0 I THURSDAY, March 17, 2005
Matt Sowers/Collegian
Eric Bradley, a senior at 184-pounds, takes down an opponent. Bradley will make a run for a national title this weekend.
WRESTLING
Wrestlers
With six qualifiers, the Penn
State wrestling team looks
to rebound after a disap
pointing finish at Big Tens.
By Chris Weeden
COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER I cweeden@psu.edu
ST. LOUIS It's just a little bigger
than Rec Hall. It will be slightly more
full than the Bryce Jordan Center.
It's the Savvis Center, located in St.
Louis. It's the arena that will host the
NCAA Championships. Six Penn State
Nittany Lions will attend, the most
notable being Eric Bradley.
Seeded fourth in his 184-pound
class, Bradley represents the Lions'
most legitimate threat to walk away
with an individual crown.
Two other wrestlers came off some
of their best performances of the year
at the Big Ten Tourament, March 5
and 6. For one, this weekend repre
sents the climax to a stellar career.
For the other, it's his coming out party
in the national spotlight.
Senior Adam Smith placed a career
best fourth at Big Tens at 125 pounds
to earn the trip down the Mississippi.
Freshman Phil Davis, in his first Big
Ten Tournament, also wrestled his
way to a fourth-place finish at 197
pounds and will wrestle a guy in the
first round whom he's already beaten.
One wrestler was at the cusp of not
advancing, which would've been disas
trous to a season in which he was a
staple in the top 20 at 157 pounds.
Sophomore Nathan Galloway thought
he won his seventh-place match at Big
Tens in lowa City, but in the closing
seconds the referees awarded his
opponent a deciding takedown. Gal
loway and Penn State coaches both
thought time had expired.
After a discussion, there was no
overturn. With the top seven finishers
going on to NCAAs, it appeared his
season was over. He caught a break.
Galloway won one of two wild-card
spots, given by the Big Ten coaches.
Junior Joel Edwards would've told
you at the start of the season he'd be
at Nationals. But at heavyweight?
He'd probably give you a sideways
WOMEN'S SWiNIMING
School-record 14 Penn State
Courtney Hughes/Collegian
Sara Shepherd competes in backstroke.
SPORTS
ready for nationals
Courtney Hughes/Collegian
Redshlrt freshman Byran Heller swings an opponent to the mat. Six Penn State
wrestlers qualified for the National Championship in St. Louis.
National
noon today
Sawis Center
St. Louis
look. But jumping up and performing
well despite being undersized means
he'll be in St. Louis after finishing sev
enth at Big Tens. For Penn State, the
tournament will be based on individual
success. With six wrestlers competing
and only one noted contender
(Bradley), the Lions are not viewed as
a threat for the team championship.
According to Intermatwrestle.com, a
poll shows Oklahoma State as the like
ly team champion, showing the emer
gence of the Big 12. The Conference
has griped for years about the Big Ten
receiving a competitive advantage.
However, Sunderland said prior to
Big Tens that "the Big Twelve may
have a legitimate complaint but the
fact is the Big Ten has outperfomed
By Mike Garvey
COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER I mpgl67@psu.edu
The records continue to fall underfoot
for the Penn State women's swimming
team. A month ago, the team set a
school record of 693 points at the Big
Ten Championship meet. Performances
at that competition helped a school-best
14 Nittany Lion swimmers earn berths
to the NCAA Championship meet at
Purdue University, taking place today
until Saturday.
Despite being ranked No. 14 in the
latest College Swimming Coaches Assa
ciation of America poll, Penn State will
have the fifth largest squad, trailing
Georgia, Auburn, Florida and Texas.
Coincidentally, those teams rank No. 1
through No. 4, respectively, in the
CSCAA poll.
"Were keeping some company with
the other conference [at Nationals]."
But the Big Ten still has the most
threats to win it all, and because Okla
homa State won last year, it's more of
an opportunity to state the Cowboys'
case as one of the top programs,
rather than improve the attitude
towards the conference as a whole.
"They won it last year and they have
a solid team and a lot of top individu
als," Sunderland said. "They have a
good enough opportunity to win
again."
With Big Ten schools such as lowa,
Illinois and Michigan not favored to
win, it's still enough to prove that they
are the best conference in the nation.
The Lions look to build off a sev
enth-place finish at Big Tens and show
they are one of the best squads in the
country despite the injury woes.
But they only have one more night
to prepare. Sunderland scheduled one
workout and a video session. Then it's
off to the Savvis Center and look to fin
ish a sup-par season on a bright note.
some pretty good people," Penn State
coach Bill Dorenkott said. "If we take
care of each race as it comes and each
session, [we'll be] ready to go. We don't
have a lot of control over place."
In holding with the season's theme of
balance, the team is comprised of both
veterans and youth, with at least one
swimmer competing in 16 of 18 swim
ming events. For seniors Kristen
Woodring, Courtney Stanchock and
Dierdre Dlugonski, this will be their
fourth NCAA Championship. On the
other side of the coin, sophomores Nikki
Collins, Claire Hawley and Lauren
Preyss, as well as seniors Meredith Hol
man and Lauren Semchyshen will be
competing in their first. The distance
swimmers, breaststrokers and medley
relays should be strengths for the Lions.
Six Lions will compete in both the
500- and 1,650-yard freestyle events.
