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(05/06/15 8:39pm)
By Matthew Bowker
Sports Editor
It’s the age-old debate. The NBA playoffs vs. the NHL playoffs. Everyone has a favorite. Everyone chooses a side. There is no in between. There is only right and wrong. And in this case, if you choose the NBA playoffs as the superior, you, my friend, are very wrong.
The NHL Stanley Cup playoffs is arguably the best postseason in sports, right up there with March Madness and the NFL playoffs. What separates the Stanley Cup playoffs from the rest, however, is the level of competition. Every playoff game is close, it seems. Of the 46 first-round games played, 22 went to overtime, with one triple-overtime game.
There is nothing more exciting in sports than an overtime hockey game, with teams trading rushes up the ice, laying it all on the line. Four other games were separated by a goal with under two minutes to go, before the other team scored an empty net goal to seal the win. More than half of the first-round games came down to the wire.
Compare that to the first-round of the NBA playoffs, where only four games went to overtime. Even so, watching the final two minutes of any basketball game is insufferable, with someone getting fouled every five seconds to try and prolong the game and limit the leading teams’ possessions. Not only does this strategy never work, but it is almost as entertaining as a trip to the DMV.
The NBA matchups are also much less compelling than the NHL’s playoffs. Two teams in the East made the playoffs with a losing record. The Celtics were promptly swept and the Nets were blown out by 25 in the final game of their series. As if that wasn’t enough reason to pass on watching the playoffs, the Bulls smacked the Bucks by nearly 60 points. These lopsided contest are exactly what makes the NBA playoffs less attractive. Most of the series are jokes, featuring teams that have no right to be in the playoffs in the first place. Do we really need two excruciating months of bad basketball to figure out that the Warriors and Cavs are going to the Finals?
The NHL playoffs, on the other hand, are as exciting as ever since the league switched to their current format two seasons ago. Each playoff team is guaranteed to face a hated division-rival in the first two rounds of the playoffs. These games are always close and highlight physical battles well worth watching. In the NHL, every team has a chance. In the past, we have seen the eighth-seeded Los Angeles Kings take home the Cup. When was the last time you saw an eighth-seed even advance past the first round in the NBA?
Call me crazy, but I would rather watch a triple-overtime game between two teams that hate each other’s guts than watch a blowout basketball game that has little to no consequences.
(04/15/15 4:26am)
By Matt Bowker
Sports Editor
Jordan Spieth sent a message to the golf world over the weekend. He is the real deal and a threat to win every major he plays in for the next 20 years. Jordan Spieth has what it takes to become what the golf world expected Tiger Woods would eventually become before his injuries.
Many in the golf world thought Rory McIlroy, the current number one golfer in the world, to take Tiger’s mantle. but McIlroy was a non-factor for most of last weekend’s Masters Tournament.
McIlroy’s inconsistent play has opened the door for other golfers to become the next great one, and 21-year-old Jordan Spieth has answered the call.
Spieth went into Augusta coming off four consecutive top-two finishes. That fire carried over to the year’s first major, when Spieth ran the table, finishing at -18, tying the tournament record for best score.
Spieth led from start to finish and had a stranglehold on the competition throughout. Spieth, in only his second Masters tournament, became the first wire-to-wire champion since 1976.
Spieth’s dominant victory has garnered him comparisons to Tiger Woods. Spieth became the second youngest winner of the tournament, second only to Woods. The two share eerily similar results in the first Masters victory, finishing with the same score overall.
Such a dominant tournament hasn’t been seen since since Woods was in his prime. It can be argued that Spieth was more dominant than Woods, who won by 12 shots in 1997. Spieth only won by four, but beat out past champions, rising stars and even Woods, himself.
When all is said and done, Spieth will not be the next Tiger Woods. Spieth will surpass Tiger Woods, and we will be looking for the next Jordan Spieth.
(04/01/15 11:50pm)
By Matt Bowker
Sports Editor
I do not know what Chip Kelly is doing. The media does not know what Chip Kelly is doing. The team does not know what Chip Kelly is doing. I sure hope Chip Kelly knows what he is doing.
Kelly, the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles, has completely decimated the Eagles’ roster of talent in favor of injury-prone players that may win the division, but are more likely to crash and burn like the Hindenburg. One thing’s for sure: If the Eagles fail, Kelly will almost certainly lose his job.
Let’s start with the biggest move of all: Nick Foles for Sam Bradford. Yes, the same Nick Foles that went 14-4 under Kelly and has the third-highest passer rating in an NFL season. The same Nick Foles that threw seven touchdowns in a game, tying an NFL record.
Kelly traded his “quarterback for the next 1,000 years” for a quarterback that has greatly underperformed since being drafted first-overall in the 2010 draft. This may be due to the lack of talent he had to throw to in St. Louis or his glass ACL that seems to tear at the very thought of a defender charging at him. Bradford can be a solid NFL quarterback when healthy, but the problem is he is never healthy. Bradford has only played 33 out of a possible 48 games over the last three seasons.
With Bradford’s health issues, the Eagles have much more to lose in this trade than the Rams. So why would the Eagles also need to throw in a valuable second-round pick for Bradford, who may very well suffer a serious injury early in the season? Nobody knows. It just doesn’t make sense.
The trade wasn’t the only questionable move of the offseason for the Eagles, however. Kelly traded the Eagles’ star running back, Lesean McCoy, to Buffalo for another injury-prone player, linebacker Kiko Alonso. This trade is actually quite easy to defend from Kelly’s standpoint. By getting rid of McCoy’s $11 million cap hit in 2015, the Eagles were able to sign Demarco Murray, a running back that fits the system much better than McCoy, and Ryan Mathews for the same price of McCoy.
