Last Week’s Results

Tuesday, October 13          Wellesley 3, Women’s Soccer 0
                                        Wellesley 3, Field Hockey 2 (Penalty Strokes)
                                        MIT 3, Volleyball 1

Thursday, October 15         Fitchburg State 2, Men’s Soccer 0

Friday, October 16             Assumption 135, Swimming and Diving 127

Saturday, October 17         Women’s Soccer 4, Coast Guard 0

Sat Oct 17 and Sun Oct 18 Men’s Crew at Head of the Charles Regatta (Boston, MA)
                                       Women’s Crew at Head of the Charles Regatta (Boston, MA)


Men’s Athlete of the Week

Varsity Eight - Men’s Crew

The WPI's men's crew varsity eight of Hank Moore (Jaffrey, NH), Ben Johnson (Northford, CT), Arthur Gager (Kennebunk, ME), Sebastian Cohn (Orinda, CA), Jeff Onderdonk (Colchester, CT), Ricky Holak (Windham, NH), John Madura (Hewitt, NJ), Tobin McGee (Rye, NY) and Brenna Colleary (Southboro, MA) are the WPI men’s athletes of the week for the week ending October 18. The varsity eight rowed an outstanding race en route to a fourth place finish at the Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston on Sunday. The Engineers' time of 15:54.4 was only 0.1 seconds behind third-place Grand Valley State and represents the first time the varsity eight has medaled as a varsity program at the Head of the Charles. The eight placed ahead of 34
other boats, a tremendous accomplishment considering the field included several talented Division I programs.


Women’s Athlete of the Week

Kelly Johnson - Field Hockey

Senior field hockey player Kelly Johnson (Buxton, ME) is the WPI women’s athlete of the week for the week ending October 18. Johnson scored the only goal of the first half of a narrow 3-2 defeat to Wellesley last Tuesday, when she blasted a shot off a penalty corner just 2:30 before intermission. After Wellesley had evened the match midway through the second half and scored the go-ahead goal just 1:39 later, Johnson helped the Engineers even the game just 10 minutes later when she converted another penalty corner. Johnson's laser tipped off an opponent’s stick for her team-high ninth tally in 13 games this season and 20th goal of her illustrious WPI career.



This Week’s Games

Tuesday, October 20            Women’s Soccer at Smith                                                   4:00
                                          Smith at Field Hockey                                                        7:00
                                          Volleyball at Clark                                                              7:00

Saturday, October 24           Volleyball at Eastern Nazarene with Husson                        11am
                                          Babson at Men’s Soccer                                                    11am
                                          Football at Rochester                                                        Noon
                                          Field Hockey at Springfield                                                 1:00
                                          Springfield at Women’s Soccer                                            2:00
                                          Crew vs. Quinsigamond Invitational for Novices                    TBA

Sunday, October 25             Crew at Head of the Fish Regatta (Saratoga Springs, NY)       TBA



Men’s Soccer (9-3-1 overall, 2-1-1 NEWMAC)

In its only action of the past week, Men’s Soccer fell to Fitchburg State 2-0 in non-conference men's soccer action Thursday evening, dropping the team’s overall record to 9-3-1. The Falcons tallied the game-winner on a breakaway, drawing WPI netminder Paul Moan (Watertown, MA) out of the net and slipping a shot past him for the early 1-0 Falcons lead. Fitchburg State added an insurance goal at the 74:48 mark. The Engineers fired shots throughout the second half in an attempt to draw even with the Falcons in a game played in a consistent wet snowfall that surprised much of the Worcester area with its early season arrival. WPI fired nine of its game-high 14 shots in the second half, but Fitchburg State’s goalkeeper saved all eight shots on goal to earn the victory. Jason Hopkins (Mendon, MA) and Mike Ford (Whitman, MA) paced the WPI attack with two shots on goal apiece, while Moan made a save in net for the Crimson and Gray. WPI returns to its conference slate for its next match on a week from Saturday. The Engineers will face NEWMAC rival Babson at home on October 24th, with an early start of 11am.



Women’s Soccer (6-9 overall, 2-4 NEWMAC)

