Drew Dominguez ’09, football
Drew Dominguez ’09 is a superstar. A co-captain of the 2008 football team, he had 38 tackles and 524 all-purpose yards a year ago—this guy is good. Dominguez is the football team’s leading return man, tallying big numbers last season with his flashy speed and shifty moves. Averaging 20 yards a return, kickers will look to avoid putting the ball in Dominguez’s hands.
Outside of setting up the offense with solid field position, Dominguez intercepted opposing quarterbacks three times last year — a mark he looks to increase this fall. NESCAC quarterbacks are far from safe with the likes of Dominguez and fellow captain Andrew Fiola ’09 roving the defensive backfield.
“Dominguez has a knack for reading quarterbacks’ eyes and shutting down any deep threats,” said David Burstein ’10. “I’m just happy to be on the same field as him.”
The Wesleyan defense, anchored by its tri-captains Dominguez, Fiola and Vinny Colangelo ’09 is a force to be reckoned with in 2008. Wesleyan’s home opener is Sept. 27 against Hamilton.
Hailey Sarage ’09, field hockey
Co-captain Hailey Sarage ’09 looks to once again be a consistent leader on the field during this fall’s field hockey season. Tied for most goals in 2007-2008 with five, Sarage also posted an assist for a total of 11 points. Two of Sarage’s goals came as results of penalty shots, one each against rivals Amherst and Williams. She was an iron woman for the team, playing in all 15 games, on a team that finished just under .500 with a 7-8 record. Coming off of a seventh place finish in the NESCAC, the Cardinals are looking to improve on its 3-6 conference record.
“Even though we have a young squad, this is the most confident I have felt going into a season in the last three years,” Sarage said, after being asked about the 2008 squad.
Wesleyan’s first game is this Saturday at Tufts University, where the women will be looking for some payback after being eliminated by the Jumbos in the first round of last fall’s conference tournament.
Alan Ashenfelter ’09, men’s soccer
As the Wesleyan men’s soccer team looks ahead to its 2008 season, it has many reasons to believe that it can continue its success from the 2007 campaign, when it rattled off 10 straight wins while shutting out five consecutive opponents. The foundation of the team that went 10-5 is back, most notably Alan Ashenfelter ’09, who scored four goals and had two assists in 2007 despite playing defense.
The 6’1”, 175-pound senior from Needham, Mass. was voted second-team all-NESCAC as a junior, and his leadership as a co-captain this season will be invaluable to the Cardinals. Ashenfelter’s stellar junior season included three game-winning goals, and he helped anchor a defense that only allowed 1.06 goals per game. The men’s soccer team opens its season this Tuesday, Sept. 9, hosting Western New England, a team that the Cardinals beat last year 2-1.
Elaine Lauriat ’09, women’s crew
Elaine Lauriat ’09 is a key returning member of the women’s crew team. She looks to help the squad carry the momentum they gained near the end of last year, where they finished eight out of 13 in the New England Championships.
Lauriat is from Southwest Harbor, Maine and is entering her senior year at Wesleyan. Having attended Mount Desert Island High School, Lauriat is now one of five seniors on the team, pushing the squad to a 6-7 dual meet record last year. She was a member of the Varsity Eight Boat for the races in the spring, helping the crew to three second-place finishes.
The women’s crew team will look to push themselves this fall to improve on last year’s mark. Their first race this fall comes up Saturday, Oct. 11 at the Head of the Housatonic in Naugatuck, Conn.
Matt O’Connell ’09, men’s tennis
After winning three of its final four spring matches to end the year at 8-8, the men’s tennis team is poised to take another step forward and establish itself as one of the premier teams in the NESCAC. One player who can be counted on to make a big impact this season is captain Matt O’Connell ’09, who went 8-7 in singles action in 2007-08—with all but one match coming at the number-one position, where he went 7-7—and established himself as one of the top players in the conference.
Wesleyan faces a daunting fall schedule book-ended by visits from Little Three rivals Williams (an opponent the Cardinals last defeated in 1972) and Amherst. However, the team appears ready to ride the momentum of its strong finish in April to a dominant fall season.