The trade allowed the team to solidify a young front-seven with the potential to be great. In his rookie year, Alonso, who is just 24 years old, led the league in tackles on a bad Buffalo team. If he can return from his own ACL tear and play at a high level, the Eagles will have a scary front seven that will be very tough to run on. In essence, the Eagles received a player that can be the cornerstone of their defense for the next decade for an aging player, which plays a position which makes him expendable.
Nobody, not even Kelly himself, knows if these trades will make the team better than last season. At the very least, Kelly has given ESPN something to talk about for the next six months.
(03/24/15 6:27pm)
By Matt Bowker
Sports Editor
This spring break was one to remember for six members of the men’s swimming and diving team. The College’s 400 freestyle-relay team and 800 free-relay team captured national titles at the 2015 NCAA Division III Swimming and Diving Championships in Shenandoah, Tex., that lasted from Wednesday, March 18, to Saturday, March 22.
In an exhilarating race, the foursome of seniors Brett Pedersen and Brian Perez, junior Joseph Dunn and sophomore Scott Vitable defended their national title in the 400-free relay, while setting a program record with a time of 2:57.85, bringing home the gold for a second straight year.
The race began with Gettysburg College and Denison University vying for the lead in the first two legs of the event, while Vitable and Dunn kept the race within reach for the Lions. Up third for the College was Perez, who swam a team-best time of 44.13 to pull the team closer with just one leg left to go.
“I knew it was going to be extremely close,” Pedersen said. “I remembered what my coach and teammates told me to do, and that was give it everything I had. I wanted to send Brian and myself out with a bang.”
And he did just that. Pedersen, the team’s anchor, dove into the pool, prepared for a frantic finish, then closed the gap and came into the home stretch. Pedersen pulled even with Matthew Veldman of Chicago University as both reached for the wall. When the two looked up, both clocks read “2:57.85.” Both swimmers tapped the wall at the exact same time, making the squads co-national champions.
“When I saw that we won, it was one of the best feelings of my life,” Pedersen said. “There was no better way to end my swimming career. I could not have done it without the guys behind me, screaming at me before I dove in.”
The 400-free team was not the only team to win a national title, however. Pedersen and Vitable had already sealed their place in history with a first-place finish in the 4x800 event. The duo, along with sophomores Ryan Gajdzisz and Jason Ivins, won the event, beating out Kenyon College by two tenths of a second.
After the two titles in 2015, Pedersen now has four national titles to his credit along with two All-American honors.
The Lions brought home two national titles with four relay teams winning All-American honors. Dunn, Perez, Pedersen and junior James Shangle finished fourth in the 4x200 freestyle relay, earning each an All-American status.
In the 2x400 medley relay, senior Aleksander Burzynski, Shangle, Pedersen and Dunn finished seventh, giving Burzynski his own All-American honors. Their time of 1:30.26 set a program record.
In all, the College finished seventh in the nation for the entire championships, marking the program’s sixth-ever top 10 finish. The team’s best finish came in 2014, when the Lions finished sixth.
“In the seasons to come, I am very confident not only in myself, but (that) all my teammates will continue to succeed on such a high level,” Gajdzisz said. “I’m confident that our number of national titles and national champions will continue to increase as the seasons go on.”
(03/24/15 6:22pm)
By Matt Bowker
Sports Editor
Senior Zach Zotollo took the mat for the final time in his impressive career in the final round of the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships on Saturday, March 14, in Hershey, Pa. Zotollo entered the match looking to become a national champion, but he fell short in one of the most dramatic finishes in recent tournament history.
Zotollo was taken down early in the first period to give Wabash College’s Conner Lefever, the No. 1 seeded wrestler at 174 pounds, a 2-0 lead. Zotollo fought back and was able to pull off an escape later in the period to cut the lead in half.
“The only thing you can think about is getting that next score. Whether you are winning by a point or down by 10, the only the thing that matters is the next point,” Zotollo said. “Push the pace, that’s always my approach.”
Zotollo, the No. 3 seed, pushed the pace in the second period, scoring an early escape to tie the match. He followed that up with a takedown of his own to allow himself a 4-2 lead heading into the third and final period.
Lefever scored an escape to cut Zotollo’s lead to 4-3, before regaining the lead at 5-4 with a takedown with only 30 seconds to go.
Zotollo would not let his championship slip through his fingers without a fight, though. As the clock expired, Lefever held on for dear life, trying to run out the clock on Zotollo’s dreams. Zotollo attempted an escape, which would have tied the match, sending it to overtime. The officials conferred, and after a video review, upheld the ruling on the mat: Zotollo had lost.
“Honestly, it’s heartbreaking to lose a close match like that, but it was a great match,” Zotollo said. “I know how hard I worked to get to where I am and that’s what’s most important.”
Earlier in the day, Zotollo earned his third-consecutive All-American honors, becoming only the 17th wrestler in program history to do so. The second-place finish was the best of his career, beating his fourth in 2013 and sixth in 2014.
Junior Antonio Mancella also earned All-American honors in Hershey, the first of his career.
After a terrific opening day on Friday, March 13, Mancella dropped his opening match on Saturday morning to place him in the seventh-place match later that day. Mancella lost that match by injury default to fourth-seeded Jon Garrison of Mount Union. Mancella finished eighth in the nation at 157 pounds.
Senior Nathaniel Leer also participated in the championships, finishing with a 1-2 record at 197 pounds.
As a team, the Lions wrapped up a 17th-place finish, putting them in the top 20 for the fourth consecutive year.
Before the championships began, the life of former Lions’ Coach Dave Icenhower was celebrated with a short video montage of his accomplishments on and off the mat. Following the match, the National Wrestling Coaches Association renamed their coach-of-the-year award after Icenhower, who passed away in October.
