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Men Sports Tennis

Men’s tennis defeats rival Colgate

By Cooper Mead
Writer

The men’s tennis team came away with a hard-fought 4-3 victory over Colgate at home on Friday, sending the team to 1-1 in the Patriot League.

The Bison doubles play continued its strong performance from last week, winning the crucial team point. Evan Zimmer ’13 and Josh Katten ’13 won a convincing match (8-4) against Luke Gensburg and Sean Spellberg at the No. 2 spot and improved their winning streak to four matches. At No. 1 doubles, Greg Cohenca ’12 and Aidan Lynch ’14 defeated Alec Goldstein and Parker Lewis in a tight 8-6 match, clinching the doubles point for the Bison.

On the singles front, the Bison were able to grind out victories in three out of six matches to ensure a team victory. Gregory Maxson ’12 won at the No. 6 singles spot against Connor Feuille, 6-1, 6-4. Katten also defeated Spellberg at the No. 4 spot, 6-2, 6-7, 6-2 and Zimmer capped off the day beating Bobby Berkowitz in a tough match with a slew of long rallies, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.

“Colgate was a good win for us,” Katten said. “It was a step in the right direction leading into the core of the Patriot League season.”

Following the victory, the Bison fell to a formidable George Mason team at home 4-3 on Saturday. Again, the Bison doubles pairings were extremely effective as they clinched the team point for the Bison. Cohenca and Lynch defeated Jordan Dyke and Chris Borden 8-6 at the No. 1 doubles spot, bringing the pairing to 2-3 in No. 1 matches during the spring season. Katten and Zimmer also continued their great performance, beating Scott Keaton and Joe Wiggins, 8-5. After his win, Zimmer’s individual record for the season improved to an impressive 25-5.

Despite the doubles victory, the Bison struggled in singles. Kelly Morque ’13 took on Keaton at the No. 4 spot and won in straight sets, 6-3, 7-5. Kyle Rosen ’14 recorded the only other singles win for the Bison when he defeated Taylor Sargent, 6-4, 6-3 at the No. 5 spot. Rosen’s victory brings him to 16-12 in singles play this season.

“We were obviously disappointed by the 4-3 loss to George Mason but the win versus Colgate demonstrated that we can be a dangerous team,” Morque said. “Even though we didn’t play our best, we still toughed out a win against a very determined Colgate squad. Matches like the ones we had this weekend will only make us better in the long run.”

The Bison began a three-match road trip yesterday afternoon when they faced Army after press time. They will next take on Lafayette on Sunday and Lehigh on Tuesday before returning home to face Robert Morris at 3 p.m. Wednesday.

 

 

 

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Sports Tennis Women

Women’s tennis struggles

By Lindsay Regruto
Senior Writer

The women’s tennis team dropped three tough matches over the week against George Mason, Colgate and Towson, leaving them 2-15 on the season.

Elizabeth Morgan ’14 and Lauren Boone ’15 pulled out a close win (8-7) on Saturday against their opponents from George Mason in the No. 3 doubles slot. Doubles play overall was intense and hard-fought, but the Bison ended up dropping the doubles point to George Mason after two close losses in the No. 1 and No. 2 positions.

“At Saturday’s match, it was great for me and Lauren to pull out a win in doubles, especially after being down most of the match and coming back to win in a tiebreak,” Morgan said.

Dumitrita Iepuras ’12 came out strong after her loss in doubles play to defeat her opponent. Christie Schneider ’15 picked up the second win for the Bison at the No. 4 singles slot. The victories in singles weren’t enough, and the Orange and Blue fell to the Patriots 5-2 overall.

“Although we weren’t able to win the overall match as a team, it was definitely a step in the right direction,” Morgan said. “Hopefully we will be able to turn our season around for our last couple of matches.”

On Friday, the Bison lost to Patriot League opponent Colgate 4-3. Iepuras and Lydia Colvin ’15 battled it out in No. 2 doubles to grab an 8-5 win. One win wasn’t enough, though, and Colgate took the doubles point.

Schneider picked up her first win of the spring coming back from a 3-6 loss in the first set to win the next two sets 6-3, 7-6.

“My match was extremely close the whole time but I was able to pull out the win because my teammates were on the court next to me cheering,” Schneider said. “I think with our positive attitudes … we will be able to do well as our season ends.”

