Posted by: Ryan Maurer

Rebecca Russ

Deb Muller

A fairy tale 2002 season continued last week as the Wittenberg field hockey team claimed two more victories to race out to an 11-0 overall record, including a 7-0 mark in the NCAC. The Tigers held strong in the national rankings that are dominated by traditional east coast powers, moving up two spots to No. 12. Wittenberg has the most wins of any team in the poll, which was released Monday evening.

As an added bonus, senior Tiger captain Rebecca Russ (Louisville, Ky./Sacred Heart) was named NCAC Player of the Week for the first time in her career. A 2001 third-team All-America selection, Russ spearheaded a defensive effort that allowed just 11 shots on goal in two games last week.

A mid-week 1-0 victory over Earlham was made possible by the usual stellar defensive effort and yet another timely score by senior forward Emily Duh (Hellertown, Pa./Saucon Valley), who put home her 14th goal of the season in the second half after sophomore Deb Muller (Weston, Conn./The Millbrook School) providing the assist.

Duh was ranked No. 2 in the country last week in goals with 14 and first in scoring with 34 points. Her 3.09 points per game leads the NCAC by a wide margin.

On Friday, there was a rare occurrence - someone scored against Wittenberg and sophomore goalkeeper Jen Meyer (Solon, Ohio/Hathaway Brown). Meyer, who hadn't conceded goals in any of her previous six NCAC games and was on a four-game shutout streak, gave up an early tally against Wooster in a key mid-season showdown between two of the top conference title contenders. Meyer came into the weekend ranked among the nation's best in save percentage and goals against average.

In response, freshman Emma Rufleth (Clinton, Conn./The Morgan School) provided a quick cross for sophomore forward Katie Houchens (Denver, Colo./Kent Denver) to fire home a one-touch shot late in the first half to even the score. Then Rufleth turned from provider to scorer in the second half as she fired a hard shot from the top of the circle after a pass from midfielder Blair Ufer (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer).

The Tigers get a rare break this week and their next game is scheduled for Saturday at Denison. The Big Red are perennially one of the top teams in the league who figure to be smarting after losing 4-0 earlier this season to Wittenberg.

Next: 10/12 @ Denison, 4 p.m.

---

Monica McDonald

Sarah Yuskewich

Volleyball (18-4, 5-0 NCAC) Coach: Connie Surowicz (ninth season) Perfect. That's what the Wittenberg volleyball team has been in the North Coast Athletic Conference since 1997. That's what the Tigers were again last weekend as they crushed Oberlin and Wooster in an NCAC tri-match hosted by the Yeowomen.

Currently riding a nine-match winning streak and coming off a first-place finish against a loaded field in the Wittenberg Invitational, the Tigers, ranked No. 13 in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association Division III poll, posted a pair of shutout victories over Oberlin and Wooster. Not only has Wittenberg not yielded a match in conference action since 1997, they haven't given up a single game in one of those matches in at least three years.

Oberlin was the first victim, as the visiting Tigers allowed just 48 points in the entire match, winning 30-19, 30-11, 30-18. It was more of the same against Wooster, as the Tigers allowed the same number of points in claiming a 30-22, 30-14, 30-12 victory.

With just three NCAC matches left in the regular season, the Tigers' star players continue to shine. On attack, sophomore outside hitter Monica McDonald (Newark, Ohio/Catholic) leads with 340 kills in her 73 games, as well as 51 service aces. A 2001 All-NCAC and All-Great Lakes Region selection, McDonald leads the conference in kills per game and ranks among the top 20 nationally in the category as well. Senior middle hitter Tiffany Keller (Massillon, Ohio/Tuslaw), the NCAC Player of the Year in 2001 and last week's Player of the Week, is second with 221 kills, closely followed by Lindsay Nelson (Massillon, Ohio/Tuslaw) with 211.

