From Yard Lines to Bass Lines

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Whether he’s rushing a passer, tackling a running back or playing an instrument, rhythm and coordination are important for senior defensive end Ryan Murphy of the Muhlenberg football team.

Murphy didn’t start playing for a football team until high school but he got his first instrument, a bass guitar, when he was in fourth grade. Prior to that, he had played in his school band.

“Ever since I was a kid, my dad was always listening to music,” said Murphy. “My uncle also played guitar and bass. When I was little, I saw him play bass in his band and it seemed like a lot of fun so, from then on, I really wanted to do it.

“Since I started on bass, that’s always what I’ll revert back to as my favorite,” explained Murphy, who also plays guitar and would like to learn how to play other instruments as soon as he has the time. “No matter what, I will always refer to myself as a bassist.”

Murphy, who says he always has his headphones on (except for on the football field of course) uses music as a stress reliever and a respite from life’s challenges.

Although the double major in music and business administration came into Muhlenberg undeclared, he knew he wanted music to play a role in his higher education, whether it was through involvement in musical groups or by studying it.

“I took an introduction to music class in the spring of my freshman year as a general academic requirement,” stated Murphy. “It reminded me how much I love music, so I decided to enroll in more music classes and see where they took me.

“Jazz improv ensemble may have been my favorite,” added Murphy, who has taken classes ranging from bass and guitar performance to multiple levels of music theory. “I finally got a chance to get together with a group of some really talented musicians and play for fun.”

He finds musical inspiration in a number of different styles from hard rock to hip-hop to jazz, but his favorite style to play is funk. He says his classes at Muhlenberg are what really opened his eyes to classical music and artists such as Beethoven and Mozart.

“My classes really showed me how intricate their music was and how ahead of their time they were. I feel like, as a music major, I should be able to write something like that at some point in my life,” he laughed.

He says the writing side of music is definitely something he would like to explore. But don’t expect “Murphy’s Musical Masterpiece” to be on sale anytime soon.

While he currently has all the necessary musical knowledge from his theory classes, as a student-athlete, he lacks the free time required to write a piece of music.

And as for his future plans, he hopes to combine aspects of each of his two majors.

“Well, if I’m not touring the world in a famous band,” he quipped, “I would like to have my own music shop where I can teach lessons and sell and rent instruments. But that is a little further down the road.”

Vincent van “Goal”

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As part of a defense that allowed just 0.74 goals per game this season, Stephanie Tramutola of the Muhlenberg women’s soccer team has to be creative with her feet on the field. However, when she’s not defending the back field, she can often be found doing creative things with something that she can’t use during soccer – her hands. Whether with brushes, pencils, a camera or clay, Tramutola loves making art.

She has enjoyed art ever since she was a little girl, but high school was when Tramutola really began to explore her creative side. She took art classes all four years of high school, mainly in the area of sculpture.

“It allows me to express myself and be creative, and I’ve just loved it ever since high school.”

Thus far, the junior has taken five art classes at Muhlenberg in a variety of disciplines: Painting 1, Painting 2, Introduction to Analog Photography, Drawing Studio and Art History. Painting 2 was her favorite because it allowed for the greatest amount of creative leeway and artistic exploration.

“There was almost no structure to that class – we were basically allowed to paint whatever we wanted.”

Art certainly provides a number of creative avenues, but Tramutola prefers to keep her work within the abstract vein.

“I am horrible at figure paintings,” she laughed. “We had to do figure drawings of naked models in one of my classes and I find it very hard to draw the human body.”

Tramutola’s most recent work from her Painting 2 class is on display in the lobby of the Baker Center for the Arts.

Being that she is an abstract artist, it may be difficult for non-seasoned art viewers to understand what Tramutola was depicting in these works.

“In the beginning of the year, we were given a sheet that told us to find a mirrored object. It could be anything that had a mirror or a chrome surface,” exlpained Tramutola. “My grandma, who passed away, had given me mirrored elephants and I chose those as my subject. All of those paintings were of the elephants.”

Now you see them!

Pictured below is her final project for Painting 2, as well as a few of her paintings from classes she took during her freshman year.

While she plans to continue honing her creative side during her time at Muhlenberg, the media and communications major doesn’t quite envision a career in art.

“I think I will just continue to do it on my own time to relieve stress,” she added.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Musical Strokes

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For the second half of the season, the Muhlenberg field hockey team always heard Kayleigh Thies’ voice before its home games.

