Buckeye Sports Shorts – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/21/2002 12:00:00 AM | General
May 21, 2002
Athletes of the Week
Four Buckeyes won Big Ten titles at the 2002 Big Ten Track and Field Championships in Madison, Wis. Krista Keir won the discus, while Katy Craig placed first in the hammer throw. Tami Smith continued her dominance in the high jump, claiming the conference championship in the event. Dan Taylor won the shot put title.
Sports Shorts
The annual Ohio State Scholar-Athlete Dinner will be heldWednesday at the Columbus Convention Center. This year, 366scholar-athletes will be recognized. The finalists for the 2002 BigTen Conference Medal of Honor are Allison Blanton (Fieldhockey/Newton, N.J.), Carolina Moraes (Synchronized swimming/SaoPaulo, Brazil), Isabela Moraes (Synchronized swimming/Sao Paulo,Brazil), Monica Rincon (Tennis/Lapeer, Mich.), Lauren Shenk(Basketball/Minster, Ohio) and Emily Thorpe (Soccer/Cincinnati,Ohio) for the women and Collis Boyce (Lacrosse/Butler, Md.), DarylBrazeau (Soccer/Hanover Park, Ill.), J.J. O’Rielly (Cross countryand track/Dover, Ohio), Kevin Stephan (Lacrosse/Massapequa, N.Y.)and Tyson Walter (Football/Bainbridge, Ohio) for the men. AllisonBlanton (Newton, N.J./Kittatiny Regional), a senior goalkeeper onthe Ohio State field hockey and lacrosse teams, was named to theVerizon Academic All-District IV University Division Women’sAt-Large First Team. Blanton is one of 10 First Team selections whowill represent District IV as a candidate for the national team.Women’s tennis senior Monica Rincon (Lapeer, Mich./West) was namedto the district’s third team. Megan Mirick (Sr., Burke, Va.) of thewomen’s lacrosse team has been named a First Team 2002Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association/U.S. LacrosseAll-American sponsored by Brine. Shannon Wilson (Jr., Sherkston,Ontario) was named to the third team. The softball team concludedits 2002 season with a 2-2 record at the NCAA Region 6 tournamentheld at Alumni Field in Ann Arbor, Mich., over the weekend. TheBuckeyes fell to the Wolverines, 4-0, on the last day in an attemptto earn a spot in the Women’s College World Series set to beginThursday in Oklahoma City, Okla. OSU finished its record settingcampaign with a 55-14 record and took second in the Big Ten with a16-4 record. The Buckeyes also finished second at the Big Tentournament. OSU put wins over Central Michigan, 7-0 in the opener,and upset No. 6 Washington, 2-1, while dropping both games to theWolverines. For the year, 19 team records and 12 individual markswere broken by the Buckeyes including games played, wins and homeruns while Anna Smith, Stacy Roth, Kristine Himes and Katie Chainset new player standards. Smith reestablished the career and seasonruns, career and season hits, season stolen bases and seasonbatting average records while hitting .507 (second in the nation)and collecting the ninth-most hits in a single season in NCAAhistory at 105. Roth set new marks for season and career RBIs andHimes rewrote the season home run record. Chain broke the 500strikeout barrier while setting new standards in career wins andshutouts and season strikeouts. For their play, the Buckeyesgarnered six All-Great Lakes Region honors and the team’s highestnational ranking ever at No. 19. Russ Hellickson, the OSU wrestlingcoach, garnered National Wrestling Coach of the Year honors for theNational Wrestling Coaches Association Monday after guiding theBuckeyes to a 20-4 record and a sixth-place finish at the NCAAchampionships where Tommy Rowlands won the heavyweight nationalchampionship. Hellickson, who also was named the 2002 Big TenCo-Coach of the Year (with Minnesota’s J Robinson), has compiled