Monroeville's Jacob Schwab has been named the Ohio Athletic Conference Men’s Track and Field Runner of the Week for his performance last week running track for Ohio Northern.

Schwab led the way for the Polar Bears at the Washington & Lee (Va.)/Virginia Military Institute Carnival in Lexington, Va. by delivering four top-eight performances at the non-scoring event.

The sophomore sprinter teamed up with Joe Amstutz, Ryan Fleming and Evan Heyman for a victory in the 4x100-meter relay. The team finished in 42.02 seconds.
Schwab and Heyman combined with Garrett Brown and Shane Huntley for a second-place finish in the 4x400-meter relay in 3:19.19.

Individually, Schwab ran his way to a third-place finish in the 400-meter dash and an eighth-place finish in the 100-meter dash. He crossed the finish line in 49.74 seconds during the 400-meter dash and completed the 100-meter dash in 11.20 seconds.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Perkins' Cierra Bravard and her Florida State Seminoles will have to play the game of their lives tonight when they face No. 1-seeded Connecticut, who beat them earlier this season 78-59.

Florida State (29-5) advanced with a 74-71 victory over No. 7 seed Mississippi State on Sunday in the Dayton Regional semifinal, led by Bravard’s 10 points and nine rebounds, along with 21 points from Alysha Harvin and 14 from Courtney Ward.

UConn (36-0) defeated Iowa State in the earlier semifinal. The Huskies have won 75 games in a row and it’s their third-straight win in the NCAA Tournament by at least 30 points.

The Seminoles, who set a school mark with their 29th win, earned their first spot ever in a regional title game.

After 11 ties and 14 lead changes, the Seminoles finally got the lead for good with 1:40 left when Harvin was fouled during a loose-ball scrum and broke a tie at 66 by hitting both foul shots.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Avon Lake’s Annette Ilg was named a California Collegiate Athletic Association Second Team selection, after her outstanding season and career, playing basketball for UC San Diego.

UC San Diego won its second-straight CCAA Championship this season and was ranked 12th in the nation.

In her last game for the Tritons, Ilg was the story, scoring 25 points, while going 9-for-16 from the floor, including 3-for-6 from behind the arc. She also tallied eight rebounds, three assists, and a steal. Ilg had an outstanding postseason - averaging better than 22 points in the last three games of her college career.

Ilg takes home her first career all-conference selection after averaging 11.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 2.1 steals during the regular season.

The guard has been outstanding in her final season at UCSD, shooting over 40 percent from the floor and scoring 10 or more 17 times during the season.

She scored a career-high 24 points to lead the Tritons to an 82-80 double overtime victory over No. 20 Seattle Pacific on Dec. 28.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Toth shown on Sunday

Lake Erie College baseball recorded its first ever win over a Division I opponent as the Storm rained all over Cleveland State on Sunday afternoon at All Pro Freight Stadium.

Admiral King’s Matt Toth, a sophomore, hit his second career home run and Vermilion’s Adam Beach, a red-shirt freshman, pitched six solid innings to lead the Storm (9-8) over the Vikings, 19-4 through a steady drizzle of rain.

The win was the Storm’s school record-tying fifth straight and moved the team above .500 this late into a season for the first time in the program’s nine-year history.
“We’ve made tremendous strides as a program, but it’s not as important as where we are as where we are going, and we are going in a great direction,” Lake Erie College coach Brian McGee said through a press release. “I’m really proud of our coaching staff and the players who believe in this program and work hard every day at getting better.”

The game also marked the first time that Lake Erie College had ever faced a Division I school.

“I think early on, our guys had some jitters and maybe some nerves about playing a Division I team, but they were really excited about the opportunity as well,” McGee added. “After the first few innings, we seemed to settle in and start to play our way - hard and aggressive - and just got rolling.”

Other than the single runs in the second and third innings, the Vikings could do little against Beach, who won his third-straight start. He scattered five hits in six innings of work. With the wet weather making it difficult to grip the ball at times, Beach still struck out a career-high nine hitters, including the first five outs of the game.

“Adam was fantastic today,” McGee said. “He spotted his fastball really well. And he battled through the early part of the game when he didn’t have his best stuff or great control. But he just kept going after guys and attacking. He has a very tough mentality, which is rare in first-year pitchers.”

Toth drove in a career-high four runs and has six RBI in the last two games.

The Storm will get its second shot at a D-I opponent on Tuesday when it travels to the University of Akron.

Toth hit his first college home run for Lake Erie College against Baldwin-Wallace on Saturday.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Amherst’s Ryan Rua became Lake Erie College’s all-time home run leader as the Storm baseball team powered its way to a doubleheader sweep of Baldwin-Wallace College on Saturday.


The Storm, playing in their first home game of the season, homered five times, including three by Rua, to win by scores of 15-5 and 11-9. With the wins, Lake Erie ran its winning streak to four games and evened its record at 8-8 for its best record this late in the season in the program’s nine-year history.

