Athletics

Rob Borman, Wesleyan’s grounds manager, watched as Wesleyan and Emerson’s soccer teams went through warmups on a beautiful late summer day. It was warm and the sun shined as the players went through passing drills and stretched on the perfect turf. Emerson’s players shouted through their drills. Wesleyan’s goalies bounded from side to side as they practiced knocking away shots on goal. Borman, though, wasn’t looking at the players. He was checking out his brand-new field, installed in May. “That is 100 percent Kentucky bluegrass,” he said. “The ball should roll awesome.” For the first time in two years, Jackson…

Peter “Kosty” Kostacopoulos, adjunct professor of physical education, emeritus, and former head baseball coach and assistant football coach, passed away on March 25 at the age of 86. Kosty earned his BS from the University of Maine, where he lettered in football, basketball, and baseball, and made the All-Maine Conference in football and basketball. After coaching at Bowdoin for nine years, he arrived at Wesleyan in 1968. He served as head baseball coach for 28 years and assistant football coach for 19 years. He also served as a head squash coach during this time. Kosty led the Cardinals to 11…

This month, the Wesleyan Student-Athlete of Color Leadership Council (SACLC) released its "The Battle is Worth It" video with the Wesleyan community. The video, which was produced by Wesleyan's Video Services team, features athletes from SACLC who aim to bring awareness to their work and support other athletes of color. SACLC aims to build a safe, more diverse environment, which will enhance the athletic experiences of student-athletes of color throughout all Wesleyan sports teams. Programs and services are developed with the intention of implementing a system that establishes a social network amongst athletes of color, promotes solidarity, and encourages discourse…

Men’s basketball player Shackylle Dezonie ’22 was 11 years old when African American high school student Trayvon Martin was killed in a gated community while visiting family in Sanford, Fla. “It’s been a recurring cycle ever since,” Dezonie said. “Philando Castile, Tamir Rice, Eric Garner, Breonna Taylor, Sandra Bland, and unfortunately the list goes on. Now, with the murder of George Floyd, I can only hope that this time there will be a different outcome, and we can get justice for these families that have been affected by these unjust killings.” Seeing a need for action, Dezonie and three of…

Wesleyan Athletics is hosting its fourth annual “Be The Match” Marrow Donor Drive. This year the drive will be held virtually. What is Be The Match? For the thousands of people diagnosed every year with life-threatening blood cancers or diseases like leukemia and lymphoma, a cure exists. These patients can receive blood stem cells as a cure. Unfortunately, 70% of patients cannot find a match within their family and therefore look to the Be The Match registry for that life-saving match. Over the past 25 years, Be The Match has managed the largest and most diverse marrow donor registry in…

On May 21, the Wesleyan University Athletic Department hosted a virtual event to honor and celebrate the accomplishments of scholar-athletes. The ceremony combined the annual Scholar-Athlete Banquet with the end-of-the-year Senior Awards presentations. It was hosted by Director of Athletics Mike Whalen '83 and featured remarks from President Michael Roth '78. Several coaches presented individual awards to the student-athletes. Hockey goalie Tim Sestak '20 and women's soccer defender Mackenzie Mitchell '20 were the recipients of the Roger Maynard Memorial Awards, which are presented annually to the Wesleyan male and female scholar-athlete who best exemplifies the spirit, accomplishments, and humility of Roger…

Despite graduating from Wesleyan with degrees in fields such as economics or psychology, several Wes alumni went on to pursue jobs in sports and athletics. While some became professional athletes on nationally-recognized teams, others delved into coaching, refereeing, sports reporting, and team management. In this "Best of Wes" article, read about Wes alumni who turned their love of the game into a lifelong passion and career. We'll include another Alumni in Sports feature next week! (Interested in other Wesleyan-themed lists? Check out our previous “Best of Wes” pieces.) In March 2020, Rob King ’84 was named vice president and editor-at-large…

Wesleyan's Athletic Department is celebrating student athletes' recent achievements and is honoring members of the Class of 2020. They include: Men’s Lacrosse Senior Day Women’s Lacrosse Senior Day Six Men’s Lacrosse Players Named Maverik DIII Media All-Americans Wrestling Earns Several All-NEWA Awards Walker Harris '20 Named Third Team All-American Walker Harris '20 Honored with Joe Concannon Award Field Hockey Places Nation-Leading 25 on NFHCA National Academic Team

Wesleyan's winter athletic teams put a total of 80 student-athletes on the 2019–20 New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Winter All-Academic Team, while eight earned a spot on the 2019–20 NESCAC All-Sportsmanship Team. In order to earn a spot on the All-Academic Team, a student-athlete must have reached sophomore academic standing and be a varsity letter winner with a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.50 or equivalent on a 4.0 scale. Transfer students are eligible as long as they have completed at least one year of study at the institution. Wesleyan ranked seventh out of 11 schools with…

On March 8, the men’s hockey team celebrated its first-ever NESCAC Championship with a 7-2 victory over Trinity College. Although the win secured the league’s automatic bid into the 2020 NCAA Tournament, NCAA President Mark Emmert and the Board of Governors decided to cancel all remaining winter championships as well as the spring sports season across all divisions (I, II, and III). Wesleyan had several winter sports scheduled to compete in their respective NCAA Championships, including men’s hockey, which are affected by this news. The Cardinals scored seven goals in just over 30 minutes of action, erasing an early deficit…

On Feb. 14, the Wesleyan University wrestling team added its newest member to the team as 14-year old Amar Champlin of Team IMPACT signed his National Letter of Intent. "It is a great day to be a Cardinal," said head coach Drew Black. "And it is a great day to be Amar and have him and his family join our team. We are all very excited as we added a great Cardinal to the program." Amar is in the eighth grade and hails from Old Saybrook, Conn. He loves sports, especially wrestling. "To be a Cardinal, you need to be…

On Jan. 25, Wesleyan Athletics held its fifth annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day Clinic. More than 130 local girls—from kindergarten to sixth grade—participated in this free event. Several coaches from women's teams and student-athletes taught the clinic and introduced the girls to softball, soccer, field hockey, rowing, track, tennis, and more. "Our female student-athletes did a fantastic job in being role models for our local youths," said Christine Kemp, head field hockey coach and assistant strength and conditioning coach. "The girls had a blast and had the opportunity to try out a number of sports all morning."…

Student-Athletes Return to Regular Play Following 2-Year Hiatus

Kostacopoulos Remembered for Being Wesleyan’s Winningest Coach

Student-Athletes of Color Bring Awareness to Their Work Through New Video

Men’s Basketball Creates Athletes Taking Action to Support Black Lives Matter

Wesleyan Athletics Hosts Virtual Marrow Donor Drive

Scholar-Athletes, Seniors Honored for 2019–20 Accomplishments

Best of Wes: Alumni in Sports

Student Athletes Celebrated, Honored

NESCAC Announces Winter All-Academic, All-Sportsmanship Honorees

Hockey Wins First-Ever NESCAC Championship

Wrestling Team Drafts 14-Year-Old of Team IMPACT

Athletics Hosts 5th Annual Women in Sports Clinic for Area Girls