Brit Bits (03/18-28)

Sports recaps from March 18 through March 28

Baseball

Record:  6-15 for the season, 2-4 in MIAA play

Last week:  The men’s baseball team fell to Madonna in a two-game loss, trailing 14-7 and 8-4 in the final score of each matchup in the doubleheader.

This week:  Albion College baseball won two games against Defiance of Ohio on Sunday, March 21, and lost their game against the same team the following Tuesday.  The Britons fell to Spring Arbor on Wednesday, March 24, and split with Trine University two days in a row on Friday and Saturday, March 26-27, winning one game and losing one game in each doubleheader.

Key player: Dan Zech, Rochester Hills senior, was Albion’s leading hitter with three hits in the second game on Saturday against Trine University. Abe Belanger, Coldwater senior, and Nick Frank, Coloma first-year, had two hits apiece.

What’s next: The Albion College Britons will take to the field in a double header against Alma on Friday, April 2.

Softball

Record: 6-16 for the season, 0-2 in MIAA play

Last week:  Albion women’s softball split with Defiance of Ohio on Saturday, March 20, winning the second game of their double header 6-3 on the road.  The Lady Brits won both games of their doubleheader against Case Western Reserve of Ohio at home with final scores of 7-6 and 7-3.

This week:  The Lady Brits fell to Adrian in a home game doubleheader on Friday, March 26.  Game one was decided after just five innings, a 13-2 loss, but game two of the double header showed promise.  The Lady Brits lost 7-6 after a wild pitch that allowed the Adrian Lady Bulldogs to score the tying run in the seventh inning was followed by a homerun.

Key player: Lindsay Toman, St. Claire Shores senior, drove in two runs with a double, and Melissa Shaw, Jackson junior, also brought in two runs with a double.  Alyssa Tropea, Bloomfield Hills sophomore, drew a walk and scored on a double hit by Tate Kern, Kaleva sophomore.

What’s next: Women’s softball plays Olivet on April 1 at 3:30 p.m. at Olivet.

Men’s Tennis

Record: 1-9 for the season, all non-MIAA play

Last week:  Men’s tennis fell to Grand Valley State on Saturday, March 20, in an 8-1 final score and to Ferris State on Tuesday, March 23, with a final score of 9-0.

This week:  Men’s tennis played in a tournament  in Indiana this past weekend.  Dann y Frank, Ann Arbor sophomore, won two matches and finished  in third place in the No. 2 singles bracket.  Chris Tapping, Chelsea junior, and Billy Sessions, Grosse Pointe Woods sophomore, each placed fourth in their brackets, No 6. and No. 5 singles respectively.

Key player: Frank, winning two matches to secure a third place in the No. 2 singles bracket, led the team at the Indiana Invitational.

What’s next: Dual meet conference play resumes on Saturday, April 2, against Kalamazoo College at home at Albion College.

Women’s Tennis

Record: 6-2 for the season, 1-0 in MIAA play

This week:  The Lady Brits took on Alma College in MIAA play on Tuesday, March 23.  Marissa Messenger, East Lansing first-year, and Morgan Walter, Novi senior, Albion’s third doubles team, won a tiebreaker that helped clinch a 5-4 win.  Watler, Shelley Zamler, Beverly Hills junior, and Anna Gundersen, Whitehall senior,  each won their singles matches in straight sets.

Key player: The Brits’ team of Messenger and Watler carried Albion to victory, breaking the 4-4 tied score going into the set.

What’s next: The Lady Brits take on Olivet College at 4 p.m. at home on March 30.

Men’s Track and Field

This week:  Albion College competed in the Rhodes Invitational this past weekend in Memphis, Tenn.  Ryan Burgdorf, Hastings sophomore, finished in the top four for his sprinting event (third place in the 100-meter sprint and fourth in the 200-meter sprint) and Austin Rogers, Dexter junior, won the shot-put throw.  Nich Shaheen, Flint senior, and Tyler Silverthorn, Swartz Creek senior, finished third and fourth, respectively, in the 10,000-meter race.  Deion Pruitt, Ann Arbor first-year, finished fifth in the 5,000-meter race.  Drew Fuentes, Grand Junction sophomore, and Matt Melvin, Bangor first-year, finished third and fifth, respectively, in the 3,000-meter steeplechase.

What’s next: The Albion College men’s track team will compete in the Spartan Relays on Saturday, April 3.

Women’s Track and Field

This week:  The women’s track team competed in Indiana Wesleyan University’s Polar Bear Invitational this past weekend.  Erika Nichols, Greenville senior, finished first out of 21 runners in the 5,000-meter race, finishing 12 seconds before the second place runner who represented Division I school Ball State University.  The 4×100-meter relay team of Kalya Miles, Jackson first-year, Kristin Nelson, Iron Mountain first-year, Dana Koenig, Midland junior, and Samantha Ritter, Vandercook Lake sophomore, finished in third place with a final time of 51.65 seconds.  Koenig also finished second in her triple jump field event, and Chelsea Anthony, Ludington sophomore, was the runner-up in the discus throw.

What’s next: Albion College will compete in the Spartan Relays on Saturday, April 3.

Photo courtesy of Shelley Zamler.

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