Wrestling heads into home stretch with good showing at Wheaton

By Joe Katz / February 11, 2005

As the season winds down, the competition is heating up for the Maroons, as Sean Barnes discovered against his toughest foe yet. The fourth-year heavyweight was pinned in 5:36 by top-ranked third-year Ryan Allen of Wisconsin-Lacrosse, but bounced back to score a fifth place finish at the prestigious Wheaton Invite Saturday. He was one of...

Sport Shorts 2-11-05

By Joe Katz / February 11, 2005

Men’s tennis starts spring season 3-0 Coming off a three-and-a-half month hiatus, men’s tennis picked up right where it left off. Chicago won all three of its matches at the Wisconsin-Whitewater Invitational last weekend, defeating Luther College 6-1 Saturday and taking down Wisconsin-Oshkosh 6-1 and Wisconsin-Whitewater 4-3 Sunday. The Maroons, ranked 10th in the Central...

Performances of the Week

By Joe Katz / February 11, 2005

Clay Carmody (men’s basketball): Led team in scoring with 15 in victory over Brandeis, career-high 27 points in victory over NYU Jen Kaiser (women’s basketball): Career-high 21 points, career-high 12 rebounds led Maroons in win over NYU; 16 points in the second-half

Sports Shorts 2-04-05

By Joe Katz / February 4, 2005

Two garner UAA honor The UAA named two Maroons as Athletes of the Week on Tuesday. Fourth-year 125-pound wrestler Ai Nguyen and third-year women’s basketball forward Susie Gutowski earned recognition. Nguyen earned his first Athlete of the Week commendation for a critical win against NYU at the UAA Championship last Saturday. He pinned Violet Brian...

Performances of the Week

By Joe Katz / February 4, 2005

Ai Nguyen (wrestling): Named UAA’s co-most valuable wrestler with second-round pin at league championships, helped clinch fifth straight title Susie Gutowski (women’s basketball): Averaged 18 points, 6.5 rebounds per game in two road losses Clay Carmody (men’s basketball): Came off the bench to score 17 points, 88.9 percent shooting in loss to Brandeis 200-yard freestyle...

Wrestlers pick up fifth straight conference title

By Joe Katz / February 1, 2005

Fourth-year Ai Nguyen’s shoulder had been plaguing him for days, and during the second period of his 125-pound bout against NYU fourth-year Brian Benson, he could really feel the burn. In a critical match, he was going to need some help from his teammates. With some strong vocal backing from the Chicago sideline, Nguyen took...

Sport Shorts 1-28-05

By Joe Katz / January 28, 2005

UAA honors Bishof’s tournament title Second-year wrestler Mike Bishof was named the UAA Athlete of the Week for wrestling Tuesday. Bishof, a first-time honoree, has won 9 of his last 11 matches. He dominated the 165-pound bracket at Saturday’s Manchester Invite, scoring one fall and giving up only escapes on his way to winning the...

Bishof, wrestling tear through Manchester Invite with UAA next

By Joe Katz / January 25, 2005

With a critical stretch of the season just ahead, Mike Bishof isn’t interested in breaking a sweat. The second-year 165-pounder flew through his bracket, going 4-0 to pace the 25th-ranked Maroons to a third-place finish at Saturday’s Manchester Invite. Bishof has now won 9 of his last 11 individual matches over two dual meets and...

Women’s basketball wins seventh straight

By Joe Katz / January 21, 2005

With a big weekend ahead, the Maroons could have been excused for looking past a streaky Benedictine team. Fortunately, this Chicago squad isn’t looking for excuses. Chicago held the Eagles’ leading scorer, first-year forward Tamika Curtis, to four points in an unexpectedly easy 75-42 shutdown Tuesday at Ratner. The Maroons finished off their non-conference schedule...

Sports Shorts 1-18-05

By Joe Katz / January 18, 2005

Wrestlers finish fourth at North Central After ripping through his first four opponents, second-year Andrew Bribriesco had an opportunity to wrap up his bracket and earn a little payback at the same time. He couldn’t close it out, dropping his second bout 4-2 against seventh-ranked David Silva of Elmhurst in four days at the North...

Sports Shorts 01-15-05

By Joe Katz / January 14, 2005

UAA recognizes three Maroons Three Maroons earned UAA Athlete of the Week honors on Wednesday: fourth-year heavyweight wrestler Sean Barnes, first-year women’s track and field jumper Aparna Hirve, and fourth-year men’s swimmer Northe Saunders. Barnes won three straight matches to capture the heavyweight class title at the Cornell Invite Saturday. He beat nationally ranked wrestler...

Big upsets have wrestlers looking upward

By Joe Katz / January 14, 2005

Individually, it was an uplifting night for Chicago’s Barnes brothers. But in the end, they were reminded that sometimes upsets and last-minute heroics aren’t enough. Fourth-year heavyweight Sean Barnes scored a late takedown for a 6-4 win and second-year 184-pounder Ben Barnes notched a quality upset over Division III’s second-ranked Matt Sassolino, but the Maroons...

