Recently in University of La Verne Category

The University of Redlands men's water polo team took over the top spot in the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Division III poll after defeating the University of La Verne, 19-8, on Saturday afternoon in La Verne, according to an announcement made today by the CWPA.
 
Redlands has fared well against NCAA Division III institutions this year, boasting a perfect 7-0 record against fellow members of Division III.
 
The Bulldogs held the No. 1 spot in the CWPA Division III poll last year from the preseason rankings through Nov. 12.
 
Tonight, Redlands (9-14, 1-0 SCIAC) hosts Cal Lutheran University. Game time is set for 5 p.m. at the Thompson Aquatic Center.
 
For a complete list of CWPA rankings, visit http://www.collegiatewaterpolo.com/news/2009-10/102109MenVarsityPolls.
 

The University of La Verne is no longer without a women's volleyball coach as former Olympic assistant coach Marlon Sano has been chosen to direct the Leopards program.

He becomes only the third head coach at the school since 1974, following Jim Paschal (1974-1997) and Don Flora (1998-2008). The program has produced three national championships, 22 SCIAC titles and 26 All-Americans.

Flora resigned earlier this spring to take an assistant position at Division I New Mexico State.

"This has been a program that has been great for an awful long time,'' Sano said. "I'm just hoping to keep building on what has been done here and maybe raise the bar even higher."

Sano was an assistant for the 1984 U.S. Olympic silver medal-winning volleyball team and is currently a co-director and head coach for the USA High Performance Development camp series. That series develops and implements the techniques and tactics taught to coaches and players in conjunction with the USA National team.

He inherits a La Verne squad that went 27-3 and reached the NCAA Division III Championship match in 2008. The Leopards graduated just two players.

Sano's collegiate resume includes a recent stint as an assistant coach at the University of Nevada Las Vegas. He was also an assisant at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo from 1995-2005 and most recently served as lead assistant at Cal State Los Angeles. He also was the head coach at Utah State (1991-94), an assistant coach at Cal State Fullerton (1989-91) and a head coach at Southern California College (now Vanguard University) from 1988-89.

Sano also has extensive junior club coaching experience and is the founder and co-director for the Ocean's Elite Juniors Volleyball Club.

Sano said he has spent much of the last week contacting the returning players, incoming recruits and support staff. Both of Flora's assistants left for other jobs so he is looking for help as well.

"It has been a weird year and there are some good coaches still out there," he said. "I didn't want to put the cart before the horse so that's what I am looking into now."

Sano earned his bachelor's degree in speech communications and his teaching credential from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

La Verne's Rizal Amin and Brianna Gonzales were honored as the Jesse Iles and Anthony P. Scafani Awards, respectively, as the school's top senior male and female athletes for 2008-09.

Gonzales is a two-time First Team All-America by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) and is also a two-time Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Player of the Year (2007, 2008).

She helped lead the Leopards to a ninth consecutive SCIAC crown and a runner-up finish at the NCAA Championships during the 2008 season. Along the way she was named Most Valuable Player of the West Regional and also was named to the NCAA Championship All-Tournament Team.

A two-time AVCA All-West Region selection (2007, 2008), she also recorded her 1,000th career kill in October to become the first Leopard volleyball player to reach that milestone in 15 seasons.

Amin was a three-time All-American in golf, earning First Team honors in 2007 and 2009 while garnering Second Team accolades in 2008. He helped the Leopards to NCAA runner-up team finishes in both the 2007 and 2009 seasons. He placed third overall at the 2009 NCAA Championships. He was the 2008 SCIAC Player of the Year and was a First Team All-SCIAC honoree in 2009. In addition Amin was the recipient of the SCIAC's Jess Clark Sportsmanship Award.

University of La Verne junior Mitchell Fedorka has been named winner of the 2009 Jack Nicklaus Award which goes annually to the nation's top golfer in Division III.

Fedorka, out of Upland High School, led the Leopards to a runner-up showing at the Division III national tournament last month at the PGA Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla.

The award was presented by Nicklaus to Fedorka on Sunday prior to the final round of The Memorial, the PGA event hosted every spring by Nicklaus at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio.

Fedorka was the top ranked player in the Golfstat Division III individual standings with an overall scoring average of 72.35.

At the NCAA Division III Championships he tied for the overall lead with a total of 285 (67-71-74-73) but lost a sudden death playoff for medalist honors to Ogelthorpe University sophomore Olafur Loftsson.

Fedorka was a first team All-America selection in 2009. He also earned All-West Region and SCIAC Player of the Year accolades.

