Weekly Lyon

Field Hockey (2-4) Snaps Losing Streak in Only Action of the Week

In its only contest of the week, the Wheaton College field hockey team knocked off Lasell College, 3-0 Saturday at Clark Field in the teams' first-ever meeting. The Lyons had been scheduled to face the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth on Thursday, but the game was postponed after a few minutes of play due to inclement weather.

Senior Elizabeth Rowland (Holliston, MA/Holliston) scored her first two goals of the season to help Wheaton snap a three-game losing streak in its win against Lasell. Rowland tipped home the eventual game-winner with 16:03 to go in the first half. With less than a minute remaining in the half, sophomore Lyndsie Ryalls (Branford, CT/Branford) grabbed the rebound from junior Shea Clarke's (Bellingham, MA/Bellingham) shot to make it 2-0. Rowland tacked on another insurance goal with 2:08 left in the game, as she gathered the rebound off another Clarke shot. Junior netminder Mary Catherine Boll (Columbus, IN/Miss Porter's School) turned aside three shots including a penalty stroke attempt.

Men's Soccer (3-3-0, 1-0-0) Blanks Two Foes Before Falling to Sixth-Ranked Williams

The Wheaton College men's soccer team went 2-1 last week, blanking a pair of opponents before losing to one of the nation's top teams. The Lyons shut out previously-undefeated Western New England College, 2-0 on Tuesday before shutting down Springfield College, 3-0 in their New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) opener on Saturday night. Less than 24 hours later, Wheaton hit the pitch at Keefe Field and narrowly lost, 3-2 to Williams College, which was tied for sixth in the latest National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll.

Against Western New England, which entered the game with a 5-0 mark and number-five ranking in New England, the Lyons netted a goal in each half while junior goalkeeper Matt Pachniuk (Newtown, CT/Newtown) made six stops. Freshman Dan Lane (Dedham, MA/Worcester Academy) scored the game-winner in the 28th minute off a helper from sophomore Dan Chong (Miami, FL/Coral Reef). Off a restart in the 78th minute, junior Dennis Durao (West Hartford, CT/Northwest Catholic) served a pass to the far post, where freshman Mathurin Coulibaly (Ivory Coast, Africa/Saint George's School) connected and sent a header toward the net. Junior Ariel Tatum (Cayman Islands, BWI/Holderness School) collected Coulibaly's ball and volleyed a shot home for his first goal this year.

The Lyons and Pride squared off in a night game whose start was delayed an hour by lightning. Freshman Justin Hart's (Ashland, MA/Ashland) first collegiate goal stood as the game-winner, with Lane assisting on the tally at 20:09. Fourteen minutes later, Lane netted the Lyons' second goal of the evening thanks to a helper from sophomore Borja Polo (Miami, FL/Belen Jesuit Prep). Junior Chris Sentance (Concord, MA/Williston Northampton School) completed the scoring at 77:40 after heading home sophomore Ian Walker's (Marblehead, MA/IMG Academy) corner kick. The tally was the first of Sentance's career. Pachniuk made four stops.

Wheaton finished its week by suffering a hard-fought loss to the top-ranked team in New England. Williams held a 2-0 lead heading into the second half before Lane delivered in the 67th minute with a perfectly-placed free kick from 20 yards out that carried over the keeper. Williams, however, responded with its third goal of the day four minutes later, but Wheaton sophomore Trevor Cote (Portsmouth, RI/Providence Country Day School) took a pass from Lane inside the box and buried his shot just 19 seconds later. Pachniuk was credited with six stops in the loss.

Women's Soccer (4-3-0) Loses By One, Records Easy Victory in 1-1 Week

The Wheaton College women's soccer team, ranked first in New England and 13th nationally last week by the NSCAA, dropped its first game against a New England foe since 2001 before rebounding with a resounding victory. The Lyons fell at Tufts University, 3-2 on Wednesday and responded by sailing past Framingham State College, 8-0 on Saturday at Mirrione Stadium.

Against Tufts, Wheaton saw its losing streak reach three games for the first time since October 1995 and lost to a New England opponent for the first time since November 3, 2001, when the Lyons suffered a 4-1 defeat versus Amherst College in the NCAA Tournament. The Lyons' last regular season loss to a regional foe had been at Connecticut College, 2-1 on October 5, 2000. Sophomore Jenna Rabesa (Teaticket, MA/Falmouth) converted classmate Lauren Konopka's (Medford, NJ/Holy Cross) cross in the 15th minute to give Wheaton a 1-0 lead, and the Lyons rallied from a 2-1 deficit when sophomore Julie McLane (New Canaan, CT/New Canaan) scored at 65:19. McLane's first collegiate tally came after a cross from Konopka and a header by sophomore Ashley Furr (Chicopee, MA/Cathedral). However, Tufts sent in the game-winner four minutes later. Sophomore keeper Stacey Kronenberg (Belchertown, MA/Belchertown) made nine saves.

McLane went on a tear against Framingham State, collecting four goals and an assist as the Lyons stretched their regular season home winning streak to 49 games. Eight other Wheaton players collected points, including a trio with multiple points. Konopka scored twice while Rabesa and sophomore Erin Davis (Easton, CT/Joel Barlow) each provided a pair of assists. Sophomore Katelyn Brack (Lake Oswego, OR/Oregon Episcopal School) and freshman Bailey Edwards (Austin, TX/Saint Stephen's Episcopal School) posted second-half goals, with Edwards' going down as her first collegiate tally. Wheaton outshot the Rams, 30-2 while holding a 10-1 advantage in corner kicks, as Kronenberg and senior Emily Lipsky (Whitestone, NY/Sacred Heart Academy) combined to stop two shots. McLane's four goals and nine points tie her for second in program history in each category.

