Virginia Wesleyan women No. 1 in Virginia sports
Marlin program No. 2 overall
Bragging rights about success in sports on the Virginia Wesleyan College campus belong to the Marlin women.at least for now.
Virginia Wesleyan's women won a program-record 108 contests during the 2004-05 campaign, producing the most successful results among Virginia's Division II and III teams, according to the final annual survey released by the Virginia Sports Information Directors Association. The Marlins dropped only 54 contests and tied three en route to posting a 74.2 winning percentage - another Virginia Wesleyan record. While the women won by a healthy margin over runner-up Washington and Lee University (70.0), the Marlin men placed fourth with a 59.7 winning percentage. Virginia Wesleyan's men, who posted an 86- 44-3 record overall, still placed high enough however to vault the Marlins' program overall to the No. 2 spot among all DII and DIII colleges and universities in Virginia. Virginia Wesleyan placed No. 1 overall last year. "This is a great tribute to our student-athletes and to our coaches, who put in a lot of time and effort to maintain this impressive level of success," said Sonny Travis, director of athletics. "Our goal has always been and always will be to be one of the most successful Division III programs nationally and this year's results certainly help to keep us among the best." Virginia Wesleyan sponsors 19 teams during the athletic year, with 12 producing win-loss records. Those 12 teams combined efforts for a 175-98-5 record in 2004-05, a 63.8 winning percentage. Christopher Newport University took the top spot for the year with an overall 65.3 winning mark. Ten Virginia Wesleyan teams produced winning records in 2004- 05, with several extending impressive season winning streaks. Men's soccer led that group, posting a 20th consecutive winning campaign with a 10-5-3 finish. The men's streak is one of the longest in the nation in Division III soccer. Men's basketball emerged with its 11th consecutive winning season, doing it with the best record in program history at 24-6. The Marlins won the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) championship and won an NCAA first-round tournament game. Field hockey joined men's basketball as an ODAC championship winner and advanced to the NCAA national title tournament for the second consecutive year. The Marlins won 10 consecutive games during the season en route to a 17-5 finish, the second best record in the program's 14- year history. Women's soccer also produced the second best record in that program's 21-year history, finishing 15-3-2 overall en route to posting a sixth consecutive winning campaign. The tennis and lacrosse teams both produced their fourth straight winning years with 9-3 and 12-5 showings, respectively, men's tennis finished 9-4 for a third straight winning mark and the two-year-old women's volleyball program posted a second consecutive winning year with a record 19-9 finish. Softball and baseball, two perennial winners for Virginia Wesleyan, continued that trend with strong seasons. The softball Marlins finished 24-15-1 overall, marking their 22nd winning season in 24 years of competition. The win total moves the program closer to a milestone victory as the Marlins are now only 22 wins shy of No. 600. Baseball, now only 13 wins away from program victory No. 700, moved closer last year with a 21-18 finish, the sport's ninth straight winning season. Virginia Wesleyan student-athletes set or tied 34 individual and 33 team records during the year. They also garnered 37 All-ODAC honors, 15 All-Virginia accolades, nine All- South recognitions and three All-America honors. Kim-Michael Mertes was named Virginia's College Division Coach of the Year in field hockey and David Macedo received the same honor in men's basketball.
Sports in Review
BASEBALL(21-18 overall, 11-7 ODAC, fourth place regular season and tournament)
Eight Marlins hit .300 or better for the season as Virginia Wesleyan finished among the top four teams in the ODAC for the 14th consecutive year, posting a program-record ninth consecutive winning season. Senior pitcher Jason Jarrett and senior outfielder Colin Roberson were both drafted by the Florida Marlins following the season, becoming the 15th and 16th Virginia Wesleyan players to advance to the professional leagues since 1991 and the 20th and 21st overall.
- ODAC HONORS: Roberson, first team; Hill, Imperato, second team; Jarrett, honorable mention
- ALL-VIRGINIA: Roberson, honorable mention
- ALL-SOUTH: Roberson, honorable mention
- ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT 3: Junior outfielder Brent Vuyovich
- CoSIDA District 3 Academic: Vuyovich, first team; sophomore catcher, Bryan Brinkley, second team
GOLF (Placed seventh in the ODAC tournament)
Senior Cole Herrington finished the season with
a team-leading 79.6 average through 12 rounds
of competition. Junior David Wheeler tied the
Virginia Wesleyan nine-hole record (33) and the
18-hole record (68) in competition at the prestigious
Camp Lejeune Invitational. The Marlins
recorded the program's third lowest 18-hole
score, a 294, at that invitational.
