The Wittenberg men's and women's swimming and diving teams put thefinishing touches on another solid season on Feb. 2 at Case Western Reserve.Heading into the North Coast Athletic Conference championship meet Feb.14-16 at C.T. Branin Natatorium in Canton, Ohio, the Tiger men were 6-4nd the women were 4-5-1 against a very challenging 2001-02 dual meet schedule. While those records were good, the team may well be peaking headinginto the toughest conference swim meet

On the men's side, the Tigers are led by a trio of athletes who havealready produced strong times. Senior Jeremy Lazarus (Moens, France/Ferney-Voltaire)figures to lead the way this year as he attempts to win his second straight 100-yard breaststroke title. He is very close to qualifying for the NCAA meet in the event after making Honorable Mention All-America in 2001.
 

Another Honorable Mention All-American hoping for a return trip to the national meet is sophomore Steve Rader (Painesville, Ohio/St. Ignatius),who has once again been very consistent in the butterfly events. Also swimming well in a quest for a first NCAA berth is sophomore Alex Berger (Findlay,Ohio/Findlay), who's best time in the 100 breaststroke was just three seconds away from the NCAA "B" cut. Rounding things out for the men is sophomore Kyle Dunaway (Warren,Ohio/Howland), who is considered an NCAC contender in the 400 Individual Medley as he approaches the school record of 4:15.0. And the sprint freestylers, including sophomores Matt Werbach (Painesville, Ohio/Hawken) andScott Olmsted (Castle Rock, Colo./Cherry Creek) and senior Bob Rafferty (Mt. Vernon, Ohio/Mt. Vernon) have put up some strong times and are threatening several school records posted just a year ago.

Alex Berger

On the women's side, things start with a trio of returning 2001 NCAA meet participants, seniors Rachel Juergens (Springfield, Ohio/Catholic Central), Paula Hauser (Mason, Ohio/Mt. Notre Dame) and Melissa Beck (Williamsville, N.Y./Carmell (Ind.)). Juergens has been outstanding again this year after finishing fifth in the nation in the 1650 freestyle last year. One of the most versatile swimmers in school history and holder of no less than nine school records, Juergens has already posted times that figure to qualify her for the national event.

Hauser was an Honorable Mention All-America selection a year ago for her strong finish in the 200 breaststroke, and she is once again approaching the time to qualify for the national meet. Beck, despite spending the first semester abroad, has come on strong in recent weeks and will again be afactor on relays, at the very least. Other swimmers hope to break through at the NCAC meet are sophomoreNicole Kinzeler (Centerville, Ohio/Kettering Alter), who has performed well in several short freestyle events; sophomore Courtney

Nicole Kinzeler

Galliger (Eagan, Minn./Eagan), who took first place by a full three seconds in the 100 backstroke at Case Western; sophomore Jessica Forsberg (Wickliffe, Ohio/Notre Dame Cathedral Latin), who has made significant improvements this year; and senior Elizabeth Bradley (Columbus, Ohio/Worthington Kilbourne), who recently posted her career-best in the 1650 free.

Next:   2/14-16 @ NCAC Championships
    Canton, Ohio

Head Coach Bill Brown

With one week left in the 2001-02 regular season, the Wittenberg Tiger men's basketball team is sitting in the catbird's seat - alone in first place in the North Coast Athletic Conference, ranked among the nation's Top 25 and among the region's Top 5 and in firm control of its own destiny.The Tigers head into a week that includes a home game against Earlham onWednesday and a road game on Saturday against arch-rival Wooster one game ahead of the Scots, who were surprised on their home court by third-place Wabash on last Saturday. Last week was a good one for the Tigers, but also a bit scary. Things started off well enough as Wittenberg took an early lead at Ohio Wesleyan last Wednesday, only to have the Bishops battle back to take a lead intothe locker room. The second half was almost the same script as the visiting Tigers jumped out to a double-digit advantage, only to have OWU tie the game at 64-64. That's when sophomore guard Mark Borland (Kettering,Ohio/Archbishop Alter) stepped up big-time, draining what turned out to be a game-winning three-pointer with 30 seconds remaining.  Fromthere the Tigers held on for a hard fought victory over the Bishops 67-64, avenging a 94-83 loss at Ohio Wesylean in last year's NCAC opener.

