The women's lacrosse team took the field Wednesday, April 27, against Manhattanville and opened up the flood gates, scoring twelve goals unanswered to start things off. The final score was 21-10.
Dowling and Holden dominate league: Sports Wrap
Posted by Julia Schwartz & Isaac Baker
Skidmore started this past week off strong with a big win 12-4 over Union on April 16. The dreary weather was no match for the Thoroughbreds as the team won possession of the ball to start the game off on a high note.
Dominating from the start, the team kept the ball on offense for the majority of the first quarter to produce four goals scored by Ben Cornell '11, followed by Jon Hoeg '13, Mike Perlow '13 and Ryan Paradis '12. Union began to fight back in the second quarter, scoring three goals to end the half at 4-3.
As Skidmore came back from intermission, the team jumped into action scoring three goals in a row to increase their lead, with two goals from Mike Holden '13 and another from Perlow. Union posted another goal on the board, which would terminate its scoring opportunities for the remainder of play.
After the shut down of the other team, Skidmore posted another five goals on the board to bring the final score up to 12-4 by the end of the third, which did not change in the scoreless fourth quarter.
Holden finished the game with a game-high of four goals, notably followed by Perlow who had three goals. Seven other members of the team contributed offensively for the Thoroughbreds. In goal, Connor Dowling '12 made 14 saves, 10 of which came in the scoreless quarters.
Despite Skidmore's continuous rise in the rankings, the No. 11 team could not hold off Hamilton in the 9-8 loss April 20 on the road. After disorderly conduct on the field slowed the beginning of the game, Scott Madison '11 ignited the offense for Skidmore to begin play with a turnover, allowing Jacques Ward '11 to drive toward goal.
The Thoroughbreds were evenly matched throughout regulation, as Hamilton tied the score up every time the Thoroughbreds produced a goal. Standout players from the game were Holden, who finished the game with five goals, followed by Perlow with two and Cornell with one.
Dowling and Holden received Liberty Leauge honors for their efforts on the field. Dowling's season high of stopping 19 shots nabbed him Co-Defensive Performer of the Week. Holden had a team high of seven goals throughout play this past week, boasting him as Co-Offensive Performer of the Week.
Women's lacrosse
Lindsay Stavola '11 led the Thoroughbreds to victory against league competitor Rochester April 15 with home-field advantage. She produced five goals and two assists during the game, bringing her year totals so far up to 41 goals and 27 assists. She is the 11th Skidmore player to score more than 40 goals in her career.
Lauren Madden '12 and Kimberly Segalas '11 also contributed to the team's success, with three goals and two goals, respectively. Rachel Klein '12 blocked the net for the Thoroughbreds with five saves for the day. The team had a 22-14 shot advantage, which helped produce the final outcome of 16-5.
Skidmore returned to the field the next day to cream the second league competitor of the week, William Smith.
Six different players contributed to the success of the huge win, led by Stavola, Madden and Segalas. Other notable scorers of the day were Lexi Melville '13, Summer Segalas '14, Sydney Weill '11 and Abbie Hamlin '12.
Women's lacrosse followed their win with a road trip on April 19 to Amherst where they played an evenly matched game against the No. 16 team. The deciding factor was a last minute goal from Amherst that brought the final score to 11-10.
After a competitive week on the turf, the Liberty League named Stavola Co-Performer of the week for the fifth time this season. She is the scoring leader of the season so far, and currently has 45 goals and 27 assists. Skidmore continues play on its home turf April 27 against Manhattanville.
Baseball
The baseball team had a busy weekend with four games against league competitor Union. The Thoroughbreds began action on the road in Schenectady, where even Union's home-field advantage could not stop the domination that took on a pair of 9-4 wins.
Nick Laracuente '11 threw the first game, giving up eight hits, four earned runs and producing six strikeouts. The win improved his record 7-0 on the year. To assist his pitching, the team secured the win in the sixth inning by scoring seven of the nine total runs for the game, six of which were scored with two outs.
The second game began successfully for the Thoroughbreds, as the team produced three runs in the top of the first inning, and never looked back as they maintained the lead for the rest of the game. The final score of the second game reached the abnormal, yet identical score to the first, 9-4.
Zack Rudman '12 threw the second game, improving his record on the year to 3-1. Isaac Forman '14 provided assistance at the end of the game by relieving the junior pitcher to pull through and win the sweep against the Dutchmen.
The following day Skidmore returned to its home field to play Union in another double-header.
In the first game, the competition lay on the two opposing pitchers. Despite the first five innings being scoreless, Skidmore finally posted a number in the runs column in the bottom of the sixth as Matty Tatkow '13 scored off a fly ball from Rob Rubenstein '11.
After a valiant effort from the opposing team, three fly balls were no match for the Skidmore outfield to help give Trevor Brucato '11 his third win of the season and a shutout for the day.
After a brief hiatus to refuel, the Thoroughbreds returned to the field to complete the series against Union, hoping to finish victorious to no avail. Skidmore began the game with a solo home run from Erik Watkins '14, his first of his college career. They kept on attacking slowly, but could not match Union's attack in the fourth inning and beyond.
The bottom of the eighth proved the last chance for Skidmore to have the opportunity for a comeback, as Logan Arena '11 and Watkins both drove in runs. After attempting to face Union's closer in the bottom of the ninth, Skidmore had exhausted its energy for the weekend and left the field with a score of 8-5.
Jordan Keyser took the loss for the Thoroughbreds, allowing seven runs in four innings. Both Rudman and Brucato received Liberty League honors for their efforts throughout the Union performance, as well as their game against Southern Vermont from April 13. The team returns to the field on the road April 22 at Clarkson.
Softball
Skidmore struggled in its first league games April 15 on the road against Rochester. Rochester swept the team in two scoreless games for the Thoroughbreds, 8-0 and 3-0.
The fall in both games came when Skidmore could not string together any of its hits to bring runners home. Christina Gargiso '12 made great efforts to help the Thoroughbreds offensively in both games, producing one of three hits in the first game for the team and going 2-3 in the second game. Softball returns to league play April 22 away at Union.
Women's tennis
The women's tennis team volleyed through a rough weekend on the road April 16 and 17 as they took on non-league competition against No. 2 Williams and MIT. Williams swept Skidmore 9-0 despite the efforts of Rachel Loeb '11 at No. 1 and Rachel Baird '14 at No. 6 singles, respectively.
As the Thoroughbreds continued their travels, Sophia Bryan-Ajania '14 and Keirsten Sires '14 won at No. 3 doubles against MIT, as did Molly Nolan ‘14 at No. 5 singles.
Baird returned to the court and battled through to pick up a win at No. 6 singles. The rest of the team was unable to pull through as Skidmore fell to MIT 6-3. The Thoroughbreds return to the court on April 30 at Middlebury.
Men's lacrosse goes down to Middlebury in double OT: Sports Wrap
Posted by Isaac Baker
The men's lacrosse team suffered a brutal defeat against Middlebury last Tuesday, April 12. After two rounds of overtime, Middlebury edged out Skidmore to win 11-10 on Wachenheim field. This loss ended Skidmore's six game winning streak, making its overall record 8-2.
Middlebury went up in the first few minutes with two quick goals, but by the end of the first quarter, Skidmore was up 4-2 with a 4-0 run for momentum. The rest of the game went back and forth, each team trading goal-for-goal. With 2:16 to play, Middlebury was up 10-9 and intended to run the clock out.
Much to the chagrin of the opponent, defender Michael Jennings '11 caused a key turnover, and Mike Milazzo '12 scored the equalizer with 29 seconds to play. This was Milazzo's third goal of the game.
Both teams had chances to score in overtime, but Middlebury ultimately found the back of the net first. Mike Holden ‘13 and Matt Lavesque '11 also finished the game with three goals apiece.
The Thoroughbreds will take the field again next Saturday, April 16, against Union on their home turf.
Golf
The Skidmore golf team took first place last Sunday, April 10, in the NYU/Manhattanville Spring Invite. The team collectively scored 28 strokes less than its closest competitor, SUNY Delhi, placing it well out in front of the nine other teams, all of which scored pretty similarly.
Of the top 20 scores that day, Skidmore held seven of them - including the No. 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 spots. Anothony Dilisio '13 was Skidmore's top performer, finishing with a 72-74 — 146, one stroke behind Greg Verde (Cabrini College) and Andrew Kim (Columbia College), who tied for first.
Right on Dilisio's tail was Joseph Flowers '11, who shot a 72-75 — 147, while teammates Ryan Lloyd '11 and Peter Anderson '12 tied for fifth place at 151 strokes. Among those selected for the All-Tournament team were Dilisio, Flowers and Anderson.
Skidmore plays again April 15 at the Kravetz Invitational.
Softball
The softball team trounced Green Mountain last Thursday, April 7, in a clean sweep of the double header. Sam Crose '13 ran a tight shift in the first game, allowing no hits and just one walk in the five innings, the entire duration of the game. Caitlin Ketcham '11 went 2-for-3 with a double and three RBIs. Likewise, Charlotte Evans ‘11 also went 2-for-3, but with a two-run homer in the mix, her second this season. Katie Peverada '14 finished with two runs scored, two RBIs and a stolen base to boot. The final score of the first game was 11-0.
Game two began much like the last ended - with Skidmore lighting up the scoreboard with six runs in the first inning. The big hit in this spree was Christina Gargiso's '13 three run double with the bases loaded. The final score of the second game was 10-1.
The Thoroughbreds Monday game was cancelled this week, but they will return to action Thursday, April 14, against MCLA on Wachenheim field and again on Saturday, April 16, away at Rochester.
Baseball
The baseball team went on a five game winning streak this past week – beating Hamilton, sweeping a double header at St. Joseph's, shutting out Middlebury and edging out Southern Vermont with a series of late goals. This streak rockets the team's overall record up to 15-5.
The Thoroughbreds started off last Thursday, April 7, down 1-0 against Hamilton in the first. Due to an excellent rotation of pitchers, including Jordan Keysor ‘13, Zack Rudman ‘12, and Chris Aulet ‘14, this would be the only run scored by the Continentals.
Skidmore strung three runs together in the bottom of the third, and then grabbed its fourth run in the sixth. The rest were scoreless, and the final score of this big home game win was 4-1.
