I O
T R I U M P H E
11
S C AA ORR OO RUU NN EDD CCBAA MMOPP UUASS R D D. TRUMPIE PHOTOS
Women claim MIAA titles in soccer, golf; football closes with 7-3 record By Robin Hartman Albion College is a member of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) and NCAA Division III.
Women’s soccer: Under third-year coach Lisa Roschek, Albion this fall earned its first MIAA championship in women’s soccer, smashing several school records along the way. With the league title came the chance to play for the first time in the NCAA Division III women’s soccer championship. Albion reached the regional semifinals, beating Lawrence University of Wisconsin in the first round, 2-0, before losing to Ohio Wesleyan, 3-1. The game with Lawrence marked the first time an NCAA women’s tournament contest was played on the Albion campus. Albion’s 17 wins and 70 goals scored are single-season school records. The squad’s balanced attack featured four players scoring 10 or more goals, led by junior captain Liz Hermiller’s 12. Junior Amanda Yeager had 11 goals, while sophomores Stacey Supanich and Betsy Hubert each tallied 10. Freshman Lauran Gentry scored nine times, while another freshman, Natalie Sztykiel, established a single season record with 12 assists. In all, 13 players had at least one goal. At the defensive end, Albion goalkeepers Annie Lerew and Erica Williams combined for eight shutouts. As a team, Albion allowed three goals or fewer for all but one game. Hermiller, Sztykiel and sophomore defender Theresa Kolly earned first-team AllMIAA honors. Hermiller was later named to the first-team Great Lakes Region team by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. Football: Battling with one of the toughest schedules in Division III, Albion came within a game of a possible NCAA postseason bid and its 32nd MIAA football championship. Under coach Craig Rundle, the Britons finished the season at 7-3. The three losses came against Hope, a 2000 NCAA tournament participant, and two 1999
postseason tournament competitors, Buffalo State and Alma. Albion’s season was enhanced by a number of record-setting performances, several involving senior kicker Keith Debbaudt. Debbaudt is the first Albion player to kick 10 or more field goals in consecutive seasons, booting 13 three-pointers in 14 attempts after connecting on 11 in 16 tries in 1999. His success rate of 92.9 percent in field goals led all Division III kickers, and was third among all field goal kickers, regardless of division. He also made all 36 of his extra point tries, becoming just the second kicker in Briton football history to be successful on every extra point, and the first to be perfect in 20 or more attempts. A third-team All-American in 1999, Debbaudt is the second Albion player to appear in the mid-December Aztec Bowl, a game pitting Division III all-stars against an all-star team from Mexico. He also earned first-team Division III All-American honors from the American Football Coaches Association. Debbaudt is one of eight Britons earning first-team All-MIAA honors for football. Others were fellow seniors Mike Brosnan, Justin Nye, Dan Deegan and Ben Gitler, and juniors Erik Vernon, Chris Huff and John Bennink. Gitler was named the league’s Most Valuable Defensive Player.
Women’s golf: Coached by Karen Baird, Albion got off to another great start in women’s golf, and led from start to finish to earn its second straight MIAA championship. The great start was matched by a sensational finish, with a final-round team score of 326 at Alwyn Downs Golf Course in Marshall. With only four players scoring for the team total, Albion actually had five players finish in the top eight for league individuals, including three of the top four. Senior Melissa Hall placed second among the league’s individuals for the third year in a row. She is the first Albion player and the third league golfer since the sport’s inception in 1991 to earn first-team All-MIAA honors for four years.
Keith Debbaudt kicks one of his school-record 13 field goals in Albion’s 30-27 win over Washington University Sept. 24. The Grand Rapids senior led Division III in field goal accuracy, making all but one of his 14 attempts.
