Women's Basketball Gives Back to Macon

J. Andrew Lockwood
Senior Editor / Columnist

Basketball is a game that is played inside. Yet, in a city where summertime temperatures hover around 1000 F, the Mercer women’s basketball team was sweating. These weren’t wind sprints or weights (although a good part of the summer was spend in training), this was the real world. Building houses, bonding with senior citizens, and holding basketball clinics at the Macon Youth Detention Center, this summer was a very different time for this group of young women.

“This summer we spent a lot of time at different places trying to give back to the community,” commented senior guard Courtney Ford. “One of my favorite things we did this summer was help build houses with Habitat for Humanity. Putting walls up on that house was pretty cool because it’s nice to know you’re making a difference in the community,” she added.

While some long weekends were spent constructing houses, other days were spent at the Gables Retirement Center cleaning garages and sidewalks as well as playing bingo with the residents of the community. One of the residents, a former Mercer alumni and basketball coach named Jackie Murphey, agreed to have the team clean out her garage. Head Coach Janell Jones recounted the experience on MercerBears.com, jesting, “Jackie is 72 and is in better shape than many of my girls!”

While there was certainly a work aspect to the community service projects the team undertook this summer, a large amount of time was also spent forming relationships with others in the community. In addition to mingling with the residents in the Gables Retirement Center, the team also shared breakfast with the men living in the Cottages on Wesleyan. “A lot of the men in the Cottages talked about their World War II experiences and their time in the service,” said Jones. She added, “I think it was great for our team to be exposed to that: to understand that in that time everyone went to war.”

One of the most effective ways they gave back to the community was through the basketball clinics they held at the Macon Youth Detention Center. Sophomore Lorin Hammer recounted her favorite part of the clinics, remarking, “Seeing the kids’ faces light up when you were teaching them and playing with them was awesome. We were in a powerful position and it was awesome to interact and help them out."

Altogether, this summer was quite the bonding experience for the team. “Kids take a lot for granted these days and anytime you can give back to the community, that’s special,” added the third year head coach. “It’s a privilege to be a scholarship athlete but there’s a bigger picture to life and that’s serving people. I think that in giving back, something happens subconsciously so that after they graduate and get further down the road in life, they’ll make it a habit to continue giving back to others,” she added.

Despite the 6 hours of classes, workouts, basketball practices, and social lives to attend to, the team learned the importance of giving back as well as taking the initiative on projects. “We had to work together to plan on how to go about each situation,” said Hammer. “Through these things, we had to rely on each other to plan and do these different projects. It’s great to get out of your comfort zone and really start to understand the people we were working with,” she added.

Even with a new semester beginning, they’re still looking for ways to give back to the Macon community. Continuing their current projects, the team is looking to expand its efforts into Macon’s elementary schools through the ‘Let’s Read Program’ as well as several opportunities downtown. It’s no coincidence that the Bears play in the Atlantic Sun conference where the motto is ‘Building Winners for Life.’ Now, the team is adding to that phrase. ‘Building Winners for Life and Serving the Community’ seems a bit more fitting.

Lacrosse Coming to Mercer in 2010-11!

J. Andrew Lockwood
Senior Editor / Columnist

Lacrosse will officially come to Mercer University as a NCAA D-I sport in 2010-11. The men’s program will begin its inaugural season next school year while a women’s program will start up during the 2011-12 academic year. The two programs will be Mercer’s 15th and 16th Division I intercollegiate teams.

Generated by unequaled popularity and interest during the past two years, lacrosse quickly rose through the ranks as a club sport before being announced in June as a Division I varsity sport in 2010-11. Started by a core group of lacrosse enthusiasts, the club saw its roster peak at over 40 players at the beginning of last season. Officially added as a club sport in 2007-08, the lacrosse team has had mixed results against other club teams the past two years.

They’ve faced other competitive club-level teams from around the southeast, including Kennesaw State, North Florida, Augusta State, and SCAD. However, a move up to Division I status will require them to play much more established programs in the southeast such as Duke, North Carolina, as well as recently started programs at Presbyterian, and Jacksonville. Currently, 64 universities have NCAA Division I men’s lacrosse while 89 Division I schools carry women’s programs. Mercer University will be the only NCAA D1 school in Georgia to offer the sport.

“Lacrosse is becoming a very popular sport in the Southeast,” Mercer athletic director Bobby Pope said on MercerBears.com. He added, “We will be the first NCAA Division I program in Georgia, so this will be a great opportunity for Mercer to set the bar high for the sport in our state.”

Faculty advisor Emory Dunn has provided direction and has helped initiate interest in the club for the past three years and is excited to see the sport finally come to Mercer. “There was a plan to generate interest in the lacrosse program all along and we hope that the sport will bring students from the Northeast as well as private schools in the state of Georgia [with lacrosse programs],” he commented.
One of unfortunate aspects of creating a new program is recruiting players from scratch. However, the current lack of a program doesn’t seem to worry Dunn at all. “We’ve seen a good bit of interest. The team has an inquiry form on the website and we’ve seen a good number (150+) inquiring to play,” he added.

Obviously, another hurdle will be traveling for away games. Trips to Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia may become commonplace after Mercer exhausts playing the current programs in the Southeast. The fall season’s club schedule doesn’t venture outside of the state of Georgia but only includes five games against four in-state club teams.

The pending obstacles seem minor in comparison to the excitement generated by the news. Michael DellaPolla, a player involved from the beginning of the formation of the team, was excited about the changes it would bring to Mercer’s campus. “Mercer Lacrosse will be undergoing tons of changes this year in hopes of becoming the next ‘big thing’ at Mercer,” DellaPolla said. He added, “From recruiting to using the soccer field for games, fans will now be able to watch Mercer’s newest Division 1 sport from the stands!”

You don’t have to wait until next season to watch the men with sticks, shoulder pads, and helmets battle though. The Bears will play a five game slate during the fall, highlighted by two home contests against the Inferno and Georgia State University.

