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Youth raises questions in backcourt for Musketeers

Doug Tifft
Sports Editor

The Xavier Men’s Basketball team was dealt a blow to its developing backcourt when it was recently announced that freshman guard Mark Lyons has been deemed partially ineligible for the 2008-09 season.

Lyons will be allowed to practice with the team, and remains on full scholarship, but will not be allowed to compete in any games this season, and will not travel to any away games.

According to NCAA rules, a player is deemed ineligible when they do not graduate from high school, successfully complete the 13 academic credit courses in the appropriate core area or present a core-course grade-point average and a combined score on the SAT verbal and math sections or a sum score on the ACT based on the partial qualifier index scale.

The Xavier Athletic Department did not release a statement about the issue, allowing the news to be released publicly when men’s basketball coach Sean Miller first spoke about the issue at a press conference on Tuesday, Oct. 14.

Miller did not discuss which of the three criteria Lyons had failed to meet, but many sources have speculated that his courses at Brewster Academy, a prep school in Wolfeboro, N.H., did not meet the core NCAA standards.

Xavier Athletics is undertaking efforts, led by Miller, to regain full eligibility for Lyons. Still, the team is tempering its hopes.

“There is a chance that as we have more dialogue, that that could potentially be overturned. That is our approach, and that is what we have been told,” Miller said.

“[However], being a partial qualifier, it would be more of a surprise to us [if he were to be ruled eligible], then if he were not.”

Expectations were high for Lyons, the 6’2 guard who was rated as the 103rd best player in the high school class of 2008.

“He is also a very, very talented player; someone that I am really excited about, and equally disappointed that I am telling you [about his partial ineligibility],” Miller said.

With the graduation of senior guards Drew Lavender and Stanley Burrell Lyons was being discussed as being in competition for a starting role on this Musketeer team, but Miller will now have to rely even more heavily on fellow freshmen Terrell Holloway and Brad Redford.

“It is extremely unfortunate. I would almost categorize it as, you know that we experience injuries as a team, to me we have had a season-ending injury with him being that we expected him to play and he can’t,” Miller said.

NCAA rules state that Lyons retains only three years of eligibility, with a fourth year being awarded to him if he is to graduate by May of 2012.
“In terms of what it costs him, it just puts his career on delay,” Miller said. “Like any young person, he can take advantage of all of the resources that we have in terms of getting his degree, as well as getting stronger, learning our system.”

There may be a silver lining for Lyons, as Sean Miller illustrated by pointing to 2004 Xavier graduate Lionel Chalmers, now a professional with Universitrt-Yugra Surgut of the Russian Super league.

“The thing that I feel best about is when you look at our past, Lionel Chalmers experienced an identical, almost eerily similar, case,” Miller said. “He was a partial qualifier in the first year, when he just practiced. Then he translated that into a fifth year, which Mark can have, as long as he progresses towards his degree –which I have no doubt that he will.”

Although his career at Xavier seems to have gotten off on the wrong foot, the athleticism and scoring ability that Lyons brings to the table will should help him make the most of his time at Xavier.

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XU has plenty of games to get excited about

Musketeers challenge themselves again in non-conference season

Doug Tifft
Sports Editor

When Sean Miller took over the job as head coach of men’s basketball at Xavier five years ago he made it a priority for Xavier to go out and challenge themselves with a series of games against top-level competition. That priority has produced many memorable games in the past, such as last year’s showdown with Tennessee. Here is a look at five such opportunities for high-level competition for Xavier this season:

Puerto Rico Season Tip-Off Thursday, Nov. 20 - Sunday, Nov. 23- In the first round of tournament, Xavier will play Missouri, who will serve as an early test to the Xavier frontcourt. The Tigers are experienced and skilled in the post with returning Big 12 Newcomer of the Year, DeMarre Carroll and Leo Lyons, a 6’9” senior big-man who averaged 13.1 points and 5.7 rebounds per game a season ago.

Xavier will then play either the winner or loser of the game between Fairfield and Virginia Tech. Virginia Tech will likely be favored to advance to the second round, as they return three starters in senior wing and leading scorer A.D. Vassallo, sophomore forward and leading rebounder Jeff Allen and sophomore small forward J.T. Thompson.

