MOVE OVER, WE’RE DRIVING

A four game win streak and a thrilling 80-79 win over Lake Forest has Melissa Bittner’s women’s basketball team in the driver’s seat as they try to return to the Midwest Conference tournament for the first time since the 1997-98 season.

“We’re still riding pretty high off of Tuesday night’s win,” said Bittner of the game that was won on a last-second shot. “People talk about not being able to sleep after a tough loss, but for me, I can’t sleep after a big win. I began thinking about all the scenarios for the playoffs. That’s the type of game where the momentum will carry over to the weekend.”

The Scots and the Foresters entered the game deadlocked in fifth place, one spot out of an MWC tournament berth. The win puts the Scots in the driver’s seat with five games to play and they’ll meet two of the four teams ahead of them – St. Norbert and Ripon – this weekend.

Neither Monmouth nor Lake Forest could deliver the knockout punch in the game that was tied 14 times and had 23 lead changes. The fans got their money’s worth when Melissa Gorski hit the game-winning shot with two seconds left.

Up 78-77 with 43 seconds left, the Scots took a timeout to set their strategy. The Foresters had their strategy set, too, and promptly forced a turnover and converted a layup to take a 79-78 lead. Tanesha Hughes picked up her fifth foul on the shot, giving Lake Forest a chance at the old-fashioned three-point-play. Erica Puig, coming in for the fouled-out Hughes, pulled the rebound on the missed free throw and the stage was set for the final 13 seconds.

Another Monmouth timeout.

Fortunately for the Scots’ faithful, this time their plan worked to perfection. The Scots got the ball to point guard Justine Boone who gave it to Alison Andrews on the wing with the option to either drive, or dish off to Gorski. Not having a good chance to drive, Andrews found Gorski near the free throw line in the paint and delivered the ball in perfect position for her to take a dribble, square and shoot. Just to make sure no one overlooked the drama of the moment, Gorski’s shot rattled on the rim a bit before going in for her career-high 30^th point, but it still looked like a masterpiece to Bittner.

“It was amazing,” said Bittner who described the ebb and flow of the game as a chess match. “The shot went down exactly as it was supposed to. We wanted to get the ball to our senior with the hot hand. Erica and Justine set perfect screens to free up Mitt. It was just a great team win and really a compliment to our players.”

The win gave the Scots sole possession of fifth place, one game back of Saturday’s opponent, Ripon. The Red Hawk pounded the Scots 74-54 in December – and it wasn’t as close as the score indicated.

“We were down 29 at halftime,” reported Bittner. “We’ve got to play HORRENDOUS to get down by 29 by halftime. It was a case of Murphy’s Law –‘Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.’ It was the kind of game you want to forget. We kind of shot ourselves in the foot at the start of the season, but we’ve battled back and have gotten into the mix.”

The Scots open the weekend hosting St. Norbert Friday knowing they were just three points away from upsetting the Green Knights for the second year in a row.

“Revenge will be the theme this weekend,” claimed Bittner in reference to avenging the blowout loss to Ripon and the nail-biter with St. Norbert.

Boone drained a 3-pointer and Gorski scored in the paint in the final 1:24 against the Green Knights, pulling Monmouth within 1 at 54-53, but a missed free throw with three seconds left saved the game for St. Norbert.

Ironically, the Scots have been on a free throw binge lately. They’re connecting on 72 percent of their throws. Sophomore Kim Howard made both of her free throws against Knox to tie the Scots’ career consecutive free throw mark of 19 set by Leslie Stone in the early 90s. Gorski had a string of 12 straight broken when she missed her first throw against Lake Forest – then promptly hit the next 11.

The way the Scots are approaching the charity stripe could have an impact this weekend, a weekend they’ve been waiting for.

“We’ve been talking about the upcoming weekend for a long time,” said Bittner. “They feel like they have a lot to prove.”

The Scots were able to let 15 players prove themselves in last weekend’s 85-55 win over Knox. The Scots never trailed in the game and shot nearly 50 percent from the floor. Gorski, not a regular long-range bomber, canned five of seven 3-pointers in the game.

“That was a good game because we got to give the starters some rest and get the bench some quality minutes,” said Bittner. “We only had 11 turnovers and just 13 against Lake Forest. We’ve been doing a good job of taking care of the ball.”

Now Bittner hopes her team can take care of business.