Looking back, Zotollo admits that Coach Icenhower had a big impact on his decision to come to the College.
“I met Coach Ice, and he made me fall in love with the program,” Zotollo said. “Coach Ice was awesome.”
(03/12/15 3:56pm)
By Matt Bowker
Sports Editor
Senior Zach Zotollo is a man of routine. On each match days, Zotollo arrives focused and confident, ready to give his all to help the College’s wrestling team win.
Alongside Zotollo is coach Joe Galante, not only preaching patience and strategy, but also ensuring Zotollo remains focused. About midway through a typical meet, Zotollo then picks up his water bottle, places it next to assistant coach Len Goduto and gives him a tap on the shoulder. Zotollo is ready.
He takes the mat, weighing in at 174 pounds, and goes to work.
Zotollo’s routine has helped him punch a third-consecutive ticket to the Division-III NCAA Championships on Friday, March 13, and Saturday, March 14, to be held in Hershey, Pa. Zotollo came in fourth-place in 2013 and sixth in 2014 at the national championships. This year, however, Zotollo believes he has what it takes to go a step further and become a national champion.
“I love (my chances),” Zotollo said. “I know I’m prepared, I know I’ve worked as hard as I can and everything else will take care of itself.”
Zotollo, currently ranked sixth in the nation in his weight class, is looking to become the 22nd individual national champion in Lions’ history.
“This is what I work for all year,” Zotollo said. “It’s really just another tournament. I’m just continuing to do the training I’ve been doing and (staying) focused.”
Zotollo, a criminology major, led the team with a 19-1 record during his senior season at the College. He will be joined in Hershey by fellow senior Nathaniel Leer and junior Antonio Mancella, both making their first appearance in the NCAA tournament.
Wrestling came natural to Zotollo. Following in the footsteps of both his father and older brother, Zotollo first started wrestling at the age of five and immediately fell in love with the sport.
“My dad was head of our town program (in Paramus, N.J.). I would just go to practices with my dad and brother, and it just caught,” Zotollo said.
Zotollo stuck with wrestling and eventually chose the College for the program’s storied history and its supportive coaching staff.
After finishing his freshman season with a 5-4 record, Zotollo challenged himself to become the All-American he knew he would one day become.
Zotollo put on weight, moving from the 149-pound division to the 165-pound class for his sophomore season. With stiff competition to get in meets at 165 pounds, Zotollo again decided to move up a weight class midway through the season.
In Zotollo’s first full season at 174 pounds, he earned a career-high 24 victories, his first All-American honor and a fourth-place win in the NCAA tournament.
“I had never intended to go 174, but it’s the best decision I’ve ever made,” Zotollo said.
Galante applauds Zotollo’s work ethic for his ability to put on 25 pounds and excel in a higher weight class.
“(Zotollo) is always in shape, always down to weight and always ready to compete,” said Galante, a former two-time All-American. “You don’t have to get ready if you stay ready.”
It was not all smooth sailing for Zotollo, however. Zotollo’s career hit a road bump entering his senior year.
“At the beginning of the year, I had a pulled hamstring, and it kept me off the mat for the first three weeks,” Zotollo said, a pack of ice tied around his arm from a different injury he sustained earlier in the season. “I’ve been in and out of the room with injuries.”
“Staying healthy is hard but staying tough is harder,” Galante said. “(Zotollo) is a tough dude.”
Zotollo overcame his series of injuries to defend his title at the NCAA East Regional Tournament on Sunday, March 1, and qualify for the NCAA Championships.
During his time at the College, Zotollo has racked up 85 career wins, back-to-back regional championships and two All-American honors, with a third likely on the way.
Zotollo will go down as one of the most prolific wrestlers in Lions’ history, and with a Division-III National Championship coming up, he’ll be given a chance to cement his place in history as he takes the mat one final time.
(03/04/15 11:04pm)
By Matt Bowker
Sports Editor
The men’s tennis team suffered its first loss of the young season on Saturday, Feb. 28, dropping a close 5-4 decision at the hands of Rensselaer Polytechnic University.
The Lions quickly jumped out to a 2-0 lead over the visiting Engineers in the frigid weather.
The team’s top doubles pairing of juniors Pierce Cooper and Billy Buchbinder got the Lions off to a hot start, doubling up their opponents, 8-4. The win gave the College a 1-0 lead and kept the duo undefeated on the season.
The College continued to roll with second doubles pair sophomores Jack August and Mike Stanley defeating their counterparts, 8-5. The win was August’s first of two wins on the day and kept him a perfect 4-0 in both singles and doubles on the season. August’s partner, Stanley, picked up his first win in his season debut.
The Lions’ freshmen pairing of Chris D’Agostino and Sean Fernandez were unable to complete the doubles sweep of RPI, falling, 8-2.
While the College was dominant in the doubles competition, the team was unable to carry its momentum over to singles competition.
The team lost four of six singles matches en route to their first loss of the season.
First up for the Lions was Cooper. Cooper, the seventh-ranked tennis player was bested by RPI’s McKinley Grimes in straight sets, 7-5, 6-4, to tie up the overall score of the meet at two apiece.
August promptly put the Lions back in the lead by defeating RPI’s senior captain Brandon Mazzara, 6-2, 7-5.
The Engineers took the next two matches to open a 4-3 lead with just two matches remaining. Both Buchbinder and D’Agostino picked up their first singles loss of the season. D’Agostino was able to take his match to a third and final set — the only match of the day to go to a third set — before dropping the deciding set, 6-3.
With the meet on the line, Fernandez was able to steal a victory for the College to tie the meet at four with just one match remaining.
