Athletics News

OFFICIAL NFCA RELEASE

COMPLETE ALL-REGION TEAMS

Swarthmore, PA - Swarthmore College freshman Christine Sendelsky (Edison, NJ - John P. Stevens) has been named to the 2006 Louisville Slugger/NFCA Division III All-Region team. Sendelsky is an at-large selection on the second team  in the East Region, as announced by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) on May 8.

Starting all 37 games in 2006, Sendelsky led the team in seven offensive categories: batting average (.395), hits (49), runs (40), doubles (13), home runs (four), total bases (78), and slugging percentage (.629).  Her four home runs tied the school record for the most in one season, matching the total hit by Michelle Walsh '98 in 1998 and Mary Mintel '05 in 2005. 

Sendelsky started 16 conference games at second base, completing the season tied for the Centennial lead in home runs (three), tied for second in runs scored (12), tied for fourth in RBIs (11) and total bases (29), and fifth in slugging percentage (.558). 

Sendelsky became just the third Swarthmore woman - the first freshman - to make First Team All-Centennial on May 5.  Named Centennial Hitter of the Week twice in 2006, she is the first Garnet softball player to earn All-Region status.  She joins Emily Trainor from McDaniel as the only Centennial players listed as high as second team All-Region.

Swarthmore (23-17, 9-7 Centennial) had one of the best seasons in school history in 2006, breaking school records for overall and conference wins while earning its first Centennial playoff berth.

SWARTHMORE, Pa. -- Nine members of the Swarthmore field hockey team were named to the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NHFCA) Division III All-Academic Squad for the 2005 season.  The list includes Madalyn Baldanzi '08 (Morristown, NJ / Morristown), Heidi Fieselmann '06 (Bridgewater, NJ / Bridgewater Raritan), Abbie Fischer '08 (Sudbury, MA / Lincoln-Sudbury), Jessica Larson '06 (Lincolnshire, IL / Adlai E. Stevenson), Karen Lorang '06 (San Diego, CA / University H.S.), Julie Monaghan '07 (Wynnewood,PA / Penn Charter), Saranne Perman '07 (Hunt Valley, MD / Dulaney), Lindsay Roth '07 (Severna Park, MD / Severn School), and Jessie Whitfield '06 (Leawood, KS / The Barstow School).

In order to be selected to the squad, student-athletes must have achieved a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.3 through the first semester of the 2005-2006 academic year.

Larson was also one of 11-student athletes selected to the first-ever Philadelphia Inquirer Academic All-Area Field Hockey Team, which was voted on by the sports information offices of the 28 Philadelphia area institutions.  She has also been on the Centennial Conference Academic Honor role for the past three years.

Lorang was a second team All-Centennial selection in 2005, making 81 saves in goal for the Garnet.  Lorang, along with Monaghan, Roth, and Whitfield, were also selected for the 2005 Centennial Conference Academic Honor Roll.

Swarthmore completed the 2005 season with an 8-9 record, including a 4-6 mark in the Conference.

FREDERICKSBURG, Va. - Swarthmore senior Zac Rodd, ranked fifth in the Atlantic South region, defeated Mary Washington senior Paul Bristow, ranked second in the region, at No. 1 singles to send the 20th-ranked Garnet to a 4-2 victory over the seventh-ranked Eagles in the second round of the 2006 NCAA Division III Tennis Championships on Sunday afternoon.

The Garnet avenged a 6-1 loss to the Eagles on April 2 and, more importantly, a 4-1 home loss to MWU in the second round of last year's NCAA Championship. 

Swarthmore (8-10) advances to the NCAA National Championship quarterfinals on May 17 to be held at the University of Mary Washington.  It is the first quarterfinal appearance by the Garnet since the brackets were expanded in the early 1990s, the last coming in 1991.  Opponents and match times will be announced this week.

The Garnet won the doubles' point in spectacular fashion, winning at No. 1 and No.2 with ease.  Swarthmore's top duo, Rodd and classmate Brian Park defeated UMW's Bristow and Randy Loden, the top-ranked tandem in the region and All-Americans in 2004-05, by a score of 8-3.  Garnet junior Jon Reiss and sophomore Jon Lo also took care of business in doubles' play, defeating UMW's John James and Jon Pollak 8-2.  The third doubles' match was suspended, per NCAA procedure.