He captured the SCIAC 36-Hole Championship with a total of 138 (66-72) as he helped propel the Leopards to their third straight conference crown. His conference scoring average of 69.3 is a SCIAC record. Fedorka won three tournaments this season and only finished out of the top 10 on two occasions.

"This definitely takes some of the sting out of finishing second at nationals," Leopard first-year coach Joe Skovron said. "He really deserved it. He was so consistent all season.
"It isn't just his ability but his demeanor out there. To look at him out there you wouldn't know whether he birdied or bogeyed that last hole."

The University of La Verne golf team moved into first place after two rounds of the Division III national tournament at the PGA Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla. on Thursday.

The Leopards (575) shot a team total of 5-under 283 over the par 72, 6,973-yards Ryder course to surge past first-round leader Methodist (NC) which ballooned to a 15-over 303 on the harder 7,123-yard Dye course for a two-day 582.

The University of Redlands, the national runner-up four of the last five years, remained in seventh place (695) in the 36-team field after a 10-over 298.

Leading the charge for La Verne were junior Mitchell Fedorka and senior Rizal Amin who are 1-2 on the individual leaderboard.

Fedorka added a 1-under 71 to his 5-under 67 the first day for a 138, which is three strokes better than Amin. He went 3-over on the seventh, eighth and ninth holes but followed that up by going 4-under over the next four holes highlighted by an eagle on the par 5 13th hole.

"He really doesn't get too rattled," La Verne coach Joe Skovron said of his top player, who entered the event ranked No. 1 individually. "That's the best thing about him. He has shown the last two days what kind of player he is."

Amin's 3-under 69 was the best round of any player on Thursday. He continued his steady play with a round that consisted of five birdies and two bogeys with a 35 on the front nine and a 34 on the back.

Rounding out the scoring for the Leopards were Andrew Kramer with a 2-under 70 (147) and Eric Bunge with a 1-over 73 (153). The non-scoring member on Thursday was Kevin Smith with a 3-over 75 (151).

Redlands is 20 strokes behind La Verne but just four strokes out fourth place. The Bulldogs were led by sophomore Alex Hedlund who is fourth individually after carding a 2-over 74 for a total of 144.

Junior Ross Canavan settled for an even-par 72 which puts him 26th in the field of 185 golfers at 148.

Also factoring in the scoring were freshman Todd Steller (75) and lone senior J.C. Riter (77), with Steller improving on an opening round of 84.

Scott Pena (82) was the discarded score of the day.

Freshman Tain Lee of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, who qualified for the event as an individual, shot a 2-over 74 and is tied for 57th with a 151.

All the teams will compete on the Dye course Friday. The Leopards will be in the first group, teeing off the first hole at 10:30 a.m. The first player from Redlands will go off No. 10 at the same time.

Upon further review and after obtaining an important agreement involving off-campus facility usage, University of La Verne Interim Athletic Director Julie Kline announced that the women's tennis program will continue as an intercollegiate athletic sport.

Kline said that following an earlier decision to place both the La Verne women's and men's tennis programs on hiatus at the conclusion of the 2009 season, discussions were held on how to resolve the issues involved in an effort to reactivate the programs.

"We felt it was important to go back and reassess and reevaluate our decision after meeting with all the student-athletes from both programs and see if we could find ways to some how align these programs with the philosophical principles of our athletics department," said Kline. "As a result, we were only able to do so with one program. Given the number of returners on the women's team and the expected incoming recruiting class, we felt we should channel available resources into the women's program."

The university's men's tennis program remains on hiatus with no definitive timetable for its return.

One factor assisting in the revised decision on women's tennis was provided by The Claremont Club. President and CEO Mike Alpert came forward with an offer to provide the athletics department use of the club's facilities, leading to a scheduling agreement that will meet the tennis program's practice and match needs. La Verne, which removed its campus tennis courts in August 2007, has plans for a new facility included as part of a partnership between the university and the City of La Verne to establish a joint-use sports complex.

In most sports the SCIAC does well to get two teams from the conference in the playoffs so it was a pleasant surprise that three have been selected to the double-elimination Division III West Regional to be hosted by East Texas Baptist starting Thursday.

The University of Redlands (30-10) got the automatic bid by winning the four-team conference tournament but the Bulldogs also won the regular season. They will be the No. 4 seed in the seven-team event.

Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (28-14), the SCIAC tournament runner-up), received the No. 6 seed while the University of La Verne (28-18) is the No. 7.

"I'm very excited that we got three teams in and all are deserving," Redlands coach Laurie Nevarez said. "I think we're going to surprise some people."

