Men’s Golf Wins Malone Invitational, Finishes 10th At NAIA Classic
 

     The Malone College men’s golf team (B squad) captured its own Malone Invitational among a 12-team field at the Tannenhauf Golf Course in Alliance last Friday and Saturday while the A team, earlier in the week, placed 10th among a 15-team field at the NAIA Classic, hosted by Indiana Wesleyan University last Monday and Tuesday. 
     At the Malone Invitational, Malone B won the team title with a two-day score of 585 (294-291) while the Malone A team made it a 1-2 finish for the Pioneers with a runner-up score of 588 (297-291).  Tiffin University took third at 590 (297-293) while Bethel (IN) College and Mt. Vernon Nazarene University tied for fourth at 591.
     Scotty Jones (Sr., East Palestine H.S.), of the Malone A team, captured medalist honors by posting a birdie on the first hole of a sudden death playoff with teammate Matt Strayer (Jr., Riverside H.S.), of the Pioneer B team.  Both shot a two-day score of 143 (Jones with a 73-70 and Strayer at 72-71) and both made the five-man All-Tournament Team.
     Other Malone A scores included Jordan Grubb (Sr., Lake H.S.) at 147 (73-74), Grant Gates (Sr., River Valley H.S.) at 149 (75-74), Darren Phipps (Jr., Lake H.S.) with a 152 (76-76) and Garret Barbush (Manheim, PA) with a 153 (80-73).
     Ben Smith (Fr., Carrollton H.S.) paced the Pioneer B team with a 144 (74-70) and also represented Malone on the All-Tournament Team.  Other Malone B scores included Michael Johnson (So., Lake H.S.) at 147 (74-73), Nate Garwood (Sr., Ridgedale H.S.) at 155 (78-77) and Michael Strayer (Sr., Riverside H.S.) at 157 (74-83).  In addition, Mark Zimmerman (Fr., GlenOak H.S.) competed as an individual and finished with a 151 (72-79).
     At the NAIA Classic, Malone A posted a two-day score of 635 (330-305) to tie for 10th place as St. Ambrose (IA) University won the tournament at 615 (311-304).  Tiffin University was second at 617, Lee (TN) University took third at 619, Berry (GA) College placed fourth at 621 and Marian (IN) College rounded out the top five at 622.  
     After extremely windy conditions on day one in which Malone posted the 330, the Pioneers rallied to post the second-best team score of 305 on day two to move into 10th place.

     Barbush and Jones led the team with final scores of 158 which was tied for 27th place overall.  Barbush had a 76 and an 82 while Jones posted an 80 and a 78.  Phipps tallied a final score of 161 (87-74) and Grubb posted a final of 163 (88-75).  Gates finished with a 165 (87-78).
     This week, Malone will compete at the University of Dayton Invitational on Monday and Tuesday.

