Track and Field Teams Finish Season at New York State Meet; Softball Eliminated From SUNYACs with Pair of Losses



TRACK & FIELD - Teams Finish Season at New York State Meet



Buffalo State Track and Field competed in the final team meet of the season this past weekend at the NYSCTC Championships held at the University of Rochester. Facing the best competition in New York State, the Bengals did their best to represent the college admirably. The men's team placed seventh out of 14 teams and the women tied for 13th place.



Highlighting the weekend's events for Buffalo State was John Lesure (Rochester/Greece-Athena). Lesure captured the state title in the long jump with his best effort of the season, measuring a distance of 6.95M (22'09.75"). Lesure also earned points for the Bengals as he finished in seventh place in the Triple Jump with a distance of 13.56M (44'06").



Other Bengals earning points for the men's squad in field events were pole vaulters, Aaron Masters (Grand Island/Grand Island) and Curtis Bachek (Bayport/Bayport-Blue Point). Masters finished in fourth place with a height of 4.26M (13'11.75") and Bachek earned an eighth-place finish vaulting above a height of 4.11M (13'05.75"). Rookie Perry Davis (Buffalo/Seneca) tied for fifth-place in the high jump (1.89M) earning three and a half points.



Other highlights for the Bengals included the season's best record by the third-place finishing 4 x 400M Relay, consisting of Aaron Kinard (Queens/Springfield Gardens), Chris Lape (Millbrook/Millbrook), Bachek, and Dan Conti (West Seneca/Maryvale). In other relay events, the 4 x 100M Relay with Lesure, Eugene Overton (Syracuse/Corcoran), Kinard and Markus Allen (Commack/St. John's the Baptist) placed third with a time of 43.12.



Allen also placed second in each the 100M (11.32) and 200M Dashes (22.08). Kinard finished right behind Allen in the 200M Dash placing third with a split of 22.49.



In women's events, the relay team of Nicole Rowland (Brooklyn/Stephen Austin), Mimi Mason (Buffalo/Turner Carroll), Autumn Hensel (Akron/Akron), and Emily Balzano (New Hartford/New Hartford) earned an eighth place finish in the 4 x 400M Relay. Kasey Cornwell (Lapeer, MI/Goodrich) also earned an eighth place finish in the discus throw with a mark of 31.36M (102'11"). Rowland achieved a season's best record in the triple jump with a distance of 10.17M (33'04.5").



SOFTBALL (19-17/13-7 SUNYAC) - Bengals Eliminated From SUNYACs with Pair of Losses



Buffalo State was eliminated from the SUNYAC playoffs this past weekend with two consecutive losses, ending the Bengals' season with a 19-17 record.



After inclement weather forced the opening round games to be postponed from Thursday to Friday, Buffalo State opened the SUNYAC Tournament against the second-seeded Cortland Red Dragons. It was the Bengals first postseason game since claiming the conference title against Cortland in 2000. After the Red Dragons' first two batters were retired in the bottom of the first inning, Cortland exploded, hitting back-to-back-to-back homeruns. The Red Dragons increased their lead to 5-0 in the second inning. Buffalo State battled back, however, scoring three runs in the fourth inning and four more in the fifth, taking a 7-6 lead, but Cortland rallied to tie the score in the sixth inning. The Red Dragons had the first chance to win the game in the bottom of the eighth inning, when a Cortland runner was thrown out at the plate by right fielder Erin Olsen (Lancaster/Lancaster) for the third out. Buffalo State was held hitless for the third consecutive inning in the ninth, and Cortland manufactured the winning run for an 8-7 win in nine innings. Stephanie Menth (Tonawanda/Tonawanda) led the Bengals, going 2-for-5 with a homerun and two RBI. Alyssa Brosius (N. Tonawanda/N. Tonawanda) was 2-for-4.



The fifth-sng a win to stay alive, Buffalo State struggled out of the gates again, allowing three runs before recording the game's second out. After falling behind 6-0 in the third inning, the Bengals attempted to chip away at the Lady Knights lead, but still trailed 8-2 heading into the bottom of the seventh. Buffalo State's leadoff hitter reached on an error to give the Bengals' bench some life. Then, with two outs, Menth, 3-for-4 on the day, doubled putting runners on second and third. Nicole Willats (Tonawanda/Sweet Home) singled and drove in a pair of runs, but was thrown out at second base, ending the Bengals comeback hopes and season with an 8-4 loss. Tiffany Ciolek (Great Valley/Salamanca) led the Bengals offense with the first multiple homerun game of her career, leaving the yard twice in three at bats.



Postseason Recognition?



Buffalo State's young team was well represented on the list of All-SUNYAC selections. Two-thirds of Buffalo State's outfield were represented as the elite at their position. Junior left fielder Stephanie Menth (Tonawanda/Tonawanda) earned the distinction for the third time, as she finished with a team leading 46 hits, and was third with a .368 batting average. Sophomore center fielder Nadine Sirianni (Niagara Falls/Niagara Falls) made the team for the second time, as she hit .361 on the season. Sophomore shortstop Nicole Willats (Tonawanda/Sweet Home) was named to the team for the first time. She hit .313 on the season and led the team with 11 sacrifices. Medical redshirt freshman Heidi Rammacher (Angola/Lakeshore) also made the team as a designated player. The Bengals' clean-up hitter all season, she finished the year with a .339 batting average. Also receiving conference honors, was freshman Alyssa Brosius (N. Tonawanda/N. Tonawanda), who was named First Year Player of the Year. The rookie firstbaseman tied for the team lead with a .372 batting average.



We'll Be Back?



Although disappointed with the early departure from the SUNYAC Tournament, the Bengals could look back on this season as a valuable learning experience. Next year's team will not lose a single player from the 2002 roster, as there are no seniors, three juniors, nine sophomores and four freshmen on the roster. After a competitive preseason in 2003, Buffalo State should be poised to make a legitimate run at its fourth SUNYAC Championship next May.