William Penn Athletic News November 15
William Penn University Athletics
Ruff Tabbed as NAIA Defender of the Week; Parsons, Kerrigan MWL POWs
Oskaloosa—Chris Ruff (Sr., Highland Park, Mich., Grand Rapids CC) went out on a very high note as his effort last Saturday netted him NAIA Defensive Player of the Week accolades, while two of his teammates were honored by the Midwest League for their performances.
Ruff became the first Penn player to earn a weekly award from the NAIA since Leon Straughter won the Special Teams honor on October 30, 2006.
The senior tallied a career-high 17 tackles in leading the #13 nationally-ranked Statesmen (10-1, 6-1 MWL) to a 24-7 victory over St. Francis (Ill.) and a share of the Midwest League crown.
Ruff had four stops for loss and also picked off a Fighting Saint pass as Penn held St. Francis to a season-low seven points and just 115 rushing yards (the team had been averaging around 190 rushing yards per game).
For the year, he led the defensive unit with 63 tackles in just seven contests. Ruff had 9.5 tackles for loss, one sack, one interception, two fumble recoveries, and two forced fumbles.
Ruff earned his second MWL Defensive Player of the Week award of 2010 and his third of his career.
Marcus Kerrigan (Fr., Cary, Ill., Cary-Grove HS) was named MWL Special Teams Player of the Week for the fifth time this fall as he was 3-for-3 in extra points and made a 30-yard field goal into a stiff wind.
He also punted three times for an average of 40.3 yards (two inside the 20-yard line).
For the season, Kerrigan was 48-for-53 in point-after-attempts, 7-for-9 in field goals, and owned a 34.9 yard punt average over 15 tries. In 17 kickoffs, the freshman averaged 53.7 yards with two touchbacks.
Shawn Davis (Fr., Hamersville, Ohio, Western Brown HS) earned MWL Offensive Player of the Week laurels for the second time in 2010. The redshirt freshman had 14 rushes for 143 yards, including a 93-yard scamper on the team’s first play from scrimmage.
For the year, Davis ran the time on 144 occasions for a team-best 1,042 yards (7.2 avg.) and 12 touchdowns.
Penn ended the campaign with 11 MWL weekly awards.
Penn Women Dropped by NCAA Division II Power Augustana (S.D.)
Sioux Falls, S.D.–On paper, the two teams were a severe mismatch, but the Lady Statesmen cagers still hoped if they played their best game that it would be enough for the upset.
Their best unfortunately may still not have been enough Monday night as Augustana ran away from Penn 103-60 in non-conference play.
The Lady Statesmen (2-3), playing the first of two NCAA Division II programs on back-to-back nights, held two leads early (last one at 10-8), but could not stay with the Vikings, who outshot Penn 52.0%-33.8%.
Augustana (1-0) was 24-7 a year ago and advanced to the semifinals of the Central Regional Tournament, comparable to reaching the second round of Division I’s ‘March Madness’.
Freshman Leilani Tuani-Fifita (Kapolei, Hawaii, Kapolei HS) paced Penn with ten points, while a trio of players scored eight points each. Randi Olson (Jr., Federal Way, Skyline CC) was perfect from the field, going 4-of-4, while Sarah Martin (So., Anthem, Ariz., Boulder Creek HS) and Christa Subbert (Sr., Stanton, Stanton HS) hit the mark as well.
Orielle Thomas (Fr., Waynesville, Mo., Waynesville HS) added seven in the loss.
Four players had two assists each, while Rachel Butler (Sr., Orange County, Calif., Cerritos CC) recorded four steals.
Penn was outrebounded 48-36 and had six more turnovers than Augustana (22-16).
Led by Tuani-Fifita, the Lady Statesmen bench owned a 32-28 edge in bench scoring.
Next: Penn finishes its trip Tuesday by traveling to Marshall, Minn. to face Southwest Minnesota State in non-conference play at 7 p.m.
Walker’s Monster Outing Too Little in 66-61 Loss to Missouri Valley
Marshall, Mo.–Blake Walker (Fr., Smyrna, Ga., Campbell HS) was playing in just his fifth collegiate game Monday night, but his stats were more indicative of a seasoned star as he almost single-handedly led the Statesmen cagers to victory.
Unfortunately, Walker’s performance of 26 points and 15 rebounds was not enough in a 66-61 Penn loss to Missouri Valley in non-conference action.
The Statesmen (3-2) were smoking in the early minutes, pulling out to a game-high 11-point lead twice, lastly at 24-13 with 8:43 left in the first half. The Vikings (4-1) regrouped, though, and clawed back into the game, eventually leading 36-32 at the break.
