. 29 and 30), four league games against Johns Hopkins, Navy, George Washington and Princeton on Oct. 13 and 14 and the Southern Championships (Nov. 2-4).  The Kinney Natatorium also features a new video board, which is sure to add to the fans’ experience.

The Orange and Blue open their season Sept. 1 against Notre Dame (Ohio) at the Navy Labor Day Open in Annapolis, Md.

Categories
Football Men Sports

BU football gears up for a winning season

Courtesy of Athletic Communications
Quarterback Brandon Wesley ’14 has become a receptive and strong player who will be a leader for the team.

Eric Brod
Senior writer

This season may be the most highly anticipated one for the Bison football squad. Following the 2011 campaign during which the team went 6-5, a five game win improvement from the previous season, the team looks to establish itself as one of the top contenders in the Patriot League behind a defense that led the nation in turnover differential last year.

Now in his third year at the helm, head coach Joe Susan looks to continue the program’s ascent up the Patriot League rankings, and with 21 seniors and 20 juniors returning, including captains Joseph Francis ’13, Tyler Smith ’13, and Beau Traber ’13, there is plenty of experience throughout the roster. Susan has been preaching to his players throughout camp about the importance of playing with toughness and the right attitude.

“Our players have bought into being downhill in all three phases. It creates a personality of toughness that echoes through the team. We must continue to do what it takes to maintain ball security and create turnovers by our defense,” Susan said.

While the defense will miss Bryce Robertson ’12, who led the nation in interceptions, along with defensive back Sean Rafferty ’12 and defensive end Josh Eden ’12, the squad is more than capable of repeating its strong 2011 campaign.

The offense once again looks to be led by running back Smith, who gained 1,609 all-purpose yards (795 rushing) and had eight rushing touchdowns in 2011, and dual threat quarterback Brandon Wesley ’14, who had had six rushing touchdowns of his own along with passing for 1,446 yards and seven touchdowns. On Wesley, Susan says the quarterback has shown fantastic poise and an understanding of the offense in preseason camp.

“Brandon is a great athlete. He can do many things very well. He has come a long way at being a better QB in our system. He has done a much better job of leading the offense and executing the QB position. I have never been one to treat that position gently; he understands my approach and has responded well,” Susan said.

Overall, Susan has several goals in this upcoming season, and believes the leadership on this team is more than capable of taking the program towards those achievements.

“Our main goal is to play team football the right way on and off the field. We have a core of leaders who will be role models for our younger players. Our players understand that there is a fine line when it comes to success. They approach it that way in all three phases. We have a goal to be the toughest and best conditioned team on the field and to play the game one play at a time,” Susan said.

While much work is still left to be done before the team opens its season Sept. 8 against Marist, there is no doubt 2012 is shaping up to be a special year for the Orange and Blue.

Categories
Beyond the Bison Sports

Beyond the Bison: Moral Midgetry

 

Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Julian Dorey
Writer

Dwight Howard got what he wanted. It’s a sad indictment on sports in general when players like Howard methodically and manically use their star-status to get their way.

But that’s just what he did.

For one full year, Howard made the Orlando Magic a lame duck. With no other star power to speak of on the roster, the Magic’s championship hopes were not good. However, with a 26-year-old franchise big man like Howard, the Magic’s front office should have had the opportunity to bide their time and wait for the right time to grab the one or two players who could put them into contention.

Instead, the Magic sit at square one today.

They have a new coach, a new GM, a new president, and many new, young, and very unproven players who have been thrust into a situation almost certainly destined for failure.

You can safely attribute the blame for everything in that regrettable laundry list to Howard.

As a player, I don’t doubt Howard’s talent. He’s a freakishly athletic center who can jump higher than most swingmen and take over any game because of his size. As a person, he’s probably a decent man. Let’s be honest, the guy is always smiling when you see him on camera. He’s a proven jokester, and he seemed to be very close with many of his teammates until he started his shenanigans last summer.

At this point, none of that really matters. He might be a great player with some decent personality traits, but above all, Dwight Howard is a baby.

It’s true, Carmelo Anthony held Denver hostage and Deron Williams did the same to Utah–but their teams were able to trade them to a team that offered them the best deal. Their teams didn’t have all their secretive organizational dirty laundry aired in the tabloids every day for a year. As a result, their teams actually kept their executive personnel and at least kept some continuity.

