Athletics News

---

MEN'S RESULTS
WOMEN'S RESULTS

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Swarthmore's men's and women's cross country teams joined over 90 collegiate teams to compete at the 34th Brooks Paul Short Run on Friday, one of the largest meets in the country.

Erik Saka '09 led the men with a 77th place finish out of almost 450 competitors, crossing the line for the 8K course in 27:00. Shortly behind Saka, Jon Shoop '08 and Jonnie Tompkins '10 came in one second apart for 110 and 112th place finishes, respectively, in 27:22 and 27:23. Also coming in under 28 minutes, freshman Patrick Harnett crossed in 27:54 for 156th place.

Ashley Davies '10 set the pace for the women, completing the 6K in 23:39 for 60th, also out of a pack of over 400 runners. Emma Stanley '09 followed close behind for 67th, in 23:43. Bess Ritter '09 came in 104th in 24:08, with a strong pack of five more teammates finishing in the next twenty seconds. These women were Caitlin Russell '11 (108/24:10), Kathy Feeney '09 (112/24:13), Lauren DeLuca '10 (118/24:17), and Faith Pampel '09 (125/24:28).

This Saturday, October 6, the Garnet harriers run at Dickinson College's Long/Short meet at 11:15 a.m.

---

LANCASTER, Pa. - Swarthmore College forward Danielle Tocchet '08 (West Point, N.Y. / James I. O'Neill) was selected Centennial Conference Offensive Player of the Week, as announced on Oct. 2.

Tocchet, a team captain, posted two game-winning goals in a 2-0 week for the Swarthmore women's soccer team. She headed in the first goal of a 4-0 win over Washington on Sept. 26 and then tallied the lone score in a 1-0 win at McDaniel on Sept. 29

With four goals this season, Tocchet is the top scorer for Swarthmore. During the Centennial Conference match against Dickinson, Tocchet tallied her 17th career-goal.

This is the third Centennial weekly honor for the Garnet--Tocchet was named offensive player of the week during the week of Sept. 5. Goalkeeper Lauren Walker '09 (Fallston, Mary. / The Hotchkiss School) was selected Centennial Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 5 while Cait Mullarkey '09 (Wilmington, Del./ Ursuline) received the same honor on Sept. 19.

The Swarthmore women's soccer team has been nationally ranked for the past three weeks for the first time in the program's history. Their current national position in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America's poll is 18th and third overall in their regional rankings. According to D3kicks.com the Garnet is placed 17th nationally.

---

The Swarthmore volleyball team is joining the ten other schools in the Centennial Conference in a fund-raising effort to fight breast cancer during the 2007 season. 

Participating schools are collecting donations based on the number of digs their team tallies at a specific match in the month of October, which is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  Swarthmore designated the Oct. 6 match vs. Johns Hopkins to tally digs for this event.   Individuals can pledge money per dig earned by their team in the match, or can make a flat donation to the cause.

The money raised by each team goes directly to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.  The donations will be collected in the first week of November and the total amount raised by the eleven schools will be announced at the Centennial Volleyball Championship on November 4-5, 2007. 

Anyone interested in making a donation or learning more about the project, please contact with Swarthmore's head coach, Harleigh Leach.  The Garnet volleyball team and the Centennial Confernece thank you for joining the fight against breast cancer!

---

SWARTHMORE, Pa. - Swarthmore head coach Todd Anckaitis and Garnet women's soccer joined in the national celebration of the Fifth Annual "Youth Soccer Month". US Youth Soccer is the nation's largest youth sports association and hoped to grow awareness during the month of September.

At the Garnet home match against Grinnell on Sept. 7, the stands were packed with over 250 youth soccer members who came to root on the home team. "Go Swarthmore" cheers could be heard from stands throughout the game. At half time, scores of youth soccer players were able to participate in a juggling contest. The Garnet have invited various youth soccer groups to help as ball girls during the season-the guest ball-girls on this night were members of the U-9 Swarthmore Dragons Girl's Soccer Team. The Swarthmore Recreation Association (SRA), also provided a sign-up table for their community leagues at the event. The festivities of "Youth Soccer Month" continued at the end of the month when the Garnet hosted Centennial Conference-rival Washington College (Md.) on Sept. 25.

