Katie Preuss

The Wittenberg volleyball team continues to make headlines. The Tigers took first place in the Trinity Invitational last weekend and then won its North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament quarterfinal match Tuesday against Ohio Wesleyan. The wins improved fifth-ranked Wittenberg to 25-6 overall after the Tigers won eight straight NCAC regular season matches to run their incredible seven-year win streak to 69.

In the Trinity Invitational, Wittenberg beat two ranked teams and narrowly lost to a third in the first five-game match of the Tigers' season. Wittenberg opened the tourney with a 3-1 win over Savannah College of Art & Design and followed that with a 3-1 win over sixth-ranked Mount St. Joseph. The win over the Mountie Lions was crucial as it gave the Tigers the inside track on the No. 1 ranking in the Great Lakes Region and potential home court advantage in the upcoming NCAA Division III Tournament.

The Tigers rounded out the weekend with a 3-2 defeat against ninth-ranked Wisconsin-Whitewater, the same team that knocked Wittenberg out of last year's NCAA Division III Tournament en route to the school's first national championship. Wittenberg defeated the Warhawks earlier this season. Then Wittenberg defeated the host Trinity University Tigers 3-1 in the championship match and were awarded the first-place hardware based on tiebreaker criteria. Trinity was ranked No. 3 nationally heading into the weekend.

Individually, junior Kristin Fox (Galion, Ohio/Galion) had an outstanding weekend with more than 70 kills in the four matches. She and senior Lindsay Nelson (Massillon, Ohio/Tuslaw), who had 22 kills in the win over Trinity, were both named to the all-tournament team. In addition, junior Sarah Yuskewich (Columbus, Ohio/Watterson) recorded at least 50 assists in each match.

In the NCAC Tournament match against Ohio Wesleyan, the top-seeded Tigers overwhelmed the eighth-seeded Battling Bishops by a 3-0 count, with all three games decided by at least a 14-point margin. The Tigers, who have won eight of the last 10 NCAC tournament titles, including the last six consecutively, advanced to the NCAC Tournament semifinals on Friday against fourth-seeded Denison, a winner over Wooster in other quarterfinal action.

Wittenberg was in control throughout the match and never used most of its top players. Among the statistical leaders were senior Michelle Emming (West Chester, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame), who had 13 digs and 10 kills, senior Jennifer Emming (West Chester, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame), who had 11 digs and 10 kills, and senior Katie Preuss (Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South), who finished with 21 assists and 11 digs.

Next: 11/7 vs. Denison, 5:30 p.m.
NCAC Tournament Semifinal

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Sarah Wallace

The Wittenberg field hockey team jumped on top early and held off a late Denison charge to defeat the visiting Big Red 4-3 in the NCAC Tournament semifinals Saturday at Edwards-Maurer Field.

The Tigers are the defending NCAC regular season and tournament champions and the top seed in this year's competition after finishing in a three-way tie for first place in the regular season standings. They took a 3-1 lead into the halftime break and extended that advantage to 4-1 midway through the second half before Denison charged back. Junior Sarah Wallace (Reston, Va./South Lakes) scored off an assist from junior Carrie Happ (Pittsburgh, Pa./Vincentian) on a penalty corner play to open the scoring for Wittenberg and knot the game at 1-1 about a minute after the Big Red had scored first. Junior Blair Ufer (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer) scored the go-ahead goal off a penalty corner thanks to a solid feed from freshman Rachel Dunn (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny). And senior Katie Babcock (Phoenix, Md./Dulaney) recorded the third tally off an assist from Ufer late in the first half.

Freshman Katy Barrett (Powell, Ohio/Watterson) added the fourth goal early in the second half as she tipped in a cross by sophomore Julia Wickham (Columbus, Ohio/Grandview).

The biggest play of the game may have taken place inside of the final two minutes as Tiger junior Melanie Boss (Dayton, Ohio/Kettering Fairmont) cleared away the potential game-tying goal as the ball came across the goal mouth.

The Tigers now host the NCAC Tournament Championship game Saturday at Edwards-Maurer Field, where the team is a perfect 9-0 this year. Wittenberg, Wooster and Oberlin tied for first place in the NCAC regular season standings, and the Tigers and Scots, which split a pair of games this season, are slated to go for the title at 1 p.m. It is a rematch of the 2002 title game that was won by Wittenberg 6-2.

Next: 11/8 vs. Wooster, 1 p.m.
NCAC Tournament Final

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Mandie Dimenna

The Wittenberg women's soccer put the wraps on the 2003 season with a 3-1 victory over visiting Oberlin on Saturday. The win gave the Tigers eight on the season, an improvement of two over Head Coach Norm Riker's first season on the bench.

