February 9, 2009

CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA . . . The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today that Coe College women’s basketball player Brittany Norris (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Jefferson) and Buena Vista University men’s basketball player Travis Person (Tipton, Iowa/Tipton) have been named the IIAC Female and Male Athletes of the Week for the period ending Sunday, February 8. The Conference also announced the Performers of the Week for the Conference’s six sports in competition during the week.

Women’s Basketball – Brittany Norris, Coe College, Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Jefferson
Norris, a sophomore center, led the Kohawks in scoring in two games during the week. She scored in double-figures for the 19th time, tallying 20 or more points for the third time this season with a 21-point outing against Luther Feb. 7. Norris also moved into seventh place on Coe’s single-season scoring chart with three games remaining. (IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)

Men’s Basketball – Travis Person, Buena Vista University, Tipton, Iowa/Tipton
Person, a senior forward, set new career highs for points (27) and 3-pointers (9) in an 89-79 win over Wartburg Feb. 4. He also added 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the field. With 11 3-pointers during the week, Person moved into a tie for sixth place on the program’s all-time list with 136. (IIAC Male Athlete of the Week)

Wrestling – Kevin Donahue, Cornell College, Mechanicsville, Va./St. Christopher’s
Donahue, a sophomore 141-pounder, recorded a first-period pin over Coe’s 10th-ranked Johny Siegel. He also defeated Jacob Mirocha of Wartburg by a 18-8 major decision.

Men’s Tennis – Sam Zerbib, Coe College, Phoenix, Ariz./Arcadia
Zerbib, a senior, improved to 8-0 on the season with four wins Saturday. He defeated Wis.-Eau Claire’s Phil Loprinzi 7-6, 6-2 at No. 3 singles and Monmouth (Ill.)’s Sam Graf 6-4, 6-2 at No. 2 singles while teaming with Elliot Rausa for a pair of wins at No. 1 doubles.

Women’s Indoor Track & Field – Akeya Aimable, Wartburg College, Waterloo, Iowa/West
Aimable, a senior, set a new school record in the triple jump, posting an NCAA provisional mark of 38-2 ¾. She also posted an NCAA-provisional time with a third-place finish in the 55 dash (7.29) and took second in the 200 (26.23).

Men’s Indoor Track & Field – Eric Patten, Simpson College, Webb, Iowa/Sioux Central
Patten, a junior, won the 800 meters at the Cornell Hilltop Invitational and also ran on the Storm’s winning 4x400 (3:27.71) and distance medley (10:41.86) relays.

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

• Men’s Basketball – Cornell College senior guard Michael Tierney (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Jefferson) netted a game-high 18 points as the Rams clinched an IIAC Tournament berth with a 67-57 win over Coe Feb. 4. It was Cornell’s first regular-season win over Coe in Mount Vernon since Dec. 9, 2000. He also scored 21 points in a loss to league-leading Buena Vista Feb. 7.

• Men’s Basketball – Loras College senior guard Jake Oeth (Ogden, Iowa/Ogden) scored 24 points and pulled down eight rebounds in a double-overtime win at Central Feb. 4.

• Women’s Basketball – Wartburg College senior center Sharese Van Sloten (Decorah, Iowa/Decorah) finished one-half of a rebound shy of averaging a double-double in two games last weeks. She has hit 55 percent or better from the field in five straight games.

• Women’s Basketball – Cornell College senior forward Tiffany Cowan (Independence, Mo./Truman) moved into second place on Cornell’s career scoring list with 1,077 career points after averaging 20.5 points per game. She also average 5.0 rebounds, 2.5 steals, and 1.5 assists in two games last week.

• Wrestling – University of Dubuque sophomore 133-pounder Mark Schultz (Carol Stream, Ill./Glenbard North) posted a 13-3 major decision over NCAA Division III No. 3 Zac Bartlett Feb. 6. He has a 16-6 record, rebounding from an early season injury.

• Wrestling – Loras College senior heavyweight Trevor Kaufman (Bloomington, Ill./Olympia) beat a pair of Division I wrestlers on his way to a runner-up finish at the Duhawk Open Feb. 7. He also sealed the victory in a Feb. 6 dual against Wis.-Platteville with a technical fall over Matt Meschta.

• Women’s Indoor Track & Field – Simpson College junior Lauren Bucklin (Bondurant, Iowa/Bondurant-Farrar) lowered her own school record in the 55-meter hurdles by five-tenths of a second at the Cornell Hilltop Invitational. She won the event in an NCAA-provisional time of 8.27 seconds and is the non-automatic qualifying time of the year in the event. She also took second in the 200 (:26.8) and ran on the runner-up 4x400 relay (4:07.28).

• Women’s Indoor Track & Field – Loras College junior Hannah Weiss (Dallas Center, Iowa/Dowling Catholic) set a new Loras record, posting the second-best time in the NCAA in the 800 with a 2:14.40 clocking. She also ran the anchor leg of the winning 4x400 relay (4:02.03), running the fastest split.

• Men’s Indoor Track & Field – University of Dubuque junior Jeanriles Metezier (Pompano Beach, Fla./Coconut Creek) won the 55 meters at the Cornell Hilltop Invitational in an NCAA-provisional time of 6.46 seconds. He also took second in the 200 (22.40).

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