Athletics > Weekly Lyon > April 7, 2008
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Baseball (19-4, 7-0) Pushes Winning Streak to 17, Remains Undefeated in NEWMAC Play
The Wheaton College baseball team, which is ranked 18th in the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) poll, extended its winning streak to 17 games last week, going 5-0 while remaining perfect in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) play. The Lyons, who are riding the second-longest win streak in program history, began play with a 3-2 victory against visiting Suffolk University on Wednesday before traveling to down Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), 7-4 on Thursday. On Saturday, Wheaton rallied past perennial regional power University of Southern Maine, 6-5 in Norton before sweeping a home doubleheader from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 6-0 and 3-0 on Sunday. The Lyons are off to the best 23-game start in program history.
Against Suffolk, Wheaton wiped out a 2-0 deficit before plating the winning run on a sixth-inning error. Juniors Robert Foote (Walpole, MA/Walpole) and Nick Pecora (Highland Park, NJ/Immaculata) each went 3-for-4 with an RBI, while sophomore Paul Malaguti (Andover, MA/Andover) had two hits. Junior Jared Barnes (North Attleboro, MA/Bishop Feehan) tossed three innings of two-hit relief for the win, while classmate Josh Simmons (Cranston, RI/Cranston West) fanned all five batters he faced for the save.
Freshman Sean Munley (Trenton, NJ/The Hun School of Princeton) went 4-for-5 with two runs, three RBI and three doubles at WPI, breaking a seventh-inning deadlock by doubling in the eventual winning run. Pecora doubled twice, senior Jake Yagjian (Brewster, MA/Nauset Regional), sophomore Jeff Lieneck (Foxboro, MA/Xaverian Brothers) and freshman Eric Laliberte (Nashua, NH/Bishop Guertin) had two hits each, and senior Scott Guillerault (South Portland, ME/South Portland) scored three runs. Senior Keith Pescosolido (Newton, MA/Newton North) earned the win with 2.1 innings of one-hit relief, while Simmons notched the save by striking out four batters in 1.1 frames.
Guillerault's two-run double in the eighth inning capped a three-run rally against Southern Maine, and Simmons fanned the side in the ninth. Simmons completed his week by recording all 12 of his outs via the strikeout, as just one of the 13 batters he faced reached base. Malaguti and senior Ken Depasse (Holden, MA/Saint John's) each had two hits, while Munley walked twice. Freshman Chad Kasik (Dudley, MA/Shepherd Hill Regional) yielded one run in 3.1 innings of relief to earn the win.
Against MIT, senior Chris McDonough (Weymouth, MA/Weymouth) and junior Adam Gingras (Woonsocket, RI/Woonsocket) each spun shutouts. McDonough yielded only four hits in the opener, fanning 10 while walking none. Foote drove in two runs, Pecora and freshman Hadi Raad (Hastings-on-Hudson, NY/Hastings) had two hits apiece, Yagjian scored twice, and Munley drew a pair of walks. In the second contest, Gingras allowed six hits and struck out seven without walking a batter. Guillerault and Munley each had two hits, while Lieneck and Munley notched an RBI apiece.
Thanks in large part to Gingras and McDonough, who have each tied a program record with two shutouts this season, Wheaton has notched five shutouts in 2008, one short of the school standard. McDonough is just the second Lyon to record a pair of two-shutout campaigns, having also done so last year, while Simmons has moved into a tie for fifth at Wheaton with five saves this spring. With 19 wins, the Lyons are close to reaching the 20-win plateau for the 11th time in the program's 11-year history.
Guillerault is among the top five in a number of career categories at Wheaton, ranking first in hit-by-pitch (32), second in home runs (23) and walks (109), tying for second in sacrifice flies (11), while sitting third in RBI (154) and doubles (46) and fifth in games (164). Yagjian is tied for second in sacrifice flies (11), tied for fourth in times hit by a pitch (24) and fifth in bases on balls (68). McDonough is first in strikeouts (212) and complete games (11), tied for second in shutouts (4), tied for third in wins (20) and fourth in innings pitched (231). Simmons is second in saves (13) and fourth in pitching appearances (50), while Pescosolido is fifth in games (47).
