Tennis teams head to NCAA tourney
The men’s and women’s tennis teams are headed to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth-consecutive season, as announced by the NCAA Division III tennis committee.
The No. 16 women’s team travels to Denison University for the Central Regional on May 7-8. WUSTL (9-8) takes on No. 6 DePauw University on May 7, while No. 8 Denison hosts No. 29 Albion College in the other first-round match-up. The winners meet the next day with a chance to advance to the NCAA quarterfinals.
The No. 17 men’s team will travel to DePauw University for the NCAA Central Regional, also slated for May 7-8. The Bears will play No. 10 Kalamazoo College in the first round. No. 8 DePauw, the host school, and No. 23 Kenyon College will face off in the other match. The winners will meet the next day to decide which team will advance to the national quarterfinals.
Baseball sweeps to win 30th game
The baseball team swept Illinois College, 4-2 and 9-3, on May 1 to improve to 30-7. The 30 wins for the Red and Green tie the school record for a single season.
In Game 1, the Bears took control of the contest in the fourth inning. Junior Ryan Corning sparked the run with a one-out double. Senior Dan Rieck walked and sophomore Andy Shields followed with a single. Junior Alan Germano smacked a two-RBI double to give WUSTL the lead for good. Germano finished 2 for 3 with two RBIs. Junior Bryan Brown grounded out to first to plate Shields, and Germano scored on an errant throw by Illinois College’s second baseman for a 4-0 edge. Sophomore Brent Buffa pitched a complete game for his team-leading 10th win of the season.
In the second game, the Bears led 2-1 heading into the third before tallying some insurance runs. Germano struck first with a one-out solo home run over the left field fence. When it was over, the Bears scored four third-inning runs to take a commanding 6-1 lead.
No. 1 softball team runs record to 45-1
The top-ranked softball team wrapped up its regular season with a perfect 4-0 record last week to improve to 45-1 overall.
WUSTL swept doubleheaders from Webster University on April 27 and the University of Chicago on April 30.
The Bears had 12 hits, including two home runs, in the 7-1 win in Game 1 against Webster. They followed that up with four home runs in a 9-1 win in five innings in the nightcap.
In Game 1, sophomore Laurel Sagartz allowed two hits and struck out nine as she improved to 21-1. She also went 3 for 4 with two RBIs.
In Game 2, the Bears built an early 2-0 lead in the first and never looked back as they had 10 hits in the victory. Senior Victoria Ramsey picked up her 50th career victory by allowing six hits and striking out six. Ramsey is now 14-0 on the season and 50-13 for her career.
In the sweep against Chicago, Sagartz pitched a 1-0 shutout in Game 1, and Ramsey followed suit with a 2-0 shutout in Game 2. Sagartz struck out nine and walked none as she improved to 22-1 on the mound.
Ramsey (15-0) allowed four hits and struck out seven in game two as she posted the Bears’ 24th shutout of the season.
Track and field teams shine at Drake Relays
The men’s and women’s track and field teams made their marks at the storied Drake Relays April 29-30 in Des Moines, Iowa.
The women’s 4×400-meter relay squad provided the highlight for the Red and Green, recording the fastest time to date in NCAA Division III during the outdoor season. The quartet of freshman Danielle Wadlington, sophomore Natalie Badowski, junior Laura Ehret and junior Michelle McCully clocked a school-record time of 3:50.03, eclipsing the previous record by nearly two seconds.
On the men’s side, freshman Doug Beattie, junior David Skiba, senior Lance Moen and junior Jimmy Centella finished 10th in the sprint medley. In a field of 24, the Bears’ time of 3:30.50 finished just six seconds off the winning time.
Skiba placed 23rd in the 400-meter hurdles, clocking a time of 54.99, while the 4×400 relay team of Beattie, Moen, Skiba and freshman Marcus Woods placed 24th in 3:21.92.