Swarthmore took a 2-0 lead following Lo's 7-5, 6-3 win over Loden at No. 4 singles but the Eagles tied the match with victories at No. 5 and No. 6. 

The Garnet seniors, Park and Rodd, were both down a set at No. 3 and No. 1, respectively, and simultaneously rallied back to send the Garnet into the NCAA quarterfinals.  Park came back to defeat James 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 at No. 3 while Rodd fought back against Bristow, an All American at singles in 2004-05, to win 4-6, 7-5, 6-4.  It is the second time this season Rodd has taken down Bristow, the Swarthmore senior defeated the Eagles' 6-4, 6-4 in the semi-finals of the 2005 ITA Southeast Regional on October 3.

Doubles
1. Rodd/Park def.  Bristow/Loden (UMW) 8-3
2. Reiss/Lo def.  James/Pollak (UMW) 8-2
3.  Sidhu/Kevin Shaughnessy vs. Armes/Clair (UMW)  DNF

Singles
1. Zac Rodd (SC) def. Paul Bristow (UMW) 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 
2. Jon Reiss (SC) vs. Jon Clair (UMW) DNF
3. Brian Park (SC) def. John James (UMW) 4-6, 6-4, 6-2
4. Jonathan Lo (SC) def. Randy Loden (UMW) 7-5, 6-3
5. Jason Dunn (UMW) vs. Adam Wallwork (SC) 6-3, 1-6, 6-3
6. Chris Armes (UMW) def. Sam Sidhu (SC) 6-4, 7-5

COMPLETE RESULTS

WESTMINSTER, Md. - Garnet sophomore Ross Weller brought home the bronze medal in the 3,000 steeplechase and the 4 x 800 meter relay team collected a silver medal as Swarthmore finished ninth at the 2006 Centennial Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships at McDaniel College this past weekend.

Haverford men picked up their 13th Centennial Conference title in as many Conference meets and Ursinus' Brandon Evans was named outstanding track performer while long jumper Broderick Maybank from McDaniel took home most outstanding performer in the field events.

The highlight of the meet occurred at mid-day on Saturday when Weller ran a personal-best time of 9:48.30 in the 3,000 meter steeplechase, finishing a close third to Haveford's Grant Scott and McDaniel's Matt Rouse.  It is also the fifth-fastest time in school history and the best in 15 years.  Swarthmore had strong showings in the middle distances as Matt Schiller '07 (50.79) ran fifth in the 400 meter race and freshman Connor Darby was sixth in the 800 with a time of 1:59.87.

The Garnet 4 x 800 relay team, consisting of Dillon McGrew '07, Vernon Chaplin '07, Keefe Keeley '06, and Paul Thibodeau '06, capped the afternoon by finishing second to Haverford with a time of 7:54.83.

On Sunday, Chaplin led a collection of Garnet in the 1,500 meter race, finishing sixth (4:01.00) while Thibodeau (ninth - 4:06.80) and senior Adam Hunt (18th - 4:15.74) finished in the top 20.  Chaplin's time was his best in the 1,500 this season and the seventh-fastest in school history.  Weller came back on Sunday and ran strong in the 5,000 meters, taking 11th place (15:39.76) while freshmen Erik Saka (19th - 16:05.11) and Dan Hodson (16:22.82) hit the top 25.

Garnet freshman Rory Stackpole had a strong performance in the javelin on Sunday, placing seventh out of 23 competitors with a toss of 149' 4" on Sunday.

Final Team Scores:

1. Haverford 144, 2. Gettysburg 111, 3. Ursinus 109.50, 4. Johns Hopkins 99.50, 5. McDaniel 93, 6. Muhlenberg 89.50, 7. Dickinson 81, 8. Franklin & Marshall 58.50, 9. Swarthmore 31

COMPLETE RESULTS

WESTMINSTER, Md. - Swarthmore had several strong individual performances, including a bronze medal performance by the 4 x 800 meter relay squad, while finishing ninth at the 2006 Centennial Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships at McDaniel College this past weekend.