Malaguti Named NEWMAC Player of the Week for First Time
Malaguti was tabbed NEWMAC Player of the Week for the first time in his career for the week ending on Sunday, March 30. Malaguti batted .526 with seven runs and six RBI during a 5-0 week, notching at least one RBI and run in each game while slugging .579. Malaguti went 2-for-3 with two runs at Brandeis University on March 25 and 4-for-5 with a pair of runs and a double at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth on March 27. On March 29 at Springfield College, he was 2-for-4 with two RBI in game two of a doubleheader. Malaguti went 2-for-4 on March 30 against Endicott College.
Men's Lacrosse (2-6, 0-2) Falls Twice, Once During Overtime in Conference Action
The Wheaton College men's lacrosse team lost twice last week, first suffering a 19-10 setback at nationally-ranked Keene State College on Tuesday before slipping in overtime against visiting Lasell College, 7-6 on Saturday. The defeat against the Lasers was Wheaton's first during an extra session since 1999, as the Lyons had not lost in overtime at home since 1994. During the week, senior Richie Rasamny (Redding, CT/Joel Barlow) became the 12th player in program history with 100 career points.
At undefeated Keene State, which was ranked 18th nationally by the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA), Wheaton led by a 3-2 count with less than three minutes remaining in the first quarter before yielding 11 straight Owl tallies. The Lyons received two goals from freshman Chris Landers (Manchester, MA/Proctor Academy), while sophomores Andrew Brunhofer (Westfield, NJ/Westfield) and Connor Compton (Deering, NH/Saint Mark's School) and freshmen Mike Craig (Kennebunk, ME/Kennebunk), Will Henry (Alexandria, VA/T.C. Williams) and Duncan Smith (Centerport, NY/Harborfields) all recorded their first collegiate goals. Compton and Smith also each provided an assist. Sophomore Schuyler Horn (New Hartford, CT/Kingswood-Oxford School) made eight first-half saves, while classmate Alex Lewis (Westfield, NJ/Westfield) had six in the second half.
Against Lasell, the Lasers scored on the man up 24 seconds into overtime. Freshman Ben Cederberg (Duxbury, MA/Duxbury) tallied his second hat trick of the year and also had an assist, as his marker off a Rasamny pass with 2:48 remaining in regulation forced the extra session. Rasamny finished with two goals, while the helper on Cederberg's tally was his 100th career point. Sophomore Drew Schaffer (New Haven, CT/Loomis Chaffee School) added two assists, and Horn made 16 saves.
Rasamny is two points shy of being 11th in program history. In addition to 52 goals, Rasamny is sixth at Wheaton in assists (48), as he could become the fourth Lyon with 50 career goals and assists.
Women's Lacrosse (5-6, 1-2) Splits Pair of Home Contests During NEWMAC Play
The Wheaton College women's lacrosse team split a pair of home games during NEWMAC action last week, falling to nationally-ranked Babson College, 17-4 on Tuesday before defeating Mount Holyoke College, 20-10 on Saturday. The Lyons have already played three nationally-ranked teams.
Against Babson, which is ranked 11th in the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) poll, Wheaton yielded the first nine goals. Senior Sara Dimick (Cumberland, ME/Greely) scored twice, and junior Bridget Thornton (Southington, CT/Cheshire Academy) had a goal and an assist. Freshman Annalisa Carson (Yarmouth, ME/Yarmouth) made 13 saves.
Wheaton nabbed its first NEWMAC win of the year against Mount Holyoke, as four players had hat tricks. Senior Meredith Hurd (Bath, ME/Hyde School) scored five times, juniors Caitlin Grant (Walpole, MA/Walpole) and Madeline Williams (Annapolis, MD/Key School) tallied four goals each, and senior Alexa Jurczak (Davidsonville, MD/Miss Porter's School) added three markers. Freshman Abigale Magruder (Portsmouth, RI/Portsmouth) scored twice. Carson made three first-half saves, while first-year Marianna Marcellino (Milton, MA/Thayer Academy) had four stops in relief.
Hurd continues her climb up Wheaton's all-time charts. She is fourth in program history in career goals (143), as well as tied for fifth in points (160).
