2012-13 SAAC Tigers of the Month

In 2006, Wittenberg University's Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) initiated a program to recognize the accomplishments of their peers. SAAC members vote during their regularly scheduled meeting to select one male and one female student-athlete who has turned in a noteworthy performance that should be celebrated.

In 2006, Wittenberg University's Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) initiated a program to recognize the accomplishments of their peers. SAAC members vote during their regularly scheduled meeting to select one male and one female student-athlete who has turned in a noteworthy performance that should be celebrated.

Laura Rose

Softball (5/7/13): Junior outfielder Laura Rose was a force at the plate and in the field for the Wittenberg softball team for a third consecutive season. She finished second on the team in batting average at .321 while starting all 36 games for the Tigers, who tied for second place in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) regular season standings and finished as runners-up in the NCAC Tournament. Rose was also second on the team in home runs with three and third on the team in runs batted in, and she committed just one error while starting 34 games in center field. It was on the base paths where Rose made her most significant contributions, however, as she topped the team and league in stolen bases with 32 in 33 attempts. She broke the school and league records for steals in a season, and she will enter her senior year just two steals shy of the NCAC career record and one short of Wittenberg's career record.

Zach Finke

Baseball (5/7/13): Senior pitcher Zach Finke stepped into the role of No. 1 starter for the Wittenberg baseball team and flourished in 2013. In leading the Tigers to records of 23-16 overall and 9-10 in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC), Finke compiled a 5-3 record in nine appearances, including eight starting assignments. He tossed five complete games and three shutouts, including the first no-hitter by a Wittenberg pitcher since 1998 and just the sixth on record. Finke's 2.56 earned run average is tops on the team and ranks third in the NCAC as he allowed 50 hits and 15 earned runs in 52 innings. He was twice named NCAC Pitcher of the Week and to an honorable mention list for a national Pitcher of the Week award.

Logan Warye

Women's Lacrosse (5/7/13): Sophomore attacker Logan Warye turned in a tremendous 2013 season for the Wittenberg women's lacrosse team, helping the Tigers to their second consecutive undefeated North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) season. Wittenberg finished 8-0 in the NCAC regular season and 12-4 overall as Warye poured in a school-record-tying 57 goals to go along with 15 assists, which totaled 72 points, the third-best mark in school history. While leading the Tigers in both categories, Warye ranked third in the NCAC and among the top 90 nationally in goals per game.

Hunter Bastian

Men's Lacrosse (5/7/13): Junior defender Hunter Bastian played a key role on defense for the Wittenberg men's lacrosse team, helping the Tigers to records of 8-5 overall and 3-4 in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC). He started 11 games before suffering an injury in the second-to-last game of the season, contributing 31 ground balls and 11 caused turnovers, both tops among defensemen on the team.

Ashlee Wright

Softball (4/15/13): Sophomore catcher Ashlee Wright has been a fixture in the middle of the Wittenberg softball team’s line-up in 2013, and her play is one of the big reasons the Tigers have posted a 14-7 overall record (thru April 14). Wright has started all 21 games, batting .344 to rank third on the team, while her 22 base hits ranks second. She has four doubles, one homer and seven runs batted in while also playing outstanding defense behind the plate. Wright has committed just two errors and has a .979 fielding percentage, which ranks third on the team amongst players with at least 16 starting assignments.

Ian Streicker

Men's Tennis (4/15/13): Sophomore Ian Streicker is performing well atop the Wittenberg men’s tennis team’s line-up for a second straight year. A second-team All-North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) honoree a year ago, Streicker has posted a 12-9 overall record during the 2012-13 season. He is 6-6 at the No. 1 singles position as the Tigers have taken on some of the top teams in the nation. Playing with four different partners, Streicker has posted an 11-5 record in doubles. As a team, Wittenberg men’s tennis stands 13-5 overall and 1-1 in the NCAC West Division (thru April 14).

Erin Guiliano

Women's Lacrosse (4/15/13): Senior Erin Guiliano has been a key leader for the Wittenberg women’s lacrosse team again in 2013, once again stuffing the statistics sheet game in and game out. A three-time All-North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) selection, Guiliano stands fourth on the team in goals with 19 and fifth in total points with 24 as the Tigers have jumped out to records of 9-3 overall and 5-0 in the NCAC (thru April 14). A team captain in 2013, Guiliano also ranks among the best on the team in seven caused turnovers and five assists.

