Valparaiso University Sports Update, February 6, 2017

By: Valparaiso University Last Updated: February 6, 2017

VU-Mens-Tennis-Nips-William-and-Mary-in-Dramatic-FashionMen’s Tennis Nips William & Mary in Dramatic Fashion
The Valparaiso University men’s tennis match on Sunday afternoon was not for the faint of heart, as the Crusaders pulled out a nerve-inducing 4-3 victory over William & Mary. Charlie Emhardt (Carmel, Ind. / Carmel ) clinched the match with a come-from-behind win at No. 3 singles, allowing the Crusaders (3-1) to latch down a dual match win that veteran head coach Jim Daugherty ranked among the best in program history.

How It Happened

  • As they so often have in recent years, the Crusaders began the match on a high note by taking the doubles point. Jeffrey Schorsch (Perrysburg, Ohio / Perrysburg) and Emhardt rebounded from Friday’s loss against Butler by dispatching Aidan Talcott and Ryan Newman 6-2 at No. 1 doubles.
  • The No. 3 doubles tandem of Kyle Dunn (Fond du Lac, Wis. / Fond du Lac) and Garrett Gardner finished off Damon Niquet and Christian Gargill 6-2 moments later to give Valpo a 1-0 lead in the match, a point that proved pivotal in the outcome.
  • With the doubles point decided, No. 2 doubles went unfinished. Valpo’s Dave Bacalla (Skokie, Ill. / Niles North) and Chad Kissell (Latrobe, Pa. / Greater Latrobe) owned a 5-4 edge on Addison Appleby and Tristan Bautil.
  • The first singles match to finish was No. 5, as Dunn rolled to a 6-3, 6-2 triumph over Lars de Boer.
  • Schorsch took down Talcott, who was ranked No. 72 in the nation in the most recent ITA Rankings, in straight sets at No. 1 singles. Schorsch grabbed the opening set 7-5 before claiming a 6-4 win in Set 2.
  • With the first two singles points and the doubles point going in their favor, the Crusaders owned a commanding 3-0 lead in the match and needed just one more point to secure the team win. However, the Tribe (3-3) had won the first set on all four remaining courts.
  • Niquet secured William & Mary’s first win, prevailing 6-4, 6-3 over Brandon Ancona at No. 6 singles.
  • Emhardt had dropped a lopsided first set to Appleby 6-1, but rebounded in a big way with a 7-6(5) victory in Set 2. Kissell also responded to a Set 1 loss (6-3 to Christian Cargill at No. 2 singles) with a 7-6(1) win in Set 2.
  • At No. 4 singles, a long second set went final as Alec Miller bested Bacalla 6-4, 7-6(5). Meanwhile, Kissell fell behind early in the decisive set against Cargill, causing all eyes to turn to No. 3 singles.
  • Emhardt finished off Appleby for a 1-6, 7-6, 6-2 win, and was mobbed by his teammates after scoring the match-clinching point.
  • Cargill and Kissell played out their match, as Kissell rallied from a 5-2 deficit to make it 5-4, but Cargill prevailed 6-4.

Inside the Match

  • William & Mary is a program with a tradition of success. It is one of six schools in the nation with multiple NCAA Division-I men’s tennis national championships, and made its most recent trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2015.
  • The outcome marked quite the turnaround from last season, when the Tribe cruised to a 6-1 victory over Valpo in Williamsburg, Va. Schorsch and Emhardt lost to Newman and then doubles partner Scott Huang last season.
  • Emhardt notched his program-record 99th career doubles win, while Schorsch picked up his 95th.
  • Schorsch also extended his program record for career singles victories by corralling his 94th and 10th of the season. Emhardt picked up his 79th singles triumph, also his 10th of the year.
  • Dunn took over sole possession of the team lead in singles wins by bumping his season total to 11.
  • Talcott, Schorsch’s opponent at No. 1 singles, was the reigning Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Week.

