Category: Sports

By Heather Kuch
Sports Editor

The Ohio Wesleyan Women’s Field Hockey team finished last week with two conference wins over Oberlin and Wittenberg bringing their record to 5-4.

OWU played Oberlin on Sept. 27 and Wittenberg on Saturday at Selby Stadium. The Bishops were able to defeat Oberlin with a score of 2-1.
Senior midfielder Lauren Bailey and freshman attacker Montana Knapp scored the two goals for the win against Oberlin on Thursday.

Bailey said each win helps the team to learn about what works best for them.

“Our team is young but we are progressively growing and building confidence,” Bailey said. “Each win continues to help us realize that we are a good team with the potential to win the conference this year.It’s nice that our team’s talent is spread throughout every player instead of having one or two standout players because everyone contributes.”

The Bishops scored at the end of the first half in the game against Oberlin as Bailey rebounded a blocked shot into the Yeowomen goal.
In the beginning of the second half, Knapp increased the Bishop lead to 2-0 when she scored the second goal for the Bishop offense.

Despite a comeback attempt from Oberlin, which brought the score to 2-1, the Bishop defense was able to hold off further scoring attempts and end the game.

Freshman keeper Karson Stevenson, said the win was challenging because most of the team members are not at their full performance.

“Most of the team is actually sick right now so everyone was working extra hard to play past that,” Stevenson said.

“Securing the win gave us the motivation to continue forward. This season has been about pushing past limits and achieving new heights. Even when we lose we are learning new things, constantly improving.”

Junior attacker Jenna Ortega agreed with Stevenson and said the game could have gone better even though they were able to pull off the win.

“Our game against Oberlin was not our best performance but we were able to come out with the win nonetheless,” Ortega said. “We were inconsistent on Thursday and did not connect as a team until the second half.”

The Bishops were also able to defeat Wittenberg with a score of 2-1 with goals from Ortega and junior attacker Sadie Slager.

Knapp said the team is ready for every game they play and they rely on working on their fundamental skills.

“We (were) really excited about our game today and we (couldn’t) wait to get on the field and do our best as a team,” Knapp said.
The first goal of the game came in the second half when Slager was able to score on the Tiger keeper with an assist from Knapp.

The Tigers were able to tie the game shortly after Slager’s goal and tried to score twice more but Stevenson was able to stop both shots.

Ortega was able to score a goal for the Bishops with a penalty shot in the final seconds of the game which gave the Bishops their second conference win of the week.

Sophomore attacker Daylin Stevens said the team played well because they wanted each other to succeed.

“Our team is a family as well as the many connections throughout the field,” Stevens said. “If someone falls there is always someone there to catch them. We work as a unit, not as individual players; it’s a team sport and some games are better than others.”

Ortega said she believes the wins last week will help the team in the coming weeks.

“I think the back to back wins this week has given us the momentum that we need,” Ortega said. “We hope to keep up the winning and dominate the second round of conference games. When we started the season no one expected anything from our team. Now after our first round of games I think that we are a threat to each and every team in our conference.”

Bailey agreed with Ortega and said getting two big wins within the conference season are essential.

“We have eight games left and seven of those games are conference teams, so every game is important,” Bailey said. “I think we are definitely gaining respect within the conference and our opponents are realizing that we are competitors.”

Stevens agreed with Bailey and said the team plans to keep working hard no matter what their record shows.

“Our team goals are to just keep improving and once we hit a high point on the ladder we cannot go back down,” Stevens said. “Every win or loss is just more fire underneath us to do better the next day.”

The Bishops play Saturday at Selby Stadium at 11 a.m. against the DePauw Tigers.

By Jenna Rodcay
Transcript Reporter

OWU’s Battling Bishops football team took home their first conference win of the season against the Oberlin College Yeomen on Saturday at Savage Stadium with a final score of 29-17.

First year head coach Tom Watts said he was pleased with the way the team came together to get the win.

“Overall it was a great win,” said Watts. “We had guys play well in all three phases.”

Though the Yeomen were the first on the scoreboard with a field goal, the Bishops evened the score during their first possession with a 24-yard field goal from sophomore kicker Miles MacKenzie.

At the end of the first quarter, the Yeomen quarterback was sacked by sophomore linebacker Morgan McBride and junior defensive end Jonathan Valentine.
The quarterback’s next pass was intercepted by junior Rayce Risser.

Though OWU’s junior quarterback Mason Espinosa threw an interception during the second quarter, the Bishop defense did not allow the Yeomen to score.
During their next possession junior wide receiver Dave Mogilnicki, scored the first OWU touchdown.

Shortly after, senior linebacker Tyler Sheetz intercepted a pass from the Yeomen quarterback for a 15 yard drive keeping OWU in the lead at half time with a score of 16-10.

The Bishops didn’t put any points on the board during the third quarter but held the Yeomen offense until the end of the quarter when they scored a touchdown, bringing the Yeomen ahead of the Battling Bishops, 17-16.