The three homers by Rua put his career total at 18, one more than Ben Reed had from 2006-09. He leads the team with seven homers on the season.

Rua went 4-for-4 with four RBIs and homered twice in the opener as the Storm broke open a one-run game with a four-run third inning and then put it away with a seven-run fifth.

Rua blasted a two-run home run to straight-away centerfield, in the second game that tied the game and officially become the Storm’s leading home run hitter of all-time.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Whitsel (seated right - in blue)

Brookside’s Kyleigh Whitsel has decided to continue her volleyball career at Point Park University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Whitsel, a 5-foot-7 setter/defensive specialist, was a key component in the success Brookside had in the past four years.


Whitsel was named first team All-Northeast District and was honorable mention Lorain County Miss Volleyball. She had 809 assists last season and holds the top two spots in the OHSAA record book for most assists in a match with 72 and 66. She is sixth all-time in assists with 2,569.

Point Park, a NAIA school, is coming off their most successful season in school history. They went 32-8 and earned a berth in the championship match of the American Mideast Conference tournament.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Western Reserve’s Greg Patrick was named the Ohio Athletic Conference Men’s Field Athlete of the Week for his performance last weekend, throwing the shot put for Baldwin-Wallace.

Patrick set a school record in the shot put with a throw of 54-feet, 10-inches. The previous record was set by Jim Tillotson in 1975 with a mark of 54-4.5.

Patrick also placed second in a field of mostly Division I athletes and his throw hit the provisional qualifying mark for the NCAA Division III Championship meet that will take place at B-W in late May.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Firelands’ Dominic San Felippo went 7-for-9 for Wheeling Jesuit University in a double header played in Pennsylvania last weekend. He had four doubles and five RBIs to help lead Jesuit to a doubleheader sweep with scores of 9-4 and 14-0.

Clyde’s Kayla Gerber was named the Ohio Athletic Conference Women’s Tennis Player of the Week last week for her outstanding performance.

Gerber picked up a pair of wins on Saturday in a OAC opener at Muskingum University.

At second doubles, Gerber teamed up with Darcy Young to post an 8-5 victory. For the year, the duo are 5-3 thus far.

She then followed that win with another in singles action. She scored a hard-fought 6-1, 6-7 (7-9), 1-0 (10-6) win in her second singles spot. She improved her singles mark to 6-1.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Avon native Shane Sullivan was named the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week for his performance last week pitching for Wheeling Jesuit University.

Sullivan, a freshman who graduated from Holy Name, earned a pair of wins and a save during four relief appearances. He allowed just four hits and two earned runs in 8 1/3 innings of work to earn victories against Saginaw Valley State and Charleston. He struck out five batters and didn’t yield a walk.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

St. Mary’s T.J. Blanton was named the MAC East Player of the Week after his four home run, nine RBI performance, playing for Bowling Green against Eastern Kentucky this past weekend.

Blanton had a career day in the first game of a doubleheader, going 4-for-5 with three-consecutive home runs. His last home run was a deep blast to center field that Blanton turned on the jets and legged out for an inside-the-park homer, scoring two runs.

He ended his seven RBI game with a two-run single in his last at-bat as a part of a nine-run eighth inning that sealed a 19-10 win for the Falcons. Blanton also added two steals on the day, stealing second and third base consecutively following his run-scoring single. His four hits tied a career-high he set last season while his three home runs and seven RBI in a game set new career marks in those categories.

In game two, Blanton added his fourth home run of the day with a two-out, two-run homer that was part of a four-run sixth inning that marked their second come-from-behind victory of the day.

He finished the weekend hitting 7-for-13 (.538) with a .538 on-base percentage. He stole three bases and in the field made 11 put outs over the course of the series. His weekend slugging percentage ended with a team-high 1.462 mark and amounted 19 total bases in that time.

Blanton now leads the team or shares the lead in doubles (5), home runs (5), RBI (16), total bases (45) and slugging percentage (.900). He is second in hits (23), on-base percentage (.491) and stolen bases (7).

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Elyria’s Tess Sito continues to impress in her freshman season at Cleveland State, helping the Vikings to their ninth win in a row, defeating Marist, 4-1 and Columbia, 4-3 in doubleheader action on Friday. With the two wins, CSU improves to 18-7 on the year.

Sito was the hitting standout in the first game, going 1-for-4 with three RBIs. She hit a two-run homerun in the third inning, which was her ninth of the season. Her other RBI came on a RBI groundout, scoring Keystone’s Jessica Burt.

Sito added three hits in game two to move her hitting streak to five straight and 23 of her last 24.

The Vikings return to the Midwest and will be idle until playing a doubleheader in Moon Township, PA against Robert Morris on Thursday.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Western Reserve’s All-American thrower Greg Patrick set a Baldwin-Wallace school record in the shot put with a mark of 54 feet, 10 inches on Saturday at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte 49er Classic at the Irwin Belk Track and Field Center.

