Category Archives: Claremont-Mudd-Scripps

Local college golfers saluted

Posted on by
Reply

Bradley Shigezawa (Photo by Jack Hancock)

There may not be a better conference in the country when it comes to golf than the SCIAC. Several players were among the PING All-America teams announced this week.

Junior Brad Shigezawa of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps leads the group. He was the low medalist at the NCAA Division III championships last month.

Here’s the entire list so you can see how our locals stack up:

 First Team

  • Cory Howard, LaGrange; Brian Jaeger, Christopher Newport; Alex Kolquist, Gustavus Adolphus; Anthony Maccaglia, Oglethorpe; Noah Ratner, Guilford; Brad Shigezawa, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps; Casey Vangsness, Saint John’s; Mike Wesko, Methodist

Second Team

  • Alex Andrews, Wittenberg; Andrew Bateman, Methodist; Bobby Holden, Redlands; Stefan Johnson, Illinois Wesleyan; Alex Kapraun, St. Thomas; Mikey McGinn, California Lutheran; Eric Quinn, Oglethorpe; Oliver Rudnicki, Whitworth

Third Team

  • Ian Bangor, Carnegie Mellon; Chris Blyth, St. John Fisher; Cameron Button, Southwestern; James Charles, Southwestern; Johnathan Chen, Emory; Anthony DiLisio, Skidmore; John Dukes, UT Tyler; Bobby Ehrhardt, Wesley; Ben Fister, Transylvania; Dennis Granath, Saint John’s; Josh Grisa, UW-Stout; Buddy Hallman, UT Tyler; Wes Hillen, Millikin; Clay Hinton, Transylvania; Onni Hurri, Averett; Hayden Jones, Oglethorpe; Jantzen Latham, Transylvania; Drew Lynch, Saint John’s; John McCord, Redlands; Tyler McMorrow, Gustavus Adolphus; Nick Palladino, Rochester; Andrew Peter, Luther; Joe Radulski, St. John Fisher; Andrew Thompson, Guilford; Jeff Wells, Methodist; Jack Whelan, St. Lawrence; Oliver White, Allegheny; Kenny Wienckowski, Illinois Wesleyan; Alex Wunderlich, Emory; Derek Zachman, La Verne

Look who’s streaking, the top 10 win streaks by local college teams

Posted on by
Reply

They always say its harder to stay at the top than get to the top. Well a bunch of area teams have learned to deal with the pressure that comes with repeating and have established nice traditions.

So today’s top 10 is top active streaks. The length of the win streak isn’t necessarily the most important factor. Quality of competition in that sports in that conference was an even bigger factor.

10. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps men’s swimming 5 straight SCIAC titles

Much like on the women’s side, CMS has so much depth it’s hard for other teams to really challenge.

9. San Bernardino Valley men’s cross country 17 straight Foothill Conference titles

The Wolverines could easily be ranked higher than this but competition in the conference isn’t quite up to snuff. Of course the fact that SBVC is so good is one reason the rest of the conference looks so bad. More on this team later.

 8. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women’s swimming 10 straight SCIAC titles

The Athenas have maintained their stranglehold on the top spot with superior depth. Other teams may have more individual winners but CMS tends to have a couple of those, as well as place multiple swimmers in each event. That doesn’t look like it will change any
time soon.

6. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps men’s tennis 8 straight SCIACs The Stags  have repeatedly finished at the top of a conference that also has high-caliber programs in Redlands, Pomona-Pitzer and Cal Lutheran. This year the Stags (30-4) were national runner-up, and may well have won a title had it not been for the suspension of its No. 1 player before nationals.

5. Cal State San Bernardino volleyball 7 straight CCAAs.

The Coyotes have established a dynasty under head coach Kim Cherniss with seven straight and 10 in the last 12 years. This year’s might be the most unlikely because the team had graduated 7 players from the previous team and was relying primarily freshman. If another school didn’t wrestle the crown from the Coyotes this year, it might not happen for awhile. They went 24-9 overall, 19-3 in CCAA play to win by three matches. More on this team to come.