Athenas coach Betsy Hipple agrees.

"The object is to take the best teams in the West Region," she said. "I don't see how you can not take all three teams."

Joining host and No. 3 seed East Texas Baptist (37-7) are top-seed Linfield, Ore. (36-4), No. 2 Louisiana College (36-7) and No. 5 Texas-Tyler (34-8), which hosted the event in 2008.

As surprising as the fact that three SCIAC teams got in is that three got in and Redlands still was not awarded the right to host. The school did submit a bid and the NCAA typically gives that honor based on finanical concerns. The fewer teams that need to fly, the better.

Even though the three SCIAC teams are closer in proximity, four teams were going to have to fly in to either location.

"They were ranked higher than we were most of the season so I guess they didn't think they could take it away from them," Nevarez said.

La Verne was the second seed in the SCIAC tournament but lost a 13-inning game to CMS in the loser's bracket that resulted in their elimination.

What likely helped get the Leopards in was a 5-4 win over Linfield, the No. 1 ranked in the country. Five of the seven in the field are ranked with East Texas at No. 3, Louisiana at 11, Texas-Tyler at 14 and Redlands at No. 25.

The teams will leave today and practice at the venue on Wednesday.

Division II men's golf

The University of Redlands will join the University of La Verne at the Division III national tournament which starts May 13 at the PGA Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla.
La Verne, ranked second nationally, was the SCIAC's automatic qualifier. Redlands received one of just two at-large bids handed out.

The Bulldogs success on the national stage seems to warrant that as they have finished as the national runner-up four of the last five years. The year that Redlands didn't go, 2007, La Verne was the runner-up giving the conference a streak of five straight second-place finishers.

"We're glad to get the chance to go again," Redlands coach Art Salvesen said. "Winning the conference is nice but it isn't our main goal.

Redlands is ranked ninth nationally. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps is No. 12 and had a shot at earning an at-large bid as well but the Bulldogs likely secured a bid by finishing one spot ahead of the Stags at the SCIAC 36-hole tournament, the last event of the regular season.
Methodist (N.C.) is ranked No. 1 but Salvesen likes La Verne's chances.

"I think they're the team to beat, I really do," he said. "They're talented and have some veteran players that have been there before."

It will be the first time La Verne has made the trip without veteran coach Rex Huigens, Salvensen's close friend, who retired after last season. The Leopards are now coached by Joe Skovron, a former player at the school.

Chaffey baseball

The Panthers (29-13) drew the No. 18 seed and will travel to No. 15 Ventura (26-16) for a first round playoff game at 2 p.m. today. It will be the sixth straight playoff appearance for coach Jeff Harlow's team.

The Panthers finished third in the Foothill Conference behind Mt. San Jacinto (31-10) and Rio Hondo (24-16) which drew the No. 7 and No. 16 seeds respectively.

"It was pretty much what I expected," Harlow said. "We had the highest RPI of the teams in the Southern region so we deserved to get in. We had a good practice yesterday (Sunday) so the guys are ready and excited."

Freshman right-hander Colby Gurney (10-0), out of Alta Loma High School, will get the start for the Panthers.

CMS women's lacrosse

The Athenas (12-1) were selected for the 26-team NCAA field and will travel to Cortland State for a first-round game on Wednesday.

CMS has qualified for the NCAA Championships three straight years. The team is led by the scoring trio of sophomore Sarah Dick (41 goals), senior Courtney Cronin (41 goals) and junior Colbi Brawner (40 goals).

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By Michelle Gardner

Staff Writer

REDLANDS -- The young Claremont-Mudd-Scripps softball team knew it faced a formidable challenge in having to face traditional power University of Redlands in the championship game of the SCIAC tournament Saturday afternoon.

It didn't help that the Athenas had to fight through the loser's bracket, outlasting La Verne in 13 innings, only to play Redlands an hour later.

Experience paid off as the top-seeded Bulldogs posted a 5-1 win in the title tilt. Redlands (30-10) now awaits word on where it will head for the Division III West Region while CMS (28-14) is hoping the strong showing will result in an at-large berth. The SCIAC did get two teams in the regional last season.

"They have a championship culture and we're still trying to build one. We went a long way in doing that today," CMS coach Betsy Hipple said. "That game took a ton out of us but we still had to stay the course. We knew it was going to be an uphill battle."

The Bulldogs, ranked No. 25 by the NFSCA, had their ace in the circle as junior Olivia Ellis hurled every inning of all three of her team's games in the event. She set down the first 13 hitters she faced with the first hit being a single by Emily Lopez with one out in the fifth.

