Athletics Good Stuff – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/7/2007 12:00:00 AM | General
March 7, 2007
Athletes of the Week
Kellen Harkness qualified for his fourth consecutive NCAAchampionships when he won the 3-meter board at the NCAA Zone Cdiving meet. Harkness also won the event at the men’s swimming anddiving Big Ten championships. During the conference meet, thesenior was awarded Big Ten Diver of the year honors and shared BigTen Diver of the meet awards with teammate Burkley Showe. Harknessalso has earned Big Ten Diver of the week twice this year. Indual-meet competition he did not place below third and won the3-meter six times. Women’s tennis freshman Ally Mueller (Roswell,Ga./New Braunfels (Texas)) was 4-0 combined in singles and doubleslast week, helping the Buckeyes to two wins and extending theirwinning streak to four matches. Mueller won both singles matches atthe No. 3 spot in straight sets. Against DePaul, she beat KirstenGambrell (6-1, 6-4). In her first Big Ten match as a Buckeye, shedowned Wisconsin’s Chelsea Nusslock in a close match, 7-5, 7-5.Mueller paired with Julie Blackmore at the No. 1 doubles position,winning 8-6 over DePaul to clinch the doubles points and winning8-3 vs. the Badgers for the first doubles victory of the match.Mueller is second for Ohio State with 14 singles wins this season(14-6 overall) and she is second this spring with eight victories(8-4). She is on a three-match singles winning streak.
Athletics Good Stuff
Thad Matta and several members of the men’s basketball teamwere honored by Big Ten coaches and media Tuesday. Matta earned hissecond-consecutive Big Ten Coach of the Year award after leadingthe Buckeyes to a 27-3 overall record and the outright Big Tenregular-season title with a 15-1 record. Freshman Greg Oden earnedfirst team All-Big Ten honors from both the coaches and media.Classmate Mike Conley Jr. was a first team selection by the leaguemedia while the coaches placed him on the second team. FreshmanDaequan Cook earned the Sixth Man Award. Oden was defensive playerof the year and freshman of the year. Conley was on the allfreshman team as well with Oden.
Senior Ron Lewis, junior Jamar Butler and Cook also were honorable mention All-Big Ten selections. Oden and Conley also were selected by the United States Basketball Writers Association All-District V squad. Matta is the coach of the year in District V, his second-consecutive USBWA award. The Buckeyes open Big Ten tournament play at noon ET Friday at the United Center in Chicago as the No. 1 seed at the annual postseason event. Ohio State takes on the winner of the Michigan (No. 8 seed) vs. Minnesota (No. 9) game Thursday.
Jessica Davenport, the three-time reigning women’s basketballBig Ten player of the year, was named a member of the 2007 All-BigTen Tournament team in leading the Buckeyes to theirsecond-consecutive berth in the conference tournament title gamelast weekend. Davenport scored 89 points, which ranks secondall-time for a single tournament. She scored back-to-back 30-pointgames in fronting the Buckeyes to wins over Indiana (72-60) in thequarterfinals and past Penn State (73-71) in the semifinals.
Davenport’s 22-point effort in the final vs. Purdue Monday put her at 170 in 10 career games in the Big Ten tourney. That total ranks fifth all-time. Freshman point Maria Moeller played all 125 minutes of the three-game tournament, finishing with seven points and five assists vs. the Boilermakers Monday.
The Buckeyes will await an at-large bid to the 2007 NCAA Tournament announced March 12.
The synchronized swimming team won its 16th North Regionalchampionship Saturday at the Bill and Mae McCorkle Aquatic Pavilionto qualify for the 2007 U.S. Collegiate National Championships inNorton, Mass. The Buckeyes won all four routines en route toscoring a season-high 105 points.
The trio of Ellen Hacker, Carmen Moraes and Caitlin Stewart compiled a score of 94.000 to win the event. Hacker picked up her second win of the day in the duet with the help of partner Stewart, as the pair posted a score of 94.000. Barbara Nesbitt earned an individual victory when she won the solo with 88.000 points.
