Athletics Good Stuff – Ohio State Buckeyes
1/17/2007 12:00:00 AM | General
Jan. 17, 2007
Athletes of the Week
Buckeye wrestler Mike Pucillo remained undefeated against BigTen Conference opponent Purdue, as he improved to 10-0 on theseason after pinning Nick Skinner in 6:41. Pucillo is the firstBuckeye to go 10-0 since classmate T.J. Enright scored an 11-0 markat 133 pounds to open the 2004-05 season. Chelsea Davis from thewomen’s swimming and diving team earned Big Ten Diver of the Weekthe week of Jan. 8 for the first time for her performances againstOhio University when Davis went undefeated during the meet on bothdiving boards. Davis earned both the 1- and 3-meter diving titleswith the respective scores of 292.12 and 329.70. She has not scoredlower than third place in a dual meet this year. Davis continuedher winning streak into meets with Marshall, Jan. 12, andNorthwestern, Jan. 13, again winning both diving events. She alsoholds the team’s highest scores for the season on both boards.
Athletics Good Stuff
The men’s basketball team knocked off No. 16 Tennessee lastSaturday to improve to 14-3 overall on the year. The Buckeyes endedthe non-conference home season at Value City Arena with a 10-0record. Head coach Thad Matta improved to 27-0 in non-Big Ten homegames at VCA over his three seasons. Ohio State takes onNorthwestern at home Wednesday (8 p.m./ESPN Plus/WBNS 10 TV) andthen welcomes Iowa to Columbus Saturday (8 p.m./ESPN Plus). Againstthe Volunteers, Ohio State freshmen Greg Oden (24 points) and MikeConley Jr. (16 pts.) established career highs offensively in thewin. Senior Ron Lewis’ 3-pointer with less than 12 seconds to playwas the game winner in the 68-66 victory. Oden also had a game-high15 rebounds. The No. 5/8 women’s basketball team upped its Big Tenwin streak to 21 games with a road victory at Penn State (63-61)Thursday and a home triumph over Northwestern (70-42) Sunday.Andrea Walker buried a pair of free throws with 1.3 seconds to goto help Ohio State escape State College with the narrow win.Jessica Davenport led Ohio State with 13 points and 10 rebounds vs.Penn State. She recorded her sixth-consecutive double-double in theNorthwestern win with a game-high 22 points and 12 rebounds. TheBuckeyes held the Wildcats to 33 percent shooting in extendingtheir home win streak to 23 games.
Ohio State again plays a Thursday road game at Wisconsin at 8 p.m., followed by a Sunday home contest vs. Illinois at 2 p.m. in Value City Arena.
The women’s hockey team split a WCHA road series against No. 5Minnesota, Jan. 12-13. The Buckeyes recorded their largest marginof victory against the Gophers Friday with a 7-1 win behind sixplayers with multiple-point games. Minnesota then defeated OhioState in game two by a score of 3-1. It was the fourth series splitin a row between the Buckeyes and Gophers. Junior defenseman LisaChesson led all Buckeyes with five points in the series, with acareer-high four assists Friday and the lone OSU goal Saturday.Junior forward Erin Keys had four points (1g, 3a) in up herteam-leading point total to 31 and tie for second in overallscoring in the WCHA.
Ohio State next opens a two-week home stand when the team welcomes St. Cloud State for a WCHA series Jan. 19-20. Games begin at 7:07 p.m. Friday and 4:07 p.m. Saturday at the OSU Ice Rink.
The men’s hockey team was off last weekend, but resumes playwith a home-and-home series against No. 9 Miami, Jan. 19 and 21.The Buckeyes look to extend their four-game win streak andfive-game unbeaten streak when they open the series at Value CityArena Friday at 7:05 p.m. Ohio State then travels to Miami Sundayfor the second game of the series at 4:35 p.m. The Buckeyes are1-1-1 against the RedHawks this season, winning the most recentmatchup by a score of 5-3 in the Ohio Hockey Classic championshipgame Dec. 30. The men’s gymnastics team (3-2), ranked No. 3 in thepreseason GymInfo Coaches Poll, finished third at the 37th annualWindy City Invitational with a score of 209.5 Saturday. In themeet, at least one Buckeye earned a Top 3 finish on all six events.Sophomore Eddie Hay led the squad with a third-place 9.2 on floorand senior Grant Osborne finished second on pommel horse (9.0). Onrings, freshman Tai Lee grabbed the title win a 9.5 and PejmanEbrahimi bested his career high by .45 points with a score of 9.3to note a second-place finish on the event. In the second half ofthe meet, junior David Ortiz finished tied for third on both vault(8.75) and high bar (9.05) and senior Nicholaus Searcy led team onparallel bars with a career-high and title winning 9.55. ForSearcy, the 9.55 bested his previous career high by