The PioSphere Weekly Forecast

The Weekly Forecast
PioSphere Reporter Josh Landry

Pioneer Performance: The men’s tennis Pioneers propelled themselves to .500 on the season and remained undefeated in HCAC play with an 8-1 win over Manchester University at home on Saturday. Winning in straight sets in all but one match, the Pioneers performed well all around, with solid freshmen contributions from Joshua Buckman and Zachary Meikle. Men’s tennis is back-in-action again when they host Indiana University East at 3pm on Wednesday.

Matchup of the Week: This Tuesday, starting at 3:30, the Transylvania softball team will host Hanover College in a doubleheader at Hall Field. Although they are 7-17 on the season, the Pioneers are off to a 5-3 start in HCAC play and can really jump up in conference standings against the Panthers (who are 4-2 against conference opponents). The two seniors, Megan Mitchell and Michelle Ladanyi, have led the Pioneers in batting average and RBIs this season, and their leadership will be invaluable if the team is to take both games.

The PioSphere Weekly Forecast

The Weekly Forecast
PioSphere Reporter Josh Landry

Pioneer Performance: The entire men’s lacrosse team earns the “Pioneer Performance” this week, as they defeated Elmhurst College 14-4 at home on Friday. That was the team’s last home game of their inaugural season, and they finished at an undefeated 6-0 (currently 7-4 overall). With three games left on the season, the Pioneers need one more win to finish over .500 in their first season, and their next game comes Wednesday at rival Centre College.

Matchup of the Week: Sitting at 9-9 on the season, and 3-3 in HCAC play, the baseball Pioneers will look to improve their record when they host conference opponent Hanover College this Tuesday. This game comes after a tough double-header at Manchester University, where the Pioneers dropped both games. With three out of the last four Pioneer losses coming by only one run, look for Transy to improve their luck on Tuesday.

Player to Watch: After being named HCAC Golfer of the Week for the week ending on March 18th, look for Jantzen Latham to lead the Pioneers as they compete in the Emory Invitational on Monday. This comes after Transylvania Golf was named 12th in the newest Golf World/ Nike Golf Coaches’ Poll, up four spots from the last poll.

The PioSphere Weekly Forecast

The Weekly Forecast
PioSphere Reporter Josh Landry

Pioneer Performance: This week’s award is a bit unorthodox but nonetheless impressive; Transylvania had four student athletes named to the HCAC All-Academic Team for the Winter 2012 semester, which requires a 3.5 GPA or above. The four chosen were Kayla Dobson (Basketball), Elizabeth Hardt (Track and Field), Lydia Lissanu (Women’s Swimming), and Ben Lyvers (Track and Field). Congratulations go to the Pioneers who perform both on and off the field.

Matchup of the Week: This Tuesday at 4 p.m. the men’s tennis tream travels to Centre College, while the women’s team will host the Colonels at Transy in the only matchup against Centre for both teams this season. After a win over Franklin College on Saturday, the 3-4 men’s team will have a chance to bring themselves up to .500 against their rivals, while the women’s team can pull back above .500 after a rough spring break road trip.

Player to Watch: Early into their inaugural season, the women’s lacrosse team will travel to Danville on Wednesday for their first rivalry game against the Centre Colonels. Five games into the season, Freshman Aubrey Bausum is leading the Pioneers offensively, averaging seven goals per game. Look for this trend to continue on Wednesday at 6 p.m. if the Pioneers are to keep from falling to an even 3-3 on the season.

The PioSphere Weekly Forecast

The Weekly Forecast
PioSphere Reporter Josh Landry

Pioneer Performance: Transylvania Golf spent their spring break competing in the Jekyll Invitational, hosted by Oglethorpe University, in Jekyll Island, Georgia and finished fifth among a field of thirty teams. This week’s honors go to Pioneer Jantzen Latham, who finished in the top five among individual scores for the weekend, and earned All-Tournament Honors with a final score of 220 (four over par for the 54-hole competition).

