March 28, 2005

CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA . . . The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today that Buena Vista University softball player Brandi Sykora (Smithland, Iowa/Westwood) and Cornell College baseball player Paul John Zobeck (Soldotna, Alaska/Soldotna) were named IIAC Female and Male Athletes of the Week for the period ending Sunday, March 27.

Sykora, a freshman pitcher/utility player, posted a 4-1 record with a 1.91 ERA in five games on the mound, and hit .538 (14-for-26) with seven runs scored, five RBI and three doubles in eight games. She was the winning pitcher in four of the five games during the Beavers’ first five-game winning streak since 2001. She struck out 20 batters, and surrendered just eight earned runs and five walks in 29.1 innings. Sykora recorded complete game victories over Hamline (5-2), Colorado School of Mines (5-4) and North Central (3-2) while picking up a victory in relief over Hamline (16-7). Offensively, she had five multi-hit games including two 3-for-4 performances against Colorado College and a pair of two-hit games against Hamline.

Zobeck, a senior first baseman, hit .350 (7-for-20) in five games during the week. He had two doubles and three home runs, scored six runs and drove in 16 as Cornell posted a 3-2 record during the week with victories over Fontbonne (13-2), Carroll (15-1) and Otterbein (5-4).

The IIAC also announced on Monday the Performers of the Week for five Conference sports in competition during the week. Sykora and Zobeck were recognized in softball and baseball, while the following individuals were recognized for their athletic performances.

Men’s Tennis: Coe College sophomore Chad Evans (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Kennedy) went 5-1 during the week with three singles victories and two doubles victories. In singles, he defeated Illinois Wesleyan’s Pat Fischer (6-2, 7-6) at #3, and had a pair of wins at #4 singles – over Central’s Jared Fedderson (6-0, 6-0) and Monmouth (Ill.)’s Greg Bouslog (6-2, 6-0). At #1 doubles, Evans partnered with Chris Paasch for an 8-4 win over Central’s Nick Cochrane/Aaron Enderlin, the 18th ranked doubles team in the Central Region. The duo also defeated Illinois Wesleyan’s Jason Love/Mike O’Keefe (9-7) but suffered a 9-8 loss to Monmouth’s Jared Kunkle/Kevin Kamenjalin.

Women’s Track & Field: Simpson College sophomore Caroline Capper (Washington, Iowa/Washington) had three top-three finishes at the Wartburg Midweek Open. She won the javelin with a throw of 125-1, finished second in the hammer throw with a throw of 144-3, and third in the shot put with a throw of 35-4.

Men’s Track & Field: University of Dubuque senior Basil Steele (Albuquerque, N.M./Sandia) won the 110-meter hurdles at the Wartburg Midweek Open in a time of 14.97 seconds, and ran the lead leg for the winning 4x100 relay team (42.13 seconds).

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