2009 Fall Schedule
Sept. 13 – @ Inferno (3pm)
Sept. 19 - @ Georgia Tech (4pm)
Oct. 3 – @ Georgia Southern (12pm)
Nov. 14 – vs. Inferno (3pm)
Nov. 21 – vs. Georgia State (10am) [Homecoming]

Enough will Never Be Enough [The Third Half]

J. Andrew Lockwood
Senior Editor / Columnist

Whatever happened to the old adage from the movie Angels in the Outfield when the Angels announcer tells Ranch Wilder ‘Less is more’? Collegiate and professional sports teams are big businesses in today’s market, jockeying for sponsorship contracts and television deals. The trend that seems to be the most alarming is the rate at which new stadiums are being built. In the past decade, 14 NFL teams, nearly half of the league, have christened new fields.

Most recently Dallas Cowboy’s owner Jerry Jones decided to really spend on a new home for his team. For an estimated $1.2 billion, Jones built the Taj Mahal of football with a new 100,000 seat dome in Arlington. In addition, the center video display is 160 feet wide and 72 feet tall, easily making it the world’s largest. Guess everything really is bigger in Texas.

When is enough, enough? Many college football teams choose to continue to play in less than ideal stadiums, adding on and renovating when necessary. Like the game itself, stadiums are a part of the team’s history and shouldn’t be easily discarded whenever possible. The past 50 years, every team except the Green Bay Packers has jumped ship to a better, brighter, and shinier new stadium (preferably with a nice corporate name…ala Enron Field). More and more games are now played in climate controlled dooms with artificial grass turf. Wasn’t football supposed to be played in the natural weather?

What the NFL and its owners have lost in the past few years are key elements to the game. Not every matchup should be a 48-42 ‘Greatest Show on Turf’ result. Football is about getting away from the normalities of life. Who lives in a place where the weather is perfect all the time? Who works and plays in a pristine environment with a removable roof all day?

I liked my football like it was. I enjoyed the mud slop fests up north and the rain soaked games in Florida. That’s the outdoors….that’s natural. In turn, I believe that’s a major reason the college football game has grown so much in the past twenty years and has somewhat surpassed the viewership of the NFL.

When it comes to football stadiums, sometimes Less is More. Circumstances shouldn’t always be ideal. My favorite memory of attending a game was a snowy December night when I witnessed Delaware drum Colgate 41-0 for the I-AA national title. It was freezing, the field was chewed up and I had to thaw out for a good half hour when I returned home, but I remember thinking, ‘Now that was football.’

There’s plenty of football to play this coming weekend and despite my 3-5 prediction record in the previous issue of the Cluster, I’m sticking with these picks. After all, I correctly predicted a BYU upset over Oklahoma in Week 1 as well as a narrow Michigan win over Notre Dame and a UCLA upset over Tennessee.

J. Andrew’s Bold Predictions:

Thursday, September 24
Mississippi 21, South Carolina 24

Saturday, September 26
South Florida 31, Florida State 34
North Carolina 23, Georgia Tech 14
Michigan State 44, Wisconsin 24
Fresno State 31, Cincinnati 13
Miami (FL) 20, Virginia Tech 21
Arizona State 16, Georgia 45

Upset Special of the Week:
TCU 35, Clemson 38

Bears Find a Way to Win

J. Andrew Lockwood
Senior Editor / Columnist

In a wild turn of events, Mercer found a way to win last Sunday afternoon as they defeated Georgia State 2-1 in overtime. With the skies alternating between sun and rain, the tough match ended on a controversial call off of a Mercer free-kick that ultimately won the double overtime contest. In the 113th minute of the game, the officials allowed freshman Patricia Ann Upson a free-kick rather than a dropped ball after a Panther was injured on the field.

Upson’s pass to junior Sara Elliot was the difference maker as Elliot headed the pass behind goalkeeper Heidi Blankenship to win the game. It was after Elliot’s fourth goal of the season that Georgia State head coach Domenic Martelli filed an official protest afterwards on the circumstances that surrounded Mercer’s free kick.

After the game, head coach Grant Serafy said, “I have to compliment Georgia State on its play and effort. I feel for them because they have a good team and will have a good season.” The loss on Sunday dropped the impressive Panthers squad to 6-2-0 on the year.

“Defensively, we were disorganized out there today,” Serafy added on MercerBears.com. “We did some things better offensively and I’m proud of the way the team scratched and clawed out the win,” he continued.

It was a defensive struggle indeed for both clubs as Mercer and Georgia State pushed the ball on their respective offensive ends. Mercer outshot Georgia State in the second half 9-4 as well as 16-12 over the course of the game and would register one more corner kick than the Panthers, 5-4. Still, the contest remained tied at the half until Mercer’s Olivia Tucker would score the first goal of the game early in the second half from a Lauren Johnson pass. The goal would be the sophomore’s third on the season.

It didn’t take long for Georgia State to answer fourteen minutes later as a Sarah Bennett pass was deposited by Apryl Goodwin for a Panther score. The score would remain 1-1 until Elliot’s goal in the second overtime. Both goalies had their work cut out for them over the course of the long match. Panther goalie Heidi Blankenship would record seven saves as Mercer’s Jean Worts and Cristina Guilarte would split time between the white posts, totaling six combined saves.

Midway through the season, the Bears now turn their attention to visiting conference foes Florida Gulf Coast and Stetson this weekend at Bear Field. Both games should provide plenty of excitement as both clubs will provide Mercer with a good conference test before traveling on the road. FGCU, the second best team in the conference with a 5-3-1 record will visit Friday night while the 4-4-0 Hatters come into town Sunday afternoon.

Cameron Scores Twice in Mercer’s First Victory

J. Andrew Lockwood
Senior Editor / Columnist

After Friday night’s canceled tilt between Gardner Webb and Mercer, the Bears came out Sunday night looking for their first win of the season. Conditions were less than favorable on the rain soaked Bear Field, but Brad Ruzzo’s squad got their first victory of the year over in-state rival Georgia Southern to improve their record to 1-3-2. The win was Ruzzo’s third victory at Mercer and only his second home victory.
The Bears continued their winning ways over the Eagles (0-5-1), whom they defeated in last year’s late season matchup in Statesboro 1-0, off of two Ian Cameron goals. The Scot blasted his second and third goals of the season in the 19th and 97th minute to cap an overtime thriller.