The previous mark was set by Jim Tillotson in 1975, with a throw of 54’4.5". Patrick placed second overall in a field consisting heavily of Division I competitors and hit a high provisional qualifying mark for the NCAA Championship meet in late May.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Lorain native and Elyria High graduate Danny Mitcheff (133) dropped a pair of close bouts in 133-pound action on Saturday, but he still came away with a sixth place finish — good for his first ever All-American selection in his fourth NCAA appearance.
"I feel great, right now I feel blessed, I thank God for everything he’s done for me," Mitcheff said. "It’s awesome. Knowing that all the hard work I’ve put in, finally paid off."

Mitcheff went 4-3 for the week and became the second Kent State wrestler since 1986 to place in the top six at the NCAA Championships.

He dropped his consolation semifinal bout 4-3 to Oklahoma State’s Jordan Oliver, the No. 4 seed. Oliver scored the opening takedown and led 2-1 after the first period.

Mitcheff then scored a second-period takedown in between Oliver escapes. Trailing 4-3, Mitcheff chose neutral for the third period. Oliver was warned for stalling before Mitcheff got in on a leg at the edge of the mat. Time expired as Mitcheff attempted to drag Oliver inside the circle.

Mitcheff (34-6) then lost to Wisconsin’s Tyler Graff, 5-3 in the fifth place bout. Graf claimed takedowns in the first and second periods, while Mitcheff earned three escapes.

"I lost to Frank Gomez (first loss), who ended up taking third. He’s a real tough wrestler," Mitcheff said. "After that, I had one more match to become an All-American and it was a real tough match. It came down to the last period. I got the takedown at the end of the period to win the match. I was so pumped after that. It was awesome."

He closed out his career at Kent State with 131 victories, the most in Golden Flashes’ history.

Kent State wrestling coach Jim Andrassy has been nothing but impressed with Mitcheff in his college career.

"I’ve been around wrestling a long time and I’ve never seen anyone quite like Danny," Andrassy said through a press release. "He’s the best wrestler we’ve had since I’ve been a part of this program. He’s a very special kid and you can’t replace someone like that. We’re going to miss him."

Despite coming up short of his goal of being a national champion, Mitcheff is happy with his All-American status and leaving Kent State as the all-time winningest wrestler in school history.

"I’m real happy," Mitcheff added. "I wanted to do a little better, but I’m still proud of what I’ve done. I’ve had a great career. I’m glad the way everything turned out. The All-American parade was real cool. It was pretty exciting and emotional. It’s my senior year and it’s all over after this. All the hard work finally paid off and I’m real proud of myself."

Lorain County native and St. Edward’s graduate Lance Palmer came up short of becoming the first ever Lorain County resident to become a NCAA Division I national champion when the No. 1-seeded Palmer lost to second-seeded Brent Metcalf, of Iowa, for the 149-pound national title on Saturday night in the D-I National Tournament at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Nebraska.

Palmer lost 3-2 in an intense matchup against Metcalf. Metcalf was 5-1 in his career against Palmer going into the match with his only loss coming earlier this season.
Palmer defeated Penn State’s Frank Molinaro, 2-0, in the semifinals for his place in the final.

With his second-place finish, Palmer became the first four-time All-American from Lorain County since Amherst’s Jake Percival, who did from 2002-’05 while at Ohio University.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Firelands’ Dana Thoms led the way for Heidelberg softball, as she picked up a pair of wins in a doubleheader sweep of Oberlin College on Saturday.

The Berg won 12-1 in five innings in game one and 12-4 in game two.
Heidelberg, who now stands at 12-2 overall, is off to the best start in the history of the program.

Thoms improved her record to 8-1 with the pair of wins. In game one, Thoms pitched a three-hitter, while only giving up one run. In the second, she threw 3 2/3 innings in relief to earn the win. She struck out four, while giving up seven hits.

Keystone’s Ashley Stromack went 3-for-4 with four RBIs to lead the 'Berg's offensive attack.

Last season, Thoms started in 18 games and appeared in 24. She was fourth on the team in assists (27), and had a .912 fielding percentage. She went 1-6 on the mound.

At Firelands, she was a three-year letterwinner in softball, basketball and volleyball. She also earned first team All-West Shore Conference, first team All-Lorain County and second team All-Ohio in softball.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Elyria’s Chase Farris will continue his football career, verbally committing to Ohio State.

Farris, a 6-foot-6, 265-pound lineman who will be converting to defensive tackle, had several offers, including Notre Dame, Boston College, California, Duke, Indiana, Michigan State, Buffalo and Toledo.

The last time Ohio State offered a football scholarship to Lorain County athletes were Avon Lake native and St. Ignatius’ Anthony Gonzalez and Avon Lake’s Mike D’Andrea.

The Buckeyes also recruited Elyria West’s Steve Tovar and Elyria Catholic’s Matt Wilhelm, but the last Elyria athlete to receive a football scholarship was John Husband in 1970.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

National championship hopes came to an end for Lorain native and Elyria High graduate Danny Mitcheff on Friday night at the sold-out Qwest Center in Omaha, Nebraska, wrestling for Kent State.

