Category: Sports

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Sports

Bison Athlete of the Week: Alyssa Dunn ’13

Alex Wagner

Sports Editor

Player Profile

Alyssa Dunn ’13

Mason, Ohio

Management

 

Season statistics:

Five starts in five games, 164 minutes played

24/49 field goals, 26/28 free throws

19 rebounds

18 assists

3 steals

Alyssa Dunn ’13 has played a critical role in the resurgence of the women’s basketball team in its young season. After suffering tough losses in their first two games of the season against Xavier and Saint Francis (Pa.), the Bison have won three straight games against Canisius, Niagara and Morgan State.

In the win against Canisius, Dunn scored 22 points, setting her personal record. But in the game against Niagara just four days later, she broke her record by scoring 23 points, going 6-12 from the field and making all eight of her free throws. She also made all three of her attempted shots from behind the three-point line. As if that wasn’t enough, she also had a career-best six assists.

“My teammates found me in good positions to score, and we were able to create transition baskets with our defense,” Dunn said.

Dunn continued her hot streak against Morgan State, scoring 15 points to lead the team in that category, including another perfect night at the free throw line, going nine for nine. Not only did she put up impressive numbers, but she also performed her best when she was needed the most. She scored all but three of her points in the second half to help the Orange and Blue make a comeback. 

In the Patriot League, Dunn ranks third in scoring (15.6 points per game), first in free throw percentage (.929) and sixth in field goal percentage (.490), assists (3.6 per game) and assist/turnover ratio (1.1).

Dunn and the Bison will look to continue their prime performance when they take on Buffalo tomorrow at 7 p.m. in Davis Gym.

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Sports Swimming & Diving Women

W. Swimming wins home meet

Katherine Harris

Writer

The women’s swimming and diving place first in a field of six other teams at the Bucknell Invitational, ousting second place Delaware by just 2.5 points.

“Our team did an awesome job! We were truly united as a women’s team and it showed in our support and hard work. We gave everything our all in every event from diving to the relays and all races in between,” Kelly Pontecorvo ’14 said.

The Bison started out strong on Nov. 16 in Kinney Natatorium, finishing in second to Delaware by 17 points at the end of the night. Elizabeth Porcellio ’13 won the 200 IM with a time of 2:05.74, while teammate Ashley Henderson ’16 followed in fourth place with 2:07.30.

Porcellio was also part of the 400 medley team that took third place, along with Emma Levendoski ’16, Morgan Oxley ’13 and Lauren Perry ’15, posting a time of 3:53.80 that took 10th in the school record books. Katie Hetherington ’15 led the diving team with a second-place finish in three-meter diving, scoring a season-high 255.15.

The Orange and Blue then took the lead on Nov. 17, coming back to lead Delaware by eight points at the end of the day. Porcellio once again had a strong day, winning the 400 IM with a personal best time of 4:25.08 that moved her into third in school history. She also took fifth in the 200 free. She joined teammates Perry, Stephanie Koziol ’15 and Pontecorvo to win the 800 free relay, posting the second best program time in the event’s history. Perry also had another victory for the Bison on the day, winning the 200 freestyle with a school-record breaking time.

The final day of the invitational was down to the wire, with the Bison finally prevailing over Delaware by a mere 2.5 points. Pontecorvo won the 1,650 free with a time of 16:41.18, and also broke the school record with her 1,000 free time of 10:04.55. Levendoski also had another impressive day, recording a second-place finish in the 200 back. On the diving team, Hetherington finished third in the one-meter diving, with teammate Tori Molchany ’15 following in fifth place.

“Individually, I was very happy with my races,” Pontecorvo said. “I went a personal best in my 1,000 freestyle going out in the 1,650, so it makes me very optimistic for Patriots in February. I could hear the whole team cheering at that point and there was a roar in the crowd that gave me the extra motivation to finish my best.”

The Bison will compete at home again this weekend, hosting Binghamton tomorrow at 1 p.m.

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Men Sports Wrestling

Wrestling finishes sixth in season opener

Billy Tyler

Contributing Writer

The men’s wrestling team opened its season on Nov. 17 at the Navy Classic in Annapolis, Md. The team faced stiff competition including Ohio, The Citadel, Cleveland State, West Virginia and Navy. The Bison finished the meet in sixth place out of the nine teams present with 45.5 points behind a strong performance from Paul Petrov ’16. Kent State won the event with a total of 115.5 points.

