The Lawrence University football team returns to the Banta Bowl on Saturday when it faces Carroll University in the Hall of Fame Game. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.
Stevens wins MWC honor for second consecutive week
Lawrence University cross country standout Sam Stevens has been named the Midwest Conference Performer of the Week for second consecutive week.
Stevens (Suamico, Wis./Bay Port) won the honor after his effort at the University of Minnesota’s Roy Griak Invitational. The senior finished 29th among the 272 competitors and was the top Midwest Conference finisher in the event. Stevens covered the 8,000 meters in 26:43.5.
Stevens also won the award in the final week of September after finishing second at the UW-Whitewater Invitational on Sept. 22.
This is the fourth time Stevens has been named the MWC Performer of the Week. Stevens, the defending individual conference champion, captured the award twice during the 2011 season.
Lawrence returns to action on Saturday when it competes at its own Gene Davis Invitational at Appleton’s Reid Golf Course.
Carroll shuts out Vikings
WAUKESHA, Wis. — The Carroll University women’s soccer team scored three times in the first 24 minutes and went on to a 4-0 Midwest Conference victory over Lawrence University on Sunday at Schneider Stadium.
Carroll (6-2-1, 3-1-0 MWC) got goals at 17:23, 18:54 and 23:38 to take command. The Pioneers limited Lawrence (3-7-0, 2-2-0) to only two shots.
Pioneers score early, late to edge Lawrence
WAUKESHA, Wis. — The Carroll University men’s soccer team picked up a goal early and added another one late to beat Lawrence University 2-0 in a Midwest Conference game on Sunday at Schneider Stadium.
Francisco Sajuan scored in the 18th minute to give Carroll a 1-0 lead, and the Pioneers got a goal from Jake Luthardt with less than 15 minutes remaining to seal the victory.
Tomek Miaskowski made three saves to record the shutout for Carroll (7-4-0, 5-0-0 MWC). Lawrence (4-5-1, 1-2-1) was limited to three shots.
Stevens, Carlile lead Vikings to 12th at Griak Invitational
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Sam Stevens and Curran Carlile led the Lawrence University cross country team to a 12th-place finish at the Roy Griak Invitational at the University of Minnesota on Saturday.
Stevens raced to 29th place and covered the 8,000-meter course in 26:43.5. Carlile raced to a 44th-place finish with a time of 27:07.5.
The Lawrence men finished 12th with 370 points.
On the women’s side, Lawrence finished 24th with 660 points. The top finisher for the Vikings was freshman Clare Bruning, who took 50th in 24:20.2.
Big second quarter pushes Illinois College past Vikings
JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — The Illinois College football team scored three touchdowns, including one in the final seconds, in the second quarter, and pulled away for a 56-20 Midwest Conference victory over Lawrence University on Saturday at England Stadium.
Quarterback Michael Bates was 19 of 31 passing for 315 yards, five touchdowns and three interceptions for the Blueboys (4-0, 3-0 MWC). Dakota Lammy carried the ball 19 times for 160 yards and a touchdown for Illinois College.
Illinois College piled up 613 yards of offense, including 292 on the ground.
Quarterback Luke Barthelmess completed 19 of 30 psses for 174 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions for Lawrence (1-3, 1-3).
Illinois College jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter, but linebacker Jon Hope got his first of two interceptions and returned the ball 18 yards to the Illinois College five-yard line. Barthelmess hit Dominique Dirden with a touchdown pass on the next play to trim the lead to 14-7.
The Blueboys then pushed the lead to 28-14 in the second quarter, but the Vikings answered. Lawrence drove 60 yards in 11 plays for a touchdown. Barthelmess completed key passes to both Tyler Mazur and Scott Vandeloo, and Barthelmess then ran it in from three yards out.
Lawrence got another interception from Hope and drove to the Illinois College 13 before being pushed back and turned the ball over on downs. The Blueboys then drove 71 yards on seven plays, with Bates completing a 26-yard touchdown pass with one second left in the half. Illinois College led 35-14 at the half.
The Vikings took their opening possession of the second half and moved 67 yards in seven plays for a touchdown. Barthelmess hit Mazur with a 14-yard scoring pass to cut the margin to 35-20.
Illinois College got a touchdown after a Lawrence turnover to push the lead back to 42-20, and the Blueboys added a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns to complete the scoring.
Lawrence blanks Fighting Scots 9-0
The Lawrence University women’s tennis team blanked a short-handed Monmouth College squad 9-0 on Saturday at the Lawrence Courts.
Lawrence didn’t lose a game in doubles and dropped only four games total in singles.
