This Week in Walsh University Athletics
Monday, February 23, 2009
Mon. 23 Men’s Tennis (H) University of Findlay (Hall of Fame Courts) 12 pm
Sat. 28 Women’s Basketball (H) AMC Playoff 2 pm (AM 900 WCER)
Men’s Basketball (H) AMC Playoff 4 pm (AM 900 WCER)
MEN'S BASKETBALL: 4th Ranked Cavs (25-3, 12-1) Earn Share of AMC Title and Top Seed for AMC Tournament
NAIA No. 4 (new ranking 2/23) Walsh (25-3, 12-1) stretched its season long winning streak to 13 games, with back-to-back American Mideast Conference wins over Daemen College and Northwestern Ohio. The Cavs close the season tied with Cedarville University for the AMC crown and share the title with the Yellow Jackets. It marks the fifth straight season that Walsh has won the AMC title outright, or shared the championship. Cedarville receives the NAIA automatic tournament berth because of their victory over the Cavs on January 10. Walsh, while almost assured a fifth straight national tournament berth because of their ranking and season, has secured the top seed for the upcoming AMC Tournament. Walsh plays the winner of Tuesday's Notre Dame College/University of Rio Grande game on Saturday at 4 pm. The Cavs defeated both teams at Alumni Arena during the regular season. Ticket information and tip-off time will be announced on February 23. All playoff games will be broadcast live on AM 900 WCER and on the Internet at www.wcer.us.
Joe Shardo (6-5, Sr., Yorkshire, OH/Versailles) scored a game-high 32 points, as Walsh tripped up Daemen College 78-58 in an AMC game on Friday night. Shardo was 7-11 from the floor in the first half, scoring 18 points, as the Cavs built a 40-32 halftime lead. The Cavs extended the lead to double digits in the second half, and held it throughout the remainder of the game. Shardo finished 12-19 from the floor, which included 5-10 from three-point, as he eclipsed the 30-point mark for the third time this season. He also grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds. Kyelce Cescato (6-10, Jr., Barra Bonita, Brazil, Colmeia Entec) added 14 points, NAIA assist leader Jeremy Shardo (6-3, So., Yorkshire, OH/Versailles) handed out 10 and Saihou Jassey (6-6, Jr., Banjul, Gambia/Rose Hill/Bradley) chipped in 12 points off the bench.
Walsh turned in of their gutsiest performances of the season in a 60-50 road win at Northwestern Ohio on Saturday night. Early in the contest, the Cavs were showing the effects of having played Daemen the night before and traveling the next day. The Cavs were having trouble finishing, and shot a disastrous 25% in the first half on 8-31. The Cavs, the NAIA's top three-point shooting team, also missed all seven of their long range attempts. Despite the poor shooting, the Cavs trailed by just five points (27-22) at the half. In the second half, the Cavs displayed the talents that have produced a number four ranking and 25 wins. After falling behind 29-22 in 63 seconds, the three-balls began to fall, as the Cavs climbed back into the contest. The Cavs caught fire and ran off 12 quick points in the next three minutes to take a 34-29 lead at the 15:35 mark. Joe Shardo, who scored 32 points against Daemen on Friday, came to life. After scoring just three points on 1-8 from the field in the first half, Shardo would score eight points in the Cavs 12-0 run, on his way to 15-point night. He would play 77 minutes in the back-to-back games. The game was tight until the final minutes. Walsh held the lead, until NW Ohio took their final lead at 44-43 with 6:29 to play on a Josh Vorst jumper. Kyelce Cescato would give the Cavs the lead for good on the next possession at 45-44 with 6:08. The turning point of the game came in the Cavs' next three possessions; as Brandon Speck (6-0, Jr., Mansfield, OH/St. Peter's) nailed three straight three-balls to give the Cavs a 54-45 lead with 3:39 to play. The Cavs outscored the Racers 15-6 in the final 6:08. Joe Shardo led the Cavs with 15 points, while playing in front of over 50 family and friends. Younger brother, Jeremy, played 40 minutes for the second straight night and finished with 14 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Cescato scored 12 points and grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds, while Speck finished with 12 points.