Aside from the game with Duke at the Meadowlands, a possible championship matchup with either Memphis or USC looks to be the toughest test on the Xavier schedule. Despite losing a great deal from the defending National Runner-up squad of last year, John Calipari brings in the fourth best recruiting class in the country led by shooting guard Tyreke Evans. Meanwhile, USC will ease the loss of departed shooting guard O.J. Mayo with All-American freshman DeMar DeRozan. The supporting cast from a season ago is still mostly intact for the Trojans, namely Taj Gibson in the frontcourt and Daniel Hackett in the backcourt. If all goes well in Puerto Rico, the Musketeers will face three NCAA Tournament-quality opponents on their schedule before December.

vs. Auburn Wednesday, Dec. 3- The Tigers travel to Cintas Center this season, after Xavier traveled south to pick up an 80-57 victory a year ago.

incinnati native and 6’3” guard Quantez Robertson (7.8 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 4.1 apg) returns for Auburn, along with injury-plagued post Korvotney Barber (13.8 ppg, 6.9 rpg in only 10 games due to injury), 6’5” senior guard Rasheem Barrett (13.6 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 2.1 apg) and 6’1” guard DeWayne Reed (8.9 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 3.7 apg). Auburn is, as usual, athletic and will provide a solid major conference opponent for the résumé early.

vs. Cincinnati Saturday, Dec. 13- The Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout is at UC this year, and comes on the Saturday before finals for Xavier students. The Bearcats look to have a stronger team than a year ago, when they fell 64-59 to Xavier at Cintas Center. The key to the Bearcat offense is 6’1” junior shooting guard Deonta Vaughn (17.3 ppg) and his three point shooting. Vaughn will be joined by 6’5” sophomore forward Alvin Mitchell (2.8 ppg) and 6’6” Rashad Bishop (5.4 ppg).

Similar to Xavier, the Bearcats will need quick contributions from a highly touted recruiting class. Ohio High School Player of the Year Yancy Gates, a 6’8”, 250 lb. power forward, leads the way along with John Riek, a 7’1” center who had declared for the NBA Draft, and was considered a potential lottery pick before pulling out with injury concerns. Point-man Cashmere Wright and Texas transfer Mike Williams also aid the Bearcats in making this year’s version of the Shootout look to be one of the better matchups in recent memory.

vs Duke Saturday, Dec. 20.- A week after the euphoria of the Crosstown comes the much anticipated CBS national television matchup with the Blue Devils. All Duke does is return four starters and four key bench players from a No.2 seed in last year’s NCAA Tournament. That includes Greg Paulus at the point (11.4 ppg, 3.2 apg), 2008 ACC Rookie of the Year Kyle Singler (6’8” forward, 13.3 ppg, 5.8 rpg), 6’4” wing Gerald Henderson (12.7 ppg, 4.7 rpg), 6’8” post man Lance Thomas (4.0 ppg, 2.1 rpg), 6’5” sharpshooter Jon Scheyer (11.7 ppg, 3.9 rpg) and 6’2” guard Nolan Smith (5.9 ppg, 1.5 rpg). Add that to the 27th best recruiting class in the country featuring Elliot Williams (No.3 shooting guard according to Rivals.com), Miles Plumbee (No. 29 PF) and Olek Czyz (No.31 PF).

Needless to say, the Musketeers will have their hands full. A lot of this game will come down to who is shooting the ball well from beyond the arc. If any of Sheyer, Paulus, Henderson and Singler get hot, the Blue Devils could distance themselves from Xavier in a hurry.

Duke obviously has the advantage on the perimeter, but the Musketeers might hold the upper hand over the Blue Devils in the paint.

The Blue Devils figure to come out in a ‘four out, one in’ set-up on offense, and in that case you will have a defender like Singler or Scheyer guarding Derrick Brown, giving Brown a height and athleticism advantage.

This could be a statement game for Brown on a national stage, and unless Duke puts Thomas or 7’1” Brian Zoubek on him, Brown will have advantages in height and athleticsm with which to work his greatly expanded offensive game.

Aside from Brown, Jason Love figures to be able to handle himself against the shorter defender in Thomas or the slower defender in Zoubek. If Xavier can defend the perimeter effectively, then they may be able to exploit a frontcourt advantage in this prime-time matchup.