Petrov stepped up in his first collegiate meet and was one of the top performers for the Bison. He advanced to the championship bout in the 133-pound weight class after receiving a first-round bye and winning two bouts by decision. In the finals, Petrov was defeated in an 8-5 decision to top-seeded Colton Rasche of Navy.

“Petrov had a great tournament. He wrestled aggressively and is adjusting well to the college style,” head coach Dan Wirnsberger said.

Corey Lear ’13, ranked 17th nationally in the 165-pound weight class, was also a high performer for the Bison. He won two matches on a pair of decisions to advance to the meet’s semifinals. In the semifinals, Lear was pinned by Jacob Schalles of Navy, which pushed him into the consolation bracket. However, he then dominated his next two matches with a total score of 24-2 on his way to a third-place finish, giving Lear a second top three-finish in his career at the Navy Classic. Although this was not quite the result Lear was looking for, he still impressed Wirnsberger with his ability to retain his focus and return strong following the tough loss.

“In college wrestling, it is important to be able to put both wins and losses behind you and focus on the task at hand,” Wirnsberger said.

Tyler Lyster ’15 also earned a third-place finish. Lyster was unseeded going into the meet, yet pinned his first two opponents on his way to the semifinals. In the semifinals of the 197-pound weight class, Lyster faced the eventual champion Dustin Kilgore of Kent State. After putting up a tough fight, Lyster was pinned and moved into the consolation bracket. Lyster went on to defeat his next two opponents by a combined score of 16-2.

“Tyler [Lyster] put in a full training cycle in the offseason and it has paid off. He went into the tournament unseeded and really deserved his third-place finish,” Wirnsberger said.

The next match for the Bison will be on Dec. 1 at the Hoosier Duals.

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Football Men Sports

Football wins final game

Eric Brod

Senior Writer

The Orange and Blue football squad brought its up and down 2012 season to a close with an exciting 24-21 victory on Nov. 17 against Bryant. Although the Bison failed to match their win total from last season with a 3-8 record, the team was able to win two of its final three contests and provide much promise moving forward into next season. 

The offense, led by Brandon Wesley ’14 who passed for 200 yards and two touchdowns on 18-26 passing, had a time of possession advantage, 35:57-24:03, allowing them to control the pace of the game. The offense had three scoring drives of seven plays or more.

“I believe that in the last game of the season, the offense was just playing inspired and really wanted to send the seniors out with a win,” fullback Terna Ityokumbul ’13 said. “The coaches gave us a great plan, and we went out and executed it. I think the seniors got more vocal in the last week, which really showed the younger guys how important this last game was to them.”

Despite dominating the time of possession, the Bison never led by more than a touchdown until halfway through the fourth quarter when they extended their lead to 24-14 on a 10-yard touchdown pass from Wesley to running back Tyler Smith ’13, who finished the game with 101 all-purpose yards. The touchdown was set up by an interception by Joseph Francis ’13 that gave the offense great starting field position at the Bryant 13-yard line. Bryant responded quickly with a touchdown of their own on a 40-yard pass from quarterback Mike Westerhaus to receiver Jordan Harris.

After the Bison went three-and-out on their next possession with just over six minutes remaining in the game, Bryant drove deep into Bison territory, reaching the Orange and Blue 25-yard line. The defense was able to hold Bryant on fourth down and nine. Still, Bryant had a chance to receive the ball again with two minutes remaining, but they were flagged for a roughing the kicker penalty on punter Ryan Gutowski ’13, which sealed the win for the Bison.

On defense, the Bison were able to hold Westerhaus to just 13-28 passing and sacked him four times. Safety Jordan Dudas ’15 led the team with 10 tackles, and Evan Byers ’15 record nine (three for loss) and 1.5 sacks. Byers finished the season with 100 tackles.

On offense, Wesley’s most chosen target was Victor Walker ’14, who finished with seven catches for a season-high 97 yards. Smith, who finished with 76 yards rushing and 25 receiving, ended an impressive collegiate career with 3,991 total yards and 20 touchdowns.

While the Bison struggled at times this season, the team showed in the final weeks that there is much promise moving forward to the 2013 campaign.