Men's And Women's Track & Field Both Place Runner-Up At AMC Championships

     The Malone College men's and women's outdoor track & field teams both placed in the runner-up spot among their respective nine-team fields at the American Mideast Conference Championships in Houghton, New York last Friday and Saturday.  In addition, a total of eight Malone men and six Pioneer women posted NAIA national qualifying marks.
     The Malone men tallied 172 points as Tiffin University won the men's team title with 242 points.  Cedarville University was third at 169, Roberts Wesleyan (NY) University took fourth at 76 and Houghton (NY) College rounded out the top five at 59.50.
     The Malone women finished with 195.50 points for their second-place finish as Cedarville took the women's title.  Tiffin placed third at 153.50, Notre Dame (OH) College was fourth at 76 and Roberts Wesleyan rounded out the top five at 65.
     For the men, three athletes earned individual first-place finishes while one relay team also took first.  Chris Cruise (Jr., Field H.S.) won the 400 meters in an NAIA qualifying time of 48.21 seconds, Paul Robinson (Fr., Field H.S.) captured the 5000 meters in a provisional qualifying time of 15:07.77 and Chris Diaz (So., McAllen, TX) won the 5000-meter race walk in an automatic qualifying time of 23:33.38.  In addition, the men's 4x400-meter relay team of Bryan Krieger (Fr., Cuyahoga Falls H.S.), Jay Brueckner (Jr., Crestview H.S.), Jon Easterling (So., Ashtabula H.S.) and Cruise won in a time of 3:20.42.
     Malone went 1-2-3 in the 5000-meter race walk as Brad Sinick (Sr., Field H.S.) followed Diaz in a time of 23:44.17 with Joe Carmany (Sr., New Middletown Springfield H.S.) taking third in 24:24.48.  Sinick's and Carmany's times were also NAIA automatic qualifying marks.
     Second-place finishes went to Evan Gaynor (Fr., Delta H.S.) in the 5000 meters (15:08.86, NAIA provisional), Justin Baum (Jr., Kenston H.S.) in the 10,000 meters (31:18.59, NAIA auto), Tyler Davis (Jr., Teays Valley H.S.) in the high jump (6'6") and the men's 4x100-meter relay team of Krieger, Josh Chaffin (So., Norwayne H.S.), Diaz and Cruise in 42.87 seconds.
     Third-place finishers included Chris Sinick (Fr., Field H.S.) in the 800 meters (1:54.05) and the 1500 meters (3:55.54), Ryan Kienzle (Jr., GlenOak H.S.) in the 10,000 meters (31:31.19, NAIA auto), Shane McLaughlin (Fr., Caldwell H.S.) in the high jump (6'4"), Josh Gortney (Jr., Sandy Valley H.S.) in the pole vault (14' 11") and Brady West (Sr., West Muskingum H.S.) in the javelin (161' 6").  In addition, the men's 4x800 team of Mike Coates (Jr., Sandy Valley H.S.), Robinson, Nik Schweikert (So., Beavercreek H.S.) and C. Sinick finished third in 7:53.23.
     Chad Armstrong (Sr., Ashtabula H.S.) was fourth in the hammer throw at 155' 11" while Justin Jump (So., Wellington H.S.) also took fourth in the discus at 141' 2".
     Fifth-place finishes went to Coates in the 1500 meters (3:57.87), Brueckner in the 400-meter hurdles (56.81) and Roger Berning (Fr., Battle Creek, MI) in the javelin (157' 8").
     For the women's team, two athletes won their events as Emily Aldefer (Fr., Urbana H.S.) captured the shot put with an NAIA auto throw of 42' 6.25" while Brooke Gasser (Sr., Norwayne H.S.) took the javelin with an NAIA auto throw of 136' 7".
     Second-place finishes went to Sarah Hines (Fr., Northmor H.S.) in the 3000-meter steeplechase (11:50.19), Faith Nicholson (Sr., McMurray, PA) in the high jump (5' 3.75") and the pole vault (9' 6"), Holly Motter (So., Mt. Union, PA) in the long jump (17' 8") and Ashley Currence (Sr., East Canton H.S.) in the triple jump (38' 0").  In addition, the women's 4x400-meter relay team of Kim Winton (So., Medina H.S.), Megan Patton (So., Perry H.S.), Laura McElrath (Jr., Tallmadge H.S.) and Vallie Scott (So., West Branch H.S.) finished second in 4:03.44.
     Third-place finishers included Scott in the 200 meters (26.43), Rebekah Genter (So., Crestview H.S.) in the 5000 meters (18:42.23), Patton in the 100-meter hurdles (15.21, NAIA provisional) and Motter in the high jump (5' 1.75").  In addition, the women's 4x100 unit of McElrath, Gasser, Motter and Scott took third (49.62) as did the 4x800 team of Lexi Hartline (Fr., Strasburg H.S.), Hines, Winton and Brittany Davies (Sr., Cedarville H.S.) in 9:46.29.
     Gasser took fourth in the 100 meters (12.94) and 200 meters (26.56) while Scott also grabbed a fourth spot in the 400 meters (58.23).  Other fourth-place finishers included Hines in the 5000 meters (18:45.60), Kalie Hauenstein (Fr., Ashland H.S.) in the 10,000 meters (38:14.53; NAIA auto), McElrath in the 100-meter hurdles (15.62), Patton in the 400-meter hurdles (1:06.95) and Currence in the long jump (17' 2").
     Fifth-place finishes went to Winton in the 400 meters (59.64), Katie Bagley (So., Van Wert H.S.) in the 1500 meters (4:56.06), Brittani Lyons (Sr., Elizabeth City, NC) in the 3000-meter race walk (18:25.62), McElrath in the high jump (5' 1.75") and long jump (17' 0"), Motter in the triple jump (35' 11") and Aldefer in the hammer throw (132' 9").
     This week, the Malone teams are idle and will next compete in the NCCAA National Championships in Upland, Indiana May 3-5.