ODAC HONORS: Herrington, second team
MEN'S LACROSSE (2-11 overall, 0-6 ODAC, seventh place)
A very young men's lacrosse squad posted only
two wins during a season that was more competitive
than the final record indicates. The
Marlins dropped seven contests by four or
fewer goals each, including two one-goal
decisions in overtime.
ODAC HONORS: Dan Hofmeister, attack,
second team
WOMEN'S LACROSSE (12-5 overall, 7-1 ODAC, second place regular season, third place tournament)
Women's lacrosse continued its winning ways as the women produced a program-record fourth consecutive winning season. The Marlins set four program records and finished ranked No. 5 nationally in ground balls per game (37.35), No. 10 in draw controls per game (13.18) and No. 19 in scoring (13.06 points per game). Senior Megan Parris and junior Laura Wallace capped outstanding seasons with All-America honors
- ODAC HONORS: Parris, Wallace, first team; sophomore defender Holley Marchwicki and first year midfielder Jillian Boyd, second team
- ALL-VIRGINIA: Parris, Wallace, first team; Marchwicki, second team ALL-SOUTH: Parris, Wallace, first team
- ALL-AMERICA: Parris, Wallace, third team
- NORTH-SOUTH GAME: Parris
- IWLCA NATIONAL ALL-ACADEMIC: Junior Kristen Jehl
- COSIDA ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICA: Jehl, second team
SOFTBALL (24-15-1 overall, 11-5 ODAC, third place regular season and tournament)
Becky Sowell emerged as one of the top hitting-pitching threats in the conference as she led the Marlins with a .387 batting average and a 1.41 earned run average. Her ERA set a new program record, wiping out the former mark of 1.45 set by Amy Newsome in 1991. She now has a 1.59 career ERA, tying her with Tina Williams as Virginia Wesleyan's all-time leader. Senior Kim Mulholland finished second in career put outs with 753. The program posted its 22nd winning record in 24 years of competition.
- ODAC HONORS: Sowell, first team; Mulholland, honorable mention
- ALL-VIRGINIA: Sowell, first team
MEN'S TENNIS (9-4 overall, 2-3 ODAC, seventh place tournament)
Sophomores Chris Lyons and Jeff Zenisek rolled into the ODAC championship match at No. 1 doubles, but had to settle for the runner-up finish. They completed the season with an 11-2 record overall, the second best in program history. They were also 9-1 at the position, setting a College record. The winning season was the third in a row for the Marlins.
- ODAC HONORS: Lyon, Zenisek, doubles, second team
WOMEN'S TENNIS (9-3 overall, 3-2 ODAC, eighth place tournament)
Women's tennis put together a program-record fifth consecutive winning season. Sophomore Caroline Place and rookie Annie Diemer posted a 10-4 record overall in doubles, including a 7-1 mark at the No. 2 position, a College record. Both women also set singles standards as Place finished 8-1 at No. 3 while Diemer was 7-1 at No. 4. Sophomore Lisa Fanney and rookie Kiera McMillan posted a school-record 8-2 doubles record at the No. 1 position.
OUTDOOR TRACK AND FIELD (Men and women both finished sixth in the ODAC championship meet.)
Track and field drew some attention at the 2005 Old Dominion Athletic Conference outdoor championship meet where junior Pat Fulgham led the Marlins with a pair of top 10 finishes in field events. He placed fourth in the long jump (20-5) and seventh in the triple jump (40-4.75), both program records. Sophomore Travis Klink finished fifth place in the high jump (5-7.75). On the women's side, rookie Valerie Nuesa placed ninth in the women's 100 meter dash (14.19) and tenth in the 200 (30.32).
MEN’S SOCCER (14-6-1 overall, 7-2 ODAC, first place regular season and tournament)
The men posted their 21st consecutive winning campaign,
winning the ODAC championship title for the
eighth time. They received an automatic berth into the
NCAA Tournament but lost to the visiting Spartans of
York College 3-2. The Marlins’ appearance in the
NCAA Tournament was the 12th in program history
– the highest total number of appearances in men’s
soccer by any ODAC team.