Ohio State also captured the Top 2 places in the team competition. The Scarlet team took first with a score of 96.667, while the Gray team followed in the second-place position with 93.333 points.
The fencing team won its fifth-consecutive Midwest Conferencechampionship Sunday, totaling 1,320 points to top host Notre Dameby 75 points. The second-ranked OSU men’s squad won all three teamcompetitions, sweeping foil, epee and sabre for a total of 675points. The fifth-ranked women’s squad scored 645 points and wonthe sabre competition, while finishing second in both foil andepee. During individual competition Saturday, the Buckeyes won twoindividual titles and placed nine fencers in the Top 3. Individualtitles were turned in junior Siobhan Byrne in women’s sabre andsophomore Mikhail Momtselidze in men’s sabre. Buckeye wrestler J.D.Bergman led the OSU contingent with a second-place showing at 197pounds at the 2007 Big Ten Championships in the Breslin Center inEast Lansing, Mich.
In his first conference championship, freshman Lance Palmer was third in the 149-pound class. Classmates Chris Vondruska (165) finished fifth and T.J. Enright (133) and Mike Pucillo (184) finished sixth in their respective weight classes. J Jaggers was seventh at 141 pounds.
With their Top 7 outings, all six Buckeyes earned a bid to the 2007 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships March 15-17 at the Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, Mich.
The No. 4 men’s gymnastics team decidedly outscored Oklahoma tosnap the third-ranked Sooners’ seven year home dual win streak witha 218.65-213.55 victory Saturday in Norman, Okla. Scoring a seasonhigh team finish, the Buckeyes saw four gymnasts unite to garnerfirst-place marks in all six events. Jimmy Wickham finished firston floor tying his career high with a score of 9.65 and also wonvault with a season-high 9.25. The Scarlet and Gray nearlyoutscored the Sooners on pommel horse by more than two points withthree gymnasts finishing in the Top 3 on the apparatus. Willie Itoand DJ Bucher both claimed their first of two event wins tied forfirst on pommel horse (8.95) while senior Grant Osborne tied SoonerBrian Carr with an 8.45 for third. On rings, freshman Tai Leeearned his second win on the event with a career-high 9.75. Buchergrabbed his second win of the night with a 9.45 on parallel barsand Ito ended the night in first on high bar with a season-high9.65.
The Buckeye gymnasts will meet the Cal Bears at 7:30 p.m. March 10 at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley, Calif., for their final competition on the road. The squad returns to St. John Arena to celebrate senior night at 5 p.m. March 17 with a conference dual vs. Michigan.
The No. 19 women’s gymnastics has an off week this week beforethe Buckeyes compete on the road against George Washington at 2p.m. March 12 in Washington, D.C. The squad scored a 195.100against Denver last Friday in St. John Arena and concluded its homeseason on Senior Day in a quad meet Sunday with a first-placeseason high score of 195.825.
Sophomore Amanda Surine was awarded the Buckeye Performance Award Friday after placing second on vault with a 9.825 and scoring a 9.725 on floor, which tied her career high. On Senior Day, sophomore Kiki Holman won the Buckeye Performance Award with a 39.150 in the all-around. Junior Maalika Moore-Thomas won the all-around Sunday with a team season-high 39.400.
