Behrend collegian. (Erie, Pa.) 1971-1988, September 17, 1987, Image 6

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    September 17, 1987
Collegian
PAGE 6
Balanci
Promising players keep coach yelling
by Margie Survoiec
Collegian Staff Writer
The Penn State-Behrend
women's Tennis team has had to
practice indoors a lot this year.
Even thugh the weather has not
been the greatest, coach Karin
Sobotta is very optimistic about all
of her players and the upcoming
season:
"The team this year has a good
mix and depth from player number
one to player number twelve," said
Sobotta. The three returning
players are Kelly McConnell, Stor
my Vanhese, and Kathy Veazy.
"These three have played com
petitively in the past and they know
that our competition is tough,"
said Sobotta. "But these players
are bringing on-court experience to
our game this year," said Sobotta.
The new players on the team in
clude Richann Bryant, Chris Huff,
Jane McKnight, Kathy Miller,
Carissa Nickolas, Frances Pimen
tal, Shari Stumpo, Jan Thompson,
and Jennifer Vila. "The progress is
slow but sure," said Sobotta, "and
I can tell by the attitudes and the
actions of the members that every
single one of them want to be good
tennis players." "Every one of the
finis asks for extra help to constant
ly improve their game, they come
early to practice, and best of all
they are excited and get along very
well," said Sobotta.
"I really think we are going to be
O.K. this year," said Sobotta,
"because even though we play.
Attitude
by Darrell Freund
Collegian Staff Writer
With last season's record of
7-9-1 behind them, the Behrend
Men's Soccer Team went into this
years Alfred University Tourna
ment with high expectations. This
year's tournament attracted soccer
talent from throughout the region.
The Behrend team saw this gather
ing as a chance to see how their
: skills compared to schools of
similar size.
The first team to take on the
Lions was the host of the tourna
ment, Alfred University. Behrend
Head Coach Herb Lauffer was not
pleased with the results of the first .
game. "We got thumped, to put
things into simple terms," stated
Coach Lauffer, "when we needed a
goal, we couldn't find one." The
final score was 2-0, a fairly close
match. But, Coach Lauffer and the
team had their share of "close"
=games last year. Especially when
you take into consideration that
eight of last years nine losses were
academics with athletics
elle Madison, Lisa Butch, and Lisa Dorenkamp
tough people, our girls have a team
attitude rather than a self attitude
and that makes a difference." In
practice, we have been working on
fundamentals, exaggerating,
topspin, and improving the con
fidence in their strokes," said
Sobotta. During practice, the girls
know they are in trouble if coach
Sobotta stops yelling because she
tells them that if she stops yelling,
that means that she has given up on
them.
Some of the players played in the
Pennßriar Tournament, and this
boosts the confidence of the
players because then they know
what to expect during their upcom
ing games. Richann Bryant made it
into the finals and Kathy Veazy
made it into the semi-finals. "At
the end of the season there is going
to be a tennis tournament in New
York and the players cannot wait
to go_ Their footwork should be at
its peak by that time," said
Sobotta.
"The goal to stive for is to have
every player come off the courts
feeling good about their game,"
said Sobotta. "Depth is where it's
at and we've got that this year,"
said Sobotta. This year's team is
going to really be competitive and
we could use some school sup
port," said Sobotta. Home games
are Sept.l4 against Buffalo State at
3:00 p.m., Sept.l9 against Thiel at
1:00, Sept. 29 agaist Gannon at 3:00
p.m., Oct. 1 against Fredonia at
3:00 p.m., Oct. 3 against Allegheny
at 3:00 p.m., and Oct. 7 against
Geneva at 3:00 p.m.
is all part of the game
by one goal.
However, the tournament was
not a complete loss. The following
day the team played Ursinus Col
lege. "The game against Alfred
was obviously one sided. We lack
ed ball possession and shots on
goal. "It was as if Alfred had grab
bed our ankles," commented
Coach Lauffer. However, the
Lions came out a different team
against Ursinus. "The difference
was like night and day. We thought
aggressively, we thought attack
with a purpose," Coach Lauffer
went on to add, "I was very pleas
ed with the rebounding ability of
the team." They lost the game to
Ursinus 1-0, but they were out of
the doldrums experienced in the
game against Alfred.
This years team is anchored by a
duo of co-captains. Returning
seniors and co-captains Dave
Titley, at the back position, and
Joe Kushom, at the striker posi
tion, will add leadership and
stability to this years squad.
Coach Lauffer was pleased to
New golf team, coach
After a nine year absence, Penn State-Behrend has added golf to its fall
sports schedule.
Renewed interest in the program, from both within and outside of the
campus, was instrumental in reviving the sport, according to coach Dave
First. "A lot of inquiries about it, plus contributions from the private sec
tor were major factors in the revival," said First.
The interest is well illustrated by the fact that 20 students have tried out
for a spot on the roster. Members include Sophmores Jim Eighme, Rick
Kwarciak, John Martone, and Dave Spath; and Freshman Paul De
myanovich and Tom Kelly.
The team hopes to compete against some tough competition, especially
since all of its contests will be on the road this year. It is certain, however,
that home tournaments will be held in the future at nearby Gospel Hill
golf course.
AU contests will be played under tournament play rules. The first tour
nament will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 15, when the team will travel to
Stevensville, Ontario, to take part in the Buffalo State Golf Classic.
Coach First is enthusiastic about the upcoming season. He summed up
his team's goals as "...to do the best we can. We have a fresh start here. I
think we have good talent to start here."