Matchup of the Week: Both the men and women’s Tennis Pioneers host Wittenburg University this Tuesday at 4pm. This is only the fourth home match for the women’s team (who have a 2-1 record at Transy) and they will seek to pull themselves closer to .500 and end their current seven-game losing streak on Tuesday. Still early in their season, this is the first true home match for the men’s team, who will also aim to move closer to .500 against Wittenburg.

Player to Watch: The Softball Pioneers will play host to Thomas More College in a double-header that is also the team’s first home game of the season on Wednesday afternoon. Leading the team in batting average and hits, Junior Chelsea Meiners and the leadership she brings will be invaluable if the Pioneers are to be successful after a tough spring break tournament in Florida. Head out to support the Pioneers at 3:30 p.m., 5:30 p.m., or both on Wednesday.

PioSphere Weekly Forecast

The Weekly Forecast
PioSphere Reporter Josh Landry

Pioneer Performance: Both the men’s and women’s lacrosse teams claimed the first wins of their respective program histories during this past week. On Wednesday, the men bettered Alma College 7-6 at home (at Bryan Station) and went on to a two game win streak when they topped Beloit 10-9 Sunday, bringing them to 2-2 on the season. The women’s team played the first game of their program’s history at Wilmington College in Ohio and won a resounding victory 16-2.

Matchup of the Week: This Thursday at 4pm both the men and women’s tennis teams will square off against rival Centre College. The Pioneer women will be travelling to Danville for the matchup but the men will remain at home to take on the Colonels. Both teams remain winless early on in their seasons, and need to capitalize on this opportunity to claim a win over Centre to gain some valuable momentum.

Player to Watch: Currently 2-1 on the season, the Baseball Pioneers will head to Centre College to face the Colonels at 6pm on Tuesday. Junior Catcher Sam Liggett leads the team in both batting average and slugging percentage three games into the team’s young season, and his continued efforts will be essential if the Pioneers hope to remain above .500 on Tuesday by topping the Colonels.

The PioSphere Weekly Forecast

The Weekly Forecast
PioSphere Reporter Josh Landry

Pioneer Performance: The Transylvania Equestrian team had arguably their best showing of the year over the past weekend at the Hunt/Seat event hosted by UK at Lakeside Arena in Lexington. Specifically, Kate Hindman and Ashley Montgomery performed exceptionally, with Hindman competing in Intermediate Fence and Open Flat (finishing fourth and fifth respectively) and Montgomery placing first in her class in Beginner Walk Trot Canter.

Matchup of the Week: The baseball Pioneers look to bounce back from their loss to Birmingham as they travel to rival Centre on Wednesday night at 5:30pm. A pair of juniors (Sam Liggett and Zach Bynum) have jumped out to lead the team offensively early in the season, and look to continue the trend against the 2-3 Colonels.

Player to Watch: The Pioneers lacrosse squad will look for their first win of the season against Alma College, here in Lexington at Bryan Station High School. Clay Douthat leads the team in both goals (with three in two games) and shots on goal and the Pioneers will need his contribution to continue as they look for the victory this Wednesday at 4 p.m.

The PioSphere Weekly Forecast

The Weekly Forecast
PioSphere Reporter Josh Landry

Pioneer Performance: This week features a pair of swimmers at this past weekend’s Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Championships: Junior Carly Hubbard broke her personal record with a 2:08.44 and a second place finish in the 200 Butterfly. Senior Amanda Skinner finished first with 2:27.51 in the 200 Breaststroke. Both received All-Conference recognition for their top-three finishes, and the women’s team overall earned fourth place, with the men in fifth by weekend’s end.

Matchup of the Week: Beyond the pool, Transylvania is awash in a sea of sports for the next seven days. First, men’s basketball opens the HCAC tournament at 7:30 p.m. in the Beck Center on Tuesday, facing Mt. St. Joseph, while the women’s team (with a 1st place finish in the HCAC) will wait until Saturday at 3 p.m. to host the winner of Manchester v. Defiance. Second, Transy has season openers from both men and women’s tennis (vs. Piedmont College), as well as baseball and softball (who both play doubleheaders) on Saturday. Men’s lacrosse also plays its second game in the program’s history at Bridgewater College at 1 p.m. on the same day.