“We think 10 conference wins will get us in the postseason,” reported Bittner. “There are really seven teams in the mix for four playoff spots. This weekend will give us a lot of answers about our future. We can’t control what other teams do. We’ll have to take care of our business and let the chips fall where they may.”

A PREVIEW TO NATIONALS?

Running on the track that will host the NCAA Indoor Nationals next month, the men’s and women’s track teams kicked it up a notch Saturday at the Engineer Invitational at Rose-Hulman, finishing first and second, respectively in the nine-team field.

“We wanted to get them some experience on the track that will host the national meet this year and run some good times,” said Roger Haynes. “It was an improved weekend for a lot of the events.”

Luke Reschke highlighted the men’s competition for the Fighting Scots. The senior sprinter picked up a trio of firsts, including a provisional-qualifying time in the 400-meter dash. Reschke’s winning 400- time (49.65) provisionally qualified him for the Championships in March. Jacob Stott finished second in the 400- (50.44), Ryan Hardman was fifth (52.17) and Logan Weir placed eighth (52.94).

“Luke has made good progress from where he was a year ago,” said Haynes. “We feel good about that. He also led a pretty strong group in the 200.”

Six Scots scored in the 200- where Reschke took first (23.02), finishing just three-tenths ahead of teammate Logan Hohl in second. Saidu Sesay was fourth (23.40), Stott was fifth (23.47) and Kyle Prout was eighth (23.60). Reschke, Hohl and Stott picked up Shane Reschke to form the winning 4x400 relay team (3:23.67).

Clay Staley ran a conference and personal-best in the 3,000- to pick up the win (8:41.79). The time vaulted him to the top of the MWC rankings by nearly 30 seconds.

“That was a benchmark race for Clay,” reported Haynes. “He pretty much dominated the field in the second half of the race. He was just off the school record.”

Sesay and Prout were 2-3 finishers in the 55-meter dash (6.71 and 6.74, respectively). Sesay, Prout, Shane Reschke and Patrick Mundschenk teamed on the third-place 4x200 relay (1:34.56). Tim Bentz picked up a third in the 800- (2:00.29) and Damon Bautista was sixth (2:02.39), moving them into the fast heat at the MWC Championships. Geoff Bird scored points with an eighth-place finish running a season-best in the mile (4:40.04).

Peyton Lumzy led the charge in the field events, finishing no lower than second in his two events. The sophomore won the shot put (46’8) and placed second in the weight throw (47’8-1/5). Freshman thrower Paul Terpening threw a personal-best in the shot put (44’8-1/4) to place third. Nick Hitterman scored points for Monmouth placing seventh in the weight throw (41’10-3/4).

“The men’s throwers were solid, again,” reported Haynes. “Peyton was pretty decent in both his events. Paul had a lifetime best in the shot, near 45 feet. That’s basically what he threw in high school with a lighter shot a year ago. That’s pretty amazing. That’s quite an improvement and moves him up in the conference rankings.”

Tyler Hannam and Brock McAnally rounded out the firsts in the field events. Hannam placed first in the high jump (6’3-1/4) and McAnally took top honors in the pole vault (14’7-1/4). In the high jump, Sean Wells placed fifth (6’1-1/4) and Matt Hassler tied for seventh (5’11-1/4). Nick Wright and Wells placed 2-3 in the triple jump (42’6-3/4 and 41’11-1/2, respectively). Ryan Hardman and Mike Blodgett were 6-7 in the event. Hardman’s mark (39’6-1/2) was just two inches ahead of his teammate. Nick Law picked up a fourth in the long jump (19’8-1/4) and Blodgett placed eighth (18’11-3/4).

“The triple jumpers were pretty decent,” said Haynes. “We thought Brock might do a little better than what he did this weekend in the pole vault, but he’s working with a new pole, a little longer pole and that takes a little time to adjust the technique. He’s doing well and is consistent. I think he’ll make a pretty good jump at the end of the season.”

One school record nearly fell on the women’s side. Mary Kate Beyer finished second in the 3,000-meter run, just missing her own school record by .04 seconds (10:43.79). Katie Staab clocked a personal-best in the event to place sixth (11:09.00). The pair also logged career marks in the mile where Beyer placed fifth (5:23.33) and Staab was eighth (5:34.43).

“The mile was a great race for us,” said Haynes. “Mary Kate, Katie, Brianna (Flynn) and Amy (Aghababian) all ran well enough to be in position for the fast heat in the conference meet. We’re a little bit ahead of where we thought we would be with that group. They’re solid and training very well at all the distances they’re running right now.”