By then Redlands had already surged out to a 5-0 lead with senior second baseman Dory Baga knocking home four of those runs. She clubbed a three-run home run off an 0-2 pitch from Julia Cruz in the third that followed singles by Kayla Peterson and Lizett Casillas.

"I was looking for something inside," Baga said. "We have been focusing on swinging hard and it paid off. It was nice to have a lead but we respect the game and we know anything can still happen."

Redlands, the visiting team despite playing on its home field, added to that in the fifth with the same players doing the damage. Peterson and Casillas singled with Peterson scoring on Baga's second hit of the day. Lindsay Henry then drove home Casillas with a single and the Bulldogs were not threatened again.

Ellis surrendered just four hits and one run while striking out six.

CMS, which finished the game with four freshman and five sophomores on the field, prevented the shutout with a run in the seventh on a run-scoring single by sophomore Chelsea Baker.

Ellis was also backed by a defense that played error-free.

"Our first goal was winning the regular season and the second was the conference tournament," Redlands coach Laurie Nevarez said. "We're going to savor this today and tomorrow refocus on a regional championship."

Redlands will find out its destination for the regional on Monday. It has submitted a bid to host but everything depends on what teams qualify and how many will have to be flown in.

Hipple will be on the call as the conference rep.

"I hope we get a shot to keep playing but I'm proud no matter what happens," she said.

CMS 3, La Verne 2

Michelle Brody stroked a run-scoring single in the 13th inning to boost the Athenas past defending champion La Verne in loser's bracket play.

The game tookl more than three hours. CMS managed 13 hits and La Verne collected 12. Each team finished with 13 runners left on base with CMS loading the bases in the eighth and ninth with no outs but failing to score.

Brody and Jessica Vaughn had three hits each for the Athenas. La Verne got two each from Melissa Carlson, Diandra Burns and Daryn Schively.

Last year the University of Redlands softball team was fortunate.<WC1> <WC>The Bulldogs finished first in the SCIAC during the regular season, only to lose the tournament final and the automatic playoff bid to University of La Verne.

But the Bulldogs made it into the Division III West Region tournament with an at-large bid.

They are hoping it doesn't come down to that this season.

The Bulldogs host the four-team double-elimination event today and Saturday. No. 2 La Verne (27-13, 16-8) will face No. 3 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (26-12, 15-9) at 9 a.m. with No. 1 Redlands (27-10, 20-4) following against No. 4 Whittier (24-16, 11-13).

The loser's bracket game is slated for 2 p.m. with the winners following at 4:30 p.m. Action gets underway at 10 a.m. on Saturday with a loser's bracket game.

The Bulldogs, ranked No. 25 by the National Fastpitch Softball Coaches Association, went 4-0 against the Poets this season with two games ending early on the mercy rule.

Redlands leads the conference in hitting and fielding and ranks second to CMS in pitching.
Junior outfieler Kayla Peterson (.434) leads the team in hitting with sophomore first baseman Lizett Casillas (.419) and junior catcher Nicky Neumann (.383) among the other valuable offensive weapons. The Bulldogs have also gotten a boost from freshman Lindsay Henry (.393), named the SCIAC Rookie of the Year.

Junior Olivia Ellis (20-5, 1.70) and Amanda Doeppel (7-3, 1.93) have handled the bulk of the pitching.

The Leopards split both doubleheaders they played against the Athenas this season. Coach Julie Smith thinks her team is peaking at the right time.

It is led by senior outfielder Melissa Carlson (.462) who led the conference in hitting, runs scored and stolen bases. She earned SCIAC Player of the Year honors even though her team finished second.

Among the other La Verne standouts are freshman outfielder Diandra Burns (.443) and sophomore shortstop Ashley Paul (.384), also a starter on the basketball team.

"We're loose. We're confident. We're ready to go," she said. "I think we're in a good place right now."

Smith said the turning point for her team likely came halfway through the season when junior Sabrina Garcia (7-2, 2.68) joined the team. Sophomore Delaney Baylor (15-7, 2.36) had shouldered much of the load in the pitching circle but the team didn't have a consistent No. 2.
Garcia was at the school, having transferred from NAIA Hope International. She planned on playing next year but Smith enlisted her help midseason.

"It's in how you present it," she said. "I just told them she is giving up more than she's taking because she is giving up a year of eligibility to help us now."

Redlands won three of four games against La Verne and split four games against CMS.

CMS is led by junior pitcher Julia Cruz (13-5, 1.18) and senior pitcher Erika Weingart (10-6, 2.80) and sophomore outfielder Gizelle Pera (.379).