The meet came down to Stanley, making his 2015 singles debut vs. RPI’s junior Sherman Uyeno. While Uyeno had experience on his side, Stanley was coming off a tremendous freshman season in which he went 12-4 and won seven of his last eight singles matches.
Unfortunately for the Lions, Stanley was unable to pull out the victory, and the team lost the meet, 5-4, dropping their record to 1-1 on the season.
Next up for the Lions, Ramapo College will come to campus for a 2:30 p.m. start on Wednesday, March 4. The meet will be the College’s last before a well-deserved, three week break, after which the team’s schedule heats up with three meets for the remainder of the season.
(01/28/15 10:11pm)
By Matt Bowker
Sports Editor
If you are like most people, you probably made the wise decision to pass on watching this year’s Pro Bowl. If you did unfortunately watch the game, my only question for you is: Why?
For years, the Pro Bowl, as well as every All-Star game in the major sports, has been a joke. It’s a football game without the hitting, effort and meaning of a true NFL game. You would be more entertained watching a local pee-wee football game or your little brothers play Madden. Those 5-year olds may not know the rules, but at least they give it their all.
The problem with All-Star games is that the players refuse to subject themselves to injury by participating in these games, and rightly so. Why should players risk losing millions of dollars to play in a game that has absolutely no meaning or consequences? Players have no incentives to play in these games. This year, Andy Dalton of the Cincinnati Bengals made the Pro Bowl coming off an exceptionally average season, because seven quarterbacks in front of him dropped out of the game. This man has no business in a game with the purpose of showcasing the best talent in the league. He’s a ginger, for God’s sake! He belongs in the Weasley family, not in an All-Star game.
The NFL and NHL have tried various things to attempt to spark interest in the games. Both leagues have gone to a fantasy draft format, where team captains select players from the league, regardless of conference. This is a good building block to success, which certainly adds some interest to the event. It is fun to see bitter rivals play on the same and teammates play against each other.
The NFL has toyed with moving the game to the week before the Super Bowl in the host city. That way, they would play the game while football season is still ongoing rather than the week after when football is an afterthought. The problem with this is that the Super Bowl is played almost exclusively in the same five stadiums. The NFL should learn from the other three major leagues and host the Pro Bowl in a different city each year. This would ensure higher ticket sales to the game. Say the game is played in Jacksonville. The Jaguars are terrible, and their fan base has not seen an All-Star player since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Fans in the area might go to the game just to see what a star player is and to escape the reality of living in the armpit of Florida for a few hours.
While the draft and the skills competition in the NHL and NBA are exciting and refreshing, the problem still lies in the main event of the weekend: the game. The MLB has by far the most interesting All-Star game. Tune in to Fox to see which steroid-ridden man will hit the ball the furthest! The game matters because it determines which league will receive home-field advantage in the World Series. This is a great way to ensure players’ interest and effort.
The problem with the NHL and NFL is that they cannot simply copy the MLB’s model. The risk of injury is too high with the physicality of hockey and football, whereas in baseball the biggest risk of injury is getting indigestion from eating one too many dollar dogs.
The NFL, NHL and NBA, to the dismay of fans everywhere, will not change their All-Star format while the events still make money, and sadly they do. So for now, enjoy your mundane football, hockey and basketball All-Star “competitions.”
(12/01/14 8:55pm)
The Lions wrestling team finished off a busy day with a 1-2 record in its three matches at York College on Sunday, Nov. 16.
Three Lions led the way for the College with standout performances. Senior captain Nathaniel Leer, junior Antonio Mancella and junior Doug Hamann each went a perfect 3-0 on the day. Hamann is now a perfect 8-0 on the season, including a title at the Ursinus Fall Brawl.
“I’m just trying to go into each match and execute what I know, and continue to make adjustments each day,” Hamann said of his early success.
The College opened the day’s competition with a match against host York College at noon. Mancella, wrestling in the 157-pound weight division, earned the Lion’s lone win by fall against York, making quick work of his opponent in 1:04. Leer, Hamann and freshman James Goldschmidt also picked up wins for the team, but it was not enough, as the Spartans took down the Lions 27-16.
The College bounced back from its defeat just a few hours later with an impressive victory over Division II Shippensburg University. Again, Leer, Mancella and Hamann picked up individual wins, with Mancella and Leer pinning their opponents.
The Lions also received key contributions from the underclassmen in the win over Shippensburg. Goldschmidt, in the 125-pound class, earned his second win of the day, while sophomore Jesse Thorsen, 174 pounds, and freshman Kyle Lynch, 184 pounds, both won by decision.
As team captain, Leer sets the tone for the rest of the team, especially the with the less experienced underclassmen.
“I try to set an example by working hard in the room every day,” Leer said. “I’m not the most vocal leader, but as a veteran starter on the team, I know it is important to show the younger guys what it takes to be a successful college wrestler.”
The team was not able to carry over its momentum into the day’s final match against an undefeated Waynesburg University, dropping a tough battle 18-16. Hamann, 165 pounds, Leer, 197 pounds, and Mancella continued their dominant day with three victories apiece, each by decision. Goldschmidt was edged out of joining the trio with a perfect record due to a tough 5-4 match. Lynch earned his second win of the day, topping his opponent, 3-2. Sophomore Nick Herring contributed a win of his own with a huge 6-0 victory.
In total, the Lions finished 1-2 on the hectic day, with seven different wrestlers earning wins for the team.
Looking forward, the Lions will have their first home match of the young season on Wednesday, Nov. 19, when King’s College will visit Packer Hall for a 7:30 p.m. The College will then look to recover from its slow start at the Fall College Open match on Saturday, Nov. 22, in the Rec Center.
