Athletics News

Swarthmore staged another improbable comeback in the top of the ninth, but a miscue in the field gave Muhlenberg the opening they were looking for, sending the Garnet to a 3-2 defeat in 10 innings on Wednesday afternoon in Allentown, Pa.

With Swarthmore behind 2-0 and down to their final out, co-captain Jody Fisher '05 was hit by a 2-2 pitch from Mules lefty Gregg Burkhart. Second baseman Patrick Christmas '08 immediately doubled to right field, driving home Fisher all the way from first. Third baseman Justin Chen '08 followed with a single to right field, allowing pinch runner Jacob Anguiano '07 to score the tying run. Noah Cooper-Harris '07 reached on error by the Muhlenberg shortstop, moving Chen up to second base. The Mules brought in reliever Aaron Regensberg who induced Sam Faeder '07 into a ground ball out to end the Garnet ninth.

Co-captain Jared Leiderman '05, having allowed only five Muhlenberg (9-3, 1-0 CC) hits thus far, returned to the mound in the bottom of the ninth to face the heart of the Mules line-up. The lanky right-hander set down the 2-3-4 hitters down quietly, striking out two batters in the process.

Regensburg struck out Matt Fisher '08 and retired Scott Dalane '08 on a ground out for two quick outs in the top of the tenth. Catcher Travis Allen '08 cracked a two-out double into right field, putting the go-ahead run in scoring position. Regensburg had other ideas, quietly retiring Ian Adelstein '07 on a chopper to second base.

Leiderman came out for the bottom of the tenth, but Swarthmore's luck would run out. Matt Tobia made it to second base on a Garnet error, putting the winning run only 180 feet from the plate. Mike Hart followed with a base hit to right field, allowing Tobia to circle third and cross the plate with the winning run.

It was the opening game of the Centennial Conference schedule for Swarthmore (2-9, 0-1 CC) and All-Conference performer Leiderman did not disappoint. The California native pitched nine-plus innings, taking the loss after allowing three unearned runs on five hits while striking out 11 Mules. Leiderman has pitched brilliantly for Swarthmore this season, posting Conference-highs in innings pitched (37.1) and strikeouts (41), lowering his ERA to 2.17 - good for sixth-best in the Centennial.

Allen, Christmas, Faeder, Chen, and Matt Fisher all had hits for Swarthmore.

The Garnet will host Muhlenberg on Friday afternoon in their next game, a 3:00 p.m. contest.

Swarthmore College women's basketball coach and associate professor Adrienne Shibles has announced her resignation from the College.

In nine seasons at Swarthmore, Shibles improved the program in dramatic fashion. In 2000-2001 the Garnet won its first Centennial Conference Championship, and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, the school's first such appearance. The 23-5 record shattered the school mark for most wins in a season.

For her efforts, Shibles was named the Russell Athletic/WBCA District 4 Coach of the Year in March of 2001. The Garnet continued its winning ways, posting 74 wins and two post-season berths to the ECAC Tournament in the last four seasons. She leaves with the most wins of any coach in Swarthmore women's basketball history, compiling a record of 138-96 (.590 winning pct.).

A vital part of the Swarthmore community, Shibles spent four years as the Director of Physical Education, served on the Swarthmore Foundation Board, and sat on various head coaching search committees.

"Adrienne has been the quintessential coach and professor", said Adam Hertz, Director of Athletics at Swarthmore. "She has been uncompromising in her dedication to her team, the student body, and this department as a whole. That will be hard to replace."

During her tenure, Shibles motivated her players to great success, producing a Jostens Award winner, two Kodak All-Americans, two Centennial Conference Players of the Year, four All-Conference players, and four straight appearances on the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Top 25 Academic Honor Roll.

Shibles will continue at Swarthmore through June, and will then move her family to Bethel, Maine, where she has accepted the Associate Athletic Director position at Gould Academy, a prestigious boarding school. A search for her replacement will begin immediately.

Midfielder Niamh Shortt '06 scored four goals, including the game-winner, as Swarthmore withstood a furious comeback to down Widener University 10-9 on Tuesday afternoon at breezy Clothier Field.

Swarthmore had taken a 9-5 lead following a goal by midfielder Megan Speare '05 at the 14:58 mark. The Garnet went into cruise control, and the Pioneer seized the momentum.

