The Highlights

Scores, news and more from Lawrence University Athletics

Early goals lead Lawrence to victory over Northland

APPLETON, Wis. — The Lawrence University hockey team scored early in both the first and second periods and went on to a 4-1 Midwest Collegiate Hockey Association victory over Northland College on Friday at the Appleton Family Ice Center.

The Vikings (6-10-2, 5-6-2 MCHA) scored in the game’s first two minutes and then added two goals in the first 3:20 of the second period to take control.

Goaltender Fabian Sivnert made 25 saves to pick up the victory for the Vikings. Mason Riley stopped 44 shots for the Lumberjacks (6-11-1, 4-9-0 MCHA) and took the loss.

Freshman forwards Rudi Pino and Renato Engler had a hand in both of Lawrence’s first two goals. Pino scored off a pass from Engler just 1:56 into the game to give the Vikings a 1-0 lead.

Lawrence made it 2-0 just 21 seconds into the second period when another freshman forward, Matt Moore, scored off assists from Pino and Engler. The Vikings stretched the lead to 3-0 at the 3:20 mark when Patrick Coyne scored his first goal of the season off a pass from Paul Zuke.

Northland tried to get back into the game when Jamieson Webking’s goal cut the lead to 3-1 with 4:46 remaining in the final period. Lawrence answered with a goal from Phil Bushbacher just 33 seconds later to seal the victory.

Lawrence posted a 48-26 edge in shots on goal.

The teams wrap up the series Saturday afternoon.

Box score

Inside LU Athletics: Klusendorf takes his game to a new level

Conor Klusendorf is not your prototypical power forward.

Standing just about 6-foot-4, Klusendorf looks more like a high jumper than he does a guy mixing it up in the paint and doing basketball’s dirty work.

But that is exactly what Klusendorf has done this season as his game has grown from the perimeter to around and above the rim for the Lawrence University men’s basketball team.

“Plenty of times I’m going up against guys who outweigh me or are bigger, but if I can use my length and my athleticism, that levels the playing field,” said Klusendorf, a senior from Chicago.

Klusendorf is third on the team in scoring at 11.2 points per game, but he ranks third in the Midwest Conference in field goal percentage at 60.9 percent. Klusendorf is taking more shots in the paint as he has seen his role expand closer to the basket.

“Conor thought of himself as a wing player coming in (to Lawrence), but his athletic ability is crazy for a Division III player. He can make up for stuff because of his athletic ability,” Lawrence coach Joel DePagter said. “With him playing in the post, he uses his quickness, and it makes other teams have to match up to us instead of the other way around.”

Klusendorf has turned up his production level since the Vikings returned from Christmas break. In his last four games, Klusendorf is averaging 13.5 points and 8.3 rebounds per contest. He attributes the improvement in his game to his work exclusively with the post players this season.

“I put up a nice little baby hook in practice, and from there it’s just really clicked,” Klusendorf said. “I know I can get ball in the post and be a threat down there.”

DePagter said he thinks of former Lawrence star Jon Mays, an all-conference selection in 2010-11, when he sees Klusendorf.

“I think you can draw some parallels with Jon Mays,” DePagter said. “Conor has put himself into a position where he went from being a role player to an all-conference player. Kids develop here and get better.”

Fans of the Vikings were used to Klusendorf turning in spectacular plays during his first three seasons at Lawrence. With tremendous leaping ability, Klusendorf was throwing down dunks on a regular basis.

“If it’s a steal and breakaway, I know I’m going up to dunk it,” Klusendorf said. “If it’s in the lane and it’s the Red Sea and totally opens up, then I know I can dunk it.”

“Our end-of-the-season banquet DVD wouldn’t be nearly as exciting without Conor Klusendorf in it,” DePagter said with a smile. “We’ve labeled him the human highlight reel.”

Klusendorf has worked hard to get to the point where he can rise up and make the crowd at Alexander Gymnasium gasp at another stunning dunk.

“The summer of my sophomore year (in high school) was the first year I dunked it. That was when I really started working on my legs and working out a lot. That really helped me out a lot,” Klusendorf said. “If you don’t work on it and don’t maintain it, you’re going to lose it. It’s not genetic. I’ve watched some of my Dad’s games (Dave Klusendorf was a standout at Loyola of Chicago in the mid-1980s) and he could probably dunk it. I wish I could say it was natural ability, but it’s taken a lot of hard work.”

