April 6, 2001

Bears senior first baseman Anne Gregory stretches for a throw in a March 27 game against Maryville University. Junior right fielder Emily Vambaketes backs up the play. WU split a doubleheader with Maryville, winning the opener, 4-1, but losing the finale, 7-1.

Track & field competes in Memphis

The men and women of Washington University track and field competed Saturday in the Big Cat Classic, hosted by NCAA Division I University of Memphis (Tenn.). While no team scoring was kept, several individual performances stood out for the Bears.

On the women's side, Valerie Lasko grabbed an eighth-place finish in the 400-meter dash, finishing in 59.94 seconds. Mindy Kuhl finished seventh in the 1,500 meters, while the Bears continued to show prowess in the long-distance events, with senior Susan Chou (18:14) and freshman Emily Lahowetz (18:16) finishing fourth and fifth, respectively, in the 5,000 meters. Suzy Ramsey was particularly impressive, finishing seventh in the 100-meter hurdles and ninth in the 400-meter intermediate hurdles.

For the men, WU dominated the distance events by placing five runners in the top 12 of the 1,500-meter run and four in the top seven in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Twin brothers Justin (10:05.82) and Jeremy (10:08.08) Mikecz finished fourth and fifth, respectively, in the steeplechase.

Women's tennis tops Wheaton, stands at 8-1

An 8-1 win over Wheaton College Saturday improved WU women's tennis team's record to 8-1. Jenny Stein won at No. 1 singles, 6-4, 6-1, and Nandini Chaturvedula won, 6-2, 6-1, at No. 2. Sophomore Steph Cook came back from a first-set loss to win, 5-7, 6-2, 7-5. In doubles, Kat Copiozo and Rathi Many squeaked out a nail-biter, winning 9-8 (2) in No. 2 doubles.

Men's tennis goes 2-1 over weekend

A three-match road trip for the Bears resulted in two wins and several fine individual performances by the men's tennis team. The Bears came away with a 7-0 victory over Hope College in Holland, Mich., March 30, but that was followed by a 6-1 loss to national power Kalamazoo College Saturday. The Bears rebounded by defeating Principia College, 7-0, Sunday. Freshman Derek Everett shut out his opponent, 6-0, 6-0. WU is 10-5 on the season.

Three wins level baseball's record

After falling to 7-10 on the season, the Bears strung together three straight wins to get back to the .500 mark. The streak started with a 6-4 win vs. Westminster College March 27. The Bears were trailing 4-0 entering the bottom of the seventh inning but rattled off six runs for the win. The Bears then swept visiting Eureka College, 12-1 and 14-10, Sunday.

Softball bounces back with sweep

WU's softball team performed admirably in its own WU First Annual Region Tournament, despite dropping all five of its games to some of the toughest competition in NCAA Division III. The Bears traveled Tuesday to Carlinville, Ill., for a doubleheader against Blackburn College and came away with a 1-0 win in the first game. Sophomore center fielder Kate Gase lashed a home run and classmate Liz Smith went the distance, picking up her first shutout of the season, striking out four and allowing just four hits. WU took the second game, 5-1, led by Jen Hiller's 4-for-4 performance. WU is now 12-13 on the season.

Compiled by Keith Jenkins, director, sports information. For up-to-date news about Washington University's athletics program, access the Bears' Web site at bearsports.wustl.edu.