I Wednesday, Nov. 3, 2010
Naim staying productive
By Andrew Robinson
COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER
If Christine Naim taught the
Big Ten anything during her
freshman campaign last year, it
was that letting a
llaver ith
player wn
national team WOMEN’S
credentials run SOCCER
wild isn’t the
best way to win
games.
After tearing
through her first
season with the
Penn State
women’s soccer
team while scor-
ing seven goals Naim
and posting 10
assists, Naim was named first
team All-Big Ten and the confer
ence’s player of the year.
But this season, teams have
put a greater emphasis on shut
ting down the crafty sophomore
midfielder.
Despite the extra attention,
Nairn has maintained a high
level of play and has been one of
the Nittany Lions’ most consis
tent players this season.
“Every team’s strategy is to
zero in on Christine and she does
a good job, she works hard, “
Lions coach Erica Walsh said
after the 3-2 loss to Wisconsin on
Oct. 17. “She picks and chooses
her opportunities and I think
she’s playing well. I have no com
plaints about what she’s doing
right now.”
Lions focusing on beam work
By Matt Howland
FOR THE COLLEGIAN
The Penn State women’s gym
nastics team has been hitting
routines in practice at the
halfway point in
the preseason
and its first WOMEN'S
meet isn’t for GYMNASTICS
months
Nevertheless, preparations
are starting to ramp up in antici
pation of the first meet Jan. 7 at
Alabama.
The team held a balance beam
intrasquad scrimmage Tuesday
afternoon at practice with the
goal of getting the gymnasts pre
pared for the intensity and for
mat of a meet.
Danielle Hover, Stephanie
Brock, Whitney Bencsko.
Kassidy Stauder, Daryl
Konsevick and Sharaya Musser
performed their balance beam
routines in a competition-style
format. Brock, Stauder,
Konsevick and Musser all hit
their routines without falling.
Associate head coach Rachelle
Thompson was satisfied with the
results of the intrasquad, with
four of the six gymnasts hitting
their routines.
She identified the scrimmage
as important to see how the gym
nasts would perform without
more time to warm up. Each of
the six gymnasts had only 30 sec
onds to warm up on the beam
leers players to represent U.S., play NCAA opponents
By Anthony Barton
COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER
The 2011 United States Men's
National University hockey team
will travel to Vermont in late
December to play
three exhibitions
in order to pre
pare for the 2011
Winter World
University Games
Jan. 27 - Feb. 6 in
Erzurum. Turkey.
Two Penn State
leers, senior for
ward Tim O’Brien
and sophomore
forward Eric O’Brien
Steinour, were
selected to the team and coach
Scott Balboni will serve as one of
the team’s assistant coaches.
The U.S. team is made up of the
top players from the ACHA and
Sixers drop nail-biter to Wall, Wizards in overtime game
By Joseph White
ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON, DC. John
Wall had 29 points, 13 assists, nine
steals and eight turnovers in his
home debut, out-
shining fellow NR .
rookie Evan
Tu; the =—==*=
irner as
Washington Wizards beat the
Philadelphia 76ers 116-115 in over
time Tuesday night in the first
matchup of the top two picks in
this year’s draft.
No. 1 choice Wall’s eventful
game gave the Wizards their first
win of the season. Cartier Martin
The loss to the Badgers was
one of just three Big Ten games
where Nairn was held without a
goal or assist.
As the Lions experimented
with their lineups and formations
early in the season, Nairn took
on several roles and did not
record a point until the team’s
fifth game.
In the game against Wisconsin,
Naim was shadowed by Badger
defensive midfielder Erin
Jacobsen as Wisconsin’s strategy
was to keep Naim from connect
ing passes up to the forwards.
Wisconsin coach Paula Wilkins
said keeping Nairn contained
prevented Penn State’s arsenal
of forwards from getting the ball
from the midfielder’s entry pass
es.
“We were just finding her, tiy
ing to make sure every time she
got the ball she couldn’t face for
ward or get an opportunity,”
Wilkins said. “She obviously got
away a couple of times and had
some brilliant shots and she was
our main focus, to shut her
down."
Naim led the Lions in goals for
most of the season, until conced
ing that edge to forward Tani
Costa on Sunday. With the team’s
forwards scoring in bunches,
Nairn laughed when she was
asked if she’s just trying to keep
pace at this point.
“If we're winning, then I’m
happy." Nairn said.
“It's never my stats or any
thing like that. If we continue to
“I was just really focused and did what I had
to do.”
before they performed their rou
tines, echoing the format of
meets, where the team will have
only three minutes on one beam
in the two hours before theirou
tines.
"We do a lot of different pres
sure sets during preseason to
kind of get the girls ready for
that," Thompson said.
Thompson said she would use
the results of the intrasquad to
figure out how comfortable the
team was with the competition
format, and base her practices
accordingly.
"They all hit that, so the warm
up doesn’t matter to them, or if
they all fell, then we'd structure
in less and less warm up time
over the next 34 workouts,"
Thompson said.
