Athletics Good Stuff – Ohio State Buckeyes
1/24/2007 12:00:00 AM | General
Jan. 24, 2007
Athletes of the Week
Jessica Davenport was named women’s basketball Big Ten Playerof the Week Monday after becoming just the second Buckeye and 11thplayer in conference history to top 2,000 career points. The seniorcenter, who has started 102 consecutive games, finished the 62-52win Sunday vs. Illinois with 22 points, nine rebounds, four blockedshots and three assists. She surpassed the 2,000-point plateau witha bucket in the lane with 2:11 left in the first half. Davenportjoined Katie Smith (2,578 points – 1993-96) as the only otherBuckeye to reach 2,000 points in her career. Thursday at Wisconsin,Davenport led the Ohio State past Wisconsin, 74-51, with 16 points,seven rebounds and three assists. She netted 7-of-10 FG tries andblocked three shots on the defensive end. In the two games atWisconsin and vs. Illinois, Davenport made 12-20 FG (.600) attemptsand 14-18 (.778) FT tries. Freshman Mike Conley Jr. established anOhio State men’s basketball freshman record with 20 assists lastweek in two games. He now has 129 assists on the season, the mostof any freshman in Ohio State history. He passed Damon Stringer(125 in 1986) with 10 assists vs. Iowa. Conley averaged a raredouble-double last week with an average of 12.5 points and 10.0assists in a pair of Ohio State wins last week. He also connectedon 10-of-16 shots from the field for a .625 shooting percentage.His assist to turnover ratio last week was 5-1 with 20 assists andjust four turnovers. The ratio was 10-1 in the win vs. Northwesternin which he recorded his first double-double as a Buckeye with acareer-high 17 points and a career-high tying 10 assists vs. theWildcats. Conley, who leads the Big Ten in assists (129/6.79 apg.),steals (52/2.74) and assist-to-turnover ratio (+3.31), recordedeight steals last week. He owns five of the Top 6 single gamesteals totals for an Ohio State freshman. Conley’s back-to-backgames with 10 assists was accomplished for the first time since1988 and his four games this year with 10 assists ties a record forgames in a season with 10 or more assists.
Athletics Good Stuff
The men’s basketball team improved to 16-3 overall and 4-1 inthe Big Ten with home wins against Northwestern and Iowa last week.The Buckeyes travel to face the Wildcats again Wednesday (8p.m./ESPN Plus/WBNS 10TV). When Michigan State visits ColumbusSaturday (9 p.m./ESPN2) as part of ESPN’s College GameDay, the OhioState men’s basketball team requests all fans in attendance wearwhite. Head coach Thad Matta and the No. 7 ranked Buckeyes want toWhite Out the Spartans on the nationally televised ESPN2 broadcast.The ESPN College GameDay crew will be originating from Value CityArena Friday and Saturday. Fans are encouraged to attend theCollege GameDay set from 9 a.m.-noon Saturday at the VCA while theGameDay cast of Rece Davis, Digger Phelps, Hubert Davis, Jay Bilasand Andy Katz provide college basketball analysis. Announcers DickVitale and Dan Shulman along with sideline reporter Erin Andrewswill provide the commentary for the game broadcast. Doors open at 9a.m. Saturday with the College GameDay show set to begin at 10 a.m.Matta will be on set during the telecast to preview the game withthe Spartans later that night. The women’s basketball team (17-1,6-0 Big Ten ) upped several win streaks with its pair of victoriesover Wisconsin and Illinois last week. With the 74-51 triumph atWisconsin Thursday and its 62-52 win over Illinois Sunday, OhioState has won 10 consecutive overall, 23 games in a row in Big Tenplay and 24 straight at home. The No. 5/7 ranked Buckeyes are 17-1for the first time since starting the 1973-74 season with wins in17 of their first 18 contest. Ohio State is 6-0 in league play forthe first time since winning its first 13 conference games in the1986-87 Big Ten championship season. Jessica Davenport led theBuckeyes in the two games, averaging 19.0 points and more thaneight rebounds a game. Brandie Hoskins and Star Allen also weremajor contributors. Hoskins has posted 12.5 points, 6.5 reboundsand 6.5 assists in her last two games, while Allen also has notched12.5 points and grabbed 7.5 rebounds a game. The 12th-ranked men’svolleyball team is now 5-0 after a 3-0 victory last Friday againstSt. Francis (30-24, 30-19, 30-21). Layne Dreven had a team-high14.5 points in the match recording 10 kills with no errors in 13attempts for a .769 hitting percentage. He added three ace servesand three assist blocks in the contest. Robbie Klein contributed 13points with a team-high 12 kills (.476), two assist blocks and adig.
