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Skip Ivery on the awards podium.
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SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - A banner sports season was capped off in
dramatic fashion as junior Skip Ivery (Columbus,
Ohio/Groveport-Madison) won the 110-meter high hurdles at
the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championship Meet at
St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY, May 22-24. Ivery became the
second individual NCAA champion in Wittenberg sports history,
following in the footsteps of Bob Cherry '64, who won a track and
field individual championship his senior year.
Despite persistent rain and chilly temperatures, Ivery set a track
record at St. Lawrence University's Merrick-Pinkard track with a
time of 14.63. His win comes on the heels of his second-place
finish in the 55-meter high hurdles at the NCAA Division III Indoor
Track and Field Championships at DePauw University in March.
Ivery was joined in earning All-America honors by junior
Tim Gaal (Amanda, Ohio/Clearcreek), the North
Coast Athletic Conference Outdoor Field Events Athlete of the Year
at the 2003 meet. Gaal, who was also a provisional NCAA qualifier
in the decathlon but did not compete in the event, posted a throw
of 197-1 in the javelin, earning him a second-place finish at the
national meet.
Ivery's and Gaal's combined scores totaled 18 team points, placing
Wittenberg in ninth place as a team in the nation, the program's
highest finish ever in the men's outdoor track and field
championships. It was the first outdoor track and field All-America
designation for either athlete in their Wittenberg careers.
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Tim Gaal at the NCAC Track Meet.
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Senior softball outfielder Beth Walters (Westerville,
Ohio/DeSales) and sophomore utility player Katie
Carver (Enon, Ohio/Greenon) captured first-team
All-Central Region honors after leading the team to a second-place
finish in the NCAC regular season, the conference tournament
championship and the first NCAA Division III Tournament win in
school history. In addition, sophomore pitcher Norah Gillam
(Canfield, Ohio/Canfield) and junior outfielder
Carmen Montgomery (South Charleston,
Ohio/Southeastern) were named to the second team and
sophomore second baseman Katie Niemeyer (Findlay,
Ohio/Findlay) made third-team all-region.
The men's tennis team advanced its second player in the last three
years to the NCAA Tournament. Senior No. 1 player Casey
Clagett (Steamboat Springs, Colo./Steamboat Springs), the
2002 NCAC Player of the Year and a two-time All-NCAC first-team
selection, concluded his career with a first-round loss at the
national tourney on May 17. He finished 22-10 on the season. By
virtue of his Intercollegiate Tennis Association/Omni Hotels
Central Region Singles Championship last fall, Clagett was accorded
All-America status following the season.
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Women's Lacrosse All-American Jenny
Burns.
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In women's lacrosse, the Tigers came on strong to put together
marks of 8-6 overall and a school-record 5-2 in the NCAC. Senior
defender Cara Romanowski (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen
Valley), the Wittenberg record-holder for career goals
scored after ramming home 54 more in 2003, and sophomore attacker
Jenny Burns (Dublin, Ohio/Coffman), the No. 2
scorer in the NCAC with 62 total points, both were named first-team
All-West Region. Junior defender Katie Babcock (Phoenix,
Md./Dulaney), sophomore midfielder Rachel Ridgeway
(Montclair, NJ/The Taft School) and senior goalkeeper
Rebecca Russ (Louisville, Ky./Sacred Heart) all
garnered second-team all-region honors.
In addition, Burns was named third-team All-America. It was the
first such national honor in her career.
The Wittenberg baseball team finished with records of 17-22-1
overall and 4-12 in the NCAC West Division. Senior Ryan
Born (Marion, Ohio/Pleasant), the team's leading hitter
with a .411 batting average and 40 runs batted in, earned
third-team All-Mideast Region honors from the American Baseball
Coaches Association after earning first-team All-NCAC
previously.
026-03