Category: Women

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Sports Volleyball Women

Women’s volleyball wins first two in PL play

Katherine Harris
Writer

The women’s volleyball team had a breakout performance at home last weekend, beating both Lehigh and Lafayette in five sets each to end its losing streak and earn its first two wins in Patriot League play.

“The team did an amazing job all across the board. Everybody that came on the court made a contribution, and we were definitely playing as a team this weekend. We were playing for each other,” Kebah Edoho ’13 said.

The Bison faced Lehigh on Oct. 19, trying to break their losing streak. The team started off strong, winning the first two sets of the match, before facing a Mountain Hawks comeback in the third and fourth sets. The Orange and Blue battled back in the final set to take the victory.

Morgan Mientus ’14 and Edoho both had impressive matches, with Mientus finishing with 11 digs, eight kills and four blocks, while Edoho had eight kills and seven blocks. Claire Healy ’16 played strong, grabbing a double-double of 15 kills and 14 digs, as well as four blocks. Her fellow teammates also led in many ways, with Meghan Wentzel ’16 having 21 assists and four service aces, Karen Campbell ’16 recording eight blocks and Katie Price ’16 posting a career-high 22 digs.

“I was really proud of my team this weekend. We finally pulled everything together and took control of the game. It felt great to play up to our potential and finally come away with a W instead of a moral victory. We also had a lot of girls step up,” Kat Tauscher ’13 said. “On Friday it was so much fun to play in front of so many fans. They were extremely loud and supportive and really helped us push through and win that fifth set.”

The Orange and Blue then went on to face Lafayette on Oct. 20. The team started slow, losing the first two sets. They stayed strong and fought back to win the match in five sets.

Mientus, Wentzel, Tauscher and Kristen Titley ’14 all had standout performances on the day, with all four recording double-doubles for the Bison. Leylin Marroquin ’14 also had her best match of the season, recording a season high of 16 digs on the day.

“This is the BUVB I know, and I am glad that we are finally starting to show it,” Edoho said.

The Orange and Blue will continue Patriot League play at home next week when they face Holy Cross on Nov. 2 at 7 p.m. On Nov. 3 the Bison will have their final regular season home game, battling Army at 5 p.m. in Davis Gym.

Categories
Golf Sports Women

Lee leads women’s golf

Alex Wagner

Sports Editor

On Oct. 15 and 16, the women’s golf team earned a ninth place finish at the Mid-America Conference Preview tournament in Nashport, Ohio behind a career-best performance from Jen Lee ’16.

Lee shot a 74 on Monday, just two above par, and an 83 on Tuesday to tie for 13th place in individual scores and to become the Orange and Blue’s top performer.

Unfortunately, her strong individual performance did not translate to a top spot for the Bison, who finished in ninth place out of 15 teams with rounds of 320 and 325.

Bridget Wilcox ’14 also performed well, shooting rounds of 77 and 82 for a 159 total, earning her a tie for 20th place, just two strokes behind Lee. Lauren Bernard ’14 finished in a tie for 46th with a 164, Kasha Scott ’14 finished in a tie for 57th with a 166 and Emily Timmons ’15 finished in a tie for 72nd with 171 strokes.

Ball State won the tournament with a team score of 621, followed by Bowling Green State with 624 and Eastern Michigan with 625.

The last event this fall for the Orange and Blue will be the Palmetto Invitational at Kiawah Island, S.C. on Oct. 28-29.

Categories
Soccer Sports Women

Women’s soccer shut out

Ajan Caneda
Copy Editor

After dropping its first conference game against Colgate on Sept. 29, the women’s soccer team bounced back to pick up home wins over Holy Cross and Army. Unfortunately, the Orange and Blue were unable to capitalize on its scoring opportunities against American, falling 1-0 to the Eagles on Senior Day. Seven seniors were honored, including midfielder Taryn Boucher ’13, who had a team high of seven shot attempts in the loss. Currently, the Bison are 9-7 overall, with a 2-2 record in Patriot League play.

“There was a lot of excitement going into the game, but we understood that it was important for us to stay focused on beating American,” Boucher said. “Unfortunately, although I think we were the better team, we could not come back from their goal in the first half. Sometimes that’s just the game of soccer.”