Mitcheff lost in the quarterfinals to defending national champion Michigan State’s Franklin Gomez, 5-2. Scoreless after one period, Mitcheff got caught in a second-period cradle and trailed 3-0 after two periods. Gomez then escaped early in the third before Mitcheff scored the only takedown of the match.

Mitcheff went 2-0 on Thursday and advanced to the quarterfinals during day one.
Mitcheff (32-3) dominated Stanford’s Justin Paulsen, scoring a 12-1 major decision. Mitcheff jumped out to a 4-0 lead after the first period with a single leg takedown and a two-point turn on an arm bar. He added a takedown in the second and two more in third.

Despite not being able to fulfill his dreams of a national championship, Mitcheff can still make All-American status.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Western Reserve’s Greg Patrick placed third in the shot put to earn NCAA Division III All-American status on Saturday at the National Indoor Track and Field Championships at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana.

Patrick threw the shot a school-record 55 feet and 1/4 inch on the fifth of his six throws that equates to 16.77 meters. Patrick became the school’s first ever All-American in the indoor shot put.

"It is really nice to throw your personal best at a national meet," Patrick said through a press release. "I have had a personal record in every meet so far this season, so to continue my progression has been a good thing."

The All-America honor is the second in Patrick’s career as he also placed eighth in the shot put at last year’s NCAA Division III Outdoor National Championship Meet. His throw topped his previous school-record throw of 54’6.75" when he won an individual title at this winter’s Ohio Athletic Conference Indoor Championship Meet by 5 3/4 inches.

"In my first few throws, I wasn’t finishing my throw," Patrick added. "By my fourth and fifth throws when I threw it out there, I had figured it out and they were my best. It’s very exciting, and I look to carry it on to the national outdoor meet. I am very excited about having my final collegiate meet in my home stadium."

Last season, Patrick was named the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Region Field Athlete of the Year prior to the championships and the Ohio Athletic Conference "Sparky" Adams Field Athlete of the Year after the OAC Championships.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Perkins’ Trisha Krewson was named Second Team All-Patriot League for the Bucknell Bisons, announced on Tuesday.

Krewson, who was selected as the Patriot League Rookie of the Year last season, is the 16th Bison to earn the second team honor.

In just her second season, Krewson led the Bison in scoring with 12.5 points per game, including a 14.0 scoring average in Patriot League play. The guard’s .409 three-point field goal percentage (56-for-137) is also tops among Bison and ranks in the top 40 nationally.

Krewson reached a number of career marks leading to her first Player of the Week honor from the league in January. Krewson totaled 30 points against Lycoming, shooting 10-for-16 from the field and 8-for-12 from three-point distance.

Krewson then went on to total 25 points on 7-for-11 shooting from three-point distance in Bucknell’s next game at Buffalo.

The second-team selection is the second postseason award for Krewson in her young career. In addition to being named Bucknell’s fifth Patriot League Rookie of the Year last season, she also earned a spot on the All-Rookie Team. Her honors have come in the classroom as well, being voted ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District First Team selection last month after posting a 3.97 GPA while majoring in English and minoring in Spanish.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Admiral King track coach Kelvin Jackson remembers when he first met Sheral Robinson.

“It was spring break her eighth grade year,” Jackson said. “She wasn’t allowed to hurdle at Whittier, but she told me she wanted to learn to hurdle. I told her that would not be a problem.”

It certainly wasn’t.

Robinson just missed qualifying for state last season in the 100 meter hurdles as junior and her talent led Bowling Green State University to offer her a scholarship.

Robinson signed her National Letter of Intent yesterday in the Admiral King Library in front of family, teammates, coaches, teachers and even some former Whittier teammates who now are competitors at Southview.

“I wasn’t so fast at sprints so I decided I wanted to jump hurdles because I wasn’t scared,” Robinson said. “They wouldn’t let me jump hurdles in middle school so I decided I would jump in high school. Coach was a hurdler so he taught me well.”

Jackson said Robinson was a quick and determined learner.

“She had a knack for it from the beginning but it wasn’t all that easy,” Jackson said. “I remember that first year she wouldn’t let me leave practice, ‘No, no I still have to get it right.’ She caught on pretty quickly and has a lot of talent and has improved every year. I still think there is more room for more improvement before she leaves Admiral King.”

That determination is also evident in the classroom.

“I had her as a student freshman year and she always very serious about her grades and working hard about her grades,” Jackson said.

Robinson’s mother, Shelia Robinson, attempted to speak at the signing but was overcome with emotion. So Robinson’s father Andre Washington helped her out.

“I believe what she is trying to say is we are very proud of her,” Washington said. “Sheral has worked really hard all four years. You get nowhere without hard work.”

Robinson is also a very talented basketball player. As a starter for the Admirals this season, she was second on the team with 10.2 points. She also averaged four rebounds, 3.1 steals and two assists per game.