Following the game, Ruzzo commented on MercerBears.com, “We are obviously very happy with the result we earned tonight, picking up our first win of the year at home in less than ideal conditions. I thought our team fought hard and dealt with the muddy field well to pull out the victory.”

With a small crowd on hand to cheer on the team, Mercer played aggressively for most of the afternoon despite being outshot by the Eagles in every offensive statistical category. Georgia Southern would tally 16 shots for the afternoon (8 on goal) with 7 corner kicks while Mercer would take aim 14 times, with 5 shots on goal, and 5 corner kicks.

The first goal by Cameron came with 19:01 in the first half after several Georgia Southern shots were blocked on the opposing end by Mercer goalie Brett Petricek. Propelling himself off of a spin move, Cameron’s low shot past the Eagles’ goalie Mike Gubosh gave Mercer the early advantage they were looking for. Holding the lead for the rest of the half, Georgia Southern continued their aggressive style of play on offense, scoring a game-tying goal in the 74th minute off the leg of Matt Crowell from 20 yards away.

Then the showers came. The field was reduced to a mud puddle for the remainder of the game halting both teams in search for another goal. Georgia Southern made a concerted effort late in the second half to push through a game-winner, but game up short as overtime started. Mercer didn’t have to wait long in overtime though as Ian Cameron’s shot cleared by Gubosh to give his team the victory. A perfect pass from senior Chrispine Ong’Ango set up the play the to win the game.

Ruzzo added after the contest, “Ian has been a great leader for us so far this seaon. He had two fantastic goals that he capped off with great finishes which is something we talk about and stress in practice.” Two of Cameron’s three shots would find the goal while teammates Richard Wimsatt (5 shots, 2 on goal), Richie Edmonson (2 shots, 1 on goal), and Ong’Ango (2 shots, 1 assist) were all active on the offensive end. On the opposing side of the field, Eagles forward Witt Carlisle had an incredible 8 shots with five on goal, yet came up short on each. Mercer goalie Brett Petricek finished the game with 7 saves while Gubosh would tally 3 of his own on the night.

Mercer now takes to the road again for matches against Appalachian State, Belmont, and Lipscomb before returning home to face ETSU and USC Upstate in mid October.

Heavy Rain Suspends Final Round as Women Open Golf Season

J. Andrew Lockwood
Senior Editor / Columnist

Traveling three hours to the northeast to play in the Lady Paladin Intercollegiate hosted by Furman University, the Mercer women’s golf team had a rough start to their season. Playing in a talented field with fellow A-Sun schools Campbell, Stetson, ETSU, and Kennesaw State, the Bears would finish 16th out of the 17 team field after the tournament ended with two rounds of play.

Despite a hot start for many of girls on Mercer’s five person team, the third round would eventually be halted due to unplayable course conditions with Nova Southeastern University (the leader after two rounds) declared champion. Nova’s top player Sandra Changkija would win the tournament, posting a +3 in two rounds of competition (75, 72).

The heavy rains brought about a reset of the field after an incomplete third round and nullified Mercer’s climb up to 12th place, bringing an abrupt end to their first tournament of the season. France native Leslie Choucard would place the low score of the tournament for the Bears, shooting a +16 (82, 78) for a tie in 43rd. Teammate and senior Monica Kelsey would finish a stroke behind at +17 (81, 80) while the rest of Mercer’s lineup would finish a ways back.

The tournament was the culmination of six rounds worth of qualifying for the five traveling spots on the roster. Before the tournament, head coach Gary Guyer commented, “Qualifying was intense for several members of the team, especially with the freshmen.” He added, “With 12 members on the team competing for five spots, it does create a competitive environment. I told the team to come in with their ‘A’ game as we started qualifying the first day of practice.”

The results of the qualifying were a bit surprising, with freshman and Canadian Kaitlin Marrin playing as the #1 seed. Kelsey, junior Kayli Wicker, senior Alex Quagliata, and Choucard would fill out the remainder of the spots. Marrin would have a tough first collegiate tournament, finishing 89th at +31 (91, 84) despite the excellent qualifying rounds. Playing in her sixth tournament, Wicker struggled with her second round to finish in a tie for 87th at +29 (84, 89). Quagliata would finish with the 3rd best score on the team at +25 (85, 84) in a tie for 81st.

On the positive side, a tough first round set the team back a bit but four of the five women posted better second round numbers than they did in the first round. Guyer’s women must now regroup before their second annual home tournament in two weeks, the Eat A Peach Invitational.

Hosted by Idle Hour Country Club in North Macon, the tournament will draw out some of the best golf competition in the southeast with Georgia, Florida State, Miami, Georgia State, Central Florida, Furman, and in-state rivals Kennesaw State in attendance. The practice round begins on Saturday, October 3rd with the first and second rounds of the tournament played on the following Sunday and Monday. For more details of Mercer’s only home tournament of the season, consult MercerBears.com.

Volleyball Oh So Close!

J. Andrew Lockwood
Senior Editor / Columnist

It couldn’t be any closer this weekend between Atlantic Sun foes Campbell and ETSU as they visited the University Center to take on the Bears. Friday night’s matchup with the Camels brought close to 1,000 fans out to see the Bears lose in the ultimate case of déjà vu. Despite having the ability to put away Campbell twice with set points, Mercer would falter three times 26-24, 26-24, and 26-24. Putting the tough loss behind them, the Bears looked sluggish at best on offense as ETSU would sweep Mercer in three sets as well (25-22, 27-25, 25-18). The two losses drop the Bears to 1-3 in conference play with an overall record of 3-8.

Friday night’s raucous crowd brought the UC to life as Mercer looked strong early in the first set. An eight point lead wasn’t enough to hold off Campbell as outside hitter Caroline Hammersley would throw down a spike to give the visitors a 1-0 advantage. For the remainder of the match, Campbell and Mercer would trade points until the 24-24 mark of each set. Each time, the Camels would find a way to string together consecutive kills to steal away the set.

“It is frustrating when we’re in every set and can’t capitalize,” said Mercer head coach Noelle Rooke on MercerBears.com. “We had great support from our home crowd tonight and unfortunately we didn’t produce a win for them,” she added.