a310-150-6 career record in 20 years of coaching and is 239-128-6 inhis 16 years with the Buckeye program. In his coaching tenure,Hellickson has guided 67 All-Americans and 17 national titleholders with 32 and six, respectively, coming from the OSU program.Hellickson, after Rowlands, Nick Preston and Robert Sessley earnedthe honor this year, also has led at least one Buckeye wrestler toAll-America status each of the last 13 years in Columbus. OhioState men’s tennis players Phil Metz (Jr., Mentor, Ohio/Mentor) andJeremy Wurtzman (So., Rochester, N.Y./Brickhouse Academy (Fla.)both were selected to play in the 2002 NCAA Singles Championships.Singles competition will begin Wednesday in College Station, Texas.Metz’s and Wurtzman’s opponents have not yet been determined. Thedraw for the singles championships will be released Tuesday. Metz,ranked No. 34 nationally, will make his second-consecutiveappearance in the NCAA singles tournament. Metz is the firstBuckeye to play in back-to-back NCAA singles tournaments sinceTucker did in 1990-91. He is 21-10 overall, 9-3 in the Big Ten and9-5 against nationally-ranked opponents. Wurtzman, OSU’s top-ratedplayer at No. 27, was selected to make his first appearance in theNCAA tournament. Wurtzman is 32-14 overall and 19-6 in duals. Thisis the first time the Buckeyes have had two singles players in theNCAA Singles Championships since four Buckeyes (Ivan Botica, JimFlower, Francisco Gonzalez and Pedro Gonzalez) participated in the1976 tournament. A total of 15 Buckeyes (nine differentindividuals) have qualified for the NCAA singles tournament in thehistory of the program. Women’s golf opens play in the NCAAChampionships today in Auburn, Wash. The squad, ranked fourth inthe nation, is making its sixth consecutive appearance in the NCAAtournament. The baseball team, seeded No. 2, will open play in theBig Ten tournament at 3:30 p.m. Thursday in Minneapolis, Minn. TheBuckeyes will play the highest seed of the Game 1 (No. 4Indiana/No. 5 Iowa) and Game 2 (No. 3 Michigan State/No. 6Northwestern) winners. Women’s tennis senior captain Monica Rinconopens play in the 2002 NCAA Singles Championship today againstJewel Peterson of Southern California. Rincon is competing in herfirst NCAA singles tournament. The Ohio State men’s golf teamfinished 15th at the NCAA West Regional in Albuquerque, N.M., lastweek. Ohio State fell short of advancing to the 2002 NCAATournament, which will be held May 29-June 1 at The OSU ScarletCourse in Columbus. A total of 30 teams and six student athletesplaying as individuals will arrive in Columbus for practice roundsMay 27-28 before the 72-hole tournament begins May 29. The OhioState rowing team, ranked No. 3 nationally, will learn today if thesquad was selected to participate in the 2002 NCAA Tournament May31-June 2 in Indianapolis, Ind. The Buckeyes are expected to makethe field of 12 teams that will vie for the national title. OhioState bolstered its chances by winning the Big Ten tournament titleMay 4 and finishing second in the 2002 NCAA Central RegionalsSunday in Oak Ridge, Tenn.
Ohio State Athletics Events for The Week
Tuesday, May 21
Women’s Golf at NCAA Championships, All Day
Auburn, Wash.
Wednesday, May 22
Women’s Golf at NCAA Championships, All Day
Auburn, Wash.
Men’s Tennis: Phil Metz and Jeremy Wurtzman at NCAA Singles Championships, TBA
College Station, Texas
Thursday, May 23
Baseball at Big Ten Tournament (TBA), 4:35 p.m.
Minneapolis, Minn.
Women’s Golf at NCAA Championships, All Day
Auburn, Wash.
Friday, May 24
Baseball at Big Ten Tournament, TBA
Minneapolis, Minn.
Women’s Golf at NCAA Championships, All Day
Auburn, Wash.
Saturday, May 25
Baseball at Big Ten Tournament, TBA
Minneapolis, Minn.
