Volleyball team wins central region title
The No. 6 Bears volleyball team went 2-0 en route to winning the NCAA Central Region Championship in Pella, Iowa. WUSTL swept past No. 20 Elmhurst College, 3-0, Nov. 13 in the final match.
The Bears jumped out of the gates in the first game, led by junior Megan Houck. Houck had three kills and two blocks as WUSTL earned a 10-5 lead. The Bears held on for a 30-25 win. Houck registered six kills in the opening frame, while sophomore Whitney Smith chipped in with four.
In Game 2, Washington U. maintained the momentum as it opened up a 10-3 lead. After an Elmhurst timeout, freshman Emilie Walk stole the show with four kills as the Bears pushed ahead, 16-6. Walk finished the second period with seven kills as the Bears won 30-19 for a 2-0 lead. The Bears fell behind 10-8 before reeling off nine of the next 11 points for a 17-12 lead in the third game. Senior Ishi Ballew led WUSTL with four kills in the decisive third game, which the Bears won, 30-24.
Houck led the Bears with 14 kills in the match, while Walk added 12 kills and hit .709. Smith collected nine kills as the Bears hit .352 as a team. WUSTL improved to 30-6.
The Bears defeated Calvin College, 3-1, Nov. 12 in the second round of the tournament behind senior Colleen Winter’s match-high 15 kills. Washington U. returns to action Nov. 20 in the NCAA quarterfinals in La Crosse, Wis. WUSTL will face the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse at 7 p.m.
Women’s soccer off to NCAA sectionals
The No. 11 women’s soccer team will travel to Tacoma, Wash., for the NCAA Sectionals at the University of Puget Sound. Washington U. advanced to the sectionals for the third time in school history with a 5-0 win over Principia College in the NCAA tournament’s second round Nov. 13 at Francis Field.
The win improved Washington U.’s record to 17-2, tying the school record set in 1997 and tied in 1998. The Bears will face Macalester College of St. Paul, Minn., in the sectional semifinals at 2:30 p.m. local time Nov. 20. No. 22 Macalester advanced to the sectionals by winning road games at Grinnell College (3-1) and Loras College (1-0). Macalester (18-3-1) leads the all-time series with WUSTL, 4-2-1.
The teams last met in 2001, with Macalester posting a 3-1 victory. The two teams have met in the postseason, as Washington U. posted a 2-1 win on Nov. 14, 1997, in the NCAA quarterfinals in St. Louis.
Four teams will play in Tacoma for a Final Four berth, to be held Nov. 26-27 at Macpherson Stadium in Greensboro, N.C. No. 16 Hardin Simmons (19-1-1) and No. 6 Puget Sound (19-1) will meet in the other semifinal.
Football team posts another winning year
The football team extended its school-record streak of winning seasons to 12 with a 37-0 win against Greenville College Nov. 13 at Francis Field. The defense was the story as it set a school record by allowing -21 rushing yards in the victory. The defense also recorded two interceptions and held the Panthers to 198 yards total offense.
The Bears (6-4) scored on the opening possession of the game, marching 61 yards on 11 plays, capped by a 1-yard touchdown run by senior Kevin McCarthy. McCarthy continued his steady running on the ground as he eclipsed 1,000 rushing yards for his career late in the first quarter. He then gave WUSTL a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter as he scampered 13 yards for this second TD of the game.
Greenville drove down to the Washington U. 10-yard line late in the second quarter, but the Bears defense stopped the Panthers on fourth down to regain possession. WUSTL drove 90 yards on 12 plays on the ensuing possession, capped by senior Adam Meranda’s 11-yard touchdown pass to senior Jeff Buening to move ahead 21-0 with 1:55 remaining in the half.
The Bears recorded a safety with 14:47 left in the fourth quarter after senior Scott Armul blocked the Greenville punt out of the end zone. McCarthy scored his third TD of the game and freshman Michael Casper hauled in a touchdown reception from senior Zach Norman to round out the scoring.
Receiver Brad Duesing had 11 catches for 151 yards and became just the third player in NCAA Division III history to have back-to-back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons in his first three years. He finished his junior campaign with 69 catches for 1,011 yards.
Meranda finished the day 20 of 31 for 236 yards and one touchdown as he eclipsed 4,000 yards passing for his career (4,119). McCarthy notched his second 100-yard rushing game of the season as he rushed for 134 yards on 27 carries.
Women runners qualify for NCAAs
The women’s cross country team qualified for the NCAA Championships Nov. 13 after finishing second at the NCAA Midwest Regional Championships in Rock Island, Ill. The Bears men placed eighth.
Despite not making the men’s team national championships, junior Greg Reindl placed ninth out of 243 runners in the 8K run and qualified for the individual national championship.
Senior Maggie Grabow paced the women in the 6K run, clocking a 21:21.5 to finish fifth of 255 competitors. Freshman Tyler Mulkin took 16th place in 21:59.0, while sophomore Elizabeth Herndon placed 19th in 22:03.8.
Reindl clocked a 24:32.0 to lead the Bears men’s squad, while junior Brennan Bonner took 22nd place in 24:52.7.
WUSTL will return to action Nov. 20 at the NCAA Championships in Eau Claire, Wis. Race time is slated for 11 a.m.
Swimming & diving wins Maroon invite
The women’s swimming and diving (965 points) squad won the University of Chicago Maroon Invitational Nov. 13. WUSTL’s women won 13 events. Sophomore Katelyn Bryll recorded a team season-best 2:13.77 in the 200-yard butterfly.
The men’s team also finished second by tallying 741.5 points, which trailed only host Chicago (996.5). Freshman Ross Vimr clocked a team season-best 4:51.12 in the 500 freestyle.
Tourneys to open hoops seasons
The men’s basketball team will open the 2004-05 season this weekend as the Bears host the 21st Annual Lopata Basketball Classic. WUSTL will take on Tufts University at 8 p.m. today at the Field House in the team’s season opener.
Whittier College and Wittenberg University will play the opening game of the tournament at 6 p.m. today. The consolation game will be at 6 p.m. Nov. 20, followed by the title game.
The No. 10 women’s basketball team will open the 2004-05 season this weekend at the DePauw University Tip-Off Tournament in Greencastle, Ind.
The Bears open play in the tournament at 6 p.m. today against Illinois Wesleyan University. The consolation game will be held at 2 p.m. Nov. 20, followed by the championship at 4 p.m.