William Penn Athletics News January 29 and 30
William Penn University Athletics
2012 Olympic Hopeful Burnett Sixth at Millrose Games
New York City, N.Y.–Katie Burnett (Sr., Mesa, Ariz., Arizona) put her talents up against some top-tier walkers and proved she has what it takes to compete at the next level as she competed at the 104th running of the prestigious Millrose Games Friday.
In an international field of 13 race walkers, the senior placed sixth in the one-mile event in a time of 7:31.02. She was third out of ten American walkers, while Rachel Seaman of Canada won her third-straight Games title in a meet-record time of 6:41.32, six seconds faster than the previous mark she set back in 2009.
Maria Michta led the USA in second place with a time of 6:51.06.
Roudabush Breaks Record, Clay Qualifies at UNI
Cedar Falls–Josh Roudabush (Sr., Brooklyn, BGM HS) and Royce Clay (Sr., Miami, Fla., Booker T. Washington HS) both had memorable days as the Statesmen and Lady Statesmen track and field teams competed at the Jack Jennett Invitational hosted by Northern Iowa Saturday.
Roudabush put together three strong laps in the 600-meter run and finished with a time of 1:24.24. Not only was it good enough for seventh in the race, but the time was also fast enough to break the school record of 1:24.56, previously owned by Travis Sauer in 2005.
As great as Roudabush was Saturday, Royce Clay (Sr., Miami, Fla., Booker T. Washington HS) was a bit better overall, taking titles in the long and triple jumps. The senior reached a mark of 21-11 in the long, while his jump of 46-6.75 in the triple earned him a trip to the national meet as he eclipsed the NAIA’s “B” standard.
He becomes the third Penn athlete to qualify this winter, joining teammates Gabriel Green (So., Anniston, Ala., Anniston HS) (60 and 200-meter dashes) and Katie Burnett (Sr., Mesa, Ariz., Arizona) (3,000-meter race walk).
Green was no slouch himself, taking second in the 200 with a time of 22.42 seconds, while Dexter Jordan also finished high, earning a third-place bronze in the 400-meter dash in a time of 52.54 seconds.
Jonathan Pope (Sr., Starkville, Miss., Starkville HS) was fifth with a high jump of 6-3.25 and Carlos Stepter (Sr., Highland Park, Mich., Highland Park HS) took sixth in the 60 with a finishing time of 6.99 seconds.
Other top finishes from the men’s side included Michael Fulton (Jr., St. Louis, Mo., Eureka HS) placing eighth in the weight throw (40-4.25) and Blake Washington (Fr., Knoxville, Knoxville HS) also getting in the top ten in the 800-meter run at ninth (2:07.49).
Ashley Lyons (Fr., Wichita, Kan., Wichita Collegiate HS) did well in a pair of events to guide the Penn women. She was seventh in the shot put at 36-11.75 and reached the finals in the 60, taking 11th with a time of 9.25 seconds.
Jessica Bixler (Sr., Oskaloosa, Oskaloosa HS) headed the Lady Statesmen in the long jump by finishing sixth, clearing a height of 14-7.
Next: Penn travels to Mount Vernon next Saturday to compete in the Hilltop Invitational hosted by Cornell.
Limited Squad at Grand View Tourney
Des Moines–David Crow (Sr., Baumholder, Germany, Baumholder HS) led a small crew of grapplers Saturday as Penn competed in the Grand View Open.
Crow, one of six Statesmen in action, had the highest finish of anyone in the navy and gold, placing sixth at 133 pounds with a 2-3 record.
Fellow 133-pounder Tyler Schneider (Fr., Belleville, Mich., Belleville HS) as well as 141-pounder Jason Mozley (Fr., Arlington, Texas, Martin HS) were both 1-2 with a fall at the Open.
Next: Penn travels to Dubuque next Saturday to compete in the Loras Open. Action begins at 9 a.m.
Penn Men Give St. Ambrose Scare, 78-71
Davenport–Despite playing back-to-back games within 24 hours, the Statesmen cagers gave St. Ambrose all it could handle in a 78-71 loss in Midwest Collegiate Conference play Sunday.
Taking on the Fighting Bees (18-5, 7-3 MCC) in a game rescheduled from December 11, Penn (11-13, 3-8 MCC) was back on the hardwood for the second time in two days. The Statesmen were also without the services of regular starters Huzie Hambrite (Jr., Indianapolis, Ind., Ball State) and Alan Douglas (Jr., Champaign, Ill., Lakeland CC) (coaches’ decision).
In spite of those glaring facts, the remaining Statesmen performed at an elevated level from start to finish, actually holding a 35-34 halftime lead.
The visitors pushed the lead to a team-high eight points right away after the break before St. Ambrose scored 12 of the next 14 to get back in control.
The home squad never fell behind again, building the margin to a dozen at 61-49 with 10:32 remaining. The Statesmen continued to trail by a sizeable amount before making a run late. Down 71-62 at the 4:28 mark, Brandon Beasley (Jr., Indianapolis, Ind., Columbus State CC) led Penn back by scoring seven in a row, pulling the team to within one with 2:21 still left on the clock.
Beasley, who led all scorers with 26 points on 10-of-17 shooting (6-of-6 FT) then had a chance to tie the game with 23 ticks remaining, but the shot went off-line and the Fighting Bees held on to beat Penn for the second time in four days.
The junior also pulled down ten rebounds for his second double-double of the campaign. He recorded four thefts in the setback as well.
Blake Walker (Fr., Smyrna, Ga., Campbell HS), playing out of position (as a point guard) for much of the night, scored 19 points in 38 minutes of action.
