The Behrend Beacon
Fifth year not a charm for
women's soccer team
PI-10TO BY MIKE BELLO
Freshman Natasha Edrington, left watches sophomore Mandy Gesuale kick the ball
upfield during their last home game last week. Despite winning their last four home
games, as well as the first game of the AMCC tournament, the Lady Lions could not
pull out the win in the title game, losing by a 4-1 score.
by Bob Palivoda
staff writer
The women's soccer team fell to
Frostburg 4-1 in the AMCC
championship game at Family First
Sports Park on Sunday. This marked the
Things look
cut- and- dry
for water
polo team
by Zoe Row
staff writer
With the Southern Championships at the U.S. Na
val Academy happening today and Saturday, the
men's water polo team has shifted into first gear.
The Lions will need to show hard wotk and dedica
tion for the tournament, but at the same time will
have fun in the last games of competitive play this
ymr.
In the opening rounds of the tournament, the Blue
and White will face Slippery Rock and John Hopkins.
Then comes the challenge. The Lions will face-off
against local newcomer Mercyhurst for the final
game on Saturday night, and will need a win to play
Sunday. This is a crucial step for the Lions since the
last time they played the 'Hurst at the Princeton Invi
tational, they came away with a tight 10-9 win.
The guys promised me this game will not be
close, being the last game we are not going to hold
back anything" said coach Josh Heynes.
Although it is impossible for the team to end the
season with a winning record, the improvements that
have been made and the efforts shown, as well as the
devotion to stick with the team through tough times,
is in fact what makes up the Behrend men's water
polo team.
'The improvements are there," said Heynes about
the tough schedule faced this season. 'Teams that
thrashed us last year( needed) four quarters and 28
minutes of tough polo to heat us by only a few goals
this year."
As this is the last tournament of the year, along
comes the awareness that seniors Allen Haywood
and Jon Handing will leave the team.
"They were jot of a beginning that when they
look back they will really appreciate," said Heynes.
"Losing them next year will be a definite blow to the
"
When both playasjoined the team, they were out
of shape and average in academic standing but have
put in the work to get to where they are now.
"Now they are swimming and polo machines,
and academically better (possible Academic A 11-
Americans)," said Heynes. 'They will always be
welcomed back to this pool, to tell the younger ones
how it was when they first started to play here at
Penn State Elie."
As the team prepares for its final challenge, hav
ing a new facility and the backing of the athletic
department has provided a nice end for the season.
The guys have bonded as a team and have shown it
during their practices and willingness to stick together
during the tough season.
'We are at the doorstep to success," said Heynes.
"It is up to the guys to go through it"
first time in five years the team had not
won the championship.
It was just not good for Behrend, from
the beginning of the game until the end.
In the first half, the first three goals
scored came from Frostburg. Scoring the
first and only goal for Behrend, in the
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Angela Albertson:
Rising to the occasion
After being down 1-5 in her second AMCC Championship match, Angela Albertson
thought of the advice her mom told her: Never give up. She continued on to win the
match and AMCC singles championship.
by Kate Levdansky Petrikis
assistant sports editor
Angela Albertson has faced some tough com
petitors in her lifetime, but there's one player with
whom she'd love to go face-to-face.
"When I was younger, Pete Sampras was al
ways my favorite player. He has been around
forever. I would like to meet him and take him on
in a match. I think I have a good chance against
him," said Albertson, jokingly.
Albertson, a Behrend Lion tennis player, was
recently named the Most Valuable Player for the
season in the AMCC.
"Being the Most Valuable Player is pretty ex
citing. I was a little nervous at the beginning of
season about playing No. 1 singles and No. 1
doubles, but it all worked out, and it showed with
receiving this award," said Albertson.
Michelle Mendel, a teammate and friend of
Albertson, was equally as excited.
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Friday, November 2, 2001
first half, was senior Laura Furko
Although the second half of the game
was better for the Lady Lions, they still
did not score any goals but held
Frostburg to one
Behrend ended its season with a 10-
10-1 record
When commenting on the loss, coach
Dan Perritano said that he was
disappointed. He also said that this loss
should constitute for good motivation
for the upcoming season.
