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UIS impressive at the ITA
By Jason Stuebe
The UIS
men’s and women’s tennis squads had quite a showing at the
Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s Small College Regional
Championships in Kansas City, MO on September 24th-26th.
The
Stars were led by one-seeded senior Alim Mambetov, who found
himself in the championship match on the men’s side by
tournament’s end and by second-seeded senior Georgena Wulfers,
who advanced to the semi finals on the women’s side.
 In
the men’s bracket, Mambetov handily defeated Baker University’s
John Ritchey and Graceland’s Mario Paz
Wulfers’
run included a 6-2, 6-0 beating of Amy Schmidt and a 6-5, 6-1
win over Lauren Pfister, both from Nebraska Wesleyan to advance
to the semi-finals after a first round bye. The semi-finals was
as far as Georgy-train could go however, as she suffered a 6-0,
6-1 upset by six seeded Marti Eidson whom Wulfers defeated at
last year’s ITA.
“Eidson
really improved from last year when Georgy beat her,” said Head
Coach Dom Giacomini, “I think if we could play it over again,
Georgy would have gone to the finals.”
In the
men’s bracket, Mambetov handily defeated Baker University’s John
Ritchey and Graceland’s Mario Paz to advance to the championship
match against AMC rival McKendree College’s Daniel Quinn who was
seeded fifth.
The
controversial match ended on quite a sour note and not in
Mambetov’s favor. At 30 all on an off serve, Mambetov called
the ball out but was overruled by the line judge who many
thought didn’t have the line of sight to see for sure. The
heated pleas from both Mambetov and UIS Head Men’s Coach Manny
Velasco fell on deaf ears however.
Mambetov
missed the next serve and wound up losing the match 6-1, 1-6,
and 6-4.
“I don’t
want it to sound like sour grapes, but that was a sad event,”
said Coach Velasco, “it’s scary when we are playing under people
with power who aren’t competent.”
Other
highlights of the tournament included a second round match
between UIS seniors Jennifer Poss and fourth-seeded Christine
Tabayoyong due to a bracketology gaffe by tournament officials.
Poss ended up defeating Tabayoyong 6-1, 6-0 but was later
defeated by Beatriz de la Vega in the fourth round.
In
doubles action Mambetov and junior Esteban Czwan teamed up to
advance to the semi-finals only to fall to the eventual champs
Izo Zunik/Simon Quellet from Graceland.
While
scheduling blunders and bad calls marred some aspects of the
tournament, both coaches look at the overall positives and are
happy with their teams’ respective performances.
“I’m
really proud of how the girls performed,” said Coach Giacomini.
“We had expectations and I think we met them in many aspects.”
“We
played great considering the teams we are playing are better
funded,” said Coach Velasco, “we beat teams that we wouldn’t
have thought we could.”
The ITA
Regionals were the last stop for tennis’ fall season. Both
men’s and women’s teams will be back in full gear next spring
with their season starting in late February.
Women’s Volleyball falls to
powerhouse Columbia
By Mark Brockett
The UIS women’s volleyball team
couldn’t find a break anywhere last Tuesday night, losing 30-20,
30-20, and 30-13 to Columbia, the number two team in the nation.
While the loss was a bitter pill
to swallow, salt was poured into the wound when the Stars lost
freshman middle hitter Gretchen Conlin to a fluke injury as she
attempted to kill the ball during the first game. Conlin did
not play in the game against William Woods this weekend and her
status is uncertain at best.
 The
Stars had injured starters before they even took the floor that
evening as well. Sophomore middle hitter Audra Roach and junior
outside hitter Danielle Crossen were both hampered by ankle
injuries that occurred over the previous weekend. While both of
them played, the effort couldn’t meet the playing level needed
to defeat the seasoned Columbia Cougars, who are railroading
towards a conference championship.
Coach Joe Fisher credits the loss
to the slow start the team had in each of the three games. “We
didn’t serve receive as well as we could have,” said Fisher. “It
was hard to start off each game down 6 or 7 points and we
couldn’t get the confidence level up. We played with a lot of
ups and downs.”
The team certainly started out
sluggish. Some will believe that this was due to the high
ranking that Columbia had coming into the match. Fisher sees
things differently.
“It is obviously something that
affects you, but only a little bit,” said Fisher. “We had seen
them twice already this season and playing in front of a home
crowd eased that tension a little bit. Once we calmed down and
got the nerves out, we didn’t play too bad.”
The team was led in defeat by
Crossen, who tallied 9 kills in the match. Freshman Lauren
Sanders also chipped in with 8 kills of her own.
The loss put the team’s record at
3-2 in the conference and 9-15 overall. The Stars return home
for homecoming festivities in the annual alumni exhibition game
on Saturday, October 9th at 2:00 p.m.
Men’s Soccer exploits Williams
Baptist 8-0
By Mark Brockett
There wasn’t much drama in the
September 30th soccer matchup between UIS and the
Williams Baptist Eagles. The UIS men’s soccer team was playing
its first home game since Labor Day weekend and dominated from
start to finish with the final score tallying to a whopping 8-0.
