Softball’s short hiccup to a winning seasonBefore softball’s home game against Ferrum College (21-11) on April 3, Quaker fans believed that their 21-4-1 team (7-1 in the ODAC) was untouchable. Winners of their last seven games, the Quakers went into their Senior Day doublheader expecting to win.

But on the eve of Easter, the Quakers dropped a goose egg to the Panthers, losing 2-10, and 11-12.

The Quaker bats were silenced early in game one as they fell behind 5-0 after two innings. Behind celebrated senior Charissa Duncan (3-4, two runs and five RBIs), the Quaker bats woke up for game two, scoring 11 runs on 11 hits.

Pitching continued to struggle in game two. Sophomore Shelby Bowser let up a rare eight runs on seven hits, and sophomore Jessica Burcham gave up four runs.

The Quakers look to bounce back against the Old Dominion Athletic Conference’s last place team, Sweet Briar College (4-19, 0-8), on the road on April 10 at 2 p.m.

It’s go time

With seven games left in the 2010 season, five in Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) play, the baseball team (13-17, 5-8 in ODAC) searches to end a three-year ODAC tournament drought by qualifying for the sixth seed. But they’ll need a little help from some friends.

After the Quakers lost two crucial ODAC games to Virginia Wesleyan College last weekend, the Quakers will have to win at least three remaining ODAC games against either Randolph-Macon College in a doubleheader on April 10, Lynchburg College on April 14, or Bridgewater College in a doubleheader on April 17, to have a chance at a tournament berth.

In addition, the Quakers will have to count on Washington and Lee University losing games to Bridgewater, Eastern Mennonite University and/or Virginia Wesleyan, or Roanoke College losing to Emory & Henry College, Hampden-Sydney College or Eastern Mennonite.

The Quakers are currently two and a half games back of the final sixth seed in the ODAC tournament.

Men’s lacrosse wins in walk-off fashion

Sophomore attacker Greg Nash’s goal 47 seconds into overtime on April 4 sealed the deal in a 12-11 win for the men’s lacrosse team (2-10, 0-3 in ODAC) over Oberlin College.

In addition to the goal, Nash had an assist to sophomore Chris Ashcraft with just over five minutes left in the first period. Ashcraft’s goal was his second of three goals of the day, which started a four-goal deficit comeback for the Quakers, who were down 5-1 at the time.

The Quakers now face the heart of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) schedule starting April 10, when the Quakers play at Lynchburg College. Another away game will follow, when the Quakers travel to Roanoke College on April 14, but will close the season in a two-game home-stand in hopes to clinch an ODAC tournament birth on April 17 against Hampden-Sydney College and on April 24 versus Randolph College.

The Big Man earns national spotlight

With 30 double-doubles, 19.8 points per game and 14.1 rebounds per game, it is no surprise that senior Big Man Tyler Sanborn earned the honors of National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Player of the Year.

Sanborn had already earned the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Player of the Year, First-Team All-American honors, DIII News Player of the Year, and helped lead the Quakers to the Final Four for the second consecutive season in 2009. But the honors given by the NABC put the icing on the cake in a 1,398 point and 1,133 rebound Guilford basketball career.

In addition to being recognized at the AT&T NABC Guardians of the Game Awards Show at the Murat Theatre in Indianapolis on April 4, Sanborn attended the Final Four in the men’s March Madness Tournament.

Congratulations, Big Man. Way to go out in style.