Women's soccer makes it to Liberty League Championship

Posted by Skidmore Athletics

SARATOGA SPRINGS — It's off to the Liberty League championship for the Skidmore College women's soccer team after a 2-0 shutout of RIT in a Liberty League semifinal, Wednesday at Wachenheim Field.

The second-seeded Thoroughbreds will travel to top-seed William Smith for Saturday's 1 p.m. championship game. The Herons beat St. Lawrence 4-0 in their semifinal.

Skidmore is 13-5, while the Tigers, playing in their first Liberty League season, end the year at 8-10.

Abby Benton '12 scored the first goal at 22:26. Kelsey Yam '13 made a long cross to Christine Bellotti '14 who passed on the shot and tapped the ball to Benton who eased it past RIT goalie Ashley Valenti.

Bellotti set-up the second goal with a long ball in the air that Yam headed home from 10 yards out for her team-high sixth goal of the season.

Thoroughbred goalie Meghan Sleezer '12 had seven saves to earn her ninth shutout of the season. It was Skidmore's 12th shutout in 18 games. Sleezer's biggest save came in the 40th minute when she stopped a Rachael Bromson breakaway. She was also tough on several RIT restarts.

Skidmore had a slight 13-11 shot advantage. The Tigers had an 8-6 edge in penalty corners.

Playing in its seventh straight Liberty League tournament, this will be Skidmore's second appearance in the Liberty League championship game. The previous time was a penalty-kick loss to William Smith after a 0-0 tie in 2008. This will also be the fifth time in six seasons the two teams have faced each other in the league tournament.

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Field hockey off to Liberty League Championship

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SARATOGA SPRINGS — The No. 5 ranked Skidmore College field hockey team used a six-goal outburst in the second half to defeat St. Lawrence 8-1 and advance to the Liberty League Championship.

The Thoroughbreds improve to 17-1, extending their home winning streak to 28 games, and will host the winner of Friday night's William Smith-RPI match-up. The Saints end their season with a 9-8 record.

St. Lawrence got the scoring started early as Courtney Cartier deflected Erika Swits' shot from the top of the circle past Skidmore goalie Haley McDougall '15 for her fifth of the season.

Ceilidh MacNeill '13 tied it up at 20:46 when she redirected Hilary Cranston's '13 pass from outside the circle past Nicole Matos. Lauren Tobias '12 gave Skidmore the lead in the 30th minute, taking a pass from Annie Rosencrans '12 and sending it home for her 14th of the season.

After leading 2-1 at the half, the Thoroughbred offense came alive in the second half. Kelly Blackhurst '14 blasted a shot from the top of the circle to make it 3-1 and then assisted of MacNeill's second goal of the game at the 43:14 mark. Blackhurst tallied her second of the game and 24th of the season in the 48th minute to make it 5-1. Skidmore went on a run late as MacNeill, Caylyn Sullivan '12 and Sam Skott '15 all scored in a 2:10 span to close it out and give the Thoroughbreds an 8-1 win.

McDougall finished with three saves to earn the win and Annie Weis '14 added a defensive save for Skidmore. For the Saints, Matos stopped 14 shots, while Ali Ferenczy and Julia Croyle each had a defensive save.

The Thoroughbreds outshot St. Lawrence 30-5 and held a 14-7 advantage in penalty corners. 

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Skidmore ends on an up note

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SCHENECTADY — A pair of second-half goals carried the Skidmore College men's soccer team to a 2-1 Liberty League road win over Union College, Saturday.

With the win, the Thoroughbreds finish fifth in the Liberty League with a 3-4-1 league and 7-10-1 overall record. The Dutchmen finish seventh at 2-5-1 and 11-5-1.

After a scoreless first half, Gordon Bray '15 headed one past Union keeper Adam Margulies off a Marcus Goldbas '13 corner for a 1-0 lead at 50:23. Diego Reinero '12 made it 2-0 from Brock Bakewell '15 at 64:40.

Union scored less than a minute later, but the Thoroughbreds shut the Dutchmen down the rest of the way for the hard-earned win.

Nick Peterson '12 had two saves in net for the win in his final collegiate contest.

