Posted by Julia Schwartz
Skidmore athletics went on spring break this past week and achieved great success all across the country. The first of successes came from the men's lacrosse team, which traveled to Orlando, Fla. on March 16 to give No. 6 Dickinson College its first loss of the season, with a score of 9-7.
Skidmore sprang off to a quick lead in the beginning of the game with two goals from Ben Cornell '11. After keeping the lead from their jumpstart, Skidmore maintained the advantage at half time 5-2.
When the Thoroughbreds returned to the field after the half, they posted their sixth goal of the game to bring the score to 6-2. Dickinson made its first attempt at vengeance by posting a 3-0 run to bring the score within one point. Skidmore's Jon Hoeg '13 pushed the score up to 7-5, but then Dickinson returned with two goals to tie the score.
Late in the game, Skidmore secured its win first with a goal from Richie Davis '14, followed by Cornell scoring his third goal of the game.
On March 19, Skidmore returned home to play against Clark. The team creamed the Cougars 14-2, and held the score to 14-0 until the last period. Notable contributions to the game came from Cornell, Mike Perlow '13 and Kyle Grillo '13, who each had a goal in the first period.
The Thoroughbreds continued their winning streak as they played Williams at home March 23. After exponentially creating an eight-goal lead, the team was able to pull out a final score of 10-6. Cornell finished the game with three goals, Bryan Connolly '13 had two goals and one assist and Mike Holden '13 provided the two finishing goals.
Connor Dowling made seven saves in the net, bringing his goalkeeping record to 3-0 for the year so far. He received Liberty League Defensive Performer of the Week this past week for his play in goal, making 17 saves in the game against Dickinson and 11 against Clark. Skidmore plays next March 26 at home against U.S. Merchant Marine Academy.
Women's lacrosse
The women's lacrosse team did the least amount of traveling as compared to the rest of the spring teams, playing two games in Westminster, Md.
The Thoroughbreds began play March 15 against McDaniel on the team's home turf. Skidmore was able to pull out a win in the last 48.9 seconds of the game, with a goal from Lindsay Stavola '11 for a final score of 11-10. Stavola ended the game with three goals and two assists, followed by Kimberly Segalas '11 with four goals.
Skidmore returned to the field March 18 to play Wisconsin-Concordia. The Thoroughbreds improved their record to 3-0 with their victory of 14-2 against the Falcons. No. 1 player stood out in the game as 12 different players helped contribute to the demolition of their opponent. Rachel Klein '12 made four saves in the net.
The Thoroughbreds kept their undefeated record flowing as they improved to 4-0 against Castleton March 22 at home, with a score of 19-7. Stavola had a standout game, posting 10 points with six goals and four assists. The team returns to the turf March 30 against Trinity at home.
Men's baseball
Skidmore baseball headed down to Ft. Meyers, Florida for spring break, posting a 7-1 record to begin their season on a high. Their first two wins were against Bethel College, with scores of 6-4 and 3-0. Nick Laracuente '11 pitched the second game tossing his first shutout of the season. He only allowed three hits, giving up no walks and throwing four strikeouts.
The Thoroughbreds kept up their winning streak, beating Nichols in a close game that went into extra innings. They produced 14 hits and won the game on a suicide squeeze from Alex Barber '13 who scored Logan Arena '11 in the bottom of the 10th inning.
Despite Skidmore's 12 hits in its game against Kenyon, they stranded 10 runners on base, leaving them with their first loss of the season 15-2. Even with the loss, the players kept their spirits high and were able to come out on top for the rest of their games.
They swept their double headers against Millikin, which gave the team the confidence to win its last two games on March 19 against Minnesota-Morris, 11-3 and 7-4. Trevor Brucato '11 threw five innings for the win in the first game, giving up nine hits and recording six strikeouts and Jordan Keyser '14 posted the win in the second game for the Thoroughbreds, with Chris Autlet '14 in relief for the first time of the season.
Laracuente received Liberty League honors for two weeks in a row, improving his record for the year so far to 2-0, and Leejay Pollachi '13 receieved Co-Performer of the Week this past week, posting a .429 batting average with eight runs, six RBI and 9 stolen bases. Skidmore returns to the diamond March 26 for their first league game on the road against University of Rochester.
Softball
The women's softball team competed in the Rebel Spring Games in the warmth of Kissimmee, Fla. during spring break, playing in 10 games during the course of six days. The Thoroughbreds had a rough battle as they played against excellent competition from all across the country. Their record for the tournament was 2-8.
The wins came against Hood College and Roger Williams, both of which were impressive scores, 16-7 and 9-2. Despite their losing record, the Thoroughbreds can look forward to opening play March 26 away against Utica, and then they open their home season the following day against Castleton.
Men's tennis
Skidmore packed its rackets and traveled west to Claremont, Calif. during break to play on courts clear of snow at Pomona College. The competition began against Lafayette on March 15, where Skidmore won 5-2. Luke Granger '12 lead the pack with a three-set win at No. 1 singles. He also played doubles with Yahia Imam ‘11 and won 8-6.
The team jumped locations and competed against Bowdoin on March 17 in Pacific Palisades, Calif., conjuring up a close loss of 5-4. No. 1 doubles picked up their second win of the trip 8-2 against the Polar Bears, as well Oliver Loutsenko ‘14 and Alex Fromson ‘13 at No. 3 doubles with the same score. Despite these personal advances, No. 2 doubles lost as did multiple singles players.
Arriving back at its point of origin, Skidmore played against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps March 17 to continue their tour, losing 8-1 against the No. 3 seed. The losses kept pouring in after the initial one, falling short the next day to University of Redlands 6-3 and on March 19 to Pomona. The Thoroughbreds head down to New Jersey March 26 to carry on their season at Stevens Institute of Technology.
Women's tennis
No. 9 Pomona-Pitzer gave women's tennis its first loss of the season in Claremont, Calif. The team lost 9-0, breaking their initial undefeated record for the season. Sophia Bryan-Ajania '14 had the best play of the competition, losing a tight match at No. 6 singles.
The next day proved victorious for the Thoroughbreds, as they won 8-1 against No. 23 UT-Tyler. The team swept in singles, beginning with an effortless win from veteran Rachel Loeb '11. The only loss of the day came from No. 3 doubles, played by Melissa Hirsch '14 and Molly Nolan '14.
After their split performance in California, the Thoroughbreds returned home to play Rochester ranked at No. 20. Skidmore was able to pull out a close win with a final score of 5-4. Tory Engros '12 battled hard to pull out a win at No. 3 singles to help advance the team's record to 8-2.
Nataly Mendoza '13 and Hirsch received Liberty League honors for the week, earning Co-Performer of the Week and Co-Rookie of the Week, respectively, after their performances from the previous week. The Thoroughbreds travel to Vassar on March 26 to compete next in league play.