at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional in Hanover, Ind., just two team positions from advancing to the national championship meet. The finish, led by freshman Julie Kamer, is the best for an Albion team, men or women, in NCAA regional competition. Kamer also barely missed out on running at nationals, placing 13th at regionals with a time of 19 minutes, 18 seconds. Also earning all-region recognition with a top-30 finish was senior Rebekah Schultz, who was 28th with a 19:45 showing. Both Kamer and Schultz earlier were selected first-team All-MIAA. Also a first-team all-league runner was freshman Nick Betsy Hubert battles with a Lawrence University Mockeridge. Mockeridge came defender for the ball during NCAA women’s soccer through with flying colors at both the playoff action at Alumni Field Nov. 1. Hubert scored the league championship and regional second goal in Albion’s 2-0 first-round win. Albion competition. At the league champifinished the 2000 season with a school-record 17 wins onship, Mockeridge had his fastest and its first MIAA women’s soccer championship. run of the year, turning in a time of 26:23. At the regional, he nearly matched the league effort, running the 8,000Joining Hall on the first team were meter course in 26:59 while finishing 28th. freshman Lindsey Densmore and sophomore As a team, the men were 11th at the Stacy Chapman. Densmore was third in the regional, and second among MIAA schools in league standings with an 86.7-stroke average the event. for seven rounds, while Chapman finished fourth at 87.0. Chapman moved into the high Volleyball: Albion’s volleyball squad position with medalist honors at Marshall, posted a 12-18 season and fifth-place finish in shooting a 77 on the final league round. the MIAA standings. A three-time first-team All-MIAA golfer, One bright light for the Britons came with senior Katie Pritchard was seventh in the the play of junior middle hitter Michelle Hind. individual standings, and earned second-team Hind was one of the league’s best net players, league honors. Senior Lindsay Franson also leading the starters with a .305 attack placed on the second team. percentage and leading the team in kills (301) The league title means Albion will and blocks (83, including 56 solos). Not far continue on in the spring with the goal of behind was junior Sarah Morin, who finished making the Division III championship field. the year with 295 kills and a team-leading 36 Men’s golf: Albion came up with a fifth- service aces and 191 defensive digs. Hind earned first-team All-MIAA honors, place finish in the MIAA fall season, missing and may have to pick up a few pointers from fourth place by only eight strokes after seven Morin on international play. Morin and rounds of play. teammate Marion Clement joined Briton Senior Brett Crosthwaite came on strong coach Darrell Sedersten for a Division III allto earn first-team All-MIAA honors for the star volleyball tour of The Netherlands last third year in a row. Coming from sixth place June. Hind will have a similar trip to make in the individual standings prior to the final next spring, as she joins an all-star squad that round, Crosthwaite fired a 74 in the snow at will play in Australia. Alma’s Pine River Golf Course to leap into third place in the final standings. Men’s soccer: Albion struggled to get Crosthwaite is the first three-time firstout of the starting blocks under first-year team All-MIAA golfer from Albion since coach Jerry Block, but the Britons battled to 1996. the end, finishing with two wins and two Albion’s best round came at the front of overtime losses in its last five games. the schedule, when the Britons finished At one time scoring just one goal in an second with a 396 score in play at The eight-game stretch, Albion broke through with Medalist in Marshall Sept. 12. Albion also two first-half goals in a 2-1 home win against placed second with a 410 score at Thornapple Olivet College Oct. 21. A week later, the Creek in Kalamazoo Oct. 5. The Britons are Britons again played well at both ends of the coached by Mike Turner. field and beat Adrian 2-0. Overall, Albion finished the season with a 4-14 record, with Cross country: Albion opened eyes three of the losses coming in overtime and among the league’s runners with strong team five more by one goal margins. finishes at the MIAA Jamboree at Notre Helping to pick up the offensive pace were Dame, Ind., in late September. Then at the senior Brian Lindsay and sophomore Ben league championship at Whiffletree Hill Golf Godfrey. Lindsay led the team in goals with Course near Concord Oct. 28, the men and women made the rest of the MIAA take notice five, while Godfrey scored four times. Freshman Brandon Cassar did yeoman’s work once again. Albion’s women were second in in the nets for the Britons, stopping an the final standings, the best finish for a Briton average of six shots per game while turning in cross country squad since 1981. The men one shutout in 15 contests. weren’t far behind, taking third, the highest Three juniors, Jeff Boogren, Josh Menig finish for an Albion men’s team in two decades. Amy Wolfgang coaches both squads. and Kirsten Massey, earned Coaches’ Honorable Mention honors from the league at Albion followed the league effort two season’s end. weeks later with another outstanding performance. The Briton women were fourth