Walsh beat both Notre Dame and Rio Grande in the regular season. The Cavs beat the Falcons 83-66 on February 14, and downed Rio Grande 107-100 on January 31.
The Cavs are averaging 87.0 points per game, tops in the AMC, with six players scoring in double figures. Joe Shardo leads the Cavs in scoring, with a 17.9 (3rd AMC) per game average. He is shooting .513 (6th AMC) from the field and .438 (3rd AMC) from three-point and .820 (2nd AMC) from the foul line. Shardo has reached double figures in each of the last ten games and is averaging 24.4 points per game over the period. He is also averaging 6.4 rebounds per contest. Jeremy Shardo is averaging 14.5 points and leads the AMC and NAIA with 226 assists for an 8.1 per game average. Shardo is shooting .470 from the field, .442 from three-point and .792 (3rd AMC) from the line. Kyelce Cescato is averaging 14.5 points per game, with a team-leading 8.4 rebounds. He also leads the team, and AMC in field goal percentage (.647/4th NAIA). Brandon Speck is averaging 12.2 points and leads the AMC in three-point shooting (.464). Speck is also shooting .917 from the free throw line.
As a team, the Cavs lead the AMC and are among the NAIA leaders in numerous categories. In scoring; 87.0 (AMC 1st, NAIA 6th), scoring margin 21.9 (AMC 1st, NAIA 3rd), free throw percentage .739 (AMC 1st, NAIA 5th), field goal percentage .507 (AMC 1st, NAIA 2nd), 3-PT FG percentage .438 (AMC 1st, NAIA 1st), rebound margin 11.8 (AMC 1st, NAIA 3rd), assists per game 16.4 (AMC 2nd), assist/turnover ratio 1.60 (AMC 1st, NAIA 1st).
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: Cavs' (19-11, 11-4) Can't Clinch, But Earn Top Seed for AMC Tournament
Any disappointment the NAIA 23rd ranked (new ranking 2/23) Cavs (19-11, 11-4) have suffered the last four days must be put behind them. Despite failing twice to clinch their first NAIA National Tournament berth since 1998, the Cavs still have a chance to reach the tournament, as they are the top seed for the upcoming American Mideast Conference Tournament. Walsh now needs two wins to reach Iowa. The Cavs return to action on Saturday (2 pm), hosting the winner of the Mount Vernon Nazarene/Northwestern Ohio game, played in Lima on Tuesday. The Cavs beat MVNU 73-71 at Walsh on January 3, but fell 95-81 at NW Ohio last Saturday. If Walsh wins Saturday, they will host the AMC Tournament Championship on Tuesday, March 3. All AMC playoff games will be broadcast live on AM 900 WCER and on the Internet at www.wcer.us.
Walsh opened the week with a lopsided 72-50 Mayor's Cup win over Malone at Osborne Hall. The Cavs have won two straight Mayor's Cup games and can retire the Cup with a win at Walsh next season. Walsh shot .577 (15-26) from the floor in the first half and led 41-24 at halftime. The Cavs cooled off in the second half, but still outscored Malone 31-26 to sweep the season series from Malone for the second straight season. The win also evened the all-time series at 31. Kristi Yoder (6-1, Fr., Millersburg, OH/Hiland) led the Cavs with 13 points, going 5-5 from the floor. Leah Seaman (5-8, Jr., Louisville, OH/HS) and Mandi Swickard (6-1, Fr., Alexandria, OH/Northridge) each tallied 10 points. Seaman was a perfect 4-4 from the floor, while Swickard's 10 point effort is a career-high, as were her game-high eight rebounds.
