Posted: Apr 22, 2013
Baseball
The Maroons defied the odds all season, as they were picked 10th in the ODAC Pre-Season Poll despite coming off a four-win improvement from the 2011 season. Needing to basically win out through the final two weeks of the season to earn a conference tournament bid, RC won six of its final seven games (including an 11-6 victory over Bridgewater) to advance to the post-season. The most exciting game over that span came in the Maroons home finale vs. Lynchburg. Jacob Clifton smashed a walk-off home run with two outs in the 10th inning to give RC a 4-3 triumph.
Senior right fielder Mark Manthe leads the Maroons in batting (.339), home runs (5) and RBI (36). With one more RBI, Manthe will break his own single-season record at RC. Manthe is the most decorated player in Roanoke College Baseball history, setting career records in games played (129), games started (126), at bats (477) and RBI's (112).
Sophomore left fielder Brian Kluge, who has the most at bats in a single-season at RC (146), needs three more runs to have the second-most runs in a season for the program. He currently leads the Maroons with 32 runs on the year.
Senior pitcher Tyler Grouten needs one more win to tie the single-season record with five. His 57 career appearances is a school-record, while he needs only 12 more innings to break both the single-season and career records. Sophomore closer Austin Gregory needs one more appearance to break the single-season record. He also has recently tied the career saves record.
The men will take on top-seed Bridgewater College (28-9, 19-1 ODAC) on Thursday, April 25 at 11 AM. The game will be held at Lynchburg's City Stadium. Roanoke College was the only team in the conference to defeat the Eagles this season. Bridgewater reigns supreme in the ODAC, winning a conference-best 13 conference championships. The Eagles have played in an ODAC-record 21 conference championship games, including the past three years.
The Maroons split the Eagles in a regular season doubleheader on April 13. Cameron Holshouser (4-5) earned the win as Clifton went 3-for-4 with a double and Kluge scored three times and added a stolen base in the victory.
Softball
It's been a great year for Roanoke College Softball. The Maroons have been nationally-ranked all season (as high as #6) and are looking for the programs' 11th 30-win season and a ninth ODAC Championship. The road to an NCAA Tournament bid begins this weekend.
The ODAC Softball Tournament has been good historically to Roanoke College. The Maroons have collected eight ODAC Championships which led to an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament each time. The Maroons finished runner-up in the ODAC Tournament once, back in 1998 which was the second year of the programs' existence.
Senior centerfielder Leona Rainey has enjoyed a highly-decorated career for the Maroons. The two-time NFCA All-American broke the ODAC career stolen bases record (123), ranked seventh in career batting (.430), third in on-base percentage (.500) and is currently eighth on the ODAC's career hits list (211). Senior first basemen Alea Bier ranks second all-time at RC in career walks (75) and set the single-season record with 26 during the final week of the regular season. The 2012 ODAC Scholar-Athlete of the Year in her sport was an All-ODAC selection last season.
Sophomore pitcher Kelly Higbie has been the ace for the Maroons since her first appearance as a freshman last season. The NFCA All-Region selection and ODAC Rookie of the Year last spring recently moved into second on the career wins list at RC (45), innings pitched (396) and in complete games (49) while she has compiled the third-most shutouts (12) in program-history.
The double-elimination tournament begins on Friday, April 26 and continues through Sunday, April 28. All games will be played at the Moyer Sports Complex. Listed below is the entire schedule for the 2013 ODAC Softball Tournament. For more information, visit any of the participating schools' websites or stop by the ODAC's tournament website at www.odaconline.com/tournament/spring/softball.
Women's Lacrosse
The women defeated Randolph College, 23-12 on Saturday and will host the ODAC Quarterfinals against Randolph-Macon College. It will be held at Kerr Stadium in Salem on Wednesday, April 24 with game time scheduled for a 7 PM start.
Roanoke, which was picked second in the pre-season ODAC poll, won six of the final eight games of the regular season and finished 8-2 in conference play. The two losses during that span came against #17 and USA-South Conference Champions, Christopher Newport and ODAC Regular Season Champions, Guilford.
Junior Allison Bonanno (104pts.) needs only six points to move into second on the single-season scoring list. The IWLCA Regional All-American recently broke the programs' single-season (68) and career assists record (146) and is ranked fifth in career scoring (261). A two-time All-ODAC selection, Bonanno needs only seven points to move into fourth in that category.
Senior Kathleen Wager will finish her career ranked second in draw controls (166), shots on goal (230), eighth in shots attempted (296), seventh in goals (139), ninth in points (181) and sixth in career caused turnovers with 71. The IWLCA Regional All-American and two-time All-ODAC selection has enjoyed a remarkable career for the Maroons.
Quarterfinal play begins on Wednesday, April 24, with the semifinals set for Saturday or Sunday, April 27/28. The winners of the semifinals will play on Saturday or Sunday, May 4/5. The dates are contingent upon graduation and/or exam dates of the competing schools.
Women's Tennis
It's been a great year for Roanoke College Women's Tennis. The Maroons have been regionally-ranked all season (currently #19), earned the programs' fourth 13-win season and are searching for an ODAC Championship appearance. A win against Hollins would give the Maroons the single-season wins record with 14!
The Maroons (13-3, 10-1 ODAC) was picked fourth in the ODAC Pre-Season poll and finished with an undefeated 10-0 mark at home this season. Led by second-year head coach Justin Fainter, the women have been on a hot streak in the past month, putting together a string of eight-straight match victories heading into the ODAC Semifinals vs. Hollins. Roanoke defeated Hollins, 8-1 during the regular season on April 2 at the Elizabeth Campus Courts in Salem.
The program have enjoyed four-straight winning seasons, including three 10-plus win seasons over that period for a compiled 45-21 mark. It's the second-best run for the sport at RC since a string of seven-straight winning seasons from 1989-95.
Sophomore Jen Antoszyk (7-1 #1 singles) has led the charge as of late, winning six-straight matches, including one against a regionally-ranked opponent. She was named ODAC Player of the Week earlier this spring. Newcomer Briell Smith (10-2) is 5-0 in #3 singles and has won seven-straight matches while fellow freshman Kristen McDowell (9-2) is 5-0 in #4 singles and has won seven-straight as well. Sophomore Haley Goodes (9-0) is 5-0 in #5 singles and has team-best nine-straight match victories.
Seniors Laura Dodson and Corbin Leitch have solid records of 9-3 and 10-4, respectively. All-ODAC performers from last season, they should be up for some post-season recognition again in their final collegiate season.
Tournament play began Sunday, April 21, with each of the four quarterfinals scheduled at the campuses of the four highest seeds. Each of the four winners will play in the semifinals on Saturday, April 27, with the championship following on Sunday, April 28. Virginia Wesleyan will serve as host for the final three matches.
