Sara Ach ’15 and Women’s Soccer closed the regular season with two wins, including a 2-0 victory over first-place CMS on Senior Day.
Claremont, Calif. (November 3, 2014) This week in Sagehens Athletics saw Men’s Soccer, Women’s Soccer and Volleyball all close out the regular season with wins as they prepare for this week’s SCIAC Postseason Tournaments, while Swimming and Diving opened the winter season by hosting relays at Haldeman Pool.
Women’s Soccer had a strong finish to the regular season, rolling to a 4-1 win over Whittier on Wednesday and then knocking off first place CMS 2-0 on Saturday. Sofia Barsher ’18 had a key role in both wins, scoring a goal in the Whittier victory and then picking up an assist in the win over CMS. Sara Ach ’15 helped set up the first goal against CMS with a corner kick in her final regular season home game as well. The Sagehens will travel to Cal Lutheran on Wednesday for one of two semifinals, with the finals played on Saturday against the highest remaining seed.
Men’s Soccer secured a home game in the SCIAC Semifinals with a 3-2 win over Whittier on Saturday. The Sagehens fell 3-1 to Redlands on Wednesday to miss out on the top seed, despite a goal from Andrew Lind ’14 in his final regular season home game, but earned the right to host a semifinal on Thursday against Chapman at 2:30. Chase Abelson ’17, who had missed several games with an injury, returned to action this week to help bolster the Sagehen defense heading into the postseason.
Volleyball had a perfect 3-0 week to enter the postseason on a high note, defeating Chapman 3-0 on Tuesday to clinch a bid, and then sweeping both Caltech (Friday) and La Verne (Saturday). The La Verne win was the best performance of the year from the Sagehens, as the Leopards came in at 20-4 overall on the year. Ellen Yamasaki ’15 had 10 kills on her Senior Day to help her team to the win. Volleyball will travel to face top-seeded Cal Lutheran on Thursday in one of two semifinals.
Men’s Water Polo also picked up a key SCIAC win on Saturday, coming from behind to defeat Redlands 9-7 by scoring all three goals in the fourth quarter. Stephen Vint ’15 gave the Sagehens the lead for good by breaking a 7-7 tie midway through the fourth for his second goal of the match, while Austin Strong ’15 and Kyle Van der Linde ’15 were also honored before the match. The Sagehens still have two weeks left in the regular season and will travel to Caltech on Wednesday and host La Verne on Saturday in this week’s action.
Men’s Cross Country and Women’s Cross Country both competed in the SCIAC Championships this weekend and came in second place. Camille Matonis ’15 earned second-team All-SCIAC honors with a 14th place finish (out of 117 runners) for the Sagehens, while Paul Messana ’17 finished 27th overall on the men’s side. The Cross Country teams will have an off week before competing at the NCAA West Regionals on Nov. 15, where the men’s team will try to defend its 2013 title.
Football traveled to Occidental on Saturday and fell on the short end of a 41-17 score after leading 17-14 in the final minute of the first half. The Sagehens had a huge day running the football with 365 yards on the ground, with offensive linemen Colton Coss ’17, Robert Ciafullo ’18 and Sean Mulcahy ’16 helping to pave the way. Football will travel to La Verne on Saturday before closing out the regular season on Nov. 15 against CMS.
The first winter event of the season took place at Haldeman Pool with the Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving teams hosting relays, with the men’s team finishing second behind Cal Baptist of the NAIA and the women’s team finishing second behind CMS. Andrew Savage ’15 returned to the team and helped contribute to a new Haldeman Pool record in the 400-yard freestyle relay. Cayla Nishizaki ’17 also helped the women’s 400-yard freestyle relay to a strong second-place finish. Swimming and Diving will travel to the Redlands Pentathlon this weekend.
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This Week’s Schedule
Home Events In Bold
Wednesday, Nov. 5
Men’s Water Polo at Caltech, 4 p.m.
Women’s Soccer at Cal Lutheran, 7 p.m. (SCIAC Semifinals)
Thursday, Nov. 6
Men’s Soccer (H) vs. Chapman, 2:30 p.m. (SCIAC Semifinals)
Volleyball at Cal Lutheran, 7:30 p.m. (SCIAC Semifinals)
Saturday, Nov. 8
Swimming/Diving at Redlands Pentathlon, 9 a.m.
Men’s Water Polo (H) vs. La Verne, 11 a.m.
Football at La Verne, 1 p.m.
MSOC, WSOC, VB – SCIAC Finals if PP advances (site and times TBA)