 

Baseball Falls To Kent State, Splits Doubleheader At Ohio Dominican

     The Malone College baseball team posted a 1-2 record last week in three non-conference games.  The Pioneers opened play on Tuesday with a 3-1 loss in a nine-inning contest at NCAA Division I Kent State University.  The squad then split a doubleheader at NAIA #13 Ohio Dominican University on Wednesday afternoon, dropping game one 4-3 before bouncing back to take game two by a final score of 10-6.  Following the 1-2 week, Malone’s record now stands at 16-21 overall with a 5-3 mark in the American Mideast Conference North Division.
     At Kent State on Tuesday afternoon, the Pioneers took an early 1-0 advantage in the top of the first inning on a two-out RBI single by senior Bob Dubovec (Kenston H.S.).  The Golden Flashes then plated one run in the bottom of the fourth to knot the score at 1-1.  The contest remained deadlocked until the bottom of the seventh inning as Kent State tallied two runs to pull ahead 3-1.  Malone put two runners on base in the bottom of the ninth inning, but could not drive them home as the Golden Flashes were able to work out of the jam and hold on for the narrow 3-1 victory.  Sophomore Sam Campitella (Jackson H.S.) started on the mound and pitched effectively, holding Kent State to just one run on six hits over six innings pitched.  Sophomore Jake Booth (Toronto H.S.) pitched two-thirds of an inning in relief and suffered the loss (0-2) after entering the game in the bottom of the seventh and giving up a pair of unearned runs.  The Pioneers tallied eight hits in the contest as Dubovec and junior Troy Richeson (Minerva H.S.) recorded two hits apiece.
     In game one against Ohio Dominican on Wednesday, the Panthers scored three times in the bottom of the second inning to take an early 3-1 lead.  Malone quickly cut the deficit in half with a run in the top of the third and then knotted the game at 3-3 in the top of the fifth on a run-scoring single by junior John Stallings (Louisville H.S.).  The contest then remained tied until the bottom of the sixth inning when the Panthers delivered a two-out run scoring single to pull ahead 4-3.  Malone threatened in the top of the seventh as senior Josh Spencer (Canton Central Catholic H.S.) smacked a two-out triple but Ohio Dominican’s closer, Roland Rodriguez, was able to preserve the 4-3 victory and record his conference-leading 12th save of the season after striking out Stallings for the final out of the game.  Junior Jimmy Dowling (Tuslaw H.S.) started on the mound for the Pioneers and took the loss (3-3) after surrendering four runs on eight hits over five and two-thirds innings pitched.  Spencer and Stallings each recorded two hits in the contest.
     In Wednesday’s nightcap with Ohio Dominican, Malone scored three times in the top of the third inning to take a commanding 7-1 advantage.  The Panthers fought back into the game, though, scoring five runs over the next three innings to cut the Pioneers’ lead to just one at 7-6.  However, this would be the closest Ohio Dominican would get as Malone tallied two runs in the top of the sixth and one run in the top of the seventh to secure the 10-6 victory.  Sophomore Ryan Hartong (Dalton H.S.) started on the mound and notched his fifth win of the season (5-2) after giving up six runs (four earned) on eight hits over five innings of work.  Junior Zach Winkhart (Canton Central Catholic H.S.) relieved Hartong in the bottom of the sixth and recorded his first save of the year after tossing two scoreless innings.  Malone smacked eleven hits in the contest as junior Chris Mandeville (Tuslaw H.S.) went 3-4 at the plate with a solo homerun and a two-run double while sophomore Zac Barson (Canton South H.S.) clubbed a three-run homer in the top of the first inning and a crucial two-out, two-run single in the top of the sixth.
     This week, Malone (16-21, 5-3 AMC N) will host a doubleheader with Mount Vernon Nazarene University (27-11, 15-5 AMC S) on Tuesday afternoon at 1:00 p.m.  The squad will then travel to Geneva (PA) College (21-16, 6-2 AMC N) on Wednesday at 2:00 p.m. for a pair of important AMC North Division games with the Golden Tornadoes.  The Pioneers will then return home on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. for another doubleheader with Geneva.

