GVSU takes Director's Cup Again

Despite not earning a single individual championship, Grand Valley State captured its sixth straight Division II Cup with 1014.50 total points. The Lakers placed in 18 postseason championships, earning points in the maximum of seven men’s and seven women sports. Grand Valley State finished second in women’s cross country, women’s indoor track and field, and women’s golf, third in women’s volleyball, fourth in women’s outdoor track and field, fifth in men’s cross country, and football, seventh in baseball, ninth in women’s soccer, women’s swimming and men’s swimming, 12th in men’s indoor track and field and men’s outdoor track and field, 33rd in men’s and women’s basketball and tennis and 35th in men’s golf.

Quote from Grand Valley State Athletics Director Tim Selgo:

“While we’re very proud of all the competitive success of all our student-athletes, we’re proud of them in other ways as well. This past semester, 59.6 percent of our student-athletes achieved a three-point grade point average or better and have accumulated a total of 3,200 community service hours. Our competitive success is due in large part to the outstanding conference we compete in. In this year’s Directors’ Cup standings, four our conference members finished in the top 20.”

Minnesota State-Mankato, Central Missouri, Abilene Christian and Indianapolis rounded out the Top 5.

--Courtesy NACDA.com

Five-in-a-row for Western Washington

Western Washington had a winning margin of more than four seconds in the Grand Final of the Division II Eights on Sunday morning and won its fifth consecutive title at the 2009 NCAA Women’s Rowing Championships at Cooper River Park. The Vikings finished with 18 points atop the team standings, as the team also took second in the Division II Fours.

In the Eights race, Western Washington pulled out to a winning lead in the second 500 meters. The Vikings were less than half a second off the pace set by Mercyhurst in the first 500 meters but pulled out to a nearly four-second margin by the midway point of the race. Western Washington crossed the finish line in a time of 6:52.60, while the Lakers had a time of 6:57.22. Seattle Pacific (7:00.22) and Philadelphia University (7:05.70) finished third and fourth, respectively.

Nova Southeastern enjoyed a comfortable winning margin in the Division II Fours to win its first individual championship. The Sharks led Mercyhurst and Western Washington by nearly three seconds after just 500 meters and held on to the margin to eventually win by 3.70 seconds with a time of 7:53.64. The Vikings were second in 7:57.34 and the Lakers took third in 7:57.70.

Mercyhurst earned four team points for a third-place finish in the Fours race and nine points for its finish in the Eights competition to finish second in the team standings with 13 points. Nova Southeastern was third with 11 points and Philadelphia University had eight team points and finished fourth.

The two at-large teams in the championship, Dowling and Seattle Pacific, were not eligible to receive team points. Dowling won the Petite Final of the Division II Eights with a time of 7:11.38, coming in just over five seconds ahead of Nova Southeastern.

Western Washington has now won five of the eight Division II Rowing Championships since the events inception in 2002. The Vikings have won nine individual championships.

FINAL TEAM STANDINGS

Western Washington 18
Mercyhurst 13
Nova Southeastern 11
Philadelphia University 8

--Courtesy Villanova Athletics

St. Aug's & Lincoln win Outdoor Track

After more than a three-hour rain delay, the final day of the 2009 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field National Championships got exciting in a hurry as the team championship races came down to the wire.

St. Augustine's claimed the men's crown with 94 points and Lincoln held off host Angelo State for the women's team title with 85 points. St. Augustine's claimed its first national men's title since 2001, snapping a seven-year reign by Abilene Christian. Lincoln's women's victory was their sixth in the past seven seasons.

In the most anticipated event of the day in a field that included three Olympians, Lincoln's Samoy Hackett outstretched Barbara Pierre from St. Augustine's for the title in the women's 100-meter dash. Hackett won the event in a time of 11.18, matching Pierre's meet record set in the prelims. Pierre ended the finals in a time of 11.22. Lincoln's Janika Martell was third in a time of 11.36.

It then came down to the 4x400 relay for the women's title as Lincoln outran Angelo State by less than two seconds to capture the team crown. The Blue Tigers won the event in a time of 3:39.45 while ASU finished second at 3:41.38. District of Columbia was third at 3:42.81.

For the men, St. Augustine's and Abilene Christian entered the final event tied at 84 points apiece. St. Aug's 4x400 relay squad claimed the team title for the Falcons with a winning time of 3:06.90. Lincoln placed second in the event in a time of 3:08.22 and Fort Valley State third at 3:08.41.

FULL STORY

--Courtesy Angelo State Athletics

D2 Baseball Series Goes to Lynn

Starting pitcher Dan Wright overcame a first-inning run and tournament Most Outstanding Player Tommy Kahnle retired all six batters he faced in relief as Lynn claimed its first-ever Division II baseball national title with a 2-1 victory over Emporia State in the championship game of the 2009 NCAA Division II Baseball National Finals Saturday at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, N.C. Kahnle posted a 1-0 record with two saves at the National Finals, retiring 21 of the final 22 batters he faced, including the last 13 in a row.

Lynn finishes the season with a record of 46-16, while Emporia State closes with a 49-14 mark.

Kahnle was among five Lynn players selected to the All-Tournament Team, joined by Wright, Crowe, Flores and MacDougall. Graham, Lane and White represented Emporia State on the All-Tournament Team. Also selected were Spencer Sobol of Belmont Abbey, Daniel Pembroke of Dowling and Josh Tanner of UC San Diego.