Women’s Soccer was 1-1 during the past week, falling 3-0 at Wellesley on Wednesday before bouncing back with a 4-0 win over visiting Coast Guard. On Wednesday, Wellesley started the scoring six minutes into the game to take an early lead. The Blue extended its lead to 2-0 in the 35th minute which they kept until halftime. Wellesley held a 13-9 advantage in shots, with a 4-2 lead in corners, during the opening half. Wellesley boosted its lead to 3-0 with 40 minutes to play in the contest. WPI's best opportunity to score came in the 58th minute when two quick shots from Engineer Kristen Garza (Kingston, MA) gave WPI a corner kick. On the corner, Hailey Taylor's (Colusa, CA) kick found the foot of Katie Partridge (Worcester, MA), but Blue keeper Sarah Gray (Montclair, VA) smothered the ball to preserve the shutout for Wellesley. Rebecca Newman (Howell, NJ) made a career-best 10 saves for the Engineers while Garza led the Engineer offense with six shots. For the game, Wellesley out shot WPI 28-17, while recording eight of the game's 12 corner kicks. WPI rebounded from the shutout with one of its own, a 4-0 win over Coast Guard on Saturday. Four different players tallied goals in the victory. WPI scored the only goal of the first half when Kelsey Mawhiney (Johnston, RI) knocked home Taylor’s beautifully placed corner kick in the 20th minute. The marker was Mawhiney's second of the year and the assist was Taylor's team-leading sixth. The Engineers added to the advantage early in the second half when Partridge buried a cross by Garza into the lower left hand corner. The tally, just 43 seconds into the second stanza, was Partridge's second of the season. Garza added to her school record scoring total in the 74th minute when she tapped in a nifty pass by Lindsay Grasis (East Brookfield, MA) for her 10th goal of the season and 35th of her career. Nica Sylvia (West Tisbury, MA) closed out the scoring in the 85th minute when she registered her first goal of the season after a pass by Samantha Kingsley (Methuen, MA). Newman recorded three saves on the day en route to collecting her third shutout of the year. WPI attempted 27 of the game's 32 shots and each team had four corner kicks. WPI ventures to Northampton to take on Smith at 4pm on Tuesday in its next NEWMAC contest.



Field Hockey (9-4 overall, 3-2 NEWMAC)

The Blue converted three penalty strokes, helping Wellesley to a 3-2 victory over WPI in a NEWMAC conference field hockey contest on Tuesday evening. In its only action of the week, the Engineers slipped to 9-4 on the season and 3-2 in NEWMAC play. After 100 minutes of action, the game came down to strokes. Wellesley took an early lead when they connected on the opening stroke and put the pressure on the hosts when WPI's opening shot was denied. Wellesley took a 2-0 lead in the second round. After both teams missed in the third round, the Blue went home winners with its third penalty goal. WPI scored the only goal of the first half when Kelly Johnson (Buxton, ME) blasted a shot off a penalty corner following an insertion by Megan Read (Wrentham, MA) and a stick stop by Celena Dopart (Washington, DC) just 2:30 before intermission. Wellesley evened the match midway through the second half and scored the go-ahead goal just 1:39 later, at the 47:49 mark. The Engineers evened the game just 10 minutes later when they converted another penalty corner. Johnson's laser tipped off an opponents stick for her ninth tally of season and 20th of her career. Dopart netted her second assist on the stick stop, while Maggie Wigley (Bridgewater, MA) was credited with the helper on the insertion. Allie Griffin (Billerica, MA) had seven stops in the first half for the Engineers while Elizabeth Ray (Simsbury, CT) turned away four shots in the second stanza and the two overtimes. Ray also came up with a big stop for the Crimson and Gray in the third round of strokes. Wellesley enjoyed an 19-12 edge in shots and a 18-8 advantage in penalty corners. Each team registered a defensive save. Katye Milligan (Skowhegan, ME) turned the trick for the Crimson and Gray. After a week off, WPI is back in action on Tuesday, October 20th when they host Smith at 7pm on Senior Night. As part of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the game is a "Play 4 the Cure" event with proceeds to benefit the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation.



Volleyball (17-6 overall, 1-5 NEWMAC)

Volleyball dropped its only match of the week, a 3-1 decision to visiting MIT. In the match, WPI's Becca Holmberg (Madison, CT) notched her 1,000th career dig, but it was not enough as visiting MIT defeated the Crimson and Gray 14-25, 25-12, 25-18, 25-19. MIT remains undefeated at 6-0 in NEWMAC play and improves to 19-4 overall, while WPI is now 17-6 on the season and 1-5 in NEWMAC action. The Crimson and Gray fell to the unbeaten Cambridge Engineers but did not go quietly. Bailey Sarber (Westerly, RI) led the way with nine kills and 15 digs while Holmberg collected seven kills and a game-best 19 digs. Joan Porambo (Jim Thorpe, PA) amassed 15 digs while Becca Mattern (Vernon, CT) swatted three blocks and Elyssa Dorenfeld (Reading, MA) and Belinda Nwagbara (Santa Rosa, CA) smashed six and five kills respectively. Kim Woodward (Clifton Park, NY) contributed 26 assists to the WPI cause. The opening set win by WPI was its first over MIT since 2000, a span of nine straight matches. After a week off for final exams, WPI heads to Clark on Tuesday, October 20th for a pivotal 7pm NEWMAC match.