Elena Vidrascu ’14 defeated her Raiders opponent 6-3, 6-1 at the No. 3 slot. Iepuras picked up a win as well after a three-set match (6-3, 1-6, 6-2) in the No. 1 spot. The wins gave the Orange and Blue three overall team points, but it was not enough to defeat Colgate.

“We had some pretty good matches against Colgate but I think because of the different lineup it was a bit difficult,” Vidrascu said. “Despite difficulties … we have all adapted to the fact that we have to constantly make changes and this helps us not to fall apart.”

On Thursday, the Bison fell 5-2 to the Towson Tigers. Daria Tuzhikova ’13 and Vidrascu beat their opponents in the No. 1 doubles position 8-5. The Orange and Blue couldn’t grab another win, and the doubles point went to Towson. The two other wins for the day were in No. 1 and No. 2 singles. Iepuras earned a large victory over her opponent 6-2, 6-1 at the No. 1 slot. Colvin also had a decisive win at the No. 2 slot 6-3, 6-1.

“Overall, even though we didn’t have our starting line-up due to injured players, we really stepped up as a team and showed our potential for the years to come,” Colvin said.

The Orange and Blue will face off against Patriot League opponent Lehigh today at 3 p.m.

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Men Sports Track & Field

Men’s track takes second in Virginia

By Chris McCree
Sports Editor

Entering the weekend as reigning champions, the men’s track and field team claimed second in a field of 27 teams at the Colonial Relays this past weekend in Williamsburg, Va. The Orange and Blue finished behind a talented Michigan squad by 18 points, recording a total of 149 points.

Highlighting the meet for the Orange and Blue was Robert Arent ’12, who broke his own school record in the 110 meter hurdles by .01 seconds. Finishing in a time of 14.31 seconds, Arent claimed second in the race, but was the top collegiate finisher.

Trailing Arent by .16 seconds in the race was Christian Lupica ’15 who claimed seventh for the Orange and Blue, recording a personal-best time of 14.47 seconds.  Lupica also claimed ninth in the 200 meter dash with a time of 21.69 seconds.

Other top finishers for the Bison were Kamal Riley ’14 and Ray Holmes ’14, who placed second and fourth in the 100 meter sprint and triple jump respectively. After placing fifth in the semi-final heat, Riley jumped up three spots in the finals, securing valuable points for the Bison. Riley capped off his meet by competing in the 4×100 and 4×200 relays, helping the squad to a pair of fourth places finishes.

Mike McGowan ’15 earned the team’s best finish in the distance events by taking second in the 10,000 meter run. McGowan beat his seed time by more than 47 seconds, finishing in 30:22.55.

In the field events, the Bison were able to secure multiple top-10 finishes, including a sweep of the top two spots in the shot put by Quinten Marcott ’13 and Luke Webster ’13. Leonard Joseph ’13, Tom Barr ’12 and Ted Mottola ’13 each placed in the top five of the hammer throw with Joseph leading the group in second place with a 59.19 meter throw.

After opening up their spring season with a pair of away meets, the Orange and Blue have two home meets over the next two weeks. This weekend, the Bison will host the Bison Outdoor Classic starting at 12 p.m. on Friday.

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Sports Track & Field Women

Women’s track takes third

By Katherine Harris
Writer

For the second consecutive year, the women’s track and field team placed third in the Colonial Relays last weekend in Williamsburg, Va. The Orange and Blue placed ahead of 24 other teams, trailing only Villanova and Delaware with 78 total points in the two-day event.

One of the highlights of the day was the impressive performances of the Bison in relays. The 4×200 relay broke a school record set in 2003 with a time of 1:41.40, taking third in the race. The distance medley also took third on the day, with a time of 11:45.88 breaking into second in the school record books.

“I saw a team that is really jelling,” head coach Kevin Donner said. “The Colonial Relays is a war of attrition over two days where many athletes need to compete in multiple events and rounds. It is a great preparation for the grueling two-day Patriot League Championship.”

Many individuals also had strong showings on the track over the two days. On Friday, Jennifer Zymet ’14 led the way with a fifth-place finish in the 400 meters with a time of 56.76 seconds. Teammates Stefanie Spanfeller ’14 and Stephanie Bryan ’14 came in one after the other in the 10,000 meters, grabbing third and fourth place with their times of 38:01.77 and 38:12.11 respectively.