Tyler Hutchinson

Baseball (4/15/13): Junior Tyler Hutchinson has made quite an impact on the Tiger baseball team in his first season in the Red & White, checking in with a .394 batting average while starting all 24 games (thru April 14). Hutchinson ranks among the team and North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) leaders in a variety of offensive categories, including on-base percentage (.522), slugging percentage (.676), home runs (3), runs batted in (21), total bases (48) and hits (28). Hutchinson is one of the primary reasons for Wittenberg’s 14-10 start to the 2013 campaign, as well as the team’s .302 team batting average.

Zach Finke

Baseball (3/18/13): Senior pitcher Zach Finke got his 2013 season off to a tremendous start, tossing a pair of complete-game shutouts during the Tigers’ Spring Break trip to Florida. Finke allowed just three hits in a 1-0 win over WPI and then scattered a mere four hits in a 2-0 win over Union. He did not allow a walk in either game as the team’s pitching staff compiled a sparkling 2.95 earned run average as the Tigers posted a 6-1 record. Finke was honored by the North Coast Athletic Conference with Pitcher of the Week honors and by the National College Baseball Writers Association with Honorable Mention Pitcher of the Week honors.

Francine Murzynski

Women's Lacrosse (3/18/13): Junior midfielder Francine Murzynski has picked up right where she left off in 2012, leading the Wittenberg women’s lacrosse team in almost every statistical category through the first three games of a promising 2013 season. Murzynski has scored nine goals and dished out four assists for a total of 13 points, and she also leads the squad in ground balls with 13 and draw controls with 12. A 2012 first-team All-North Coast Athletic Conference and second-team All-West Region honoree, Murzynski has played a key role in the Tigers’ 2-1 start to the 2013 season, heading into a challenging road trip that features games at Stevenson on March 23 and Washington & Jefferson on March 24.

Jordan Shoger

Men's Lacrosse (3/18/13): Junior Jordan Shoger has played a key role in the Wittenberg men’s lacrosse team’s 4-1 start to the 2013 campaign. Through March 18, Shoger ranks third on the team in scoring with 10 goals and 11 total points after a breakout performance in which he had a career-high four goals in a 9-7 victory over St. Vincent in the Tigers’ 2013 home opener. Heading into the Tigers’ North Coast Athletic Conference-opener against Kenyon, Wittenberg has outscored its opponents 52-35. Shoger came into the season with just two goals and two assists in his career, which has been limited due to injuries.

Rachel Ross

Softball (3/18/13): Junior Rachel Ross has been a steady performer through her first two collegiate seasons, and during the Wittenberg softball team’s trip to Florida she continued to perform at her customarily high level. Ross posted a record of 4-1 with a sparkling 2.26 earned run average during the trip as the Tigers posted their best start ever with eight wins in nine games. In addition to tossing five complete games while chewing up 34 innings in the pitcher’s circle, Ross was hot at the plate, batting .423 with four doubles, one home run and seven runs batted in during the trip.

Molly Gustafson

Women's Swimming & Diving (2/12/13): Heading into the annual NCAC Championship Meet, junior breaststroke specialist Molly Gustafson has been in excellent form for the Wittenberg women’s swimming and diving team. The Tigers compiled a 9-3 dual meet record in the 2012-13 season, with all three losses coming to teams ranked nationally. She capped her individual dual meet season with an impressive first-place finish in the 200-yard breaststroke against third-ranked Kenyon with a time of 2:27.54. She also finished second in the 1000-yard breaststroke and swam a leg on the third-place 200-yard medley relay team in the same meet as she earned NCAC Swimmer of the Week honors on Feb. 4. A two-time All-American, Gustafson has the second-fastest time in the league in the 100 breast and third-best time in the 200 breast heading into the conference championship meet.

Sam Collins

Men’s Basketball (2/12/13): Sophomore forward Sam Collins has started all 23 games for the Wittenberg men’s basketball team in the 2012-13 season, helping the Tigers to records of 15-8 overall and 8-6 in the NCAC (through Feb. 12), good for third place in the conference standings heading into the final week of the regular season. Collins ranks third on the team in scoring with 10.8 points per game, including a career-high 21 against Oberlin on Jan. 21, and he ranks second on the team in rebounds with 5.8. He also leads the Tigers with 65 assists.

