Basketball defeats Puget Sound and Pacific (Ore.)

Photo by Maggie McDermut

Above PJ Taylor ('12)

By Jodi Snider /// Staff Writer

The Lewis & Clark men’s basketball team earned two wins this weekend, taking on the Puget Sound Loggers at home, 78-72, and the Pacific Boxers, 70-57, in Forest Grove, Ore.

Friday night honored seniors PJ Taylor, Marcus Wells and Donato Perconti. Joined by the players’ families, LC athletes and fans thanked the players for their dedication and hard work.

The Pioneers came out shooting as they scored 10-0 in the first few minutes of game time. They continued their ten-plus lead throughout the majority of the first half. The Loggers came within six points for a brief moment, but the Pios pushed forward from there to end the half 42-27.

In the second half, the Pios continued with their lead. However, as the half pro- gressed, the Loggers slowly chipped away at the score. With just seconds left in playtime, Puget Sound came within four points of a tie, but, with two free throws from Wells, that hope was washed away. The final score was 78-72.

Taylor and James Hollins (’13) had 16 points each to lead the Pios. Wells had 15 points; Ross Erickson (’13) had 12 points and 13 boards while Brad Carter (’15) had 11. This win gave the Pios hope of making it into the first round of playoffs. LC improved to 8-7 in the NWC and 13-11 overall.

Saturday night, the Pios brought back the effort to finish out regular season play against the Boxers. LC followed close behind Pacific throughout the half. The largest deficit was at the two-minute mark as the Pios were down nine, 32-23. Neither team scored for the rest of the first half.

During the second half of the game, the Pios came out strong, chipping away at the nine point deficit. With 14:59 on the clock, Carter scored a layup, bringing the Pios within one point of the Boxers, 36-35. Around the 12:00 mark, Scott Pisapia (’13) scored a jumper to put the Pios in the lead, 42-41. From then on, the Pios surged forward, ending the game with a 13-point lead. The final score was 70-57.

High scorers were Hollins with 17 points, Wells with 16 points and Erickson with 11 points. Erickson also had a team high 6 boards. The Pios finished 9-7 in the NWC and 14-11 overall. With this win, the Pios earned the 4th place seed in the Northwest Conference semifinal tournament.

Off the Court with Tayler Wang of Women’s basketball, 2014

Photo by Maggie McDermut

By Fiona Corner /// Sports Editor

1. Pregame ritual: It sounds silly, but be fore I step on the court I have to chew a piece of gum until after warm ups, a while we do our team cheer, Kat Howe (’14) and I do a silly pre-game dance with each other.

2. Now playing on my iPod: “You Got Me” by Colbie Caillat

3. Love to trade places for a day with: An Avatar

4. Favorite team to follow as a kid: The Lakers (my dad’s favorite team)

5. Actress who would play me in a mov ie about my life: Katherine Heigl

6. Favorite spot in Portland/on campus: Sesame Donut

7. Favorite meal: Loco Moco (A native Hawaiian Dish)

8. If not basketball I’d play: Volleyball 9. Two words my teammates would use
to describe me: Caring and passionate

10. Favorite team to play: George Fox

11. Best vacation destination Ive been to: Japan

12. Currently reading: The Giver

13. Dream job: Undercover journalist

14. My hero: My mom

15. Three historical figures I’d like to meet: Queen Lili’uokalani, Elvis Presley, Albert Einstein

16. If I could be a superhero, I would be: Superman

17. Favorite person to follow on Twitter: I don’t have a Twitter

18. Favorite Lewis & Clark team to watch: Football team

19. Favorite Lewis & Clark athlete to watch: Danny Curtin (’13)

20. After a practice/game, I relax by:
Going home, taking a shower, cuddling on the couch with a warm blanket and watching TV.

Baseball falls to Corban

By Michael D'Angelo /// Sports Editor

Baseball kicked off their home play Sunday, Feb. 19 with two losses in a double-header against Corban, 6-3 in game one and 4-2 in game two.

