Hall Pass

Haverford College field hockey and lacrosse coach MaryAnn Foley Schiller has been selected to the Marple Newtown High School Athletic Hall of Fame.

Schiller '86 played field hockey, basketball and lacrosse for four years at Marple Newtown and was named team MVP in each sport. She earned All-Delco honors in hockey and lacrosse in helping both teams win the Central League title.

She played varsity field hockey for three years and varsity lacrosse for four years at Penn State University and helped the Lions to the NCAA Division I field hockey tournament semifinal round as a freshman.

In lacrosse she helped Penn State win the Division I championship in 1987 and 1989 and finish second in 1988. She was a regional All-America selection twice and is among the Lions’ top 10 career goal scorers.

She was field hockey coach at Marple for one season (2001) and the team was undefeated Central League champ. She also has been head lacrosse coach at Boston College and Haverford College and head field hockey coach at Haverford.

Sunday Football Preview

Mules Hope to Stay Healthy, Reach Greater Heights
by Jeff Schuler, Allentown Morning Call
"Few teams in college football have had to do more adjusting on the fly the past two years than Muhlenberg." / Muhlenberg at a Glance

Mules Could Lead the Pack Again
by Paul Sokoloski, Easton Express-Times
"A roster overflowing with returning starters and prestige from preseason rankings have Muhlenberg earmarked for big things this season."

Hoops Down Under

The Centennial Conference was well-represented as a group of Division III basketball players and coaches took their game “down under” to compete in the 2005 Eastern University Games in Tamworth, Australia.

Led by Beth O’Boyle (Gettysburg '98), head coach at Montclair State, the team captured the bronze medal with a 4-1 showing against a pool of Australia collegiate teams.

The team advanced to the medal round on a three-point play by Elizabethtown’s Jen Roberts at the buzzer. After falling to 79-55 University of Western Sydney in the semifinal, the team rebounded to beat the University of Technology-Sydney 95-67.

“Taking home the bronze medal was a great way to complete an incredible tournament,” noted O’Boyle. “Overall, the coaches and the players had a great experience competing against the Australian universities and learning how to adjust to the international game.”

The team’s roster included Deb Charamella '05 of Bryn Mawr and Ally Teatom '07 of Dickinson.

The University Games is a four-day event drawing 28 Australian universities participating in 19 sports.

Weekend Football Scrimmages

Friday, August 26
Muhlenberg at Wilkes, 9:15 a.m.
Franklin & Marshall at Moravian, 11:00
Dickinson at Lebanon Valley, 4:00

Saturday, August 27
Ursinus at Delaware Valley, 10:00
McDaniel at Salisbury, 12:00
Shenandoah at Gettysburg, 1:00

Johns Hopkins does not have a scrimmage.

From Scarlet Knights to Diplomats

There is a buzz surrounding the 2005 Franklin & Marshall College women's soccer team. Head coach Steve O'Day opens camp this week in search of a goalkeeper to replace the graduated Melissa Ruff. One of his top candidates is a transfer from Rutgers - Robyn Jones - a junior from Titusville, N.J. Jones comes to Lancaster with quite a resume ... she was ranked second in shutouts (9) and fourth in goals-against average (0.82) among BIG EAST goalkeepers as a sophomore in 2004 ... one of those shutouts came against No. 1 ranked Notre Dame where she made nine stops in a scoreless double overtime tie.

Orioles, Nats Have Eye on Haverford's Byrnes

The Sporting News' Ken Rosenthal reports that "Red Sox assistant GM Josh Byrnes (Haverford '92) figures to emerge as a candidate if the Orioles, as expected, look for a new GM. Byrnes, 33, is from the Washington, D.C., area and also could be a possibility for the Nationals if new ownership replaces GM Jim Bowden. ..."

Are You Ready for Some Football?

Green Terror Battle Heat at First Practice
Carroll County Times, Aug. 15

"There might be three weeks before the McDaniel College football team tackles its first real opposition, but Sunday it faced a difficult opponent - the heat. With the midday sun beating down on the turf at Bair Stadium, the Green Terror began preseason practices. Their season begins Sept. 3 at Bridgewater." Complete Story

NCAA, Indians and Bullets

Caught this tidbit in the Marion (Ind.) Chronicle-Tribune through the magic of Google News. Say what you will about the NCAA's position of Native American nicknames, but when columnists bring the Centennial Conference into the discussion ... well we get fired up and want to hear your comments.

Here are some highlights ...

"In a state named for Indians and full of places named for Indians or using Indian words, the NCAA did a very stupid thing. The National Collegiate Athletic Association, the governing body for much of college sports, has banned the use of American Indian mascots during its postseason tournaments ... Since the NCAA is so worried about being offensive, maybe other groups should speak up.

Perhaps the pope should ban college nicknames such as the Lemoyne-Owen Magicians, the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils or the Arizona State Sun Devils.

Muslims should rally against the Crusaders of Valparaiso, University of Dallas and Holy Cross.