4. San Bernardino Valley men’s cross country 7 SoCals

The Wolverines are a dominant force, led by coach Wes Ashford. During this streak SBVC also went on to win five straight state championships from 2006 to 2010. SoCal is more competitive than NorCal, so win the region and you have a good shot to win it all.

3. University of La Verne men’s golf 7 straight SCIAC titles

The Leopards can change players and change coaches but have remained the best team in what is arguably the top conference in the country in Division III. How good is it? Well La  Verne may have gotten the AQ, but three others were given at-large berths to nationals. That’s three of seven given for the entire country.

2. University of Redlands softball 9 straight SCIACs

The Bulldogs (36-12, 22-6) retained their title again this year, despite losing All-American outfielder Amanda Lievanos to an injury before the season even started. Coach Laurie Nevarez also had a lineup, primarily of underclassmen and overcame a huge challenge from nationally ranked Claremont-Mudd-Scripps as well as SCIAC newcomer Chapman, which had been a national title contender even when competing as an independent.

1. Cal State San Bernardino volleyball 13 straight appearances in regional final

Winning a conference title is one thing, but doing better than that and making it all the way to the step before the Elite Eight is even more admirable, especially given the level of competition in the West region. This program is by far the premier program in the Inland Empire in any sport. A footnote here . . . The first win by the Coyotes next year will be the 500th in the tenure of Cherniss.

McIntosh_CSUSB_VB

 

ABCA/Rawlings Division III All-West Baseball Region

Posted on by
Reply

Players from all four local SCIAC schools made the cut, impressive  considering the size and quality of the West Region. A total of 21 players from the SCIAC were selected.

FIRST TEAM

DH Philip Windham, East Texas Baptistl; C Josh Rapacz, George Fox (Ore.); 1B Nick Boggan, Cal Lutheran; 2B Tim Wilson, Linfield (Ore.); 3B Nicho Della Valle, Cal Lutheran; SS Trevor Koons, Cal Lutheran; SS Christian Muscarello, Trinity (Tex.); OF Pat Hirschberg, Trinity (Tex.); OF Jake Wylie, Linfield (Ore.); OF Nick Gentili, Pomona-Pitzer; UT Jake Peterson, Cal Lutheran; RHP Chris Haddelandm Linfield (Ore.); LHP Ryan Lucero, Trinity (Tex).; Rellief RHP Aaron Roth, Cal Lutheran; Relief LHP Sean Kistler, Texas Lutheran.

SECOND TEAM

DH Johnathan Brooks, Occidental; C Stephen Zavala, Whittier; 1B Derek Dixon, George Fox (Ore.); 2B Jason Henning, Redlands; 3B Kevin Francke, Trinity (Tex.); SS Jordan Dresner, Redlands; OF Erik Munzer, Pomona-Pitzer; OF Nick Fisher, Linfield (Ore.); OF Kramer Lindell, Linfield (Ore.); OF Timothy Williams, George Fox (Ore.); UT Jake Bruml, Pomona-Pitzer; UT Scott, Hong, Occidental; Relief RHP Derek Miller, Texas-Tyler; RHP Zack Speer, Trinity (Tex.); RHP Matt Delegato, Pacific (Ore.); RHP Aaron Thomasson, Linfield (Ore.); RHP Kevin Knight, La Verne; RHP Jeff Spillane, Texas Lutheran.

THIRD TEAM

C Chase Caldez, Schriener (Tex.); 1B Chris Whitehead, Schreiner (Tex.); 1B Trevor Keele, Dallas; 2B Marcus Uechi, Hardin-Simmons (Tex.); 2B Garrett Smith, Cal Lutheran; 3B Julian Barzili, Whittier; SS Logan Allen, Occidental; SS Scott Witte, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps; OF Collin Radack, Hendrix (Tex.); OF Tyler Pfeffer, Whitworth (Wash.); OF Tyler Bates, East Texas Baptist; OF Alex Scheiwe, Redlands; UT Carlton Brown, Howard Payne (Tex.); LHP Scott Peters, Cal Lutheran; Relief RHP Tyler Brunnemann, Hardin-Simmons (Tex.); Relief RHP Taber watson, Chapman; RHP Curt Copeland, LeTourneau (Tex.).

