Weekly Lyon

Field Hockey (15-8, 5-3) Advances to First ECAC Tournament Championship Game

The Wheaton College field hockey team's season came to an end over the weekend, as the Lyons competed in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Tournament for the first time since 1995 and advanced to their initial title game. After the second-seeded Blue and White downed number three Western New England College, 1-0 in double overtime during Saturday's semifinal, Wheaton took on number one Endicott College but came up short, 2-1 in overtime on Sunday.

Against visiting Western New England, junior Sara Dimick (Cumberland, ME/Greely) scored the game's lone goal in the 93rd minute. The goal was Dimick's 18th of the season and gave her 47 points, eclipsing Maureen Reynolds' '88 school record of 46 set in 1987. Senior Mary Catherine Boll (Columbus, IN/Miss Porter's School) stopped 10 shots for her fourth shutout of the year.

During the ECAC championship game, which was moved to Salem State College due to inclement conditions at Endicott, freshman Alex Block (Saratoga, CA/Saratoga) tied the game in the 45th minute by tipping home senior Shea Clarke's (Bellingham, MA/Bellingham) long hit before the Gulls scored a little more than two minutes into overtime. Boll finished with six saves.

The Lyons finished up a season in which they eclipsed the program wins mark of 13 while finding the back of the net 59 times, shattering the 1987 standard of 44 goals. Dimick finished with a school-record 11 assists, while Clarke and sophomore Alisa Ardito (Branford, CT/Branford) also each surpassed the former mark with 10 helpers apiece. Clarke completed her career with school records of 21 assists and 78 games played, while senior Rachel Sminkey (White River Junction, VT/Hartford) finished 10th in points (45) and tied for 10th in goals (18). Boll notched a school-record 15 wins this year and finished her career tied for third in shutouts (10) at Wheaton and fourth in wins (25).

Men's Soccer (12-5-4, 5-1) Falls to Western New England in NCAA Tournament

The Wheaton College men's soccer team fell in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday to Western New England College, 2-1 in a game played at Amherst College. The Lyons lost for just the second time in their last 14 games after beginning the season 4-3.

The Golden Bears took a 2-0 lead in the 57th minute, but sophomore Dan Lane (Dedham, MA/Worcester Academy) tallied his 11th goal of the fall midway through the frame. Junior Trevor Cote (Portsmouth, RI/Providence Country Day School) and sophomore Ben Resnicow (Newton, MA/Newton North) were credited with assists, but the Lyons came no closer. Wheaton outshot Western New England, 13-10, and senior Matt Pachniuk (Newtown, CT/Newtown) had four saves.

Pachniuk completed his career as one of the most accomplished goalkeepers in program history. Wheaton's leader in career wins (54), shutouts (29) and minutes (7,154:13) finished third in each saves (292) and goals against average (0.86). Lane's marker was the 24th of his career, leaving him ninth in program history entering his junior season. His 54 points are five shy of 10th at Wheaton.

Pachniuk Earns ECAC and NEWMAC Weekly Honors

Pachniuk earned weekly honors from both the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) and New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) for the week ending on Sunday, November 5. Pachniuk shared ECAC Co-Defensive-Player-of-the-Week accolades while being named NEWMAC Player of the Week for the second time in his career after drawing the honor on September 19, 2004. Pachniuk posted a pair of shutouts during the NEWMAC Tournament, sending Wheaton to its sixth tournament title and seventh NCAA Tournament berth. He turned aside four shots in a scoreless double-overtime semifinal against United States Coast Guard Academy on November 4 before stopping three penalty kicks during a 5-4 shootout win. Pachniuk made four more saves during a 1-0 victory against Babson College in the championship game on November 5.

Women's Soccer (21-2-1, 9-0) Wins NCAA Tournament Opener Before Falling to Amherst

The Wheaton College women's soccer team split a pair of games in the NCAA Tournament over the weekend, downing Husson College, 3-0 in the first round on Saturday before dropping a 3-0 second-round decision to Amherst College on Sunday. With the loss, a streak of four straight seasons advancing to the NCAA Sweet 16 came to an end, as the Lyons saw their 19-game undefeated run snapped.

Against visiting Husson, junior Jenna Stiegler (Madison, WI/Middleton) converted the 38th-minute game-winner off classmate Erin Davis' (Easton, CT/Joel Barlow) corner kick before junior Lauren Konopka (Medford, NJ/Holy Cross) corralled the rebound of freshman Abby Isaac's (Larchmont, NY/Proctor Academy) shot six minutes later. Konopka moved into fifth at Wheaton in career points (108) with her tally. During the 67th minute, sophomore Angelamaria Viscomi (Newton, MA/Newton North) tallied off freshman Lyndsey McManus' (Marshfield, MA/Marshfield) free kick. Junior keepers Elana Cockburn (Chestnut Hill, MA/Brookline) and Stacey Kronenberg (Belchertown, MA/Belchertown) combined for two saves.

The Lyons yielded the game-winner to visiting Amherst 22 seconds into the contest and fell despite holding a 16-11 advantage in shots. Wheaton nearly got on the board in the 26th minute, but freshman Kathleen Carroll's (New Paltz, NY/New Paltz Central) shot toward the lower left corner of the net was turned away by a diving Amherst keeper. Cockburn and Kronenberg combined for two saves.

