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D. TRUMPIE PHOTOS
Football takes title in record-setting year; women’s soccer posts 19-0 tally By Bobby Lee Albion College is a member of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) and NCAA Division III.
Football: The Albion College football team enjoyed a record-setting season en route to its 32nd MIAA championship. Under head coach Craig Rundle, the Britons posted a perfect 5-0 league record with the exclamation point being a 42-11 victory over Hope College in the season finale at SprankleSprandel Stadium. The squad was 8-2 overall for the season. Albion’s record-breakers—senior quarterback Travis Rundle, senior flanker John Bennink and freshman kicker Andy Cline—all achieved first-team All-MIAA status. Rundle established new single-season school records for most passing attempts and completions (183 of 329), most passing yards (2,346) and most passing touchdowns (20). Bennink bettered Albion’s season records for receptions (74) and receiving yards (995). Cline tied the school record for most field goals in a game twice, booting three in MIAA victories over Alma and Olivet. He finished the season with 12 field goals, one shy of the single-season school mark. Rundle, Bennink and Cline were just three of 13 Britons who received All-MIAA honors. Others receiving first-team recognition were senior tight end Drew DiGiacinto, senior offensive lineman Chris Huff, junior offensive lineman Allen Hearn, senior linebacker Nick Loafman, senior return specialist Jared Owens, senior defensive linemen Michael Stempki and Erik Vernon, and senior defensive back Todd Ritter. Senior defensive back Jared Merchant and junior offensive lineman John Trupiano were listed on the AllMIAA second team.
Women’s soccer: Under fourth-year coach Lisa Roschek, the Britons posted a 19-0 regular season record, becoming the first women’s soccer program in MIAA history to accomplish the feat. With its second consecutive league crown in hand, Albion advanced to the NCAA Division III tournament. The
Junior forward Stacey Supanich (white jersey) established single-season school records for most goals, assists and points in a season.
Britons reached the regional final (or the round of 16) for the first time in the history of the women’s soccer program, overcoming the College of Mount Saint Joseph in a shootout before falling to Ohio Wesleyan University. Albion’s 19 victories bettered the singleseason school record of 17 established in 2000. The squad tallied 69 goals, just missing the single-season record of 70 also set in 2000. Junior forward Stacey Supanich established new single-season school marks for most goals (19), assists (13) and points (51) in a season. Not to be outdone, senior midfielder Liz Hermiller and sophomore forward Lauran Gentry contributed 13 and 11 goals, respectively. Junior midfielder Laurie Vance and sophomore midfielder Sarah Pike dished out six assists apiece. In all, 13 student-athletes had at least one goal. At the defensive end, the Briton goalkeepers, junior Erica Williams, freshman Emily Crisman and sophomore Annie Lerew, combined for 10 shutouts. Albion’s success on the field was further rewarded with the selection of five studentathletes to the All-MIAA first team. Three first-team honorees—Supanich, Vance and Williams—will return for the 2002 campaign. Hermiller and senior defender Theresa Kolly joined the underclassmen on the first team. Receiving All-MIAA second team awards were senior midfielder Amanda Yeager and Gentry. In December, Supanich and Hermiller became the first women’s soccer players in Albion history to be named NCAA Division III All-Americans.
Cross country: Albion may have had a new coach, but the men’s cross country team continued its run to success. Under the direction of Hayden Smith, the Briton men finished second at the MIAA Jamboree at Holland in late September, and third at the league championship meet at Grand Rapids in October. Sophomore Nick Mockeridge enjoyed an exceptional season. He achieved first-team All-MIAA status for the second year in a row after crossing the finish line fourth at the league championship meet. He followed the league effort with a 12th-place finish at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional meet to advance to the NCAA Division III championships. Running on the national stage, Mockeridge turned in his best time of the season at 25:33. Joining Mockeridge as a first-team AllMIAA honoree was Todd Falker. The sophomore finished 13th at the league championship meet with a season-best time of 27:11. Seniors Josh Baker and Nate Warren achieved second-team all-league status. Baker was 17th at the MIAA championships with a time of 27:22, while Warren was 27th with a time of 27:42. The women’s team made significant improvement during the course of the season. The Britons finished seventh at the MIAA Jamboree, but jumped up to a fifth-place finish at the league championship meet. Sophomore Sarah Smith and freshman Loan Portlance were the top Briton women at
Senior flanker John Bennink (center) received first-team All-MIAA and Verizon Academic AllAmerican honors in the fall. He helped the football team win its 32nd league championship by setting single-season school records for receptions and receiving yards. the MIAA championships. Smith finished 34th overall with a time of 20:33, while Portlance finished 10 seconds back in 38th place.
