How will an extra NESCAC game affect the Hamilton Football season?
Last spring, the presidents of the 10 NESCAC schools approved a change to the conference’s football schedule that increased the number of games NESCAC teams would play from eight to nine, effective for the 2017 fall football season. NESCAC teams will alternate between playing four and five home games every year; Hamilton will start with four home and five away games this season. Last season the Continentals finished just under the .500 mark with a 3–5 overall record. The 2016 season was highlighted by a 26–25 win over Bowdoin at Steuben Field on a last minute five-yard rushing touchdown by quarterback Kenny Gray ’20, and a dominant performance in the 24–7 victory in the season finale over the Bates Bobcats where Marcus Gutierrez ’18 rushed for 118 yards and two touchdowns. The Continentals will kick off their season on Sept. 18 against the lone NESCAC team they did not play in the 2016 campaign, the Tufts Jumbos, at the notoriously raucous Zimman Field in Medford, Massachusetts. The added NESCAC game will replace the annual preseason scrimmage (recently against Cornell University), limiting the amount of preseason game-speed reps available to the Continentals. Hamilton will need to be prepared to take on a conference power a week earlier than usual, but with a key returning core of program veterans, the Continentals look poised to improve upon a solid 2016 season.
How will new head coach Melissa Mariano replace all-American void for Hamilton Field Hockey?
Change is abundant at Hamilton heading into the 2017 field hockey season. Melissa Mariano will take over the reigns as head coach for the field hockey team after a wildly successful nine-year stint at Franklin & Marshall College, where she led the Diplomats to the NCAA tournament five times and achieved a National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) number one ranking in 2013. Mariano takes over one of Hamilton’s most successful sports programs in a field hockey team that finished second in the NESCAC with a 12–5 overall record and was consistently ranked in the top 20 in the NFHCA polls throughout 2016. The 2017 Continentals will lean on 2016 NFHCA third team All-American goalie Julia Booth ’19 to build upon last year’s success, but have lost a vital piece in two-time second team All-American Eva Rosencrans ’17, last season’s leading goal scorer and second highest point getter. Forward Michaela Giuttari ’20 proved herself as a budding star by leading the Continentals in points, but will need support from sophomores Tatiana Bradley ’20 and Sarah Stinebaugh ’20 to replace Rosencrans’ impact up front. The 2017 season looks very promising for a talented and motivated Hamilton squad.
Will the Hamilton Men’s cross country team be able to return to the NCAA Division III National Championship in 2017?
Hamilton’s men’s cross country team has seen immense success over the past two years, with Henry Whipple ’18 representing the Continentals at Nationals last year following a team berth to the top NCAA DIvision III meet in 2015. The Continentals will bring back much of last year’s impressive squad that finished seventh in the 2016 Atlantic Region Men’s Cross Country Championship, narrowly missing out on earning an at-large bid to nationals. Whipple will lead a strong senior class including Peter DeWeirdt ’18, Andrew Sinclair ’18 and Erich Wohl ’18. Veteran experience is complemented by the promising young talent of Bryce Murdick ’20, Colin Horgan ’19 and Jake Colangelo ’20. Hamilton will play host on Sept. 9 for the Hamilton Short Course meet, an early season tune-up to start 2017’s campaign to punch tickets to Elsah, Illinois for DIII Nationals. The Continentals hope to capitalize on their depth to compete with the giants of the Atlantic Region later this fall to return to the NCAA National Championship, this year as a full team.
Can Men’s Soccer replicate its success?