     The Malone College softball team split its six scheduled contests last week, with all three of its victories occurring away from home.  The Pioneers opened play on Tuesday by traveling to local rival Walsh University where they picked up wins of 9-8 and 16-4.  On Friday, the squad dropped both games of a home doubleheader with the University of Rio Grande, falling 9-3 in the opener and 7-3 in the nightcap.  Malone then faced off with Geneva (PA) College and Mount Vernon Nazarene University in single, seven inning contests on Saturday afternoon (both of Saturday’s games were played at Mount Vernon Nazarene).  The Pioneers began the afternoon with a tough 7-6 loss to Geneva before rebounding later in the day to post a 5-3 win over the host Cougars.  Following the 3-3 week, Malone is now 10-20 overall with a 4-8 mark in the American Mideast Conference South Division.
     Against Walsh in game one on Tuesday, Malone scored six runs in the top of the first inning to claim an early 6-0 lead.  The Cavaliers fought back with two runs in the bottom of the second and three more runs in the bottom of the fourth to trim the Pioneers’ advantage to one at 6-5.  Malone answered with three runs in the top of the fifth to push its lead back to four at 9-5 and then held off a late Walsh charge to record the 9-8 victory.  Junior Kathryn Bzdafka (Avon Lake H.S.) recorded her fourth win of the season after pitching all seven innings, giving up eight runs (two earned) on 11 hits while striking out seven.  The Pioneers smacked 12 hits in the contest as five different batters recorded at least two hits.  Leading the way at the plate was freshman Laura Blackburn (Worthington H.S.) who clubbed a double and a three-run homer.  Sophomore Elisha Bierman (Keystone H.S.) also contributed with a two-out, bases-loaded single in the top of the first inning that drove in three runs.
     In Tuesday’s second contest with Walsh, Malone’s offensive outburst continued as the squad once again scored six runs in the top of the first inning.  However, this time the Cavaliers were unable to keep pace as Malone plated three additional runs in each of the next three innings en route to a dominating 16-4, five-inning mercy rule victory.  Senior Cori Helm (Marion, IN) started on the mound and recorded her fourth win of the season after giving up two runs on seven hits over three innings pitched.  Bzdafka had an outstanding game at the plate as she crushed two home runs, scored four times and drove in a total of five runs.  In addition, sophomore Caitlin Ott (Glendale, AZ) smacked a three-run home run, junior Ashlee Locker (Strasburg H.S.) clubbed a two-run homer, and freshman Morgan Heacock (Mt. Gilead H.S.) went 3-4 with three RBI and two runs scored.
     In Friday’s opener with Rio Grande, the Redwomen tallied four runs in the top of the sixth inning to break open a close game and pull away for the 9-3 victory.  Bzdafka went the distance on the mound and took the loss after allowing nine runs (eight earned) on 14 hits.  Offensively, Bierman smacked a two-run double while Bzdafka, Heacock, and Locker each recorded two hits.
     Against Rio Grande in game two on Friday, the Redwomen scored three runs in the top of the fifth inning to break a 3-3 tie.  Rio Grande then added another run in the top of the seventh to secure the 7-3 win.  Helm started on the mound and suffered the loss (4-7) after allowing six runs (two earned) on seven hits over four and one-third innings pitched.  Junior Holly Christopher (Garfield H.S.) went 2-4 at the plate and knocked in all three of the Pioneers’ runs with a pair of doubles.
     Against Geneva on Saturday, Malone plated six runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to take a 6-1 advantage.  The Golden Tornadoes answered back quickly, though, with two runs in the top of the fifth inning and four more runs in the top of the sixth inning to reclaim the lead at 7-6.  The Pioneers threatened in the bottom of the seventh as Christopher reached second base with one out, but Geneva was able to retire the final two Malone batters of the inning to preserve the one-run victory.  Bzdafka suffered the loss after entering the game in the top of the sixth inning and surrendering a pair of unearned runs.  The Pioneers posted 11 hits in the contest as Bierman, Christopher, junior Jenna Vrabel (Ursuline H.S.) and sophomore Leslie McCammon (Wadsworth H.S.) each tallied two hits apiece.
     In Saturday’s game with Mount Vernon Nazarene, Malone pulled out to an early 4-0 lead and withstood a late Cougar rally to claim a 5-3 win.  Bzdafka pitched her third complete game of the week, claiming the victory (5-9) after limiting Mount Vernon Nazarene to three runs (two earned) on eight hits while striking out four.  Offensively, Heacock went 2-3 with one RBI and led off the game with a triple.  In addition, McCammon and Blackburn each smacked run scoring doubles.
     This week, Malone (10-20, 4-8 AMC S) will travel to Ursuline College (10-17, 1-3 AMC N) on Monday for a 4:00 p.m. doubleheader with the Arrows before heading to NCAA Division II Ashland University (27-14, 9-7 GLIAC) on Tuesday for a pair of games starting at 5:00 p.m.  The squad will then wrap up its regular season schedule on Saturday with a 1:00 p.m. make-up doubleheader at home against Urbana University (17-19, 7-3 AMC S).