It’s not that the sophomore spoke up in the pregame meetings – although the all-conference forward is one of the team’s leaders on the field. The Mules heard their teammate in a recorded version of the national anthem.

Even though she’s never had a voice lesson, Thies is a veteran singer. She has been involved in musical theater and singing with her father’s band Doghouse since she was 5. Thies traveled all over her home state of New Jersey performing with the Paper Mill Playhouse and says she has been in more than 50 musicals, with roles ranging from Elphaba in Wicked to a Bad Girl in Suessical to Jack’s mother in Into the Woods.

Thies stopped doing musicals when she was a sophomore in high school so she could devote more time to field hockey and lacrosse, but she took her talents to a new medium when she posted a video for a song she wrote on YouTube.

“It got a lot of hits in a short period of time, so my Mom said I should record some popular songs,” she said.

Thies’ YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/user/kthiesx3lax) now features her covers of songs by artists such as Lady Gaga, Adele, Jason Mraz and Christina Perri.

One of the many visitors to the channel was Muhlenberg field hockey coach Megan Eddinger.

“Coach saw my videos, and I’m always singing and being goofy at practice, so she asked me if I wanted to sing the anthem,” said Thies, who sung it at her high school basketball games. Being on the field with her teammates for pregame and lineup introductions was important to Thies, so rather than sing it live each time, she recorded the national anthem in one of the Life Sports Center classrooms.

On the second take, she wrapped up the final version (click here to listen), which made its debut before the Mules’ game against Washington College on October 6 – her 20th birthday.

“It was kind of motivating,” said Thies of hearing her recording before a game for the first time. “I got to show people that I have this talent and I also play sports. Some people who sing, that’s all they do. It was a way for me to show that I have a broad spectrum of things that I do.

“And it also pumped a lot of my teammates up.”

So what’s next for Thies? A tryout for American Idol, X-Factor or The Voice? Going from Team Mule to Team Cee Lo?

“People always tell me I should try out,” she said. “A lot of the auditions are in August, and that’s when field hockey starts. So maybe after college.”

Or maybe she’ll just keep singing for fun. “I don’t know if I could do it as a career,” said Thies. “Right now it’s just a stress reliever for me.”

Athletes of the Month

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Muhlenberg’s top athletes for November 2012:

Female Athlete of the Month – Samantha Mayden, Cross Country

Mayden wins the award for the second time in three months after enjoying success at the highest levels in her two November races. She earned all-region honors for the third straight year by finishing seventh at the NCAA Mideast Regional, then traveled to Indiana and posted the highest finish ever by a Muhlenberg runner (67th place) at the NCAA Championships.

Male Athlete of the Month – Isaiah Vaughn, Football

Vaughn closed out his football career with three big games to help the Mules finish 8-3 and earn a postseason berth. He caught 12 passes for 257 yards (a 21.4 average) and two touchdowns in the three games. Among his key receptions that didn’t go for scores, two were inside the 10, setting up TDs against Moravian, and he caught back-to-back passes for first downs on the game-tying drive against Ursinus. Vaughn also returned a kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown in the ECAC bowl game against Delaware Valley, in which he set a school record by averaging 43.6 yards per touch.

Antonini Anthology

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Cody Antonini recently finished his career as a Muhlenberg men’s soccer player with a bang, recording a hat trick in his final game. That brought Antonini’s career total to 49 goals – the fourth-most in program history.

The 49 goals came over a five-year span (Antonini took the 2011 season off) and in a variety of situations. Who did he score against most? Who helped him score the most? And were his goals important ones that helped the Mules win?

The answer to those questions and more in this breakdown of Antonini’s 49 career goals:

by opponent

  • Moravian – 6
  • Gettysburg – 5
  • Ursinus – 4
  • New Jersey – 4 
  • Franklin & Marshall – 3
  • Dickinson, Centenary, Cortland State, Haverford, Marywood, McDaniel, Washington, Wilkes, William Paterson – 2 each
  • Baruch, DeSales, Drew, Elizabethtown, Johns Hopkins, Montclair State, NYU, Richard Stockton, Swarthmore – 1 each

Note: Antonini scored against 23 different opponents, including all eight in the Centennial Conference.

