WHAT A DEBUT

The Fighting Scots football team knows how to debut a new stadium.

 Playing at the brand new April Zorn Memorial Stadium, the Scots not only hosted a first round playoff game – they WON!

Saturday’s 42-13 win over Aurora will be marked in history as the first playoff win in school history. Alex Tanney threw for 366 yards and five TDs, Michael Blodgett was on the receiving end of three of those. The defense yielded just 84 yards rushing and the Scots led 20-0 by halftime.

 Not bad for a day’s work.

 It didn’t look like a blowout early, even after the Scots scored late in the first quarter. The ensuing PAT kick was blocked and Aurora’s defense scooped up the loose pigskin and headed downfield for a possible defensive two-point conversion.

Enter Nick Wright.

In Don Beebe fashion, the holder on the PAT squad raced downfield and knocked the Spartans defender out of bounds inside the five yard line – keeping the score 6-0 instead of 6-2.

“That was a terrific effort,” said Steve Bell. “We had a similar situation at St. Norbert and Nick couldn’t quite bring that guy down. I think Nick decided it wasn’t going to happen again. It was a big play. It took away a possible momentum changer.”

Bell isn’t concerned that his Fighting Scots are 0-2 against their second round opponent in the Division III playoffs.

“We’re both in the same stage of playoff experience,” said Bell of 9-2 Wartburg, which boasts seven playoff appearances, but none since 2004. “We’re a much different team now than we were in the first game of 2007. I don’t put any credence in that game other than they are a very good team. Last year was last year and this year is this year.”

The Scots host the Knights for a noon kickoff Saturday at April Zorn Memorial Stadium and enter the contest with a 14-game winning streak – believed to be the longest streak in Division III. The 11-0 Scots also have the No. 1 scoring offense in Division III and lead the division in turnover margin – nearly +2 per game. The swarming defense has recorded 21 interceptions and recovered 15 fumbles.

Defensive coordinator Chad Braun has a veteran defensive unit that’s ranked sixth in total defense. The squad starts eight seniors – half of them linebackers. They’ve held opponents to less than 100 yards rushing per game and allowed less than 13 points per game. Marc Artozqui’s 110 tackles are just five shy of the Scots’ season record and cornerback Willy Mason’s seven interceptions are just two shy of Al Hatfield’s season record set in 1967.

Wartburg’s defense is no screen door, either. The Knights are ranked 11th in pass efficiency defense and will give the Scots’ offense a “stiff” challenge. The unit has picked off 17 passes, led by senior corner Josh Faaborg’s five. Opposing quarterbacks have been sacked 24 times and Wartburg has only allowed 10 passing touchdowns. That’s in direct conflict with the Monmouth offense, which has aired out more than 300 yards per game passing to go with 47 aerial TDs.

“Wartburg’s defense is fast,” claimed Bell. “You can tell they’re well-coached. They’re a lot like us in that they try to get 11 guys to the ball on every play.”

At times, it seems like the Scots’ offense tries to get the ball to 11 guys – 19 players have offensive stats of some kind. The leader of the pack – sophomore Tanney – has already moved to No. 1 on the school’s single-season list for passing yards (3,311) and TD’s (47). In last weekend’s first round win over Aurora, Tanney set the career record for completions (519), breaking Rob Purlee’s record set from 2000-04.

Wartburg has its share of offensive threats, too. Junior quarterback Nick Yordi enters Saturday’s game just 130 yards shy of passing former standout and current quarterback coach Reed Hoskins’ single season record of 2,685 yards set in 2003. He has an efficiency rating of 143.84 and has thrown 11 interceptions.

Yordi’s favorite target has been Justin Vetter. The “talented” senior is the Knight’s first 1,000-yard receiver since 1999. He has nearly twice as many receptions as the next closest receiver and leads the team with 11 TDs.

On the ground, Wartburg has at least two able backs – freshman Lamar Harvey and appropriately-named junior Alex Boom. The tandem is just 20 yards shy of the 1,000-yard mark. Boom leads the backs with five scores, and Yordi has four.

