Hello everyone, my name is Zach Palmer and I am a senior attackman for the Johns Hopkins Men’s Lacrosse Team. Each week I am going to write and give the “inside scoop” on what’s going on throughout the week and how the games go; sort of a behind the scenes insight.
With the Centennial Conference Championships less than a week away, the Hopkins men’s and women’s track teams were able to turn in strong performances at the Keogh Invitational in Haverford, Pa.
Led by junior Katherine Simeon and freshman Rachel Viqueira, six Blue Jays were placed on the Eastern Women's Fencing All-Conference team on Feb. 18 in Hoboken, N.J. Simeon decimated the opposition at the fencing competition last Saturday, winning 16 out of her 17 bouts. She has now earned First Team EWFC All-Conference honors for the third straight season. She is currently 63-16 for the season and 244-87 for her career. Simeon was also honored with the Denise O'Connor Fencer of the Year honors in the Sabre and Foil.
Coming off of two back-to-back disappointing seasons, the Hopkins women’s lacrosse team opened their 2013 campaign this past Saturday at Homewood Field by doubling up Old Dominion 20-10 in resounding fashion. The squad was led by junior midfielder, Sammy Cermack, who began the second half of her distinguished career with a dominant four goal performance. In addition to compiling her second career hat-trick, Cermack also controlled five draws.
The NBA season came to a halt this past weekend as some of the league’s silkiest shooters and dirtiest dunkers came together for the annual NBA All-Star Weekend. The Toronto Raptors rookie Terrence Ross contorted his body to throw down some ferocious slams while Kyrie Irving of the Cleveland Cavaliers put on a clinic, knocking down seven straight three-pointers, enroute to the three-point contest championship. With such thrilling performances, The News-Letter thought it would be keen to highlight some surprises and offer some predictions at the halfway mark of the season.
This past week, the Lady Jays wrapped up their regular season against Centennial Conference opponent Franklin & Marshall. On Feb. 13 the team traveled to Lancaster, Pa. to face an opponent who had beaten them earlier in the season at home. However, this did not deter them from ending their season on a high note. The squad came out of the gates in control of the game and entered half time with a one-point lead over the Diplomats.
The Blue Jays women’s lacrosse team opened their season on Saturday, taking on the Old Dominion Lady Monarchs on Homewood Field. The 19th ranked Blue Jays came out shooting, as juniors Sammy Cermack, Taylor D’Amore and Sarah Taylor scored the first three goals just three minutes and 28 seconds into the game.
When it comes to facing adversity, some teams are better than others. This past week, the Hopkins men’s basketball team demonstrated that not only are they one of those teams that can handle the pressure, but that they thrive in it.
This past week, the Hopkins men’s and women’s swim teams competed at the Bluegrass Mountain Championship in Charlotte, N.C., a competition that lasted three days for the athletes.
Despite the bitter weather, a crowd of about 1,700 braved the blowing winds at Johnny Unitas Stadium to watch the seventh ranked Hopkins Blue Jays take on the home team, 28th ranked Towson Tigers. After securing a comfortable 12-6 win, Hopkins is off to an undefeated start in the regular season. Sophomore Wells Stanwick notched a career high of four points in the game, with two goals and two assists. Junior Brandon Benn led the team with four goals, marking his sixth career hat trick.
The fourth ranked Hopkins men’s lacrosse team began their 2013 season with an emphatic, 15-6 win over the Siena College Saints this past Friday at Homewood Field.
After a win against McDaniel College and a loss to Ursinus, the Hopkins men's basketball team moved to 15-8 overall and 11-5 in the Centennial Conference. With the win against McDaniel, the Blue Jays clinched a berth into the Centennial Conference tournament. With two games left in the regular season, the Blue Jays are tied for second place in the conference with Muhlenberg College and Dickinson College.
This past Wednesday the Hopkins women's basketball team took on Centennial Conference opponent McDaniel. Despite a strong game from senior forward Alex Vassila, the Blue Jays fell to the Green Terror by a score of 57-50. Vassila led the way with 18 points and nine rebounds on the night. McDaniel took the lead 47-44 with five minutes left in the fourth quarter and never looked back. Hopkins rallied late to bring it within one point at 51-50 with a 1:03 left, but missed their final three shots of the game as their comeback fell short.
Friday evening at Goldfarb Gymnasium turned into one of the strongest victories in Hopkins Wrestling history. With an impressive adversary in 16th-ranked Messiah, the Blue Jays were more than aware of the type of team effort it would take to take down the Falcons.
Slicing his way through the competition, freshman Josiah Yiu has electrified the collegiate fencing world with precision and energy. At the Duke Invitational this past weekend, Yiu won 11 of his 14 bouts, leading the Jays in overall wins and extending his debut season record to 42-12. The News-Letter sat down with the freshman to ask him about his whirlwind season and aspirations for post-season playoffs.
The men’s fencing team was on the road last weekend, traveling to Durham, North Carolina for the Duke Invitational on Feb. 9 and returning to Homewood for the MACFA Round Robin on Feb. 10. The squad went 6-3 overall for the weekend.
The Hopkins Women’s track team competed in the Navy Multi-Madness Meet and the Bucknell Winter Classic this past weekend. After breaking several records at both meets, the Blue Jays have added greater prestige to their already remarkable season.
The Hopkins women’s fencing team — now en-route to their fourth straight title — dominated the Eastern Women’s Fencing Conference Championship this past weekend in Baltimore. The team managed to go unbeaten in six matches to claim the top spot and, in each match up, the Blue Jays blew away the competition.
This past weekend, the Hopkins men’s track & field team competed at the prestigious Bucknell Classic. The Blue Jays faced off against some of the top Division III track teams in the region, along with several Division I schools.
Apart from inscribing her name in the record books, senior women’s basketball star Alex Vassila has got the Blue Jays on a roll. Vassila’s leadership and unselfish play currently has Hopkins sitting in third place in the Centennial Conference standings, primed to make a strong run in the conference tournament. Before the final week of regular season play, Alex Vassila took some time out of her busy schedule to answer a few questions for The News Letter.