“Basketball was my first love but track became it when I started to do hurdles,” Robinson said. “When I got good at track I started focusing more on track.”Robinson choose Bowling Green for academics and track.

“I like the faculty and the coach was really nice,” said Robinson, who will study pre-dentistry. “I liked everything about Bowling Green.”

Her basketball coach Cheryl Bansek joked that Robinson had the whitest teeth of anyone she has ever coached.

“I like white teeth,” Robinson said with a smile. “My auntie is a dentist and got me interested in it.”

Robinson said there were a lot of people who helped her succeed while at Admiral King.

“A lot of teachers, all of my coaches, my parents, my friends and counselor. Everyone helped,” Robinson said.

Courtesy of Zachary Dzurick

For the second time in three years, Heidelberg University’s mens basketball team was trying for an Ohio Athletic Conference title, but it came up short, sustaining a 82-69 loss to Wilmington College at the John Carroll University’s DeCarlo Varsity Center in University Heights.

The ‘Berg finishes their season with a 15-13 overall record and marked the seventh appearance in the OAC Championship game.

Admiral King’s Adrian Casey, who is just a freshman, hit two free throws to put the Berg on top 32-31, but Wilmington answered with a 6-0 run to take the largest lead before halftime en route to its win.

Casey played in 27 games this season, including seven starts. He finished sixth in scoring with a 6.3 points per game average and second in rebounding with 141. His 5.2 rebounds per game average led the team. He led the team in rebounds in nine games this season and scoring once – a game he scored his career-high of 18 points against Ohio Northern.

Huron’s Matt Grieves, a senior, played in 25 games and averaged 3.1 points and 1.8 rebounds per game.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

St. Mary’s Michael Gallagher, who won a Division II state championship in the 200-yard individual medley this past season, has chosen to continue his swimming career at Ohio State.

Gallagher earned a gold medal in the 200-yard medley with a time of 1:52.77 at this year’s swimming championships.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Southview’s Jazzminn Richey-Obey led The Hampton University women’s bowling team, as it won four matches last weekend at the Capital Classic, hosted by Delaware State University. Richey-Obey took seventh place out of 166 bowlers

The Lady Pirates went 2-3 during team match play, losing the first two to Adelphi University (847-873) and Delaware State (798-909); however, they won the next two against North Carolina A&T (851-801) and Howard (874-828). Hampton came up short against St. Peter’s 878-888.

Richey-Obey led the way with a total pinfall of 950, bowling a season-high 235 against Howard.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Elyria’s Danny Mitcheff has put a stamp on his college wrestling career — becoming the winningest wrestler at Kent State.

Mitcheff surpassed former all-time leader Alex Camargo last weekend, and is now the Golden Flashes all-time wins leader, as he defeated Central Michigan’s Scotti Sentes in the Mid-American Conference Championships for his 127th win.

"This lets me know that all the hard work that I put into the sport has paid off," said Mitcheff, who is currently 30-3. "I’ve been wrestling since I was 5 years old. I’m proud of myself and I’m glad I was able to break the record. It’s cool. As a freshman, it never crossed my mind. It was never a goal of mine, it just came along the way."

Mitcheff will now get his fourth shot at a national championship when he wrestles in the Division I tournament at Omaha’s Qwest Center March 16-18. The national tournament will be his fourth-straight appearance, and he has a goal of being an All-American, which is finishing in the Top 8 in the nation — something he has yet to accomplish.

"When I made it my freshman year, I went 2-2 and that gave me a lot of encouragement going into my next year." Mitcheff said. "My next year, I obviously wanted to do better each time. I didn’t get to All-American status my sophomore or junior year, but I just kept working hard. Now that it’s my senior year, I got the sixth seed and it’s definitely helped just to have been there three previous years. I don’t think I’ll be as nervous as I was in the past. I’m real excited and ready to get it on."

Mitcheff, who was also named Kent State Athlete of the Week for his performance, scored an impressive win over Sentes, avenging an earlier-season defeat. After falling to Sentes three weeks prior, Mitcheff scored single and double leg takedowns to give Mitcheff a 4-1 lead after the first period. Mitcheff began the second period with a quick escape of Sentes and countered with a takedown, giving him a 7-1 lead en route to a 8-2 win.

"I went out there knowing he’d be a tough opponent, the record wasn’t on my mind," Mitcheff said. "I was focused on winning and wrestling hard. I just wanted to work on things that me and my coaches have been working on."

The MAC Championship was his second-straight 133-pound title. He was also named the tournament’s Most Valuable Wrestler for the second-straight season.

As a junior, Mitcheff finished 2-2 at the NCAA Championships, one win away from All-American status. He finished the season with a 23-8 record, including finishing second at the Oklahoma Gold and at the Body Bar before a fourth-place finish at the Southern Scuffle.

His sophomore season, he was given an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships for the second straight year and finished with a 30-9 record.