Beyer and Staab’s times at Rose-Hulman rank them third and sixth in the MWC. Flynn and Aghabagian are ranked 9-10 after Saturday’s competition (5:44.76 and 5:44.88, respectively).

Sprinter Jae Moore took second in the 55- (7.68) and the 200- (27.14). Shannon Turczyn placed second in the 55- hurdles (8.65), seventh in the 55- (7.94) and fifth in the 200- (27.86). Kaci Lierman placed fourth in the 200- (27.80).

“The 200 was another good race for our women,” said Haynes. “Jae, Shannon and Kaci all ran times that will put them in scoring range. Jae is running better in the 55 and 200 than a year ago. She’s stepped it up, but we need to make sure we have multiple scorers in those races.”

Whitney Didier and Morgan Leffel added points in the 800-. Didier placed fourth (2:30.45) and Leffel was seventh (2:36.47). Didier also excelled in the field events where she cleared her season high in the pole vault (10’5-1/2) to place second. She also picked up points with a seventh-place finish in the triple jump (31’4).

“Whitney and Morgan ran very well for their first try at the 800,” said Haynes. “Morgan has made the choice to run the 400 and 800-meters instead of sprinting as much as she did a year ago. She wanted to get back to some of the events she did in high school. She fit in with what our team needed in the sprints a year ago and is ready to progress to the 400 and 800.”

The Scots’ women throwers were consistent as all four throwers scored in the weight throw and three finished in the top five of the shot put. In the weight throw, Gloria Lehr equaled her personal-best to place third (47’1), Amanda Streeter was fourth (45’7-3/4), Allison Renfroe recorded a career-high to finish fifth (44’9-3/4) and Maureen Dewan rounded out the scoring in seventh (43’0-1/2). Lehr won the shot put by more than four feet (42’3-1/2), Streeter placed third (37’2-1/2) and Renfroe was fifth (35’10-3/4).

“Our group of women throwers did quite well,” praised Haynes. “They’re coming along nicely.”

Heather Hull led the Scots’ high jumpers with her best jump of the year, placing second (5’0-1/4). Sarah Stinson tied for third (4’10-1/4) and Lierman tied for fifth (4’8-1/4).

“We’ll try to fill in some events this weekend,” reported Haynes. “We’re still trying to plug some holes. We’ve got three weeks before conference to figure it out.”

The Scots travel to Illinois Wesleyan for a meet this Saturday before hosting their own Fighting Scots Invitational next weekend.

DOWN THE STRETCH

So often, after nearly 40 minutes of basketball, the outcome is decided in the final few minutes.

The men’s basketball team experienced a loss and a win in the last week, and both games hinged on the Scots’ play down the stretch. A scoring drought over the last 3:30 of the Knox game resulted in a 70-65 loss Saturday night. In Tuesday night’s 57-53 win over Lake Forest the Scots hit five of their six free throws and forced a turnover in the last 1:18.

Against Knox, the Scots missed five of seven free throws and five of six field goals – including two layups – in the final six minutes. It was quite a different six minute story in the victory over Lake Forest – two of four from the field and six of eight from the line, including four straight in the last minute.

“It’s hard to close out a game when you don’t hit your shots late,” said Mark Vershaw of the loss to the Prairie Fire. “If just one of those shots against Knox goes in, it might be a different outcome.”

That different outcome came to fruition Tuesday and Vershaw credits the defense with getting things turned around against the Foresters.

“It all began at the defensive end,” said Vershaw. “Lake Forest had to take contested shots and we were able to get the defensive rebound.”

No one did a better job of controlling the defensive boards than Eric Cogdill. The sophomore hauled down 10 rebounds – all on the defensive end. For good measure, he also hit four straight free throws in the final minute and finished with 12 points.

“We did a nice job of executing,” claimed Vershaw. “We were patient on offense and got the kinds of shots we can make. We talked about not taking longer contested shots and use more of the clock. We were so patient we nearly had a few shot clock violations.  Alex (Tanney) found his rhythm and that gave us a huge lift in the second half.”

Tanney’s rhythm, which included three of five from beyond the arc, netted the sharpshooter 21 points as the Scots had to fight back from nine down just three minutes into the second half. The Scots were on their “A” game passing the ball – 17 assists on 22 field goals. That means there was an assist on 77 percent of their shots. Not even assist-happy Grinnell averages that type of prolific passing.

