Athletics News

LANCASTER, Pa. --Swarthmore gathered three more medals and took firm hold on third place after the second day of competition at the 2006 Centennial Conference Championships.

The Garnet now have 380 team points, sitting behind F&M (558) and Gettysburg (530).

The 200 yard medley relay got the finals' round started by capturing the silver medal in a time of 1:52.40. The group of Martyna Pospiezalska '06, Michele Hom '07, Jennie Lewis '08, and Sarah Cotcamp '07 put together the fourth-fastest time in school history.

Lewis collected her third medal of the Championships in the 100 yard butterfly, nabbing the bronze in a time of 1:00.14.

Swarthmore completed the night with a bronze medal in the 800 yard freestyle relay as Cotcamp, Franny Zhang '08, Patricia Funk '06, and Whitney Nekoba '08 combined to post a time of 8:22.14. It was the fourth medal of the competition for Cotcamp.

Day Two Results/Standings

SWARTHMORE, Pa. - Swarthmore forward Karen Berk scored a career-high 33 points as the Garnet defeated Haverford 68-58 Saturday afternoon in Tarble Pavilion.

It is the 17th consecutive time the Swarthmore (11-14, 7-11 CC) women have won over the Fords (6-19, 4-14 CC). The last Haverford victory came in 1998 when the Fords won 57-45 on the Main Line.

Haverford took its only lead of the night, 4-2, following a pair of free throws by freshman forward Brittany Lattisaw at 18:53. The scored was tied again at the 8:56 mark after Ford senior Katie Crowley hit two from the line at 8:56.

Swarthmore broke the game open with a 15-0 run, led by 10 points from Berk, to assume a 27-12 lead with 4:46 remaining in the half. Berk ended the half with 19 points, sending the Garnet into the intermission with a 31-22 lead over the Fords.

Crowley led Haverford with eight first-half points.

Garnet senior guard Jennifer Stevenson opened the second half with a jumper to push Swarthmore to a 33-22 lead. The momentum swung in the Fords' favor over the next six minutes with Haverford putting together a 14-3 run to knot the score at 36-all with 12:37 remaining.

Swarthmore answered with a lay-up from senior forward Cara Tigue and a triple by freshman Melissa Grigsby give the Garnet a quick 41-36 lead with 11:25 on the clock.

Haverford worked hard to keep the game close over the next six minutes, getting with 50-48 after a Lattisaw lay-up at the 5:48 mark.

A three-pointer by sophomore Laura Popovics and two buckets by Berk culminated a 7-0 run by the Garnet, who pushed the lead back to 57-48 with 4:38 left in the game.

The Fords would only get as close as six points the rest of the way; Swarthmore hit 6-of-10 from the line down the stretch to maintain control. Senior point guard Debbie Farrelly gave the crowd a thrill by sinking the final three-point attempt of her career to give the Garnet a 10-point lead with 1:08 left.

Berk sent the four seniors (Farrelly, Stevenson, Tigue, and Radiance Walters) off with an impressive performance. The sophomore center shot 10-of-19 from the floor and 13-of-17 from the line to establish the highest point total by a Swarthmore women since 2002. Two-time Centennial Conference Player of the Year Katie Robinson '04, in attendance for the Alumni Game on Saturday, dropped in 40 points in a 85-82 double overtime win at Johns Hopkins on February 6.

Berk added 10 rebounds and five steals, tallying her 13th double-double of the season. In three games this week, Berk is averaging 24.7 points, 15.0 rebounds, and 3.0 steals per game. Her previous career-high (29 points) came at Muhlenberg on January 20, 2005.

Popovics chipped in nine points for Swarthmore, Stevenson totaled eight points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals in her final appearance, while Tigue concluded her career with six points, seven rebounds and three assists.

Lattisaw tallied her own double-double for the Fords, scoring 14 points to go along with 11 rebounds. Abby Scattergood chipped in 12 points and a game-high seven steals while senior Claire Scribner totaled 10 points in her final game. Crowley was held in check for much of the second half, finishing an impressive four-year career with nine points and six rebounds.