 

Top 10 college athletes of 2012-2013

Posted on by
Reply

Well the college sports season is officially over. So in celebration of some great accomplishments, I’m counting down the top 10 individual performances of the last season. There were a lot of candidates and narrowing it down to 10 wasn’t easy.

10. Camille Smith, Sr., Cal State San Bernardino volleyball

Was the  veteran leader and setter on an otherwise very young Coyotes volleyball team that managed to keep its CCAA title streak in tact. If nobody beat them out for a title this year, that may not happen for awhile. For good measure the Coyotes advanced all the way to the NCAA Division II West Region final, AGAIN!

9. Lenore Moreno, Sr., University of La Verne track/cross country

Was named Division III Cross Country West Region Female Athlete of the Year after placing first place at the West Region Championships, becoming the first-ever Leopard to win a regional championship meet. In track she set school records in two events.  Her season best of 17:09.70 in the 5,000 meters established a new La Verne record.  In addition, she set both a school and SCIAC record in the 10,000 meters (35:00.43) and placed eighth at nationals in the 10,000.

8. Vainayaki Sivagi, Sr., University of Redlands track

Won SCIAC titles in the 200 and 400 and contributed to a winning relay, earning conference Athlete of the Year honors. She went on to place second nationally in the 400 meters.

7. Khallifah Rosser, Chaffey College track

Won a state championship in the 400m hurdles with a time of 52:08 seconds and contributed to a fourth-place finish in the 4×100 relay. Next month he is headed to the U.S. Junior Championships.

6.Chandra Lukes, Soph., University of Redlands swimming

Became the school’s first female national champion with a win in the 100 free. She also placed fourth in the 50 free (23.31), an event in which she entered the competition seeded 16th.

5. Mitchel Anderson, Sr., Cal Poly Pomona basketball

He was the CCAA Player of the Year and an NABC All-American and the leader of the best team in the conference by far.  Ranked in among conference leaders in scoring (14.2 ppg), rebounding (8.1), steals (1.9). He’s not flashy but he’s consistent and reliable. Would probably av erage more for another team but the Broncos style of play doesn’t lend itself to huge numbers.

4. Kwame Alexander, Cal State San Bernardino basketball

Led the CCAA in both scoring (16.7 ppg) and rebounding (8.8 rpg), also earning NABC All-American honors. That’s pretty tough to do in a conference with great depth of talent in teams and individuals. He’s also high on the list because we was such great fun to watch.

3. Kristen Lim, Sr., Claremont-Mudd-Scripps tennis

Went undefeated in the regular season and was ranked No. 1 individually much of the year. Finished as national runner-up in singles and teamed with Caroline Ward for a runner-up finish in doubles as well.

2. Jeff Depew, Soph., University of Redlands swimming

It’s hard enough to win a national title but it’s probably even tougher defending it the next year and Depew did that, winning the 400 individual medley. He also gets props for winning an IM which means he’s good at every stroke which is the biggest compliment you can give a swimmer. He goes for a three-peat next year. He also placed 10th in the 100 back.

1. Brad Shigezawa, Jr., Claremont-Mudd-Scripps golf

Not much can trump a national championship and he was the best in all of Division III. In thinking about it, winning a national title in golf might be THE toughest sport to win one. No disrespect to say track or swimming. But in those sports you qualify, then have a prelim and a final. In golf you have to be the best over the course of four days – 72 holes. It doesn’t get tougher than that.

Bradley Shigezawa (Photo by Jack Hancock)

Top 10 jobs by local college coaches

Posted on by
Reply

As always it was a banner year for local college programs. None won a national title but there were many in the running. Today’s countdown, the top 10 coaching jobs of the school year. Heavy emphasis placed on teams that won conference titles or were close.

