Two Thoroughbred teams heading to NCAA tournaments
Skidmore's field hockey team earned a first-round bye in the NCAA tournament after winning a second consecutive Liberty League Championship with a 3-2 overtime victory over Hamilton Saturday at Thoroughbred Field. Junior Christine Kemp (Putnam Valley, N.Y.) set up senior Elise Britt (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.) for the game-winner with 3:58 remaining in overtime. Britt earned tournament MVP honors after scoring all three Skidmore goals in the championship game and adding another goal in the 5-0 semifinal win over Union. The 16-3 Thoroughbreds will travel to Tufts University to play the winner of Amherst-Husson in a second-round matchup on Saturday, Nov. 14.
Women's soccer received an at-large bid in the 63-team NCAA tournament after posting an 11-4-3 record. The Thoroughbreds received the bid despite losing to Hamilton 1-0 in the Liberty League semifinal and will travel to Williams College to take on Oneonta in a first-round matchup on Saturday, Nov. 14. This is the second straight (and fourth overall) Skidmore appearance in the NCAA tournament.
Volleyball posted a 2-2 record in the Liberty League Tournament, including a 3-0 victory over top-seeded Clarkson. The Thoroughbreds also defeated Union 3-2 but fell to Vassar 3-2 and St. Lawrence 3-1. Senior Lauren Dinsdale (Harrington Park, N.J.) averaged 34.25 digs over the four matches and was named Liberty League Co-Player of the Year. Junior Meredith Palmer (Montvale, N.J.) was named to the Liberty League First Team and sophomore Kelley Vershbow (Washington, D.C.) earned second team honors.
Men's and women's swimming and diving both fell to Vassar College this weekend. Sophomore Doug Pilawa (Chardon, Ohio) won both the 1-meter and 3-meter diving events with NCAA qualifying scores and broke his own school record in the 1-meter. On the women's side, senior Sonia Segal-Smith (Needham, Mass.) won the 1000 free and 200 breast and junior Kelsey Carson and sophomore Elaine Burns finished 1-2 in the 200 fly. ~ By Cody Berschwinger