a tenth of apoint and gave the senior his third career first-place finish. Inits season opener Saturday in St. John Arena, the women’sgymnastics team topped Ball State by 8.3 points, marking theBuckeyes’ most lopsided home win since 1993. Ohio State posted ateam score of 193.625, which ranks them No. 24 heading into thisweek, when the Buckeyes will travel to N.C. State for a tri-meet at2 p.m. Sunday along with Georgia. Junior Kaylan Clevinger won theall-around with a career-high 38.875 to take home the BuckeyePerformance Award. The fencing team placed 13 of its own in the Top20 last weekend in the North American Cup held at the ColumbusConvention Center. The NAC, which determines placement on the U.S.National Team, was Ohio State’s final non-collegiate meet of theseason. The Buckeyes travel to the Notre Dame Duals this weekend.Former OSU All-American Hanna Thompson (2002-05) won the women’sfoil competition, while best among current Buckeyes was sophomoreMikhail Momtselidze (2nd, men’s sabre), junior Alexandra Obrazcova(T-3rd, women’s epee) and sophomore Andras Horanyi (9th, men’sfoil). The pistol team hosted the Winter Open/ROTC Classic Fridayand Saturday at the Lt. Hugh W. Wylie Range in Converse Hall. Thenon-team scoring event was highlighted by OSU’s Teresa Meyerwinning six of seven events. Meyer finished first in the open air(548), open standard (528), women’s air (361), women’s sport (566),three gun aggregate (1,321) and the women’s two gun aggregate(927). Independent shooter Mike Creamer took first in open freewith a 255. OSU’s Krystin Schmid was runner-up in both aggregates(Open-1,306, Women’s-889) and finished second in open free (247)and women’s air (359) and third in open standard (517) and open air(542). The Pistol Team returns to action, Jan. 20-21, when theyhost the U.S. Naval Academy and The Citadel. The rifle team returnsto action when they face the U.S. Military Academy in Palmyra, Pa.Men’s volleyball is now 4-0 after 3-0 wins over Clarke and twiceagainst Springfield. In the 30-16, 30-21, 30-15 win last Wednesdayagainst Clarke, John Albertson scored a match-high 15 points witheight kills, a career-high five ace serves, a solo block and twoassists. Layne Dreven contributed 12 points with eight kills (ineight swings), two ace serves and four assist blocks. In the 30-17,30-18, 30-17 win Monday against Springfield, Robbie Klein had amatch-high 14 points with 10 kills, three ace serves and a soloblock. Sam Stevens contributed 12 points with a match-high 11 killsand two assist blocks. On Tuesday in the 30-18, 30-21, 30-24victory over Springfield, Klein continued strong with a match-high17 points, scoring a team-high 13 kills while hitting .706. Headded an ace serve, a solo block and four assist blocks. Albertsonadded 14.5 points with eight kills, two ace serves and a match-highnine assist blocks.
Ohio State continues at home this Friday when they host St. Francis (2-1) at 7 p.m. in St. John Arena.
The wrestling team earned a 28-6 Big Ten Conference win over Purdue Jan. 14. The Buckeyes won eight of 10 matches, including a win by third-ranked Mike Pucillo. Pucillo pinned Nick Skinner in 6:41 at 184 pounds and moved to 10-0 on the season. Other winners were Will Livingston (125), T.J. Enright (133), J Jaggers (141), No. 19 Lance Palmer (149), No. 15 Chris Vondruska (165), Tommy Priestley (174) and Corey Morrison (285).
It was the first varsity dual meet for Priestley and in his debut, he scored a 5-1 sudden victory. During his bout, Livingston amassed an impressive riding time of 5:23.
Ohio State returns to action Sunday at the 18th annual Wendy’s Big Classic Duals, hosted by Ashland University in Ashland, Ohio.
The women’s swimming and diving team defeated Marshall, 148-86,Jan. 12, but suffered a 132-168 loss to Northwestern, Jan. 13 atthe McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion. The Buckeyes swam the fastest timein every event against the Thundering Herd, but elected to swim thefinal three events as exhibition. Six Buckeyes earned individualwins in the meet, with the divers sweeping both diving events.Stasia von Rahl earned her first collegiate win in her first timeswimming the 1,000-yard freestyle this season.
Despite Chelsea Davis winning both the 1- and 3-meter springboard events for the third consecutive meet, the Wildcats still overtook the Buckeyes. Colleen Schweitzer swam the team’s fastest time of 2:19.99 in the 200-yard breaststroke to win the event. Griet Buelens also earned an individual victory in the 200-yard butterfly in a time of 2:02.43. Gulsah Gunenc took second in the event. Both women recorded NCAA `B’ times in the race.
