Sports briefs

MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY

The Rams finished their season at the CAA Championships Saturday afternoon with a fifth-place finish in the contest. Senior Jay Wyss (Richmond/J.R. Tucker) concluded his career with a time of 25:09, good enough for a 12th-place finish and a spot on the All-CAA team. Piotr Dybas (Jaslo, Poland) finished in 21st with a time of 25:32, while senior Joey Wingo (Richmond/Lee-Davis) finished his career with a time of 25:51 and 28th place.
VCU’s top runner, Stephen Mutisya (Machakos, Kenya), was unable to participate in the event because of a stress fracture in his leg.

WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY

The Rams finished eighth of 10 competing teams at the CAA Championships on Saturday, completing the team’s best finish in the event in four years. Top-70 finishes from Genova Washington (Woodbridge/Gar-Field) and Heather DelaCruz (Williamsburg/Lafayette) paced the Rams. Washington finished 63rd with a time of 24:08, while DelaCruz finished 68th with a time of 24:18.

FIELD HOCKEY

The top-ranked Maryland Terrapins toppled the Rams, 10-0, in VCU’s final away game of the season this past Thursday night. The Terrapins out-shot the Rams 34-2 and cruised to a 7-0 lead at halftime. VCU keeper Laura Baker (Kent, England/Langley Park) made nine saves in goal.

GOLF

Junior Rafael Campos (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico/Baldwin School of PR) was named CAA Golfer of the Week after winning the individual title at the Landfall Tradition and leading VCU to a third-place finish in the event.

MEN’S SOCCER

The CAA Tournament picture got a little bit fuzzy Saturday night, as the Rams fell on the road to Delaware, 1-0, in overtime. The Rams out-shot the Blue Hens 19-12, but were unable to find the back of the net. Delaware’s Andy Streilein scored the winning goal in the 94th minute after a teammate collected a deflection in the box and found him for the goal. The loss drops the Rams to 4-4-2 in the CAA and 8-7-2 overall. VCU must defeat Northeastern on Nov. 6 in order to qualify for the conference tournament.

WOMEN’S SOCCER

The Rams ended their season on a high, yet bittersweet, note Thursday, defeating James Madison on the road, 2-1, in double overtime on the same day the team found out it would miss the CAA Tournament for the first time in 13 years. Francesca Gioeli (New York, N.Y./Brooklyn Tech) headed in the winning goal in the 108th minute off an assist from Megan Flanagan (Franktown, Colo/Ponderosa). The Dukes controlled the offensive tempo in the first half and scored first, taking a 1-0 lead just 11 minutes into the match. However, the Rams were able to turn the tide in the second half as Gioeli found Laurel Pastor (Springfield/West Springfield) for a goal in the 53rd minute that evened the score and ultimately sent the game to overtime. VCU finished the season 5-5-1 in the CAA and 9-9-1 overall. The Rams needed Hofstra to defeat Northeastern in order to gain their 14th straight CAA Tournament bid, but the Huskies defeated the Pride 2-1.

VOLLEYBALL

VCU took care of business in less than 90 minutes Friday night, defeating Delaware 3-0 (25-18, 25-16, 25-20) at the Siegel Center. Ariel Newman (Greensboro, N.C./Southern Guilford) and Jessica Ojukwu (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Colegio Dourado) both had 10 kills in the victory while Elisa Kuehnel (Dresden, Germany/Sportsgymnasium) recorded 14 digs.