"As soccer continues to grow with more children in the United States participating in organized soccer than any other sport," stated Larry Monaco, President of US Youth Soccer. "We [US Youth Soccer] take great pride in spearheading the Youth Soccer Month initiative to promote the benefits of playing this wonderful sport such as fun, family, friendship and fitness."

Each week during "Youth Soccer Month", a new propriety is introduced to help grow the culture of youth soccer. Fitness was the first theme to be noted, identifying the ideas of health and fitness (physical, psychological and social) benefits of playing soccer. During the week of September 10th, the buzzword Fun comes into the mix to help express that whether recreational or competitive in nature, involvement in soccer is easy, affordable and rewarding. Playing soccer ties families together as schedules, vacations and Family time are coordinated in the process of playing the game. Friendship, the last theme noted represents the relationships generated through playing soccer extend beyond the field.

As "Youth Soccer Month" continues it assists in the recognition of those who participate in soccer across the nation. The celebration highlights the various programs available to children interested in participating in soccer, including the inner-city, special needs, recreational and elite soccer programs that have facilitated the growth of the sport at all levels.

BOX SCORE

WESTMINSTER, Mary. -- Swarthmore junior Natalie Stone (Philadelphia, Pa. / Friends Select) scored her eighth goal of the season as the Garnet fell to hometown McDaniel 2-1 in Centennial field hockey action Saturday afternoon.

Swarthmore falls to 5-3 overall and 2-1 in the Centennial while the Green Terror improve to 4-6 overall and 2-1 in the Conference.

McDaniel assumed a 1-0 lead as Michelle Fluty finished off a pass from teammate Jessica Largent at 4:20.

The Garnet answered with a score five minutes later. Stone fired a shot at the Green Terror goal and forward Abbie Fischer '08 (Sudbury, Mass./ Lincoln-Sudbury Regional) chased down the rebound. Fischer passed the ball off to Stone, who put it home at 9:13.

The Green Terror got the game-winner from Brooke Dixon at 20:01 to pick up their fourth win of the season.

Garnet freshman Katie Ashmore (Princeton, N.J. / Princeton) posted three saves in the cage.

The Garnet return home on Wednesday night for a 6:00 p.m. game with Johns Hopkins, beginning a three-game run at Clothier Field.

---

BOX SCORE

WESTMINSTER, Mary. -Swarthmore junior outside hitter Jen Wang (Palo Alto, Calif. / Henry Gunn) tied her season-high with 25 kills and added 11 digs yet the McDaniel volleyball team came away with a 3-1 Centennial Conference victory on Saturday afternoon. The Green Terror (8-4 overall, 3-0 CC) downed the visiting Garnet (6-12, 1-2 CC) by scores of 30-27, 32-30, 19-30, 30-25.

McDaniel senior outside hitter Katie Siebel (Finksburg, Mary. / Westminster) had a team-high 19 kills and sophomore middle hitter Taylor Herrgott (Derwood, Mary. / Magruder) added 16 kills. Freshman setter Kristen Nuckles (Sussex, Va. / Nansemond-Suffolk Academy) paced the Green Terror offense with 53 assists along with 11 digs. Sophomore libero Alice Hardwick (Poolesville, Mary. / Poolesville) led the defense with 19 digs.

Wang attempted to put the Garnet offense on her back in the fourth game, running off nine straight kills in nine attempts. In six of her last seven matches, the junior has posted double-digit kill numbers and with four straight double-doubles increased her season total to 10.

Swarthmore junior captain Erin Heaney (Buffalo, N.Y. / City Honors) continued to direct the defense, accumulating a season-high 32 kills. The team libero, Heaney surpassed the 1,000-dig plateau on Wednesday vs. Washington College - she is the third player in school history to accomplish the feat.

Garnet setter Kearney Bangs '10 (Kingston, Wash. / North Kitsap) has quickened the pace of the Swarthmore offense, resulting in 61 assists and increasing her season-average to 8.87 assists per game.

Three other Swarthmore hitters registered double-digit kills-senior right side Vanessa Wells (Chicago, Ill. / Lincoln Park) posted 15, classmate Karen Berk (Havertown, Pa. / Haverford) added 10 and sophomore Johanna Bond (Pittsford, N.Y. / Pittsford-Sutherland) contributed her second double-double with 12 kills and 11 digs.