Swarthmore completes the 2005-06 season overall record of 11-14 and finishes the Centennial slate with a 7-11 record.

Box Score

LANCASTER, Pa. -- Swarthmore grabbed three more medals on the second day of the Centennial Conference Championships, ending the night in third among seven teams with 381 points.

The 200 yard medley team consisting of Doulgas Gilchrist-Scott '09, Andrew Koczo '07, Brian Roth '09, and Jon Augat '07 brought home the bronze with a time of 1:38.36, a heart-beat away from a top-five time in the school record books.

Freshman Stephen Shymon, a record-setter in the 500 free on Friday, brought in his first medal on Saturday, claiming the bronze in the 400 IM with a time of 4:18.57. It was the the third-fastest 400 IM in school history.

Gilchrist-Scott collected the third medal of the day for Swarthmore, also his third of the meet, by grabbing the silver in the 100 yard backstroke with a time of 54.11 (second-best in school history).

Day Two Results/Standings

SWARTHMORE, Pa. - Ian McCormick '08 scored 12 of his 18 points in the second half as the Garnet withstood a late rally by the Haverford Fords to pull out a 62-57 victory. The win completes the first season sweep by the Swarthmore men's and women's teams over their Haverford counterparts since the 2000-01 season.

The Garnet honored senior co-captain Eric Williams '06 in a ceremony before the game. Williams got the start, his first of his career, and hit a key jumper early in the second half to help the Garnet build their largest lead of the game.

With hundreds of fans of both teams in the gym, the Garnet quickly quieted the rowdy Ford supporters by scoring on their first two possessions and kept them silent by clamping down on the defensive end. The visitors managed only two field goals in the first 8:47 of play as the Garnet build a 16-6 lead. Noam Fliegelman '08 came off the bench to cap the run with a three-pointer. The sophomore guard would hit three of five shots, including two of three from beyond the arc, to lead the team with eight points at halftime.

Swarthmore-Haverford games are rarely blowouts, though, and this game would be no different as the Fords ripped off the next six points before Matt Kurman '08 nipped the run in the bud with a trey. A few minutes later, with forward Steve Wolf '08 sidelined with two fouls, Mark Rohde '07 got a chance to provide a spark. The forward tipped in a Fliegelman miss, hit a three from the top of key, and grabbed a pair of rebounds in six minutes of action.

The Garnet built their lead as large as 11, 32-21 with 2:51 to play, before Haverford went on another 6-0 run to close the half. Ford guard John Elefterakis picked Chris Casey pocket and fed Brent Anderson for a layup to close out the scoring with Swarthmore ahead 32-27.

Swarthmore again asserted its will early in the second half, eight of the first 10 points and forcing an early Ford timeout. Again the visitors came back, closing the gap to 46-44 on a Jason Polykoff layup with 9:15 to play. Elefterakis came up with another steal on the ensuing possession, but forward Ben McDowell missed a potentially game-tying layup at the other end. The Fords kept the game close, but would not get another chance that good to even the score. McCormick '08 quickly extended the lead back to five, hitting a fallaway jumper while getting fouled and converting the free throw.

McCormick showed off his shooting range twice more in the next few minutes, hitting a pair of long jumpers to help the Garnet hold off the feisty Fords. Senior guard Jason Polykoff fed freshman forward Adam Howland for an open three pointer on one possession and converted a layup on the next to bring his team back within two points at 55-53. McCormick hit a pair from the line, but Howland made another jumper to keep it a one-possession game. Elefterakis had a chance to put the Fords ahead, but his three-pointer rimmed out with two minutes to play.

McCormick made one of two from the stripe at the other end, and the teams exchanged turnovers before Elefterakis bricked another three with 35 seconds remaining.

The Garnet guards then closed out the win with clutch free-throw shooting. Casey and Matt Kurman '08 both made two of two, with Kurman's pair ending the scoring with 18 seconds left.

McCormick made 7 of 12 shots from the field and four of five from the line for an efficient 18 points and tied with Wolf for the team lead with eight rebounds. Kurman, with 12 points, was the only other Garnet player in double figures.

