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2005-06 Review: Men's Basketball third consecutive NCAA appearance highlighted the Tigers 2005-06 year
July 17, 2006 2005-06 Pacific Athletics Year in Review The Pacific Men's Basketball highlighted the 2005-06 season as the Tigers earned their third consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament and claimed the Big West Conference championship. Two teams either received season-ending national rankings or votes in their respective national polls. In addition, numerous Pacific student-athletes garnered individual accolades as All-America, All-Conference, Academic All-America, and Academic All-Conference honorees.
BASEBALL --
Notes: The Tigers opened their first intercollegiate home field since 1951, Klein Family Field, in April of 2006. In their third season under head coach Ed Sprague, the Pacific Baseball team recorded its second consecutive 30-win season at 30-25. It is the first time in school history that the baseball team has reached back-to-back 30-win seasons. Pacific got off to a fast start in 2006 as the Tigers won 10 of the first 14 games, including a sweep of BYU. The Tigers also recorded a three-game sweep of San Diego State on the road, then closed the season with a sweep of Cal State Northridge. Four Tigers received All-Big West Conference honors following the 2006 season, highlighted by senior Matt Berezay earning All-Big West First Team Honors. In early June, the Tigers saw five players move on to the professional ranks. Seniors Eric Stolp, Anthony Jackson and Berezay were selected in the MLB Amateur Draft, while Luke Massetti and Steve Spurgeon signed free agent contracts.
MEN'S BASKETBALL --
Notes: The third time was a bittersweet charm for the Pacific men's basketball team as the Tigers earned their third consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament with a 78-70 win over Long Beach State in the championship game of the Big West Tournament. Pacific drew a No. 13 seed and highly-touted ACC power, Boston College in the first round in Salt Lake City, Utah. The Tigers gave the Golden Eagles everything they could handle, battling back from a 13-point second half deficit to force overtime. In the first extra session, Pacific led by as much as six points, but Boston College was able to force a double overtime. The Eagles proved to be too much for Pacific in the second extra session, defeating Pacific, 88-76. Similar to each of the last two seasons, the Tigers got off to a slow start at 4-3, but won 20 of their final 25 games, including 13 of 14 contests entering the NCAA Tournament. Senior Christian Maraker led the Tigers in every way, earning Associated Press All-America honors and Big West Player of the Year. Head coach Bob Thomason claimed his third consecutive Big West Conference Coach of the Year honor. Senior Johnny Gray and freshmen Anthony Brown and Steffan Johnson also garnered post-season honors. Gray was named to the All-Big West First Team, while Brown and Johnson were each named to the All-Big West Freshmen Team.
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL --
Notes: The Pacific women's basketball team finished the 2005-06 season with a 6-22 record, including a 3-11 mark in the Big West Conference. Despite their struggles, the Tigers' season saw the emergence of senior Carolina Ruiz, who earned All-Big West First Team recognition as she led Pacific with 8.6 rebounds per game and was second on the team with 12.5 points per contest. In early December, head coach Craig Jackson resigned and assistant coach Karen Weitz was named interim head coach. The Tigers responded by winning three of their next six contests, including a 58-56 win over Cal State Northridge on Jan. 4. Pacific, however, could not maintain their momentum and ended its season with a 94-67 loss to Cal Poly in the opening round of the Big West Tournament on Mar. 8. Following the season, Pacific hired former Chico State head coach Lynne Roberts as the new head coach for the 2006-07 season. Roberts was the 2004-05 and 2005-06 California Collegiate Athletic Association Coach of the Year as she led the Wildcats to a 26-4 record a to the NCAA Division II Final Four in 2005-06.
WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY --
Notes: First-year head coach Greg Rhines took over the team in the middle of August. Rhines increased the roster size to the nine athletes, the largest participation for a cross-country team in over five years. Rhines' background as a private coach and sport psychology consultant in Lodi, Calif., should help the Tigers tremendously in 2006. He works individually with all ages of runners to enhance their form, function and fitness.
FIELD HOCKEY -- Notes: After earning the second trip to the NCAA Tournament in program history in 2004, the Pacific Tigers continued to excel in 2005. Pacific earned the No. 1 seed in the NorPac Tournament as the Tigers were 5-1 in conference play. Pacific's only conference loss came after the Tigers had sewn up the top seed as Pacific fell to Radford, 3-2, on Oct. 29. The Tigers avenged that loss in the semi-finals of the NorPac Tournament as Pacific defeated Radford, 2-1, in double overtime to advance to the finals against the host, California Golden Bears. In a rematch of the 2004 finals, this time Cal took advantage of their home field, defeating Pacific, 4-0. Following the season, junior Vianney Campos earned All-West Region Second Team honors. Campos also earned All-NorPac First Team accolades, while junior Michelle Manson and Jen Chaney were named to the All-NorPac Second Team.