Ohio State completes a seven-match home stand this weekend with matches against Rutgers-Newark (1-2) Friday and Carthage (5-1) Saturday.
The men’s hockey team (9-10-5, 7-7-4 CCHA) tied No. 9 Miami,4-4, Friday at Value City Arena, rallying from two 2-goal deficits.Senior defenseman Matt Waddell scored the game-tying goal and addedan assist for his first multiple-point game of the season. TheBuckeyes then traveled to Oxford for the second game of thehome-and-home series, falling to the RedHawks by a score of 2-1.Junior forward Tommy Goebel scored the lone OSU goal unassisted ashe extended his point streak to six games.
Ohio State next travels to Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., to face No. 19 Lake Superior State in a CCHA series Jan. 26-27. Games begin at 7:35 p.m. Friday and 7:05 p.m. Saturday at Taffy Abel Arena.
The No. 10 women’s hockey team (14-9-3, 9-8-3 WCHA) took threeof four WCHA points from St. Cloud State Jan. 19-20 at OSU IceRink. The Buckeyes tied the Huskies, 3-3, Friday before a 6-1victory Saturday. Junior forward Shelby Aldous led the team withfour points in the series on two goals and two assists. ClassmatesErin Keys and Lisa Chesson each scored two goals and added anassist for three-point weekends. Senior goaltender Erika Vanderveerstopped 48 of 51 Husky shots faced to surpass the 2,000-save mark.She now ranks second all-time at OSU with 2,037 saves.
The Buckeyes next welcome No. 7 Minnesota Duluth to Columbus for a WCHA series Jan. 26-27. Games begin at 7:07 p.m. Friday and 4:07 p.m. Saturday at OSU Ice Rink.
Members of the No. 3 ranked men’s tennis team performed well atthe 2007 Rice University/Downtown Club at the Met InvitationalIndoor Tournament. All five Buckeyes who began play Friday made itto the second round. Sophomore Steven Moneke, the nation’s topranked singles player, was upset by his OSU teammate No. 62 BryanKoniecko in the quarterfinals. No. 42 Devin Mullings then beatKoniecko in the semifinals to advance to the Championship match ofthe event where he eventually fell to Adam Hailstorm of Denver.
In doubles action, Chris Klingemann and Moneke were forced to forfeit their match for the tournament championship because the OSU pair had to catch a flight. The Buckeyes open the 2007 spring dual season Wednesday in Columbus against Butler (11 a.m.) and Xavier (5 p.m.) at the Jesse Owens West Tennis Center.
The wrestling team went 3-0 at the 18th Annual Wendy’s BigClassic Duals Jan. 21 in Ashland, Ohio, defeating Ohio, 26-10,Appalachian State, 30-12 and Ashland 25-15. Six Buckeyes in WillLivingston (125), T.J. Enright (133), J Jaggers (141), ChrisVondruska (165), Mike Pucillo (184) and J.D. Bergman (197) wentundefeated on the day. Livingston shut out all three of hisopponents, including an 11-0 major decision over Ashland’s RyanBelcher. Bergman notched a pair of falls against ASU’s BrandonBrothers (2:13) and AU’s David Crowley (2:51).
Ohio State returns to Big Ten Conference action when it travels to State College, Pa., where it will face Penn State at 7 p.m. Friday at Rec Hall. The Buckeyes then will host Indiana at 2 p.m. Sunday in St. John Arena.
