This Week In Goucher Landmark Conference History (February 22-28)
We have had a lot of great moments since Goucher joined the Landmark Conference in 2007. While the college athletics world is still on pause due to COVID-19, we will look back at events from our teams from the past since we joined the conference. Each week we will focus on the days that occur from Monday to Sunday for the 2020-21 calendar year. Today, we will look at great moments from the Landmark Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships and play for men's and women's lacrosse and the start of some play by the men's tennis team for the week of February 22-28.
Track and field has registered some great success at the conference championship meet in the 13 years history of the league. The men and the women have combined for three Rookie of the Year honors, seven conference champions and 20 athletes that finished second to garner All-Landmark Conference second-team recognition.
The Blue and Gold women's track and field team has notched five conference champions and 13 all-conference second-team performances at the Landmark Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships. Jaclyn Kellon was the first conference champion in women's track and field history with her win in the 400m in 2012 and she would repeat the feat two years later in the same event. Kellon is the most decorated Gopher for the indoor season after also running a leg in the conference champion 4x200m relay team and the second place 4x400m relay and 4x200m relay in 2013. Destiny Phillips was named the Rookie of the Year in 2013 after winning the 60m hurdles while placing second in the 60m and anchoring the second-place 4x200m relay. The distance medley relay team won the title in 2015 while Taylor Gunter was the last conference champion with her crown in the shot put in 2019. The distance medley relay also finished second in 2009 and 2013 with Kathryn Walker being a member of both the winning team in 2015 and the silver medal group in 2013. Kamillah Smith placed second in the 60m in 2014 and 2016 and in the 200m in 2016 while also running a leg in the silver medal 4x400m relay in 2013. Lexi Stewart (2017) and Anna Gallina (2019) finished second in the 60m while Natalie Kent was second in the shot put in 2018. Gabby Blazek was the last all-conference performer after she finished second in the pole vault in 2019 and 2020. In the 2020 championships, she set a new school record with victory, but the meet also marked the end of her career after the outdoor season and championships were cancelled due to CoVID-19.
The Goucher men's track and field team have recorded two conference champions and seven All-Landmark Conference second team performances in program history at the Landmark Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships. Will Evans is a three-time all-conference performer at the indoor meet after finishing second in the 55m and the 200m in 2011 to earn Rookie of the Year honors and then won the conference title in the 60m in 2013 for the only men's indoor individual title. Doug Falk was named the Co-Rookie of the Year in 2012. The men's distance medley relay team won the gold in 2012 and 2013 while the 4x400m relay in 2009 and the 4x400m relay in 2017 earned silver medals. Joey Negreann, who anchored both the winning distance relay teams, finished second in the 5000m in 2013. Falk was a member of the medley relay victory in 2012 while Troy Browne ran a leg in the medley relay in 2013 and also finished second in the 400m in 2013. Ogemdi Chukwu is the last men's athlete to finish in the Top-2 with a second-place standing in the 60m hurdles in 2017.
February 22
Erin Reifsnyder, who was a member of the winning 4x200m relay team for the Blue and Gold track and field team and the second place 4x400m relay teams in 2013, helps get us started with non-championship events for this week with her play on the lacrosse field. She tallied four goals, three ground balls and three caused turnovers to help the Gophers women's lacrosse squad to a 9-8 win against Bridgewater on February 22, 2014. Megan Meluskey added two goals and Emily Gill had eight saves.
February 23
Shannon Stull recorded four goals and two assists to help head coach Sarah Goodson to her first head coach victory with a 24-2 victory against Cedar Crest on February 23, 2019. Julia Gazzola added three tallies, two helpers and 10 draw controls while Alyssa Long posted two goals and four assists. Emily Flinn registered two goals and three helpers and Soleil Gagne notched a hat trick.
Frankie Mullinix clinched a 5-4 win for the men's tennis team against Methodist on this date in 2020. Mullinix won his No. 6 singles match 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 10-8 while Tetsuya Ota (6-1, 6-2) at No. 1 singles and Slade Dumas (2-6, 6-4, 10-6) at No. 3 singles also won their matches. Mullinix and Herman took their No. 1 doubles match, 8-2, and Ota and Brian Kane won at No. 3 doubles, 8-5.
February 24
Dumas and Josiah Meekins won their singles matches against Bridgewater on February 24 in 2018 and 2019 to help the Blue and Gold to an 8-1 win in 2018 and a 7-2 decision in 2019 that earned head coach Eric Spangler his first win as a head coach. Dumas won at No. 4 singles in 2018 6-4, 6-0 and then took his No. 2 singles match 6-3, 6-1 in 2019 while Meekins was victorious at No. 5 singles 6-2, 6-3 in 2018 and 6-2, 6-0 at No. 6 singles.
February 25
The Blue and Gold men's lacrosse team would beat Washington twice in the 2012 once in the regular season and then in the postseason for the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament win. Matt Lynch tallied three goals and an assist and Pierce Ingram had three markers to lead the Gophers to an 8-6 win in the regular season meeting against Washington on February 25, 2012. Kyle Boncaro added a score and two assists while Bryce Carson paced the defense with four ground balls and three caused turnovers. Connor Mishaw made 13 saves in the winning effort.
February 26
Fueled by a three-goal, two assist performance by Matt Woodson, the Blue and Gold laxers closed the game by scoring 11 of the final 15 goals to earn a 12-8 win against McDaniel on February 26, 2020. Rashaan Evans added two tallies and three helpers while Jared Halverson, Andrew Sade and Ben Smith each registered two markers in the come-from-behind win. Kyle Ramos paced the defense with three ground balls and three caused turnovers while Justin Lugo made 13 saves.
February 27
Hannah Khin registered 14 goals and one assist on February 27 to lead the Gophers to three wins. Khin had four goals in a 23-10 win against Mount St. Vincent in 2010, five tallies in a 16-14 victory against Virginia Wesleyan in 2011 and five markers and a helper in a 12-11 decision against Rowan in 2013. Goalkeeper Ashley Shaner also played in all three wins with 39 saves including 16 stops against Rowan. Colleen Cole had 10 goals and two assists on this date with a seven-goal performance against Virginia Wesleyan while Becca Smith tallied six goals and three assists in the first two wins on this date. Mary Lambert had eight goals against Mount St. Vincent. Reifsnyder posted eight ground balls, 5 draw controls and six caused turnovers combined in the matches against Virginia Wesleyan and Rowan. Also on this date, Stull registered four goals and two assists in an 11-9 win against Immaculata on this date in 2019 while Flinn and Elizabeth Green reach added two goals. Lia Oren made five caused turnovers and Abbie McHerron had 10 stops.
February 28
Derek Bitzer scored off a Matt Woodson assist with 1:43 left to earn a 5-4 win against McDaniel for the men's lacrosse team on February 28, 2018. Woodson had two goals and an assist while Bitzer scored twice and Zephan Harnish chipped in a goal and an assist. Eric Bowden paced the defense with four ground balls and two caused turnovers while Matt Messerle posted eight saves. Behind two goals and one assist apiece by Connor Annuziato and Sam Woofdruff, the Gophers men's lacrosse team also defeated Randolph-Macon 12-11 on this date in 2015. Sam Morgan and Jake Ziegler also found the twine twice in the contest. Nathan Cain registered four ground balls and three caused turnovers, and Karl Wiszumerski had 13 stops in the victory.