BE AC ON SPORTS
HOUSING AND FOOD
SERVICES
ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
NAME:
SPORT:
CLASS:
DATE:
Derek Sieber (Warren/Warren) has been named the
Housing and Food Service Athlete of the Week.
Sieber led the men's water polo team in a 4-0 week
end at the Wildcat Invitational hosted by Villanova.
He scored eight goals, had one assist, earned 10
steals, a pair of drawn kickouts, and made three
field saves.
Behrend defeated University of Pennsylvania,
Army, Kingfish, and Villanova.
Derek Sieber
Men's Water Polo
Freshman
September 25, 2006
Water Polo looking forward to postseason
By Matthew Waronker
The Penn State Behrend men’s water polo team had high
expectations as they entered the 2006 season. With the largest,
and quite possibly, most heralded incoming class in school his
tory, the Behrend Lions prepared for a solid run at the Eastern
Championships.
“That’s our main focus,” said head coach Joe Tristan. “We
need to continue preparing for that tournament.”
Although the Division 111 Eastern Championships will not be
held until the weekend of October 21 and 22. the tournament
will mark a milestone in school history. For the first time in
program history, Behrend will host the five team tournament
that ranks each varsity team on the east coast.
The road to this point, however, has been considerably
bumpy. The Lions began their season with a six game road trip
through California that resulted in six consecutive losses.
These matches were all part of the Redlands Tournament
which was hosted by the University of Redlands. Over the
course of the road trip, Behrend faced difficult match-ups in
the tournament, all of which were against California based
opponents.
“These matches were not so much a matter of wins and loss
es,” noted coach Tristan. “They were more a matter of how we
compared to these teams. Overall, I feel we competed well
against them.”
I n their first two matches the blue and white fell to Cal
Luheran University 16-10, and then to Chapman University
18-14. The Lions were then defeated by the University of
Redlands 21-9 and later suffered their fourth straight loss to
Claremont College by a score of 15-9.
In their last two matches of the tournament the Lions were
Penn State picks up second straight loss
Despite a good defensive effort, the Penn State Nittany Lions lost 28-6 to the #l-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes in their Big Ten
opener on Saturday at Columbus. Penn State shutout Ohio State at the half, holding a 3-0 halftime lead. However, in the second
half, theNittany Lions' defense had trouble stopping Ohio State running back Antonio Pittman, who scored a touchdown to give
the Buckeyes a lead they never relinquished
Penn State’s biggest problem in this game was on offense, as quarterback Anthony Morelli threw three interceptions. Trailing
14-6 late in the fourth quarter, he threw a pass that was intercepted and returned for a touchdown, putting the game out of reach
for the Nittany Lions. Morelli threw another interception that was returned for a touchdown, putting Ohio State up 28-6
The first half was dominated by both defenses, with neither team scoring until Penn State’s field goal right before the half. Both
teams’ quarterbacks threw an interception each, and neither offense was able to establish much of a rhythm. The teams punted
back and forth until Penn State’s final drive of the half, when they drove down inside the 10-yard line. Kicker Kevin Kelly missed
a field goal as time expired in the first half, but a roughing the kicker penalty gave him another try, which he converted to give
the Nittany Lions a 3-0 lead
One of the game’s highlights was not even a play on the field. Halfway through the second quarter and right before Penn State
was about to punt, Joe Patemo went running through the end zone and to the stadium tunnel. It turned out that Patemo was feel-
ing ill from flu-like symptoms, and he was heading to the restroom. Paterno returned in the fourth quarter.
Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith made an excellent play early in the fourth quarter, helping the Buckeyes win the game. Being
chased by Penn State defensive linemen, he rolled out of the pocket, escaping the pass rush. He then threw a 37-yard touchdown
pass to Brian Robiskie, which put Ohio State up 14-3
Led by running back Tony Hunt, Penn State subsequently had a great drive that gave them an opportunity to get back in the
game. Hunt picked up many of his 135 rushing yards on a 74-yard drive which went all the way inside the Ohio State one-yard
line. However, after a false start penalty on fourth down, Penn State was forced to kick a field goal, making the score 14-6. This
would be their last scoring opportunity, as their next two possessions ended in interceptions returned for Ohio State touchdowns
This loss to Ohio State dropped the Nittany Lions to 2-2 overall and 0-1 in the Big Ten. Penn State dropped out of the top 25 in
both polls after being ranked #24 last week. The Nittany Lions take on Big Ten opponent Northwestern at home at 3:30 pm on
Saturday as they attempt to get back a overall winning record
staff writer
handed another pair of losses, this time from Occidental and
the University of La Verne. Occidental defea'ed Behrend 16-4,
while La Verne handled the Lions 19-6.
Throughout the tournament the Lions were led by captains
Leandro Azevedo, Andre Pranckevicius and Anthony Spoto.
Azevedo tallied 70 saves, while Pranckevicius and Spoto each
scored 12 goals a piece. Junior Vince Brewer recorded 32
steals.
“The whole tournament was a great experience,” said
Tristan. “It really showed where our weaknesses are, and will
give us the opportunity to address them and turn them into
strengths."
Following the Redlands Tournament the Lions dropped their
seventh consecutive match to rival Mercyhurst College.
Despite a valiant effort, the blue and white were outlasted 9-7.
Pranckevicius, junior Rodolphe Acelor and freshman Chris
Munton all contributed two goals in the losing effort. Goalies
Azevedo and senior Jake Hayden combined for eight saves.
Acelor and Pranckevicius led the Lions with seven shots each.
After going 0-7 to start the season, Behrend began to rebuild
its record with four wins at the annual Wildcat Invitational held
at Villanova University. The Lions defeated Army 12-8 in their
first match, and Kingfish Veterans 10-8 in their second match.
To close out the tournament, Behrend outlasted tournament
host Villanova 12-11 and then defeated the University of
Pennsylvania 15-13.
The Lions look to add to their winning streak this weekend
with matches against Gannon and Washington & Jefferson.
“We need to come together as a team for these matches,”
commented Tristan. “We have to focus on the little things since
they’re both very strong teams.”
By Tommy Phillips
slat! writer
The Behrend Beacon I
Friday, September 29,2006