Hannah Geoffrey and Ali Heiring won 8-0 at No. 1 doubles, and Polly Dalton and Gayatri Malhotra were 8-0 winners at No. 2. Megan Occhino and Perrin Tourangeau won by default at No. 3.
The Vikings rolled through the singles, highlighted by Allison Juda’s 6-0, 6-0 victory over Christine Peterson at No. 4.
Cornell tops Vikings 6-3
The Cornell College women’s tennis team downed Lawrence University 6-3 in a nonconference match on Saturday at the Lawrence Courts.
The Vikings won one of the three doubles matches, an 8-4 victory by Christina Schaupp and Tess Vogel at No. 3. Lawrence also took wins in two of the singles matches. Gayatri Malhotra defeated Alyssa Zavislak 6-3, 1-6, 1-0 (11-9) at No. 2 singles, and Polly Dalton beat Ellie Purdy 6-3, 6-0 at No. 5.
Pioneers top Lawrence in four sets
The Carroll University volleyball team took the first two sets and went on to a 3-1 Midwest Conference victory over Lawrence University on Wednesday at Alexander Gymnasium.
Carroll (8-10, 1-0 MWC) got 14 kills apiece from Kelly Sloyan and Katrina Zenz.
Shannon McLain led Lawrence (5-10, 0-1) with 15 kills, and Emma Kane added seven kills and 15 digs.
Kathleen Rowland picked up a match-high 29 digs for the Vikings, and Diane McLeod had 33 assists and 14 digs.
Inside LU Athletics: Lawrence men’s soccer a real team effort
The Lawrence University men’s soccer team is a group that brings a lunch pail to work every day.
It’s one of those metal lunch boxes with a thermos of strong, black coffee that your Dad took to the paper mill every morning. That image fits this group Vikings because they are definitely blue collar, working class guys.
“We are who we are and the kids understand that,” Lawrence coach Blake Johnson said. “Collectively, we need to work together, stand together to be successful. That’s the best-case scenario. I wouldn’t want it any other way.”
Without a true “star” among its starting 11, Lawrence has carved out a 4-4-1 record (1-1-1 in Midwest Conference play) with bit of a patchwork lineup.
Lawrence has played all season with its lone all-conference selection from a season ago, defender Charlie Mann, because of injury. The Vikings also started the season without injured midfielder Joe Cullen, midfielder Karl Mayer and defender Nick Craker.
“It hasn’t made it easier,” Johnson said of the injuries. “This year, more than any other year, we’ve been juggling and piecemealing things together until we can get everyone back.”
The injuries forced changes to the lineup, and that has revealed the character of the squad, according to Johnson. In addition to giving others a chance to step up their games, the biggest change to the lineup was moving playmaking midfielder David Caprile to the defense. Caprile led the team in scoring a season ago.
“Caprile, for three years, has been a rock in the midfield and understood his role,” Johnson said. “He has taken the opportunity and the need for the team to be the center fullback. As a coach, those are the kind of kids you want in your program. They will do what is necessary for the benefit of the team.”
Despite the injuries and the alterations to the lineup, expectations and the Vikings’ style have not changed.
The Vikings are still shooting to be one of the four teams playing in the MWC Tournament at the end of the season. Lawrence is aiming for its third consecutive MWC Tournament appearance and its fourth in the last five seasons. Lawrence also has continued to play its style, preferring the type game that Johnson fell in love with during his childhood in South America.
“I’ve continued to challenge them to play the game the way it should be played … Possession soccer, rather than just hammering the ball down the field,” Johnson said. “I don’t think our kids would enjoy that, and I wouldn’t enjoy that.
“If (Monday’s) game (a 1-0 victory over Wisconsin Lutheran College) was any indication, I was very pleased with the way we played and the energy and the urgency.”
Lawrence faces another huge test when it travels to defending conference champion Carroll University on Sunday. Johnson feels confident that his continually improving squad can play its team game with anyone
“It’s a case of everyone working for each other, understanding their roles and sacrificing a little bit of personal glory to keep us in matches,” Johnson said. “I’m very pleased with where we are right now and looking forward to getting the full complement of players in.”
Pino, Olsson pace golfers
The Lawrence golf squad completed its fall season with a solid sixth-place finish at the Wisconsin Lutheran Invitational on Monday, and the Vikings could have a pair of all-conference performers on the squad.
Sophomore Anton Olsson was the team’s top player a season ago and finished 18th at the MWC Championships. Olsson had a stroke average of 81.5 last season, but he has improved his game. Olsson’s average stands at 77.0 after the fall campaign. The Vikings have added another top player in freshman Rudi Pino, who averaged 76.0 in five rounds this fall.
Both Olsson and Pino trade in their clubs for skates in October as both are members of Lawrence’s hockey team.
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.