(11/16/14 3:04am)
The College opened its wrestling season on Saturday, Nov. 8, at the annual Ursinus College Fall Brawl. The Lions had a very successful match against the region’s best, including one weight-division title, a runner-up and third place finish. In total, over 20 colleges and universities participated in the event, with over 100 wrestlers competing in 10 different weight classes.
Junior Doug Hamann took home the title in the 165-pound division. After transferring from Rutgers University in the offseason, Hamann won the College’s first title win at the Fall Brawl since the 2012 season, in his first outing as a Lion. Hamann went undefeated in his weight class, racking up four wins before pinning Rochester Institute of Technology’s Connor Martinez in a long bout of 5:52.
Senior Nathaniel Leer advanced to the finals in the 197-pound grouping but was edged out by American University’s Brett Dempsey by a slim 3-2 decision. Leer finished with a respectable 3-1 record on the day and earned two of his wins by pins. Leer also finished second in the 2013 Fall Brawl.
Sophomore Patrick Schinder placed third in the 285-pound division. After winning his first two matches, Schinder was defeated by runner-up Scot Augustine of American University. Schinder was relegated into the consolation bracket, where he rattled off four straight wins to claim a third-place finish.
Two Lions reached the semifinals in their respective divisions: Junior Antonio Mancella finished with two wins in the 157-pound division, while sophomore Daniel Wojtaszek posted identical numbers in the 184-pound weight group.
The Lions will open their team meet portion of the season with four meets this week. The College will travel to Stevens Institute of Technology on Wednesday, Nov. 12, for a 7 p.m. meet with a Ducks squad coming off a shutout loss to Division 1 Rutgers University.
The College will then participate in three meets on Saturday, Nov. 16, at York College. The Lions will take the mat with York College, Shippensburg University and Waynesburg University for a hectic noon start.
Last season, the College had an average 8-8 season as a team. However, the Lions are expecting a bounce-back season as reflected in the 2014 coaches poll, where the College was ranked 15th in the nation.
(10/31/14 12:28am)
With no acting director, chaos reigned in the Intramurals and Club Sports program for the first month of the semester: Club teams were unable to schedule games and were disrupted in their everyday activities with the absence of a Club Sports director.
That all changed once the new Director of Recreation, Robert Simels, was welcomed to the College a little over a month ago. Club Sports schedules are now returning to normal as Simels settles into his new job.
“We’ve come up with a really good procedure, and things are starting to work out really well,” Simels said.
With no time to get a feel for the job, Simels started right away to get the Club Sports program back on track.
“It’s nice to jump right into it, because you don’t have time to think,” Simels said. “You can dip your toe in the pool and pull it out. I just cannonballed in. It just means you’re learning while doing instead of learning then doing.”
Simels, a graduate of the University of North Carolina, spent time as the Director of Intramurals and Recreation at Dickinson College before accepting the vacant position here at the College.
“Really, (I came here) because of the school and opportunities that it had to offer. I think there’s a big future in recreation here and developing a holistic recreational program based on fitness, intramurals and club sports,” Simels said.
Simels added that he was drawn to the school because of the opportunities that the College has to offer.
Above all, Simels wants to build a “culture of recreation” at the College — a culture where students want to be active.
“Doing some sort of physical activity, if it’s as simple as going for a hike to as competitive as playing rugby, there’s a benefit to it that will meet their academic goals as well as the mission of the school,” Simels said.
Overall, Simels’s goal is to build every program, from the Physical Enhancement Center to intramural sports, to be the best they can be for the students’ use.
“My favorite part of the job is interacting with students, learning what students want,” he said. “I think the students here are great. They have a lot of great ideas about what they want to see, and hopefully we can get some good things going.”
(10/07/14 4:29pm)
It’s almost that time of year again when fists fly, goal horns sound and the Pittsburgh Penguins choke again. With the NHL season set to kick off this week, here are my Stanley Cup picks.
In the Western Conference, it is clear that the L.A. Kings are head and shoulders above any other team. After winning last year’s Cup, the Kings have resigned playoff hero Marian Gaborik. Gaborik, along with Conn Smythe winner, Justin Williams and sniper Jeff Carter, will be enough offense for the Kings to come out of the west. The Kings defense will return all six members who allowed the fewest goals in the league last year.
The Kings biggest competition will again be the Chicago Blackhawks, in one of the quickest growing rivalries in the game. With serious salary cap issues, the Blackhawks will have to rely on young players to add secondary scoring behind Toews, Kane, Hossa and Sharp.
The East is a much more open division. The Penguins, Canadians and Lightning all have a realistic chance, but I like the Bruins to win the conference in the conference finals. The Bruins have the best goalie in the game and are getting back their top-pairing defenseman, Dennis Seidenberg, from a season-long injury. The Bruins lost their leading goal scorer, Jarome Iginla, in free agency, but have the most balanced offense in the league and will cruise to another deep playoff run.
The team with the best chance to dethrone the Bruins will be the Pittsburgh Penguins. It seems like every year the Pens are the Cup favorite but choke in the first round. After surviving a first-round scare to the Blue Jackets, the Pens coughed up a 3-1 series lead and lost in seven games to the Rangers. To no one’s surprise, they cleaned house over the summer and fired their general manager and head coach, who was the real problem. The Penguins brought in Steve Downie to add some much-needed toughness. However, they lost 40-goal scorer James “the walking-suspension” Neal in a trade to Nashville. In the end, it doesn’t really matter who you put on the ice with Crosby or Malkin, because they’re due for a career year. While the coaching change will solve many problems, Marc-Andre Fleury is still a liability in the playoffs, and the Penguins have no scoring past their top two lines.
And that brings us to the Stanley Cup Finals, where the Kings will go toe-to-toe with the Bruins in a heavyweight matchup of two of the most evenly matched teams in recent memory. Both teams have superstars at every position, but I’ll take the speedy Kings over the physical Bruins in seven.
