A few minutes with......Taylor Ratliff!

Name: Taylor Ratliff

Hometown: Columbia Station, OH

Year at Hiram: Freshman

Major: Integrated Math/Education

Career Aspirations: High School Math Teacher and Coach

Craziest Ambition: American Idol Star

Favorite TV Show: Tough Love

Favorite Movie: Love & Basketball

Favorite Class: Politics & Sports

What's playing on your iPod right now?  Rihanna's new album: Talk that Talk

What is your best basketball moment?  Playing in my first game

What do you like most about Hiram?  The basketball team

What are you most looking forward to on our upcoming trip to LA?
Disneyland!!

A few minutes with......Marisa Thomas!

Name: Marisa Thomas

Hometown: Lorain, OH

Year at Hiram: Sophomore

Major: Psychology

Career Aspirations: Become a Physical Therapist

Craziest Ambition:
Becoming a professional Dance Dance Revolution Dancer

Favorite color: Blue

Favorite TV Show: The Nanny

Favorite Movie: Bridesmaids

What's playing on your iPod right now?  The Beatles

What is your best basketball moment?  Beating the College of Wooster on Saturday

Best Hiram moment: freshman winter break playing 'Just Dance'

What are you most looking forward to on our upcoming trip to LA?
The 'dress-up' dinner and Seaworld!

Congrats Kelsey!

Senior All-NCAC point guard Kelsey Durichko broke the school record for assists in a career on Sunday, November 27th, in our game versus Thiel College.  Kelsey came into the season needing just 22 more assists to break the record. 

In her junior season, Kelsey broke the school record for assists in a season with 138, the previous record had been 115 set in the 1995-96 season.

2011-2012 Season Preview!

The Hiram College women’s basketball team will feature a very experienced team in 2011-12 as the Terriers return the majority of their roster from a year ago.The Terriers are coming off of a 12-14 campaign last year and finished sixth in the conference last season. Hiram also made its fourth straight trip to the North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament.

Hiram loses just one player from last year’s roster and will be led by the duo of senior All-NCAC guard Kelsey Durichko (Brunswick) and Tiffany Shields (Bedford Heights/Bedford).  Durichko started all 26 games last season and finished fourth on the team in scoring at 6.8 points per game on 30.1 percent shooting (53-of-176). She was tied for the team-lead in rebounding at 6.5 rebounds per game and dished out a school single-season record 138 assists. She also had three blocked shots and a team-high 56 steals defensively. Following the season, she was tabbed as an honorable mention All-NCAC pick.

Shields is coming off of a solid junior season after leading the team in scoring with 14.2 ppg. while shooting 36.4 percent (137-of-376) from the floor. She was also amongst the team leaders in free-throw shooting (71.1 percent) and rebounding (4.7 rpg.). In addition, Shields tallied a team-best 18 blocked shots to go along with 32 steals defensively.

"Kelsey and Tiffany are the undisputed leaders of this team.  They have worked extremely hard to elevate their competitiveness and their work ethic has had a tremendous impact their teammates.  I am excited to see where this team will go with their leadership." stated Coach Preston.

"Kelsey is one of the top point guards in the NCAC and region.  She makes it very difficult for defenses to stop her from getting where she wants to go.  With that, she creates tremendous opportunities for herself and her teammates.  She will have an opportunity to break some school records this season and I hope it works out that she does.  Tiffany is a triple threat player.  She can knock down the three point shot, pull-up off the dribble, or get to the hoop and finish at the free-throw line.  She is a challenge for any defense to contain.  I have high hopes for her this season; I really believe the sky is the limit for her this year."

Also returning in the backcourt for Hiram this season will be juniors Chelsea Kovach (Lakewood), Emily Smerchansky (Girard), Calysia Smyers (Akron/ Coventry) and Lindsay Buckner (Vienna/Mathews). Kovach was third on the team in scoring last season with 7.6 ppg. and was second in three-pointers made with 29. Smerchansky and Smyers had solid seasons coming off the bench providing depth at the guard position and averaged 4.6 and 4.4 ppg. respectively. Smyers also averaged 2.2 rpg. to go along with 29 assists and 22 steals. Buckner saw playing time in 25 games as a backup and averaged 1.9 ppg. on 14-of-46 shooting (30.4 percent).

In addition, expect to see sophomore guards Danielle Day (Newbury) and Marissa Thomas (Lorain/Amherst) to compete for increased playing time.

