| Athletics Update | |
| By Dave Reed & Dave Moross |
In this Edition
- Hockey Team Climbs to the Top
- McGinnis Excels, On and Off the Field
- Men’s Basketball: Reich Reaches 2,000 Points
- Women’s Basketball: Udall Breaks Rebounding Record
- Tigers Named Runners, Coach of the Year
- Women’s Lacrosse: Highest Ranking Ever
- Men’s Soccer Goes to Div. III Playoffs
- Women’s Soccer: Loseke Named Defensive Player of the Year
- Four Named to All-Independent Volleyball Teams
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| The CC Tigers gather jubilantly around the MacNaughton Trophy, awarded annually to the regular-season champion of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association. Their 3-0 shutout of the University of Denver on March 3 earned them a share of the trophy, but arch-rival DU rallied the next night to win 5-0, giving the Pioneers a share of the league title as well as top seed for the WCHA playoffs. |
| Photo by Casey Gibson |
Hockey Team Climbs to the Top
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| Junior center Marty Sertich has led the nation in scoring for most of the 2004-2005 season. |
| Photo by Casey Gibson |
Thanks to an 11-game undefeated streak that stretched from mid-December to late January, the Colorado College hockey team soared to No. 1 in the national rankings after sweeping both games of a series at previously top-ranked University of Minnesota the weekend of Jan. 8-9, then confirmed they’d earned that slot by beating the University of North Dakota twice at the Colorado Springs World Arena.
The Tigers, who finally dropped a 4-3 decision to the University of Minnesota-Duluth Jan. 22, remained near the top of the polls and Western Collegiate Hockey Association standings after reaching the 20-victory plateau for the fifth consecutive campaign. By early February, they had taken over first place in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association and clinched home ice for the first round of the league playoffs.
Center Marty Sertich and left wing Brett Sterling, both juniors, emerged as candidates for college hockey’s prestigious Hobey Baker Award. After 32 games, Sertich led the nation with 58 points, having scored 23 goals to go with 35 assists. Sterling was a close second with 26 tallies and 26 assists, good for 52 points, and ranked among the national leaders with five game-winning goals. The linemates were among 10 Tigers to earn WCHA Player of the Week honors this season.
« TopMcGinnis Excels, On and Off the Field
When Patrick McGinnis ’05 transferred from Dartmouth to Colorado College, he had a pretty good idea what to expect.
His parents, Mark McGinnis ’77 and Ciliamarie Ferrari McGinnis ’77, could talk with him about CC academics, and his older brother, Sean McGinnis ’03, was a member of the men’s soccer team. So Patrick expected to earn a great education while he played soccer for one of the top Division III programs in the nation, and he did.
Patrick’s dedication to succeed on the field and in the classroom has made him among the most decorated student-athletes in the college’s history. “Every athlete has to balance the athletics and the academics,” McGinnis says. “That's something I was interested in, having fun playing soccer and coming to a place like CC with quality academics.”
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| Patrick McGinnis '05 accepts the Division III Player of the Year award from CC President Richard F. Celeste — one among his many accolades after a spectacular college career. |
| Photo by Casey Gibson |
Those accomplishments earned McGinnis every possible national honor. His major accolades: Division III Player of the Year by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA), Division III Academic All-American of the Year by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), Offensive Player of the Year by the Association of Division III Independents.
He was also named an NSCAA First-Team All-American, the third in the program's history, and a First-Team CoSIDA Academic All-American.
It was obvious that the 2004 season would be special when McGinnis opened the season with four goals against Johnson & Wales University, the first of eight such performances he would record during the course of the season. He scored all three goals against Central College in the second contest, which included the first of nine game-winners; that game was one of five in which McGinnis would provide all of CC’s scoring.
One of the most memorable games of the year was a 2-1 October victory over DePauw University, when McGinnis struck twice to tie the goals-in-one-season record set by Andre Zarb-Cousin ’72. McGinnis claimed sole possession of the school record with a pair of goals two outings later.
While the statistics and records will belong to McGinnis, he is quick to point out that his brother, his teammates, and the style of CC soccer played an important role in his individual accomplishments.
“With the guys we had this year, the way we worked together and the opportunities that everyone created, the goals were bound to go in,” McGinnis says. “I think we play an attractive style of soccer. Everybody’s involved, and I think that's definitely a plus for the program.