Forward Ray Brown led the Fords with 14 points on 5-6 shooting. Polykoff added 13 and Howland 12. Elefterakis filled up the stat sheet with nine rebounds, four assists, and two steals.

The Garnet bettered their win total from last season with the victory and finish the year with a 5-20 record, 4-14 in the Centennial.

Box Score

LANCASTER, Pa. -- During the 2006 Centennial Conference Swimming Championships held Friday evening, Swarthmore placed third among seven teams with 152 points.

Three Swatties contended with 22 others to qualify for the 500 yard freestyle. Andrew Frampton '08, Stephen Shymon '09, and Tom Kelleher '09 took sixth (4:53.33), ninth (4:55.59), and sixteenth place (5:04.94), respectively.

Frampton took a commendable fifth in the 500 yard freestyle final (4:50.17), shaving three seconds off his preliminary time. Shymon won the consolation finals in a time of 4:42.80, breaking the record of 4:45.44 set by David Whitehead in 2000.

During the last event of the night, the 400 yard medley relay, Swarthmore managed to finish strong. Douglas Gilchrist-Scott, Andrew Koczo '07, Brian Roth '09, and Jason Horwitz '07 combined efforts delivered a silver medal (3:34.18), a mere three seconds off the lead.

Day One Finals

LANCASTER, Pa. - On Friday evening, the Garnet women competed against seven other schools to round off the first day of the 2006 Centennial Conference Swimming Championships. The team worked hard to snag third place, scoring 160 points, with tough season contenders F&M and Gettysburg at the helm.

After the long drive to Lancaster, PA, the Garnet women (7-4, 5-2 CC) arrived at Franklin & Marshall geared to go Friday afternoon. The Garnet swam three events, having seven Swatties qualify after the preliminaries, and five of those swimmers rank among the top ten.

In the 50 yard freestyle, Sarah Cotcamp '07 took the bronze (25.05) while sophomore Jennie Lewis took eighth (25.57).

Martyna Pospieszalska, Michelle Hom '07, Lewis, and Franny Zhang '08 finished off the night with third place in the 400 yard medley relay (4:05.68).

Zhang, Funk, Lewis, and Cotcamp also won the bronze in the 200 yard freestyle relay, swimming a time of 1:40.80.

Day One Finals

SWARTHMORE, Pa. - Swarthmore forwards Karen Berk '08 and Cara Tigue '06 tallied double-doubles as the Garnet fell to Alvernia 59-50 in Tarble Pavilion on Thursday evening.

Lauren Fortner led the Crusaders (13-12) with 13 points while Erin Knarr chipped in 12 points and Mandy Reinhart dropped in 10 points.

Berk scored 13 points while corralling a career-high 22 rebounds, finishing one rebound shy of tying the school record. Nancy Rosenbaum holds the Swarthmore record, snagging 23 boards vs. Vassar on December 5, 1992.

Tigue finished with a career-high 13 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the floor. The senior captain added 10 rebounds to register the first double-double of her career.

Alvernia was on top 26-24 at halftime as both teams struggled to find a mark on the basket. The Garnet hit 33% of their shots while Alvernia could only convert 28% on their end.

The Crusaders began to hit jump shots, extending their lead to 45-35 at 10:49 following a triple by Michelle Lutzkanin. The Garnet countered with a three from Laura Popovics '08 on the very next possession. Swarthmore cut the lead to 49-45 with 6:13 remaining as Popovics nailed another triple, but the Crusaders locked down on defense, limiting the Garnet to a single field goal for the remainder of the game.

The game hinged on the lack of efficient free throw shooting by the Garnet; Swarthmore hit only 7-of-21 (33%) from the charity stripe on the night.

Alvernia hit 41.4% of its shots from the field in the second half, including four baskets from beyond the three point arc.

The Garnet conclude the 2005-06 season on Saturday, February 18 when they host rival Haverford at 2:00 p.m. Swarthmore will celebrate Senior Day, recognizing the accomplishments of the four seniors: Debbie Farrelly, Tigue, Jen Stevenson, and Radiance Walters.