The following sweep of St. Joe's proved to be record setting for pitcher, Nick Laracuente '11, who held onto his perfect winning streak and lead Skidmore to its 7-0, 7-2 wins last Saturday, April 9. Laracuente pitched a shutout in the opening game, improving his record to 5-0 from the mound.
This was his twentieth win at the college level, which ties the program record for collegiate wins. The shutout was also his second of the season, which ties the shutout record at Skidmore.
Last Tuesday, April 12, Skidmore kept its winning streak alive with a clean run against Middlebury. After three early runs in the first four innings that went unanswered, the Thoroughbreds drove in three more runs in the ninth to finish 6-0.
Zach Rudman '12 earned his second win of the season, throwing three shutout innings from the mound. Keysor followed Rudman's lead with three more clean innings, and two other pitchers cleaned up the rest.
The following day, Skidmore strung together a few late runs in the seventh and the eighth to win against Southern Vermont. Laracuente picked up another win, improving to 6-0 on the season – officially breaking the win record in Skidmore baseball history.
The team plays next on Saturday, April 16, in a Liberty League game at Union.
Women's lacrosse
The women's lacrosse team came up with two important wins on the road this week against Clarkson and St. Lawrence last Friday, April 8, and Saturday, April 9, respectively, but lost to Williams on Wednesday, April 13. In Friday night's game against Clarkson, Lindsay Stavola '11 tied the program record with nine goals to push Skidmore to its 15-9 victory.
The Thoroughbreds went up five goals in the first fourteen minutes, setting the overall tempo for the game. Despite the Knights' two goal response, Skidmore volleyed again with three more before the half to break with the score 8-2.
Clarkson returned after the half with four consecutive goals, but was unable to secure a lead. After that, Skidmore fired up and pushed its way toward another victory. In addition to Stavola's staggering nine goals and two assists (her second double digit game this season), Lauren Madden '12 and Kimberly Segalas '11 each finished with two goals.
This Wednesday, Williams ended Skidmore's winning streak. To start things off, Williams scored five of the first six goals scored to take an early 5-1 lead. Lauren McCarthy '11 was solely responsible for Skidmore's scoring in the first half, putting two in the back of the net to Williams' nine.
Though the Thoroughbreds rallied in the second half, they fell short of their mark and went down 11-8.
The Thoroughbreds resume play at Wachenheim field this Friday, April 15, at 4 p.m. against Rochester.
Men's tennis
The men's tennis team picked up two wins against St. Lawrence and TCNJ this past weekend. Skidmore is now ranked tenth regionally. In the matches on Saturday, April 9, Skidmore's Luke Granger led the team to its 8-1 victory with two wins in the singles, and one doubles win when he combined with Yahia Imam '11, who also had two singles wins.
On Sunday, April 10, Skidmore got a run for its money from opponent College of NJ, but still managed to pull out a 5-4 victory. The teams battled back and forth and New Jersey won two out of the three doubles matches; however, Skidmore made up ground in the singles to win it.
Skidmore will play again Wednesday, April 20, at Williams College.
Riding
The Skidmore riding team finished second to host St. Lawrence at the Zone II national qualifying show, giving them good standing going into the show at Kentucky Horse Park in early May. After a great day of riding, Coach Cindy Ford was recognized with the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association Lifetime Achievement.
In her 20 seasons as Skidmore's riding coach, she has led the team to five IHSA national titles, and has helped secure the 2010 championship.
Softball soars through winning streak: Sports Wrap
Posted by Julia Schwartz & Isaac Baker The Skidmore softball team cleaned up this week with four wins in two double-headers. Last Sunday, April 3, the Thoroughbreds traveled to Utica College where they pulled out two wins in two closely contested games. Skidmore came back from a formidable deficit to win the first game, and scraped its way back on top in the second game, giving it two big wins against Utica.
In the first game, the Thoroughbreds were down six runs in the seventh inning. But after many quiet innings, Skidmore's bats lit up, as the team drove in seven runs to win the game with a final score of 9-8.
The Thoroughbreds sprang out in the second game with the momentum gained from the first win, working their way up to a 4-1 lead by the third inning. The Pioneers closed the gap in the bottom of the fifth inning with a pair of runs, bringing the score to 4-3. The following inning, Utica brought in another run to tie the game. After a standstill in the seventh inning, both teams returned to the field for extra innings. In the top of the eighth, Skidmore proved more successful with seven runs to Utica's three that they put on the board in the bottom of the eighth, finalizing the score at 11-7.
Between the two games, Julia Schwartz '13 had two home runs; teammates Charlotte Evans ‘11, Caiti Ketcham ‘11, Katie Sorochka ‘14 and Christina Gargiso '12 each finished with one homer for the day. Gargiso also went 4-4 in the first of the two games.
Three days later on Wednesday April 6, Skidmore played another double-header against Sage. Skidmore won the first by a significant margin, winning the game 8-1. Charlotte Evans '11 was 2-4 with a two run double, Caitlin Ketchem '11 went 1-2 with two RBIs and Christina Hein '11 went 2-3 with a pair of runs scored.
The following game, first-year Sorochka threw a no hitter, allowing just three walks and one hit batter. The Thoroughbreds shutout Sage 5-0, and headed back to Saratoga with their fifth straight win under their belts. Hein went 2-3 with a solo home run, while Schwartz went 1-4 with a two run double.
Skidmore heads to Middlebury April 1, hoping to continue its streak.
Baseball
The Thoroughbreds home field advantage was not enough to bring them luck against their double-header April 2 against Vassar. The Thoroughbreds fell short at the end of both games, losing with the final at bats in both games.
Zack Rudman '12 took the lost in the first games, throwing the full nine innings to no avail. Matty Tatkow '13 lead the Thoroughbreds effort up at bat, but was unable to punch enough through to the gaps to bring them a win.
Skidmore called upon Bobby Stafutti '13 in the second game when the game went into extra innings to continue the efforts of Trevor Brucato '11 on the mound, allowing two runs on seven hits with seven strikeouts.
Stafutti received the loss after the Brewers were able to pull through in the bottom of the 11th inning. Rob Rubenstein led Skidmore's offense in the second game, going 3-5 at the plate with an RBI.
The Thoroughbreds returned to the field the next day for two more games against the Brewers, this time losing the first game 8-3 and coming back at the end of the four game series with a score of 6-1.
Nick Laracuente '11 and Rubenstein received Co-Pitchers of the Week and Co-Performers of the Week for their efforts in their competitions against Vassar. Laracuente improved his throwing record to 4-0 with his win against Vassar, giving up one walk and striking out nine, which also lowered his ERA to 0.60 on the season so far. Rubenstein went 11-19 against the Brewers with eight RBI and a .780 slugging percentage.
Men's lacrosse
Men's lacrosse continued its success ranked at No. 19 on April 2 with a win against league rival, St. Lawrence 16-10. The Thoroughbreds had 46 shots on goal, 16 higher than that of St. Lawrence.
Skidmore secured the advantage early in the game with a 6-2 advantage at the end of the first period. Despite the Saints' attempt at vengeance beginning in the second half, Ben Cornell '11, Jon Hoeg '13, and Sam Lawfer '13 all put points on the board for the Thoroughbreds.
After half time, Skidmore returned to the field and pushed out the score 13-7, securing the win with a large enough advantage to finish out to the final second.
Major contributors to the Thoroughbreds' success were Mike Holden' 13, who had a game-high of five goals, as well as Cornell, Bryan Connolly '13, Matt Levesque '11 and Mike Perlow '13, all with two goals. Connor Dowling '12 protected the net for the Thoroughbreds with assistance from Ryan Paradis '12, who had a game-high of eight ground balls.
With The Thoroughbred's success came the elevation of their ranking in USILA Coaches Poll to No. 13. They have now won six straight games and have an 8-1 overall record and are 2-0 in league play.
Holden and Jacque Ward '11 received Liberty League Co-Performer of the Week and Co-Defensive Performer of the Week, respectively, for their contributions in their game against St. Lawrence. Skidmore returns to the field at home on April 12 to compete against Middlebury.
Women's lacrosse
Skidmore lacrosse started off the week with a tough loss against RPI in overtime, with a final score of 12-11. Despite the close loss, the team came together and fought back hard the next day against Vassar.
The Thoroughbreds were able to glide by and win with a final score of 17-8. Contributions to the score came from six different people throughout the game, allowing the Brewers to be kept off guard at all times. Lauren Madden '12 had a game-high of four goals, while Lindsay Stavola '11 finished the game with three goals and five assists. Lauren McCarthy '11 and Lexi Melville '13 also provided stability for the team, with three goals apiece. After Skidmore's outstanding performance against Vassar, Stavola earned Co-Offensive Performer of the Week for the third time this season.
The excitement earned from their huge win against Vassar did not carry over to the next game, as Skidmore fell to Union 12-3 on the road. The loss brings the team's record to 1-2 in league play. Stavola scored a goal, as did Kimbery Segalas '11 and Ali Frey '12, but those goals were not enough to create the momentum they needed to win over the Dutchwomen.
Skidmore continues road play April 8 and 9 at Clarkson and St. Lawrence, respectively.
Women's tennis
The Thoroughbreds rallied back and forth attempting to win close competitions April 2 and April 3, but fell short at the end, terminating both match ups with a score of 5-4. Melissa Hirsch '14 stood out for the Thoroughbreds, despite the two losses, earning Liberty League Rookie of the Week. She was 2-0 at No. 2 singles and 1-1 playing doubles with teammate Molly Nolan '14, with an 8-4 win against Wellesley and a close 9-7 loss against TCNJ. The women's tennis team plays next at home April 16 against Williams.
Softball splits double-header: Sports Wrap
Posted by Isaac Baker
The softball team played to a split in its double-header against Castleton on Wednesday. Castleton took the first game 3-2, but Skidmore came back with a vengeance, winning the second game 12-1 in five innings.
The Thoroughbreds drew first blood in the opening game – Carol Brown '13 brought teammate Molly Canavan ‘12 home with a big double, making the score 1-0. Castleton responded with an RBI double two innings later to tie the game.
Skidmore then went up in the sixth on an RBI ground ball by Julia Schwartz '13. But Castleton scored two in the seventh, the final run coming on a game-winning hit with the bases loaded and two outs.