“They are very good,” said Bell of the Knights’ offense. “They are well-coached and pretty balanced. They can throw and have a physical running game. They’ll spread the ball around.”

While the skill positions get the glory, the coaches will tell you the game is won in the trenches. That could be interesting Saturday afternoon when the Scots’ large, agile defensive line battles the “big” Knights’ offensive line for territory. The Knights have a 10-pound per man advantage, as left guard Scott Crawford’s 290-pound frame tips the scales in Wartburg’s favor.

“They have a big, physical offensive line,” warned Bell. “We’re big on the defensive line, too. That should be interesting to watch.”

Unlike last week when the Scots met an Aurora team they hadn’t seen in more than 20 years, this weekend both teams will have recent history to pull from.

“They do some of the same things,” reported Bell. “Coach (Rick) Willis wasn’t coaching them when we played last, but the style hasn’t changed. Defensively, we’ll need to create some turnovers and prevent them from getting big plays and picking up big chunks of yardage. Offensively, we’ll need to sustain some drives.”

It might be tough for the Scots to win the time of possession battle. Their quick-score offense has resulted in nearly half of their 80 scores coming in two minutes or less, resulting in a five-minute deficit in time of possession.

The ability to score quickly came with the maturing of the no-huddle offense that Bell installed last season and debuted against the Knights in Waverly, Iowa.

“We’re vastly different than we were last year,” claimed Bell in referring to last year’s loss. “We were very young when we played them last year. It was the first game of our no-huddle offense. Defensively, we were different up front in terms of experience. This game will be played Saturday and that’s all that matters.”

BEYER IN EXCLUSIVE COMPANY

Competing at the NCAA Cross Country National Championships in Hanover, Ind., Saturday, Mary Kate Beyer (East Peoria, Ill./East Peoria) shaved 45 seconds off her previous time at the Hanover course to place in the top third of the nation.

Beyer’s time of 22:12.78 over the 6K course, placed her 74th, missing All-American status by less than 30 seconds.

“The time was about, or a little better than I had hoped for,” said Roger Haynes. “The race went through a little faster than I thought it would. She was down a few places from where we had hoped, but she ran very well for her first national championship meet. It was a good experience and I think it will have an impact on what she does in the future.”

Beyer got off to a good start, running from the outside box, her pace was nearly “perfect” through the first mile.

“She ran well through the middle mile,” said Haynes. “She probably wasn’t as strong as some of the others in the last mile or so that she would have hoped to have been, but she ran really well.”

It was a new experience for the sophomore who became Monmouth’s first female national qualifier. For the first time this season, Beyer had no teammates in the race – or even any teammates to warmup with. Still, she had plenty of support. Family, friends and teammates made the drive to Hanover to watch history in the making. That may have taken some of the sting off missing the All-American goal.

“She was a bit disappointed in not being closer to All-American,” reported Haynes. “As we drove home Saturday afternoon, we talked and she realized what she accomplished. We compared it favorably to what Zach Barr did on that course his first time.”

What Barr did was place 68th in 2003, then finish as an All-American in 2004. That’s a pretty good comparison for Beyer to hang her spikes on.

SINKING A VIKING SHIP

The Fighting Scots’ men’s and women’s swim teams sank the Augustana Vikings in a dual meet Friday at the college’s Pepper Natatorium.

The Fighting Scots swam outside their normal strokes and were still able to post a sweep. The men won seven of their 11 events to score an easy 124-80 win. The Scots women had a tougher time, but took first in six of their 11 events and edged the Vikings 97-95.

“We did a very nice job of swimming our ‘off’ strokes,” praised Dave Yez. “(assistant coach) Kurt (Niemeier) changed it up a bit so the kids were swimming some different strokes and we had a very good effort.

That good effort resulted in the Scots’ women handing Augie their first dual meet loss of the year.