(10/01/14 5:48pm)
Over 1,000 supporters turned out for the third annual Meters for Mike event to honor the life and memory of 2009 swimmer and graduate Mike Heaney.
Heaney was struck by a car while riding his bike on April 11, 2012, suffering severe brain damage. Heaney was a fighter, spending the next year and a half battling for his life before passing away on November 9, 2013.
“Mike was a great motivator,” said head swimming and diving coach Brian Bishop. “He was one of the hardest workers I’ve ever coached.”
After his passing, four of Heaney’s teammates at the College were looking for a way to honor their late friend. Steve Swenson ’06, Liam Gallagher ’08, Chris Levin ’08 and Mike Molloy ’09, along with Bishop and Heaney’s family, coordinated Meters for Mike just months after Heaney’s accident to pay for his medical bills.
Over the next two years, Meters for Mike grew in popularity and continued to raise money for Heaney’s medical care.
After Heaney’s passing, the brain trust behind the event decided to continue the annual event in memory of Heaney, with donations and money raised going to the Brain Injury Alliance of New Jersey to help others in Heaney’s position.
In the first year of the event after Heaney’s passing, over $30,000 was raised, excluding sponsorships and donations from the event, with a record of over 1,000 combined participants and supporters.
Heaney’s friends, family and fellow Lions invaded Belmar Beach on Saturday, Sept. 20, to show their support for Heaney.
Volunteers from across New Jersey turned out to make the event such a success. With help from the Belmar Police and Beach Patrol, TCNJ Swimming and Diving teams and alumni, Meters from Mike has become the third-largest, open-water swim in New Jersey history.
Swimmers from across the region came out to show their support for Heaney and his family. Participants from Rider University, Stevens Institute of Technology, Rowan University, Montclair State University, Princeton University, University of Pennsylvania and St. Peter’s College, along with local youth swim teams, took part in the one-mile open.
Both the men and women’s swimming and diving teams from the College participated in the event.
“I was really nervous because it was my first ocean swim, but I thought it was a lot of fun and for a great cause,” junior club swim team member Lindsay Walheim said.
In his time at the College, Heaney was a co-captain of the swimming and diving team and held the program’s backstroke record at the time of his graduation.
Coach Bishop said he expects next year’s event to be even more successful than years past.
“We have set records for three straight years now,” Bishop said. “And I’d like to do that again next year. Maybe we can make (Meters for Mike) a nation-wide event.
(09/24/14 6:22pm)
The College’s women’s soccer team was able to bounce back after suffering its first loss of the season to roll to victory at Rutgers-Newark University on Friday, September 19. The 13th-ranked Lions coasted to a 3-0 win behind a strong defensive effort with timely scoring. The game marked the beginning of crucial New Jersey Athletic Conference play for the team.
Sophomore Christine Levering continued to do what she does best — netting two goals and adding an assist, leading the team to victory. Levering, last year’s NJAC Rookie of the Year, and last year’s leading scorer, scored just 17:55 into the game on a cross from fellow sophomore Brianna Petro.
Five minutes later, senior Korrie Harkins scored her second goal of the season on a pass from Levering to extend the Lions’ lead.
Levering was not done, though. She later tacked on an insurance goal in the second half off of a header on a corner kick from senior defender Jordan Downs for her fourth goal of the season.
Downs and company did their part defensively. The Lions again allowed only one shot on goal in the contest. It was the third time this season that the team has allowed one shot on goal or less.
Senior goalkeeper Kendra Griffith stopped the one shot that came her way en route to her third solo shutout of the season. Griffith has also recorded two combined shutouts with senior Tara Fisher. All five of the College’s wins this season have been shutouts.
This week, the Lions will play their first home games in two weeks. Fairleigh-Dickinson University will visit campus on Tuesday, September 23. Later in the week, Kean University will look to tame the Lions attack in a tough conference matchup, while the College looks to maintain their undefeated home record.
“I think we just have to come into every game with the mentality that no team is going to roll over for us,” said Levering. “We have to come out with a lot of energy, play like we’re capable of playing and score as early and often as we can.”
(09/18/14 7:40pm)
The women’s soccer team suffered its first loss of the season with a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Johns Hopkins University on Saturday, Sept. 13. The game featured two of the nation’s top Division III teams, with Johns Hopkins ranked 18th in the nation and the Lions 10th. The loss dropped the College to 4-1 overall and third place in the New Jersey Athletic Conference.
After a scoreless first half in the rain, Johns Hopkins was able to break through early in the second half. Senior Hannah Kronick got the Blue Jays on the board first when she rocketed home a rebound in the 61st minute. Kronick then added her sixth goal of the year 15 minutes later to give the Blue Jays a commanding lead.
The Lions rallied with a goal by junior Christina Roach in the 88th minute, but it was too little, too late for the College to complete the rally.
The goal was Roach’s third of the season, with the assist coming from last season’s leading scorer, Christine Levering.
The Blue Jays were able to hold off the Lions’ attack to secure their fifth win of the season.
“We had our chances throughout the game, but for some reason we were not able to finish them,” said leading-scorer Gina Caprara.
The Lions defeated Johns Hopkins last season in a 2-1 double-overtime thriller capped off by a Levering game-winning goal.
Johns Hopkins was the first ranked opponent the College has faced this season.
The Lions have another light week ahead of them with only one upcoming game. The team will travel to Rutgers-Newark University on Friday, Sept. 19, at 7:30 p.m. The game will be the College’s first conference match.
Last season, the Lions used a 6-2-1 conference record to coast their way to an NJAC title.
“Moving forward, we just need to focus on finishing our chances and we should be fine,” Caprara said.