After missing the playoffs in the 2014 and 2015 seasons, the men’s soccer team rebounded in 2016 to not only make the playoffs but advance to the NESCAC title game. Hamilton finished tied for fourth in the conference in the regular season, the program’s highest finish since joining the conference, which earned the Continentals their first home playoff game since entering the NESCAC in 2011. This year’s team looks to build on the success from last season but will have to find replacements for five of its starters who were lost to graduation. Two of Hamilton’s top three point scorers, co-captain Mike Lubelczyk ’17 and Alex Cadet ’17 graduated, along with starting goalkeeper, Harris Pollack ’17, co-captain Alec Talsania ’17 and defender Spenser Heller ’17. Look for Matt Casadei ’19, Aidan Wood ’20 and Rowan Myers ’19 to lead the Continentals up top, while the second-leading point scorer on the 2016 team, Jefri Schmidt ’20, along with fellow midfielders Killian Clancy ’18 and Greg Milnarik ’19 figure to feature prominently as well. Eli Lichtman ’18, Quinn O’Malley ’18, and 2016 NESCAC Rookie of the Year Luke Eckels ’20 look to anchor the defense while Pete Calleri ’18 and Linds Cadwell ’20 look to compete, along with potential newcomers, for time in goal. In conference play in 2016, Hamilton was tied for fourth in both goals scored and goal against and looks to improve on both marks this season. While the team lost some key contributors, its young core hopes to demonstrate that the 2016 success was no fluke and that Hamilton is here to stay near the top of the NESCAC in men’s soccer.
Will new coach produce immediate success for Volleyball?
Like the field hockey team, the volleyball team has a new head coach. Unlike the field hockey team, the volleyball team has not had success of late, missing the NESCAC playoffs in each of the past two seasons. New head coach Kristin Baker, who spent the past eight years as an assistant coach for Colgate University’s volleyball team, hopes to turn the tides and make an immediate impact on the program. While the coach is new, the team is not, as the Continentals graduated just one senior. Hamilton’s experience will be a key asset for the team and should help speed the coaching transition as almost all of the team’s leadership remains intact from a player’s perspective. Giuliana Rankin ’20 and Erin Donahue ’18 led the team in kills, with 189 and 188 respectively, and figure to play key roles again this season for Hamilton on offense. Setters Kyndal Burdin ’18 and Meghan Wilkinson ’19 accounted for over 90% of Hamilton’s assists in 2016 and hope to build on their success, while Christine Zizzi ’18 and Kendall Searcy ’20 registered the most digs. First-year coaches often have difficulty obtaining success but, by inheriting a veteran team, Baker is well-positioned to see immediate gains on the court. In a conference where eight of eleven teams make the playoffs, anything can happen. The Continentals open their season on Sept. 8 at the University of Rochester.
Can Women’s Soccer break into the top of the NESCAC?
Having finished the past two regular seasons in eighth place in the NESCAC and losing in the quarterfinals to top-seeded Williams, the women’s soccer team looks to break out in 2017 and ascend to the top of the NESCAC and advance in the playoffs. While the Continentals lost a few key contributors to graduation, notably Morgan Fletcher ’17, Bea Blackwell ’17 and Ali Clarke ’17, much of the roster remains intact. The four-leading point scorers from 2016, Kate Whiston ’18 (3 goals), Amanda Becker ’18 (2 goals, 1 assist), Jessie Murray ’19 (1 goal, 3 assists) and Katja Dunlap ’18 (2 goals), all return. Cassie Hayward ’19, Katie McKillop ’19 and Kristin Hughes ’20 all return to bolster a defense which goalkeeper Emily Dumont ’18 anchors. Hamilton had the conference’s ninth-best offense in 2016 and its eighth-ranked defense, and, if it wants to jump to the conference’s top tier, must improve its production from both units. The top teams in the conference, namely Williams and Amherst, are very good and compete for national titles every year. Williams won the 2015 Division III Championship and was the runner-up in 2014. Being able to compete with, and ultimately defeat, these teams is no small task, and the Continentals have a lot of work ahead of them in order to do so. The addition of new recruits figures to bolster the team as several first-years have contributed immediately on the field for Hamilton in the past few years. Nonetheless, the Continentals’ playmakers must step up; strong leadership is essential if they want to host a playoff game and advance in the playoffs.