“We did a better job in the second half with our spacing and we were able to find shooters,” said Vershaw. “Zach (Ott) was a little banged up from Saturday night, but was able to give us a few minutes and contributed four assists and picked up three blocks and five rebounds. Austin Weishaupt came off the bench and gave us some good minutes, too.”

Monmouth could have used a few good minutes Saturday against Knox. The Scots had built a 12 point lead late in the first half, but couldn’t hold off the Fire who gave head coach and Monmouth alum Rob Purlee ’03 his first career win.

Leading 38-32 at the half, Vershaw’s squad went cold for the final 20 minutes, hitting less than 40 percent of their shots and a dismal 18 percent on threes.

“I told them at halftime if we just, at the minimum, put up another 38 points, we’d be OK,” reported Vershaw. “We didn’t make the layups down the stretch, but you’ve got to give Knox credit. They outworked us in the second half – they got to more loose balls and had some energy. Those are the games that are hard to get over and wish you could have back.”

Speaking of wishing you could get a game back, the Scots will have a chance this weekend to avenge an early-season overtime loss. Bob Gillespie brings his Ripon Red Hawks to Glennie Gym Saturday. Ripon downed the Scots in overtime back in December.

“That was a very hard loss to start the conference season,” claimed Vershaw. “We missed six straight free throws down the stretch and they forced overtime and then put us away.”

With Ripon still in the hunt for an MWC playoff berth, the Scots will have their work cut out for them in defending the home court Saturday. Friday won’t be a cakewalk, either.

When 11^th ranked St. Norbert visits Friday, they will be the third team this year to face the Scots after a disappointing loss.

The Green Knights were upended by Lawrence Tuesday for their first league loss. Earlier this season, Monmouth met Grinnell after the Pioneers fell to Carroll by nearly 50 points. Lawrence hosted the Scots after a heartbreaking one point loss to Grinnell.

“St. Norbert is still atop the standings,” said Vershaw. “We’re going to see their best effort Friday night. Their seniors know they can’t afford to lose any more games if they want to host the tournament.”

The Scots are out of the playoff picture, but with five games remaining can improve on their win total from last season.

“We didn’t expect to be where we are in the conference standings,” said Vershaw. “The guys want to keep climbing that ladder and finish the season strong. We did that last year. It gives you something to push for and build for the next season."

SWIMMERS GOOD AND TIRED IN FINAL TUNEUP    

The swim team geared up for the Midwest Conference Championships in two weeks with a five team meet at Pepper Natatorium where the men finished first and the women second – the second meet in less than 24 hours for the pool people.

“We didn’t sugar-coat it,” said Dave Yez. “We told them the next 24 hours would be very demanding. This was a good way to simulate what the conference meet schedule would be like. They will have to swim tired.”

Despite “swimming tired,” the Scots turned in a number of good performances Saturday.

Andrew Wright picked up a pair of firsts for the men. He led a 1-2-3 finish in the 1650-yard freestyle. The freshman finished first (17:51.36) followed by Ed Novak (18:57.34) and Jim Travnik (19:28.98). Wright also placed first in the 500- freestyle (5:02.28) and Novak was third (5:23.50).

Kevin Satler swam to a first-place finish in the 200- breaststroke (2:25.67). He and Harrison Heilman completed a 1-2 Scots finish in the 100 breaststroke. Satler won the event by less than a second (1:05.10) over Heilman, who swam a personal-best (1:05.63).

Steve Collins picked up a second in the 400-yard individual medley (4:48.94). Josh Dunn was out-touched in the 100- freestyle to finish second by a mere .06 seconds (51.14). He then clocked a personal-best while placing second in the 100- backstroke (57.43). Wright and Josh Van Swol placed 2-3 in the 200- freestyle (1:51.79 and 1:54.61, respectively). Van Swol also took third in the 200- backstroke (2:08.23).

John Kaiser equaled his personal-best to win the 200- individual medley (2:07.91). Kaiser and Tom Pederson were 2-3 in the 50- freestyle. Kaiser finished just .10 second ahead of Pederson (23.31). Stephen Whittle recorded a career-best in the 200- butterfly where he placed third (2:24.19).

In the relays, Dunn, Satler, Kaiser and Collins placed second in the 200- medley relay (1:43.95). Joe Testolin teamed with Kaiser, Pederson and Dunn for a second in the 200- freestyle relay (1:34.91).

