Novice Four Named Student-Athletes of the Week
April 11, 2016 02:55 PM | General
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Following its performance at the 2016 Knecht Cup Regatta, the Mountaineers’ first novice four crew of Nicole Bender, Kara Ehrenberger, Amanda Garn, Madison Stepp and coxswain Kaitlin Sullivan have been named the WVU Student-Athletes of the Week, presented by University Apartments.
On Saturday, the Mountaineers recorded a pair of runner-up finishes in order to advance to the Grand Final in the Women’s Frosh/Novice Four event at the Knecht Cup, held on April 9-10, in West Windsor, New Jersey.
In its respective heat, WVU crossed the finish line in second place with a time of 9:02.55. The Mountaineers then earned a spot in the Grand Final with another second-place finish in a semifinal time of 8:45.74.
The first novice four boat of Bender, Ehrenberger, Garn, Stepp and Sullivan was the only West Virginia crew to advance to the Grand Finals on Sunday. The Mountaineers competed against Boston College, Pitt, Massachusetts, Lafayette ‘A’ and Holy Cross in the Grand Final, finishing sixth with a time of 8:11.70. Overall, the crew placed sixth out of 30 entries in the Women’s Frosh/Novice Four event.
This Week in Baseball: Next up for the Mountaineers, the Backyard Brawl resumes on Tuesday, April 12 at 6:30 p.m. when WVU hosts Pitt at Monongalia County Ballpark ... the game is a Gold Rush, and all fans are encouraged to wear gold ... the first 1,000 fans through the gate will receive a gold shaker, courtesy of Coke Zero ... the matchup will be the 191st meeting between WVU and Pitt on the diamond, marking the most games played among any WVU opponent ... the Mountaineers are an even 3-3 against the Panthers since 2013 ... West Virginia then welcomes Big 12 foe Kansas State to Morgantown from April 15-17 as part of WVU Family Weekend ... the series begins on Friday at 6:30 p.m. ET, and there will be a postgame fireworks show, courtesy of WVU Medicine ... Saturday’s contest, which begins at 4 p.m., is Family Day, and fans can purchase four tickets and receive a $10 concession voucher for just $25 ... the series concludes on Sunday, April 17 at 1 p.m. ... Sunday is Kids’ Day, and fans can get autographs from the Mountaineers and run the bases after the game.
Last Week in Baseball: West Virginia played five games for the second consecutive week ... WVU opened the week with a 5-4 win at in-state rival Marshall in 10 innings, followed by a 5-1 home victory against Eastern Michigan the following night ... on the weekend, WVU won the series finale in a doubleheader to Furman, 8-5 on Sunday after losing the series-opener, 7-3, and the first game of Sunday’s doubleheader, 8-6.
Notes: West Virginia improved to 17-13 on the season after Sunday’s win over Furman in the second game of a doubleheader … junior Jackson Cramer, the reigning Big 12 Player of the Week has reached base safely in 49 consecutive games, the longest active streak in the Big 12 … with a 5-4, 10-inning victory at in-state rival Marshall, WVU improved to 3-2 in extra-inning games and 2-1 in the past week … senior pitcher Jeff Hardy made his first career plate appearance on Wednesday and grounded out in the eighth inning and then earned his second save of the season in the ninth … with a team-high-tying six hits and a team-best six RBIs last week, freshman Darius Hill continues to lead the team in hits, with 38, RBIs, with 23, and in batting average, at .330 … juniors Shaun Wood and Ray Guerrini hit home runs over the weekend, Wood’s was his first of the season and 12th of the year, while Guerrini’s was his third in 2016 and sixth in his career.
This Week in Women’s Tennis: The Mountaineers will swing through Texas for a pair of Big 12 matches this week … West Virginia faces Texas on Saturday, April 16, followed by a match against Baylor on Sunday, April 17 … Saturday’s match against the Longhorns will begin at 1 p.m. ET, while Sunday’s match against the Lady Bears will start at 10 a.m. ET. … Baylor and Texas Tech each old a 3-0 all-time series edge over West Virginia.
