The Pointer UW-Stevens Point Student Newspaper
Junior Logan Hermsen became the sixth national champion in program history for the Pointer wrestling team when he won the 165-pound division at the 2016 NCAA Division III National Championships in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
The championship match was tied 3-3 and, with a third period takedown, Hermsen sent the match into overtime. He defeated Wartburg’s Nicholas Michael in a sudden victory-1 to claim the 165-pound title.
On Friday, Hermsen won his first round matchup 7-0 against Williams College’s Timothy Garripoli and defeated Central College’s Ryan Vandall with a 7-6 victory to secure a spot in the semifinals.
Earning 19 points with his victory, he helped UWSP place 19th overall as a team—its highest placement since 2009 when the Pointers finished 17th.
Hermsen finished his junior season with a 28-4 overall record.
Sophomore Ben Vosters also qualified to the NCAA Division III National Championships, where his season finished with a pair of defeats. In his first matchup against Central College’s CJ Pestano, he lost 5-2. Vosters was defeated in his second match against Rob Murray from Stevens Institute of Technology.
Vosters concluded his season with a 24-5 overall record, which included a WIAC Championship and Scholar All-American Honors.
Williams and Ward Set New School Records at the NCAA Division III Indoor National Championships
Junior Jerry Williams and sophomore Darin Ward each earned All-American honors and set new UWSP records in their respected events this past weekend at the 2016 NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Championships in Grinnell, Iowa.
Williams secured All-American honors in two events at the championships after placing runner-up in the triple jump with a new school record jump of 15.03 meters as well as finishing third in the long jump with a jump of 7.16 meters.
Photo by Jack McLaughlin.
For the fourth time this season, Ward broke the school and his own personal record in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.01 seconds, which was the fourth-best time in qualifications. During finals, he finished in 8.25 seconds to place eighth overall and receive All-American honors in the event.
Also on the men’s team, national championship competitors included junior Neil Pedersen who also earned All-American honors after finishing seventh in the one-mile run in 4:12.85. Senior Jordan Richards placed ninth in the long jump with a mark of 6.87 meters and freshman Jeremy Lee placed 10th in the heptathlon with a collective 4,682 points. The men’s 4×400-meter relay team finished 12th with a time of 3:23.67 minutes.
The Pointers placed 10th as a team with 17 points. UW-Eau Claire won the championships with 53 points, UW-Whitewater was second with 39 points and UW-La Crosse rounded out the top three with 40 points.
On the women’s side, senior Shannon Burke placed highest for the Pointers with an eighth place finish in the pole vault after she cleared a height of 3.70 meters and received All-American honors.
Senior Kadie Flynn recorded a distance of 16.41 meters in the weight throw and finished 13th in the championships. She also placed 10th in the shot put with a throw of 13.23 meters. The women’s 4×400-meter relay team crossed the line in 3:54.21 minutes to place 11th in the prelims.
The women’s team earned 0.5 points and tied for 76th with Stockton. Baldwin Wallace claimed the team title with 42.2 points. Illinois Wesleyan was runner-up with 36 points and Washington U. placed third with 31 points.
The men and women’s track and field teams will begin their outdoor season at the Sherman/Lukoski Invite on April 9 in Ripon.
Softball Splits Doubleheader Games with Buena Vista University
The UWSP softball team won 3-2 in its first game and fell 9-1 in the its second game to Buena Vista University on Saturday afternoon in Storm Lake, Iowa.
In the Pointers first matchup, the first thee innings of the game remained tied 0-0 until sophomore Katie Uhlenbrauck knocked in an RBI double to put UWSP on the board. Buena Vista scored its first run of the game and tied the Pointers 1-1 with back-to-back doubles from Marissa Schmidt and Keely Bycroft.
Photo by Jack McLaughlin.
Freshman Morgan Johnson earned the win for UWSP when she scored junior Charlotte Pegram and Kylie Johnson in the seventh inning, giving the Pointers the 3-2 win.
Sophomore Paige Allen recorded three hits. Morgan Johnson had one hit and two RBIs while Uhlenbrauck had one hit and one RBI. Pegram posted one hit in the first game.
In the second game, senior Bailie Sheahan scored the Pointers only run of the game with a solo home run in the first inning.
From that point on, Buena Vista scored five runs in the bottom of the first inning, two runs in the second and two in the fourth, defeating the Pointers 9-1 by run rule.
Sheahan led the Pointers efforts with one hit and one RBI. Sophomore Averi Kanyuh and Allen each recorded one hit during the game.
The Pointers will be back on the mound starting March 17 where they will play 12 games at the National Training Center Games in Clermont, Fla.
Pointer Tennis Records One Win and One Loss in River Falls
Photo courtesy of UWSP Athletics.
The UWSP tennis team split a pair of matches this past weekend in River Falls.
In the morning on Friday, the Pointers won their match up 7-2 against UW-River Falls and later in the day, lost 8-1 to Bemidji State University.
UWSP will be back in action, facing off against Saint Mary’s University (Minn.) at 12 p.m. on April 3 in De Pere.
Kylie Bridenhagen
Sports Editor
kbrid305@uwsp.edu