“The ups and downs that the team went through this year will only make the team more mentally tough for next year,” Ityokumbul said. “As long as this team is able to learn from the things that this past year’s team did well, and change the things that we weren’t able to do as well, they should be successful and serious competitors in the Patriot League next year.”

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Men Sports Water Polo

M. water polo second at Easterns

Alex Wagner

Sports Editor

Following their first place finish at the Southern Championships, the No. 15 men’s water polo team put out another elite performance at the Eastern Championship in Princeton, N.J. After defeating Harvard and No. 20 Princeton, the Orange and Blue fell in overtime to No. 12 St. Francis (N.Y.). The Bison had not reached the Eastern Championship finals since 1993.

The Orange and Blue began their play with a 15-13 win against Harvard. The Bison beat Harvard twice earlier in the season by a combined 10 goals. Alex Nowlin ’14 led the Bison, registering four goals and three assists in the contest. Brian Barron ’13 also had a good showing, adding two goals and five assists of his own. Stefan Aleksic ’16, with three goals and two assists, and Nick Hale ’16, with two goals and three assists, showed the strength of the underclassmen as well. Matt Napleton ’13 performed strongly in goal, making seven saves.

Although the Orange and Blue jumped out to an early three goal lead, they had to overcome a two goal deficit in the second half to pick up the win against Harvard, the fourth seed in the Northern Division.

The Bison survived a much tougher test the next day, when they beat Princeton 7-6 in the semifinal. Aleksic scored the eventual game-winning goal with just 1:48 left to play. He was the only Bison to score twice in the match. The game featured five lead changes and no team ever led by more than two goals. Going into the fourth quarter, the game was tied 5-5. The Orange and Blue then had goals from Barron and Aleksic, while only surrendering one goal, allowing them to hang on for the win.

While there were no particular offensive standouts, the Bison had a balanced attack as six different players ended up on the score sheet. Napleton had another superb night in goal, racking up 11 saves and a steal against the Princeton attack.

The second win of the weekend for the Bison sealed their meeting in the final with No. 12 St. Francis (N.Y.). The Orange and Blue had faced them twice already this season, losing both contests by just one goal. Unfortunately, their third meeting would be more of the same, as the Bison fell 10-9 in overtime.

The Bison kept the game close for the first half, but they could not hold off St. Francis in the third quarter, when they were outscored 4-1, and they then entered into the fourth quarter down 8-5. Barron and Aleksic each scored early in the fourth to bring the Bison close, and Nowlin scored with under three minutes to play, tying the game and sending it into overtime.

Jack Else ’14 scored a clutch goal for the Bison just 30 seconds in overtime to give his team the advantage. St. Francis answered once again with a goal on their next possession, and then took the lead for good with under two minutes left to play on a power play goal.

Despite the loss, the Bison had many achievements to be proud of. Barron was named First Team All-Eastern Championship, while Napleton, Else and Aleksic were named to the second team. In addition, Aleksic was given the honor of being Rookie of the Tournament.

Although they fell just short of their first NCAA tournament berth in 27 years, the Bison certainly achieved a great amount in the 2012 campaign.

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Men Sports Swimming & Diving

M. Swimming finishes third at home meet

Cooper Mead

Writer

The men’s swimming team finished third in the Bucknell Invitational in Kinney Natatorium on Nov. 16-18. The team was led by Mike Nicholson ’14, who won the 200 breast with a time of 2:01.71, which tallied second in Bison Swimming history.

Nicholson finished in one of the top three positions four times during the meet, as he also won the 400 IM, and placed third in the 200 fly and the 200 IM. Trevor Reitz ’14 also had a good showing, coming in first in the 100 freestyle with a time of 46.30, and was joined by five other Bison who finished in the top 16. Reitz was the only Bison in the “A” final and also won the prelims.

“The invite represented a great opportunity for us to step up. A three-day meet like that is long, but as a team we swam hard and put ourselves in a good position for the rest of the year,” Reitz said.

In addition, Bison first-years had an impressive weekend as Will Rappaport ’16 placed seventh in the 200 back with a time that was only .05 seconds shy of tying the 10th best time in Bison Swimming history. Brian Phillips ’16 also placed ninth in the 1,650 free.

