A shaky start to the season has the Emory & Henry softball team’s record sitting at 0-4 on the season.

The team lost two games in Orlando, FL to Warner Southern by the scores of 9-4 and 5-0. In the first game against Warner Southern, the Wasps collected 9 hits and 3 RBI’s. Robin Phelps led the way for the Wasps with two hits, while Laken Price, Tiffany Caylor and Dana Dettmar each drove home a run.

The Wasps returned home from Florida and traveled to Maryville on Mar, 9 for two hotly contested games. Though the Wasps were swept by Maryville, the Wasps collected 12 hits and 3 RBI’s in the two games. In the first game, Shannon Harris pitched 6.2 innings, allowing only one run and striking out four batters.

In the second game, Megan Evans pitched 4.2 innings allowing only one run, four hits and collecting five strikeouts.

The Wasps return to action on Wednesday, Mar. 12 against Greensboro at 2 p.m. at home. The team will then compete in the Ferrum Tournament on Mar. 15-16 at Salem, VA. The Wasps are just on the brim of collecting their first win, and with the right circumstances, can end up a successful team at the end of the year, despite some early disappointments.

As it turns out, a scenery change is just what the Emory & Henry baseball team needed.

The team grabbed two victories on Spring Break in Orlando, Fla. The Wasps beat Ohio Northern 10-9 and Hanover 11-10. In the Ohio Northern game, the Wasps had six players with at least two hits.

Gavin Haynes led the team with three hits. The team as a whole totaled 14 hits and 10 RBI’s. Codie Mitchell also picked up his first win of the season on the mound for the Wasps, giving up just six hits in over six innings of pitching.

The Wasps followed that win with a tough 16-12 loss to Rose-Hulman before recovering with the win against Hanover.

Colin Roberts pitched over three innings and got his first win as an E&H Wasp. Codie Mitchell and Seth Hyder both recorded three hits to help the Wasps at the plate. In all, the Wasps pounded out 12 hits and 9 RBI’s.

Gavin Haynes leads the team with a .400 batting average and 22 hits, and he also has 11 RBI’s. Anthony Lowry is batting .342 with 13 hits and Bucky Mann is batting .340 with 17 hits and a team leading 13 RBI’s.

Currently, three pitchers have an Earned Runs Average of 8 or less (Eric McDaniel (4.96), Garrett Amburgey (6.05) and Derek Joyner (7.71).

The team has lost six consecutive games since leaving the Sunshine State, and their record now stands at 4-12 and 0-4 in ODAC play. The team will look to get back on track at Guilford on Sat., Mar. 15.

The Emory & Henry women’s basketball team finished the 2007-08 season with a record 9-17 (7-13).

For the casual viewer, it would appear that the Wasps had a terrible season. However, the Wasps went on a hot streak late in the season, winning five of their last 11 games, upsetting the ODAC powerhouses and sneaking into the ODAC Tournament as the #8 seed after defeating Washington & Lee 82-81.

On Feb. 2, the Wasps upset #19 Randolph-Macon at home 76-68. Less than a week later on Feb. 8, the Wasps upset the top team in the ODAC again in Eastern Mennonite 63-58 on the road.

Individually, Sarah Petty had a very impressive season, and was the key to those two gigantic wins. For her efforts for the first week of February, Petty was named the ODAC Player of the Week. For that same week, Petty was named to D3hoops.com’s National Team of the Week. To cap off her stellar season, Petty was named to 2nd Team All-ODAC after leading the league in assists per game with 5.2.

Petty also led the Wasps with 55 steals and 13.5 points per game. She was also second on the team with 5.7 rebounds per game, an outstanding statistic for a guard.

In all, the Wasps had four players average over 8 points per game, in Petty, Baylie Snyder (9.0), Brittany Rogers (8.2) and Alex Lyons (8.2). Lyons also led the team in rebounding with 6.0 per game.

The Wasps’ success this year was just another step in the right direction for this young team made up of all freshmen and sophomores. Things are looking up for the Wasps and should continue to do so in the following years.

The 2007-08 Emory & Henry men’s basketball team suffered through a season of tragedy and disappointment.

For the first time in nearly three decades, Coach Bob Johnson did not coach the E&H men’s basketball team. Johnson was forced to retire after spending 27 years as the head coach on E&H’s bench because of kidney cancer. Coach Paul Russo guided the Wasps in Johnson’s absence.

Russo is a former player of Johnson’s, and is one of the all-time leaders in assists at E&H.

Though the Wasps finished a dismal 7-18 (3-15), the excitement surrounding the E&H basketball program never disappeared. Running what is regarded as “The System,” formulated by Grinnell College, the Wasps spent the year as one of the most potent and high scoring teams in all of Division III men’s basketball. The team averaged 105.8 points per game, even after the team switched offenses mid-season for the sake of defense.

Leading the team in scoring was junior wing player Camillo Weinz with 15.2 points per game. On Jan. 20, Weinz set school and ODAC records with his 35 points on 11 of 17 from 3-point range in a 120-112 loss to #17 Guilford. Weinz also moved himself into first place all time at E&H with 3-pointers made in a career.

