All-Sports Release

Pat Denbow

The Wittenberg men's basketball team has turned the corner in the 2005-06 North Coast Athletic Conference title chase, and now they are headed for home riding an 11-game win streak. The No. 1 ranked team in all of NCAA Division III, Wittenberg stands at 17-1 overall and 8-1 in the NCAC after wins at Allegheny and at home against Wabash in the last week.

The five-point win over Allegheny on Saturday was Wittenberg's most significant challenge since a Dec. 10 loss at Wooster, the second-ranked team in the nation and the current NCAC leader. In that 11-game stretch, no other team has gotten closer than 11 points to the Tigers.

With 2005 NCAC Player of the Year Daniel Russ (Louisville, Ky./Trinity) struggling, the Tigers got a huge lift from senior post Dane Borchers (Russia, Ohio/Russia), who hit for a career-high 29 points to go along with a game-high 10 rebounds. Borchers did much of the heavy lifting in the game, setting the stage for the biggest shot of junior guard Pat Denbow's (Louisville, Ky./St. Xavier) collegiate career, a three-pointer with 44 seconds left that made it a two-possession game. Then Borchers and senior wing Phil Steffes (Centerville, Ohio/Centerville) combined to hit 5-of-6 free throws down the stretch to ensure the victory.

Against Wabash, the Tigers came out of the locker room on fire by hitting their first six shots, and they effectively buried the Little Giants. Wittenberg, the top-ranked defensive team in all of NCAA Division III, smothered Wabash, winning the battle of the boards by seven and holding the Little Giants to 38 percent shooting from the field. Russ rebounded nicely, going for a game-high 17 points, while senior wing Kenny Brady (Reading, Ohio/Reading) added 10 points and six boards.

For the season, Russ, Borchers and Brady lead the Tigers in scoring and rebounding. Only twice this season has another player led Wittenberg in scoring in a game and only twice all season has another player topped the team in rebounds.

The stretch run of the 2005-06 season figures to be an interesting one for the Tigers, starting with road games in the next six days against Denison on Saturday and Earlham on Wednesday. Those two teams both lost to Wittenberg by double figures earlier this season, but both are in contention for an upper division finish in the conference's regular season title chase. A win against the top-ranked team in the nation could make their season.

If forms holds, however, the game of the season will take place Feb. 4 in the HPER Center when Wittenberg welcomes Wooster for their second grudge match of the 2005-06 season. The Tigers won two of three games a year ago between the two teams, but Wooster won the game in Springfield, 102-95 in triple overtime. The Scots also won the first meeting between the two teams this season on a late three-pointer on Wooster's home court.

Details about the Tigers’ season can be found on the team's schedule/results page and season statistics page.

Next: 1/28 @ Denison

Brittany Landreth

The Wittenberg women's basketball team is finding a way to get things done, which may bode well for a future run at the North Coast Athletic Conference regular season and tournament titles. The Tigers have won six of their last seven games, including a pair of three-point victories at home in the last week, to improve to 11-6 overall and 7-1 in the NCAC.

Wittenberg defeated Ohio Wesleyan 57-54 at the HPER Center on Saturday, rallying from a 10-point deficit by outscoring the Battling Bishops 13-2 in the final 8:39 of the game. The Tigers got six straight points from junior post Kathy Hittle (Noblesville, Ind./Noblesville) to close the gap to take a one-point lead and then two free throws by junior wing Rachel Clark-Haggy (South Charleston, Ohio/Southeastern) were clutch for the Tigers with 1:17 remaining. OWU missed two three-pointers in the final 10 seconds as the Tigers were able to seal the win.

Against Thomas More, the shoe was almost on the other foot. The Tigers held what appeared to be a comfortable 11-point advantage with 6:39 remaining in the game after senior guard Brittany Landreth (Mantua, Ohio/Valparaiso (Ind.)) hit a jumper. Held scoreless for the next 6:36, the Tigers saw their lead shrivel to one point before Landreth rescued them.

Thomas More rebounded a Wittenberg miss, but the outlet pass never was made as Landreth made the steal and was subsequently fouled with just three seconds left. She drilled both free throws, forcing the Saints into a desperate three-point attempt at the buzzer.

Hittle, who leads the Tigers in scoring and rebounding on the season, had 29 points in the two games combined. She has reached double figures in 12 of the team's games this season, and she has six double-doubles, easily the most among Tiger players.

Wittenberg hits the road for a game against Oberlin on Saturday before a crucial week of games that starts with a home game against Kenyon, the preseason NCAC favorite, on Jan. 31. Leading the NCAC by a slim one-game margin, the Tigers follow that game with an always draining road trip to Hiram and Allegheny on Feb. 3 and 4.

Details about the Tigers’ season can be found on the team's schedule/results page and season statistics page.

Next: 1/28 @ Oberlin

Nick Pierson

The Wittenberg men's and women's swimming and diving teams are on the final leg of a very long relay event - the marathon that is the annual collegiate regular season. The Tigers put the finishing touches on the 2005-06 dual meet campaign this weekend with a home event against NCAA Division I Wright State on Friday and then a road dual against NCAA Division III national powerhouse Case Western Reserve on Saturday.