Walsh's first chance to clinch a NAIA tourney berth came at home on Friday night, but Daemen College came back from a 14-point second half deficit to defeat the Cavs 85-73 in an AMC game. Leah Seaman (5-8, Jr., Louisville, OH/HS) ignited the Cavs with 16 first half points, as Walsh led 44-34 at the break. Seaman had two steals and scored the Cavs last seven points of the half, the last three on a half court shot which beat the buzzer. Walsh built the lead to 14 points (48-34) with 18:23 to play, and led 59-49 with 13:01 to play. Daemen would then catch fire, and outscore the Cavs 12-2 and tie the game at 61 with 8:40 to play on a Sarah Bogardus three-pointer. Walsh took their final lead at 66-64 with 6:30 to play on a Jessie Miller (5-10, Jr., Strasburg, OH/HS) three-pointer. With the score tied at 68, Daemen took the lead for good with 4:19 to play on a jumper from Mary Kate Wilson. Walsh would pull to with one point, at 73-72 with 2:23 to play on two Kristi Yoder free throws, but would get no closer. Daemen would shoot free throws and close the game with a 12-1 run. Seaman led the Cavs with 18 points off the bench. Cara Bedard (6-0, So., Randolph, OH/Waterloo) added 15 points, with Yoder and Chelsea Chaffin (Fr. 5-3, Mt. Sterling, OH/Madison Plains) each scoring 10.
The Cavs second chance came at Northwestern Ohio on Saturday, but turnovers proved costly, as Northwestern Ohio defeated Walsh 95-81 in the regular season finale for both teams. Despite shooting 60% (12-20) from the floor in the first half, Walsh turned the ball over 15 times and trailed 50-35 at the half. NW Ohio hit 56% percent of their shots and were relentless on the glass with nine first half offensive rebounds. Walsh rallied and trimmed the lead to eight points in the second half, but was not able to overcome the first half deficit. Bright spots in the loss were the play of Cara Bedard and Jessie Miller. Bedard was 7-12 from the field, 8-10 from the line and finished with a game-high 22 points. She also grabbed a game-high seven rebounds. Miller played her finest game of the season, connecting on 8-16 from the field to finish with a season-high 20 points. Ciera Burkes (5-3, So., Shaker Heights, OH/HS) added 16 points, four rebounds and three assists off the bench.
Katie Berry (So., Cleveland, OH/St. Joseph’s) leads the Cavs in scoring, and is averaging 13.6 points per game (AMC 10th). She is shooting .467 (AMC 5th) from the field and .791 from the line. Cara Bedard is the only other player scoring in double figures, averaging 12.4 points and a team-leading 5.9 rebounds. Bedard is also shooting a team-leading .539 from the field, .812 (AMC 3rd) from the foul line, and has recorded four double-doubles on the season. Freshman Chelsea Chaffin is averaging 8.1 points and is shooting .782 (AMC 9th) from the foul line.
As a team, the Cavs have eclipsed last season’s win total overall (13) and in the AMC (5). Walsh's 18 wins are the most since they finished 20-11 under Theresa Berg in 2003-04.
WOMEN'S INDOOR TRACK: Women's Track Sets New Mark
Coach Al Campbell received some fine individual performances this weekend. On Friday, the Cavs distance medley relay team set a new school record at Capital University. Megan Case (So., Louisville, OH/HS), Andrea DiNinno (Sr., Greensburg, PA/Central Catholic), Kristen Havens (So., Wadsworth, OH/HS) and Erin Koppel (Sr., McDonald, OH/HS) won in a time of 13:09.51.
On Saturday, the Cavs traveled to Kent, for the KSU Tune-Up. DiNinno placed third in the 3000m (10:35.87), Natalie Borland (So., Kent, OH/Roosevelt) was fifth in the high jump (5'11"), Jackie Misiak (Sr., North Royalton, OH/HS) placed eighth in the 300m hurdles (49.81) and Ashley Lewis (So., Louisville, OH/HS) finished ninth in the 300m (45.33).