The Haverford  team earned its second Conference championship, and its first since the 1995 season.  Gettysburg sprinter Lauren Parker, the 100 meter and 200 meter champion, was named outstanding track performer while Haverford's Jessie Belden was named outstanding field performer.

On Friday night, the first slate of competition, senior Carrie Ritter ran fourth in the 10,000 meter run with a time of 39:44.58 (good for fourth-fastest in school history). 

On day two, The 4 x 800 meter quartet of Kavita Hardy '08, Lauren Fety '06, Caitlin Mullarkey '09, and Emily Wistar '06 ran third to Haverford and Muhlenberg, finishing with a time of 9:54.31.  Mullarkey also took fifth in the 400 intermediate hurdles posting a personal-best (and the fifth-fastest in school history) with a final heat time of 1:07.20.  

On the final day of competition, Wistar ran a strong seventh in the 1,500 meters with a time of 4:53.77.  That time was a personal-best for Wistar and the sixth-fastest in school history.  Hitting the top 25 in the 1,500 as well were freshmen Kathy Feeney (17th - 5:10.54) and Faith Pampel (22nd - 5:15.63).  Later in the afternoon, Ritter and freshman Emma Stanley ran seventh (18:33.34) and eighth (18:37.57), respectively, in the 5,000 meter run.

Final Team Scores

Haverford 185, Muhlenberg 138, Dickinson 108, Gettysburg 103, McDaniel 88.5, Johns Hopkins 75, Ursinus 50, Franklin & Marshall 47.5, Swarthmore 21, Bryn Mawr 3

GAME BOX SCORE

HAVERFORD, Pa. - Ursinus junior ace Mallory Greene allowed one run on six hits while sophomore Erin McHugh and senior Marci Logan collected two hits as the Bears downed Swarthmore 4-1 at the 2006 Centennial Conference Championships on Sunday morning on the campus of Haverford College.

Junior first baseman Kelly Siano and freshman centerfielder Lauren Walker led the Garnet two hits.  Siano tallied the lone run for Swarthmore, coming on a her second home of the season, a solo shot in the fourth inning.

With the victory, Ursinus (30-7) advances to the face top-seed Haverford to decide the 2006 Centennial champion. 

The Bears took a 1-0 lead in the top of the third, putting an unearned run across when sophomore Jessica Cherry scored on Logan's RBI single to right. 

Ursinus added two more in the fourth, taking the 3-0 lead when Ellie Knise drove in senior Kelly DeBow with a single up the middle.

The Garnet got on the board in the bottom of the fourth, when Siano drove an inside fastball from Greene over the left field fence.  It is the 10th four-bagger hit by Swarthmore this season, easily breaking the school record set in 1998 and matched in 2005.

Ursinus answered with a run in the top of the fifth; McHugh reached on an infield single, stole second, and scored on junior Mary Reid's single to center.

Swarthmore refused to go quietly, working a rally in the bottom of the seventh against Greene, the two-time Centennial Pitcher of the Year.  Senior catcher Christina Procacci drew a one-out walk (the 104th of her career) and Walker beat out a high hopper over the first base bag.  Senior right fielder Danielle Miller grounded a ball to third where Bears' third baseman Sarah Hennessey tagged out Procacci.  Garnet freshman Christine Sendelsky, a first-team All-CC selection in 2006, came to the plate and the Bears pitched around the first-year slugger for the second time today.  Greene worked ahead in the count on Swarthmore's next batter, sophomore Katie Gold.  The Garnet shortstop cracked a 1-2 pitch back in the box and Greene made a nice stab at the ball, calmly throwing to first to end the game.

Greene (14-6) worked all seven innings for her second victory of the championship, allowing one run on eight hits while striking out six.  Freshman right-hander Alexandra Zelaski (11-6) struck out four batters in seven innings for Swarthmore, allowing two earned runs on eight hits while walking only one.

Swarthmore head coach Renee Clarke is the fifth Garnet coach (second in 2006) to win a Centennial Conference playoff game.  She joins Lee Wimberly (men's basketball - 1997), Karen Borbee (field hockey - 2000), Adrienne Shibles (women's basketball - 2001, '02, '05), and Jeremy Loomis (women's tennis - 2006).

Swarthmore, making its first-ever appearance in the Centennial playoffs, now stands at 23-17 on the season and will wait to find out if they will be granted a berth in the E.C.A.C. Softball Championships.

