Manchester Men’s Soccer Wins OT Thriller Against Olivet
September 9, 2019 at 2:33 a.m.

NORTH MANCHESTER – Manchester University battled until the final whistle on Sunday afternoon, rallying on multiple occasions against visiting Olivet College. The Spartans scored the golden goal three minutes in to overtime to seal a 4-3, come-from-behind victory against the Comets.
In the opening minutes on Sunday, both Manchester and Olivet had early scoring opportunities turned away by goalies Aidan Brunkow and Andrew Aragon.
Olivet broke into the scoring column first after Moubarak Adam's cross found Josh Rosendale who finished in the back of the net for the fourth time this season in the 10th minute.
17 minutes later, the Spartans equalized as Zryan Abdullah's ball forward was flicked in the air and over the Olivet goalkeeper by Max Baker.
The Comets regained the lead just before the intermission as Kjiel Dickinson scored for the first time this season. Dickinson's free kick from 30 yards out sailed just over Brunkow's reach and into the back of the net.
The Spartans equalized yet again in the second half as Max Baker's through ball found Josh Gonzalez in the 67th minute. Gonzalez's right-footed strike found the back of the net and pushed the score to 2-2.
The game would not remain tied for long however, as Josh Rosendale score for the second time in Sunday's match just three minutes later.
The Spartans continued to battle, and Max Baker delivered his second goal of the match in the 76th minute. Nick Surber picked up the assist on Baker's second goal.
With the score tied 3-3 at the end of regulation, Sunday's contest moved into overtime.
After a scramble in the box, Josh Gonzalez was able to put a strike into the back of the net to lift Manchester University to a 4-3 win.
On the afternoon, Manchester outshot the Comets 22-16. Olivet held advantages in corner kicks (14-5) and saves (10-5).
Aidan Brunkow made five saves in goal for MU and earned his first collegiate win in between the posts.
Manchester improved to 2-2-1 this season while Olivet dropped to 1-2. The Spartans will return to the pitch at home at noon Saturday against DePauw University.
Cook’s Record Weekend Leads Historic Women’s Golf Performance
WAUSEON, Ohio – The Manchester University women's golf team compiled a record-breaking performance this weekend at the Defiance College Invitational.
On Saturday, the women's first round score of 326 was the second lowest team score in Manchester history. The Spartans' followed Saturday's hot performance with a 334 team score on Sunday afternoon, setting a new program record for a two-day team score (660).
The Spartans ended day one of the Defiance College Invite in second place. MU concluded the weekend in sixth place and led all NCAA Division III teams in the field.
Junior Kaitlyn Cook set a pair of new records this weekend en route to a second-place overall finish in a field of more than 70 golfers. On Saturday, Cook carded a first-round score of 75, the lowest first round score in school history. Cook fired a 77 in the second round on Sunday and set a new program record for the lowest two-day score (152).
Taylor Erfman also had a solid performance this weekend, finishing in 22nd place with a two-day total of 165. Mary McGuire placed 26th at the Defiance College Invite with a two-day total of 169.
The women will be back in action next weekend, Saturday & Sunday at the Heidelberg Fall Invite.
Wappes Leads Strong Day For Manchester Cross Country Saturday
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Senior Hannah Wappes highlighted Manchester's efforts at the Knight Invitational, hosted by Calvin College on Saturday.
Wappes earned a top 10 finish, placing seventh overall in a field of 200 runners. Wappes crossed the finish line with a time of 22.12.2 – 34 seconds faster than her previous career-best set last year. Wappes' time on Saturday was the fourth-best time in Manchester University history in a 6k race. Hannah's time on Saturday morning was also the fourth fastest time among NCAA Division III runners.
Fellow senior Ana Acevedo placed 67th overall with a time of 23:54.3. Acevedo's time also set a new personal record, topping her previous benchmark of 23:59.5 set last fall at Oberlin. Ana's time on Saturday morning also clocked in as the 18th best time in Manchester history.
Both Sydney Young and former Manchester Lady Squire Emily Lynn also posted times that put them in the top-50 all-time in MU history.
On the men's side, the Spartans earned a 16th-place finish and were led by the performance of Lucas Fontanez. Fontanez placed 61st overall in a field of nearly 220 runners. Lucas clocked in at 26.40.4 on Saturday.
Senior Daniel Baker (Okemos, Mich./Okemos) wasn't far behind, placing 67th with a time of 26:43. Sam Barnard (Indianapolis, Ind./Scecina Memorial) was the third Spartan across the finish line on Saturday afternoon. He placed 70th with an overall time of 26:47.3
Volleyball Splits Matches At North Park
CHICAGO, Ill. – Manchester University went 1-1 at the North Park University Tri-Match on Saturday September 7.