In the end, the Bison finished with a score of 1191, behind Yale with a score of 1550 and Delaware with a score of 1265.5. The Bison placed ahead of La Salle (793), Binghamton (747), Georgetown (619) and Fordham (608.5).

“The Bucknell Invitational was a very exciting meet for both the men’s and women’s sides,” Daniel Wallace ’14 said. “Many season-best times were posted and this sets us up well as we move into the second half of our season, especially with our Florida training trip only a few weeks away.”

The Bison will prepare to compete against Binghamton at home tomorrow at 1 p.m.

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Beyond the Bison Sports

Beyond the Bison: Sports News Across the Nation

 

Courtesy of Wikimedia CommonsDwight Howard of the Lakers. His acquisition was expected to provide a boost, but things haven't gone as planned.
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Dwight Howard of the Lakers. His acquisition was expected to provide a boost, but things haven’t gone as planned.

Julian Dorey

Writer

“You play in dirt, you get dirty.”

Last year, there was Albert Pujols. Pujols was considered the best baseball player in the world when his services were up for bidding at the 2011 Winter Meetings (and while he had a quiet year this past season, he most definitely is still one of the best). There were plenty of other big name prizes up for grabs as well: Prince Fielder, C.J. Wilson and Hanley Ramirez to name a few.

This year? Not so much. The 2012 MLB free-agent class is much weaker. There are smaller names, and thus there will be smaller numbers next to the dollar totals on the contracts they will all eventually sign. However, there is one very interesting and big name out there: Josh Hamilton.

Yes, Hamilton, perhaps the biggest lightning rod in all of baseball. Just about every fan knows his story at this point. He was the number one overall pick in the 1999 MLB draft and shortly after spiraled out of control with drug and alcohol addictions. The addictions landed him on the unemployment line from 2004-2006, and only then did he get his life in order. After doing so, he worked his way into a major league lineup the hard way, and eventually landed with the Texas Rangers in 2008, where he finally showed his true ability and became a perennial all-star.

With his contract up and his power bat set to hit the market, Hamilton should be getting a seven-year deal worth $200 million plus, right? Wrong. While Hamilton has been a great story and an inspiration to many, his battle with alcohol and drugs is very real and will be an ongoing struggle until he takes his last breath. During his “story-book” tenure with the Rangers (that included two trips to the World Series), Hamilton had several relapses that brought negative attention to the team.

Last year specifically, after the team hired a traveling mentor/counselor to work with him and be his “sponsor” of sorts, Hamilton still relapsed, and after a monster start to his season, cooled off and hurt his team down the stretch.

Hamilton’s body has taken a beating (through no one’s fault but his own). Though he is only 31, you have to wonder if his body will hit a wall soon because of his past. Throughout much of the season, he sulked about not having a new contract from the Rangers, something that many members within the organization believe contributed to his decline in play during the season.

He is a great player, but he is also a burden. One mistake could literally kill him. It’s sad, but that is the harsh reality of being an addict.

Hamilton wants the big contract over many years, but I’m not sure he’s going to get it. The Rangers have already said they will not commit beyond three years.

To me, Hamilton is not worth the aggravation. He is a great player with a rare five-tool skill set, but his baggage may outweigh what his body will be willing to produce on the field in the next several years. Should the Rangers not retain him, one would have to assume it would be because another team is willing to commit big money beyond three years. To whatever teams are considering the idea, thinking they can swoop in and steal an MVP player, I’ll say this: be careful what you wish for.

Categories
Basketball Men Sports

Men’s basketball off to 6-1 start

Andrew Arnao
Senior Writer

After falling by a final of 60-57 in a close game at Penn State, the men’s basketball team returned to their winning ways on Nov. 27 with a 62-49 home victory against Dartmouth. The victory marked the 100th win in Sojka Pavilion for the Bison, and gives them a 6-1 record for the year.

The Bison held a 0-9 record at Penn State’s Bryce Jordan Center going into the game, and at first it looked like the Bison would break their winless streak. The Bison charged out to a 10-2 lead, led by six points from guard Bryson Johnson ’13. Though the Orange and the Blue continued to hold the lead for the remainder of the first half, going into halftime with a 22-16 advantage, the Bison offense only managed to make 35.7 percent of their field goal attempts.