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Skidmore Women's Soccer drops regular-season final

Posted by Skidmore Athletics

ROCHESTER — Christine Belding scored the game-winning goal 1:52 into the second overtime session to lift host Nazareth to a 1-0 non-conference victory over Skidmore College. Following the victory, Nazareth improves to 9-3-4 overall. The Thoroughbreds fall to 12-5.

Skidmore will host RIT in a Liberty League semifinal at 4 p.m. on Wednesday.

Thoroughbred goalie Meghan Sleezer '12 kept the Golden Fliers off the board, meeting each challenge through all of regulation and the first overtime period. Sleezer finished with 10 saves before allowing Belding's goal. Skidmore came into the contest against Nazareth with only eight goals against them through the previous 16 games.

Nazareth's goalie Abbie Carey prevented Skidmore from scoring the go ahead goal in the final minutes of regulation as she thwarted two of the Thoroughbreds' better scoring opportunities. Carey beat Skidmore's forward to a through ball in the middle of Nazareth's penalty area and smothered it before a shot could be taken. Moments later, Carey punched another ball out of the Golden Flyers' penalty area. Carey finished the contest with three saves to record the shutout.

In the 89th minute, Skidmore forced a turnover deep in Nazareth's defensive zone. The Thoroughbreds' Abby Benton '12 collected the ball and took a shot from the middle of the Golden Flyers' penalty box. Benton's shot, however, sailed wide left.

Nazareth finished with a 15-11 advantage in shots, including an 11-3 advantage in shots on goal. The Golden Flyers also had a 6-2 advantage in corner kick opportunities.

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Thoroughbred Swimming sweeps Potsdam

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SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Skidmore College men's and women's swimming and diving teams picked up wins over Potsdam, Saturday afternoon at the Williamson Sports Center. The women won 134-92, while the men won a close one, 118-109.

On the women's side, Sarah Shaw '12 won the 1000 Free (11:27.99) with Emily Przysinda '15 finishing second (12:00.41). Carrie Koch '13 won both the 200 (2:03.00) and 500 Freestyle (5:37.91) and Catherine King '15 continued to dominate sprint freestyle, touching first in both the 50 Free (25.30) and 100 Free (55.25).

Katherine Kelloway '14 was also a double-winner, winning both the 200 Individual Medley (2:19.21) and 100 Backstroke (1:04.72). Kristin Stearns '13 and Krista Pelton '14 swept diving. Stearns scored 217.80 on 1 Meter and 239.78 on 3 Meter, while Pelton scored 183.23 on 1 Meter and 194.25 on 3 Meter.

In the men's meet, the Thoroughbreds came away with key victories in the 200 Medley and 200 Free relays. Jesse Adler '13, Nick Sauerbrunn '15, Sam Leibenhaut '12 and Tim Brodsky '15 combined to win the medley relay in 1:46.92. Down by 3 points going into the free relay, the men combined to go 1-2, assuring the team victory. Taylor Best '14, Robert Fulton '15, Greg Amoresano '13 and Andrew Becker '13 touched first 1:37.03, while the team of Lyle Stephenson '15, Leibenhaut, Peter Quattromani '14 and Andrew Lloyd '12 finished second in 1:38.93.

The men's team swept the 50 Freestyle, with Brodsky (23.86) first, followed by Fulton (24.65) and Becker (24.69), and finished 2-3-4 in the 100 Freestyle. Brodsky was second (52.53), Best third (52.87) followed by Amoresano (54.38). Adler won the 100 Backstroke (57.99), and touched second in the 200 Individual Medley (2:09.47).

Diver Doug Pilawa '12 had an outstanding meet, winning both boards, earning NCAA qualifying scores and breaking his own school records in each event. Pilawa scored 333.38 on 1 Meter and 358.13 on 3 Meter.

Important points were earned by Quattromani, finishing second in both the 1000 Free (10:57.78) and 500 Freestyle (5:17.79); Sauerbrunn, second in the 200 Free (1:56.07); and Fulton, second in the 100 Breaststroke (1:07.75). 

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Thoroughbred netters extend win streak to 10

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SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Skidmore College volleyball team completed the perfect weekend, beating Baruch and New Paltz to claim the Skidmore Invitational Tournament championship.

The Thorougbhbreds have won 10 straight and 14 of 15 to take a 25-8 record into next weekend's Liberty League championship tourmnament at Clarkson.