MEN'S GOLF -- Notes: Under the guidance of first year head coach Brandon Goethals, the Pacific men's golf team closed out its 2005-06 season with a fifth place showing at the Big West Conference Championships, a two-spot improvement from 2004-05. The Tigers had their best team performance with a fourth place finish at the Countrywide Home Loans Intercollegiate Tournament. Individually, senior Gordian Curtius placed third at the Countrywide, while junior Thomas Petersson earned All-Big West Honorable Mention.
WOMEN'S SOCCER -- Notes: The Pacific women's soccer team wrapped up the 2005 season with a trip to the Big West Conference tournament, appearing in the postseason for the first time since 1998. The Tigers completed a very successful season in which they finished tied for fourth place in the Big West, the sixth highest rated conference in the nation as rated by SoccerRatings.com. For the seventh time in program history, the Tigers eclipsed the 10 win mark on the season, finishing 2005 at 10-9-1 overall. The Tigers put up 10 wins despite facing some of the stiffest competition both pre-conference and within the Big West. In 2005, Pacific faced four nationally ranked teams, including the No. 1 team in the nation and eventual NCAA Champions, the Portland Pilots. One of the keys to Pacific's success was the Tigers' home field advantage at Stagg Memorial Stadium. Pacific set a new program record for home wins in a single season, going 8-1 in 2005. Individually on the field, the Tigers' had five players earn All-Big West honors at the conclusion of the season led by juniors Carmen Padilla (San Jose, Calif.) and Kelsey Nagel (Lynnwood, Wash.) who garnered first team recognition. Sophomores Bunny Dickson (Millbrae, Calif.) and Montez Harrison (Oakland, Calif.) earned second team honors while goalkeeper Jaime Souza (Gig Harbor, Wash.) was named an All-Big West Honorable Mention.
SOFTBALL -- Notes:Despite missing the postseason, the 2006 season was a continuation of one of the most successful periods in program history, as the Tigers posted their 11th consecutive winning season (26-25 overall). With a roster that boasted seven freshmen and four sophomores the Tigers needed to grow up quickly on the field as they immediately jumped into tournament play against some of the nation's best teams. Pacific's tough early schedule took its toll on the youthful roster as the Tigers started the season dropping six of their first nine games, including a 1-0 loss to No. 3 Arizona in their final game of the Wildcat Invitational. The Wildcats went on to claim the NCAA Championship. However, the early bumps paved the way to success as the Tigers blew through the country's toughest tournament, the Palm Springs Classic, posting a nearly perfect 4-1 record, including a 4-1 win over No. 18 Baylor, while facing four teams that earned bids to postseason regional play. Rainy weather shortened the Tigers' non-conference schedule, washing out six contests including an exhibition contest against the Chinese National Team. Despite the bad weather, the Tigers completed non-conference play by winning five of their final six games to finish with a 19-14 out-of-conference record. The Tigers continued to play some of their best softball of 2006 at the start of the Big West Conference season, rebounding from an opening loss to UC Santa Barbara to take their next five conference games. Pacific returns 14 players for next season that comprised a defensive squad that finished sixth in the nation among all 264 Division I teams in fielding percentage at .978. Individually, junior Gina Carbonatto was named to the NFCA/Louisville Slugger All-American. Carbonatto also earned All-West Region honors, as did teammate, junior Jennifer Curtier.
MEN'S SWIMMING -- Notes: First year coach Greg Meehan inherited a team with only one senior after the Tigers graduated nine swimmers from the 2004-05 Big West Championship team. Despite a very young and limited roster, Meehan's team set new Pacific records in five different events. Sophomore Krzysztof Zoldak continued to dominate the Big West Conference in the 200 and 400 IM, winning both events at the Big West Championship. Zoldak also earned his second consecutive Big West Conference Male Athlete of the Year award. In addition, Zoldak was the only representative for the Tigers and the Big West at the NCAA Championships. Krzysztof finished 20th in the 200 and 18th in the 400 IM at the NCAA Championships.
WOMEN'S SWIMMING -- Notes: Meehan also took the reigns for the women's swim team in 2005-06. Similar to the men's team, Pacific had dominating individual performances during the 2005-06 season, but did not have the depth to compete at the conference level. Senior Laura McDonald and sophomore Ja-Neil Bragg were two of three athletes to share the Big West Female Athletes of the Year award. McDonald set Pacific records in the 1,000 Free and 1,650 Free during the season and claimed both events at the Big West Championships. Bragg won three individual events at the Big West Championships, earning the title in 100 Free, 200 IM and 400 IM. Both Bragg and McDonald represented the Tigers at the NCAA Championships.