“We didn’t play well,” forward Brian Fitzpatrick ’13 said. “We were out of sync offensively and had too many turnovers in the first half. We should have been up by a lot more than six at halftime. In the second half, we still struggled to score, but Penn State started hitting shots. ”

Almost non-existent in the first half, the Penn State offense exploded in the second half to the tune of a 65.4 percent shooting percentage on field goals. Though the Bison were able to keep up at first, Penn State tied the game for the first time at 34-34 and eventually went ahead for good after breaking a 39-39 tie with a jumper. The Bison kept it close, thanks in part to a strong 14-point effort from guard Cameron Ayers ’14, who hit a three-pointer with eight seconds left to make the score 59-57. Penn State then only managed one of two free throws, but the three-point attempt from Ayers did not find the net as time expired.

Johnson led the team with 18 points in the loss, while forward Mike Muscala ’13 recorded a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds.

“The Penn State game was tough because we started the game with too many turnovers and didn’t really get in a good flow offensively,” Johnson said. “We allowed them to stay in the game early and that allowed them to eventually take the lead on us and end up winning the game. It was a tough loss, but we will move forward and are already focused on Dartmouth.”

The Bison jumped out to another early lead against Dartmouth, delighting the home crowd with a 12-2 run to start the game. A rash of turnovers allowed Dartmouth to come back, and the Big Green managed to tie the score with six minutes remaining in the half. The two teams then exchanged leads over the next few minutes, with three free throws from Johnson giving the Bison a 25-24 advantage one second before halftime.

Though Dartmouth kept the score close, the Bison would not fall behind for the entire second half, and slowly began to break away. After Dartmouth managed to tie the score for the last time at 35-35, Muscala countered with a dunk, a three-pointer and four free throws to give the Bison a 44-35 lead. Dartmouth managed to crawl back to a 45-40 deficit, but a great steal by Ayers and back-to-back blocks from Muscala and forward Joe Willman ’13 kept the Big Green from getting any closer. Outstanding work on the foul line (8-8 in the last 1:20 and 29-34 overall) allowed the Bison to pull away for a double-digit victory.

Muscala and Ayers both had double-doubles, and Muscala also lead the team with 17 points. Willman and Johnson also had 13 and 10 points, respectively.

The Bison look to continue their seven-game winning streak against Ivy League teams as they travel to face Columbia tomorrow.

Categories
Basketball Sports Women

Women’s basketball continues win streak

Ajan Caneda
Copy Editor

After stumbling to a 0-2 start, the women’s basketball team bounced back to win its first game of the season against Canisius 59-50, giving head coach Aaron Roussell his first win as Bison head coach. On Nov. 21, the Orange and Blue carried that momentum back home, where they defeated Niagara 77-69, behind Alyssa Dunn’s ’13 career-high 23 points.

The Bison outscored Niagara 36-20 in the first half. Lindsay Horbatuck ’13 showed her balanced attack once again, scoring 10 points and pulling down eight rebounds in the half. The Orange and Blue got contributions from many members of the team during a 15-4 run that pushed the lead to 12 with 6:38 left in the half. Shelby Romine ’14 dished one of her four assists to Dunn who scored a lay-up to build the lead to 20. The Bison shot 41.2 percent (14-34) from the field to carry a double-digit lead into halftime.

“Something that has been very evident in our last three games is our team’s work ethic. Every night that we go out on the court, we vow to outwork and outhustle our opponents,” Horbatuck said.

In the second half, Niagara fought back to eventually cut the lead down to four with 3:13 left in the game. This arose from a 25-9 run that saw the Purple Eagles nail five three-pointers. It would not be enough to hold down the Bison, as Romine and Dunn combined for 14 of the last 15 points for the Orange and Blue to seal the win.

Despite the late Niagara run, the Bison never trailed in the game. Their 77 points is the most they have scored since Feb. 2011. Dunn also had a career-high six assists to go along with her 23 points and went a perfect 3-3 from three-point range and 8-8 from the free throw line, while Horbatuck had a double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds.

“During the last three games, I think we really came out strongly as a team. Even when we went through rough spots, we persevered and turned things around quickly. Above all else, we never doubted that we could win,” Dunn said.

Following the win, the Bison bested Morgan State 72-64 in Baltimore, putting them over .500 for the first time since the 2008-2009 season.

