October 21, 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, October 20. Wartburg College cross country runner Missy Buttry (Shenandoah, Iowa/Shenandoah HS) was selected IIAC Female Athlete of the Week and Simpson College football player Mike Donnenwerth (Sheffield, Iowa/SCMT HS) was selected IIAC Male Athlete of the Week.

Buttry, a sophomore, won her fourth race in as many attempts this year with a victory at the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse’s Tori Neubauer Invitational. She set a school record for with her 17:28.2 finish in the 5,000 meter race and won the 318-runner meet by 58 seconds. Buttry’s victory led Wartburg to a third place finish in the 22-team field.

Donnenwerth, a junior quarterback, completed 15-of-22 passes for 291 yards and four touchdowns in Simpson’s 38-14 victory over Luther. He had touchdown passes of nine, 10, 18 and 57-yards, and threw just one interception on the day. Donnenwerth also averaged 40.0 yards on five punts, including a long of 47 yards.

The IIAC also announced on Monday the Players of the Week for the Conference’s six sports in competition during the week. Buttry and Donnenwerth earned the honors for women’s cross country and football, respectively, while the following individuals were also honored for their athletic achievements.

Men’s Cross Country: Loras College junior Marcus Murphy (Ankeny, Iowa/Ankeny HS) won the Dr. Robert Tucker Invitational hosted by Loras. He finished in 25:08, 1:10 ahead of the second place finisher in the 132-runner race. Behind Murphy’s individual victory, Loras won the Invitational.

Men’s Soccer: Simpson College freshman midfielder Benni Zasendorf (Uelzen, Germany/Kiel CAU HS) finished the week with six points in two games. After being held scoreless on two shots in a 4-0 Simpson victory over Buena Vista University, Zasendorf scored two goals and two assists in a 5-1 victory over the University of Dubuque.

Women’s Soccer: Simpson College sophomore forward Erin Goettl (Burnsville, Minn./Apple Valley HS) scored five goals and one assist in two games during the week. In a 9-0 Storm victory over Buena Vista, she had four goals and an assist on 11 shots. Goettl also scored one goal on four shots in a 5-1 victory over Dubuque.

Volleyball: Simpson College senior outside hitter Annika Gustafson (Ogden, Iowa/Ogden HS) was named to the Washington (Mo.) Invitational All-Tournament Team. In five matches during the week, including four at the Washington (Mo.) Invitational, she had 59 kills, 51 digs and 10 blocks (six solo). She recorded career-highs with 25 kills and 23 digs in a 3-1 victory over Fontbonne (Mo.) College. Gustafson also reached double digits in kills against Luther College (11 kills) and Nebraska Wesleyan University (16), and double digit digs against St. Olaf College (13 digs).

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