The Stars scored six of those
goals in the first half before Coach Joe Eck called for a
serving of mercy.
Leading the charge for the Stars
against the sluggish Eagles was senior Ross Pagliara and juniors
Korey Baker and Michael Hutchinson. Each of them had two goals
on the evening while junior Todd Pierce and senior Mauricio Lora
netted one apiece.
The win boosted the Stars to 3-0
in conference play and 6-4 on the season.
The game did serve as a learning
experience for the team. Coach Eck saw some things that he
hadn’t seen his team do yet. “There were some positives to this
game and we learned some things,” said Eck. “We gained another
conference win and scored some more Longo points for the season.
We also were injury free in the game and scoring a lot of goals
can boost the confidence in players.”
Williams Baptist was playing
with only two reserves due to six disciplinary suspensions
placed on their players, including four starters. The loss
dropped them to 1-7 and 0-4 in the conference.
The Stars look to continue their
winning ways when they play Missouri Baptist tonight at 7:00
p.m. in what is sure to be a barn burner. The Stars also take
to the field this Saturday for the homecoming match against the
Fighting Illini of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s
Club Team. Kick off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
The Rebirth of a Pastime…
By Jason Stuebe
After a
decade of decline, losing ratings and fans to the likes of the
emerging auto racing genre, it appears as though Major League
Baseball has been given a second chance at life.
Who
could blame the exodus of interest during the ‘90’s? Who wasn’t
tired of hearing more about salary caps and player’s unions,
greedy owners and even greedier players than triple crowns and
October heroics?
Even a
spirited duel to break Maris’ season home run record did little
to bolster support after number 62 was hit into the history
books.
In the
last two seasons, however, it seems that the wounds of yesterday
have finally healed and baseball is well on its way to becoming
that magical sport that it once was. Not since the end of World
War II has such aura surrounded the national pastime that is
baseball.
The
rekindling of the Yankees and Red Sox’s heated rivalry, the
reemergence of the Chicago Cubs from the bottom of the barrel
(until the past two weeks), and the growing common place of
online fantasy leagues have all had a positive effect.
To be
perfectly honest, baseball has just gotten more interesting to
watch lately. With Bonds chasing Ruth and Aaron while Ichiro
broke the single season hitting record, excitement and even a
sense of nostalgia have emerged. That nostalgia is also
bolstered by the return of Major League Baseball to our nation’s
capitol now that the brainiacs finally realized that baseball in
Montreal just didn’t work.
People
are tuning in now more than ever as the playoffs are underway,
and why not? The possibility of the Yankees and BoSox and the
Cubs and Cards reaching their respective championship series was
possible, until Chicago proved that you can’t play with a hand
on your throat. Not to mention the thrilling National League
wild card and American League West races, both of which went
down to the wire on Sunday.
It was
the race between Anaheim and Oakland that actually got me
excited about the American League West! Honestly, who gets
excited about the American League, let alone the western
division?
So sit
back, relax, crack open a cold one (whatever a one might be,
just ensure that it’s cold), and watch what could be one of the
most incredible months of October we’ve seen in recent memory.
I don’t practice Santeria, I ain’t got no crystal ball, but if I
had a million dollars I’d spend it all for a bet on a Braves/Red
Sox fall classic (special thanks to Sublime for that one).
As
always, Go Stars! Oh yeah, and the Braves too!
Prairie Star of
the Week
By Jason Stuebe
The NAIA
and AMC are really making our job pretty easy these days. For
the second consecutive week, UIS has an AMC and Region V Player
of the Week in junior forward Todd Pierce who has helped boost
the Stars back over .500 after a four game skid.
 The
all-around soccer stud has been on top of his game for the past
two weeks, going on a goal-scoring rampage netting five goals in
the last four games. Pierce has also racked up nine shots on
goal and 19 shots overall.
Aside
from helping run up the scores games against William Woods and
Williams Baptist, Pierce’s clutch plays have garnered the game
winners against McKendree and the overtime dual with Oklahoma
City.
Pierce
leads the team with six goals this year in the nine games that
he played, only two shy of his entire season total from last
year. Save yourself the time, we’ll do the math, that’s an
average of .66 goals a game!
Success
on the field didn’t happen at the drop of the hat this year
however. “At the beginning of the season he was getting good
chances, he just couldn’t find the back of the net,” said Head
Coach Joe Eck, “but he worked through it and got that confidence
back.”
“I
don’t think I was playing up to my ability,” said Pierce, “I
started looking at how I was playing and just dug deeper.”
Although Pierce wasn’t named the number one player in the
country last week (that honor went to Lindsey Wilson’s Anthony
Wolfe), he can relish in the joys of being named the UIS Sports
Writers and Broadcaster’s Association Prairie Star of the Week.
Pierce
is a former Central State Eight Player of the Year from his
glory days at Springfield High and is pursuing a degree in Legal
Studies.
Snapshots
Women’s
Volleyball
UIS vs.
William Woods (Fulton, Miss.)