by class year

  • freshman – 5
  • sophomore – 12
  • junior – 16
  • senior – 16

by assister

  • unassisted – 23 (2 penalty kicks)
  • Matt Cecconi – 3
  • Tom Reilly – 3
  • Samuel Hayden, Josh Luginbuhl, Jeff Reinhart, Danny Way, Mike Williams – 2 each
  • 12 others – 1 each

by game situation

  • gave Mules a 1-0 lead – 14
  • gave Mules a 2-0 lead – 9
  • gave Mules a 3-0 lead – 8
  • gave Mules a 4-0 lead – 5
  • gave Mules a 5-0 lead – 3
  • gave Mules a 2-1 lead – 2
  • gave Mules a 5-1 lead – 1
  • tied game at 1-1 – 3
  • tied game at 2-2 – 1
  • cut Mule deficit to 2-1 – 3

by site

  • home – 29
  • away – 19
  • neutral site – 1

by half

  • first half – 16
  • second half – 33

by time

  • 0:00-15:00 – 4
  • 15:01-30:00 – 6
  • 30:01-45:00 – 6
  • 45:01-60:00 – 12
  • 60:01-75:00 – 15
  • 75:01-90:00 – 6

Muhlenberg’s record when Antonini scored a goal: 32-3-3

Muhlenberg’s record when Antonini did not score a goal: 15-15-6

A Break in the Storm

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Shane O’Connor knew it wasn’t going to be good when he saw TV weatherman Al Roker reporting from his hometown of Point Pleasant Beach, N.J.

It wasn’t good, of course. The Jersey shore was pummeled by Hurricane Sandy this week, resulting in unprecedented destruction.

Even though O’Connor’s house was spared significant damage, many of his friends weren’t so fortunate. And Bay Head Beach, where the senior co-captain on the Muhlenberg football team works as a lifeguard in the summer, was among the hardest hit.

“It’s just sad,” said O’Connor, shaking his head in disbelief. “It’s where I grew up. It’s my childhood.”

O’Connor got a welcome respite from the horrible news from home yesterday when he helped the Mules beat Ursinus, 24-17, on Senior Day at Scotty Wood Stadium. He said it was like a “sigh of relief” at the end of a harrowing week.

“Concentrating on football and schoolwork were tough,” he said. “I was calling friends here and there, seeing whose house got damaged. I knew how bad it was, but I didn’t know who it affected.”

Getting even that information proved to be challenging and frustrating.

“Cell service was down for a few days after the storm hit,” O’Connor said. “I couldn’t get in touch with my parents.

“A lot of my friends went home,” he added. “I saw the news and the pictures and it was tough being here and not being able to help out.”

O’Connor’s other family, the Muhlenberg football team, helped ease his anxiety. Known as “Shane-O,” the three-year starting safety is popular among his teammates. Wrote fellow co-captain John Merklinger, “He puts David Hasselhoff to shame with his killer good looks and ‘Dude, I’m such a beach bro’ attitude. Having Shane as both a teammate and friend is something I’ll always treasure.”

“I had a lot of help to take my mind off of it,” said O’Connor with a nod to the locker room. “These guys are great, and I know they’re there for me no matter what.”

For a few hours yesterday, it was Saturday business as usual for O’Connor. He smiled for pictures with his family during Senior Day ceremonies and went out for the coin tosses prior to the game and the overtime.

Proudly wearing “732” – his home area code – on his wrist, O’Connor played his customary solid defense as the Mules held the most prolific passing attack in the Centennial Conference in check, with the exception of a few big plays. He recorded three tackles and had a near-interception in the second quarter. He hammed it up on the field with his fellow seniors following the game, their last at home.

“It just brightened my day,” said O’Connor. “I’m able to look past everything for just a little bit.”

There will be tougher days ahead when he goes home and the reality sets in. But even though Bay Head Beach will be off limits for a while due to gas leaks, O’Connor is confident it will bounce back.

“I know we’ll rebuild the shore and get it back to the way it was,” he said.

photos by Lisa Youngentob ’12

Athletes of the Month

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The new month begins with All Saints’ Day, and while these two athletes might not qualify for sainthood just yet, their performances in October earned them recognition as Muhlenberg athletes of the month.

Female Athlete of the Month – Maggie Neary, Soccer

Muhlenberg’s improbable run to the Centennial Conference playoffs – which begin tonight with a first-round home game against Swarthmore – was built on defense, and its defense is built around Neary. A rock at center back, Neary anchored a back four that allowed only two goals in seven October games. That’s two goals in 650 minutes – a goals-against average of 0.28. The Mules went 4-2-1 in October, clinching the fourth seed in the CC playoffs after starting out 0-2 in league play. A four-year starter and two-time (likely to be three-time) All-CC selection, Neary also helped out the offense with her free kicks, recording an assist against Washington College.

