Sports Features

Sports

Eagles beat Vermont in thriller, 67-64

By Ian Quillen | December 6

AU forward Jason Thomas just missed a new career scoring high on Saturday, merely tying his previous mark of 23 points. And with two foul shots, two seconds left and a two-point lead over Vermont, he also failed to clinch the game, missing one shot, leaving the Catamounts with a chance to tie. But the senior did just about everything else for the Men's Basketball team, even intercepting Vermont's last-second Hail Mary inbounds pass, in an impressive 67-64 win at Bender Arena over the Catamonts, a team that has been drawing national attention.

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Sports

Sideline Scholars: Eagles and fans brought 'A' game vs. UVM

By Phil Turner | December 6

Bender Arena felt like a real college basketball stadium and the men's hoops team looked like a real team on Saturday afternoon when it took down Vermont in arguably the most exciting home game since the Patriot League championship game in 2002. The normally reserved, offish, elitist, "I'm too tired to cheer because I've been studying cross-cultural communications" (or some similar waste-of-time homework) crowd that has come to typify AU school spirit took on a different tune for the 1:00 p.m. game.

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Sports

Sports Brief: Women take third at tournament after win against Southern Miss.

By Jesse Epstein | December 6

The Women's Basketball team split its weekend, finishing third in the Southern Mississippi Invitational in Hattiesburg, Miss. The Eagles won the consolation game, beating the University of Southern Mississippi, 66-56, on Saturday night. The Eagles started hot, jumping to a 9-4 lead in the first three minutes, and led 37-25 at the half.

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Sports

Sports Brief: Women's Swimming takes 6th, Men take 8th at Princeton Invitational

By Elliot Smilowitz | December 6

AU Women's Swimming and Diving team put up a respectable performance in the 2004 Princeton Invitational, finishing in sixth place out of 11 teams with 120 points. The men's squad came in eighth place, scoring 153 points. Princeton won both the men's and women's competitions, putting up 1181 and 909 points, respectively.

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Sports

Nittany Lions roar by AU

By Phil Turner | December 6

Facing Penn State, the nation's third ranked team, in Happy Valley, Pa., was too tall an order for the AU Volleyball team, as it fell in three straight games in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Friday night. The loss in the first round is the fourth in four consecutive NCAA trips for the Eagles. After completing a fourth straight undefeated season in the PL, the Eagles were hoping for a better seed in their region, but ended up drawing Penn State, the Big Ten champions and a threat to win the national championship. And while they gave a tremendous effort, it was not enough to overcome the relentless Nittany Lions.

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Sports

V-Ball takes third in pre-NCAA invitational

By Phil Turner | December 2

Back during pre-season two-a-day practices, AU volleyball coach Barry Goldberg and his team talked about continuing their dominance of the Patriot League and making an impact on the national scene in the latter part of the year. Having already won its fourth straight PL title in dominating undefeated fashion, the Eagles will now get their shot at national prominence when they take on fourth ranked Penn State Nittany Lions in the first round of the NCAA Volleyball Tournament this weekend in Happy Valley, PA.

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Sports

Sports Brief: Swimmers sink to back of pack at George Mason Invitational

By Jesse Epstein | December 2

AU's Swimming and Diving teams placed eighth and 10th, respectively, in the George Mason Invitational this past weekend, in Fairfax, Va. The men's team placed eighth in the 11-team tournament, while the women finished 10th. The highlights for the teams were junior Valery Fomenko's seventh-place finish in the 200-meter backstroke, and Joe Eberhart's 12th-place finish in the 200-meter breaststroke.

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Sports

Ladies take three straight

By Jesse Epstein | December 2

The AU Women's Basketball team had a lot to be thankful for this week, as it won all three games over Thanksgiving break to run its record to an impressive 4-1 in nonconference play. The Eagles defended their home court, beating Mount St. Mary's, 67-52, on Nov. 24 and winning a 74-63 overtime thriller over Loyola College of Maryland last Friday before Sunday's 48-46 victory in Asheville, N.C., against the University of North Carolina- Asheville.