After this contentious game, Skidmore took the field again with newfound vigor, and demolished Castleton – warranting the mercy rule by exceeding an eight run margin by the fifth inning. After the teams went run-for-run in the first inning, Skidmore came alive and went on an 11-0 run during the remainder of the game.
Katie Peverada '14 had a brilliant two RBI double in the fourth that cemented Skidmore's dominion. Christina Gargiso '12 and Carrol Brown '13 each finished with three RBIs. After allowing just three hits and one run, Abby Fuhrman '12 picked up the win in just five innings pitched. Skidmore will play at Utica College on Sunday, April 3 .
Men's lacrosse
A big week for men's lacrosse and a strong finish for the riding team
With home field advantage, the men's lacrosse team won three games this week on the Wachenheim turf. The first adversary to fall was Williams College last Wednesday. The Thoroughbreds built up a six-goal lead by the end of the first half, the spread being 8-2.
Senior Ben Cornell scored two of the initial eight goals, and finished the game as the leading scorer with three goals overall. During the third quarter, Skidmore widened the gap with two additional goals, pushing the score to 10-2.
Williams responded with one goal that quarter, and then rallied in the last quarter with three goals, but it was not enough. The final score was 10-6.
The main contributor to Skidmore's success lay in its defensive fundamentals; the defense cleared the ball on 29 of 30 attempts, and stifled all but one of Williams' offensive attempts when it was man down. In addition, goalie Connor Dowling '12 made seven saves and improved his record to 3-0 for the season.
Three days later, the lacrosse team took to the field again, but this time against the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. Skidmore kept its hot streak alive, demolishing Kings Point 16-7. With the Liberty League opener just ahead, this was a great warm up for Skidmore: every player dressed got playing time, and nine of those players saw the ball into the back of the net.
By the time the clock showed 1:20 in the first quarter, Mike Perlow ‘13, Jeremy Goldman ‘11 and Bryan Connolly ‘13 had already scored, putting Skidmore up 3-0. This set the tone for the entire match, with Skidmore leading throughout.
Wednesday afternoon, Skidmore took the field against RPI in the League opener against the No. 8 team (Skidmore is currently ranked No. 19), where they upset their opponents in an 11- 9 win.
Skidmore took the lead early on, and held it for the entire game. Its margin reached its pinnacle in the third quarter when Skidmore went up 11-4. Though RPI rallied back with five goals in the fourth, the Thoroughbreds held onto their lead to win their first League game.
Jaques Ward ‘11, Mike Holden ‘13 and Perlow picked up two goals a piece; Dowling made 13 saves, contributing to yet another win under his belt. The Thoroughbreds go on the road this Saturday to St. Lawrence for their next game.
Women's lacrosse
The women's lacrosse team suffered its first loss at the hand of Trinity this Wednesday. This was Skidmore's first loss on the season, making its record 4-1 overall. After reaching a 2-2 tie midway through the first half, Trinity strung together three goals before the clock ran down, leaving the field with a 5-2 lead.
Skidmore rallied somewhat in the second half, but did not bring enough fire to smoke out Trinity players who maintained a lead for the remainder of the game. Lauren McCarthy scored half of Skidmore's points, secured three ground balls and controlled three draws.
Despite controlling more draws than Trinity, Skidmore was nearly doubled in shooting by Trinity, the deciding factor in this loss. Skidmore will travel to play RPI on Friday, April 1.
Baseball
The baseball team travelled to play a double-header against Rochester last Friday, March 25; Rochester won the first game 6-4, while Skidmore rallied in the evening and won the second 8-5. These were the first League games of the season for Skidmore, making its league record 1-1, while its overall record is 8-2.
Erik Watkins '14 lit up the scoreboard during the first game with a two-run double in the second. Rochester responded with two RBI singles and then took the lead with an RBI double. Rochester managed to stay on top through the nine innings, making this the first loss for Trevor Brucato '11 who allowed three earned runs and six overall.
The following game proceeded very differently for the Thoroughbreds – by the third inning, they had secured a 5-1 lead, and showed no signs of relenting. Zack Rudman ‘12 threw two no-hit innings, striking out four of the batters, and picked up a save. Nick Laracuente '11 got the win, improving his personal record to 3-0 from the mound, allowing only six hits in his seven innings in the game.
The Thoroughbreds will play away against Vassar this Saturday, and then host Vassar on Sunday, April 3.
Men's Tennis
The men's tennis team came out strong last weekend and beat the Liberty League defending champion Vassar on Saturday, March 26, in Saratoga Springs. The Thoroughbreds won all of the doubles matches, and won four of six singles matches, giving them a five point margin in their 7-2 win.
The team will travel to Vassar's courts to play Amherst College Saturday, April 2.
Women's Tennis
The women's tennis team lost to league rival Vassar Saturday, March 26. Nataly Mendoza '13 had a perfect day for Skidmore, winning both her singles and her doubles match. The rest of the team, however, did not share her zeal, and lost a few key doubles matches that made the difference.
Skidmore will travel to Wellesley, MA this weekend, where they will play TCNJ and Wellesley on Saturday April 2, and Sunday April 3, respectively.
Riding
The Skidmore riding team finished its perfect season with yet another victory at Morrisville last Saturday, March 26. The Thoroughbreds scored 47 out of the 49 possible points, edging out the No. 2 team, Morrisville, by five.
The Thoroughbreds will go to St. Lawrence University on April 9 to compete in the Zone Championships. Flavia D'Urso ‘13, Chelsea Jones ‘12, Kelly Campbell ‘12, Melissa Hillberg ‘13, Emma Weinstein ‘13, Hanae Kimura ‘11, Julia Mazzarella ‘13, Megan Merritt ‘11, Erika Wohl ‘14 and Cecilia Culp '11 were all class winners. Winning both of her classes, Campbell finished as the High Point Rider.
The Thoroughbreds will host the Regional Championships on April 2; Skidmore riders will compete for individual titles at their home course.
Victory during break for lacrosse and baseball : Sports Wrap
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.
Men's basketball: a season to remember
Posted by Isaac Baker
For a long time now, Skidmore has been highly competitive on the tennis court, the baseball field and, predominately, on horseback—hence the name. Throughout the past season there was a new arena where the Thoroughbreds made their name and rode to victory. The men's basketball team moved boldly out of obscurity and into the limelight with an overall record of 18-10 and a Liberty League championship title to boot.
Just three years ago, the team's overall record was 6-19, with just one win in league play. The team had never won a championship, and was consistently far off the mark. The year after that did not see much improvement; the 2008-09 overall record improved to just 8-17.
Last year, Skidmore really stepped up their game, finishing with a winning record of 16-10 and advancing to the Liberty League tournament where they lost a close game to Hobart in the first round. It became clear that Skidmore was starting to put together a promising team that would need to be reckoned with thereafter.
Following the steady arc of improvement, the team brought their game to a whole new level this winter with new blood and fresh administration.
Senior Jeff Altimar ‘11 summed up his four years playing for Skidmore when he said "after finishing in last place my freshmen year, the team has come a long way to finally win a Liberty League Championship for the first time in?school history."
This year was truly anomalous and is definitely a step in the right direction for the basketball team. Continuing his reflection on the season, Altimar said "We?received national recognition with our?NCAA record tying seven overtime game against?Southern?Vermont and?broke the previous school record for total wins."
In another interview, coach Joseph Burke commented on the same highly publicized game: "The amount of national attention [that] the players and the school received is beyond anything the school has ever seen before… From a team perspective I thought that particular game allowed us to grow and come together as a group. It was early and I was the new coach, I believe we learned to trust one another in that game and it allowed our relationship to grow quicker than I ever expected."?
The fateful game came very early in the season and set the tone for the rest of the season. After emerging victorious from the nationally covered event, Skidmore was almost ready to take their newfound confidence to every game that followed.
Coming back from winter break, Skidmore went out flat-footed in the game against Norwich, leading to a 81-72 loss. This did not seem representative of the work the team had put in prior to the break and Coach Burke encouraged them to find that stride that had been treating them so well before: "After that game, I challenged the guys and basically called them out. To be a championship team, you can't pick and choose when you want to play hard, it has to be consistent… from that game forward we were focused every time we took the court."
Skidmore advanced to the Liberty League tournament for the second year running, but this year, they improved on the year before, beating RPI and then Hamilton to win their first ever championship title.
Unfortunately, the team's momentum did not hold up in the final game of the season against Amherst College. This was the first round of the NCAA Division III tournament, a competition that has never before seen Skidmore in its bracket. Skidmore did not bring its A-game, and went down 79-39 in their biggest loss of the season.
Altimar was quick to assure me though that "this final game does not reflect the?kind of season this group had." The team simply did not show up with the same enthusiasm that carried them through the Liberty League tournament, shooting just 2 for 21 from beyond the arc, making many turnovers and struggling on both offensive and defensive boards. It's tough to end on a note like that, but it in no way belittles their incredible achievements this year as a team.
Going forward, Coach Burke is confident that Skidmore will field another competitive team. He elaborated by noting, "We obviously lose Jeff Altimar who was?very important to our success this year. However, we have everyone else coming back so I am excited because I believe we can be very good.? That being said, we are not sneaking up on anybody next year, we certainly will be the team everyone is shooting to beat.? It will be our responsibility to get better in the off-season and have a great pre-season so that we are ready to handle all the challenges that are ahead."
The implication is that Skidmore will have to work even harder in the coming year to defend its title, but Burke is confident that the team is up to the challenge.
Altimar, the only graduating senior on the team, joined the ranks of a select few Skidmore basketball players when he hit his 1,000-point mark this season. He was a strong contributor to the team, and scored the most points many games throughout the winter.
After the final game of the season, Altimar commented, "This was a special group with great team chemistry who I had a lot of fun with this year. I am definitely going to miss?being a part of the team, all of whom are coming back?next year."
Despite this loss, things look good for the basketball team in the future; all but one of this year's championship team will be returning next season. The Thoroughbreds have pushed their way into the NCAA Division III playoffs this year, and will look to make their presence known in that bracket by the time next season rolls around.
Sports Wrap: Lacrosse and riding pull out on top
Posted by Isaac Baker
After a slow start in the first half, the men's lacrosse team found the back of the net seven times in the second period, firmly securing their 12-8 win against Western Connecticut State in their home-opener. Part way through the second period, the score was tied 4-4, but Skidmore's relentless shooting brought its opponent to their knees.
