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Women’s Tennis Duo
Wins Rolex National
Title
The Methodist College
women’s tennis doubles team of
Elena Blanina (sophomore from
Moscow, Russia) and Carla
Simpson (sophomore from
Cameron, NC) captured the
women’s doubles national champj*-
onship in the NCAA Division-lII
Rolex(r) National Small College
Tennis Championships held at The
Racquet Club of Memphis (TN).
Blanina and Simpson won
their third match in two days and
topped Beloit College’s Julia
Lebedeva and Tanja Kpylova 6-4,
7-6 (2) in the championship. The
Lady Monarch duo is the first from
Methodist College to ever claim a
Rolex(r) regional or national title. .
The duo looks to lead coach Dan
Arnold’s women’s tennis squad into
the 2001 traditional season,
Blanina, the Lady Monarchs #1
singles player, went undefeated in
the 2000 season with an 18-0 record
at the top spot while Simpson
transferred to Methodist College
from Sandhills Community College.
The event was presented by
the USTA (US Tennis Association)
and administered by the ITA
(Intercollegiate Tennis Associa
tion). The Rolex(r) National Small
College Championships feature
men and women’s singles and
doubles tournaments in each of the
ITA’s four small college divisions
(NCAA-Il, NCAA-Ill. NAIA, Jr.
College). In order to qualify for the
National tournament, competitors
must advance through regional
quahfying.
Anna Baker and
Men’s Golf Team Wins 2nd Consecutive Golf Samantha Moser Earn
World National Match-play Championship DIAC Rookie of the
The Methodist College men’s
golf team swept through the 2000
Golf World National Intercollegiate
Match-play Team Championships
at the Country Club of Big Oaks in
Tupelo, MS. The #2 seeded
Monarchs defeated Southwestern
(TX) 5-0 in the finals.
Coach Steve Conley’s team,
who entered the fall season as the
nation’s top-ranked NCAA Divi-
sion-III team in the MasterCard(r)
Collegiate Golf rankings, did not
lose a match in route to the school’s
second consecutive match-play
national title. In the quarterfinals,
the Monarchs rolled past Olivet
College 5-0 and defeated Skidmore
4.5-0.5 in the semifinals.
The innovative event featured
the top eight ranked NCAA
Division-Ill schools in a unique
match-play competition. The five
members of each team played
singles matches against their
opponents to determine the winning
team. T-he event was sponsored by
Golf World magazine and was
administered by the College Golf
Foundation.
Members of the Methodist
College Monarch championship
squad were Chad Collins (3-0),
Jered Gusso (3-0), Billy Whitney
(3-0), Joey Wuertemburger (2-0-1),
and Ian Finch (3-0).
Week Honors
Men and Women Picked Second in Preseason
DIAC Basketball Poll
Both the Methodist College
men’s and women’s basketball
teams have been voted to finish
second in the 2000-2001 Dixie
Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
pre-season basketball coaches poll.
The poll, released on Monday,
October 16th from the conference
office, is a vote among the league’s
7 head coaches. The men’s team
received 25 votes and one first-
place vote and are picked to finish
in a tie for second with NC
Wesleyan, while the women’s team
garnered 32 votes and 2 first-place
votes. Christopher Newport
University was tabbed as the
preseason favorite in both polls.
On the men’s side, the
Monarch look to rebound after a 9r
16 campaign last season. The Green
& Gold return 11 lettermen off last
year’s young squad and have four
out of five starters returning.
Second-year head coach David
Smith will look to improve on last
season’s fifth-place conference
finish. The men open the 2000-
20001 season at The Citadel, a
NCAA Division-I school, on
November 18th.
On the women’s side, fourth-
year head coach DeeDee Jarman
looks to continue the string of two
consecutive Dixie Conference
regular-season titles. The Lady
Monarchs. who finished 21-5 last
season, return 12 letter winners and
four starters. The Lady Monarchs
also take into this year’s campaign a
17-game home winning streak at
the March F. Riddle Center. The
women’s team opens the 2000-2001
season at the Randolph-Macon Tip
Off Classic in Ashland, VA.
Men’s Basketball
1. CNU (6), 36
2. Methodist (1), 25
NC Wesleyan, 25
3. Greensboro, 24
4. Shenandoah. 19
26
5. Ferrum, 10
6. Averett, 8
Women’s Basketball
1.CNU (4), 34
2. Methodist (2), 32
3. Greensboro (1),
4. Ferrum, 20
5. NC Wesleyan, 14
6. Shenandoah, 13
7. Averett, 8
Women’s soccer player Anna
Baker and volleyball player
Samantha Moser were named this
week’s Dixie Intercollegiate
Athletic Conference Rookies of the
Week for their respective sports.
Baker, a midfielder from
Kemersville, NC, recorded both the
game-winning goals for the Lady
Monarchs (10-6-1 overall, 3-2-1
DIAC) in 1-0 wins over Ferrum
College and Catholic University.
Headed into Thursday’s match at
St. Andrews, Baker currently leads
the Dixie Conference in goals
scored with 15 on the season. This
marks the second time that Baker
has been tabbed the DIAC’s Rookie
of the Week and the fourth time the
honor has gone to a Methodist
College player.
Moser, a middle-hitter from
Wilmington, NC, received the
volleyball Rookie of the Week
honor after leading the Lady
Monarchs (12-14 overall, 3-4
DIAC) in a 3-1 conference win over
NC Wesleyan on the road October
lOth. She hh .413 with an average
of 6 kills per game (24 total).
Heading into Friday’s crosstown
showdown with Fayetteville State,
Moser led the Lady Monarchs in
kills per game with 3.88. This week
makes the second time this season
that Moser has earned the honor
and the third time for the Lady
Monarchs.
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Press releases were taken from www.methodist.edu/athletics.
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It’s all about balance!
Photo by Krislfn Porter