Brea Medlock

Women's Track & Field (2/12/13): Freshman Brea Medlock's collegiate career is off to a tremendous start, as she has already become one of the top sprinters for the Wittenberg women's track and field team. She earned NCAC Athlete of the Week honors on Feb. 4 after picking up a pair of individual victories at Wooster's Fighting Scot Invitational, where she won the 400-meter dash in a time of 1:01.42 and the 200-meter dash in a time of 0:27.02. Medlock followed that up with a fine performance at the challenging All-Ohio Invitational at Otterbein on Feb. 9 as she placed eighth in the 200-meter dash and fourth in the 400-meter dash against some of the best competition in all of NCAA Division III. She also ran a leg on the 4x200-meter relay that placed seventh.

Justin Yates

Men's Track & Field (2/12/13): Sophomore Justin Yates is off to a fast start to the 2013 Men's Indoor Track and Field season. Yates took first-place finishes in the 400-meter dash at both the Defiance Invitational and Wooster's Fighting Scots Invitational, where the Tigers won their first indoor track team title since 1997. He was rewarded for his efforts with NCAC Athlete of the Week honors on Feb. 4. Yates topped himself a week later, breaking the school record in the 400-meter dash at the All-Ohio Invitational at Otterbein as he crossed the finish line in a time of 49.68, the 11th-fastest time in all of NCAA Division III. He then joined three teammates to smash another school record, this time finishing first in the 4x400-meter relay at the All-Ohio Invitational. In defeating some of the best competition in the nation, the members of the 4x400-meter relay posted a 29th-best time nationally.

Steven Newell

Men's Basketball (1/11/13): Junior guard Steven Newell serves as one of the team captains for the Tiger men's basketball team, which stands 10-4 overall at the midway point of the 2012-13 season. Newell ranks third on the team with 20 assists and second in steals with 15, in addition to his 1.5 rebounds per contest. He ranks fourth on the team in scoring at 8.4 points per game, but most importantly he is providing a much-needed three-point shooting threat. Thirty-three of Newell's 37 successful field goal attempts so far this season have been three-pointers, and he leads the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) in both three-pointers and three-point field goal percentage (.508). He just misses the threshold of 2.5 three-pointers made per game — if he did qualify, Newell would rank seventh in all of NCAA Division III for three-point field goal percentage.

Katelyn Haralamos

Women's Basketball (1/11/13): Sophomore Katelyn Haralamos led the Wittenberg women's basketball team's mid-season surge by earning Tournament MVP honors in Wittenberg's Charles B. Zimmerman Memorial Classic Dec. 28-29. Haralamos started out the weekend with nine points, five rebounds and five assists in a 62-44 win over Defiance before topping herself the next day in a thrilling 61-60 victory over then-second-ranked Mount Union. Haralamos scored a game-high 21 points and pulled down a team-best six rebounds in the win, and her lay-up with 3:15 remaining jumpstarted the Tigers' game-ending 7-2 run that turned a four-point deficit into a most unlikely victory. She hit 9-of-13 shots from the field in leading the Tigers to their first win against a nationally ranked team since the second round of the 2004 NCAA Division III Tournament, when the Tigers beat 15th-ranked Messiah on the Falcons' home floor. Haralamos was named North Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Week and to the d3hoops.com National Team of the Week on Jan. 2.

Scott Masin

Men's Basketball (1/11/13): Junior Scott Masin continues to elevate his play for the Tigers, reaching double figures in scoring in 13 of the first 14 games of the 2012-13 season. Masin leads Wittenberg with a 14.9 points per game scoring average, including a career-high 21 points in a win over Kenyon on Jan. 9. Masin also leads the Tigers by a wide margin in rebounding, pouring in 8.9 board per game to rank second in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC). He also achieved a career high in rebounds with 15 against Ohio Christian on Dec. 15, one of seven games in which he finished with a double-double.

Enri Small

Women's Basketball (1/11/13): The Wittenberg women's basketball team has enjoyed a mid-season resurgence, in no small part due to the strong play of sophomore Enri Small. She leads the team in scoring at 11.9 points per game after reaching double figures in five straight games (through Jan. 11) and eight of the last 10. Most recently, Small put together the first double-double of the Tigers' season and her own career against Hiram on Jan. 4 while doubling her personal best in rebounds with 14 and tying her career best in assists with four. She also totaled seven steals, good for the third-best single-game total in team history. Twenty-one hours later, Small matched another career high with 23 points against Allegheny, including eight in a row to erase an early 13-12 deficit. Small was named North Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Week on Jan. 7 and to the d3hoops.com National Team of the Week on Jan. 8.