Skidmore outshot West Conn. 48-28 and completed 20 out of 23 attempted clears, as opposed to West Conn.'s 15-of-25. Mike Holden '13 and Tyler Masters '13 scored the first two goals of the game to put Skidmore up 2-0. Their early successes carried throughout the game; Holden finished the match with four goals and two assists, while Masters netted two goals overall.
This game was a strong start for the team and boosts their overall record to 2-0, giving a polished record to match the team's new jerseys this season.
After Skidmore's loss to Haverford on neutral turf March 9, the team heads to Florida to heat up the competition for a game over break.
Women's lacrosse
What started off as a slow game quickly turned into a fast paced shootout that left the women's lacrosse team with a sizable win in their season opener against Mt. Holyoke College. Senior Lindsey Stavola '11 lead the way for the Thoroughbreds in their 12-3 win with five goals and four assists.
Skidmore controlled the tempo of the game, especially during the second half, keeping the ball on the offensive end for the majority of the game. Lauren Madden '12 ended the game with three goals.
Many other players had their first goals of the season, including Summer Segalas '14 and Robin Fetterolf '14, who each scored their first goals of their college careers. After Rachel Klein '13 made five saves in goal, Annie Keeler' 14 got between the bars in her first college appearance, making two saves in the last five minutes of the game.
Coming out of a losing season last year, this game was an auspicious start for the women's lacrosse team. It was also the first game for the new women's head coach, Elizabeth Ghilardi, indicating that the new management is partially contributing to the new success of the team.
The team hosts Manhattanville College Mar. 10 before heading to Maryland over spring break to play McDaniel and Wisconsin Concordia.
Riding
Another week and another first place spot for the riding team. The event took place at Hartwick College where 9 teams competed for the highest rank. Skidmore won the event with 42 points, narrowly beating Colgate who had 39. Flavia D'Urso '13, Kelly Campbell '12, Alex McGuire '11 and Molly Parker '13 were the winning, pointed riders for Skidmore.
Winning on the flat and over fences, McGuire went head to head with Morrisville State College's Jill Featherly for top honors. McGuire's elegant rides earned her High Point Rider of the show. Marisa McCullough '13 and Megan Merritt '11 both finished second in their respective competitions, giving the Thoroughbreds the points they needed to finish first overall.
D'Urso, McGuire, Campbell, Kaitlin Swartwood '11 and Maria Lorenc '11 all qualified for the regional championships. They will go to compete for these individual titles April 2, 2011. The next show for Skidmore's so-far-perfect riders will be after break on March 26.
Women's tennis
The women's tennis team recorded two victories this weekend: one against William Smith and the other against Ithaca. The clean sweep pushes the team's overall record to 6-0, including games from last September.
Against William Smith on Friday, the team dominated the singles rounds, picking up wins from Nataly Mendoza '13 and Sophia Bryan-Ajania '14. Both players also combined with other teammates to win their respective doubles rounds. The overall score was close, but Skidmore came out on top 5-4.
On Saturday, Skidmore owned the net, sweeping through against Ithaca 8-1. Skidmore's Mendoza, Nolan, Melissa Hirsch '14 and Robyn Baird '14 all had winning rounds in both their singles and their doubles matches. The team will head to California over spring break, where they will play against Pomona-Pitzer and UT Tyler, also accompanied by men's tennis.
While the racket teams head west, both baseball and softball travel south for spring break to start their seasons in the warmth of Kissimmee, Fla.
Sports Wrap: Men's basketball heads to 'Big Dance'
Posted by Julia Schwartz
Skidmore basketball returned to the Liberty League tournament for the second year in a row. They finished regulation play posting a 16-9 overall and 10-4 league record. The team tied a program record for regular season wins and set a new program record for Liberty League wins.
The tournament began with a game against Rensselaer Engineers. The Thoroughbreds and Engineers were 1-1 against one another this season with each team winning on its home court.
The Thoroughbreds struggled at the beginning of the first half, but Terron Victoria '12 threw up two three-point shots in order to start a 16-0 run after the 10:53 mark. The Engineers held the lead at the end of the first half, with a score of 38-34. Within the first half there were 11 lead changes, a remarkable amount matched by the competitive nature of the rivalry of the two teams.
When the second tip off began, Skidmore aggressed toward the opponents basket, scoring the first 9 points of the half. With the five-point lead from their expedient start, Skidmore kept pushing and never gave up the lead for the rest of the game. Every time the Engineers would attempt to push ahead, the Thoroughbreds matched their efforts. The lead never dropped below three points.
Standouts in the game were Victoria, who led the Thoroughbreds in double figures with 17 points, followed by Gerard O'Shea ‘12 with 12 points, and Kyle Clark '12 and Melvis Langyintuo '12 both had 11 points and 9 rebounds.
Skidmore came out the next day to perform in its first Liberty League championship the following day. Riding off the win from the previous day, they swept their tournament play to prevail in the Liberty League. The win came with not only the team's first Liberty League title, but also an invitation to the NCAA tournament starting Mar. 4. at Worchester Polytechnic Institute, when Skidmore competes against Amherst.
Skidmore accelerated in the first half with 9 three-pointers, four of them coming from the hands of Langyintuo. With the team on fire, the Thoroughbreds took the lead at the end of the first half, with a score of 33-19.
The second half began when Skidmore increased their lead out to 20 points, after back-to-back three pointers from Jeff Altimar '11.
Skidmore never lost a double-digits lead as the team controlled rhythm of the game to obtain a final score of 68-52. Langyintuo led all scorers in the game with 20 points, while O'Shea added 10 points and four assists.?
Following their high performance in the Liberty League tournament, juniors Langyitnuo, O'Shea and Victoria all received the honor of Performers of the Week after their selection for Liberty League All-Tournament Team.?Langyintuo was named Tournament MVP after scoring a total of 31 points in both games and shooting 6-8 from three-point range. O'Shea scored in double figures during both Liberty League games and played without a single turnover.?Victoria led the Thoroughbreds in their game against RPI with 17 put up eight points and four assists in the championship game.?
With the win, Skidmore advanced to the final game of the tournament against Hamilton the following day. The tournament begins with three first-round games between the lowest seeded-six teams. The three first-round winners move on to play one of three number one seeds on Saturday. After dwindling down from more than 400 schools in Division III men's basketball, Skidmore begins play in one of 13 four-team groupings against number 9 seed Amherst at Worchester Polytechnic Institute Mar. 4.
Ice Hockey
After scoring a spot in the ECAC East semifinals, Skidmore lost in a shutout game against Babson Feb. 26. The Thoroughbreds end the season at 9-14-3. The game ended with six chances missed on the power play, while Babson was able to convert on two of four chances.
Two goalies swapped chances during the game to help defend, but came out with five allowed goals, from both Colin Bessey '12, who had 16 saves and Andrew Ross '12, who had 17 saves throughout the final 30:11.
Men's Lacrosse
After a change in location due to a blast from the persistent winter weather, Skidmore lacrosse came out on top with a score of 9-8 against Babson on the road. It was the season opening game for both teams. J.P. Sullivan '13 provided the first early lead for the Thoroughbreds with 5:34 left in the first quarter, to bring the score to 2-1.
During the second quarter, Babson attempted to gain the lead back, but Skidmore prevailed and ended the half with a 5-4 lead.
While the teams managed to bring the score to a tie in the third quarter, Sullivan converted an assist from Mike Holden '13 with just under 11 minutes left in play. Sullivan then scored the insurance goal, his fouth of the game, to provide Skidmore with an absolute win with 2:44 left in regulation.
Skidmore lacrosse continues to battle the cold and the snow next on Mar. 5 at home against Western Connecticut State at 3:30.
A double success at the Big Green Scream
Posted by Evan Owen
This past weekend, Skidmore College hosted Clarkson College in both men's and women's basketball for their final home games of the season. The event itself, known as the Big Green Scream, drew a huge crowd that came for the games and various prizes like shirts, water bottles and (most importantly) a 32-inch flat screen television.
The lady Thoroughbreds, coming into the game with a record of 11-12, played the first game of the day. Before the game, they held a ceremony for the squad's three graduating seniors, Christine Kemp, Cyrida Felton and Ismatu Alison, all of who will be missed on the floor.
The Thoroughbreds and the Clarkson College Golden Knights began the game relatively even. Skidmore attacked with hard cuts inside combined with good rebounding and put back shots, while Clarkson shot almost all of their shots from the perimeter. After trailing by two points at the half, the Thoroughbreds kicked into high gear in the second half, limiting Clarkson to only 12 points in the entire second half. In the end, the whole team contributed to a strong 55-41 win, bringing their overall record to an even 12-12 and their liberty league record to 8-6.
The men's team experienced the same success on Sunday, also playing Clarkson College and winning by a commanding 20 points. The game marked the last home game for the team's lone senior, Jeff Altimar, who has consistently performed well at Skidmore College for all four years.
The game started off a bit rocky for the Thoroughbreds when they fell behind Clarkson early on by as many as 10 points. However, in the middle of the first half, spectacular outside shooting by juniors Gerard O'Shea and Brian Lowry contributed to a 23-9 point run, allowing Skidmore to end the first half with an impressive 17 point lead. From that point on, there was no doubt that the Thoroughbreds would emerge victorious. Strong performances by Langyintuo and Altimar contributed to the overwhelming victory with 12 and 9 points, respectively. The final score was 83-63, and the win secured Skidmore's third seed spot in the Liberty League tournament next week at Hobart College in Geneva, NY.
The Big Green Scream was both entertaining for the students of Skidmore College, with games and prizes, and successful for both basketball teams, each recording victories in their final home games.
Sports Wrap: Men's hockey and basketball advance
Posted by Isaac Baker
The men's basketball team secured their spot in the playoffs last Friday with their win against St. Lawrence. Though the final spread was a 13-point margin, 82-69, the Thoroughbreds had to work for every bit of their lead. After dominating the first half, Skidmore went to the locker rooms with a 46-19 lead; they had connected consistently from beyond the arc and were moving the ball around successfully. Jeff Altimar '11 led the team at the half with 13 points.