Allison Glavin, Alexis Brook, and Tricia Lynch combined for four consecutive goals for Widener in a little over three minutes, bringing the game to a 9-9 tie with 9:11 remaining.

The Garnet retained possession in their attack zone and began to run their offense. Megan Sanborn '08 got a step on her defender and raced towards the right side of the cage. A Pioneer defended rolled over to help her beaten teammate, leaving Shortt alone behind the net. The junior took a pass from Sanborn and scampered around the back of the cage, creating a one-on-one opportunity with Widener goalie Brianna Tarry. Shortt acted quickly, firing the ball over the left shoulder of Tarry to give the Garnet a 10-9 lead.

The Swarthmore defense and goalie Susannah Blair '08 stood tall against a trio of Pioneer offensive possessions, the most memorable being a kick save by Blair on a low shot headed for the right post.

The Garnet took possession with just over three minutes to go and strung together a host of passes to keep the ball away from the Pioneers to their fifth win of the season.

Shortt led Swarthmore (5-2) with four goals, giving her seven in the last two contests. Freshman Rachel Jordan collected a hat-trick of her own, her second of the season, while Lindsay Roth '06, Ele Forbes '05, and Meagan Speare '05 each added goals for the Garnet.

Blair made ten saves in goal for Swarthmore, while Tarry made 15 stops for Widener (4-2).

Lynch led the Pioneers with three goals and an assist, with Glavin and Krasley added two goals apiece. Lauren Gloane contributed a goal and four assists from her attack position.

Swarthmore will resume their Centennial Conference schedule on March 31st when they host Washington (Md.) College in a 7:00 p.m. contest.

Box Score

Widener used a seven-run fifth inning to cruise to a 14-7 victory over the Garnet in a non-conference match-up in Chester, Pa. on Saturday afternoon.

Center fielder Scott Dalane '08 cracked a two-out, two-run double in the bottom of the second inning to put Swarthmore in an early 2-1 lead .

The Garnet appeared in control as hurler Jared Leiderman '05 cruised through four innings of work, limiting the Pioneers to one unearned run on a single hit while fanning four.

Swarthmore extended the lead to 4-1 in the top of the fifth as senior first baseman Jody Fisher singled home two runs.

Widener quickly took away the Swarthmore momentum, jumping on the Garnet bullpen with five hits in the fatal bottom of the fifth. Right fielder Ryan Shoultes provided the majority of the damage, launching a bases-clearing triple in his second at bat of the inning. By the time the dust had settled, Widener lead 8-4.

The Pioneers added another run in the sixth and two more in the seventh to extend their advantage to 11-4.

Swarthmore put together a rally in the top of the eighth, drawing four consecutive walks from Widener reliever Bob Quaile to push a run across. Widener brought in reliever Tom Pletcher, who immediately induced catcher Ben Mendelson '08 into a double play. Dalane scored on the play, cutting the lead to 11-6. Pletcher retired Andrew Bender '08 on a ground ball to end the Garnet rally.

Widener pushed three more runs across of Swarthmore reliever Noah Cooper-Harris '07 in the bottom of the eighth, and Pletcher shut the door in the ninth to send the Pioneers to their seventh straight win.

Fisher led Swarthmore with two hits and two RBIs, while Dalane, Sam Faeder '07, Travis Allen '08, Ian Adelstein '07, and Scott Young '06 had hits.

Zac Rider took the loss for the Garnet (2-8).

Swarthmore opens their Centennial Conference schedule on Tuesday, March 29th, when they travel to Muhlenberg College for a 3:00 p.m. game.

Sonya Reynolds '07 was a winner in both singles' and doubles' play, yet it was the resilient Mary Washington tennis team that exited Faulkner Courts with a 6-3 win over 25th-ranked Swarthmore on Saturday afternoon.

Reynolds teamed up with classmate Waverly Lutz to defeat Eve Helmer and Tallie Fugate 8-4 in the No. 1 doubles match. The Eagles won the other two doubles matches, taking a 2-1 lead into singles play.

Reynolds make quick work of Gayle Smith in the No. 1 singles match, dispatching Smith 6-0, 6-1. Elli Suzuki '06 (above) won at No. 2 doubles, beating Helmer 6-0, 3-6, 6-0.

The 28th-ranked Eagles (5-5) swept the remaining four singles matches, surviving a pair of third-set tie-breakers, to pull of the upset.

