The Bucknellian

By Chris McCree

Sports Editor

Player Profile:

John Dugan

First-year

Ramsey, N.J.

Undeclared

Season Stats:

Meets: 4

Top 10 finishes: 2

Best time: 25:43

Best finish: 6th

Men’s cross country runner John Dugan ’15 received Patriot League Rookie of the Week honors for the second time this season after an impressive performance at the Princeton Invitational on Saturday. Dugan posted a time of 25:51 at the Tigers’ eight-kilometer course and helped the team claim eighth place in a highly competitive field of 14 teams. Individually, Dugan finished 56th out of 139 runners and was the Bison’s top first-year runner for the third time this season.

The consistently strong performance of the first-year class has been one of the biggest surprises for the men’s team this year. Dugan and Michael McGowan ’15 have led the first-years and together have earned Patriot League Rookie of the Week honors three separate times. Impressively, Dugan is the only Bison athlete to win this award multiple times this year and the only first-year runner to place in all four of his meets. With the regular season coming to a close and championships rapidly approaching, it will be important for Dugan to build on his string of solid performances. Over the course of the next three weeks, the Bison will compete in the Patriot League and Mid-Atlantic Championships.

By Julian Dorey

Contributing Writer

For a diehard Philadelphia fan like me, yesterday was a nice change of pace. It was the first day without a thought of the Phillies’ “black October” (since the unceremonious end of the now-dreaded postseason), and the first day since that disappointing Phillies loss that the Eagles have played second fiddle to another Philadelphia sports team.

The Phillies and the Eagles were shunted behind a Philly team with the biggest news of the day. No, I’m not talking about the Flyers. I’m talking about the 76ers.  Remember them?

While the prima donna parade—the NBA lockout mediation meeting—was going on in D.C., the Philadelphia 76ers stole the thunder in the local market by unveiling their new ownership group.

While it’s understandable that some people are simply turned off to the NBA and could care less right now, I’d say that even the casual fan should at least perk his or her ears up on this one. The 76ers finally have some new blood. After 15 years being responsible for his “red-headed stepchild,” as Anthony Gargano from 94.1 WIP-FM put it to me on air yesterday, Ed Snider finally decided to relinquish his power so that the Sixers could have an ownership strictly dedicated to their well-being. For those of you who are unaware, Snider has owned the Philadelphia Flyers since its establishment in 1967.

So, who are the new guys?

Well, the new ownership team is a bit crowded.  But, in essence, the team is comprised of 15 investors, with two having the largest stake in the team.  However, there are a couple of the minority owners who actually do matter.

But  just who are these new owners?

To help break down and predict the makeup of the Sixers’ new brass, I’ve decided to invoke some parallels from the greatest film of all time, “The Godfather.”

The Don Corleone of the Philadelphia 76ers is majority owner Joshua Harris.  Harris is a New York investor, who, at age 46, is already worth an estimated $1.45 billion.  Harris has been serious about purchasing the Sixers for a long time and finally went through with it in July.  The deal took 3 months to be ratified by the NBA.  While Harris is the managing owner, Sixers coach Doug Collins wasn’t afraid to say that Harris isn’t exactly a basketball analyst. Harris is a shrewd and cunning business man.  He made it clear in the press conference that he will run “the business end” of things and make sure that the Sixers become a prospering “family” in the long run.  He has entrusted the basketball decisions to Sixers president Rod Thorn and Collins.

Already, WIP’s Howard Eskin seemed to have his doubts as to whether or not Harris understood just how much of a financial failure the 76ers were last year.

I think I’ll give “the Godfather” a chance to work his business magic for the next couple years.  Then we can talk, Howard.

The Michael Corleone of the 76ers is co-owner and newly-appointed CEO Adam Aron.

Aron is the other “investor” with a major stake in the team.  He will be living in south Philadelphia, “outside the Italian Market,” as he said (unlike Harris, who will be commuting via train from New York).  Aron will be the second in command and will oversee all day-to-day operations of the Sixers.  He too made it clear that he is entrusting the basketball decisions to Rod Thorn and his basketball-educated staff.