10. Kristin Dowling, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women’s basketball

Gets major props for how far her team came in the course of a season. She got the job so late admissions were closed so she was left with whatever players remained. She had to get a tennis player and another who had never played before just to round out a roster of eight. The Athenas lost a lot of games early but were competitive by the end of the season. Can’t imagine how well she will do given a full year and chance to recruit.

9. Kristen Hauge, San Bernardino Valley College women’s soccer

The Wolverines (14-3-5) regained their Foothill Conference title and did so with a freshmen-laden roster. Some of the sophomores she did have, were ones with limited experience. Some minor injuries along the way also proved problematic but the Wolverines made their usual run deep into the playoffs. She also plays a difficult schedule and does a wonderful job of moving players on to the next level.

8. Bill Mierzwik, San Bernardino Valley College baseball

The Wolverines won their first Foothill Conference title since 2004 and they did it without a Pitcher of the Year or Player of the Year as those went to athletes from other schools. He might have been higher on the list it weren’t for a quicker than expected departure from the playoffs.

7. Chris Krich, University of La Verne football

The Leopards went 4-5, which was a repeat of the previous season. But it was a much better looking and more competitive 4-5. Let’s not forget how bad this program was when he took over three years ago. Numbers were down, interest was down. This should be the year the Leopards really turn the corner and make a significant impact.

6. Ben Cooper, Chaffey College men’s soccer

The Panthers went 16-5-2 overall, won the Foothill Conference and won three playoff games before falling to favored Golden West 3-1. The Panthers did it without a what you would call a “dominant” player. This is definitely a program on the rise.

5. Greg Kamansky, Cal Poly Pomona men’s basketball

Another one that is going to be on the list every year. The Broncos (28-3) won what is one of the toughest conferences in the country by a whopping four games and they advanced to the West Regional semifinal. Kamansky did it with two experienced players in Mitchel Anderson and Terrence Drisdom. After that, Kamansky had a bunch of unproven role players. Yet the beat goes on for the Broncos.

4. Frank Pericolosi, Pomona-Pitzer baseball

The Sagehens (29-16) finished second in the SCIAC to Cal Lutheran and were given at at-large berth in the NCAA Division III regional. We have come to expect good things from the Sagehens because they have always delivered. But this year’s team  exceeded expectations. Pericolosi lost three pitchers and a catcher for a good portion of the year with injuries. One of the pitchers also plays first so it was like losing two players. Let’s not forget the high academic standards which  can make it tough to contend. Bonus points for playing a strong schedule that included three games against No. 1 Linfield (Ore.)

3. Laurie Nevarez, University of Redlands softball

The Bulldogs lost their All-American and career home run leader Amanda Lievanos to a knee injury before the season started and they didn’t have an experienced pitcher after workhorse Kayla Uphold. Still the Bulldogs won a ninth straight SCIAC title and came within one game of playing for the regional final and their 36 wins equals a program record.

2. Kim Cherniss, Cal State San Bernardino volleyball

Yes, she could collect a Coach of the Year honor pretty much every year. But this year was one of her best jobs. Maybe the Coyotes didn’t make it to nationals like they had done the previous four seasons but they did make it to the West region final, despite having graduated seven seniors. So this year’s run came with a senior setter and a boatload of freshmen yet the still won the CCAA by three games. If someone else didn’t win this year, they may never win. An absolute travesty that a coach with a sub-.500 record got Coach of the Year honors this season in the CCAA

1. Jeff Klein, Chaffey College men’s basketball

The Panthers (27-7) had the best season in school history, making it all the way to the state title game before falling to Mt. SAC 102-88. Most impressive was an 87-85 win over previously unbeaten San Francisco in the state semifinal. The Panthers had a solid, united core of sophomores that were the foundation for that success. They played hard, they played together, played with poise and were not in awe of their surroundings no matter what the situation. That’s a reflection of the coach and his staff.

Jeff Klein

 

CMS tennis coach sends message

Posted on by
Reply

The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps men’s tennis team is ranked No. 1 in the country. All indicators were pointing to this finally being the year the Stags get over the hump and win that elusive national title.