Softball (21-7, 7-3) Wins Seven of 10, Moves into Third Place in NEWMAC Standings
The Wheaton College softball team went 7-3 last week, including 6-2 in NEWMAC play to move into third place in the league standings with six conference games remaining. The Lyons began a stretch of 10 games in six days with a twinbill sweep at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 10-9 and 4-0 on Tuesday before splitting a non-conference doubleheader at Bridgewater State College on Wednesday, winning 7-1 in the opener before losing 6-0. At Babson College on Thursday, the Lyons won game one, 8-2 in eight innings but fell in the nightcap, 4-2. On Saturday, Wheaton split a pair of home games with Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), falling by a 10-0 count in six innings in game one before taking the second contest, 2-0. The Lyons finished their week with a Sunday sweep of Smith College, 3-2 and 20-2 in five innings. Wheaton has reached the 20-win plateau for the 15th straight season and is off to its best 28-game start since going 22-6 in 2003.
At MIT, Wheaton held on for a game-one win behind a school-record three sacrifice flies. Senior Erika Marini (Pawtucket, RI/Saint Raphael Academy) became the first Lyon with two in one game, scoring three runs with two RBI, while freshman Nicole DeRosa (Greenwich, CT/Greenwich Academy) became the first Lyon since 1999, and just the third overall, to hit a school-record two triples in one contest. She finished 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBI. Senior Audrey Poulton (Charlestown, RI/Chariho Regional) had three hits and three runs, junior Brady Benton (Concord, NH/Concord) added three hits and two runs, while freshman Rachel Merrick (Methuen, MA/Central Catholic) had two hits. Sophomore Andrea Bagley (Foxboro, MA/Foxboro) earned the win and freshman Courteney Collier (Bolton, MA/Nashoba Regional) the save. In game two, senior Jodi Moynagh (Worcester, MA/Holy Name Central Catholic) fired a three-hit shutout with 10 strikeouts and only one walk. Marini drove in three runs, Poulton was 3-for-3 with two runs, and Benton had two hits and two runs.
Against Bridgewater State, Moynagh yielded one run during a complete game in the opener, allowing five hits while striking out 10. Marini was 3-for-4 with two runs and two RBI, Poulton went 3-for-4 with two runs, DeRosa notched two hits and a pair of RBI, and Benton contributed two hits and two runs. In the second contest, Wheaton was blanked on seven hits. Marini and senior Alix Brozman (Chappaqua, NY/Horace Greeley) each had two, with Brozman tripling.
The Lyons rallied with six runs in the eighth inning in the first game at Babson. Junior Stacey Kelleher (Brockton, MA/Brockton) homered to knot the game in the seventh before Merrick singled in the go-ahead run later in the inning, but Babson tied the score in the home half. In the eighth, Merrick slugged a grand slam for her first collegiate home run as the big blow in the frame. She finished with three hits and five RBI, Kelleher and freshman Kristen Hunt (Milford, CT/Jonathan Law) each had two hits and two runs, while Poulton added two hits. Bagley earned the win with 1.2 innings of shutout relief. During the nightcap, Marini and junior Lynn Cotto (Brookfield, CT/Brookfield) each went 2-for-3, but the Lyons relinquished a 2-0 lead by allowing all four of Babson's runs in the fourth inning.
Wheaton dropped its opener with WPI, suffering a loss by the eight-run mercy rule to a NEWMAC team for the first time since 2000. Benton picked up two hits. In game two, Moynagh spun a three-hit shutout, striking out 10 while walking only one. Marini and Merrick each had an RBI.
The Lyons pulled out a game-one win over Smith when Marini scored from third on a two-out wild pitch in the bottom of the seventh. Kelleher doubled and picked up Wheaton's only RBI, while Moynagh struck out seven and earned the win. In the second contest, Wheaton hit the 20-run plateau for the first time since 2000, rapping out 18 hits and swiping seven bases. Kelleher went 4-for-4 with three runs, five RBI and two doubles, and Brozman was also perfect at 3-for-3. Merrick finished 2-for-3 with two runs, four RBI and three stolen bases, Benton and Poulton each went 2-for-3 with three runs, and Marini scored three times and walked twice. Cotto added a 2-for-4 effort with two runs, two RBI and two steals, while freshman Julie Murray (Canton, MA/Canton) smacked her second home run of the year and finished with two runs and two RBI. Poulton, who made just her third pitching appearance of the season, and first start, allowed one earned run on six hits in five innings, fanning two.
Already this season, the Lyons have hit 17 triples, tying for third in program history behind the record of 19. Wheaton's pitching staff has a school-mark five saves, thanks in part to Collier's record-tying two this season. Meanwhile, Moynagh has become just the third Lyon pitcher to post three 100-strikeout seasons. The Class of 2011 already has the highest long ball total for any freshman class in program history, with 12, surpassing the Class of 2000's eight from 1997.