The women’s track and field team competed at the IndianaClassic in Bloomington, Ind., Saturday. The Buckeyes were led inthe non-scoring event by sophomores Ayrizanna Favours and VeronicaJatsek, who claimed first-place honors in the 400-meter dash andweight throw, respectively. Favours clocked an NCAA indoorchampionships provisional qualifying time of 54.13 to take the 400mtitle. She also joined teammates Ashley Caldwell, Chandra Krempeland Jenna Harris in taking the 4x400m relay in a season-best3:44.98. The men’s track team competed in a dual meet at Kent StateFriday in Kent, Ohio. The Buckeyes outscored the Golden Flashes,77-74, to win the dual meet. Sophomore Matt Comer won the 60-meterhurdles and the 400m dash to lead the Buckeyes on the track. PatWhalen provisionally qualified for the NCAA indoor championships inthe shot put for the second week in a row. The men’s swimming anddiving team picked up two wins this weekend when they defeatedWestern Illinois, Friday, and Iowa, Saturday, in Iowa City. The mendominated both meets, defeating the Westerwinds, 120-79, and theHawkeyes, 156-82.
Ohio State swept the 200-yard freestyle and 100-yard individual medley against Western Illinois. The Buckeyes also won every event until they elected to swim the final to races as exhibition. The Scarlet and Gray came back on Saturday to again govern the pool. Matthias Sigrist, Mark Neiman and Nate King each won two events to help the team capture the victory. Buckeyes were first to touch the wall first in 11 of the 13 events swum.
The women’s swimming and diving team split wins this weekendwith a 141.5-98.5 loss to Penn State on Friday and a 193-105victory over Kenyon on Sunday. Ohio State won five events againstthe Lions, with Freshman Katie Bell earning her first collegiatevictory on a springboard event. Another freshman, Jill Lockhart,recorded a win in the 200-yard backstroke and a second-place finishin the 200-yard individual medley.
Ohio State honored its seniors on Sunday during the final dual-meet of the season. Senior Gulsah Gunenc ended her college dual-meet career with two wins in the 100- and 200-yard backstroke. Julie Broms also won the 3-meter to end her collegiate career with a victory. Jill Lockhart and Griet Bueles each won three events to propel the Buckeyes to dominate the ladies.
Synchronized swimming swept all three routines to win the OSUTri-Meet Jan. 20, scoring 96 points to finish ahead of Keuka (70)and Walsh (48). In the solo event, Buckeyes Barbara Nesbitt andCarmen Moraes finished first and second, scoring a 91.833 and87.500, respectively. In the duet routine, Ohio State again tookthe Top 2 spots. The pair of Ellen Hacker and Caitlin Stewartcompiled 90.833 points for first and Jackie Mundy and Brooke Paulrecorded an 88.667 to finish second. The group of Hacker, Moraesand Stewart put together a first-place effort with 92.167 points tofinish atop of the leader board in the trio event. ClassmatesNesbitt, Leah Pinette and Hannah Shively notched 90.325 points forsecond.
The Scarlet and Gray returns to action at 2 p.m. Feb. 3 when it hosts the First Annual Jessica Beck Memorial Meet.
The fencing team went a combined 16-1 at the Notre Dame Dualslast weekend, which included a 9-0 record from the second-rankedmen’s squad and a 7-1 effort from the sixth-ranked women’s team.The OSU men defeated rival and fifth-ranked Notre Dame, 14-13, andbeat No. 8 Stanford, 20-7. The women’s only loss was a narrow 14-13defeat to the fourth-ranked Fighting Irish. The Buckeyes travel tothe New York University Duals Sunday. The pistol team finishedsecond in a home meet against the U.S. Naval Academy and theCitadel in the open events over the weekend. The Navy finishedfirst in the open events, scoring a 6,287. The Buckeyes scored6,167 and the Citadel, 5,989. In the women’s events, OSU finishedfirst with a 2,705 score. Navy was second at 2,676 with the Citadelthird at 2,281. OSU’s Krystin Schmid finished first in the openstandard with a 542 and was third in open free at 502. In thewomen’s events, Teresa Meyer was first in air (369) and sport (560)pistol.
The team will now travel to Missouri State for a match, Jan. 26-27.
The rifle team dropped a dual meet to the U.S. MilitaryAcademy, 4,661 to 4,426 in Palmyra, Pa. The Army outscored theBuckeyes, 2,311 to 2,174 in smallbore rifle and 2,350 to 2,252 inair rifle. Jeff Naswadi was the top scorer for Ohio State with a1,117 two-gun aggregate. He shot a team-high 555 in smallbore and a562 in air. Kelly Lake was second for the Buckeyes with a 1,109.She had a team-high 577 in air rifle and a 532 in smallbore.
