South Mountaineer Volume 40, Issue 15

              Lehigh Athletics
Website: http://www.lehigh.edu
Hotline: (610) 758-LULU
WRESTLING: Lehigh finishes second at Sheridan
12
BASKETBALL: Season Summary
11
SWIMMING: Both squads defeat Delaware
11
South Mountaineer
Volume 11, Issue 15
Lehigh University Athletics Weekly
December 9,1997
Wrestling
Lehigh 2nd at 17th Sheridan
LU Matmen Place Eight with Three Champions
Bill Closson
by Frank Thompson
Sports Communications
"Revenge is a
dish best served
cold" seemed to be
the cliche in the
finals of the 17th
annual Sheridan
Tournament as
Lehigh placed
second in a very
competitive 16 team
field.
The revenge theme was dressed in
Brown and White as 150 pound champion
Chris Ayres pinned last year's Sheridan
champion and outstanding wrestler, Jarret
Mathews of Army. Mathews decisioned
Ayres last year in the finals, but this time
around, Ayres won with a fall at the 1:40
mark. The difference? "I guess I lifted more
than he did over the summer," Ayres,
unbeaten on the season at 9-0, joked.
The sweetest revenge probably came
in the heavyweight finals as Bill Closson
defeated Syracuse's Jason Gleasman, 5-4.
Closson had owned a 2-8 record against
Gleasman going into the bout. The fourth
and fifth-ranked wrestlers in the country
had faced off last week in the Mat Town
finals with Gleasman winning. Gleasman
had also defeated Closson for seventh
place at nationals last year.
This time around though Closson got
the only two takedowns of the match and
held on for the win. "I got a major monkey
off my back," Closson said. "I'd beaten
him before but he had a long win streak
going. I knew I could beat him, but going
out and doing it was something else."
Ayres and Closson, both seeded
second had won Sheridan titles in 1995
and 1994 respectively.
A first time"
champion for Lehigh
was 126-pound
freshman Shawn
Mulrooney.
Mulrooney won an
11-0 major over Dave
VollmerofJames
Madison in the
finals.
Two other
Lehigh grapplers
advanced to the
finals as freshman
Ryan Bernhoz
advanced to the 142
pound finals and dropped an 8-4 decision
to Oklahoma's David Kjeldgaard.
Bemholz, seeded third, had knocked off
the second seed, Ed Hockenberry of
Bloomsburg, 5-2, before losing to the top
freshman in the country.
John Van Doren, Lehigh's only
number-one seed, lost to Rider's Leo Giel,
3-1, in a rematch of last year's Sheridan
final. The loss was the first of the year for
Van Doren.
Others placing for Lehigh included
Mike Sferra (3rd) at 118, Dan Tashner (5th)
Chris Ayres avenged last year's Sheridan Finals
Joe Ryan
at
34, and Travis Doto (5th) at 158.
James Hamfeldt (118), Mark Dufresne
9167)andGlaucoLolli-Ghetti(190)also
wrestled for Lehigh.
Volleyball
Volleyball Falls in NCAA's
Team Travels to Washington State for First Round of Tournament
by Jason Jenkins
Sports Communications
Lehigh's most successful season in
volleyball history culminated in Pullman,
Washington in its first NCAA tournament.
The Mountain Hawks lost to the #11
Washington State Cougars in three sets.
The defeat ended Lehigh's season at
18-13. Washington Stte improved to 25-6
with the win.
In the first game, the Cougars started
with an 11-1 run. The Mountain Hawks
managed several side-outs but could not
recover from the start.
Lehigh improved its play in the seond
game, scoring four consecutive points to
cut Washington State's lead to 8-3.
However, the Cougars proved to be too
strong as they continued for a 15-5 victory
in game two.
Washington State's size was a major
factor in the match. With only one hitter
taller than 6'-0, the Mountain Hawks had
trouble playing above the net and were
outblocked 9-2. The
Cougars had five
players on their
roster above 6'-0.
"That was a
big, physical team,"
head coach Patrick
Nicholas said. "At
this level, you have
to raise your mental
game, because we
cannot all of a
sudden grow to be
6'-2."
Junior Jessica
McCarthy was a
bright spot for
Lehigh, knocking down 10 kills and
recording a .529 hitting percentage.
McCarthy said her experience playing at
an elite level as a youth helped her in the
NCAA game.
"I've played against big stars before,'
McCarthy said. "I kind of knew what to
Lehigh posted an 18-13 record and a Patriot League Title
Joe Ryan
expect."
Junior Kim Freedman had eight kills
and another junior, Marta Mielcarz, led the
team in digs with six. Junior Patty Watson
paced Lehigh with 22 assists.
Sheridan Team Standings
1. Oklahoma 151.0
2. Lehigh 131.5
3. Rider 81.5
4. Army 80.0
5. Hofstra 69.0
6. Virginia Tech 55.0
7. Drexel 52.5
8. NC. State 42.0
9. Brown 39.0
10. Bloomsburg 36.5
11. James Madison 35.0
12. Syracuse 27.5
13. Rutgers 26.5
14. Duke 24.0
15. East Stroudsburg      15.5
16. Bucknell 8.0
Championship Finals
118-John Carvaiheira (RU) dec.
Shane Valdez(OU), 4-2
126-Shawn Mulrooney (LU) md.
Dave VolImer(JMU), 11-0
134-Michael Lightner (OU) md.
Sean Gray (VT), 10-2
142-David Kjeldgaard (OU) dec.
Ryan Bernhoz (LU), 8-4
150-Chris Ayres (LU) wbf
Jarret Mathews (A), 1:40
158-Byron Tucker (OU) dec.
TivonAbel(Br),7-4
167-Michael Roller (OU) dec.
Josh Stanley (Dr), 8-7
177-Leo Giel (RU) dec.
John Van Doren (LU), 3-1
190-Dave Wimberly (A) wbf
MikeQuaglio(HU),:41
HWT-Bill Closson (LU) dec.
Jason Gleasman (SU), 5-4
Lehigh Placewinners
118-Lee Carroll (NC)md
Mike Sferra (LU), 9-1 - 3rd Place Bt
134-Dan Tashner (LU) dec.
E.Schmisesin (HU), 6-0 - 5th Place Bt
158-Travis Doto (LU) dec.
Troy Yegge (A), 6-3 - 5th Place Bt
NCAA Volleyball Tournament
Lehigh
W.S.U.
1
2
15
2
5
15
3
0
15
Team Records
18-13
25-6
Lehigh Leaders
Jessica McCarthy-10 kills
Kim Freedman - 8 kills
Marta Mielcarz - 6 digs
Patty Watson - 22 assists