Joseph Vanden Acker

Author: Joseph Vanden Acker

Miller goes out in style as he leads Vikings over Monmouth

Troy Miller
Troy Miller

MONMOUTH, Ill. — Troy Miller scored a career-high 27 points in his final game to lead the Lawrence University men’s basketball team to a 96-89 Midwest Conference overtime victory in the season finale at Monmouth College on Saturday.

Miller, a senior guard, went 8-for-11 from the floor on nothing but 3-point attempts to eclipse his previous career high of 21 points. The eight 3-pointers ties the second-highest game total in Lawrence history and is a personal best for Miller, who hit seven triples in a game last season.

Jeremy Stephani added 19 points for the Vikings (10-13, 7-11 MWC), and Jamie Nikitas had 18 points before fouling out. Nikitas finished his career with 1,406 points, good for fourth on Lawrence’s career list. He also shattered the season scoring record with 577 points and the scoring average record at 25.1 points per game.

Ben Peterson picked up 13 points and a game-high eight rebounds for Lawrence before he fouled out, and Connor Weas added 11 points and seven boards.

Lamont Mitchell and Matt Juhola scored 18 points apiece for the Scots (13-10, 9-9).

Lawrence rallied from a nine-point deficit in the final five minutes of regulation and nearly won the game without an overtime. The Vikings were down 71-62 when they went on a 7-1 run courtesy of a 3-pointer and a pair of free throws from Stephani and Evan McLaughin’s layup.

Mitchell and Miller traded 3-pointers, and the Vikings tied it at 77-77 on another Stephani 3-pointer with 1:29 left. Miller then hit another 3-pointer and added a free throw to give Lawrence an 81-77 edge with 45 seconds left.

Monmouth’s Will Jones converted a three-point play, and after the Vikings turned it over, Mitchell hit a jumper for an 82-81 lead. McLaughlin was fouled with six seconds left and made one free throw to tie it. Jon Calhoun was short on a layup at the buzzer that would have won it for Monmouth.

The game was tied at 87-87 in overtime when the Vikings took over. Stephani hit a jumper in the lane, and Miller drained a long 3-pointer to put the Vikings up 92-87 with 53 seconds left.

After a Monmouth miss, the Scots were forced to foul. Lawrence hit just 4-of-8 free throws in the final 42 seconds but that was enough as Monmouth had a turnover and a pair of missed 3-pointers to finish the game.

Box score

Big third period lifts Foresters over Lawrence

LAKE FOREST, Ill. — Lake Forest College scored three times in the third period Friday to post a 4-2 Northern Collegiate Hockey Association victory over Lawrence University at Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse.

The game was tied 1-1 heading into the third, but Charlie Izaguirre scored twice in a span of 1:45 to give Lake Forest (10-14-0, 8-11-0 NCHA) a 3-1 advantage. Izaguirre scored at the 5:24 mark and then added an unassisted goal at 7:09.

Lawrence (8-13-3, 7-9-3) got right back into the game as Steve Hughes scored just 18 seconds later off assists from Brandon Boelter and Matt Montemurro to trim the margin to 3-2.

The flurry of goals continued as Lake Forest’s Shawn Nelson scored just 1:16 later to push the lead back to 4-2.

The Vikings pulled goaltender Mattias Soderqvist for the final 2:11 but couldn’t get any closer. Soderqvist finished with 32 saves, and Leo Podolsky stopped 32 shots for the Foresters.

Lawrence grabbed a 1-0 lead at the 7:49 mark of the second on Matt Moore’s seventh goal of the season, but Lake Forest tied it on Vito Aluia’s goal with 3:07 left in the period.

Lawrence’s loss, coupled with MSOE’s loss at St. Norbert College, leaves the Vikings two points behind the Raiders heading into Saturday’s season finale at the Appleton Family Ice Center. Lawrence needs a win over Lake Forest on Saturday to reach the NCHA playoffs. The puck drops at 7 p.m.

Box score

Cardinal paces Vikings on opening day of MWC Championships

GRINNELL, Iowa — Hayley Cardinal grabbed a third-place finish and swam on both relays Friday to pace the Lawrence University swim team on the opening day of the Midwest Conference Championships at Grinnell College.