Men’s soccer: Albion showed improvement under second-year coach Jerry Block. The Britons finished the season with a 6-11-2 record, but three of the losses were decided by one goal. One of the highlights of the Britons’ season was scoring a school-record six goals in the second half during a 7-1 triumph in the home finale against Adrian College. The offense spread the wealth as each goal was scored by a different student-athlete. Senior defender Kirsten Massey scored the only goal of his collegiate career in the second half. Two of Albion’s top three scorers were underclassmen. Freshman forward Bryan Ricker led the Britons with five goals, while junior midfielder Ben Godfrey collected two goals and four assists. Freshmen Jon Morden and Corey Rees scored two goals apiece. Defensively, sophomore goalkeeper Brandon Cassar logged nearly 1,500 minutes on the field and took part in three shutouts. Junior defender Josh Menig claimed secondteam All-MIAA recognition, while senior defender Jeff Boogren and Massey earned honorable mention honors from the coaches. Women’s golf: The future for women’s golf is bright as four Albion underclassmen achieved All-MIAA status in the fall. By finishing in the top six in the MIAA’s final individual standings, junior Stacy Chapman, sophomore Lindsey Densmore and freshman Anna Watkins achieved first-team all-league status. Watkins was fourth in the MIAA, averaging 88.6 strokes in five league rounds. Chapman finished fifth in the MIAA with an 89.2-stroke average, while Densmore was sixth with a 90-stroke average. A fourth Briton golfer, freshman Lindsey Drewes, earned second-team All-MIAA recognition with a 90.8-stroke average in league play. The Britons, coached by Karen Baird, just missed defending their MIAA crown. Albion led after the first round of the two-day league championship tournament, but Hope College turned the table on the second day to eke out a two-stroke victory.
Albion placed first in two tournaments in the fall, topping a nine-team field at a tournament hosted by Defiance (Ohio) College and winning an MIAA match at the Lenawee Country Club.
Volleyball: Albion volleyball had one of its most successful showings in school history, winning 17 matches with first-year coach Russell Frey at the helm. Only the 1986 Briton squad, which finished with 20 victories, posted more wins in the history of the program. The Britons finished the season at 17-14. As impressive as the win total was the way Albion played against MIAA competition. The Britons posted a five-game victory over Calvin College in September for its first victory over the Knights since 1979. Albion also extended Hope College, the MIAA regular season co-champion, to five games in Kresge Gymnasium. Senior outside hitter Michelle Hind received athletic and academic honors. She received second-team All-MIAA recognition after totaling 142 kills and 44 blocks in 14 league matches. Hind also received Verizon second-team Academic All-District honors. The history major was the only student-athlete from the MIAA listed on the Academic AllDistrict volleyball team. Sophomore outside hitter Amy Corrigan earned honorable mention honors from the league coaches. She led the Britons in service aces (23) and ranked second in digs (170) in league play.
Men’s golf: Albion came up with a sixthplace finish in the MIAA fall season. The Britons’ best single-round league finish came at the Watermark Golf Club in Grand Rapids. Albion finished fourth with a 408 team total. Jordan Rich and Jordan McArleton, both juniors, posted the lowest averages for the Britons. Rich finished with an 83.7-stroke average in seven league rounds. McArleton finished at 83.9. Freshman Mike Thackaberry completed the fall with an 84.0-stroke average. The Britons are coached by Mike Turner.