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(03/15/12 5:00am)
After back-to-back victories against Washington and Lee and Gettysburg, the Hopkins wrestling team fell short of nationally ranked Messiah last Friday night in Grantham, PA, 22-16. Coming off of the two previous victories, the Blue Jays looked to continue their momentum and take down the Falcons and make a statement. Despite the loss, the Blue Jays hung with the Falcons until the last match and had the victory within reach. This performance against the nation's 24th best squad should give Hopkins the confidence needed to finish out the rest of the season strong. On Friday, the Jays took an early lead, wining the first four out of five matches. This resulted in an early 13-6 advantage over the Falcons. Leading the initial charge were Hopkins co-captain and junior Paul Marcello, sophomore Henry Stauber and freshman Paul Bewak, with decisions at 141, 149 and 125, respectively. Stauber's 10-2 major gave the Blue Jays and early 10-6 lead. However, despite their early dominance, Hopkins could not sustain the advantage. The Blue Jays fell behind after the midway point, but made another push, led by co-captain and junior Reid Mosquera in 197-pound weight class. The captain stepped up with a hard fought win for the Jays to hold the deficit to 19-16. This put the Blue Jays in a good spot going into the final match. With everything riding on the final matches, the Falcons ultimately proved victorious. Messiah's Russell Jones secured the victory with a decisive win at 285. Although the Blue Jays lost the match, the residual effects could prove far more important and beneficial for the squad. The Blue Jays proved that they could wrestle with anyone and perform to a high level. Freshman standout Paul Bewak has been outstanding all season with an overall record of 20-7 and a Centennial Conference record of 4-0, and his performance against a nationally ranked opponent only bolstered his confidence. Bewak has learned quickly what it takes to be a collegiate wrestler. "The biggest adjustment for me was that in college there are no easy points," the Greensberg, PA native said. "You have to be ready to give 100 percent every time in every position to even have a chance at scoring." Coming up against his biggest challenge so far at JHU, a nationally ranked opponent in Messiah, Bewak was forced to hone the mentality he has taken in the past matches and go beyond. "It felt really good beating a nationally ranked team because it shows me that I'm ready and able to compete at the higher levels of my sport," he said. The Blue Jays' light weights (125, 141, 149, 157) all stepped up during the match and provided the driving spark needed to hang with the 24th-ranked Falcons. This confidence has echoed throughout the team and with Centennial Conference Championships just two weeks away, the timing could not be better. Marcello, a veteran on the young Jays who advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2010-2011, has high hopes for the team with the Centennial Conference Championships just a few weeks away. "This is the year to win conferences, and this is the team to do it," Marcello said. The Blue Jays have yet to win a Centennial Conference Championship, but the team has shown their resilience and toughness in their recent matches and is looking to make history. To finish out the regular season, the Blue Jays will face the Merchant Marine Academy and Stevens Tech on Sunday, February 12th and will then face New York University the following week. If the Blue Jays can build off of their momentum gained from the battle with Messiah, then Hopkins should storm into Conferences ready to take the title.
