Author: cdm016

By Andrew Lichtenauer

Writer

Seven women’s rowing boats competed in four different events at the Head of the Schuylkill this past weekend in Philadelphia, Pa. Two more Bison eights were supposed to row in the championship eight race, but the regatta was cut short because of inclement weather.

In the novice eight event, the Bison placed all four of the boats they entered in the top 20 of the 28-boat field. The women’s “A” boat was the top finisher for the Bison, placing third behind Penn and Drexel.

The Bison open four boat placed 27th in a 38-boat field. In the open single, Gabriella Fleming-Shemer ’14 came in ninth of 16 and Caitlin Vogelsang ’12 came in seventh of 11 in the lightweight single.

Although spring is the most important season for the Bison, this fall’s results have given the team confidence going into the spring.

“It is hard to predict how we will perform in the spring, but competing in the fall definitely added a little extra motivation to work harder from the start. It’s also great for the freshmen to get a taste of racing in the fall instead of having to wait until spring,” Vogelsang said.

Navy will once again be the Bison’s toughest competition for the Patriot League title in the spring. In last year’s Patriot League Championship, the Bison beat Navy by a slim margin to claim their sixth straight Patriot League title. Earlier this fall at the Head of the Charles Regatta, the varsity eight came in 29th of 37, beating out Navy by three positions.

“It’s great that our eight beat Navy at the Head of the Charles, but it probably gives Navy more motivation to work hard to beat us in the spring. I think the whole team knows it will take a lot of hard work to win a seventh-straight Patriot League title,” Vogelsang said.

The Head of the Schuylkill marked the end of the fall season for the Orange and Blue. The Bison will resume competition in the spring with the championship portion of their schedule, where they will be aiming for a seventh consecutive Patriot League Championship title.

By Colin Fields

Contributing Writer

The volleyball team lost a tough match 3-0 at home last Saturday. Despite taking an early lead in the first set and trading shots with Colgate in the second, the Bison fell in straight sets. Katie Baumgarten ’12 tallied nine kills and eight digs in her final appearance in Davis Gym.

In the first set, the Orange and Blue jumped out to an early advantage at 11-8. The Bison then lost their lead, but regained it with a kill by Kebah Edoho ’13. Down 13-12, Colgate rallied for five consecutive points. The Bison were able to come back to within one at 21-20 but Colgate rallied again and took the opening set 25-21.

The Orange and Blue opened the second set with another 12-8 advantage with a kill by Baumgarten and an ace from Kat Tauscher ’13. Tauscher logged 22 assists throughout the match. The Bison let the lead slip again, and Colgate rallied for seven points to take a 15-12 lead. An ace from Kadri Lutter ’15 put the Bison back on top 19-17. But Colgate came back again, scoring three straight points to close out the set 25-22.

The Raiders did not relent in the third set. The Bison tied the score at 3-3 and never came back. Colgate went on a blistering 16-5 run that brought the score to 19-8. The Orange and Blue mounted a final comeback in the third set but had dug themselves too big a hole and eventually fell 25-17.

The Bison offense posted a .173 hitting average. Colgate posted a .272 hitting average and had five players with at least eight kills.

The Bison close their season with four away matches, starting with Lehigh and Lafayette this weekend.

“I am very excited about the upcoming games with Lehigh and Lafayette. We had a really good game against Colgate despite losing. If we play with the same level of intensity that we did when we played Colgate, we will definitely do well this weekend,” Edoho said.

By Alex Wagner

Contributing Writer

The men’s cross country team finished fifth at the Patriot League Championships last Saturday at Lehigh University. John Dugan ’15 placed 14th and earned Rookie of the Meet.

Dave Brown ’12 was once again the Bison’s top finisher with a time of 25:35.10, placing him 11th overall. His strong performance earned him a spot on the Second Team All-Patriot League.

John Dugan ’15 finished just one second and two spots behind Brown. In addition to winning Rookie of the Meet, he also earned a place on the Second Team All-Patriot League with Brown.

The next two finishers for the Orange and Blue were Dustin Horning ’13 and Andrew Garcia-Garrison ’15. Horning finished in 26:13.70 for 27th place while Garcia-Garrison finished just behind him with a 26:14.80 finish for 28th.

“The conditions were very cold and snowy but everyone really toughed it out and still ran great,” Horning said.

D.J. Krystek ’13 earned 32nd place with a time of 26:20.70. He was followed by Andrew Kirna ’15 in 41st place and Michael McGowan ’15 in 42nd place, with times of 26:40.90 and 26:42.10, respectively.

Though they improved on last year’s result, the Bison were still not completely satisfied.

“The team would have liked to have been a little higher in the league standings,” McGowan said. “Fortunately, we have a very young team and we are pretty excited when looking towards the future in what we can do.”

Navy once again took top Patriot League honors and won its fourth championship in a row, beating No. 2 American by a score of 38-49. Christopher Johnson of Colgate took the top individual spot with a time of 24:53.90.

