Westmont Magazine Spring Semester Sports Update
The women’s basketball team received an at-large bid to national tournament this year.
Men’s Basketball
The Warriors finished the regular season 18-9 (13-7 GSAC), tied for third in the conference. Senior Kevin Blomstrom made the All-GSAC team. The men lost to The Master’s in the first round of the GSAC tournament.
Women’s Basketball
The women lost to Biola 57-55 in the first round of the GSAC Tournament. But with an 18-11 (13-7 GSAC) record and a No. 19 national ranking, the team received an at-large bid to the NAIA National Tournament March 17-23.
Seniors Becky Gibb and Katie Hardeman were each named to the All-GSAC basket-ball team. It was the third all-conference award for both.
Track and Field
Senior Sarah Eyman finished sixth in the 1,000-meter run to earn All-American honors at the NAIA Indoor Champion-ships in Johnson City, Tenn. Her time of 3:01.18 was a personal best. It was the fifth All-American award of Eyman’s career. Freshman Ryan Borger also competed in the 1,000 meters on the men’s side, finishing 16th.
Tennis
Mid-way through the tennis season, the men had compiled a record of 5-9 (2-4 GSAC) and the women were 2-8 (1-4 GSAC).
Baseball
With about half of their games remaining, the Warrior baseball team was 3-14 (0-6 GSAC).
Six Warriors Named NAIA Scholar-Athletes
Six Westmont athletes from the fall sports season were named NAIA Scholar-Athletes for their performances in the classroom and on the field or court. To be eligible for the award, the student-athlete must be a junior or senior, carry at least a 3.50 grade point average and meet playing criteria, which varies by sport.
The women’s soccer team has four honorees. Seniors Stephanie Cowell (biology), Kristen Kleen (pre-med), and Lauren Schick (political science) earned the award for the second straight year, while Cynthia Mitchell (biology) picked up the honor for the first time. Kleen has twice been named to the NAIA National All-Tournament Team and is an NAIA All-American. Cowell, Schick and Mitchell have all seen significant playing time for the Warriors in their careers.
Senior Patti Scofield (computer science) and junior Bonnie Van Elderen (communication studies) from the volleyball team also earned the honor. Scofield, who holds several Westmont career records, is a two-time NAIA All-American and a four-time All-GSAC pick. Van Elderen has earned All-GSAC honors the past two years.
A Four-time Coach of the Year
Mike Giuliano earned his record third consecutive NAIA National Coach of the Year award as part of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) annual convention in January. Giuliano is the first coach at any collegiate level to claim three straight awards and now has four overall.
In his 11th year at Westmont, Giuliano guided the women’s soccer team to a 22-1-1 record and their third straight NAIA national championship. His record for 11 seasons is 194-42-15 (.809), and he has taken the Warriors to the national tournament nine times, including a current streak of eight straight. In addition to the four national titles, he also guided Westmont to the NAIA final four in 1997.
Karin Sullivan Named NAIA Player of the Year
Karin Sullivan kept the top NAIA award in the family by claiming the NSCAA/Adidas National Player of the Year award for the NAIA. Twin sister Kristi won the award a year ago, making Westmont the first NAIA school to produce consecutive Player of the Year award winners.
Karin led the Warriors to their third straight NAIA national title and was named the MVP of the national tournament after recording four goals and two assists in four matches. She totaled 23 goals and nine assists for the season. Her 55 points was the second-highest single-season total in Westmont history. In just three seasons, Karin is third on Westmont’s career lists with 57 goals and 137 points.
Westmont has now produced three NAIA Players of the Year, starting with Katie Gardinier in 1999 and Kristi Sullivan in 2002. In addition, Sandra Asimos was named the MVP at the 1985 national tournament, which was the NAIA’s top award at that time.
Sullivans Make Sports Illustrated
Karin and Kristi Sullivan were featured in the “Faces in the Crowd” section of the Sports Illustrated issue dated Jan. 12, 2004.
The twin sisters helped lead Westmont to its third straight NAIA Women’s Soccer National Championship and have combined to record 22 goals and 12 assists in 12 national matches over the past three seasons.
Karin was the national tournament MVP in 2001 and 2003, while Kristi earned MVP honors in 2002. Both were first-team NAIA All-Americans this year.
For more information on the Warrior teams, go the Web site, www.westmont.edu and click on “Athletics.”