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Auggie fall sports wrap-up

fall_sportsThe Augsburg fall sports season has come to an end, with several teams showing strong improvement in both overall records and individual accomplishments.

The Auggie football team, under third-year head coach Frank Haege, finished 5-5 overall (3-5 MIAC), marking the first time Augsburg had reached the .500 mark since 2003 (5-5 overall, 4-4 MIAC). With its five victories this season, Augsburg also eclipsed its number of wins from the previous three seasons combined (4-26). Along the way, the Auggies claimed several huge victories, including a 14-13 triumph at No. 10-ranked Wartburg (Iowa) on Oct. 6, and a 44-38 win over Gustavus on Oct. 27, breaking a nine-game losing streak to the Gusties.

Quarterback Jordan Berg (JR, Gaylord, Minn./Sibley East HS) set single-season school records in every passing category, completing 291 passes for 3,444 yards and 34 touchdowns this season.  One-hundred-one of Berg’s passes were caught by receiver Royce Winford (JR, Brooklyn Park, Minn./Osseo HS), who recorded 1,403 receiving yards and a single-season school-record 16 touchdowns.

The Augsburg women’s soccer team, under ninth-year head coach Mike Navarre, finished 9-7-3 overall, 7-3-1 in MIAC play, earning a spot in the four-team MIAC postseason playoffs for the fourth consecutive year. The Auggies fell to St. Benedict in the conference semifinal match. The Auggies claimed several key wins during the season, including a 1-0 triumph over Macalester on Oct. 3, breaking a 12-game winless streak to the Scots.

fall_sports2Goalkeeper Maggie DeGroot (JR, Waukesha, Wis./Waukesha West HS), who tied the school’s career record for shutouts with 26, was named to the All-MIAC first team, while Felicia Faison (JR, Minneapolis, Minn./South HS), Whitney Holman (SO, New Hope, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong HS) and Jackie Keller (SR, Traverse City, Mich./Traverse City West HS) were named honorable-mention all-conference. DeGroot was also named to the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team, and Keller earned ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District 5 second team for the second straight year.

The Augsburg men’s soccer team, under fourth-year head coach Greg Holker, finished 9-9-0 overall, 5-5-0 in MIAC play this season, its second straight .500-or-better campaign under head coach Greg Holker. The Auggie senior class finished with a 35-31-7 record, the best mark for any four-year class at Augsburg since the 1981 senior class.

Defender Nick Manders (SR, De Pere, Wis./West De Pere HS) and midfielder James See (JR, Richfield, Minn./Holy Angels HS) were named to the All-MIAC first team, with defender Kelsey Duerr (SO, Blaine, Minn./Spring Lake Park HS) being named honorable-mention all-conference. Cassidy Duerr (JR, Blaine, Minn./Spring Lake Park HS) was named to the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team, and Manders and Alex Hildebrandt (SO, St. Paul, Minn./Highland Park HS) were named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District 5 squads, Manders to the first team and Hildebrandt to the second team.

The Augsburg volleyball team, under third-year head coach Jessica Rinehart, finished 13-16 overall, 4-7 in MIAC play. Augsburg finished its season with its best record in both overall and MIAC play since the 1998 campaign (17-11 overall, 6-5 MIAC). The Auggies won four of their last five matches to close the season, including a win in five games over NCAA Division III national tournament team Bethel on Oct. 20.

Middle hitter Laura Harms (Jr., Little Falls, Minn.) and Haley Bower (Sr., Brainerd, Minn.) received MIAC honors, as Harms was named to the MIAC All-Conference team and Bower was named to the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team. A transfer from Division I Mercer (Ga.), Harms made an immediate impact as a middle hitter in her first season with the Auggies, leading the team in both kills (376, 3.55 per-game) and blocks (110, 13 solo, 1.04 per-game), while also contributing 167 digs and 32 service aces. Bower, a libero, led the Auggies in digs (558, 5.42 per-game), while also contributing 35 service aces.

The men’s and women’s cross country teams experienced a season of personal bests in 2007, with 37 personal-best times recorded by Auggie runners this season. As a team, the Auggie men finished ninth at the MIAC Championships and 15th at the NCAA Division III Central Regional (its best team finish since 2004), while the Auggie women placed 12th at the conference meet and 21st at the regional.

Brent Haglund (SO, Fridley, Minn.) led the Auggie men throughout the season, capping the year with a personal-best 26:00 time over 8,000 meters at the regional, finishing 20th overall. Chris Scribner (JR, New York, N.Y./Port Townsen HS) also had a solid year, finishing 34th at the conference meet and 62nd at the regional with a personal-best 26:53. Shane Wyborny (SO, Detroit Lakes, Minn.) finished 47th at the conference meet and 70th at the regional with a 27:04, personal-best time.

On the women’s side, two newcomers led the way throughout the season. Jennifer Lovering (FY, Bemidji, Minn.) improved her 6,000-meter time from 1:56 from the beginning to the end of the season, with a 23:50, 51st-place finish at the regional. Kim Carlson (FY, New Brighton, Minn./Irondale HS) also showed strong improvement from beginning to end, cutting her time by 1:39 to a season-ending 25:41.

With no seniors and three first-year athletes on the roster, the Augsburg women’s golf team was a young one, but one of its athletes made program history. Johanna Frykmark (FY, Stockholm, Sweden/Rollingby Gymnasium HS) became just the second Augsburg women’s golfer to ever earn all-conference honors, finishing in a tie for 10th place overall at the conference meet in early October.

As a team, the Auggie women moved up a place to eighth in the conference meet, marking the end of the fall half of the fall-spring collegiate golf season.

The Auggie men’s golf team lost several of its top scorers to graduation last season, making this year a rebuilding one for the program. The Auggies closed the fall half of the season with an eighth-place finish at the MIAC Championships in early October.

Lucas Angrimson (FY, Lindstrom, Minn./Chisago Lakes HS) and Andrew Womeldorf (SR, Northfield, Minn.) finished in the top 25 overall at the league meet, as Angrimson finished 19th and Womeldorf finished 23rd.

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