The Emory Athletics weekly preview for April 8th to April 16th. This preview is to serve as a weekly snapshot of all upcoming athletic events for the coming week.
Women's Golf:
The No. 3 ranked Emory women's golf team will take the course early this week, playing in the Max and Susan Stith Invitational in Glen Allen, Virginia. The tournament will be played at The Dominion Club's Par 72, 5,602-yard course. Emory will then head to Alabama to serve as host for the Deb Jackson Invitational, with eight different teams set to join them at The Shoals Schoolmaster Course.
The Eagles sent five golfers to the tournament, with freshman Carys Code, sophomores Cindy Wang and Katie Park, and juniors Sharon Mun and Heejo Hyun all heading to Virginia.
Code has been one of the Eagles' most consistent players this spring, earning her the No. 10 overall individual ranking in the latest Scoreboard-Clippd rankings. She finished her last event as Emory's top performer, shooting a 235 (+19) in the Liz Murphey Classic. Her performance at the event saw her jump 16 places in the Division III rankings.
Joining Code in the top-25 individual players are Hyun at No. 11 and Mun at No. 17. Hyun will play her first match for the Eagles since the UAA Championships in October. Her best round this year came in the Montgomery Women's Intercollegiate where she shot a 140 (-4). Meanwhile, Mun's best performance came in the team's opening weekend back in September when she won the Lynn Schweizer Invitational, shooting three under par.
The event in Virginia will span two days, from Monday, April 8th to Tuesday, April 9th.
The Eagles will then host the Deb Jackson Invitational in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. The Eagles will bring 11 players to the tournament, fielding two teams. The event will start with a practice round on Sunday before the teams play 36 holes on Monday, April 15th and conclude with 18 holes on Tuesday, April 16th.
When/Where:
- Monday, April 8th-Tuesday, April 9th – Max and Susan Stith Invitational – The Dominion Club (Glen Allen, VA)
- Monday, April 15th-Tuesday, April 16th – Deb Jackson Invitational – RTJ Golf Trail Schoolmaster Course (Muscle Shoals, AL)
Coverage:
- Max and Susan Stith Invitational
- Deb Jackson Invitational
- TBA
Track and Field:
The Emory track and field teams will continue their outdoor season this weekend with a couple of different meets they'll send athletes to. Some will head to Lynchburg University's Dennis Craddock Coaches Classic meet while others will stay regional and head to the Berry Field Day at Berry College.
Emory is coming off a weekend in which the Eagles saw three separate program records fall at the Lee Flames Invitational. Sophomore Madison Tiaffay got things started with a record-breaking performance in the mile, clocking in at 5:00.28 to set the new program mark. Graduate student Ethan Thompson competed in the 10,000m, finishing in 30:10.54 to set the new record while also setting the 16th best time in Division III in the event in the process. Senior Spencer Watry rounded out the Eagles' record-breaking weekend when he finished the 800m in 1:50.19, which is also the top time in Division III this year.
Emory saw several solid performances on the field as well, with sophomore Henry Brandstadter winning the long jump with a distance of 7.13m. Graduate student Aiden Gilbert was close behind, finishing third with a 6.45m mark. Freshman Mable Mutumwa picked up an event win this weekend as well, with a 40.52m mark in the javelin. Her distance was also the ninth best in Division III this season.
Emory will look to keep it rolling this weekend at the Dennis Craddock Coaches Classic and Berry Field Day. Both meets will take place from Friday, April 12th to Saturday, April 13th.
When/Where:
- Friday, April 12th-Saturday, April 13th – Dennis Craddock Coaches Classic – Lynchburg University (Lynchburg, VA)
- Friday, April 12th-Saturday, April 13th – Berry Field Day – Berry College (Rome, GA)
Coverage:
- Dennis Craddock Coaches Classic
- Berry College
Softball:
The Emory softball team (16-12, 2-6 UAA) is looking to get back on track this weekend with a four-game road set against UAA-foe Brandeis on deck. The Eagles split their opening series with Carnegie Mellon but were swept on the road against No. 6 ranked Case Western Reserve this past weekend.
