Muhlenberg College 1999 Fall Sports Update

Muhlenberg College

1999 Fall Sports Update

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Summer News

NEW WEIGHT ROOM OPENS
The new Muhlenberg College weight room opened in early August. The equipment is a combination of free weights and individual selectorized equipment designed to exercise every muscle group. The equipment makes maximum use of the space available to meet the needs of athletes and recreational weight trainers.
Weight room equipment includes:
• Streamline Fitness: lat pull, Smith Machine, adjustable benches and flooring.
• Cybex: VR2 selectorized bench, incline, military, seated row, curl, leg press.
• Icarian: selectorized leg curl, extension, pec fly, plate-loaded leg press, preacher curls and free weights.
• Samson: seven “self-contained power stations” including seven adjustable benches on wheels, selectorized glute hamstring machine, assisted chin/dip as well as a glute ham back hyper bench.
• King Fitness: Rock dumbbells from 5 to 120 pounds.
• Life Fitness: selectorized abduction and adduction machines, hammer four-way neck.

FOOTBALL PICKED FOURTH IN PRESEASON POLL
The Muhlenberg football team was selected to finish fourth, one place higher than last year, in the Centennial Conference preseason poll of coaches and sports information directors. The Mules received two first-place votes and have each of the top three teams in the survey (Western Maryland, Johns Hopkins and Dickinson) at home this year. The complete poll, with place, first-place votes and points:

1. Western Maryland (14).....98
2. Johns Hopkins.............77
3. Dickinson.................75
4. MUHLENBERG (2)............64
5. Franklin & Marshall.......51
6. Ursinus...................35
7. Gettysburg................31
8. Swarthmore................17

Season Previews

Cross Country Muhlenberg will field its largest cross country squad ever in 1999 and hopes to translate bigger numbers into smaller times. The women, who placed in the top half of all but one race last year, feature a veteran squad that includes seniors Cindy Bredefeld, Elissa Murphy (right) and Lauren Weisenberger and 1998’s top runner, Laura Roth. The honor of top runner on the men’s team could be a battle of Wills: senior captain William McElroy and sophomore Will Elson.	Field Hockey The Mules return virtually intact from a team that went 12-7, won nine in a row at one point and received a bid to the ECAC Mid-Atlantic Tournament. Senior captains Beth Hughes, Becky Pierotti and Peach Reigle will try to lead the veteran squad back into the postseason in 1999. Junior Kelly Gower (above) led the high-scoring team with 13 goals last year.
Football Optimism abounds in the football program after the Mules won their last four games of 1998 to finish with a non-losing record (5-5) for the first time in nine years. The offense, which scored 30 or more points five times, returns most of its skill players, including senior all-conference wide receiver Kenyamo McFarlane (left) and junior quarterback Michael McCabe. The defense, plus-10 in turnover ratio last fall, will be headed by senior linebacker Joseph Gmitter and junior end David Jones.	Men’s Soccer The 13th year at Muhlenberg was indeed unlucky for head coach Jeff Tipping (189-53-20), who saw his team’s streak of four straight NCAA Tournament berths go down in a rash of injuries and inconsistent play that resulted in a final record of 8-8-1. The Mules will seek to get back on track in 1999 with a veteran team. Forward Johan Hohman, the 14th all-time leading goal scorer and team captain, and all-conference backs Michael Hamelton (above) and Shane Topping are three of seven seniors on the roster.
Women’s Soccer The last thing the Muhlenberg women’s soccer team wants to be doing at the end of the 1999 season is defending its ECAC Mid-Atlantic championship. The Mules, who set school records for wins (15) and goals scored (66) last year, would rather be in the NCAA Tournament. Senior captains Allison Fish (right) and Karen Konopelski spearhead a defense that allowed less than a goal a game in 1998. Junior Jen Sands and sophomores Nancy Grove and Jennie Vroman, all all-conference selections, are the top returning scorers.	Volleyball New head coach Stewart Arevalo is faced with a team that lost four of its six starters after going 16-10 for its best record in four years. All-time assists leader Milena Negrao (left) and all-conference hitter Allison Verduin are two of the seniors who will look to lead the Mules to their ninth consecutive season of double figures in wins.

Questions or comments? Send mail to falk@muhlenberg.edu

Last updated August 25, 1999