Cardinal took third in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:12.94. She also teamed with Emily Flack, Paige Witter and Danielle Millin to place fourth and set a Lawrence record in the 400 medley relay in 4:00.38. The team of Cardinal, Millin, Eryn Blagg and Lizzy Garcia Creighton took fifth in the 200 freestyle relay in 1:41.31.

The other top individual finisher for the Vikings was Witter, who took sixth in the 500 freestyle in 5:16.87.

The Lawrence women are in fourth place in the team standings with 113 points. The Lawrence men are last with 26 points.

The top finish for the Lawrence men was a seventh place in the 400 medley relay by the team of Max Stahl, Jordan Spalding, Travis Charlow and Christian Bell.

The competition continues through Sunday.

Results

Father/son duo honored with Wurdinger Award

Butch (left) and Andy Vandenboogard received the Bob Wurdinger Athletic Service Award on Feb. 17.
Butch (left) and Andy Vandenboogard received the Bob Wurdinger Athletic Service Award on Feb. 17.

APPLETON, Wis. — A father/son duo were honored with the 2016 Bob Wurdinger Athletic Service Award.

Little Chute residents Butch and Andy Vandenboogard were presented with the award at halftime of the Feb. 17 men’s basketball game against Carroll University.

Butch, the father, and Andy, the son, have been hooked on Lawrence athletics since the early 1990s and have rarely missed a football or basketball game since.

“I’m reading the newspaper on a Saturday morning back in 1992, and there was a game at the Banta Bowl,” Butch said. “My son was very, very young. I packed my son in the car, and we had so much fun we went to the next one and then to the next one and it just went on from there.”

Butch said he and Andy have missed just five home games since 1992, and the Vikings have played more than 110 home games in that stretch. The guys latched on to Lawrence basketball starting with the 1996-97 when the Vikings captured the Midwest Conference championship behind star guard and now head coach Joel “JoJo” DePagter.

“I remember going to the (Midwest Conference) tournament and that got us hooked on basketball,” said Butch, adding that he and Andy have missed fewer than 10 basketball games since then.

“It’s a father-son thing and we enjoy it. For my son and I, that’s our common ground. We love sports, and we enjoy going to the games, watching the kids come and go.”

The award was established to honor Wurdinger, a Kaukauna native and long-time Lawrence assistant football coach. Wurdinger, who has been a tireless advocate for Lawrence athletics for more than four decades, received the first award in 2006.

Other winners of the Wurdinger Award are: Chuck and Cinny Reff, Ken and Carole Ebert, Joe, Clyde and Jeanne Kieffer, Don Strutz, Dick Knapinski, Jerry Podair, Joy Jordan, Paul Wilke, Chuck Merry and Rick Peterson.

Inside LU Athletics: Cardinal leads a fast crowd into MWC Championships

Lawrence's Hayley Cardinal owns the top times in the Midwest Conference in the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke and 200 individual medley.
Lawrence’s Hayley Cardinal owns the top times in the Midwest Conference in the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke and 200 individual medley.

APPLETON, Wis. — Hayley Cardinal is a champion swimmer with the mentality of a middle linebacker.

The Lawrence University swimming star heads into this weekend’s Midwest Conference Championships at Grinnell College a little banged up and loving it.

“I tend to do well when I’m kind of beat up so I literally started my taper (Tuesday),” said Cardinal, a senior from Lombard, Ill. “I’m not nervous. I’m trying to trust the taper.”

Cardinal, the 2014 MWC champion in the 100-yard breaststroke, already owns the top times in the Midwest Conference in the 100 and 200 breaststroke and 200 individual medley. Most swimmers would ease off the gas pedal earlier in order to go really fast at the end of a season.

“It’s going to be new, but I think it’s going to be good,” said Cardinal, and she has the evidence to prove it.

Cardinal did an abbreviated taper in December 2014 because her season was coming to an end as she went to study abroad. In her final meet that season at UW-Oshkosh, she broke three school records and posted two NCAA “B” cuts. She set school marks in the 100 breaststroke (1:04.44), 200 breaststroke (2:21.82) and 200 IM (21:12.50).