(03/15/12 5:00am)
The Hopkins women's tennis team traveled toGreencastle, IN this past weekend to compete in the ITA National Team Indoor Championship. The competing teams were Denison University, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges, Washington University, University of Chicago, Washington & Lee University, Carnegie Mellon University,DePauw University and Hopkins. This nationwide tournament featured some of the best teams in the country, including eight of the top 16 teams in the latest Campbell/ITA Division III women's team rankings, half of which sit inside the top 10. Last year's champion, the Emory Eagles, did not get slated into the tournament, so a new champion would be crowned. In the opening round on Friday afternoon, Hopkins drew a tough opponent, the eighth-ranked Washington & Lee Generals. Hopkins found themselves down, 4-2, but they did not give up. The Blue Jays eventually tied the match at 4-4. This late surge was led by Hopkins sophomore Abby Clark and freshman Shannon Herndon. Clark beat Washington & Lee'sTrelsie Sadler 6-4, 6-3 to win at fifth singles. Herndon then followed with a victory over Lindsey Burke in three sets, 3-6, 7-5, 7-5 at fourth singles. Despite cutting the deficit, the Washington & Lee Generals ultimately prevailed 5-4 over the Blue Jays. With the opening round loss to the Generals, the Jays next faced off against the University of Chicago in the consolation semifinals. Chicago jumped out to an early 2-1 lead with wins at first and second doubles. Hopkins freshman Elaine Baik and senior Courtney Boger tied the match at one with an 8-6 win over Chicago's Maggie Schumann and Linden Li. But Chicago came back with another win to take the lead back to 2-1. Chicago never looked back after taking the early lead. They stayed in the lead until the end, earning a 6-3 final score over Hopkins. After two tough losses in their first two matches, the Blue Jays sought revenge against sixth-rankedDension University and got the much needed win. This was the highest ranked opponent that the Blue Jays had ever beaten in the program's history. Hopkins took an early lead with a decisive 8-2 victory in the opening match. After Denison took the second match, it was all Hopkins. In the end, Hopkins defeated Denison, 5-1. This victory gave the Blue Jays a seventh place finish in the ITA National Indoor Championship. Although the Blue Jays did not finish as high as they hoped, their performance showed great promise heading into the rest of the season. The Blue Jays faced some of the best teams in the country and they were barely edged out in their two losses. The tournament also gave the Blue Jays the opportunity to get acclimated with their team before going into Centennial Conference play. The Blue Jays will be back in action on Saturday Mar. 17th at Haverford. This will start conference play. Hopkins is looking to build off of their performance at the ITA Indoor Nationals and carry that momentum throughout the season.
(03/15/12 5:00am)
The Hopkins Blue Jay baseball team looked to take their victory over York last Wednesday into the weekend and beginning half of this week in order to gain some momentum before their annual spring break trip to Arizona. However, the past three games did not end exactly how the Blue Jays had planned. On Friday, the Jays took on the Mustangs of Stevenson. Hopkins jumped out to an early lead in the first inning behind junior first baseman Jeff Lynch. Senior catcher and co-captain Aaron Borenstein reached base, and Lynch drove him home with a double in the left-center field gap. In the second inning, the Jays brought in two more runs off of a couple of hits and walks. At the end of the second inning, the Blue Jays were up 3-0 on the Mustangs. Senior right-hander and co-captain Alex Eliopolous was on the hill for the Blue Jays. Eliopolous was dominant throughout the game, leaving the Mustang hitters guessing on every pitch. The Mustangs did not cross home until the seventh inning. Eliopolous finished with eight strikeouts through seven innings while only yielding one run. The sixfoot- six, 205-pounder felt strong after his outing. "I felt like I pitched really well, but late in the game the ball bounced Stevenson's way," he said. "We got really unlucky with the rest of the game, but knowing our team, we will bounce back." Once Eliopolous exited the game in the eighth inning, the Mustangs saw their chance to come back and used the pitching change to their advantage. The Mustangs led off the inning with a home run on Eliopolous' final pitch of the game, and they did not stop there. Stevenson put up three more runs in the inning to take a 5-3 lead after the eighth inning. The Blue Jays then retook the lead in the ninth once again behind the bat of Lynch. Lynch finished the day two-for-three with three RBIs. Going into the bottom