At Virginia Saturday, Jan. 3- In the first true road game of the season, the Musketeers face off against another ACC opponent in the Cavaliers. High scoring guard Sean Singletary is gone, but the Cavs still have firepower on the wings in Diane Mamadi (11.8 ppg, 4.4 rpg), Jeff Jones (4.8 ppg, 1.8 rpg in 25 starts) and highly touted recruit Sylvan Landsberg out of New York City. 6’8” sophomore post man Mike Scott (5.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg) leads the frontcourt. The loss of Singletary leaves UVA without a definitive front man, which Landsberg certainly could develop into by early January. The frontcourt could be a question area for the Cavs, especially considering the loss of leading rebounder Adrian Joseph.

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NBA Draft Profile: Derrick Brown

Xavier junior forward Derrick Brown is being discussed by many as being a viable candidate for the 2009 NBA Draft. While Brown and Xavier head coach Sean Miller have both said that they will wait until after the season to address the issue, the Newswire sat down with Doug Baxter of Draftinfo.com to get a feel for where Brown stands in the eyes of NBA scouts.

Newswire: Where would you rate Derrick Brown in the NBA Draft if he were to enter this year?

Doug Baxter: It depends a lot on how he performs this year. I would project him as an early-to-mid second rounder at this point.

NW: Does that ranking have anything to do with the relative strength of the 2009 Draft class? Would he be a higher or lower pick if he were to remain in school until after his fourth year of eligibility and enter in 2010?
DB: It is still too early to tell for both of those questions. While the class is deep now, there will likely be quite a few guys drop out due to injuries, inconsistency or just wanting to stay in school. Whether or not he should declare after this year or come out after 2010 is dependent on his performance this year.

NW: What are Brown’s strengths in the eyes of NBA scouts?
DB: He has first class athleticism, a definite NBA prospect only on his athleticism. He attacks the basket and can absolutely soar.

NW: What are his weaknesses?
DB: One of his biggest weaknessses is his tendency to fade off and not be a factor during games. He needs to stay involved and become the number one option, and prove he can handle it.

NW: If you had to compare him to one NBA player (past or present), who would it be?
DB: Desmond Mason.

NW: What does Brown need to do to jump over some of the other players in the draft at his position and get into the top of the draft class?
DB: He needs to step into the go-to guy role and become the first or second option for Xavier this year.

NW: How much playing time do you see Brown getting to start his career; or in other words, is he NBA-ready in your eyes?
DB: No he is not NBA-ready but I could see him being a valuable role player early in his career.

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McGuff introduces his Muskies

The Xavier women’s basketball team has high hopes for the 2008-09 season, as they come off of two straight Atlantic 10 Conference titles, and enter the season ranked 21st in the country according to Athlon Magazine.

Here is a look at their roster from head coach Kevin McGuff:

#0 Tyeasha Moss- “Tyeasha is a freshman from Columbus. She is perimeter player. She’s a really exciting young person in our program and is going to really help us this year. A great three point shooter, she’s going to give us some great depth on the wing.”

#1 Special Jennings– “Special is a sophomore from Cleveland. She had a terrific freshman campaign playing the point guard position. She’s worked very, very hard in the offseason.”

#4 Dee Dee Jerningan- “Dee Dee is a junior from Chicago. She’s a transfer [from Rutgers University] and is eligible right away. She’s a very talented perimeter player that can play any of the perimeter spots and we’re really happy to have her in the program.”

#11 Amber Harris- “Amber is a junior from Indianapolis. She was a first team All-Atlantic 10 player last year. She’s a very talented player and has worked incredibly hard in the offseason: she’s stronger and she’s in great shape. Our expectations are that she is one of the best players in America this year.”

#12 Alesia Barringer– “Alesia is a junior from Columbus. She’s a point guard and had a really good offseason also and worked hard. We’re looking to having her this year.”

#13 Maureen Hester- “Mo is a sophomore from Bethel Park, Pa. She’s a great three point shooter and an emerging defensive player and she’s worked really hard in the offseason. We’re excited to watch her grow this year.”

#20 Tudy Reed- “Tudy is a senior from Chicago, and she, like April, transferred last year and became eligible at Christmas, so this will be her first full season. I think you’ll see an even better player you saw last year; she’s really settled into the program and she’s very talented. She’s going to have a spectacular season.”