Jane Tsivitse

Women's Swimming and Diving (12/11/12): Jane Tsivitse is in the midst of an outstanding senior season, providing leadership as one of the Tiger women’s swimming and diving team’s captains in 2012-13 while consistently turning in strong performances in the pool. After helping the Tigers to a 6-1 mark in dual meet competition in the first half of the campaign, Tsivitse topped herself at the DePauw Invitational, helping Wittenberg to a thrilling one-point win in the two-day event. Individually, Tsivitse broke the school record in the 200-yard butterfly and added school, pool and meet records in the 100-yard butterfly with an NCAA B Cut time of 57.44. Her best work came in the relays, however, as she swam a leg of the winning 400-yard medley relay that set pool and meet records and earned a B Cut and a leg of the winning 200-yard freestyle relay that set pool and meet records. She was then joined by Sarah Wilson, Maggie White and Dani Lacy to touch out DePauw in the meet-ending 4000-yard freestyle relay while breaking the school, pool and meet records by more than seconds.

Scott Masin

Men's Basketball (12/11/12): Junior Scott Masin has stepped up for the Tiger men’s basketball team in his first season as a starter. He leads the team and ranks among the top 10 in the North Coast Athletic Conference in scoring at 13.1 points per game and rebounding at 7.4 per outing for Wittenberg, which is 5-2 in the early going of the 2012-13 season. Masin also ranks third on the team in assists with 10 and steals with seven, in addition to leading the Tigers with five blocked shots. Masin has played 28 minutes per game to rank second on the team.

Amber Lara

Women's Basketball (12/11/12): Sophomore Amber Lara has picked up right where she left off a year ago, scoring 7.7 points per game in the early going of the 2012-13 season for the Tiger women’s basketball team, which is off to a 3-4 start. She ranks fourth on the team offensively, including a high of 18 points in a narrow loss to Kenyon on Dec. 5. Lara has played the most minutes of any Tiger, and she ranks third on the team in assists with 1.2 per game and third on the team in rebounding at 4.3 per game.

Justin Yates

Men's Track and Field (12/11/12): Sophomore Justin Yates and his Tiger teammates kicked off the 2012-13 indoor track and field season with a solid performance at the Tiffin University Open on Dec. 1. The highlight of the meet came in the first-place finish by the 4x400-meter medley relay team. Yates anchored the relay for the Tigers, following junior Chris Frierson, freshman Laike Wallace and freshman Ben Ampudia. Yates added third place in the 400-meter dash in a time of 51.34.

Desi Kirkman

Football (11/1/12): Junior wide receiver Desi Kirkman has done some fine work during the 2012 season, rushing two times for 15 yards and a touchdown, catching 22 passes for 306 yards and three touchdowns, returning 11 punts for 88 yards and returning 15 kickoffs for 304 yards. Add that all up, and Kirkman ranks second on the team in all-purpose yards, a year after breaking a several records for kickoff returns in a game and a season. The numbers tell only one part of the story, however – Kirkman’s big claim to fame was a highlight-reel flip into the end zone during a 41-17 victory over the University of Chicago. So spectacular was the end-over-end entrance into the end zone that Kirkman earned a spot in ESPN SportsCenter’s nightly top 10 plays feature on Oct. 13.

Ed Young

Men's Swimming and Diving (11/1/12): Sophomore Ed Young is off to a fine start to his second collegiate campaign, starting with a strong swim in several events at the season-opening relay meet hosted by Kenyon. He followed that up with first-place finishes in a pair of events at the Tigers’ first dual meet of the 2012-13 season, a clutch 16-point win over arch-rival Wooster. In that meet, Young touched out the competition in the 1000-yard freestyle and the 500-yard freestyle events by wide margins of 22 seconds and seven seconds.

Dani Lacy

Women's Swimming and Diving (11/1/12): Freshman Dani Lacy is off to a tremendous start to her collegiate career, with fine performances in her first two meets in the Red & White. After turning in solid times at the season-opening relay meet hosted by Kenyon on Oct. 20, Lacy placed second in the 50-yard freestyle and the 100-yard freestyle in a dual meet against Wooster on Oct. 27. It wasn’t the finishes so much as the times that were impressive – Lacy touched the wall in 24.98 in the 50-yard freestyle and 54.62 in the 100-yard freestyle, both of which put her among the top 25 swimmers in all of NCAA Division III (as of Nov. 2).
 