While the Eagles may be on a skid, they've kept the bats going. The Eagles have the eighth highest batting average in the nation, hitting an impressive .381 as a team. Sophomore Ashley Chu has played a key role in keeping that average so high, hitting .500 out of the leadoff spot. Chu has shown her performance is sustainable too, playing in 23 games. Emory's single-season highest batting average (minimum 45 at bats) came in 2000 when Lauren Dix hit .489. She also gets it done on the basepaths, tied for ninth in the nation in stolen bases with 21.
Chu's ability to get on base and proceed to get into scoring position has served her teammates well this year, with freshman Ellie Zerr and sophomore Ella Hoyle reaping the benefits. Zerr has a team high 42 RBI this season on seven home runs and a .381 batting average. Zerr is slugging an impressive .750 through 28 games as well. The sophomore added to her home run total against the Spartans this past weekend, hitting two in the series. Hoyle is on Zerr's heels, with 28 RBI and a .393 batting average.
Emory will enter their game against the Brandeis Judges with both teams on a bit of a skid. The Eagles have lost five straight, while the Judges have dropped their past two games as well and sit at 8-11 on the year. While the Judges are scuffling a bit, they like to hit the long ball, averaging 0.67 home runs per game, good for 18th in the nation. Haley Nash and Bells Burdenski are leading the way for the Judges, both hitting six home runs this year. Nash is hitting an impressive .411 while Burdenski is close behind at .355 as both have played and started in all 19 games this year.
Kannan Ragini is the ace of the Brandeis staff, owning a sub-3.00 ERA over 67.0 innings of work. She's done a solid job at keeping the ball inside the yard, giving up just three home runs this year. Ragini pitched a gem this past weekend, striking out 10 in a complete game shutout of Carnegie Mellon.
The Eagles have had the Judges' number historically, having the edge in the all-time series, 47-9. The series will take place from Friday to Sunday, with a doubleheader on Saturday.
When/Where:
- Friday, April 12th – at Brandeis – 3:00 PM – Marcus Field (Waltham, MA)
- Saturday April 13th – at Brandeis – 12:00 PM / 2:00 PM – Marcus Field (Waltham, MA)
- Sunday, April 14th – at Brandeis – 11:00 AM – Marcus Field (Waltham, MA)
Coverage:
- Game 1
- Game 2
- Game 3
- Game 4
Baseball:
The Emory baseball team (16-14, 3-5 UAA) will stay on the road this weekend, with another UAA series on deck. This time around, the Eagles will head to St. Louis, Missouri to take on the WashU Bears. Emory is coming off a series split with NYU this past weekend, where they scored 29 runs over the four games in New York.
The Eagle bats erupted in the series opener against NYU on Friday, scoring 14 runs in their mercy-rule win over the Violets. Senior Jacob Grossman did his job as the table-setter, going 4-for-5 with three doubles. Junior Matthew Sicoli started his weekend hot too, going 4-for-4 with a home run and five RBI. Five different Eagles had RBI on the day and five also had multi-hit days.
The Eagles scored just one run in the opening game of Saturday's doubleheader before the bats once again woke up to score 13 runs in the second game. Grossman stayed red-hot with a 2-for-4 game with another double and a home run. Seven different Eagles had RBI in the win.
Despite dropping the series finale on Sunday, the Eagles got a solid performance from their pitching staff. Adam Geller had his best start of the year, going 5.0 innings with three runs allowed on three hits. The bullpen combined to hurl 3.0 innings and give up one run on three hits. Yet, NYU's Andrew Reid was dominant as he held Emory to one run on five hits through 8.2 innings of work.
The Eagles certainly like to stretch their base hits into doubles too, hitting 2.66 per game, good for eighth in the nation. Grossman has played a key role in that department with a team-high 18. Junior Blake Dincman, who is leading the team in batting average at .430 and slugging percentage at .699, has hit his fair share of doubles this year as well, hitting 13 this year.
