September 4, 2007

CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA . . . The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today that Simpson College volleyball player Tara Christensen (Hinton, Iowa/Hinton) and Coe College football player Tom Breitbach (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Xavier) have been named the IIAC Female and Male Athletes of the Week for the period ending Sunday, September 2. The Conference also announced the Performers of the Week for each of the Conference’s eight sports in competition during the week.

Volleyball – Tara Christensen, Simpson College, Hinton, Iowa/Hinton
Christensen, a sophomore setter, was named Most Valuable Player at the season-opening NYU Labor Day Invitational in New York City. In four matches at the Invitational, she hit .286, averaged 11.58 assists per game and posted 15 digs and 12 service aces while leading the Storm to a 4-0 mark that included a 3-0 upset of No. 20 NYU. In the win over the host Violets, Christensen posted 31 assists, seven digs, six assists, and three kills in the win over the host Violets. She posted a season-high 44 assists in Simpson’s 3-0 win over SUNY-Geneseo Sept. 1.

Football – Tom Breitbach, Coe College, Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Xavier
Breitbach, a junior wide receiver/defensive back/return specialist, tallied 183 all-purpose yards on just five touches in Coe’s 24-6 season-opening win over Illinois Wesleyan University, averaging 37 yards per touch. He scored on a 51-yard punt return late in the second half and then added a 92-yard interception return early in the fourth quarter. Breitbach also caught one pass for 10 yards, returned one kickoff for 19 yards and two punts for 62 yards. Defensively, he posted six tackles (four solo) and broke up five passes.

Men’s Soccer – Trent Michael, Wartburg College, Urbandale, Iowa/Urbandale
Michael, a sophomore goalkeeper, led No. 17 Wartburg to a 3-0 record in the opening weekend of the season. In Wartburg’s 4-2 victory over St. Olaf Aug. 31, he recorded four saves and posted an assist offensively. He posted his first career shutout Sept. 1 in the Knight’s 1-0 win over Johnson & Wales (R.I.) at the Wisconsin Lutheran Warrior Cup. Michael capped off the weekend by keeping regional power UW-Whitewater to one goal in 90 minutes and 33 seconds in a 2-1 overtime victory Sept. 2.

Women’s Soccer – Jamie Frederick, Wartburg College, Waterloo, Iowa/Columbus
Frederick, a junior midfielder, scored the game-winning goal in overtime against UW-Whitewater Sept. 2 and compiled her first career hat trick in a 9-0 win over Wisconsin Lutheran Sept. 3 as Wartburg opened the 2007n season with a 3-0 mark.

Women’s Cross Country – Ashley Schnell, Coe College, Lincoln, Neb./North Star
Schnell, a freshman, won her first collegiate race, the Mount Mercy Mustang Gallop. She completed the 4,000-meter course in 14:51, crossing the finish line one minute, eight seconds ahead of the second-place runner. The Kohawks finished third in the seven-team, 56-runner event with 81 points.

Men’s Cross Country – Ben Grant, Loras College, Peosta, Iowa/Western Dubuque
Grant, a senior, finished first at the 172-runner Elmhurst Earlybird Invitational. He finished the 6,000-meter race in 17:55.15, more than two seconds ahead of the second-place runner. The Duhawks finished second in the 16-team field with 65 points.

Women’s Golf – Daina Deery, Wartburg College, Cedar Falls, Iowa/Cedar Falls
Deery, a sophomore, tied for sixth individually in a 109-golfer field at the UW-Eau Claire Fall Invite after firing rounds of 77-85. Deery led Wartburg to a top-four team finish (fourth – 668) among a strong regional and national field that included three teams that placed in the top-10 at the 2007 NCAA Championships (Gustavus Adolphus – 3rd, St. Thomas – 5th, St. Thomas – 7th). Deery, who was the highest placing IIAC golfer at the meet, fired the only sub-80 score of any league golfer in the field.

Women’s Tennis – Pavla Brachova, Cornell College, Ames, Iowa/Ames
Brachova, a junior, posted a 4-0 record during the week with two league victories each at #1 singles and #1 doubles. In singles play, she posted straight set wins over Simpson’s Martha Davis (6-0, 6-1) and Central’s Hillary Baehr (6-0, 6-4). Brachova teamed with Caryl Abeyta to post an 8-1 win over Simpson’s #1 doubles team and an 8-2 win over Central’s #1 doubles team.

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

• Cornell senior linebacker Chris Gustafson (Lakewood, Colo./Bear Creek) had a game-high 14 tackles (2.5 for loss), two blocked kicks, one sack and one forced fumble in the Rams’ 31-30 season-opening win at Northwestern (Minn.). Gustafson blocked the potential game-tying PAT with 51 seconds remaining as Cornell won its school-record eighth consecutive season opener.

• Buena Vista senior defensive back Michael Sly (Grimes, Iowa/Dallas Center-Grimes) led a defensive surge in the Beavers’ 21-16 victory over No. 24 Bethel (Minn.). Sly recorded 12.5 tackles (nine solo), including 2.5 for a loss, and returned one interception 48 yards for a touchdown. Sly also chipped in on offense rushing three times for seven yards and a touchdown.

• Central senior setter Terri Berger (Sioux City, Iowa/Heelan) was named Most Valuable Player at the Grinnell Invitational after leading the Dutch to a 4-0 record. Berger hit .571, averaging 1.55 kills and 2.09 digs per game in four matches. In Central’s 3-1 win over Augustana (Ill.), Berger recorded a 40-assist, 10-kill double-double.

• Dubuque junior setter Amber Rippentrop (Charles City, Iowa/Charles City) led the Spartans to a 3-1 record at the Earlham College Quaker Classic and was named to the All-Tournament Team after hitting .400, averaging 12.77 assists and 3.92 digs per game.

• Loras junior cross country runner Mary Bridget Corken (Dubuque, Iowa/Wahlert) finished second in a field of 172 runners at the Elmhurst College Earlybird Invitational. Corken traversed the 4,000-meter course in a time of 15:00.63 to finish 14.37 seconds behind the winner. Loras finished first in the 13-team field with 42 points.

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