In all, five players averaged in double figures for the Wasps, including Weinz, Robert Hudson (14.6), Kyle Huckins (11.4), Jarell Christian (11.4) and Josh Lee (10.8). J.D. Dyson led the team with 132 assists, while Marques Thomas finished with 108.

Though the season was a disappointment, the team still had its share of memories such as Weinz’s 35 points against Guilford and elevating the program to a new level by competing against Division I team Radford on the road and giving them all they could handle before losing 124-109.

There is a positive outlook going into next season as E&H only graduates two players. There is no doubt that E&H will once again be one of the most exciting teams to watch in all of Division III.

Though the Highlanders came away with a 124-109 win, the Wasps outplayed Radford for the majority of the game, even leading twice in the second half.

Sophomore point guard J.D. Dyson recorded a double-double in the game with 10 points and 10 assists with only one turnover, putting on a masterful display of basketball and making several poster worthy plays.

The Dedmon Center crowd was made up of mostly Emory & Henry fans. Unfortunately, the Wasps then face three of the top teams in the conference over the next six days, going 0-3.

“This has been a long stretch of games during the Christmas Break. Unfortunately for us, this long stretch included some of the top teams in the ODAC,” Head Basketball Coach Paul Russo said.

“I felt that our team played extremely well in short bursts. The challenge for this team will be to play more consistently,” Russo said. The three ODAC games for the Wasps each represented their lowest scoring contest on the season with 90 against Roanoke, 89 against Virginia Wesleyan and 81 against Randolph-Macon.

Dyson followed up his impressive performance in the Radford game with a 15 point outing against Roanoke and an 11 point game against Virginia Wesleyan. In Virginia Wesleyan game the Wasps were lead by Camillo Weinz who had 21 points going 6-12 from three point range and Jarell Christian who had 16.

The very next day against Randolph-Macon Weinz erupted for 25 points on 4-16 from three point range and 13-14 from the free throw line to lead a Wasp team that struggled to find its rhythm.

“The recurring theme for this team will be how we respond in the face of adversity,” Russo said. For the 4-7 (0-4) Wasps, the schedule doesn’t get any easier as the ODAC Conference is loaded with talented basketball teams.

“I really like the makeup of this team and I think we will see the response needed to be successful.”

Though the team has suffered through five consecutive losses, four of those have been within ten points. The Wasps have also gotten better contributions on offense.

Two players are averaging double figures in scoring. Sophomore Baylie Snyder leads the team in scoring with 11.4 points per game, while sophomore Sarah Petty is second with 10.6 points per game.

Alex Lyons, Brittany Rogers, Ashton Kaylor, Tuesdee Woods and Samantha Shepard are also making big contributions to the team and playing big minutes.

The team arguably found its bread and butter in the full court press defense in a 62-55 loss to Guilford at home. The team went into half trailing 33-19, but made a furious run in the second half falling short by just seven points.

The full court press that Coach Scruggs employed during that game forced the Quakers into a plethora of second half turnovers and gave the Emory & Henry players a renewed enthusiasm on the court.

The team made a similar run the following game versus Lynchburg falling just short again 79-72. The team has made obvious strides and is playing with a confidence that they lacked early in the season.

All of the Wasps’ remaining games are against ODAC opponents except a game against Salem College on Jan. 29. At 3-7 (2-4), the Wasps are probably not satisfied. If the team improves on their defense and assist to turnover ratio, they have a chance be the team they may have envisioned at the beginning of the season.

But good or bad, The Mitchell Report ordered by MLB Commissioner Bud Selig exposed some inconvenient truths to sports fans that might not have been willing to hear them. Of course now, one player’s alleged steroid use is dominating the headlines (Roger Clemens) and no person is more appreciative than Barry Bonds, but fans and the media alike need to shift their focus back to the grand scheme of things.

Even though it is a big deal that “The Rocket” might have been juicing, he is not the only player who was caught by the probe. In fact, he wasn’t even the only big player caught by the probe.

At least one player from every Major League team was caught. So those who say that steroids are not a problem in baseball (and in sports altogether) try to justify that. Obviously they have a negative effect on sports in all phases, as well as the children that look up to and admire athletes in these sports, but what about the health concerns?

It’s impossible now to measure the ramifications of an athlete’s steroid use over a long or short period of time because it has just became pervasive in sports, but I’m going to go out on a limb and say it’s not healthy. If that’s the case, it should be the biggest concern for the MLB. They have to make sure the players are safe first and foremost.

Secondly, they have to maintain the integrity of the game, so it’s either all get steroids or none get steroids. Let’s hope it’s the latter. Also, even a player who is proven guilty of using steroids cannot be eliminated from Hall of Fame contention.

Who’s to say that the player opposite them was not juicing themselves? It is entirely possible. And where do you draw the line? Would Barry Bonds for instance not have hit a lot of home runs if he hadn’t juiced?