Skidmore came from behind to beat New Paltz 3-2 (21-25, 25-17, 18-25, 25-17, 15-4) to win the tournament. Tournament MVP Kelley Vershbow '12 had 20 kills, 15 digs, two aces and two blocks to lead the Thoroughbreds. Corrine Palmer '14 also made the All-Tournament team with 17 kills and five blocks (one solo) against New Paltz. Emma Wilberg '14 made a solid contribution as well.

Also on the All-Tournament team were Melinda Santiago (Baruch), Melinda DiGiovanna (New Paltz), Carrie Hack (New Paltz), Theresa Lilly (Plattsburgh) and Eve Richards (Union).

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No. 5 Skidmore rolls in regular season finale

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SARATOGA SPRINGS — Kelly Blackhurst '14 recorded four assists to become the youngest player in program history to record 100 career points as the 5th-ranked Skidmore College field hockey defeated Geneseo 6-1.

The four assists ties a single game record, becoming just the fourth player to accomplish the feat and first since Jodi Wheeler and Molly McClellan did it in 1998. With her third assist of the day, Blackhurst became the 12th player in program history to record 100 career points, joining Annie Rosencrans '12, who reached the feat two games earlier, as the most recent player to reach the mark.

The Thoroughbreds close out the regular season with a 16-1 record and will host St. Lawrence on Nov. 2 in the Liberty League semifinals. Skidmore has now won eight straight and extended its home winning streak to 27 games. With the loss, the Knights fall to 10-9.

Ceilidh MacNeil '13 got the scoring started at the 13:43 mark, redirecting a shot from Blackhurst past Geneseo keeper Caitlyn Dowell to make it 1-0. At the 20:07 mark, Lauren Tobias '12 received a centering pass from Blackhurst and sent it home for her 13th goal of the season. Rosencrans made it 3-0 at the 31:46 mark when she took a pass from Blackhurst and blasted it from the top of the circle. The Knights responded at the 32:08 mark as sophomore Kayla DeAngelis picked up a loose ball in front and beat Thoroughbred goalie Haley McDougall '15 for her 17th of the season, making it 3-1 at half.

Just over 10 minutes in to the second half, Rosencrans scored again, this time on a shot from the wing off a penalty corner to make it 4-1. Jackie Slocombe '12 and Hilary Cranston '13 assisted on the goal. At the 52:08 mark, Rosencrans scored her third goal of the game and 14th of the season, redirecting MacNeill's pass from outside the circle. MacNeill capped the scoring at the 68:12 mark, redirecting a pass from Blackhurst for her second of the game, giving Skidmore the 6-1 victory.

McDougall made five saves to improve to 15-1, while Dowell finished with eight saves for Geneseo.

The Thoroughbreds outshot the Knights 19-7 and held an 11-3 advantage in penalty corners.

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Basketball team hopes to trump historic season

Posted by Jesse Shayne

Last season marked a historic high for the Skidmore men's basketball program; the team won the Liberty League championship and made it to the NCAA tournament, both for the first time in Skidmore's history. Having graduated only one senior last year, the team has lofty goals for the upcoming season.

"My goal, to be honest, is to try and win a national championship," head coach Joe Burke said.

Considering the circumstances, Skidmore's chances of winning it all are not too shabby. The team went 18-10 overall (including playoffs) in their first season with a new head coach. Along with winning the League championship and making it to NCAA's, the team did something that no Skidmore athletic team has ever done - be on ESPN's highly viewed sports show, Sportscenter.

The team played against Southern Vermont University for their third game of the season, which turned into a seven overtime victory that tied the NCAA record for overtimes in a basketball game. Aside from making it on to the Sportscenter highlights, the win also gave the team momentum that carried them through the rest of the season.

"The seven overtime game was a coming together point for us because anytime you have a new coach there is always a big transition period," Burke said. "I felt like we played six or seven games in one and I felt like that was something that brought us close together. We learned to trust each other a lot after that game."

While the team is losing their second-leading scorer, Jeff Altimar, they will have nine seniors on the roster this season, all of whom will play significant minutes according to Burke. Seniors on the team this season include: Garret Bush, Kyle Clark, Melvis Langyintuo, Brian Lowry, Dyan Malloy, John Mantas, Raoul Oloa, Liberty League first team selection Gerard O'Shea and last year's team captain Terron Victoria.

