I Friday, Dec. 3, 2010
11l
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Senior Blair Brown and her women's volleyball teammates celebrate a point in a win vs. St. John’s earlier this season in Rec Hall
Lions exdted for NCAAs
By Jake Kaplan
KTAA S T AfF Avs;Tj:R
The title defense starts tonight.
After the las! three seasons
ended with
national champi- ‘
onships. the 2010 WOMEN'S
Penn State v 'Oi LFYBAI L
women's vollev-
ball team looks to
complete its journey tor a fourth
straight title.
The Nittany Lions host Niagara
Hertzog, Naim
named finalists
By Andrew Robinson
Corey Hertzog's name didn't
appear as one of the 3!) listed on
the 2010 MAC Hermann Watch
List back in
August.
20 goals and
the junior for
ward on the
men's soccer I
team is one of 15 j & jpr
finalists for the ;
prestigious j 'HjfiW.
award, college A
soccer's equiva
lent of the
Hertzog
Heisman Trophy
"In college soccer he's number
one as a player and that’s going
pretty much on stats. The guy's a
machine." Penn Stale senior co
captain Andres Casais said.
"Playing with him is awesome."
And he isn't the only Nittany
Lion on a Hermann semifinalist
list.
Women's soccer sophomore
Christine Nairn was also named
as one of la semifinalists on
Thursday, alter being named to
the preseason watch list the last
two seasons. Despite a drop in
her numbers from last year.
Nairn became a more complete
player this season.
"She had a brilliant season and
I think her role changed a bit this
year." women's soccer coach
Erica Walsh said. "Her numbers
were down simply because our
numbers were down overall, but
her leadership was up and her
mentality was better and she's
really starting to develop into a
leader for us."
A year after posting 11 goals,
Hertzog outdid himself in his jun
ior campaign, drawing plenty of
national attention along the way.
NCAAF
Illinois at Fresno State
10:15 p.m.. ESPN2
Q: How many points did Zydrunas
Ilgauskas score in his first career home
game with the Cleveland Cavaliers?
Thursday's answer: Before Wednesday,
Penn State won the last matchup with
Maryland in men's basketball.
in the opening round of the NCAA
tournament at 7 tonight at Rec
Hall. A Penn State win. which
would set an NCAA Division I vol
leyball record for consecutive
home wins at 91. would allow the
Lions to advance into the second
round against either Virginia
Tech or Delaware at 7: ;o
Saturday night.
"Excitement. I don't think
that's even a word that could
explain it.” said senior co-captain
Alvssa D'Errico. the Lions' libero
His 20-goal effort, currently tops
in the nation, tied the single-sea
son high for the Big Ten. which
was set by :
Indiana's Dema i
in points per
game, at 2.09. Nairn
and total points
with 4(1. Hertzog scored a hat
trick and assisted the other goal
in the team's 4-1 win over Old
Dominion in the second round of
the NCAA Tournament before
the team fell 1-0 to No. 2 seed
Maryland last Sunday.
Despite being held scoreless
against the Terrapins. Hertzog
wasn't a nonfactor.
"Watching the tape against
Maryland, he didn't do much in
the sense we couldn't get the ball
to him much but he was running
so much." Casais said. "He didn't
stop running and his work ethic
is just amazing."
Hertzog said it's exciting being
nominated for an award like the
Hermann trophy, but at the same
time, not being on the preseason
list served as a bit of motivation
"Not being on the radar. I don't
w'ant to say it upset me. but it
made me try harder." Hertzog
said.
"Not being recognized for ha\
ing a good season Hast yearl. it
made me come hard for this sea
son and all my hard work proved
it."
Last week, the striker was
identified as a possible
Generation Adidas target, which
is the route for early entry into
the MLS. However, Hertzog said
Thursday he hasn't given much
thought to his future and is
See FINALISTS. Page 10.
Yankees up offer to SS Jeter
The New York Yankees increased their
contract offer to Derek Jeter.
The team informed Jeter’s side of the
new offer during a telephone conversation
early Thursday, a person familiar with the
negotiations said.
The person spoke on condition of
anonymity because no announcement was
made.
’‘The ball's in Derek's court now, and his
agent," Yankees co-chairman Hank
Steinbrenner said later Thursday in a tele
phone interview with The Associated
Press. "It's up to them."
Jeter’s agent. Casey Close, declined
comment.
who has been a part of the last consecutive conference wins ear
three titles. "All of us are literallv her in the season.
like frothing at the mouth. I would However, Penn State (26-5.16-4
say. for a chance to compete for Big Ten) finished the season win
another national championship." ning 13 of 14 conference matches
The Lions, who are the tourna- and an eighth-straight Big Ten
ment's No. 4 seed and w’ould not title. And though the Lions
be forced to leave Happy Valley dropped their season finale at
until a potential fourth-straight Minnesota, D'Errico said her
Final Four trip, know nothing is team is ready to go.
for granted. It has been an up
and-down year for the Lions, as
they snapped their 109-match Women's volleyball ready for upset
winning streak and string of 65 minded Niagara. | Page .9.
