Weekly Lyon

Men's Basketball (9-9, 2-5) Nearly Downs Nationally-Ranked WPI, Falls to .500

The Wheaton College men's basketball team lost a pair of games last week, opening play with an 89-74 setback at Tufts University on Tuesday before narrowly falling to nationally-ranked Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), 67-64 on Saturday during the Lyons' sole New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) contest of the week.

Against Tufts, junior Brent DiGiovanna (Hanover, MA/Hanover) recorded 17 points and seven rebounds, while senior Brian Zukowski (Dracut, MA/Dracut) finished with 13 points, four assists and three steals. Sophomore Nick Michel (Hyde Park, MA/Boston Latin School) tallied 12 points on 6-of-10 shooting with five rebounds, while junior Eric Johnston (South Windsor, CT/East Catholic) had 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting and six boards. Freshman Jon Lecznar (Poland, ME/Poland Regional) collected six points, six rebounds and four blocks in 13 minutes during his first extensive appearance with the Lyons, notching all of his points, five boards and two blocks in the final 2:06 alone.

Wheaton nearly rallied for the upset over visiting WPI, which was ranked 17th by D3hoops.com, but the Lyons' desperation three-point attempt at the buzzer fell short. The Blue and White turned a 13-point hole in the first half into a 26-25 lead thanks to a 14-0 run, with Johnston scoring 11 during the 2:48 stretch, and was down by 11 with 3:27 remaining in the game before trailing by a lone possession on the final play. Johnston led the Lyons with 16 points thanks to a career-best four three-pointers and tacked on three assists in 26 minutes. Zukowski added 15 points and four assists, while freshman Ben Stehle (Newton, MA/Newton South) notched nine points and five boards in 15 minutes.

Zukowski now stands fourth in program history in each career assists (254), steals (162), three-pointers (174) and free throws (294), fifth in points (1,288) and sixth in field goals (410).

Women's Basketball (13-6, 6-1) Goes 3-0, Moves into First-Place Tie in NEWMAC

The Wheaton College women's basketball team went 3-0 last week and elevated into a first-place tie in the NEWMAC. The Lyons began play on Tuesday by knocking off Tufts University at the buzzer for the second straight year, winning by a 63-62 count, before downing the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth, 74-60 on Thursday. On Saturday, Wheaton picked up a 58-40 triumph at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The Blue and White finished the week tied with Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) for first place in the league. The Lyons are one win shy of matching their most from the last 11 seasons, while six league victories equal Wheaton's high since the NEWMAC went to a 13-game format in 2003-04. The Blue and White has won nine of 10 games for the first time since 1995-96.

Senior Kim McCormack's (Milton, MA/Milton) lay-up at the buzzer pushed the Lyons past host Tufts. Junior Becky Aitchison (Norwalk, CT/Trinity Catholic), whose long three-pointer beat the clock against the Jumbos last season, drove the lane and provided the final of her three assists. Aitchison added eight points and four rebounds, while sophomore Krystin Hickey (Manchester, NH/New Hampton School) had 23 points thanks to 7-of-8 free throw shooting and gabbed eight rebounds. Sophomore Bri Smith (Westford, MA/Westford Academy) tacked on 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting, while senior Casey Sorbara (Port Chester, NY/Trinity Catholic) added five helpers and three steals.

Senior Samara Audet (Derry, NH/Trinity) scored the first five points during a game-changing 18-3 run against visiting UMass-Dartmouth. Aitchison and Audet each recorded 12 points, with Aitchison shooting 6-of-8 and handing out four assists. Hickey had 10 points, while Smith notched nine points on 4-of-6 shooting with three assists in 15 minutes. Freshman Ida Kruse (Vershire, VT/Rivendell Academy) added eight points and three steals in 10 minutes, and classmate Jenny Champney (Bedford, MA/Bedford) had eight points in 12 minutes. McCormack notched seven points and five rebounds, while Sorbara had four assists and three steals in 16 minutes.

At MIT, Audet's offensive rebound and putback just 17 seconds into the contest gave the Lyons the lead for good. Hickey notched 15 points on 7-of-12 shooting in 25 minutes, and she also turned in three assists. Kruse had 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting with four rebounds in just 11 minutes, while sophomore Jennie Pleat (Nashua, NH/Nashua South) went 3-of-3 for eight points. Aitchison had a team-high eight rebounds, while Sorbara added a team-best four assists.

Through last week's games, Sorbara is tied for fourth in program history in career assists (316) and sits seventh in steals (184). McCormack is ninth in steals (182), tied for ninth in assists (186), and is 10th in each rebounds (549) and free throws (195). Smith is tied for 10th in three-pointers (58).

Men's (5-11) and Women's (14-4) Swimming Complete Dual Regular Season Schedules

The Wheaton College men's and women's swimming and diving teams finished up their respective dual regular season slates over the weekend at Tufts University, as the women downed Bates College, 192-106 but lost to the hosts by a 159-141 count. Wheaton's men fell to Bates, 123-115 and against the Jumbos, 170-86. The Lyon women extended their school record wins total to 14.

