Who knows why the date November 1st is so important?! Common answers may include: the month before Christmas, the month of Thanksgiving, or the mid-way mark of the Fall Semester. However, for athletes here at Trinity College, November 1st has an entirely different significance. The anticipated first day of practice!!! November marks the beginning of Men’s Basketball, Women’s Basketball, Men’s Hockey, Women’s Hockey, Swimming and Diving, Squash, and Indoor Track. Her Campus caught up with some of the captains of the upcoming 2015-2016 season to give our readers a preview of all the great games to come!!
Our Men’s Basketball team has quite the reputation to uphold after last years performance. After a record of 23-7 and making an appearance in the NCAA tournament Elite Eight, captains Jaquann Starks, Shay Ajayi, Andrew Hurd, and Rick Naylor have their work cut out for them. Keep an eye on the Bants as they expect to come back even stronger than last year! We’re hoping for another packed gym and home playoff game!!
The Women’s Basketball team is looking to bounce back from a tough season last year and has just the personnel to do so! Lead by senior captains Mackenzie Griffin, Christina Raiti, Alexa Menard, and Melanie Mills, the Bantams are looking to make a far run in the NESCAC tournament this year. These seniors are not going down without a fight.
Next up, the Women’s’ Hockey team looks to repeat last season and win another NESCAC championship. The team is looking forward to their new coach Keith Maurice from Ohio State University. They are looking just as strong as last year and will be led by captain Shannon Farrell and co-captains Brooke Heron and Emma Tani.
Don’t forget about the sport in the water! The swimming and diving team will be led by Nick Celestine, Carle Gibney, Doug Curtain, and Kate Barlok. This year the Bantams hired a new assistant Patrick McDevitt who may be the new spark they need. After losing a few seniors, Trinity is eager to pick it up for the first meet at Trinity on November 21!
A team always on top here at Trinity that expects nothing less than perfection this year is Squash. The Men’s team won the national championship last year and has full intentions of winning a back-to-back title. The women had an equally impressive season finishing second and they’re chasing after a chip as well. Captains Kanzy El Defrawy, Sachika Balvani, Juan Vargas, and Affeeq Abedeen, have no intentions of finishing anything short of on top this winter season.
Track and Field, led by Abbey Schlangen, Abbie Barrett, Hoagie Hoagland, and Geoff Bocobo, intend to build upon last years’ successes. They finished 12th at the New England Division III Indoor Championships and 22nd at the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III Indoor Championships. Great job Bantams. We look forward to hearing about more successes this upcoming year.
Last but CERTAINLY not least, in fact, maybe saving the best for last, is Men’s Hockey. Last year the Bantams were National Champions and this year we expect nothing less. Captains Ellie Vered, Sam Johnson, and Nathaniel Heilbron are not messing around this year with a title on the line to defend. How cool would it be to make history twice?!
Stay tuned to see how this winter season plays out!!!