No stopping Mount Union?
December 11, 2007 11:00 am by Andrew
It certainly doesn’t seem so. The Purple Raiders steamrolled Bethel (Minn.) 62-14 to advance to the Stagg Bowl, as they continue their march toward a third straight title.
After giving up 18 points to Ithaca in the opening round (a 42-18 victory), Mount Union only gave up 31 points in their next three games, outscoring opponents 173-31 in that span. Senior cornerback Scott Lieber, one of Ithaca’s most seasoned secondary members, told me that Ithaca “gave them the best game of the season.” And he’s absolutely correct. The 18 points given up by the Purple Raiders was the highest total of the season, while their 42 points scored was their third lowest output of the year.
But for the third consecutive season Mount Union advances to the National Championship game to face Wisconsin-Whitewater, 16-7 winners over Mary Hardin-Baylor in the semifinals. The game begins at 4 p.m. Saturday and will be televised on ESPN. The guess here is that Mount Union makes it three in a row, but stranger things have happened.
Share 
Leave a Comment
Grinnell guard crushes assist record
December 9, 2007 10:41 pm by Andrew
I always love when records get broken. So when I read that Grinnell College’s David Arseneault eclipsed the single-game assist mark on Saturday, I was definitely thrilled. Arseneault finished the game (a 151-112 win over North Central University) with 34 assists, easily passing the old record of 26 (set in 1989 by Kean University’s Robert James).
Basketball is the ultimate team sport, but it has been argued that the game has become more of a showcase for individual talent. This is more true in the NBA than in college, but the argument is valid on all levels of basketball. So to read the following about Grinnell’s offensive philosophy is refreshing, to say the very least:
“Grinnell, in central Iowa, is known for a unique style of play that includes rotating five players in and out as often as possible, pressing the entire game and shooting more than 50 3-pointers.”
Congratulations to Arseneault on breaking the record and a tip of the hat to Grinell coach David Arseneault (young David’s father) for keeping basketball fun and team-oriented.
Share Leave a Comment
Roundup: Basketball season in full swing
November 29, 2007 12:09 am by Andrew
I hope everyone had an enjoyable Thanksgiving. The annual stuff-your-face-with-food holiday was again good to Hat Trick, full of lots of turkey, but sadly no mashed potatoes (a crime, in my opinion).
It’s been a solid two weeks since my last post (my bad…), so there’s a lot to catch up on. First let’s take a look at the football playoff picture. Read more
Share Leave a Comment
Football bracket set
November 11, 2007 4:22 pm by Andrew
Ithaca is in, Alfred is out. If you’ve read any of my football posts over the past month or so, you know that I had the Saxons pegged as my dark horse National Championship contender. Oops. Three straight losses to finish the season will usually be enough to keep you out of the playoffs.
Surprisingly enough, the committee selected three teams from the Empire 8, something I thought was a virtually impossibility. But Hartwick got in by virtue of the automatic bid for winning the Empire 8. St. John Fisher got in based on their impressive season (9-1 overall) and Ithaca got in based on their spectacular six-game winning streak that helped them finish 8-2 overall.
Hartwick faces undefeated Curry, Fisher hosts 8-2 Hobart and the Bombers get the unenviable task of traveling to Ohio to face two-time defending champion Mount Union. Elsewhere in the playoff field, there weren’t too many surprises. The top four seeds in the four brackets are Mount Union, Central, Washington and Jefferson, and UW-Whitewater.
After I take some time to look over the bracket, I’ll make some predictions and post them here. Feel free to leave comments on who is your early favorite.
Share Leave a Comment
More playoff action
November 8, 2007 2:42 am by Andrew
So I figured that since I updated the women’s soccer playoff picture earlier today, I should mention the D-III field hockey playoffs. Today marked the start and completion of the first round, and didn’t really produce any upsets to note. A quick look at the bracket shows that every home team won, and advanced to the second round of the tournament, which will be played this weekend. Keep an eye on defending National Champion Ursinus, who had a bye in the first round. They play Juniata, who defeated Johns Hopkins in the opening round.
And while I’m at it, here is the scoreboard and updated bracket for the men’s soccer playoffs. Three-time defending Champion Messiah received a bye in the opening round of the tourney, and faces Greensboro this weekend.
Share Leave a Comment
Women’s soccer tournament underway
November 7, 2007 5:38 pm by Andrew
There’s been some buzz on the South Hill about the Ithaca women’s soccer team, who faces Bowdoin in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Friday. The first round actually began today, with a number of games on the slate. Wheaton, last year’s champion, will be looking to repeat this year.
The Bombers haven’t won since they collected back-to-back National Chamionships in 1990 and 1991. Take a look at the full bracket and make some predictions. It’s playoff time.
Share Leave a Comment
Holy Trinity: 15 laterals, two teams, one play
October 29, 2007 3:29 pm by admin
So in case you missed it on Saturday (and most likely you did), the Trinity-Millsaps game on Saturday produced arguably the craziest play in the history of sports. Watch the madness for yourself:
Ridiculous. I don’t know how else to describe that play. Just ridiculous. Oh, and Trinity won the game 28-24, and improved to 7-1 overall (4-1 SCAC). It was Millsaps first loss of the season, and moved Trinity to within a half game of the conference lead.
Share 1 Comment
Catching up on a few weeks of football
October 23, 2007 1:50 am by Andrew
Ah yes, Hat Trick returns after a two-week hiatus (I’ve probably been having too many of these in the past few months). But, in my defense, it was mid term week, followed by fall break, so please excuse my recent absence. And though Hat Trick wasn’t blogging much, that doesn’t mean the D-III football slowed down one bit. Let’s take a look at how the season is shaking out, and what lies ahead for the playoffs.
Share Leave a Comment
Rochester changing “benign” logo
October 9, 2007 3:29 am by Andrew
The University of Rochester has decided to change its logo and is letting fans and students alike have a voice in the process. The original logo, which Rochester vice president of communications Bill Murphy called “benign-looking,” features a rather cute and cuddly yellow jacket.
Essentially, this logo conjures up thoughts of fun cartoons, as opposed to intimidating Division III athletes. And it is for that reason that Rochester has decided to go ahead and change it. I’ll admit, I was intrigued by this process, so I voted (Hat Trick is all about fan interaction).
For some reason I liked the fourth option. It reminds me of some of the newer NFL logos, which are generally pretty cool. The fifth option is just ridiculous. I’m not sure who thought it was a good idea to fit the yellow jacket with bionic arms, but it’s absurd. He looks like Jax from the Mortal Kombat video games.
I’m definitely interested to see which logo wins out. Voting is open until this coming Sunday, so do it up. Thanks to Nic from College Ave. for finding this.
Share Leave a Comment
Monday Morning Quarterback
October 2, 2007 2:01 am by Andrew
Another weekend, another slew of crazy outcomes. The biggest news this past Saturday was the completely unexpected upset of Hartwick over 10th-ranked St. John Fisher. In case you’re counting, that makes the Hawks 3-1 overall, and 2-0 in the Empire 8. Earlier this season Hartwick upset Ithaca, earning what was then the biggest win in school history. Cross that one out now, and replace it with the Fisher win.
Junior quarterback Jason Boltus played an absolutely flawless game, going 22-of-33 for 336 yards and two touchdowns through the air, and 29 yards and one touchdown on the ground. As of right now, Alfred and Hartwick are tied for first place in the Empire 8 standings. Who saw that coming?
Other musings from around the world of D-III football this weekend:
Feed for Hat Trick