Thoughts from Head Coach Jim Daugherty

  • “The team really dug deep for this one. Every player on the court dug extra deep. It was really a team effort. You’ve really got to applaud Charlie for raising his game up at the end to get the final point for us.”
  • “I think guys are believing in themselves more each and every day, and it’s really showing up on the court. This is great for the program. In our program’s history, this is a great win.”
  • “Obviously, the doubles point became very big, winning 4-3. We came out with the energy that we normally do. It was good to see the guys take care of business.”

Next Up
The Crusaders will hit the road for a showdown with Western Michigan on Sunday, Feb. 12 at 1 p.m.

Crusaders Conclude Busy Weekend of Track & Field
The Valparaiso University men’s and women’s track and field teams split up this weekend as part of the team went east for the Meyo Invitational held at Notre Dame, while the rest of the squad traveled west to the Windy City Invitational in Chicago, held by the University of Chicago. At the Windy City Invite, the men finished in second place, just behind the host, while the women captured a fourth-place result.

How It Happened

  • At the Meyo Invite, the men’s top finish was earned by junior Andrew Guzek (Valparaiso, Ind./Valparaiso), who placed ninth in the weight throw (59’10 1/2"). Freshman jumper Nick Ricks (St. Louis, Mo./Lutheran North) leaped a 46’0 1/2" in the triple jump, landing in third in program history.
  • For the men at the Windy City Invite, four runners finished in the top sixth in the 3,000m event. Jack Mader was first (8:52.15), senior Dan Walters (Crown Point, Ind./Crown Point) in second (8:54.41), freshman Victor Fortin (East Peoria, Ill./Peoria Notre Dame) in fifth (9:00.33) and senior Max Morello (Plano, Ill./Plano) in sixth (9:06.53).
  • In the mile event, junior Ben Zibricky (New Lenox, Ill./Lincoln Way Central) crossed the finish line for a second-place mark with a time of 4:22.23.
  • Two Valpo throwers received second-place finishes in their respective events. Guzek had a weight throw of 54’4” and freshman Jake Rasawehr (Celina, Ohio/Celina) tossed the shot put 44’9 1/2".
  • The field specialists for the women shined on Saturday as two jumpers combined for three top-four results in two events for the Crusaders. Freshman Anne Mou (Bloomingdale, Ill./Lake Park) earned first in the triple jump (36’7”) and fourth in the long jump (16’3”). Sophomore Chidimma Ozodi (South Milwaukee, Wis./South Milwaukee) leaped 16’10’ in the long jump to secure a second-place finish.
  • Sophomore Abby Jankowski has a mark of 47’9” in the weight throw to notch second and sophomore Nellie Bonham (Palos Hills, Ill./Stagg) received third-place in shot put (39’6”).

Next Up
The Crusader women are back in action on Friday, Feb. 10 at the Chicagoland Championships, hosted by North Central College. The men will compete on Saturday, Feb. 11 at the Chicagoland Championships.

Crusaders Come Up Short, Suffer Close Loss to Vikings
The Valparaiso University women’s basketball team owned an eight-point halftime lead after its third straight well-played half, but the Crusaders couldn’t seal the deal on Saturday afternoon at the Athletics-Recreation Center. Cleveland State (12-11, 6-5) came from behind to eke out a 66-62 win over Valpo (6-17, 1-11). Dani Franklin (Cedar Rapids, Iowa / George Washington) finished with a double-double of 26 points and 10 rebounds in a game that featured eight ties and 11 lead changes.

