SPORTS HIGHLIGHTS

TCNJ WOMEN’S LACROSSE TEAM TO SPONSOR GOAL FOR GOAL CHALLENGE TO BENEFIT AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY

The College of New Jersey women’s lacrosse team, which finished the 2005 season as the NCAA Division III National Champions, will be sponsoring a fundraising event for the America Cancer Society in conjunction with the team’s home game against Salisbury University on April 15 at 1 p.m. in Lions’ Stadium.

On that day, when the Lions host Salisbury University, in a rematch of the 2005 NCAA Division III Championship game that saw the Lions triumph, 9-7, the Lions will sponsor a goal for goal challenge.

Sponsors can donate dollar amounts for each goal TCNJ scores in the game against Salisbury University. Should people wish to donate a set dollar amount, donations are also being accepted as well.

For more information about the Lions’ fundraising drive for the American Cancer Society, please contact TCNJ’s women’s lacrosse office at 609.771.2817.

March Sports Briefs

Men's Swimming and Diving

TCNJ’s senior men’s swimming team member, Steve Swenson became the first Lion individual champion since 1994 as the co-captain won the 100 breaststroke in 56.25, while setting a new school record. In addition to being a national champion in the 100 breaststroke at the 2006 NCAA Division III Championships this month in Minnesota, he placed 15th in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:07.02, which also earned him All-American status. The senior capped his standout career earning All-American honors 15 times.

The College of New Jersey’s men’s swimming and diving team wrapped up a successful season as the Lions competed at the 2006 NCAA Division III Championships, which were hosted by Carleton College. Kenyon College collected an unprecedented 27th men’s swimming and diving team championship, a feat unmatched in any other sport or division. The Lions finished in 12th place in the team race with 83 points. A year ago they finished 14th.

Freshman diver Greg Lloyd (Ringoes, NJ/Hunterdon Central) finished in sixth place with a score of 444.55 to earn his first career All-America award. He had been in 13th place in three-meter diving after the first of three rounds. Lloyd’s accomplishment is even more significant as this is his first year as a competitive diver.

In the 100 freestyle, junior Kyle King (East Brunswick, NJ/East Brunswick) finished in 21st place in 46.25, while senior Jeff Glenn (Galloway, NJ/Holy Spirit) finished in 25th place in 46.62. For his stellar career, Glenn completes his collegiate tenure having amassed 10 All-America citations.

In the 400 freestyle relay, the Lions unfortunately were disqualified in the trials and did not advance to the finals after posting a time of 3:03.67, which, had it stood, was the third fastest time after the trials.

Women's Swimming and Diving

Three members of TCNJ’s women’s swimming and diving team competed at the 2006 NCAA Division III Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships this past weekend. The Lions finished tied for 33rd place with 20 points, while Emory University (428 points) held of Kenyon College (418 points) in the tightest race for the title in the 25-year history of the sport.

Sophomore Ava Kiss (North Brunswick, NJ/Stuart Country Day) repeated as an All-American in the 100 butterfly as she picked up fourth place in the event. She broke her own school record in the trials with her time of 57.18 and then did that one better as she posted a time of 56.78 in the finals to take home fourth place after taking ninth place in the same event in 2005.

Kiss also competed in the 200 individual medley for the Lions and finished in 33rd place in 2:11.53, while also taking 25th in the 100 freestyle in 53.91.

Senior Erin Stutz (Cedar Grove, NJ/The Montclair Kimberly Academy) wrapped her stellar Lion career at the NCAA’s. She picked up 16th place and All-America Honorable Mention honors in the 400 individual medley in 4:36.09 in the finals to record her fourth career All-America award. She also picked up 24th place in the 200 butterfly in 2:10.57.

Sophomore diver Lee Swanson (Princeton Junction, NJ/West Windsor-Plainsboro South) qualified for both diving events at the NCAA’s. She finished in 13th place in the three meter event with a score of 379.10 to take home All-America honorable mention honors. In the one-meter event, she finished in 21st place with her score of 363.0.

Men's Indoor Track             

The Lions’ men’s indoor track and field team finished in 13th place in the race for the 2006 NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Championships at St. Olaf College with 13 points. The University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse won the program’s sixth straight NCAA crown with 78 points.

Senior Jeff Zodda (Mercerville, NJ/Notre Dame) won the NCAA title in the 800 meters, after setting a Tostrud Center record in the event with a time of 1:52.53. The award marks the sixth All-America citation for the Lion runner, who also helped TCNJ take home ninth in the distance medley relay in 10:14.15. Running in the relay for TCNJ were senior Matt Randal (Dayton, NJ/South Brunswick), freshman Rob McGowan (Monroe Township, NJ/Monroe Township), Zodda and sophomore Brian Kopnicki (Scotch Plains, NJ/Scotch Plains-Fanwood).