St. Lawrence, however, did not throw in the towel and came back in the second half with a nearly impenetrable zone-defense and a much stronger offense. With just seven minutes to play, St. Lawrence had closed the 27-point gap to 7, and Skidmore's self-assurance from the first half had all but faded.
But they held on and maintained a tenuous lead through the end of the game, largely due to a high outside shooting percentage. Melvis Langyintuo '12 scored 18 points for Skidmore and shot 4 for 5 from beyond the arc, while Brian Lowry '12 put up 15 points off the bench. With a hard-won victory in their minds, they looked forward to Saturday's game at The Big Green Scream.
There was an electric feel in the gym on Saturday when Skidmore went up against Clarkson in the final game of the day's events. The Big Green Scream brought in a much larger crowd than usual to support the team in its final regular season game.
Though off to a shaky start, Skidmore started hitting its stride and went up by 17 at the end of the half. There was no question after that who would come out on top with Skidmore leading by as much as 27 in the second half.
Skidmore's bench outscored that of their opponent's 39-14; Gerard O'Shea '12 and Lowry each scored 14 points; and Langyintuo put up 12 points and brought down a team-high of eight rebounds.
Altimar scored 9 points, and, as the only senior, was also recognized by the coach, family and fans for his four years of dedication to Skidmore's basketball team.
As the No. 3 seed in the playoffs, Skidmore will face Rensselaer, the No. 2, Friday, Feb. 25 at Hobart; the winner of the four team playoff will move on to the NCAA Division III tournament.
Women's basketball
The women's basketball team also hosted St. Lawrence on Friday in what turned out to be well-fought loss for the Thoroughbreds, 49-47.
In the final second of Friday night's game, St. Lawrence's Kelly Legg put back a clutch offensive board to put her team up by two; this buzzer beater put St. Lawrence just ahead as the final fractions of a second ticked off the clock. On the whole, this was a low-scoring game and was close throughout – neither team lead by more than six at any point.
With two minutes remaining, Christine Kemp '11 scored a three pointer to tie the game at 47, pushing her overall contribution up to 15 points. Megan Gaugler '12 finished with 9 points, while Jordyn Wartts '14 put up eight. It was a tough loss, but they hoped to rally at Saturday's Big Green Scream.
Their hopes became reality in the Williamson Sports Center the next day in their 55-41 victory against Clarkson. This was also their final game of the season, and the crowd rolled in at 2 p.m. to watch the team's final moments of glory, and particularly the seniors on the team.
Gaugler led the team with 10 points, 8 rebounds and four assists; teammate Christine Kemp '11 followed with 9 points, 7 assists and two steals. Both of these women, along with Ismatu Alison-Konteh '11 and Cyrida Felton '11, were recognized for their long standing commitment to the women's basketball team and were assured that their presence and their contributions over the years would be sorely missed.
Ice hockey
The hockey team went on the road for its last two games of the season, travelling to Middlebury and Williams College. Skidmore held on in their battle against Middlebury, which ended in a 3-3 tie.
Though the score was even, Middlebury outshot Skidmore 36-16; Skidmore's saving grace was its goalie Colin Bessey '12 who saved 33 shots throughout the course of the game. Hunter Thayer '11 scored one goal from the right with a wrist flick, while Alex Essaris ‘12 led the team with two goals.
Skidmore's game against Williams College the following night at their rink was a blowout; the Thoroughbreds scored just two to Williams' seven. Tony Giacin ‘14 and Nick Dupuis '12 were the lone scorers for Skidmore.
Despite the loss, Skidmore will still advance to post season play, maintaining 4th place in the ECAC East. They will face Babson College on home ice at 7 p.m. on Feb. 26 in the Saratoga Springs City Rink.
Hockey game turns to shutout: Sports Wrap
Posted by Julia Schwartz
It was a close call this past Saturday as Skidmore fell short by two points to Rensselaer on the road with a final score of 65-63. Kevin Dahill '13 supported the team with 14:16 remaining, shortening the deficit to seven points. He and his teammates continued to shorten the deficit, as John Mantas '12 sank a three-point shot with 10:50 to go in the game. It looked like the game was over once the clock reached 1:34 because RPI had an 11-point lead.
However, the Thoroughbreds fought back as much as they could, and with baskets from Gerard O'Shea ‘12, Mantas and Sakhile Sithole '13, to bring the score to what would be the final one. Standouts in the game were juniors Terron Victoria, Melvis Langyintuo and Brian Lowry who all contributed 10 points apiece. Also to be recognized is Jeff Altimar, who had a game high of 10 rebounds.
After their loss on the road the previous day, the Thoroughbreds traveled farther south to score a win against Vassar 60-46. The win came as no surprise seeing as Skidmore had a huge win against Vassar in their last matchup, winning 86-52 on Jan. 28.
Both teams struggled to start their engines at the beginning of play, until the Thoroughbreds ran with the ball for seven minutes straight, scoring 14 points with none in return from Vassar. Skidmore kept the lead going for the rest of the game.
Altimar played outstandingly with 25 points, followed by guard Victoria who had two game highs, eight boards and five assists. As well, Kyle Clark '12 posted a game high of four blocks.
Women's basketball
The women won opposing games against the same opponents this past weekend, winning big against league opponent RPI and falling to Vassar.
Skidmore had an excellent game against RPI, with four of its players scoring double digits. Megan Gaugler ‘12 lead the pack with 22 points, followed by Christina Gargiso '12, who had 14 points and eight rebounds. In addition, Christine Kemp '11 put up 12 points and Jordan Wartts '14 contributed 10.
The Thoroughbreds were trailing by eight points after the first half with a score of 31-23, but came back with a vengeance. As the game neared the end, Skidmore ran with the ball, scoring 12 points over the two scored by RPI, giving them an 11 point lead over the Engineers.
With only 57 seconds to go, Gargiso seamlessly threw up a pair of free-throws to secure the win. The Thoroughbreds had a 50-point second half, naturally contributing to their win against RPI 73-62.
The next afternoon, Skidmore was not as lucky as they fell short to Vassar 59-49. Skidmore held the shooting advantage from inside the arc 34-10 against Vassar, but unfortunately fell short, as they were only 3-21 from beyond the arc.
Contributions for the Thoroughbreds came from Gaugler, who shot 16 points in the game, while Gargiso had 11 points and six rebounds. Logan Frederick '13 also stood out for the Thoroughbreds, providing nine points and eight rebounds.
Because of her immense efforts on the court, Gaugler received honors as Liberty League Player of the Week this past week for the second week straight and the third time this season. She averaged 17.5 points for the week during the split performance for the Thoroughbreds.
Skidmore wraps up regulation play next week as they host St. Lawrence on Feb. 18 and Clarkson on Feb. 19.
Ice Hockey
Skidmore hockey creamed St. Michael's this past Friday in a 7-0 win at home. Contributions to the win came from all around the rink. It was an exciting evening for Collin Bessey '12, who stopped 27 shots on goal for his first career shutout with the Thoroughbreds. It was also the first shutout the team has had since its 2007-2008 season.
Skidmore broke out in the first period with four goals. The first came 53 seconds into the game when Alex Radmin '13 scored on a breakaway from Brendan Cottam '13 and Philip Buonocore '14. The attack continued with three straight power-play goals from Nick Dupuis '12, Buonocore and Zach Menard '13.
The second period proved positive, adding two goals onto the scoreboard. The additions came within 18 seconds of each other, first with a goal from freshman Aaron Beck, his second of the season, assisted by Alex Essaris '12 and Tony Giacin '14. Joe Melnyk '11 then scored the second goal of the period with assists from Hunter Thayer '11 and Tyler Doremus '12. Beck scored the only goal of the third period to top off the high scoring game.
The next day the Thoroughbreds honored their six seniors for Hockey Senior Day at their last regular home game against Norwich. Honors took place before the game commending seniors Alex Mykolenko, Austin Sullivan, Kyle Montour, Corey Jarecki, Thayer and Melnyk, all joined by friends and family.
Despite their huge win over St. Michael's the previous day, Skidmore seemed unable to carry the momentum over to compete against Norwich. Vlad Gavrik '14 scored Skidmore's first and only goal of the game, assisted by Giacin, in the first period. Norwich scored two of their three goals of the game on powerplays, including the final goal with only eight seconds left on an empty goal. The final score was three-to-one. Skidmore finishes off the season Feb. 18 and Feb. 19 on the road against Middlebury and Williams.
Swimming
Following the swimming event hosted by the women's team, men's swimmer Stephen Lento '11 broke his record from 2008 in the 1000 Freestyle. Lento's previous school record was 10:34.34, and he managed to break about 13 seconds off his record to post 10:21.40 in his time trial.
The Thoroughbreds finished second at the Vassar Sprint Invitational on Feb. 12, just three points away from swimming past Liberty League rival, Vassar. Lento performed a trio of wins, finishing first in the 400 IM and the 200 Free and he was part of the winning 200 Free Relay with Greg Amoresano '13, Taylor Best '14 and Andrew Becker '13.
Peter Quattromani '14 won the 500 Free with a season best performance and Jesse Adler '13 finished first in the 100 Back.
Rob ZIlinyi '11 and Eric Stumpt '12 swept the diving competitions. Zilinyi won the 1-meter and Stumpf was second. Zilinyi and Stumpf performed in the same order on the 3-meter dive to help them pull out the win.
Both the men's and the women's teams return to the pool on Feb. 23 at the UNYSCSA Championships in Rochester.
The Big Green Scream
The event will kick off with the women's basketball team playing Clarkson at 2 p.m., followed by the men's basketball game against Clarkson at 4 p.m. Both Skidmore teams are 1-0 in their standings with Clarkson this season, but both games are sure to be hotly contested and otherwise filled with prizes, raffles and other entertainment. Admission is free, and the first 250 students that show up will receive either a t-shirt or a water bottle. And if this is not enough incentive, there will also be one 32-inch Sony Bravia flat screen TV given away.
Entertainment and materialism aside, this is also Skidmore's last chance to honor each team's senior athletes as they play in their final home games during the regular season as Thoroughbreds. Seniors will be honored before each game, so come early to support these athletes for the completion of their years of dedication. This will be the final push for both teams before they move into post-season play.