J.--
discover during this preseason that
this years team has some depth.
"The gap between our best player
and player of least experience is not
as wide as I had thought," stated
Coach Lauffer.
With key players returning, this
years squad looks fundamentally
sound. All Conference 'sweeper
back Doug McCarthy, along with
senior mid-fielders Jose Domingos
and Mike Cifelli, will add some ex
perience to the team.
It looks as if graduation did not
deplete the team of quality players.
Junior Mike Smelko, a mid-fielder,
Sophmore striker Ken Crumb, and
Sophmore back Jay Varcoe will be
returning for this season.
Sophmore goalie Mark Yingling
will be between the posts for the
team this season.
Coach Lauffer considers all of
his players important to the team
effort. This years crop of freshmen
are the future of men's soccer at
Behrend. "As of now, I haven't
seen enough of the freshmen to
make any evaluations," com-
ALL PHOTOS THIS PAGE BY RICK BROOKS
by Chris Stowe
Collegian Staff Writer
mented Coach Lauffer
This years team, and teams of
the future, will be tough com
petitors on the field. The talent is
there. However, 'Coach Lauffer
thinks that attitude is just as impor
tant as talent. "For all I know,
mental preparation could be as
much as 50 percent to 60 percent of
an athlete's preparation for his or
her sport." Coach Lauffer went on
to add that "This could seem mind
boggling to some, but I believe it to
be true." The fact that mental
preparation could be vital to an
athlete's success has prompted the
Coach to set two goals for this
season. First, offensive consistency
is a must. "We have to believe we
can score," Coach Lauffer said,
"Secondly, our athletes have to
believe in themselves. They have to
believe thit ,they can compete
against anyone."
This season looks to be a fruitful
year for the Behrend Soccer Team.
Coach Lauffer and the team hope
to see as many Behrend students as
possible supporting this years soc
cer team.
Freshman who are having difficulty finding time for school work
should take notice of a few classmates. A number of students are combin
ing their studies with participation in two varsity sports.
I Balancing academics is nothing new for Education major Randy
I Baughman. Randy, a member of both the Behrend baseball and basket
ball teams, won numerous all-city honors in both sports at East High
School. He also found time to quarterback the football team and graduate
near the top of his class.
Men's basketball coach Doug Zimmerman was quick to praise
Baughman. "Randy is an excellent point guard who sees the court very
well and has good leadership qualities." Randy will pitch and play the in
field for the baseball team. ,
Mike Jenkins, an Academy High School graduate, comes to Behrend
with a fine athletic reputation. Like Baughman, he will also play baseball
and basketball. "Mike is an excellent all-round athlete who can do a
number of things well", said Zimmerman.
Not to be ooutdone, two other freshmen will take part in women's
volleyball and softball. Education majors Erica Scribner and Gwen Jones
are expected to be an important part of each team.
With new faces like these in the athletic program, Behrend fans can
look forward to an exciting future.
Coach Bari.
about Cubs
by Richard Cain
Collegian Staff Writer
The Behrend baseball team
began their fall workouts last
month with enthusiasm and excite
ment. A total of 48 players
reported to the opening tryout with
hopes of obtaining one of the 23
spots on the roster. The 23 man
roster will eventually include a pit
ching staff of up to 10 men. This
prospective roster alone is cause for
enthusiasm considering last
season's team consisted of only 15
men with four pitchers.
Major ingredients for success for
this year's team include strong
showings from some of the
recruits. One of the quality addi
tions to the team is Shawn Selby. A
transfer student from Penn State
Beaver, Shawn has shown both
hustle and leadership abilities.
These talents give Coach Michael
Bari high hopes for a productive
season from Shawn.
Some other major additions to
the team come from the Freshman
class. These promising newcomers
include Joel Domkowski, Rich
Adams, Joe Vieria, Mark
Van Home and Randy Baughman.
The experience missing from the
first year players will undoubtably
be allieviated by some outstanding
second year players. The stand out
from these returning athletes is
Reese Wetzel. Wetzel is coming of
a great first year having hit over
.400 and recieving an honorable
mention in the All Mideast Region
All-Star Team. The other standout
from last season's team is Bob
sports
by Andy Dobry
Collegian Staff Writer
confident
Druschel, who hit .3 last spring.
Accompanying these stand outs on
to the field this season are a
number of other quality players,
inluding: Tom Partridge, Jim
Sanyo, Dave Bruce, Bob Duma,
Ron Thompson, and Matt Rose.
The eventual outcome of all this
depends on the ability of the new
recruits to weld with the returning
players. The burden of this task
falls on the shoulders of second
year coach, Michael Bari. Having a
year under his belt and a larger,
more talented group of players to
work with, Coach Bari is confident
about the Cub's success. " I think
we have the capabilities of being a
real competitive team in the spr
ing," said Coach Ban, " This all
depends on our fall workouts and
our ability to come together as a
unit."
The Cubs have 8 exhibition
games in the next two weeks. There
is a double-header against Gannon,
at home, on Sept. 12. The next day
they travel to Jamestown Com
munity College to play another two
games. The following weekend
they play two at home against Mer
cyhurst and a double-header with
Fredonia on Sept. 20.
The Cubs then wrap up their fall
activities with a 100 inning fund
raising game on Oct. 4. Having
raised $2,200 last fall, the team will
be looking for pledges for this
game. All proceeds from this game
go toward a spring break trip to
Florida for the team. This trip in
cludes a number of exhibition
games against quality teams from
all over the country.