Spring 'break' anything but for Thoroughbred athletes

Baseball opened its 2012 campaign with a trio of wins in Fort Myers, Fla. In three games, junior Leejay Pollacchi (Porter Corners, N.Y.) drove in eight runs to lead the offense. Senior Zack Rudman (Pittsford, N.Y.) and junior Jordan Keysor (Cadyville, N.Y.) each were victorious on the mound. Skidmore resumes its spring trip Tuesday, March 13, against Baruch. 

Women's lacrosse opened its season on a winning note, beating Utica 9-6 on the road. Seniors Abbie Hamlin (South Hadley, Mass.), Lauren Madden (Huntington, N.Y.), and Leslie Stebbins (Wilton, Conn.) had two goals apiece to pace the offense, while senior Rachel Klein (Far Hills, N.J.) finished with four saves in goal. The Thoroughbreds return to action Monday, March 12, against Claremont-MS in West Palm Beach, Fla.

Men's lacrosse posted a 1-1 record this past week, losing to Haverford before beating No. 16 Trinity. Against Haverford, sophomore Richie Davis (Edgewater, Md.) tallied three goals and freshman Tony Baum (Portland, Ore.) added two. In an 11-10 OT win over Trinity, junior Jon Hoeg (Mount Sinai, N.Y.) scored the game-winner in OT, while classmate Mike Perlow (Briarcliff, N.Y.) scored a game-high six goals. Senior face-off man Ryan Paradis (Brookside, N.J.) won 36-of-52 (69 percent) of faceoffs and senior goalie Connor Dowling (Darien, Conn.) had 27 saves on the week. Skidmore is 2-2 overall and returns to action Wednesday against No. 13 Dickinson at Calvert Hall College High School in Baltimore, Md.

Riding closed out the regular season unbeaten after tying Colgate for first at the Morrisville State Show. Senior co-captain Kelly Campbell (Cohoes, N.Y.) was the high point rider after winning the Open on the Flat and Open Over Fences. She qualified for the prestigious Cacchione Cup by finishing the season as the region's high point rider. She will compete with 36 of the nation's top Open riders at the IHSA National Competition in Raleigh, N.C., in May. Other class winners for Skidmore were senior Molly Parker, junior Jennifer Brown, sophomores Bettina Salfeld (North Grafton, Mass.) and Erika Wohl (Baltimore, Md.), and freshman Whitney Steele (Fairfield, Conn.). Skidmore will host the Zone II, Region 3 finals starting at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, March 31.

Softball opened play at the Rebel Spring Games in Kissimmee, Fla. The Thoroughbreds dropped their opening three games, falling in a pair of close games before running into a hot pitcher on Sunday. In a 2-1 loss to Roger Williams, freshman Donata Lorenzo (Buffalo, N.Y.) drove in the lone run and senior Sam Crose (Assonet, Mass.) tossed a complete game with six strikeouts. In the 5-4 loss to Presentation, junior Julia Schwartz (Bryn Mawr, Pa.) drove in three of the team's four runs. Skidmore is 2-3 overall and takes on Daniel Webster at 5 p.m. Monday, March 12. ~ By Cody Berschwinger