Although the loss to Campbell was a blow to the team’s confidence, there were bright spots on the court. Krista Hurley finished the night with 14 kills, hitting .321 for the game while setter Chelsea Gebben tallied up 28 assists. Friday night’s match was also the first time the Mercer faithful got a real glimpse of the talented freshman Jamie Duffy. Substituted onto the floor in crucial situations, Duffy posted six kills and eight digs in her first real home debut.

Making the big difference on the floor for Campbell was a pair of outside hitters. Ashley Weers and Emily Werner would finish with 11 kills each while setter Hope Leatigaga handed out 33 assists.

Looking to put the Campbell match behind them, the Bears looked rather flat on offense Saturday against the Lady Bucs of ETSU. Hoping to avenge last season’s first round loss in the Atlantic Sun Tournament, Mercer fought out of an early hole in the first set to trade points with the Bucs. Tied at 22-22, ETSU would pick up the three crucial points at the end of the first stanza to jump out to a 1-0 lead.
The second set looked like a continuation of the performance against Campbell. Deadlocked 25-25, an Alyssa Long kill and Mercer attacking error would doom the Bears to their eight straight set loss. A decent sized Saturday crowd in the arena hoped the intermission would spark the Bears in the third set, but unfortunately saw Mercer falter once more 25-18. Sophomore Aimee Frutchey was the star of the night on offense, tallying 10 kills and 15 digs while teammate Krista Hurley added 7 more kills to her season’s total.

A trio of ETSU players would finish with 10 or more kills on the afternoon. Whitney Cogburn (12 kills, 6 digs), McKayla Barber (10 kills, 5 block assists), and Erin Ryan (13 kills) would lead the Lady Bucs on offense as setter Amanda Youell finished with 41 assists, 3 kills, and 7 digs of her own.

Dropping to the bottom half of the Atlantic Sun wasn’t what Coach Rooke had in mind for this weekend, but now her young team must rebound before playing A-Sun rivals Lipscomb and Belmont on the road. The Bears return to Macon to take on Jacksonville, North Florida, and Florida A&M in their next home stand.

BearZone Player Spotlight: Krista Hurley

J. Andrew Lockwood
Senior Editor / Columnist

Without a doubt, Krista Hurley is one of the most athletically gifted volleyball players to pass through Mercer in recent memory. The 5’11” junior middle blocker from La Verne, California has an incredible leaping ability and has been known to leave red marks on the faces of her opponents after vicious kills over the net. Once or twice a game, the crowd is usually taken back with one of these ‘facials,’ but it’s Hurley’s all-around athleticism and leadership on and off the court that make the difference.

Coming after a monster 2008 campaign in which she finished with 212 kills (1.91 kpg), 11 solo blocks, and 91 block assists in 111 games, Hurley finds herself in a different position this season. Last year’s seniors Karen Dorris, Claire Tucker, and Kelly Jansen are gone, leaving a void on the court that Hurley and her other teammates have started to fill early in the 2009 season. The Cluster sat down with Hurley to discuss everything from the team dynamics to why we should attend the games.

BearZone: What have been the biggest challenges on the court that you've faced since coming to Mercer three years ago?

Hurley: When I first came to Mercer, I was commonly known as the ‘little middle’ [Hurley seeds 2-4” at her height to the girls that usually play her position]. I quickly learned that there was certain level of physical discipline that needed to be present when playing at the college level. I've had to prove myself on the court, work hard in the weight room, find my place in the classroom, and show others around me that I was prepared to be a competitive student athlete.

BearZone: How have the team dynamics changed during your time here at Mercer?

Hurley: Over the past 3 years, our team has evolved into a quicker, more explosive, and more athletic group of girls. Rather than relying on pure size, we are using our athletic abilities to get the job done. In addition, our team has become a close group of girls that are not only teammates, but good friends off the court. Our team chemistry has definitely been the key to our latest successes.

BearZone: What are your personal goals for this upcoming season?

Hurley: Obviously, I hope to continue to improve my personal game and to be seen as a leader on the court. More importantly, I hope that our team utilizes our unique talents and works together to bring us further success in the A-Sun Conference.

BearZone: How does volleyball relate to your everyday life?

Hurley: Time-management, physical discipline, and determination are all essential lessons that can be taken from being a student-athlete, into everyday life. More importantly, I place a great emphasis on the love for the game. I believe passion should be the driving force in whatever you choose to do in life. Why do something that you are not passionate about?

BearZone: Why should the average student attend a volleyball game?

Hurley: Volleyball is an exciting, upbeat, and unpredictable game - there is never a dull moment.
It's free, we do some cool stuff, and we wear spandex. Enough said?

BearZone: What are your future plans after school and volleyball?

Hurley: I plan to get my masters in education, travel, and teach anywhere and everywhere. I hope to coach back in Southern California and do whatever makes me happy!

You can catch Hurley and the rest of the volleyball Bears in action in the University Center this season as they aim for the 2009 Atlantic Sun Conference title. After a breakout 18-11 season a year ago, look for Mercer to be in midseason form when A-Sun opponents Jacksonville, North Florida, and FAMU visit Macon in early October.

Photos courtesy of Alex Lockwood Photography

Mercer Bears Men’s Soccer – Illinois Road Swing

Adam Hunt
Sports Columnist / Reporter

The Mercer Bears Men’s Soccer team faced some tough opposition in their two-game away swing in Peoria, Illinois.

Looking to avenge an unlucky 2-1 home defeat to Alabama A&M less than a week earlier, The Bears took part in the Busey Bank Kickoff Invitational hosted by Bradley University.

Coach Brad Ruzzo’s side battled to a 0-0 tie with Eastern Illinois at Shea Stadium in their first game.

Mercer freshman Brett Petricek had a stellar game in goal for the away team, playing the whole game, notching seven saves and a perfect shutout.

“Petricek is a true freshman, but based on how he played tonight you would not have been able to guess that at all,” said head coach Brad Ruzzo, speaking on MercerBears.com. “He was very poised and composed tonight, making three huge saves to keep our team in the game.”