Anticipation of All-Star's 60th Annual
Posted by Evan Owen
This coming weekend marks the 60th playing of the NBA all-star game in Los Angeles - a star studded weekend with two games and many other head-to-head events such as slam dunk and three point contests. The highlight of the weekend is sure to be the actual all-star game itself, which takes place on Sunday, but other events are expected to draw some attention as well.
For readers who aren't NBA savvy, all-star weekend is just what it sounds like: a gathering of the league's best players for a trick and pony show of gargantuan men wielding basketballs. There are two games and four main contests. The first game is played on Friday and is a Rookies vs. Sophomore game where teams of rookies and second-year players square off to showcase the league's up and coming stars.
The second game is played on Sunday and is the regular all-star game: a battle between the best of the Eastern and Western conferences. The starting rosters for each side are relatively unsurprising.
The East's starters include Lebron James and Dwyane Wade from the Miami Heat, Derrick Rose from Chicago, Dwight Howard from Orlando and Amar'e Stoudemire from New York.
The West's starters are Kobe Bryant from L.A. (of course), Kevin Durant from Oklahoma, Carmelo Anthony from Denver (who might be playing in New York soon, fingers crossed), Chris Paul from New Orleans and Kevin Love from Minnesota who replaces Houston's Yao Ming who has been out for most of the season.
Each team also has a deep bench with powerful players from all over the country, but there are too many to list and the focus of the game will mostly be on the starters.
As for predicting the outcome of the game, I would have to side with the East this year. All of the East's starters have been having spectacular seasons, even with James and Stoudemire adjusting to new teams. The players' respective teams (including the bench players) are all from the top six teams in the East, meaning that the players are doing well both individually and with their teams.
The West's players are having decent seasons, but not nearly as good as their Eastern counterparts. Bryant and the reigning league champs have been sliding lately and many of the players' teams are in the bottom half of the conference and, in Kevin Love's case, even in last place. All signs point toward the East winning again this year.
On Saturday, there are four main contests, which include: A shooting contest, a ball skills contest, a three-point shooting contest and, arguably the most famous and intriguing, a dunk contest. I usually only watch the latter two events, the three-point and dunk contest. This year, both of these contests have a bit of buzz about them.
Regarding the three-point contest, last week Boston Celtic's player Ray Allen passed former Indiana Pacer's star, Reggie Miller, for the most three pointers made in a career at 2560. He will be entering this year's contest as the king of 3's, and there will be a lot of focus and pressure on him. As for the dunk contest, rookie superstar for the L.A. Clippers, Blake Griffin, will be participating in his first dunk contest and first all star game as a reserve. He has dazzled the league with spectacular dunks throughout the first half of the season, dunking over and making fools of high caliber players throughout the country. Griffin is surely a reason to watch the dunk contest and will very likely be the star this year and for many years to come.
All-star weekend marks the halfway point in the NBA season, and fans can look forward to the rest of the season just about as much as the weekend itself. After this weekend's culmination of stars and spectacle, teams start to buckle down and get serious for late season pushes to the playoffs. We all have an exciting weekend (and rest of the season for that matter) to look forward to.
Evan Owen is a first-year student from New York City who speaks English, Spanish, Hebrew and Mandarin, but enjoys writing about sports in English.
Super Bowl leaves students inquisitive
Posted by Evan Owen
The Super Bowl in Arlington, Texas this past Sunday featured the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Green Bay Packers and was simply a well played game, but nothing extraordinary.
Green Bay ended up triumphing over Pittsburgh with a score of 31-25 after a strong first half on the offensive end, and a second half effort that prevented the Steelers from snatching victory away in a last minute drive. Aaron Rodgers, the Packers' quarterback, was named the most valuable player of the game, and rightfully so; he threw for 300 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions.
My viewing experience this year was definitely different from past years, as I had never been at college to watch the Super Bowl. The last time I was the most football savvy person in a room was when I watched a game alone with my dog one lonely Sunday afternoon.
The gender ratio of the crowd watching the game in my room matched our school's 60:40 liberal arts ratio, and the chatter in the room reflected it. I spent a decent portion of the viewing explaining the rules of the game and an even greater portion of time pointing out who was winning and saying "no" when asked if the game was over yet.
I was pleased with my first Super Bowl viewing experience at Skidmore, and it was oddly refreshing to answer questions about the game and attempt to answer questions that were beyond me. "Why are they playing in Texas?" Because it's warmer there I guess (even though the city was battered by ice and snow before the game). "Can they pull each other's hair? That one guy (Troy Polamalu on the Pittsburgh Steelers) has so much." I guess they can, I don't see why not. "Why are both teams wearing yellow pants?" Uhhhh….
Personally, I wasn't too invested in either of the teams since I'm from New York, but I was hopeful that the 45th installment of the Super Bowl would be entertaining at the very least. There wasn't anything wrong with the game per say, but there were very few exciting plays sans an interception returned for a touchdown by Green Bay's Nick Collins in the first half.
Frankly, it was not nearly as exciting as Super Bowls in years past. There was no David and Goliath story leading to a franchise's first Super Bowl title like last year when the Saints defeated the Colts, and there were no truly outstanding catches like Santonio Holmes' in 2009 or David Tyree's in 2008.
If anything, the game could be the start of a long career for the Packers' Aaron Rodgers, who now holds the same number of national titles as his predecessor and local legend, Brett Farve, after starting for only three years. Legend in the making? We'll just have to wait and see.
Gaugler and Gargiso shoot for three: Sports Wrap
Posted by Isaac Baker
The men's basketball team broke even this week with a sizable win against Hamilton (71-55) and with a loss to league leader, Hobart. Friday night's victory against Hamilton was the final blow in Skidmore's clean sweep of the Continentals this season. Riding on a 1,000-point mark over break, Jeff Altimar '11 came back with his usual intensity and led the team to victory with a team-high of 16 points.
The game against Hobart the following day, however, produced poorer results. Skidmore started the game on a cold-streak, hitting just one of the first 20 shots. Though the Thoroughbreds managed to close the gap to five, the game's initial trend prevailed; the final score was 75-66.
Altimar received Liberty League Perfomer of the Week after averaging 13.3 points and 3 rebounds. The Thoroughbreds compete next on the road Feb. 11 against Rensselaer.
Women's basketball
After a closely contested loss last week to Union, Skidmore returned with a vengeance this week to its home court, beating Hamilton and William Smith in two well-fought matches. Friday night's game against Hamilton started off with a bang when Megan Gaugler '12 and Christina Gargiso '12 collectively made five consecutive 3-pointers, putting Skidmore on a 15-0 run. Hamilton, however, held on, and managed to narrow the gap to one point in the final quarter. Though the tension was high, Skidmore's fundamentals kept them afloat in the final minutes as they shot five for six from the line to win 56-50.
Saturday's game also proved to be a success as the Thoroughbreds surged ahead in the second half with their 56-49 win against William Smith. Gaugler carried the team and put up a scintillating 20 points, 8 rebounds, 5 steals and 2 blocks. This win brings their record to 10-10 overall and 6-4 in the league.
Gaugler received Liberty League Performer of the Week for her efforts against both league competitors. She averaged 19 points and 8 rebounds for the week. Her standout performance played out against Union, where she recorded a double-double of 19 points and 10. Skidmore plays next Feb. 11 against RPI on the road.
Ice hockey
The Skidmore hockey team went on the road this week, traveling to Maine where they edged out the University of New England 2-1, and lost to the University of Southern Maine 3-2. With 11:25 remaining in Friday night's battle against UNE, Brad Schuler '14 found the back of the net after a crisp pass from Dalton Weinstein '14, pushing Skidmore into a lead that held for the rest of the game. This was Skidmore's fifth consecutive win and the team hoped to maintain its momentum the following night.
Unfortunately, the USM goalie played like a brick wall Saturday, saving 35 of 37 shots on goal. Though the Thoroughbreds made every attempt to tie the game, their efforts were in vain. Despite ending their winning streak, the team hopes to find their footing once more in the upcoming home games Friday and Saturday night against St. Michael's and Norwich University.
Swimming and Diving
While many were just waking up Saturday afternoon, the Skidmore Swimming and Diving team was already suited up and prepared to host Vassar and William Smith at the 2011 Skidmore Sprint Invitational.
Swimmer Carrie Koch '13 came in first in the 500 Free and stole second in the 200 Free, while Katherine Kelloway '14 won the 400 IM and managed third place in the 100 Free. As for the divers, Kristen Stearns ‘13 won the 1-meter and placed second in the 3-meter, while teammate Krista Pelton '14 came in third in both contests. Despite these efforts and many others, Skidmore placed third overall in the Invitational. William Smith won the meet with an impressive score of 271, followed by Vassar and then Skidmore.
Thoroughbred Society
This week began by honoring 106 student athletes who have shown their committent to excellence on and off the playing field. Students were recognized for maintaining a cumulative GPA of 3.67 or higher, or for helping their team to sustain a GPA of 3.0 or higher. Among the recipients of this honor, there were four two-sport athletes and 9 other student-athletes who achieved academic perfection in addition to their significant athletic obligations. Our hats are off to each and every one of these talented and driven individuals.
1,000 career points for Altimar: Sports Wrap
Posted by Julia Schwartz
Skidmore men's basketball returned from break and have competed hard to stand currently at 12-7 overall and 6-2 in Liberty League play.
Over the break, the Thoroughbreds celebrated an exciting mark on Jan. 21 when Jeff Altimar ‘11 reached 1,000 points in his playing career. He is the 13th player to reach this mark in Skidmore basketball history. Altimar added to his total with 13 points in a 65-57 win against Clarkson.
The Thoroughbreds were not so lucky in their next two games as they fell to league opponent St. Lawrence, who they lost to by eight despite Melvis Langyintuo ‘12 scoring 19 points.
After a two-game deficit, Skidmore came back to win three league games consecutively against Vassar, RPI and Union. Altimar started the Vassar game off with a three-pointer, which gave Skidmore the momentum to beat the Brewers 86-52 in a huge league win. Brian Lowry ‘12 had a standout week in league play being the high scorer in two out of three games for the Thoroughbreds, with 14 points against Vassar and 19 points against RPI.
