Cardinal Sports Report: September 11

Photo by Susie Blanchard.

By Griffin Cappiello

Men’s Tennis opened their season with a 6-1 win on the road against Dickinson last Friday. Freshmen Jake Hershey and Flynn Hollinger earned their first collegiate doubles win as Catholic’s third doubles pairing. They each also picked up their first singles win of their collegiate careers in the number four and number five spots, respectively. The following day, Catholic hosted York and St. Mary’s in a doubleheader for their home opener. The Cardinals swept both matchups with convincing 7-0 victories. Hershey and Hollinger put up strong performances again, with Hershey being named the Landmark Conference’s Men’s Tennis Athlete of the Week. Catholic returns to action this Saturday, September 20, on the road against Lebanon Valley.

Women’s Tennis also opened their season on the road last Friday against Dickinson, but fell 5-2. In their double header home opener, the Cardinals picked up their first two wins of the season: 6-1 against York and 5-2 against St. Mary’s. Junior Ava Niggemeier was named the Landmark Conference’s Women’s Tennis Athlete of the Week after winning both of her doubles sets alongside junior Mairead O’Hara, as well as picking up victories in both of her singles matches to start the season 4-0. The Cardinals’ next match is this Saturday, September 20, at Lebanon Valley.

Women’s Golf played in the Battle of the Beltway hosted by Stevenson this past weekend. The Cardinals placed first out of six teams with a team score of 335. Freshman Meghan Mullen and senior Isabelle Seratch each shot an 82 (+10) to tie at the top of the leaderboard. Mullen played in her first collegiate round, while Seratch tied her career lowest round. Catholic will host their next match for the Cardinal Fall Classic on September 27 and 28.

Men’s Cross Country competed in the Cantello Invitational, finishing fourth out of six teams, but first out of the Division III schools competing. Senior Joe Wolfe finished the Men’s 4.9 Mile with a time of 26:07.7, placing fifteenth overall and first among D3 athletes. Freshman Alexandre Ramos finished twentieth overall and first among D3 athletes in the Men’s Open 5k with a time of 18:28.5. The Cardinals will next compete in the Paul Short Run on October 3.

Women’s Cross Country also competed in the Cantello Invitational. Freshman Olivia Sobkowicz finished the Women’s 6k with a time of 23:23.9, placing eighth overall and first among Division III athletes. She was named the Landmark Conference’s Women’s Cross Country Athlete of the Week. The Cardinals will next compete in the Paul Short Run on October 3.

Volleyball looked to capitalize on their strong start to the season last Saturday with a tri-match at home. They dropped the first match 0-3 against Rowan, but picked up a 3-2 win against Lebanon Valley. In the second match, sophomore Julia Raab led the team with seventeen kills, matching her career high, and freshman Alejandra Garcia led the team with fifteen digs. On Wednesday night, the Cardinals traveled to Stevenson to try to pick up back-to-back wins, but fell 3-1. Raab led the team with fourteen kills while junior Vivian O’Brien finished with a career high eleven kills, and Garcia again led the team with twelve digs. The Cardinals will celebrate senior day with a tri-match against Mount Aloysius and Dickinson this Saturday, September 20.

Field Hockey matched up against #16 Franklin & Marshall last Saturday. The Cardinals, still looking for their first win of the season fell 1-3 with senior Mary Rojack scoring the team’s first goal of the season. On Wednesday evening, Catholic hosted #12 Rowan, falling 0-4. Sophomore goalkeeper Ella Bowman made ten saves throughout the game. The Cardinals will host Washington College this Saturday, September 20.

Football went on the road for the first time this season to face off against Capital. Freshman quarterback Brady McBride found junior wide receiver Nole Henry in the end zone for an early touchdown, but the Cardinals were unable to convert the extra point. Senior running back Omari Owes rushed for a touchdown, and McBride rushed for a fifty-seven-yard touchdown, the longest rush of his career. Despite leading at halftime, Catholic did not score in the second half and fell 20-36. The Cardinals will continue their road trip at Franklin & Marshall on Saturday, September 20.

Men’s Soccer, ranked #19, faced off against Washington & Lee last Saturday. The game finished 1-1, with a goal scored by senior Holden Woodings, to keep the Cardinals undefeated season alive. On Tuesday, Catholic went on the road to play Washington College. Sophomore Ellington Andrews and freshman Carson Shamoo each found the back of the net off of assists from senior Ben Zimmer, and the game ended 2-2. The Cardinals, now ranked #18, will return to Carlini Field this Saturday, September 20, to host Stockton.

Women’s Soccer went on the road to face off against Gettysburg and fell 0-1. On Wednesday night, the Cardinals continued their road trip at St. Mary’s. Catholic fell 1-2, with sophomore Caroline Aponte scoring her first goal of the season. The Cardinals’ road trip goes on as they travel to Shenandoah this Saturday, September 20.

For more information on all things Catholic Athletics, visit catholicathletics.com or follow @catholicu_cards on social media.