The game got off to an early start when a Morgan State technical foul led to a free throw by Romine right before the opening seconds of the game. A pair of free throws by Horbatuck capped a 9-0 start for the Bison. The Orange and Blue led for most of the first half, but the Bears eventually regained a one-point lead at the break.

Even with a 4:03 field goal drought in the second half, Sheaira Jones ’16 scored a lay-up to take the lead that the Bison never relinquished to pick up a win against the Bears. Dunn, Romine and Felicia Mgbada ’13 each scored in double figures, while Audrey Dotson ’15 and Horbatuck each had nine points to go along with a combined 20 rebounds. The Bison out-rebounded the Bears 53-33.

“One of the little things includes rebounding, which I think my team has excelled at recently. Getting offensive boards turns into second chance opportunities and getting defensive boards turns into transition which is a huge part of our offensive game,” Horbatuck said.

The Bison continued their early season dominance with a fourth straight win over Mount St. Mary’s. Dunn and Romine each finished with 11 points, while Jones had a near double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds. The Bison led by 10 at halftime, a lead that would be cut down to two in the second half, but Dunn and Katherine Harris ’15 made two key three-pointers down the stretch that lifted the Bison to the 55-43 win.

The Bison look to extend their win streak, as they face Buffalo tomorrow at 7 p.m. in Davis Gym, followed by a match-up at Penn on Dec. 3.

Categories
Beyond the Bison Sports

Beyond the Bison: Sports News Across the Nation

Julian Dorey
Writer

It’s time.

After what will be 14 seasons of both good and bad times, the Philadelphia Eagles must part ways with Andy Reid.

Another season is preparing to come and go without much hope for a mere playoff birth.  The team has tuned him out, making the same amateur mistakes week-in and week-out. Turnovers, penalties, lack of fundamentals, poor blitz-pickups, etc. The laundry list of repeated issues has been growing for the past several years.

Calling for Reid to pack his things and walk out the door isn’t meant to paint him as a bad football coach. In fact, he’s a good one, and if he can find a way to put a ring on his finger one day, he’d be a great one.

No, calling for Reid’s job is simply a task in applying a simple “law” of human fallibility: he’s been coaching in one place for too long.

Reid is an Eagles institution. His West Coast offense, his ability to develop quarterbacks and his many winning seasons will eventually be recognized by Philadelphia faithful with respect and gratitude one day. But right now, every fan’s primary wish is to start over with a new Eagles hierarchy next season.

For years, Philadelphia has been fed the idea that their team is “this close” or “on the verge” of winning the big one. Talented Pro-Bowlers like Donovan McNabb, Brian Dawkins, Jeremiah Trotter, Hugh Douglas, Troy Vincent, Brian Westbrook, Terrell Owens, Asante Samuel, Trent Cole, Michael Vick, DeSean Jackson and LeSean McCoy have played at the highest of levels for Reid at Veterans Stadium, and later Lincoln Financial Field. But the team trophy case lacks the most important one of all.

How can an owner who at least claims to be so hungry for a championship prove to the rest of his organization that he means it? He can start by moving out the winningest coach in franchise history. You know why? Because wins don’t mean much in the long run when you can’t win the big one.

Let’s face facts here. I mentioned earlier that Reid’s teams have seemingly tuned him out at times over the past few seasons. The results would reflect that. Since the 2008-2009 season, the team has appeared in just two playoff games over three seasons (not including this year’s seemingly hopeless 3-6 squad) and lost both of them. Since a Super Bowl appearance in 2004 that followed a streak of four straight NFC Championship game appearances and five straight trips to the playoffs, Reid’s teams have returned to the postseason just four times over seven plus seasons, and they’ve won a grand total of three postseason games. If you put those stats up next to other NFL coaches’ stats over the past seven years, you would find them to be middle-of-the-pack at best.

For all of Reid’s great qualities, his same issues have persisted. He is a poor clock manager, he fails to make in-game adjustments and his play-calling is about as hopelessly unbalanced as it gets.

With another season ready to come and go without so much as a winning record, it’s time for owner Jeffrey Lurie to come to his senses and start anew with a coach that will wake the players on the Eagles’ roster up.

If you ask me, Reid doesn’t have the ability to do that anymore.