Senior Brian Donovan (East Brunswick, NJ/East Brunswick) finished in sixth place nationally in the 5,000-meter run with an impressive performance of 14:44.45. The All-America award for Donovan is the first his career.

Kopnicki ran in the one-mile run and finished in sixth place in his heat in 4:21.49, but did not advance to the finals of the race.

A pair of Lions also competed in the field events at the meet as senior Kevin Jones (Galloway, NJ/Absegami) competed in the long jump and posted a mark of 6.82 meters in his flight to take fourth, but did not advance to the finals in the event.

In the triple jump, sophomore Marquis Mitchell (Bergenfield, NJ/Bergen Tech) posted a mark of 13.72 meters to finish fifth in his flight but did not advance to the finals of the event.

Women's Indoor Track

TCNJ’s women’s indoor track and field team picked up a 10th place finish at the 2006 NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Championships at St. Olaf College.

Along the way, the Lion women finished as the NCAA Division III Runners-up in the 4 x 400 relay after posting a time of 3:51.30. The Lions were edged at the finish line by Lincoln University (3:51.08) and were unable to defend the crown they won a year ago in the race. On the relay for the Lions were sophomore Jessica Bonelli (Sewell, NJ/Glouchester Catholic), sophomore Carolyn Gray (Barnegat, NJ/Southern Regional) and junior  Angela Tecco (Wildwood Crest, NJ/Lower Cape May) and senior Brittny Boyd (Hackettstown, NJ/Hackettstown).

The Lions won the crown in 2005 and finished in third place in the same event in 2004.

Boyd also competed for the Lions in the long jump and in the 400-meter run at the championships. On Saturday night, she finished in third place in the 400 meters with a time of 56.68. She posted Tostrud Center record in the trials, only to have it broken in the finals by the 2006 champion, Rachel Anderson of Illinois Wesleyan (56.35). Boyd is now an 18-time All-American in track and field. 

In the 800-meter run, Tecco posted sixth place finish to earn All-America honors as she had a time of 2:14.93 and is now a six-time All-America on her young Lion career. She posted a time of 2:14.69 in the trials of the race to advance.

Bonelli competed in the 400-meter run for the Lions and recorded a time of 58.47 in the trials, but did not advance to the finals.

A year ago, TCNJ’s women’s team picked up an 11th place finish with 15 points under rookie head coach, Eric Mobley.

Wrestling      

TCNJ’s senior wrestling team co-captain Brian Dempsey (Galloway, NJ/Asbegami) capped his standout career at TCNJ in fine fashion placing third at the 2006 NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships held in the Student Recreation Center on TCNJ’s campus.          

The Lions finished the tournament in 19th place with 19 team points marking the 33rd consecutive year the Lions have placed in the top 25.

Wartburg College reeled in the team title, scoring 145.5 points and finishing well ahead of second place University of Wisconsin-La Crosse (106).

Dempsey entered the tournament as the fifth seed at 125 pounds and advanced to the quarterfinals with a 7-3 win over Anthony Nicolicchia of Roger Williams. He then fell 5-2 to fourth-seeded Terry Morgan of Loras before winning his opening match in the consolation bracket by beating SUNY-Brockport’s Rob Vaccaro 5-1.

On the second day of competition, Dempsey rattled off three impressive wins to place third. He opened the morning session with a pin in 4:36 of Cornell College’s Chris Heilman. He then posted a 16-3 major decision over Wilkes’ Felipe Queiroz putting him in the third-place bout.

Dempsey then ended his career on a winning note scoring an 11-4 decision versus sixth-seeded Nate Hansen of Luther College, making him the school’s first three-time All-American since Anthony Conte (1999-2001). In each of his three trips to the prestigious event, Dempsey improved his finish after taking eighth in 2004 and fifth in 2005.

The Lion senior finished the season with a mark of 35-5 and went 113-37 his career.

Things got off to a good start for junior Joey Galante (Ocean City, NJ/Ocean City), as he was awarded the top seed at 157 pounds. The Lion won his opening match 6-2 against Thiel’s Michael Kemble.  In the quarters, Galante was upset by eighth-seeded Ross Needham from UW-La Crosse, 3-1 in overtime, and then saw his season come to a close as he fell to Ithaca College’s Joseph Duca 7-3 in the consolation bracket. He finished the season with a mark of 27-5.

At 174 pounds, sophomore Jeff Harrington (Stockton, NJ/Hunterdon Central) came up one win shy of reeling in All-American status. He lost his opening bout 6-2 to third-seeded Josh Chelf of UW-La Crosse before bouncing back to beat John Hopkins’ David Kraus 11-5.

The tournament came to a close for Harrington on Saturday as he dropped a narrow 6-5 decision against Jonathan Dolan from Williams College.