Senior All-American Barrett Roberts (Portland, ME/Deering) picked up three wins, including a pair of NCAA Championship provisional qualification times. His 50-yard freestyle victory came in a provisional time of 20.89, which was just 0.20 seconds off an automatic qualifying standard. Roberts matched the provisional time of 46.66 during his 100-yard free triumph and also won the 100-yard butterfly. Junior Matt Jordan (Ellsworth, ME/Ellsworth) paced the 200-yard backstroke field.

Wheaton's women picked up six event victories, as junior Abby Pratt (Melrose, MA/Melrose) played a hand in four, including pacing the 50- and 100-yard freestyle fields. Her 50 time of 24.72 was 0.13 seconds off her own program mark and 0.24 ticks shy of an NCAA meet provisional standard, while her 100 time of 54.24 was 0.24 seconds short of her school mark. Junior Meg Miller (Duxbury, MA/Duxbury) won the 200-yard free race, while freshman Emily Sweatt (Portland, ME/Deering) topped the 200-yard breaststroke competition. Miller, Sweatt, sophomore Caitlin Glover (Durham, NH/Berwick Academy) and freshman Iris Meehan (Bar Harbor, ME/Mount Desert Island) combined for a 400-yard medley relay victory, while Meehan, Miller, Pratt and freshman Brenna Crothers (Mount Desert, ME/Mount Desert Island) won the 200-yard free relay race.

The Lyons complete their regular season slate on Saturday in preparation for their respective New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Championship meets. Wheaton's women travel to Wellesley College on February 16-18, while the men host the meet on February 23-25.

Roberts Receives ECAC Accolade for Third Time in Four Weeks

Roberts earned Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Co-Swimmer-of-the-Week honors for the week ending on Sunday, January 21, marking the third time in the last four weeks of selections that Roberts drew an ECAC accolade. Roberts picked up eight wins and two runner-up finishes in the 10 events he entered while notching two NCAA Championship provisional qualifying times and breaking a school record. At Bridgewater State College on January 17, Roberts won the 100-, 200- and 500-yard freestyle events and helped the 200-yard medley and 400-yard free foursomes to triumphs. On January 20 at Division II Bentley College, Roberts broke the school's 50-yard butterfly record by 0.56 seconds with a first-place finish of 23.86. He also won the 50- and 100-yard free events in 21.01 and 46.55, respectively, as each provisionally qualified him for the NCAA meet. Roberts also helped the 200-yard free and medley quartets to runner-up finishes.

Men's and Women's Track Athletes Notch Two NCAA Times, Eight Wins at Wesleyan

The Wheaton College men's and women's indoor track and field teams took part in the non-scoring Wesleyan Invitational on Saturday, when senior Jennifer Harlow (East Bridgewater, MA/East Bridgewater) and sophomore Jonathan Cunha (Lexington, MA/Lexington) each notched NCAA Championship provisional qualifying times. The Lyons combined for eight event victories.

Harlow won both the high jump and 55-meter hurdles competitions, as she met an NCAA provisional standard in the 55M hurdles and tied for the season's best time in New England at 8.46. Sophomores Lily Calderwood (Harvard, MA/Bromfield School) and Natana Jules (Brooklyn, NY/Boys and Girls) won the mile and 800-meter run events, respectively, while the duo joined classmates Celeste Karpow (Wilton, CT/Wilton) and Christine Moreau (Lincoln, RI/Lincoln) on the victorious 4x400M relay team. Freshman Renee Thompson (Hartford, CT/Weaver) won the 400M dash, while sophomore Chizoba Ezeigwe (Brockton, MA/Thayer Academy) notched New England's top 55M time this season at 7.35 during a fourth-place finish, as she was just 0.02 seconds off an NCAA provisional time. Junior Joell Whitley's (Magnolia, NJ/Triton Regional) second-place triple jump performance of 36' 5 1/2" was 2 3/4" shy of an NCAA provisional standard.

Cunha picked up his NCAA time during a 400-meter dash victory in 49.50. Freshman Howard Powell (Brooklyn, NY/Boys and Girls) won the 55M hurdles in 7.83, which was just 0.04 seconds shy of a seven-year-old program record and 0.08 ticks short of an NCAA provisional time.

Ezeigwe Earns Weekly ECAC Track Honor

Ezeigwe drew Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Track Co-Athlete-of-the-Week honors for the week ending on Sunday, January 21. Ezeigwe won the 400-meter dash while also provisionally qualifying for the NCAA Championship on January 20 at the Sorlien Invitational. Ezeigwe's time of 57.73 was 1.99 seconds faster than the runner up and paced a 13-athlete field otherwise comprised of Division I and II runners.

This page is maintained by Scott Dietz. Last updated on 2/8/08.
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