athletics – Page 7

Wesleyan's men's basketball won the Little Three Title with a thrilling 73-72 overtime victory on the road against No. 8 Amherst College on Feb. 7. Jordan Bonner '19 knocked down a three-point buzzer-beater to send the game into overtime, and then hit the game-winning free throws to help guide the team to victory in non-conference action. With the win, the Cardinals snapped Amherst's 32-game home winning streak and claimed the Little Three title outright. The Cardinals, who shared the Little Three title with Amherst a year ago, won it outright for the first time since the 1990-91 season and the 15th…

Bill Belichick ’75, head coach of the New England Patriots, will lead his team to the Super Bowl on Feb. 5 against the Atlanta Falcons. The Super Bowl is the National Football League’s annual championship game. Belichick’s team has never lost to the Falcons, in fact, in his four games against Atlanta since 2000, he’s 4-0. Beginning his NFL career as an assistant coach with the Baltimore Colts in 1975, Belichick moved to the Detroit Lions in 1976, remaining there for two seasons before spending a year in the Denver Broncos organization before moving on the the New York Giants…

On Jan. 20, the Wesleyan men's ice hockey team welcomed its newest member to the team, 9-year-old Connor Albert from Team IMPACT. In April 2016, Connor was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma, a type of cancer that starts in the bones. The issues, however, started in January 2016 when a small limp continued to get worse. One day, while playing basketball, Connor fell on his hip and the pain increased drastically. Doctors found a tumor in his hip, which they thought was benign, until four different biopsies concluded it was bone cancer. He underwent hip replacement surgery in the fall and is…

Former men's head basketball coach Herb Kenny will be inducted to the Middletown Sports Hall of Fame on Jan. 26. The Middletown Sports Hall of Fame and Museum was created to honor the numerous outstanding athletes and other sports-minded individuals, and to preserve the deep and rich history of sports in the life of the City of Middletown. Kenny, an adjunct professor of physical education, emeritus, coached the Cardinals from 1968-1995 and ended his career with a 312-280 record. Kenny was known for his intense coaching style and intricate offenses. To honor Kenny for his 27 years of coaching, Wesleyan annually…

The 2016 Wesleyan University fall athletic season featured several strong performances and achievements, both on the field and off it. Sixty-eight Cardinals earned New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) All-Academic and 16 were named NESCAC All-Conference. In team sports, football, volleyball and women's crew highlighted the fall for the Cardinals. The Wesleyan football team finished with a 6-2 overall record and claimed the Little Three title for the second time in the past four seasons, and 14th time in program history, with a 20-0 win over Amherst College and a 59-14 rout of Williams College. The 45-point margin of…

The Wesleyan women's soccer team hosted a free kids' soccer clinic on Nov. 12 for ages 5-13 to benefit the Amazing Grace Food Pantry in Middletown. The event called Kicking4Hunger encouraged area children to donate a non-perishable food item in exchange for the free clinic. Around 25 kids from the Middletown area attended and were taught the basic skills of soccer — passing, dribbling, shooting — by members of the team. Senior captain Carly Swenson '17 spearheaded the second annual event, along with former player Tess Daggett-Edenholm. Swenson and Daggett-Edenholm started a program on campus called Athletes C.A.R.E (Creating Abundant…

The Wesleyan women's crew team continues to excel as the Cardinals finished first out of 28 boats from Division I, II and III programs at the 52nd Annual Head of the Charles Oct. 23 in Cambridge, Mass. Wesleyan's Varsity 8 boat finished in 18:04.538, almost a full second ahead of the second-place boat and nearly four seconds ahead of the third-place boat. The crew consisted of Sarah Osborn '19, Clara Babbott-Ward '20, Emma Halter '17, Allison Quintana '19, Annalee Holmdahl '17, Rachelle Flowers '19, Amanda Molitor '18 and Ava Miller-Lewis '17 and coxswain Rachael Crunkleton '20. Ithaca College finished in…

The rain couldn't dampen the Wesleyan spirit at Homecoming and Middletown Day 2016! On Oct. 21-22, more than 2,000 alumni, students, families and members of the Middletown community flocked to campus with umbrellas and hoodies to participate in team tailgating, campus tours, alumni meetings, family activities and five athletic contests. The highlight of Homecoming was a 20-0 football win over Little Three rival Amherst on Oct. 22.

On Sept. 10, Wesleyan's football team welcomed its newest member to the program, 10-year old Michael from Team IMPACT. Michael, from Cromwell, Conn., was born with an immune dysfunction and is blind in one eye. He also suffers from cardiac issues, developmental delays and cognitive impairments. Michael started speaking at 4 1/2 years old and took his first step at 2 1/2. He now walks independently and has scoliosis in his spine. Because of his immune deficiency, he is very susceptible to getting sick. Partnering with Team IMPACT, whose focus is to improve the quality of life for children facing life-threatening…

Wesleyan, in partnership with PrestoSports, has launched a new athletics' website, http://athletics.wesleyan.edu. The platform will serve as the home for all news, information, scores and schedules for the college's 29 varsity athletics teams. PrestoSports has crafted a website that features not only a modern look, but also improved fan amenities. The website host has designed and built over 2,000 successful websites for college athletics, conferences, high schools and other sports organizations. The new website will provide fans, parents, alumni and media with easy access to game stories, press releases, video features, live statistics, photos and email sign-up, as well as…

The list of athletes who ran on Elmer Swanson's teams over the 30 years he served as Wesleyan's track and cross-country coach "reads like a 'Who's Who' in elite running," observed Hartford Courant Sports Columnist Lori Riley. She remembered Swanson, who died Aug. 12, at the age of 92, in an piece rich with comments from some of his well known—and fleet-footed —alumni. Riley's roundup notes: "He coached [Amby] Burfoot [’68], who won the Boston Marathon in 1968, his senior year, and went on to become the editor of Runners World magazine. He coached Bill Rodgers [’70], who won four Boston marathons and…

The 2016 Memorial Day Weekend was a historic one for Wesleyan athletics as women’s tennis player Eudice Chong ’18 defended her crown as the NCAA Division III Individual Singles Champion, and the women’s crew team captured a bronze medal in the Varsity 8 Grand Final at the NCAA Division III Rowing Championships.

Men’s Basketball Wins Little Three Title

New England Patriots Coach Belichick ’75 Leads Team to Super Bowl

Men’s Hockey Drafts 9-Year-Old Connor from Team IMPACT

Coach Kenny Inducted into Middletown Sports Hall of Fame

Football, Volleyball, Women’s Crew Victories Highlight the Fall Cardinal Sports Season

Women’s Soccer Hosts Clinic to Benefit Local Food Pantry

Women’s Crew Claims First Place Victory at Head of the Charles Regatta

Football 20-0 Win Highlight of 2016 Homecoming (with Photo Gallery)

Wesleyan Football Drafts 10-Year-Old Michael from Team IMPACT

Wesleyan Launches New Athletics Website

Swanson Called Wesleyan Coach of Running Elite

Wesleyan Celebrates Historic Memorial Day Weekend for Women’s Tennis, Crew