Swarthmore (4-2) travels next to Tennessee on April 2nd to take on University of the South in a 2:00 p.m. match.

Results

The nationally-ranked Bullets scored six goals in the second half to bust open an otherwise close contest, defeating Swarthmore 10-4 on a cloudy Saturday afternoon at Clothier Field .

Gettysburg drew first blood as junior midfielder Chris Renzi beat Garnet goalie Frank Mazzucco at 8:02 to give the Bullets a 1-0 lead in the first Centennial Conference match-up for both squads.

Swarthmore quickly knotted the contest at the 6:06 mark when electric attack man Tim Chryssikos '05 put home his team-leading 13th goal of the season.

The Bullets came out firing in period two, placing a pair goals on the board three minutes in for the 3-1 lead.

Rugged midfielder Jay Charles '07 charged up the left flank and made it a one-goal game with 8:07 left in the half, eliciting a roar from the 225 fans on hand. Charles shrugged off a stick check at 15 yards and created enough space to spit a left-handed shot between the left post and Bullet goalie Pat Vaughan.

Gettysburg responded as many talented teams do, putting another score on the board in a short amount of time. Junior middie T.J. Liberto made his way to the front of the net, scoring at 6:27 to send the Bullets into the intermission with a 4-2 lead.

Chryssikos answered the bell in the third period, tallying his second score (14th of the season) at the 12:46 mark, and the lead was 4-3 Bullets.

The young men from Gettysburg responded once again, running off three scores in a little over two minutes to push their lead to 7-3. Renzi claimed two more scores to complete the hat-trick, while junior Evan Gallant collected his second score of the day.

Senior midfielder Tom Coughlin (pictured above) made it 7-4, notching an unassisted goal at 4:02, ending the goal-filled third stanza.

Gettysburg surged forward in the fourth period, getting three more goals on offense and Vaughan made three big saves in goal, sending the Bullets (4-2, 0-1) to their second consecutive win.

Mazzucco, facing a steady dose of shots all day, made ten stops in goal for the Garnet (2-3, 0-1).

Swarthmore travel to northern New Jersey on Saturday, April 2nd to face Drew University in a 2:00 p.m. contest.

The University of Rochester pounded out ten hits to defeat the Garnet 9-3 on Saturday afternoon at the College of New Jersey.

For the second straight day the Yellow Jackets jumped out to an early lead, this time scoring three runs in each of the first two innings to take a 6-0 advantage.

Rochester scored two more times in the top of the fourth, but Swarthmore answered with a run of their own in the bottom of the frame.

Katie Gold '08 led of the inning with a walk and was immdiately sacrificed to second by Danielle Miller '07. Siano popped up in shallow right, allowing Gold to move up to third on the play. Val Marone '05 drew a walk of her own, and Melissa LaVan '07 hit the ball to the shortstop. The Rochester fielder was unable to complete the play, allowing Gold to cross the plate to cut the deficit to 8-1.

Rochester put one more across in the top of the seventh to increase the lead to 9-1.

Christina Procacci '06 began a two-out rally in the final frame with a base on balls. Slugger Mary Mintel '05 (above) followed with a double in the gap, putting Garnet runners at second and third. Gold hit an infield single, driving home Procacci and Mintel scored on an error by the Rochester shortstop.

The Yellow Jackets (8-8) quickly stamped out the Swarthmore rally, getting Miller on a ground ball to the pitcher for the final out.

Emily Remus (0-4) took the loss for the Garnet, allowing six runs, three earned, in two innings while striking out three.

Gold led Swarthmore (4-13) with a pair of hits and an RBI. Procacci and Mintel each added a hit and a run scored.

Box Score

Sophomore pitcher Jess Kohut (6-3) picked up her fourth consecutive win as Kohut pitched a one-hit shutout complete game with four strikeouts.

The Lions scored all three of their runs in the bottom of the second. After doubling to reach base, Kristen Zimmerman went to third on an error and stole home for a 1-0 score. Then junior infielder Kelly Quigley singled through the left side to score freshman pinch runner Jonna Mahalchik and sophomore outfielder Jen Hughes who had reached on an infield single.

Sophomore Marianne Klingaman (1-4) took the loss for Swarthmore as Klingaman yielded three runs (none earned) on seven hits in a complete game.

