Brewers wrap first semester action, prepare for road ahead

With Winter Break approaching, many of Vassar's teams played their final games of the semester this past week.

The men's and women's swimming and diving teams each wrapped up play for the first half of the year. Both teams finished fifth out of eight teams at the Liberty League Championships on Dec. 3.

The women's team finished with 361 points, just 10 shy of fourth place Union College. Caroline Shannon '12 led the squad, finishing second in the 400 IM, setting a new school record (4:41.50) in the process. Shannon also finished second in the 200 breaststroke (2:31.18) and 200 IM (2:12.79) and third in the 100 breaststroke (1:09.54).

The men's team also narrowly missed finishing fourth with 292.5 points, just behind Rochester Institute of Technology's 299 points. Jack Smart '12 keyed the Brewers' efforts, recording four top-10 finishes. Smart finished second in the 200 breaststroke (2:13.67), fifth in the 100 breaststroke (1:02.21), sixth in the 200 IM (2:01.65) and seventh in the 400 IM (4:26.56). The University of Rochester won both the men's and women's championships.

Men's basketball still has one more contest prior to break; however, with Liberty League play on the horizon, the team has had a number of tune-up games prior to break. On Nov. 30, the team was overcome by cross-river rival State University of New York New Paltz 83-70 despite 27 points from Sam Rappaport '14. The sophomore sniper was 10-20 from the field and 5-11 from beyond the arc, in just 23 minutes off the bench, but his strong performance was not enough to overcome the Hawks.

The team was able to rebound the next Saturday, Dec. 3, shellacking Sarah Lawrence College 79-13. The Brewers held their opponents to just six first-half points, jumping out to a 59-6 lead. In the first half, the Brewers walloped Sarah Lawrence on both sides of the court, shooting 58 percent (23-40) from the field, while holding Sarah Lawrence to just 6 percent (2-29) shooting. 14 of 15 Brewers scored in the contest, with Johnny Mrlik '15 leading the way with 13 points.

Against City College of New York (CCNY) on Dec. 6, the Brewers continued their winning ways. Mrlik had a career-high 23 points and 10 rebounds on 7-9 shooting. Alex Snyder '15 also turned in a strong performance with 18 points and nine rebounds. The Brewers busted the game open with a 16-3 run in the first half, keyed by 11 points from Mrlik. The victory over the only team to capture a NCAA Championship and an NIT Title in the same year (1950) improves the Brewers to 4-2 on the year.

The women's basketball team also has one game remaining prior to break. On Nov. 30, they handled Drew University 70-42 with 18 points from Captain Brittany Parks '12 and 17 points from Captain Cydni Matsuoka '14. Nyah Berg '15 contributed 12 points, while Colleen O'Connell '15 chipped in nine points and 16 rebounds. The Brewers held a 33-25 halftime lead, with Matsuoka scoring all 17 of her points in the first frame; however, it was Vassar's suffocating defense that sealed the win. The Brewers held Drew to just 19 percent shooting in the second half (7-36), outscoring their foes 37-17.

Vassar improved to a perfect 5-0 with a 69-67 victory over Hunter College on Dec. 6. The Brewers jumped out to an early 28-19 lead, but went into the locker room trailing by 3 after being outscored 20-8 to end the half. The game remained close with neither team holding more than a five-point lead with under 15 minutes remaining. After a Matsuoka jumper tied the game at 64 with 2:35 remaining, three free throws gave Hunter the lead back. Matsuoka cut the Vassar deficit to one with 1:24 remaining and then gave Vassar a 68-67 lead with 33 seconds to play, after a steal with 37 seconds left in the contest. Hunter had one last chance to win, but Kristyn Tempora '12 secured the defensive board with eight seconds remaining, and drained a free throw to give Vassar the final 69-67 margin.

The men's and women's squash team each finished the fall semester this past week with a series of contests against some of the nation's top programs. On Nov. 30, the men's team was overcome 9-0 by No. 21 Amherst College. Two days later, No. 27 Tufts University achieved the same result. On Dec. 4, No. 18 Bowdoin College and No. 22 Connecticut College each swept the Brewers 9-0.

After starting the season 4-0, the women's squash team suffered their first defeat of the year to Amherst on Nov. 30. The No. 15 ranked Lord Jeffs swept the No. 22 ranked Brewers. Vassar competed twice more on Dec. 4, dropping contests to No. 20 Bowdoin, 9-0 and No. 24 Connecticut College, 5-4.

The men's and women's fencing team visited Penn State University for contests against the University of North Carolina, Penn State, Princeton University, Harvard University and New York University, while the women additionally faced Temple University. Against some of the nation's finest fencing programs the Brewers endured a tough meet, losing all nine matches. Katie LeClair '13 led the women's team, going 11-6 on the day. The men's squad was led by Tavish Pegram '13 with a 9-3 record.