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September 25, 2009 Soon the Moraine Valley men’s soccer and women’s volleyball teams will be saying “ciào” to Illinois and “buon giorno,” “hola,” “bonjour,” and “hello” to 82 international teams at the World Interuniversity Games in Milan, Italy. Both teams will travel throughout the Lombardy region from October 8 through 17 and compete with universities from 22 countries including France, Russia, Lebanon, Norway, and Panama. Moraine Valley brings the only teams from the United States to the contest. Men’s soccer will face off with 16 teams while the women are in a field of six. While there, both teams also will participate in an environmental community service project with the World Wildlife Fund of Italy. “This is an unbelievable opportunity to experience the culture and history of Italy, made possible through the unifying nature of athletic competition,” said Moraine Valley head men’s soccer coach Chuck Bales. “I'm excited by the chance to compete on an international level against top teams from across the globe and help the World Wildlife Fund with their ongoing conservation work.” This is the third time the Cyclones are competing in the Interuniversity Games, the world’s largest university sports tournament that pits international teams against each other in men’s and women’s basketball, volleyball and soccer. Participating in international competition is part of Moraine Valley’s award-winning International Sports Exchange Program, which began in 2004 when the men’s soccer team played host to the University of Sao Paulo (Brazil). The soccer team then competed in the Games held in Rotterdam, Holland in 2005 and the volleyball team participated the following year in Dublin, Ireland. In 2007 the men’s team was invited by the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg to play in Nuremburg, Germany after the university’s women’s soccer team visited Chicago in 2006. This program helps Moraine Valley student-athletes diversify their levels of competition while building the college’s standing as a hub for cultural connectivity. Each opportunity for travel comes with the provision, however, that teams must raise funds for the trip that both squads have been pursuing for the last year. “This event will foster life-long memories for all our student-athletes. The world will become smaller for all of us as we experience the diverse cultures at this tournament. Each of us will grow from this tremendous opportunity,” said Moraine Valley head volleyball coach Gloria Coughlin. Sept. 9, 2009 The fall sports season has begun at Moraine Valley with all seven teams working hard and getting into the swing of things. The women’s soccer team is rolling on a four-game winning streak, two of those games being shutouts. The men’s soccer team is not far behind with a 3-2 record after a tough loss to Oakton Community College on September 8. Cyclone golf has a first place finish from their home match on August 31 and looking toward a hectic upcoming schedule. Men’s and women’s cross country ran their first meet September 4, in Madison, Wisconsin and faced some tough teams to each finish in fourth place. Women’s tennis is still working out the kinks, but have battled in their last three matches including a home win September 8 against Oakton Community College. The women’s volleyball team also is hanging in there early in the season with a 2-5 record and loads more sets to go. Moraine Valley student-athletes named to conference All-Academic team Nearly 30 Moraine Valley student-athletes were named to the Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference All-Academic team for the 2008-09 school year. Students were selected for earning a 3.0 or higher G.P.A. after completing at least 48 course credit hours while participating in one of the college’s 12 sports. Within the eight colleges in the conference, Moraine Valley had the most athletes honored. The 26 Moraine Valley athletes selected were soccer players Jennifer Galvan, Lauren Hauptman, Melissa Hernandez, Eduardo Pena, and Paul Sioulas; cross country runners Lauren Burke, Ann Gelezauskas, Monica Gelezauskas, David Kierys, Bruce Lockett, Tony Manjarrez, and Connor Williams; softball players Janessa Guerrero, Claudia Kovach, and Jessica Noble; baseball players Eric Duschean, John Katsikas, Dave Letourneau, Matt Shilney, Justin Stengle, and Alex Triantafillo; tennis players Erick Dobrzynski and Damian Hahn; and volleyball players Meghan Ardolino, Dana Morano and Danielle Synowiecki. “I’m really proud of the athletes and the work of academic advisor Gloria Coughlin who helps keep them on track,” said Bill Finn, Athletics director. “We value education as much as athletics. This success is attributed to the high school students who keep their grades up and bring that work ethic to Moraine Valley.” Cyclones win All-Sports trophy for a three-peat Moraine Valley has won the Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference All-Sports trophy for the 2008-09 sports season—the college’s third consecutive year receiving this honor. This trophy recognizes the collective achievements of a college’s sports teams. Each of the eight colleges in the conference