For the majority of the contest Eastern Illinois controlled the field of play, out-shooting the Bears 24-10 overall and 7-2 on goal.

The best chance for either team in the game undoubtedly came in the 75th minute for Eastern Illinois. Panthers striker Jeff Kupiec was awarded a penalty shot after a Mercer foul, but was denied by Petricek to keep the game at 0-0 until the finish.

A day later The Bears were back in action, facing tournament hosts Bradley.

The home side brought a formidable reputation to the field and lived up to it as they swept Mercer aside 3-0.

Ruzzo’s team could not seem to generate any offense against an organized Bradley defensive unit. Overall, the Braves out-shot Mercer 18-4 including a 6-0 margin on shots on goal.

The Braves jumped all over Mercer right from the opening kick. Senior forward Chris Cutshaw netted the first of his three goals in the contest, just three minutes in, by heading home a corner kick service to make the score 1-0 Bradley.

Cutshaw, the tournament MVP, completed his hat trick by scoring two more insurance goals in the 41st and 64th minutes, respectively, to put Bradley on top 3-0. They later went on to win the tournament.

Despite a difficult loss, Mercer showed plenty of resolve in their first away match of the season and will look to build on a resolute defensive display.

Men and Women Open Cross Country Seasons

Adam Hunt
Sports Columnist / Reporter


The Men's and Women's cross country teams both began their respective seasons at the University of Chattanooga Opener on Friday.

The Bears had to contend with some stiff competition against powerhouses Middle Tennessee, Tennessee at Chattanooga and conference rival Kennesaw State.
Tennessee State also took part to round out the five team competition.

The meet kicked off with the women's 2 mile race. Freshman Kacie Niemann turned in a strong 5th place finish followed by four more top 25 finishes by Clara Densmore (21st), Karen Dorris (23rd), Kasie Knapper (24th) and Alesa Webber (25th).

At the start, Niemann was tailing the lead pack and ran a conservative first mile. However, Niemann then found the accelerator and made a move towards the leaders.
In a surprise move, Freshman Knapper made a statement by finishing in the fourth position for the team in her first collegiate race.

In the Men's 5K race, Freshmen Jacob Law and Chris Svidesskis came out swinging at the start, but were left in smoke by Festus Chemaoi and William Songock from Middle Tennessee who powered past them.

Law and Svidesskis came through the mile marker in approximately 5:03, running with the front group with another freshman, Andrew Weems hot on their heels.
The freshmen were followed by Seniors Roland Adams and Marc Kushinka who ran more conservative opening miles. Adams and Kushinka both made their move later in the race to overtake Weems, but fell short of catching Svidesskis and Law.

Law finished with 12 points and in the first team position for Mercer, followed by Svidesskis with 14 points, Adams with 16, Kushinka with 18 and the final Mercer scorer was Weems who scored 21 points. Freshmen Taylor Snyder and Trey Ellis rounded out the Mercer seven.

Coach Ryan Bailey said afterwards: “I am happy with the performance at UTC. I did not taper the team much for this race. I think they performed quite well considering the course and the tough workout we did earlier in the week."

The Bears are back in action when they host the RunFit Sports Invitational, an event both the men and women will be looking to dominate.

The Third Half: Weekend College Football Predictions

J. Andrew Lockwood
Sports Editor / Columnist

Another fall of college football has arrived and with it comes some rather boring news. Florida, the reigning national champion, is the overall favorites to win the whole thing again with #1 rankings in all of the top preseason polls, Tim Tebow should be considered the favorite to win the Heisman Trophy again after another stellar season for the Gators, and let’s just go ahead and crown Urban Meyer as the 45th President of the United States.

Florida is undoubtedly the dynasty program of today, much like the Miami and Nebraska teams of the 1990’s. However, my first bold prediction this season is that Florida will lose not one, but two games over the course of the season. The Gators don’t have the most difficult schedule in the country, but they do play three Top 25 teams with important games against LSU in Baton Rouge and Florida State the last weekend of the regular season. Tim Tebow will be good….but not that good this season.

The second bold prediction I’m making this season is that BYU will appear in a BCS Bowl game. The Cougars have a tough non-conference schedule, highlighted by games against Florida State and Oklahoma as well as Mountain West rivals TCU and Utah, however, they’ll win enough to sneak into a big bowl game by the season’s end. Don’t count out the little guys anymore. Boise State, TCU, and Utah will continue to upset their bigger conference opponents.

Remember South Florida’s breakout season in 2007? This year’s breakout team will be the Stanford Cardinal out of the Pac-10. Under Jim Harbaugh’s tenure, the Cardinal have slowly improved during the past few seasons, recording a 5-7 mark in 2008. You may have to search for the Versus network to find their games, but watch out for the Trees. This could be the best team since Elway’s glory years at Stanford.

How’s this for a bold prediction? The biggest flop in 2009 will be Notre Dame and USC. Little Jimmy Clausen will never live up to the expectations South Bend has placed on his shoulders. Despite a mostly cupcake schedule, if Charlie Weiss doesn’t win ten games this season, the Irish will have a new coach in 2010. Notre Dame will somehow find a way to disappoint. Additionally, Southern Cal will struggle this season with freshly minted QB Matt Barkley. The surfer/signal caller will struggle against Ohio State and will take a while to get adjusted to playing college football. Mark it down, two to three loses for USC this season.

Finally, I’ll give my bold predictions for the Heisman Trophy winner this season. Sam Bradford (QB, Oklahoma) and Tim Tebow (QB, Florida) will most likely finish #1 and #2 in the final voting, but Oregon State RB Jacquizz Rodgers might just sneak up to the #3 position by the season’s end barring injury. He’s small, but elusive and fast and cut through USC’s defense like a knife through hot bread last season. If he picks up the stats again this year, watch out for this Beaver.
Bold predictions, yes, but who would have thought the Tampa Bay Rays would be playing in the World Series a year ago? Or that Boise State would win a bowl game over Oklahoma on a last second trick play? That’s the reason we all watch…to see if our bold predictions come true.