Swarthmore travels to Bryn Mawr this coming Tuesday, Oct. 4 and then will return to home for a 1:00 p.m. match with Johns Hopkins next Saturday, Oct. 6.

---

BOX SCORE

WESTMINSTER, Mary. -Swarthmore senior Danielle Tocchet (West Point, N.Y. / James I. O'Neill) scored the lone goal as the 19th-ranked Garnet women's soccer team remained undefeated with a 1-0 win at McDaniel in Centennial Conference action Saturday afternoon.

Swarthmore improves to 7-0 overall and 3-0 in the Centennial while the Green Terror slip to 1-8 overall and 1-2 in the Conference. Swarthmore is 14-1-1 in the past two Septembers, its only defeat coming at the hands of Gettysburg on Sept. 24, 2006.

Tocchet, a team captain, took advantage of a poor clear by the McDaniel defense in the early minutes of the game. The senior was running up the left flank as Swarthmore All-Centennial midfielder Maggie DeLorme '10 (Lusby, Mary. / Patuxent) sent in a beautiful cross from the right sideline. The ball glanced off a McDaniel defender and Tocchet never broke stride, out-racing the charging Green Terror goalie. Tocchet arrived a split-second earlier and sent a chip into the upper-right corner at 2:32 for her team-leading fourth goal of the season.

The Garnet defense limited McDaniel to just three shots on the day for the team's sixth shut-out of the season. Freshman defenders Laura Bolger (Centerport, N.Y. / Harborfields) and Sarah Reece (Manhattan Beach, Calif. / Mira Costa) provided strong play along the backline, helping junior goalkeeper Lauren Walker (Fallston, Mary. / The Hotchkiss School) pick up her 14th career shut-out. DeLorme continued to control play in the midfield for the Swarthmore women, getting to a majority of the balls in the air.

Swarthmore returns home to Clothier Field on Wednesday night for an 8:00 p.m. contest against defending conference champion Johns Hopkins. The game is the much-anticipated re-match of the 2006 Centennial Conference Championship game--the Blue Jays won 1-0 to claim their second consecutive title.

BOX SCORE

SWARTHMORE, Pa. -- Gettysburg broke open a scoreless game with a quick-strike goal in the 47th minute and held on for 1-0 win over host Swarthmore on a cool Saturday night at Clothier Field.

A Gettysburg defender cleared a Swarthmore corner kick out of the Bullet box right to a teammate's feet, sparking the fast break. Two passes later, the ball was on the feet of Chris Bayon (Langhorne, PA / Lawrenceville School). Bayon beat one defender off the dribble, and with another on his hip, knocked the ball into the lower left corner of the net.

The Bullets nearly extended the lead to 2-0 in the 63rd minute when Matt Varner (Medford, NJ / Shawnee) knocked the ball towards an empty net. But Swarthmore senior captain Brendan Grady (San Jose, Calif. / Bellarmine), facing the goal, set his feet and bicycle-kicked the ball away.

Swarthmore's best chance to tie came in the 70th minute. Junior Evan Nesterak (Parker, CO / Ponderosa) rose high above a defender and sent a header towards the goal, but Gettysburg goalkeeper Matt Langston (Harrisburg, PA / Central Dauphin East) was well-positioned to make the save.

Gettysburg looked poised to ice the game in the 90th minute, but Garnet goalkeeper Ryan Sutcliffe (Milford, DE / Milford) stoned Bayon from five yards away.

The teams played a nearly even first half, with Gettysburg holding a 6-4 edge in shots. Gettysburg went on to finish the match with a 13-9 shot advantage.

The Garnet held a 5-1 advantage in corner kicks, but the Bullet defense held the hosts to just one shot off of corners-a Jeff Kushner '09 (Norristown, PA / Methacton) header that sailed high in the 52nd minute.

Langston made three saves for his first shutout of the season; Sutcliffe made three stops for the Garnet.

Swarthmore will look to rebound next Saturday in Collegeville, Pa. when they face conference foe Ursinus in a 1:00 p.m. match.