Goal-scorers in the win over Oberlin were Lucia Cornett (Cincinnati, Ohio/Oak Hills), Lindsay Zigler (Columbus, Ohio/Upper Arlington) and Melissa Gallion (West Jefferson, Ohio/West Jefferson) and an assist was credited to Mandie Dimenna (Blacklick, Ohio/Gahanna Lincoln).

Senior Geri Woessner (Dayton, Ohio/Oakwood) finished as the team's leading scorer with seven goals and three assists for 17 total points. Woessner was the team's leading scorer in each of her four seasons, despite missing half of the 2002 season due to a knee injury. Zigler was second with 13 total points and Cornett finished third on the team with 10 total points.

The Tigers graduate five seniors as they begin looking toward the 2004 season. Twelve freshmen saw significant playing time this season, including Phoebe Gaston (Cincinnati, Ohio/Northwest), Lauren Fraley (Delaware, Ohio/Olentangy) and Jamie McIntyre (Columbus, Ohio/Grandview), who were three of five players to start all 19 games.

Next: Season Complete

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Sebastian Missura

The Wittenberg men's soccer team rounded out its 2003 season with a 2-1 double overtime road victory over Oberlin on Saturday. The win gave Wittenberg eight on the season, and it extended to 21 the number of consecutive seasons that the Tiger men's soccer program has registered at least seven wins.

The Tigers wrapped up the season with goals by sophomore Matt Berry (Tipp City, Ohio/Tippecanoe) in the first half and freshman Sebastian Missura (Quito, Ecuador/American School) in the second overtime. Senior goalkeeper Matt Sharp (Mainville, Ohio/Middletown Fenwick) recorded seven saves in the game. Assists were awarded to freshmen Nick Hauff (Delaware, Ohio/Hayes) and Jason Sucher (Lousville, Ky./duPont).

Missura was named NCAC Player of the Week for his heroics, the first such honor of his career and the first such honor for a Wittenberg player in 2003. He finished the year with nine goals and one assist for a team-high 19 total points. That total ranked ninth in the NCAC as well.

Berry finished with 14 total points on six goals and two assists, while sophomore Andy Stewart (Huber Heights, Ohio/Wayne) added 10 total points on three goals and four assists. Nine freshmen saw significant action in 2003, including Adam Horrocks (Delaware, Ohio/Hayes), the team's primary goalkeeper. The team loses just four seniors, including four-year letterwinners Greg Zeller (Springfield, Ohio/North), Steve Doring (Dayton, Ohio/Wayne) and Tim Fogler (Chagrin Falls, Ohio/Kenston).

Next: Season Complete

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Peter Franz

The Wittenberg University football team put forth a gallant effort in the mud at Allegheny College Saturday but fell short 27-21. It was the first victory for perennial powerhouse Allegheny against Wittenberg since 1996, and, incredibly, the loss gave Wittenberg two regular season defeats for the first time since 1994.

Wittenberg's first score of the game came late in the first quarter as sophomore wide receiver Jered Glover (Middletown, Ohio/Middletown) took a short pass from junior quarterback Ryan Holmes (Oxford, Ohio/Talawanda) 65 yards to a touchdown. In the second quarter, Wittenberg got on the board again on a two-yard scoring burst by freshman fullback Tyler Harmon (Indianapolis, Ind./Perry Meridian).

In the second half, Wittenberg took its only lead of the game on a 25-yard scoring run by junior tailback Raymar Hampshire (Lima, Ohio/Elida) in the third stanza. But Allegheny came back to score its fourth touchdown of the day and then the Gators came up with several defensive stands to make the six-point margin stand up. As a team, Wittenberg finished with 413 total yards, including 259 on the ground. Allegheny posted a total of 356 yards, including 225 yards passing. The key to the game was turnovers as the Tigers had one interception and two fumbles. Individually, Wittenberg got 147 yards rushing on 26 carries from Hampshire and 99 yards on 21 carries from Harmon. Holmes finished with 11 completions on 21 attempts for 154 yards and Glover topped the receiving corps with 97 yards on four receptions.

Defensively, three players finished with seven total tackles - senior linebacker Peter Franz (Chagrin Falls, Ohio/Kenston), freshman safety Mitch Fonseca (Miami, Fla./Christopher Columbus) and junior defensive tackle Jarrett Brown (Columbus, Ohio/St. Charles). Sophomore safety Yusef Abdul-Zahir (Canton, Ohio/McKinley) had one interception for 15 yards and four total tackles.

The Tigers are back in action on Nov. 8 for the final road trip of the 2003 season at Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Ala. That game was originally scheduled to be against Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, but the Lords withdrew from conference play this season.