Then a funny thing happened on the way to that championship tournament in Kalamazoo, Mich. Sophomore Warren Wood, the team’s No. 1 player, was left home for something coach Paul Settles called an “internal team matter.”

Whoops!

That has to be a tough call for a coach whose team is so close to the ultimate reward. Give him credit for having the guts to do it. You would like to think they all would make the same call. But that is not the case.

Who knows what Wood did? But it doesn’t matter. Star athletes get star treatment too much of the time. It’s nice to know some coaches still have standards.

If any team has the depth to still pull this off, it’s the Stags (28-3), Claremont native Alex Lane has been playing No. 4 all year. Two years ago he was playing No. 1. That’s how deep this team is.

The team got behind on Monday, trailing Middlebury 2-1 after doubles. But the first four singles matches completed all went the Stags way. They won 5-2. Now it’s on to the semifinal on Tuesday. Settles has already sent a message. If his team pulls it off and wins it all anyway. Well. now that’s REALLY sending a message.

 

All-SCIAC baseball players honored

Posted on by
Reply

Player of the Year: Jake Petersen, JR, California Lutheran

Pitcher of the Year: Aaron Roth, JR, California Lutheran

Newcomer of the Year: Jake Petersen, JR, California Lutheran

All-SCIAC First Team

1B: Nick Boggan, SR, California Lutheran

2B: Jason Henning, SR, University of Redlands

3B: Nicho DellaValle, JR, California Lutheran

SS: Logan Allen, SR, Occidental

SS Jordan Dresner, SO, University of Redlands

SS Trevor Koons, SR, California Lutheran

C: Sean McMillan, SO, University of Redlands

OF: Nick Gentili, SR, Pomona-Pitzer

OF: Erik Munzer, SR, Pomona-Pitzer

OF: Alex Scheiwe, JR, University of Redlands

P: Jake Bruml, SO, Pomona-Pitzer

P: Scott Hong, SR, Occidental

P: Kevin Knight, SR, University of La Verne

All-SCIAC Second Team

1B: Mark Saatzer, JR, Chapman

2B: Garrett Smith, SR, California Lutheran

3B: Julian Barzilli, JR, Whittier

SS: George Hanna, JR, University of LaVerne

C: Spencer DuBois, SO, California Lutheran

DH: Johnathan Brooks, SO, Occidental

OF: Connor Battaglia, JR, Chapman

P: Kyle Hart, SR, University of Redlands

P: Tyler Hebda, JR, California Lutheran

P: Scott Peters, SO, California Lutheran

P: Taber Watson, JR, Chapman

UT: Simon Rosenbaum, FR, Pomona-Pitzer

UT: Eliot Smith, SR, University of Redlands

All-SCIAC softball honors announced

Posted on by
Reply

SCIAC honors have been announced in softball and it is Claremont-Mudd-Scripps with a conference-best seven players recognized. The University of Redlands finished first in the regular season but it was CMS winning the post-season tournamentr.

Here’s the full list:

Player of the Year: Kayla Uphold, SR – University of Redlands

Rookie of the Year: Katie Savard, FR – Claremont-Mudd-Scripps

All-SCIAC First Team

P – Natalie Both, FR – Chapman

P – Hayley Schultz, SO – Claremont-Mudd-Scripps

C – Samantha Mellano, SO – Whittier

1B- Raven Freret, JR – University of La Verne

2B – Harmony Palmer, SR – Claremont-Mudd-Scripps

SS – Danielle Vela, SO – University of La Verne

3B – Mercedez Cundiff, SO – Whittier

OF – Jenny Richards, SR – Chapman

OF – Jacqueline Shimamoto, JR – Occidental

OF – Sarah Beeman, SR – University of Redlands

DP – Nikoli Sharp, SO – University of Redlands

UTKaty Kibbe, FR – University of La Verne

At-Large – Marie Bradvica, SO – Claremont-Mudd-Scripps

All-SCIAC Second Team

P – Brittany Vacura, SR – Occidental

P – Cassie Oregel, SO – Chapman

C – Shannon Tinsley, SR – California Lutheran

1B – Caitlyn Hynes, JR – Pomona-Pitzer

2B – Alexandra Flores, SO – Whittier

SS – Jordan Learn, JR –Whittier

3B – Candice Nunez, JR – University of La Verne

OF – Tara Robinson, FR – Claremont-Mudd-Scripps

OF – Kerry Peterson, SR – Chapman

OF – AJ Carrasco, FR – University of Redlands

DP – Mikayla O’Neal, FR – Claremont-Mudd-Scripps          

UT – Shonna Christianson, SO – California Lutheran

At-Large – Megan Latta, JR – Claremont-Mudd-Scripps

Two locals garner SCIAC honor

Posted on by
Reply

Athletes from two area SCIAC schools earned top honors for their performance in the last week.

Senior sprinter Vainayaki Sivaji of the University of Redlands track & field program garnered her first Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Female Athlete of the Week honor.

Sivaji captured three SCIAC titles and contributed to a record-setting relay during the recent SCIAC Track & Field Championships.  In the 400 Meters, she uncorked a new school-record time of 55.70 to take first place, while in the 200 Meters, she ran another career-best mark of 25.10 seconds to capture the gold and the third-fastest time in school history.  Her 400 Meters time is the fourth-fastest mark in the NCAA Division III this season, while the 200 Meters time is the 14th fastest.

She garnered her third championship as a member of the 4×400 Relay, which completed the race five seconds faster than the competition in a time of 3:53.93.  In addition, the Bulldog foursome boasts the 13th-fastset time among the NCAA Division III this season.  Additionally, Sivaji anchored the 4×100 Relay that clocked in a new school-record time of 48.30 for second place at the meet.

Junior golfer Brad Shigezawa of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges was named the SCIAC Male Athlete of the Week.

Shigezawa won the SCIAC Championships by three strokes with a 54-hole total of 212 (-4). He was one shot down after 36 holes and tied for the low round of the tournament on the final 18 with a 68. He was one of only three players to break par.

Shigezawa also won SCIAC #1 (69) and SCIAC #2 (149).

 

Redlands, CMS in DIII Top 25

Posted on by
Reply

NFCA Division III Top 25 poll – April 24, 2013

The National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division III Top 25 Poll is voted on by eight NCAA Division III head coaches representing the eight NCAA regions. 2013 records are shown. First place votes are in parentheses.

Rank Team Record Points Previous
1 Montclair State (5) 33-1 195 1
Texas-Tyler (3) 38-2 195 2
3 Salisbury 32-2 183 4
4 Trine 29-3 174 5
5 Emory 39-3 169 3
6 Linfield 36-6 159 7
7 Tufts 28-3 148 6
8 Redlands 32-8 144 8
9 Rowan 32-4 137 11
10 Coe 28-4 128 13
11 St. Thomas (Minnesota) 23-5 111 15
12 East Texas Baptist 30-10 108 14
13 Wisconsin-Whitewater 22-3 94 10
14 Central (Iowa) 26-7 91 19
15 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 29-11 79 17
16 Christopher Newport 32-11 76 21
17 Virginia Wesleyan 34-6 71 22
18 Illinois Wesleyan 26-7 70
19 Lynchburg 30-9 56 16
20 Texas Lutheran 32-8 38 24
21 Carthage 21-7 27 25
22 Randolph-Macon 33-7 26
23 Wisconsin-Eau Claire 18-3 24
24 Luther 23-7 22 9
25 North Central (Illinois) 27-3 18 18

Others receiving votes:

Lebanon Valley (16), Simpson (13), Roanoke (10), Capital (6), Wesleyan (4), Eastern Connecticut (3), John Carroll (2), Utica (2) and Penn State Berks (1).

Dropped out:

The team experiencing the largest drop in this week’s poll was Roanoke (29-10) who fell from No. 12 last week to receiving just 10 points this week to land unranked. Previously ranked No. 20 the College of New Jersey and No. 23, Chapman fell in the poll to be unranked this week as well.