GAME ONE BOX

GAME TWO BOX

HAVERFORD, Pa. - Sophomore Katie Gold had five hits and drove in four while classmate Dhalia Perez added four hits as Swarthmore split a pair of Centennial playoff games on the opening day of competition at the 2006 Centennial Conference Softball Championships hosted by Haverford College on Saturday afternoon.

The Garnet (23-16) fell to defending champion Ursinus 7-3 in the first game but came back in the afternoon to defeat McDaniel 8-4.  The Centennial Championships are a double-elimination tournament so the Garnet will face Ursinus, victims of Haverford 8-0 on Saturday afternoon, at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday, May 7 at Haverford.  Click here for all the Championships scores and box scores.

In the morning game, the Bears jumped on Swarthmore starter Marianne Klingaman in the first inning, taking a 1-0 lead as Ursinus' junior Mary Reid laced a two-out single up the middle to drive home freshman Jennie Moore.

Swarthmore evened the score in the top of the third; freshman Lauren Walker cracked a one out single to center and stole second base one out later.  Garnet freshman Christine Sendelsky smoked a 3-2 pitch from Bears' starter Mallory Greene down the left field line for an RBI double.  The next batter, sophomore Katie Gold, beat out a slow dribbler to third base and Sendelsky wheeled home to give Swarthmore a 2-1 lead.

Ursinus took the lead back in the bottom of the inning as Ellie Knise walked and Moore bunted her way on.  A sac bunt by Jessica Cherry moved up the runners and Knise came in to score on a wild pitch.  Reid lofted a deep double over Walker's head in center field, plating Moore with her second hit of the afternoon, giving the Bears a 3-2 lead.

The Bears put the game out of reach with four more runs in the bottom of the fifth.  Moore reached base with one out with an infield hit, Cherry was hit by a pitch, and the moved to third when Garnet left fielder Kristen Caspar '09 couldn't come up with Marci Logan's fly to left center.  Swarthmore went to the bullpen and brought in reliever Emily Walz '08, who walked in a run to make it 4-2.  Ursinus third basemen Sarah Hennessy, the next batter up, hooked a line drive to right field that spun away from Swarthmore's Danielle Miller, allowing two runs to score.  Miller's throw back to the infield went wayward and Reid advanced home to bring the score to 7-2 Bears.

Swarthmore got a run back in the top of the seventh when Sendelsky reached on a fielder's choice, moved to third on a double by Gold, and scored on a Dhalia Perez '08 RBI single to left.  Greene induced Klingaman to pop out for the final out to send the Bears into the winner's bracket.

Greene (13-6) tossed all seven innings, allowing three runs on 11 hits while striking out six.

Klingaman (7-5) suffered the loss, throwing 4.1 innings, giving up six runs (five earned) with one strikeout.

Perez tied her season high with three hits with an RBI while Miller, Sendelsky, and Gold had two hits apiece. 

The second game pitted McDaniel, defeated 7-1 by top-seed Haverford, and the Garnet in the first elimination game.  The two teams split a doubleheader at McDaniel on April 30.

The Green Terror put up the first run of the game in the first inning when sophomore Emily Trainor singled and scored on senior Megan Mitchell's double to right centerfield. 

Swarthmore evened the score 1-1 in the bottom of the frame as Gold singled, moved to second on Siano's sacrifice bunt, and scored on junior Melissa LaVan's single to left field.

The Garnet took a 3-1 lead with two runs in the bottom of the third inning.  Procacci led off with the inning with a walk and was moved over by Walker's sacrifice bunt.  Miller then doubled down the left field line, driving in Procacci.  Sendelsky then sent a drive to deep centerfield and Miller tagged up and headed to third base.  The centerfielder's throw sailed into the dugout, allowing Miller to come home for the 3-1 Garnet lead.

Swarthmore tacked on a fourth run in the bottom of the fourth when Caspar's fly ball to left got away from the McDaniel left fielder, allowing Perez to come home to score, with Caspar ending up on third.