MEN'S TENNIS -- Notes: For the second consecutive season, the Pacific men's tennis team fell just one team point shy of earning the Big West Conference title, suffering a narrow 4-3 loss to UC Santa Barbara in the championship match of the 2006 Big West Conference Tournament. Despite the loss, the Tigers earned their sixth consecutive berth in the Big West Conference Tournament Championship. Individually, senior Arnar Sigurdsson became the first individual to earn a berth in the NCAA Singles Tournament. Arnar fell to eighth seeded Travis Helgeson of Texas by the score of 6-3, 6-2 in round of 64 action at the NCAA Division I Men's Tennis Championships on Wednesday, May 24 at Taube Tennis Center in Stanford, Calif. Arnar finished his career as the Pacific record holder for singles victories with 98. His final singles record was 98-27 (.784), the highest winning percentage in school history. Sigurdsson also holds Pacific's all-time record for combined wins (175) and doubles victories (77). This year Arnar earned his fourth consecutive All-Big West First Team selection in both singles and doubles. Joining Sigurdsson on the All-Big West First Team in singles was senior Jorgen Vestli, while junior Vladimir Zdravkovic earned All-Big West Second Team and freshman Tim Koniarski earned All-Big West honorable mention. The doubles teams of Sigurdsson and Zdravkovic as well as Vestli and Koniarski, each were named All-Big West First Team.
WOMEN'S TENNIS -- Notes: The Tigers finished an injury plagued 2006 season at 9-12, falling in the first round of the Big West Championships to Cal Poly, 4-1. Pacific began the season with only seven players on the roster, but were able to get off to a 7-3 start to the spring dual match season. Injuries and illness, however, caught up to the Tigers down the stretch of the season as Pacific was forced to play several matches with only five available athletes, causing Pacific to forfeit the No. 6 position and one of the three doubles matches. One of the bright spots during the season was the continued excellence of senior Natalia Kostenko. Natalia remained relatively healthy throughout most of the season, playing either the No. 1 or No. 2 singles position for the Tigers. Kostenko's first singles victory of the spring 2006 season, broke the Pacific record for most singles victories in a career. She concluded her four-year career with 94 singles wins. Following the season, Kostenko earned All-Big West Second Team Honors, while junior Vana Mrazovic earned All-Big West Honorable Mention. Kostenko and freshman Carla Tamborini also were named All-Big West Honorable Mention in doubles play.
MEN'S VOLLEYBALL -- Notes: The Pacific men's volleyball team finished the 2006 season with an 8-20 overall record and a 6-16 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation mark. The Tigers were 6-6 in the Alex G. Spanos Center, including victories over USC, Stanford, Cal State Northridge and UC Santa Barbara. Following the seasons, senior Brian Adamson represented the Tigers with All-MPSF Honorable Mention recognition. Adamson led the Tigers with 430 kills during his final season at Pacific.
WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL -- Notes: Senior Ashley Groothuis closed out a spectacular season for Pacific by earning a slot on the AVCA All-West Region Honorable Mention Team. Groothuis also earned All-Big West First Team honors, as did senior Sidney Bennett and sophomore Kara Uhl. Junior Allison Ianni rounded out the post-season awards for Pacific as she earned All-Big West Honorable Mention. At 16-14 on the season, the Tigers did not earn a berth in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. In early January, the Tigers announced the hiring of Charlie Wade as the fifth head coach in Pacific history.
MEN'S WATER POLO -- Notes: The Pacific men's water polo team finished its third year under head coach Mike Maroney with the second most victories (19) in school history and the best record since 1993. The two MPSF wins were the first wins for the Tigers since 2002 when Pacific went 3-5. In the final national poll of the season, the Tigers were ranked sixth in the country. The Tigers qualified for the MPSF Tournament for the first time since 2002, and almost pulled off a first round upset of No. 4 UC Irvine, falling 7-6. The Tigers then went on to upset Pepperdine before losing in the fifth place game to UCLA by the score of 9-5. Sophomore Dragan Bakic earned third team All-MPSF honors after recording team-high 60 goals. Bakic also tallied 33 steals, 32 assists and drew 39 ejections in 28 games played. His 2.14 goals per game avg. ranked sixth in the MPSF. Senior goalkeeper Marko Popovic (Belgrade, Serbia) earned honorable mention All-MPSF honors as he led the conference in saves, averaging 8.3 per game. At the MPSF Tournament Popovic spearheaded the Tigers defense, recording 31 saves in three games, with 11 of those coming on man-down defensive situations. Following the season, both Bakic and Popovic earned All-America honors.
WOMEN'S WATER POLO -- Notes: The Tigers received bittersweet news in mid-December as head coach Ryan Brown announced his resignation to take the assistant coach position with the United States men's water polo team. The Tigers hired Steve Hanson as the interim head coach in late December. Despite the difficult season the Pacific team suffered through, senior Julia Snyder finished the season with a team-high 41 goals, while sophomore Kellie Fletcher notched 33 goals. Snyder ended her career with 93 goals, tying her for fourth place in Pacific history with Amy Collette (1999-2002). |