Three women’s track and field student-athletes earned berths tothe 2007 NCAA Indoor Championships held at the University ofArkansas’ Randal Tyson Track Center Friday and Saturday. JennaHarris, a senior and three-time Big Ten champion, is part of aBuckeye duo that will compete for All-America honors in the 400meters. Harris, who clocked a season-best 53.27 Feb. 10, is joinedby sophomore Ayrizanna Favours and her time of 53.47, also set Feb.10. Harris’ mark ranks 10th in the country and Favours falls in atNo. 14. Veronica Jatsek heaved her best weight measure of theseason Feb. 25 to take runner-up at the Big Ten championships. Sheis ranked seventh nationally heading into the meet and will competeto join her brother, Lenny, as an All-American. Lenny, a junior onthe men’s team, earned All-America honors in the weight in 2006.Qualifiers for the 2007 NCAA Men’s Indoor Track and FieldChampionships were announced Monday. Ohio State’s Tony Cole, ajunior sprinter, and Jeff See, a sophomore miler, each gained theirfirst berth to the national meet. Cole, the 200-meter Big Tenchampion in 2007, earned his bid to nationals in the 60m dash withhis top time of at the season of 6.66, set Feb. 25 in his runner-upperformance at the conference meet. Cole’s time is the ninth-bestin the country. See won the Big Ten mile Feb. 25 and turned in hisbest time of the season Feb. 3 at Akron, when he crossed the finishline in a time of 4:00.5. See’s mark ranks eighth in the nation.The men’s hockey team ended its season with a series loss toNorthern Michigan in the first round of CCHA tournament action. TheBuckeyes won the series opener, 6-2, before losing to the Wildcats3-2 in overtime in game two and falling in the series finale, 3-2.Three seniors led Ohio State with three points in the series -Tyson Strachan (2-1-3), Sean Collins (1-2-3) and Mathieu Beaudoin(1-2-3). The 10th-ranked women’s hockey team concluded its seasonSaturday with a 4-0 loss to top-ranked Wisconsin in the semifinalgame of the 2007 WCHA Playoff Championship at Ridder Arena on theUniversity of Minnesota campus in Minneapolis. The game was thefirst shutout of the season for the Buckeyes as they finished witha final mark of 20-13-4 (13-11-4 WCHA). This season was the firsttime Ohio State reached the 20-win mark and the 13 league wins werea program-best as well. Senior goaltender Erika Vanderveer made 22saves in the game and completed her career as the all-time Buckeyesleader in wins (42), save percentage (.910) andgoals-against-average (2.56). This season, Vanderveer also set therecords for season save percentage (.920) and GAA (2.19). Aprogram-record six members of the field hockey team were named tothe NFHCA National Academic Squad, the National Field HockeyCoaches Association announced Monday. Sophomore forward Emily Mikacreceived her second selection to the team in as many seasons, whilesenior midfielder Saskia Mueller as well as four freshmen – MelissaHunter, Rachel Hunter, Melissa Palm and Lindsay Quintiliani -earned their first recognitions. In order to be named to the squad,a student-athlete must have a grade point average of 3.30 or higherthrough the first semester of 2006-07.
Head coach Anne Wilkinson also announced the five recruits who will join the team in the fall of 2007. The class includes an Ohio native, as well as two from Pennsylvania and one each from Maryland and Ireland. The Buckeyes welcome Keegan Billick (Reistertown, Md.), Jena Cacciatore (Allentown, Pa.), Brianne Doak (Selinsgrove, Pa.), Aisling McKeon (Galway, Ireland) and Ally Sullivan (Columbus, Ohio).
The women’s tennis team was 2-0 last weekend, downing DePaul,6-1, and blanking Wisconsin, 7-0, to open Big Ten play at JesseOwens West Tennis Center in Columbus. The Buckeyes swept doubles inboth matches. The duo of Julie Blackmore and Ally Mueller was 2-0at No. 1, Sonia Ruzimovsky and Caitlin O’Keefe were 2-0 at No. 2and Ciara Finucane and Kristin Messmer were 3-0 at No. 3. Mullerand Ruzimovsky each added two singles wins over the weekend.
The Buckeyes are off until March 19, when they travel to Fort Myers, Fla., to take on Wichita State and Florida Gulf Coast.