The vaunted Garnet offense got rolling in the fifth; Walker led off with a triple down the left field line and Miller followed with a walk.  The Green Terror went to the bullpen and brought in reliever Mary Abrams.  Abrams immediately drilled Sendelsky in the leg to load the bases.  Gold made McDaniel pay, crushing a three-run triple to right-center to put Swarthmore ahead 7-1.  Junior Kelly Siano hit a grounder to the right side, driving Gold in to make the score 8-1.

The Green Terror answered with three runs of their own in the top of the sixth, putting together three hits (all with two outs) to cut the lead to 8-4.  Zelaski got Abrams to fly out to end the threat.  In the seventh, Zelaski retired McDaniel in order to clinch the victory and keep Swarthmore's championship hopes alive.

Gold was 3-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs scored while Miller added two runs, a hit, and drove in a run.

Zelaski (11-5) picked up the win by spreading nine hits and four runs over seven innings, striking out two batters. 

Procacci drew two walks on the day, increasing her career total to 103 to take over sole possession of third-highest total in Division III history.  The record is 106 held by Mariann Shumbo from East. Connecticut St. and Brenda Bowers from Ohio Northern.

LEXINGTON, Va. - 12th-ranked Carnegie Mellon won four straight singles' matches to defeat 18th-ranked Swarthmore 5-2 in the first round of the NCAA Division III Team Tennis Championships hosted by Washington & Lee University on Saturday afternoon.

Swarthmore took a 2-1 lead after the doubles' competition as the Garnet No.2 duo Jennie Park '09 and Erica Lukoski '08 defeated CMU's Sheena David and Samantha Shultz 8-4 and the No. 3 Garnet pair of juniors Waverly Lutz and Sara Sargent downed Kelly Nakamura and Alison Liu 8-6.  Swarthmore's top doubles' tandem, juniors Sonya Reynolds and Marissa Matthews, fell to the Tartans Mona Iyer and Amy Staloch 8-4 at No. 1s.

The Tartans (16-6), ranked fourth in the Atlantic South region, rolled back to win the match with strong play in singles' action.  David downed Matthews 6-4, 6-4 at No. 3 singles and Liu fought past Sargent 6-2, 7-6 (6) at No. 4.  Nakamura cruised past Swarthmore's Emily Townsend '06 6-2, 6-3 while Shultz got past Lutz 6-2, 6-3 to send Carnegie Mellon into the second round against top-ranked Washington & Lee.

The Reynolds/Staloch match at No.1 and the Park/Iyer match at No. 2 were suspended as the outcome of the overall match was determined, as per NCAA rules.

The Garnet (16-3) saw their season-high win streak end at 14 in a row.  Swarthmore will look forward to Reynolds' second appearance in the NCAA Division III Individual Tennis Championships in Santa Cruz, CA on May 17-22. 

Carnegie Mellon 5, Swarthmore 2

FREDERICKSBURG, Va. - Junior Adam Wallwork rallied back from down a set win at No. 5 singles, sending #20 Swarthmore to a 4-3 victory over #14 Washington (Md.) in the first round of the NCAA Division III Team Tennis Championships hosted by University of Mary Washington on Saturday morning.

Swarthmore (7-10) will face the winner of host #7 Mary Washington, 4-1 winners over Johns Hopkins on Saturday,  in second round action on Sunday, May 7 at 1:00 p.m. 

The Garnet took the two out of three in doubles action to earn the doubles point and a 1-0 advantage.  Jon Reiss '07 and Jon Lo '08, Swarthmore's No. 2 doubles pair, downed Washington's Mike Edison and Maciek Prytula 8-4 while the top Garnet pair, seniors Zac Rodd and Brian Park, downed the Shoremen's top duo, Arturo Solis and Tim Riskie (ranked fourth in the Atlantic South Region), 8-5 to clinch the point.  The third doubles' match (matching the Garnet duo of Kevin Shaughnessy and Sam Sidhu against Washington's Anantha Bhaskar and Rafael Roldan) was suspended at 6-6 with the doubles' point already decided.