Team

Women's Soccer (11/1/12): Coming off an 8-9-1 record in the 2011 season, little was expected of the Wittenberg University women’s soccer team. The North Coast Athletic Conference coaches were polled prior to the 2012 season, and the Tigers were picked to finish seventh in the final regular season standings. Fast forward to season’s end, and the Wittenberg Tigers were crowned NCAC regular season champions for just the second time in program history, owners of a sparkling 7-0-1league record and the No. 1 seed in the NCAC Tournament. After a loss to DePauw in the NCAC Tournament semifinals, Wittenberg stands 11-4-3.

Ian Streicker

Men's Tennis (9/24/12): The Wittenberg men’s tennis team is off to a 4-0 start to its 2012-13 dual match season, in addition to a strong performance in the Wittenberg Invitational, which included strong teams from Capital, Ohio Northern, Ohio Dominican and Ohio Wesleyan. Sophomore Ian Streicker has picked up right where he left off in 2011-12, compiling a 3-2 singles record and 5-0 doubles record in the early going, highlighted by his play in the home tournament. Streicker reached the championship match of the A Flight in singles, and he teamed with freshman Stas Pakhomov to win the A Flight in doubles.

Allie Lawwill

Women's Golf (9/24/12): Through the first three weeks of the 2012-13 season, freshman Allie Lawwill has helped the Wittenberg Tigers make an early statement. The Tigers have three top-three finishes in their first three tournaments, highlighted by a championship at the Denison Fall Classic. For Lawwill, the high point came at the Illinois Wesleyan Fall Classic, where she turned in a third-place finish individually to lead the Tigers to third place in a 22-team field. Lawwill’s 74 in the opening round and her two-day today of 153 both rank second in program history.

Brock Hicks

Men's Soccer (9/24/12): Through Sept. 24, the Wittenberg men’s soccer team is off to a 4-3-2 start as several veteran players continue to step up their game. Among them is senior Brock Hicks, who has three goals on the season to rank second on the team in scoring. A starter in all nine matches after earning honorable mention All-North Coast Athletic Conference honors a year ago, Hicks’ season was highlighted by a two-goal performance against Mount St. Joseph on Sept. 19. He scored in the 70th minute, and then he banged home the game-winner in overtime, rescuing a ball off the end line and hitting a shot from a sharp angle to beat the Lions’ goalkeeper.

Jessica Batanian

Volleyball (9/7/12): Defense of the first NCAA Division III championship in Wittenberg volleyball history started off very well, despite the loss of five starters from the 2011 squad. Among the key players in wins over Wartburg, Whitworth and Trinity (Texas) in the Courtyard by Marriott Wittenberg National Invitational was senior outside hitter Jessica Batanian. She tallied 39 kills, second-most on the team, and 36 digs, fourth on the team, in the three matches, in addition to five blocks on the weekend.

Maggie McIlvain

Women's Cross Country (9/7/12): Junior Maggie McIlvain helped get the 2012 women’s cross country season off to a solid start with an eighth-place finish in the Meijer Flyer Invitational, hosted by the University of Dayton at Indian Riffle Park in Kettering, Ohio. McIlvain placed second among Tiger runners in the meet as Wittenberg took the second spot in the Intercollegiate Division of the race, behind only Division II powerhouse Cedarville.

Daniel Broidy

Men's Soccer (9/7/12): The Wittenberg men’s soccer team is off to its best start since 2008, and senior midfielder Daniel Broidy has played a key role in wins over Capital and Mount Union and a tie with highly regarded Thomas More. After the Tigers pulled out a 1-0 win over Capital, which hadn't lost on its home field in nearly a year, Broidy assisted on the first goal and scored the overtime game-winner in a 2-1 victory over Mount Union.

Jacob Kuntz

Men's Cross Country (9/7/12): Junior Jacob Kuntz helped the Wittenberg men's cross country squad kickstart its 2012 season with a first-place finish in the Intercollegiate Division of the Meijer Flyer Invitational, hosted by the University of Dayton at Indian Riffle Park in Kettering, Ohio. Kuntz crossed the finish line in 16:37 as he led three Tigers in the top four positions. Wittenberg won the meet with a total of 28 points, one better than Division II Cedarville.