Weekly Lyon

Men's Basketball (12-4, 1-2) Endures 0-2 Week with Losses to Tufts and MIT

Earning honorable mention in the latest NCAA Division III Northeast Regional poll, the Wheaton College men's basketball team endured an 0-2 week with losses to Tufts and MIT. The Lyons fell to the Jumbos, 95-82 in a non-conference contest on Tuesday and then were defeated on Saturday, 77-65 in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action in Cambridge.

Tufts opened a 17-point halftime lead and never looked back, defeating host Wheaton on Tuesday. Tied at six points three minutes into the game, Tufts sprinted to a seven-point lead over the next five minutes. The Lyons answered, pulling ahead 26-25 with seven minutes to play, however the Jumbos then caught fire, closing the half on a 22-4 run over the final 6:30. Tufts hit 17-of-33 (.515) field goals and 5-of-9 (.556) three-point attempts in the half, while the Lyons were a mere 10-of-35 (.286) shooting, including 1-of-8 (.125) from behind the arc.

Trailing by 17 points heading into the second half, Wheaton posted seven unanswered points to cut the lead to 47-37, capped by a field goal from sophomore Mike Stanton (Lynnfield, MA/Brewster Academy). The Lyons however would get no closer, as the Jumbos stayed hot, hitting 18-of-33 (.545) second-half shots and 35-of-66 (.530) field goals for the game. Tufts extended its lead to 27 points midway through the second half. Despite the large deficit, Wheaton refused to quit, outscoring the Jumbos, 27-14 over the final 9:16 of the game behind 15 points from sophomore Marco Joubert (Haverhill, MA/Governor Dummer Academy).

Four Lyons posted double-figure scoring, led by Joubert's season-high 17 points (5-8 FG, 6-6 FT) and season-high tying four assists. Junior Scott Mahan (Bridgewater, MA/Cardinal Spellman) and Stanton scored 16 points apiece, with Stanton contributing a career and team-high five assists. Junior Frankie Whall (Roslindale, MA/Cheshire Academy) rounded out the scoring with 15 points.

On Saturday, it was a tale of two halves for the conference rivals, as Wheaton and MIT combined to score a mere 44 points in the opening stanza. Things quickly turned offensive in the second half, as the host Engineers outscored the Lyons, 52-46 en route to the 12-point victory. MIT shot a blazing 15-of-21 (.714) from the floor and 6-of-8 (.750) from behind the three-point arc. In a game where a combined four players fouled out, neither team shot well from the charity stripe. Wheaton went 14-of-26 (.588) from the line, while MIT shot 19-of-31 (.613), including a 16-of-26 (.615) performance in the second half.

Despite holding the Engineers without a field goal in the final four minutes of play, the Lyons were unable to overcome the large deficit. Wheaton managed to hold a 34-24 advantage in points in the paint and 24-15 margin in points off turnovers, but the Blue and White were unable to find an answer to MIT's offensive outburst. Whall and sophomore Josean Vega (Pawtucket, RI/St. Raphael's) paced the Lyons with 14 points and four rebounds apiece. Mahan contributed 12 points (4-7 FG) and nine rebounds, while senior captain Jarett Lewis (Detroit, MI/South Kent School) rounded out the double-figure scoring with 10 points and four assists.

Women's Basketball (4-8, 1-1) Posts 1-1 Record in NEWMAC Play, Downs Clark, 80-64

The Wheaton College women's basketball team opened conference play this week, as the Lyons posted a 1-1 record. Following a 52-47 loss at MIT on Tuesday, Wheaton bounced back with an impressive 80-64 triumph over Clark in its NEWMAC home opener Saturday in Emerson Gymnasium.

