April 1, 2013

ODAC Players of the Week

Thru Week Prior to: April 1, 2013

BASEBALL
Alex Tucci, Virginia Wesleyan, So., Pitcher
Tucci, a sophomore from Stewartstown, Pa., even his season record at 3-3 with a complete game win as part of two appearances last week. After throwing a scoreless inning of relief in a 5-3 loss to Randolph-Macon, Tucci kept 12th-ranked Shenandoah at bay with nine strong innings in a 3-2 VWC win. He gave up two runs (one earned) on six hits while walking three and striking out eight Hornets, a personal season-high. Tucci has started in seven of his eight appearances this season, recording four complete games, which is tied for second in the ODAC. He boasts a 2.98 earned run average in 54.1 innings of work, the third-most innings pitched in the conference.

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BASEBALL
Jonathan Mason, Bridgewater, Sr., Outfielder
Mason, a senior from Sterling, Va., collects his second weekly award of the season as he hit .688 to help the Eagles to a 3-1 record on the week. The Eagles were 2-1 against nationally-ranked teams with a win over No. 12 Shenandoah and a split with No. 8 Christopher Newport, in addition to victory over Washington and Lee. Mason had a slugging percentage of 1.125 and a .750 on-base %. He was 3-for-4 with two runs, two RBIs and a homer in an 11-2 win over Shenandoah. He was 3-for-3 with two runs scored, a triple and two stolen bases in a win over W&L. In an 18-6 win over CNU, he was 4-for 7 with three runs, four RBIs and two doubles. He was 1-for-2 with a stolen base in the loss to CNU. Mason is currently sixth in the ODAC with a .398 batting average. His .505 on-base percentage in third, which is helped by an ODAC-best 17 walks. He collected three free passes this past week.

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MEN'S LACROSSE
Derek Sweet, Lynchburg, Sr., Attack
Sweet, a senior from Duxbury, Mass., helped the Hornets to a 1-1 record against a pair of nationally-ranked opponents last week. In a 9-8 overtime win over #9 Washington and Lee, Sweet scored twice, including the tally that sent the game into overtime with a little over three minutes to play. Over the weekend, Sweet again forced extra time as the eighth-ranked Hornets locked horns with #5 Stevenson. Sweet's goal was his fourth of the game and came with only 39-seconds to play in regular, but the Mustangs went on to win with a man-up tally in OT. Sweet, who added two assists in that contest, has racked up 21 points on 14 goals and seven assists this season.

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MEN'S TENNIS
Hayden White, Washington and Lee, Senior
White, a senior from Baltimore, Md., helped lead the Generals to a 2-1 week by posting a 2-0 record in singles and a 3-0 mark in doubles. In a 5-0 win over Lynchburg, White and partner Brian Krouskos posted an 8-0 win at #1 doubles. In a 5-4 loss to #18 Carnegie Mellon, White picked up two points, including a 6-2, 6-1 win at #1 singles over Chris Heaney-Secord, the sixth-ranked player in the Atlantic South Region. He and Christopher Hu won 8-3 at #2 singles. In a 7-2 win over # 16 North Carolina Wesleyan, White won his 13th straight singles match, defeating Robert Kjellberg, who is the top-ranked singles player in the region. The score was 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (7-5). White and Hu posted their second straight 8-3 win at #2 doubles. For the season, White has posted a 21-5 singles record and a 15-7 doubles mark. In the latest (3/28/13) ITA rankings, White is the second-ranked player in the Atlantic South Region.

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OUTDOOR TRACK
Rachad Davis, Lynchburg, Junior
Davis, a junior from Virginia Beach, Va., climbed both the ODAC and NCAA Division III performance lists following a strong showing at the Virginia Commonwealth Duals hosted by Lynchburg College. Davis finished second to an unattached runner in the 110-meter hurldes, posted an ODAC top time of 14.98 seconds. That currently stands eighth in the country. Davis came back with a victory in the 400-meter hurdles in 53.89, setting another conference-best time and ranking sixth in the nation. Davis also helped the 4x100-meter relay team to a second place finish in 42.51-seconds.