The No. 2 men’s tennis team began the defense of its 2006 BigTen Title Saturday by beating No. 68 Indiana (8-3) 6-1 at the JesseOwens West Tennis Center. The win extended the Buckeyes’ home winstreak to 46 matches. The streak dates back to the 2003 season. OSU(12-1) has won the last seven meetings between the schools,including a 6-1 decision April 7, 2006, in Bloomington, Ind. Withthe win Saturday, OSU tied the all-time series record at 39-all.Ohio State has outscored opponents 69-12 this season. Opposingteams have managed to take only 36 of 181 singles sets from theBuckeyes. Senior Devin Mullings earned his 100th career singlesvictory for the Buckeyes when he beat Michael McCarthy 6-2, 6-1 atthe No. 3 singles spot. The Buckeyes return to action Saturday whenthey take on the University of Miami in Miami, Fla. The men’sswimming and diving team traveled to Ann Arbor, Mich., this weekendfor the NCAA Zone C diving qualifying meet. During the three-daymeet, five Buckeyes earned at spot at the 2007 Swimming and DivingNCAA Championships. Kellen Harkness, the Big Ten 3-meter champion,earned another title on the board when he won the event with 645.80points. Teammate Burkley Showe was the runner-up, just one pointbehind Harkness with a score of 644.50. Showe came back thefollowing day to win the 1-meter by 67 points. Weston Wieserrounded out the Top 3 to qualify for the NCAA meet. As the soleBuckeye to compete on the 10-meter platform, Wieser recorded afourth-place finish.
The men’s team will travel to Minneapolis, March 15-17, for the NCAA championships.
The women’s swimming and diving team had Julie Broms alsoqualified for the national championships on the first day ofcompetition at the NCAA Zone C diving qualifying meet when shefinished fourth on the 1-meter in Ann Arbor, Mich.
The team will compete at the NCAA championships held in Minneapolis March 8-10.
The men’s lacrosse team lost a close game to No. 17 Bucknell,7-6, last Saturday at North Turf Field. Sophomore Joel Dalgarno ledthe Buckeyes with two goals, while junior Kevin Buchanan had twoassists and sophomore Jeff Ryan had a goal and an assist.
The Buckeyes hit the road for their next three games, beginning at Penn State at 1 p.m. Saturday in University Park, Pa.
Women’s lacrosse (1-0) returns to action with home gamesWednesday against Duquesne (2-1) at 3:30 p.m. and against No. 10Johns Hopkins (2-1) Sunday at 2 p.m. The Buckeyes opened the seasonwith a 15-3 road win against Robert Morris, Feb. 28. The women’sgolf team finished 11th at the University of Central FloridaChallenge Tuesday, shooting a team total of 937 on the par-72 GrandCypress Golf Course and placing 11th. Competition at the UCFChallenge marked the Buckeyes return to team play after a two-weekhiatus. No. 4 Duke won the two-day, 54-hole tournament with a scoreof 860.
Leading the Buckeyes throughout the event was sophomore Gemma Webster. Webster shot a 228 for the tournament and finished tied for 27th. Junior Haley Brown was close behind Webster finishing tied for 34th and shooting a 232.
Men’s volleyball (15-1 overall, 4-0 Midwestern IntercollegiateVolleyball Association, 1st place) have now won eight straightmatches with road wins at Rutgers-Newark (3-0) and at George Mason(3-1). Dan Meske had 18.5 points against the Scarlet Raiders withSam Stevens and Robbie Klein adding 13 each. Klein posted ateam-high 19.5 points at George Mason with Stevens adding 19 andMeske 18. Setter Daniel Mathews recorded 51 assists atRutgers-Newark and a career-high 72 assists at George Mason toaverage 17.57 assists per game.
The Buckeyes return to conference action when they host Ball State (10-6, 4-1, 2nd place) Friday at 7 p.m. in St. John Arena.