Box Score

CHESTERTOWN, Md. - Swarthmore, led by sophomore Steve Wolf's career-high 37 points, fought back from an 11-point second half deficit only to fall to Washington (Md.) 92-88 in Centennial action on Wednesday night.

Jonathan Webb led the Shoremen (12-12, 10-7 CC) with 22 points while guard Kyle Stem added 19 points.

The Shoremen had a hot-hand early on, sinking 6-of-12 (50%) from behind the three-point in the first half. Washington also made half of its attempts from the field, 13-of-26 while building a 43-32 lead at the intermission.

Garnet forward Steve Wolf led all scorers at the half with 16 points while Shoremen guard Kyle Stem led his squad with 15 points, including three triples.

Washington held Swarthmore at bay for much of the second half as both squads hit high percentages from the field.

The Garnet made their move at the six-minute mark and the Shoremen up 78-67. Sophomore forward Ian McCormick, saddled with foul trouble for much of the game, made his way back on to the floor to spark the Garnet. McCormick got the Swarthmore comeback started with a lay-up at 6:01 and the Garnet ran off the next seven points to cut the Washington lead to 78-76. Wolf capped off the scoring binge with a big dunk, finishing off a fast break ignited by a steal by sophomore guard Matt Kurman.

Stem answered with a lay-up for Washington, yet Wolf answered with back-to-back jumpers to tie the game at 80-80 with 4:13 left in the game. The Garnet took their first lead of the night thirty seconds later as McCormick sank a pair from the free throw line. Unfortunately for Swarthmore, McCormick fouled out on the very next play with 11 points on the night.

The Shoremen extended the lead back to three, 85-82, on a jumper by forward Jonathan Webb at 2:57, but Wolf had the answer once again, drilling a jumper to cut the lead to one.

Washington pushed the lead to 87-84 with 1:50 left following a pair of free throws by Joey Breslin. Wolf made his way to rim once again, dropping in a lay-up at 1:35 to bring the Garnet within one.

Breslin hit one-of-two at the line to make the score 88-86 Shoremen and the Garnet came up empty on the next trip down the floor. Swarthmore fouled Stem and the senior gave the Garnet life by missing both attempts from the charity stripe.

Swarthmore was unable to connect on its next offensive possession and Webb put the Shoremen up four, 90-86, with a pair of made free throws with 13 seconds left in the game.

Kurman streaked up the court for a lay-up to put the Garnet within two with six seconds remaining. Both teams traded time-outs looking to set-up for the crucial inbounds play. The Shoremen, inbounding underneath their own basketb caught Swarthmore off-guard and sent freshman guard Tim Kohlrus up-court. Webb hit Kohlrus on the run and the freshman scored the goal and got fouled to seal the victory for Washington.

Both teams efficiently shot the ball in the second half; Swarthmore got back in the game by hitting 52.8% while the Shoremen upped the ante with a 56.7 shooting percentage. Much of the contest was spent at the free throw line as the two teams combined for 56 fouls; the Garnet nailed 24-of-31 (77.4%) while the Shoremen checked in with a 24-of-37 (64.9%) performance.

Wolf was hard to contain all night, shooting 13-of-24 from the floor and 10-of-11 from line for 37 points, the highest total in the Centennial this season. This is the second time Wolf has topped the 30-point mark; the sophomore nailed 32 points vs. Philadelphia Biblical on January 5. It is also the most scored by a Garnet player since assistant coach Matt Gustafson dropped in 37 point at Drew on November 23, 2004.

Wolf grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds for his third double-double of the season.

Garnet point guard Chris Casey also enjoyed a banner night, dropping in a career-high 17 points on 5-of-7 shoooting from the floor and 6-of-7 from the line.

Swarthmore concludes the 2005-06 season this Saturday, February 18 when it hosts rival Haverford at 4:00 p.m. The Garnet will honor senior Eric Williams before attempting to complete a season-sweep of the Fords. Swarthmore defeated Haverford 60-43 on January 18.

Box Score

CHESTERTOWN, Md. - Swarthmore sophomore center Karen Berk scored a season-high 28 points and the Garnet shot a blistering 63% from the field in the second half to defeat Washington ( Md.) 62-51 in Centennial action on Tuesday evening in the Cain Athletic Center.