During the fourth quarter McBride intercepted a Yeomen pass leading to a touchdown by sophomore runningback Kevin Herman.
Herman said the Bishop defense played a key role in the win.

“Our defense did a good job of giving us the opportunity to score with four interceptions,” Herman said. “The offense clicked as a whole and was motivated to score after [each interception].”

Junior cornerback Leonard Gleaves ended the game by intercepting another Yeomen pass and preventing them from scoring again.

Watts said he looks forward to the Battling Bishop’s first home game of the season.

“It’s good to be 2-0 and come home and play,” Watts said. “Hopefully we can come home to a big crowd and do it again.”

At the end of the game MacKenzie had a total of 5 field goals breaking an OWU record set by Pete Billington in 1968 and a North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) record of 4 field goals.

He also broke records with his points scored by kicking and was named OWU athlete of the week.

The OWU record had previously been set by Billington in 1968 with 13 and the NCAC record of 16 points.

MacKenzie said he did not believe his teammates when he was told that he had broken school records.

“Breaking some of the records was a nice surprise,” MacKenzie said. “I just hope we can use all of this energy to get ready for Case next week.”

The Bishops play Case Western Reserve University on Saturday, Sept. 22 at 1 p.m. at Selby Stadium.

By Taylor Smith
TranscriptCorrespondent

The women’s cross country team looks ahead to qualifying for the NCAA championship meet again despite setbacks early in the season.

The team begins this season without two of their All-North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) runners due to graduation and injury.

According to third year head coach Matt Wackerly, junior Cara DeAngelis, defending NCAC champion is going to be out most of the season, and possibly the entire season, with a stress fracture in her foot.

Even with the setback, the team feels confident in their ability to do well this season. Senior captain Emily Johnson said the team is very young but they share the same goals.

“Everyone is willing to put all of their effort in, including even changing their lifestyle to completing the goals we want to as a team,” Johnson said.

Johnson said at first DeAngelis’ injury might have caused the team morale to slip, but it is now a driving force for the team.

“We have that chip on our shoulder to prove that we’re still a good team,” Johnson said.

Wackerly said he believes DeAngelis’ presence during her injury is great. He said she is there every day on her crutches at practice while most runners would be devastated with that kind of injury.

“She (DeAngelis) inspires me, inspires me as a coach, that kind of commitment she has is extraordinary,” Wackerly said.

Wackerly said there is a group of six freshmen on the team that have started to distinguish themselves and are ready to pick up some of the slack.

“They’re all good, hungry, an aggressive group,” Wackerly said. “The future is extremely bright.”

Johnson said they’re ready to take on the conference. The NCAA pre-season rank has last year’s conference champions, Oberlin, ranked in the top 20 in the nation.

“Oberlin is a really deep team,” Johnson said. “It was unexpected, with our numbers, to get second (at NCAC championships) last year.”

Wackerly said Oberlin is a good team, but he also knows that DePauw is an underrated team which will likely be ranked later in the season.

Johnson said she believes Wackerly is more involved this year and outspoken. She said he has confidence in the younger team.

“His (Wackerly’s) presence is stronger,” Johnson said. “His enthusiasm changed, I honestly think because he sees our potential and what our team can be.”

By Liza Bennett
Transcript Reporter

The Ohio Wesleyan Women’s Field Hockey team has started the 2012 season with a double header that left the team with a 1-1 record.

OWU played Bethany and Hendrix back to back on Sept. 2 and Sept. 3 at Selby Stadium. The Bishops were able to take down Bethany with a score of 9-0. Senior Lauren Bailey was the lead scorer in the win against Bethany.

“I did not expect to be the lead scorer in the first game, so it was very humbling and I wouldn’t have been able to score if our team didn’t work together as a whole,” Bailey said. “I didn’t score my first goal until my junior year, but it’s fun to have the opportunity to contribute to the team in different ways, since in the past my contributions were mostly defensive.”

Ohio Wesleyan took the lead just over five minutes into the game when junior defender Jenna Ortega sent the ball from the middle to the left side, where senior midfielder Calina Hilyard was able to score; they continued to outscore Bethany for the duration of the game. The Bishops outshot Bethany, 70-0.
The Bishops were unable to continue their winning streak on Sept. 3 and lost to Hendrix 2-0.

Bailey felt as though having two games back-to-back may have contributed to the defeat the suffered against Hendrix.

“We played Hendrix the day after Bethany so I think we were all a little tired and we didn’t play to our full potential,” Bailey said. “We can look at our mistakes from the Hendrix game and focus on improving those areas for our next game.”

Ortega, who is one of the captains, said that the team performed well for the first two games, but still has work to do.

“There are only 16 of us this year and all 16 girls have something to contribute to the team because we are only as strong as our weakest player,” Ortega said. “Since we are a small team we have been able to connect well on and off the field, this has been clear since the first day of preseason. The upper class-men have returned ready to play and we have a strong and ambitious freshman class.”