Success on the track continued for the Orange and Blue on Saturday with Taylor Funk ’12 coming in eighth in the 100 meters with a time of 14.94 seconds. Bison teammates Alysha Hooper ’12 and Stephanie Fulmer ’12 also had strong showings in the 3,000 meters with their respective times of 10:12.51 and 10:14.58 earning them fourth and sixth on the day.

“As the season continues we will become more confident in our races. The training is already there so now it is just time to perform. Each week, having another race or two under our belts will allow us to continue to drop our times and further our marks,” Funk said.

The Bison had strong performances both days in the field events as well. On Friday, Kat Folger ’12 grabbed third in the javelin with a throw of 143’ 10’’. Emily Ando ’14 and Autumn Schellenberger ’14 tied for sixth in the pole vault, both clearing 10’ 8’’. Orange and Blue teammates also rounded out the top ten in the hammer throw, with Abby Monaghan ’13, Kathryn Wahls ’13 and Rebecca Misko ’12 taking spots eight through ten with marks of 143’ 4’’, 140’ 2’’ and 135’ 11’’ respectively.

Monaghan led the day for the Bison throwers on Saturday with her personal best 146’ 9’’ grabbing her a first-ever discus victory and moving her into seventh in school history. In the shot put, Sarah Bella ’12 placed third with a throw of 43’ 0.25’’. Laura Lutzker ’14 and Gabrielle Eckles-Shehadi ’15 also both cleared 5’ 1’’ in the high jump, taking the fourth and fifth positions in the field.

“I was very happy with my performance; it was my season opener and I had a good series of throws in competition,” Folger said. “We will continue to work hard and stay focused to prepare to defend our title as Outdoor Patriot League Champions.”

The Bison will compete next this upcoming weekend at their first home meet of the season. The Bison Outdoor Classic will be held at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium this Saturday and Sunday.

 

 

Categories
Rowing Sports Women

Rowing excels at home

Alex Wagner
Assistant Sports Editor

The women’s rowing team picked up its first-ever regular season lightweight eight win over Princeton in the Bison’s only home event of the year last Saturday. The Bison varsity eight also won against Drexel.

The lightweight eight boat for the Orange and Blue is rowed by Caitlin Vogelsang ’12, Hannah Rozowski-Vogt ’12, Helena Craig ’15, Hilary Strong ’12, Anne Kirk ’12, Elizabeth Aigler ’13, Victoria Catharine ’14 and Jennifer Fish ’14, with Alexandra Higbee ’12 as coxswain.

They rowed to a 7:15.98 finish, more than three seconds ahead of Princeton. The victory did not come easily.

“It was a tough race, especially with Princeton closing our lead within the second half,” Vogelsang said. “Mentally and physically pushing through that was the key to ultimately pulling back out ahead.”

The day’s events also marked the first time the Bison have raced an Ivy League school at their home course.

The Bison’s openweight freshman eight raced against Princeton’s freshman lightweight eight and finished in 8:01.55, almost nine seconds ahead of their competitors. After only a short break, the same rowers lost to Drexel’s freshman eight.

In the second race after the break, the Bison’s second and third varsity eights competed against Drexel’s second varsity eight, finishing first and third respectively, with Drexel in second.

The day’s races finished up with the Orange and Blue varsity eight defeating Drexel’s varsity eight by almost 14 seconds.

Head coach Stephen Kish was pleased with his team’s performance.

“It was an exciting day for the team. Drexel University has a great rowing program and our boats did a great job putting together a strong race and defending our home course.  The Princeton lightweights finished second at the national championship last year, so finishing ahead of them definitely felt good and showed us that we can be competitive at the top level,” Kish said.

The next action for the Bison will be this weekend at the Knecht Cup on the Cooper River in Cherry Hill, N.J.

 

Categories
Featured Lacrosse Sports Women

Athlete of the Week: Sophie Kleinert ’14

By Chris McCree

Sports Editor

 

Sophie Kleinert

Year: Sophomore

Position: Midfielder

Hometown: Greenwich, Conn.