Aron will probably do more talking than Harris, as he seems to be a more outgoing man interested in dialoguing with the people.  To start off his reign with the Sixers, Aron has set up a webpage for Sixers fans to send in suggestions for the team.

OK, so he may be channeling Sonny’s sin of “letting other people outside the family know what he’s thinking”—but I like it.  The organization has been losing money for years, and in order to buck that trend, Aron has to go straight to the source—the fans.

Did I mention the Sixers slashed the seating prices by 50 percent?

Yeah, I’d say that’s a good start.

There are a couple more “family members” the fans should be aware of. I’d like to call them both the Tom Hagens of the Sixers—but in their own rights.

The first minority owner that fans should know about is Jason Levien.  Levien is a former NBA agent with vast knowledge of the game, and he is one of the first agents to become an owner of an NBA team in league history.  He will provide some good input for salary cap strategy and will certainly add some basketball knowledge to the ownership group.

The second consigliere is a guy that I consider “the ace in the hole” of the entire ownership group: rapper/actor Will Smith. Smith is a native of Philadelphia and a lifelong fan of the 76ers.  Until several years ago, he was a season ticket holder who attended many games throughout the year.

Somehow, during this entire buying process, all sides were able to keep their mouths shut and avoided mentioning Smith as a potential buyer to any news outlets.

I believe that Smith is going to prove to be a huge asset to the organization—and it’s not just because his star status will bring some much-needed publicity to the franchise.

No, Smith gets us.  He gets the fans.  He gets Philadelphia.  He knows what we want and what we expect.  The only other Philadelphia native on the ownership team is Aron, and he hasn’t lived here since he was 20 years old. Smith has a chance to be the quiet voice in the background giving valid input on important franchise decisions—from marketing ideas to internal discussions regarding potential transactions. Obviously, the man knows a bit about the game.

Yesterday was a great day for the 76ers.  It’s their time to move forward and regain the popularity they once had.  Unfortunately, with the lockout, many of the changes and progress the new owners want to make will have to be put on hold. But the moment that lockout ends—whenever that may be—expect this “family” to start “gaining some new territory.”

—With respect to the NBA, that is.

By Thomas Walter

Contributing Writer

The women’s golf team finished sixth this past weekend at the CSU Wendy’s Invitational in Charleston, S.C. Three Orange and Blue players finished in the top 25 or better with Kasha Scott ’14 heading the team with a seventh place finish.

After the two rounds, Scott ended with a final score of 149 which was good enough for her second top-10 finish of the season.

“I was just trying to make pars and avoid any big numbers at all costs,” Scott said. 

Bridget Wilcox ’14 finished in tied for 21st with 154 and Minjoo Lee ’12 finished in t-23rd with a 155.

In the nice weather the women had a strong showing in their second to last tournament of the year. The Bison shot 310 in the first round and 309 in the second. For the first time all season the team was not playing in the rain.

“The weather was finally nice–hot and sunny; the first tournament it hasn’t rained the entire season. It was a great tournament and great course, we have all worked a lot on our game and it is definitely showing,” Wilcox said.

The team has continually posted good results throughout this fall season and the key to the team’s early success has certainly been the consistently solid play of the sophomores.

“Kasha and Bridget played great and they have been playing well all season,” Lee said.

Wilcox and Scott have been providing solid scoring all fall long, especially Scott. This t-7th is her fourth t-20 finish in five tournaments this fall.

This weekend, Scott and the rest of the Bison look to continue this hot streak in their last tournament of the season at the Palmetto Invitational in Kiawah Island, S.C.

By Andrew Lichtenauer

Writer

The men’s tennis team ended the fall season this weekend at the Lehigh Fall Championships. Leading the Bison were Josh Katten ’13 and Kelly Morque ’13, who teamed up for a perfect 3-0 record in doubles and went 2-0 in singles. As a team, the Bison finished the weekend at 17-9.