"The nine of us have been together since freshmen year and we are all best friends and get along...team chemistry is very high," said O'Shea, who was the starting point guard last season.

Everyone else from the team last year will be coming back except for one member who has taken a leave of absence. Two freshmen will be joining Skidmore men's basketball as well, Connor Merrill (Vermont Academy) and Nanribet Yiljep (Westtown Prep.). "Both freshmen were highly recruited..both had division one and two offers but they really loved this place and loved the team," Burke said.

The team will be facing a revamped Liberty League that lost Hamilton College but added Bard College and Rochester Institute of Technology. Hamilton was the team Skidmore beat in the Liberty League Championship last season.

No team has repeated as Liberty League Champion for the past eight seasons, so if Skidmore does it they will be breaking a trend. "We have a target on our back so we are going to get every team's best effort. Everyone wants to beat the champion," O'Shea said.

The team has been working hard since they started practicing at the end of September. "Having been at division one I know how hard those guys work, and these guys work just as hard, they just don't get the notoriety," Burke said.

Skidmore will open up the regular season with a three game homestand. They will start the season on Nov. 15 against Cobleskill College, play a rematch of last season's seven overtime thriller against Southern Vermont College on Nov. 22 and then face Oneonta State on Nov. 30. They will participate in a national division three tournament in Las Vegas over Christmas break. Liberty League play will kick off on Jan. 6 against Vassar College.

Skidmore clinches home field with 2-0 win over RPI

Posted by Skidmore Athletics

TROY — The Skidmore College women's soccer team clinched home field for the upcoming Liberty League tournament with a 2-0 win at RPI Wednesday night.

With the win, the Thoroughbreds improve to 12-4-0 overall (6-2-0 Liberty), while the Engineers move to 7-7-2 (4-3-1 Liberty).

Abby Benton '12 netted her third goal of the season from just outside the RPI six-yard box, off a cross by Kelsey Yam '13. Yam raced up the left flank and sent a low ball in that Benton was able to finish first-time in the eighth minute.

The Engineers appeared to have tied the game less than two minutes later on a header by freshman Taylor Korytko, but the play was ruled offside. After being out-shot 3-0 early, the Engineers took a 7-5 advantage in shots attempts into halftime.

Skidmore pushed its lead to 2-0 in the 57th minute, when Christine Bellotti '14 took a tight-angle shot from the right side of the box that deflected off an RPI defender and inside the far post. The tally was her third of the year.

Meghan Sleezer '12 had two saves for her eighth shutout of the season.

Skidmore will close out the regular season at 3 p.m. on Saturday, October 29, when the Thoroughbreds visit Nazareth.

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3-0 road win for Thoroughbreds

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ONEONTA — Three second-half goals propelled the Skidmore College field hockey team to a 3-0 road win over Hartwick College, October 27.

The No. 5 Thoroughbreds are 15-1 with seven straight wins. The Hawks drop to 6-10.

Skidmore dominated the game, not allowing a Hartwick shot on goal. The Thoroughbreds outshot the Hawks 22-4.

After a scoreless first half, Lauren Tobias '12 got Skidmore on the board, taking a long pass from Jackie Slocombe '12 for her 12th goal of the season at 44:36. Annie Rosencrans '12 made it 2-0 from Kelly Blackhurst '14 at 50:42. Rosencrans returned the favor, assisting Blackhurst 10 minutes later for the third goal. It was Blackhurst's 22nd goal of the season.

Haley McDougall '15 earned her sixth and the team's seventh shutout of the season.

Skidmore will close out the regular season at home at 1 p.m. on Saturday against Geneseo.

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Women's soccer prevails in overtime

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POTSDAM — Christine Bellotti '14 scored early in the second overtime to lead the Skidmore College women's soccer team to a 1-0 Liberty League win at Clarkson University on Saturday.

The Thoroughbreds (5-2, 11-4) remain in second place with one league game to play. The Golden Knights fall to 1-5-1 in league play and 8-5-1 overall. Skidmore has already clinched a Liberty League berth and can finish anywhere from second to fourth with one league game to play.

Skidmore dominated the game, not allowing a Clarkson shot on goal. The Thoroughbreds outshot the home team 24-3.

