MOC sports news

Published in Sports on October 10, 2004 9:48 AM

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Trojan men's soccer team still unbeaten in CVAC

MOUNT OLIVE -- Cory Worrell scored two goals and Reid Clewis added a goal and an assist as regionally fifth-ranked Mount Olive College remained unbeaten in conference play with a 4-1 victory over Limestone in Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference men's soccer Saturday at Trojan Field.

With the win, the Trojans remain the lone unbeaten and untied team in the CVAC.

Mount Olive (11-2-0 overall, 7-0-0 CVAC) got on the scoreboard barely five minutes into the contest as Clewis intercepted an errant pass just outside the box and dribbled in for an open shot. The Trojans added a goal in the 19th minute when a foul in the box led to a penalty kick by Erik Small.

Mount Olive scored again less than two minutes later when Warren Atkins outmaneuvered the Limestone defense in the attacking third and found Worrell open near the left post to extend the lead to 3-0. The assist was the 14th of the season for Atkins, who is tied for second in the nation in assists per game.

Mount Olive outshot Limestone 15-3 in the first half, but the Saints got back in the game late in the half as Ian Fleming scored in the 39th minute off a cross by Camilo Agudelo to pull within 3-1 at halftime.

Limestone (1-10-0, 0-5-0) kept up the pressure much of the second half, but was able to get only two more shots the rest of the match. Mount Olive added an insurance goal with less than 10 minutes remaining when Clewis led a counter-attack down the right sideline, crossed the ball to Charles Williams, who one-touched the ball to Worrell for the goal. Worrell ranks in the top five in the nation with 18 goals. Mount Olive outshot Limestone 25-5 for the match.

Mount Olive plays the first of four consecutive road contests Monday as the Trojans travel to Fayetteville to face Methodist in non-conference action. Match time is 4 p.m. Limestone travels to Banner Elk Wednesday at 5 p.m. to take on Lees-McRae in a CVAC match-up.

Trojan women shut out Limestone in soccer

MOUNT OLIVE -- April Jacobs scored a goal and an assist and Lauren Slattum recorded two assists for the second consecutive match as Mount Olive College defeated Limestone 3-0 in Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference women's soccer Saturday at Trojan Field.

The win assures the Trojans of finishing above .500 in conference play for the first time in the 10-year history of Mount Olive women's soccer.

Mount Olive (11-2-0 overall, 6-2-0 CVAC) broke a scoreless tie less than six minutes into the match as Jacobs served the ball into the box to Emily Escolas, who scored her sixth goal in her last five matches. The Trojans outshot Limestone 9-1 in the first half, but had to settle for a 1-0 lead at halftime, thanks in part to a diving save by Limestone goalkeeper Liz Eichhorn on a 15-yard shot by Jacobs with 38 seconds left in the half. Eichhorn finished with nine saves for the match, including two more diving saves in the second half on almost certain goals.

Mount Olive scored a goal five minutes into the second half when Jacobs headed in Slattum's corner kick to extend the Trojans' lead to 2-0.

Limestone (4-7-0, 1-4-0) pressured late in the second half and nearly cut the lead in half in the 76th minute when Cathy Zgraggen's shot bent towards the right post, but Trojan goalkeeper Heather Ressler made a leaping save to preserve her school-record sixth shutout of the season. Mount Olive added an insurance goal in the 84th minute when Gina Dos Santos scored on another corner kick by Slattum.

Mount Olive outshot Limestone 23-4 for the match and has outshot its last two opponents by a combined 57-7.

Mount Olive is off until Thursday when the Trojans travel to Winchester, Va., to begin a three-match road trip with a non-conference contest against Shenandoah. Match time is 4 p.m. Limestone travels to Banner Elk Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. to take on Lees-McRae in a CVAC match-up.

Anderson drops

MOC volleyball team

ANDERSON, S.C. -- Heidi Busch recorded 19 kills for her 27th consecutive double-figure performance, but it wasn't enough as regionally ninth-ranked Mount Olive fell to 11th-ranked Anderson 30-18, 30-26, 28-30, 30-28 in Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference volleyball Saturday at Anderson.

The loss gives Mount Olive a split with Anderson in the regular season series.

Mount Olive (17-8 overall, 9-3 CVAC) dropped the first two games, but rallied from a five-point deficit in game three to pull within 2-1. The Trojans jumped out to a 17-8 lead in game four, but Anderson (14-8, 3-5) rallied to tie the game 28-28 and scored the final two points to clinch the win.

Anna Luft finished with 16 kills, seven blocks and two aces for Mount Olive, while Colby Mangum added 10 kills and nine blocks. Anderson was led by Ryan Johnson with 10 kills.

Mount Olive is off until next Friday when the Trojans travel to Banner Elk to compete in the Magic on the Mountain Tournament, hosted by Lees-McRae College.

Mount Olive will play four matches against teams from the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, including regionally-ranked California (Pa.) and Edinboro.

Trojan volleyballers drop Pfeiffer

MISENHEIMER -- Heidi Busch tallied 20 kills, 15 digs and four blocks as regionally ninth-ranked Mount Olive defeated 10th-ranked Pfeiffer 30-27, 22-30, 30-26, 30-21 in Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference volleyball Friday at Misenheimer, N.C. Busch has now reached double-figures in kills in 26 consecutive matches.

Including Busch, four Trojans reached double-figures in kills as Sam Mitchell finished with 17 kills, Anna Luft had 14 kills and Colby Mangum added 10 kills. Luft and Mangum had five blocks apiece, while Nikki Murphy added 15 digs and two service aces. Luft led the Trojans with four aces. Sara Christie finished with 37 assists.

Mount Olive (17-7 overall, 9-2 CVAC) remains in a tie for second place in the CVAC standings with St. Andrews, which defeated Belmont Abbey Friday. Pfeiffer (9-12, 7-4) remains in fourth place. With the win, the Trojans sweep the regular season series against Pfeiffer.

Men's basketball team picked second in CVAC

MOUNT OLIVE -- Mount Olive College garnered two first-place votes and was picked second in the 2004-05 Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference Men's Basketball Preseason Poll, it was announced Friday.

The Trojans received 88 points to finish nine points behind defending conference champion Pfieffer.

Mount Olive had its best season in school history last year, posting a record of 23-8 and earning its first-ever trip to the NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Tournament. Mount Olive, which was ranked as high as No. 20 in the NABC/Division II Bulletin Top 25 Poll, tied for second in last year's CVAC regular season standings with a 15-5 mark and was runner-up at the CVAC Tournament. The 23 wins and an 11-game winning streak during the season were both school records.

Pfeiffer earned the remaining nine first-place votes in the poll, which is voted on by the CVAC men's basketball head coaches. Coaches are not allowed to vote for their own team. Belmont Abbey placed third in the poll with 78 points and Queens was fourth with 73 points.

Mount Olive opens its 2004-05 campaign with a pair of exhibition games against Division I schools. On November 6, the Trojans head to UNC-Wilmington for the second consecutive year. On November 12, Mount Olive heads to Chapel Hill and the Dean Dome for the Trojans' first-ever meeting against North Carolina.

Mount Olive begins regular season play November 19-20 as the Trojans play host to the 39th Annual Pickle Classic.