Campus News
March 17, 2011
3 Eagle teams are UAA champions
Emory's baseball, softball and golf squads each clinched UAA Championships over spring break.
By John Farina
March 13 was a big day for Emory Athletics as three teams clinched outright University Athletic Association (UAA) Championships. The Eagles' baseball, softball and golf squads all emerged as the top teams in their respective sports and raised the number to seven the total of league crowns won by Emory thus far during the 2010-11 year.
Baseball team makes record return to top
The Emory baseball team captured its 10th conference championship, and first since the 2008 season, at the 2011 UAA Championships in Sanford, Fla. The Eagles finished the six-game tournament with a 5-1 record, marking the first time a team has won five or more games at the championships since 2006.
After clinching a share of the conference title with a 15-4 win over the University of Rochester on March 13, the Eagles utilized a Patrick Riebsame two-run walk off home run in the ninth inning of a 9-8 win over Washington University on March 14, to claim the championship outright.
Emory was paced offensively by the senior Riebsame, who hit .435 with two home runs and eight RBIs, senior Andrew Cohn, who batted .348 with a home run and nine RBIs, and freshman Brandon Hannon, who recorded a tournament-best .526 batting average with seven RBIs. On the mound, sophomore Mike Bitanga did not allow an earned run in three games in relief, going 1-0 with two saves, while sophomore Caleb Long earned a win with six innings of one-hit baseball against Brandeis University. The Eagles are now 13-7 overall this season.
Listen to the call of Riebsame's walk off homer vs. Wash U. that clinched the UAA Championship.
Golfers' victory is sweet ending
The 20th-ranked Emory golf team brought home the program's 13th UAA Championship over the weekend as the Eagles used a sterling second-round performance in edging runner-up Rochester by two strokes. Emory finished the 36-hole tournament, which was played at Red Tail Golf Course in Sorrento, Fla., with a score of 586 (302-284) with the team's final-day showing
representing the fourth-lowest total in school annals.
Senior Nick Szem finished second in the field with a one-under par 143 that included a second-round 66, tying for the lowest score in school history. Senior Charles Raindre aided in Emory's run to the title with a one-under 71 to finish at 145, tying for third. Junior Ryan Dagerman was the next Eagle on the scoreboard at 148 (76-72), good for fifth place and Michael Mullavey rounded out the team's scorers with a 150 (75-75). Szem, Raindre and Dagerman all earned
All-UAA First Team honors while Mullavey landed a berth on the second team.
The first-place performance was extra sweet for Emory head coach Mike Phillips who was coaching in his final conference championship after announcing his plans to retire following the end of the season. Phillips, along with assistant John Sjoberg, was named the UAA Coaching Staff of the Year.
See the Emory Golf UAA Championship results.
Perfect marks for softball team
The Emory softball team steamrolled its way to the program's second consecutive and fifth
overall UAA Championship, finishing with a perfect 8-0 mark.
The Eagles outscored their eight foes by an amazing 84-5 margin en route to the
title and compiled an impressive .455 batting average compared to the opposition's mark of .221.
Emory blasted 12 homers during the Championships, four each by junior Jessica Thomas and freshman Megan Light, and registered 19 two-base hits. Thomas hit a blazing .588 (10-for-17) and drove in 10 runs while Light turned in a .565 average (13-for-23) with 16 RBIs.
On the mound, junior Bridget Holloway crafted her way to four wins, striking out 19 batters in 29 innings of work while finishing with a 0.70 ERA. Freshman Lena Brottman also was strong in the circle, not allowing a run in 12 innings of action and registering three wins.
The Eagles eight victories upped their overall record to 22-0 for the season.
