CROSS COUNTRY OFF AND RUNNING, OR IS THAT RUNNING AND OFF?

Cross Country coach Roger Haynes reiterated his pre-season analysis of his team after their opening meet last weekend at the Illinois Wesleyan University Invitational.

"We need to narrow the gap from our 2-5 place runners," said Haynes. "We’ve got kids with good ability, but we’ll have to make sure we’re fit and healthy for the second half of the season."

One of those "good kids," sophomore Mary Kate Beyer (East Peoria, Ill./East Peoria) broke the tape on the women’s two mile course in 12:07.67, a full 10 seconds ahead of the runnerup.

"That was a nice way to start," said Haynes of Beyer’s first place finish.

Katie Staab placed eighth in 12:41.75 and Briana Flynn placed 11th in 13:11.49 just in front of Taryn Tang and Jayme Ayers. Amy Aghababian finished 15th and Whitney Didier rounded out the scoring in 20th position to put the Scots in second place in the team standings.

"Taryn ran very well for her first collegiate race," reported Haynes of his junior who carries a "rigorous" academic schedule. "She’s worked pretty hard this summer and is very bright and motivated. She trained very well and is maybe a bit better than we expected."

Junior Clay Staley (Hanna City, Ill./Illini Bluffs) led the Monmouth men to a second place finish. Staley’s 5K time of 16:28.28 placed him second. A summer of Marine training didn’t allow Staley sufficient road work miles and Haynes credits Staley’s toughness with his second place finish.

Brad Begyn clocked a 16:47.06 for a sixth place finish while Matt Peharda and newcomers Jonathan Welty and Geoff Bird placed 11th, 13th and 15th, respectively. Alan Rosiquez finished the Scots’ scoring runners in 18th position.

"It was a good start," praised Haynes. "You run the first couple of meets on the work you’ve done over the summer. After that you get into the training since everyone has gotten back. We’ve got a lot of work to do (in preparation for the conference and regional meets)."

The teams will take a break this week before heading to Peoria for the Bradley Open on Sept. 12.

The Scots got some answers last week with a third place finish in their own tournament. Seniors Tanesha Hughes and Samantha Robinson combined to throw down nearly 60 kills in the three tournament matches. They may not have had those numbers had senior libero Crystal Myers been on the receiving end. Myers’ 65 digs in the three-match tournament gave her 1,890 for her career and moved her to the top of the Monmouth record book surpassing Karissa Murray’s old record of 1,849. As a result, she was named to the all-tournament team and selected as the season’s first Midwest Conference Performer of the Week.

"I was impressed with how well we played together as a team," said Shimmin. "Our seniors are showing some good leadership on the floor. Crystal did an excellent job with her floor play. Tanesha and Samantha showed they can attack and we expect even more from them. Anna (Damos) got some nice blocks and has done a nice job learning the right side position."

Like any coach, Shimmin wasn’t entirely satisfied with her team’s opening weekend performance which included a 3-0 win over MacMurray and a 3-1 victory over Robert Morris-Springfield.

"I would have liked to have had more ball control," she said of the team’s 3-1 loss to Loras which was sandwiched between the two wins. "Those are the types of teams we’re going to face and those are the teams we need to beat to have a great season."

The Scots will get no rest this weekend, competing at the UW-Platteville Tournament. As Shimmin says, "We’ll need to step it up a level."

Women’s soccer coach Barry McNamara sounded a bit like Yogi Berra after last week’s 3-2 loss to Elmhurst.

"We felt like it was a win AND a loss," said Berra…uh, McNamara.

An explanation is in order.

"We looked bad in the first 10-15 minutes," he said. "It was still 0-0 before they wore us down and scored a couple of times. We thought ‘Wow, this isn’t going like we thought.’ We were just not playing well at the start, fortunately, we finally snapped out of it."

Perhaps it was the typical opening game jitters, or perhaps a bit of early season rust, but whatever the case, the Scots quickly found the switch and turned the lights on just before the half when freshman Amy Unzicker (Morton, Ill./Morton) netted her first collegiate goal to trim the deficit to 2-1. Unzicker then scored her second goal in the 53rd minute to tie the Bluejays at 2-2. The freshman earned the season’s first Midwest Conference Offensive Performer of the Week honor.

"Becca Baur (Jacksonville, Ill./Jacksonville) did a really nice job to keep the ball alive on Amy’s second goal," praised McNamara. "Amy was able to finish the play and that’s one area we lacked last season. She’s not the only one we have, though. We think (freshmen) Molly Ball (Charleston, Ill./Charleston) and Erica Kurth (Rochelle, Ill./Rochelle) will get in on the scoring, too."

One bobble to allow Elmhurst the game winning goal in the second half was the only blemish in an otherwise solid performance over the final 60 minutes for the Scots.

