(Posted March 19, 2001)

SOFTBALL (5-2): Mar. 24, Alfred (2).

The Eagles swept a doubleheader from visiting Dickinson in their lone action of the week. On Thursday, Juniata opened the home portion of its 2001 schedule with a 4-0 and 7-0 decision over the Red Devils. In the opener, the blue and gold diamond squad posted three runs in the bottom of the first inning and junior pitcher Christie Matthews (South Williamsport/South Williamsport) held Dickinson to just three hits during her complete-game triumph. Matthews struck out four and walked none, while moving her record to 3-1 on the season. Freshman second baseman Becky Herr (Hamburg/Hamburg) was 1 for 2 with a run scored and a run batted in. Sophomore left fielder Lauren Baker (Susquehannock/Spring Grove), sophomore shortstop Brandy Preslovich (Bald Eagle Area/Moshannon) and freshman third baseman Cass Dutzer (Danville/Riverside) were all 1 for 3. Preslovich scored once, had an RBI and a stolen base, Baker scored one time and posted a stolen base and Dutzer knocked in a run and had a triple. In the day's nightcap, Herr got her initial collegiate start on the mound and went the distance during the 7-0 triumph. She allowed just four hits, struck out two and walked two. Freshman right fielder Amy Gable (Kennard-Dale/Stewartstown) was 2 for 4, scored twice and had two RBI. Baker went 2 for 4, while freshman center fielder Amber Helsel (Claysburg-Kimmel/Claysburg) was 2 for 3 with a triple and two runs scored. Preslovich was 1 for 4 with a three-run double in the sixth inning.

MEN'S VOLLEYBALL (9-8, 5-5 EIVA Tait): Mar. 21, Mercyhurst; Mar. 23 at NJIT; Mar. 24 at Rutgers-Newark.

Freshman outside hitter Javier Garcia (San Ignacio/Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) played just the final two and a half games of the match for Juniata against St. Francis on Tuesday evening in Memorial Gymnasium, but he certainly made his presence known during his brief appearance. The coaching staff elected not to start the team's leader in kill average due to a team decision. However, once inserted into the lineup, he provided a spark with 14 kills on 22 swings and just one hitting error during Juniata's 24-30, 30-27, 26-30, 30-19, 15-13 win over the Red Flash. The victory was Juniata's 17th straight over St. Francis (12-6). The Eagles now own a 29-7 lead in the all-time series and last lost to the Red Flash back in 1995. The loss also snapped a current seven-match winning streak by St. Francis. Sophomore outside hitter Neil Lukas (Fairport/Fairport) ended the night with a match-high 17 kills and he also had six digs, two aces and three blocks. Sophomore middle hitter Chris Jones (Lower Merion/Wayne) had 11 kills and four blocks for Juniata, while sophomore setter Scott Kofmehl (North Allegheny/Pittsburgh) had 51 assists, six rejections, five digs, an ace and three kills. Garcia added in four digs, two blocks and one ace to his totals for the night. On Friday night, Juniata survived a strong effort by Springfield in the first game of a key Division III outing and turned up its defense through the last three contests of the night to post a 23-30, 30-21, 30-20, 30-25 win over the Pride. The Eagles are ranked second in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division III Poll, while Springfield is rated eighth in the most recent AVCA Division III rankings. The victory sets up a showdown with New York University on March 31. The winner of that outing will most likely host the EIVA Division III Championship in April and the first-place team in that event advances to the Molten Division III national championship weekend. Freshman opposite Ryan Genova (Antietam/Reading) had a match-high 16 kills, a .387 hitting percentage and six digs, while freshman middle hitter Kenny Eiser (Central Bucks West/Doylestown) had 13 kills, while Jones and Garcia each had 11 kills. Senior setter Kevin Moore (Webster/Webster, NY) dished out 51 assists and had 12 digs, while Lukas finished with nine kills and six digs.

BASEBALL (7-4-1, 2-0 Commonwealth): Mar. 19, Penn State-Altoona (2); Mar. 21 at Gettysburg;

Mar. 24, Lebanon. Valley (2).

Juniata opened its northern schedule during the 2001 season on Wednesday with a 10-10, 10-inning tie at Dickinson. The Eagles owned leads of 3-0, 4-1, 9-7 and 10-8 in the game before the Red Devils tallied two runs in the bottom of the ninth to knot the score. The outing was called after the 10th frame due to darkness. Senior right fielder Lucas Kelleher (Bishop Guilfoyle/Altoona) was 4 for 6 with two runs scored and two runs batted in. Junior first baseman Tim Dobson (Millville/Millville, NJ) went 2 for 4 with three RBI and scored a run. Senior pitcher/center fielder Matt Eisenberg (Big Spring/Newville) was 2 for 5 at the plate and scored two times. He also pitched 8 2/3 innings and got a "no decision". On Thursday, Juniata started Commonwealth Conference action with a doubleheader sweep at Albright, 3-1 and 8-7 (8 innings). In the first game of the day, junior pitcher Clint Wevodau (Northern Lebanon/Annville) went the distance on the mound to earn his first triumph of the year. He yielded just six hits, one earned run, walked two and struck out seven. Juniata was down, 1-0, heading into the fifth inning when Eisenberg ripped an RBI triple to score junior second baseman Jamie Campbell (Muncy/Muncy), who had singled to lead off the inning. Eisenberg then scored what turned out to be the winning run with an RBI single from Kelleher. Eisenberg was 2 for 4 with a double and a triple, while scoring once and knocking in a run. In the second tilt, the Eagles trailed, 7-0 (only two earned runs) after the first inning. Dobson, junior designated hitter Tim Keeley (Caledonia-Mumford/Caledonia, NY), freshman Bill Kulbacki (DuBois Area/DuBois) and senior left fielder Fred Heaton (Central/Roaring Spring) each had a home run for Juniata during the comeback. Dobson's and Keeley's were solo efforts in the second and fourth innings, respectively. Kulbacki delivered a two-out, pinch-hit home run in the sixth to tie the game and then in the top of the eighth, Heaton led off with a home run to left field for the game-winning run. Sophomore pitcher Paul Evans (Huntingdon/Huntingdon) went the distance on the mound to move to 3-1 on the year. He gave up nine hits, just three after the first frame, walked none and struck out three. Keeley was 2 for 3 with two RBI and a run scored, while Heaton was 2 for 4 as well.

Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.