Brozman is eighth in program history in career sacrifice hits (25), while Benton and Marini are each tied for ninth in home runs (9). Marini is also tied for eighth in sacrifice flies (6), tied for ninth in times hit by a pitch (5) and 10th in doubles (30). Moynagh is third in each strikeouts (443), appearances (84) and innings pitched (465.1), tied for third in both wins (46) and saves (3), and fourth in shutouts (13) and complete games (46). Poulton is first in saves (4), fourth in strikeouts (172), fifth in appearances (62) and tied for eighth in wins (22), while Bagley is 10th in strikeouts (98) and tied for 10th in wins (17).
Men's Tennis (7-2, 2-0) Wins Lone Match of Week, Downs Coast Guard in NEWMAC Play
The Wheaton College men's tennis team, ranked 18th in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's (ITA) Northeast poll, earned a 6-3 NEWMAC victory against visiting United States Coast Guard Academy on Saturday during its only action of the week. Freshmen Harry Altman (Riverdale, NY/The Dwight School) and Brian Krantz (Milford, CT/Joseph A. Foran) yielded two games apiece during singles sweeps, while sophomore Kyle Hudgins (Uxbridge, MA/Uxbridge) and freshman Gregory Poulin (Boxboro, MA/Home Schooled) each won in three sets. The doubles tandems of Poulin/sophomore James Little (Mount Desert, ME/Mount Desert Island) and Hudgins/Krantz won.
Wheaton Trio Captures NEWMAC Weekly Top Singles and Doubles Honors
Hudgins was named NEWMAC Singles Player of the Week for the week ending on Sunday, March 30, while Little and Poulin corralled the league's doubles team-of-the-week honor. Hudgins went 2-0 out of the third singles position, blanking a University of Massachusetts at Boston opponent on March 25 before winning 6-0, 6-1 against Clark University on March 29. Little and Poulin won twice at first doubles, notching an 8-1 triumph against a Beacon duo before knocking off a Cougar tandem, 8-3.
Track and Field Athletes Qualify Three Times for NCAA Championship at Stonehill
The Wheaton College men's and women's track and field teams had three athletes provisionally qualify for the NCAA Championship during Saturday's Skyhawk Invitational at Stonehill College, where the Lyon women placed fourth out of 11 scoring teams, and the men were 5th among 12 squads.
Junior Chizoba Ezeigwe (Brockton, MA/Thayer Academy) played a hand in two wins for the women, including provisionally qualifying for nationals in the 100-meter dash in 12.06. Ezeigwe fell 0.06 seconds short of an automatic standard. For the winning 4x400M relay, Ezeigwe joined classmates Natana Jules (Brooklyn, NY/Boys and Girls) and Celeste Karpow (Wilton, CT/Wilton) and freshman Laurenmaria Smith (Providence, RI/Hope). The second provisional qualifier was freshman Erin Neville (North Providence, RI/La Salle Academy), who won the high jump at 5' 5". Wheaton's second-place finishers were Jules in the 400M, Karpow during the 400M hurdles, senior Megan Brousseau (Attleboro, MA/Attleboro) in the 800M and freshman Diana Kornberg (Highland Mills, NY/Monroe-Woodbury) in the shot put.
On the men's side, sophomore Howard Powell (Brooklyn, NY/Boys and Girls) had a role in a pair of victories, including winning the 110-meter hurdles in 14.86, which provisionally qualified him for the NCAA Championship. The triumphant 4x100M relay team included Powell, junior Jonathan Cunha (Lexington, MA/Lexington) and sophomores Mark Cimino (Danbury, CT/Danbury) and Merzudin Ibric (Revere, MA/Phillips Academy). Freshman Marcus Kohlman (Milton, MA/Milton) won the high jump competition at 6' 6", coming within one inch of a provisional qualification.
Powell Earns ECAC Track Co-Athlete-of-the-Week Accolade
Powell was named Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Track Co-Athlete of the Week for the week ending on Sunday, March 30. Powell played a hand in two event wins during Tufts University's Snowflake Classic on March 29, capturing the 110-meter hurdles in 15.12, beating the runner up by 0.19 seconds, before running leadoff for the victorious 4x100M relay quartet. The foursome finished in 43.91, besting a pair of Division I teams.
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