How It Happened

  • After Valpo scored the first basket of the game, Cleveland State led for much of the first six minutes. Grace Hales (Cromwell, Ind. / Westview) knocked in two 3s in a 32-second span with 3:20 left in the first to put the Crusaders on top 17-14.
  • The first quarter was high scoring, similar to the opening 10 minutes of Thursday’s win over Youngstown State. The Vikings held a 24-23 lead after one. Franklin was already in double figures with 11 points in the first stanza, while Olivia Voskuhl went 4-of-5 shooting in the first and had nine points.
  • The Crusaders knocked down three 3s in the opening quarter, but would go 1-for-17 from beyond the arc for the remainder of the game. The only make was Hales’s third triple of the game, which came in the second quarter.
  • The Crusaders played stifling defense in the second, holding the Vikings to four points. Valpo started the quarter on a 9-0 run and held Cleveland State scoreless for the first 6:38 of the period.
  • The Vikings ended their offensive dry spell when Ashanti Abashaw swished a 3-pointer with 3:22 left in the second to cut Valpo’s lead to five.
  • Cleveland State chipped away over the first five minutes of the third quarter, eventually tying the game at 42 on a 3 by Voskuhl with 4:48 to go in the third.
  • The Crusaders entered the fourth with a narrow 46-44 lead. The Vikings held Franklin to just two points in the third.
  • Franklin’s offensive productivity reignited in the fourth, when she scored 11 of her team’s 16 points.
  • The Crusaders had the lead with 1:10 to go, but Jade Ely connected on a crucial 3-pointer to put Cleveland State up 56-55. That basket came after Ely had hauled in an offensive rebound to extend the possession.
  • The Vikings would hold the lead for the remainder of the game. Their final 10 points all came on made free throws.
  • Khayla Livingston missed a free-throw try with 10 seconds left that would have pushed the lead to two possessions, giving the Crusaders a glimmer of hope. Franklin secured the rebound. Franklin eventually attempted a jumper on the other end with two seconds left, and was fouled in the process. The Crusader bench erupted with excitement thinking Franklin would receive three free throws, but her foot was on the 3-point line, so she was awarded only two attempts. The call on the floor was confirmed after video review.
  • Franklin made the first free throw to cut the lead to two, then missed the second intentionally, but Voskuhl snared the rebound, latching down the win for Cleveland State.

Inside the Game

  • Franklin cracked Valpo’s all-time Top 10 in career scoring with her 26 points, passing both Lynda Kukla and Tamra Braun.
  • Franklin also moved into Valpo’s all-time Top 10 for points in a single season.
  • Franklin’s double-double was her sixth of the year and first since Jan. 20 against Northern Kentucky.
  • Georgi Donchetz (Savage, Minn. / Burnsville) chipped in five points, six assists and seven rebounds, finishing one shy of career highs in both assists and rebounds. Donchetz did not turn the ball over.
  • Amber Lindfors (Elk Grove Village, Ill. / Elk Grove) clobbered five Cleveland State shot attempts, finishing one shy of her career high in blocks.
  • As a team, the Crusaders blocked a season-high eight shots.
  • Hales connected on three triples for the first time since the season opener at Stetson. She finished with 11 points, two shy of her career watermark.
  • Caitlin Morrison (Glenview, Ill. / Glenbrook South) went 6-of-6 at the free throw line, her first career game with more than three free throw makes.
  • Franklin hadn’t swiped four steals in any of the first 80 games of her Valpo career. She has now notched four steals in back-to-back contests.
  • Valpo held Abshaw (4-of-17) and Livingston (4-of-17) to inefficient shooting performances, but Livingston hurt the Crusaders at the stripe. She atoned for her 0-of-7 3-point shooting performance by going 14-of-18 at the foul line to finish with a team-high 22 points.
  • Voskuhl went 8-of-14 and finished with 20 points. For the second consecutive meeting, Valpo held Abshaw well below her average. She entered the game tied with Franklin for second in the league in scoring at 18.3 points per game, but was held to 11.