Klusendorf isn’t just getting it done on the offensive end, he also has been a force on defense. Already Lawrence’s career blocks leader with 106, Klusendorf ranks fourth in the league at 1.4 per game. He also is sixth in the conference at 1.6 steals per game.

“The leaping ability has opened the door to get blocks. So much of it is timing and technique,” Klusendorf said. “It’s really nice because sometimes you see a guy going and see his eyes locked on the rim and he doesn’t see it coming. Especially at home, the reaction is just great. The crowd goes nuts.”

Klusendorf’s exuberance has been duly noted by the head coach, who has seen him take on new challenges with gusto.

“He’s kind of an Energizer bunny. If he doesn’t get in foul trouble, he can play 40 minutes,” DePagter said. “He’s done a great job. You couldn’t ask for anything more when he’s guarding 6-8 guys who have a hundred pounds on him. We have guys who are one-dimensional, but he has more than one dimension and that will make him tough to replace.”

Different year, same result

Junior guard Chris Siebert has made 17 of his last 18 free throws for a stellar 94.4 percent.

Siebert is up to 84.1 percent from the foul line this season, but he has a ways to go to break Jack Ehren’s school record of 90.9 percent set back in 1981-82. It was around this same time last season that Siebert hit 44 consecutive free throws.

National name

Freshman Logan Lemirande is near the top of the national statistics in NCAA Division III hockey.

The forward from Janesville is second in scoring by rookies at 1.27 points per game. He trails only Adrian College’s Shaquille Merasty, who is at 1.47. Lemirande also ranks fourth in the nation at 1.00 assists per game. Paul Rodrigues of Oswego State is first at 1.17.

Editor’s Note: Inside LU Athletics is a notes package written by Lawrence University Director of Athletic Media Relations Joe Vanden Acker. It will feature teams and individual players, recap weekly awards or highlights and take a look at what’s ahead for the Vikings.

 

 

Big second half leads Carroll past Lawrence

APPLETON, Wis. — The Carroll University men’s basketball team scored 46 second-half points and held Lawrence University to just 24 percent shooting after the break to rally for a 74-68 Midwest Conference victory on Wednesday at Alexander Gymnasium.

Kevin Hurd and Alec Molter both posted double-doubles for Carroll (12-4, 8-3 MWC). Hurd had 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Molter had 10 of 13 points and 10 of his 11 rebounds in the second half.

Conor Klusendorf had a double-double of 12 points and a game-high 13 rebounds to pace Lawrence (7-9, 5-6). Ryan DePouw led the Vikings with 15 points and Tyler Mazur added 13.

Lawrence was in command in the first half as the Vikings sprinted to a 38-28 lead at the break while shooting 53.6 percent from the floor.

The Vikings went cold in the second half and hit on only 7 of 29 shots (24.1 percent) from the floor. Lawrence was 3-for-14 on 3-pointers in the second half, connecting on just one of its first 12 tries from beyond the arc in the final 20 minutes.

Lawrence led 43-30 early in the second half, but Carroll scored 14 consecutive points to take a 44-43 lead on Molter’s layup with 13:40 left. The teams then traded the lead before the Pioneers took the lead for good at 49-48 on Hurd’s layup with 9:33 left. 

Carroll built its lead to as many as nine points at 60-51, but Klusendorf answered with a three-point play. Lawrence then trimmed the lead back to 62-58 on a pair of free throws from DePouw with 2:27 left.

Lawrence missed its next two shots from the floor, both 3-pointers, and Carroll pushed the lead back to 68-58. Lawrence never got closer than six points after that.

The Vikings return to action on Saturday when they travel to Monmouth College.

Box score

Carroll pulls out overtime victory over Vikings

APPLETON, Wis. — The Carroll University women’s basketball team held the Lawrence University scoreless in overtime to post a 60-52 Midwest Conference victory over the Vikings on Wednesday at Alexander Gymnasium

Hilary Arthur paced Carroll (8-6, 7-4 MWC) with a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds. Kelly Menden led Carroll in scoring with 12 points.