In the doubles bracket, Katten and Morque worked hard for their success. The two opened with a pair of 8-6 wins, first over Saint Francis and later against Lehigh. They went on to finish the draw with an 8-5 win over Delaware.

“We just really wanted to give it our all since this was the last tournament of the fall season,” Morque said.

According to Morque, two final round losses to teammates Gregg Cohenca ’12 and Evan Zimmer ’13 earlier in the season motivated him to play well at Lehigh.

Katten and Morque made their mark in Bison record books after their play at Lehigh. For the first time in his career,  Katten is now ranked among the top 20 players in singles victories with a career record of 38-32. Katten also moved up to 13th in doubles (44-22) and 16th in combined win record (82-54). Morque is now tied for 19th in doubles (37-28) and 30th in combined wins (64-47) at the University after his showing this weekend.

This marks the end of the fall tournament schedule for the men’s tennis team.

“The positive results from the fall give our team confidence going into the spring. As a team, we are all proud of our results and level of play so far, but there’s still a lot of work to do. The goal is to play at an even higher level in the spring,” Morque said.

After taking the winter off, the Bison will return to the courts on Feb. 3 to take on Saint Francis in Loretto, Pa.

 

By Katherine Harris

Contributing Writer

The women’s cross country team sent its top 10 runners to the muddy Penn State National Invitational, competing against Patriot League Rivals Lehigh and Colgate, as well as No. 19 West Virginia and other top programs from around the country. The Bison took 11th as a team, with Alysha Hooper ’12 taking the 51st spot overall, and Stephanie Fulmer ’12 and Kelly Grosskurth ’12 also placing the top 100.

“This past weekend was true cross country and we walked away covered in mud,” Hooper said. “We wanted to do better than we did, but our team is still developing in the right direction. For the next two weeks we will have one focus: Patriot Leagues.”

While those who competed at Penn State rested, on Saturday other Bison ran against some top Division II and III teams. Placing second out of 31 schools, the second squad for the Orange and Blue had many top finishers, including Katie Jessee ’15. With her second consecutive top 10 finish, Jessee was the first rookie and the sixth overall runner to cross the finish line.

“We ran with a lot of guts and conviction. I was very pleased, especially with Katie Jessee,” Head Coach Kevin Donner said. “She is starting to really develop into a distance runner.”

From here, the Bison are setting their sights on the Patriot League Championships looming just around the corner. With no meets this upcoming weekend, the team will be focusing all efforts on making sure it is completely prepared to compete for that top spot on Oct. 29 at Lehigh.

“As we move forward, the team needs to continue to work on mental toughness,” Fulmer said. “We expect individuals to step up and rise to the occasion of Patriot League’s and place themselves in a position to help us win. We are training under the notion that the Bison always come through, when it matters most.”

Donner also emphasizes the importance of the team’s mental state as they head into the final stages of the season.

“We are not exactly where we need to be, but we are getting closer. The muddy conditions affected a few of our runners more than others, however it was there for the entire field, so we cannot use it as an excuse. We are expecting muddy conditions at Patriot Leagues on Oct. 29 and we are going in with the intentions of winning,” Donner said.

By Alex Wagner

Contributing Writer

The men’s cross country team placed eighth this past weekend at the Princeton Invitational on the Tiger’s eight-kilometer course.

Dave Brown ’12 was the top finisher for the Bison, earning 31st place overall with a time of 25:29. 

“I have been battling some training issues that hit me hard with around a mile and a half to go, which resulted in a sub-par performance,” Brown said. “The rest of the team, especially the freshmen, ran really well though.”

D.J. Krystek ’13 narrowly missed out in the top 50 with a time of 25:46, earning him 51st place. John Dugan ’15 was not far behind, with a time of 25:51, which got him into 56th place. Dustin Horning ’13 was next for the Orange and Blue in 60th and a finish of 25:55. Andrew Kirna ’15 rounded out the Bison’s top five finishers with a time of 26:20, earning him 78th place.