The Spartans battled host North Park University in Saturday's first match. The Vikings defeated the Spartans 3-1 after set scores of 27-25, 22-25, 25-22, and 25-18.
Halle Planck led the Spartans with 14 kills. Lauren Gandhi and Alexandria Collins chipped in 23 and 15 assists respectively against the Vikings. Anna Marie Lawrie and Rachel Ressler collected 14 and 10 digs respectively.
Manchester rebounded in its second match of the day, defeating the Blackburn College Beavers in four sets, 22-25, 25-20, 25-23, and 25-20.
Halle Planck once again led the MU offense with a career-best 21 kills. Sophomore Kara Heckmuller provided an extra boost for the Spartan offense, finishing with 15 kills against the Beavers.
Lauren Gandhi (26) and Alexandria Collins (16) combined for 42 assists. Anna Marie Lawrie led Manchester with 22 digs. Sophomore Chelsea Waltermire (Muncie, Ind./Cowan) tallied a season-high five aces.
The Spartans (2-4) will be in action on Wednesday when the team travels to St. Mary's (Ind.). Match time against the Belles is slated for 7 p.m.
Men’s Tennis Splits With Olivet And Alma
MARSHALL, Mich. – The Manchester University men's tennis team picked up its first win of the fall season, defeating Olivet College by a final score of 8-1.
The Spartans swept through doubles action against the Olivet Comets on Saturday. The No. 1 doubles duo of Isaac Miller and Samuel Hollingsworth teamed up for an 8-1 win. At No. 2 doubles, Austin Arnold and former Triton Trojan Gavin Eads paired of an 8-4 victory. Trevor Johnson and Reece Romer paired for an 8-4 triumph at No. 3 doubles.
In singles action, Isaac Miller earned his third win of the season at the No. 1 flight, winning 6-1, 6-2. Gavin Eads tallied a 6-3, 6-0 win at the No. 3 position. Reece Romer earned a 6-4, 3-6, 10-7 win at the No. 4 slot. Blake Rentschler earned his first win of the season, winning 6-2, 6-1 at No. 5 singles. Austin Arnold rounded out singles play with a 6-2, 6-0 win at the No. 6 flight.
The men also battled Alma College on Saturday afternoon and narrowly dropped a hard-fought 5-4 decision.
Austin Arnold and Gavin Eads picked up an 8-1 win at No. 2 doubles to start the match with the Scots.
Eads earned a 6-1, 6-3 victory at No. 3 singles and Blake Rentschler added a 6-2, 2-6, 6-2 win at the No. 4 position. Austin Arnold won 6-1, 6-0 at the No. 4 singles slot.
Head Coach Alyson Worrell earned her first career coaching victory at the helm of the Spartans.
The Spartans (1-3) will return to action on Tuesday September 23. Manchester will travel to Indiana-South Bend for a 5:30 pm matchup with the Titans.
Women’s Tennis Drops Two Road Matches
MARSHALL, Mich. - The Manchester women's tennis team dropped a pair of non-conference road matches to Alma and Olivet on Saturday afternoon in Michigan.
Against Alma, junior Karly Eichenauer (North Manchester, Ind./Manchester) earned a hard-fought 7-6 (9-7), 6-1 victory at No. 1 singles. She added a 6-2, 6-1 win at No. 1 singles against Olivet as well.
Against the Olivet Comets, Maddy Russow (Logansport, Ind./Logansport) and Kaitlyn Burger (Syracuse, Ind./Fairfield) teamed up for an 8-4 win at the No. 2 doubles position. Barger also dropped a three-set battle at No. 3 singles by a narrow 4-6, 7-6 (8-4), 10-8 decision.
Men’s Soccer Slowed by Spalding On Saturday
NORTH MANCHESTER – The Manchester University men's soccer team fell in non-conference action on Saturday afternoon to visiting Spalding University. The Golden Eagles won by a 3-0 final score at Good Field.
Manchester nearly struck for goal in the opening minute as Nick Surber's (Hebron, Ind./Hebron) shot attempt in the box sailed just over the cross bar.
The visiting Golden Eagles found the back of the net in the 14th minute. Joseph Zamora struck for goal after a clean cross from the left side by Mani Bakari slipped by the Manchester defense.
The Spartans outshot Spalding 4-3 in the opening period and narrowly trailed 1-0 at halftime.