Perhaps General Motors should ban the Haverford College Fords.

The National Weather Service might not like the Hurricanes of the University of Miami, the Cyclones of Iowa State or the Geneva College Golden Tornadoes.

The Fraternal Order of Police might take umbrage at the Idaho Vandals, the Gettysburg College Bullets, the South Carolina-Upstate Rifles or the McDaniel College Green Terror.

... Maybe it's time for people upset about college nicknames to do some homework of their own. Learn about the Illini, the Seminoles and the Chippewas.

History and names of honor should trump political correctness."

Net Gains

The American Volleyball Coaches Association has produced its 2005 Division III Mid-Atlantic preview which lists seven Centennial teams that submitted preseason information to the AVCA. Here are some highlights along with some first-year players to watch:

Dickinson
Returning Starters: 4 + libero. Top Returnees: Ashley Young (Jr, MB, 5-11, All-CC 2nd team); Margie Hatch (Sr, MB, 6-1, All-CC 2nd team). Top Newcomers: Leah Stowers (Fr, OH, 5-10).

Gettysburg
Returning Starters: 3 + libero. Top Returnees: Shannan Smith (Sr, S, 5-7, All-CC 1st team; AVCA All-America honorable mention). Top Newcomers: Megan McConville (Fr, OH/MB, 5-10).

Haverford
Returning Starters: 6 + libero. Top Returnees: Heidi Jutsum (Sr, MB, 6-0, All-CC 1st team, AVA All-Region honorable mention); Nina Mullenhard (Sr, OH, 5-9, All-CC honorable mention). Top Newcomers: Lisa Perkins (Fr, OH, 5-9).

Johns Hopkins
Returning Starters: 5 + libero. Top Returnees: Jen Hajj (Sr, MB, 6-0, All-CC honorable mention). Top Newcomers: Amanda Lewis (Fr, S, 5-10); Cassie Wilcox (Fr, MB, 6-1); Adrienne Young (Fr, MB, 6-0).

Muhlenberg
Returning Starters: 6 + libero. Top Returnees: Julie Lauro (Sr, OH, 6-0, All-CC 1st team; AVCA All-America honorable mention). Top Newcomers: Megan Eiser (Fr, S, 5-8).

Swarthmore
Returning Starters: 4 + libero. Top Returnees: Erica George (Jr, OH, 5-8, All-CC honorable mention). Top Newcomers: Jennifer Wang (Fr, OH, 5-8).

Washington College
Returning Starters: 5 + libero. Top Returnees: Marcie McConville (Sr, MB, 5-11). Top Newcomers: Arielle Brown (Fr, S, 5-4); Alisa Pitt (Fr, S, 5-1).

The Love of Hockey

Swarthmore College graduate Lurah Hess '99 has seen the highs and lows when it comes to field hockey team competition. Her high school team - Mount View High School - did not win a single game during her scholastic career. Things changed when she got to Swat, as the Garnet won three Centennial titles in 1995-96-97. Hess had 19 goals and three assists for a career-best 41 points as a junior. She remains active in the sport today, but as an official. And a good one. Now she is working toward a dream -- becoming a certified umpire for the women's World Cup and Olympic Games.

Read more

The Art of the Deal

Although not "officially" a Centennial Conference alum, Josh Byrnes, Haverford College class of 1992, did play baseball for the Black Squirrels just prior to the inception of the Conference in 1993-94. Byrnes had 14 career round-trippers and 106 RBI, while compiling an OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) of .986. He now serves as an assistant general manager to Theo Epstein with the Boston Red Sox. Byrnes was right in the middle of last weekend's hoopla regarding a possible trade of Manny Ramirez to the New York Mets. Peter Gammons of ESPN.com and a brand-new member of the Baseball Hall of Fame picks it up from there:

"The one mess was the six player deal between Boston and Colorado that the Rockies thought was done Friday night. Theo Epstein has long liked Larry Bigbie, and the Rockies did the Bigbie deal with Baltimore to move him to Boston with first baseman Ryan Shealy for Adam Stern, Abe Alvarez, Kelly Shoppach and a minor leaguer.

The offer that was faxed from Boston to Colorado was not signed, or a final document. It was negotiated by assistant GM Josh Byrnes because Epstein was consumed by the Ramirez trade and trying to get Ramirez calmed down and repair his damaged feelings. It never occurred to Epstein that a simple baseball deal that did not involve money was something ownership would consider objectionable. But, indeed, ownership and its assistant, Larry Lucchino, did object, because they were focused on the Ramirez deal.

So Lucchino nixed the deal, which -- rightly -- incensed Dan O'Dowd and the Rockies. But when Lucchino called Colorado owner Charlie Monfort, he threw Byrnes under the bus and did not accept the responsibility of killing it.

By then, there was very little chance of a deal happening for Ramirez, and, fortunately by then, Epstein had repaired much of the damage, with the help of Kevin Millar and David Ortiz."

Read more: Peter Gammons column / Delaware County Times story on Byrnes