"This showed me we can score against good teams," reported McNamara. "I think we maybe wore them down. We were doing some good things. It made me believe we’re going to be alright this year."

If not for a couple of great defensive plays by the ‘Jays goalkeeper and a bit of bad luck, the Scots could have at least salvaged a tie.

Case in point: 1) Unzicker was stuffed by the Elmhurst ‘keeper on a breakaway in the first half, 2) an Elmhurst defender, trying to clear the ball to their ‘keeper, fired a bit too hard and the pass banged off the upper 90, and 3) Ball’s rocket from 10’ was snared by the Bluejays’ sticky-fingered goalkeeper.

OK, so the Scots literally came just inches away from at least a tie, so we can see how McNamara was optimistically figuring the game might be figured as a "win" of sorts. Of course, with the coach’s beloved Cubs entertaining thoughts of their second World Series title in 100 years, we can understand his cheery disposition.

Apparently, Elmhurst’s coach shared McNamara’s enthusiasm for the Scots, complimenting the play of Unzicker, sweeper Brittany Parker (Waukegan, Ill./Warren) and midfielder Megan Meeke (Elmhurst, Ill./York).

"We did lose," said McNamara after returning to reality. "We’ll have two tough opponents this week at Eureka and the Milwaukee School of Engineering, but if we play like we can, we feel we can pick up two wins."

Women’s tennis coach Kerry Frantz saw a lot of good things from his team despite their heartbreaking 5-4, 5-4 loss to Augustana and Quincy last Saturday.

"I knew we would be strong one through four," said Frantz. "I was a bit surprised we lost at No. 2 doubles to Quincy, but overall, we were very competitive, certainly at the top of the lineup."

Seniors Cassie Frantz (Macomb, Ill./Macomb) and Brittany Donnelly (Metamora, Ill./Metamora) and freshman Amy Unzicker (Morton, Ill./Morton) each went 3-1 in the double dual. Against Division II Quincy, the No. 1 doubles team of Frantz and Donnelly were dominant in an 8-1 win.

Playing at No. 2 singles, Unzicker lost just two games in a straight set win against her Quincy opponent. Sophomore Kimi Wegner (Dixon, Ill./Dixon) posted a 2-2 mark with wins against Quincy at No. 3 singles and No. 2 doubles with Unzicker. The tandem impressed their coach with their early season play.

"Kimi did well Saturday," praised Frantz. "She will get better as the season progresses and will be able to adjust her game to different players. Amy is extremely competitive. She’s a great player to watch because of her intensity."

That intensity surfaced on a disputed call in her first collegiate match.

"She stuck with her call," reported Frantz. "She didn’t give in to the freshmannitis thinking she had to give in on a questionable call."

Donnelly, at No. 4 singles lost a nail-bitter falling to Augustana 7-6, 2-6, 7-10. Frantz predicts his senior will be a force from the baseline.

"She’s a really powerful baseline player," claimed Frantz. "As the season wears on, the precision of her stroke will get better and she will get more comfortable with her game."

Maddy Ethington and Kayla Seyller faced tough competition at Nos. 5 and 6, respectively. Ethington teamed with Sarah McLinden at No. 3 doubles.

The Scots rolled Knox Tuesday 6-3, winning at No.1-4 singles and 1 and 2 doubles. The match, played at Knox was a non-conference affair. The teams will play their conference match in Monmouth on the 24th.

Following Frantz’ plan to frontload the schedule with high caliber competition the Scots will get a good test this weekend at the Quincy Tournament in preparation for Midwest Conference play.

"Most coaches would like to stay away from the big boys, but I would rather play good competition within an hour or two drive," said Frantz. "If teams play soft competition, they may think they’re better than they actually are."

The Scots are definitely playing the big boys this weekend and won’t get much of a break next weekend, either, when they compete at the Western Illinois University Tournament.

The Scots were not able to find the back of the net in a 4-0 loss to powerful Elmhurst in the season opener, but they were able to find some bright spots.

"We knew Elmhurst was going to be a challenge, they were in and out of the rankings last year," reported coach George Perry. "The good news is some of the mistakes we made were mental. We can correct those, and we had some good play from a variety of guys."

The Scots sluggish start contributed to a couple of those mistakes that resulted in a 2-0 halftime deficit and a 3-0 hole early in the second period. The game’s second goal came less than a minute before intermission.

"That goal really hurt," said the veteran coach. "It was a bit deflating, but our guys were able to battle back in the second half despite giving up an early second half goal to fall behind 3-0."

The Scots held the Bluejays scoreless through the game’s first 20 minutes and defensively Perry had praise for goalkeeper Owen Robinson (Bourbonnais, Ill./Bourbonnais) who made "two or three great" saves and Joe Howell (St. Louis,Ill./Kirkwood) who picked up extra players to slow the ‘Jays attack. Adam Buol (South Beloit, Ill./Hononegah) also turned in a stellar performance at midfield, something Perry credits with helping the Scots establish some rhythm.