#23 Megan Askew – “Megan is also from Columbus, and last year she played a post position for us. This year she’ll be a little bit on the perimeter. She’s a terrific athlete and had a great offseason. We’re really looking forward to seeing what she can do this year.”

#24 Jerri Taylor– “Jerri is from South Bend, and she was a great player last year. Many people don’t realize she was near the top of our league in three point percentage. She is a steady force for us and is a great, great woman and we’re happy with the way she has developed. She is our lone captain this year so she has a great responsibility on her shoulders.”

#25 Stephany Johnson- “Stephany is a sophomore from Toledo. She is a very physical player and last year she gave us some great minutes off the bench and we’re looking forward to her coming into a role and helping us on the defensive end of the floor.”

#34 Der-ryka Martin- “Der-ryka is a junior from Orlando, and she is someone we are extremely excited about having in this program. She is in the best shape in her life and we are looking forward to her helping us this year, especially defensively and with rebounding.”

#42 April Phillips- “April hails from Long Beach, Calif. She’s really talent post player and she had a good season last season. She’s worked really hard to get herself to great shape this year. I think you guys will be really excited to see her.”

#52 Brittney Moore- “Brittney is a sophomore from Merrillville, Ind. She’s going to add to what we think is already a great group of young post players. She is very physical and we’re happy to have her here.”

# 53 Ta’Shia Phillips– “Ta’Shia is a sophomore from Indianapolis. She was the Atlantic 10 rookie of the year last year and several publications had her as a freshman All-American. She is a terrific, young woman and a great post player. We have high expectations for what she’s going to do.”

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Tough competition ahead for Xavier in the A-10

Ken Burton
Sports Writer

The Atlantic 10 has been one of the toughest conferences in women’s basketball, with five teams securing postseason tournament bids in each of the past three years. With that high level of competition expected and a total of 46 starters returning (and three schools returning all five starters), the league will be stacked with talent. Here is my 2008-09 prediction of how the A-10 standings will shake out in March:

1. Xavier - Returning all five starters from their 24-9 NCAA tournament team last year, the team is coming off back-to-back Atlantic 10 championships and NCAA tournaments.

The Musketeers have garnered some preseason recognition from major national publications for the upcoming season. Xavier was ranked 21st by Athlon Magazine, 22nd by The Sporting News and was included in USA Today’s top-16 teams.

Pre-season All-American candidate Amber Harris, a junior, leads the Musketeers on offense and has already scored over 1,000 points. She is no slouch on defense though, as she already holds the career record for blocks at Xavier and has 598 career boards, 10th all time in Xavier history.

Harris is joined by a fellow former Atlantic 10 rookie of the year, Ta’Shia Phillips. Phillips broke Harris’s single season rebounding mark last year as a freshman. Phillips averaged 11.2 rebounds a game last year — fifth best in the country — on her way to an astounding 378 rebounds in her freshman campaign.

Also returning are senior floor generals Jerri Taylor and Tudy Reed, the leading backcourt scorers from a year ago.

Head coach Kevin McGuff said, “I think as much as anything, we set the stage [through offseason workouts] for what could be a special season this year. We’ve got an older group and we’ve had a terrific offseason. We’re further along today than we’ve ever been in terms of conditioning, strength and I’d say, maturity.”

McGuff did, however, caution fans that although the stage seems to be set for a great season, anything can happen. “It’s going to be a long process; it’s a long year but we have very, very high expectations.”

“We’ve been the NCAA tournament two years in a row now, and I think with this group, we are now ready to take the next step to make a deep run into it,” McGuff said.

No matter what the season may hold, McGuff praised the Musketeer fans, saying that this season would be special and “you guys are going to be a big part it.”

Xavier fans will have their first chance to live up to those expectations when the Musketeers take the court on Saturday, Nov. 14 against Robert Morris.

2. George Washington - The Colonels have been a collegiate powerhouse and been atop, or tied atop, the A-10 for the past five years. The frontcourt will be the strength; they return All-American candidate and two-time All-A-10 center, Jessica Adair as well as her twin Jazmine Adair and senior forward Antella Parrish who averaged nearly 11 points per game last season.