“I was really pleased with the men’s performance,” praised Yez. “We didn’t get back from Lincoln until midnight and they turned around and swam a very good meet on very little rest.”

Krysta Sparks paced the women with three firsts and a pair of pool records. Sparks set pool records while winning the 100- and 200-yard breaststrokes (1:10.03 and 2:32.67, respectively). She also clocked the winning time in the 200- individual medley (2:21.10).

Rachel Holm picked up a first with a personal-best swim in the 200- butterfly (2:19.02) and took second in the 100 butterfly with a career-best (1:03.03). Rachel Buckham recorded a personal-best in the 200- backstroke (2:19.83), but was out-touched at the finish to place second just .02 out of first. Buckham also logged a second-place finish in the 100- backstroke (1:05.77). Jamie Schingoethe placed third in the 200- freestyle (2:07.96). Kendra Kuehl bettered her career-best in the 100- freestyle (59.15) and finished third.

The women’s relays picked up a pair of seconds. Buckham, Holm, Schingoethe and Lauren Nelson recorded an honor roll time in the 200- freestyle relay (1:48.82). Kuehl, Holm, Colleen Zumpf and Jessica Lindley took second in the meet-opening 200- medley relay (2:02.49).

The Scots’ performance on Saturday came less than 24 hours after they competed in a triangular meet at Lincoln College where the women won eight of the 10 events. Divers Jack Clifford and Lindsey Masscho recorded personal-bests at the meet. In the 1-meter, 6-dive competition, Clifford recorded a score of 190.30 and Masscho garnered 135.70 points.

The women defeated Lincoln and the College of DuPage to finish the dual meet season at 8-1. The men fell to Lincoln, but won against the College of DuPage and finished dual meets at 6-3.

“Toward the end of our invitational I could see the exhaustion on their faces,” said Yez. “This was a good prelude for the conference meet. The kids know now that they can swim well even though they are fatigued.”

Yez’ squad will have plenty of time to rest. Their next and final action of the year will be Feb. 13-15 at the Midwest Conference Championships in Grinnell, Iowa. With two weeks before the MWC test, Yez is chomping at the bit for the day to arrive.

“I feel like we’re ahead of where we were last year at this time,” reported Yez. “They’re right where we want them for this year. After a little doubt at the beginning of the season, they’ve really bought into our expectations of accountability and character. They’re seeing the fruits of their labor and I have a good feeling of having a fantastic finish to the season.”      

LAST YEAR WAS LAST YEAR, TENNIS LOOKS TO THIS YEAR

After defeating every Northern Division team last year, but failing to make the four-team Midwest Conference playoffs, you couldn’t blame men’s tennis coach Chad Braun if payback was the theme this season.

The MWC Championships open with a four-team tournament, followed by singles and doubles competitions. Only the top two teams from the North and South Divisions qualify for the team portion and chance to win the team title. The Scots swept their North competition last year, but those matches aren’t counted in the conference standings and Monmouth finished third in the South. In Braun’s mind, last year was last year.

“I don’t think our returners will use last year as motivation,” said Braun of the MWC’s qualification criteria for the team competition. “We’re more concerned about the process of trying to get better, not about last year. We won’t worry about things we can’t control.”

If the squad is as talented and deep as Braun suspects, they should be able to control most of their opponents. The Scots have four returners who combined to win 63 percent of their singles matches a year ago. Two seniors, Kyle Korb (Quincy, Ill./Quincy) and Eric Brandhorst (Quincy, Ill./Quincy), and two sophomores, Sam Graf (Mascoutah, Ill./Mascoutah) and Ben Morrow (East Peoria, Ill./East Peoria), will form a solid base to match with seven freshmen.

“We’ve got some guys who have worked very, very hard,” praised Braun. “Those guys are prepared and ready to go. We began practice Monday and our first matches are this weekend. We’re at a little disadvantage early because of the conference’s mandated practice start date which is a little later than other conferences.”

With 11 players vying for six singles positions and six doubles slots, it’s been a spirited competition for playing time on the opening weekend.

“We have some really talented players, so we’ll make some adjustments to the lineup this week,” said Braun. “Nothing’s definite yet. We’ll see how everything develops as the season moves along.”

Korb, last year’s No. 1 singles consolation champion at the MWC meet, could get the early nod to stay at No. 1, but Braun warns the order is not carved in stone.