Penn kept the game close with a 48-35 edge in rebounding, resulting in a 16-4 edge in second-chance points. It was not enough to overcome a poor shooting night, however, as the visitors came up short in that department 48.1%-33.8%.
The Statesmen were quite opportunistic on defense, taking advantage of 18 Viking turnovers to convert them into 20 points. Penn committed 16 mistakes.
Walker topped all participants on 8-of-17 shooting (1-of-3 3-PT, 9-of-11 FT). The redshirt freshman also tallied a game-best four steals.
Only five Penn players scored Monday with Alan Douglas (Jr., Champaign, Ill., Lakeland CC) contributing 13 points, while Huzie Hambrite (Jr., Indianapolis, Ind., Ball State) joined the double-digit club with 12 points.
Ryan Wilson (Sr., Ballwin, Mo., Missouri-Kansas City) had six points and ten rebounds and Adam Hodge (Jr., South Elgin, Ill., Rock Valley CC) managed four points.
Hambrite and Douglas dished out two assists apiece, while Wilson blocked two Missouri Valley shots.
Next: Penn travels to Chicago, Ill. Thursday to face Roosevelt in non-conference action at 7 p.m.
Hadden Ends Career with One Final Weekly Honor
Oskaloosa—Caitlin Hadden (Sr., Oskaloosa, Oskaloosa HS) did not go down without a fight and for her efforts she collected Midwest Collegiate Conference Volleyball Libero of the Week honors, announced by the league office Monday.
Hadden helped Penn (25-21, 4-4 MCC) reach last weekend’s MCC Tournament Finals. The Lady Statesmen upset #1 seed Viterbo 3-1 Wednesday, but fell to #3 seed St. Ambrose 3-1 Saturday to end their year and her stunning career.
The senior, who is an eight-time winner of the award (three this fall), recorded 44 digs (5.50 per set) last week. She also posted three assists and did not commit a single reception error in 42 attempts. Hadden tallied a week-best 25 digs against St. Ambrose.
For the year, Hadden had 1,020 digs (5.96 per set) with three kills, 30 assists, and a team-high 57 aces. She ends her Lady Statesmen career with school single-season (1,020) and career (3,060) records for digs.
It is the team’s fourth honor of the 2010 campaign.
Three Picked for MCC Honorable-Mention Team
Oskaloosa–Three Statesmen soccer players were honored for strong 2010 campaigns as the all-Midwest Collegiate Conference men’s soccer teams were announced Monday.
Goalkeeper Tadeo Cavazos (Sr., Baytown, Texas, Lee HS), forward Nick Gorrie (Fr., Kilmarnock, Scotland, Grange Academy), and defender Frankie Sullivan (Fr., Essex, England, Shenfield HS) were all named to the league’s honorable-mention squad.
A total of 29 athletes were recognized by the MCC, including 14 first-teamers and 15 honorable mentions.
The trio helped Penn to a 7-9-2 record (2-5-1 MCC).
Cavazos ended his final collegiate campaign with a 5-6-2 record. He owned a 2.11 Goals Against Average, made 78 saves, and posted three shutouts. He departs as the school’s all-time leader in shutouts with 17.
Gorrie led Penn with 11 goals in addition to two assists for a team-high 24 points. He scored game-winning goals in five of Penn’s seven victories.
The freshman’s 11 goals tied for third in the conference, while his 24 points were seventh.
Sullivan was the leader in the Statesmen backfield, helping the team to allow just 2.58 goals per contest. Offensively, he assisted on one goal during the year.
Luis Heitor-Piffer of Grand View was named MCC Player and Newcomer of the Year, while Amir Hadzic of Mount Mercy claimed the Coach of the Year award.
Wink Named Honorable-Mention All-MCC
Oskaloosa–Melisa Wink (Jr., Brookfield, Ill., Lyons Township HS) was honored for a solid 2010 season as the all-Midwest Collegiate Conference women’s soccer teams were announced Monday.
Wink was one of 18 individuals named to the honorable-mention squad, while 14 players were recognized by the MCC as first-teamers.
Wink helped Penn to a 5-11-3 record (1-6-1 MCC). The junior scored two goals with a team-best four assists to tie for second on the squad with eight points.
She recorded the game-winning goal against Iowa Wesleyan on October 5.
Ashley Dexter of St. Ambrose was named MCC Player of the Year, while Steph Wisen of Viterbo was tabbed as Newcomer of the Year. Mick Regan of Ashford claimed the Coach of the Year award as he led the Saints to a share of the regular-season title as well as the MCC Tournament crown and a trip to the NAIA National Tournament.
Wade Steinlage
