Men's cross-country
Women's cross-country
Field hockey
Football
Men's soccer
Women's soccer
Men's tennis
Women's tennis
Volleyball

MEN’S CROSS-COUNTRY (0-2)

The Bombers put the finishing touches on a strong season by taking 18th at the NCAA Division III championship at Augustana College in Illinois. Ithaca earned the right to travel to nationals with a 2nd-place showing at the NCAA regional qualifier, held at the Rochester Institute of Technology. It was the blue and gold’s top performance at the regional race since turning in a runner-up result in 1985. The South Hill crew was also 2nd at the New York State Collegiate Track Conference outing.

Senior Mike Pawlowski was the first Ithaca athlete to cross the finish line at the NCAA meet (25:55) and the 88th overall in the field of 173 competitors. Pawlowski hit the tape first for the Bombers in four outings this fall, including a course-record effort at the five-mile Roberts Wesleyan Invitational (26:32).

Sophomores Ian Golden and Eric Sambolec, junior Andy Weishaar, and seniors Brian Boyle, Thomas Lansley, and Greg Loomis were other top performers for Coach Jim Nichols. Golden recorded a 27:24 clocking at RIT in the regional qualifier to take squad honors, while Sambolec, Weishaar, Boyle, Lansley, and Loomis were at nationals and helped Ithaca to its 18th-place result.

WOMEN’S CROSS-COUNTRY (0-1)

Senior Melanie Della Rocco became the first Ithaca women’s cross-country runner to qualify for the NCAA Division III championship since Moira Strong ’94 secured a trip in 1993. At the national event Della Rocco placed 117th in a field of 180 runners with a time of 19:29.

Della Rocco, who was first for the blue and gold on four occasions in 1996, earned her NCAA journey by taking 9th (21:03.8) at the regional qualifier at RIT. She helped the Bombers place 7th as a team with her effort. Ithaca also claimed the 7th spot at the NYSCTC championship and 5th out of 13 schools at the Williams Invitational.

Junior Leah Crivello was 15th overall at the NCAA regional meet with a 21:21 clocking, and she finished just one second behind Della Rocco (20:40) in 20th place at the state outing. Crivello took top team honors three times this past fall and posted a season-low mark of 19:55 at the Geneseo Invitational.

FIELD HOCKEY (12-9)

For the first time in 28 years, there was a new boss on the Ithaca sidelines, and she picked up right where the former mentor left off. Rookie coach Tracey Houk took over for the legendary Doris Kostrinsky in 1996 and led the Bombers to their seventh straight winning campaign and NCAA play-off invitation.

Following a 10-7 regular season, Ithaca advanced to the New York State Women’s Collegiate Athletic Association tournament and won two out of three games to place third for the second consecutive year. Once in the NCAAs, the Bombers fell to eventual semifinalist Lebanon Valley, 1-0, in overtime at Salisbury State University.

Junior forward Julie Parsons paced the offense with 13 goals and 2 assists, while senior midfielder Marie Kelly chipped in with 8 scores and 2 helpers. Sophomore forward Kelli Coppola registered 6 net finders and a team-best 3 assists.

Sophomore goalie Jennifer Stoneburg played 1,347 out of a possible 1,497 minutes and recorded a 1.25 goals-against average and an .836 save percentage.

Kelly, who ended her blue and gold tenure tied for 8th (34) in goals and 10th in points (74) on the all-time Bomber charts, picked up second-team all-American honors from the National Field Hockey Coaches Association.

FOOTBALL (7-3)

The Bombers posted the program’s 27th consecutive winning season and earned the Eastern College Athletic Conference northeast title in 1996. The second in Ithaca’s gridiron history, the ECAC crown featured a 27-21 road triumph over previously unbeaten Worcester State. The victory marked the 12th time since 1975 that Ithaca prevailed over an undefeated team in that squad’s season-ending game.

Five straight wins to open the campaign put the Bombers in the top spot of the NCAA East Region Poll. But then Ithaca stumbled, losing three of its next four games, with defeats at the hands of Division II American International, rival Cortland State, and eventual NCAA play-off participant Buffalo State. Coach Mike Welch’s crew finished the campaign on a high note with the ECAC postseason decision.

Senior quarterback Neal Weidman completed his Ithaca career with 17 school records, including the mark for career passing yards (4,129). Senior Jeff Higgins, who missed two 1996 contests because of injuries, finished his tenure tied for first in career receptions (94). He was named second-team all-American on the Hewlett-Packard and Football Gazette units as a kick returner. Sophomore Matt Buddenhagen gave the Bombers another exciting return threat. He ranked third among Division III performers in punt return average (16.8).

MEN’S SOCCER (14-4-2)

The 1996 campaign will go down as one to remember for the Bombers. Ithaca struggled to a 3-3-1 start but ripped off eight wins in its last nine regular-season games to earn a spot in the NCAA Division III play-offs for the second straight year. Once in the tournament, the blue and gold won the northeast region crown for the second consecutive year with victories over Rensselaer, 5-0, and St. Lawrence, 2-0.