3. St. Bonaventure - The Bonnies are looking to build on back-to-back winning seasons for just the second time in the 37 years of Bonnies women’s basketball. It is unprecedented success for head coach Jim Crowly, who will most certainly be aided by his five returning starters and seven upperclassman. Four freshmen also join the mix, making up what should be the strongest Bonnies team in history.

4. Saint Joseph’s - The Hawks return four starters including All-Rookie team and A-10 third-team selection Sarah Acker. Head coach Cindy Griffin adds a trio of incoming freshman, a redshirt-freshman and a JUCO transfer that will help bolster the backcourt.

5. Charlotte - Head Coach Karen Aston is excited about the upcoming season: “We are returning a large portion of the [4th place, 2007-08] team and added depth.” Charlotte will contend for the top spot in the A-10.

6. Temple - It’s tough to expect much from a team that loses a coach the caliber of Dawn Staley and its two top scorers from a year ago. Fortunately for new head coach Tonya Cardoza though, the cabinet is not empty. Junior Lakeisha Eaddy, named to the All-Defensive team in the A-10 last year, will be asked to also handle much of the scoring load with senior Shenita Landry.

7. Richmond - Head coach Michael Shafer returns for his fourth season with the Spiders and brings back four of his starters from a year ago. The Spiders return a backcourt duo that finished first and second on the team in scoring and were both All-A-10 honorable mentions.

8. Duquesne - The Dukes boasted the league’s highest scoring offense, but struggled on defense a year ago. Head coach Suzie McConnel-Serio returns three starters from the high-scoring team, but again lacks depth inside. Look for the Dukes to struggle into the top half of the league which features some of the best frontcourt players in the country.

9. Saint Louis - The story of the 2008-09 Billikens will be one of new beginnings. Playing in a new arena this year, the team adds five newcomers to a team that would like to forget the nine games lost by six points or fewer last year.

10. Rhode Island - The Rams return eight players, three of which were starters on last year’s tenth place team. The Rams, however, took a huge hit when three-time All-A-10 guard Safi Mojidi graduated. The Rams bring in a Utah State transfer and three freshman to help fill the void.

11. Dayton - Last year’s Flyers were the best in school history and earned a bid to the WNIT under A-10 Coach of the Year Jim Jabir. This year should be different, however. The team has four upperclassman and none of them starters.

12. LaSalle - LaSalle welcomes back three players who missed more than 20 combined games, which the Explorers hope can negate some of effects of losing four seniors and a two-time All-A-10 performer in Carlene Hightower. Upperclassman guards Jamie Walsh and Margaret Elderton will lead the team.

13. Massachusetts - The A-10’s top shooting team from a year ago lost four seniors including two of the most dominant scorers in school history, Kate Mills and Pam Rosanio. The roster is filled with nine underclassman and will need to be led by two seniors who had a combined average of 11 points a game last season.

14. Fordham - While the A-10 has proven to be solid, it also features college basketball’s worst D-I team in the Fordham Rams. The Rams return 10 of 11 players from last year’s team. There is nowhere to go but up for the Rams.

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Xavier fans have new shirt

Ken Burton
Staff Writer

When the Xavier basketball team takes the court this season, it will be in front of a more colorful crowd than in years past.

The 2008-09 version of the X-Shirt, worn by the fans in the Xavier student section, was unveiled Saturday, Oct. 18.

The shirt features a large white X on the front with a blue and white tie-dye background, with the phrases “One Team, One Xavier Nation, One Fight,” and a sword below the words on the back of the shirt.

The tie-dye idea came from men’s head basketball coach Sean Miller, who was impressed by Wake Forrest’s yellow and black tie-dye tradition, and wanted to implement something like that at Xavier.

This is the third year that Xavier has had an X-Shirt.

The shirt is designed by a committee of members from the Student Alumni Association, X-treme Fans, and Student Government Association.

The committee puts out a flyer in the spring asking for design ideas from anybody in the university for the X-Shirt.

According to X-Treme Fans President Matt Robinson, the committee received about ten designs this year and did not directly use any one design but drew on ideas.

Robinson did, however, note that many people suggested that the shirt be a Xavier color this year.

Three years ago, the shirt was designed to help create an atmosphere of unity at Xavier. The shirt is in part modeled off of other schools, like Notre Dame, who have a long-standing tradition of unifying shirts.