Women's basketball
Since break, the women's basketball team has been fighting to keep up with its fierce league competition. The team has played all league teams once now, waiting to compete against them all once again to improve their 4-4 record in league play. Skidmore's highlights in league play have been against William Smith, Hamilton, Clarkson and Vassar. Skidmore pulled away with a big win in overtime against William Smith on Jan. 14 with a score of 88-82. Megan Gaugler ‘12 stood out in the game with an outstanding 27 points.
Gaugler came through again in the clutch at the end of Skidmore's game against Hamilton on Jan. 15 with a game winning three-point shot. Other standouts in the game were Michela Ottati ‘14 and Jessie Kavana ‘12, who both contributed 11 points apiece to the winning score.
Skidmore's most recent standout league game was against Vassar, where they won the game 68-62. Skidmore was ahead by four at the end of the first half, and continued with their lead throughout the game to push through for a win. Christina Gargiso ‘12 scored 18 points and retrieved five rebounds.
The Thoroughbreds unfortunately were unable to carry over their winning spirit to the next game against Union on Feb. 1, losing a close game 67-64. Gargiso picked up Liberty League co-performer of the Week due to her 33-point weekend. Her shooting percentage of 7-9 on the floor against Vassar and her five three-point shots contributed to her acknowledgement. The Thoroughbreds look to advance their record when they continue league play Feb. 4 against Hamilton at home.
Ice hockey
Men's hockey skated off with a win on Jan. 28 against Connecticut College with a score of 4-2. Contributing greatly to the game was rookie Tony Giacin ‘14, who scored a hat trick for the Thoroughbreds. Giacin broke the silence with his first goal on a power play with assistance from Nick Dupuis ‘12 and Alex Essaris ‘12. The rookie upped the ante in his next shift, scoring the next goal with assistance from Vlad Gavrik ‘14 and Jack Walsh ‘12. Giacin sealed the game in the third period for the Thoroughbreds when he scored off a perfect pass from teammate Alex Mykolenko ‘11. In goal for the Thoroughbreds was Andrew Ross '12, who had 21 saves, with an impressive 14 in the second period.
Skidmore extended their winning streak in the next game to four as they took a win over Tufts 6-2. The win extended their record to 6-5-2 in the ECAC East and 7-10-2 overall. Skidmore got off to a quick start with a goal from Mykolenko only 1:29 into the first period. After Tufts came back to tie the score, Essaris sealed the lead with his first goal of the season with assistance from goalie Colin Bessey ‘12. Tyler Doremus ‘12 then followed up to deepen the lead with another goal at 12:12, still in the first period. The second period provided back and forth scoring for both teams, bringing the score to 4-2.
The Thoroughbreds were able to seal the win in the third with two more goals from Doremus, his second of the game, and Chris Powers ‘14, his first goal of the season. For his efforts, Giacin nabbed ECAC east rookie of the week with a 5-goal weekend. Skidmore skates on to their next competition Feb. 4 at UNE.
Swimming & Diving
While the rest of the school was unpacking from a long vacation, the swimming and diving teams traveled to Hartwick on Jan. 23 to compete. Standouts on the women's side included Kristen Stearns ‘13 and Krista Pelton ‘14. Stearns won first place in both the 1-meter and 3-meter dives, while first year Pelton finished second in the 1-meter. Carrie Koch ‘13, Katherine Kelloway ‘14 and Chelsea Halsor ‘11 all finished second in their respective swimming races and Sarah Shaw ‘14 finished in third in the 500 free.
Men's swimming came through in the same competitions with Taylor Best ‘14 in third place for the 50 free and Tucker Cambridge ‘14 in third for the 100 breast. The men's divers jumped into third place with Rob Zilinyi ‘11 performing both the 1-meter and the 3-meter dives.
Swimming and diving did not have as much luck when they went up against RPI as the Engineers came through with wins in both the women's and men's competition. Skidmore lost 136-74 in the women's division and 152-76 in the men's division. Despite the loss, Best and Peter Quattromani ‘14 both performed well finishing second in the 200 IM and the 1,000 Free, respectively.
As for the women, Koch came in second in the 200 Free with a career best time of 2:02.16, Shaw finished second in the 1000 free, and Stearns dove into second place for the Thoroughbreds in the diving competition. Skidmore hopes to swim to victory next on February 5 when the women host the Skidmore Sprint Invitational.
Super Bowl Sunday: Apathy in Dining Hall
Posted by Evan Owen
As a first year at Skidmore, I have become accustomed to waking up on Sunday with my hair in shambles and my eyes barely open, making my way to the dining hall so that I can eat. Late into the day already, I chow down on a muffin and enjoy the tranquil sounds of excessive grunting and bodies crunching together, otherwise known as a standard Sunday during football season.
The season started the Sunday after school began in the fall, and it had been there for students, including myself, every Sunday until the semester concluded in December. Along with the games, I had gotten used to seeing the same people watch the same teams on any given Sunday. The scattered fans from far away places such as California and Texas dotted the room, but always were dwarfed by students who hail from regions within driving distance of Saratoga, sporting the apparel of teams in the Northeast such as the Ravens, Jets, Giants and, especially, the Patriots. The season has ended and the culmination of the many Sundays of gridiron clashes emphasized by the appearance of this gaudy apparel is on next week (and hopefully being shown in D Hall) - the Super Bowl.
This year's round of playoffs has been a surprise for many, as lower ranked teams pulled David and Goliath-esque upsets to secure their spots deeper into the postseason and many top-seeded teams fell with relative ease. To the surprise and shock of many, the two teams that clashed in the Super Bowl last year, the New Orleans Saints and the Indianapolis Colts, each lost to teams with losing records the Seattle Seahawks and the New York Jets, respectively.
As the postseason continued, both No. 1 seeds, the Atlanta Falcons and the New England Patriots lost to wild card teams, the Green Bay Packers and the Jets (again). In the conference championships, the Jets' luck ran out against the always-consistent Pittsburgh Steelers, and the Packers, after having barely made the playoffs, found themselves beating their regional rivals, the Chicago Bears, and securing themselves a spot in the Super Bowl.
The competition this coming Sunday is in Arlington, Texas and is between the Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers. It aims to be a helmet-clashing Super Bowl between two teams that have consistently performed well during the regular season and especially in the postseason. Aaron Rodgers, a former backup quarterback to Brett Favre before he retired, then un-retired, switched teams and all other sorts of dramatic whiney nonsense, leads the Packers after a strong late season run to clinch a wild card spot. The Steelers, on the other hand, are lead by the seasoned Ben Roethlisberger, who went to and won the Super Bowl merely three years prior.
Both teams are worthy of a Super Bowl title, and neither team is heavily favored. Fans revere the Packers for their offense and the Steelers for their defense, each team holding top rankings in the NFL in various categories.
As for the Skidmore population, I can't imagine that too many people will be interested in watching it since we have no football team ourselves and I've seen a bigger turnout at an a capella concert than at a sporting event. I will be watching the game in the dining hall come Sunday night, and I'll be sporting black and yellow while rooting for the Steelers.
Men's basketball winds down semester
Posted by Audrey Nelson
After an historic seven overtime win against Southern Vermont with its new coach Joe Burke, the Skidmore men's basketball team nears the end of the semester with a dramatic win against Castleton State College.
Junior Terron Victoria sent the three-pointer shot in the last 24 seconds of the game for a 74-71 win. The team improves to 5-2, while the Spartans fall to 2-4.
Victoria hit a three with 1:12 remaining to tie it at 69-69 and tied it up again at 71-71 before his winning three-pointer. Junior Melvis Langyintuo had a game-high 22 points, scoring 15 in the last nine minutes to aid the win.
The Thoroughbreds led 42-37 at the half, but the Spartans stayed alive until the last minute. After junior Dylan Malloy's three-pointer, with 13:38 remaining giving Skidmore a four point lead, Castleton made 11 unanswered points, taking the lead with less than 10 minutes remaining. With about three minutes on the clock, the teams traded the lead until the last shot.
"I am very proud of our resiliency", there were multiple times where we could have given in tonight and in the end we were able to get the job done," coach Burke said.
The team had hosted the Hilton Garden Inn Invitational over the weekend where the Thoroughbreds won 87-48 in their initial match against Bard College. This victory sent the men to the championship game against Utica where the team fell to the Pioneers 64-62.
"The Hilton tournament was a disappointment because we simply did not win, which is what we set out to do," senior and team captain Jeff Altimar said. "That being said, I thought we played pretty well in the tournament and definitely had our chances to win in the championship game."
Skidmore got the first basket of the game with a three from Gerard O'Shea '12 and maintained the lead until the half. Utica kept a close trail of two points through the first half but wasn't able to tie it up as Skidmore took a 36-31 into halftime.
The Pioneers grabbed their first lead of the game with 9:30 remaining. Skidmore took the lead right back with two free throws from O'Shea. Jeff Altimar '11 and Sakhile Sithole '13 added to that lead with 6:58 remaining.
Utica took the lead for the rest of the match with 2:52 remaining. O'Shea cut the lead back to a two-point difference on a three-pointer with 20 seconds remaining, but the Thoroughbreds couldn't make their last attempt shot to tie it up, as the Pioneers grabbed the 64-62 win.
"We were very inconsistent. We defended and executed our offense very well in stretches, but not throughout the entire game. Thus that is why we were not able to sustain our leads until the end of the game," Langyintuo said.
With a motto of "play tough, play together and play with confidence," the Thoroughbreds stand at 5-2 in hopes to end the season as Liberty League Champions and secure a place in the NCAA tournament.
"Being six games into our season now, I think the team has made great strides in getting to where we want to be. We have had both good and bad moments, but we are learning from all these experiences," Altimar said.
With a new coach leading the team, Langyintuo feels a greater bond with his team.
"I feel that we have greater cohesion, team spirit and more confidence as a group. Also, each player is a friend on and off the court; we are more of a family this year," he said.
"I think that this is attributable to the unity we fostered as a group prior to the official start of the season. We had intense fall team workout sessions that included weight lifting, pick-up games and 9 a.m. Saturday conditioning/training sessions."
But nothing could bond the team more than the marathon, seven-overtime victory at Southern College. On Nov. 23, the Thoroughbreds won 128-123 against Southern Vermont to set the NCAA record for the longest game in the Division III history. The game also tied for the longest game in any division, among numerous other records.