Men’s Crew

The varsity eight of Hank Moore (Jaffrey, NH), Ben Johnson (Northford, CT), Arthur Gager (Kennebunk, ME), Sebastian Cohn (Orinda, CA), Jeff Onderdonk (Colchester, CT), Ricky Holak (Windham, NH), John Madura (Hewitt, NJ), Tobin McGee (Rye, NY) and coxswain Brenna Colleary (Southboro, MA) rowed an outstanding race en route to a fourth place finish at the Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston on Sunday. The Engineers' time of 15:54.4 was only 0.1 seconds behind third-place Grand Valley State and represents the first time the varsity eight has medaled as a Varsity program at the Head of the Charles. The eight placed ahead of 34 other boats, a tremendous accomplishment considering the field included several talented Division I programs. Meanwhile, the second varsity eight of Corey Stevens (Douglas, MA), Andrew Emerson (York, ME), Zachary Theoharidis (Sedgwick, ME), Dan Pierson (Hampton, NH), Adam Panzica (Freeport, ME), Justin Bales (Upland, CA), Michael Mourkas (Hampden, ME), Alex Becker (Webster, MA) and coxswain Lauren Moloney (Buffalo, NY) rowed to an impressive 19th place finish out of 46 boats in the Men's Club Eight on Saturday. The Engineers finished the course in 16:20.4. Yale was the race winner at 15:22.6. The varsity four of Chris Carrigan (Northboro, MA), Phillip Kellermeier (Berlin, Germany), Jack Sternal (Westfield, NJ), Josh Wimble (Albans, VT), and coxswain Jillian Kloc (Elma, NY) also collected a 22nd place finish the competitive Men's Collegiate Four event. The Crimson and Gray crossed the line in a time of 18:20.61. The WPI Alumni boat also performed well, finishing 19th out of 34 boats with a time of 16:59.3. Northeastern's Alumni finished first at 15:13.5. Crew will close out its fall season next weekend. On Saturday the Crimson and Gray will host the Quinsigamond Invitational for Novices on Lake Quinsigamond and Sunday they will travel to Saratoga Springs, NY for the Head of the Fish Regatta.



Women’s Crew

The women's varsity four of Nell Nassiff (Columbia, CT), Vicky Stutz (Trumbull, CT), Suzanna Kelley (Attleboro, MA), Mary Hesler (Glastonbury, CT) and Colyer Sigety (Tampa, FL) had a great showing at the Head of the Charles Regatta on Saturday, rowing to a ninth place finish. The four posted a time of 20:16.3 to place ahead of 20 boats, while Trinity finished first with a time of 19:15.7. The women's varsity eight of Bridget Stevens (Cropseyville, NY), Sarah Dinwoodie (East Greenwich, RI), Amy Loomis (Mahtomedi, MN), Caitlin Heindl (Bow, NH), Macauley Kenney (North Yarmouth, ME), Joan Keyes (Plymouth, MA), Simone Staley (Albany, NY), Lauren Laboissonniere (Smithfield, RI) and coxswain Holly Fletcher (Dartmouth, MA) wrapped up women's crew's participation at the Head of the Charles Regatta on Sunday, rowing to a 26th place finish. The eight posted a time of 19:50.9 to place ahead of nine other boats. Grand Valley State took first place with a time of 17:47.4. In addition, the WPI Alumnae boat rowed to an 11th place finish out of 20 entries, posting a time of 19:18.5. Virginia crossed the line first at 17:18.2. Women's Crew will be in action next weekend when it hosts the Quinsigamond Novice Challenge on Saturday in Worcester and heads to Saratoga Springs, NY on Sunday for the Head of Fish Regatta.



Women’s Swimming and Diving

Freshman Heather Peruffo (Poughkeepsie, NY) earned a pair of first place finishes and graduate student Karen O'Sullivan (Pelham, NH) and sophomore Alana Aubin (Taunton, MA) each tasted victory as the WPI Women's Swimming Diving team opened the season with a close 135-127 loss at Assumption. Perruffo touched the wall first in the 100 and 200-yard backstrokes (1:04.41 and 1:14.53) while O'Sullivan took the gold on the 100-yard breaststroke (2:21.63). Aubin touched the wall first in the 50-yard freestyle in a time of 28.00. The Engineers enjoyed success in the relays, winning both contested events. The trio of Peruffo, O'Sullivan and Aubin teamed with Sarah Dinwoodie (E. Greenwich, RI) to win the 200-yard medley relay (2:00.37) while Dinwoodie, Kaitlyn Kelley (Salt Lake City, UT), Toni La Bella (Warrick,RI) and Alexandra Sanz-Guerrero (Ann Arbor, MA) combined to take victory in the 400-yard freestyle relay. Second place finishes were garnered by Colleen Heckley (Tyngsboro, MA) in the 500 and 1000-yard freestyles (6:12.86 and 12:44.06), Albin in the 50 and 100-yard butterfly (30:05 and 1:06.99), Sanz-Guerrero in the 50-yard freestyle (28:05), O'Sullivan in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:43.55) and Peruffo in the 200-yard IM (2:27.10). WPI is off until Saturday, October 31st when they travel to Norton, MA for a noon tri-match with Wheaton and Brandeis.



Football (3-3 overall, 0-3 Liberty League)

Football enjoyed an bye week as they gear up for the final four contests of 2009. They will head to Rochester on Saturday before hosting defending conference champion Hobart on Homecoming on October 31st at 1pm.



Men’s and Women’s Cross Country

The cross country squads avoided the forecasted poor weather to have a good running conditions this past Saturday for their annual alumni race. A good time was had by all. The Engineers are off again next weekend before competing in the NEWMAC Championships on Saturday, October 31st. The championships, hosted by Wellesley, will be held at Franklin Park.