The MLB has tried over the last several years to loosely police steroid use, but I think that was only an attempt to save face for the league in anticipation of what a probe such as The Mitchell Report would uncover.

As for punishment? I think lots of community service (talking to kids at school about avoiding steroids), a stiff suspension and fine (say a year and a year’s pay) and counseling and rehabilitation are key to curbing this problem. Do this instead of talking about it, and witness the results.

Moss has also been accused of preventing the woman from leaving her house (where the incident allegedly occurred) to seek medical attention.

This news couldn’t have come at a worse time for Moss or the New England Patriots. When the story broke last week, Moss and the Partiots were preparing for the AFC Championship Game.

What has been a record breaking season on the field has also been a fairly quiet season off the field, which is saying something for the often outspoken Moss. Like many NFL receivers, Moss is anything but quiet.

Up until this season, he had simply squirted a water bottle at a referee (which drew a $25,000 fine), verbally assaulted Vikings’ corporate sponsors (drawing a $15,000 fine and mandatory anger management classes), assaulted a traffic officer in downtown Minneapolis in his SUV (landing him one night in jail and a $50,000 fine), pretended to moon fans in Green Bay (causing a $10,000 fine) and had been a distraction on basically every team he had ever played for.

Before entering the league Moss had quite a rap sheet as well. Moss served time for battery and violating his probation by smoking marijuana. Moss also had marijuana in his car at the time of the traffic incident, but not enough to warrant a misdemeanor.

However, this does not make Randy Moss guilty of the crime that he has just been accused of. Like I said, this year we had been witnessing a new Randy Moss through and through. And Moss made some valid points.

“It’s unfair to us as athletes, that when a situation like this occurs, it’s up to you guys to make an assumption,” Moss said during a press conference. This really opened my eyes to the subject. What can athletes do other than deny allegations of wrongdoing?

Of course, unfortunately more often than not, the allegations are true. However, this time I believe Moss. He showed emotion and valid concerns about becoming a meal ticket in his press conference. He has sued based on the premise he’s a victim of extortion.

Moss may be guilty, but I think he’s innocent.

During a 81-51 loss at Roanoke, the Wasps got great contributions from freshman Kayla Blackstock and sophomore Baylie Snyder who each scored 13 points in the loss.

Blackstock has found a rhythm from outside, hitting 9 of 14 from 3-point range over the last three games. She has also averaged 10.3 points per game over that period of time, adding considerably to the Wasps’ point production.

On Jan. 18, Blackstock came off the bench to score 12 points on 4-6 shooting from 3-point range to spark a late run that got the Wasps back into a game many thought they were out of.

Though they lost the game 71-56, two players were in double figures (Blackstock and Snyder with 10), and one player was on the cusp of having a double-double (Alex Lyons with 9 points and 9 rebounds).

Though the Wasps have lost three straight, they are 4-10 (3-7), and on Jan. 15, the team beat Hollins University by 52 points.

Unfortunately for the Lady Wasps, their poor play in the first half has been dooming their chances to come back in the second half of play.

Even with the fantastic runs that Wasps have put on lately in the second half, they must get much better point production in the first half to stay competitive.

Part of that comes with experience, some comes with luck and some comes with finding consistent scorers. Whatever the Wasps do, they must do a better job of holding onto the ball. Turnovers have plagued the Wasps all season long, and correcting the problem would go a long way towards winning.

The Wasps now have two players in double figures, with Baylie Snyder leading the team at 10.5 points per game and Sarah Petty trailing just behind with 10 points per game.

The Wasps travel to Randolph on Sat., Jan. 29 and finish out their non-conference schedule with a game against Salem College at home.

The date, Jan. 19, 2008, was recognized for the former E&H men’s basketball coach who was forced to retire earlier this year after 27 years on the sideline.

The court in the King Center was named Bob Johnson Court during halftime to commemorate the coaching career of Johnson and the impact he has made on E&H basketball.

“The things like enthusiasm and fire, which we lacked the previous games, we had at the Guilford game. The main reason for that is that it was Coach Johnson’s day,” Junior guard Camillo Weinz said.

“We were all fired up before we even got to the gym and everybody was ready to go from the start,” Weinz said.

Weinz exploded for 35 points on 11-27 shooting from 3-point range. Weinz also broke the record for 3-pointers in a career at E&H midway through the game. The record now stands at 196, and he’ll have over a year to improve on that number if he can prevent one of his colleagues from getting it.

Despite Weinz’s good shooting, Guilford had a stellar performance itself from senior post player Ben Strong. Strong had 39 points on 14-17 shooting and also tallied 15 rebounds, 5 blocks and 2 assists. Strong also went 11-17 from the free throw line.

J.D. Dyson continued his stellar play, finishing with 11 points and 6 assists in only 19 minutes of play. Robert Hudson also had 22 for the Wasps on 6-17 shooting from 3-point land. Senior Shavar Bland also had a good day, scoring 12 points on 4-11 shooting from three.

They are now 4-9 (0-6) and will travel to Eastern Mennonite and Bridgewater on January 26 and 27 before returning home to play Lynchburg on January 30.