Michael Ball (’12) gave the Pioneers a lead in the fourth inning of the first game with a lead-off homerun. The Warriors responded in the top of the fifth, regaining their lead with two runs on two hits and a Pio error. Corban capitalized on their lead in the sixth, gaining a 6-1 lead from four runs.

Geoff Wertz (’13) garnered a run back for the Pios, courtesy of an RBI double to left field scoring Eric Hyun (’15) in the bottom of the seventh. A double to right center by Nick Lavin (’12) brought Wertz around to score followed by a single from Parker Dane (’12), which put runners at the corners for the Pios. However, the Pios weren’t brought home, with the next batter flying out to end the game.
Wertz finished the first game 3-for-4, scoring once and picking up a single RBI. Corey Davis (’14) ended the contest 2-for-3 from the plate.

Corban started the scoring in the second game in the third inning. Corban took off from there at the top of the fourth, starting with a hill double down the right line that brought a Warrior in to score from second. Corban’s Kunnel picked up an RBI with the next Warrior at bat.

The Pios responded in the bottom of the fourth with a run to put their first point of the game on the board. A double to right field by Hyun led off the inning, putting a Pio in scoring position. The next Pio at bat advanced Hyun to third before being driven in by Ball on a ground out to short.

The scoreboard remained unchanged until the top half of the seventh inning, when the Warriors plated another run. The Pios responded shortly after with a run in the bottom half of the inning. A single to right field by Davis, followed by a single down the left line by Mike Kinkenon (’15). Dane scored on a fielder’s choice with Davis hitting third and Kinkenon getting thrown out at second.

A double to right center by Andrew Traver (’15) brought Davis home, but with one out Corban’s pitcher retired the next two Pios, keeping the other two runners from scoring.

Hyun ended the game two 2-for-3, starting in the lead-off spot, while coming around to score one of the team’s two runs. Kinkenon came in for Lavin after one inning of action, finishing 2-for-2 from the plate.

Baseball returns this Saturday, Feb. 25  at Linfield starting at 11 a.m.

Out with a splash

PHOTO BY FIONA CORNER

Senior swimmers (left to right) Eric Khazoyan, Noah Boring, Kira McGieson, Kaitlin Smith and Rachel Wolf. Not pictured Steven Carreno.

BY CIERRA HIGGINS Staff Writer

The Pioneer swim team travelled to Federal Way, Wash. to finish up their 2011-2012 season at the Northwest Conference championships, where the team broke records and gave solid performances.

The women placed sixth overall, while the men finished in eighth place.

“I think we did really well, considering that we don’t have the numbers. We’re not a big team, but everyone works hard,” said Noah Callaghan (’15).

Highlight performances from the wom- en include a fourth place finish in the 200 Butterfly from Monica Castro (’15) and a sixth place finish in the 200 Backstroke from Taylor Coiner (’14). Other notable perfoRmances came from Kayla Ernewein (’13), who placed fifth in the 100 Freestyle, and Katy Yeh (’14), who finished sixth in the 200 Breaststroke. The women’s 400 Freestyle team, consisting of members Hannah Frank (’13), Kira McGieson (’12), Ernewein and Coiner, placed fourth.

The men’s team also had solid performances, with Trevor Schapiro (’15) placing sixth in the 1650 Freestyle. River Poze (’15) finished 14th in the 200 Backstroke and Evan Damon (’13) placed 13th in the 200 Breaststroke. Callaghan swam the 100 Freestyle, placing tenth. The men’s 400 Freestyle placed eighth, consisting of team members Noah Boring (’12), Steven Carreno (’12), Shapiro and Callaghan.

The NWC championships had both negative and positive aspects compared to the other meets.

“The reason why NWC was better than other meets is also the reason why it was the worst. It was a long meet that took place over three days, but that’s also why it’s bet- ter, because all the teams in the conference were there and everyone was swimming their best,” said Callaghan.