The gymnasts felt they were
prepared for the scrimmage, but
they also said the short warm up
time was still a factor.
“It was a good wake up call
‘cause it did remind me of how it
would feel in a meet," senior
Danielle Hover said.
The stakes were high, with the
performance of the gymnasts on
the beam determining the
intensity of the rest of the prac
tice, where the team worked on
will take on three NCAA oppo
nents, including Division 111
Castleton State College on Dec.
27, Division II Saint Michael's
College on Dec. 28 and will wrap
up with Division I University of
Vermont on Dec. 29.
Balboni said the last time he
went to the World University
Games, he thought the team need
ed some more games to better
prepare. He said the team has
never skated together before, and
adding more time to gel would
give the coaching staff a chance to
put together the best possible line
combinations.
iCERS
ACHA Commissioner Brian
Moran and Balboni reached out to
multiple NCAA schools before
they were able to schedule the
three teams.
“It's a situation where each
time we’ve gone to the World
University Games since 2001,
caught Wall’s inbounds pass and
hit a 3-pointer with 0.3 seconds
remaining in regulation to send
the game into overtime.
No. 2 pick
Turner, who vS J%■
came off the
bench and was- '*l’"iT*.'"
n’t a factor until Washington
the second half,
scored all of his #|j *8 IJ*
nine points in
the fourth quar
ter and finished Philadelphia
with six
rebounds for the 76ers, who are 0-
4 for the first time since 2001-02.
Lou Williams led the 76ers with
SPORTS
win, I’ll be happy whether I’m
getting the points or not.”
Despite being the focus of
more defenses, Naim has still
provided moments of brilliance.
The midfielder carried the
Lions to a 2-1 win over
Northwestern when she scored
both of Penn State’s goals. After
playing more of a central midfield
role early this season, Naim has
moved back into an attacking
midfield position, but has shown
an increased drive on the defen
sive end, chasing down attackers
across and up-and-down the field
all game.
Sophomore midfielder Maddy
Evans said during games the
other players will look to Naim to
provide answers and the sopho
more usually delivers. With
Naim’s extended background in
soccer she served as a co-cap
tain on the United States U-20
World Cup team this summer
and has two appearances with
the senior national team
Evans said her teammate is the
type of player and person that
can make the best of any situa
tion.
“She’s had all the experience
in the world, pretty much literal
ly,” Evans said. “She’s able to
deal with anything at this level.
She’s someone that other teams
focus on but she’s one of those
people that can handle that and
take it on and she handles it, I
think, really well.”
To e-mail reporter: adrso79@psu.edu
Stephanie Brock
vault, uneven bars and balance
beam.
With Hover, Becsko, Stauder,
Konsevick and Musser looking
like locks for five of the six bal
ance beam competition spots,
the pressure was also on Brock, a
freshman, who is penciled in to
the final spot but has to fight off
competition. Senior Heather
McElwee, and freshmen Lindsay
Musgrove and Cassidy Bogar are
also in competition for the sixth
spot. Brock hit her routine well,
and appears to be the favorite at
the spot for now. After the count
less hours of practicing her beam
routine, she was unfazed by the
short warm up time.
"I tried not to let it affect me
because we’ve done hundreds of
routines, so I know I could hit
everything," Brock said. "I was
just really focused and did what I
had to do."
Thompson highlighted the
importance of the competition for
spots in keeping everyone sharp.
“It’s still a lot of competition for
that spot,” Thompson said.
“Seven and eight keep working,
hoping to get in, and while
they're working and getting bet
ter and better, they’re also push
ing one through six."
they've tried to make the experi
ence better and tried to give us a
better shot at getting into the
medal round,” Balboni said. “It’s
extremely important for our guys
to play these games for A) to get
used to the level of competition
that we’ll be facing and B) so they
get together and have a chance to
get to know one another and the
coaching staff."
Both O'Brien and Steinour said
winter break is usually spent tak
ing some time off from the long
ACHA season to spend time with
their families. With the U.S. team
leaving the day after Christmas
for Vermont how they approach
the break will be different.
“Now that we have some games
right after Christmas, I’m going to
continue to workout and find some
ice time somewhere to make sure
I’m fresh," Steinour said.
“I definitely want to make sure
30 points, one shy of his career
high. He scored 20 points in the
fourth quarter and went 6-for-6
from the free throw line in the final
17 seconds of regulation as the
76ers’ lead fluctuated between one
and three points until Martin
hit the 3-pointer that electrified
the near-sellout Verizon Center
crowd celebrating the home open
er.
Andray Biatche added 23 points,
eight rebounds and six turnovers
for the Wizards.
Elton Brand finished with 21
points for the 76ers.
He fouled out in the final sec
onds of overtime.
Dani Toney (left) prepares to shoot in a match against Indiana
Offense getting
back to old form
Once Dani Toney scored the
eventual game-winning goal in a 2-
0 win at then-No. 13 Illinois on Oct.
24, it opened a
floodgate of scor- “ ~
The senior for
ward said prior to
that game she felt
the offense just needed a few goals
to get going again. Over the past
three games, the Penn State
women's soccer team has
outscored its opponents 14-2 as it
makes a late push for an NCAA
Tournament bid.