(09/09/14 7:56pm)
The College’s women’s soccer team claimed the annual Mayor’s Cup Tournament for the second time in three years this weekend with back-to-back wins over Suny-Oneonta State and Hartwick College. With the wins, the Lions improved to a perfect 4-0 on the season and propelled them into first place in the NJAC conference.
The team struck early against Oneonta State on Saturday, Sept. 5. Freshman Jessica Goldman netted a goal just two-and-a-half minutes into the game. That goal would be all the offense the Lions needed, as they grinded their way to a 2-0 victory. Sophomore defender Marissa Scognamiglio tacked on an insurance goal with less than three minutes to play to seal the win.
In the second game of the tournament, the Lions cruised to a 6-0 victory over the host, Hartwick College. Junior Shannon White tallied her first two goals of the season, while senior Gina Caprara matched her total goals from last season with her fourth goal of the year. Senior goalkeepers Kendra Griffith and Tara Fisher recorded another combined shutout. The dynamic duo has yet to give up a goal in the Lions’ four games so far this season.
“Our hard work through preseason and our scrimmages has led to the wins and shutouts we’ve been earning,” Fisher said. “It’s not just having a strong offense and defense — we have a strong team. Knowing that my teammates are willing to put themselves on the line for me or any other teammate makes me want to work harder and do the same for them.”
Four Lions were named to the all-tournament team, led by senior goalie Kendra Griffith, senior defender Jordan Downs, junior midfielder Shannon White and junior defender Brianna Cummings. Griffith was named the defensive player of the tournament, and White took home offensive MVP honors.
Earlier in the week, the College stole a home win against Virginia Wesleyan. Freshman Jessica Goldman again played the hero. Virginia Wesleyan goalie Megan Gerhart was able to keep her team in the game, stopping 10 shots on the day before Goldman struck late in the second half to give the Lions a 1-0 victory.
The team has a light schedule this week with just one game. The College will travel to Baltimore on Saturday, Sept. 13, to take on fifth-ranked Johns Hopkins University. The Lions are currently ranked 11th.
(09/02/14 7:47pm)
The 10th-ranked Lions dominated Cedar Crest College in their season opener on Friday, Aug. 28, winning in a 10-0 landslide at home.
The team raced out to an early lead and never looked back. Freshman Elizabeth Thoreson opened the scoring for the Lions just 39 seconds into the game. Thoreson was one of three freshmen to tally a goal on the day.
Fellow freshmen Hannah Richman and Kathryn Bednarsky came off the bench to add goals of their own in their first collegiate games. In all, Lions’ substitutes scored eight of the team’s 10 goals.
Senior Gina Caprara led the way offensively for the College, scoring three goals in a span of six minutes to seal the win for the Lions. She scored her three goals on her only three shots of the game.
“It really was (a great experience) since I haven’t scored a hat trick since my youth soccer years,” Caprara said. “I was surprised I was able to get three, but I am glad I finished all my chances.”
Junior Christina Roach also had a big game, scoring two goals of her own.
Last year’s leading scorer and reigning NJAC Rookie of the Year, Christine Levering, scored her first goal of the season just six minutes into the contest.
Junior Justine Larocca closed out the scoring for the College, burying one in the back of the net early in the second half.
Overall, seven different Lions scored on the day.
“I think we have great players starting … and everyone who comes off the bench also makes an impact on the field,” Capara said about the team’s offensive balance. “I think that that will help us this season because we have a lot of good players off the bench still scoring. That shows we all offensively know how to finish the ball.”
While the offense turned in an incredible game, the defense played a nearly perfect game. Thanks to stellar defense and ball control, Cedar Crest was unable to get a single shot off.
Senior goalkeepers Kendra Griffith and Tara Fisher each played a half while picking up a combined shutout, despite not facing a single shot. Last season, the team had a remarkable 13 shutouts.
This week, the Lions will host Virginia Wesleyan College on Wednesday, Sept. 3, just before heading to New York for a pair of weekend games with Oneonta State on Saturday, Sept. 6, and Hartwick College on Sunday, Sept. 7.
(08/26/14 8:13pm)
Perhaps the best word to describe head coach Joe Russo’s women’s soccer teams is: consistent. Over Russo’s 24-year stint as head coach, the Lions have won three Division III championships, 16 NJAC conference titles, and have appeared in 23 consecutive NCAA tournaments.
And 2013 was no different. The Lions finished the regular season
with a stellar 18-3-2 record en route to yet another New Jersey Athletic Conference title. The Lions outlasted fifth-ranked Montclair State in the title game, winning 1-0 on penalty kicks. The Lions advanced to the third round of the NCAA tournament before falling to eventual national champion William Smith College by a score of 1-0. Earlier in the season, the College handed William Smith its only loss of the season.
That was last season, and the team is training harder than ever to get back to the NCAA tournament and bring home the women’s soccer program’s fourth ever title.
“Our goal for this season is the same as the previous season, as we practice every day to win a National Championship,” said last season’s leading scorer sophomore Christine Levering. “There are smaller goals along the way which we hope to achieve, such as win the conference (NJAC), and the regular season.”
Levering, led the team with 11 goals and 26 points as a freshman last season. The 2013 NJAC Rookie of the Year will look to build on last season’s campaign with help from her teammates.
“My success comes with the team’s success and when we’re on our game it makes it easier for me to get opportunities to score,” Levering said. “I think to keep up my success we need to work together to possess the ball and make as many scoring opportunities as we can so I can do my part and put the ball in the back of the net.”
However, not all is golden on the offensive front. The team will be without two of its top three scorers from last season.