Last Week in Women’s Tennis: WVU dropped a pair of Big 12 matches at Ridgeview Racquet Club on April 8 and April 10 … the Mountaineers dropped a 4-1 decision to No. 34 Kansas on April 8, followed by a 4-2 loss to Kansas State on April 10 … the Mountaineers claimed their lone win against the Jayhawks with a forfeit at the No. 6 singles position … WVU claimed one doubles win and two singles victories against the Wildcats on Sunday … sophomore Lyn Yuen Choo and freshman Paula Goetz made quick work of K-State’s Carolina Costamagna and Iva Bago to claim the first victory of the day on court two (6-2) … the Mountaineers then recorded two straight singles victories on court three and court one, respectively, to cut their overall deficit to a one-point match … Goetz tallied her first Big 12 victory of her career, as she bested K-State’s Costamagna in straight sets (6-4, 6-3) … sophomore Habiba Shaker defeated Wildcat Ana Garcia Navas in a three-set battle to cut the Mountaineers deficit to one point … she captured the first set, but dropped the second … Shaker then prevailed in set three to capture the match by a score of 7-5, 2-6, 6-4.
Notes: Sophomore Habiba Shaker leads the team in singles play with an overall record of 12-2, followed by freshman Paula Goetz with seven singles victories … sophomores Lyn Yuen Choo and Carolina Lewis each own six singles wins apiece … the doubles tandem of senior Hailey Barrett and Shaker holds a team-best 7-3 mark at the No. 1 slot this season … the doubles tandem of junior Kaja Mrgole and Choo also hold a perfect 5-0 record at the No. 3 slot this season.
Coach Miha Lisac after the Kansas State match: “Lyn Yuen (Choo) and Paula (Goetz) stepped up and executed well in doubles today. Overall, we played with more conviction today and that was a good step forward. Habiba (Shaker) and Paula (Goetz) also had good performances and competed well in singles. We are making progress, but we also see how much work still needs to be done.”
This week in Track and Field: The Mountaineers will compete at the Bison Outdoor Classic in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, from April 16-17 at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium.
Last Week in Track and Field: WVU senior Tori Bertrand posted a victory in the pole vault to highlight Saturday’s competition at the Mason Spring Invitational in Fairfax, Virginia, on April 9 ... WVU posted six top-five finishes, highlighted by Bertrand’s pole vault victory, the third best mark on WVU’s outdoor performance list ... three of West Virginia’s pole vaulters placed in the top five ... Bertrand won the event with a career-best mark of 3.91 meters ... sophomore Madelin Gardner finished in third place, vaulting 3.81 meters, followed by sophomore Sara Finfrock in fifth place with a 3.55 meter vault ... junior Megan Yuan competed in the 1,500 meters, posting a third-place finish with a time of 4:40.31 ... the Mountaineers placed fourth in the 4x400 meter relay ... the team of junior Brianna Kerekes, senior Kelly Williams and sophomores Rebecca Wendt and Bria Welker crossed the finish line in 4:10.18 ... freshman Faith Penny placed fifth in the high jump, leaping 1.65 meters, followed by senior Hannah Stone in sixth (1.60 meters), and sophomore Meghan Jean-Baptiste in seventh (1.60 meters) ... while battling cold temperatures and high winds, West Virginia placed ninth overall out of 15 teams, scoring 42 points ... Dartmouth won with 119.5 points, followed by Bucknell in second (109.75) ... WVU finished just 1.75 points shy of a top-six finish and 10.5 points away from a place in the top five.
Coach Sean Cleary after the Mason Spring Invite: “This was an interesting day. Temperatures in the 30s with winds up to 25-30 miles per hour at times. One of these weekends we are bound to get good track weather. I was pleased for the most part with those who stayed mentally strong throughout the day. Our pole vaulters had a very good competition after having last week’s meet cancelled due to hazardous weather. Tori (Bertrand) earns our performance of the week, after jumping her lifetime best.”
This Week in Golf: The Mountaineers compete in their final tournament before heading to the Big 12 Championship … the team travels to rival Penn State for the Rutherford Intercollegiate on Saturday and Sunday.
