William Penn Athletics News–April 5
William Penn University Athletics
Game-Winning Suicide Squeeze Headlines Split Versus Vikings
Oskaloosa–The Statesmen baseball team played small ball to secure a split of a Midwest Collegiate Conference twinbill against Grand View Saturday.
William Penn (16-10, 3-5 MCC) won the opener 2-1 in ten innings, but dropped the nightcap 5-3. The navy and gold won last year’s MCC regular season crown, while Grand View (14-10, 7-3 MCC) took the 2013 tournament title.
The visitors scored first as the first game turned into a pitcher’s duel with the sides combining for 14 hits (8-6 WPU) but only three runs. Grand View tallied its only run in the top half of the fourth, but the Statesmen answered in the bottom half. Stan Simmons (Sr., Brooklyn, N.Y., Physical Education) got the rally going with a one-out single and moved to third on a single by Patrick Roxbury (Jr., Canyon Country, Calif., Sociology). The senior knotted the contest by tagging up and scoring on a sacrifice fly by Enrique Alvarado (Sr., Lancaster, Calif., Sociology).
The home squad put runners on base in each of the next five innings, but did not score until the tenth. Still tied at 1-1, Sho Serrano (Jr., Lancaster, Calif., Physical Education) started the frame by reaching on one of GVU’s two errors. He eventually got to third on a passed ball and a sacrifice bunt. Kyle Mauricio (Sr., Ardene Hills, Minn., Physical Education) and Simmons joined him on the pads, but it was Patrick Roxbury (Jr., Canyon Country, Calif., Sociology) who came up with the final hit as he laid down a perfect suicide-squeeze bunt down the third-base line.
Serrano, going on contact, touched home plate almost simultaneously with the batted ball reaching the Viking fielder. Matt Emerson (Jr., Saugus, Calif., Business Management) finished 2-for-3 (one walk), while Roxbury was 2-for-4. Mauricio had one base knock and walked twice.
Josh Ruiz (Jr., Chula Vista, Calif., General Mathematics) went 6 1/3 innings in the start, giving up just one earned run on four hits. He struck out six against two walks, but did not figure into the decision. Corey Lathram (Sr., Brentwood, Calif., Physical Education) earned his first victory of the year by shutting out the visitors over the final 3 2/3 innings. The senior (1-3) permitted two hits and walked one.
Grand View had a little more firepower in the nightcap, managing a 9-7 edge in hits and scoring two runs in the first inning.
The Statesmen came back with two runs of their own in the second. William Vazquez (Fr., North Hollywood, Calif., General Accounting) notched the big hit, bringing in Alvarado and Kenny Hall (Jr., Morgan Hill, Calif., Exercise Science) on a single.
Unfortunately, Grand View answered right back with two in the third and another in the sixth. The navy and gold slimmed the margin back to two at 5-3 in the bottom of the sixth on an Emerson single that brought in pinchrunner Cory DeRush (Jr., Grand Junction, Colo., Business Management). William Penn had the tying run at the plate in the seventh, but failed to score any more runs.
Alvarado and Vazquez both went 2-for-3 at the plate. Kyle Kutzler (Fr., Kenosha, Wis., Industrial Technology) fell to 2-3 by giving up five runs (four earned) on eight hits. He posted four strikeouts with two walks, while Rafael Villafana (Sr., Sylmar, Calif., Communications) tossed 1 1/3 innings out of the bullpen (1 K, 2 BBs).
Next: The teams face off again on Sunday in another doubleheader beginning at noon.
McCastle Breaks Record and Qualifies, Taylor Also Qualifies at Central
Pella–Highlighted by a pair of national-qualifying performances, the Statesmen men’s track and field squad had a tremendous showing at the Central Invitational Saturday.
William Penn placed second out of nine teams with 115 points, while host and #6 ranked Central (NCAA D-3) won the title with 239 points.
Cornelius McCastle (Fr., McKinney, Texas, Industrial Technology) tallied two individual crowns, winning the high jump at 6-8 and the triple jump at 43-9. The freshman’s high jump mark was impressive on two accounts as it set a new school record and helped McCastle qualify for May’s NAIA National Championships by eclipsing the provisional standard.