Week 2 Game Predictions

Thursday, Sept 10
Clemson 27, Georgia Tech 35

Saturday, Sept 12
North Carolina 19, UConn 21
Stanford 41, Wake Forest 21
Notre Dame 20, Michigan 21
UCLA 34, Tennessee 31
South Carolina 24, Georgia 17
USC 17, Ohio State 19
Upset Special of the Week: Vanderbilt 31, LSU 30

Hoosiers Narrowly Defeat Bears 2-1

J. Andrew Lockwood
Senior Editor / Columnist

It’s not everyday that Mercer draws a Big Ten school into Macon, but when they do, they aim to capitalize on the event. Unfortunately, the Mercer women’s soccer team came up just short, losing to the Hoosiers 2-1 on Sunday morning. Grant Serafy’s squad looked sharp early on, coming off of a 1-1 tie against #16 Georgia. Sara Elliot scored her third goal of the season during the 39th minute of the match, courtesy of a perfect Kate Alderman pass to give the Bears an early 1-0 lead. The header from Elliot passed to the left of Indiana’s goalie Lauren Hollandsworth to give the Mercer faithful something to cheer about.

However, in the second half, it was the Hoosiers who went on the attack, scoring two goals to escape middle Georgia with the win. Indiana sophomore Carley Samp changed the contest with a 63rd minute goal from teammate Kelly Lawrence while the decisive goal came nine minutes later. Beating two Mercer defenders down the field, Lawrence tallied her second assist when her pass to senior Christie Kotynski went into the Bears’ goal.

A late push from Mercer came up short as they would fall to 2-2-1 on the season. The Hoosiers improved to 5-0-0 after the Sunday morning defeat.

The game was a tale of two different halves. Mercer outshot their visitors 6-3 in the first half before the Hoosiers dominated the second half 7-1. The corner kicks followed the same trend as Mercer outshot Indiana 3-1 before the reversal of 2-1 in the second half. Mercer attacked on offense in the first half, but struggled mightily to control the ball later in the contest.

The Bears will look to notch another win at home Saturday when they face in-state foe Kennesaw State to begin this season’s conference play. The Owls, Mercer’s biggest rivals during the past few seasons, have had a slow start to the 2009 campaign, accruing a 1-3-0 record. It’ll no doubt be a feisty match worth attending when both team meet on the field Saturday night at 7pm.

Bears Take 2 of 3 in Bear Brawl

J. Andrew Lockwood
Senior Editor / Columnist

Mercer won their first two matches of the season last Friday and Saturday as they defeated Troy (3-0) and Bethune-Cookman (3-0) while narrowly losing to Furman (3-2). Junior Krista Hurley was named tournament MVP while teammates Rachel Urbelis and Ashley Skidmore were named to the All-Tournament Team.

After dropping the first three matches of the season in Atlanta to Austin Peay, Georgia, and Georgia Tech, the Mercer women looked strong all tournament long minus three sets against Furman. Replacing the large holes left on the roster by last year’s graduating class of Karen Dorris, Claire Tucker, and Kelly Jansen, sophomore Libero Ashley Skidmore played brilliantly while the net players (Libby Hansch, Erica Vrvilo, and Hurley) picked up the rest of the slack. Aggressively offensively and responsive defensively, the Bears looked to be in mid-season form for most of the tournament.

Their first contest against Troy appeared to be close after the Bears narrowly won the first set 25-22. However, a 25-10 second game set the tone of the rest of the match. The third set was controlled by the Bears as they finished off the Trojans 25-20. While most of Troy’s offense came from two players, Mercer saw a much more balanced attack from Hurley, Aimee Frutchey, and Vrvilo. Troy’s Meghan Gilroy and Brittany McClelland totaled a combined 22 kills, assisted by setter Megan Henderson (34 assists). Accuracy was a problem for the former A-Sun school as they converted only 40 of their 114 kill attempts with 22 errors (.158 hitting percentage). Hurley led the way for the Bears, totaling 11 kills against Troy while teammates Frutchey and Vrvilo chipped in 7 kills apiece. Head Coach Noelle Rooke’s 6-2 offense was headed by setters Chelsea Gebben (20 assists) and Nickie Halbert (15 assists). Defensively, Rachel Urbelis led the team in digs (13) with also adding five kills on offense.

The Friday night match against Furman looked to be a continuation of the Bears’ dominance earlier in the day. The first two sets went Mercer’s way 28-25 and 25-13, but an epic collapse in the final three sets saw the Southern Conference team escape the University Center with the victory. Continuing to smash the ball on offense, Rachel Urbelis accounted for 19 kills and 15 digs while Frutchey (10 kills, 15 digs) and Hurley (15 kills, 3 Block Assists) also had double digit offensive totals. Early in the match, the Paladins struggled from the left side of the net as Libby Hansch blocked everything that came her way. Hansch would finish with 4 solo blocks and 9 kills.

The major storyline of this match was Furman’s ability to change their strategy throughout the game. Hitting .333 and .381 in the final two sets, Kelly Kirby and Alexis Shaffer accounted for 37 of Furman’s 73 kills during the match. Setter Kelsey Salava had videogame-like stats with 65 sets and 22 digs. Despite an initial poor showing against Mercer’s defense, Coach Michelle Young changed up the offense to force the Bears to defend intermediate attacks. Unfortunately, the Bears’ backline struggled after the change to drop their fourth match of the season.

“I’m disappointed we lost, but I give credit where credit is due: Furman is a great team,” Rooke said at the close of the match. She added, “We played great today but unfortunately they came out on top.”

Saturday’s match against Bethune-Cookman was an easier one for Mercer as they cruised to a three set victory to improve to 2-4 on the season. Finishing out
the fifth annual Bear Brawl, Rooke was able to play most of the roster against the struggling Wildcats. Statistically, the standout of the match was Chelsea Gebben’s 30 assists but the real story of this match was the continuity and balance of Mercer’s offense. Seven Bears finished with 2 or more kills, to finish the night 41 for 113 with 17 errors (.212 hitting percentage).

Rooke commented after the match on MercerBears.com, “We played well enough to get the win today, but we still have room for improvement. We’re looking forward to starting conference play. Our youth stepped up and played a major role this weekend.”

Mercer now travels to Kennesaw State, USC-Upstate, and FAMU before returning back home to face Campbell and ETSU.

