Sports

Loras
drops
rematch
to MSOE

photo by Maddy Cole

Senior Michael Kreiser and first-year Jimmy Combs go up for the block
during the Duhawks 3-0 loss to MSOE Tuesday night.
and kept the match alive. The Duhawks were unable to force a 5th set,
as Mount St. Joseph took the 4th set
to wrap up the match with a 3-1 victory.
The Duhawks will next travel to
Fort Wayne, In. to take on Coach
Thornburgs alma mater, Indiana
University Purdue University Fort
Wayne. Thornburg got his start in
coaching at IPFW, where he was a
member of hall of fame coach Arnie
Balls staff.

MSOE 3, Loras 0
(25-22, 25-21, 26-24)
Loras (3-12, 1-6)........ AC Kl Dg Ast
Michael Kreiser...................2 4 2 1
Dawid Kasprzak..................0 6 0 0
Shayne Marquez................. 1 0 3 19
Jimmy Combs..................... 1 8 3 0
TJ Esporas..........................0 7 3 0
Dylan Ross..........................0 5 1 0
Danny Krasich.................... 1 0 5 11
Blair Anderson....................0 0 9 1
Kyle Zacok...........................0 2 0 0
Totals...........................5 32 26 32

softball

Klein, Serpico to lead young Duhawks

by Frank Fernandez | sportswriter

Coming off a 14-22 season and a second straight missed conference tournament, the Duhawks hope that their
combination of strong veterans along
with hungry newcomers can lead them
to their first postseason appearance
since 2012.
The senior duo of Katie Serpico and
Holly Klein will provide leadership and
anchor the Duhawks in various areas.
Serpico, an all-region selection in 2014,
has the capability to surpass her numbers from a year ago, when she led the
team in batting average (.370), home
runs (7), and runs batted in (32).
In the circle, Klein returns as the
Duhawks top pitcher from last season.
She had 10 complete games last season
and held opponents to the lowest batting average among the Duhawk starting staff. After a strong offseason of
working with new pitching coach Kevin
Schuchmann, Klein will look to build on
her career-high 55 strikeouts in 2014.
Ive been working closely with coach

Unfit for fitness

by drew brashaw | asst. sports editor

Preseason poll has

Loras picked to finish 7th
in Iowa Conference

March 5, 2015

Drews Views

Duhawks earn 1st conference

victory against Fontbonne

The mens volleyball team hosted

Milwaukee School of Engineering on
Tuesday night at the AWC. The Duhawks looked to avenge their Jan.
21 loss to MSOE, a match which finished as a 3-2 nail-biter in favor of
the Raiders. Unfortunately for Loras,
Tuesdays contest wasnt as close, as
MSOE closed out the match in 3 sets
(25-22, 25-21, 26-24). First-year Jimmy Combs hit for .636, tallying 8 kills
and 3 digs in the match. First-year
T.J. Esporas pitched in 7 kills and 3
digs.
The loss moves Loras to 3-12 for the
season.
Even though the road this season
has been rocky, the Duhawks reached
a significant milestone this weekend,
earning their first Midwest Collegiate
Volleyball League victory of the year
on Friday when they swept the Fontbonne Griffins 3-0 in St. Louis.
Led by Combs, who notched 8 kills,
4 blocks, and 2 service aces, the Duhawks outlasted the Griffins in two
closely contested sets to open the
match, winning 25-23, and 26-24. In
the 3rd and decisive set, Loras was finally able to create some separation
on the scoreboard, and sealed the
match with a 25-19 win. Senior Michael Kreiser contributed 10 kills and
2 blocks, and Esporas had 9 kills.
We fought hard and accomplished
some of our major goals (against
Fontbonne), said head coach Jeremy
Thornburg. We got our first conference win, we finished sets at crucial
times, and we really played together
as a team.
On Sunday, the Duhawks traveled
to Cincinnati for a matchup with the
14th-ranked Mount St. Joseph Lions.
After dropping the first two sets 2520, and 25-17, Loras bounced back to
take the 3rd set by a score of 25-22