Sam Taylor (Jr., Eddyville, Iowa, Industrial Technology) will join his teammate at nationals by placing second in the 110-meter hurdles with a ‘B’ standard time of 15.00 seconds.
Alex Edwards (Jr., Knoxville, Iowa, Secondary Education) also won the 400-meter dash in a time of 48.81 seconds, while WPU’s 4×400-meter relay team was the best in 3:21.39.
Five different individuals matched McCastle with a pair of high finishes. Elnimair Barakat (So., Aurora, Ill., Mechanical Engineering) led that group by placing third in the 200-meter dash (22.78 seconds) and fourth in the 100 (11.25 seconds).
Throwers Colt Brumbaugh (Sr., Keswick, Iowa, Industrial Technology) (3rd, javelin, 141-4; 10th, hammer throw, 111-10), Derek Seddon (Fr., Knoxville, Iowa, Physical Education) (7th, hammer, 127-11; 7th, discus, 149-10), and Kalob Gist (So., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Business Management) (4th, shot put, 46-1.25; 10th, hammer, 111-10) also accomplished the feat. Kenbea Walker (Jr., McKinney, Texas, History/Government) was a two-time top-ten finisher as well, doing so in the 100 (6th, 11.50) and 200 (7th, 23.12).
The 4×1 team notched a silver in 44.16 seconds, while Chris Gossett (Fr., Park Forest, Ill., Mechanical Engineering) earned bronze in the triple jump at 42-6.25. Joshua Rankin (Fr., University Park, Ill., Undecided) also placed high in the triple at 40-7.5. Blake Washington (Sr., Knoxville, Iowa, Public Accounting), in seventh place in the 800-meter run at 2:02.39, and Stepfon Williams (So., St. Louis, Mo., Industrial Technology), in ninth place in the 100 in 11.57 seconds, also found success Saturday.
“This was an overall great meet for both our men and women,” Head Coach Allen Friesen said. “I was really pleased at the team effort and the performances today. We are so much further along in our times and distances compared to last year. It was really exciting to see everyone compete at such a great level. These were the best finishes by both teams since I have been here.”
Next: William Penn travels to Des Moines next Friday to compete in the Jim Duncan Invitational hosted by Drake.
Statesmen Clobber Clarke With Two Mercy-Run Wins
Dubuque–Two days after splitting a home double dip with the Crusaders, the William Penn softball team took out its aggressions on Clarke by sweeping a Midwest Collegiate Conference twinbill Saturday.
The Statesmen (20-9, 8-2 MCC) won the first game 21-2 (5 innings) and took the second game 11-2 (6 innings). WPU’s 21 runs are the most since scoring a school-record 30 on April 28, 2003 (vs. Viterbo), while its 21 hits in the opener match its total from March 27, 2010 (vs. Grand View).
The day started in style as 15 batters came to the plate in a ten-run first inning. Jessica Christensen (So., Marysville, Wash., Sociology) and Steviee Grove (Sr., Runnells, Iowa, History/Government) both had two-run doubles in the frame. The Crusaders answered with two runs in bottom half, but nothing more was permitted by Jennifer Whitehead (Sr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Biology) who went to 13-2 with the victory. The senior allowed two runs (both earned) on four hits in three innings, while striking out three with one walk.
The hits kept coming as two more runs were recorded in the second. Three came across in the third and fifth more managed in the fourth. Bri Zerley (Jr., Monroe, Iowa, Biology) left the park in the third with a two-run shot and then tallied another two-run single in the next frame.
Zerley finished a perfect 3-for-3 (one walk) with five RBIs and three runs scored. Christensen managed a 3-for-4 performance with four RBIs and two runs scored.
Steviee Grove (4-for-5, 2 RBI, 3 R), Malloree Grove (Sr., Runnells, Iowa, Physical Education) (3-for-5, 5 RBI, 2 R), Brittanee Grove (Jr., Runnells, Iowa, Elementary Education) (2-for-2, 4 R), Jorden Steele (Jr., Tacoma, Wash., Physical Education) (2-for-4), Sydney Edwards (Jr., Galesburg, Ill., Psychology & Biology) (2 R), Ashlee Dennis (Jr., Loveland, Colo., Biology), and Sonia Ray (Sr., San Diego, Calif., Physical Education) (2 R) also had big positive results. All of WPU’s nine starters had at least one hit.