Next: 11/8 at Huntingdon, 2 p.m. (EST)

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Jonathan Newcomer

The Wittenberg men's and women's swimming and diving teams posted strong finishes in a season-opening dual meet against national powerhouse and NCAC rival Wooster last Saturday. The results were a 145-95 win for the Tiger men and a 134-107 defeat for the Tiger women against a team that finished fifth in the nation a year ago.

Individually, the men's team posted a large number of first-place finishes. Senior Steve Rader (Concord, Ohio/St. Ignatius) posted wins in the 200-yard freestyle and the 100-yard backstroke, senior Alex Berger (Findlay, Ohio/Findlay) took first in the 100-yard breaststroke and 100-yard freestyle, freshman Sean Wolf (White Lake, Mich./Walled Lake Central) claimed the top spot in the 1000-yard freestyle and 1500-yard freestyle, freshman Cody Nicely (Knoxville, Tenn./Bearden) captured a pair of victories in the one-meter and three-meter diving events and senior Kyle Dunaway (Warren, Ohio/Howland) hit the wall first in 200-yard Individual Medley. In addition, the 200-yard freestyle relay quartet of Rader, Wolf, Berger and senior Scott Olmsted (Castle Rock, Colo./Cherry Creek) finished first.

The team's swimmer of the week award was handed out to junior Jonathan Newcomer (Valencia, Pa./Mars Area), who didn't win his race but recorded his best in-season time in the 100-yard backstroke. He broke through the one-minute barrier earlier than he has in past seasons.

On the women's side, sophomore Becca Searcy (Shelbyville, Ky./Shelby County) took a first place finish in the 200-yard IM and freshman Mary Workman (Medina, Ohio/Cloverleaf) captured both diving events. Many other quality times were turned in throughout the meet as the Tigers got their first dual meet look at one of the top competitors in the conference and national title races in 2003-04.

The Tigers are back in the pool this weekend with a pair of meets. First up is a tri-meet at Wilmington with Ohio Wesleyan. Then on Saturday, perennial powerhouse DePauw comes calling on the HPER Center Natatorium at 1 p.m.

Next: 11/7 at Wilmington with Ohio Wesleyan, 6 p.m.

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Becky Barnes

The Wittenberg men's and women's cross country teams finished 10th and eighth respectively in the NCAC Championship meet last Saturday at Wooster. Senior Becky Barnes (Williamsport, Ohio/Westfall) was Wittenberg's top finisher in either race, and her finish was strong enough to garner Honorable Mention All-NCAC honors. She posted her best finish in the competition, placing 18th in a time of 18:14.

Sophomore Tracy Butler (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Homestead) placed 24th in a time of 20:27, sophomore Anna Finkelstein (Whitehall, Mich./Reeths-Puffer) placed 44th in 21:49, freshman Sarah Yehle (West Lafayette, Ind./West Lafayette) took 53rd in 22:21 and junior Sarah Woodford (Springboro, Ohio/Springboro) placed 57th in 23:23.

On the men's side, the top finisher was sophomore John Compton (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee) in 49th place in a time of 29:27. He was followed by sophomore Chris Petrik (Highland Heights, Ohio/Mayfield) in 55th in 30:00, sophomore Matt Dilworth (New Carlisle, Ohio/Tecumseh) in 59th in 30:14, senior Tim Damopoulos (Grove City, Ohio/Grove City) in 60th in 30:15 and senior Jeff Domingus (London, Ohio/London) in 64th place in 30:30.

The Tiger teams will put the finishing touches on the 2003 season this weekend at the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional at Hanover College. If any Tiger runner can work his or her way into the top eight, the NCAA Division III National Championship meet is slated for Nov. 22 at Hanover.

Next: 11/15 NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional
at Hanover College

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Peter Walker

The Wittenberg men's basketball team was picked to finish second in preseason voting by coaches and media after the NCAC's 20th annual basketball media day. Defending NCAC champion Wooster took 27 first-place votes in the men's balloting, 20 of 24 from the media and seven of 10 from league coaches, to outdistance Wittenberg and Ohio Wesleyan. Both the coaches and the media predicted the Tigers would finish second and gave them a total of four first-place votes. Ohio Wesleyan picked up a first-place vote in both polls to finishing third behind Wittenberg.

The Tigers return seven letterwinners, including three starters, after a 20-6 overall record in 2002-03. The Tigers are the winningest team in NCAA Division III history with 1,458 victories since the 1911-12 season, and last year's 20-win season was the 47th consecutive non-losing campaign.

Wittenberg, the winningest men's basketball program in the history of NCAA Division III, returns seven letterwinners, including three starters, in 2003-04 in hopes of returning to the top of the NCAC for the third time in the last four years.

In 2002-03, the Tigers' two-year reign as NCAC regular season champions ended with a second-place finish. Still, the Tigers were able to achieve another 20-win season, compiling an overall record of 20-6, including a mark of 14-2 in the NCAC.