Thoughts from Head Coach Tracey Dorow

  • Thoughts on the Game: “I thought we got off to a great start again. It was a high-scoring first quarter. In the second quarter, we did a tremendous job on defense. Unfortunately, we didn’t shoot the ball well enough to get a bigger lead than what we had. In the third quarter, we didn’t come out ready to go. Cleveland State made some plays and picked us apart at times. Livingston did a great job creating opportunities for her teammates to score.”
  • On the Final Stretch of the Game: “I thought we turned it over in some critical moments and missed a couple shots. They got a few key offensive boards and made us pay. We just didn’t take control of the game, they took it from us.”
  • On Defending Abshaw and Livingston: “I thought we forced them to take some really tough shots. We fouled Livingston a lot, and that was a lack of concentration on our part, because we were supposed to be denying her the ball and not letting her be the one to shoot free throws. She did a tremendous job finding seams and we didn’t move our feet well enough when we tried to block shots. We forced them to miss shots when we maintained our positioning.”
  • On Putting Together a Complete Game: “We have to maintain the mentality that we’re going to put together 40 minutes. We did the other night, and we didn’t today. We were solid for 32 or 33 minutes. There were a few stretches where we didn’t get it done, and that was the difference in the game.

Next Up
The Crusaders will hit the road to face off with Wright State on Thursday at 3 p.m. at the Nutter Center in Dayton, Ohio. The game can be seen on ESPN3, WatchESPN and the ESPN app. In addition, it can be heard on WVUR, 95.1 FM Valparaiso with links to live video, audio and stats available on ValpoAthletics.com.

Valpo Tops Rival Butler in Men’s Tennis
The Valparaiso University men’s tennis team opened up the home portion of its dual season with a 7-0 triumph over instate rival Butler on Friday afternoon at the Courts of Northwest Indiana. The Crusaders rebounded from a tightly-contested loss to Wisconsin last week to up their dual match record to 2-1.

How It Happened

  • Chad Kissell (Latrobe, Pa. / Greater Latrobe) secured another victory at No. 2 singles by besting Butler’s Mikheil Khmiadashvil 6-4, 7-6(5) in two close sets.
  • Kyle Dunn (Fond du Lac, Wis. / Fond du Lac) was victorious in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2 over Butler’s Spencer Lang.
  • At No. 1 singles, Jeffrey Schorsch (Perrysburg, Ohio / Perrysburg) grinded out a 7-5 win over Aviv Ben Shabat in the opening set before cruising to a 6-2 victory in Set 2 to capture the match.
  • Charlie Emhardt (Carmel, Ind. / Carmel), who moved up to No. 3 singles for this match, prevailed over Mason Dragos in the only three-set affair of the match. Emhardt dropped the opening set 6-3 before storming back with 6-3, 6-2 wins.
  • Brandon Ancona (Belvidere, Ill. / Rockford Christian) also bumped up a spot in the lineup, facing Ari Gerstein at No. 5 singles. His afternoon was a successful one as he prevailed 6-3, 7-6.
  • Brian Pecyna (Glen Ellyn, Ill. / Homeschooled) was inserted at No. 6 singles and notched a 6-3, 6-2 win over Temilope Adelakun.
  • After missing the match against Wisconsin last week, Valpo’s No. 3 doubles duo of Dunn and Garrett Gardner (Poland, Ohio / Poland) returned to the lineup and didn’t miss a beat, prevailing 6-2 over Ben Shabat and Gerstein.
  • The top Valpo doubles team of Schorsch and Emhardt fell to Dragos and Khmiadashvil 6-4.
  • The doubles point hinged on the outcome at No. 2 doubles, where Dave Bacalla (Skokie, Ill. / Niles North) and Kissell were able to take care of business against Lang and Temilope Adelakun by picking up a 6-3 win.

Inside the Match

  • Kissell and Dunn both notched their 10th singles victory of the season. They share the team lead in that department.
  • Kissell has lived up to his national ranking since being anointed the No. 95 singles player in the country in the most recent ITA rankings. He has rapped off three straight victories – including a three-set win against Wisconsin last week – to begin the spring campaign. In addition, Kissell has won six of his last seven going back to last spring.
  • Excluding the NCAA Tournament loss to No. 14 Northwestern, Kissell has won 13 straight in dual matches. He entered last year’s NCAA appearance on a 10-match winning streak.
  • Schorsch now owns 93 career singles wins and stands at 9-5 this season. Emhardt captured his 78th career singles triumph.

