Pag* 10 Van Tassel Hal Colby/ The Cottglan Helping hand: Athlete of the Week Karl Van Tassel teaches Wds the fundamentals of tennis. Just add consistency by Greg Kristen Collegia* Staff "I think we at times see what the potential is, but we need to be more consistent," said Head Baseball Coach Dan Perritano. The Lions battled and lost two more games last Saturday against the Presidents of Washington and Jefferson. In the first game, the Lions got off to a fast start as they collected two runs on three hits in the first inning. Leading die charge was captain Bill Weimer who jumpstarted the Lions with a triple. After the explosive start, the cagers fizzled and lost the game 4-2. They managed only three more hits in the game. Lost in the defeat was the pitching of Dan Schrock, who pitched his third complete game in five starts. Perritano said, "We're starting to see shades of the potential that Lady by Bill Graham Collegia* Staff Penn Staie-Behrend’s women’s softball team continued to shine during the middle of the season. The Lady Lions ran their winning streak to a season high nine games by defeating Washington & Jefferson by the scores of 10-1 and 9-0 in Washington, Pa. last Saturday. Behrend feasted on the Lady we talked about earlier. We just have to be more consistent." In the second game, the Lions started off with a run on three hits in the first inning, culminated by Schrock's double and a RBI. Yet, they lost again because of the inexperience and youth of the team. Weimer said, "We have to do the little things: making contact and cutting down on the strike outs." The Lions are 2-8 with three weeks to go in the season. This young team has fought through some tough times. Still, they are working to make the season a success by trying to reach the .500 mark. Perritano said, "The work ethic is there it just needs to be consistent" Potential and consistency are the key ingredients for this team. If they can capture that they can finish this season on a high. Lions Presidents’ pitching, pounding out 14 hits in the first game. Emmy Arnett and Karen Strait each had three hits, with Arnett hitting an inside-the-park home run. Julie Stocker and Sue Mazur had two hits each, Stocker driving in a pair of runs. Casey Putteman shut down W A J on six hits, striking out four and walking none. Putteman improved her record to 7-1. The second game was all 's supreme court by Keith E. McFall Corpora Editor "Dedicated" and "strong willed” are the words that come to mind to describe Karl Van Tassel, Penn State-Behrend's Athlete of the Week. Van Tassel, a junior tennis player, attended Seneca High School, a school which doesn't have a tennis team. He now plays number four singles and number one doubles for Behrend. This accomplishment can be directly attributed to his hard work at The Pennbriar Athletic Club (a local health and racquet club). Head Tennis Coach Dan Gallegos was teaching tennis lessons at the club when he noticed Van Tassel. "Coach trained me and worked with me a lot over the summer to get me ready. I really owe a lot to him and the staff at Pennbriar," said Van Tassel. Van Tassel had to play a lot on his own also. "I played against Ron Van Duinsn/ CottgianPhotognpher Going to tho pon: Ralaf pitcher Tommy Gardner works on his pitching this week in practice. continue to shine Behrend as well. Cherie Varrassa also improved her record to 7-1 by pitching a five hitter, striking out five and only wallring one. Marlesse Schlott and Mazur sported the big bats in the nightcap. Schlott stroked three hits, including two triples, and drove in two runs. Mazur also had three hits while plating three runs. Molly Samuels added two more hits to the 14 hit attack for the Lady Lions. varsity players from other schools and colleges, and that gave me the experience I needed to play at the collegiate level,” he said. Van Tassel holds a 14-2 singles record and an 8-1 doubles record. He has helped the team to an 11-3 mark on die season. "Karl is like the Energizer Bunny; he keeps going and going and going," said Gallegos. "He's a team player and will do anything it takes to get a win, and in my 25 years of coaching I've never seen anyone work harder than he does. He's a pleasure to coach.” Van Tassel highly praises Gallegos as well. "I really like Coach's style. He doesn't put pressures on you, and that allows you to enjoy the game," he said. "You play better when you're allowed to have fun because it brings out your creativity.” With one year of eligibility left. Van Tassel has set high goals for himself and the team. With the Lady Lions hitting over .300 as a team for the season, pitching is what makes the team go. According to Coach Paul Benim, “It is definitely the strength of our team right now, all four of them. The team is able to feed off of our outstanding daily pitching performances." With the rotation of Varrassa, Putteman, Julie Chimers, and Shari Robinson, they have Thursday, April 14,1994 "I would like the team to be ranked number one in Division Three." He is going to work hard to improve his game to help make that a reality. "This summer I am going to play in several USTA (United States Tennis Association) sanctioned tournaments against Division One and Two players. The better the competition, the more I'll improve," he said. In his free time, Van Tassel teaches tennis lessons to underprivileged children at the JFK Center and Westwood Tennis Club. He also is an accomplished table tennis player and is ranked nationally. He has won several tournaments and the Behrend intramural tourney the last three years. Van Tassel will graduate in May with an associate's degree in liberal arts and science. He plans to continue his education by pursuing a business degree. combined to limit opponents to only one earned run per game. They also have a remarkable four to one, strikeout to walk ratio. “Our pitchers are talented and they’ve worked hard to get where they are," added Benim. “Their success is defined with their outstanding stats." The Lady Lions are scheduled to host Buffalo State at home tomorrow at 3:00 pm.
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