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OUTDOOR TRACK
Alexis Janney, Roanoke, Freshman
Janney, a freshman from Daleville, Va., won a pair of individual events and was part of two winning relays at the Commonwealth Duals hosted by Christopher Newport University. Janney won the 100-meter dash in 12.57 seconds, and then added a win in the 200-meter dash in 25.38 seconds. Her 100 dash time is second on the ODAC seasonal performance list and tied for 26th in NCAA Division III. Her time in the 200 dash ranks #1 in the conference and ninth in the country. Janney ran the anchor leg of the 4x100-meter relay team comprised of Esther Prempeh, Alease Kinney and Brianna Hood. The quartet posted a time of 49.19, the second-best time in the conference behind RC's own ODAC top time of 49.07 set earlier in the season. Janney joined Kinney, Jessica Mejia and Carmen Graves is setting a new ODAC top time in the 4x400-meter relay in 4:00.12, which stands 13th in the country.

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SOFTBALL
MacKenzie Creech, Virginia Wesleyan, Jr., Pitcher
Creech, a junior from Hillsborough, N.C., appeared in three of the Marlins four games last week, picking up a pair of victories and a save. She opened the week with a scoreless inning to close out a 7-5 win over Randolph-Macon to record her first save of the season. She started and went the distance in game two against Randolph-Macon. She surrendered one run on three hits with one walk in seven full innings. She also fanned three Yellow Jackets. Creech capped her week with her 11th win of the season in an 11-3 victory over Mary Washington. For the week, Creech tossed 11.0 innings and posted a 0.64 earned run average, lowering her season ERA to an ODAC second-best 1.22. Her 11 wins are tied atop the ODAC lists, and she's fourth in both innings pitched (69.0) and strikeouts (54).

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SOFTBALL
Tori Higginbotham, Virginia Wesleyan, Jr., Outfielder
Higginbotham, a junior from Glen Allen, Va., extended her current hitting streak to eight games as she led the Marlins to a 4-0 week with double-header sweeps over Randolph-Macon and Mary Washington. Higginbotham went 7-for-12 on the week with a double, two homers, six runs scored and a pair of runs batted in. she also stole two bases and walked twice. She went 5-for-7 in the twinbill with R-MC, hitting a solo homer in each contest. The two round-trippers give the 2012 NFCA All-American a career-high nine, the second highest single-season total in VWC history. Higginbotham currently leads the ODAC in runs scored (36) and stolen bases (30), while her nine homers are second. She is also second in slugging (.897) and fourth in batting (.471).

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WOMEN'S LACROSSE
Allison Bonanno, Roanoke, Jr., Attack
Bonanno, a junior from Ridgewood, N.J., helped the Hornets to a 2-0 week in ODAC action with a near-NCAA Division III record in the one of the contests. Bonanna opened the week with four assists and seven draw controls in the Maroons 22-1 win over Hollins. At Randolph-Macon on the weekend, Bonanno set an ODAC and Roanoke record with 12 assists as the Maroons topped the Yellow Jackets, 21-11. The assists mark is second all-time in NCAA Division III history, topped by the 14 helpers posted by Krystin Shand from Farmingdale State in 2012. Bonanno had a hand in 15 of the Maroons' 21 goals scored against R-MC as she also tallied three times. For the season, Bonanno leads the ODAC with 44 assists and is third with 68 points. She entered last week's games tied for second in the country with 28 assists.

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WOMEN'S TENNIS
Sonja Meighan, Washington and Lee, Sophomore
Meighan, a sophomore from McLean, Va., went 4-0 during the Generals 3-0 week. In a 9-0 win over Randolph, Meighan posted a straight set win at #1 singles and teamed with Cameron Dorsey for an 8-2 triumph and #1 doubles. In a 7-2 victory against #7 Carnegie Mellon, Meighan topped Chelsie Motie 6-3, 6-0. Motie is the seventh-ranked player in the Atlantic South Region. Meighan and Patricia Kirkland posted an 8-2 win at #1 doubles, defeating the region's eighth-ranked tandem in Motie and Brynn Raschke. Meighan, the fifth-ranked singles player in the region, is 13-4 overall and 9-2 in dual matches this season. She and Kirkland, who top the ITA's Atlantic South Region doubles rankings, are 15-3 overall and 11-1 in dual matches.

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