“I honestly didn’t believe the times I had at the Oshkosh meet. They were faster than I ever dreamed of going,” said Cardinal, who was named the conference’s Swimmer of the Week four times this season.

“It shows how good a coach Drew (Fleek) has been. To drop that kind of time in that kind of event is amazing. I’m more than happy with how my swimming has gone and thankful that I have such a good team to train with.”

While Cardinal has the dream of winning multiple conference titles and perhaps qualifying for the NCAA Division III Championships, she will get plenty of support as the Vikings look to improve on last season’s fourth-place finish.

The Vikings have top swimmers near the top of the conference in multiple events.

Lizzy Garcia Creighton paces the Vikings in the freestyle sprints, and Emei Thompson stretches from the 200 to 500 freestyle. Junior Paige Witter is among the league’s best in the 500 freestyle and the 100 and 200 butterfly. Cardinal is flanked by teammate Emmi Zheng in the 100 and 200 breaststroke, and Emily Flack is a contender in the 100 and 200 backstroke.

“I think Hayley is certainly capable of competing for several individual titles as well as breaking her own school records in the 100 and 200 breaststroke and the 200 IM,” Lawrence coach Drew Fleek said. “As a team, I think if we swim the way we all know we’re capable of, we can finish in the top three.”

The Vikings have a limited men’s roster, but Lawrence is looking to improve on last season’s eighth-place finish.

“I also think the men’s team will have some very competitive relays and I expect Travis Charlow, Christian Bell, Max Stahl, Kaleb Cooperman and Jordan Spalding to have some outstanding swims,” Fleek said.

Hockey series preview: Lawrence vs. Lake Forest

APPLETON, Wis. — Lawrence University wraps up the regular season with a huge Northern Collegiate Hockey Association series with Lake Forest College this weekend. Both teams are fighting for their playoff lives, with Lawrence two points out of the final playoff spot in the North Division and Lake Forest tied for the final playoff berth in the South Division. Friday’s game is at Lake Forest, and Saturday’s game is at 7 p.m. at the Appleton Family Ice Center.

Preview

Big third quarter pushes Carroll past Vikings

APPLETON, Wis. — The Carroll University women’s basketball team used a big third quarter Wednesday to break open a close game and go on to a 61-41 Midwest Conference win over Lawrence University at Alexander Gymnasium.

The Pioneers led by just five points at the half but outscored the Vikings 20-5 in the third quarter to pull away.

Brittany Wald scored 24 points on 10-of-14 shooting from the floor to lead Carroll (8-14, 7-10 MWC). Wald went 9-for-10 from the floor and scored 20 points in the second half.

Andrea Wilkinson paced Lawrence (0-22, 0-17) with 11 points, and Patsy Kealey and Olivia Hoesley added eight points apiece.

Carroll opened the second half by scoring 10 consecutive points, capped by Wald’s layup, to take a 41-26 lead. Over the same stretch, Lawrence went 0-for-4 from the floor with three turnovers.

Liz Arco’s layup with 6:34 left in the third quarter stopped Carroll’s run, but Lawrence managed just three more points over the rest of the period. The Vikings hit just 2-of-11 shots from the floor and turned the ball over six times in the quarter. Carroll led 51-31 after three quarters.

The Vikings then played Carroll evenly in the fourth quarter but got no closer than 16 points in the final period.

Lawrence jumped out to a 12-5 lead to start the game with Fanita Robins’ layup giving the Vikings an early seven-point lead. The Pioneers then scored the game’s next 10 points to grab a 15-12 lead, but Natalie Kramer’s layup cut the advantage to 15-14 after one quarter.

Carroll stretched the lead to 29-22 with 3:39 left in the second quarter, but the Vikings got layups from Wilkinson and Arco to trim the margin to 29-26 with 57 seconds left. Malory Christenson countered with a layup to give Carroll a 31-26 lead at the half.

Box score

Second-half surge leads Carroll past cold-shooting Vikings

APPLETON, Wis. — A scoring outburst midway through the second half Wednesday led the Carroll University men’s basketball team to a 70-51 Midwest Conference victory over Lawrence University at Alexander Gymnasium.