Freshmen Kendra Kuehl, Jamie Schingoethe and Krysta Sparks each picked up a pair of firsts. Kuehl, Schingoehte, Sparks and Rachel Holm opened the meet with a win in the 200- medley relay (1:59.57). The trio then each won individual events for their second firsts of the meet.

Kuehl out-touched Holm to win the 200- IM (2:26.22). Schingoethe’s collegiate debut in the 200- freestyle (2:08.78) resulted in a win. Sparks took first in the 100- breaststroke (1:12.58) to edge teammate Colleen Zumpf (1:15.68).

Rachel Buckham swam a personal-best to win the 100- backstroke (1:07.02), just ahead of Kuehl (1:08.10). Buckham also picked up a second in the 1,000- freestyle (12:15.43).

Lauren Nelson posted a first in the 500- freestyle (5:58.38). Sparks took second in the 100- butterfly while swimming a personal-best (1:06.11). Buckham, Nelson, Zumpf and Jessica Lindley swam to a second-place finish in the 200- freestyle relay (1:53.01).

Harrison Heilman paced the men with a pair of firsts. The junior from Downers’ Grove, Ill., touched first in the 200-yard IM (2:11.45) and the 500- freestyle (5:24.95). Freshman Joe Testolin was second in the 500- freestyle (5:26.01). Classmate Andrew Wright swam a personal-best and picked up a first in the 1,000- freestyle (10:51.08). John Kaiser won the 100- butterfly (58.23) and was second to Wright in the 1,000- freestyle (11:10.42).

Testolin led a 1-2-3 finish in the 100- freestyle. His time of 52.46 out-touched teammate Steve Collins by .36. Ed Novak placed third (55.25). Another freshman – Josh Dunn – swam a personal-best and won the 100- backstroke (59.94). He was second in the 200- IM (2:13.30).

“Joe (Testolin) really surprised us in the 100- freestyle,” claimed Yez. “We really didn’t expect that. Harrison said he felt really good in the 500- , he was cruising.”

Stephen Whittle and Jack Clifford, who was second in the 200- freestyle (2:05.63), teamed with Dunn and Novak to win the 200- medley relay (1:51.78). The 200- freestyle team of Kaiser, Brant Furr, Josh Van Swol and Matt O’Rourke took second (1:44.23).

“I think the meet was a testimony to our endurance,” said Yez. “Our swimmers’ endurance seemed to be better. I think we’re ahead of schedule of where we wanted to be for conference. If we continue on our pace, we should have some greatly improved times come conference.”

The Scots take this weekend off before heading to the DePauw Invitational Dec. 5-6 and then heading out for winter break.

“This is a championship-type meet,” said Yez in comparing it to the Midwest Conference meet. “We’ll face some top-notch competition. We’ll swim everyone pretty close to the lineup we’ll use in conference. This will really be our last chance to post some good seed times for conference.

3-0, BUT ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT

Those who have been around the women’s basketball program know Melissa Bittner won’t settle for being “just OK.”

The Scots posted a home-opening 83-59 win Saturday against Augustana and followed that up with a 59-55 squeaker Tuesday at North Park. Neither score was indicative of how each game began.

The Scots were a bit slow out of the gate against Augustana and didn’t hit their first shot until nearly three minutes into the game. Even then, the offense couldn’t quite get into a flow. The Vikings took a time out at the 14 minute mark to make an adjustment…and it worked…for the Scots.

After the timeout, the Scots converted two straight steals into points and the momentum was clearly in the Scots’ favor. By halftime, Monmouth had built a 14 point lead thanks in part to three of Lynsey Barnard’s four treys. The Vikings were only able to get the deficit down to nine – once – in the second half. Barnard led all scorers with 18 points. Tanesha Hughes posted a double-double of 13 points and 12 rebounds.

“Justine Boone led us with her defensive intensity,” praised Bittner of her sophomore who had a game-high nine steals. “I was very proud of our pressure defense that created 29 turnovers. Our defense helped us get 82 points off steals and fast breaks.”