Male Athlete of the Month – Dan Deighan, Football

The football team entered October on the heels of a 17-0 loss to Susquehanna that broke a long streak of not getting shut out in a Centennial Conference game. After a week off, the Mule offense returned in full force, averaging 457.7 yards and 43.7 points in three October games. At the helm was senior quarterback Deighan, who passed for 650 yards and five touchdowns while rushing for 178 and another score in the three games. He became the first QB in program history to record a 100-yard rushing game and a 300-yard passing game, and he did it in back-to-back weeks, running for 105 vs. Juniata and passing for 313 at Dickinson. He also broke the school record for career rushing yards by a quarterback (1,254 and counting) and moved into the top 10 in CC history in total offense.

Pop in the DVD

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The Muhlenberg football team’s offense is available on DVD. And it comes with plenty of added features and bonuses.

The DVD is the senior trio of running back Terrence Dandridge, wide receiver Isaiah Vaughn and quarterback Dan Deighan. For the last three years, the three players have been the top threats on the Mule offense.

Yesterday at Dickinson, the D-V-D package was full of highlights. Dandridge rushed for 110 yards, Vaughn caught passes for 149 yards, and Deighan threw for 313 yards. It was the eighth time in program history that the Mules had a 100-yard rusher, 100-yard receiver and 300-yard passer in the same game. The others (listed in order of rusher-receiver-passer):

  • 2008 vs. Wilkes: John DeLuca-Phil Cresta-Eric Santagato
  • 2000 vs. Hartwick: Matt Bernardo-Joshua Carter-Michael McCabe
  • 2000 vs. Johns Hopkins: Anthony Wolfsohn-Carter-McCabe
  • 2000 vs. Dickinson: Wolfsohn-Alfredo Mercuri-McCabe
  • 1998 vs. Grove City: Jason Brader-Carter-McCabe
  • 1998 vs. Gettysburg: Brader-Kenyamo McFarlane-McCabe
  • 1997 vs. Gettysburg: Brader-Kevin Cannon-George Fosdick

All three of the D-V-D players are climbing Muhlenberg’s all-time lists, and two are prominent in the Centennial Conference record book. Here’s a quick look:

With his 110 yards yesterday, Dandridge became the 11th player in CC history to rush for more than 3,000 yards. His total stands at 3,053 with two games remaining in the regular season, 214 yards away from cracking the top 10. He is third in Muhlenberg history in career rushing yards and also ranks fourth with 3,624 all-purpose yards. The 100-yard rushing game yesterday was the 14th of his career, which is tops among active CC players. “TD” has rushed for 31 career TDs, four away from second place on the Mules’ all-time list.

 

 

The “burner” in the D-V-D trio, Vaughn played on the defensive side as a freshman, so his impact on the all-time charts comes in only three seasons. He is in 11th place on Muhlenberg’s receiving yards list with 1,393 and needs 77 more to make the top 10. He also ranks 15th with 81 receptions for a career average of 17.2 yards per catch. Vaughn’s average of 20.9 yards per catch this season leads the CC. His touchdown catch yesterday covered 65 yards; he also caught a school-record 95-yard TD last and a 56-yard bomb in 2010. That makes him the first Mule receiver to catch a touchdown pass of at least 50 yards in three straight seasons since Alfredo Mercuri (2000-02).

 

 

Deighan moved close to a major career milestone yesterday with his first career 300-yard game. Deighan has 4,945 yards, good for third in Muhlenberg history and just 55 yards away from becoming the 15th CC quarterback to throw for 5,000 yards. Already the school record-holder for rushing yards by a quarterback, Deighan added 29 to his total yesterday, and with 1,254, he needs just 10 more to move into fifth place all-time in CC history. Deighan also moved into the CC’s top 10 in total offense yesterday with 6,199 yards; he is only the third CC QB to pass for 4,000 yards and rush for 1,200.

 

Weekend Preview

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The last weekend of October means falling leaves, Halloween, nasty weather in the forecast – and the fall sports seasons winding down. Two Muhlenberg teams will end their seasons tomorrow, while two others hope to continue theirs.

Women’s Soccer at Ursinus (7:30)

This is the only game in which a Muhlenberg team can chart its own playoff course. With a win, the Mules are in – although, since the only team that can catch them (Dickinson) plays at noon, by the time this game kicks off they might be in already!