"The seven overtime game is one I will never forget and it really showed how resilient our team can be," Altimar said. "It makes me tired just thinking about it." He added that the team was very proud to see coverage of Skidmore on ESPN and other positive publicity.
Langyintuo echoed this sentiment. "It was exciting to see our school featured on national TV because we as athletes work as hard, if not harder than some of the teams that are routinely featured. Thus to accomplish such a feat as sustaining seven overtimes to achieve a victory is a testament to our determination, drive and unity as a program," he said. "Personally, I felt a calm sense of enjoyment because what we did was surreal."
In the middle of an exciting season, the men's basketball team, in addition to the women's basketball and ice hockey teams, has not only boosted its team spirit, but also its holiday spirit with a charity can drive event. The program, Skidmore Cares, has benefited local food banks and families in the Saratoga area for several years.
"It is a great way for our privileged college to give back to the community and help stock local food banks for the holiday," Altimar said. "We as college students have a lot to be thankful for and this is a small way to help others who may not have been as lucky."
Langyintuo added, "By helping the community through service initiates, we are not only gaining new supporters, but also contributing to the growth and prosperity of the society we live in."
The team will finish the semester at a home game against Trinity College on Dec. 10, and will return to the court on Jan. 5 against Norwich University.
First-year Gavrik to play for Ukraine, will represent home country in 2011 world championship: Sports Wrap
Posted by Audrey Nelson
Skidmore first-year Vlad Gavrik will represent his home country of Ukraine in the 2011 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) U20 World Championship in Belarus from Dec. 13-19.
Ukraine is competing in the IIHF U20 Division I – Group A with Belarus, Japan, Great Britain, Italy and Latvia.
"It's an honor to represent and play for your country," Gavrik said. "I can't wait to start playing."
"It's great to have that international presence both on campus and in the locker room," Skidmore ice hockey coach Neil Sinclair said. "I think it meshes really well with the educational theme here at Skidmore."
Gavrik has played in all seven games for the Thoroughbreds this season. He ended his semester play with two game-winning goals.
On Dec. 3, senior Alex Mykolenko scored the winning goal at 2:31 in overtime to give the Skidmore College hockey team a 7-6 win over Bowdoin College.
The Thoroughbreds advanced 3-3 overall and 2-1 in ECAC East play, while the Polar Bears lost for the first time this season, dropping to 3-1 overall and 2-1 in NESCAC league play.
Skidmore led 3-0 after the first period with goals from sophomore Zach Menard, junior Nick Dupuis and senior Joe Melnyk. In the second period, Bowdoin scored its first point at 5:11 with a goal by sophomore Daniel Weiniger.
First-year Thoroughbred Dave Dupuis scored his first goal of the season at 15:20 to set the score at 4-1. The Polar Bears answered back with a goal from Harry Matheson ‘14 at 16:20 to cut the lead to 4-2.
The Thoroughbreds scored two more times in the final 1:41 with goals by junior Tyler Doremus and Menard to make it 6-2.
Bowdoin picked up speed in the third period, scoring four unanswered goals by first-year Kyle Lockwood, senior Kyle Shearer-Hardy, Matheson and senior Jeff Fanning, to tie the game at 6-6.
At the 2:31 mark, Mykolenko sent the puck to the net for the winning goal, putting Skidmore up 7-6.
The next day on Dec. 4, Skidmore played Colby College where the final score rested at a 3-3 tie. The Thoroughbreds are 3-3-1 overall and 2-1-1 in league play. The Mules are 3-3-1 and 1-2-1 NESCAC.
Colby held a 2-0 lead in the first period. Junior Nick Dupuis scored at 13:56 of the second period to put Skidmore on the board at 2-1.
Sophmore Brendan Cottam tied up the score with assist from first-year Brad Schuler and Dupuis at 1:20. Colby took the lead at 4:17 but the Thoroughbreds tied it again on sophomore Julian Malakorn's goal from Phil Buonocore '14 at 15:48.
Skidmore outshot Colby 4-1 in the overtime, but couldn't get past Colby's goalie for the winning goal.
The Thoroughbreds lost 4-1 to Plattsburgh State in a non-league match-up on Dec. 7 at the Saratoga Springs City Rink.
The loss breaks a three-game winning streak for the Thoroughbreds who are now 3-4-1. The 7-4 Cardinals have won five straight.
After two goals in the first period first-year Vlad Gavrick scored Skidmore's only goal of the game and his fourth of the season, at the 13:56 mark.
But the Thoroughbreds couldn't keep up the momentum and the Cardinals picked up two more goals.Skidmore goalie Colin Bessey ‘12 had 33 saves.
Skidmore's defenseman Nick Dupuis was named Eastern College Athletic Conference East Player of the Week.
In the team's game against #4 Bowdoin, Dupuis scored a goal and had two assists. He also scored a goal and made an assist in the 3-3 tied game against Colby.
He leads the Thoroughbreds in scoring with five goals and five assists for 10 points, and he ranks first among ECAC East defensemen in scoring.
Skidmore will finish the semester at 7 p.m. on Dec. 10 at Castleton State.
Women's Basketball
The women's basketball team lost 60-55 to Trinity College on Dec. 3 in the Williams College Invitational.
Trinity held a consistent lead despite junior Megan Gaugler's 16 points and 14 rebounds.
Senior Ismatu Alison-Konteh added 10 points, eight rebounds and three steals, while first-year teammate Michela Ottati hit six out of six free throws to finish with 8 points.
The women played host team Williams College on Dec. 4, but lost 68-50. The Thoroughbreds drop to 2-4, while the Ephs remain undefeated at 7-0.
Williams ended the first half with a 38-23 lead and maintained the lead throughout the second half.
Skidmore made a come back in its game against Potsdam with a 75-43 win. The Thoroughbreds improved to 3-4, while the Bears fell to 1-7.
Skidmore never trailed and led as much as 17 points in the first half, where the score settled at 34-21 at the half.
The second half continued the lead for Skidmore. Gaugler had 12 points, six rebounds and four assists, while teammate junior Christine Gargiso scored 10 points off the bench. Ottati scored a game-high 20 points and grabbed a game-high seven rebounds.
The win closes out the semester for the Thoroughbreds. They will return to action on Jan. 4 against Nichols College.
Sports Wrap: Field hockey falls in NCAA semifinals
Posted by Audrey Nelson
The field hockey team's 19 game winning streak came to an end in Virginia at the NCAA Semifinal game against Bowdoin College. The Thoroughbreds lost 5-0 to the Polar Bear's, finishing their season with a 20-2 record.
Despite being down 1-0 at halftime, the Thoroughbreds finished the first half outshooting Bowdoin 9-5 with an 11-4 corner advantage. In the second half, the Polar Bears outshot Skidmore 18-12, though the Thoroughbreds held a 16-10 penalty corner advantage.
The team's dream season came to a close in Virginia, but left its mark with program records for most wins (20), a 19 game winning streak and a .909 winning percentage among several individual records.
Ice hockey
The men's ice hockey team will host a "Pack the Rink" game against Bowdoin College at 7 p.m. on Dec. 2. The first 400 fans will receive free T-shirts and admission. Students can ride a free shuttle bus to the ice rink for the 7 p.m. game.
During the game, the team will also be holding a can drive to benefit the "Skidmore Cares" program. The team will also hold the can drive at its game Dec. 4 against Colby College and on Dec. 7 against SUNY Plattsburgh.
On Nov. 23, the men lost a non-league game 6-5 against SUNY Potsdam. In the second period, the Thoroughbreds were down 4-1, but picked up speed with a goal by junior Jack Walsh at 0:54 in the second and a goal at 0:21 in the third by Nick Dupuis '12.
After the Bears brought the score up to 5-3, Skidmore battled back to tie the game at 5-5 with goals by Alex Radmin '13 at 9:12 and Brendan Cottam '13 at 9:51. Ultimately, Potsdam's Matt Rhymer '12 made the game-winning shot at 13:13.
The team hosted the Skidmore Invitational Hockey Tournament on Nov. 27 where the Thoroughbreds lost to Buffalo State 4-0. Buffalo continued on to play Southern Maine where the team won 3-0 in the championship game. In its consolation game against 15th ranked Elmira College, the Thoroughbreds won 4-2. In the first period, Skidmore picked up two goals. Hunter Thayer '11 scored his third goal of the season followed by the 2-0 goal at 16:38 from first-year Aaron Beck, his first collegiate goal.
Vlad Gavrik ‘14 scored early in the second period to make it 3-0, but Elmira answered back late in the period when Rick Acorn '12 scored at the 19:17 mark to make it 3-1. Thayer scored Skidmore's final goal of the game at the 6:54 mark in the third period, while Mark Morikawa '13 finished up the scoring at 4-2.
Men's Basketball
Skidmore's men's basketball team won its game 87-78 against Hartwick College Nov. 30. The Thoroughbreds improved to 3-1, while the Hawks fall 2-3. With 5:37 left on the clock in the second half, the Thoroughbreds made 12 unanswered shots to secure the win.
Junior John Mantas began the streak with a 3-pointer, followed by a second 3-pointer from Melvis Langyintuo '12. Senior Jeff Altimar contributed two shots to the run and ended the streak with another 3-pointer.
Altimar added 21 points to the board while Langyintuo put up 20, and made eight rebounds. Terron Victoria '12 scored 11 points for the Thoroughbreds, and Gerard O'Shea '12 had a game-high eight assists.
Skidmore will host the Hilton Garden Inn Tournament on Dec. 4, and will face Bard College at 4 p.m.
Women's Basketball
Oneonta went on a 6-0 run, and Skidmore wasn't able to come back. In the second round of the Invitational, the Thoroughbreds lost 74-57 to SUNY Cortland. On Nov. 30, Skidmore made a come back win over Hartwick College 89-37. The Thoroughbreds improve to 2-2, while the Hawks fall to 3-2. Sophomore Logan Frederick scored 10 points and made 11 rebounds, while teammate Christina Gargiso '12 scored a game-high 15.
Four Skidmore players scored double figures in the game including first-year Jordyn Wartts (12), senior Christine Kemp (11), junior Jesse Kavana (11) and first-year Michela Ottati (10).
The women finished the first half with a 50-20 lead. The second half continued the same lead, finishing the game at 89-37.