The Bison struggled on offense early, reeling off only three shot attempts in the first half. American countered with eight of their own and found the back of the net in the 25th minute for the 1-0 lead. Despite the low shot production, the Bison kept the pressure on with four corner kicks in the half.

In the second half, the Bison picked things up, trying to even the score. The Orange and Blue outshot the Eagles 11-4 in the half. This included a blocked shot attempt by Boucher that would have been the equalizer for the Bison. Despite the shot advantage for the Orange and Blue, American stayed strong in goal, not allowing anything to go past the net, including a Kayla Yee ’13 penalty kick that sailed over the goal post.

Goalie Sandita McDermott ’13 finished with three saves, while Boucher, Yee and Liz Dwornik ’14 combined for 12 of the Bison’s 14 shot attempts.

“It was definitely a hard loss, especially on Senior Day,” Yee said. “We started out slow in the first half and American capitalized on their chances. In the second half, I thought we were the better team but weren’t able to find the back of the net.”

Yee and McDermott reflected on their journeys as Bison soccer players.

“The past four years at Bucknell have been amazing. My teammates and coaches have been the best part of my experience … and I’m definitely going to miss them next year,” Yee said.

“Being a member of this team really embodies something so much more than yourself and allows you to not only grow as an individual but really grow with a group, particularly with the six other girls in my class. I would say that being a part of this team is what made my Bucknell experience as amazing as it is,” McDermott said.

The Bison start a three-game road trip against two Patriot League rivals this weekend. They will travel to Bethlehem, Pa. tonight to face Lehigh. On Sunday, the Orange and Blue will make their way to Easton, Pa. to battle Lafayette at 1 p.m.

“Although the loss was disappointing, our season is far from over. We have a really important weekend coming up versus Lehigh and Lafayette, and it’s important for us to put this defeat behind us and focus on winning our next three league games and securing our spot in the tournament,” Boucher said.

Categories
Field Hockey Sports Women

Field hockey shut out

Andrew Arnao
Senior Writer

The field hockey team fought hard but eventually fell to No. 14 Lafayette on Oct. 13, suffering a 2-0 shutout against its Patriot League rival. The Orange and the Blue now have a 2-1 record in the Patriot League standings and an 8-7 record overall.

The Bison defense was tremendous throughout the game, holding Lafayette to just two shots in the first half and only one shot in the second half. Unfortunately, two of those well-placed shots managed to get past goalie Erica Perrine ’14, giving Lafayette a 1-0 lead in the first half and an insurance goal early in the second half.

“The game went very well other than the score,” head coach Jeremy Cook said. “They are ranked 14th in the nation for a reason, but we really played well and had them on the ropes for some of the first half and the majority of the second half.”

The Bison offense kept the pressure on the Leopards and proceeded to outshoot them 8-3, including a seven-shot outburst in the second half. Though none of the shots found the back of the net, it was clear that the Orange and the Blue offense was in control for most of the second half.

“[We] outshot them and out cornered them, but they were able to score and hold us off which is something Lafayette has done well all year against good teams,” Cook said. “We had all the right answers, just couldn’t find the back of the net. This does give us a lot of confidence heading in to the final couple weeks of play and the tournament … now we are all hoping we can earn a second shot at them in the title game.”

The Bison continue Patriot League play tomorrow with their final home game against Lehigh at noon. Tayler Siegrist ’13 and Kelly Stefanowicz ’13 will also be honored as part of the team’s Senior Day.

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Cross Country Cross Country Men Sports Women

Cross country divides forces

 

Edward Louie | The Bucknellian
Bison runners forge a path at the front of the pack. Pre-Nationals proved to be a tougher test for the Orange and Blue than the Gettysburg Invitational.

Billy Tyler
Contributing Writer

The men’s and women’s cross country teams divided their squads last weekend to compete at both Pre-Nationals in Louisville, Ky. and the Gettysburg Invitational in Gettysburg, Pa. The divided teams produced varying results at two premier events with extremely competitive fields.