Muhlenberg (7-8-2, 5-3-1) is in fifth place in the Centennial Conference. Dickinson (11-5, 5-4) needs a win against Franklin & Marshall and a Mule loss or tie to snatch away the final playoff spot. If the Mules win, they will face the loser of the Haverford-Swarthmore game in the first round (or Swarthmore if that game ends in a tie).

Although Ursinus (3-8-4, 0-5-4) is winless in CC play, it did take Haverford and Dickinson to double overtime.

Muhlenberg leads the all-time series, 13-6, but the Bears have won the last two meetings – including a 2010 game in Collegeville in which the Mules needed a win to stay alive in the playoff race.

Live stats: http://livestats.prestosports.com/ursinus/

Cross Country at Haverford for Centennial Conference Championships (men, 11:00; women, 12:00)

The Mules compete at the 20th CC Championships. For a preview, click here.

Field Hockey at Ursinus (12:00)

Muhlenberg (9-6, 4-5) closes out a season of great improvement with a chance to beat eight-time defending champion Ursinus (9-7, 5-4) for the first time ever. The Bears need a win and help to make the playoffs.

Live stats: http://livestats.prestosports.com/ursinus/

Volleyball at Ursinus (12:00)

It’s the last match of the season for the Mules (16-11, 3-6), who have a chance to reach 17 wins for the first time since 2008. They won a total of 16 matches the last two years. Ursinus (7-16, 2-7) has lost to Muhlenberg eight straight times.

Football at Dickinson (1:00)

Muhlenberg (5-2, 4-2) plays a road game for the first time in almost a month against a Red Devil team coming off a comeback overtime win against McDaniel. It’s been feast or famine for Dickinson (3-4, 3-3): It lost big to to nationally ranked Hobart (31-0) and Johns Hopkins (49-0), but its other five games were all decided by eight points or fewer.

The Mules lead the all-time series, 40-25-2, and have won four of the last five meetings, including last season’s 12-0 “Snowtober” game.

Live stats: http://www2.dickinson.edu/sports/statistics/mfb/livestats/XLIVE.HTM

Live video: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/reddevilsportsnetwork

Men’s Soccer at Ursinus, 5:00

The Mules (10-5, 5-4) enter the final day of the regular season needing a win or tie and a Johns Hopkins loss OR a win and a JHU draw to make the playoff field. The Blue Jays play at Washington at 7:00.

Ursinus (5-11, 1-7) has lost seven straight CC contests since opening with a win against Gettysburg and has allowed a league-worst 24 goals in conference play.

Muhlenberg has an all-time record of 18-0-1 against Ursinus in CC play. The tie, however, came in Collegeville in 2006 when the Mules needed a win to secure a home playoff game.

Live stats: http://livestats.prestosports.com/ursinus/

XC Q&A

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Men’s cross country co-captains Jarrett Felix and Charlie Kline wrote about their recent encounter with two of the best to ever compete in the sport at Muhlenberg.

This past weekend the Muhlenberg cross country teams had a Q and A session with former Muhlenberg track and cross country standouts and Hall of Fame couple Will Elson and Karen Mount Elson. Karen had just been inducted that day into the Muhlenberg Hall of Fame, and Will was there to support her. It was special for them to take time out of their busy day to talk to the teams.

One of the quotes that Will told us was “When you’re behind, no one can see you coming.” This idea embodies the men’s cross country team’s spirit at this point in the season. Last season ended in disappointment, but behind the leadership of new coach Doug Finley, we feel that there is potential to surprise a lot of people this championship season.

Both Will and Karen gave us a number of tips about both preparation for a race and race strategy. Karen explained that earlier in her collegiate career, she was stressed out before big meets and was unable to overcome the pressure of the moment. By her junior year, she realized the importance of making sure to relax and laugh before the start of races to avoid getting worked up.

Will stressed the importance of following a routine and individualizing prerace preparation. Both ideas have been taken to heart by the men’s team; we hold a variety of prerace quirks to keep us relaxed, everything from polo shirts to pink socks.

Hearing from such successful alumni has inspired our squad as we approach the two most important meets of our season. The team is looking to improve off of a sixth-place finish at Conferences on Saturday at Haverford, and aiming to dramatically upgrade our 18th-place finish at the NCAA Regional Championship in Dickinson on November 10.

We may be underdogs going into the postseason, but when you’re behind, no one can see you coming.