Manchester outshot the Golden Eagles 10-9 on the afternoon and held a 7-5 advantage on corner kicks.
NORTH MANCHESTER – Manchester University battled until the final whistle on Sunday afternoon, rallying on multiple occasions against visiting Olivet College. The Spartans scored the golden goal three minutes in to overtime to seal a 4-3, come-from-behind victory against the Comets.
In the opening minutes on Sunday, both Manchester and Olivet had early scoring opportunities turned away by goalies Aidan Brunkow and Andrew Aragon.
Olivet broke into the scoring column first after Moubarak Adam's cross found Josh Rosendale who finished in the back of the net for the fourth time this season in the 10th minute.
17 minutes later, the Spartans equalized as Zryan Abdullah's ball forward was flicked in the air and over the Olivet goalkeeper by Max Baker.
The Comets regained the lead just before the intermission as Kjiel Dickinson scored for the first time this season. Dickinson's free kick from 30 yards out sailed just over Brunkow's reach and into the back of the net.
The Spartans equalized yet again in the second half as Max Baker's through ball found Josh Gonzalez in the 67th minute. Gonzalez's right-footed strike found the back of the net and pushed the score to 2-2.
The game would not remain tied for long however, as Josh Rosendale score for the second time in Sunday's match just three minutes later.
The Spartans continued to battle, and Max Baker delivered his second goal of the match in the 76th minute. Nick Surber picked up the assist on Baker's second goal.
With the score tied 3-3 at the end of regulation, Sunday's contest moved into overtime.
After a scramble in the box, Josh Gonzalez was able to put a strike into the back of the net to lift Manchester University to a 4-3 win.
On the afternoon, Manchester outshot the Comets 22-16. Olivet held advantages in corner kicks (14-5) and saves (10-5).
Aidan Brunkow made five saves in goal for MU and earned his first collegiate win in between the posts.
Manchester improved to 2-2-1 this season while Olivet dropped to 1-2. The Spartans will return to the pitch at home at noon Saturday against DePauw University.
Cook’s Record Weekend Leads Historic Women’s Golf Performance
WAUSEON, Ohio – The Manchester University women's golf team compiled a record-breaking performance this weekend at the Defiance College Invitational.
On Saturday, the women's first round score of 326 was the second lowest team score in Manchester history. The Spartans' followed Saturday's hot performance with a 334 team score on Sunday afternoon, setting a new program record for a two-day team score (660).
The Spartans ended day one of the Defiance College Invite in second place. MU concluded the weekend in sixth place and led all NCAA Division III teams in the field.
Junior Kaitlyn Cook set a pair of new records this weekend en route to a second-place overall finish in a field of more than 70 golfers. On Saturday, Cook carded a first-round score of 75, the lowest first round score in school history. Cook fired a 77 in the second round on Sunday and set a new program record for the lowest two-day score (152).
Taylor Erfman also had a solid performance this weekend, finishing in 22nd place with a two-day total of 165. Mary McGuire placed 26th at the Defiance College Invite with a two-day total of 169.
The women will be back in action next weekend, Saturday & Sunday at the Heidelberg Fall Invite.
Wappes Leads Strong Day For Manchester Cross Country Saturday
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Senior Hannah Wappes highlighted Manchester's efforts at the Knight Invitational, hosted by Calvin College on Saturday.
Wappes earned a top 10 finish, placing seventh overall in a field of 200 runners. Wappes crossed the finish line with a time of 22.12.2 – 34 seconds faster than her previous career-best set last year. Wappes' time on Saturday was the fourth-best time in Manchester University history in a 6k race. Hannah's time on Saturday morning was also the fourth fastest time among NCAA Division III runners.
Fellow senior Ana Acevedo placed 67th overall with a time of 23:54.3. Acevedo's time also set a new personal record, topping her previous benchmark of 23:59.5 set last fall at Oberlin. Ana's time on Saturday morning also clocked in as the 18th best time in Manchester history.
Both Sydney Young and former Manchester Lady Squire Emily Lynn also posted times that put them in the top-50 all-time in MU history.
On the men's side, the Spartans earned a 16th-place finish and were led by the performance of Lucas Fontanez. Fontanez placed 61st overall in a field of nearly 220 runners. Lucas clocked in at 26.40.4 on Saturday.
Senior Daniel Baker (Okemos, Mich./Okemos) wasn't far behind, placing 67th with a time of 26:43. Sam Barnard (Indianapolis, Ind./Scecina Memorial) was the third Spartan across the finish line on Saturday afternoon. He placed 70th with an overall time of 26:47.3
Volleyball Splits Matches At North Park
CHICAGO, Ill. – Manchester University went 1-1 at the North Park University Tri-Match on Saturday September 7.