Eric Balaban ’14 ran the course in 26:40 to earn 89th place and Glen Williams ’15 squeezed into 100th place with a time of 26:56.

“I didn’t run a very smart race this week, and my time suffered,” Williams said. “It was good to see many of my teammates do well.”

He was followed by Tyler Erhard ’14, who placed 113th, and Brian Charland ’13, who placed 137th, with times of 27:21 and 29:28, respectively.

Cornell earned first place in the team standings with 50 points, and Ben Sathre of St. Thomas (Minnesota) took in the top individual spot with a speedy time of 24:29.

“Coming into the race, we were feeling pretty optimistic. There wasn’t any pressure to beat specific teams, and we were there just to run our race,” Brown said. “Overall, it was a good tune up for the league championships in two weeks.”

The Bison hope to build off of this weekend’s strong finish when they go to the Patriot League Championships at Lehigh on Oct. 29.

“It’s an exciting time to be a freshman on the team,” Williams said. “A lot of the young guys are looking forward to contributing in the championship season.”

By Ajan Caneda

Writer

The Bison field hockey team split this weekend’s games at Lehigh and Towson. The team traveled to Bethlehem, Pa. to take on the Mountain Hawks on Saturday, and despite their aggressive play early on, the Bison ended the game with a 1-0 loss. On Sunday, the Bison went to College Park, Md. and improved their overtime record to 3-0 after forward Mallory Smith ’12 scored the game winning goal against Towson, her second goal of the game.

The Mountain Hawks struck first, scoring the first goal just 10 minutes into the game. The Bison outshot Lehigh in the first period 8-5 but were unable to convert. They continued the barrage of shots on the Mountain Hawks in the second half, outshooting them 17-2 and 10-1 in penalty corners. It was to no avail, as Lehigh prevented the Bison from scoring and had 15 saves for the whole game.

“The Lehigh loss was a big one, as we now need to beat Colgate on the road just to get into the Patriot League Tournament. We felt like we really controlled the game and just couldn’t find the net,” head coach Jeremy Cook said. “Their goalkeeper had a fantastic game, and we were a bit unlucky at times. Making the most of your opportunities is often what it comes down to and Lehigh was able to do that.”

Following the loss at Lehigh, the Bison came away with a hard-fought overtime victory over Towson. The Orange and Blue got off to a quick start as Smith scored the first goal 45 seconds into the game with an assist from forward Rachel Misko ’14. The Bison and the Tigers both had five shots in the first half. Towson scored an assisted goal in the 59th minute but forward Katie Durkin ’13 immediately responded with a goal of her own with an assist from midfielder Vickie Resh ’14. Towson evened the score with an unassisted goal before overtime. The Bison quickly ended the Tigers’ night as Smith scored three minutes into the overtime period off a rebound.

“Towson was a great win. They are a tough team from a very tough conference. Our overtime success is partly due to the format, and the extra space on the field suits our style of game and the players we have very well,” Cook said. “Although Towson created some momentum for itself with a late tying goal, we had all the confidence in the world going into overtime, and it really showed.”

The Bison look to carry this momentum into their game against American on Saturday.

By Colin Fields

Writer

The women’s volleyball team fell to Army in straight sets last Friday night, but rebounded the following day to defeat Holy Cross in straight sets on Saturday in Davis Gymnasium. The Bison’s Morgan Mientus ’14 and Jessica Serrato ’14 racked up a total of 29 kills to help beat the Crusaders.

The Orange and Blue offense stagnated in the first set against Army while only Mientus tallied more than one kill. Army’s offense struggled equally, trailing 18-16 late in the first set but were able to pull away 25-21 over the Orange and Blue. In the second set the Bison fell behind 21-14, but pulled out a 7-2 run of its own to draw within two of the Black Knights at 23-21. Army won the next two points and capped of the second set 25-21. The Black Knights carried this momentum into the third set and defeated the Bison 25-15. Kyleigh McAhren ’12 led the Bison with five kills.