Pre-Nationals, featuring a strong national caliber field, presented a tough test for the Orange and Blue. The men’s team goal to finish in the top half of the competitive field was hindered by some bad luck, in the form of several falls early in the race to key runners, including Glen Williams ’15 and D.J. Krystek ’13. John Dugan ’15 managed to finish the eight-kilometer course strongly coming in 146th place with a time of 24:48.3. He was followed by Michael McGowan ’15 in 177th (25:05.1), Charles Seigneur ’13 in 188th (25:08.4), Andrew Garcia-Garrison ’15 in 190th (25:10.1) and Tyler Erhard ’14 in 243rd (25:54.7).

“[The falls] really cost our team quite a bit,” head coach Kevin Donner said.

Donner is still confident his team gained valuable experience from the event and will bounce back to perform well at the Patriot League Championships.

The women’s team had similar results in the event, which featured a fast and aggressive field. The quick pace left several members of the Bison struggling to sustain the tempo in the last bit of the six-kilometer race. Leading the way for the Bison was Caroline Tolli ’13, who finished 13th overall with a time of 21:47.

Both teams fared better at the Gettysburg Invitational. The men’s team had a second place finish out a field of 35 teams. The team also had two members finish in the top 20 in of the eight-kilometer race, with Andrew Kuchta ’16 (26:02) and David Strauss ’14 (26:09) taking ninth and 18th place, respectively. The Bison finished the event with a total of 70 points, second only to Lock Haven with 50 points.

The women’s team had an equally strong result at the event, taking the third place spot in a field of 36 schools. Just as with the men’s team, the women’s team was led by members finishing in the top 20, with Becky Snelson ’15 (23:13) taking 17th place and Emily Waksmunski ’14 (23:18) taking 19th place.

“Overall, everyone ran really well this weekend, and I think it was a good confidence booster to have this as our last meet before Leagues,” Snelson said.

Many of these reserves provided solid results and several were able to earn spots on the travel roster for the team’s next event, the Patriot League Championships, which will take place on Oct. 27 in Hamilton, N.Y.

Categories
Men Sports Tennis Tennis Women

Tennis duos shine

 

Chloe Chou | The Bucknellian
Maria Cioffi ’16 extends to reach the ball. She had a strong weekend for the Bison individually and in her double play with Elenca Vidrascu ’14

Alex Wagner

Sports Editor

Men’s tennis teammates Chris Tortora ’14 and Jonathan DeFrancesch ’15 and women’s tennis teammates Maria Cioffi ’16 and Elena Vidrascu ’14 saw success in doubles and singles play in the Lehigh Invitational last weekend.

Tortora and DeFrancesch together accounted for seven of the team’s 15 wins over the weekend after each went 2-0 in singles play as well as combining for a 3-0 doubles record, including a highly-contested 9-7 win over Lehigh.

“This was the second tournament that Johnny [DeFrancesch] and I have played together in, and we keep making strides in improvement,” Tortora said. “Johnny is an energetic player and that really helped me get my blood flowing. We beat our opponents more so because of our high levels of intensity than anything else.”

Evan Zimmer ’13 also had a good weekend as his 1-1 singles record and 2-1 doubles record with partner Josh Katten ’13 moved him up three spots to fourth place on the Bison’s all-time win list. He is now 119-63 in his career with the Orange and Blue.

“This weekend went very well for not only me, but the team as a whole,” Tortora said.  “We got to match up our lineup versus some quality opponents and we fared very well. I was able to be effective with my serve and I stayed mentally tough throughout all of my matches.”

On the women’s side, Cioffi and Vidrascu had similar success as a duo and as singles. They went 2-1 in doubles after two tight 9-8 wins against Lehigh opponents. They are now 10-3 together on the season. Cioffi also went 2-0 in singles with defeats of Delaware and Lehigh.

Although Vidrascu was unable to get a win in singles, her doubles success moved her up to a tie for 18th place on the Bison’s career wins list, as her record is now 38-35.

Jen Bush ’15, Christie Schneider ’15 and Stephanie Pino ’16 were also able to contribute to the Orange and Blue’s success as they each earned a singles victory against Lehigh.

The men’s team will be back in action from Oct. 18-22 as Zimmer, Katten and Kelly Morque ’13 head to Charlottesville, Va. for the ITA Regional Championships. The women’s team will not be competing until the start of dual play on Feb. 2.

Categories
Sports Volleyball Women

Volleyball struggles against PL rivals

 

Heather Oros | The Bucknellian
The Bison move quickly to cover their side of the court. Over the weekend, American and Navy found a number of holes in the Bison’s defense.