Perritano was proud of how far his
team had come this season. He was
especially proud of last third of the
season, in which the team undoubtedly
improved.
Even though the game against
Frostburg ended the season on a gloomy
note, the game leading up to the
championship was one of style and
grace for Behrend.
Behrend's first match-up for the
AMCC Tournament was against Pitt
Bradford on Saturday. Snow on the
Behrend Fields prevented the teams
from playing Friday, which pushed the
semifinals to Saturday.
Behrend absolutely dominated the
game against Bradford. In the first half,
sophomores Lisa Danwalder and
Aubrey Nicksich led Behrend with a goal
each.
Danwalder finished with two goals
after scoring again in the second half to
lead the Lions to a 3-0 win over
Bradford.
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"I was so happy for her," said Brendel. "If any
one deserves this awanzl, it is her! The first time I
met her was on the tennis court. The coach was
trying to convince me to play, but I was afraid of
joining the team because I was a freshman in Plas
tics Engineering and was afraid I would not have
enough time.
"Albertson's direct words were, 'l'm a freshman
in Plastics and I'm playing tennis too.' That is not
what I wanted to hear at the time, but I decided to
take her advice and join the team. I'm glad I did,
because from that moment on Angela and I had be
come life-long friends."
Albertson claimed it was her determination that
pulled her through a win in her final AMCC match.
Albertson lost the first set 6-4. She also was down
5-1 in the second set, and 40-15 in the game."
"I was determined that I was not going to lose,"
said Albertson. "I fought back from being down so
far. It would have been easy to mess up one point,
and the match would have been over, but I stuck
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Because of Behrend's punishing
defense on the day, senior Michelle
Malatesta only faced two shots on goal
blocking them both. Malatesta ended
the season with an amazing eight
shutouts.
Perritano has high hopes for next
season. He will lose five seniors,
Furko, Malatesta, Diane Holtsford,
Briana Shively, and Melissa DelPorto
but will count on the players he has left
to improve, which includes only
freshmen and sophomores. He hopes
to bring in 15 recruits for next year's
freshmen class.
Behrend does have eight players on
the 2001 AMCC Women's Soccer All
Conference Team.
Making the first team, as midfielders,
arc seniors Furko (11 goals, 29 points
on the year) and Holtsford (one goal,
three points).
Making the first team, as defenders,
are sophomore Mandy Gesuale and
senior Briana Shively.
Senior Malatesta (129 saves, 39 goals
against, 1.86 goals against average)
made the first team as goalkeeper.
Making the second team as a forward
is sophomore Nicksich (nine goals, 18
points). Also making the second team
as a defender is freshman Natasha
Edrington.
Finally, coming in at honorable
mention as a midfielder is freshman
Maria Gahagen (four goals, 10 points).
with it. I ended up winning 11 games in amw
to win both the second and third sets."
The second set score ended up being 7-5
and the third set was 6-3.
"My determination brought a win for my
final match in my college tennis career," said
Albertson.
During the grueling match, Albertson
thought not only about tennis but also about
her mother.
"My Mom has always stressed to never give
up in what I was doing," said Albertson.
"Without that thought drilled in my head, I
would have easily lost my final AMCC match
due to how far behind I was. I didn't give up
though, and it certainly paid off."
Albertson started playing tennis in fifth grade
when she joined her grade school tennis team.
She continued her career at Villa Maria High
School, and continued to play when she started
college at Penn State Behrend. At Behrend,
coach Jeff Barger, has taught Albertson how
to improve her strategy.
"Before a match I try to put thoughts of
school and activities aside and concentrate on
the match, given that things get pretty hectic
during tennis season," said Albertson. "Be
cause, the more I allow myself to relax before
a match, the better I play. I just love playing
tennis. I get excited for every match, and I
think that is a big part of preparing."
"Angela values team unity and always
cheers her teammates on," said Brendel. "She
always arrived to matches and practices on time
and ready to play. She is truly a dedicated and
an amazing person."
Albertson had an internship last summer in
volving her major in Plastics Engineering at
Rehrig Pacific Company, where she mainly
worked on material testing. This experience
was worthwhile to Albertson.
"I enjoyed doing this because I got to leave
the plant sometimes to mold parts," said
Albertson. "And I also got to communicate
with others outside of the company."