“Kyle, first of all, is a tremendous person,” said Braun of Korb. “He’s a great leader. He’s changed his game over the course of his career and has gotten a lot smarter. As a freshman he wasn’t going to beat himself, but he also wasn’t going to beat too many people. He’s made himself better and is now one of those players who knows how to beat people. He’s gotten better and better every year.”

Speaking of getting better, Graf may make a big jump in 2009. Last season, the sophomore posted a 3-2 record at No. 4, but actually had a better record (9-3) at No. 3. Touted as a hard worker, Graf advanced to the conference semifinals as a freshman. Braun thinks Graf, who “probably plays and practices more than anyone in the nation,” will likely get the early season nod at No. 2 singles.

Although a senior, Brandhorst is only in his second year of college tennis. Recruited for the team as a high school senior, the talented student-athlete opted to concentrate solely on his music major his first two years at Monmouth. In his inaugural season as a junior, Brandhorst put together a 10-2 record at No. 4 singles and could move up a spot to No. 3 this season.

“I expect Eric to have a solid year for us,” said Braun. “He’s leaps and bounds ahead this year of where he was last season.”

Morrow could get the assignment at No. 5 singles where he completed a 9-3 campaign last year. The athletic sophomore advanced to the quarterfinals of last fall’s ITA Central Regional in St. Louis, Mo.

A pair of freshmen, Chris Utterback (Aurora, Ill./Wabaunsie Valley) and Tyler Lampe (Metamora, Ill./Metamora) could debut the season at No. 4 and 6 singles. Both have similar credentials. Utterback finished in the top 32 in the state his junior year in doubles and was in the top 64 as a senior. Lampe finished in the top 64 in doubles as a high school junior.

“Chris may be our most talented freshman,” said Braun. “He has terrific strokes and we hope he winds up being a great player for us. Tyler is also a very talented player and should help out in the lower part of the lineup. We’re excited to have both of them as part of the program.”

Braun will have a healthy stable of remaining freshman to choose from. Brian Miller (Eureka, Mo./Eureka) is a lefty who could create some problems for opponents – as well as the coach.

“Brian will be the first lefthander I’ve coached,” said Braun. “I’m excited about getting a southpaw here. He’s only played tennis for two or three years, but he’s a hard worker who is learning the game. His ball will move differently being a lefty, so he might have a bit of an advantage.”

Like Utterback and Lampe, Matt Smith (Oswego, Ill./Oswego) is a state qualifier in doubles who will add pressure to the competition for playing time. Eric Soliwon (Springfield, Ill./Sacred Heart-Griffin) could get some travel time early in the season as he hones his skills for the college game. Dan Steamer (St. Charles, Ill./North) and Andrew Wright (Quincy, Ill./Quincy), who is currently competing with the swim team, round out the crop of freshman.

With a solid nucleus in the singles competition, Braun is especially optimistic when it comes to doubles. The No. 1 duo will likely be the senior-freshman combination of Korb and Utterback. Two veterans – Morrow and Brandhorst – are expected to play at No. 2. The pair posted an 8-3 record last season before falling in the conference semifinals. Graf and Lampe will form the No. 3 team, although any of the seven freshmen could figure into the mix before season’s end.

“I feel very good about our doubles combinations,” said Braun. “We’re a very deep team where nearly everyone could crack the lineup. We have the potential to be the most talented squad since our 2006 team went 22-8.”

The 2006 team continued their dominant play with a third place finish in the conference tournament, their highest finish since a third in 1972. With the right combination, Braun is hoping history repeats itself. At least the 2006 history.

MORE TO LIFE THAN ATHLETICS

A coach and two student athletes who attended a recent NCAA Division III Student-Athlete Leadership Conference in Chicago found the experience both practical and inspirational.

Men’s soccer coach George Perry accompanied Student-Athlete Advisory Committee representatives Kembra Bell and Kyle Korb for three days of workshops and training sessions. Bell, a junior softball player from Beardstown, and Korb, a senior tennis player from Quincy, were among athletes from eight of the 10 Midwest Conference schools who attended the conference. Sessions ranged from learning how leadership styles work together to planning an event or program to incorporate on the participants’ campus.

“It was interesting to spend time with people who are considered rivals on the field, but now we’re all working together toward a common goal,” said Bell. “I really enjoyed spending time in a non-competitive setting with SAAC representatives from our conference.”