---

SWARTHMORE, Pa. - Senior Michael Bonesteel (Clifton Park, NY / LaSalle Institute) hit the top corner from 30 yards out in the 19th minute and the Garnet never looked back, taking a 2-0 decision over Centennial Conference rival Washington College on a warm night at Clothier Stadium.

The victory evens Swarthmore's conference record at 1-1-1 (6-1-3 overall) and places them in the thick of the conference playoff race.

After earning just one point in their first two conference games, Swarthmore knew it was business time and took firm control of the match right from the outset, holding the Shoremen without a shot for nearly 38 minutes while taking 14 of their own.

Bonesteel's goal was the culminating play in an impressive Garnet fast break. Deep in the Swarthmore end, junior Chris Szeto (Chapel Hill, NC / East Chapel Hill) kicked the ball nearly 40 yards upfield to classmate Stu Leon (Wrentham, MA / King Phillip Regional). Leon made a clean trap and sent the ball on a diagonal across the field to Bonesteel, who took care of the rest.

The Garnet were poised to score a second goal in the 30th minute as junior Yoi Tibbetts (Sandwich, MA / Sandwich) bore down on Washington goalkeeper Marc Petrucci (Avondale, PA / Avon Grove). Tibbetts was winding up for a shot when he was taken down from behind and awarded a penalty kick. The junior took the kick himself and left no doubt, banging it well out of Petrucci's reach and giving the Garnet a 2-0 lead.

Washington kept fighting for the full 90 minutes and nearly pulled within one in the 68th minute, but Garnet sophomore Zach Weimar (Rutledge, PA / Friends Central) dove and knocked Brian Denver's (Bethany Beach, DE / St. Alban's (DC)) shot just wide.

Garnet starting goalkeeper Ryan Sutcliffe '08 (Milford, DE / Milford) did not have to make a save in his 45 minutes of work. Weimar entered at halftime and notched two saves to preserve the shutout.

Petrucci kept the match close with an impressive 9-save performance. Junior Brian Schultz (Baltimore, MD / Calvert Hall) took a pair of shots to lead the Shoremen offense.

Swarthmore finished the match with a 27-5 advantage in shots and a 7-4 edge in corner kicks.

The Garnet will look to keep their offensive momentum going into Saturday night when they host conference rival Gettysburg College in a 7:00 p.m. match.

---

SWARTHMORE, Pa. - Early Wednesday night, the Swarthmore Garnet (5-3, 1-0 CC) beat Washington (Md.) (4-4, 0-3 CC) in a 4-3 win.

The Garnet were the first to get on the scoreboard just past the 3:08 mark when freshman Sara McCabe (Millsboro, Del./ Sussex Central) received a pass from Alex Gilbert-Bono '10 (Wellesley, Mass./ St. Mark's School) in front of the goal and put it in. Washington junior Jaimie Barlow (Bel Air, Md./ John Carroll) blasted in a goal off a penalty corner at 17:16 to knot things up at 1. The Garnet retook the lead when sophomore Hoa Pham (East Landowne, Pa./ Penn Wood) scored off a rebound at 23:39 after Abbie Fischer '08 (Sudbury, Mass./ Lincoln-Sudbury Regional) tried to fire one into the Shorewomen net. Finally, at the 33:48 mark, Fischer notched her fifth goal of the season unassisted to close the first half with the Garnet ahead 3-1.

Swarthmore wasn't satisfied with a two-goal lead, and quickly extended the margin to three when Natalie Stone '09 (Philadelphia, Pa./ Friends Select) received a pass from McCabe at 37:51 to score her eighth goal of the season. The Shorewomen did not give up, though, and cut the lead to one at 4-3. Junior Candace Gaull (Laurel, Del./ Laurel) led the comeback, scoring twice after receiving passes from sophomore Kelly Tancredi (Wallingford, Pa./ Strath Haven) 56:44 and freshman Sarah Garber (Mount Joy, Pa./ Pequa Valley) 64:51.

Sophomore Elena Nicholoff (Tunkhannock, Pa./ Lackawanna Trail) had a busy night posting 17 saves for the Shorewomen. Garnet freshman Katie Ashmore (Princeton, N.J./ Princeton) worked hard to keep the shots out of the net while posting six saves.

Swarthmore field hockey's season continues this weekend when they travel to McDaniel on Saturday, Sept. 29th for a 1:00 p.m. match.