"We have high expectations for our perimeter players this season.  This is the second year running an up-tempo offense.  Every indication is that we will be more efficient and productive than a year ago.  You cannot manufacture experience when it comes to learning and executing a new system.  I am looking forward to Chelsea (Kovach) having another solid year.  She is such a hard worker and wants to do things right every time.  She has been a great influence to her teammates.  I also expect Calysia Smyers to have a break-out year; she is a player that has been a productive player off the bench for us in the past.  She has a lot of passion for the game and is extremely competitive.  She has a great desire to win and I think she is ready to help her team in that capacity." 

Hiram will also return a host of veterans up front at the forward positions led by junior Amy Geisman (Middleburg Heights/Midpark). Last season, Geisman started all but one game and led all forwards in scoring at 5.4 ppg. while averaging 4.3 rpg. She led the team in field goal percentage at 40.3 percent (60-of-149) and was also amongst the team leaders in free-throw percentage at 74.1 percent (20-of-27). In addition Geisman had nine assists, six blocks and 14 steals.

Joining Geisman will be fellow juniors Brenna Host (Seven Hills/Normandy) and Amanda Petrusky (Parma/Valley Forge). Host played in 25 games as a backup forward and averaged 3.1 ppg. and 2.6 rpg. She ended the season second on the team in blocked shots with 17. Petrusky saw playing time in 13 games and scored 12 points on four-of-nine shooting (44.4 percent) and four-of-eight (50.0 percent) at the free-throw line.

Sophomore Alexis Kemper (Centerville) should also battle for playing time in 2011-12. As a freshman, Kemper played in 22 games and scored 33 points while shooting 24.4 percent (11-of-45) from the field. She also averaged 1.0 rpg. to go along with two assists, a blocked shot and six steals.

"We have a great group of forwards who have gained playing experience over the past couple of seasons.  I expect Amy (Geisman) to have another solid season and anticipate that Brenna Host will have an opportunity to leave her mark as well.  Alexis (Kemper) gained some valuable playing time as a forward last season; however, her perimeter skills have really developed nicely so she will definitely see more playing time in that role."
Hiram will open the season on Tuesday, Nov. 15 when the Terriers travel to Marietta for a non-conference matchup against Marietta College. The game is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. Hiram will play its first home game on Saturday, Nov. 26 against Westminster (Pa.) College at 2 p.m. at Price Gym.

"There is no question that we want to have a big year this year.  The conference race should be very exciting with many of the top teams losing key contributors.  We feel confident that we can take a big step forward with our program this year.  We were on the cusp last season and didn’t finish the way we would have liked.  That feeling has resonated with these kids throughout the offseason and they are fired up to take the court!"

RELAY FOR LIFE!

Lindsay Buckner, Amanda Petrusky, Calysia Smyers,
Brenna Host and Chelsea Kovach representing the super sophomores!

Last April we took part in Hiram's first annual Relay For Life. Relay For Life is an organization that raises money for Cancer research, anyone can make a team and start fundraising. The actual event took place out on the track at the Coleman Sports Center, where all the teams set up their on site fundraisers. The event lasted from 6PM on Friday to 12PM on Saturday morning. During this whole time one person from each team must be walking the track to represent that "cancer never sleeps". 

Alexis Kemper, Calysia Smyers and
Megan Andres walk to fight cancer!

Megan Andres, Marisa Thomas, Leslie Johnson and
Alexis Kemper representing the fabulous freshman class!

Playing a little ball on the track!

The theme of last year's event was Hollywood/Movies, for our team we picked the movie Space Jam, (suitable I thought). We made shirts, sold baked goods, and had a basketball hoop. People could come by and pay a dollar for one shot. We won best site and were treated to Chipotle! Many of us stayed up most of the night and danced around the track the next morning  to keep warm. We all had a lot of fun and we are excited to participate again this coming year. I'm not sure how much we raised as a team but as a school we were in the running for the title "Rookie of the Year". Meaning we competed with other schools who joined Relay for Life for the first time! The results haven't come out yet, but we raised close to $27,000 dollars! We'll post information on here and our Facebook page if you would like to help out! Remember, any little bit helps :) I also want to make a shout-out to Rosie and Jamie Zychowski they made this an awesome and unforgettable event! Thank you so much!

A great team picture!

1st Annual Golf Outing a huge success!

 A huge thank you to all our golfers and hole sponsors that helped make our first annual golf outing at Chardon Lakes Golf Course a huge success!


Lindsey Buckner, Emily Smerchansky and Marisa Thomas
working hard at Chardon Lakes Golf Course!