 It was just the opposite Tuesday at North Park as the Scots scored nine unanswered points before the Vikings – yes, they’re the Vikings, too – scored on a free throw nearly four minutes into the game. By halftime it was 31-20 and the Scots appeared to be on their way to win No. 3.

The Vikings came charging out of the gate in the second half and quickly dug their way out of the 11 point hole, trimming it to three with 14:30 to play. Monmouth kept North Park at bay, never surrendering the lead and iced the game when Melissa Gorski hit four-for-five free throws in the last :33. Gorski ended with a game-high 16 points and Hughes posted her second straight double-double, pouring in 11 points and grabbing 10 boards. Gorski’s countdown to 1,000 points now stands at 956. At her current pace, she should hit the milestone next weekend.

“Our seniors stepped up big,” said Bittner of the efforts of Hughes and Gorski. “We need to make better adjustments. We had 16 turnovers at halftime and 11 of those were traveling violations. I think that got in our head and affected our play. Sometimes, you just have to grind out wins on the road.”

This weekend the Scots will host Central, Rockford and Robert Morris-Springfield for their Thanksgiving Tournament. The four-team format will pit Rockford and Robert Morris against each other in the opener Saturday night followed by the Scots meeting Central.

“Central might be 1-3,” warned Bittner. “But, they’ve played some really tough teams.”

Tough teams might be an understatement. The Dutch have met two ranked teams in their four games.

The Scots haven’t exactly opened up with patsies, either, posting win against a pair of CCIW schools.

“I’m proud of our 3-0 start,” said Bittner. “Now we have to defend our home court. We’ll need to move the ball quicker and attack the press, and we’ll continue to work on our rotations and pressure defense.”

The weekend tournament should be a good warmup for the Midwest Conference season. The Scots hit the road next weekend for their first set of conference games traveling to Ripon and St. Norbert.

GETTING THERE

Half the battle for Mark Vershaw’s men’s basketball team was just getting there.

In the first week of the young season, the Fighting Scots have logged over 2,400 miles…all by van or bus. The Scots have a 1-3 record to show for their travels, but Vershaw is hoping the real value will be apparent once the conference season begins.

“We’re learning how to win,” said Vershaw. “It was a good opportunity to see how it’s done.”

The Scots first win of the season came on an improbable play from an improbable player in an improbable spot.

It’s the second overtime and the Scots are trialing 73-72 with just seconds left against Case Western – at Case. CW had just taken the lead and the Scots opted to hustle up the floor. What happened next defies explanation.

“It was not a textbook finish,” said Vershaw of the wild finish that saw the Scots score the final points of each period. “We were up (72-71) with about 30 seconds left and had possession. Eric (Grant) brought the ball up the floor and got it caught on his hip and turned it over.”

Don’t worry, Mrs. Grant, your son will redeem himself in a minute.

Case took the ball down court and promptly took the lead 73-72 with :13 remaining. Here comes the improbable part.

Grant took the drive into the paint and lost the ball – again. Wait, Mrs. Grant, this is good – really.

Vershaw at this point is screaming for a timeout, but fortunately as we all know referees don’t always hear someone screaming in their ear. That was a good thing.

Grant picked up the loose ball, turned around and got a quick shot off the glass to go in. Yes, the bank was open and the Scots had their first win – if Case doesn’t score in the last five seconds.

Another “gentle” plea for a timeout by Vershaw to set his defense goes unanswered and CW has one last look.

“They got a clean look from halfcourt,” reported Vershaw. “It was right on target but hit the back of the rim. As it turned out, I was thankful he didn’t give me either timeout.”

The positive finish didn’t look too promising early in the game. The Scots trailed by eight with 13 minutes to go in the game when things turned around.

“I felt like if we fell behind by 12 or more, we wouldn’t be able to bounce back,” reported Vershaw. “The guys responded from that point on and we played the way we were hoping to play from the effort standpoint. Corey Gruber did a really nice job defending their wing. All five guys we had out there were on the same page. We still need to work on execution.”