The tie-breaking score came in the 103rd minute as Skidmore found itself with a 2-on-1 chance. Morgan Governale '15 had just one defender to beat for a shot on the Clarkson goal, but sent a pass across the box to Kelsey Yam '13. Yam returned the favor to Governale and she took a shot from in close that hit the left post and bounced out with a few swings missing on the clear. There, Bellotti was able to hit a soft grounder into the net, which was nearly cleared before it bounced over the goal line at 102:37.

Meghan Sleezer '12 earned her seventh shutout of the season. The Thoroughbreds are at RPI on Oct. 26.

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Men's soccer blanks Clarkson, 1-0

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SARATOGA SPRINGS — Matt Wolff '12 scored in the 64th minute to help lead the Skidmore College men's soccer team to a 1-0 Liberty League victory over Clarkson, Oct. 22 at Wachenheim Field.

The Thoroughbreds improve to 6-10-1 overall and 2-4-1 in league play, while the Golden Knights fall to 4-10-1 overall and 2-5-0 in the Liberty League.

Neither team was able to generate a good scoring opportunity in the first half, as they combined for just eight shots.

Skidmore came out aggressive in the second half, putting pressure on the Clarkson defense early before breaking through on Wolff's goal. Adam Beek '15 sent a perfect cross from the corner that Wolff dove across the box and headed past Scott Stuart for his first tally of the year. The Golden Knights were able to get a few corners late but were unable to capitalize as the Thoroughbreds held on for the 1-0 win.

Skidmore outshot Clarkson 14-11 and both teams finished with five corners.

Nick Peterson '12 made four saves to record his sixth shutout of the season, while Scott finished with two saves.

The Thoroughbreds are at Union on Oct. 29.

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Volleyball completes another Liberty sweep

Posted by Skidmore Athletics

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Skidmore College volleyball team beat St. Lawrence and Clarkson to complete a second-straight unbeaten Liberty League weekend. The Thoroughbreds finish the regular season in second place with a 9-3 league and 21-8 overall record. Clarkson (10-2, 25-4) won the Liberty regular season title and will host the league semifinals and championship on Nov. 4-5.

Skidmore will play St. Lawrence (7-5, 18-13) in one semifinal, while Clarkson will play Vassar in the other semifinal.

Union (6-6, 19-12) tied Vassar for fourth, but went 0-2 against the Brewers. RIT (4-8, 15-20) finished sixth.

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No. 6 Skidmore picks up 2-1 win at Vassar

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POUGHKEEPSIE — Annie Rosencrans '12 became the 11th player in program history to record 100 career points as the 6th-ranked Skidmore College field hockey team earned a 2-1 victory at Vassar.

The Thoroughbreds improve to 14-1 overall and finish the regular season a perfect 6-0 in Liberty League play. They have now won 20 straight against Liberty League opponents. The Brewers fall to 7-7 overall and 2-4 in the league.

Rosencrans tallied her 10th goal of the season at the 32:36 mark, redirecting a shot from the top from Katie Flowers '12 to make it 1-0. At the 53:33 mark, Kelly Blackhurst '14 scored her 21st of the season off a pass from Rosencrans, giving Rosencrans 100 career points.

Vassar cut the lead to 2-1 a few minutes later on a goal from Tina Caso, but the Thoroughbreds were able to hold on for the 2-1 victory.

Rosencrans became the first player to reach the century mark since Elise Britt '10 and Christine Kemp '11 each reached the milestone in the 2009 season.

Haley McDougall '15 earned the win in goal for Skidmore, while Maggie Brelis made 13 saves in the losing effort.

The Thoroughbreds outshot the Brewers 21-4 and held a 16-3 advantage in penalty corners.

Skidmore is at Hartwick at 4 p.m. on Oct. 26.

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Thoroughbreds open season against St. Lawrence

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Skidmore College men's and women's swimming & diving teams hosted St. Lawrence in Saturday's 2011-2012 season opener at Williamson Sports Center.

The men picked up a 183-102 win, while the women suffered a 162-132 loss.

On the men's side, the Thoroughbreds opened with a 1-2 finish in the 200 medley relay as the team of Jesse Adler '14, Nick Sauerbrunn '15, Taylor Best '14 and Logan Jones '15 (1:46.92) edged out Lyle Stephenson '15, Robert Fulton '15, Sam Leibenhaut '12 and Tim Brodsky 2'14 (1:47.58).