Callaghan broke a record for the Pioneers, as he swam the fastest 200 Backstroke since the record was set in 1978.

“I’m ecstatic. That was certainly one of our biggest high points of the entire weekend,” said Coach Chris Fantz.

Besides Callaghan, there were many other team members who impressed the coaches.

“I think most of them went above and beyond. I think Evan Damon probably surprised us. He didn’t exceed expectation, because we expected a lot from him, but he just blew his times out of the water,” said Fantz.

Fantz is optimistic about the future of Pioneer swimming and hopes that team mem- bers keep up their enthusiasm for the sport.

“I think really what we are looking for is people maintaining this level of excitement so that they keep that big-picture view and keep in perspective what they want to accomplish this time next year.”

Keeping it even with 7-7 Men’s basketball sits at fifth place in the NWC with a 7-7 NWC record and 12-11 overall.

PHOTO BY MAGGIE MCDERMUT

BY JODI SNIDER Staff Writer

Thursday Night in Salem, Ore., the LC Pioneers took on the Willamette Bearcats. The Bearcats came out strong, taking the lead early in the first half. With 6:06 remain- ing on the clock, the Pioneers were down by 13 points, 18-31. With 1:44 left in play time, LC ramped up their intensity as Donato Perconti got a lay in followed by a steal, making the score 28-38. Continuing this strong effort, Caron Rayford scored back-to- back layups, bringing the Pioneers within 6 points of the Bearcats at 32-38. The Pioneers gave up one last bucket in the half; the final score at half time was 32-40.

Marcus Wells started off the second half grabbing two back-to-back boards and a layup, putting the score at 34-40. It was a constant struggle for the Pioneers to catch up the entire second half. Slowly, the Pioneers clawed their way back up and at 8:39 left in the game, Ross Erickson scored a layup to bring the Pioneers within a point of the Bearcats, 59-60. From here the Bearcats went on a 12-2 run. Even with a commend- able effort from Erickson, scoring 16 of his 22 points in the second half, the Pioneers couldn’t chase the bearcats down.

The final score was 70-79, leaving the Pioneers at 6-7 in conference and 11-11 overall. High scorers were Ross Erickson with 22 points, Marcus Wells with 14 points and Scott Pisapia with 10. Both Wells and Donato Perconti had a team high 6 boards.

Saturday night at home, the Pioneers played the Pacific Lutheran Lutes. The Pioneers started the game slow as the Lutes went on a 10-3 run. PJ Taylor scored three con- secutive three-pointers to get the Pioneers within 4 points of the Lutes, 12-16. With another three-pointer, this time by Donato Perconti, the Pioneers came within a point of the Lutes with only 8:15 left in the first half, bringing the score to 19-20. The lutes continued to keep their lead throughout the first half; the half time score was 28-27.

To start off the second half, a lay-in and free throw by PJ Taylor tied the game up at 30-30. The Pioneers took the lead with 13:25 remaining on the clock with a three- pointer by Marcus Wells, bringing the score to 35-32. With 10:23 left in game time, Ross Erickson threw a beautiful dunk to further extend the Pioneers’ lead to 41-35. The Lutes could not answer back, and with about two minutes remaining, the score was at its larg- est difference of eleven points, 61-50. The Pioneers won, 63-53, to take home their sev- enth NWC win.
High scorers were PJ Taylor with 16 points, Marcus Wells with 11 points and Ross Erickson with 10 points. Erickson also grabbed a team-high of 14 boards and 5 as- sists. Wells was an impressive 5-6 from the floor, an 85% shooting percentage.

The men play again Feb. 17 and 18. Come out to support Seniors PJ Taylor, Do- nato Perconti and Marcus Wells on Friday against the University of Puget Sound Loggers, as it will be their last home game. Saturday night, the games will be away at Pacific University in Forest Grove, Ore.