"We're just trying to make a
statement to the NCAA commit
tee right now that this is a team
that's coming on well and coming
on strong," coach Erica Walsh
said.
gymnast
"Hopefully this weekend won t
be our last weekend of competi
tion and we’re trying to make a
strong statement right now."
Of the 14 goals the Lions have
scored. 12 have come from the for
ward rotation of Toney. Maya
Haves, Hayley Brock and Big Ten
Offensive Player of the Week Tani
Costa. Midfielder Christine Nairn,
tied with Toney for second place
with seven goals, had the other
two scores over the three-game
run.
Costa has led the way, scoring
five goals over the last two games
and has started the last four. But
the redshirt freshman isn't the
only player on a hot streak, as
Toney and Brock have both scored
in three consecutive games.
"It's great for us because we
were struggling in the beginning,
but we’ve been really working
hard in practice and trying to work
with each other and talking
through it, giving each other the
confidence to put balls in the back
of the net," Toney said. "It's finally
coming through. We worked hard
and we re going to continue to
work hard."
all my skills are toned in."
O’Brien said while he thinks
creating chemistry with his new
team will take some time, the high
talent level of the players should
expedite the process.
That said, he did say the team
should be wary of falling into the
same trap of some all-star teams
of the past.
"It's always easier to play with
guys that have decent talent."
O'Brien said.
"Sometimes though when you
see all-star teams they can strug
gle because all the guys want to be
goal-scorers because they have
the talent to be. Looking at the
roster I think the coaching staff
did a great job of selecting not all
goal-scorers and some role play
ers, so I don’t think it will be hard
for us to come together and be
successful.”
Balboni anticipates a raucous
In the extra period, Wall stole
the ball from Turner and convert
ed the play into two free throws to
give the Wizards a one-point lead.
Washington was up by three with
one minute left, but Brand made
consecutive jumpers to put the
76ers ahead 115-114.
Biatche then drew a foul driving
to the basket with 7.1 remaining
and put the Wizards back in front
with two free throws. Andre
Iguodala had the final chance to
win it for the 76ers, but he missed
his jumper just before time
expired.
Although the game was the first
matchup of Waff from Kentucky
By Andrew Robinson
COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER
WOMEN'S
SOCCER
The Daily Collegian
In all three of the team's latest
matches, Penn State controlled
possession, dictating the pace of
play in its favor. That control-style
soccer has allowed the Lions to
score early and keep pressure on
for the entire match.
Though the team only got two
goals against Illinois on Oft. 24, it
still put 10 of its 23 shots on goal. In
the 6-1 wins over Indiana and
Purdue, the Lions got two goals
after the 70th minute in each con
test.
Penn State has plenty of speed
on offense, but the team is best
suited when it keeps the ball on
the ground.
Nairn said Walsh has taken that
fact to heart this season in the way
the Lions train and prepare for
games.
"Teams have always scouted us
as Take the ball and run,' and we
take that as a slap in the face that
says we can't play soccer," Nairn
said.
"Coach has taken a totally dif
ferent approach and put a lot of
emphasis on our strength, which
is keeping the ball rather than
kicking and running."
Costa said the forwards have
been focusing on their efforts on
the defensive end. which she
thinks has helped the scoring. By
being more alert and involved as
defenders, the forwards can
recover the ball deeper in an oppo
nent's zone and create better
scoring chances.
While the 14-2 scoring margin is
a clear indicator of the offense's
return, a telling sign came on
Toney's romp through Purdue's
defense that tied the game
Sunday.
"I was calling for the ball and
she just took it on herself to put it
away," Nairn said.
"If she can do that every single
time I call for the ball, that'd be
great and I'd rather her not pass
me the ball if she's just going to
score like that."
To e-mail reporter: adrso79@psu.edu
atmosphere in the exhibition
games. He said the first two fan
bases will be excited at the
prospects of having a world team
in their building, and the final
game against Vermont will be
played in front of a sellout crowd of
8,000 people.
Overall, he thinks the trip will
give the coaches a good basis on
how to proceed forward.
"We were able to get the UVM
game, w hich is obviously against a
D-I team, which is kind of the pin
nacle of the trip to play a very
high-caliber team which will be
equivalent to what we're going to
play when we get overseas,"
Balboni said.
“I expect all three teams to
come out hard against us and
have us play well as we start build
ing toward the games.”
To e-mail reporter: acbsls2@psu.edu
and Tiimer from Ohio State, any
one anticipating an intense head
to-heal dual had to wait a while.
Wall is already a starting point
guard, captain and arguably the
most important player on the
court for the Wizards, while
Thmer is a swingman coming off
the bench as he seeks to find his
niche for the 76ers.
When introduced in the starting
lineup, Wall milked the spotlight,
doing an extended version of “The
Dougie” dance as he strutted out
to his teammates showing no
signs of the sprained right ankle
he suffered in Washington’s last
game on Saturday.