Paolo Sandoval
Staff Writer
Tournaments galore saw the Dons hit incredible highs and tragic lows, but there was no lack of excitement as USF closed out most of its regular season play. Here is your recap of this week in Dons’ sports.
Women’s tennis took on the Syracuse University Orange at the Olympic Club May 2, but despite three victories, were unable to defeat their east coast opponents, losing the match 3-4. The Dons finished their season with an impressive 12-7 overall win-loss record.
The men’s and women’s track and field teams split up April 30 for the West Coast Relays. The women headed to Clovis, Calif. while the men competed at the OSU High Performance Meet in Corvallis, Ore. Both teams showed out with strong individual performances as the Dons claimed four personal bests at the Veterans Memorial Stadium in Clovis. Aoibhe Richardson finished fifth in the 5,000 meters — her blazing time of 15 minutes, 43.58 seconds put her top-25 in the nation at the event — while Sarah Marske broke her own school record for the second week in a row, running a time of 14.57 seconds in the 100 meters hurdles. Ed Kiolbasa turned in a personal best of his own at the Whyte Track and Field Center in Corvallis, running a time of 29 minutes, 43.28 seconds in the men’s 10,000 meters to take sixth in the event.
Men’s golf competed in the West Coast Conference (WCC) Championships at the Reflection Bay Golf Club April 29-May 1. The nationally-ranked No. 25 Dons finished third overall, with a 22-under 842 (278-281-283), the team’s best result at the WCC Championships in program history. After a strong day one and a topsy-turvy day two, four players managed to finish under par, including team leader Soren Lind, who placed 11th at the tournament with a 6-under 210. The Dons next move on to NCAA regional play May 17.
Women’s beach volleyball participated in their own West Coast Conference Championship, finishing the April 30-May 1 tournament with one win and two loses. Day one at Dockweiler Beach in El Segundo, Calif. started off with a 5-0 loss to No. 3 Saint Mary’s College, but the Dons rebounded to take game two against the No. 7 University of Portland Pilots, winning 3-2 behind a three set victory (21-19, 20-22, 15-9) from Tanner Pemberton and Greta Corti. USF couldn’t pull out a final win, though, dropping their third and final match of the tournament 1-4 to No. 5 Pacfic University. Anna Dalla Vecchia and Catie Cronister won the only point for USF’s team. The Dons finished their season with a 3-9 overall win-loss record.
Men’s baseball took on the University of the Pacific Tigers in a three-game series April 30-May 2, winning the series 2-1 in one of their most dominant displays in recent memory. Putting a bitter one-run extra innings loss in game one behind them, the Dons doubled down and focused up in game two for a 6-4 win at Klein Family Field in Stockton, CA, behind a clutch Jacob Munoz pinch hit in the eight inning. USF finished off the Pacific series with an absolute blow-out of a game, destroying the Tigers by a score of 17-4. Six Dons had at least three runs, including Jacob Westerman, whose massive homer with the bases loaded put USF up early and for good.