“I’d love to see an entire student section full of X-Shirts. I think it’s a powerful enough shirt with its real strong front, with that plain X,” said Robinson.

A portion of the sales from the shirt go to a different charity every year.

This year’s charity is Adventure for Wish Kids, a program similar to Make a Wish Foundation that focuses more locally on outdor-related wishes.

“My personal goal is to get over $7000,” said Robinson. Two years ago the shirt generated over $6,500 for charity and over $3,700 last year.

The shirt is on sale at the bookstore for $18.

“It’s a good build off of last year’s shirt. I think it will go over well,” said Robinson. “We want to have one game in the season where we draw it as the X-Shirt game, because I want people to see what it will look like when the entire student body wears the X-Shirt. I think it will look phenomenal.”

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Bernadette McGlade anticipating first season as A-10 Commissioner

Possibility of new location for men’s and women’s tournaments

Doug Tifft
Staff Writer

When Linda Bruno announced a season ago that she would be stepping down as the commissioner of the Atlantic 10, a bright chapter in conference history was closed.

Bruno had seen the expansion of the conference from an eight team league to the current 14 schools, expanded television contracts and the conference’s first Final Four appearance when Massachusetts pulled the trick in 1996.

Bruno was one of the most respected commissioners in college athletics, in addition to being one of only three female commissioners with Carolyn Schlie Femovich of the Patriot League and Brenda Weare of the Northeast Conference.

While Bruno’s resignation left a giant hole at the top of the food chain in the Atlantic 10 office, the shoes seem to have been filled comfortably by newly installed commissioner, Bernadette McGlade.

McGlade, who took over in June after spending the previous 11 years as associate commissioner of the Atlantic Coast Conference, brings a strong background in television relations and women’s athletics leadership.

McGlade was attracted to the conference for a number of different reasons, with the recent success in men’s basketball being among them.

“Last year was very exciting, especially with the number of teams that got into the various postseason tournaments. Any time you have a league with men’s basketball as your flagship sport, and you have eight teams with 20 win seasons, it is pretty impressive and something to be proud of,” McGlade said.

In her short time on the job, McGlade has already made some adjustments that look to benefit the television exposure of the conference, demonstrated by the 16 games that Xavier will play on national television this season.

“Before I even actually officially began my job in the middle of July, I made it my number one priority to talk with our television committee here with the A-10 to get the background that I needed from them, read all of the contracts, read all of the information, and then personally go to New York to sit down with our television partners,” McGlade said. “I really tried to sure up the partnership, to make sure that everyone knows how valuable our television exposure is, not only to the league from a branding standpoint, but to every signle individual institution in their respective markets.”

An increase in television exposure has proven to be an increasingly important aspect of the Atlantic 10’s efforts to remain competitive with some of the other prominent conferences in college basketball, and shake off any stigma of being a “mid-major” conference — a label McGlade is not fond of.

“We are a division one conference with major basketball programs,” McGlade said. “Whether they be power conferences, mid-majors, small majors – whatever they happen to be — I don’t think that you are defined by a label. We know very well who we are and what we are. We are a formidable presence in the division one landscape of men’s basketball and are proud to be there.”

One of the impressions that Bruno left on the league after her departure was increased emphasis on improving each institution’s strength of schedule, a focus that McGlade hopes to continue.

“[Progressive scheduling] helps the image of the league a great deal,” McGlade said. “The basketball fan base out there is an educated fan base. They know great college basketball, and people love to see great teams and great traditional basketball powers playing each other. That is the beauty of intercollegiate athletics as we know it. From a profile standpoint [progressive scheduling] helps, and from a television exposure standpoint as well.”

While she has inherited a healthy, thriving conference, McGlade does possibly recognize the potential for shakeups within the conference and its membership.

“I think [expansion or contraction] is always a possibility, especially when you look at the landscape of division one conferences over the last several years,” McGlade said. “Like every other commissioner, I watch that landscape very closely, and it would be foolish to think that [expansion or contraction] is never a possibility, at any point in time. We only have to look back on history to see the number of different movements of various different conferences that many may have forecasted, and many more may not have forecasted.”

While the possibility of a shakeup in conference membership remains a long shot, a shakeup in the venue for the annual conference tournament is being seriously considered.