Last Week in Golf: WVU played in a pair of tournaments last week … the Mountaineers traveled to the Old Waverly Collegiate Championship in West Point Mississippi on Monday and Tuesday … the squad took 14th with a score of 295-303-314=912 for 21 to finish 48 over par … Chris Williams was the team’s top finisher in 37th place … he carded a score of 71-76-78=225 for nine over … WVU competed in the Robert Kepler Intercollegiate at the Scarlet Course in Columbus, Ohio, on Saturday and Sunday … freshman Tristan Nicholls ended the first round in the top 10, but dropped to 44th place after struggling in the final round … he shot 73-79=152 to finish 10 over par.
Notes: Freshman Max Sear leads the team with a 74.14 scoring average … he is also a team-best 2.50 vs. par… five Mountaineers have recorded tournament rounds in the 60s: Sear, Alan Cooke, Easton Renwick, Chris Williams and Mason Short … Cook and Renwick are tied for the low round, each shooting a 67 this season … Williams leads the team in subpar holes (seven).
Coach Sean Covich after Sunday’s tournament: “It was a rough day for us on the Scarlet Course. We just flat-out struggled today. It was not our best golf.”
This Week in Rowing: West Virginia is idle this week … the Mountaineers return to the water for a scrimmage against Duquesne on Saturday, April 23, in Pittsburgh … competition is set to begin at 8 a.m. on the Allegheny River.
Last Week in Rowing: WVU raced at the prestigious Knecht Cup Regatta from April 9-10, in West Windsor Township, New Jersey … the two-day event featured crews from 70 schools across the country, including more than a dozen Division I women’s programs … Big 12 foes Alabama, Kansas and Old Dominion competed on Mercer Lake as well.
Notes: During the first day of competition, the Mountaineers’ novice four crew advanced to the Grand Final with a pair of runner-up finishes, while WVU’s first and second varsity eight boats earned semifinal appearances before competition was suspended due to weather … in the Women’s Frosh/Novice Four heat, the Mountaineers’ first boat crossed the line in second place in 9:02.55 … next in the semifinals, the crew earned a spot in the Grand Final with another second-place finish (8:45.74) … the women’s first varsity eight crew recorded a time of 7:45.90 to place third in its heat, while the second varsity eight boat posted a time of 7:45.63 to place fourth in its heat … West Virginia’s first and second varsity eight boats advanced to the semifinals for a chance to compete in the Grand Final on Sunday … on Sunday, the novice four crew of Nicole Bender, Kara Ehrenberger, Amanda Garn, Madison Stepp and coxswain Kaitlin Sullivan placed sixth out of 30 entries with a Grand Final time of 8:11.70 … the women’s first varsity eight boat recorded a seventh-place finish with a semifinal time of 7:00.79 to conclude its run at the Knecht Cup Regatta … the second varsity eight boat crossed the finish line with a semifinal time of 7:12.77 to place third behind Connecticut (7:10.02) and Big 12 foe Kansas (7:07.40) … with a third-place finish, the second varsity eight crew of Abbigail Rees, Jacqueline Spiropoulos , Elizabeth Hooper, Grace Dever, Carly Ledbetter, Janae Hurst, Lillian Westerman, Alisha Brownfield and coxswain Brittany James earned themselves a spot in the Petite Final … the Mountaineers finished in fourth place with a Petite Final time of 7:01.00 … overall, WVU placed 10th out of 27 entries in the Second Varsity Eight event.
Coach Jimmy King following the Knecht Cup Regatta: “Our second varsity eight and novice four gained a lot of valuable racing experience this weekend, which will serve them well in races to come. I’m very pleased with how the second varsity eight raced this weekend. They didn’t let a bad stroke here or there affect them, and they raced with poise in tight contests during the semifinals and final.”
Novice coach Amanda Merritt following the Knecht Cup Regatta: “I’m proud of the first novice four for making it to the Grand Final. Although we came in sixth, I’m happy with how they battled with the other crews today. Leading into the Grand Final, we knew that it was going to be a tough race with the strong teams that we were facing. The big positive in the final was that we closed the gap on teams that were faster than us in the heats and semifinals.”
SWIM: What it Means to Represent West Virginia
Wednesday, April 29
SWIM: What it Means to Become a Mountaineer
Wednesday, April 29
Gold-Blue Spring Festival Fan Recap
Sunday, April 19
John Neider | April 18
Saturday, April 18