Maria Ray
and Audra Roach led the Stars against William Woods in a 3-0
win, going 30-26, 30-22, 30-22. Ray and Roach combined for 22
kills while setting stud Megan Leonard racked up 38 assists.
The Stars are now 4-2 in the American Midwest Conference and
10-15 overall.
Men’s
Basketball
The UIS
Men’s Basketball schedule has been released. The Stars will
open up the season against Lindenwood University in St. Charles,
Miss., on November 3rd. The Stars make their home
debut on November 11th against the Illinois Institute
of Technology; tip off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
Women’s
Basketball
The UIS
Women’s Basketball schedule has been released as well. The
women begin their season at the Taylor University Tournament up
there in Upland, Ind., on the weekend of November 5th
and 6th. The Stars return for their home opener
against Lindenwood University on November 9th with
tip off set for 6:00 p.m.
Women’s
Softball
Get out
your PDA’s and schedulers because the Women’s Softball schedule
for the spring has also been announced. Opening day will
feature the Stars taking on Olivet Nazarene University on
February 18th, the first pitch is slated for 2:00
p.m. Don’t worry, we’ll remind you a little closer to game
day.
CAMPUS
RECREATIONAL SPORTS BRIEFS
Intramural
Sports
Entries are now
available from the Campus Recreational Sports Office for the
IM 7x7 Flag Football League, IM 6x6 Soccer League,
and IM 2x2 Outdoor Basketball Tournament. Entry forms
are due in the CRS Office by 11pm Wednesday, October 6 for all
three sports. The Outdoor Basketball Tournament will be held
under the lights at 6:30pm on Sunday, October 10 at the Rec Park
Basketball Court. League play begins the weekend of October 16
for flag football and soccer at the Rec Park Field. For more
specific details, contact the CRS Office or check out the CRS
website.
Fitness &
Instructional
Registrations
are now being accepted in the CRS Office for the following
classes:
Toning &
Conditioning
classes will be held October 11-November 19 in the UIS Gym on
Mondays and Fridays from 12:10-12:50pm. Amy Giles will return
to teach the class. Deadline to sign up is 11pm Wednesday,
October 6. UIS Students and Rec Center Members with valid i-cards
pay $10 for the 6-week session. UIS Community Non-Rec Center
Members pay $30.
Fencing Lessons
will
once again be taught by Dr. Larry Livingston on Wednesdays in
the UIS Gym from 12:10-12:50pm beginning October 13. The
deadline to sign up is 11pm Wednesday, October 6. UIS Students
and Rec Center Members with valid i-cards pay $5 for the
6-lesson session. UIS Community Non-Rec Center Members pay $15.
Intramural 6x6
Sand Volleyball Results
Will Work For
Sets defeated Tikea 30-15, 30-25 leaving Tikea to take 4th
place in intramurals. The Ramrods defeated The Cowboys in a
close game going to three matches, 30-28, 22-30, 15-3. The
Cowboys end the season in 3rd place. The
championship match will take place this Sunday October 10th
between Will Work For Sets and The Ramrods at 4pm.
Intramural
Sports 9x9 Softball Results
Softball
wrapped up this weekend. The Beanfield Ballers defeated U Is?
for the intramural championship. The Beanfield Ballers ended
the season in 1st place with a 4-0 record. U Is? came in
second, 3rd was Old School, Webb’s Team took 4th
and Foxglove came in 5th. Congratulations to the
following members of The Beanfield Ballers for an undefeated
season: Justin Fabish, Joey Howell, Grazia Silvestro, Phil
Reinhardt, Mark Brockett, Brad Ward, Matt Wallace, Jared Jones,
Ryan Reese, Matt Reidle, and Chad Eversgerd.
Sport Clubs
The Men’s
Club Volleyball team is practicing Mondays and Thursdays
from 7-9pm and Fridays from 5-7pm in the UIS Gym. Any male UIS
student interested in competing extramurally with other college
or USVBA men’s club volleyball teams is welcome to join. Male
students may be undergraduate or graduate; full time or part
time. If interested contact Club President Jim Brower at
jbrow16s@uis.edu.
The Frisbee
Enthusiasts Club practices every Thursday from 5:30-7pm and
Sunday from 3-6pm at the Sport Club Rec Field east of Kiwanis
Stadium. The club participates in Ultimate Frisbee as well as
Frolf (Frisbee Disc Golf). If interested contact Club President
Colin Cook at
ccook04s@uis.edu.
How Can I Learn About Campus Rec Sports News?
Send an Email
to RecSports@uis.edu too
be included in the 2004-2005 Campus Rec Sports News List to
receive personal up-to-date information about future events and
activities. Go to your UIS e-mail account and click on “Public
Folders>All Public Folders>UIS>Announcements” then click on
“Student or Campus” (depending on your status) to read the
e-mail announcements sent out by UIS RecSports. Check out the
website at
www.uis.edu/recsports/. Contact the Campus Recreational
Sports (CRS) Office located in the Fitness Center (SLB 118) or
call 206-6658.
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