Despite holding MIT without a field goal over the final eight minutes of regulation, the Lyons struggled to overcome a seven-point halftime deficit and fell to the host Engineers in Tuesday's league opener for both teams. Following a 26-19 Engineer advantage at the half, Wheaton held MIT to a mere six field goals in the second stanza, but the difference proved to be at the free throw line. The Engineers led by as many as 12 points in the frame, as the Lyons managed to trim the deficit to two points one occasion. Wheaton was forced to foul down the stretch and the hosts took full advantage, converting on 13-of-19 (.684) opportunities from the charity stripe.

The Lyons forced 30 turnovers on the night and held a 19-11 advantage in points off turnovers. The Blue and White's bench also came up big, outscoring the Engineer reserves, 21-6. Witnessing one tie and three lead changes, Wheaton again struggled offensively, shooting 17-of-69 (.246) from the field and 3-of-23 (.130) from long range. Sophomore Kate Williams (Portland, OR/Catlin Gabel) led the Lyons in scoring with 11 points off the bench. Classmate Vanessa Savas (Belmont, MA/Belmont) contributed eight points and a team-high 11 rebounds, while Kerry Deshefy (Clinton, CT/The Morgan School) added a career-high tying six steals.

Against Clark, senior guard Jessica Arment (Lee, MA/Lee) posted a career-high 20 points (8-14 FG) with six rebounds and four assists, leading Wheaton to the decisive victory. Aside from a 2-2 tie in the first minute of the opening half, the hosts led throughout the game's entirety. Wheaton junior Bethany Jones (Winsted, CT/The Gilbert School) and Savas combined for six unanswered points over the next two minutes, propelling the Blue and White to a lead that would not be relinquished. Wheaton slowly pushed its lead to a double-digit margin. A three-point bucket by Deshefy at the 9:05 minute mark put the Lyons in front, 25-13. From that point, Wheaton maintained its double-figure lead for the remainder of the contest. Deshefy's trey spearheaded a stretch where the Lyons outscored the Cougars, 20-11 over a seven-minute span. Deshefy had eight points in that spurt alone, helping carry Wheaton to a 42-28 advantage at the intermission.

In the second half, Clark narrowed its deficit to 44-34 at the 18:02 minute mark. Over the next eight minutes, Wheaton exploded with a 23-7 run to put the game out of reach for the visiting Cougars. Arment and Savas registered nine and eight points, respectively in the stretch, helping propel the Lyons to a 67-41 lead. A field goal at the 2:15 minute mark pulled Clark to within 12 points, but Wheaton closed the contest with six of the game's final eight points. The Lyons put together a pair of impressive shooting performances in each half, highlighted by a second half that saw Wheaton hit 16-of-26 (.615) from the field. For the game, the Blue and White posted a season-best 56.7 (34-60) shooting percentage. The Cougars struggled offensively, converting 24-of-68 (.353) from the floor. Savas finished the game with a season-high tying 17 points (8-12 FG) and nine rebounds, while Deshefy rounded out the double-figure scoring with 13 points (5-9 FG). Williams added eight points and a career-best seven assists, while junior Taryn Brassil (Holyoke, MA/Holyoke) grabbed a career-high tying 11 boards.

Men's (2-6) and Women's Swimming (5-5) Splits with Bridgewater, Drops Pair to Bentley

The Wheaton College men's and women's swimming and diving teams split Wednesday's dual meet with Bridgewater State, but fell to NCAA Division II Bentley on Saturday. Against the Bears, the women were victorious, 123-102 while the men fell, 127-105 in Mary Jo Moriarty Pool. At Bentley, the men were defeated, 136-89, while the women lost, 144-87

Posting their third straight victory over the Bears, the Wheaton women were led by freshman Lauren Pcholinski (Old Saybrook, CT/Old Saybrook). Pcholinski captured a pair of events for the Lyons, winning the 100-yard backstroke in a time of 1:05.60 and 500-yard freestyle in 5:52.20. On the men's side, sophomore Chris Klinkow (Hollis, NH/Hollis-Brookline) was the lone multiple-event winner, earning victories in the 100-yard butterfly and 200-yard freestyle events. Klinkow finished the fly in a time of 55.95 and the free in 1:54.96. Other event winners came from senior Chris Peterson (Ashland, MA/Ashland) in the 100-yard breaststroke, junior Chris Hurley (Belfast, ME/Belfast Area) in the 100-yard freestyle and freshman John Kuckens (West Hartford, CT/Hall) in the 1000-yard freestyle.