Women's Tennis Wins Three Of Five Matches On The Week

   
    The Malone College women's tennis team won three of its five matches last week as the squad defeated Carlow (PA) University 9-0 at home last Monday but fell to Walsh University (away) 9-0 on Tuesday and to Tiffin University in a tough road loss by the score of 6-3 on Wednesday.  The team bounced then bounced back to defeat Roberts Wesleyan (NY) College 8-1 on Friday (away) and Shawnee State University 6-3 on Saturday (home).  With the 3-2 week , the team is now 7-12 overall and 5-4 in the AMC.    
    Scores for the matches (in order – Carlow, Walsh, Tiffin, RWC, Shawnee St.) are as follows:
#1 Ann Marie Burton (So., Wadsworth H.S.) W 8-0   L 6-0, 6-0       L 6-3, 6-3      W 5-4 (def.-inj.) L 3-6, 6-4/10-7       
#2 Cami Urdea (Jr., Brasov, Romania)           W 8-0   L 6-2, 7-5       W 6-3, 7-5        W 6-1, 6-0    W 6-0, 6-0

#3 Emily Farls (Sr., Beaver, PA)                     W 8-0   L 6-3, 6-2       L 6-3, 3-6, 6-7  W 6-3, 6-0    W 6-0, 2-6, 6-0
#4 April Victor (Fr., Tallmadge H.S.)               W 8-0   L 6-1, 5-7/10-4  W 6-3, 7-6    W 6-1, 6-0     W 6-0, 7-5
#5 Lynsey Fuller (Fr., Canton South H.S.)     W 8-0   L 6-2, 6-2       W 6-2, 6-1        W 6-2, 6-0     W 6-3, 6-2

#6 Jackie Quilter (Jr., GlenOak H.S.)               ------    -------             L (forfeit)          --------           L (forfeit)
#6 Erin Martin (Jr., Beaver, PA)                      W 8-0   L 6-0, 6-1             -------         L 6-1, 6-2       --------

#1 Burton/Urdea                                             W 8-0   L 8-4             L 9-7                 W 8-4            W 8-6
#2 Farls/Victor                                               W 8-0    L 8-4             L 8-2                 W 8-0            W 8-2

#3 Quilter/Fuller                                              ------     ------             L (forfeit)          --------            L (forfeit)
#3 Fuller/Martin                                              W 8-0    L 8-1              --------              W 8-5             -------

    This week, Malone will close out its regular season by playing at The College of Wooster on Wednesday (4:00 p.m.) in its only match of the week.

 

     The Malone College men's tennis team defeated Ohio Dominican University 7-2 at home on Wednesday but lost at Cedarville University 6-3 on Saturday in its only other match on the week.  With the 1-1 week, Malone now stands at 9-8 overall on the season and 3-3 in the AMC.
     Scores for the matches (in order – ODU, Cedarville) were as follows:
#1 Jason Christman (Sr., McKinley H.S.)    W 7-6, 2-6, 7-6      L 6-0, 6-4  
#2 Kyle Bowers (So., Norwalk H.S.)          W 6-1, 6-3             W 6-2, 6-4  
#3 Tim Springirth (So., Erie, PA)                  W 6-2, 6-3             L 6-3, 7-6

#4 Nathaniel Rodd  (Fr., Canton, OH)          W 6-3, 6-2             L 6-3, 6-2 

#5 Dan Yard (Jr., Louisville H.S.)                L 7-5, 7-5              L 6-0, 6-1 
#6 Tim Frazier (Fr., Beaver Falls, PA)         W 6-3, 6-2             W 6-4, 5-7/11-9
#1 Bowers/Springirth                                  W 8-4                    L 8-2    

#2 Christman/Rodd                                      W 8-1                    W 8-5
#3 Yard/Frazier                                           L 8-5                     L 8-2
     This week, Malone is idle as the regular season is complete.  The team has qualified for and will next compete in the NAIA Region IX Tournament on May 3-4 at Cedarville, Ohio.