As a red-shirt freshman, he qualified for the NCAA Tournament at 133 where he went 2-2. He posted a record of 22-15, including 3-1 at the MAC Tournament to earn a second place finish and a wild card to the NCAA Tournament.

He was red-shirted his true freshman season and wrestled unattached, posting a 18-8 record.

At Elyria High School, he won a state title his senior year and was a three-time state qualifier wrestling under legendary coach Erik Burnett. He had a career record of 123-13, including a 38-1 mark as a senior.

"I’m proud of my career," Mitcheff said. "I didn’t accomplish everything, but I know I still have a chance this year to do some damage at the tournament. My goal was always to be a national champion and that’s what I’m working for. We’ll see how it turns out at the tournament."

Mitcheff will graduate in the spring with a degree in Human Movement Studies. He then plans to go to graduate school to get his masters degree in physical education. He also would love to coach wrestling someday, either at the high school or college level.

"I want to thank God first of all, my family for getting me through everything, and every coach that I’ve had — they’ve all played an important role."

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Two players from Lorain County Community College received postseason honors after finishing the season 12-17.

Christa Wodarczyk, a Columbia graduate in 2009, was recognized on the 2nd Team All-Ohio Community College Athletic Conference.

Julia Monteleone, an Avon graduate in 2009, earned Honorable Mention. Wodarczyk and Monteleone averaged 15 and 11 points per game, respectively, in conference play.

Both players plan on returning to LCCC for another season and will be major leaders on the team.

The Commodores finished with a record 2-12 in the OCCAC this season, including an upset over Columbus State Community College in the final game.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

The University of Findlay women’s basketball team advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division II Midwest Regional Tournament with a 54-51 win over the University of Wisconsin-Parkside on Saturday in Houghton, Michigan.

The Oilers, who improved to 22-8, got a huge rebound from Norwalk’s Megan Sellers, who snatched a rebound and was sent to the line for free throws with 10 seconds left. Sellers made the front end, but missed the second, giving Wisconsin-Parkside a last attempt at tying the game and sending it into overtime but their triple try was off the mark.

Amherst’s Audra Mihalic scored 12 points, while Sellers added five points and eight rebounds.

The Oilers will be back in action again Sunday when they face top-seeded Michigan Technological University at 4 p.m. for a chance to reach the Sweet 16.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

For the second time this season and the fourth time in his career, New London’s Corey Chaffins, a junior, has been named the Mid-American Conference West Division Pitcher of the Week, while pitching for Eastern Michigan University.

Chaffins, who improved to 2-0, was stellar on the mound for the Eagles against Jacksonville State University on Friday, earning his second victory of the season after going 6 2/3 innings and giving up five runs on six hits.

He also tied a season-high in strikeouts with eight, to help the Eagles claim the 10-8 win.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Amherst’s Audra Mihalic has made her mark for the women’s basketball program at the University of Findlay.

This season, she helped the Oilers advance to the 64-team NCAA Division II National Tournament for the first time in Findlay school history. Findlay, who notched the fifth seed in the Midwest Region, will play fourth-seeded University of Wisconsin-Parkside, today in Michigan.

The Oilers, who advanced to the semifinals of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Tournament, another first, before falling 71-64 to Northern Michigan University, enter the national tournament with a 21-8 record.

"It’s really a great feeling,” Mihalic said. “Seeing from where we came when I came in as a freshman with four other seniors on the team. It’s a great accomplishment to make it to the NCAA Tournament for the first time. It’s a really good feeling.

"Making the NCAA Tournament was one of our goals, also winning the South and making it to the GLIAC Tournament was our goals so doing it my senior year is just awesome. Coming into the program, we had to work so hard everyday. Being a part of building this program has been an awesome feeling. My highlight is winning the South Division and making it into the NCAA Tournament. We’ve never been here before."

Mihalic, who was named First Team All-GLIAC for the second-straight season, averages 14.7 points, 4.8 assists and 3.1 rebounds per game this season. She has also amassed 134 assists, tying her own school record for assists in a season, which she set last year.

For her career, Mihalic ranks third all-time in Findlay school history with 1,375 points and is second all-time in assists with 414.

"I have definitely improved on my shot, something that I’ve worked on a lot in the offseason," Mihalic said. "I have gotten better on my short jumpers and 3s, compared to what I was in high school.

"We have taken pride in our defense. We have really taken ownership in our defense, cutting down on our turnovers. That’s helped us out a lot."

And although the Oilers were eliminated from the GLIAC Tournament last Friday, they anxiously awaited news on their NCAA Division II tournament bid through the Selection Show.

"We were disappointed that we had lost, but we made it to the semifinals after never making it to the GLIAC Tournament before so that was a really big accomplishment for us," Mihalic said. "We were all together at one of our coach’s house to watch the Selection Show and when we saw our names, we got real excited. It was definitely a great feeling."

The road wasn’t easy for Mihalic and the Oilers. Her freshman season, they only won six games as they looked to rebuild a program around Mihalic and fellow freshmen Candace Black, Maggie Gompers, Jessica Vorst and Megan Sellers, who is from Norwalk High School. Now that they’re seniors, the hard work has paid off.