Men's Tennis Competes in Middlebury Invitational, Payman Reaches Semifinals

The Wheaton College men's tennis team sent six singles players and three doubles teams to compete in the 13th annual Middlebury College Invitational last weekend. Junior Payum Payman (Pleasant Valley, NY/Arlington) had the best showing for the Lyons, advancing to the semifinal round of the "A" singles flight and the quarterfinal round of the "A" doubles flight with sophomore Sean Daly (Miami, FL/La Salle).

Payman began the tournament with victories of 6-1, 6-4 and 7-5, 4-6, 10-3 before falling in the semifinals, 6-4, 6-4. Junior Raymour Radhakrishnan (Amherst, NH/Bridgton Academy), playing in the "D" singles flight, was the only other Lyon to record a victory in the main draw, collecting a 6-4, 7-6 win before falling, 6-1, 6-1. In doubles, Payman and Daly edged Bowdoin, 9-7 in the opening round of the "A" draw but came up just short in their quarterfinal match. Radhakrishnan and senior Nick Potter (Concord, NH/Concord) claimed an 8-0 first-round victory in the "B" doubles flight before an 8-6 quarterfinal round loss.

Women's Tennis (4-2, 1-1) Splits Pair of NEWMAC Matches During 1-1 Week

The Wheaton College women's tennis squad opened its NEWMAC slate by splitting a pair of matches at Clark Tennis Courts last week. The Lyons lost six points by close decisions during a 7-2 setback against Babson College on Tuesday before sweeping past Springfield College, 9-0 on Saturday.

Against Babson, the Lyons lost a pair of doubles matches by 8-6 scores while junior Eden Gudonis (Manchester, MA/Governor Dummer Academy) and freshman Mallory Farmer (Washington, CT/The Gunnery) posted an 8-1 win at number three. Doubles play set the stage for a competitive singles slate, as the Lyons and Beavers fought tooth-and-nail in four of the six matches, two of which needed three sets to be decided. Sophomore Briana Jackson (Redding, CT/Joel Barlow) earned the Lyons' lone singles win with a 6-0, 6-0 final in the fourth spot.

Versus Springfield, juniors Jamie Weiss (Chicago, IL/Francis W. Parker School) and Darby McDermott (Briarcliff Manor, NY/Hackley School) notched an 8-1 win at first doubles while the pairings of Gudonis and Jackson and Farmer and sophomore Maya Milic-Strkalj (Philadelphia, PA/Friends' Central School) each captured 8-4 victories. Jackson and first-year Meghan Doyle (Hingham, MA/Hingham) led the pack in the singles portion of the match, combining to limit their opponents to three points in the third and fourth spots, respectively. Weiss, McDermott, Jackson, freshman Samantha Schraeter (Rye, NY/Rye) and Milic-Strkalj all blanked the opposition in their second sets to complete the sweep.

Weiss Named NEWMAC Singles Player of the Week

Weiss was named the NEWMAC Player of the Week for the week ending on Sunday, September 11. Weiss recorded three number-one singles victories during the week. Against Gordon College, she collected a 6-3, 6-1 victory in the top spot in helping Wheaton to an 8-1 final. Weiss recorded a hard-fought 7-5, 7-6 victory against Skidmore, as the Lyons suffered a 5-4 setback to the Thoroughbreds. She finished the week with a 6-3, 6-1 decision in Wheaton's 9-0 sweep at Union College.

Women's Volleyball (4-5, 2-0) Moves Closer to .500, Sweeps Pair of NEWMAC Matches

The Wheaton College women's volleyball team won its first two NEWMAC matches of the season by 3-0 finals last week. On Tuesday, the Lyons played the first of six matches in Emerson Gymnasium by knocking off Babson College, 30-14, 30-17, 30-16 and continued their success at Mount Holyoke College, 31-29, 30-18, 30-22 on Saturday.

Wheaton's match with Babson finished in favor of the hosts as the Lyons put together runs in each game. With the teams deadlocked at four in the first game, Wheaton earned serve after senior Marriah Vengroff's (Storrs, CT/E.O. Smith) kill and eventually led, 20-9 before finishing off the Beavers. Up 12-10 in game two, the Lyons scored 18 of the final 25 points in the win. The highlight of game three was the Lyons rallying from an early 7-4 hole behind eight consecutive points, including five on services aces from junior Alexis Liesman (Winchester, CA/West Valley). The Blue and White rattled off a 15-4 run to end the match. Senior Carilyn Tately (Walpole, MA/Walpole) notched 13 digs, Vengroff recorded 12 kills and collected five of the Lyons' 11 solo blocks, junior Tonia Smith (White Plains, NY/Alexander Hamilton) supplied 10 kills and Liesman added 29 assists.

Against Mount Holyoke, Liesman posted 28 assists, 11 digs and four service aces, while senior Elizabeth Reagh (Seattle, WA/Seattle Lutheran) finished with 17 digs and 10 kills. Smith recorded 13 kills and three blocks, Tately notched 13 digs, and Vengroff picked up seven aces and seven kills. Vengroff now sits just 34 kills shy of 1,000 for her career.

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

Men's Tennis: Men's tennis players Beekman and Hudgins named ITA Scholar-Athletes (more)

Women's Soccer: Hough's tally sends Wheaton past Emmanuel, Leddy notches third shutout (more)