The Lorian

Schuchmann these past few months ines and Crown at the Augsburg Dome
and I can already see a lot of improve- on March 6 and 7. A spring break trip
ment in my control and movement, to Tucson, Arizona has the Duhawks
which will help me build on last years competing in the Tucson Invitational
games. Playing eight games in four days
success, Klein said.
Head coach Ashley Winter is hoping will give Loras an early season test, bethat she can get a strong showing from fore heading back to Dubuque to begin
conference play against the title favorite
some of the first-years on the roster.
Weve got a few freshmen that have Luther College Norse.
showed great potential and
they could see significant
2014 softball season statistics
playing time if they continue,
Batting
said Winter.
One of these freshmen, Mi- Player................ G h rbi hr slg% ob% avg
randa Chapman, is making Katie Serpico.......... 33 34 32 7 .641 .482 .370
Katherine Angelini....19 14 6 0 .439 .391 .341
her transition from the court
Lara Mangialardi......19 15 8 2 .522 .340 .326
to the diamond after wrap- Danielle Stromert.. 33 26 13 0 .424 .500 .306
ping up her first season on Makaila Haase....... 33 27 27 6 .490 .360 .270
the Womens basketball team. Kali Koopmann...... 30 22 13 1 .344 .320 .244
In the preseason Iowa Con- Sam Shindelar........31 21 8 2 .322 .258 .241
ference poll, the Duhawks Ashlee Hoffmann... 24 14 11 1 .317 .306 .222
Alaina Rigdon........30 17 20 6 .451 .305 .207
were picked to finish seventh Cate Paulsen...........19 8 11 0 .225 .289 .200
of eight teams.
Nora Zerante.......... 27 12 15 0 .242 .342 .194
Im very excited to get this Maddie Bare............19 7 5 0 .244 .209 .171
season going, we are ready to Totals.....................36 250 181 29 .417 .368 .270
Pitching
make a statement and show
everyone what we are made Player........... app-gs ip w-l bb so avg era
Lara Mangialardi.... 20-15 72.21 5-10 47 34 .324 5.11
of, Winter said.
Holly Klein........... 20-17 94.2 7-8 40 55 .312 5.32
The Duhawks will begin Erin Hosch..............16-1 22.0 1-1 12 12 .360 6.05
their season in Minneapolis, Taylor Vaske............ 7-0 9.2 0-1 4 1 .404 9.42
facing off against St. Cather- Totals..................... 36 220.1 15-21 114 117 .328 5.66

n the course of my duties as

the assistant sports editor
for this fine publication, I
often find myself in the presence
of very athletic, physically
gifted young men and women.
For a twiggy thirty-something
with a bad back and thinning
Drew Brashaw hair, these surroundings arent
asst. sports editor exactly conducive to a positive
self-image. I look at the amazing
things these fine-tuned studentathletes are able to do with their bodies, and I
think to myself, I could do that when I was their
age. Its a damned lie, but its a lie that always
makes me long for the days when my joints didnt
snap, crackle, and pop like a bowl of Kelloggs Rice
Krispies every morning when I got out of bed.
Recently, I decided to do something about it.
A few weeks ago, while I was perusing
announcements on the Loras portal, I came
across a post that read: Time to Start Your
Fitness Program. Im not sure why I clicked on
the link. I hadnt been contemplating suicide, or
self-mutilation, or any other form of masochistic
activity lately, but I clicked. And I read. To wit,
students in the kinesiology program were looking
for guinea pigs to design and implement workouts
for, and would serve as personal trainers for the
volunteers at no cost.
I dont know why I responded, but I did.
I was instructed to fill out a packet of
information and bring it to the Graber Center
on a Monday morning to discuss it with my new
trainer. Completing the informational forms was a
formidable exercise in and of itself. Here are a few
highlights:
Q: Why did you decide to sign up for this fitness
class?
A: Because Im an out-of-shape old man who lives
a lifestyle only slightly less active than that of the
average glacier.
Q: What are you hoping to accomplish through
this program?
A: To undo the last dozen years, or so.
Q: Do you picture yourself as having a healthy
diet?
A: Yes, but sometimes I also picture myself as
Batman.
Q: Do you have any bad habits youd like to break?
A: No thanks, Im in a good place with my bad
habits.
Q: What is your biggest fear for the next 12 weeks?
A: Vomiting on the gym floor. And grizzly bears,
they terrify me.
I managed to get through the packet injury-free,
and I was ready to meet my trainer.
The first day was just a meet-and-greet, where
I was introduced to Sani, my new personal fitness
trainer. As Sani looked over my questionnaire,
he chuckled politely a few times, as if he knew his
work was cut out for him. He had no idea. But
Sani has the kind of attitude that sprays positivity
all over the place, and I couldnt help but to feel
encouraged. Before our next meeting, which
would consist of fitness tests to determine the
exact degree of how pathetic my physical prowess
is, I went out and bought two items Id never
before owned: a pair of running shoes, and a box
of cereal without a cartoon character on it. With
my feet properly adorned, and my stomach filled
with something called whole grains, I headed to
Graber to meet Sani.
The events which followed were a complete
horror show.
I ran, unpursued, for 12 minutes. Who does
that? At the end of this Bataan-caliber death
march, I swore my chest would burst. As it turns
out, two dozen Camels a day isnt the greatest
thing in the world for a guys wind. What in the
hell had I gotten myself into?
Inexplicably, I didnt give up. I came back for
more abuse.
The next time, there were push-ups, and situps, more running, and a medicine ball. I didnt
even know that was a real thing. I thought they
only existed in sports movie training montages.
To make a long story short, I dont feel any
younger. My left calf feels like Ndamukong Suh
just danced the Charleston on it, and my abs (who
knew I had such a thing?) ache so badly that Im
continuously checking myself for stab-wounds.
Despite feeling like the victim of a prison riot
today, Im going back tomorrow, and I plan to
finish out the full 12-week program. I havent yet
figured out why. Netflix and Papa Johns never
make me hurt this way.
Ill let you know how it works out.