Search - by Dustin Jones

Pacific Union College's newest varsity sport has proven to be a swinging success. This year's first-ever men's varsity golf team won the California Pacific Conference division championships at the Bayonet Club in Monterey. Senior physical education major Scott Reed, who helped lead the Pioneers with a score of 82, was also named the 1997 Cal-PAC Golf Player of the Year."It was a great honor," said Reed. "I feel that it was certainly unexpected and a little undeserved." He pointed out that because of the weather, everyone else wasn't shooting very well and he was lucky to shoot so low. "Conditions were pretty crazy. There was wind going everywhere," Reed said.After winning the Cal-PAC division, PUC competed in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Far West Regional Championships held at the Rancho California course in Temecula.The championships pitted Division I champs Point Loma Nazarene and the runner-up Cal Baptist against Division II champs PUC and their runner-up Dominican College.For the championship game, Reed led the Pioneers once again with an 80 on the first round and an 83 on the second."I think our guys played extremely well, given the kind of competition they faced," said coach Chuck Evans. "We definitely...

The Pacific Union College men's Pioneer basketball team faced top ranked Bethany College at their last home game on Wednesday night, Feb. 19. The Pioneers played their best game of the season, defeating the Bethany Bruins in overtime 87-83.Bethany (8-2) came into the game expecting an easy victory against the Pioneers (2-8). However, the Pioneers won the tip-off and took control of the game from the start, with a three-pointer by guard Mario Perez.PUC guard Brady Bock hit another three-pointer to give the Pioneers a 10-4 lead with 16:11 left in the half. Bock's three-pointer started PUC on a 10-0 run that was capped by a dunk by forward Brett Graves.Bethany head coach and former Los Angeles Lakers player, John Block, called a time-out to regroup his team. When play resumed, Bethany started a half-court press against the Pioneers, and things no longer looked so bleak for Bethany. However, the Pioneers retain their lead throughout the entire first half, 37-31.In the second half, Bethany hit a three-pointer to make the score 40-43, then scored on a steal to pull within one.With 15:00 left in the game, Bethany took the lead for the first time in the game, 44-43.With 5:00 left...

The Pacific Union College Men's Pioneer basketball team won 82-66 against the San Jose Christian College Warriors last Tuesday night, Jan. 21, at PUC's Pacific Auditorium.It was the first time in seven years that Pacific Union College has defeated San Jose Christian College.The Pioneers won the tip-off and proceeded with a strong first half, causing the Warriors to take a timeout with PUC ahead 7-0. When play resumed, the Pioneers continued their lead with a 15-2 run. Thanks to solid defense and quick thinking, the Pioneers stole the ball 15 times, a season record.To seal their first-half mastery, Pioneer guard Brett Graves hit a three pointer at the buzzer to make the half-time score 44-25."We've learned how to stay in the game through the first half; now we just need to concentrate on the second half," said Graves, who had 13 first-half points.In the second half, the Pioneers lacked the defensive prowess they had in the first half, allowing Warrior forward Jeff Stapelton to take several open shots.With 5:24 left in the game, the Warriors pulled within nine points. That would be as close as they would come, as forward Mark Ermshar came off the bench, providing seven rebounds and...

The Pacific Union College men's basketball team lost 72-78 to Menlo College, an NCAA division III team, at Pacific Auditorium on Sunday, Jan. 26.The Pioneers started out in scripted fashion, with a turnover, and Menlo guard Vince Encelan scored eight points in two minutes in what started to look like a rout of PUC. But with 11:59 remaining in the half, the Pioneers went on a 6-0 run to come within two points, 16-18, and force a Menlo time-out.With 5:05 left in the half, Pioneer center Bryan Banfield was fouled while taking a shot. Banfield hit both free throws to bring the score within one, 28-29.However, as a result of two missed dunks and several turnovers at key moments, Menlo was able to run the score to 41-32 by the end of the first half.With 6:02 left in the game, Pioneer forward Bryan Patterson was fouled on the drive. Although Patterson missed his free throw, forward Matt Hickman grabbed the rebound and tipped it in to make the score 61-68.Bryan Banfield led the Pioneers with 22 points and six rebounds. Pioneer guard Brett Graves chipped in 18 points and 10 rebounds. Menlo College guard Vince Encelan led all scorers with...

The Pacific Union College Men's Pioneer Basketball team faced the La Sierra University Eagles as they began their '96-'97 season on Saturday night, Nov. 23. Although LSU made a comeback late in the second half, the Pioneers, led by junior forward Rob Adams, hung on to win 80-73 at home. "I really wanted to win this one," said PUC freshman guard Mario Perez. Perez graduated from La Sierra Academy and had grown up with most of LSU's players. The offense for both teams started off sluggishly until PUC guard Brett Graves sunk a three-pointer with 16:40 left in the first half. Graves' three-pointer awoke the Pioneer offense into a 19-2 run. At the end of the first half, PUC led 36-17. But the Pioneers lost the spark they had shown in the first half, and allowed the Eagles to come back within 10 points with four minutes left in the second half. LSU then proceeded to outscore PUC 56-44, coming within four points with one minute left in the second half. Bryan Patterson sank four straight free throws to make the score 78-70. PUC hung on to win with a final score of 80-73. Chris Lindstadt led LSU with 24...

The Pacific Union College Lady Pioneers basketball team evened their record to 2-2 as they played the La Sierra University Eagles, winning 59-38 on Nov. 23. After winning the tip-off, PUC sophomore forward Heather Isaacs was called for an offensive foul. LSU was unable to score on the opportunity and the game remained close for most of the first half. After several traveling calls against LSU, PUC began to edge away. At the end of the first half, PUC led the Eagles 35-17. The Lady Pioneers never looked back. Lucy Tuipulotu came in off the bench for PUC and scored 8 points. Tuipulotu also pulled down 6 rebounds. "She was unstoppable," said Lady Pioneer fan Earl Pasamonte. The Lady Pioneers showed off their depth as their bench scored 27 points and grabbed 20 rebounds. "We showed a lot of poise, but that doesn't win games," said LSU Coach Mary Flatley. The LSU Eagles have a record of 0-5....