“The A-10 Tournament is scheduled [at Atlantic City, NJ’s Boardwalk Hall] through 2009, and right now we have Requests for Proposals (RFP) out for several different areas that are interested and bidding to host the A-10 Men’s Basketball Tournament, which has certainly proven to be a good product,” McGlade said.

“We made the RFP available to the facilities that are in the footprint of where our A-10 schools are. We put it out to [Xavier’s] footprint, Dayton, Pittsburgh, Washington D.C., Richmond and Philadelphia. So it is basically available now as an open RFP process.”

With a possible scenery change for the men’s tournament, McGlade also discussed finding a permanent site for the Women’s Atlantic 10 Tournament, something that has been called for by many of the conference’s coaches.

“I think one of the areas [for growth] is finding a home for the women’s tournament,” McGlade said. “Would that be a model that is replicated, like we did with the ACC Tournament in Greensboro? I don’t know that, but I do know that you have to study it.”

“You have to look at the fan base that is unique to the Atlantic 10 before you make some calculated calls and decisions to find what might be the best home and format for the tournament,” she said.

As the woman in charge gets her feet under her, the Atlantic 10 Conference continues to gain in prominence — a momentum which McGlade desires to see continue:

“I am really optimistic that this league has every capability of really being a superstar.”

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Volleyball remains perfect in conference play

Defeats Fordham with three set comeback, knocks off Rhode Island

Scott Mueller
Asst. Sports Editor

The Xavier University volleyball team recorded two victories this past weekend over Fordham and Rhode Island. The wins kept Xavier undefeated in A-10 play. On Friday, the Musketeers came back from a two set deficit to beat Fordham, 3-2. Saturday, the team defeated Rhode Island, 3-1, for their sixth straight conference victory.

The first set against Fordham (11-12, 1-4 A-10) was close the entire time. The teams traded points in the beginning of the set, neither scoring more than two points in a row until Fordham took the lead at 12-10. Xavier would fight back and tie the score again, as late as 22. But with the score tied at 22, the Rams would go on a 3-0 run to finish off the set.

The second frame was dominated by Fordham, 25-19.

With their undefeated A-10 record on the line, the Musketeers stepped it up in the third set. Xavier jumped out to a quick 8-2 lead, forcing Fordham to take a timeout. After the timeout, Xavier expanded the lead to 12-4, and forced Fordham to a take a second timeout. Xavier would win the set 25-15.

In the fourth set, Xavier led most of the way. However, the Musketeers found the score tied at 20. Xavier responded to the late push from the Rams by going on a 5-0 run to end the set and even up the match at two sets apiece.

In the fifth and deciding set, neither team led by more than two. Xavier was able to come away with the victory, 15-13, and complete the comeback.
Junior Kelly Ruth had her ninth double-double of the season, collecting 22 kills and a career-high 24 digs. Senior Jen Welsh contributed 27 assists and 12 digs.

The next day, the Musketeers took on the Rhode Island Rams. In the first two sets, Xavier showed why they were undefeated in the conference.
Xavier opened the match with a 6-0 run, and soon closed out the first set, 25-19.

In the second set, Xavier again jumped out to an early lead at 6-2. They stretched the lead to as much as 22-14, and would win the second set 25-20.

In the third set, Rhode Island came out strong, determined not to roll over, and took an 8-3 lead. Xavier fought back, and tied the score at 16. The score was still tied at 23 before Rhode Island finished out the set with two straight points.

In the fourth set, with the score tied at 9, Xavier went on a 4-0 run to take the lead for good. Xavier held match point at 24-16.

Ruth posted another double-double, with 13 kills and 15 digs, and was named the A-10 player of the week on Monday for the second time this season. Ruth compiled 35 kills and 39 digs for the weekend while leading the Musketeers to two victories.

This coming weekend, Xavier will travel to Duquesne and St. Louis. On Friday, Oct. 24 the Musketeers will take on the Dukes at 7 p.m. On Sunday, Oct. 26 the Musketeers face off against the Billikens at 2 p.m. The Billikens are currently ranked 25th in the country and also sport an undefeated A-10 record.