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Sports

B-Ball wins 2nd straight

By Jesse Epstein | December 2

After a heartbreaking start to the season, the Men's Basketball team evened its record to 2-2 after an impressive 71-65 victory over St. Francis at Bender Arena on Monday night. The win avenged the Eagles' loss last year at St. Francis. The Eagles were led by the scoring duo of Andre Ingram and Raimondas Petrauaskas, who combined for 35 points, while Patrick Okpwae and Jason Thomas chipped in with 12 and 10, respectively.

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Sports

XC places 20th

By Ian Quillen | December 2

The AU Men's Cross-Country team finally returned to the national stage after a 33-year absence, placing 20th in the NCAA Championships on Nov. 22 in Terre Haute, Ind. The Eagles qualified to be part of the 30-team field by finishing second in the Mid-Atlantic regional meet on Nov. 13 in State College, Pa.

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Sports

Sideline Scholars: No win, no job

By Ian Quillen | December 2

After pressure from students, fans and big-money donors became too much for Notre Dame to ignore, the university fired football coach Tyrone Willingham on Tuesday, apparently because the university bigheads still envision the Fighting Irish as a football team that should be among the nation's elite every year. Willingham's 21-15 record over three seasons, including a 6-5 mark this year against what was among the nation's toughest schedules, simply didn't cut it, despite upset wins over Michigan and Tennessee this year.

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Sports

Soccer falls, 2-1, in round 2

By Ian Quillen | December 2

Come tournament time, soccer games are often decided by the smallest of margins. One mistake or one lucky break can often mean a game-winning goal or a game-changing play. But in AU's second-round clash with Virginia in the NCAA Men's Soccer tournament on Nov. 23, the irony was that it was a Virginia mistake - a mid-hit cross - that turned into Virginia's lucky break - a deceptive cross that fooled AU senior 'keeper Thomas Myers and snuck in the net's top corner for a crucial game-tying goal.

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Sports

Eagle runners finish 20th at NCAA finals

By Ian Quillen | December 2

The AU Men's Cross-Country team finally returned to the national stage after a 33-year absence, placing 20th in the NCAA Championships on Nov. 22 in Terre Haute, Ind. The Eagles qualified to be part of the 30-team field by finishing second in the Mid-Atlantic regional meet on Nov. 13 in State College, Pa. Also at the championships, AU Women's Cross-Country runner Keira Carlstrom finished 17th out of a field of 250 individuals, finishing the 6-kilometer race in 20:49.8. Carlstrom also qualified for the championships in Sate College, taking second place at that regional in a time of 20:37.

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Sports

Sports Brief: Wrestling advances three to national rankings in weekend

By David Bergman | December 2

This weekend at Lock Haven University's Mat-Town Invitational, the AU Wrestling team took fifth place among the nation's top teams. Junior Muzaffar Abdurakhmanov took first place at 157 pounds this weekend, upsetting three-time All-American and last year's national tournament runner-up, Jake Percival of Ohio University, by medical default. Percival has a history against AU, notably beating AU's career wins record-holder alumnus Marc Hoffer ('02) in 2001.

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Sports

Sports Brief: Scoring drought against Niagara dooms Men's Bball to second straight loss

By Jesse Epstein | November 22

The AU Men's Basketball team suffered its second straight road defeat Saturday night, falling to Niagara, 78-71. The Eagles were led by center Matej Cresnik, who scored 17 points, and Raimondas Petrauskas, who netted 16 on 7-of-10 shooting.

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Sports

Bball women show their will

By Jesse Epstein | November 22

The American University Women's Basketball team opened Bender Arena for the season with an astounding 78-59 win over William & Mary on Sunday. The Eagles were paced by a balanced scoring attack, led by senior center Kim Salem, who tied her career-high with 17 points. Senior Joanna Barnes scored 13, Tala Hadavi scored 11 and Tara Williams came off the bench to score 10 for AU.

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Sports

Volleyball completes four undefeated years in PL

By Ian Quillen | November 22

Four years ago, six freshmen entered the AU Volleyball program as it was transitioning from the Colonial Athletic Association to the Patriot League. This weekend, those freshmen, now seniors, capped off the final chapter in a perfect PL career. The AU Volleyball team defeated Army, 3-0, in the Patriot League championship on Saturday night at Bender Arena, winning the three games 30-23, 30-28 and 30-21, and clinching a fourth straight NCAA tournament appearance.

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