Now that the season is over, Albertson plans
to work during the week at a Rehrig Pacific
Company.
Albertson is also involved in a lot of school
activities. She is the treasurer of Society of
Women Engineers, treasurer of the senior class
of Society of Plastics Engineers, president of
SAAC, and a Lion Ambassador. Albertson is
not done playing tennis, though.
"One nice thing about tennis is that it is a
sport that you can play all your life," said
Albertson. "So, I definitely plan on playing in
leagues to stay active in the latter years of my
life. But, I certainly am going to miss playing
tennis for Behrend."
behrcolls@aol.com
Joe Paterno
is a Penn
State legend
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Jason Snyder
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I was sit
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Ling in one of
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weeks ago,
learning about the models of communication
and the levels of hierarchy in organizations.
My professor decided to use Penn State as an
example of the different hierarchical levels.
"Who is at the very top of the Penn State
hierarchy? - he asked.
Waiting for a response such as, "The Board
of Trustees," or "Graham Spanier," he unex
pectedly heard, "Joe Patemo." And as unex
pected as that answer was, everyone agreed.
Joe Patemo is a Penn State god, which be
came ever so apparent to me this past Satur
day when he broke Bear Bryant's all-time win
record with his 324th victory. The historical
meaning of the day became even more ap
parent with the way Penn State came back
from a 27-9 deficit to knock off rival Ohio
State.
I was fortunate enough to be at Beaver Sta
dium for the historic event, witnessing his
tory happen right in front of my eyes. You
can't even begin to understand the true spec
tacle of Joe Paterno unless you are there to
see it.
From the moment he takes the field, there
is a sense of awe from the people in the stands.
Every week he wears pants that are too short
and a jacket that you could find at K-mart.
He looks like any ordinary "Joe."
He walks from person to person on the field,
shaking hands and starting conversation with
nearly everyone in his way. Then he starts
his trek from the back of the end zone to his
sideline, walking past the student section of
the stands to a standing ovation and a roar of
cheers. He waves to the students with a grin
on his face.
When he gets to his sideline, he continues
to meet and greet people. It appears as though
he doesn't even understand the true spectacle
of himself, talking to every person that ap
proaches him. The fame has never gone to
his head.
The players then begin their stretching be
fore the game, lining up in perfect rows. I'd
assume that's how Joe Pa requested it be done.
He walks from player to player, shaking their
hands or patting their shoulder pads or giving
them words of encouragement. He's done this
to thousands of his players, and I'm sure they
haven't forgotten that ritual.
So the game starts, the students stand, the
alumni cheer and Joe Pa walks the sideline.
All of these traditions are just something we
take for granted, because they have been com
monplace for the past 35 years.
Joe Pa will then step onto the field every
once in a while to give a referee an earfu4,
which will cause more than 100,000 fans to
join in, chanting "Joe-Pa-Ter-No, Joe-Pa-Ter-
No," or, "Joe Pa, Joe Pa, Joe Pa."
As last weekend's game against Ohio State
neared its conclusion, those "Joe Paterno"
chants started up again. We waited six games
for two wins this season. And Joe Paterno
wasn't going to make us wait any longer.
The clock wound down, the players put the
legend on their shoulders, and 100,000-plus
Penn State faithful chanted his name. The
record might not seem as important to any
one else in this country, but anyone who
bleeds Penn State Blue realized the impor
tance of the moment. The man who put Penn
State on the map as a traditionally great foot
ball program finally got the respect he de
serves.
My friend and I rushed the field with a
couple dozen other students who managed to
get past security when the celebrations be
gan. We understood the historical importance
of the moment. But even more than the his
torical aspect, we understood that the moment
was the culmination of more than 50 years of
making a legend. He had gone from just any
ordinary "Joe" to a Penn State icon.
Today, Joe Paterno is no ordinary "Joe."
He is no ordinary football coach. And he
surely isn't just another ordinary member of
the Penn State community. Joe Paterno is
Penn State, period. Without him, we lose a
sense of our identity. We lose a sense of our
traditions. And we lose one hell of a football
coach, the winningest college football coach
of all time.
And a loss like that is something that a true
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