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Late goals prove insurmountable for soccer

Scott Mueller
Asst. Sports Editor

Men's Soccer

The men’s soccer team fell in both matches over the weekend, 0-3 to the St. Louis Billikens and 1-2 to the Charlotte 49ers. With the losses, Xavier falls to 1-9-3 this year.

On Oct. 17, the Musketeers travelled to Missouri to take on the Billikens of St. Louis University. Xavier, in the midst of a four game unbeaten streak, hung tough with the 15th ranked Billikens for the majority of the game. However, the Muskies could not hold when St. Louis striker Kyle Patterson netted three goals in the last ten minutes of regulation, shutting out the Musketeers, 0-3.

After a day off between games, the Musketeers traveled to Charlotte, N.C. A 47th minute goal to start the scoring by 49er Adam Gross was quickly answered by Musketeer sophomore El-Hadji Dieng. The goal, a netted penalty kick, was Dieng’s first of the season.

The Musketeers allowed a goal with four minutes remaining in regulation, bringing the heartbreaking game to its final score of 1-2, a Musketeer loss.
The Musketeers will look to rebound off the tough weekend when they hit the Xavier Soccer Complex turf this weekend to face off against La Salle (Friday, Oct. 24 at 7 p.m.) and Fordham (Sunday, Oct. 26 at 1 p.m.).

Women's Soccer

The Xavier women’s soccer team was back in action last weekend looking to reverse their fortunes by facing Duquesne and St. Bonaventure.

On Friday, the team hosted the 5-4-3 Dukes of Duquesne. The Dukes got a 14th minute goal from Annie Reid. Xavier evened up the score when sophomore Carlyanne Wenzel scored off a rebound from a great save by the Duquesne goalie on a shot by sophomore Kaitlyn McGoldrick.

A handball late in the game led to a penalty kick by Duke forward Shaina Geisler that would ultimately prove to be the game winner. Mackenzie Creehan of Duquesne later added an insurance goal, and Xavier fell 1-3.

On Sunday, the Musketeers reconvened at the Xavier Soccer Complex to meet the 8-7-0 St. Bonaventure Bonnies.

Wenzel continued her goal-scoring streak scoring twice, which temporarily put the Musketeers on top.

While the upstart Xavier offense was finally clicking, the defense began to falter. The Musketeers allowed Bonnie forward and reigning A-10 player of the week Courtney Bosse to score two late goals.

The score was tied 2-2 at the end of regulation and the two teams headed into overtime, both desperately needing the conference win.

The Bonnies nearly walked away winners after Bosse once again found the back of the net halfway through the first overtime. Luckily, for the Musketeers, the referee found the Bonnies offsides on the would-be goal scoring drive and wiped away the goal.

“To have what was the game-winning goal nullified was tough, but we have to pick ourselves up,” said Bonnies coach Manoj Khettry. The game ended in a 2-2 tie.

The tie brought Xavier’s conference record to 0-5-2 and its overall record to 1-12-2.

The Musketeers will hit the road this weekend to meet St. Louis this Friday, Oct. 24 at 7 p.m. and then Charlotte this Sunday, Oct. 26 at 1 p.m.

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 Briefs

Doug Tifft  
Sports Editor

Men’s tennis strong in closing tournament

The Xavier University men’s tennis team finished play at the Wilson/ITA Midwest Regional Championship on Saturday, Oct. 18. The Musketeers had two invidual players qualify for the main draw and one doubles team. Overall, the team won eight matches at the tournament.

In the singles tournament, both senior Doug Matthews and freshman Richard Canelas were elminated in the first round, out of a field of 64.

In the doubles tournament, the team of senior Ra’ees Ismail and junior J.T. Torbeck won their first two matches before being knocked out by a team from Ohio State in the third round.

This was the team’s best showing at the tournament in head coach Eric Toth’s time at Xavier. “To win eight total matches against this level of competition ends our fall season on a high note,” said Toth.

Swim team collects two wins at Valparaiso

The Xavier University men’s and women’s swim teams both picked up wins in a dual meet this past weekend at Valparaiso University.

Xavier won 22 of the 30 events. The men won 94-51, while the women beat Valparaiso 82-56.

Sophomores Nathan Greene and Kari Peglar both won three events for the Musketeers.

Senior Mary Catherine Mahon finished first in two individual events and swam legs in two first place relays.