Notes From the Nest: A Weekly Recap of Juniata College Athletics

By: Jennifer Jones
Director of Sports Information
jonesj@juniata.edu • juniatasports.net

HUNTINGDON, Pa. – The Juniata College men’s and women’s outdoor track and field teams are knee deep in their season just as men’s volleyball prepares to head into its conference tournament.  And men’s tennis remained undefeated on the year, improving to 13-0.

Baseball
The Juniata College baseball team finished a long week of Landmark Conference play with a 1-6 record. The Eagles recorded their first league victory with a 5-4 win over The University of Scranton in Lewisburg, Pa. Senior Brad Medellin (Lewisberry, Pa./Red Land) had a solid week at the plate and on the mound for Juniata. The second baseman went 3-for-5 in a two game stretch with Moravian College and 3-for-8 with two runs scored and a run batted in in the series against Catholic University of America.

Men’s Basketball
Senior Brian Scholly (State College, Pa./State College) was named the Landmark Conference Senior Scholar-Athlete for men’s basketball.  The award winners must have a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.20 and are then selected from a committee of Landmark officers, athletics directors, and sports information directors. He is just the tenth Juniata student-athlete to receive the honor and the second men's basketball player.  Scholly will graduate with a degree in history with a secondary emphasis in education.

Softball
Juniata softball (3-16, 0-4 Landmark) dropped three games during the week, one to Penn State Altoona and two to Landmark Conference rival Catholic University.  Junior Katie Schroeder (Kempton, Pa./Kutztown) and freshman Paige Dennison (East Berlin, Pa./Bermudian Springs) led the team in hits with three each, respectively.  Freshman Holly Renninger (Adamstown, Pa./Cocalico) earned the highest batting average, hitting .667 for the week.  Juniata is on the road for the next two contests but returns home on Sunday, April 13 for a conference doubleheader against Drew University.

Men’s Tennis
Five matches in a week yielded five wins for the Juniata College men’s tennis team as the Eagles improved to 13-0 on the year. Juniata has now won as many matches in 2014 as the team did in the whole of the record-tying 2013 season. Senior Justin Wisniewski (Moorestown, N.J./Moorestown) is 13-0 in dual match singles play and freshman Dean Polisena (Adelaide, Australia/Saint Ignatius) dropped his first singles match of the year to The University of Scranton No. 1, but rebounded we two wins on Sunday against York College and Elizabethtown College to improve to 12-1 in dual match singles.

Women’s Tennis
The Juniata College women’s tennis team suffered three losses in the week, but finished off with a solid 8-1 win over York College on Sunday. The Eagles are now 8-4 on the year with six matches remaining. Senior Megan Phillips (Jefferson Hills, Pa./Thomas Jefferson) moved up to the No. 2 singles position where she claimed both matches on Sunday. She teamed up with junior Heather Waring (San Antonio, Texas/John Jay) to take two of the four No. 1 doubles matches on the week.

Men’s Outdoor Track and Field
Juniata dominated at Frostburg State’s Bobcat Invitational on Saturday. The Eagles amassed 20 top-six finishes including three first place finishes. In the 800 meter run, freshman Petro Sokirniy (Huntingdon Valley, Pa./Upper Moreland) crossed the line first. Sophomore Matt Guetzlaff (Schnecksville, Pa./Parkland) finished first in the 1500 meter run and senior Justin Herr (Mountain Top, Pa./Crestwood) placed first in the long jump. The Eagles next travel to Mechanicsburg, Pa. to compete in the Messiah Invitational.

Women’s Outdoor Track and Field
Senior Katrina Woods (Shirleysburg, Pa./Mount Union) racked up the accolades this past week.  After being named the Landmark’s women’s runner of the week, she earned Eastern College Athletic Conference Player of the Week honors, and was named the Landmark Senior Scholar-Athlete for women’s indoor track and field.  The Juniata College women’s outdoor team competed at the Bobcat Invitational on Saturday. The Eagles were again paced by Woods, who picked up a win in the 1500 meter run. Juniata accumulated eight more top-six at the meet. The women will continue competition when they compete at the Messiah Invitational.

Men’s Volleyball
The No. 1 Eagles dropped their first Continental Volleyball Conference (CVC) match of the season to No. 15 Stevenson (3-1) Friday night but regrouped and pulled out a dominating 3-0 win over Cairn on senior day on Saturday.  Juniata (24-4, 9-1 CVC) was led by senior Alex McCoglin (Buffalo, N.Y./Hamburg), who finished with a team-high 18 kills, and freshman Kyle Seeley (Ellicott City, Md./Howard) who earned a team-best 10 blocks.  Juniata is the No. 2 seed in the CVC Tournament and will face off against Dominican University on Saturday, April 12 at 12:30 p.m. for a chance to take on the western No. 1 seed Carthage in the semifinals at 4 p.m.

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