The MIAC Weekly Notebook

http://miac-online.org/news/2011/11/2/NOTEBOOK_1102111529.aspx

 

THE MIAC TOP FIVE
Here's a look at the top five stories in the MIAC this week in no particular order, submitted by the conference's sports information directors and selected by the MIAC office.

The MIAC Weekly Notebook will feature the top stories from the conference an its institutions each week, and it runs each Wednesday afternoon throughout the year.

Hamline men, Carleton women win MIAC Cross Country titles
The 2011 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Cross Country Championships had several lasting images on a gorgeous fall afternoon Saturday at Como Park Golf Course in St. Paul. the Hamline men edged St. Olaf in a tight team race to win its third-straight team championship, and St. Thomas senior Ben Sathre ran away from the field in an impressive display to win the men's individual title. In the women's race, the top three runners to cross the finish line were all from Carleton, and they led the way to a first-place team finish and a conference championship for the Knights. At the front of the pack was senior Simone Childs-Walker, claiming the individual title.

The top 15 runners in each race were recognized as All-Conference, with places 16-25 earning Honorable Mention honors. For complete results, recaps, photos, video highlights and more, visit the 2011 MIAC Cross Country Championships page.

Regular season champs crowned, Playoffs under way for volleyball, soccer
A thrilling final day of the regular season led to co-champs in volleyball, men's soccer and women's soccer, and now the MIAC Fall Playoffs are under way for all three sports as well to determine the postseason champions and hand out the MIAC's automatic bids to the Division III Playoffs.

In volleyball, both Concordia and St. Thomas won on the final day of the regular season to share the conference title, with the Cobbers earning the No. 1 seed and the Tommies taking No. 2. They'll both host MIAC Playoff semifinal matches Thursday at 7 p.m. with No. 3 Bethel traveling to St. Thomas and No. 4 Saint Benedict traveling to Concordia. The Royals defeated No. 6 Augsburg 3-1 in Tuesday's quarterfinal round, while the Blazers handed No. 5 Gustavus a 3-1 loss as well.

In women's soccer, Saint Benedict and Carleton both shared the regular-season championship after the Blazers lost and the Knights won on the final day of the regular season. Concordia - which beat Saint Benedict - and Macalester rounded out the field for the Playoffs, which began Tuesday. The Cobbers upset No. 2 Carleton with a 1-0 win in Northfield, while the Blazers advanced with a 2-0 win in the shootout over Macalester after neither team scored in regulation or either overtime. Saint Benedict will host Concordia Saturday for the championship at 1 p.m.

Men's soccer also had a thrilling finish, as cross-town rivals St. Olaf and Carleton squared off on the final day with the title on the line. The Oles beat the Knights, so the two teams shared the conference crown, with St. Olaf claiming the No. 1 playoff seed. The men's postseason begins Wednesday afternoon with both Northfield teams hosting 2 p.m. matches. St. Olaf hosts No. 4 Augsburg and Carleton hosts No. 3 Gustavus, with the two winners meeting Saturday at the highest remaining seed with the title on the line.

Below are links to all the MIAC's Fall Playoff pages, which contain full schedules, results, box scores, recaps, team information and more.

2011 MIAC Fall Playoff Pages | Volleyball | Women's Soccer | Men's Soccer |

Close games highlight Hockey Showcase
The 2011 MIAC Men's Hockey Showcase wrapped up Saturday and Sunday with six more games, and the theme of the weekend certainly was parity. Each of the nine games either ended in an overtime tie, or the margin of victory was a lone goal. The close games highlighted a great weekend of action at Fogerty Arena in Blaine, Minn.

The opening weekend was a rousing success for Hamline and Concordia, which both went 2-0 to lead the field at the Showcase. St. Thomas and St. Olaf both went 1-0-1, Augsburg was 1-1, Gustavus and Saint John's were both 0-1-1 and Saint Mary's and Bethel both finished 0-2. Below are complete results, box scores, photos and on-demand videos courtesy of Webcast America.