FOOTBALL
PSU seniors
hope to wow
At the team's 'Pro Day,' PSU players will display their abil
ities in front of the watchful eyes of NFL talent evaluators.
By Jenny Vrentas
COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER I jennyv@psu.edu
Start the countdown: In exactly 37
days, the 2005 NFL Draft will com
mence in New York.
But for the seniors on the Penn State
football team who have declared for
this year's draft, another day indicative
of their football futures has already
arrived Penn State's Pro Day, which
is held today on campus. Participating
in the combine-like workouts and inter
views with NFL representatives are
nine members of last fall's senior class
John Bronson, Scott Davis, Robbie
Gould, Andrew Guman, Paul Jefferson,
Zack Mills, Ryan Scott, Gerald Smith
and Derek Wake.
"This is going to be the equivalent of
the NFL combine, with every single
test as the 360 players at [the 2005
Scouting Combine in] Indianapolis
would have," said Brett Senior, the
agent for Gould, Guman and Mills.
"Most, if not all, of the 32 [professional]
teams will be represented."
Among the tests the players will
complete are the 40-yard dash, vertical
jump, shuttle run, three-cone drill and
broad jump, as well as position-specific
drills. While players have the opportu
nity to schedule follow-up workouts
after the pro day, it is nonetheless a
chance for all of the draft-ready play-
FENCING
Depth aids Lions
in quest for title
Last season, the Penn State fencers fell short of a national
title, but the Nittany Lions expect to regain it this year.
By Jamie Romm
COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER I jjr2s2@psu.edu
Penn State fencing captain Marten
Zagunis was the last one in the team
locker room showering and packing for
this year's NCAA Championships in
Houston.
For the last two years, Zagunis has
represented his team in the NCAA
Championships and he was a key com
ponent in the Nittany Lions' second
place finish last year.
This year, though, he's packing not
to compete but to serve as an alternate
for the men's saber squad.
Each team can qualify two fencers
from each weapon to compete at the
championships, while the rest have to
qualify to act as alternates.
Freshman Franz Boghicev and
sophomore lan Farr both placed ahead
of Zagunis at this year's Mid-
Atlantic/South Regionals and qualified
to compete.
Zagunis, though, is more than posi
tive of his team's chances to finish first
even though he's on the sidelines.
"At the beginning of the year I think
people felt that Franz and I would be
the ones who eventually would com
pete at NCAAs," Zagunis said. "But
lan really worked his butt off all year
ers head
Sophomore Erin Morris is seeded
eighth in the 500 free with a time of
4:42.17, and Claire Hawley is the 12th
.seed in the 1,650-yard event (16:16.59).
Though this group doesn't crowd the top
of the seedings like it had at the Big Itin
meet, some of swimmers did not taper
completely, saving their best perform
ances for this week.
"We had a handful of kids thit went
through the Big lens unshaved We like
to leave a little bit left in the tank,"
Dorenkott said.
It will be the last go-round for the
breaststroke duo of Woodring and Stan
chock, who are seeded 13th and 14th in
the 100-yard event with 1:01.41 and
1:01.55, respectively. 'Dv-seeded Sarah
Poewe of Georgia qualified with a time
of 59.58. Two seconds is an eternity in
such a short event, but both Lions
swimmers have swum faster times than
scouts
Chad Woolbert/Collegian
Senior Paul Jefferson gives freshman
wide out Terrell Golden.a pep talk.
ers to give NFL scouts a comprehen
sive look at their physical attributes
and football abilities.
Of the nine Penn State players, only
Wake, a 6-foot-3 outside linebacker, was
See PRO DAY, Page 16.
and he deserves to go because he's
been amazing."
Zagunis and Farr both grew up in
Oregon and have been competing with,
and against, each other for years.
This year not only were they com
peting for the same team but also
against each other for a spot to play for
the team in the championships.
"He's always been a great fencer,"
Zagunis said. "At Regionals when it
came down to it, and all the money was
on the table he stepped up and did his
job and that's why he got the spot"
As a freshman last year, Farr fin
ished fifth while Zagunis finished
fourth.
Boghicev is a freshman entering his
first NCAA Championships.
"Franz's only question to me was if
he should wash his uniform because it
was starting to smell," Zagunis said.
"But in practice ail week we've been
going after each other hard to pre
pare.'
The men's team will also be sending
senior Nonpatat Panchan and fresh
man Jeffrey Chang.
In the foil, only freshman Arthur
Urman qualified.
The women's squad, which enters
the championships as the third-ranked
See FENCING, Page 16.
to NCAAs
their seed times, including Woodring's
59.96 at the 2001 NCAA Championship
meet. The medley relay team of Haupt,
Woodring, Biedermann and Dlugonski
may benefit from the meet being held in
the Boilermaker Aquatic Center. At the
2003 Big Ten Championships, which
were hosted by Purdue, this team set
pool records in both the 200- and 400-
yard medley relays, with respective
times of 1:39.41 and 3:36.39. The 200-yard
event will be one to watch. The Lions
are seeded third with a Big Ten record
time of 1:39.06.
"Relays are awfully important [They]
count for double the points," Dorenkott
said. "I think we have a shot to score all
five [relays]."
Biedermann holds records in the 100-
and 200-yard butterfly, and Haupt set a
record in the 100-yard backstroke. Both
will compete in those events this week.
THE DAILY COLLEGIAN