Eric Cogdill was able to execute from the free throw line, making seven-of eight – including four-for-four in the second overtime. The sophomore finished with 19 points. He and Corey Turner were named to the all-tournament team.

The Scots weren’t so fortunate the following night, falling to Capital 87-67.

“They were a very good team,” said Vershaw. “They won a game in the national tournament last year and had four seniors in the starting lineup last weekend. They did everything we would like to do.”

The Scots put their lessons to practical use last night in a 65-54 win over Eureka.

Monmouth never trailed in the game and took their first double-digit lead on Scott Ubbenga’s three-pointer with 13:17 left in the first half. The Red Devils trimmed the deficit back to six points nearing halftime before Corey Turner nailed a trey off of an Ubbenga assist. The Scots kept Eureka at arm’s length in the second half to pick up their second win in three games.

Turner hit five treys and led with a game-high 19 points and Eric Cogdill added 10 as the Scots shot nearly 50 percent from the floor and just under 46 percent from beyond the arc.

“We’re fortunate to be able to play this demanding schedule so early in the season,” said Vershaw. “It gives us a chance to identify some problem areas and correct them before we get into the conference season.”

The long road trips also help build stamina.

TERRIFIC TRIO

A senior and two sophomores earned All-Midwest Conference honors for the women’s soccer team.

Megan Meeke (Elmhurst, Ill./York) earned her second first team honor. The sophomore midfielder led the team with a .640 shot-on-goal percentage. She was second on the team in goals (5), tied for third in assists (3) and was third in total points (13).

Sarah Kisner’s (East Moline, Ill./United Township) honorable mention selection was her first all-league honor. The senior midfielder was tied for the team lead in goals (8) and tied for second in total points (18). Kisner was a four-year starter and the lone senior on this year’s squad.

Brittney Parker (Waukegan, Ill./Warren) was named to the honorable mention team for the second time. The sophomore defender helped Monmouth post five shutouts and hold opponents to a 1.58 goals per game average.

The Fighting Scots finished the season 7-8-3 and played five overtime matches. They finished sixth in the MWC standings.

  BELL, TANNEY, SCOTS GET THEIR HONORS  

The Midwest Conference coaches rewarded the Monmouth College football team for their conference championship with 19 all-conference selections and the Offensive Player and Coach of the Year awards.

Fighting Scots’ coach Steve Bell was named the MWC Coach of the Year for the third time, previously winning the award in 2001 and 2004. Bell has guided the Scots to a 67-24 record in his nine years which included an unbeaten season and conference title in 2005. This season marked the fourth time the Scots have recorded an unbeaten regular season and the second under Bell. His Scots were ranked No. 15 by the American Football Coaches Association and received the No. 3 seed in the West Region in the Division III playoffs. The team is one win shy of the 500th in the program’s history.

Alex Tanney followed his older brother Mitch’s footsteps from 2005 and won the Offensive Player of the Year award after quarterbacking the Scots to a league title and undefeated regular season. Tanney has thrown a school-record 47 touchdowns this season and set the Fighting Scots’ passing record with 3,311 yards. In just two years, he has set the career record for completions (519). The record-breaker came in last Saturday’s historic 42-13 playoff win over Aurora, besting the previous mark of Rob Purlee (514) set from 2000-03. The talented sophomore picked up his first all-conference award after being bypassed altogether as a freshman.

Joining Tanney on the first team were three reasons why he won the POY award. Junior lineman Josh Kotecki picked up his second all-conference award. Fellow lineman and classmate Dan Schwindenhammer and sophomore wide receiver Michael Blodgett were honored for the first time. Kotecki and Schwindenhammer anchor an offensive line that has allowed the team to rack up a nation’s best 48.5 scoring average. The Scots have averaged a whopping 467.2 yards per game and converted nearly half of their third down tries and nearly three-quarters of their attempts on fourth down. Blodgett has hauled in a team-high 55 passes. He also leads the team in TDs (13) and receiving yards (734).