- ODAC HONORS: Senior Kelvin Murray, junior Ryan
Cassel, sophomore Damien Woodley, first team;
senior Chris Mills, second team; junior Evan Small,
honorable mention - ALL-SOUTH: Cassell, Murray, first team
WOMEN’S SOCCER
(19-2-1 overall, 10-0-1 ODAC, first place regular season,
third place tournament)
The Marlin women posted a 10-0-1 record in the conference, earning their second undefeated season in three years. They ranked in the country all season, reaching as high as No. 4 in the NSCAA/adidas poll. The Marlins received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, where they defeated Christopher Newport University 2-1 before falling to Lynchburg College in the second round.
- ODAC HONORS: Senior Sharon Hay, player of the year; Hay, junior Kelly Donnelly, sophomore Courtney Benitez, first team; senior Danielle Burns, junior Kristen Byrnes, sophomore Lindsey Williams, second team; sophomore Christina Smith, sophomore Ally Hodgkins, honorable mention
- ALL SOUTH: Benitez, Donnelly, Hay, first team ALL-AMERICA: Hay, second team; Donnelly, third team
FIELD HOCKEY (13-6 overall, 7-1 ODAC, third place regular season, third place tournament)
The Marlins posted their third consecutive winning campaign, the most successful run in program history. The Marlins defeated Bridgewater College 6-2 in the opening round of the ODAC Tournament to advance to the semifinal round, where they lost to Lynchburg College.
- ODAC HONORS: Junior Chrissy Clancy, first team; senior Cara Byrd, junior Holly Marchwicki, junior Megan May, second team; senior Kristen Jehl, honorable mention
- ALL-SOUTH: Clancy, May ALL VIRGINIA: Clancy, first team; Byrd, May, second team
VOLLEYBALL (19-13 overall, 7-3 ODAC, fourth place regular season, fourth place tournament)
The Lady Marlins tied the program record for victories with 19 in only their third year of competition and advanced to the ODAC Tournament semifinal round for the second consecutive season. The Marlins have put together three consecutive winning seasons in their first three years of competition, compiling a combined 55-32 record overall.
- ODAC HONORS: Junior Jen Perkinson, first team; senior Lauren Heltsley, sophomore Katie Heilenday, honorable mention
CROSS COUNTRY (Final standings – men: seventh in ODAC; women: sixth in ODAC)
In their second year under the leadership of Head Coach Mat Littleton, the men’s and women’s cross country teams placed 14th and 16th respectively in the NCAA’s South/Southeast Region cross country championship race. First-year Brandon Spaulding became the first Marlin runner to complete an eight-kilometer race under 27 minutes and the first All-South runner in program history.
- ODAC HONORS: Spaulding, second team
- ALL-SOUTH: Spaulding
Professors, coaches team up
Wesleyan professors join forces with Marlin coaches to bring success in the classroom as well as on the scoreboards.
It's not about making the highlight reel on SportsCenter. It's not about getting a million-dollar contract to play in the pros. For most, it's not even about the glory, though Marlin student-athletes have certainly enjoyed a fair amount of time in the spotlight. At Virginia Wesleyan College, athletics are seen as a complement to academics, and more than a third of the student body competes at an institution that cares equally for its academics and its athletics. So much so, in fact, that the two have joined forces. The outcome? The Faculty Team Advisors Program (FTAP), which is now in place for the 2005-2006 academic year. The program, the first of its kind at the College and modeled after such successful archetypes as Princeton University's Academic-Athletic Fellows Program, matches coaches with professors as teams focus on the enrichment of Virginia Wesleyan student-athletes. The combination bridges the gap between athletics and academics to foster a closer working relationship between those who inspire students in the classroom and those who motivate them on the playing fields and courts. "Many Division I schools are doing similar things," said David Buckingham, dean of students. "We looked at the unique qualities of these programs and we determined what would best benefit our student-athletes. We wanted a program that would develop relationships between our faculty and coaches, which in turn would provide our studentathletes with more mentors, more positive role models and more ways to connect to the College." The 18 professors serving as faculty advisors this year represent 12 of the 29 academic departments on campus. "I believe that athletics is just another venue for lifelong learning," says Sharon Payne, professor of health and human services and faculty advisor to the women's volleyball team. "I believe it has a great deal to do with the development of confidence, identity and character, and I think that especially for women it is a good training ground for functioning in a world that many times is hard and competitive and may function differently from the way that women intuitively work with one another. It teaches self-discipline, time management and all those skills important for adulthood. And if you have a way to practice that while balancing academic work in college, you go out to work prepared to handle a career or graduate school and the demands of adult responsibility in our culture." "I think it's a great step in the right direction," said Dave Macedo, head men's basketball coach. "It allows faculty to see exactly some of the things the athletes go through and it's really another pair of eyes to help us to monitor our student-athletes. As coaches, it's our primary responsibility to make sure our student-athletes are progressing - [faculty] are kind of another advisor for them and can also contribute to their growth." More than one third of Virginia Wesleyan's student body is involved in intercollegiate competition, so it's important to unite the academic and athletic houses. The Faculty Team Advisor Program is also sure to improve the academic profiles of Virginia Wesleyan's student athletes, which continue to improve annually. "This all boils down to mentoring," said Buckingham. "It provides the opportunity for our faculty and coaches to know each other better and to work together to make sure we're doing everything we can do for our student-athletes."
