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March 1, 2002

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Track Buses to Boston for IC4As, ECACs

By wpengine | March 1, 2002

This weekend the qualifying members of the men’s and women’s track & field teams will travel to Boston to compete in what could be their final meets of the season. The men will compete in the IC4As and the women will compete in the ECACs. After strong regular seasons by both the men and women, these year-end meets give the athletes a chance to shine on a much larger stage.

“The IC4As is a huge track meet,” said men’s head coach Nathan Taylor. “There are 103 teams — one-third of all NCAA schools in the country. We had 25 athletes qualify for the IC4As. That’s the most in a while, possibly ever.”

“People seems pretty excited,” added women’s head coach Lou Duesing. “We’re one of 85 teams, and we know they all come to play.”

Sophomore pole-vaulter Travis Offner says that the athletes are well aware of the magnitude of this weekend’s meets.

“Everybody’s fired up and ready to go. We’re stronger than last year,” he said. “If everybody performs up to par, we should do pretty well.”

For many of the athletes, the IC4As and the ECACs will serve as a fitting end to a successful season. But, for a select few, Boston could be a steppingstone to the NCAAs.

“We are on the brink of qualifying for the NCAAs in four events,” said Duesing. “Last year, we had the performances, but we didn’t know if we could play. This year, we’ve brought confidence and determination. We want to mix it up. This is a special group.”

“Right now we have two provisional qualifiers,” said Taylor. “The IC4As will be a very competitive meet and a challenge for the athletes. It will be their last meet of the season unless they qualify for the NCAAs.”

The IC4As and the ECACs will be the final chance for the men’s and women’s track teams to give their all before turning their focus to the outdoor season. No matter how this weekend might turn out for the Red, Taylor knows that the next season is right around the corner.

“Our first outdoor meet is March 16th. We’ll give the athletes who are competing this weekend a day or two off. But, then we’ll start to focus on the outdoor season.”

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By wpengine March 4, 2002

TROY, N.Y. — The college hockey gods are a fickle bunch; anyone who disagrees need only look at Cornell’s slim 2-1 win over Rensselaer on Friday night. In a game marked by special teams and two disallowed goals, the Red held on to win by the slimmest of margins. The Red (20-6-2, 16-3-2 ECAC)fought from behind before the game even started. During the warmup, senior goaltender and scheduled starter Matt Underhill took a puck off the knee that sent him onto the bench. Freshman David LeNeveu was only given the start after the warmup session ended. However, Cornell’s season long goalie rotation paid off, as the rookie stopped 32 of 33 shots. “[Underhill] took a shot off the leg in warmup and he hurt himself, so it was one of those freaky things that happened tonight. David did a great job tonight of stepping in and taking his place,” head coach Mike Schafer said. LeNeveu was tested early, as junior defenseman Doug Murray and freshman Charlie Cook were sent to the box within 23 seconds of each other a mere two minutes into the game. “It got me into the game real quick. There were a lot of shots,” LeNeveu said. “It was unfortunate that our guys had to take that penalty,” he added about Cook’s hooking call on Mark Murley, “but it was a good penalty to take. Their guy was on a breakaway.” RPI (15-12-4, 9-9-3 ECAC), fighting for home-ice in the conference quarterfinals, capitalized as Matt Cavosie ripped a shot from the point which snuck by LeNeveu’s glove side. However, the Engineers relinquished the momentum after they gave Cornell a power play at 11:41. The first unit looked as sharp as it has all season when Murray found junior Mark McRae at the top of the right circle. With classmate Sam Paolini applying the screen, McRae was able to slip a goal over RPI goalie Nathan Marsters’ left shoulder. “It took some perseverance to come back, especially starting the game with a five-on-three,” junior captain Stephen B
M. Lax Opens With 8-5 Defeat

By wpengine March 4, 2002

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