2011 MIAC Men's Hockey Showcase
Friday, Oct. 28 | Friday Photo Gallery (all photos for sale) | Video On-Demand |
St. Olaf 1, St. Thomas 1 (OT) | Box Score |
Augsburg 3, Bethel 2 | Box Score |
Gustavus 3, Saint John's 3 | Box Score |

Saturday, Oct. 29
Hamline 3, Bethel 2 | Box Score |
Concordia 3, Gustavus 2 | Box Score |
St. Thomas 3, Saint Mary's 2 | Box Score |

Sunday, Oct. 30 | Sunday Photo Gallery (all photos for sale) | Video On-Demand |
Concordia 2, Saint John's 1 | Box Score |
St. Olaf 3, Saint Mary's 2 | Box Score |
Hamline 3, Augsburg 2 (OT) | Box Score |

MIAC Men's Hockey Showcase Page
Saint Mary's MIAC Men's Hockey Showcase Page

Third-ranked Tommies secure share of title, playoff bid
The No. 3-ranked Tommies (9-0 overall, 7-0 MIAC) have claimed their third consecutive NCAA playoff berth and have secured at least a share of the MIAC title. It's the Tommies' first back-to-back conference football crowns since 1948 and 1949. UST can post another 10-0 regular season with a win Saturday at Carleton and will attempt to add to these streaks -- regular-season victories (now at 23); MIAC wins (now at 18); and road wins (now at nine). St. Thomas has won its last eight November games under Coach Glenn Caruso. UST junior cornerback Jack Gavin, who shares the MIAC interceptions lead, has three pickoffs in the red-zone in his last five quarters of play.

'Be The Match' at Augsburg on Wednesday
Be The Match, the national bone marrow donor registry, will be on the Augsburg College campus on Wednesday, Nov. 2 for a bone marrow donor registry drive. This year, Be the Match will be aided by the Auggie baseball team, including assistant coach Troy Deden '07, a transplant recipient.

Deden was diagnosed with leukemia in 2008, after he had graduated and had joined the Augsburg coaching staff. He went through treatment for eight months, missing an entire baseball season, and was in remission for nine months following chemotherapy. Then, the leukemia returned, requiring a bone marrow transplant.

The Augsburg bone marrow donor drive will be Nov. 2 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Christensen Center lobby. Be the Match is in need of donors between the ages of 18 and 60 who meet the health guidelines, particularly racially or ethnically diverse donors.

GAME ON!

This year, the MIAC enters its second season with weekly television exposure in the Twin Cities and beyond thanks to GameON! The weekly sports show features "The MIAC Minute" each week, where host/producer Rod Simons sits down for an interview with a coach, student-athlete or administrator from the conference.

This week, Simons sits down with MIAC alum and Kare 11's Dave Berggren. The local news personality is a graduate of Bethel, so he'll talk about his alma mater, and the landscape of the MIAC and small college sports as well, along with his interesting career with Kare 11 to showcase what graduates of the conference can go on to do after their collegiate careers end.

Tune in to GameON! every Sunday at 10:30 a.m. on MY29 in the Twin Cities. For MIAC fans outsite the metro area, visit the show's home page to watch full archived episodes. Fans are also invited to attend the weekly tapings, which are Tuesdays at 7 p.m. at Seven Steakhouse/Sushi/Ultralounge & Skybar on the corner of Hennepin and 7th in downtown Minneapolis.

CONNECT TO THE CONFERENCE

In addition to the MIAC home page, stay connected to the conference through its various social media sites, including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.



AROUND THE LEAGUE
Here's a school-by-school look at the top three sports news items from each of the MIAC's 13 institutions.

Skip to: AUG | BU | CAR | CON | GAC | HU | MAC | CSB | SCU | SJU | SMU | STO | UST |

Courtesy of MIAC