Senior Captain Calina Hilyard has high hopes the team will have a season to remember.

“I feel as though we have the tools we need to have a winning season that we can all be proud of, it’s just a matter of putting the pieces of the puzzle together which I know we will do very soon,” Hilyard said. “I can’t wait to have the best possible senior year season with my fellow teammates.”

The next home game for the Bishops will be on Wednesday, Sept. 19 against Wooster at 4:30 p.m. at Selby Stadium.

By Taylor Smith
Transcript Correspondent

Despite having some big shoes to fill, the men’s cross country team sets their sites on a bright future as the season kicks off.
The team returns this season with some big names missing. Three All-North Coast Athletic Conference runners graduated last year and a fourth, senior Shane Brandt, is out for the season.

Brandt is out for the season with a torn tendon in his knee. Entering his third season, Coach Matt Wackerly said between Brandt and the team’s top 3 graduates from last year their top four runners are gone. But there are younger runners there to step up.

“I think guys like [sophomore] Landon Erb, [seniors] Nathan Kafity and Tyler Tomazic, all had really good summers and are committed to doing something special,” Wackerly said. “And so I think we can surprise some people.”

Kafity, one of the team captains, said he believes the team isn’t as consistent and solid as last year and looks a little more spread out than what it has been in the past.

He said there is still some hope, though.

We have a lot of potential,” Kafity said. “We’ve had some people show they can do big tings, but it’s still too early to tell.”

The team is going to have a lot on their hands for conference contention. The NCAA has both Alleghany and Wabash teams ranked in the top 20 in the nation.
Kafity said he believes Alleghany, ranked in the top 10 past five years, is coming down form their five year high after losing some big names and have a shot against them.

Wabash, number two in the conference last year, is also weaker and the top three schools (Alleghany, Wabash and OWU respectively) all lost their strongest runners, but still show a balance of young potential.

Wackerly said that Alleghany and Wabash are both returning with some outstanding teams.

“Alleghany brought in maybe the best freshman I’ve ever seen in the NCAC to be honest,” he said. “Ohio Sate doesn’t have guys as fast as him an he is in our conference.”

Wackerly said there is no shame in finishing third in this conference.

There is also a large freshman class this year that shows a lot of potential. With eight our of the 17 men on the team freshmen, Kafity said there is a great mix of guys on team that create a whole new dynamic.

Wackerly credits the upper classman for setting the pace and example for the large young group.

“Our seniors really done a good job in terms of leadership,” he said. “In terms of showing these younger runners what it means to be an Ohio Wesleyan cross country runner.”

Wackerly said he is not changing anything in his coaching method this year, but Kafity said that he is addressing a lot of the smaller details and that that is a sign of what a good coach will do.

The men’s cross country team has run at Kenyon and placed fifth of 11 at the OWU Invitational this past weekend. Their next meet is the pre-NCAC Invitational at Wooster Sept. 15.

By Ellin Youse
Transcript Reporter

After three sets of intensely strategized rallying, Ohio Wesleyan’s volleyball team was unable to successfully combat Muskingum Wednesday, September 5 at Edwards Gym.
TheMuskingum Muskies won the game scoring 23-21 in the first set, 25-20 in the second, and 25-18 in the third set.
Muskingum began the first set with a 15-9 lead against the Bishops, followed by a strong rally by OWU to harbor in on the Muskies 15-17.
However, kills from Muskingum’s Hanna Rose and Katie Sidwell kept the Bishops at bay to finish out the first set 23-21.
The start of the second set saw a strong offensive attack from OWU, giving the Bishops a 10-6 lead. The Muskies quickly retorted, with a well-strategized strike targeting the Bishops’ defensive specialist, freshman Danielle Birney. Birney managed to initially stop the kills, but Muskingum gained a point running Birney around in long rallies.
The Bishops came out obviously determined once again in the third set, but after a series of blows by Muskingum and several defensive missteps, lost 25-18.
Senior middle hitter Ashley Haynes said it was it was a really tough mental game.
“Our chemistry as a team hadn’t quite clicked at the right moments and it’s hard to get that momentum back up once you’re down,” Haynes said.
Freshman Elizabeth Simmons said that, although the lady Bishops did not play their best, they still made the Muskies work for their win.
“We did not give up. We did keep fighting back,” Simmons said. “After Muskingum took the lead, it wasn’t like we put our heads down and were finished playing. We kept working hard even though things weren’t going our way during the game.”
Freshman libero Danielle Birney said the game could be used as a learning experience for the future.
“We didn’t play as a team,” Birney said. “We werent ready for the game like we thought we were, but we are taking this opportunity to better prepare ourselves for the upcoming obstacles.”
Senior setter Brittany Vickers said she agreed with Birney.
“We are a relatively young team and so we need to go into every game with confidence, but not cockiness, each game is an experience we need to learn from so we can continue to be successful as the season progresses,” Vickers said.
Although the Bishops lost Wednesday, they won three games during their opening tournament this weekend.