Sophomore setter Sarah Yuskewich (Columbus, Ohio/Watterson) has been nothing short of outstanding setting up the kill experts. She has contributed 1,094 out of the Tigers' 1,113 assists, easily the best in the NCAC and among the top five in the nation. Sophomore Emilie Schmid (Canton, Ohio/Massillon Jackson) has done a great job on the defensive end for the team, leading with 296 digs, while senior Teresa Murphy (Blacklick, Ohio/Newark Catholic), tops on the team in the category the last three years, checks in with 283 digs.

The Tigers' next match is an NCAC game at Ohio Wesleyan before four outstanding teams invade the HPER Center for this weekend's Wittenberg National Invitational. Joining the Tigers in this Homecoming weekend competition are Nazareth, Baldwin-Wallace, Thomas More and Rochester Institute of Technology.

Next: 10/9 @ Ohio Wesleyan, 7p.m.

---

Raymar Hampshire

Jered Glover

When it rains it pours. No, not the weather. In Springfield, Ohio, it has been raining touchdowns for senior tailback Daniel Grove (Uhrichsville, Ohio/Claymont).

Grove, the leading scorer in the NCAC and in all of NCAA Division III, tacked on three more touchdowns last Saturday against Denison in a 53-7 romp for the Tigers. And that was without playing a single snap in the second half.

Grove scrambled for touchdowns of 39 yards, 14 yards and five yards to take his tally for the season to 13. They were part of an efficient 18-carry, 173-yard performance for the senior, who now ranks No. 2 in school history with 264 career points.

Sophomore fullback Raymar Hampshire (Lima, Ohio/Elida) chipped in with two scores and a career-high 72 yards. Senior quarterback Greg Cornett (Franklin, Ohio/Franklin) guided the Tigers' ball-control offense well, finishing 14 completions in 18 attempts for 187 yards and one touchdown. That scoring pass went to freshman Jered Glover (Middletown, Ohio/Middletown), who had his best day in the Red & White with seven receptions for 114 yards. Junior wide receiver Skip Ivery (Columbus, Ohio/Groveport-Madison) was the other favorite target of the Tiger quarterback, hauling in six passes.

On the defensive front, senior linebacker Dustin Goldsbury (Columbus, Ohio/Ready), who was named NCAC Player of the Week after making three tackles, two drive-killing sacks for a loss of 14 yards and one interception against Thomas More the previous week, led the Tigers with 10 first-half tackles. In his stead, freshman linebacker Anthoni Fazio (Chagrin Falls, Ohio/Chagrin Falls) contributed seven tackles in the second half.

Next up for the Tigers is a crucial Homecoming battle against Wabash this Saturday at Edwards-Maurer Field. A standing-room-only crowd is anticipated in a game that will go a long way toward determining the 2002 NCAC champion and who gains the opportunity to participate in the NCAA Division III playoffs in November and December. Wittenberg, which is riding a conference record 30-game NCAC win streak and a home winning streak of 36 games dating back to 1996, has won the last four titles outright.

Next: 10/12 vs. Wabash, 1 p.m.

---

Matthew Berry

Brian Armstrong

Yet again one goal was enough to consign Wittenberg men's soccer team to defeat in both matches last week.

The first defeat came at the hands of Earlham on Tuesday despite senior forward Brian Armstrong's (Delaware, Ohio/Dublin Coffman) first-half goal. Armstrong's team-best fifth tally of the season came off a pass from senior midfielder Stefan Christman (Dublin, Ohio/Coffman). But the Tigers couldn't hold on in the second half as they surrendered two goals to the Quakers. The game was made even more difficult by the fact that they played most of the second half with just nine players thanks to a pair of red cards.

The same 2-1 scoreline was repeated on Saturday as the Tigers took on Denison at home in front of a Parent's Weekend crowd. Denison took the lead in the first half, but freshman Matthew Berry (Tipp City, Ohio/Tippecanoe) equalized things with his third tally of the season. The score remained there, despite a Wittenberg penalty kick that went awry, until Denison scored the winner with just five minutes remaining in the game.