Major: Political Science

 

Season Statistics:

 

GP-GS: 12-12

Goals: 11

Assists: 2

SOG %: .720

Ground Balls: 10

 

Despite being part of a 14-11 losing effort to Patriot League rival Lafayette, Sophie Kleinert ’14 put together an impressive offensive performance for the Orange and Blue on Saturday, leading the team with three goals and five shots on target. Starting at midfield for the Bison, Kleinert gave the team the early lead with her first goal of the day less than two minutes in. Later in the half, Kleinert came through with another big goal to preserve the team’s lead following a Leopard offensive rally in which the team tallied two goals within 15 seconds. Entering the second half with a one-goal lead, the Orange and Blue maintained the momentum after Kleinert scored her third goal. 

Along with her three goals, Kleinert also recorded a ground ball and draw control, raising her season totals to 10 and 11 respectively. She also showed off her accurate shooting abilities, as all five of her shots were on target.

Although the team has not had much success this season, Kleinert has certainly elevated her game from her rookie year. Just 12 games into this year, Kleinert has already nearly doubled the six goals she scored last year.

Currently, the Bison hold a 3-9 record and have five regular season games remaining on the schedule. Looking to earn their first league victory, Kleinert and the Orange and Blue will travel to Holy Cross this Saturday to take on the Crusaders at 1 p.m.

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Beyond the Bison Sports

Beyond the Bison: “Ain’t never gonna be what it was”

Julian Dorey

Columnist

The first pitch has hit the glove, and the 2012 MLB season is officially underway. 

Every year there are big storylines going into the season. Players have new homes (Albert Pujols), teams have new looks (the Miami Marlins), and legends are replaced (Tony LaRussa). But this year, one story is staying under the radar.

The Philadelphia Phillies—one of the game’s great forces for the last five years—could be on the wrong side of a high incline hill. Even with the game’s best pitching rotation (highlighted by Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels), the Phillies enter this season with much lower expectations. Perhaps some of it has to do with the free-agency splash the Miami Marlins made and the young players entering the Majors for the Nationals (both teams in the NL East with the Phils). But most of it has to do with the one power no man can fight: father time.

The Phillies once “young-gun” core isn’t so young anymore. Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley and Carlos Ruiz are all 33, Ryan Howard is 32 and recovering from one of the most devastating injuries in sports (ruptured Achilles) and Shane Victorino is 31. The staples of the 2008 World Series Championship team and the 2009 runners-up are “up there.”

None of them have the same pop they once had. Many of their stats have declined in the last three seasons. Utley has cartilage damage in both knees which will cost him the beginning portion of his season. Howard’s Achilles injury may never allow him to hit the ball like he once did. Aging is a sad thing in sports, but it’s a reality.

Maybe the Phils have another fight or two left in them. Whenever you have pitching like they do, you always have a shot. But the name of the game is runs, and the Phillies don’t have a lot of forces to help them in that department. This year, they will need to rely on last year’s trade deadline pick-up, Hunter Pence, heavily. Without Howard for the first few months of the season, Pence (a career 20-25 HR hitter) will need to provide a little more power than usual in the cleanup spot. Role players like John Mayberry Jr., Juan Pierre, Laynce Nix and Ty Wigginton will need to put up some inflated numbers as well.

It’s a lot to ask of a team that simply lacks the edge it once had. Frankly, it’s sad that Philadelphia and America may have to say goodbye to a truly exciting team that gave the league a great thrill ride year in and year out.

But this is the reality of sports.

Everything comes to an end.

Categories
Featured Men Sports Tennis

The Dominant Duo

Alex Wagner

Assistant Sports Editor

 

The Bison’s top men’s tennis doubles team of Gregg Cohenca ’12 and Evan Zimmer ’13 is currently ranked No. 51 in the nation by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association. 

The two, who began playing together in the fall of 2011, quickly found that they were able to work together well, helping them climb to a position among the elite doubles teams in the nation.

“We played all the fall tournaments together and have meshed since,” Cohenca said.

A key to their success this year has been their ability to stick to the basics.

“Sticking to our fundamentals and tactics [has] brought us our success thus far. We stay positive for every single point and focus on setting up points to end in our favor. Trying to stay completely relaxed and confident out there has propelled us to beat many teams, such as Penn State,” Zimmer said.

In fact, the Feb. 11 victory over Penn State’s Jason Lee and Russell Bader, who are currently ranked No. 25 in the nation, proved early in the season that Cohenca and Zimmer deserve national recognition.