Senior Keith Bjorhus (Wayne, PA/Connestoga) participated in his fourth national tournament and finished with a record of 1-2 at heavyweight. He opened the tournament with a 5-2 decision over seventh-seeded Brett Christensen from Simpson College. In the quarterfinals, he lost 14-7 to UW-La Crosse’s Ray Allen, who went on to win the national championships.

Bjorhus then lost to fourth-seeded Michael Hayes from UW-Stevens Point ending his career with a record of 91-28.

Dempsey and senior Lenny Goduto (Stanhope, NJ/Lenape) were both named to the 2006 National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Division III Scholar-Athlete Team. Goduto was tapped as an alternate to compete in the 2006 NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships. Goduto went 18-4 on the year at 165 pounds and is now 19-6 on his career.

The award recognizes student-athletes who have competed in at least 60 percent of the team’s matches and have achieved a 3.0 cumulative grade point average or higher.

TCNJ’s former collegiate wrestler, Glen Sandull (Kenilworth, NJ, formerly of Howell, NJ) joined the National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III Hall of Fame on March 2. Sandull, an All-American wrestler at TCNJ, joined the class of 2006 in conjunction with the 2006 NCAA Division III Wrestling Championship on the campus of his alma mater, March 3-4. The 2006 NCWA Division III Hall of Fame class includes wrestlers Sandull, Jamal Fox of Wartburg College (IA), and Mike Helm of Messiah College (PA) as well as coaches Kevin Pueblo of Augustana College (IL) and Rusty Carlson of Rhode Island College.

A two-time NCAA Division III Champion at heavy weight for the Lions in both 1993 and 1994.  Sandull was also a two-time Metropolitan Conference champion at HWT as well as a two-year team captain for the Lions.

Men's Basketball            

The College of New Jersey men’s basketball team had two players named to the 2005-2006 New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Men’s Basketball All-Star Team, while head coach John Castaldo was tapped as the John K. Adams Coach of the Year after guiding the Lions to a 17-9 overall record and a fourth seed in the 2006 NJAC Championships after an 11-7 conference mark.

TCNJ’s seniors Scott Findlay (Long Valley, NJ/West Morris) and Matt Diamond (Ringwood, NJ/Lakeland) were both named to the All-Conference Team as Findlay earned a spot on the first team and Diamond was named to the honorable mention squad. Findlay was also named to the 2005-2006 National Association of Basketball Coaches Division III All-America Third Team after earning a spot on the 2006 NABC All-Region First Team.

Findlay, the Lions’ leading scorer this past season, finished with a team-high 512 points and a 19.7 ppg average, which is third best in the NJAC and ranked 48th in Division III. Findlay, the NJAC Rookie of the Year in 2001-2002, wraps his stellar career as the College’s second all-time leading scorer having poured in 1,668 points, behind TCNJ’s Greg Grant (2,611 points, 1986-1989). Over the course of his career, Findlay added 42 career double-doubles, while also scoring in double figures in 88 of his 107 career games played. He added 948 career rebounds as well and once again finished the season as the NJAC’s leading rebounder in 2005-2006 after adding256 caroms and a 9.8 rpg average.

Findlay also ranks among the league’s top statistical leaders in several categories, while TCNJ finished the season ranked nationally as well in a handful of categories. TCNJ currently ranks second in all of Division III in scoring defense, yielding just 56.9 points per game, while also ranking 34th in field goal percentage defense (40.2%), and seventh in fewest fouls committed with 14.9 per game.

Findlay, who ranks 29th in Division III in rebounding this year, also ranks ninth in the NJAC in steals (47, 1.81 per game), and 15th in free throw percentage (68.4, 108-158). Earlier this season, Findlay added to his resume as he scored a career-best 37 points and tied his personal best of 19 rebounds in the Lions’ road win over Rowan University.

Diamond, who enjoyed a career-best campaign with the Lions this year, added 314 points and 100 rebounds, good enough for a 12.1 ppg and a 3.8 rpg average. Diamond was a 14-game starter as a senior for the Lions and finished the season ranking among the NJAC’s leaders in several statistical categories. He was 18th in scoring, 10th in field goal percentage (49.5%, 104-210), second in three-point field goal percentage (46.3%, 56-121) and sixth in three-point field goals made per game with 2.15 (56).

Head coach John Castaldo just completed his 13th season at his alma mater and for the fourth time in his career, he guided the Lions to a spot in the NJAC Playoffs. This year’s team completed the season with an impressive 17-9 record with an 11-7 showing in the league, good enough for the No. 4 seed in the 2006 NJAC playoffs. Castaldo now boasts a career collegiate coaching record of 188-135 (.582 winning percentage). Under Castaldo, the Lions have posted eight winning seasons and collected 15 or more wins five times, including back-to-back 17-9 campaigns in 2004-2005 and 2005-2006.