Borland led all scorers as he poured in 17 points, his best offensive output of the season. He was joined in double figures by senior guard Greg Rustad (Lakewood, Ohio/ Lakewood) with 14 points. Junior center B.J. Harris (Dayton, Ohio/ Stebbins) had an off night offensively with only four points, eight below his team-leading average, but he grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds.
 

The Tigers rounded out the week by dominating Hiram 103-60 win on Senior Night at the HPER Center before 1120 noisy fans, in the process breaking the school record for three-pointers in a game with 20 and handing Head Coach Bill Brown his 200th career victory.

The Tigers sprinted out to a 55-23 halftime lead and coasted from that point. All 14 players who saw action in the game scored at least two points and five players hit for double figures. Sophomore guard Rod Emmons(South Bend, Ind./John Adams) paced the winners with 13 points, Rustad and freshman forward Andy Bucheit (Cincinnati, Ohio/LaSalle) each had 12 points, and Borland and sophomore forward Peter Walker (Louisville, Ky./St. Xavier) chipped in with 10 apiece.

The Tigers obliterated the school record for three-pointers taken in a game with 49 and set a new standard for treys made with 20. Bucheit and Rustad each had four triples as 10 players hit at least one in the game.

For Brown, the win was a landmark one for his career, but he characteristically was more concerned with his current team and its situation. He deflected congratulations after the game, instead talking about how privileged he is to be coaching at a place like Wittenberg and to have been associated with so many great people as a coach in Springfield.
 
"I so enjoy the guys who I get to be around every day," said Brown, a native of West Liberty, Ohio and a 1973 Wittenberg University graduate."I don't base the success of this programs solely on wins and losses. I look at it from the aspect of what do the student-athletes who played for me do after they leave Wittenberg and how they continue to interact with the program and its current members even after they graduate.

"Two hundred wins is nice, but what I like best is the people."

The 103-66 win over Hiram improved the 2001-02 Wittenberg team to 20-3 overall and, coupled with a loss by Wooster earlier in the day, put theTigers in sole possession of first place in the NCAC at 13-1. Wittenberg has not had a losing season since 1955-56, and under Brown the Tigers have put together nine consecutive outstanding seasons. His teams have won at least 18 games every year, they have claimed four NCAC regular season titles and one NCAC tournament crown, and the Tigers have made the NCAA Division III Championship tournament five times.

Among the highlights during the last nine years were a 26-0 start in 1993-94 en route to a third-place finish in the nation, an NCAA Elite Eight finish in 1995-96, and last year's 24-4 record that included an NCAC regular season championship and an NCAA Division III Sweet Sixteen appearance. Brown won his 100th game at Wittenberg on March 6, 1997 in the first round of the NCAA tournament against John Carroll University. A significant career milestone arrived when he won his 200th career game on Nov. 24, 1999 against Wilmington. He won 60 games in his career before arriving at Wittenberg in 1993.

Brown's next milestone victory figures to come sometime in the 2003-04 season. With a career mark of 260-149, he needs 40 more wins to reach the 300-win plateau, a figure that just 50 active Division III coaches have previously reached.

Next:   2/13 vs. Earlham, 7:30 p.m.
     2/16 @ Wooster, 7:30 p.m.

At the start of last week, the Wittenberg women's basketball team was coming off a disappointing road loss at Allegheny that dropped the team into a tie for the NCAC lead. What a difference a week makes. Strong performances at Earlham on Wednesday and back home against Wooster on Saturday, coupled with a loss by Denison at Allegheny over the weekend, propelled Wittenberg back into the driver's seat of the NCAC. The Tigers are alone in first place with just two games remaining on the regular season schedule - a road game on Wednesday at Oberlin and a Senior Day contest opposite second-place Denison on Saturday.

Keller

Campbell

Junior forward Tiffany Keller (Massillon, Ohio/Tuslaw) led the team on offense with 14 points in just 14 minutes of action. Once again,she was sharp in her shooting, making seven of her 11 shots from the floor. Junior guards Kate Rolf (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Carroll) and Stephanie Campbell (South Charleston, Ohio/Southeastern) chipped in with 13 and 12 points respectively, while senior forward Jill Swary (Columbus, Ohio/Grandview)and sophomore forward Haley Warden (Loveland, Ohio/Indian Hill)were strong up front with 10 points apiece.