The Shoremen took a 2-1 lead by winning at No. 6 and No. 3 singles; Roldan downed Swarthmore's Sam Sidhu 6-3, 6-1 while Bhaskar got past Park 6-1, 6-3.  The Garnet got rolling when Reiss remained unbeaten in Division III (10-0) with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Riskie at the second flight.  Lo fought back from down a set at No. 3s to defeat Edison 1-6, 6-0, 6-3 putting Swarthmore up 3-2.  Solis, the top-ranked player in the region, battled past Rodd (ranked fifth in the region) at No. 1s 6-4, 7-6 to even the match.  This left the No. 5 match-up to decide who would advance to the second round.

Wallwork dropped the first set 2-6 to Washington's Prytula, but Wallwork re-grouped to win the next two sets, 6-3, 6-2 to advance the Garnet into the second round.

This is the third consecutive year Swarthmore has eliminated Washington from the NCAA Tournament.  All three occasions have taken place in the first round and ended with a score of 4-3.

Swarthmore 4, Washington 3

DOUBLES
No. 1 - Park/Rodd (SC) d. Solis/Riskie (WC) 8-5
No. 2 - Reiss/Lo (SC) d. Edison/ Prytula (WC)  8-4
No. 3 - Kevin Shaughnessy/ Sidhu (SC) vs. Bhaksar/Roldan (WC) 6-6 sus.

SINGLES
No. 1 - Arturo Solis (WC) d. Zac Rodd (SC) 6-4, 7-6 (3)
No. 2 - Jon Reiss (SC) d. Tim Riskie (WC) 6-3, 6-3
No. 3 -  Anantha Bhaskar (WC)) d  Brian Park (SC) 6-1, 6-3
No. 4 - Jonathan Lo (SC) d. Mike Edison (WC) 1-6, 6-0, 6-3
No. 5 - Adam Wallwork (SC) d. Maciek Prytula (WC) 2-6, 6-3, 6-2
No. 6 -  Rafael Roldan (WC) d. Sam Sidhu (SC) 6-3, 6-1

Swarthmore, PA - Swarthmore College senior Christina Procacci (Moorestown, NJ - Moorestown), freshman Christine Sendelsky (Edison, NJ - John P. Stevens), and junior Kelly Siano (Fort Collins, CO - Poudre) have been named to the 2006 All-Centennial Conference team. Procacci and Sendelsky are first-team selections and Siano received honorable mention, as voted on by the conference head coaches.

Procacci started all 16 conference games for Swarthmore, finishing tops in the Centennial in walks (11) and times hit by pitch (five), and second in on-base percentage (.517).  The team's starting catcher, Procacci did not commit an error in conference play (66 chances) while handling a pitching staff that posted an earned run average of 2.36.

Starting all 37 games in 2006, Procacci set career-highs in hits (29), runs (23), RBIs (21), batting average (.321), and on-base percentage (.525) while tying her own Centennial record with 35 walks.  She finished the season fourth in Division III in walks per game (0.95) and eighth in hit by pitch per game (0.24).  In 133 career games, Procacci drew 101 walks, tying her for third all-time in Division III history.

Sendelsky started 16 conference games at second base, completing the season tied for the Centennial lead in home runs (three), tied for second in runs scored (12), tied for fourth in RBIs (11) and total bases (29), and fifth in slugging percentage (.558).  Starting all 37 games in 2006, Sendelsky led the team in seven offensive categories: batting average (.391), hits (45), runs (37), doubles (12), home runs (four), total bases (73), and slugging percentage (.635).  Her four home runs tied the school record for the most in one season, matching the total hit by Michelle Walsh '98 in 1998 and Mary Mintel '05 in 2005.

Siano also started all 16 conference games for the Garnet, anchoring the infield at first base by committing only two errors in 115 chances (.984 fielding percentage) in Centennial play.  Siano appeared in all 37 games in 2006, setting career-highs in batting average (.346), hits (37), runs (22), doubles (five), RBIs (15), slugging percentage (.421), on-base percentage (.407), and stolen bases (three).  She was second on the team, to Procacci (.986) in fielding percentage (.984) making only four miscues while handling 223 chances.

Procacci and Sendelsky are the second and third Swarthmore women to make the first team;   Walsh earned the distinction in 1996 as a sophomore third baseman.  Sendelsky is the 25th Centennial freshman to make the first team.

Swarthmore (22-17, 9-7 Centennial) had one of the best seasons in school history in 2006, breaking school records for overall and conference wins while earning its first Centennial playoff berth.