The Baseball Buckeyes were able to even their record at 3-3this weekend after beating Georgetown 7-5 and Lehigh 7-2. The gamevs. Duquesne was rained out and will not be made up. In the pair ofgames, Jacob Howell and J.B. Shuck each had three hits. Howellscored three runs and batted in another and Shuck batted in threeruns and scored twice. Eric Fryer led the team with five RBI. CoryLuebke picked up his first win of the season against Lehigh. Hestruck out a career-high 11 batters and allowed only five hits inseven innings. Dan DeLucia improved to 2-0 in his start againstGeorgetown. He equaled his career high with nine strikeouts. JakeHale got the first save of his career vs. Georgetown and RoryMeister did not allow a run and struck out three in his two-inningsave vs. Lehigh. Ohio State returns to action Friday at 7 p.m.against North Florida and will play Western Michigan Saturday at 4p.m. before closing the weekend Sunday at 11 a.m. vs. Connecticut.The softball team 2-2 at the Magic City Classic hosted byAlabama-Birmingham last weekend as the Buckeyes remained at .500overall at 7-7. Sophomore pitcher Kim Reeder and freshman catcherSam Marder were named to the all-tournament team. Reeder threw herfirst career no-hitter in a 3-1 win over UAB and then tossed atwo-hitter the next day in a win over Birmingham-Southern. Marderled the Buckeyes with a .444 batting average during the weekend.This week, Ohio State travels to Clearwater, Fla., for the SouthFlorida Adidas Invitational, which begins Thursday. The pistol teamhas been invited to the NRA Intercollegiate Pistol Championships tobe held March 13-17 at the United States Military Academy at WestPoint, N.Y. The Buckeyes qualified in all three open events,ranking seventh in air pistol and fifth in free pistol and standardpistol. The women’s team is ranked first in women’s sport pistoland fourth in women’s air pistol. Competition begins March 15 andconcludes March 17.
Ohio State Athletics Schedule
March 7 – March 8
March 7
Women’s Lacrosse vs. Duquesne, 4 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
North Turf Field
March 8
Softball vs. Fordham, 4 p.m.
Clearwater, Fla.
Softball vs. Robert Morris, 6 p.m.
Clearwater, Fla.
Women’s Track at NCAA Indoor Championships, All Day
Fayetteville, Ark.
Women’s Swimming at NCAA Championships, All Day
Minneapolis, Minn.
March 9
Men’s Basketball vs. Michigan/Minnesota, Noon
Chicago, Ill.
Baseball at North Florida, 7 p.m.
Jacksonville, Fla.
Softball vs. Central Michigan, 4 p.m.
Clearwater, Fla.
Men’s Volleyball vs. Ball State, 7 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
St. John Arena
Women’s Track at NCAA Indoor Championships, All Day
Fayetteville, Ark.
Women’s Swimming at NCAA Championships, All Day
Minneapolis, Minn.
Men’s Track at NCAA Indoor Championships, All Day
Fayetteville, Ark.
Rifle at NCAA Tournament, TBA
TBA
March 10
Men’s Basketball at Semifinals, 1:40 p.m.
Chicago, Ill.
Baseball vs. Western Michigan, 4 p.m.
Jacksonville, Fla.
Men’s Lacrosse at Penn State, 1 p.m.
State College, Pa.
Men’s Tennis at Miami, 2 p.m.
Miami, Fla.
Men’s Gymnastics at California, 7:30 p.m.
Berkeley, Calif.
Women’s Track at NCAA Indoor Championships, All Day
Fayetteville, Ark.
Women’s Swimming at NCAA Championships, All Day
Minneapolis, Minn.
Men’s Track at NCAA Indoor Championships, All Day
Fayetteville, Ark.
Rifle at NCAA Tournament, TBA
TBA
Fencing at Regional Qualifier, TBA
Detroit, Mich.
March 11
Men’s Basketball at Big Ten Championship, 3:30 p.m.
Chicago, Ill.
Baseball vs. Connecticut, 11 a.m.
Jacksonville, Fla.
Women’s Lacrosse vs. Johns Hopkins, 1 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
North Turf Field
March 13
Pistol at National Championships, TBA
West Point, N.Y.
March 14
Pistol at National Championships, TBA
West Point, N.Y.
March 15
Wrestling at NCAA Championships, All Day
Detroit, Mich.
Men’s Swimming at NCAA Championships, All Day
Minneapolis, Minn.
Pistol at National Championships, TBA
West Point, N.Y.