WashU had the weekend off from UAA competition, but started their conference schedule strong when they took three games from NYU a couple of weeks back. The Bears will come into the series with an 18-9 record this year. Sophomore Shane Pellegrino, an All-UAA First Team player a year ago, is leading the way for the Bears. The sophomore is hitting .372 with a team-high .574 slugging percentage. He has hit a team-high eight doubles and is tied for second in home runs with three. Clayton Miller has gotten it done at the dish this year as well, hitting .356 and slugging four home runs this year. The Bears play their fair share of high-scoring affairs, averaging 8.0 runs per game while their pitching staff has a cumulative ERA north of 6.00.
The Eagles have the edge in the all-time series with the Bears, 37-20, including having won eight straight against the conference rival. The series will take place from Friday to Sunday, with a doubleheader on Saturday.
When/Where:
- Friday, April 12th – at WashU – 4:00 PM – Kelly Field at Irv Utz Stadium (St. Louis, MO)
- Saturday, April 13th – at WashU – 1:00 PM / 4:00 PM – Kelly Field at Irv Utz Stadium (St. Louis, MO)
- Sunday, April 14th – at WashU – 12:00 PM – Kelly Field at Irv Utz Stadium (St. Louis, MO)
Coverage:
- Game 1
- Game 2
- Game 3
- Game 4
Men's Golf:
The No. 2 ranked Emory men's golf team is set to return to the course to host the Shoals Intercollegiate in Florence, Alabama early next week. The event will be played at the RTJ Golf Trail at Muscle Shoals.
The Eagles have spent the past couple of weeks off from competition, with their most recent performance coming in the Jekyll Island Collegiate in March. The Eagles had an impressive showing, finishing seventh out of 30 teams in a very talented field.
Senior Jackson Klutznick has continued to be dominant on the course this year, earning the No. 1 spot on the Scoreboard-Clippd Division III individual rankings. The senior has three top-10 finishes this year, including a first-place finish at the Gate City Invitational in September. He also played a key role in the Eagles' UAA Championship, winning both of his matches in the conference tournament. Most recently, Klutznick finished 15th out of 150 golfers in the Jekyll Island Collegiate.
Joining Klutznick in the top-25 is junior Tony Li, who checks in at No. 25 overall. He has two top-10 finishes, including an event win at the Tartan Invitational in October. Li was impressive in Savannah a month back, finishing 13th as he shot two under par. He'll look to jump back into the top-10 with a solid performance in Alabama.
When/Where:
- Sunday, April 14th-Tuesday, April 16th – The Shoals Intercollegiate – RTJ Golf Trail at Muscle Shoals (Muscle Shoals, AL)
Coverage:
Men's Tennis:
The No. 2 ranked Emory men's tennis team (11-3) will be back on the courts early next week for a pair of matches. They'll start at home against North Georgia before hitting the road to take on N.C. Wesleyan.
Emory is coming off a week in which it won its lone match, sweeping Covenant, 9-0. The Eagles received solid performances from a new rotation of players, each winning their singles matches while the usual doubles tandems won their matches as well.
The doubles teams have been incredibly strong this spring, consistently securing points early in matches. Sophomore Dean Kamenev and senior Nolan Shah have been dominant, going 10-1 out of the No. 2 position. Meanwhile, seniors Brandon Cohen and Ryan Glanville have held it down in the No. 1 position, going 9-3 as a team. Rounding out the starting doubles lineup is senior Samuel Dean and freshman Christian Liew, who have gone 7-3 at the No. 3 spot.
Junior Emilio Van Cotthem has been strong as of late, winning four straight singles matches. The junior has played primarily out of the No. 5 or 6 position. Liew has also experienced a strong start to his collegiate career, winning 10 of his 13 singles bouts this spring, playing in the No. 4 and 5 position primarily.
When/Where:
- Sunday, April 14th – vs North Georgia – 10:00 AM – Woodruff P.E. Center
- Monday, April 15th – at N.C. Wesleyan – Time TBA – Palmetto Tennis Center (Sumnter, SC)
Coverage:
- North Georgia
- N.C. Wesleyan
- TBA