“It was our best race of the year as a team,” head coach Kevin Donner said. “Although we were hoping for a higher team finish, we have closed the gap quite a bit with Army and Lehigh, who both hammered us at the Paul Short Invitational one month ago.”

At the conclusion of the team’s Patriot League campaign championships, Donner is already looking ahead.

“With four freshmen in our top seven, the future looks bright,” he said.

By Chris McCree

Sports Editor

 

Player Profile:

Sandita McDermott

Junior

Goalkeeper

Rhinebeck, N.Y.

Major: Economics/ International Relations

 

Statistics:

Games: 2

Saves: 17

Goals against: 1

Season save percentage: 83.7%

 

Carried by spectacular play by goalkeeper Sandita McDermott ’13, the women’s soccer team transformed its season with two crucial wins against Patriot League opponents Lehigh and Lafayette. In arguably her best two-game performance of her career, McDermott recorded 17 saves and surrendered just one goal against two tough opponents. On Friday, Oct. 21 McDermott recorded her fourth shutout of the season during the team’s 1-0 victory over the defending champion Mountain Hawks. Two days later, she followed this impressive game play with a nine-save performance against Lafayette, allowing the team to clinch a 2-1 win and raise their league record to 3-3.

After the two wins, McDermott was named Patriot League Goalkeeper of the Week for the first time this season and increased her season save total to 77. All year, McDermott has been a strong point for an Orange and Blue squad that has certainly had its ups and downs. Coming into the weekend, the team stood at the bottom of the league standings and needed both wins in order to have a chance for a postseason bid. McDermott and the rest of the team look ahead to their upcoming matchup against Navy tomorrow. Playing at Emmitt Field, the team will depend on McDermott to control the Navy attack and carry the Bison to a Patriot League tournament appearance.

By Thomas Walter

Contributing Writer

The women’s golf team finished 16th at the Palmetto Invitational hosted at the Oak Point Golf Club in Kiawah, S.C. this past weekend. The tournament was their last of what has been a very successful fall season. Once again, Kasha Scott ’14 led the team in scoring. Scott and Minjoo Lee ’12 both fired 236 for all three rounds. Lauren Bernard ’14 was one shot behind them.

The Bison opened up with a round of 319 on Sunday and followed with rounds of 315 and 316. Although the women were not thrilled with this result, they can certainly be satisfied about their fall season performance.

“Throughout the fall I learned what parts of my game need work in the off season and I will continue to improve my game to be ready for the spring season,” Bernard said.

The Bison will have the opportunity to continue to improve their game this winter because of the new Instructional Golf Center that was completed last spring. This facility will permit both the women’s and men’s teams to play throughout the winter to stay competitive with other teams in the Patriot League. This multi-purpose indoor/outdoor facility features hitting bays, a video-equipped swing diagnostic center, locker rooms and a two-tiered putting green.

The women’s team will continue to build on their success this off-season by working in the facility in hopes of an even more successful spring season.

 

By Katherine Harris

Contributing Writer

The women’s swimming and diving team started off with a decisive win as against George Washington in the first scored meet of the season. The Bison hosted the Colonials at Kinney Natatorium on Saturday afternoon in a joint meet with the men’s team. The team’s impressive depth led to a win, 169-124. Both the Bison and the Colonials placed first in eight out of the 16 events, so the win came from strong second and third place finishes by Orange and Blue swimmers.

“We saw some good improvement in a number of areas compared to our first exhibition meet of the year against UMBC,” head coach Dan Schinnerer said.

First-years placed first in five out of eight events in their first official competition for the Bison. 

Leading the way were Katie Hetherington ’15 and Stephanie Koziol ’15. Hetherington won both diving events, after setting the school record for one-meter diving last weekend in the exhibition versus UMBC. Koziol also won two events, the 200 back and 200 IM.

“I was really happy with how I swam this weekend. My times were extremely close to my all-time best times, so I was a little surprised to see that I was going so fast so early in the season,” Koziol said. “At the beginning of the meet GW proved to be tough competition and I think that forced all of us to push ourselves even harder to make sure we swam as fast as we could.”

More young members of the team were forced to step up for the Orange and Blue as key players were missing. Emily Wright ’14 won the 50 free and 100 free, and Lauren Perry ’15 finished second in both of those, and also took the 200 free.

“The women especially were a bit short-handed due to some injuries and illnesses so it was nice for them to be able to come through and score a strong win.  Our first-years … have made strong impacts right away,” Schinnerer said.

The team’s next competition will come in two weeks as they face some tough Patriot League opponents in Army, Lafayette and American in Annapolis, Md.

By Andrew Lichtenauer

Writer

The men’s swimming and diving team started the season off strong in Kinney Natatorium over the weekend, defeating George Washington 168-89. The Bison had at least two of the top three finishers in 11 of the events contested and swept the top three spots in the 500 free and 100 fly.