Katie Grendel '08 and Coach Preston after recording
their first hole for par!

SUMMER BASKETBALL CAMP AT HIRAM!!!



2010-2011 Hiram women's basketball team
celebrating a victory!

Take advantage of our one day clinic on June 22 from 9a to 6p in the Coleman Sports Center on the Hiram College Campus.  Click here for a registration form: Advanced Player Position Clinic.

We are also hosting Hiram Hoopfest 3-on-3 tournament.  We have boys and girls youth divisions thru adult!  Sign up today! 

Make plans to spend some time at Hiram this summer improving your game!

Annual Awards announced at banquet!

It's hard to believe that the season is over and we are already celebrating it with our banquet!  It's always fun to get together and recognize the members of the team for their hard work and commitment.

Each year the team votes on three awards: Offensive Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Most Improved.  Then I get to select two awards which is never an easy task; especially this year when our team leadership was so sound and everyone was committed to making the season successful.  The two awards I get to choose are the Leadership Award and the Hartzmark Commitment Award.  Obvisously, the leadership award recipient is someone who exemplifies everything a team leader should be.  The Hartzmark Commitment Award is named in honor of John Hartzmark who served as a student assistant during his Hiram days and gave so much time and energy to improving our team and program.  This award is given to the person who really goes above and beyond with their commitment and work ethic.  Both of these awards were well represented this year, but it didn't make choosing the recipients that much easier!



Tiffany Shields was voted as the team's Offensive Player of the Year.  Tiffany had a break out year and led the team in scoring with 14 points per game.  She also led the team in blocked shots.  Congrats Tiff!



Tiffany Shields was voted
the Offensive Player of the Year!



For the third consecutive year, Kelsey Durichko was voted the team's Defensive Player of the Year.  Kelsey led the team in steals and tied for the lead in rebounding with 6.5 per game!  She also broke the single season assist record!  Congrats Kelsey!



Kelsey Durichko, Defensive Player of the Year.



First year player, Danielle Day, was voted the team's Most Improved Player.  Danielle did a great job of working hard and continuing to improve throughout the season and earned more playing time as the season progressed.  We are looking forward to more of Danielle's contributions in the future!

I selected Jess Cowan as the recipient of the Leadership Award.  Jess was a fantastic senior leader for our team.  She did a great job of motivating and leading by example to a very young team.  Of our 15 players on the team, 12 were either first or second year players.  Jess was terrific in working with your younger players to help them understand what it takes to be successful at the college level.  We will truly miss Jess's leadership!

Jess Cowan and Coach Preston
at the banquet.

Chelsea Kovach was awarded the Hartzmark Commitment Award.  Chelsea is always working and pushing herself to get better.  On and off the court, Chelsea is a great ambassador for our program.  Her hard work truly paid off this year as she had a break out season and recorded a career high 21 points against Ohio Wesleyan.  I am very excited for her future with our team!  A much deserving individual!

Chelsea Kovach knocking in a couple
of her 21 points v. OWU.

Cowan and Durichko selected to All-NCAC squad

Senior guard Jess Cowan was selected to the NCAC Honorable Mention for the 2010-2011 season.

Photo courtesy of Tom Commett

Junior point guard Kelsey Durichko was also selected to the Honorable Mention team!

For a complete list visit http://www.northcoast.org/.

Photo courtesy of Rosalie Mormile

Terriers fall to Allegheny despite a career high from Tiffany Shields



Tiffany Shields scored 28 points
for the Terriers on Tuesday.



Despite a career night for Tiffany Shields, the Terriers fell to Allegheny College in the quarterfinals of the North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament.  Shields poured in 28 points for the game including shooting 4-8 from the 3-point line!

The Terriers fought until the end and can be extremely proud of all the accomplishments they achieved this season.



Senior guard Jess Cowan



Last night's game also marked the end of Jess Cowan's outstanding Hiram career.  For her career, Jess scored 782 points including 103 three-point field goals.  She also pulled down 345 rebounds.  Jess contributed more in a category that cannot be measured and that was her leadership!  She helped everyone on the team keep perspective, instilled competitiveness and she also influenced the team with her positive attitude.  Everyone involved with our program with miss her and her contributions! 

Hiram WBB hosts WBCA Pink Zone event!

The Hiram women's basketball team worked together with all the North Coast Athletic Conference Schools to celebrate the WBCA Pink Zone week!

Each NCAC school received team t-shirts donated by Victory Promotions (Watertown, NY) and wore them proudly to raise awareness for breast cancer.