With a 3-2, come-from-behind triumph over Bethany on the Upper Terrace Field in the quarterfinals, Ithaca notched its first-ever journey to the NCAA semifinals, which were held at Kenyon College. But the Bombers failed to advance to the NCAA championship tilt owing to a 5-4 penalty-kick setback to the College of New Jersey after the two clubs had battled through regulation and overtime tied at 0-0.

Junior forward Mitshel Lavander led Ithaca with 12 goals and 4 assists for 28 points. Junior midfielder Matt Morrison added 7 scores and a squad-high 7 helpers.

Freshman goalkeeper Chris Lucci had a stellar rookie campaign with a 12-1-2 record, .898 save percentage, and 0.59 goals-against average.

Senior back Dan Katz was tabbed with third-team all-American laurels from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, while Bomber mentor Andy Byrne was named the NSCAA northeast region coach of the year.

WOMEN’S SOCCER (16-4)

Third-year boss Mindy Quigg, who earned NSCAA regional coach of the year laurels this fall, guided Ithaca to its highest winning percentage since 1993 and two NCAA play-off triumphs before losing to the College of New Jersey, 2-0, in the regional finals. The Bombers rolled to 10 consecutive victories after a 1-0 loss at Skidmore on September 28, including NCAA tourney wins over William Smith, 3-0, and regional host Binghamton, 1-0, in overtime. Ithaca has now advanced to the national tournament in 9 of the last 10 years.

With her 11 goals and 8 assists, senior forward Amanda Mabee became just the second player in the history of the program to register 30 points in a season. Maureen Nolan ’87 owns the school record of 33 points, which she set in 1984. Senior midfielder Melanie Jones was right behind Mabee in scoring, with 8 net finders and a club-high 9 helpers, while senior midfielder Lisa Finn recorded 17 points (7 goals, 3 assists).

Senior goalkeeper Stephanie Dawson posted a 0.57 goals-against average and an .867 save percentage in 1,571 minutes of work.

Mabee and Jones earned second-team all-American honors from the NSCAA.

MEN’S TENNIS (7-3)

For the first time in the history of the low-net program, the Bombers competed in a nontraditional fall season. Coach Tim Faulkner’s group made the most of its matches, with seven triumphs in 10 tries. Ithaca lost three of its first four dual meets of the autumn but rallied to win its final six showings. During the stretch of victories, the blue and gold outscored their opponents, 44-7.

Freshman Jean-Jamil Rojer made an impressive debut: an 8-2 singles record and a 6-3 doubles mark. He paced the squad with 14 overall wins. Senior Todd Smith was 7-5 on the singles court and 6-2 with a partner, while senior Dave Gleason had a 7-3 singles record this fall.

Gleason moved into a tie for ninth place on the College’s all-time singles wins list this past autumn and has 23 triumphs heading into the spring season.

WOMEN’S TENNIS (5-4)

Ithaca recorded its eighth consecutive non-losing fall season with a 9-0 blanking over Oneonta in the final match of the year. The Bombers started the campaign with a 3-3 record but regrouped to win two of their last three contests to keep the streak in place. Second-year coach Tim Faulkner also led the South Hill squad to an 11th-place showing at the NYSWCAA championship, held at the Limestone Tennis Club in Manlius.

Freshman Kim Faulkner, the daughter of the coach, paced the Bombers with 14 overall wins in 1996. She was 8-4 in singles play and had a 6-5 record in doubles action. Classmates Julianna Barbieri and Jaimie Daniello posted 13 and 11 victories, respectively, during their rookie campaigns. Barbieri was 7-5 on the singles court, while Daniello went 6-2 as a doubles competitor.

Senior Cortney Trull ended the fall ranked 5th in all-time overall wins (59) at Ithaca. She is also 7th in career doubles triumphs (33) and tied for 10th in singles victories (26).

VOLLEYBALL (27-16)

The Bombers advanced to the NCAA Division III play-offs for the fourth straight year after completing one of the most highly competitive regular-season schedules in program annals. Included during this fall’s agenda were stops at the Washington and Juniata Invitationals, with those hosts finishing the year first and second in the nation, respectively. Ithaca’s campaign came to a close in the postseason with a 3-0 loss to RIT in the NCAA New York regional semifinals.

Junior middle hitter Heidi Nichols paced the South Hill attack in 1996. She set school records with 760 kills and 219 total blocks this fall and posted an impressive .379 hitting percentage. Nichols was tabbed with first-team all-American honors from the American Volleyball Coaches Association. Senior outside hitter Teresa Lemery, who ended her Ithaca tenure first on the school’s career dig list (1,647), was a GTE academic all-American second- team member.

Sophomore setter Jill Finochio, an AVCA all–New York region pick, ended the year with a school standard 1,563 assists. She is now third in all-time assists at Ithaca (2,869).

Other AVCA all–New York region selections for the Bombers were sophomore middle hitter Christine Ansley and sophomore outside hitter Kinga Skuza.