November 19, 2007

This Week in Walsh University Athletics

Monday, November 19, 2007

Tues. 20 Women's Basketball (H) Roberts Wesleyan 6 pm

Men's Basketball (H) Roberts Wesleyan 8 pm *

* Game to be broadcast on AM 900 WCER

MEN'S BASKETBALL: (2-1) Cavs Split at Alvernia Tournament

NAIA No. 6 Walsh (2-1) split games at the Alvernia College Tip-Off Tournament in Reading, PA this past weekend.  The Cavs defeated Point Park University 110-83 on Friday night, but lost 80-73 to the University of Scranton in the championship game on Saturday.  This week, they play their home opener against Roberts Wesleyan College on Tuesday, November 20 at 8 pm.  The game will be aired live on AM 900 WCER and on the Internet at www.wcer.us.

Walsh scored 62 second half points in their win over Point Park.  Corey Jones (6-3, Sr., Avon Lake, OH/Akron Saint Vincent-Saint Mary), who was named to the All-Tournament Team, led the team with 19 points.  Jones was 7-9 from the floor and 5-6 from three-point.  Brandon Weems (5-10, Sr., Akron, OH/Akron Saint Vincent-Saint Mary) tallied 16 points, dished out nine assists and had six rebounds.  The Cavs bench was outstanding, scoring 56 points.  Lamar Skeeter (5-10, Fr., Dayton, OH/Fairmont Kettering) had 18 points and five rebounds, Josh Johnson (6-4, Jr., Warren, OH/Harding) 17 points and seven rebounds and Brandon Speck (6-0, So., Mansfield, OH/St. Peter's) 13 points.  Walsh shot .548 from the field for the night and a torrid .667 (24-36) in the second half.  In Saturday's title game, the Cavs picked up where they left off the night before, and built a 28-14 lead in the first half.  Scranton would then crawl back into the game, and close the lead to nine points at the half at 42-33.  The second half was all Scranton, as they out scored the Cavs 47-31, shooting .652 (15-23) from the field.  Walsh was ice cold in the final 20 minutes, connecting on only 8-23 for .348.  Transfer Joe Shardo (6-5, Jr., Yorkshire, OH/Versailles/Missouri-Rolla) came off the bench to lead the Cavs with 18 points.  Shardo was 6-8 from the floor and 3-4 from three-point.  Lamar Skeeter again provided a spark off the bench with 14 points and was named to the All-Tournament Team.

Walsh leads the all-time series 4-2 with Roberts Wesleyan.  The Cavs beat the Raiders 92-72 in an AMC Qualifying Playoff game last year.  This year the Raiders are 1-1.  They lost to Mercyhurst College 81-67 last Thursday.

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: Cavs Fall in Title Game at Rio Grande Tournament

Walsh (1-3) lost two out of three games last week, but reached the championship game of the Bevo Francis Tournament at the University of Rio Grande.  This week, the Cavs host Roberts Wesleyan College on Tuesday, November 20 at 6 pm.

Walsh fell to 0-2, losing 70-64 to the University of Northwestern Ohio (2-1) in their home opener last Tuesday.  The Cavs turned the ball over 15 times in the first half and trailed 38-29 at halftime.  After falling behind by ten points (44-34) in the second half, the Cavs came back in a flurry.  They would go on a 16-7 run in the next six minutes and take their first lead of the game at 51-49 on a Leah Seaman (5-8, So., Louisville, OH/HS) three-pointer.  After UNOH tied the game at 51 at the 9:33 mark, the Cavs took their final lead at 53-51 on a Callie Brutcher (6-0, Fr., Amherst, OH/Marion Steele) basket.  The Racers regained the lead at 55-53, and were never headed.  Seaman led all scorers with a career-high 16 points.  Cara Bedard (6-0, Fr., Mogadore, OH/Waterloo) added 13 points and six rebounds off the bench and Brutcher tallied ten points.  Walsh's Katie Berry (5-11, Fr., Cleveland, OH/St. Joseph Academy) led all rebounders with 13. 

