Sports Recap

By Terry Rabbitts, [email protected]

Women’s Volleyball

The University of Akron volleyball team dropped all three matches at the Comfort Inn and Suites Invitational on this past weekend, falling to Samford in three sets (23-25, 21-25, 14-25), host Morehead State in five (25-23, 25-16, 21-25, 26-28, 14-16), and then East Tennessee State in four (19-25, 25-21, 17-25, 18-25). Versus Samford, the Zips were powerless against an almost perfect attack. The Bulldogs (4-4) committed just 10 errors as a team in the match. Akron was able to be victorious in the first two sets again Morehead State, but could not find a way to clinch the final one against the Eagles’ (3-8) balanced team effort. On Saturday, the Zips gave ETSU (8-3) a battle early on, but eventually came up short against the Buccaneers. Amanda Bedell led the Zips, now 6-7, for the seventh straight game in kills and was named to the All-Tournament Team. “Once again we showed an ability to play at a high level for some stretches. Hopefully we can continue to improve and lengthen those stretches as we head into MAC play,” said head coach Tom Hanna. The Zips kick off Mid-American Conference play this week as they travel to Buffalo on Thursday, and then come home to host Ball State on Saturday at the JAR at 5 p.m.

Women’s Soccer

The Zips’ women’s soccer team dropped a pair of matches over the weekend in the Lipscomb Invitational. On Thursday against the host Lipscomb, the team gave up two goals in the first half of play, with the first coming in the first five minutes of play, and was never able to mount a comeback against the Bison (5-2-3). The next day, a goal by junior Sarah Sivic tied the game at one in the 79th minute against UT Martin, but the Skyhawks were able to score a goal in overtime to send the Zips to their fourth straight defeat. The goal was Sivic’s third on the year and the assist went to freshman Shea O’Brien. Akron actually out-shot UT Martin for the game, 11-10. The Zips return to action Friday, when they play against cross-town rival Kent State in the Wagon Wheel Challenge at 7 p.m. at FirstEnergy Stadium – Cub Cadet Field. The first 100 students will receive a FREE “Beat Kent” t-shirt.

Men’s Golf

The men’s golf team was busy yesterday playing the first two rounds of the 54-hole Inverness Intercollegiate Tournament in Toledo, Ohio. The first round did not go well for the Zips as they shot a team score of 315 on the par-71 Inverness Club. That score put them last in the field of 15 teams and 24 strokes behind leader, California. The Zips were paced by J.B. Williams who shot a 77 in the opening round. Akron bounced back in the second round by shooting a team score of 298 to move up to 13th place overall after the first day. California still leads the tournament, 29 shots ahead of the Zips. Elliot Grayson shot an even par 71 for his second round. Grayson and Williams finished the day tied at +11 and in 42nd place overall. George Baylis (+12, 45th place), Zach Gollwitzer and Yann Pfeiffer (+14, 55th place) round out the rest of Akron’s scoring. All the teams return to the course at 8 a.m. this morning to complete the final round.

Men’s Cross Country

The men’s cross country team managed to place five runners in the top 13 at the Virginia Tech Alumni Invite on Friday to take the team title. That showing allowed the Zips to post a one-point victory over Florida State and third place team Virginia Tech by 56. Florida State came into the race ranked 26th nationally in the latest United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) cross country poll released on Tuesday, Sept. 15. The host, Hokies, also received votes in the national poll. Pacing Akron to these impressive victories were Kyle Cochrun, 3rd place (24:52.58), Joe Rosetti, 8th (25:02.30), Dan Zupan 10th (25:05.29), Trevor Norris 11th (25:06.60), and Garrett Crichlow 13th (25:07.91). The team has a break now and returns to action on October 2.

Women’s Cross Country

The women’s cross country team placed fifth out of 13 teams last Friday at the Virginia Tech Alumni Invite. Jillian Roth led the efforts for the Zips in the women’s race by placing 21st in 22:16.49. Alexandra Blair and Sarah Kupniewski were next across the line for Akron, finishing 38th (23:19.55) and 39th (23:20.35) respectively. The Zips return to competition at the All-Ohio Championships in Cedarville, Ohio, on Oct. 2

Women’s Tennis

The tennis team kicked off their season over the past weekend by hosting the Akron Shootout. Teams from Cleveland State, Youngstown State, and Maryland-Baltimore County spent three days with the Zips playing a round-robin tournament in which team scores were not kept. In singles competition, returning player Ariadna Blinova, sophomore transfer Waverly Wituski, and freshman Luisa Echeverry led the Zips with three victories each while co-captain Shannon Newnes and Marina Zerbola, who also returned from last year’s squad, each picked up two. Echeverry and Wituski also managed three victories in doubles play while Newnes and Zerbola picked up one. This upcoming weekend the Akron team travels to West Point, New York to participate in the West Point Invitational.