Katherine Harris
Writer

The women’s volleyball team wrapped up its first round of Patriot League play last weekend, ending in losses to both American and Navy at home.

The Bison went up against a tough American team on Oct. 12. While they put up a strong fight in pushing the Eagles to four sets, the team ended with a loss for the night. Since the Orange and Blue have lost in straight sets in their last four meetings with American, they considered their performance to be a definite step in the right direction.

“This past weekend we came out really strong against American. We truly gave it our all but still weren’t able to come through with the W. We made American earn every point that they received on the scoreboard,” Claire Healy ’16 said.

Many individuals performed strongly for the Bison in the match. Morgan Mientus ’14 recorded her first double-double of the season with 15 digs and 13 kills, while Karen Campbell ’16 racked up 10 kills and four blocks. Healy recorded 11 kills, Meghan Wentzel ’16 totaled 28 assists and Katie Price ’16 brought in a career-high 20 digs on the night.

The Orange and Blue then hosted Navy on Oct. 13. The team struggled to bring the same intensity as the previous night and lost in three straight sets to the Midshipmen.

“We just have this issue where not everyone is ‘on’ on the same night. Some of us will be playing so well one game and then struggle the next,” Mientus said.

Mientus racked up nine kills and six digs on the day, while Healy gained her fourth double-double of the season, recording 13 kills and 11 digs. Wentzel also once again led the Bison in assists for the match, this time bringing in 13 for the team.

The Bison will begin their second round of Patriot League play tonight at 7 p.m. as they host Lehigh. Though they lost 3-1 in their first meeting with the Mountain Hawks, the team is confident that this could be the game to break their losing streak.

“We definitely need some consistency and hopefully the juniors and sophomores can step into the starting line up a bit more and use our experience to provide more consistency,” Mientus said. “Going into the second half of Patriot League play, I hope we can redeem ourselves and show the teams that we are indeed a force to be reckoned with!”

Categories
Soccer Sports Women

Women’s soccer falls two times

Ajan Caneda
Copy Editor

The women’s soccer team struggled this past week, falling 4-1 against Colgate in its Patriot League opener on Sept. 29. On Oct. 2, the Orange and Blue put up a valiant effort against No. 4 Penn State, but were unable to contain the offensive attack of the Nittany Lions, suffering a 3-1 loss in Happy Valley.

During this season, the Bison (7-6) have gotten off to early leads that have allowed them to control the tempo of the game. In the Orange and Blue’s home conference opener, Colgate struck first, scoring its first goal in the ninth minute of the match. The Raiders continued to pressure the Orange and Blue, reeling off 14 shot attempts and six corner kicks in the first half. A Bison own goal pushed the lead to 2-0 at halftime.

“It was a pretty tough game, and Colgate finished their best chances, while we struggled a bit in that area,” Courtney Nelson ’15 said.

In the second half, Cassie Denger ’15 offered a cross-pass to Evelyn Nicinski ’15, who nailed a goal off of a leaping volley. The Orange and Blue were able to outshoot Colgate 11-10 in the second half. Unfortunately, the Raiders answered with back to back goals in the 56th and 59th minute to seal the game.

Nicinski led the Bison with four shot attempts. Nelson, Kayla Yee ’13 and Chelsey Garkowski ’14 each had three. Goalie Sandita McDermott ’13 finished a complete game with seven saves.

“We can’t let this one defeat keep us down; Colgate is a good team, but we haven’t peaked yet and will keep on improving,” Nelson said.

Following the loss, the Orange and Blue traveled to State College to face Penn State. The Bison were strong defensively, holding the Nittany Lions scoreless for a majority of the first half. A Bison foul led to a penalty kick goal for Penn State, giving them the lead at halftime.

After a Penn State goal in the 58th minute, the Bison countered with a goal from midfielder Jenna Tryon ’13, her first since her first year. Midfielder Taryn Boucher ’13 had a chance for the equalizer down the stretch but was unable to convert. The Nittany Lions scored their final goal in the 74th minute off a cross pass to finish a 3-1 victory.

McDermott had 11 saves, off of 20 Penn State shot attempts, 14 of which were on goal. This is only the second time this season that the Bison have lost consecutive games.