The Swarthmore women, feeling generous on Valentine's Day, assisted on 14 baskets, including a career-high seven helpers by senior point guard Debbie Farrelly. The team total is the second-highest total of the 2005-06 season.

The Garnet (10-13, 6-11 CC) trailed the Shorewomen 28-26 at halftime, courtesy of a deep three-pointer by Washington guard Regina Barrett in the final 25 seconds. The see-saw first half saw nine lead changes and seven ties, with neither team leading by more than four points at any juncture.

Much of the first half play revolved around the post players: Berk led all scorers with 13 first-half points while freshman forward Brianne Slizofski led Washington (5-19, 2-15 CC) with 10 points at the intermission. Both players struggled at times; the Shorewomen forced Berk into six costly turnovers while Slizofski was saddled with three personal fouls.

The score was knotted for the 11th time when Berk finished a lay-up at 13:15, making the score 41-41 and some ragged play ensued. The Shorewomen came down and got two open looks at a three-pointer but both shots missed and Garnet freshman Melissa Grigsby corralled the rebound. Grigsby's outlet pass missed its intended target, point guard Debbie Farrelly '06, and the ball ended up out of bounds with possession to the Shorewomen. The next three Washington possessions ended in missed shots while the Garnet turned the offensive end of the floor into a turnover party.

Little did the Garnet know, but the turning point in the game was about to happen. The Shorewomen took a 30-second timeout at the 11:04 mark but it was Swarthmore that benefited from the break in the action. The Garnet immediately ripped off seven straight points that turned into a 16-6 run and a 57-47 Swarthmore lead. Unselfish play and a hot hand by Grigsby fueled the out-burst; the freshman put in seven points over the run and the Garnet handed out five assists on six field goals.

Over the last three minutes and change, the Garnet executed the motion offense to answer each bucket by the Shorewomen. Swarthmore shot 15-of-24 (62.5%) from the field in the second half, finishing the game with a season-best shooting percentage of 51%. The Garnet did much of their damage in the lane, outscoring the Shorewomen 44-14 in the paint with a slight 36-34 advantage on the glass.

Berk shot 11-of-17 from the floor and 6-of-7 from the free throw line on her way to more than 20 points for the ninth time this season. The 13 rebounds gave the sophomore her 11th double-double in 2005-06, tied for most in the Centennial.

Grigsby enjoyed the best shooting night of her young career, hitting 5-of-6 for 11 points. Senior Jennifer Stevenson chipped in nine points while classmate Cara Tigue added seven points and seven rebounds.

Latoya Turner led the Shorewomen with 14 points while Slizofski ended up with 12 points on the night. Sophomore guard Elise Conway dropped off a game-high eight assists to go along with six rebounds and four steals for the Shorewomen.

The Garnet return to Tarble Pavilion this Thursday, February 16 when they host Alvernia College in non-conference action set to tip-off at 7:00 p.m.

Box Score

Jessica Larson '06 easily won her singles' match yet the Bryn Mawr Owls prevailed in a couple of close matches to defeat Swarthmore 3-2 in Tarble Pavilion on Tuesday evening.

Larson dispatched of Belinda Leung 11-1, 11-4 and Anjali Aggarwal '06 overcame Jennette Kwon in a nail-biter 11-9, 11-9 to claim both points for the Garnet (3-1). In other singles' action, Candice Cherk '07 fell to Ashley Hibelfarb 11-2, 11-1.

In doubles' play, Bryn Mawr's Sharon Grim and Naomi Philip teamed up to defeat Swarthmore's Mu Yang '07 and Maisha Howard '08 by a score of 15-8, 7-15, 17-14. The Owls also claimed a three-set victory in the final doubles' contest, as Luci Ho and Simona Radu defeated Patricia Kelly '08 and Karma Lama 8-15, 15-8, 15-11.

The Garnet will prepare this week for the Northeast Collegiate Tournament, to be held in Tarble Pavilion on Sunday, February 19 with an 8:00 a.m. start time.