Victories were few against Bentley, as the Lyons posted two individual event wins in addition to capturing a pair of victories in the relay events. The lone victory for the women came in the last event of the day, as junior Katie Levine (Needham, MA/Needham), sophomores Nicole Bassaleh (Mansfield, MA/Mansfield) and Blake Worrall (Duxbury, MA/Duxbury) and first-year Cassie Bannell (Farmington, CT/Farmington) captured the 200-yard freestyle relay in a time of 1:46.55.

The men scored three victories on the day, starting the meet with the top mark in the 200-yard medley relay event. The team of Peterson, Hurley, Klinkow and junior Patrick Sagui (Westwood, MA/Westwood) finished in a time of 1:44.74. In the 200-yard backstroke, Hurley outdistanced himself from his closest competitor, winning the event in 2:03.04, which was five seconds faster than the second-place finisher from Bentley. Later in the afternoon, Kuckens posted a victory in the 500-yard freestyle in 5:25.18.

Men's and Women's Track Teams Continue to Shine at Boston's Terrier Classic

Wheaton College women's indoor track and field junior Amber James (Woodbury, MN/Woodbury) and men's indoor track and field sophomore Dan Olson (Voorheesville, NY/Albany Academy) continued to shine for the Lyons, as both posted NCAA Division III national meet automatic qualifying results in the 400-meter dash and high jump, respectively at Boston University's Terrier Classic Saturday afternoon. No team scores were recorded at the meet.

James set two school records on the day, finishing second in the 400-meter dash with a time of 55.29 and third in the 200-meter dash in 24.74. She was the top Division III runner, as well as the only Division III athlete to finish in the Top 10, in both events. James shattered her own school record in the 400M and broke Deshawnda Williams '00 three-year old school mark in the 200M by one one-hundredths of a second. Olson was impressive for the men, leaping a season-best 7' 1" in capturing the men's high jump title. As the only Division III competitor, Olson won the event for the second consecutive week, as he was victorious at the Greater Boston Track Club (GBTC) Invitational title last weekend.

Another automatic qualifier was reached on the women's side, as the 4x400-meter relay team consisting of James, junior Vernick Smith (Camden, NJ/Woodrow Wilson), sophomore Tessa Donoghue (Springfield, MA/Cathedral), and freshman Aquila Williams-Judge (Boston, MA/Scituate) finished as the top Division III team and third overall in a time of 3:49.29. A total of seven women posted NCAA provisional qualifying marks on the day, led by Williams-Judge and Donoghue. Williams-Judge posted provisional times of 7.35 in the 55-meter dash and 8.30 in the 55-meter hurdles, while Donoghue posted provisional marks in the 400-meter dash (57.62), long jump (17' 9 1/2") and triple jump (37" 11 1/4").

In addition to James and Donoghue in the 400-meter dash, first-year athlete Oly Wirtz (Fitchburg, MA/Fitchburg) and Smith posted provisional times of 58.23 and 58.62, respectively. Rounding out the provisional marks were senior captains Kristen Cullen (Stoneham, MA/Stoneham) and Kerry Teamey (Kalamath Falls, OR/Henley). Cullen recorded a time of 8.57 in the 55M hurdles, while Teamey posted a season-high pole vault of 11' 1 3/4". In addition to Olson, the men were led by junior Erik Benson (Southbury, CT/Pomperaug), who recorded a sixth-place finish and provisional qualifying time of 48.94 in the 400-meter dash. Benson also placed third in the 200-meter dash with a time of 22.18.

This page is maintained by Scott Dietz. Last updated on 1/30/07.
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