Wrestlers take down all-division competition in Iowa

By Joe Katz / January 11, 2005

Fresh off an overtime win and working on a four-match winning streak against Division III opponents, fourth-year Sean Barnes was not about to let a little thing like competing against one of the best wrestlers in the country slow him down. Barnes’s 3-2 decision over top-seeded Bryan Morgan of Millikin University, the sixth-ranked heavyweight in...

Sport Shorts 1-7-05

By Joe Katz / January 11, 2005

Fall all-region awards announced Eight Maroons were named central region All-Region honorees over break. Third-years forward Renee Neuner and goalkeeper Andrea Przybysz made the first team along with midfielder Jacqui De Leon. Third-year defender Elise Aiken made the second team. Two on men’s soccer also earned all-region honors. Fourth-years sweeper Peter Ostroske and midfielder Ben...

Sports Shorts 1-7-05

By Joe Katz / January 7, 2005

Wrestling drops to 3-3 in dual meets With parity the rule across Division III wrestling, no one knew quite what to expect from last night’s home showdown against North Central. The Maroons were hoping for better results than they got. Chicago lost seven of ten matches and fell to the Cardinal 23-9 on their home...

Football gives Eureka devil of a time

By Joe Katz / November 16, 2004

With less than a minute remaining and the Maroons up by four touchdowns, there was, for once, virtually no tension on the field. But first-year linebacker Tony Insalaco managed to keep things interesting, intercepting a pass from Eureka backup Justen Rayner and running it back 55 yards for a touchdown that iced a 48-14 victory...

Case closes UAA finale with big play

By Joe Katz / November 9, 2004

With the clock ticking down and the Maroons’ defense looking unbeatable, Case Western knew it would need a big play. They got exactly what they needed, with an 86-yard touchdown pass on fourth and 23 that sparked a 27-23 victory over Chicago Saturday in Cleveland. “That’s a heartbreaking loss,” head coach Dick Maloney said. “That...

Football slaughters Bison in home finale

By Joe Katz / November 2, 2004

With the chilly wind swirling in his face and the clock ticking down on the first half, 32 yards stood between third-year kicker Mike Morzenti and the lead. Morzenti shrugged off the elements and nailed a field goal that put the Maroons up 10-7, which proved to be all they would need in a 31-7...

Football hosts feeble Bison in home finale

By Joe Katz / October 31, 2004

Coming off a bye week, the Maroons are rested and ready for battle in their final 2004 home game against Bethany College tomorrow. It promises to be an emotional senior day for the team, who will say goodbye to a highly praised group of upperclassmen in pre-game and halftime ceremonies. “Our senior leadership has been...

Believing in the impossible pays off big

By Joe Katz / October 27, 2004

Screaming. Jumping up and down. My roommate, a Yankees fan excited in spite of himself, shouting in my ear, “How much do you love baseball right now?” And that was before Game 7. Brace yourselves, ladies and gentlemen, and stock up on the No-Doz. Barring a stupendously boring World Series, we are experiencing the greatest...

Déjè vu: turnovers negate Maroons’ defensive effort

By Joe Katz / October 24, 2004

With the possibility of a winning season on the line on a stormy Pittsburgh Saturday, the Maroons turned in a game as bleak as the weather. Untimely turnovers dropped Chicago once again, this time by a 17-7 score. “We play a high-risk style of offense, but we just have to take better care of the...

Living with the Evil Empire

By Joe Katz / October 17, 2004

There are always challenges at the beginning of a new year. Everyone’s got a class that’s a step above what they’ve done before, everyone’s looking for a job to pay the bills, and everyone’s met a first-year they’d like to see again. No one’s very happy about it, either. This fall, though, none of that...

Upset over DePauw slips through Maroons’ hands

By Joe Katz / October 6, 2004

With less than three minutes remaining and their opponents about to punt, the Maroons knew they would only have one more chance to complete a hard-fought comeback against DePauw. What they didn’t know is that that one chance was about to appear and disappear before their eyes. A high snap over Tigers fourth-year punter Bill...

Football looking to regain footing against DePauw on Saturday

By Joe Katz / October 2, 2004

Anybody would expect the Maroons to be looking for revenge after their second-straight loss. Tomorrow’s game against DePauw, however, carries personal significance. “This is a huge one,” said fourth-year captain Matt Armbruster. “Last year, [the DePauw game] was the most embarrassing of my Chicago career. This time, we can turn our whole season around.” The...

Owens challenged game head-on

By Joe Katz / June 8, 2004

In football, it always starts with the small stuff. “I remember being impressed back in freshman year that Sam would sprint back with the ball after every carry and hand it to the quarterback rather than just tossing aside or flinging it back. Even then, his discipline stood out,” fourth-year wide receiver Joe Polaneczky said....

Focused and lively, Carqueville always gave complete effort

By Joe Katz / June 8, 2004

If the women’s soccer team’s run to the national championship game left an indelible mark on the new face of University of Chicago athletics, it no doubt left the team with memories that will last a lifetime. As the graduating seniors on the team look back on their four intense years of academic work, they...