On the plus side, the Lions are gifted with an abundance of senior leadership this season. The team is returning six seniors, including defender Jordan Downs. The awards and honors continued to roll in throughout the summer for Downs, including NJAC Defensive Player of the Year, an ALL-NJAC First Team selection. She was even chosen as an NSCAA Second-Team All American.
The Lions were recently ranked 10th in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Division III Preseason Poll. NJAC coaches predicted, however, that Montclair State will overtake the College for the NJAC Conference title this season.
The team opens up its season at home Friday, Aug. 29, at 5 p.m. with Cedar Crest College.
With a balanced and experienced offense and a defense lead by Downs, the Lions look to add to their winning history and win a National Championship.
(04/29/14 8:25pm)
The Lions clinched a spot in the NJAC tournament with a much-needed doubleheader sweep over division rival Richard Stockton College on Saturday, April 26.
The College went into the game in a three-way tie with Stockton and Rutgers-Newark University for the final playoff spot.
Before the games, Coach Dean Glus had a message for his team.
“He (said) that if we do not win both games then it could possibly be our last time on the field this season, and we did not want that to happen,” said sophomore designated hitter Garen Turner, who scored five hits and four runs.
The Lions earned four conference points, rising to fifth in the standings and eliminating Stockton from playoff contention.
Like it had done all season, the Lions’ pitching staff powered the team to victory. Junior Connor Smith tossed his fifth complete game of the season, while the team held on for a 4-3 win. Smith allowed seven hits, but limited the Ospreys to three runs, only one of which was earned.
The College jumped out to an early lead on an RBI double by Turner, who later scored on an error to giving the team a 2-0 lead.
The Ospreys battled back to tack on runs in the third and fourth innings, briefly tying the game at two.
In the Lions half of the fifth, sophomore center fielder JC Rizzi scored on a sacrifice fly to regain the lead. Later in the inning, junior first baseman Josh Limon scored Turner on a key RBI double.
With the bases loaded in the sixth inning, Smith bared down to get the final out of the inning on a called third strike to preserve the one run lead.
Smith allowed only one baserunner over the final three innings to secure his team-leading sixth win of the season.
In the second game of the doubleheader, it was senior Brendan Kelly’s arm that provided the College with another win. Kelly also pitched a complete game. He allowed only one run on nine hits while recording five strikeouts.
The Lions’ offense gave Kelly three runs to work with in the first inning, with RBIs from Limon and sophomore right fielder Pat Roberts. The team later tacked on runs in the second, fifth and sixth innings en route to a 6-1 victory.
The College played error-free baseball for the first time in 16 games this season, as they tightened up its defense.
Other seniors honored on Saturday included left fielder Joe Dispoto, catcher Paul Searles and infielder Justin Ely. All four seniors got a chance to play in the doubleheader.
The Lions will visit Rowan University in the first round of the NJAC Tournament on Tuesday, April 30 at 3:30 p.m.
The team dropped both games with Rowan earlier this week — the only times the two team faced each other this season. The Lions led 4-3 going into the ninth inning at Rowan, before surrendering two wins to give Rowan a 5-4 victory. The next day was much of the same as the Lions tied the game up in the ninth inning to send the game in extra innings. Rowan promptly scored five runs in the 11th inning to steal a 7-2 victory at Ackerman Park.
“With our bats heating up at just the right time and the depth of our starting pitching rotation, TCNJ baseball will certainly be a dangerous team in the NJAC tournament,” Turner said.
(04/15/14 4:00pm)
Coming off an eight-game win streak, the Lions stumbled this past week, losing four of five games.
“We’ve just been getting outplayed,” sophomore pitcher Steven Volpe said. “If we get back to the basics and fundamentals of the game, we’ll be fine.”
All four losses came against conference opponents. The one win and four losses dropped the College all the way from first in the division down to sixth place out of 10 teams. With a 4-5 conference record, the Lions sit four conference points back from top-seeded Rowan, with 11 conference games left in the season.
“(Coach Glus) reminded us to execute, maintain our focus and have trust in ourselves and teammates to get the job done but still have fun out there,” sophomore catcher Matt Facas said.
Volpe picked up the team’s only win this week on Thursday, April 10. He pitched into the sixth inning, on his way to his fourth win of the season. Volpe worked his way out of jams all afternoon, before leaving the game with runners on first and second and no outs in the seventh inning.
Sophomore relief pitcher Mike Correa was called on to protect the team’s three-run lead. Correa gave up a single that cut the Lions’ lead to 5-3. Sophomore center fielder JC Rizzi made a nice catch on the run for the first out to limit William Paterson’s damage. Correa dug in to record the force, a pop up, and then a strikeout to end the Pioneers’ threat.
Junior pitcher Benito Gonzalez shut the door on the Pioneers in the ninth inning, picking up his first save of the season and giving the Lions a 5-4 win, avenging the previous day’s shutout loss to eighth-place WPU.
The College followed up Thursday’s win with back-to-back losses to fifth-place Ramapo College. The team dropped the first game by a final of 9-4 before a 7-1 defeat in the second game.
The Lions’ schedule does not get any easier this week with games at Farmingdale State College and a home-and-home with fourth-place Montclair State University. The team will then travel to Rutgers-Camden University for a doubleheader with the first-place Scarlet Raptors on Saturday, April 19.
“As long as we stay positive and continue to go out there and keep working hard, we’ll be fine. We are still in good shape for the last three weeks of the season and we just need to get back into a rhythm, start winning some ballgames, and build up our confidence as a team going into the final stretch of the regular season,” sophomore catcher Matt Facas said.
If the Lions can do that, there’s plenty of time remaining to improve their standing in the NJAC — and they can start by getting back to the win column this week.
“Baseball’s a long season. There’s a lot of ups and downs, but the character of this team is strong,” Volpe said. “I’m sure we’ll bounce back this week and get a few wins.”