New Faces to Lead Bears into the Fall [2009 Men's Golf Preview]

Adam Hunt
Sports Columnist / Reporter

More of the same is most certainly the plan for the Mercer Men’s Golf team this Fall.
Last year was a groundbreaking one for Coach Andrew Tredway and his team, culminating in a program-first NCAA Regional berth.

But with the loss of three influential Seniors in Ryan Peters, Ryan Blackburn and Bill Jones, The Bears’ incoming Freshmen will have to rapidly make their mark if such success is to be repeated.

Jones, in particular, will leave a sizeable hole to be filled given that he featured in every tournament and sported a team-low 73.77 scoring average as the team raced to its highest-ever national ranking (86th) and its best conference finish (third) since 1992.

However, Coach Tredway has proved himself to be an astute recruiter in previous seasons so there is no reason why 2009-2010 should be any different.
Four newcomers have been added to the roster: Thomas Holmes, Matt Kocolowski, William Meason and Alex Street.

Holmes is a local favorite, hailing from Macon, and will have vital experience of playing on the team’s home courses such as The Brickyard which plays host to The Brickyard Collegiate Championships in October.
Meason is another Georgia resident, this time from Alpharetta, who recorded five top-ten finishes on the Southeastern Junior Golf tour last year, including a fourth-place finish at the Hampton Club Junior Classic.

Tredway believes the addition of Meason will have a significant impact on his growing team. Speaking on MercerBears.com he commented: “He has a great foundation, a great short game and is a pure putter. With some work, he could be one of the top players in the A-Sun and in the country.”
Kocolowski, of Apopka, Florida, has been busy fine-tuning his game in the off-season and placed an impressive 20th at the prestigious Cardinal Amateur at The Cardinal Golf & Country Club in Greensboro, North Carolina last month.

The Cardinal Amateur is a traditionally high-class event consisting of 78 players, half from the college level and half from mid-amateurs. Many former competitors have gone on to appear on the PGA Tour such as Allen Doyle, Paul Claxton and David Duval.

Finally, Tredway has added Street from his own stomping ground of Medford, Oregon.
Street has found plenty of success while playing for St. Mary’s High School in the Pacific Northwest. He won the District 6 championship in both 2007 and 2008, while taking third place at the 3A Oregon state championship in 2007.


Tredway feels Street will prove to be something of a dark horse and enthused: “This kid is totally under the radar and I think there are going to be a lot of coaches on the West Coast kicking themselves the next four years. Having grown up in the same area as Alex, I know exactly how difficult it is to get noticed in the Rogue Valley. When I saw his golf swing, his work ethic, and heard from some of my own friends, signing Alex was a no-brainer.”

The Orange and Black certainly know what it feels like to work hard and this season will require nothing different.

Tredway and his players all buy in to the philosophy of effort in equals rewards out. Hopefully this will stand them in just as good stead as it did last time around.

Tennis Center Getting a Facelift

Adam Hunt
Sports Columnist / Reporter

The Mercer Bears Tennis teams are set to roar into the Fall semester with the addition of eight refurbished courts and a clutch of new faces.

The LeRoy Peddy Tennis Center, situated on southern the edge of campus, was in need of a touch up and it has certainly received that courtesy of Mercer Athletics. All of the courts have been completely resurfaced with blue and green Plexipave Acrylic. This is the same surface that is used at the US Open and countless other high profile tennis events around the world. It complies fully with NCAA standards and is designed to reduce impact on players’ joints.

In addition, Coach Nick Stutsman has signed several new players to freshen up the Men’s roster. Freshman Peter Tauchner joins Transfers Evandro Rosindo and Raul Martinez to replace Justin Wimpee and Chapman Mitchell who graduated last year.
However, the Women’s team has not, as yet, found replacements for Irys Citko and Juliana Moscoso Chiang. It is expected that some new players will sign in January in time for Atlantic Sun Conference play as the current roster only stands seven-strong.
Both teams are set to begin official practice soon and are raring to prepare thoroughly ahead of their off-season tournament schedules. We will preview fully their prospects in a future edition of The Cluster.

Onwards and Upwards [2009 Women's Cross Country Preview]

Adam Hunt
Sport Columnist / Reporter

Onwards and upwards is the philosophy the Mercer Women’s Cross Country team will be focusing on this semester.
The Belle Bears put in some promising Spring performances and continued to steadily improve as the season progressed.
Strengthened by a batch of talented recruits, Coach Ryan Bailey will be hoping his team can reap the rewards of persistent training on the practice track with high-placed finishes in official competition.

Having signed six newcomers, the roster has a young feel with only two Seniors of a total 13 runners.
Of the Freshman, local favorites Kassandra Knapper, Hannah Stark, Alesa Webber and Rebecca Broome, each of whom competed within 135 miles of Mercer’s campus, will be looking to make the grade.

Knapper, from Whitewater High School in Fayetteville, Georgia, was a four-year letterwinner and served as team captain for the last three years. She also lettered twice in both track and lacrosse for the Wildcats and was successful in the classroom as well, earning membership in both the National and French Honor Societies.

Stark, a product of Franklin County High School, earned the Lions’ Rookie of the Year and Best Middle Distance awards as a ninth-grader and claimed the Coach's Choice Award as a junior. Stark was also a two-time winner of the FCHS’ Runner of the Year Award as a sophomore and a senior.
Webber comes to Mercer from Shiloh High School, as a three-time letterwinner in cross country and a two-time letterwinner in track for the Lady Generals.

Last of the locals, Broome helped her Woodland High School Wildcats earn a 2008 region championship and a seventh-place finish at the GHSA State Meet.
Another prep standout that signed for Mercer this Summer, this time from a little further afield, is South Oldham High School’s Kacie Niemann.

A product of Crestwood, Kentucky, Niemann finished third in the 2009 Region 3 AA championships and placed fourth at the state meet in cross country. Her achievements are even more remarkable in track, where the fleet-footed senior claimed a pair of first-place finishes at the Oldham County Championships – in both the 800m and 1600m events.