Both Lynn and Emporia State entered the championship game unbeaten in the National Finals. Lynn, which posted a 4-0 record in the South Regional, became the first team since Tampa in 2006 to go through the entire NCAA Division II Baseball Tournament without a loss.

Saturday's contest marked the fifth time in the 42-year history of the NCAA Division II Baseball Championship that the title game was decided by one run. The combined three runs tied for the lowest scoring national championship game. Cal State Northridge defeated Nichols State 2-1 in 1970, the third year of the championship.

FULL STORY

--Courtesy NCAA.com

Lock Haven dominates to win D2 Softball

Kristin Erb, named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, led Lock Haven (51-6) at the plate and in the circle as the Lady Eagles scored eight runs in their final two at bats to defeat Alabama-Huntsville (54-6) 8-0 to win the 2009 NCAA Division II National Championship at the James I. Moyer Sports Complex in Salem, VA. The title is the second for the Lady Eagles as they also won the championship in 2006. Lock Haven defeated Emporia State by the score of 3-0, with the game also being played in Salem.

The National Championship Game started off with some history being made. Lock Haven's Sarah Norris singled to lead off the game. The hit was her 12th of the series which set a new NCAA Division II Finals Series record. The record was previously held by Colleen Thorburn of Kennesaw State in the 1995 tournament.

The Lady Eagle offense broke the game open with 5 runs in the top of the sixth. Erica Eisenbise led off the inning with a single which forced a UAH pitching change. Alex Lewis replaced UAH starter Whitney Hawkins. Eisenbise advanced to second on a passed ball. Amanda Gutmaker reached on an error which scored Eisenbise. Brittany Muthard followed with a single to score Gutmaker. Sage Woodham replaced Lewis on the mound. After a walk, an error and a fielder's choice, Erb singled in the sixth run of the game. Ilia Lopez followed with a two RBI double to make it 8-0 Lock Haven. The eighth run for the Lady Eagles tied a NCAA Division II Finals Series record for runs by a team in a series with 32. UC Davis also scored 32 runs in 2003.

Kristin Erb improved to 50-5 on the season. She pitched all 6 innings, giving up only 1 hit. Erb struck out 9 and did not walk a batter. The complete game was her 51st of the season and her 33rd shutout of the season and 100th of her career. Whitney Hawkins suffered the loss for Alabama Huntsville. She worked 5 innings, giving up 4 runs (3 earned) on 7 hits.

FULL STORY

--Courtesy ODAC Online

CW Post takes D2 Lacrosse

Senior goalkeeper Daniel Sciulla made seven saves in the fourth quarter and USILA Player of the Year Greg Cerar scored four second half goals to lead #2 C.W. Post to an 8-7 victory over #1 Le Moyne College in the 2009 Division II Men's Lacrosse National Championship game on Sunday evening in front of 24,072 fans at Gillette Stadium.

Harmatuk got the Dolphins to within 7-6 just 43 seconds into the final quarter by using an inside roll and beating the goalkeeper with a bounce shot from 10 yards out. Following almost 13 minutes of scoreless action, Cerar scored into an open goal off a pass from Loftus. The Dolphins won the ensuing face-off and ran the ball into the offensive zone before calling a timeout. Right after play was resumed, Harmatuk scored on the crease off a pass from sophomore midfielder Matt Chadderdon. After causing a turnover following the face-off, the Dolphins called a timeout after getting the ball into the box. Venditti put a shot wide with 14 seconds remaining before Harmatuk had a shot saved with only four seconds remaining.

Le Moyne (16-1), which defeated C.W. Post, 6-5, on March 21st in the Carrier Dome, was making its fourth consecutive appearance in the National Championship game. The senior class closes its career with a record of 64-5 and two national championships. The 64 wins marks the highest total by a class in Le Moyne history.

FULL STORY

--Courtesy LeMoyne Athletics

Sonoma State takes D2 Golf

In a comeback of monumental proportions, the Sonoma State men's golf team came from nine strokes back in the final round to win the 2009 NCAA Division II Men's Golf National Championship on Friday at Loomis Trail Golf Course in Blaine, Washington. It is the third national championship in the history of the school and the first for the men's golf program.

After an incredible comeback effort on the back nine (Sonoma gained seven strokes on San Bernardino), the Seawolves finally drew even with the Coyotes on the final hole when Patrick Bauer's bogey bested a double-bogey by CSUSB's Gene Webster. The ending could not have been scripted better as the Seawolves and Coyotes were paired together and all eyes were on Bauer and Webster down the stretch.

Sonoma would then edge San Bernardino 16-17 on the playoff hole to emerge with the trophy. The Seawolves got four pars and one bogey while the Coyotes carded three pars and two bogeys. The team playoff was played on the 18th hole.

ounded in 2004, the Sonoma State men's golf team is in just its sixth season. The squad finished 13th at the national championship in 2007 and 16th in 2008. The Seawolves won CCAA titles in 2008 and 2009 and a west region title in 2008.

The Seawolves become the first CCAA institution to win the NCAA Division II men's golf national championship since Cal State Northridge in 1974 and just the fourth all-time. It is the first win by a California school since UC Davis in 1979. It is also the first time that CCAA schools have finished 1-2 in the national championship tournament.

FULL STORY

--Courtesy Sonoma State University Athletics