Archive | Events RSS feed for this section

Grove City Men’s Lacrosse: Heavy Away Slate Highlights Wolverines 2012 Schedule

By gcclaxer on January 5, 2012 in Events

Wolverines set to take on four top-10 teams; multiple playoff teams from a season ago

Grove City, Pa – The 2012 schedule for the Grove City men’s lacrosse team is looking to be another gauntlet of opponents for the Wolverines, who will take on four teams ranked in the preseason Top 10, including two Top 5 programs. The Wolverines will play 13 regular-season games, with 4 being in Grove City. Highlighting the home schedule are non-conference games against Taylor and Calvin with two divisional games against John Carroll and national powerhouse Dayton.

The Wolverines’ strength of schedule was rated the second toughest nationally in MCLA Division II just a season ago and looks to be just as daunting this season. After a tough season in which they finished 3-7, the Wolverines are looking to bounce back into the elite ranks of the CCLA and MCLA.

The squad’s road games include trips south to St. Louis, North Carolina and Georgia as well as trips to Ohio and Michigan.

The season will kick off with a non-conference matchup in Pittsburgh against University of Pittsburgh on February 18^th. The Wolverines lost to Pitt last year 14-9. After a CCLA conference game on February 25^th at Carnegie Mellon, the Wolverines will head south to play #11 Elon on March 1^st and then #9 Savannah College of Art and Design on March 3^rd. Both Elon and SCAD are traditional powerhouses out of the South.

Following the trip south, the Wolverines will be home for a two-game weekend against Taylor on March 9^th and Calvin on March 10^th. The Wolverines are excited to renew the “Holy Wars” rivalry that has been a tradition in the past for all three programs. Both games vs. Taylor and Calvin are scheduled to be played on Thorn Field.

After their weekend home matchup, the Wolverines will travel to Grand Rapids, Michigan to take on defending national semi-finalist Grand Valley State on March 16^th and Aquinas College on March 17^th. Aquinas was a CCLA playoff team a year ago and Grand Valley State came just short of winning the National Championship. The Wolverines will jump back on the road to take on Walsh March 21^st, a CCLA playoff team last season.

After a few weeks off, the Wolverines will travel to CCLA conference rival Walsh, another playoff team from a year ago, that should prove to be a hotly contested matchup. After the CCLA in-conference game, they will travel south for a second time to St. Louis to play nationally ranked Washington University of St.Louis on April 13^th and Lindenwood-Bellville on April 14th. Both games should be interesting, first time matchups for all schools.

Grove City returns to league action when it hosts John Carroll under the lights on Thorn Field April 18^th at 7 p.m. They will then close out the regular season at home, April 21^st against national powerhouse Dayton.

Grove City Men’s Lacrosse

2012 Schedule

Feb 18 Pittsburgh Noon

Feb. 25 @ Carnegie Mellon 1:00 p.m.

March 1 @ Elon 7:00 p.m.

March 3 @ SCAD 11:00 a.m.

March 9 TAYLOR 6:30 p.m.

March 10 CALVIN 3:00 p.m.

March 16 @ Grand Valley 7:00 p.m.

March 17 @ Aquinas 2:00 p.m.

March 21 @ Walsh 5:00 p.m.

April 13 @ Wash U-St.Louis 6:00 p.m.

April 14 @ Lindenwood-Bellville 2:00 p.m.

April 18 JOHN CARROLL 7:00 p.m.

April 21 DAYTON 3:30 p.m.

Comments { 0 }

Grove City College Lacrosse Announces Pro Look Sports Sponsorship; Unveils 2011 Uniforms

By Gray MacKenzie on December 2, 2010 in Events, News

Grove City, PA – The Grove City College Men’s Lacrosse team is pleased to announce a sponsorship with uniform supplier Pro Look Sports (Provo, Utah). Through this sponsorship, Pro Look Sports becomes the official provider of uniforms for the Grove City College Men’s Lacrosse team. Pro Look will provide the team with custom home and away jerseys sets and game shorts for the 2011 season, with plans to add an “Alternate” Jersey in 2012.

“We are very excited about this opportunity,” said Vice President Bill Sigmund, “Pro Look was incredibly helpful and accommodating to our specific requests, and their customization, quality, and customer service are second to none. We can’t wait to see our new uniforms, and are looking forward to working with Pro Look in the future.”

