January 15, 2007

CEDAR RAPIDS , IOWA . . . The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today that Luther College wrestler Matt Pyle (Merrill, Kan./Sabetha) and Luther College basketball player Blair Ernst (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Washington) have been named the IIAC Male and Female Athletes of the Week for the period ending Sunday, January 14. The Conference also announced the Performers of the Week for each of the Conference’s seven sports in competition during the week.

Wrestling – Matt Pyle, Luther College, Merrill, Kan./Sabetha
Pyle, a senior, went 5-0 at 149-pounds at the NWCA Cliff Keen National Duals with two falls, a major decision and two decisions over nationally ranked opponents to lead Luther to a fifth-place finish. He pinned McDaniel’s Eric Preefer (1:35) and Coe’s Niles Mercer (1:34), and recorded a major decision over Cornell’s Dave Paramski (12-4) in the fifth-place match. The third-ranked wrestler in country, Pyle won by decision over the fifth-ranked wrestler, Heidleberg’s Joe Pflug (6-2), who is the defending national champion at 157-pounds, and the eighth-ranked wrestler, Delaware Valley’s Jaryd Steinbacher (14-7).

Women’s Basketball – Blair Ernst, Luther College, Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Washington
Ernst, a sophomore forward, averaged 16.0 points, 7.7 points and 1.3 steals per game and shot 58.3 percent from the floor (21-of-36) in three Luther victories as the Norse moved into sole possession of first place in the Conference. In a 55-41 win over Cornell, she scored eight points, had 11 rebounds and a steal. Ernst posted back-to-back 20-point performances to finish the week in a 66-42 win over Simpson and a 73-35 win over Dubuque. Against nationally ranked Simpson, she shot 62.5 percent from the floor (10-of-16), had seven rebounds, two steals and two assists. She shot 75.0 percent from the floor (9-of-12), had five rebounds, a steal and an assist against Dubuque.

Men’s Basketball – Andre Wagner, Buena Vista Univ., Omaha, Neb./Northwest
Wagner, a sophomore guard, averaged 19.7 points, 2.0 assists and 1.3 steals per game, shot 47.4 percent from the floor (18-of-38) including 55.6 percent on 3-pointers (10-of-18), and 86.7 percent from the free throw line (13-of-15) in three games during the week. He led Buena Vista in scoring in all three contests, a 72-70 loss to Central, a 75-69 loss to Conference-leader Loras and an 84-70 win over Wartburg. Against Central, Wagner scored 17 points (on 7-of-13 shooting) and handed out three assists. He scored 17 points (on 3-of-13 shooting from the floor and 8-of-10 from the line), had two rebounds and an assist against Loras. Wagner scored a season-high 26 points (on 8-of-12 shooting, 5-of-6 on 3-pointers) against Wartburg to go along with two rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Men’s Swimming & Diving – Michael Pettengill, Luther College, Vinton, Iowa/Fort Mills, S.C.
Pettengill, a freshman, set two school records with first place finishes at the Grinnell Invitational, leading Luther to a 282 point win over the host. He broke the school record from 1997 in the 100 breaststroke with a finish of 59.51 seconds and the school record from 1995 in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:11.89. Pettengill was also a member of the winning 200 medley relay team (1:38.65).

Women’s Swimming & Diving – Lauren Lehenbauer, Loras College, Davenport, Iowa/Bettendorf
Lehenbauer, a sophomore, placed in the top-four of five events at the Grinnell Invitational, swimming season best times in four of the five. She won the 400 individual medley (4:49.38) and the 500 freestyle (5:20.06), and finished second in the 200 butterfly (2:15.61). Lehenbauer was also a member of the 400 medley relay team that finished third (4:19.30) and the 400 freestyle relay (3:51.36) that finished fourth.

Men’s Indoor Track & Field – Rich Elings, Simpson College, Clive, Iowa/West Des Moines Valley
Elings, a senior, was a two-time winner at the Graceland Invitational, posting a winning time of 1:15.93 in the 600-yard dash and running on the winning 4x400 relay team (3:36.34).

Women’s Indoor Track & Field – Suzi Anderson, Simpson College, Albia, Iowa/Albia
Anderson, a junior, had four top-four finishes at the Graceland Invitational including a pair of first-place finishes. She won the 200-meter dash in 27.86 seconds and was a member of the winning 4x400 relay team that finished in 4:22.55. Anderson also placed second in the long jump (16-5.75) and fourth in the high jump (4-11.75).

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

• University of Dubuque junior forward Tyler Daugherty (Bellevue, Iowa/Bellevue) averaged 21.7 points, 7.0 assists and 6.0 rebounds per game, shot 35.2 percent from the floor (19-of-54) and 80.8 percent from the free throw line (21-of-26) in games against Clarke (73-66 win), Central (81-58 win) and Luther (62-58 loss).

• Central College senior guard Morgan Martin (Union, Iowa/BCLUW) averaged 19.3 points and 3.7 rebounds per game, shot 51.5 percent from the floor (17-of-33) and connected on all 16 free throw attempts in games against Buena Vista (74-65 win), Dubuque (78-77 loss) and Simpson (78-69 loss). She scored a career-high 28 points against Buena Vista.

• Coe College junior guard Amber Karkosh (Toledo, Iowa/South Tama) averaged 20.0 points, 12.5 rebounds and 3.5 steals per game, and shot 60.9 percent from the floor (14-of-23) as Coe extended its win streak to three with victories over Loras (57-52) and Clarke (57-55). She posted a double-double against Clarke with 22 points and 16 rebounds, the third-highest single game total in school history.

• Coe College freshman Tyler Burkle (Coggon, Iowa/North Linn) went 5-0 at 157-pounds at the NWCA National Duals with a fall and a decision over the fourth-ranked wrestler in the nation (Wartburg’s Aaron Wernimont, 9-5)

• Loras College junior Jay Figgins (Clinton, Iowa/Clinton) went 5-0 at 184-pounds at the Budd Whitehill Duals with five falls, all in under three minutes.

• Wartburg College sophomore Romeo Djoumessi (Waverly, Iowa/Waverly-Shell Rock) went 4-0 at 184-pounds at the NWCA National Duals with a fall, technical fall and major decision.

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