Howard tried to commandeer the ship. When the Magic’s owner, Richard DeVos, tried to convince Howard to sign an extension and stay in Orlando early last season, Dwight tried to coerce the big man into giving him (a player) the power to replace the GM with a person of his liking, to pick out other players around the NBA that he wanted the team to trade for and to fire the head coach (one of his other bosses), Stan Van Gundy. Oh, and Dwight also said that if he did get traded–he would only sign an extension with one or two teams. In essence, Dwight basically asked DeVos if he could just play owner instead.

All of the ridiculous tidbits of this drama found their way to the media and wrecked relationships within the franchise past the point of repair.

Unfortunately, he is a microcosm of the culture the NBA and other professional sports are creating. The players don’t just “play” anymore. If anyone had any doubts, I think Howard just removed them.

Bon voyage, Dwight. Let us know just how nice L.A. is when you don’t win the big one.

Categories
Field Hockey Sports Women

Field hockey beats Fairfield in overtime

Andrew Arnao
Senior Writer

After travelling to Connecticut last weekend for their first games of the season, the field hockey team rebounded from a shutout loss to the Connecticut Huskies and triumphed over the Fairfield Stags on an overtime goal by forward Kiersten Sydnor ’16. After the series, Sydnor was recognized as the Patriot League Rookie of the Week, and goalie Erica Perrine ’14 received Patriot League Goalkeeper of the Week honors.

“This is the first time in a few years we have split our opening weekend. This weekend provided a great starting point for us moving into a bunch of home games this month,” head coach Jeremy Cook said.

The Bison (1-1) managed little offensively in Saturday’s 3-0 loss against nationally sixth ranked Connecticut, but the defense put in a strong effort to keep the Orange and Blue close. Perrine allowed only three goals, blocking 10 of Connecticut’s 23 shot attempts.

“Playing against the number six team in the country was definitely a challenge, but it was a good season-opener because it allowed us to showcase our talent and it exposed our weaknesses,” Perrine said. “We played our first game stronger than we ever have the past two years I have been here, and even though we lost, we learned a lot and were proud of ourselves.”

“The entire backfield (Amie Pritchard ’15, Liz Wills ’15, Tayler Siegrist ’13 and Perrine) did a tremendous job defending the Huskies and only allowing three goals,” Siegrist said.

After falling behind 1-0 early on Sunday against Fairfield, Siegrist tied the score on a penalty shot right before halftime. After a scoreless second half, the game went into overtime, an area the Bison have thrived in. Since 2010, the Orange and the Blue had won seven of their last eight overtime games, and improved that stretch as Sydnor scored the winning goal to give the Bison a 2-1 victory.

“Going into overtime, which is [our] specialty, we knew we had to make something happen.  Starting off with possession, we were able to get the ball into their circle within the first minute. Rachel Misko ’14 took a shot off the far post and I was able to tip it in,” Sydnor said.

“Our defense again was the story, as we absorbed a ton of attack and were able to frustrate them throughout the game. [Fairfield had a] much slower playing surface, which gave them a big home-field advantage. I am very proud of the team for overcoming the playing surface and very different style of play for the win,” Cook said.

The Bison will return for their home opener on Sept. 2, when they will host Lock Haven at 12 p.m.

Categories
Sports Volleyball Women

Volleyball starts off with victory

 

The Bucknellian Archives
The Bison take a breather during their stretch of four games in two days.

Katherine Harris
Writer

The women’s volleyball team started off their season strong this weekend, beating both La Salle and Manhattan on Saturday afternoon before falling short against Niagara and Loyola on Sunday.

“Our hard work during the summer and preseason has definitely paid off. Everyone stepped up and gave it their all throughout the whole weekend. I was very impressed by our freshmen; they got on the court, maintained positive attitudes, and made significant contributions,” said Kebah Edoho ‘13.

The Bison began their season with an impressive 3-1 win against the home team in the La Salle Invitational. Many athletes stood out in the game, including Morgan Mientus ‘14 with a career best 16 digs, Kat Tauscher ’13 with 17 assists, and Edoho with five blocks, more than the entire La Salle team combined. Also impressive were the contributions made by rookie members of the team, as Meghan Wentzel ’16 racked up 17 assists, along with four blocks from Karen Campbell ’16 and ten kills from Claire Healy ’16.