She went on to finish ahead of the pack in yet another pair of races, the 3200m and the 4x800m relay in the regional track championships and helped the Dragons’ 4x800m relay to a state championship title.

Bailey’s team has also certainly excelled in the classroom, with Junior Jenna Jackson garnering recognition at the annual President’s Dinner for achieving a perfect 4.0 GPA last semester.

In addition, during the off-season, the Atlantic Sun Conference office announced that former Women’s Cross Country standout Chereese Rowe had been awarded the prestigious female postseason graduate scholarship.

Speaking on MercerBears.com, Coach Bailey said: “The selection committee could not have made a better choice; Chereese is an outstanding individual and very deserving.”

Since graduating last semester, Rowe has utilized her scholarship award and decided to continue her studies with Mercer at our Atlanta campus.

Narrow Loss to Bulldogs Still Shows Improvement

J. Andrew Lockwood
Senior Editor / Columnist

Despite losing 2-1 to the visiting Alabama A&M Bulldogs, the Mercer Bears looked much improved from their 2008 campaign. On the offensive end, they pressured the Bulldogs for most of the night and looked to be in mid-season conditioning form, yet they still came up short due to two late second-half goals.

“We battled and competed the entire match,” Mercer head coach Brad Ruzzo commented after the game on MercerBears.com. He added, “We have some guys injured and we are not a deep team right now. We are going to have to ask more from our reserves. They are a really talented team and we had a lot of chances, but 1-0 and even 2-0 is not good enough against a team like that.”

Ruzzo’s words echoed the depth problem for Mercer heading into their season opener with senior Thomas Knerr sidelined for the night with an injury despite participating in pre-game warm-ups. Yet Mercer looked gritty against the team that went 9-5-3 a year ago and saw graduate Futhi Bhembe get drafted by Salt Lake City (MLS). In comparison to last year’s contest, a 5-0 loss, this contest appeared to be quite balanced.

The Bears pressured Alabama A&M’s goal keeper Paul Musoke early in the first half, but couldn’t muster a goal despite their eight shots on goal and three corner kick opportunities. The second half opened with the Bulldogs looking to control the ball more than they did in the first half, however Mercer’s attack in the 72nd minute of the match led to an unorthodox goal from senior Chrispine Ong’Ango. After Musoke blocked Ong’Ango’s initial shot, he couldn’t block a rebound opportunity as Ong’Ango slid to the right of the goal. It was the first collegiate goal for the senior from Nairobi, Kenya, and an exciting moment at Bear Field.

Unfortunately for Mercer, the lead didn’t last too long. Alabama A&M’s Eric Kamya scored on the other end of the field off of an Abraham Kassaye pass. With time running out in the second period, it appeared that the game might end in a tie, but an unassisted goal in the 84th minute by Abraham Kassaye ultimately put the Bulldogs over the top for the 2-1 victory.

The loss wasn’t a complete disappointment for Mercer though. Ruzzo liked what he saw on the offensive end, saying, “We were organized on the attack and knew what we wanted to do. This game is a lesson learned for a young team to focus minutes after taking a lead.” It’s a tough loss…and lesson to learn indeed, especially considering that the Bears outshot the Bulldogs 17-12 for the game and had several good looks on the goal.

The Mercer men continue to look for their first win as they play out their non-conference slate in Illinois, taking on Eastern Illinois and Bradley before returning to the south to play Georgia State and Wofford.

Photos courtesy of Alex Lockwood Photography

Running Fast [2009 Men's Cross Country Preview]

By Adam Hunt

The Mercer Men’s Cross Country team is looking to go the distance this Fall, boosted by a talented group of new signings.
Coach Ryan Bailey has increased the size of his roster to 18 athletes - the plan seems to be strength in numbers.

Incoming Georgia natives Trey Ellis from St. Pius X High School (Marietta), Chris Svidesskis out of Dominion Academy (Marietta) and Taylor Snyder from Greenbriar High School (Augusta) all inked national letters of intent to run for the Bears over the Summer.

Ellis gained attention in cross country as well track, garnering a second-place finish at the 2008 Mercer RunFit Invitational and was runner-up at the GHSA Region 5AAA meet. He also collected a seventh-place at the state meet and earned honorable mention on Team Georgia 2008. On the track, Ellis was runner-up in the 1600m at the Region 5AAA meet.
Svidesskis helped lead the Knights to both the 2008 Region 1AAA Cross Country Championship and the GISA AAA State Championship, while individually claiming a fourth-place finish in the 2008 Footlocker South Regional Cross Championships in an impressive time of 16:03.
He garnered three third-place finishes at the 2008 GISA AAA state track meet (800m, 1600m and the 3200m) and helped boost his 4x400m relay squad to a sixth-place finish en route to becoming the fifth-highest scorer in the meet.

Greenbriar’s Taylor Snyder helped lead his team to regional championships in both cross country and track, as the Wolfpack claimed the 2008 Region 2 AAAAA cross country championship as well as the 2009 Region 2 AAAAA 3200m title in track.

Snyder followed up by posting a 76th place finish (out of 255 runners) at the Footlocker South Regional Cross Country Championships with a time of 16:04. He was also runner-up in the 1600m at the 2009 Region 2 AAAAA meet and notched a pair of sixth-place finishes in the 3200m and 1600m at the GHSA state track meet, picking up Greenbriar’s only points at the state competition.

Coach Bailey has also signed Jacob Law, out of South Oldham High School in Crestwood, Kentucky. Law joins The Bears along with fellow South Oldham graduate Kacie Niemann on the Women’s team.

Last year, Law was the 2008 Region 3 AA and Kentucky State AA champion in cross country. As a junior, he finished 11th in the AAA classification and recorded a remarkable 9:39 for two miles, claiming a second-place finish at the state championships.

The Bluegrass State native also garnered a 29th place finish at the 2008 Footlocker South Region Championships, covering the 5K in a time of 15:41 and was recently named to the Kentucky High School All-Class Super Team after closing out his stellar prep career with the Dragons.

As a member of both the National Honor Society and the National Beta Club, Law has proven to be as strong the classroom as well as on the trails.

With such strength in depth, Coach Bailey and his Mercer Bears will be racing to make a big impression this season.