Weekly Lyon

Men's Basketball (4-3) Splits Pair to Complete First-Semester Schedule

The Wheaton College men's basketball team split a pair of three-point decisions last week, first falling at Connecticut College, 77-74 on Tuesday before downing host Endicott College, 67-64 on Saturday. The Lyons finished up their first-semester schedule and hit the hardwood next at the Salem State College Christmas Invitational on December 29-30 before starting conference play on January 6.

At Connecticut College, the Blue and White shot 61.5 percent (32-52), the third-best showing in program history, but came up short. Junior Eric Johnston (South Windsor, CT/East Catholic) tallied a game-high 18 points while hitting 9-of-12 shots, and classmate Brent DiGiovanna (Hanover, MA/Hanover) dumped in 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting. Senior Brian Zukowski (Dracut, MA/Dracut) had nine points, six assists and four steals, while sophomore Nick Michel (Hyde Park, MA/Boston Latin School) added nine points and a game-high-tying five rebounds in his first collegiate start.

Johnston carried the Lyons at Endicott, scoring eight of his 14 points in the last 68 seconds, including the winning free throw with three seconds left. DiGiovanna produced game highs of 16 points and eight rebounds, while Johnston hit all six of his free throw tries. Zukowski added 13 points and a game-high five assists while canning 7-of-8 freebie attempts, while junior David Harding (Hanover, MA/Boston College) and freshman Ben Stehle (Newton, MA/Newton South) each notched eight points. The Lyons hit 25-of-27 free throw tries for the third-highest percentage (92.6) in program history. A significant streak ended during the game, as the Blue and White had a run of 346 consecutive games making at least one three-pointer snapped. It was the first time since December 4, 1993, during a home contest with Trinity College that the Lyons failed to connect from beyond the arc.

Women's Basketball (4-4) Finishes First Semester with 1-1 Week

The Wheaton College women's basketball team finished up its first-semester slate with a 1-1 showing last week in non-conference play, dropping visiting Suffolk University, 68-52 on Wednesday before falling to Salve Regina University, 76-68 on Saturday in Emerson Gymnasium.

Against Suffolk, the Lyons used an 18-0 run in the middle of the game to pull away. Junior Becky Aitchison (Norwalk, CT/Trinity Catholic) notched 19 points on 9-of-14 shooting to go along with seven rebounds, while senior Casey Sorbara (Port Chester, NY/Trinity Catholic) finished with nine points and game-high totals of seven assists and six steals. Senior Kim McCormack (Milton, MA/Milton) posted six points and pulled down a game-best nine boards, while freshman Ida Kruse (Vershire, VT/Rivendell Academy) had seven points and four caroms in nine minutes.

The Lyons chipped a 16-point deficit against Salve Regina to three with less than three minutes remaining but could not complete the comeback. Aitchison posted 16 points, seven rebounds and four steals, while sophomore Krystin Hickey (Manchester, NH/New Hampton School) recorded all 14 of her points in the second half and had five steals. Kruse again turned in seven points and four rebounds.

Men's (4-4) and Women's (7-2) Swimming Athletes Break Seven School Records

The Wheaton College men's and women's swimming and diving teams saw its athletes break seven school records on Saturday at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), as the women recorded their first victory over the Engineers since the 1993-94 season, 151-148, and downed Smith College, 204-93. The men fell to MIT, 159-96, but had two swimmers record national championship qualifying times.

Freshman Emily Sweatt (Portland, ME/Deering) broke her own school records in each the 50-, 100- and 200-yard breaststrokes and swam a leg for the record-breaking 400-yard medley relay team. In the 100 breast, she clocked in at 32.06 during the first 50 yards to surpass her old mark while winning the event in 1:08.64. Sweatt, who won the 200 breast in 2:31.50, joined juniors Meg Miller (Duxbury, MA/Duxbury) and Abby Pratt (Melrose, MA/Melrose) and freshman Iris Meehan (Bar Harbor, ME/Mount Desert Island) as the 400-yard medley quartet placed first in 4:04.25, bettering the old mark by 4.24 seconds. Meehan also won the 100- and 200-yard backstroke events, Miller took the 200-yard freestyle race, and Pratt topped the field in the 50- and 100-yard freestyle and 100-yard butterfly.

On the men's side, senior All-American Barrett Roberts (Portland, ME/Deering) won both the 50- and 100-yard freestyle events while notching automatic qualifying times for the NCAA Championship in each. In winning both events, he also broke the school, conference and pool records. During the initial 50 race, he had an automatic qualifying time of 20.54 before eclipsing that during the opening leg of the 200 free relay in 20.48. During the 100, Roberts topped the field in 45.30. Junior Matt Jordan (Ellsworth, ME/Ellsworth) notched a provisional qualifying time for the NCAA meet with a time of 52.65 in the 100-yard backstroke and also won the 100-yard butterfly in a school-record time of 53.14, edging out a 2003 standard by .08 seconds.

Synchronized Swimming Opens Season with Top Finish at Regional Meet

The Wheaton College synchronized swimming team kicked off its 2006-07 season by besting a pair of in-state foes on Saturday during the New England Figure Meet in Balfour Natatorium. The Lyons notched 24.5 points to beat out Boston University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

During a meet that only involved B, C and D figures competitions, the Lyons took the top spots in each the B and C categories. In fact, the top four finishers in the B figures field hailed from Wheaton, and pair of Blue and White swimmers claimed the top two C figures spots. In B figures, sophomore Sharada Strasmore (Weston, CT/Weston) notched 68.832 points to edge out second-place finisher Laura Montes (San Juan, PR/Academia San Jose), a freshman who accumulated 67.323 points in her first college meet. Sophomore Sylvia Syracuse (Tonawanda, NY/Kenmore West) and senior Elizabeth Corman (Saint Paul, MN/Hill-Murray School) were the next two finishers. Sisters Jenna and Sarah Swinkin (Hamden, CT/Hamden) claimed the top two spots in C figures. Jenna, a freshman participating in her first collegiate action, tallied 63.770 points to notch the victory, while Sarah, a senior, had 62.478 points. During the D figures competition, senior Renata Paglio (Portland, ME/Deering) finished only 0.750 points out of first place with 56.338 and a second-place showing.

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