Success continued for the Orange and Blue as they faced Manhattan, coming out with another 3-1 victory. Edoho once again anchored the team’s defense with 6 blocks, and Mientus crushed her career record once again with 25 digs. Tauscher and Wentzel also both stepped up, with the senior pulling in 26 assists and the freshman finishing with 18 assists and 10 digs.

“This weekend was a pretty big surprise in the past two years that I’ve been on Bucknell’s team we have never started off so strong. I see really good things in our future. I think we got all of our first tournament jitters out and will only go up from here,” said Mientus.

After a strong opening day, the Bison faltered in their first match on Sunday, losing to Niagara in three straight sets. Individually, many of the Bison still had strong performances, with Tauscher and Wentzel pulling in 14 and 13 sets, respectively. Mientus also continued to post high stats, with 24 digs in the match, and Edoho had 12 kills and a .478 attack percentage.

Finally, the Orange and Blue lost a tough last match to a strong Loyola squad who went 4-0 on the weekend. Jessica Serrato ’14 stepped up on offense with 10 kills, along with Tauscher and Wentzel holding solid in the assists column, but the effort just wasn’t enough as the Bison fell to the strong attack of their undefeated opponent in three sets.

“We have been working so hard since August 7th so it’s nice to finally have the hard work and commitment pays off. Although we went 2-2 this past weekend, we faced some tough competition. We all left the weekend with a ‘good taste’ in our mouths because of the future potential we saw play out on the court,” Healy said.

The team will now prepare for their upcomingmatch this weekend at the Robert Morris/Duquesne Invitational on Friday and Saturday.

Categories
Men Soccer Sports

Season starts off with two ties for men

Chris McCree
Sports Editor

The men’s soccer team opened its season this past weekend with a pair of 1-1 draws against VCU and Butler at the VCU/Nike Classic in Richmond, Va. Playing in the first contests of their collegiate careers, goalie Mike Lansing ’16 and forward Jesse Klug ’16 took the spotlight for the Orange and Blue. Klug gave the Bison an early lead against VCU with his first collegiate goal while Lansing compiled a nine-save performance in which he allowed just one goal.

“Our team performed well for our first games out. We were up against very good teams, ones that our coaches believe will be going to the NCAA tournament,” Lansing said. “It felt good to make a few big saves and earn the respect of my teammates.”

Coming in against VCU, the Orange and Blue stunned the Rams with Klug’s goal just 18 minutes into the half. As has been the case many times over the past few seasons, the goal came off of a set piece when Brendan Burgdorf ’13 headed a free kick to a well-positioned Klug on the other side of the net.

“It was great to score my first goal in my first game, and equally as great that it was an important one against a good team,” Klug said. “VCU was honestly one of the best teams I’ve ever played, so I’m really glad to have gotten a result against them.”

The Bison were able to maintain the lead for the majority of the contest, but VCU striker Jason Johnson tied the game with less than 10 minutes remaining to send the game into overtime. During the extra play, the Bison relied on their rookie goalie once again to come up with three huge saves and preserve the tie.

“I think the team did really well in our first game this weekend,” Burgdorf said. “We played a very good VCU team, probably one of the best teams I’ve played in my career here, and we came close to beating them. I think it’s a sign of good things to come for the team moving forward.”

Coming off the 110 minute showdown with the Rams, the Bison battled their second Atlantic 10 opponent of the weekend and came away with the same result. Unlike the first, it was Butler that jumped out to an early 1-0 lead. The Bulldogs held the slim lead for the half, but the Bison put the pressure back on in the second half. In the 59th minute of play, Mayowa Alli ’14 threw an arching throw-in into the box which deflected off of a Butler player and ended up in the back of the net.

Against the Bulldogs, the Orange and Blue were able to generate a lot more pressure on the offensive side than their first matchup. Burgdorf and Josh Plump ’13 both finished with three shots apiece and the Bison recorded 14 throughout the contest. Lansing continued his strong play with five saves.

“I think our strongest asset was our work rate. We are still working out some of the kinks of playing with new teammates, but we all definitely worked for each other and came out of the weekend with good results,” Klug said. “I do think we still need to work on keeping more possession, but that will come with time.”

For the first time in 73 years, the Orange and Blue started their season with two draws. The Bison will take the field in search of their first win on Sept. 2 at 1 p.m. at Florida Gulf Coast.