Adler also won the 100 back (58.11), 200 IM (2:09.87) and finished second in the 200 back (2:08.10), while Leibenhaut finished first in both the 100 (58.38) and 200 (2:21.69) butterfly and Jones won the 50 (23.33) and 100 (51.46) free. In the 100 breast, Skidmore finished 1-2-3 with Fulton (1:08.39) finishing first, Sauerbrunn (1:09.62) taking second and Andrew Lloyd '12(1:10.76) finishing third. Also picking up wins were Sauerbrunn in the 200 breast (2:24.87) and Peter Quattromani '14 in the 1000 free (10:56.87).

Doug Pilawa '12 won both the 1-Meter (327.05) and 3-Meter (298.85) dives with NCAA qualifying scores.

For the women, Catherine King '15 was a double winner, taking the 50 free (25.26) and 100 free (56.27), while Emily Przysinda '15 won the 1000 free (11:41.40). Carrie Koch '13 won the 500 free (5:42.32) and took second in the 200 free (2:02.99) and Katherine Kelloway '14 took second in the 100 back (1:04.68) and 200 back (2:19.29). Kristen Stearns '13 won both the 1-Meter (204.35) and 3-Meter (206.30) dives and the relay team of King, Kate Lambos '15, Elaine Burns '14 and Koch won the 200 free relay (1:47.36).

The Thoroughbreds host SUNY Potsdam at 1 p.m. next Saturday.

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Riders open on top

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SARATOGA SPRINGS — It was a decisive home win on Oct. 22 for the Skidmore College riders. The Thoroughbreds were first with 46 points, 14 ahead of Hartwick College and Morrisville State College in second with 32. Siena College and Colgate tied for 5th with 29. Also competing were SUNY Cobleskill, RPI, Oneonta State, U/Albany and Union.

Skidmore dominated the Open over Fences division by winning each section. Co-captains Kelly Campbell '13 and Chelsea Jones '13 won blue ribbons along with Jasmin Lai '15.

Kiira Lizza '14 was first in the Intermediate over Fences, Emily Phalen '13 placed second and Emily Wonham was sixth.

In the six sections of the Novice over Fences, Skidmore's five equestrians won four events and took second in another. Winning were Molly Parker '12, Nicole Cahill-Yi '12, Sandrine Couldwell '13 and Catherine Luckhardt '12. Jennifer Brown '13 placed second.

Winners in the Equitation on the Flat classes were: Open- Jones; Intermediate - Phalen and Luckhardt; Novice - Michelle Bakker '12, Cahill-Yi and Emory Wonham '13; Walk/Trot - Kayla Kleinman '14.

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Swim team has high expectations for new season

Posted by Jesse Shayne

After last year's seasons that would look sub-par on paper to most, Skidmore's Men's and Women's swimming and diving teams are looking to improve this year.

The men's team went 2-6 last year, beating Vassar and Utica, while the women's team went 1-7, beating Utica. However, the records do not show the whole story.

"The team has always been more focused on the championships and end of season times. Dual meets are more of a stepping stone...If you look at the record and see 2 and 7 you think it's not very good, but we lack depth and a core foundation and we are working toward that," Peter Quattromani '14 said.

Skidmore's teams lacked quantity last season, and while they did not lack quality, having such small teams made it difficult to compete against larger schools.

"There are some teams that are huge so no matter how well we swim we could not beat them, especially at the big meets where there are so many teams. We try to compete against teams that are similar to us," said captain Carrie Kosch '13, who was the women's team MVP last season.

While the dual meet records may not indicate success, the teams did set a lot of records and improve on times.

"I think swimming is an individual sport so we are looking for as much progress as an athlete can make over the season...[last season's] dropoffs were outstanding and the college breaking 15 records shows our hard work paying off," said Coach Jill Greenleaf, who will be entering her 10th season at the helm of the Thoroughbreds.

Only one senior graduated from the women's team last year and two from the men's team. This season the women's team has seven new members, six freshmen and one sophomore, and the men's team has five new members, four freshmen and one sophomore.

While Head Coach Greenleaf is returning to complete a decade at Skidmore, the diving team has a new coach. "Our old diving coach retired last year, so that made it hard to recruit new younger divers," Coach Greenleaf said.