Wiebe Goodyk (So., Oskaloosa, Iowa Central CC) and A.J. Rogers (So., Patoka, Ind., Princeton HS) added nine points each, while Rogers also passed out four assists.
Penn was narrowly outshot 41.8%-41.7%, but held a nominal 40-39 edge in board play, good for a 15-11 margin in second-chance points. The visitors also committed just 12 turnovers (16 for St. Ambrose) and posted 13 steals (five for SAU).
“We probably should have won this game,” Statesmen Head Coach John Henry said. “I am so proud of our guys today as they fought hard and gave some really great performances. From Brandon Beasley to A.J. Rogers and everyone in between, it was a really fun game and it is too bad we did not win, but we gave St. Ambrose a heckuva scare with a bunch of guys that do not play a lot.”
Next: Penn travels to Mount Pleasant Wednesday to face Iowa Wesleyan in MCC play at 7:30 p.m.
Streak Over as Penn Women Fall to Mount Mercy
Cedar Rapids–The Lady Statesmen’s stay as the only one-loss team in the league was a short one as Penn fell 87-67 to Mount Mercy in Midwest Collegiate Conference action Saturday.
The Lady Statesmen (18-7, 9-2 MCC) had their winning streak snapped at eight games in a setback that witnessed the Mustangs (14-11, 8-3 MCC) stay alive in the MCC race. It is Penn’s first loss since falling 61-50 to St. Ambrose on January 2. The team ends a very successful month of January with an 8-2 record.
The Lady Statesmen are now just one-half game ahead of 8-2 St. Ambrose and Iowa Wesleyan, while Mount Mercy is one full game back.
Penn, who was outshot 52.7%-40.0%, played well early, leading 15-11 just 5:53 into the afternoon. Unfortunately, the home team scored 14 in a row and was able to hold the edge for the duration.
The visitors trailed 37-31 at the break and actually pulled within two twice in the second stanza (last at 42-40 with 16:52 left). The Mustangs responded with five in a row, however, and 25 of the next 31 points to lead by a game-high 21 and cruised to the win, avenging a 74-66 overtime loss to Penn back in December.
The lone bright spot for Penn was a team-high 21 points from Christa Subbert (Sr., Stanton, Stanton HS). The senior’s tally gives her 1,998 points for her career and moves her into third on the program’s all-time scoring list, past Becky King (1978-81) and her mark of 1,992 points.
Samantha Darley (Sr., Gilbert, Ariz., Mesa CC) added 12 points, while Kim Thompson (Fr., Park Forest, Ill., Upper Iowa) and Rachel Butler (Sr., Orange County, Calif., Cerritos CC) managed ten points each.
Sarah Martin (So., Anthem, Ariz., Boulder Creek HS) finished with six points and led her team with five assists.
Orielle Thomas (Fr., Waynesville, Mo., Waynesville HS) scored just four points, but pulled down a game-best nine rebounds. Penn held a 37-33 advantage on the boards. Thomas recorded two blocks as well.
In addition to its strength from the field, Mount Mercy unfortunately had much more success at the line (21-of-24, WPU was just 4-of-6) and forced Penn into 17 turnovers, good for 32 points.
Next: Penn travels to Mount Pleasant Wednesday to face Iowa Wesleyan in MCC play at 5:30 p.m.
Late Surge Too Little in Road Loss to Mustangs
Cedar Rapids–Despite being in the midst of a rough season, the Statesmen basketball team showed a ‘never say die’ attitude Saturday, giving its foe a scare in an 86-82 loss to Mount Mercy in Midwest Collegiate Conference play.
The Statesmen (11-12, 3-7 MCC) were down by as much as 15 points with 8:21 to go and still trailed by 11 with 1:37 left, but a 13-3 run in a span of just 69 seconds set up a much more dramatic finish than anyone had anticipated.
Unfortunately, still behind by three with 20 seconds left, a game-tying three-pointer by Wiebe Goodyk (So., Oskaloosa, Iowa Central CC) was blocked and the Mustangs (15-8, 8-3 MCC) prevailed in the end.
The Statesmen led just once, by two points at halftime (28-26), only to witness the home squad take the advantage back right away after break and never relinquish it again. After combing for just 54 first-half points, the teams scored 114 points following intermission, including 54 by Penn.
With the loss seemingly inevitable in the waning minute-plus of regulation, Alan Douglas (Jr., Champaign, Ill., Lakeland CC) sparked the late comeback with a three-point play. Douglas tallied a double-double of 11 points and a contest-high 11 rebounds.
Blake Walker (Fr., Smyrna, Ga., Campbell HS) added a three-pointer, and after a few more Penn points, Douglas got his team within one with another jumper. Mount Mercy made two free throws on the other end and then the defense stepped up with the block of Goodyk’s trifecta try.
Huzie Hambrite (Jr., Indianapolis, Ind., Ball State) and Brandon Beasley (Jr., Indianapolis, Ind., Columbus State CC) led the Statesmen with 18 points each, while Goodyk joined Douglas with 11 points.
Deon Bergeron (Sr., Lake Charles, La., Grand Lake HS) just missed doubles figures with nine, while Walker contributed seven.
Douglas dished out five assists, while Beasley had two blocks and Hambrite stole two passes.
The visitors were narrowly outshot 46.8%-44.1% and outrebounded Mount Mercy 38-26, leading to a 20-11 margin in second-chance points.
Next: Penn is back on the road Sunday, traveling to Davenport to face St. Ambrose in a rescheduled MCC game at 3 p.m.