Lisa Drennan ’09, volleyball
Along with her co-captain Ellie Healy ’10, Lisa Drennan ’09 returns to the hardwood to lead the Cardinals in search of a coveted NESCAC title this upcoming season. Drennan has played spectacularly over the course of the past two years, earning NESCAC Player of the Year in 2006 and then receiving all-NESCAC and all-New England laurels in 2007. Her team-high 446 kills carried the Cards in 2007, a per-game average that led the NESCAC and placed her in the top five in the country.
Despite remaining undefeated at home and finishing with a strong overall record of 17-8, Wesleyan was eliminated from the NESCAC tournament in the first round after a disappointing bout with Connecticut College. This season, however, looks promising for the Cardinals, with Drennan and Healy leading seven other returning letter-winners, including Alicia Garrison ’09, Emily Dine ’09, Allison Heaney ’09, and Anna Williams ’09. Women’s volleyball gets underway tonight, taking the floor at home against Little Three rival Williams at 8 p.m., and then faces Coast Guard and Wellesley in a double-header on Saturday.
Ben Roberts ’09, men’s crew
Ben Roberts ’09 is one of many key returnees for the Wesleyan University men’s crew team. The crew is currently back to pre-season mode after a very successful spring, highlighted by a strong bronze medal showing from the first boat at the New England Rowing Championships in May.
Roberts, a senior from Chappaqua, New York, has been on the team since freshman year and has been steadily improving in each of his years at the University. He is now a vital member of the First Varsity Boat, made up of the eight best rowers on the team. In a sport where every member of the boat must work together for success, it is important to have your strongest rowers together. Roberts fits this mold, and helped the First Boat to some impressive showings last spring, including wins over Tufts, Bates, and Colby, among many others.
Coming off of a very successful spring, the team will undoubtedly look to build on this success, working harder in the off-season. With the effort and dedication the team has shown in the past, look for the men’s crew team to be making some big waves this fall.
Gavi Elkind ’09, women’s soccer
On Wednesday, Sept. 10, the women’s soccer team will host Mount Holyoke in its home opener on Jackson Field. All those present will be lucky enough to watch the superior goal-tending skills of Gavi Elkind ’09, who gave up only 0.68 goals per game last year while posting a 3-2 record. Elkind’s stellar performance will be pivotal to the Cards’ success this season after it dropped six NESCAC games in 2007 by just one goal. This season the Cardinals will look to propel themselves to the other side of those close NESCAC games. With Elkind in the goal, the Cardinals fancy their chances, and with eight returning starters joining her, the team hopes to improve on last year’s 3-10-1 season.
Brad Litchfield ’09 and Ravenna Neville ’10, XC
After strong showings in the 2007 New England Division III Championship, the cross country teams have performed strongly this year, with both currently ranked in the top 10 regionally.
Both teams are in good hands, despite the loss of graduating captains and NCAA qualifiers Sean Watson ’08 and Maynard Award winner Lucia Pier ’08. Brad Litchfield ’09 takes up the leadership position along with co-captain Jonah Blumstein ’09. Litchfield was a consistent point-getter for the Cards last season, cruising into second place in the 800m dash at January’s Wesleyan Invitational. He also scored impressive numbers all year in the 800m and 600m events.
For the women, Ravenna Neville ’10 (not pictured) returns to take the helm along with co-captain Liz Wheatley ’09. Neville, who earned all-New England honors in 2007, went the distance time and again for Wesleyan in 5k and 6k runs. Both teams will stretch their legs in an upcoming alumni meet this Saturday before hosting the Wesleyan Invitational on Sept. 27.
Ania Preneta ’09, women’s tennis
After qualifying for the NESCAC tournament for their first time last spring, the women’s tennis team looks to continue their success in the ’08-’09 season. The leader of the squad will be team captain and number-one singles player Ania Preneta ’09, who went 10-7 in the number-one spot last year. She also contributed valuable dual-match points competing in the number three doubles with partner Lizzie Collector ’09, in which the duo went 11-5 for regular season play.
Perhaps most significant is that the squad lost no players to graduation last season. Rachel Ghorbani ’09 and Anika Fischer ’10, who were both awarded spots on the all-NESCAC second team in doubles, will likely remain among the key players for the Cards. Alex Sirois ’09 returns with the best record, ending last season 9-3 overall, mostly from the six spot. Rounding out the returnees will be Madalina Ursu ’09, Linda McDougal ’11, Meredith Holmes ’10 and Casey Simchik ’10.
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