"When we were able to uptempo a bit and get the defense going as a unit we had some success," praised Perry. "We still need to do that better, and we will."

Perry was also able to pick some bright spots from the second half, especially the improved play of Lucas Knox (East Moline, United Township) at midfield. Knox’s play allowed the Scots to maintain a little more possession time against a high octane offense.

The women’s golf team was not happy with their consistent rounds in the season-opening tournament hosted by Illinois College in Jacksonville.

"The women weren’t exactly happy with their scores, but pleased with the consistency," reported coach Molly McNamara. "Compared to last year’s scores, last weekend was some of our lowest scores, but the team wanted to play better. None of them thought they played well. We were paired with some scholarship schools and didn’t get blown out, so that’s a very good sign."

The Scots recorded a two-day 371-375-746 to finish ninth in the 12 team field. Junior Lynsey Barnard (Pekin, Ill./Pekin) placed 32nd to lead Monmouth with an 89-92-181, edging teammate Jessica Sackville (Aledo, Ill./Aledo) by one stroke. Sackville shot rounds of 90 and 92 at The Links golf course.

"Lynsey hit the ball incredibly well," praised McNamara. "She didn’t putt as well the second day. Jessica was a very good senior leader. She struggled with the driver the first day, but scored well."

Sophomore Kristin Humphrey (Polo, Ill./Polo) shot a two-day total of 188 to tie for 43rd, senior Heidi Hartshorn (Roscoe, Ill./Hononegah) shaved five strokes off her first round with improved putting to finish with a 195 and tie for 52nd and junior Kendra Catterton (Moline, Ill./Moline) fought off a couple of "bad" holes to finish 70th.

"The women are mentally more mature about their games this year," said McNamara. "They understand one bad shot doesn’t mean the entire round is bad. They are handling that one bad shot better than last year and it’s showing with their improved confidence."

McNamara is glad the team was disappointed in their play.

"They all expect to play better," she said. "They played well, but they’re still not happy with their overall play. The fact that they’re not satisfied with their play is a positive because they understand they are better players than their scores last weekend."

The Scots get an early taste of the conference tournament format this week when they play 54 holes in the span of three days – at Augustana and Knox today and tomorrow before hosting the Fighting Scots Invitational at Gibson Woods Saturday.

"This is a veteran group that understands the physical demands of 54 holes in three days," said McNamara. "This is a warmup of sorts for conference. We’re shooting for something around 360, once we hit that mark, I think we will really begin to turn it on."

IN THE HOUSE

The Scots’ football team saw their first action in their new digs for an intra squad workout last Saturday and by all accounts, the team and stadium received good marks.

"It’s pretty impressive when you walk on the field and look up at the stands," said Steve Bell, who is anxious for the home opener next Saturday. "After we got going, we really didn’t notice the surroundings, but it’s going to be quite a site when we fill the stands once the season begins."

The Scots had what Bell called a "productive" intra squad scrimmage. Going into the final week of preparation before the road opener at Loras this weekend, the coaching staff wanted to look at some key positions in a game setting. A few players improved their status with Saturday’s play.

"Clay Bricker (Avon, Ill./Bushnell-Prairie City) really made an impression," Bell said of his junior running back. "He showed he’s a physical runner, but he can also take it to the house when he gets to the open field."

"We’ve got some young guys who are pushing them," reports Bell. "Clay and Casey have been very consistent."

Another battle is shaping up in the kicking department. Junior Kyle Tuor (Peoria, Ill./Dunlap), who spent the first two years in scoring champion Nate Palkovic’s shadow, is battling freshman Shane Reschke (Geneseo, Ill./Geneseo) for the kicking duties. Both kickers impressed Bell enough to contemplate splitting the duties, but admits the kickers are pretty equal and they’ll let the situation play itself out over the coming weeks.

While upbeat about an impressive scrimmage, Bell is anything but comfortable heading into the season opener at Loras this weekend.

"Don’t let their record fool you," said Bell of the Duhawks’ 2-8 record in ‘07. "They are good. I don’t care what their record was last year. They played Central and Wartburg awfully tough. They compete very well in a tough Iowa Conference."

Loras’ multiple looks will be a good test for Bell’s veteran squad in preparation for the Midwest Conference race.

"This will give us a chance to maybe solidify some spots before we get into conference play," said Bell. "We’ve got a lot to work on, but we’ll be ready for Saturday."

Thurs., Sept. 4

Fri., Sept. 5

Sat., Sept. 6

Sun., Sept. 7

Mon., Sept. 8

Wed., Sept. 10