Perfect game solidifies Johnson’s place in sports history

By Joe Katz / May 21, 2004

I was sitting around Tuesday night with a few friends, chattering excitedly about one of sports’ most difficult accomplishments when I heard these words: “Boy, perfect games are getting pretty common now, huh?” Don’t kid yourselves. It’s true that there have been three in the past seven seasons, and there has been one every three...

Stop your damn predictions already!

By Joe Katz / May 7, 2004

Ah, May. This is the underrated month of the baseball season. The first-date jitters are in the past, the pitchers and hitters are at about an equal level, we’ve had enough time to figure out who’s for real and who’s not, and yet most of the league can still legitimately dream about the playoffs. That...

Quiet Varitek shows why he puts superstar catchers to shame

By Joe Katz / March 12, 2004

As a sign that the new Collective Bargaining Agreement didn’t really change baseball’s economics, nothing is clearer than the situation at Red Sox spring training in Fort Myers, Florida. Five outs short of a trip to the World Series last year, the Red Sox picked up one of the best starters and best closers in...

Young core set to lead women’s basketball

By Joe Katz / March 9, 2004

Women’s basketball came in with high hopes but closed out their season on a low note Saturday at Ratner. The women’s team lost their final game of the season to the NCAA tournament-bound Washington University Bears 73-47. The loss dropped the team’s overall record to 10-15, 5-9 against conference opponents. “I thought we had learned...

Chicago sends ranked Brandeis reeling

By Joe Katz / February 27, 2004

The women’s basketball team’s primary goal for the final two weeks of the season was to play the spoiler against the three top-ranked teams remaining on the schedule. The Maroons succeeded in a big way Sunday, as they stunned then 22nd- ranked Brandeis 50-44 at home. “Brandeis was looking beyond our team. They didn’t prepare...

Cleveland baseball player misses chance to break sexuality barrier

By Joe Katz / February 24, 2004

Spring training is now under way. Those of you who didn’t follow basball’s offseason missed a historic time, in which some of the game’s greats changed uniforms. You also missed one of the strangest moments in the history of the sport—a player struck out before the season even started. Actually, Kaz Tadano joined some great...

Homeward bound Maroons to seek revenge against NYU

By Joe Katz / February 20, 2004

After a pair of weekend splits, the women’s basketball team is returning home to play the spoiler. In their final three games of the season against New York University, Brandeis University, and Washington University, the Maroons will do what they can to damage the playoff hopes of their UAA rivals. “We have a tough road...

Coaches buckle under spotlight

By Joe Katz / February 13, 2004

As a University of Chicago student, there’s nothing I appreciate more than a break from the cold. Some people out there might not appreciate being quite so warm. As much as we’d like to head down to Florida to beat the winter, the hottest seat in sports right now isn’t any place where the weather’s...

Chicago wins 2 of 3 weekend road games

By Joe Katz / February 6, 2004

Having lost five of its last six games, the women’s basketball team was in need of a jumpstart, and this week may very well have provided it. The Maroons closed out five games on the road with victories over Carnegie Mellon 57-50 on Friday and Benedictine 69-49 on Tuesday. Chicago’s only loss of the week...

Maroons’ woes continue on East Coast trip

By Joe Katz / January 30, 2004

Having made it through the first half of the season, the women’s basketball team is still struggling to solve their two big problems: putting away the close games and making the rebounding game a strength rather than a weakness. The Maroons’ struggles continued during the past two weeks, as the team dropped games at home...

North Central edges Maroons 66-63 in upset

By Joe Katz / January 16, 2004

For the women’s basketball team, more and more games seem to be just slipping away in the game’s final minutes. After dropping two games in four days, the women’s basketball team will be drilling hard to improve its play on the boards, according to coach Jennifer Kroll. “Rebounds were the most important part of both...

Maroon to kick off UAA schedule against rival Bears

By Joe Katz / January 11, 2004

After a series of close losses, women’s basketball (4-5) is looking towards tomorrow’s conference opener at 3rd-ranked Washington University for a boost in confidence and recognition. “Washington is a perennial power in the UAA. They won the league last year, and they have restocked their team. If we beat them, we’ll really send a shock...

Volleyball falls at UAA tourney

By Joe Katz / November 14, 2003

The volleyball team will have to wait until next year, bowing out of the UAA Conference Championships last weekend in the minimum four matches. Last Friday the team lost in three games against conference champions Washington University and Carnegie-Mellon. The Maroons went on to lose a close match in five games against the University of...

Volleyball travels to NYU for UAA championships

By Joe Katz / November 6, 2003

The women’s volleyball team (7-25) will finish its season today and tomorrow at the University Athletic Association championships at New York University. Chicago will first play matches against second-ranked Washington University, Carnegie-Mellon University, and the University of Rochester to determine seeding for the single-elimination round. The top two teams from each pool play for first...

Injuries, inexperience thwart volleyball

By Joe Katz / October 6, 2003

With the 2003 volleyball season just past the halfway point, injuries are seriously challenging a Maroon team that has been struggling since the season began. Chicago has a 4–17 overall record and is mired at the bottom of the University Athletic Association (UAA), with three losses in as many games. “We were looking forward to...