"We went 6-21 my freshman year," Mihalic said. "My sophomore season, we won nine games. My junior year, we went 14-13 so that was a really good step in the right direction, but we ended up not making it into the GLIAC Tournament because it came down to two teams and the one that we needed to win, lost. This year was the best year that we’ve had."

And now University of Wisconsin-Parkside, who is 23-8, stands in their way.

"We don’t know a great deal about them, beside that they’re tall and physical, a post-oriented team," Mihalic said. "It should be a good matchup for us. We are very confident.

"We’ve competed with the top teams so we’re hoping that it gives us the confidence that we need to go out and play a good game that we know how to play. As long as we play like we’ve done in the past that made us successful, we’ll be fine. We want to make a run in the tournament and be put on the map. We’re back to being a force in college basketball."

Mihalic, who has a 3.71 GPA, will be graduating with a business management and marketing degree and a minor in biology. She will then go to a one-year nursing program to earn her bachelor’s degree.

"These four years have definitely flown by," said Mihalic, who was named an All-Ohio Honorable Mention and the Southwestern Conference MVP three times while at Amherst. "Overall things have been great. I love every minute of it. It’s been a great journey."

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Oberlin's Aaron Gibbs and Southview's Adriene Rodriguez were rewarded for their outstanding tournament playing for Ohio Dominican, earning a spot on the All-Conference team from the Association of Independent Institutions (A.I.I.) tournament played last week.

Ohio Dominican made it to the championship game in its first and only season in the A.I.I. before losing to Johnson & Wales, 65-60.

Johnson & Wales will make their second straight appearance in the NAIA Men's Basketball Division II National Championships.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Amherst’s Audra Mihalic, of The University of Findlay women’s basketball team, was named First Team All-Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) for her outstanding senior season.

Mihalic, who was also a first team all-conference selection last year, has averaged 14.7 points, 4.8 assists and 3.1 rebounds per game thus far during her senior season. She has also amassed 134 assists up until this point, tying her own school record for assists in a season which she set last year.

For her career, Mihalic ranks third all-time in UF history with 1,375 points and is second all-time in assists with 414.

Stay tuned for a College Insider on Mihalic's impressive career at Findlay.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Elyria Catholic’s Mike Haszto is having the time of his life playing for the University of Central Oklahoma’s hockey team.

On Tuesday night, the No. 10 Bronchos pulled off another upset, defeating the No. 2 Nittany Lions of Penn State, 2-1 in overtime at the Edge Ice Arena in Bensenville, Illinois.

Trailing 1-0 and the Nittany Lions going all out to kill the clock for the win, UCO defenseman Nick Novak blasted a shot into the back of the net. Shawn Steggles got the assist on that game-tying goal with just 1:29 left in regulation.

An unassisted tally 1:42 in overtime from Jonathon Cannizzo gave UCO its second straight upset win and sent them to the national semifinals.

Central Oklahoma advances to the tournament semifinals next Tuesday evening at the Edge. Their opponent will be determined after the four semifinalists are reseeded.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Perkins' Amy Schlessman continues to roll as she won at singles and doubles to lead the Kenyon College tennis team to a 9-0 win over Baldwin-Wallace last week.

Prita Kidder teamed with Schlessman for an 8-1 triumph in the top doubles flight. Schlessman also claimed victory in decisive fashion, 6-1, 6-1, at the No. 2 doubles.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Western Reserve’s Steph Tinney was selected as the GLIAC women’s indoor track athlete of the year for her outstanding junior season running track at Ashland.

For part of this season, Tinney had the best time in the country in the 400 meters. Currently, she has the second best clocking in the nation. At the GLIAC championships, she set a conference record in the 400, winning the race in 55.33. Tinney was part of the 4x4 relay team that claimed a silver medal and she ran on the distance relay that was third.

"There aren’t enough awards for Steph Tinney," AU head coach Jud Logan said. "There aren’t words to describe how she leads by example, the way she runs her workouts, the way she embraces A.G.’s (Kruger) weightroom workouts. She’s the energy and pulse of the women’s team."

Tinney has earned a berth at the NCAA Division II national championship meet, which will be held Mar. 12-13 in Albuquerque, N.M.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Firelands’ Cory Lamar was named the GLIAC men’s freshman of the year for his outstanding freshman year running track at Ashland.

At the GLIAC championships last weekend at Grand Valley State, Lamar finished third in the 400 meters. He was also a part of the 4x4 relay that finished third and the distance medley relay that finished second.

"Cory came into a stable of 400 meter runners," AU head coach Jud Logan said through a press release. "When you have Joe Horn, Nick Bellanco, Edwin Smith and Cyrus Granger, he was the new kid on the block. What Cory did was practice with those guys every day. Those guys are his leaders, his examples. That’s why he’s running the times he is now."