Sophomore infielder Kelly Siano went 1 for 2 as Siano connected on the Garnet's lone.

The Garnet will host Widener in their next action, a scheduled 3:00 p.m. doubleheader on Tuesday, March 29th.

Box Score

Senior Mary Mintel's (above) solo home run stood alone Friday afteroon as the surging Garnet offense was held in check, falling 14-2 to the College of New Jersey and 5-1 to the University of Rochester in round robin action at TCNJ.

After one inning, the Lions of TCNJ led 3-0 as Siobhan Scullin came home on an error and Kristen Zimmerman doubled to right center to score Christina Lizzi who had reached on an error.  Zimmerman scored on a single through the right side by Jess Kohut.

TCNJ was up 8-0 after two innings of play before the Garnet got on the board in the bottom of the second.  Senior outfielder Samantha Brody singled through the right side to bring home both freshman infielder Katie Gold and freshman Anna Ghublikian both of who had reached on a single.

The Lions added two runs in the third, three runs in the fourth and one in the fifth to seal the win in five innings.   

Senior pitcher Jess Donohue (6-1) earned her sixth consecutive win as Donohue pitched her fifth complete game of the year.  She fanned seven batters and gave up two runs on six hits.  For Swarthmore, freshman Amy DiBiase '08 (1-4) took the loss as DiBiase allowed eight runs (six earned) on six hits in 1.1 innings of work.

Gold led the Garnet with a 2 for 3 effort and a run.

Swarthmore came out slow in the second game as Rochester went up 2-0 after one as freshman designated player Alicia Citro doubled to right field to score freshman outfielder Jessica Sorrentino who had reached on a single.  Citro scored on a Garnet error.

The Yellow Jackets added another run in the second as Jena Robertson singled to left field to bring home sophomore infielder Rachel Askin who had reached on a double.

Swarthmore cut the lead to 3-1 as senior outfielder Mintel homered over the right field fence in the top of the fourth, her third four-bagger of the season .

Rochester clinched the win in the fifth with two more runs as Citro homered over the center field fence, scoring Carr who had reached on an error.

Junior Kristina Long (4-2) threw a complete game for the Yellow Jackets as Long scattered just four hits and allowed one run.  Sophomore Marianne Klingaman '07 (1-4) suffered the loss as Klingaman gave up five runs (3 earned) on six hits with four strikeouts.

Christina Procacci '06, Mintel, Gold, and Kelly Siano '07 all had hits for Swarthmore (4-12).

The Garnet return to TCNJ to face off against the Yellow Jackets again in a 11:00 a.m. contest on March 26th.

TCNJ Box
UR Box

Sara Sargent '07 came to the rescue giving the Garnet a 5-4 victory over 2004 Centennial Conference Champ Muhlenberg in a match played in the Mullan Center. Sargent defeated Stacy Lipschultz 6-1, 6-3 at No. 5 singles on a gimpy ankle to halt the Mules 19-match Centennial win streak. The Garnet extends its own CC win streak to 11.

Sargent also teamed with Elli Suzuki '06 to post an 8-5 victory over Pam Kimmelman and Emily Oster at No. 2 doubles. It was in that match that the sophomore rolled her ankle.

Erica Lukoski '08 and Emily Townsend '06 were 8-2 winners over Lipschultz and Kelly Fraser at No. 3 doubles for the Garnet while Amy Schmidt and Ashley Reed defeated Sonya Reynolds '07 and Waverly Lutz '07 8-3 at No. 1 to give the Garnet a 2-1 advantage after doubles play.

Schmidt defeated Reynolds at No. 1 singles, 6-1, 6-2 to even the match at 2-2. Suzuki went 2-0 on the day with a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Kimmelman at No. 2, putting the Garnet back up 3-2.

Fraser defeated Sonya Vallabh '06 at No. 6 singles in a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 marathon to even the match at 3-3.

Marissa Matthews '07 breezed to a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Oster at No. 3 to put the Garnet within one of the victory but Waverly Lutz '07 defaulted to Reed at No. 4 after a stomach ailment. Reed held a 6-2, 2-1 advantage at the point of retirement setting up the Sargent heroics.

The two squads have combined to win the last four Centennial Conference Championships with the Garnet winning crowns in 2001 and 2003 and the Mules in 2004 and 2002.

The 25th-ranked Garnet host #28 Mary Washington on Saturday at 1:00. Results