2010-2011 Hiram WBB team sporting their Pink Zone shirts!
Photo courtesy of Rosalie Mormile

 

This event marks the first time in the history of the Pink Zone that an entire league came together to raise awareness and money for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund!

Hiram secures #6 seed for NCAC tournament

Despite losing their final game of the regular season, the Terriers secured the #6 seed for the upcoming NCAC tournament.  The team continues to makes it's mark as the #6 seed is the highest in team history!

Hiram will travel to Allegheny College on Tuesday night for a 7:30p tip-off.  The Gators swept the season series from Hiram, however, the Terriers put up a great fight each time and look forward to the third meeting of the season!

Check out http://www.northcoast.org/ for the latest tournament information!

Go TERRIERS!

Junior Point Guard Kelsey Durichko breaks Hiram's Single Season Assist Record!

Kelsey Durichko

Despite a disappointing loss at Ohio Wesleyan on Saturday afternoon, there was one bright spot for the Terriers.  Junior point guard, Kelsey Durichko, broke the single season assist record after recording a team high 5 assists.

By the end of the season, Kelsey will have shattered the old record of 115.  She currently has at least five games remaining this season and is averaging just under 6 assists per game with a season total of 117.

She is also leading the NCAC in assist to turnover ratio!

WAY TO GO KELSEY!

This week's forecast: WHITE-OUT!

Hello to all the Terrier supporters out there!

The past few games have definitely been exciting for us and especially the players.  We were able to beat Kenyon College for the first time since 2003!  It was a great game from start to finish; Tiffany Shields erupted for 24 points.  Amy Geisman and Chelsea Kovach also chipped in 14 each to round out the top scorers.


Here's a great picture of our team after a hard fought win!


We kept the momentum as we traveled to Oberlin for our next game and definitely hung on for a two point victory.  We didn't start out the game particularly well, but give credit where credit is due.  Oberlin started the game on fire from the field and held an easy 12-0 advantage.  After that we began to claw our way back into the game and eventually held a double digit lead.  However, Oberlin battled their way back and tied the game in the closing seconds and two free-throws by Jess Cowan sealed the win.

We closed out our non-league schedule last Tuesday night at Ursuline College.  It was a battle from tip-off to the closing horn.  Ursuline was able to tie the game with about :15 seconds left and Kelsey Durichko quickly sent the inbounds pass to Tiffany who noticed the Ursuline players celebrating at half-court.  She was able to drive the length of the court and was fouled going in for the lay-up.  We would again seal the victory with a pair of free-throws, this time from Tiffany Shields.  She was also our leading scorer with 20 points and Calysia Smyers chipped in 10.

Our final game of the week was against the #15 team in the country: Denison University.  We didn't fair too well against the Big Red the first time around so we were all excited for the opportunity to show how much we have improved and were determined to be competitive throughout.  We were definitely competitive throughout and a run in the final three minutes of the first half gave Denison it's largest lead of the game at the time at 32-22.  In the opening minutes of the second half, Denison began to pull away but we fought back and got it to a 10 point deficit with just over five minutes remaining in the game.  Well, Denison is undefeated for a reason.  They were able to execute and force a couple of key turnovers and were able to hold on for a 65-49 win.

This week we will host The College of Wooster on Wednesday night.  We are planning our annual WHITE OUT event...if you are planning on attending the game, wear WHITE!  We are excited to host Wooster and if we take care of business, we hope to get back to our winning ways.

We close out the week with a trip to Ohio Welseyan and hope to avenge our earlier loss to the Battling Bishops.

I hope you can join us for our WHITE OUT!

Meet Tiffany Shields, leading scorer for the Terriers...

Hi everyone!

Tiffany Shields hitting a pull-up jump shot!

My name is Tiffany Shields and I am a junior management major here at Hiram College.  This year has been very successful for the Hiram Lady Terriers.  It’s so rewarding to see that all of our hard work is paying off and we have a winning record to prove it.  8-3! Yay!  We have become really close as a team throughout the many months of the season.  During the long winter break, the team has had theme nights such as tie-dye night and rock star night.  On these nights, we play various Xbox and Nintendo Wii video games like Rockband, Just Dance, Disney Sing-It, and American Idol.  It was a showcase of our wonderful singing voices and amazing dance moves.  One of our first year players, Marisa Thomas definitely has the best voice on the team, but I believe that I “take the cake” when it comes to the dance moves.  Tonight we travel to Case Western Reserve University.  Wish us luck!!!