But the hard work to get to the top began for the two of them long before they started seeing themselves in the national rankings this year. Their career records are a testament to their patient approach. Cohenca is currently ranked fourth for the Bison in terms of all-time doubles victories, with a record of 64-46. Zimmer is not far behind in a tie for 12th with a 48-24 record.

In addition to their constant focus on the fundamentals, the teammates also cite their unity off the court as a strong point of their play.

“Off the court, we are good friends, which helps during those crucial moments in the match,” Zimmer said.

As the season progresses, they hope to continue the short-term thinking that has gotten them to where they are today.

“Our goal on the court this season is to play one point at a time. Once that point is over, win or loss, we move on to the next point,” Cohenca said.

There is little doubt that if Cohenca and Zimmer stick to the principles that they have been employing, they will continue to do great things this season.

 

Categories
Golf Men Sports

Men’s golf battles wind, finishes eighth

By Scott Padula

Staff Writer

In its second tournament in as many weeks, the men’s golf team fought off 30-mile-per-hour winds and frigid temperatures en route to placing eighth out of 44 in the Wildcat Invitational in Malvern, Pa.

On Monday, the first day of action, the Bison battled the elements to shoot a team score of 320 in the first round. Captain Will Bachman ’12 led the Bison with a team-low of 78. Thomas Walter ’14 shot an 80 while Dan Bernard ’13 and Schuyler Stitzer ’14 both shot opening round 81s. Jon Hartman ’13 rounded out the Orange and Blue team with a score of 82 in his spring debut.

The Bison sharpened their game in the second round of the day, shooting a team score of 318. In the afternoon round, Stitzer broke Bachman’s team-low for the tournament by shooting a 76. Through 36 holes, Stitzer led the team with a score of 157. After his impressive 78 in the first round, Bachman followed up with a second-round score of 82. Other notable performances for the Bison came from Hartman and Bernard, who shot 79 and 81 respectively. After the second round of the tournament, the Orange and Blue sat in 11th place.

In the final round of the tournament on Tuesday, the Orange and Blue shot a team score of 307, allowing them to jump three places in the team standings. Hartman carded the best Bison score of the day with a three-over-par 74. Bernard and Stitzer recorded 77s, while Bachman and Walter tallied 79s. Stitzer led the team with four birdies. This final round was the first of the spring where all five Bison registered scores below 80.

“As long as we continue to practice with intensity and work on areas that need improvement, we will be prepared for Patriot Leagues. It is important to remember that golf is a strange sport where what happens one weekend in no way determines what will happen the next. All we can do as players is make the right decisions and continue to improve,” Stitzer said.

The Orange and Blue have a week off before they head to Farmville, Va. where they will compete in the Manor Intercollegiate on April 13 and 14.

Categories
Rowing Sports Women

Rowing places eight boats in top seven

By Lindsay Regruto

Senior Writer

The women’s rowing team had a strong showing at the Occoquan Sprints on Sunday in Fairfax, Va. with all three varsity eight boats placing in the top seven, another varsity eight boat taking fourth in its final and a novice eight boat taking first in its finals. 

“In the grand final, the varsity eight were in lanes one and two racing right next to each other just like every morning,” Christy Holodnik ’12 said. “Every morning the two boats push each other to be faster … and that is exactly what happened during the final.”

Two of the varsity eight boats with coxswains Jacqueline McKeone ’13 and Alexandra Higbee ’12 finished second and third respectively in the second heat of the competition while the third varsity eight boat with coxswain Katherine Anderson ’12 pulled out a first place finish in the third heat. McKeone’s and Anderson’s boats advanced to the final and took third and fourth respectively. The third varsity eight boat (cox: Higbee) advanced to the petite final taking first over Georgetown by almost five seconds to place seventh overall.

The second varsity eight boat took third in its heat and finished fourth in the final of its division. The Bison also had a strong showing in the novice eight with its boat taking first in its heat by seven seconds over Old Dominion. The novice eight boat continued to the final, beating out Delaware for first by about eight seconds.

“[We] had an exciting showing this past weekend,” Ally Cohen ’12 said. “All of our boats held their own against some tough competition.  We are looking forward to races to come and are excited to keep getting faster.”

The Bison will host Drexel and the Princeton Lightweights on Saturday at 8 a.m.