Next Up
The Crusaders continue the home weekend on Sunday at noon as they welcome William & Mary to the Courts of NWI. The Tribe is 3-1 this spring entering a match at Notre Dame on Saturday with its lone loss coming in the season opener against Yale. William & Mary figures to be one of the best opponents on Valpo’s schedule this season.

Crusaders Welcome Transfers Osifeso, Waugaman to Men’s Soccer Program
The Valparaiso University men’s soccer team has announced the addition of transfers Babatunji Osifeso (Laurel, Md. / Laurel) and Dylan Waugaman (Houston, Texas / Friendswood) to the program.

Osifeso, a redshirt junior midfielder / forward, transferred from Campbell, while Waugaman, a redshirt sophomore defender, comes to the Crusaders from Oregon State.

“We have an exciting recruiting class that we will announce in full sometime over the next week or two, and we thought the ideal way to kick off that announcement was to introduce two roster additions that have already joined the program and are having an impact on the team,” Valpo head coach Mike Avery said. “Not only have we added two very good players, but we have more importantly added two people that have blended into our team's culture perfectly. These are both guys that have high expectations for themselves, but who understand that all individual efforts have to fit within the framework of the team if we are we are going to continue pushing the program forward.”

Osifeso, whose club team is Baltimore Bays USSDA, started his collegiate career in 2013 with a strong freshman campaign for the Fighting Camels. He played in 19 matches and made nine starts while garnering Big South all-Freshman Team recognition. He scored one goal and had four assists while placing nine of his 17 shots on goal, earning the Jim McVeigh Award, which is given to the team’s top freshman.

Osifeso appeared in 17 matches and made 12 starts for Campbell in 2014, finishing second on the team with three goals, including a game-winner at Stetson. He made seven appearances and six starts during the 2015 campaign, finishing with one goal and two assists in a season that was cut short by an injury.

“I transferred to Valparaiso because I wanted to have a good chance to go pro and I felt Valparaiso game me the best opportunity to do that,” Osifeso said. “I’ve heard nothing but positive things about the program, the team and the coaching staff, which made me more than eager to get on board. As soon as the opportunity came to transfer here, I knew I couldn’t turn it down and had to make the most of it.”

The new Crusader joins a team that tied the program record for most wins and fewest losses in a season by going 10-5-4 in 2016.

“I plan to accomplish many great things next season,” Osifeso said. “It’s my last year in college soccer, so I’m playing with a chip on my shoulder and looking to make the most of it. I want to win the Horizon League, I want to go to the NCAA Tournament and I want to score goals and win as many games as possible. In the end, I hope the team makes history next season, I hope I get the opportunity to go pro and I also hope to raise the bar for future Valpo men’s soccer players. I am looking forward to next season and can’t wait to get started.”

Waugaman, whose club team is Texas Rush USSDA, helped Friendswood High School to three district championships during his prep tenure. He was first-team all-district as a sophomore, Team and District MVP as a junior, first-team all-region as a junior and second-team all-state during his junior campaign. In addition, he finished high school with a perfect 4.0 GPA.

“I chose to transfer to Valpo because of its challenging academics and to add my skills and attributes to an already good soccer program,” Waugaman said. “While I am at Valpo, I intend to help my team win the Horizon League and get a ticket to the NCAA Tournament. From there, anything can happen.”

Waugaman and Osifeso will be part of a large contingent of newcomers who will help the Crusaders sustain success after losing 12 players to graduation.

“You'll see soon when the remainder of our incoming class is unveiled that Tunji and Dylan are prototypes of the kind of people we pursued when we began this recruiting cycle,” Avery said. “There is no question that we graduated a large and talented group, and we have worked very hard to bring in a class capable of building on what has been left here for them. With that in mind, we are pleased to officially welcome Dylan and Tunji to the family.”