September 23, 2002

MOUNT VERNON, IOWA . . . The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today its Male and Female Athletes of the Week for the period ending Sunday, September 22. Wartburg College cross country runner Missy Buttry (Shenandoah, Iowa/Shenandoah HS) was selected IIAC Female Athlete of the Week and Loras College cross country runner Marcus Murphy (Ankeny, Iowa/Ankeny HS) was selected IIAC Male Athlete of the Week.

Buttry, a sophomore, finished first among 234 runners at the Woody Greeno Invitational hosted by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She finished in 20:24.28, 1:03 ahead of the second place finisher in a field that included runners from NCAA Division I, Division II, Division III, NAIA and junior colleges. Buttry’s performance led Wartburg to the Collegiate Division (NCAA Division II, III, NAIA, junior colleges) title but the team score of 34 also would have won the University Division.

Murphy, a junior, finished second among 119 runners in the College Division of the National Catholic Invitational hosted by the University of Notre Dame to earn his second consecutive IIAC Male Athlete of the Week recognition. He ran the race in a time of 25:20, finishing three seconds behind the winner. Loras finished sixth in the 14-team College Division race.

The IIAC also announced the Players of the Week for the Conference’s eight sports in competition during the week. Buttry and Murphy earned the honor for women’s and men’s cross country while the following individuals were honored for their athletic performances.

Football: Buena Vista University senior wide receiver Josh Espinosa (Bellevue, Iowa/Papillion La Vista HS) broke a 26-year old school record with 190 receiving yards (on eight receptions) in the Beavers’ 20-17 loss to Simpson. He broke the previous record of 169 yards, set in 1976. He also returned three kicks for 56 yards and two punts for 17 yards.

Golf: Simpson College freshman Steph Schenfeld (Indianola, Iowa/Indianola HS) finished tied for second (of 81 golfers) in the Luther Invitational on Saturday with an 81 (two strokes back). She won the Loras Invitational on Sunday with an 80, six strokes ahead of second place. She had a hole-in-one on the 166-yard par-3 fourth hole at the Meadows Golf Club in Asbury, Iowa.

Men’s Soccer: Wartburg College freshman midfielder Scott Hill (Mundelein, Ill./Mundelein HS) scored five goals in three games during the week. He scored twice in a 4-2 victory over Cornell as the Knights overcame a 2-0 deficit in the final 20 minutes. He also scored Wartburg’s lone goal in a 2-1 loss to Simpson before ending the week with a two goal performance over Clarke.

Women’s Soccer: Luther College freshman forward Sarah Olson (Chicago Heights, Ill./Homewood-Flossmoor HS) scored six goals in a pair of Luther victories. In an 8-1 win over Dubuque, she scored four goals in less than 12 minutes. She also scored both Norse goals in a 2-0 victory over Cornell.

Tennis: Cornell College freshman Marie Schutte (Boone, Iowa/Boone HS) posted two singles victories and two doubles victories on the week to improve to 5-1 on the season at singles and 9-0 on the season at doubles. She recorded a 6-2, 6-4 win over Loras’ Michelle Strecher at #2 singles and a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Augustana’s Allison McAndrews at #3 singles. At #2 doubles, she paired with Ingrid Spiegel to post an 8-3 win over Loras and paired with Sarah Leavenworth to post an 8-5 win over Augustana.

Volleyball: Wartburg College senior setter Angie Hulse (Clarence, Iowa/North Cedar HS) recorded 37 assists in the Knights’ 3-0 victory over Cornell on Tuesday. She also hit .750, had three aces and eight digs.

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