With a win in the weight throw competition (63-8 ¼),junior Lenny Jatsek (Walton Hills, Ohio) led the men’s track andfield team in its season-opening meet Friday at the KentuckyInvitational at Nutter Field House in Lexington, Ky. Sophomore JeffSee finished second in the 3,000-meter run in a time of 8:12.85.See was followed by three other Buckeyes who earned Top 10 spots inthe 3,000. Freshman Chad Balyo, in his Buckeye track and fielddebut, took fifth in the 3,000m in a time of 8:15.55. Balyo wasfollowed by junior John Ealy, who finished sixth in a time of8:23.15. Senior Glenn Collins rounded out Buckeyes in the Top 10with a 10th-place finish in the 3,000m in a time of 8:33.79.Sophomore Patrick Whalen was one of the leaders for the Buckeyes onthe first day of the Kentucky Invitational with a third placefinish in the weight throw with a toss of 52-5 1/4 and a secondplace finish in the shot put with an NCAA provisional qualifyingmark of 59-5 3/4. Junior thrower Veronica Jatsek won the women’sweight throw with an NCAA provisional qualifying mark of 64-3¼ to pace the women’s track and field team Friday on thefirst day of the Kentucky Invitational at Nutter Field House inLexington, Ky. The event, held on the University of Kentuckycampus, opened the season for the Buckeyes and served as head coachKaren Dennis’ first meet at the helm of the women’s team. Thewomen’s team was led by a second-place finish from senior JennaHarris in the 400-meter dash in a time of 54.13. Harris was the topattached finisher in the event. Junior Jessica Stringer, a threetime Big Ten champion in the high jump, began her senior seasonwith a second-place effort in the high jump with a leap of 5-8. Thesoftball team opened practice Monday in preparation for theirseason-opening tournament in Tempe, Ariz., Feb. 9-11. The Buckeyeshave 10 letterwinners back from their 2006 team, which went 39-23overall and earned a trip to the NCAA tournament, and welcome eightnewcomers for 11th year head coach Linda Kalafatis. The men’stennis team opens the 2007 spring season ranked No. 3 nationally inthe Intercollegiate Tennis Association preseason poll. The teamranking is the highest preseason ranking achieved in Ohio Statehistory. In addition to the lofty team rating, the Buckeyes alsoboast six singles players among the top 70 in the country.Sophomore Steven Moneke will start the season as the top-rankedsingles player. In addition to Moneke, seniors Devin Mullings andChris Klingemann open the season ranked Nos. 42 and 46,respectively. Sophomore Bryan Koniecko, the 2006 Big Ten Freshmanof the Year, opens the season at the No. 62 spot. Junior DrewEberly comes in at No. 64 and freshman Justin Kronauge is No. 69.Moneke had a successful fall season as he won the 2006 ITA MidwestRegional in October on the campus of the University of Minnesota inMinneapolis.
Moneke is the second Buckeye to reach No. 1 in singles. Jeremy Wurtzman was ranked No. 1 in Jan. 2004, his senior season at OSU.
Ohio State opens the 2007 spring season Jan. 24 in Columbus against Butler at 11 a.m. and Xavier at 5 p.m. at the Jesse Owens West Tennis Center.
The synchronized swim team will begin its 2007 campaignSaturday when it hosts the OSU Tri-Meet at 2 p.m.
Ohio State Athletics Schedule
Jan. 17 – Jan. 24
Jan. 17
Men’s Basketball vs. Northwestern, 8 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
Value City Arena
Jan. 18
Women’s Basketball at Wisconsin, 8 p.m.
Madison, Wis.
Jan. 19
Women’s Swimming at Penn State, 4 p.m.
State College, Pa.
Men’s Swimming at WIU, 5 p.m.
Iowa City, Iowa
Men’s Track at Kent Dual Meet, 6 p.m.
Kent, Ohio
Men’s Volleyball vs. St. Francis, 7 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
St. John Arena
Men’s Ice Hockey vs. Miami University, 7:05 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
Value City Arena
Women’s Ice Hockey vs. St. Cloud State, 7:07 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
OSU Ice Rink
Men’s Tennis at Houston Rice Invite, All Day
Houston, Texas
Jan. 20
Men’s Basketball vs. Iowa, 8 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
Value City Arena
Men’s Swimming at Iowa, 11 a.m.
Iowa City, Iowa
Women’s Ice Hockey vs. St. Cloud State, 7:07 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
OSU Ice Rink
Women’s Track vs. Indiana & Purdue, All Day
Bloomington, Ind.
Rifle at Military, TBA
Palmyra, Pa.
Pistol vs. U.S. Naval Academy and Citadel, TBA
Columbus, Ohio
Lt. Hugh W. Wylie Range
Synchronized Swimming at OSU Tri-Meet, TBA
Columbus, Ohio
Bill and Mae McCorkle Aquatics Pavilion
Fencing at Notre Dame Duals, TBA
South Bend, Ind.
Men’s Tennis at Houston Rice Invite, All Day
Houston, Texas
Jan. 21
Women’s Basketball vs. Illinois, 2 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
Value City Arena
Wrestling at Ashland Duals, 10 a.m.
Ashland, Ohio
Women’s Swimming vs. Kenyon, Noon
Columbus, Ohio
Bill and Mae McCorkle Aquatics Pavilion
Women’s Gymnastics vs. N.C. State and Georgia, 2 p.m. Raleigh, N.C.
Men’s Ice Hockey at Miami University, 4:30 p.m.
Oxford, Ohio
Pistol vs. U.S. Naval Academy and Citadel, TBA
Columbus, Ohio
Lt. Hugh W. Wylie Range
Fencing at Notre Dame Duals, TBA
South Bend, Ind.
Men’s Tennis at Houston Rice Invite, All Day
Houston, Texas
Jan. 24
Men’s Basketball vs. Northwestern, 8 p.m.
Evanston, Ill.