Then on Saturday, Wittenberg went down 7-0 before recovering in fine fashion. By the time the stompede had ended and the dust had cleared, Wittenberg had rallied for a record-setting 111-58 win over visiting Wooster.

Wittenberg slowly pulled away from a 15-15 tie midway through the first half, putting together a 28-9 run over the final seven minutes to takea 55-34 advantage into the locker room. The second half was much more lopsided as the Tigers broke out to a huge lead and poured it on late. The final point total was a school record, breaking the 109 figure that the Tigers had posted against Earlham on Nov. 17, 2001 at the Kalamazoo Tip-Off Tournament.

Wittenberg was led by a huge game off the bench by junior forward Meghan Bruggeman (Middletown, Ohio/Fenwick), who poured in a career-high 20points in just 17 minutes. Joining Bruggeman in double figures were Rolf with 13 points, Keller with 11 points, and freshman guard Emilie Schmid(Canton, Ohio/Massillon Jackson) with 10 points. Wittenberg forced 44 Wooster turnovers and grabbed 25 steals, a season-best, including six by Campbell. In addition, the Tigers knocked down a school-record 34 free throws, breaking a record they had set earlier in the season against Allegheny.

As the Tigers continue their march toward the 2001-02 NCAC championship,which would be their eighth since joining the conference in 1989, Head Coach Pam Smith continues to move closer toward a personal milestone. With 297 career wins, Smith figures to reach the 300-win plateau yet this year as the Tigers have two regular season games remaining and with one more win will clinch one of the top seeds in the upcoming conference tournament, guaranteeing them home court advantage. Wittenberg is a perfect 11-0 at home this season.

Next:   2/13 @ Oberlin, 6 p.m.
  2/16 vs. Denison, 2 p.m.

It was another strong week for the Wittenberg track and field teams,which competed at an open competition with no team scores at the University of Findlay.

Providing the biggest highlight for either team was sophomore Kristen Mumper (Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian), who was the NCAC Athleteof the Week the previous week and then outdid herself. While she wasn't selected Athlete of the Week again, Mumper's first-place triple jump of 34-feet, 8.25-inches surpassed the school record she set just last week at Ohio Northern. Mumper capped another outstanding effort with a 5th-place finish in the long jump.

Mary Blonder Derek Thompson

Other top performances on the women's side included sophomore KellyZilli (Kettering, Ohio/Alter) and her sixth-place finish in the mile, freshman Marissa Davoll (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson) and her fifth-place finish in the 600-meter run, and the fourth-place finish turned in by the 1600-meter relay foursome of Davoll, freshman Tina Valerius (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mt. Notre Dame), sophomore Mary Blonder (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest) and Zilli. On the men's side, freshman Joe Rumschlag (Maumee, Ohio/Toledo Christian School) made an impression by competing in the triple jump for the first time and finishing sixth. Also placing for Wittenberg were sophomoreJoel Drake (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee), who was 10th in the shot put and 11h in the 35# weight, and the 1600 relay quartet of sophomoreDerek Thompson (South Charleston, Ohio/Greenon), sophomore Matt Frost (South Vienna, Ohio/Southeastern), Mike Torsell (Springfield, Ohio/Catholic Central), freshman Chad Kresser (Findlay, Ohio/Findlay),which was ninth.

Finally, heading into the home stretch of the 2002 indoor track and field season, Wittenberg's teams have made an impression nationally. In a poll that tabulates points based on previous performances and projects teams based on how they would finish in dual meets, Wittenberg's men are ranked 18th and the women 15th. In the Great Lakes Region, the men are ranked fourth and the women are third.

Next:   2/16 @ Scarlet & Grey Invitational

February
13            Women's Basketball
                 @ Oberlin                                         6 p.m.
               Men's Basketball
                 vs. Earlham                                       7:30 p.m.
14-16      Swimming & Diving
                 @ NCAC Championships
               (Canton, Ohio)
16            Track and Field
                 @ Scarlet & Grey Invitational
               Women's Basketball
                 vs. Denison                                       2 p.m.
               Men's Basketball
                 @ Wooster                                      7:30 p.m.