Lamar has earned a berth to the NCAA Division II national championship meet, which will be held March 12-13 in Albuquerque, N.M.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Elyria Catholic’s Mike Haszto scored a goal and assisted on another to help lead No. 10 Central Oklahoma to a 5-4 win over No. 7 Oklahoma in double overtime on Saturday night.

Haszto, who was switched to right wing for the past seven games, came through again and has tallied three goals and two assists since the change. His sixth goal of the season on Saturday broke a 2-2 tie late in the second period, as he stuffed a rebound from his own shot past a sprawling Sooner goalkeeper.

UCO, who improved to 25-12-2, will now play in the ACHA College Hockey Division I Tournament against No. 2 Penn State, a 7-3 winner over No. 15 SUNY-Canton earlier in the day.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Kelsey Williams

Jerial Nixon

In his final college game, Admiral King’s Jerial Nixon scored a team-high 19 points for the California University of Pennsylvania basketball team in a 88-74 loss to Mercyhurst in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference last Saturday.

Nixon went 9 of 12 from the floor and also snagged six rebounds and dished five assists. Nixon finished the year ranked third on the team in scoring at 11.9 points per game, while also leading the team in assists (3.0 per game).

Sandusky’s Kelsey Williams, a sophomore added 15 points and a team-high seven rebounds.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

Perkins’ Bethany Caudill knocked down a game-winning 3-pointer with 11 seconds left to lead the Slippery Rock University basketball team to a come-from-behind 80-79 win over Clarion last Saturday in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference-Western Division game at Morrow Field House.

Caudill finished the game with 13 points. For the season, in just her freshman season, she has started 16 games of 27 games played. She averaged 7.6 points per game, which includes 26 3-pointers, good for second on the team.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

New London's Corey Chaffins was named the Mid-American Conference (West Division) Pitcher of the Week last week for his pitching performance for Eastern Michigan University.

Chaffins was also named to the CollegeBaseball360.com "Primetime Performer Weekly Honor Roll".

In the Eagles' 3-1 victory over the No. 25 ranked Kansas University, Chaffins struck out eight batters in seven innings. He allowed just one run on three hits and a walk to lead EMU to its second-straight season opening victory. In his second start, Chaffins picked up a no-decision against the University of South Alabama, after going seven innings, giving up four earned runs and striking out three.

swalker@MorningJournal.com

As a freshman, Jackie Bankston once went to soccer camp with a full leg cast below her knee. She still managed to fully participate in workouts.

Among other intangibles, she’s going to bring toughness when she plays both soccer and softball next academic year at Ursuline College — at least that’s what Kevin Ziegler said, her high school soccer coach.

Bankston signed a letter of intent to Ursuline College Tuesday night at Wellington High School before an exclusive crowd of family, friends and teachers.

She didn’t expect to be playing college soccer entering her freshman year in high school. She’s always played softball, not soccer.

"When I was little, I was always playing softball and never played soccer," Bankston said. "And then freshman year, I was like, ‘Oh, OK, that is a fall sport here, I’ll try it out.’"

Bankston was a four-year starter and letterwinner at goalkeeper throughout her career at Wellington. She was the Most Improved Player, and earned second team all-county and all-conference awards in 2006. She followed up the 2006 campaign with another impressive season in 2007. She earned Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2007.

"I’m looking forward to playing two sports next year," Bankston said. "I’ve been playing softball my whole life, and soccer has been my main thing during high school."

Playing two sports in college fails to daunt the talented goalkeeper and catcher.

"I play three sports right now in high school," Bankston said. "Most of the time I’m playing two at a time, so I don’t think it will be much different. I think I’ll be able to manage. I just have to stay organized."

Besides being an accomplished goalkeeper – one with a 77 percent save percentage throughout her high school career and 22 career shutouts – her leadership qualities is why she was so highly recruited by Jason Kubbins, the Ursuline College head soccer coach.

"She has a great attitude," Kubbins said. "Throughout the whole recruiting process, she’s conducted herself with class. At Ursuline, we try to recruit good kids along with good athletes, and she definitely fits the mold."

A sentiment echoed by Ziegler and Kubbins is her intensity and aggressiveness at the goalkeeper position.

"She brings a lot to the table as far as the goalkeeper position goes," Kubbins said.

"She’s very aggressive, which is very important. She’s got some great technical ability, too. She’s definitely one of those kids you can work with, which is great."

courtesy of Kareem Elgazzar

Oberlin 's Aaron Gibbs was named the Association of Independent Institutions (A.I.I.) Male Athlete of the Week for last week’s performance playing for Ohio Dominican.

In the final week of the season, Gibbs posted 64 points over the Panthers two games at the A.I.I. Division II Men's Basketball Championship.

The sophomore forward led the Panthers to the A.I.I. Championship game after scoring 24 and grabbing nine rebounds versus Walla Walla University in the semifinals.

In the Championship final, the Panthers came up just short, falling 65-60 to Johnson and Wales, however Gibbs registered 16 points and seven rebounds in the loss.

swalker@MorningJournal.com