Fall's Finest
Seven Crusader Fall Non-Football Athletes Earn MAC Honors,
Field Hockey Has Three, Volleyball/Men's Soccer Get Two Apiece
SELINSGROVE, (Pa.) --Seven Susquehanna University athletes have earned Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth League All-Star honors in field hockey, men's soccer and women's volleyball.
Field hockey tops the list with three All-Star picks. Senior co-captains Kim Aurand (Lewistown/Lewistown H.S.) and Brandy Crum (Harrisburg/Central Dauphin H.S.) are first-team selections and played as a wing and center midfielder respectively this season. Both were second-team All-Stars in 1997. Sophomore Ali Hughes (Reading/Muhlenberg H.S.) is a second-teamer this season and also was a starting wing.
The women's volleyball team was also well-represented as senior co-captain and outside hitter Christy Herrmann (Havertown/Haverford H.S.) is a first-team All-Star this year after being a second-teamer in 1996. Freshman middle hitter Sarah Lauro (Collegeville/Villa Maria Academy) is on the second-team this season.
The Crusader men's soccer team also had two second-team All-Stars, with forward/midfielder Chris Yearicks (National Park, N.J./Gateway H.S.) making the second-team, after being a first-teamer last season, and freshman scoring leader and forward Aaron Littzi (Kingston/Wyoming Valley West H.S.) joining him on that second-team.
Aurand started at wing in all 16 games this season, finishing second on the team in scoring with seven goals and two assists for 16 points. Also a three-time MAC All-Academic Field Hockey Team member, as well as a member of this season's National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Division III National Academic Squad, she finished fifth at Susquehanna all-time in both career goals (22) and scoring (49), playing in 50 games.
I was really pleased to see Kim earn first-team honors after being a second-teamer in the past. She has been a leader on our offense throughout her career, but particularly the past two seasons," said 23rd-year Susquehanna head coach Connie Harnum.
Also an All-MAC jumper on the women's track and field team, she is a biology major and is the daughter of Steven and Teresa Aurand of Lewistown.
Crum has already been named a 1998 AstroTurf/ NFHCA Division III North Atlantic Regional All-American, and has also been chosen to be a field player in the NFHCA Division III North/South Senior All-Star Game at the University of Pennsylvania's Franklin Field this Saturday, November 21. She started all 16 games for the Crusaders this season at center midfielder and had three assists while keying a defense which posted a 1.37 team goals-against average. She also has earned honors on the NFHCA Division III National Academic Squad and is a two-time member of the MAC All-Academic Field Hockey Team. She will be a co-captain for the women's lacrosse team this spring.
In many respects, Brandy has been the heart and soul of our team. She's a real competitor who's provided great leadership and will be sorely missed next season," said Harnum.
Crum is a biology major and the daughter of Jean and Ed Crum, Jr., of Harrisburg.
Hughes started all 16 games this season and led the team with 25 points on nine goals and seven assists - tying for the fourth-most points in a season at Susquehanna. She finished second in the final MAC statistics in scoring at 1.56 points per game. Hughes had a career best three goals in a 4-0 win over Elizabethtown on October 10.
She is also a member of both this season's NFHCA Division III National Academic Squad, and the MAC All-Academic Field Hockey Team as an elementary-education/ psychology major. She is the daughter of Mike and Carol Hughes of Reading.
Under the Harnum, the Crusaders completed their second-straight season of .500 or better, finishing 8-8 overall, 2-5 in the league.
Herrmann finished as the school's career record holder in digs with 1,269, ranking third in service aces with 197. She led the team in digs (3.62 per game) and kills (2.86 per game) this season, finishing second in hitting percentage (.202) and service aces (0.43 per game), and third in blocks (0.35 per game). She was eighth in the MAC in digs per game as of the last statistical rankings (through October 25). "Christy did everything we could have asked of her during her career. Her all-around presence will be sorely missed next season," said sixth-year Crusader head coach Bill Switala.
A three-time member of the MAC All-Academic Women's Volleyball Team - earning special honor on the Executive Director's Team this season - she is an elementary-education major and is the daughter of Russell and Elenita Herrmann of Havertown.
Lauro led the team with a .223 hitting percentage and also topped the charts in blocks per game (0.85/61 solo). She was second on the team in total kills (2.04 per game), also averaging 1.16 digs and 0.37 aces per game. Lauro was MAC Player of the Week on October 19.
She is also an elementary-education major and is the daughter of James and Louise Lauro of Collegeville.
The Crusaders women's volleyball team made the MAC playoffs for just the fourth time in program history - winning its opening match vs. Allentown before finishing at 14-15 overall, 4-3 and in fourth-place in the Commonwealth League.
The 5-9, 175-pound Yearicks scored four goals and four assists to finish second on the team in scoring with 12 points on the season (0.67 ppg). He scored a pair of goals and assisted on another in Susquehanna's 6-1 decision over Lebanon Valley on October 22. Yearicks upped his school record for career assists to 21. He is a history major and the son of Cooper and Lois Yearicks of National Park, N.J.
The 5-9, 165-pound Littzi netted a team-high 10 goals and six assists for 26 points (1.44 ppg). He tied for the fourth most goals in a season at Susquehanna, and finished 10th in the final MAC stats in scoring. He scored two goals in a game four times during the season, including both goals in a 2-1 victory over Philadelphia Bible on October 3.
Littzi is a liberal arts major and the son of Allan and Marie Littzi of Kingston.
Under rookie head coach Jim Findlay, the Crusader men's soccer team finished with a deceiving 5-13 record, going 2-5 in the Commonwealth League. Of the 13 losses, seven were by 2-1 decisions, with another one at 1-0.
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