“We have a lot to improve on and hopefully we can start winning consecutive games. Moving forward, we need to play more consistently and hopefully we can do so in our upcoming home matches,” Mientus said.

The Bison picked up their second straight Patriot League sweep on Saturday, Oct. 15. The offense was the difference, allowing the Orange and Blue to record their highest attack percentage of the year. The Bison took the first set 25-22 and the Crusaders never pulled closer than two during the duration of the set. The second set was closer, and while tied at 9-9, Rose Lewis ’14 served consecutive aces to gain the lead. The Orange and Blue were able to close out the second set by the same score of 25-22. In the third set, the sophomore tandem of Mientus and Serrato shined. Mientus scored three consecutive kills on assists by Kat Tauscher ’13 to gain an early lead and Serrato scored a kill to push the game to match point. Tauscher put the finishing touch on the victory with an ace for a 25-19 win in the final frame.

The Bison open up homecoming competition with a re-match against Navy tonight, their Senior Night. They face American tomorrow.

“I think that our team needs to work on finishing matches in the first three games, rather than giving the other team a chance. We had opportunities to beat Navy in the third and fourth games, but we didn’t capitalize on them. I feel good about our rematch with Navy because we have the home-court advantage this time around,” McAhren said.

 

By Scott Padula

Writer

Bison fans filled Kinney Natatorium this past weekend to watch the men’s water polo team go 2-2 against CWPA Southern Division rivals Princeton, Johns Hopkins, George Washington and the Naval Academy. The Bison opened the stretch by falling to No. 16 Princeton 9-8 in overtime last Friday night. The Orange and Blue bounced back Saturday, defeating Johns Hopkins 12-10 and George Washington 12-5. In a highly-anticipated conclusion to the weekend, the Bison lost to No. 17 Navy 10-8. The Orange and Blue are now 10-4 on the season and 5-3 in divisional play.

The Bison began the divisional stretch against the Princeton Tigers. Ten different Bison accounted for the 21 goals scored. More impressively, the Bison assisted on 20 of these 21 goals. Alex Nowlin ’14 had a team-high four assists and five points. Brian Barron ’13 led all Bison scorers with three goals. In goal, Matt Napleton ’13 blocked six shots and stole the ball four times. As a team, the Orange and Blue tallied 17 steals.

In the Bison’s first action on Saturday, the Blue Jays started the game strong, taking a 6-3 advantage into the half. The Orange and Blue would not be denied in the second half, outscoring the Blue Jays 9-4. The momentum shifted considerably in the third quarter as the Bison netted five goals compared to John Hopkins’ one. The win was in large part thanks to Julian Colina ’14 who tallied three goals and an assist. Jack Else ’14 also had four points with an even two goals and two assists. Napleton recorded 11 saves in 32 minutes.

In the nightcap, the Orange and Blue defeated George Washington in the 1,000th game in program history. The victory was a balanced effort as six different Bison posted a multi-point game. In particular, Beau Caillouette ’12 recorded a game-high six points with four goals and two assists. Else matched Caillouette in scoring. On the defensive end, Napleton had a strong performance with 10 saves in 32 minutes of action.

In the final game of the weekend, the Orange and the Blue faced Navy. The Bison took a 3-2 lead into the intermission and ended the third quarter ahead 6-4. In the fourth, the Orange and Blue were unable to contain Navy. The Midshipman scored six goals in the final quarter, more than they managed in the first three quarters combined. Nowlin netted two goals and dished out two assists. Caillouette and Mike Kimble ’14 collectively recorded an impressive 12 ejections, and Napleton had produce 15 total saves.

“In the Navy game, we played well enough for three quarters to establish a lead, but failed to finish. Our team needs to focus on closing out games in the future. Hopefully this weekend will be a good learning experience for our team as we head into some very important tournaments to end our season,” Napleton said.

The Orange and the Blue will travel to the West Coast this weekend where they will compete in the Santa Clara Rodeo.