Mike Nicholson ’14 led the Orange and Blue with wins in the 200 butterfly, 100 butterfly and 1,000 freestyle. With his win in the 1,000 freestyle (9:40.35), Nicholson moved up to fifth in University program history for the event. In his three victories, Nicholson beat his opponents by a combined time of 14.83 seconds.

“My success this past weekend came from the great training we’ve been doing since the beginning of the year. Every guy on our team gives their all at every practice, lift and dry land. The attitude we have in our locker room is contagious; we have big goals for this year and everyone is 100 percent focused on doing his part,” Nicholson said. “We want to make a name for ourselves as a program and we have the guys to do it.”

Thomas Brown ’12,  Matthew Segar ’12, Eric Sokolosky ’12 and Christian Treat ’13 also contributed to the team’s success against George Washington, winning two individual events apiece.

Eric Sokolosky won the 50 freestyle (20.95), 100 freestyle (46.23) and 200-medley relay (1:34.39).

“The team as a whole is working harder than I’ve ever seen them work before,” Sokolosky said. “We’ve been employing some new techniques and equipment both in the pool and weight room that have really proven effective. With such strong performances from everyone so early in the season, one can’t argue with the results.”

Ben Seketa ’15 had the fastest time in the 200 IM (1:54.99). 

Looking ahead to the rest of the season, the team is confident about its prospects.

“This year’s men’s team is likely one of the fastest and deepest team in Bucknell’s history. We must realize just how strong we are and that there’s so much we can accomplish this season,” Nicholson said. 

The Bison will return to the pool in two weeks when they face Patriot League rivals American, Lafayette and Navy in Annapolis, Md.

 

By Alex Wagner

Contributing Writer

The men’s golf team placed seventh out of eight teams this week at the two-day Lehigh Invitational in Bethlehem, Pa.

Individually, Dan Bernard ’13 led the Bison by shooting only seven strokes over par for both days, earning him a tie with four others for ninth place individually. He shot 75 on Saturday and 76 on Sunday for a 151 overall.

“Dan Bernard did an exceptional job of hanging in after a tough start,” coach Jim Cotner said. “He was four over par after three holes and played the last 15 holes in even par. He was the only one able to post a score that we expect from our players.”

Schuyler Stitzer ’14 and Jon Hartman ’13 were the next two finishers for the Orange and the Blue, both tying in a group of seven for 24th place.  Hartman had a strong finish on Saturday, finishing with an even par of 72, but his 83 strokes on Sunday evened him out with the crowd.  Stitzer was more consistent over the weekend, shooting a 79 and a 76.

“The golf course played very long (6900 yards) and was very wet. The first day I thought we did a pretty good job of handling the course and weather conditions,” Cotner said.  “Day two was a different story. We just did not get the consistency needed to compete. ”

Will Bachman ’12 put in another consistent outing for the Bison, shooting an 80 and a 78 to earn 34th place.  He was followed by J.J. Szmadzinski ’13, who shot 77 and 84, putting him in 38th place.

The conclusion of the Lehigh Invitational marks the end of the men’s golf team’s fall season.

By Ajan Caneda

Writer

Following an overtime win against Towson, the women’s field hockey team defeated American at home 3-1 last Saturday to raise its league record to 2-2. Three days later, the women lost to No. 8 Penn State; their overall record dropped to 6-10 on the year heading into the last two games of the regular season.

The Bison were on the defensive early as American had 13 shot attempts in the first period, but Orange and Blue midfielder Kelly Stefanowicz ’13 scored the first goal of the game off a penalty corner by fellow midfielder Kelsey Mucelli ’15 and an assist by forward Rachel Misko ’14. Four minutes later, the Eagles evened the score with a penalty corner goal. The squads were tied going into halftime. The Bison quickly regained the lead as forward Katie Durkin ’13 scored an unassisted goal off a rebound. Although the Eagles outshot the Bison 11-6 in the period, goalie Erica Perrine ’14 countered with 11 saves for the game. Durkin ended any hope of an Eagle comeback, scoring in the 64th minute with an assist from Misko.

“At the end of the day, they came to play and we came to win. Our team worked together flawlessly. Everyone on our team had each other’s backs and there was a great deal of trust and desire to win the game,” Perrine said. “All it takes is a couple of opportunities and we were able to capitalize when they could not.”

On Tuesday, the Nittany Lions scored the first goal 13 minutes into the game. They outshot the Bison 13-4 in the first period but were held to one goal as Perrine had seven saves in the first half. Penn State reeled off 11 more in the second period and scored two more unassisted goals. Misko scored in the 64th minute, but it was not enough to secure the win.

“I think the last two games have been confidence boosters for us,” head coach Jeremy Cook said. “Penn State is ranked eighth for a reason and we missed some opportunities. The team was disappointed in the outcome, but I think that comes from our own increased expectations that we can be competitive with great teams so it is a big positive for us. I think we all feel as if we are hitting our stride right now, and are very excited for our must-win game this Saturday up at Colgate.”

The Orange and Blue close out the regular season this weekend at Colgate on Saturday and play No. 5 Syracuse on Sunday.