The Tigers split a home dual with Ohio Northern last Friday, defeating the Polar Bears handily on the women's side but losing to one of the top teams in the Ohio Athletic Conference in the men's competition, 116-111. Then on Saturday, Wittenberg's men lost another heartbreaker, this time to Transylvania, 122-114, in addition to a decisive setback against Emory in a meet hosted by the University of Kentucky. The Tiger women improved their dual meet record to 9-2 with a win over Transylvania but a loss to Emory, which won the national title a year ago.

For the women, sophomore Lindsay Smith (Mount Vernon, Ohio/Mount Vernon), sophomore Courtney Roth (Gurnee, Ill./Lake Forest) and senior Betany Yeakley (Wilmington, Ohio/Wilmington) were all double-winners against Ohio Northern as the Tigers captured first place in 12 of the 14 events.

In the meet against Transylvania and Emory, the highlight was provided by senior Becca Searcy (Shelbyville, Ky./Shelby County), who earned an NCAA B Cut in the 1650-yard freestyle. A three-time NCAA Division III Championships qualifier, Searcy is hoping to improve upon her performance in the national meet each of the last three years, which resulted in five honorable mention All-America designations.

For the men, junior Cody Nicely (Knoxville, Tenn./Bearden) took a pair of firsts against Ohio Northern and Transylvania. He and Roth, who also defeated all opponents from ONU and Transylvania, were unbeaten in dual meet diving competitions before finally losing to Emory on Saturday. Sophomore Nick Pierson (Indianapolis, Ind./North Central) and sophomore Ryan Schramm (Cincinnati, Ohio/Roger Bacon) were both individual winners in the meet against ONU.

After this weekend's dual meets, the Tigers have a week off to prep for the annual North Coast Athletic Conference championship meet Feb. 9-11 in Canton, Ohio. The Wittenberg women have been fourth in the meet the last three years, while the Tiger men slipped to sixth place a year ago.

Details about the Tigers’ season can be found on the team's schedule/results page.

Next: 1/27 vs. Wright State
1/28 @ Case Western

Nicole Bailey

The Wittenberg men's and women's track and field teams ran well in their second meet of the 2006 indoor season, take fifth and eighth place respectively at the Marietta Invitational. The meet consisted mostly of scholarship programs from NCAA Division I and II and NAIA. The Tigers finished first among NCAA Division III programs in the men's competition and second in the women's meet.

In the 12-team men's meet, the Tigers were led for a second straight week by senior Gregg Carter (Wellsville, Ohio/Wellsville). The NCAC Sprints/Hurdles Athlete of the Week, Carter placed second in the long jump with a mark of 21-11.75, third in the 200 meters in 23.12 and seventh in the 55 meters in 6.67.

Even more impressive may have been the performance turned in by freshman Erik Larkin (Cincinnati, Ohio/Country Day), who placed first in the triple jump with a mark of 42-11, sixth in the high jump with a mark of 6-0 and seventh in the long jump at 20-1.75. Amazingly, this was the first meet in which Larkin had ever competed in the triple jump.

Also of note, sophomore Mike Echols (Springfield, Ohio/North) took fourth in the 800 meters, freshman Mark King (Indianapolis, Ind./Ben Davis) added a fifth in the 400 meters, freshman Manoach Lamarre (Miami, Fla./Bellen Jesuit) placed fifth in the triple jump, senior Thomas Dillingham (Cincinnati, Ohio/Princeton) finished fourth in the weight throw with a personal-best mark of 48-2.5 and junior Andy Karcher (Oceola, Ohio/Bucyrus Wynford) rounded things out with a sixth in the weight throw with a personal-best of 45-4.25.

On the women's side, Wittenberg highlights in the 13-team meet were provided individually by sophomore Nicole Bailey (Cincinnati, Ohio/Summit Country Day) and freshman Katie Shoemaker (Arcanum, Ohio/Franklin Monroe).

Bailey finished first in the 55 meters in a time of 7.47, first in the triple jump with a mark of 35-1.75 and third in the long jump with a mark of 16-2.5. She earned NCAC Sprints/Hurdles Athlete of the Week for her exploits.

Shoemaker placed second in the 400 meters in 1:04.73 and fifth in the 200 meters in 27.97. Rounding things out, the distance medley relay team of freshmen Jessica Rizzo (Benningtor, Ind./South Dearborn), Dana Reamsnyder (Eden Prairie, Minn./Prairie), Allison Macke (Dublin, Ohio/Scioto) and Abby McCutcheon (Lancaster, Ohio/Lancaster) captured a respectable fifth place with a time of 14:36.36.

The Tigers get right back into it this week at the annual North Coast Athletic Conference Relays, hosted by Denison. While this is not a traditionally formatted meet, it does give all of the conference schools an early look at the competition they will face in both the indoor and outdoor championship meets still to come this season.

Details about the Tigers can be found on the team's schedule/results page.

Next: 1/28 @ NCAC Relays
Hosted by Denison