“Pro Look Sports is excited to team up with Grove City Lacrosse,” said Jarem Nielsen, executive account manager at Pro Look, “We believe a great program like Grove City Lacrosse will prove itself a worthy recipient of the sponsorship we’ve extended. The hard work the team has put in, the high level of organization, and the success that they’ve had on the field already, as well as the many, many successes to come, all make us proud to have them wear the Pro Look brand and represent us!”

In 2011, Grove City College Lacrosse made the decision to return to traditional institution colors of Crimson and White. These colors are used heavily in both the new home and away jerseys. The white home jersey features three logos: the Wolverine, the MCLA logo, and the Grove City College shield. The Wolverine, the unofficial club sports logo of Grove City College, is featured on the back of the jersey above the numbers. The shield is placed in the center of the collar. The MCLA logo is worn on the right shoulder. The crimson shorts feature a white wide stripe, numbers, and the Wolverine logo. Here are mock-ups of the new uniforms – check back for actual pictures once we get them in!

Grove City Lacrosse 2011 Home Uniform Mockups

Grove City Lacrosse 2011 Away Uniform Mockups

Comments { 0 }

Grove City Lacrosse 2010 Season Recap

By Gray MacKenzie on May 22, 2010 in Events, News

Alumni and current Grove City Lacrosse players gather after a victory in the MCLA D-II National Tournament in Denver, Colorado.

Grove City, PA – For the Grove City Wolverines the 2010 Lacrosse Season was a win. Despite losing to Saint Thomas in the MCLA D-II Quarterfinals, the year was a victory for the development of the program. The Grove City Lacrosse name began to receive national recognition thanks to the team’s play and the dedicated efforts of coaches and officers. On the field Grove City went 6-2 during the regular season, qualified for CCLA D-II playoffs, and received an at-large bid to the National Tournament in Denver, Colorado. Off the field the program also grew dramatically; administratively, coaches, captains, and officers worked diligently throughout the year to set procedures in place to ensure sustainability.

In late August, 2009, the team began conditioning practice with strength and conditioning coach Mike Underwood. Grove City continued training throughout the fall semester, playing four fall-ball games while preparing for the 2010 Season Opener against the University of Pittsburgh. Since those preseason training runs and lifting sessions, Grove City Lacrosse has compiled a unique list of accomplishments:

Grove City Midfielder Tim Irwin (#26) beats a Davenport player on the face-off.

Grove City’s Junior Goaltender Andrew Dymski and Sophomore Midfielder Tim Irwin were named to the MCLA Division II 3rd Team All-American Team. Dymski, a Captain and 2010-2011 Team President, averaged 16.22 saves per game, while saving 66.4% of shots faced over 9 games. He accurately distributes the ball in the clearing game, directs the defense with poise and focus, and is a tremendous leader for the Wolverines. Irwin, who will serve as a Captain for Grove City in the upcoming season, received the award for his skills in the face-off circle where he won the vast majority of face-offs all year. In 8 games he averaged nearly 2 points a game and scooped 30 groundballs. A two-sport athlete, he plays with intensity and rises to challenges, as evidenced by his 4 goal game against Saint Thomas in the MCLA Quarterfinal game. Irwin was also named to the MCLA All-Tournament team as face-off specialist.
Senior Defender Alex Teal, who served as Team President and Captain, was selected as a CCLA D-II All-Conference First Team Defender for his play throughout the season. Senior Attack and Captain Josh Hostetler was named to the All-Conference Second Team, while Dymski, Irwin, and Junior Midfielder Jon Althausen received Honorable Mention All-Conference recognition. Teal led the defense unit with 31 groundballs while playing great defense, Hostetler led the team in scoring with 3.667 points per game and served as the initiator for the offense, and Althausen led the Wolverines with 43 groundballs while scoring 1.22 points per game.
Grove City started the season strong, coming from behind to defeat D-I opponent PITT 8-7 in January, then beating nationally-ranked opponents SCAD and Elon during a weekend trip to Cincinnati in February. The Wolverines continued to roll with victories over divisional rivals Carnegie Mellon, John Carroll, and Taylor University before finally losing to the University of Dayton 10-7 in April. Grove City’s 14-11 victory over Taylor clinched a playoff berth at the CCLA Tournament in Saline, MI. Matched against Davenport University in the first round, Grove City lost a hard-fought game by a score of 8-7.
For the first time since the program was founded in 1993, the team secured sponsorships; local businesses Turner Insurance, Thomas Construction, Gould Financial Services, and Interstate Pipe and Supply were gracious enough to invest in the development of the team.
Another first for the program: an appearance in the MCLA Division II National Tournament. Grove City received a bid as the 9th-seed and defeated 8th-seeded Western Oregon 11-8 in the first round before falling to 1st-seed, and eventual champion, St. Thomas by a score of 16-6.