Player(s) to Watch: The men’s basketball Pioneers have seven seniors heading into their final HCAC tournament this Tuesday. With three of those players comprising the top three scorers, as well as seniors leading the team in every other major stat category, they make up the heart of the team facing Mt. St. Joseph.

The PioSphere Weekly Forecast

The Weekly Forecast
PioSphere Reporter Josh Landry

Pioneer Performance: Since the loss to Rose-Hulman at home, the men’s basketball Pioneers have had two double-digit wins, including a 91-47 win at Manchester College, with freshman Parker Stansberry scoring a career-high twenty-six points. The majority of Stansberry’s points came from beyond the arc, where he shot over fifty percent. The win came at a significant time for the Pioneers, as they maintained a tie for second place in HCAC standings.

Matchup of the Week: Men’s and Women’s swimming and diving enters its first Ohio Athletic Conference championship this Thursday. After joining the OAC in June of 2012, the Pioneers will travel to the University of Akron for their inaugural postseason competition.

Player(s) to Watch: The men’s basketball Pioneers are currently tied for second in HCAC standings with Hanover, the team they play the Wednesday at home at 7:30pm. Being the second to last game of the regular season, this is arguably the most important game of the year for the Pioneers and it will take a total team effort to come away with a win. The team has relied throughout the season on the leadership of a core group of seniors along with major contributions from freshman Parker Stansberry, and will need it all on Wednesday.

The PioSphere Weekly Forecast

The Weekly Forecast
PioSphere Reporter Josh Landry

Pioneer Performance: This week’s honors belong to senior swimmer Amanda Skinner for her success Saturday against Bellarmine. At the Saturday meet, which was also Senior Day, Skinner took first place in all four of the events she competed in individually and contributed to the 200 Medley Relay win for the Pioneers. This was part of an overall women’s swimming victory over the visiting Bellarmine with a score of 114-72.

Matchup of the Week: After a home loss this past weekend to Rose-Hulman, the Transy women’s basketball Pioneers maintain a one game lead over Franklin in HCAC standings. With the last place Mt. St. Joseph coming to Transy this Wednesday at 7:30pm, a Pioneer win is essential to keeping the lead in Heartland standings. Look for continued contribution from the team’s scoring leader Nicole Coffman and from the leading freshmen, Katelyn Smith and Alex Botkin.

Player to Watch: The Transy men’s basketball team faces off against the Mount St. Joseph Lions away from home this Wednesday. After a tough loss against Rose-Hulman (the leader in HCAC standings) at home Saturday, the team will need a bounce-back win. Look for the leading scorer from Saturday, as well as for the season, Senior Ethan Spurlin to continue to lead the team on Wednesday and in the final remaining games.

The PioSphere Weekly Forecast

The Weekly Forecast
PioSphere Reporter Josh Landry

Pioneer Performance: The men and women’s Track and Field Pioneers had a record-breaking Saturday at the Defiance Invitational this past weekend. Despite both teams finishing eighth in their respective point totals, a total of five Transy track records were broken by Pioneer competitors. For the women, new bests came from Shelby Auxier in the 200 Meter Dash and Laura Clark in the 3000 Meter. New records for the men came from Ben Lyvers in the 200 Meter Dash, Mason Williams in the 400 Meter Dash, and another 3000 Meter best from Chris Saldana.

Matchup of the Week: The men’s basketball team squares off against the Rose-Hulman Fightin’ Engineers at home this Saturday at 3pm. The Pioneers are currently one game behind Rose-Hulman in the HCAC standings and will have the one-on-one advantage if a tie occurs (due to a win over the Fightin’ Engineers earlier in the season). The game could be essential to determining which school hosts the HCAC tournament this postseason and the Pioneers will continue to rely on heavy senior leadership to claim a win.

Player(s) to Watch: The Transy Equestrian team has its second competition of the team’s inaugural season this Saturday at Midway College. After placing well in their premier competition in November of last semester at in Murray, the Equestrian Pioneers will look to repeat their good performance throughout the weekend’s Hunt Seat Show (the category in which the Pioneers participate).