March 3, 2009

CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA . . . The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today that Coe College track athlete Ashley Schnell (Lincoln, Neb./North Star) and Buena Vista University track and field athlete Eric Bertelsen (Polk City, Iowa/North Polk) have been named the IIAC Female and Male Athletes of the Week for the period ending Sunday, March 1. The Conference also announced the Performers of the Week for the five sports in competition during the week.

Women’s Indoor Track & Field – Ashley Schnell, Coe College, Lincoln, Neb./North Star
Schnell, a sophomore, was named the Most Valuable Performer at the 2009 Iowa Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships. She won the 800 in 2:16.69, the mile in 5:11.10, and ran on the winning 4x800 relay, which set a new IIAC record with a 9:28.46 clocking. (IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)

Men’s Indoor Track & Field – Eric Bertelsen, Buena Vista University, Polk City, Iowa/North Polk
Bertelsen, a senior, was named the Most Valuable Performer at the 2009 Iowa Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships. He won five of the six events in which he was entered, setting Iowa Conference records in three. Bertelsen won the long jump with an IIAC-record and NCAA-automatic-qualifying leap of 25 feet, 2 ¾ inches, the 55-meter dash with an IIAC-record and NCAA-automatic-qualifying time of 6.36 seconds, the 200 with an IIAC-record time of 21.82 seconds, the 400 in 49.83, and ran on BVU’s winning 4x200 relay. He also ran on Buena Vista’s seventh-place 4x400 relay (3:33.43). (IIAC Male Athlete of the Week)

Men’s Basketball – Michael Tierney, Cornell College, Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Jefferson
Tierney, a senior guard, scored 20 of his game-high 24 points in the first half in leading Cornell to a 58-56 victory over Wartburg in the Iowa Conference Tournament championship game Saturday night in Mount Vernon. He finished the evening shooting 9-of-21 from the field with six rebounds, three assists, and two steals. The Rams (21-6) earned their first trip to the NCAA Division III Men’s Basketball Championship since 1994.

Women’s Basketball – Maria Oliver, Simpson College, Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood Central
Oliver, a senior center, averaged 15 points, 7 rebounds, 4 blocks, and 1 assist in two games last week en route to the Iowa Conference Women’s Basketball Tournament Championship. Oliver hit 8 of 12 shots for 19 points in a semifinal win over Buena Vista Feb. 26 and scored 11 points, pulled down nine rebounds, and blocked six shots in a win over Wartburg Feb. 28.

Men’s Tennis – Coe College No. 1 doubles team of Sam Zerbib, Phoenix, Ariz./Arcadia & Elliot Rausa, Waterloo,Iowa/Columbus
Zerbib, a senior, and Rausa, a sophomore, went 2-0 last weekend and improved their season record to 10-0. The pair defeated Carthage’s J.T. Delk and Sammy Ramoni, 8-3, and Central’s Luke Boyd and Dan Bowser by an 8-1 score.

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

• Women’s Basketball – Buena Vista University junior guard Margo Muhlbauer (Manilla, Iowa/IKM) averaged 23.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, 3.5 steals, and 2.0 assists in two games last week. In an IIAC first-round game against Luther Feb. 24, she scored 31 points, pulled 13 rebounds, and made five steals, finishing two points shy of matching her career high in scoring. Muhlbauer also went a perfect 19-for-19 at the free-throw line during the week and concluded the season with a streak of 32 straight from the charity stripe. Her 16-for-16 effort against the Norse matched the second-best total in all of Division III this season and was two short of an IIAC record.

• Women’s Indoor Track & Field – Wartburg College freshman Faith Burt (Cedar Falls, Iowa/Cedar Falls) won the 55-meter dash, the 200, and was a member of the Knights’ 4x200 relay. She set an IIAC record and an NCAA provisional mark with a 7.16 clocking in the 55 and tied an IIAC record with a 25.57 time in 200. The 4x200 relay also established an IIAC record with a 1:41.54 clocking.

• Women’s Indoor Track & Field – Wartburg College junior Hannah Baker (Keota, Iowa/Keota) won the 400 in an IIAC-record and NCAA-automatic time of 56.63. She also ran on Wartburg’s IIAC-record 4x200 relay, took second in the 200 (25.73), and third in the long jump (17-4).

• Women’s Indoor Track & Field – Wartburg College senior Akeya Aimable (Waterloo, Iowa/West) won the triple jump at the IIAC Championships with an IIAC-record and NCAA-provisional-qualifying mark of 37 feet, 10 ½ inches. She also ran on Wartburg’s IIAC-record 4x200 relay and took third in the 55 (7.30 – NCAA provisional) and the 200 (26.17).

• Men’s Indoor Track & Field – Buena Vista University senior Shawn Olorundami (Sioux City, Iowa/West) won the 55 hurdles at the IIAC Championships, setting a new IIAC record and a NCAA provisional mark of 7.56 in the prelims. He ran 7.66 in the finals. He also ran on Buena Vista’s winning 4x200 relay (1:29.22), took second in the 400 (50.25) and third in the 200 (22.63).

• Men’s Indoor Track & Field – Loras College senior Chris Buresh (Naperville, Ill./St. Francis) won the high jump and pole vault at the Iowa Conference Championships, posting NCAA provisional marks in both events. He cleared 6 foot, 8 inches in the high jump and 15-7 ¾ in the pole vault. He also place second in the pentathlon (3,225 points) and third in the triple jump (44-4 ¼).

• Men’s Indoor Track & Field – Simpson College junior Eric Patten (Webb, Iowa/Sioux Central) won the 800 and the mile at the IIAC Championships. He won the 800 in 1:56.70, holding off Loras’ Ray Orris at the tape despite running the final three-quarters of the race with only one shoe. Patten won the mile in an IIAC-record time of 4:19.12 and also ran on Simpson’s runner-up 4x400 relay (3:25.29).

• Men’s Tennis – University of Dubuque sophomore Claudio Giraldi (Rome, Italy/Shape American) went 4-0 during the week, posting wins at No. 1 singles over Monmouth and Eureka. He also teamed with Cory McCarthy for a pair of wins at No. 1 doubles.

• Men’s Tennis – Luther college freshman Tyler Zinnecker (Davenport, Iowa/Assumption) posted wins at No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles in the Norse’s 9-0 win over Simpson Feb. 28.

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