2005-06 Faculty Team Advisonrs
- Baseball - Dr. William Gibson, Political Science
- Women's Basketball - Dr. Connie Bellamy, English
- Men's Basketball - Dr. Doug Kennedy, Recreation & Leisure Studies
- Cheerleading/Dance - Robin Takacs, Academic Affairs
- Women's Cross Country - Nancy Montgomery, Recreation & Leisure Studies
- Men's Cross Country - Dr. Malcolm Lively, Education
- Field Hockey - Dr. Mavel Velasco, Spanish
- Golf - Dr. Steven Emmanuel, Philosophy
- Women's Lacrosse - Dr. Linda Ferguson, Management/ Business/ Economics
- Men's Lacrosse - Dr. Ben Dobrin, Health and Human Services
- Women's Soccer - Dr. Sara Sewell, History
- Men's Soccer - Wayne Pollock, Recreation & Leisure Studies
- Softball - Dr. Larry Hultgren, Philosophy
- Women's Tennis - Patty Clark, Library Science
- Men's Tennis - Dr. Keith Moore, Residence Life
- Women's Track - Dr. Carol Johnson, English
- Men's Track - Dr. Clay Drees, History Volleyball - Sharon Payne, Health and Human Services
Academic All-America honors for Virginia Wesleyan's Byrd and Jehl
Alexis Byrd
Field Hockey stand-outs Alexis Byrd and Kristen Jehl have once again demonstrated that academics and intercollegiate athletics can definitely succeed hand-in-hand. Student-athletes have both been selected to the 2005 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America Women's At-Large teams, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors Association.
Kristen Jehl
Only 45 women, representing Division II and III colleges and universities nationally, were selected to three All-America teams, with Jehl named to the second team and Byrd named to the third.
The prestigious Academic All-America honors are the first for Virginia Wesleyan student-athletes since 2003 and the first for two Marlin women in one year. Virginia Wesleyan also had two honorees during the 2000-01 season when Alison Mazur received first team honors in softball and John Tomasheski third team recognition in tennis. Byrd and Jehl are the first Marlins honored in field hockey and lacrosse.
Byrd, who made College history earlier this year when she
became the first Marlin field hockey player to be named to the
National Field Hockey Coaches Association's (NFHCA)
National Academic squad for the fourth consecutive year, graduated
magna cum laude in criminal justice in May. She posted
perfect 4.00 grade point averages in both the fall and spring
semesters at Virginia Wesleyan en route to a final 3.83 overall
grade point average.
Jehl, a three-time NFHCA National Academic squad
honoree, is a criminal justice major and a two-sport athlete.
While her on-field efforts focus on field hockey in the fall,
they turn to lacrosse in the spring. Through it all she also
concentrates on the classroom work where she has compiled a
flashy 3.92 cumulative GPA to date. Jehl posted a 4.00 GPA
in spring 2004 and again in spring 2005. She was selected as
the Old Dominion Athletic Conference’s Scholar-Athlete of
the Year in lacrosse.
Jehl and Byrd have been among the defensive leaders for
Virginia Wesleyan’s field hockey team in recent years, and
were instrumental in a defense that has recorded 14 shutouts,
including a school-record 10 in 2003, and held 11 other
opponents to only one goal each.
During the 2004-05 academic year the College had
four first-team honorees in cross country ace Colleen
O’Connell, baseball standout Brent Vuyovich, Byrd and
Jehl. The College also had two second team honorees in
baseball ace Bryan Brinkley and women’s soccer leader
Danielle Burns.