This was the last non-conference game for the Bison, and they look to regain momentum as they return home for two Patriot League contests this weekend. The Orange and Blue face Holy Cross today at 7 p.m., followed by a match against Army on Sunday at 1 p.m.

“As a team, we will be picking each other up and working on communication as we prepare for Holy Cross this weekend,” Nelson said.

Categories
Men Sports Swimming & Diving Swimming & Diving Women

Swimming opens season

Lauren Boone
Contributing Writer

The men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams began their season against UMBC in Baltimore last weekend with the men winning eight races and the women winning seven.  The meet was not scored, so as to give the teams a chance to experience competition early in the season.

For the women, Emma Levendoski ’16 led her team with the most wins in her first collegiate competition. She took first in the 50, 100 and 200 backstroke, while Kelly Pontecorvo ’14 won the 500 and 1,000 freestyle. To round out the first place finishes for the Bison, Lauren Perry ’15 won the 200 freestyle and Elizabeth Porcellio ’13 won the 200 individual medley (IM). Additionally, Perry was the runner-up in the 50 freestyle, while Porcellio finished second in the 100 and 400 IM.

“Overall, the meet was a success and a good start to the season. It was a low stress meet so it was really just a good way for me, as a freshman, to see how the team works in a meet situation. Everyone swam as well as they expected to and we all had a great time,” Levendoski said.

On the men’s side, Cameron James ’16 proved himself with a trifecta of victories, winning the 50, 100 and 200 freestyle heats. Mike Nicholson ’14 won the 200 and 400 IM races, while Trevor Reitz ’14 won the 50 butterfly. Ben Seketa ’15 won the 200 breaststroke and Christian Treat ’13 won the 100 breaststroke.

“I think the meet this past weekend was a great first step in our season. We wanted to start off well as a team, and I feel we did just that,” James said. “This was my first competition as a member of the men’s swimming team, so I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to prove myself. However, it is still early in our season, which means we have a lot of work ahead of us as a team. Our goal is to get better every week, and we began looking forward to our next contest at the conclusion of Saturday’s competition.”

Additionally, Brian Phillips ’16 placed second in the 1,000 freestyle, JT Nangle ’16 finished second in the 50 backstroke and third in the 100 backstroke and Wes Marberry ’16 took third in the 200 backstroke.

The men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams will be back in action in two weeks when they travel to Storrs, Conn. to take on UConn on Oct. 20.

Categories
Sports Tennis Women

Women’s tennis picks up more wins

Andrew Arnao
Senior Writer

The Bison women’s tennis team participated in both the St. Joseph’s Invitational and the Bloomsburg Fall Classic last weekend. The Orange and the Blue picked up 12 wins at St. Joe’s and 10 wins at Bloomsburg.

“The other schools there presented us with some pretty tough competition, and we all were able to rise up to the challenge,” Jen Bush ’15 said. “As a team, we’ve been working hard to add more variety to our game in matches, and I think our efforts paid off in the tournament this weekend.”

Doubles partners Maria Cioffi ’16 and Elena Vidrascu ’14 advanced to the semifinals after victories over St. Joseph’s and Pittsburgh. Unfortunately, they were unable to beat Carmen Lai and Dorothy Safron of Delaware in the semifinal. In the singles matches, Cioffi and Bush also advanced to the semifinals, but fell to Aurora Davis of St. Joseph’s (6-7, 6-2, 10-2) and Camila Diaz of Saint Francis (6-3, 6-4), respectively.

“The St. Joseph’s Invitational was a great experience for the six players that went because there were so many more schools that participated than usual, and strong teams,” Vidrascu said. “Although as individual players we didn’t get any titles, it was definitely something we all needed in order to see the different levels of competition that we will be facing in the spring.”

At Bloomsburg, Christie Schneider ’15, Sam Madnick ’16 and Claudia Silvers ’15 won in the first round of singles. Silvers also posted a win in the second round. The doubles combination of Schneider and Elizabeth Morgan ’14 also won their first round match against Bloomsburg but fell 8-0 in their second match. Madnick and Kristen Bishof ’15 were the only Bison able to pick up wins on Sunday.

The next scheduled event for the Bison will be the Lehigh Invitational on Oct. 12-14.