Wittenberg now gets a rest until next this weekend's Homecoming game against nationally ranked Ohio Wesleyan, the defending conference champion and 2001 NCAA Division III Final Four participant.

Next: 10/12 vs. Ohio Wesleyan, 3:30 p.m.

---

Rachel Ridgeway

Allison Spansky

A young, struggling Tiger women's soccer team got a nice boost last week in a game against visiting Urbana. Wittenberg, playing without its two injured leading scorers, scored a 2-1 win over the Blue Knights on Wednesday at Bill Edwards Field.

After a scoreless first half, the final 45 minutes offered plenty of action, and the winning tally came with just minutes to spare. Sophomore midfielder Rachel Ridgeway (Montclair, NJ/The Taft School) put the Tigers ahead with 15 minutes remaining in the game, but Urbana tied things up just minutes later. To the rescue came junior Allison Spansky (Munroe Falls, Ohio/Stow-Munroe Falls), who put the winner away at the back post to give Tigers their 4th win of the season.

On Saturday, the parents who came to campus for their specially designated weekend were, unfortunately, not treated to the same kind of performance as Kenyon claimed a 2-0 NCAC victory. Two first-half goals for the visiting Ladies, which were countered by two tantalizing opportunities for the Tigers that weren't cashed in, proved to be the difference. Wittenberg took more shots in the game, 13-10, but the Tigers once again couldn't finish the offensive chances.

Next: 10/9 vs. Earlham, 4 p.m.

---

Abi Gerstle

The Tiger cross country teams turned in strong performances at the Loyola Lakefront Invitational in Chicago last weekend. The women's team had the better overall performance, finishing an impressive 19th in a field of more than 35 teams that included numerous Division I and II schools.

Leading the way for the women's team was senior Abi Gerstle (Kettering, Ohio/Fairmont), who appears to be rounding into form even earlier this year than she did in 2001, when she won the NCAC individual championship. Gerstle finished 48th in the competition and was one of nine women's runners to post a season-best time at Loyola. Among the other runners who posted strong finishes was junior Becky Barnes (Williamsport, Ohio/Westfall), who dropped her time by more than two minutes.

On the men's side, six runners posted season-best times for an 8,000 meter race. Senior Nick Dewald (Mansfield, Ohio/Senior) wasn't one of them, but he did lead the team with a 223rd place finish in a field of more than 500 runners as part of 45 teams, many of them Division I and II schools.

The Tigers are back in action this weekend at the All-Ohio Invitational hosted by Ohio Wesleyan in Delaware, Ohio. This is another opportunity for Wittenberg runners to take on teams and runners from schools in other divisions as almost every college in the state participates.

Next: 10/11 at All-Ohio Invitational - hosted by Ohio Wesleyan

---

Casey Clagett

Shannon Oliphant

For the third straight year, the Wittenberg women's tennis program hosted the Omni Hotels/Intercollege Tennis Association Women's Division III Central Region Championship at the Albright Tennis Complex. Unlike last year, however, the home court advantage didn't carry any of the Tiger players through to the championship match.

Third-seeded Emily Figel (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Homestead), a sophomore and the team's No. 1 player who is coming off a 19-5 campaign as a freshman, reached the round of 16 before losing in straight sets to the tourney's 11th seeded player. Senior Shannon Oliphant (Columbus, Ohio/Hilliard Davidson), the team's No. 2 singles player and the competition's No. 9 seed, went one step further, reaching the quarterfinals. Last year, Figel advanced all the way to the championship match.

The fall season is now mostly completed for the women's team, and the men are into winter workouts as well - except for senior No. 1 singles player Casey Clagett (Steamboat Springs, Colo./Steamboat Springs). He became the first Tiger player, male or female, to win the fall regional tourney. 2002 Omni Hotels/Intercollegiate Tennis Association Men's Division III Central Region Singles Championship at DePauw University.

As a result, he advanced to the Omni Hotels/ITA National Small College Championship Tournament on Oct. 17-20. The event is hosted by H.E.B. Tennis Center in Corpus Christi, Texas.