Alex Deshler paced the Vikings (1-15, 0-11) with 15 points, and Amber Lisowe added 13 points. Patsy Kealey tied for game-high honors with 10 rebounds for the Vikings and posted four blocks.

Lawrence opened the second half with a 12-3 run to grab a 26-22 lead with 14:57 left, and the Vikings pressed that lead to as many eight points. The Vikings were up 48-40 after Kealey’s jumper with 3:40 left, but Carroll rallied in the final three minutes.

The Pioneers scored seven consecutive points, capped by Menden’s 3-pointer with 56 seconds left, to tie the game at 50-50. After the Vikings missed a pair of layups, Menden grabbed the rebound and was fouled with 16 seconds remaining.

Menden made both free throws, but Deshler converted a tough layup with six seconds left to tie it at 52-52. Corrine Engles missed a jumper at the buzzer and the game went to overtime.

The Vikings went cold in the extra period and missed all six of their shots from the floor. Carroll also went 0-for-6 from the floor, but the Pioneers went 8-for-8 from the foul line to pull out the victory.

Lawrence returns to action on Saturday when it travels to Monmouth College for a Midwest Conference game.

Box score

Cardinal takes first for Vikings at Lake Forest Double Dual

LAKE FOREST, Ill. — Lawrence University standout Hayley Cardinal picked up an event victory for the Vikings on Saturday at the Lake Forest Double Dual.

Cardinal swam to victory in the 100-meter breaststroke in 1:18.81.

Lake Forest defeated both Lawrence and Carroll in the team scores. The Foresters topped Lawrence 78-34 on the women’s side and 76-27 in the men’s meet. Lawrence and Carroll tied 52-52 in the women’s meet, and the Carroll men topped Lawrence 61-49.

Results

Raiders shut out Lawrence 4-0

APPLETON, Wis. — The Milwaukee School of Engineering limited Lawrence University to just 19 shots en route to a 4-0 Midwest Collegiate Hockey Association over the Vikings on Saturday night at the Appleton Family Ice Center.

 MSOE goaltender Nick Kohn stopped all 19 shots to pick up the shutout for the Raiders (11-5-1, 8-3-1 MCHA). Casey Moneer scored a pair of goals to pace the MSOE attack.

Fabian Sivnert made 34 saves and took the loss for Lawrence (5-10-2, 4-6-2).

The game was scoreless when Lawrence missed on several good scoring chances early in the second period. MSOE counterattacked and Logan Baumann gave MSOE a 1-0 lead with his goal at the 7:03 mark.

The Raiders made it 2-0 when Moneer stuffed the puck past Sivnert after a scramble in front of the net with just 1:33 left in the second period.

Moneer scored again at the 4:44 mark of the third to give the Raiders a 3-0 lead, and MSOE added an empty-net goal by Steve Shaffroth with 1:30 left.

Box score

Vikings run away early from Knox

GALESBURG, Ill. — The Lawrence University men’s basketball team bolted to a big early lead and cruised to a 72-43 Midwest Conference victory over Knox College on Saturday at Memorial Gymnasium.

Conor Klusendorf and Ryan DePouw scored 13 points apiece to pace Lawrence (7-8, 5-5 MWC), and Klusendorf added a game-high nine rebounds. Chris Siebert and Tyler Mazur added 10 points apiece for the Vikings.

David Jones and Lukas Shaw scored seven points apiece to lead Knox (1-14, 1-9).

After both teams got off to a cool start, Lawrence led 4-2 when the Vikings scored the next 12 points. Siebert scored five points in that stretch and Klusendorf added four as the Vikings built a 16-4 lead.

Lawrence would continue to pull away early with Troy Miller hitting a 3-pointer to give Lawrence a 28-8 lead with 7:12 left in the opening half. The Vikings would go on to lead 39-17 at the break.

The Vikings put the game away early in the second half. Lawrence opened the second half on a 12-1 scoring run to build a 49-18 advantage with 15:46 remaining.

The Vikings would go on to lead by as many as 35 points.

Lawrence’s defense limited Knox to only 34.1 percent shooting from the floor, including 15 percent from beyond the 3-point line. The Vikings also forced 24 Knox turnovers.  

Lawrence returns to action on Wednesday when it hosts Carroll University in a Midwest Conference game.

Box score