While Grove City made it to Denver for the National Tournament and took many steps in the right direction over the past year, the Wolverines remain hungry for a National Championship. Work for the 2010-2011 Season has already begun. 2010 Seniors Alex Teal, Josh Hostetler, Chris Kellner, and Kyle Helfrich provided valuable leadership and incredible talent that will be missed, but the incoming freshmen class should be up to the challenge of filling needs and helping the program continue to succeed.

Grove City and Davenport University players huddle for a post-game prayer in Saline, Michigan following an 8-7 Davenport victory in the CCLA D-II Playoffs.

The success of the Grove City Lacrosse 2009-2010 Season would not have been possible without the help and contributions of many, many individuals and organizations. As a team, we are tremendously thankful to God, our coaches, Dr. Jim Thrasher and Mark Sandvig, Grove City College, our alumni, parents, sponsors, fans. Without the generosity of these contributors and God’s complete and perfect orchestration, we could not have had a lacrosse program this year. Thank you to everyone who partnered with us and made things happen this year. We look forward to an even better year next season!

Comments { 2 }

Grove City Heads to MCLA National Tournament

By Gray MacKenzie on May 6, 2010 in Events, News

GROVE CITY, Pa. – Grove City College men’s club lacrosse team received a bid to compete in the Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association Division II National Tournament in Denver, Colo. The No. 9 Wolverines will face off against No. 8 Western Oregon May 11 at 1 p.m. at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, home of Major League Soccer’s Colorado Rapids.

The team notched a 6-2 regular season record and a 3-1 division record, and is led by captains Josh Hostetler, a senior from Elicott City, Md., junior Andrew Dymski of Carlisle, Pa., and senior Alex Teal of Williamsville, N.Y. The trio acts as a mouthpiece between players, coaches and referees. The captains lead in a variety of ways throughout a given contest, such as directing action on the field vocally and by example. Instructing the Wolverines are Head Coach Mark Sandvig ’07 and Assistant Coach Jim Thrasher ’80.

Grove City Midfielder Gray MacKenzie (#13) scoops a groundball in a game against Taylor University on April 10, 2010. Grove City won the game 14-11. Photo by Kevin Hanse '13.

Founded in 1993 by a student group of avid lacrosse players, the Wolverines joined the MCLA in 2006. In 2008, Grove City made its first CCLA D-II playoff appearance.

The lacrosse team has rallied around the motto, “As one for an Audience of One,” throughout the 2010 season. “We are a family that shares a passion for glorifying the Lord and a passion for the game of lacrosse,” said Dymski. “It means that win or lose, we are still playing strong, we never stop fighting and we never give up because God has blessed us with great abilities.”

In order to make a run in the tournament, the team will rely on their abilities and each other. “We must exercise utmost disciple as we play our game; control the ball and lock down on defense,” said Coach Sandvig. “When a team is made up of individuals who genuinely know and care for one another, special things can happen on the field.”

Sandvig’s theory has proven true as the club sport team has captured wins against other quality programs including University of Pittsburgh, SCAD and Elon University. The team credits the tight-knit relationship with one another as the key ingredient to its success, believing it will also separate them in the national tournament.

“I would much rather have a team that loves and trusts each other and plays like a family than one that doesn’t, because that is the type of team that can rise out of that hole and succeed,” said Teal. “I think if we show up with a little bit of a chip on our shoulder, a little bit of a nasty attitude and a mindset of clawing and fighting every second we’re on the field, we’ll walk away satisfied with the scoreboard.”

For more information about the men’s club lacrosse team, visit www.grovecitylacrosse.com. To learn more about the MCLA Playoffs, visit http://mcla.us/.

The above article about Grove City Men's Lacrosse was written by Michael Baker and this release is available for download at www.gcc.edu/news, where subscribers can also sign up for RSS feeds.

Comments { 1 }