half of the inning, the Blue Jays were up one run, and it looked like they were going to close out the victory. However, the Mustangs had other plans. Stevenson manufactured a run in the ninth and tied the game. The game would end there due to darkness. Oddly enough, this was the second time this season that Hopkins had tied a team this season. The Blue Jays then returned to the field in the Nation's capital, taking on the Catholic Cardinals. Once again, the Blue Jays jumped out to an early lead with junior catcher Ryan Zakszeski launching his first home run of the season to bring around two runs. The Cardinals then cut the lead in half, scoring one run in the second inning. The Blue Jays responded by scoring two more runs in the third. Hopkins put together three straight singles courtesy of junior middle- infielders Kyle Neverman and Mike Kanen, followed by a knock from Borenstein. The Blue Jays had two runners cross home plate in the inning and left the top half of the inning leading 4-1. Sophomore right-handed pitcher Tyler Goldstein made his first career start for the Blue Jays and had solid stuff. Goldstein was throwing with good velocity and off-speed pitches, but, the second time around the line-up, Catholic started piling on hits. The Cardinals entered the game with a solid lineup - averaging nearly six runs per game - and this day was no exception. The Cardinals put up five runs in the third inning on six hits to take a 6-4 lead. Each team tacked on one more run on the day, but, ultimately, the Cardinals left the field with a hard-fought victory, 7-6. The Blue Jays then traveled to Ashland, Virginia to face Randolph-Macon on Tuesday to complete their four-game road trip. For the third game in a row, the Blue Jays started with runs. The Blue Jays struck first with a double from Kanen, driving in Neverman. The Blue Jays then racked up four more runs and posted five runs total in the first inning. Senior right-hander and co-captain Sam Eagleson was on the mound for the Blue Jays and was lights out for the first few innings. After two innings, Eagleson had struck out five batters. The Yellow Jackets responded in the next few innings, however, stringing a few hits together to cut the Hopkins to one, 5-4. In the top of the fifth, senior designated hitter J.R. Santaniello belted a deep home run to extend the Blue Jays' lead to 6-4. However, the two run lead was not enough for Hopkins. Randolph-Macon responded with nine runs on seven hits in the bottom half of the frame and cruised to victory from then on, 15-8. Despite the back-to-back losses, the Blue Jays know they can bounce back and quickly become a dominant force during their Arizona spring break trip. Hopkins has been jumping out to quick leads, but unlucky breaks have crippled them in the later innings. The Blue Jays leave for Arizona this coming Thursday and play ten games in Tempe, including games at the spring training complexes of the Chicago Cubs and Cincinnati Reds. Their first game will be on Friday against Springfield at 11 a.m. MT. Once the Blue Jays return, they will begin Centennial Conference play against Dickinson on Tuesday, Mar. 27th.
(03/15/12 5:00am)
The Hopkins men's basketball team traveled toChestertown, MD to face Washington College this past weekend. The Blue Jays took down the Shoremen, 71-67. This was the final regular season game for the Blue Jays before the Centennial Conference Tournament. In the early going, the Blue Jays found themselves trailing 15-6 to the Washington College Shoremen. It was senior day for the Shoremen so the team was amped up during the early minutes. However, WC could not sustain their lead for long allowing Hopkins to go on a 11-2, led by junior Mike Rhoads and classmate Adam Spengler. At the half, the Blue Jays were down three, 31-28, but after the initial minutes went, the team was happy with their position. Freshman George Bugarinovic dominated the second half for the Blue Jays. He scored 18 points on the day, 12 of which came in the second half. Bugarinovic has started 23 of 25 games for the Blue Jays, and his proven success throughout the year was spotlighted when he took control of the second half. Bugarinovic accompanied his 18 points with a career high 13 rebounds. It was his fourth double-double of the season. Anchored by the performance of Bugarinovic, the Blue Jays were able to defeat the Shoreman in Chestertown for the first time since 2008. The Hopkins Blue Jays and the Washington College Shoremen will square off for the second time in a week on Wednesday. If the first game was any indication of how the second game will play out, then the Blue Jays will find themselves in a close battle till the final buzzer. However, facing the Shoremen again in such a narrow time frame may give the Blue Jays the upper hand. Sophomore Daniel Corbett thinks the team can use