Lunden Young (Jr., Lewiston, Idaho, Physical Education) relieved Whitehead in the fourth and struck out one batter with one hit allowed in two scoreless frames.
The visitors did not slow down in the second matchup, posting a 12-3 advantage in hits. Each program managed two runs in the first inning. Brittanee Grove did William Penn’s damage with a two-run roundtripper, but the Crusaders (12-15, 3-7 MCC) answered right back with a homer of their own.
The rest of the afternoon belonged to the navy and gold, starting with a two-run third frame. Brittanee Grove again did the heavy lifting with another two-run home run–her team-leading ninth of 2014.
A five-run fifth followed, paced by Malloree Grove’s two-run single. Zerley, with her fourth, and Steele, with her second, capped the impressive day with sixth-inning solo homers.
Brittanee Grove was impeccable with her bat, going 2-for-2 (two walks) with four RBIs and two runs scored. Zerley was 3-for-4 (two runs), while Malloree Grove and Jorden Steele both produced two hits with two runs scored.
Brittanee Grove allowed two runs (one earned) on two hits in four frames to gather her third win (3-3). She struck out one and walked two. Young finished the game with two innings of one-hit ball (three Ks).
Next: William Penn travels to Cedar Rapids Sunday to face Mount Mercy in an MCC doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m.
Loads of Big Performances for Navy and Gold at Central
Pella–Battling well with a limited roster, the William Penn women’s track and field team continues to impress as it competed at the Central Invitational Saturday.
William Penn placed fourth out of seven teams with 83 points, while host Central corralled the title with 214 points.
Raveen Rhone (Jr., Los Angeles, Calif., Biology) produced double-digit points herself, headlined by the team’s only individual crown in the triple jump at 34-8.25. The junior was also fifth with a long jump of 15-10.25.
Tarah Alexander (So., Cedar, Iowa, Undecided), with an 800-meter run time of 2:23.81, and Alora Simmons (So., Newton, Iowa, Elementary Education) and Alyssa Phillips (Fr., Gurnee, Ill., Communications), both with high jumps of 4-10.25, all took home silver, while Whitley Schertz (Jr., Eddyville, Iowa, Physical Education) won bronze and broke her own school record in the pole vault at 8-0.5.
A handful of individuals picked up two top-ten finishes, headlined by Phillips who was also ninth in the 200-meter dash in 28.75 seconds. Emmanuela Meneide (Sr., Turks and Caicos, Biology) was fifth in both the 100-meter dash (13.17 seconds) and in the 200 (26.84). Throwers Meaghan Foster (So., Centerville, Iowa, Undecided) (3rd, shot put, 42-5.5; 6th, hammer throw, 133-8), Emma Hoerr (So., Chillicothe, Ill., Physical Education) (5th, discus, 123-1; 8th, shot, 35-5.25), and Kristin Lastovka (So., Brooklyn, Iowa, Business Management) (10th, hammer, 120-7; 10th, hammer, 32-6.25) also had two top tens.
Shaniece Dishmon (So., Harvey, Ill., Physical Education) was sixth in the 200 (27.06) as was the 4×400-meter relay team (4:22.40). Fatimah Omar (Fr., Iowa City, Iowa, Business Management) also placed seventh in the 200 (28.48), while Amanda Schrempf (So., Marshalltown, Iowa, Sociology) (discus, 105-1) and Tamara Weltch (Sr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Human Services/Sociology) (hammer, 128-10) were each ninth. Deja Lewis (Fr., Spring, Texas, Undecided) concluded the list of top tens, taking tenth in the 1,500-meter run in a time of 5:26.07.
“This was an overall great meet for both our men and women,” Head Coach Allen Friesen said. “I was really pleased at the team effort and the performances today. We are so much further along in our times and distances compared to last year. It was really exciting to see everyone compete at such a great level. These were the best finishes by both teams since I have been here.”
Next: William Penn travels to Des Moines next Friday to compete in the Jim Duncan Invitational hosted by Drake.
