September 26, 2005

CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA . . . The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today that Luther College football player Tyler Sherden (Rochester, Minn./John Marshall) and Coe College tennis player Molly Fiala (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Jefferson) have been named the IIAC Male and Female Athletes of the Week for the period ending Sunday, September 25. The Conference also announced the Players of the Week for each of the Conference’s eight sports in competition during the week.

Football – Tyler Sherden, Luther, Rochester, Minn./John Marshall
Sherden, a junior running back, amassed 271 all-purpose yards and accounted for 203 of Luther’s 280 yards of total offense as the Norse defeated Wartburg for the first time since 1991. He ran for 203 yards and two touchdowns on 41 carries to go along with two receptions for seven yards and three kick returns for 61 yards.

Women’s Tennis – Molly Fiala, Coe, Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Jefferson
Fiala, a freshman, went 7-2 during the week and reached the quarterfinals in both singles and doubles at the ITA Regional where she lost to the eventual Champion in both brackets. In a dual meet against St. Ambrose, she posted a 6-0, 6-2 singles victory and teamed with Rachel Lenoch to post an 8-4 doubles victory. At the ITA Regional, Fiala defeated players from St. Benedict, Grinnell and Carleton before fall to Gustavus Adolphus’ Jamie Gaard (6-1, 6-4) in the quarters. In doubles play, Fiala/Lenoch defeated teams’ from Wheaton (Ill.) and Wisconsin-Whitewater before falling to Gustavus Adolphus’ Lauren Hom/Marla Menne (8-4) in the quarters.

Men’s Cross Country – Keith Solverson, Wartburg, Fort Dodge, Iowa/St. Edmond
Solverson, a senior, placed fourth (of 411 runners) at the University of Minnesota’s Roy Griak Invitational Maroon Race (Division II and III). He finished the 8,000-meter race in 25:31.79, his top 8K time of the year and just 19.25 seconds behind the winner. The Knights’ finished fourth in the 43-team race.

Women’s Cross Country – Jen Wendt, Simpson, Bettendorf, Iowa/Pleasant Valley
Wendt, a senior, placed seventh (of 334 runners) at the Augustana (Ill.) College’s Brissman-Lundeen Invitational breaking her own 6,000-meter school record with a time of 21:54. She finished 1:35 behind the winner and led Simpson to a 14th-place finish in the 27-team race.

Women’s Golf – Erin Dohlman, Wartburg, LeRoy, Minn./LeRoy-Ostrander
Dohlman, a senior, posted three rounds in the 70s during the week to take home Medalist honors in one Tournament and runner-up honors in another. She equaled her season-low round with a 76 at the Luther Invitational, finishing one stroke back. Dohlman followed that performance with a 78-79—157 to earn Medalist honors at the Central Dutch Invitational by five strokes. Wartburg won the team title in both events.

Men’s Soccer – Nii Yemofio, Cornell, Tema, Ghana/Presec
Yemofio, a junior defenseman, scored both Cornell goals in a 2-1 victory over Central and anchored the Rams’ defense in a 0-0 tie with Wisconsin-Platteville. Cornell went 1-0-1 against teams that entered the contests with a combined 13-2-1 record.

Women’s Soccer – Whitney Franker, Simpson, Urbandale, Iowa/Urbandale
Franker, a freshman goalkeeper, went 2-0 with a 0.50 goals against average and a .909 save percentage in two games during the week. She stopped nine of 10 shots in Simpson’s 2-1 victory over Carleton and recorded a shutout in the Conference-opener against Coe, a 4-0 Storm victory.

Volleyball – Taylor Foltz, Dubuque, Mt. Carroll, Ill./Mt. Carroll
Foltz, a senior middle blocker, hit .558, averaged 4.50 kills, 1.22 blocks and 1.06 digs per game in five matches during the week. In a 3-1 loss to Simpson, she hit .531 with 19 kills, five digs and four blocks, then led Dubuque to a 4-0 weekend at the Clarke Invitational. She hit .650 with 15 kills, two digs and three blocks in a 3-0 win over Viterbo. In a 3-1 victory over Cornell she hit .531 with 20 kills, seven digs and three blocks. Foltz hit .462 with 15 kills, four digs and six blocks in a 3-1 victory over Milwaukee School of Engineering. She finished the week hitting .684 with 13 kills and six blocks in a 3-0 win over Clarke.

Other Outstanding Weekly Performers
The IIAC also recognized the following outstanding athletic performances from the past week.

• Simpson senior linebacker Chris Kern (Algona, Iowa/Algona) recorded 19 tackles, six tackles for loss and tied the school record with four sacks as the Storm held Dubuque to -74 yards rushing, a school record for fewest rushing yards allowed.

• Cornell senior defender Kim Bussiere (Mead, Wash./Mount Spokane) scored a goal and assisted on another as the Rams defeated Central, 2-0 in the Conference opener. Central entered the match at 7-1.

• Buena Vista junior Jennifer Stork (Carroll, Iowa/Kuemper) shot three rounds in the 70s and finished third in two Tournaments during the week. She carded a 76 at the Luther Invitational and back-to-back 77s at the Division III Midwest Classic.

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