Katie Berry and Leah Seaman combined for 36 points, as Walsh (1-2) won its first game of the season, 77-74 against Milligan College (1-4) at the Bevo Francis Tournament at the University of Rio Grande last Friday.  Walsh played a strong first half and led 45-35 at the break.  Milligan did not fold in the second half and would take the lead at 62-58 with 7:22 to play.  Seaman and Berry then hit back-to-back three's, as Walsh regained the lead at 64-62 with 6:24 to play.  Milligan would come back and take the lead at 69-68 with 4:32 to play, when Walsh's Angie Eickelman (5-9, So., Akron, OH/Hoban) hit a three to put the Cavs up 71-69 with 4:14 left.  Milligan led one more time, at 74-73 with 41 seconds to play, when Berry scored on a lay-up to put the Cavs up for good.  Berry then stole the ball on the next possession and Eickelman drilled another three to ice the game.  Berry paced the Cavs with 20 points, six rebounds and five steals.  Seaman added 16 points and five assists.  Natalie Houdek (6-0, Fr., Brunswick, OH/HS) scored 10 points, on 5-6 from the floor and Callie Brutcher led the Cavs with seven rebounds.  Walsh shot .500 (30-60) from the field.

Despite a fine defensive effort, Walsh (1-3) fell 58-50 to the University of Rio Grande (4-0) in the championship game of the Bevo Francis Tournament on Saturday.  Despite shooting just .280 (7-25) in the first half, Walsh trailed by only one point (22-21) at the break.  The second half was close throughout, with Walsh holding its final lead at 45-44 with 7:19 left.  Cara Bedard sparkled off the bench, leading the Cavs with 18 points and eight rebounds.  She was 8-16 from the floor.  Katie Berry was the only other Cavalier to reach double figures with 10 points.  Damoniq'e Askew (5-8, Sr., Barberton, OH/HS) came off the bench and grabbed seven rebounds in 13 minutes.

Walsh trails in the all-time series 3-0 with Roberts Wesleyan.  The Raiders won the last meeting in 2004-05.  This year the Raiders are 1-1.  They defeated Missouri-Baptist 70-66 in the Malone College Tournament last Saturday.

MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY: McKee 31st, Groholy 109th at NAIA Championships/McKee Just Misses All-American Honors

Walsh's Brendan McKee (Jr., Akron, OH/St Vincent-St. Mary) just missed NAIA All-American honors at Saturday's 52nd Annual Men's NAIA Cross Country National Championships.  McKee ran a fine race, and finished 31st in a time of 25.31.6.  The top 30 are All-American.  Mike Groholy (Sr., Parma, OH/Valley Forge) placed 109th in a time of 26.20.1.  There were a total of 258 runners.

WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY: LeFever 166th at NAIA Championships/Lindsay Cooper Earns NAIA Scholar-Athlete Honors

Walsh's Kristen LeFever (So., Alliance, OH/Marlington) finished 166th, out of 268 runners, at the 28th Annual Women's NAIA Cross Country National Championships held Saturday at Dr. Wayne E. Dannehl Cross Country Course in Kenosha, Wisconsin last Saturday.  LeFever, making her first appearance in the championships, finished in a time of 19:45.3.

Lindsay Cooper (Sr., Canton, OH/Central Catholic) earned NAIA Daktronics Scholar-Athlete recognition.  Cooper, an accounting major, carries a 3.84 grade point average.

FOOTBALL: Cavs Place Three on MSFA First Team, Galassi, McConnell Repeat

Walsh placed three players on the All-Mid-States Football Association Mideast Team First Team.  Mike Galassi (Sr., Strongsville, OH/Holy Name) was named on the offensive line, Craig McConnell (Sr., Massillon, OH/Washington) at defensive back and Clinton Blossomgame (R-Fr., Columbus, OH/Beechcroft) at tailback.  Galassi and McConnell each earned first team honors last year.

Galassi shined after transferring from Kent State University.  He started at left tackle, and was even used at center when the Cavs suffered injuries.  He was a First Team AFAC All-American last year.  McConnell, a transfer from Northern Michigan, led the team in tackles (89) and intercepted three passes, to go along with six pass break-ups.  Blossomgame led the MSFA in rushing with 1,487 yards, averaging 4.3 yards per carry with 11 touchdowns.  He rushed for 423 yards in his final two games of the season, with a season high 241 yards against Marian College.

The Cavs also placed Dan Dale (OLB, Sr., Canton, OH/South) on the second team and Mike McGill (WR, So., Barberton, OH/Coventry) and David Hardwick (INT, Sr., Kent, OH/Roosevelt) on the honorable mention team.  Dale, who earned second team honors last year, recorded 51 tackles, 12.5 tackles for a loss and a team-leading eight sacks.  McGill was second on the team with 25 catches for a 20.3 average and four touchdowns.  Hardwick, a first team selection last year, recorded 32 tackles and four tackles for a loss.