Harper women run to sixth-place national finish

After qualifying both a full men's and a full women's team last week for Saturday's cross country national meet, Harper College had high hopes.

Unfortunately for the Hawks, the men's team was unable to compete with its full complement of runners at Saturday's national meet at Finger Lakes Community College in Canandaigua, NY.

But coach Paul Paynter still had high hopes for his women's team, and it delivered a sixth-place overall finish. Chelsea McPherson led the way with a 27th-place overall finish. She was followed by Karoline Banasik, Janet Franco, Melanie Mayer, Elisse Lorenc and Maggie Meersman.

For the men, red-shirt sophomore Jesus Escareno was looking to avenge a narrow loss two years ago. Escareno finished second once again, this time to Chris Burke of SUNY-Delhi, to earn NJCAA All-American recognition.

• Harper's football team ended its season last weekend with a 2-7 regular season record and a 2-6 mark in the Midwest Football Conference, putting them fourth in the five-team league.

On the first offensive play for the Hawks in their finale at Grand Rapids, quarterback Stuart Augustine was intercepted, and Harper could not sustain much offensively in a 35-0 loss.

"Offensively we had chances to make big plays," said Harper coach Eric Waldstein. "We just did not do it."

Still, the game was not all gloom and doom for the Hawks. The defense held Grand Rapids to 35 points, its second-lowest total of the season.

Waldstein said "defensively we played really well."

The Hawks will be losing the No. 1 and 2 quarterbacks on its depth chart, Pat Czerwiec and Cameron Kinley. Also gone from this year's team will be both starting cornerbacks, Darriell Owens and Tryance Stuckey. Stuckey was an all-conference pick last season. The entire linebacker corps will be graduating as well.

Look for Augustine to be tops on the depth chart at quarterback when camp starts on Aug. 2. Most of the Harper offensive and defensive lines will be returning for the 2010 campaign as well.

• The Harper women's soccer team traveled to College of Dupage last week in postseason play but bowed out with a 1-0 loss to the No. 2-ranked Chaparrals.

"We had our best game of the year." said coach Dwayne Cruz.

• After finishing fifth last season in the women's volleyball national tournament, the Hawks entered the season with high hopes as a ranked squad in the NJCAA Division III poll. Things did not go as the Hawks (21-24) had hoped, though, for the most part, and their season came to an end on Oct. 31 during regional play in Madison, Wis.

"I put together the toughest schedule I could," said coach Bob Vilsoet.

Libero Megan Maize (Elk Grove) and outside hitter Alexandra Mason both set school records this season, but neither they nor Katie Spychala (Elk Grove) will return to next year's squad. The Hawks do expect to have 6-foot-1 Joanna Strzelec (Rolling Meaodws) back for next season.