is awarded points based on its team’s placement at the end of the season. The colleges are then ranked using total point accumulation. Moraine Valley was one point ahead of second place. The Cyclones’ golf and men’s and women’s basketball teams each placed first in conference. Competition was fierce this season, but the combined effort of athletes, coaches and staff yielded the award. “It’s really a culmination of everyone in the Athletics Department. We recruit the best local athletes we can and it’s showing,” said Moraine Valley Athletics Director Bill Finn. “People will expect to win, to be in the hunt when they come to Moraine Valley. A three-peat is great, and it’s getting harder to repeat every year.” Moraine Valley runners honored for academic performance Four individuals and the women’s cross country team earned 2009 Academic All-American honors from the National Junior College Cross Country Coaches Association for their outstanding work in the classroom. The cross country program has fielded 25 Academic All-Americans since the program began in 2000. Lauren Burke (Lockport), Cristina Dongo (Bremen), Tony Manjarrez (Argo), and Connor Williams (Andrew) were selected as Academic All-Americans while the women’s team was among the top 23 colleges designated an Academic All-American team. In addition to Dongo and Burke, Ann and Monica Gelezauskas (both Lockport), and Kelly Washington (Morgan Park) were recognized. Manajarrez also was selected as an Academic All-American in 2008. Burke and Monica Gelezauskas also were members of Moraine Valley’s 2008 Academic All-American Team. “These scholar-athletes are simply outstanding. They attend class full time, work part time, and excel as athletes and students. Their performance on and off the field speaks highly of them. I am very proud of their achievement. It is a tremendous honor for them and Moraine Valley,” Coach Mark Horstmeyer said. Two Teams, Two Conference Championships It has been 11 years since Moraine Valley sported two basketball champions in one season, but they’ve done it again. Both the men’s and women’s basketball teams are Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference Champions after the men clinched their title with a 68-61 win Feb. 17 against Elgin Community College. The women secured their crown Feb. 12 with a 55-47 win against Oakton Community College. This is the fourth time in six seasons and third consecutive conference championship for the women’s team. “I’m very pleased with both teams doing well and becoming champions. It’s been awhile since both have done it at the same time. We have great, strong high school boy’s and girl’s basketball in the area where we recruit so of course our teams are good,” said Moraine Valley Athletics Director Bill Finn. “Coaches Delwyn Jones and Dedrick Shannon have done an outstanding job with these programs at Moraine Valley.” The men’s team is 13-1 in conference and 26-4 overall while the women have the same conference record and are 24-6 overall. Regional playoffs begin Feb. 26 for both teams. After clinching, the men’s team finally broke into the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II top 15-team ranking. As of Feb. 18 the men’s team was ranked 14th out of 122 teams in the national poll. The last time Moraine Valley had both basketball teams win conference in the same season was 1998.
Jan. 30, 2009
Jan. 15, 2009
Jan. 5, 2009
Because college funds do not finance the trip, the Athletics Department has planned several fundraising activities to help defray costs to the athletes. One of the first events will be the sale of youth and adult size T-shirts available in small to XXL at a cost of $15 per shirt. Cash or checks are accepted (checks can be made out to MVCC Athletics). The Athletics Department is taking pre-orders to determine the number of T-shirts to order initially. T-shirts will be sold until end of summer. For more information and/or to order T-shirts, contact coach Chuck Bales at (708) 974-5401 or bales@morainevalley.edu.
Nov. 13, 2008 Moraine Valley athletes played well this fall in each of the seven sports, as is demonstrated by the 53 awards they collectively received. Twenty-two athletes received NJCAA All-Region IV team honors and 31 were named to Illinois Skyway Collegiate All-Conference teams. Both the golf and men’s cross country teams as well as two runners from the women’s cross country team qualified for the national championships. Men’s Cross Country: Golf: Men’s Soccer: Women’s Cross Country: Women’s Soccer: Women’s Tennis: Women’s
Volleyball:
Nov. 4, 2008 The Cyclones came in
second place behind Black Hawk College at the 15-team tournament at PrairieView
Golf Club in Byron, Illinois. The top two teams advanced to the championship
scheduled May 19 at Goose Pond Colony Golf Course in Scottsboro, Alabama.
Moraine has had individual golfers qualify for the tournament, but this is the
first time the entire team has earned the trip. Oct. 15, 2008 Competing for the conference title will be Elgin Community College, College of Lake County, Moraine Valley, Morton College, Oakton Community College, Prairie State College, and Waubonsee Community College. Waubonsee is the defending men’s and women’s champion.