“I didn’t come to CC just to play soccer with Sean, but he did tell me about the program and the style of play. That was certainly one reason I thought about transferring. We played one-on-one a lot when we were younger. We were working on our technique and skills and moves, and sometimes it deteriorated into a brawl.”
The only blemish on an otherwise brilliant senior season was CC’s loss in the first round of the NCAA playoffs. The Tigers dropped a heart-breaking 2-1 loss at Whitworth College and finished the year with a 16-4-1 record, nonetheless recording the most victories for the program since 1992.
“The things that came after the season were little consolation for being knocked out of the tournament early,” McGinnis says. “That’s still the thing that I will remember. We thought this team would go a little further than that. It still feels a little bitter to be knocked out of the tournament so early.”
McGinnis, who hopes to continue his soccer career at the professional level, has tried out with the Real Salt Lake, Colorado Rapids, and Kansas City Wizards. (Once he is finished with soccer, graduate school and teaching are possibilities.) “The week with the Rapids was awesome,” McGinnis says. “Just seeing how they train and how professional soccer players are expected to act — everybody is battling every day, every play. That’s what could earn you a spot on the team. Hopefully, at some level, I can keep playing for a few more years.”
Men’s Basketball: Reich Reaches 2,000 Points
Forward Michael Reich ’05 became the second CC men’s basketball player to reach the 2,000-point mark when he scored 38 points against Nebraska Wesleyan in the season finale. Reich is ranked second nationally with 2,002 points, fifth with 515 rebounds, eighth with 219 assists, and ninth with 117 three-point baskets. He is the only player in the program’s history to be ranked in the career top 10 for points, rebounds, and assists.
« TopWomen’s Basketball: Udall Breaks Rebounding Record
Tarn Udall ’08 grabbed a career-high 20 rebounds in a season-ending win over the University of California-Santa Cruz and broke CC’s 27-year-old record for rebounds in a single season. She finished the season with 322 boards, one more than the previous standard set by Colorado College hall-of-famer Lorna Kollmeyer ’80 during the 1977-78 campaign. Udall led the Tigers in points (356), rebounds, steals (51), and blocked shots (22).
« TopTigers Named Runners, Coach of the Year
Jenny Jorgensen ’05, who led the CC women’s cross country team to an 18th-place finish at the NCAA Division III Championship meet, and Kiran Moorty ’07, who qualified for the men’s championship race as an individual, were named national women’s and men’s runners of the year by the Association of Division III Independents. Head coach Ted Castaneda was named women’s coach of the year.
« TopWomen’s Lacrosse: Highest Ranking Ever
The CC women’s lacrosse team earned its highest ranking ever when the Tigers were ranked No. 4 in the 2005 preseason polls by both U.S. Lacrosse and InsideLacrosse.com. The team returned nine starters and 17 letter-winners from last year’s squad, which posted a 13-3 record and advanced to the regional final of the Division III tournament.
« TopMen’s Soccer Goes to Div. III Playoffs
Two members of the men’s soccer team were named to the All-Independent team by the Association of Division III Independents, Patrick McGinnis ’05 and Alex Aguirre ’05 to the first team. CC finished the season with a 16-4-1 record and earned a berth in the NCAA Division III Playoffs for the third time in four years.
« TopWomen’s Soccer: Loseke Named Defensive Player of the Year
Goalkeeper Meghan Loseke ’05, who backstopped CC to a 9-5-2 record this season, was named the Defensive Player of the Year among the nation’s NCAA Division I independents. Forward Stevie Kernan ’06 and defender Laura Wilcox ’06 were selected to the All-Independent first team.
« TopFour Named to All-Independent Volleyball Teams
Two CC volleyball players were named to the Association of Division III Independents 2004 All-Independent Teams. Outside hitter Katharine Hauschka ’05 was a first-team selection; she set a school record with 537 kills this year and ranked 19th in Division III by averaging 4.59 kills per game. Aubrey Reed ’05 had 513 digs during the 2004 campaign and became the school’s career leader with 1,681. CC finished the season with a 21-12 record and made its seventh consecutive appearance in the NCAA Division III Volleyball Championship.