Neither diver from the men's team will be returning this year because one graduated and one is away for the year. While there are no freshmen divers joining either team, Doug Pilawa '12 will be returning from a year abroad to improve upon his 2009-2010 season in which he was the Liberty League diver of the year and qualified for nationals, and Kristen Stearns '13 and Krista Pelton '14 will be returning for the women's team after successful seasons last year.

"All three will be able to compete at the top of the conference this year," Greenleaf said.

Both teams have an identical schedule to last year. They will be starting out against St. Lawrence tomorrow, Saturday Oct. 22, and finishing the dual meet season against RPI Jan. 28.  

RPI wins Liberty showdown 2-0 over Skidmore

Posted by Skidmore Athletics

SARATOGA SPRINGS - Rensselaer kept its Liberty League men's soccer playoff hopes alive with a 2-0 win over Skidmore College, Wednesday night at Wachenheim Field.

The loss drops the Thoroughbreds to 1-4-1 in Liberty League play and 5-10-1 overall. RPI is 2-3-2 and 6-4-3.

Julian Coy got the Engineers on the board first with his second goal of the season at 22:40. The play started when Will Mignon moved past two Skidmore defenders for a breakaway, but Thoroughbred goalie Nick Peterson '12 was able to come out to make the initial save. Coy then put the rebound home for the 1-0 lead.

Adam Updegrove added an insurance goal for RPI with 3:41 to play in the game. He gained possession in the midfield, made two quick moves and found the net from 23 yards out.

Skidmore was whistled for 18 fouls to six for the Engineers. RPI had a 16-9 shot advantage, including a 12-2 difference in the first half.

Peterson finished with seven saves, while Rob Dewald had one save in net for his third shutout of the season.

Skidmore will host Clarkson at 2 p.m. on Saturday. Rensselaer is at Bard at 2 p.m. on Saturday.

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Rough finish for Thoroughbred golfers

Posted by Skidmore Athletics CROTON-ON-HUDSON - The Skidmore College golf team ended the fall season with a disappointing fourth place finish in the six-team M Manhattanville/NYU Fall Classic, held on Sunday, Oct. 16 and Monday, Oct. 17 at the challenging Hudson National Golf Club.

The No. 17 ranked Thoroughbreds shot rounds of 321-319—640 to finish 18 strokes behind winner Manhattanville College (314-308—622). Middlebury was second with 319-312—631, followed by Farmingdale in third with 324-315—639. NYU was fifth (338-321—659) and Stevens sixth (349-346—695).

Manhattanville's William Tischler was first with 72-79—151. Scott Pinder '14 was the top Skidmore player, tying for sixth with 79-79—158. Anthony Dilisio '13 (85-76—161) and John McCarthy '13 (82-79—161) tied for 11th. Zach Grossman '15 (76-86—162) was one stroke back in 16th. Garrett Colgan '13 (84-85—171) tied for 24th.

Skidmore will resume play in the spring, working toward a 26th straight NCAA Division III tournament bid.

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Women's soccer wins big at Utica, 5-0

Posted by Skidmore Athletics

UTICA - The Skidmore College women's soccer team rolled past Utica to a 5-0 win, Sunday afternoon at Charles A. Gaetano Stadium.

The Thoroughbreds improve to 10-4, while the Pioneers fall to 3-10.

Skidmore was in control from the start as Kelsey Yam '13 put home a rebound in the eighth minute for an early 1-0 lead. Abby Benton '12 made it a two goal lead in the 16th minute, scoring off a rebound for her second goal of the season.

With a 2-0 lead at half, the Thoroughbreds came out just as strong in the second half, putting up three goals in the period. Sarah LaBella '13 took a pass from Christine Bellotti '14 and chipped it in from 20 yards out in the 69th minute. At the 71:00 mark, Katie Rasche '12 put home her first collegiate goal with an assist from Elena Stansky '12 and Yam capped off the scoring with her second goal of the game, putting home a pass from Michelle Finan '13 in the 86th minute.

Meghan Sleezer '12 earned the win, facing no shots in the first half, while Gab Lawrence '14 played the second half and made four saves. Samantha Glockling finished with 12 saves for Utica.

Skidmore held a 27-4 advantage in shots.

The Thoroughbreds are at Clarkson on Oct. 22.

Skidmore Athletics