Schuler Heads to Nationals

Below is a quick interview with Men's Cross Country National Qualifier, Kipp Schuler.

Kipp Schuler finished in 5th place with a time of 27:25 at the Midwest Collegiate Conference which qualified him to advance to the NAIA Nationals this coming Saturday, November 20. The race will take place in Vancover, Washington.

How does it feel to qualify for the NAIA Nationals?

Kipp: I have to give all of the credit to God and my friends on the team during the season. It’s a great feeling to be able to compete at that level. This is my 4th national competition. One learns very quickly that without the people around you, it means nothing.

How are you feeling going into this Saturday’s Race?

Kipp: I’m feeling great heading in. I just simply want to compete the best I can with where I am at in my conditioning. I know I am capable of more from experience, but as long as maximum effort is given, it will be satisfying. It is still nerve racking though. No matter how experienced, that part never goes away.

What is your time goal going into the race on Saturday?

Kipp: Last year at the national race I place 119th with a time of 26:45. I would like to better either placing or time from the previous year. Both would be great.

Looking back on the season do you feel you have achieved your season goals thus far? What were your goals?

Kipp: I believe that I have achieved some seasonal goals. I knew coming in, due to lack of preparation, I wasn’t going to be able to achieve the level of competitiveness of the previous year. The itch is always there to better myself. I had to come in ambitious, but realistic. I simply wanted to make it to nationals. A conference championship would have been nice, but it just wasn’t my day and I was running against some great guys.

Can you give me a quote about the season and/or upcoming race?

Kipp: I’ve had the pleasure of a good coach and great teammates. That is worth more than any competition. “Shake and bake”

Know Your Football Opponent St. Francis (Ill.)

Today we quickly look at this week's football opponent St. Francis (Ill.).

But first a look back over the week…

Women's volleyball defeated Clarke in the first round of the tournament on Saturday (3-1) advancing them to semifinals on Wednesday, November 10. The Lady Statesmen upset #1 seed, Viterbo (3-1) in the semifinals advancing them on to the championship game against St. Ambrose that will take place this Saturday, November 13th at 7 p.m (in Davenport).

Men's and women’s cross country competed in the Midwest Collegiate Conference Championship this last weekend with the men finishing in 7th place and the women finishing in 6th place. Kipp Schuler for the men’s team will go on to compete in the NAIA National Championship this weekend.

The bowling teams competed at the Warhawk Open this last weekend. The men finished 2nd out of 30 teams, while the women finished 4th out of 20 teams. Both teams’ finishes were the programs highest finishes in the school’s history. The bowling teams head to SI Elite Tournament in Fairview Heights, Ill. on November 13th and 14th.

Wrestling has competed in one open tournament to start the season, where Eric Burgey (133) finished in third leading the season with 61 points and in second is Taylor Louie (125) with 34 points. Wrestling team will compete at the Dakota Wesleyan Open on Saturday, November 13th.

The men's basketball team is off to a decent start with a record of 2-1 and a ranking of fourth in the Midwest Collegiate Conference preseason bids. The Statesmen have defeated Crossroads and Faith Baptist; and lost to Graceland so far this season.

Women’s basketball is 1-2 on the season, and ranked fourth overall in the preseason conference rankings. They defeated Graceland and lost to Peru State and Concordia (Neb.) in two close matches.

Both basketball teams play at home on Friday, November 12th. Women play Central Methodist at 6 p.m. and the men play Hastings at 8 p.m. The games will be broadcasted on the stretch internet radio.

Now on to know your opponent this week for the 1 p.m. (Central) kick off between William Penn and St. Francis (Ill.). The contest will be carried locally by MCG 22 TV and also broadcast on KBOE local Radio.

1.) St. Francis (USF) was founded in 1920 by the Congregation of the Third Order of St. Francis of Mary Immaculate for the education of its own members.

2.) Across all sports, USF has made 63 NAIA National Tournament appearances, claimed 73 District 20/Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) national qualifying tournaments, won 60 CCAC championships and produced 79 NAIA All-Americans

3.) The Fighting Saints run a spread zone offensive formation with a 33 stack defensive formation.

4.) The Fighting Saints are ranked number 15th in the NAIA for PAT Kicks (39 points), and also ranked 15th in punt returns per game with 11 returns for 142 yards.

5.) St Francis (Ill.) overall defense is ranked 37th in the Nation. The Saints rushing defense is ranked 18th giving up an average 108 yards per game and their pass defense is 63th in the Nation giving up an average 221 yards per game.

6.) The Fighting Saints are 18th in scoring offense with 33 points/game. Also, the team is 14th in rushing offense with 1,788 yards for the season and 18th in rushing offense per game with an average of 198.7 yards/game.

Penn, now 9-1,13th in Nation

The newest NAIA National Polls have come out and William Penn University is making their presence known. Football is #13 in the nation. Here are the polls:

NAIA Football Rating #9 - November 8, 2010
(Number in parentheses is first-place votes)

1. Sioux Falls (S.D.) (15)
2. Carroll (Mont.) (2)
3. Saint Xavier (Ill.) (1)
4. MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.)
5. Lindenwood (Mo.)
6. McPherson (Kan.)
7. Morningside
8. Ottawa (Kan.)
9. Dickinson State (N.D.)
10. St. Francis (Ind.)
11. Marian (Ind.)
12. McKendree (Ill.)
13. William Penn
14. Missouri Valley
15. Northwestern
16. Northwestern Oklahoma State
17. Cumberland (Tenn.)
18. Georgetown (Ky.)
19. Midland (Neb.)
20. Walsh (Ohio)
21. St. Francis (Ill.)
21. Azusa Pacific (Calif.)
23. Langston (Okla.)
24. South Dakota Mines & Tech
25. Kansas Wesleyan

Others receiving votes: Cumberlands (Ky.) 21; Benedictine (Kan.) 5; Webber International (Fla.) 4; Campbellsville (Ky.) 3; Minot State (N.D.) 1; Friends (Kan.) 1; Southern Nazarene (Okla.) 1; Black Hills State (S.D.); Sterling (Kan.); Grand View 1.