Seniors Rod Emmons (South Bend, Ind./John Adams) and Peter Walker (Louisville, Ky./St. Xavier) will lead the charge in 2003-04. Walker, a 6-7 forward, was third on the team in scoring (10.3) and rebounding (4.5). He shot better than 50 percent from the field and a team-best 80 percent from the free throw line. Emmons, a 6-1 wing, started 24 of the team's 26 games, averaging a team-high 25.8 minutes per outing as well as 9.0 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. He posted a career-high 38 points in an overtime victory at Wabash, the highest point total for a Wittenberg player in more than 10 years.

Other returning letterwinners expected to vie for starting positions and key playing roles are junior point guard Danny Brywczynski (Dayton, Ohio/Northmont), junior wing Andy Bucheit (Cincinnati, Ohio/LaSalle), junior wing Brett Bowen (Arcadia, Ind./Hamilton Heights), junior guard Kenny Molz (Kettering, Ohio/Fairmont) and sophomore center Daniel Russ (Louisville, Ky./Trinity).

Brywczynski started all 26 games and topped the team in assists with 58 while averaging 4.9 points. Bucheit ranked among the NCAC leaders in three-point shooting percentage (46.8) while averaging 9.0 points and 2.5 rebounds per outing. Bowen worked his way into the playing rotation by midseason and averaged 2.4 points and 1.3 rebounds. Molz was a valuable reserve at the point guard position, contributing 45 assists and 5.0 points per game. Russ proved to be one of the best freshmen in the conference as he appeared in all 26 games off the bench and averaged 8.5 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. He also led the team in blocked shots with 21.

Next: 11/21-22 Kiwanis-Wittenberg Tip-Off Classic

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Amber Bishop

The Wittenberg women's basketball team was picked to finish second in preseason voting by coaches and media after the NCAC's 20th annual basketball media day. Ohio Wesleyan edged out Wittenberg and Allegheny in the women's balloting with 16 first-place votes, 11 of 24 from the media and five of nine from the coaches. The defending champion Tigers were second in both polls, receiving five first-place nods from the media and two first-place NCAC coaches. Both groups selected Allegheny a close third, followed by Earlham in fourth; each received first-place votes in both polls.

The 2003-04 season opens Friday, Nov. 21, as Wittenberg hosts the Kiwanis-Wittenberg Tip-Off Classic. The NCAC regular season opens with games Saturday, Dec. 7. The NCAC Tournament will be held over the final week of February, with the men's and women's semifinals and finals at the site of the respective high seeds on Feb. 27-28. The Tigers, winners of nine NCAC regular season champions and six NCAC Tournament titles since 1989, welcomes nine letterwinners - but just one starter - back into the fold in 2003-04. Among those nine returning letterwinners, six have seen significant action at the varsity level the last two seasons as the Tigers posted a 30-2 NCAC regular season record. Four of them were on the court for the final minute of a 64-57 NCAA Division III Tournament loss at Baldwin-Wallace last March.

The lone returning starter is senior point guard Christina Fischer (Norwood, Ohio/Cincinnati St. Ursula). She and fellow senior Kari Kitchen (South Charleston, Ohio/Southeastern), who shared time at point guard in 2002-03, will hold down that spot again this season after combining for an outstanding assist-turnover ratio of 83-74 a year ago. The other starting guard will likely be senior Amber Bishop (Batavia, Ohio/Batavia), who averaged 8.2 points per game last year and tied a Wittenberg, NCAC and NCAA Division III record with 12 straight field goals against Hiram on Feb. 7, 2003.

Senior Haley Warden (Loveland, Ohio/Indian Hill), who swings between guard and forward and led the Tigers with 5.3 rebounds per game off the bench last year, is another likely starter. In addition, junior guard Emilie Schmid (Canton, Ohio/Massillon Jackson), who doubles as an all-conference volleyball player on the Tigers' nationally ranked team, junior Alison Nahrup (Loveland, Ohio/Mt. Notre Dame) and sophomore Carrie Jones (Greenville, Ohio/Greenville), who saw action in 23 games, will be in the backcourt rotation.

Senior forward Geri Woessner (Dayton, Ohio/Oakwood), one of the greatest track athletes in NCAC history, one of the greatest soccer players in Wittenberg history and a three-year letterwinner in basketball despite missing all but four games in 2002-03 with a knee injury, is the team's most experienced frontcourt returnee. She will be joined in that area by sophomore Joyce Dindo (Akron, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit), who appeared in 15 games off the bench a year ago and made 50 percent of her field goal attempts.

Next: 11/21-22 Kiwanis-Wittenberg Tip-Off Classic