Two seniors and two juniors were selected to the first team defensive unit. Seniors Marc Artozqui and Willy Mason and juniors Anthony Goranson and Sean Wells lead the way for a stifling defensive unit that’s ranked No. 4 in the nation. Artozqui, Goranson and Wells picked up their second all-conference honors.

Artozqui leads the Scots in tackles from his linebacking position. His 110 tackles ranks him third all-time for tackles in a season. His 17 stops against Ripon was just three shy of the single game record. He has also picked off two passes.   

Mason, a defensive back, has intercepted a team-high seven passes this season and returned one for a touchdown. His seven picks are just two behind the season record set by Al Hatfield in 1967.

Goranson leads the team with 11.5 sacks and 20.5 tackles for loss. The defensive lineman is ranked third on the Scots list for season sacks. He is fourth all-time.

Wells is the Scots second-leading tackler, getting his stops from his defensive back position. His 66 tackles include 39 solos. He has also intercepted three passes and recorded a fumble recovery.

Named to the second team offensive unit were junior tailback Clay Bricker and sophomore wide receiver Matt Shepherd. Shepherd received his second all-league award.

The second team defense included senior lineman Wes Levy and senior linebacker T.C. Olsen, junior special teamer Steve Zidow and freshman punter Shane Reschke. The selection is Levy’s fourth all-conference award and Olsen’s second.

Honorable mention status went to senior defensive back Cole Norman, junior defensive lineman Nick Leffler, junior offensive lineman Nick Hoffman, junior wide receiver Nick Wright and sophomore defensive lineman Peyton Lumzy. Norman picked up his second all-MWC honor.

SECOND ROUND ON THE WEB

Good news for fans of the Monmouth College football team. The Fighting Scots’ second round playoff game against Wartburg College Saturday at April Zorn Memorial Stadium will be available on the Web.

The college, in conjunction with the Midwest Conference and web company Penn Atlantic, will be producing the live Webcast with full audio and video. Penn Atlantic, the web company working with the Midwest Conference and Monmouth College, are encouraging fans to log on directly to the Webcast through a link on the Monmouth College website. The link may be found at www.monm.edu/sportsinfo. Fans should click on the link marked “FREE Webcast” to be connected directly to the audio and video feed. Penn Atlantic suggests viewers not wait until just before kickoff to log on as they may experience a slow connection. Instead, the company encourages viewers to begin logging on between 11:30 and 11:45 a.m.

The actual pregame feed will begin at 11:45 a.m.

WHAT WE’RE THANKFUL FOR

Scots Scoop has a lot to be thankful for this season. A few of them, in no particular order:

·         The success of the football team.

·         The new April Zorn Football Stadium (and the heating system in it).

·         Hard-working coaching staff and administration.

·         Receptive media.

·         Talented student workers.

·         The start of the winter sports season (we’ll be thankful for the conclusion of the fall sports season, but we’d prefer to wait until after the Stagg Bowl on Dec. 20, thank you very much).

·         Great fans.

·         The electronic age.

·         Webcasts.

·         Last, but certainly not least, family members who realize sports isn’t an 8-5 Monday-Friday job.

. Here’s wishing everyone a Happy Thanksgiving and a warm seat for Saturday’s second round playoff game.

 THE WEEK AHEAD

Sat., Nov. 29
Football – NCAA Division III Playoffs, 2nd Round – hosts Wartburg, Noon
Women’s Basketball – hosts MC Thanksgiving Tourn., 5:00 & 7:00 p.m.

 Sun., Nov. 30
Women’s Basketball – hosts MC Thanksgiving Tourn., 1:00 & 3:00 p.m.

 Mon., Dec. 1
Men’s Basketball – hosts MacMurray, 7:00 p.m.

SCOTSIVATIONAL

“The world cares very little about what a man or woman knows; it is what a man or woman is able to do that counts”. - Booker T. Washington