Ohio State will next shoot at the Roger Withrow Invitational, Jan. 27, in Murray, Ky.
In its first road meet of the year, the No. 24 women’sgymnastics team again scored over a 193 with a 193.250 in a quadmeet at N.C. State Sunday. The Buckeyes took second on floor andbars and saw junior Kaylan Clevinger take second on the all-aroundwith a career-high 39.125, which included career highs on bars(9.80) and vault (9.825). Ohio State travels to Michigan State fora 7 p.m. meet Saturday. The men’s gymnastics team (3-2) returns toaction after a bye week for a trip to Illinois (4-2). The Buckeyesmeet the Fighting Illini for a dual at 8 p.m. EST in Champaign,Ill. The baseball Buckeyes open practice Monday at 2 p.m. on theindoor practice field at the Woody Hayes Athletics Center. OhioState, which finished 37-21 last year and third in the Big Ten witha 19-12 record, opens its season Feb. 23-25 in Tampa, Fla., when itwill play host to James Madison, Kansas State and Seton Hall for atournament at the New York Yankees spring training complex. TheBuckeyes have been picked by some preseason publications to win theBig Ten in 2007 and have been picked as high as 30th nationally.The team, which will be captained by Matt Angle, Dan DeLucia, EricFryer and Jacob Howell, returns five position starters and all fourstarting pitchers from last season’s squad which led the Big Ten inbatting average and team earned run average. The men’s soccer teamhosted its annual postseason banquet Friday night in Ohio Stadium,with senior Dustin Kirby and junior Xavier Balc earning co-MVPhonors. A day earlier, Kirby was drafted by Real Salt Lake in theMLS supplemental draft. Senior Jim Fisher earned two honors, theTeri Casperson Academic Achievement Award and the Linda Daniel MostInspirational Player Award. Junior Eric Brunner took home theCoaches’ Award. The Buckeyes will return seven starters in 2007.
Ohio State Athletics Schedule
Jan. 25 – Jan. 31
January 25
Women’s Basketball vs. Indiana, 7 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
Value City Arena
January 26
Men’s Swimming vs. Northwestern and Michigan, 6 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
Bill and Mae McCorkle Aquatics Pavilion
Men’s Volleyball vs. Rutgers-Newark, 7 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
St. John Arena
Wrestling at Penn State, 7 p.m.
State College, Pa.
Women’s Ice Hockey vs. Minn-Duluth, 7:07 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
OSU Ice Rink
Men’s Ice Hockey at Lake Superior, 7:35 p.m.
Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.
Men’s Track at Indiana Invitational, All Day
Bloomington, Ind.
Women’s Track at Indiana Invitational, All Day
Bloomington, Ind.
January 27
Men’s Basketball vs. Michigan State, 9 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
Value City Arena
Women’s Tennis vs. Bowling Green, 9 a.m.
Columbus, Ohio
Jesse Owens West Tennis Center
Men’s Swimming vs. Northwestern and Michigan, Noon
Columbus, Ohio
Bill and Mae McCorkle Aquatics Pavilion
Women’s Ice Hockey vs. Minn-Duluth, 7:07 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
OSU Ice Rink
Women’s Tennis vs. Cincinnati, 5 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
Jesse Owens West Tennis Center
Women’s Gymnastics at Michigan State, 7 p.m.
East Lansing, Mich.
Men’s Gymnastics at Illinois, 7 p.m.
Champaign, Ill.
Men’s Volleyball vs. Carthage, 7 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
St. John Arena
Men’s Ice Hockey at Lake Superior, 7:35 p.m.
Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.
Men’s Track at Indiana Invitational, All Day
Bloomington, Ind.
Women’s Track at Indiana Invitational, All Day
Bloomington, Ind.
Rifle at Roger Withrow Invitational, TBA
Murray. Ky.
January 28
Wrestling vs. Indiana, 2 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
St. John Arena
Fencing at New York University Duals, All Day
New York, N.Y.
Men’s Tennis vs. Washington, All Day
Columbus, Ohio
Jesse Owens West Tennis Center
January 29
Women’s Basketball at Purdue, 7 p.m.
West Lafayette, Ind.
January 31
Men’s Basketball at Purdue, 7 p.m.
West Lafayette, Ind.
