Yellow Jackets Sports Weekly Recap (Sept. 12- Sept. 18)

By: Brandon Unverferth

Photography: Hanna Young

Football: Sat. Sept. 17

Kalamazoo 42 (3-0), Defiance 23 (0-2)

Sophomore #80 Tawann Rome running to a 65-yard touchdown in the third quarter vs Kalamazoo

The Defiance College Yellow Jackets football team hosted the Kalamazoo College Hornets Saturday afternoon at Justin F. Coressel Stadium, for the first home game of the season. Yellow Jacket fans filled the stands and the weather forecast was clear, providing an excellent atmosphere for college football. After an opening drive punt for Defiance, Kalamazoo’s quarterback Josh Nichols (junior) fired a quick strike to wide receiver Andrew Widger (senior) for a 34-yard touchdown to give the Hornets a 7-0 early lead. Just prior to the 11-minute mark in the first quarter, Defiance sophomore kicker Zeke Sanchez provided the Yellow Jackets’ first points of the contest by flushing in a 10-yard field goal, to make it a 7-3 game. Following a quick three and out for the Hornets, Defiance senior quarterback Jordan Ambrose connected with senior tight end Cole Recker for a 5-yard touchdown, to give the Yellow Jackets a 10-7 lead with 1:28 left in the first quarter. Midway through the second quarter, the Yellow Jackets found themselves in the red zone at the Kalamazoo two-yard line, but senior quarterback Jordan Ambrose was unable to connect with sophomore Tawann Rome on two consecutive plays, which forced Defiance to hand the ball back to the Kalamazoo offense. Prior to halftime, Kalamazoo attempted a 10-yard field goal to try and tie the score at 10, but the Defiance special teams made a spectacular play to block the kick and maintain the Yellow Jackets’ 10-7 advantage into halftime. The third quarter was dominated by the Hornets as they separated themselves from the Yellow Jackets in the scoring column with a 28-7 point stretch, giving Kalamazoo a 35-17 lead going into the fourth quarter. In the end, the Kalamazoo Hornets defeated the Defiance College Yellow Jackets 42-23.

When senior tight end Cole Recker was asked by The Defender about what he thought the team learned from Saturday’s matchup, he expressed, “I think we improved in a lot of different aspects from Week 1. We showed what we can do on both sides of the ball, but we made some mistakes during important times. We have a lot to clean up but this is a completely different Defiance team this year. I think we are capable of much more than what we put on that field, but it will come.”

Women’s Soccer: Mon. Sept. 12 and Sat. Sept. 17

9/12: Defiance 7 (2-3), Penn State- Beaver 1 (0-2)

The Defiance College women’s soccer team traveled to Monaca, Pennsylvania, to take on the Penn State- Beaver Nittany Lions. The Yellow Jackets quickly made their way onto the scoreboard with a goal by sophomore Jocelyn Peterson at the 6-minute mark to give Defiance a 1-0 lead. Seven minutes later, junior Hallie Webb added her name to the scoring list, giving the Yellow Jackets a 2-0 advantage. Just before the 18-minute mark of the first half, junior Melissa Bixler added her name to the box score, helping Defiance stretch the early lead to 3. Four minutes later (21-minute mark), the Nittany Lions scored what would be their only goal of the contest, to cut the lead to 3-1. Just three minutes and fifty-two seconds into the second half, sophomore Ryan Lay put the Yellow Jackets back up by 3. Exactly nine minutes later, junior Hallie Webb scored her second goal of the contest, to give Defiance a 5-1 lead. At the 65-minute mark, junior Sarah O’ Shea joined the Yellow Jackets’ party, extending the Defiance lead to 6-1. Thirteen minutes later (78-minute mark), junior Bethany Lechenet scored the final goal of the contest for the Yellow Jackets, leading Defiance to a 7-1 victory.

When junior Bethany Lechenet was asked by The Defender about the team’s impressive victory, she expressed,“We went into the game this afternoon with a competitive mindset, wanting to bring home a win after the long weekend. Compared to Sunday’s loss, today was a great day for DCWS.“

9/17: Thiel 4 (2-2), Defiance 0 (2-4)

Senior #3 Brianna Snider intercepting a pass vs Thiel

The Yellow Jackets women’s soccer team welcomed the Thiel College Tomcats to Winsper-Knobel Memorial Field on Saturday afternoon for a non-conference matchup. The Tomcats started the first half strong, with a goal in the ninth minute by junior Katie Aaron. Thiel added to their 1-0 advantage with a goal in the 38th minute by freshman Tessa Allison, to give the Tomcats a 2-0 lead into the halftime break. The Tomcats added two more goals to their total in the second half, with a goal in the 59th minute by sophomore Skylar Garlick and a goal in the 88th minute by junior Bailey Fritz. Senior Brianna Snider and junior Melissa Bixler each recorded one shot on goal for the Yellow Jackets.