The Spartans battled host North Park University in Saturday's first match. The Vikings defeated the Spartans 3-1 after set scores of 27-25, 22-25, 25-22, and 25-18.
Halle Planck led the Spartans with 14 kills. Lauren Gandhi and Alexandria Collins chipped in 23 and 15 assists respectively against the Vikings. Anna Marie Lawrie and Rachel Ressler collected 14 and 10 digs respectively.
Manchester rebounded in its second match of the day, defeating the Blackburn College Beavers in four sets, 22-25, 25-20, 25-23, and 25-20.
Halle Planck once again led the MU offense with a career-best 21 kills. Sophomore Kara Heckmuller provided an extra boost for the Spartan offense, finishing with 15 kills against the Beavers.
Lauren Gandhi (26) and Alexandria Collins (16) combined for 42 assists. Anna Marie Lawrie led Manchester with 22 digs. Sophomore Chelsea Waltermire (Muncie, Ind./Cowan) tallied a season-high five aces.
The Spartans (2-4) will be in action on Wednesday when the team travels to St. Mary's (Ind.). Match time against the Belles is slated for 7 p.m.
Men’s Tennis Splits With Olivet And Alma
MARSHALL, Mich. – The Manchester University men's tennis team picked up its first win of the fall season, defeating Olivet College by a final score of 8-1.
The Spartans swept through doubles action against the Olivet Comets on Saturday. The No. 1 doubles duo of Isaac Miller and Samuel Hollingsworth teamed up for an 8-1 win. At No. 2 doubles, Austin Arnold and former Triton Trojan Gavin Eads paired of an 8-4 victory. Trevor Johnson and Reece Romer paired for an 8-4 triumph at No. 3 doubles.
In singles action, Isaac Miller earned his third win of the season at the No. 1 flight, winning 6-1, 6-2. Gavin Eads tallied a 6-3, 6-0 win at the No. 3 position. Reece Romer earned a 6-4, 3-6, 10-7 win at the No. 4 slot. Blake Rentschler earned his first win of the season, winning 6-2, 6-1 at No. 5 singles. Austin Arnold rounded out singles play with a 6-2, 6-0 win at the No. 6 flight.
The men also battled Alma College on Saturday afternoon and narrowly dropped a hard-fought 5-4 decision.
Austin Arnold and Gavin Eads picked up an 8-1 win at No. 2 doubles to start the match with the Scots.
Eads earned a 6-1, 6-3 victory at No. 3 singles and Blake Rentschler added a 6-2, 2-6, 6-2 win at the No. 4 position. Austin Arnold won 6-1, 6-0 at the No. 4 singles slot.
Head Coach Alyson Worrell earned her first career coaching victory at the helm of the Spartans.
The Spartans (1-3) will return to action on Tuesday September 23. Manchester will travel to Indiana-South Bend for a 5:30 pm matchup with the Titans.
Women’s Tennis Drops Two Road Matches
MARSHALL, Mich. - The Manchester women's tennis team dropped a pair of non-conference road matches to Alma and Olivet on Saturday afternoon in Michigan.
Against Alma, junior Karly Eichenauer (North Manchester, Ind./Manchester) earned a hard-fought 7-6 (9-7), 6-1 victory at No. 1 singles. She added a 6-2, 6-1 win at No. 1 singles against Olivet as well.
Against the Olivet Comets, Maddy Russow (Logansport, Ind./Logansport) and Kaitlyn Burger (Syracuse, Ind./Fairfield) teamed up for an 8-4 win at the No. 2 doubles position. Barger also dropped a three-set battle at No. 3 singles by a narrow 4-6, 7-6 (8-4), 10-8 decision.
Men’s Soccer Slowed by Spalding On Saturday
NORTH MANCHESTER – The Manchester University men's soccer team fell in non-conference action on Saturday afternoon to visiting Spalding University. The Golden Eagles won by a 3-0 final score at Good Field.
Manchester nearly struck for goal in the opening minute as Nick Surber's (Hebron, Ind./Hebron) shot attempt in the box sailed just over the cross bar.
The visiting Golden Eagles found the back of the net in the 14th minute. Joseph Zamora struck for goal after a clean cross from the left side by Mani Bakari slipped by the Manchester defense.
The Spartans outshot Spalding 4-3 in the opening period and narrowly trailed 1-0 at halftime.
Manchester outshot the Golden Eagles 10-9 on the afternoon and held a 7-5 advantage on corner kicks.