this to their advantage. "This time we will know what to expect. Our game plan will be the exact same as it was the first game and if we execute like we did this past Saturday, we know we can win." Corbett also noted that it is a challenge to face the same team twice in a short time span because they will try to revamp their game plan in hopes of a different outcome. However, the Blue Jays do not have an easy offense to contain. "They (the Shoremen) know our offense well. But we are a versatile team with multiple offensive sets," Corbett went on to say. It certainly will be a tough game for the first round of the Centennial Conference Playoffs, but, if the Blue Jays stick to their game plan, they will be successful. It has been a busy start to the Centennial Conference Playoffs for the Blue Jays. Many accolades have surrounded this past victory to finish off the regular season. Head coach Bill Nelson was named Centennial Conference Coach of the Year. Nelson led the team to a 15-10 record overall and an 11-7 record in conference. This is the first time since 2008 that the Blue Jays will finish above .500. The Blue Jays also had Bugarinovic and Corbett selected to the Honorable Mention All-Centennial Conference team. Bugarinovic is just the third freshman in Blue Jays' history to be named to the All-CC honorable mention team, and for good reason. He leads the team in scoring averaging 9.9 a game and rebounding with 5.9 a game. Daniel Corbett leads the team in assists with 63 and steals with 38. The Blue Jays will take their recent accolades and season success into Goldfarb Gym Wednesday night to once again battle the Shoremen in the first round of the Centennial Conference Playoffs. Coverage of the game can be found in next week's issue of The News-Letter.
(03/15/12 5:00am)
The Hopkins wrestling team made history this past Saturday in Gettysburg, PA with the capture of their first-ever Centennial Conference championship. After the Blue Jays were awarded the Centennial Conference Title, Head Coach Keith Norris was honored as the Centennial Conference Coach of the Year. The top five finishers - Hopkins, Ursinus, Stevens, Gettysburg and Merchant Marine - were separated by narrow point margins. Because of this, a true team effort was needed to take the trophy. Hopkins' 10 wrestlers all played pivotal roles on Saturday, but it was junior Reid Mosquera, The News-Letter's Athlete of the Week, who sealed the victory for the Blue Jays.Mosquera had a daunting task in the 197-pound division, taking on topseeded Connor McNamara of Ursinus. McNamara had already taken downMosquera in a previous match this season in just 90 seconds. Unfortunately for McNamara, however,Mosquera battled for an 11-8 victory in the final three seconds. The victory sealed the conference for Hopkins, as well as an individual championship for Mosquera. Leading up to the final match, the preceding events put Hopkins in a position to take the conference crown. All of the points won in the previous matches were crucial for the chance to take the title in the final match. Individual accomplishments also made program history for the Blue Jays. Freshman Paul Bewak took the first-ever championship in the 125-pound weight class for the Blue Jays. Bewak has been outstanding this season, and his two victories on Saturday did not stray from his consistency. Bewak moved to 27-7 on the season. Junior Paul Marcello, wrestling at 141 pounds, also made Blue Jay history with the third individual championship of his career. Marcello won three wins by decision to claim his individual title. The sophomore class yielded two great performances from Henry Stauber and Matt Fusaro. Both won individual titles, at 149 and 157 pounds, respectively, but their performances spurned the points needed to get to the final match and set up Mosquera's finale.Stauber, the lone Blue Jay to win an individual title not seeded first or second, also faced an opponent who had beaten him in a previous match this year: C.J. Caserta of Stevens. Caserta came in seeded second, and Stauber, like Mosquera, reversed that former outcome. It is meaningful to note that the Blue Jays stepped up when it mattered this past weekend. Facing opponents that have had the upper hand in the past is not an easy task and to beat them on the biggest stage is even more impressive. The individual titles took the spotlight in the final matches, but all of the Blue Jay's efforts were necessary for capturing their first ever Centennial Conference championship. Hopkins took the title with 79 points, while Ursinus came in second-place with 73.5 points, just short of their tenth overall title. Through ups and downs - Hopkins entered the bouts with a 6-15 record - Hopkins never lost confidence and fought until the very end. They advanced to the NCAA Tournament, which begins next Friday, Mar. 9.