Representatives from each college shared information and discussed issues affecting their institutions. Each group then identified a particular issue or area to address upon returning to its respective campus. Among the issues discussed were ways to get the entire student body, campus and community more actively involved in both community and campus activities.

The plan Monmouth’s trio brought back will benefit Special Olympics. Their goal is to increase Special Olympics participation, not necessarily by the Special Olympians, but by the community as a whole.

“We’ve begun to detail a plan to incorporate more of the campus and the city with the efforts of the Special Olympics,” said Bell. “We want the entire student population, not just the student-athletes, involved with the program. We’re also planning on getting more of the campus staff, faculty and administration involved as well as the city community.”

Not only will Special Olympics, the Monmouth College campus and the city benefit, but the participants in the conference also expect to reap rewards. Although Bell and Korb play two different sports, both believe the conference provided them with valuable experience that they will use on the field, in the classroom and in the work force.

“The information I learned during the conference will stay with me,” claimed Bell. “I found that many things that are important in athletics are the same qualities that are important in life. This will help me a great deal in graduate school and play an important role in my career.”

“It helped me figure out more about myself than I had ever known,” said Korb. “By knowing more about myself, I have learned things I can do to become a better leader. I also learned how to ‘read’ people better which will help me assess people and place them in positions where they can excel.”

Perry, who teaches physical education and oversees Monmouth’s intramurals program when he is not coaching, also found the conference rewarding. “I learned a lot and that will be beneficial to the students in my classes,” he said. “It was a very good experience for everyone to meet other student-athletes outside their own sport. I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”

Perry just may get his wish. The NCAA Division III sponsors the conference in the Midwest Conference area every three years.

CONFERENCE HONORS

Another week, another two Scots are named Performer of the Week by the Midwest Conference.

Senior Melissa Gorski (Arlington Heights, Ill./Buffalo Grove) became Monmouth’s third winner this season of the MWC Performer of the Week award in women’s basketball.

Gorski helped the Fighting Scots stay in the hunt for a Midwest Conference Tournament berth with a pair of wins to complete a 2-0 week, putting the Scots in fifth position – one spot out of a tournament berth. The guard scored a combined 42 points in wins over Grinnell College and Knox College. In Monmouth’s 91-62 win over Grinnell, Gorski poured in 17 points, pulled down eight rebounds and dished out a game-high seven assists. In an 85-55 win over Knox, Gorski exploded for 25 points and grabbed another eight rebounds and handed out a game-high six assists. For the week, she averaged 21 points, eight rebounds, 6.5 assists and two steals.

Already a member of the 1,000-point club, Gorski has moved into fourth place on the women’s all-time scoring list at Monmouth with 1,165 career points. She is 153 points behind her coach, Melissa Bittner, for third. For the season, she is averaging 15.4 points per game and would need to average more than 25 points per game over the remaining six regular season games to catch Bittner.

In men’s track, sprinter Luke Reschke (Geneseo, Ill./Geneseo) turned in his best performance of the season at last week’s Engineer Invitational and was named the Performer of the Week.

Running in Terre Haute, Ind., on the same track that will host next month’s NCAA Division III National Championships, Reschke had a hand in three first-place finishes and turned in two Midwest Conference top times. The senior clocked a conference-best and provisional qualifying mark while winning the 400-meter dash (49.65), then turned in a league-leading time to win the 200-meters (23.02). Reschke finished the meet running the anchor leg of the winning 4x400 relay (3:23.67).

Reschke’s performance helped the Scots to first place in the nine team meet.

WEBCASTS REMINDER

      A reminder for fans not able to attend Fighting Scots basketball games in person may watch the action on their computer by logging on to www.midwestconference.tv for live action with video and audio. The feeds are free.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Fri., Feb. 6
Women’s Basketball – hosts St. Norbert, 5:00 pm
Men’s Basketball – hosts St. Norbert, 7:00 pm 

Sat., Feb. 7
Track – at Illinois Wesleyan Invitational, 11:00 am
Men’s Tennis – at Coe with UW-Eau Claire, 1:00 pm & 5:00 pm
Women’s Basketball – hosts Ripon, 2:00 pm
Men’s Basketball – hosts Ripon, 4:00 pm 

Wed., Feb. 11

Women’s Basketball – at Illinois College, 5:00 pm
Men’s Basketball – at Illinois College, 7:00 pm 

SCOTSIVATIONAL

“Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out.” - John Wooden