David Jackson (15) looks to pass vs. Maryland Wednesday night.
Men’s basketball
ready for Dukes
By Jared Shanker
COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER
It was supposed to be tne com
ing out party for Penn State bas
ketball, a chance to take a step
out of the all-encompassing
shadow of Joe Paterno and
Beaver Stadium, which stands
just across the way.
Maryland, a school that's been Jordan Center, and with a win,
to two Final Fours in the last the Nittany Lions would have
decade, was coming to the Bryce See BASKETBALL. Page 10.
Lady Lions fall to Eagles in OT
making things
interesting late.
Penn State (6-2)
At Wednesday's press confer- displayed both
ence. coach Coquese Washington of those charac
said she wanted teristics Thurs-
By Ryan Loy
COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER
to see her team , day at Boston
begin the games WOMEN S College, but its
strangers BASKETBALL late-game hero-
The Lady - ics weren't
Lions developed enough as the
a habit of starting slow, but Lions fell to the Eagles (7-0) in
they've also come accustomed to overtime, 113-104.
Leyritz gets probation, fine
Former New York Yankees World Series
hero Jim Leyritz was sentenced Thursday
to one year s probation and fined $5OO for a
drunk driving conviction, a far lesser penal
ty than he had faced before a jury decided
he wasn’t responsible for a woman’s death
in a 2007 traffic crash.
Circuit Judge Marc Gold imposed the
sentence for the misdemeanor on the 47-
year-old former ballplayer, who was acquit
ted last month of DUI manslaughter in the
death of 30-year-old Fredia Ann Veitch.
Leyritz could have gotten up to 15 years if
convicted of manslaughter, but he said
Thursday it was no victory.
“I said it from the very beginning, there
would be no winners in this case,” Leyritz
said in a tearful statement to the judge.
“This was a horrible, horrible tragedy.”
■mmm'
See NCAAS. Page 10.
If you go
Men’s basketball vs.
Duquesne
When: 6 p.m.
Where: Bryce Jordan Center
Boston College
Penn State
The Daily Collegian
PSU
ready
for
search
By Anthony Barton
COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER
After completing the search
for the Penn State ice arena
architect and construction firms.
Penn State Associate Athletic-
Director for Ice Arena
Operations Joe Battista said
beginning in January' he will
turn his atten-
tion to filling the
vacant coaching ICE HOCKEY
positions.
Battista said
the next step is putting together
a search team with representa
tion from the Penn State athletic,
academic, administration and
compliance departments, as well
as faculty members. He also said
players from the current Penn
State hockey teams would be
present at meetings to give their
input.
"Key items we're looking for
are their ability to recruit top
student athletes, to run the pro
gram the Penn State way. and
their track record for success at
the highest levels of hockey in
North America.” Battista said.
"Those are all the kinds of crite
ria we'll be looking for as we
move forward.”
Battista said the university is
strongly considering the use oi a
national search firm to help nar
row down the candidates The
firm would be knowledgeable in
terms of salaries and other
nuances in order to help Penn
State find a coach who meets cri
teria.
"There are a lot of coaches
out there, they may want us
more than we want them.”
Battista said. "Our job would be
to work with a firm to help us
narrow down that list.”
Although the coaching search
is in the preliminary stages, a
construction firm has been cho-
Battista said the firm
Mortenson Construction out of
Minneapolis had been granted
See SEARCH. Page 10.
The Lions had to fight from
behind for much of the game,
holding short leads just a handful
of times in the second half.
However, Zhaque Gray hit a 3-
pointer with 13 seconds to play in
regulation. After the Lions gave
up a quick basket to Boston
College, Alex Bentley took the ball
the length of the floor and hit a
game-tying layup with just less
than a second to play.
See LOSS. Page 10.
Cleveland return disappoints
We’ve been hearing about it since the
summer When the Miami Heat visit the
Cleveland Cavaliers on Dec. 2, it will be
one of the most-watched NBA games in
recent memory.
All because a certain player who left
Cleveland for better opportunities in
Miami returned for the first time.
So we waited on pins and needles for
this triumphant return, but were soon dis
mayed when this player failed to make any
sort of impact in the Heat’s rout of the
Cavs.
Zero points and just two rebounds in
over 16 minutes on the floor?
You disappoint us, Zydrunas Ilgauskas