Men’s Soccer: Wed. Sept. 14, Thurs. Sept. 15, and Sat. Sept. 17

9/14: Defiance 2 (1-1-3), Adrian College 1 (1-6)

Junior #11 Riley Hensley looks to score vs Adrian

The Yellow Jackets men’s soccer team hosted the Adrian College Bulldogs for a Wednesday afternoon battle at Winsper-Knobel Memorial Field. Sophomore Will Gehlhausen sparked the Yellow Jackets squad early, as he netted a goal at the 5-minute mark to give Defiance a 1-0 lead. Will Gehlhausen attacked the goal once again towards the beginning of the second half (53-minute mark), where he scored his second goal of the contest. The Yellow Jackets kept the Bulldogs off the scoreboard through the entire first half and most of the second half until Juan Tapia scored (via penalty kick) with just three minutes remaining in the match. Will Gehlhausen led Defiance with three shots during the contest and two goals, while senior goalkeeper Orry Killam had five saves.

“To top it off, we got this first win in front of our home crowd. There are not many things greater than that.“
– Sophomore Will Gehlhausen

When sophomore Will Gehlhausen was asked by The Defender about how he thinks the team will carry the momentum of this afternoon’s victory into tomorrow’s matchup and the weekend, he expressed, “Winning our first game of the season feels amazing. We have been working super hard in training, to get this first win off our chest. I think our team is not only going to build off this win, but things are really going to start clicking.“

9/15: Baldwin Wallace 3 (5-0-1), Defiance 1 (1-2-3)

The Defiance College men’s soccer team traveled to Berea, Ohio, Thursday evening to take on the Baldwin Wallace University Yellow Jackets. Baldwin Wallace started off strong as they scored two goals in the opening 18 minutes, to take a 2-0 lead. Senior Nick Surowicz put one behind the net at the 6-minute mark and freshman Mike Kane scored at the 17-minute mark. Baldwin Wallace extended their lead to 3-0, six minutes before the end of the first half (39-minute mark), with a goal from freshman Max Yakym. Defiance started the second half with some urgency, however, as senior Joshua Maurer lowered the deficit to 3-1, with a goal at the 49-minute mark. Defiance continued to attack the net for the remainder of the second half, but in the end, Baldwin Wallace took the victory 3-1.

9/17: Wooster 6 (2-3-2), Defiance 0 (1-3-3)

The Yellow Jackets men’s soccer team traveled to Wooster, Ohio, Saturday afternoon to take on the Wooster College Fighting Scots. The Yellow Jackets struggled to find opportunities to score as they only managed to attempt three shots in the entire 90-minute contest. Senior Jeremy Jimenez and a duo of sophomores Jack Stanoikovich and Zak Klopfenstein, provided the three shot attempts for Defiance. Sophomore goalkeeper Zach Canterbury saw his first action of the season for the Yellow Jackets. Sophomore Max Wiley scored two of the six goals for Wooster, while senior Langston Hood, junior Kyle Stringer, sophomore Miles Rochester, and another sophomore Louis Sehr each scored one goal a piece. Wooster outshot Defiance 34-3.

Volleyball: Tues. Sept. 13 and Wed. Sept. 14

9/13: Trine 3 (4-4), Defiance 1 (1-9)

The Defiance College volleyball team traveled to Angola, Indiana, Tuesday evening for a showdown with the Trine University White Tigers. Trine started off “hot” taking the first seven points of the opening set. Freshman Abi Teders ended the White Tigers’ run, as she scored her first kill of the contest. Teders kill provided a spark for the Yellow Jackets, as they went on to score four straight points to cut the deficit to 7-4. Trine was not to be stopped in the opening set; however, as they took the victory 25-11. The second set was a thriller, as the Yellow Jackets and White Tigers went back and forth swapping the lead. The second set was definitely a “nail-bitter”, as Defiance at one point was feeling the set victory with a 24-21 lead, until Trine scored two straight kills to tighten the score. Two Yellow Jacket freshmen, Courtney Maxwell and Abi Teders, would battle back working together to seal the second set victory for Defiance 25-23. Defiance held the lead for the majority of the third set, before Trine finished with authority, as they ended on a 9-2 scoring run to take the third set 25-17 and take a 2-1 series lead. The White Tigers’ momentum carried into the fourth set, as they capped off the match with a 25-19 set victory. Freshman Abi Teders led the Yellow Jackets with seven kills, while sophomore Kendra Kline and freshman Jaelyn Tomoletz each contributed five.

9/14: Defiance 3 (2-9), Olivet College 0 (2-5)

Sophomore #9 Kendra Kline moments before serving the ball vs Olivet

The Yellow Jackets volleyball team hosted the Olivet College Comets for a Wednesday night throwdown at the Karl H. Weaner Center. While the Yellow Jackets swept the Comets, Defiance definitely had to earn this one, as all three sets in this matchup came down to the wire. It was a bad set by the Comets, which secured the first set victory for Defiance 25-22. An attack error from Olivet in the second set provided the Yellow Jackets with a 25-20 set victory. The third and final set ended with a three-point scoring run for Defiance to give the Yellow Jackets a 25-20 set victory and a clean sweep of the match. Sophomore Kaylynn Wellman led Defiance with seven kills, while another sophomore Kendra Kline finished with a team-high 12 assists. Junior Hope Yost led the Yellow Jackets in the digs category with 18.

When junior Hope Yost was asked by The Defender about her thoughts on the team’s improvement so far this season, she expressed, “We had a heavy start to the volleyball season. We played seven highly competitive teams within the past seven days. Considering it is still early in our season, we have constantly been working on determining which lineup works best for our team. We have a lot of talent on this team, it is just a matter of putting it all together, to find a successful balance. Although we are still figuring things out, it felt good to finish our heaviest part of the season with a win.“