September 17, 2008 Four Moraine Valley athletes are
NJCAA Academic All-Americans Baseball players James Janchenko and Joseph Plocharczyk, tennis player Michael Wojnarowski, and soccer player Ursula Radwanski earned the distinction by maintaining a G.P.A. above 3.6 on a 4.0 scale after completing 45 credit hours. Athletes must have participated in a sport for at least one season to qualify for the honor. “This honor is harder to achieve because you need a higher G.P.A., but this demonstrates that Moraine Valley isn’t all about athletics,” said athletic director Bill Finn. “These are the best and brightest. By virtue of this award it shows an excellent balance between academia and athletics.” Moraine Valley student-athletes named
to the Skyway Conference All-Academic Team Students were selected for earning a 3.0 or higher G.P.A. after completing at least 48 course credit hours while participating in one of the college’s 12 sports. Within the eight colleges in the conference, 126 student-athletes were honored. The 33 Moraine Valley athletes selected were soccer players Amy Johnson, Ursula Radwanski, Orlando Esparza, TJ Evans, Dong Ha Lee, Mohamed Metwally, Matthew Michaels, Julio Pinedo, Matt Van Meter, James Voutiritsas, and Jonathan Zaragoza; cross country runners Janet Arreola, Sandra Hubbard, Sharon Hubbard, and Maggie Smorczewska; softball players Christina Atton, Megan Ryan, and Megan Stroh; basketball players Shana Creighton, Laura Metzger, Larrell Gary, and Donny Malic; baseball players Mike Feddersen, Zeferino Guerrero, Jimmy Janchenko, Joe Plocharczyk, and Bill Smith; tennis players Christina Madrigal and Christina Ocampo; and volleyball players Meghan Ardolino, Bianca Couto, Kaitlin Fischer, and Meghan Hughes. “We have such a high proportion of athletes with more than a 3.0 G.P.A. and overall in the Skyway Conference we have 25 percent of the award winners. That is attributable to our academic advising, teachers and coaches who motivate the students for success,” said Bill Finn, athletic director. “I’m very proud. It shows our retention rate — we keep many freshmen — and they’ve done great work in the classroom.” June 3, 2008 The trophy recognizes the achievements of a college’s sports teams as a whole, which is ranked among the eight other colleges in the conference. Moraine Valley amassed 77 points among its 12 sports and 57.5 points for its top-finishing eight teams. Points are awarded based on each team’s placement at the end of the season. The Cyclones’ women’s basketball, tennis and softball and men’s tennis teams each placed first in the conference this season. “It shows the excellence of our comprehensive athletic program to have won this prestigious honor again,” said Moraine Valley athletic director Bill Finn. “It’s a combination of quality coaching, student athletes, support staff, and great facilities. We have such rivalry in the men’s and women’s programs and to come out on top in many individual wins and losses is great for bragging rights.” May 2, 2008 The Region IV Tournament was held April 25 and 26 at Moraine Valley’s tennis courts amid windy conditions. Moraine Valley competed against eight other colleges, including a tough team from Elgin Community College. After two days both Moraine Valley and Elgin had roughly the same number of points earned and needed a tie-breaker to decide a clear champion. Before resorting to a coin toss, officials tallied the total number of games won by each player over the two-day tournament. Moraine Valley beat Elgin by 0.2 percentage points. “It was very exciting, and we played extremely well. They hung tough and are a mentally tough team,” said Moraine Valley men’s head tennis coach Bill Finn. “I thought it’d be a three-team match between Illinois Valley, Elgin and us. All three of us could have won. It was a close, long two days, but our guys did well.” By placing first, the young team earned a bid to the 2008 NJCAA Men’s National Tennis Championship May 11-16 in Plano, Texas where they will face a strong, international field. During the regular season the tennis team was undefeated with an 11-0 overall record and 10-0 Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference record. Finn earned Region IV Coach of the Year for the fourth consecutive year as well as Illinois Skyway Conference Coach of the Year. Moraine Valley singles champion Jorden Helstern was also selected as Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference Player of the Year. Moraine Valley’s women’s tennis team is also heading to the NJCAA Women’s National Tennis Championship May 3-9 in Tucson, Arizona after placing first in the Region IV Tournament in October. The Lady Cyclones finished their season in the fall as conference champions with a 4-1 conference record.
March 11, 2008 Sandra Hubbard (Stagg High School) and Tony Manjarrez (Argo High School) were selected as Academic All-Americans while the women’s team was among the top 18 colleges designated an Academic All-American team. Sharon and Sandra Hubbard (Stagg High School), Maggie Smorczewska (Argo High School), Lauren Burke (Lockport High School) and Monica Gelezauskas (Lockport High School) were recognized. “These scholar-athletes are simply outstanding. They attend class full time, work part time, and excel as athletes and students. Their performance on and off the field speaks highly of them. I am very proud of their achievement. It is a tremendous honor for them and Moraine Valley,” Coach Mark Horstmeyer said. For news media inquiries, call Horstmeyer at (708) 974-5275 or email horstmeyer@morainevalley.edu. |
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The
men’s soccer team and women’s volleyball and basketball teams will compete in
the World Interuniversity Games, the world’s largest university sports
tournament. The tournament, to be held in Milan, Italy, in October 2009, is part
of Moraine Valley’s nationally recognized, award-winning International Sports
Exchange Program. This trip will be made more memorable for the student-athletes
as they also will participate in an environmental community service project in
the Lombardy region through the World Wildlife Fund-Italy.