Kyle Keranen led three Carroll players in double figures with 18 points. Marcus Johnson added 17 points and seven rebounds, and Bryan Nagy had a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds for the Pioneers (18-4, 14-3 MWC).

Jamie Nikitas paced Lawrence (9-13, 6-11) with 17 points and nine rebounds. Mitch Willer added 13 points and five rebounds for the Vikings, who shot just 32.7 percent for the game, including 25 percent from beyond the arc.

Lawrence trailed 41-35 after Willer hit a 3-pointer on his first attempt from beyond the arc this season. The Pioneers then went on a 13-2 run, capped by a pair of Keranen free throws, over the next 5:38 to take a 54-37 lead with 6:50 left.

Nikitas hit a jumper to cut the lead to 54-39, but Carroll scored the game’s next six points to pull out to a 60-39 advantage. Lawrence didn’t get closer than 19 points the rest of the way.

The game was tight throughout the first half with eight lead changes and six ties. Lawrence’s biggest lead of the half was 17-14 after a 3-pointer by Jeremy Stephani, but the Pioneers grabbed their biggest lead of the half at 28-22 on Tanner Zaeske’s 3-pointer with 14 seconds left.

Lawrence’s Connor Weas then buried a 3-pointer from the corner at the buzzer to trim the margin to 28-25 at the break.

Box score

Soderqvist makes it three of a kind with NCHA Player of the Week award

Lawrence goaltender Mattias Soderqvist was named the NCHA Defensive Player of the Week.
Lawrence goaltender Mattias Soderqvist was named the NCHA Defensive Player of the Week.

APPLETON, Wis. — Lawrence University goaltender Mattias Soderqvist has been named the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association Defensive Player of the Week for the third time this season.

Soderqvist (Stockholm, Sweden), a junior, won the honor for the second consecutive week after picking up a win and a tie in a critical road series at Northland College. Soderqvist, who has been the NCHA Defensive Player of the Week five times in his career, posted a 1.92 goals against average and .949 save percentage.

Soderqvist, who ran his unbeaten streak to four games, made 41 saves in Lawrence’s 4-2 victory last Friday at the Bay Area Civic Center. That was career win No. 17 for Soderqvist and moved him into third place on the school’s win list. He followed that with 34 saves in a 2-2 overtime tie on Saturday.

The three points earned in the standings moves Lawrence to within two points of MSOE for the final playoff spot from the NCHA North Division.

Over the last four games, Soderqvist has 2-0-2 record with a 1.68 GAA and .959 save percentage. He has improved to 8-9-3 on the season with a 3.58 GAA and .901 save percentage.

Lawrence wraps up the regular season with a home-and-home series with Lake Forest College this weekend. The Vikings play at Lake Forest on Friday night and then face the Foresters in a 7 p.m. game Saturday at the Appleton Family Ice Center.

Unbeaten Jumes named MWC Player of the Week

Appleton native David Jumes was named the Midwest Conference Player of the Week.
Appleton native David Jumes was named the Midwest Conference Player of the Week.

APPLETON, Wis. — Lawrence University men’s tennis standout David Jumes has been named the Midwest Conference Player of the Week.

Jumes (Appleton, Wis./Xavier) was perfect for the week and remains unbeaten in the young season. Jumes turned in three impressive and led Lawrence to a 2-0 record.

Playing at No. 1 singles, Jumes posted a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Lincoln Wurtz as part of Lawrence’s 9-0 win over Ripon College. That also marked the ninth consecutive time the Vikings have topped the Red Hawks in a dual match.

Jumes followed that with a 6-1, 6-1 No. 1 singles win over Matthew Sablay as part of Lawrence’s 8-1 non-conference thumping of the University of Dubuque. Jumes also teamed with Brian DeCorte for an 8-2 victory over Dubuque at No. 1 doubles.

Jumes is now 3-0 on the season in singles and has a 2-0 doubles mark with DeCorte.

This is the first Player of the Week selection for Jumes and the first for the Vikings since Ethan Perushek was chosen in February 2015.

Lawrence is now 3-0 and returns to on Saturday when the Vikings travel to Concordia University of Wisconsin.