Women's Basketball

TCNJ’s women’s basketball team earned a bid to the 2006 NCAA Division III Championships after winning the NJAC’s championship. The Lions fell to the University of Mary Washington team in the opening round of the 2006 NCAA Division III Tournament and had their season come to an end after a 19-9 campaign.

TCNJ’s senior forward Erin Frank (Toms River, NJ/Toms River East) earned a spot on the 2005-2006 NJAC All-Star Team for her play this past year, while senior guard Alexa Shields (Oakhurst, NJ/Wall) was tapped for the NJAC All-Star Second Team, while also earning the MVP honors at the 2006 NJAC-Skyline Senior All-Star Game. 

Head Coach Dawn Henderson finishes the season just one win shy of her 300th career victory after also recording her 250th win at TCNJ earlier in the season.

Shields capped her standout career with 906 points and ranks tied for third on TCNJ’s all-time assists list with 309. Senior guard Tiara Simpkins (Hillsborough, NJ/Hillsborough) left her mark on the defensive end of the floor finishing her career seventh in steals with 155.

Baseball

On Tuesday, March 28, Coach Rick Dell picked up his 650th win with the College's 11-1 win over Gwynedd-Mercy College. The Lions are now 14-0 this year and also broke the triples record during Tuesday's game. Dell is in his 25th season with the Lions baseball program.

TCNJ’s baseball team was tapped as the new top ranked team in Division III in the latest ABCA Division III poll released on March 27. TCNJ is now 13-0 on the 2006 season and received four first place votes in the newest poll after not being ranked in the pre-season poll. The Lions replaced previously top ranked The College of Wooster (OH) as the top ranked team with 228 points to Wooster’s 227 points.

The Lions continue to remain perfect on the 2006 season as they now stand at 13-0. TCNJ is making a run for the school consecutive win streak which stands at 17 (1999), while having already tied the single-season triple record (22) which was set in 2000.

TCNJ’s junior catcher Gerard Haran (Old Bridge, NJ/Old Bridge) was named the National Player of the Week on March 23 by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.  For the week, Haran swept player of the week selections from the NJAC, the ECAC, the NJCBA and now the NCBWA for the week of March 13-19.

Haran earned New Jersey Athletic Conference honors after hitting .600 (18-for-30) with 10 doubles, one triple, one home run, 13 RBI and 14 runs scored during the Lions' spring trip to Arizona. In eight Lion victories, he hit safely in seven contests and scored at least one run in each game. During the week he produced five multiple-hit contests, including a 5-for-6 performance with three doubles, four RBI and five runs scored in the Lions' 23-4 win over North Central. For the week, Haran produced a 1.100 slugging percentage and a .657 on-base percentage while raising his season batting average to .576.

Another Lion returning All-American is junior first baseman, Blake Bullis (Delran, NJ/Delran). Bullis batted .565 for the week of March 19-25 and was named the NJAC’s and the NJCBA Player of the Week on March 27 and is now batting .491 on the year with 27 hits and a team-high 23 RBI’s. Bullis has connected on seven doubles, three triples and two homeruns, while starting all 13 games.

Softball

TCNJ’s softball team stands at 9-5 on the year after just sweeping No. 2 ranked Salisbury University on March 26. TCNJ’s junior first baseman, Vicki Blevins (Robbinsville, NJ/Monroe Township) was named the NJAC’s Player of the Week on March 27. Blevins earns NJAC Player of the Week honors after hitting .545 (6-for-11) during a 3-1 week of play for the Lions. In four contests including a pair of doubleheaders against Rochester and No. 2 Salisbury, she hit safely in each game and finished the week with a combined one double, one triple, and four RBI. She registered two multiple-hit games including a 2-for-4 performance with a double and two RBI in the Lions' 4-2 road win in game two of a doubleheader road sweep of Salisbury. She is also is riding an eight-game hitting streak going 11-for-19 for an average of .578 in that span.

The Lions’ head softball coach, Sally Miller, is two wins shy of 300 with a career mark of 298-116-2.

Women's Lacrosse

TCNJ’s women’s lacrosse team opened the 2006 season as the top ranked team in Division III after winning the 2005 NCAA Division III Championship. The Lions started the year with back-to-back victories to extend their win streak to 17 games dating back to 2005. The Lions had their win streak snapped on March 26 at the hands of sixth-ranked SUNY Cortland, 9-8. The Lions have since dropped to No. 4 in the latest Division III poll.

Senior midfielder Lauren Dougher (Blue Bell, PA/Mt. Saint Joseph Academy) continues to lead the Lions in scoring this year as she now has 14 goals and three assists. The 2005 NCAA Division III midfielder of the year, she has once again been placed on the list of players in consideration for the Tewaaraton Award as the best women’s lacrosse player in the nation.

Now in her 20th season at her alma mater, Sharon Pfluger now sports a career record of 293-22-1 with the Lions and is closing in on her 300th career women’s lacrosse victory.