Davis Draws First Career NEWMAC Player-of-the-Week Honor

Davis earned her first career NEWMAC Player-of-the-Week honor for the week ending on Sunday, November 5. The back played an integral role as Wheaton won its sixth NEWMAC Tournament championship and drew its seventh NCAA Tournament berth, and she was also named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic College Division All-District I third team for the second straight season during the week. In Wheaton's 2-2 double-overtime semifinal draw with Babson College on November 4, Davis launched a corner kick that was converted for the 72nd-minute game-tying goal, rallying the Lyons from a 2-0 deficit. Following a pair of scoreless overtime sessions, Davis netted the clinching tally during a 4-1 shootout victory that sent Wheaton into the championship game. The Lyons earned a 3-0 victory over Smith College in the title game, as Davis recorded the first game-winner of her career in the 60th minute.

Women's Cross Country's Brousseau Earns Second NCAA Championship Berth

The Wheaton College men's and women's cross country teams competed at the NCAA Division III New England Championship on Saturday, when the Lyon women placed 12th out of 48 teams and the men were 24th of 45. Junior Megan Brousseau (Attleboro, MA/Attleboro) qualified for next weekend's national championship meet with an 11th-place finish.

Brousseau completed the course in 22:23, placing as the top finisher from the NEWMAC in the process. She looks to become the first two-time All-American in program history, as Brousseau earned honors at the national meet as a freshman. She will take part in Saturday's NCAA meet at Voice of America Park in West Chester, Ohio. Five more Lyons cracked the top 100, as senior captain Jennifer Ziello (Litchfield, CT/Litchfield) was 70th, sophomores Amanda Rawson (Dudley, MA/Shepherd Hill Regional) and Lily Calderwood (Harvard, MA/Bromfield School) were 80th and 86th, respectively, freshman Katie Pratt (Litchfield, CT/Litchfield) finished 88th, and junior Abbe Bosk (Narberth, PA/Springside) was 100th. In his second regional championship meet, junior Pat Benson (Foxboro, MA/Bishop Feehan) had his second team-best finish. Benson was 63rd in a time of 27:12.

Men's (4-2) and Women's (5-1) Swimming Combine For Three Victories Over Weekend

The Wheaton College men's and women's swimming and diving teams each suffered their first losses of the year on Friday to New York University before combining for three wins on Saturday against Babson College and Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). The Lyon men and women fell to the Violets, 128-85 and 123-111, respectively, before the Blue and White women knocked off Babson, 182-84 and WPI, 188-85. Wheaton's men downed the Beavers, 151-137 but lost to WPI, 158-129.

Junior Abby Pratt (Melrose, MA/Melrose) highlighted the women's meet against visiting NYU, winning each the 50- and 100-yard freestyle races while swimming a leg for the victorious 200-yard medley relay quartet, joining junior Meg Miller (Duxbury, MA/Duxbury) and freshmen Iris Meehan (Bar Harbor, ME/Mount Desert Island) and Emily Sweatt (Portland, ME/Deering). Sophomores Mandy Cumings (Zionsville, IN/Zionsville Community) and Caitlin Glover (Durham, NH/Berwick Academy) and freshmen Brenna Crothers (Mount Desert, ME/Mount Desert Island) and Aurelie Marcotte (Hampden, MA/Minnechaug Regional) swam for a victorious 200-yard free relay quartet. For the men, senior All-American Barrett Roberts (Portland, ME/Deering) and junior Matt Jordan (Ellsworth, ME/Ellsworth) won the 50-yard free and 100-yard backstroke events, respectively.

The Lyon women won 12 of 16 events during the double-dual meet with visiting Babson and WPI, highlighted by Sweatt breaking her own school record in the 100-yard breaststroke, pacing the field in a time of 1:10.18 while eclipsing her previous standard by 0.67 seconds. Pratt was a double-winner, taking first in the 100-yard butterfly and freestyle events. Seven additional individuals won one race apiece, including Glover in the 200-yard backstroke, Meehan in the 100-yard back, Miller in the 50-yard freestyle, senior Cassie Bohn (Manhattan Beach, CA/Mira Costa) in the 200-yard breast, sophomore Kelly Grant (South Salem, NY/John Jay) in the 1,000-yard free, and freshmen Stephanie Conelias (Cheshire, CT/Cheshire) and Sarah Houlihan (West Springfield, MA/West Springfield) in the 200-yard butterfly and 500-yard free, respectively. A pair of relay teams picked up wins, as Bohn, Houlihan, Meehan and Pratt combined for a 200-yard free victory, while Crothers, Marcotte, Miller and Sweatt comprised the top 200-yard medley quartet.

On the men's side, Jordan and Roberts won two races apiece. Roberts was victorious in each the 50- and 200-yard freestyle events, while Jordan drew the top spot in both the 100-yard breaststroke and free competitions. Freshman Max Polin (Parkland, FL/North Broward School) topped the 200-yard butterfly field, while Jordan, Polin, Roberts and senior Zach Hicks (Bath, ME/Morse) combined for a 200-yard medley relay triumph.

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