Freshman Kirsty Blue jumps up for a potential spike against two Boston College players during the Hokies' sweep of the Eagles on Nov. 14.
FANNING FIRST HOKIE TO WIN REGIONAL TITLE
Senior All-American Tasmin Fanning led the Tech cross country team this weekend by becoming the first Hokie to ever win a regional meet, placing first in the NCAA Southeast Regional in Clemmons, N.C.
Fanning, who finished third in the same event last year, bested the field of 231 runners with a time of 20:08 in the 6k race. The next Hokie to cross the finish line was senior Erin Reddan, who came in 20th. She was followed by senior Jess Fanning (50th), junior Natalie Kretzer (56th) and freshman Lauren Pinkston (99th).
With her 20th place finish, Reddan finished her Tech running career by garnering All-Region honors.
Tech ultimately placed seventh among the 33 teams at the meet. Virginia won with three runners finishing in the top 10. Kentucky, UNC, Duke and William & Mary rounded out the top five.
Fanning also received a bid to nationals, representing Tech individually as one of the favorites in the event. Fanning placed 12th out of 255 in 2007.
For the men, senior Phillip Padilla was the highest-placing Hokie, finishing the 10k run in 23rd with a time of 31:23. He also ended his Tech career with an All-Region distinction.
Junior Devin Cornwall followed Padilla in 26th, with sophomore Matt Kroetch in 34th, freshman Brian Welch in 55th, and freshman Mike Hammond in 61st. There were 212 runners in the 29-team field.
The men's team also finished seventh place overall, behind winner William & Mary.
Neither the men nor women's teams qualified for the NCAA Championships. Fanning will be the lone individual representative for Tech at nationals, which will be held Nov. 24 in Terre Haute, Ind.
-- by Matt Collette
TECH WRESTLING DOMINATES FIRST-EVER HOKIE OPEN
At the first-ever Hokie Open held at the Salem Civic Center this past Sunday, four Hokies came out with the title in their respective weight class while wrestling unattached.
Red-shirt sophomore Will Livingston, who is a transfer from Ohio State, had a 5-2 decision against Jeremy Shaw from UNC in the final round for 133, landing him the title. To reach the final round, Livingston had to wrestle sophomore teammate Jared Jones where he picked up a 20-5 technical fall, easing him into the final.
At 141 pounds, sophomore Chris Diaz came out on top with an 11-5 decision over ODU's Brennan Brumley in the final round, coming in first with the title at that mark.
At the 157 mark, freshman Jesse Dong stood his ground and came up big with a fall at 3:35 over Liberty's Josh Duren for the title.
At 174 pounds, red-shirt freshman Anthony Trongone had a 3-2 decision over ODU's Eric Decker, also gaining the title in his respective weight class.
Tech dominated in its first tournament, taking four of the nine titles available. Other Hokies such as David Marone, DJ Bruce and Jarrod Garnett, came in second in their respective classes, while Brock LiVorio and Matt Epperly came in third, and Tim Miller and AJ Johnson finished in fourth.
The Hokies will again be competing unattached this weekend as they travel to Annapolis, Md. to take part in the Navy Classic on Saturday.
-- by Lindsay Faulkner
WOMEN'S SOCCER OUT IN FIRST ROUND OF NCAA TOURNAMENT
The Tech women's soccer team lost in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday evening, falling by a score of 2-0 to the Brigham Young Cougars in Provo, Utah.
The scoring started when BYU's Kassidy Christensen found the net in the 38th minute. After denying the visiting Hokies on several occasions, the Cougars extended their lead.
Thanks to the team's leading scorer, Katie Larkin, BYU opened up a two-goal advantage. Larkin shot one past Tech freshman goalkeeper Kristin Carden in the 76th minute of play.
With the loss, the Hokies finished 10-9-4, coming within one victory of tying the program record for wins in a single season. The Cougars improved to 18-5-0 before bowing out in the next round in a loss to the fourth-seeded Southern California Trojans.
-- by Brian Wright
Continue Reading: « Previous12
Leave a comment 0 Comments Write a letter to the editor
All letters to the editor must include a name, e-mail, daytime phone number and affiliation to Virginia Tech. Affiliation includes: year and major for students; position and department for faculty and staff; current city for alumni and parents.