Sports
April 13, 2023
2023 Maple Leaf Awards
Three years ago, The Record began an annual tradition of honoring the best of Goshen College’s athletic department. Staff of The Record voted on each of these categories, recognizing our Maple Leafs for their hard work on the field. Congratulations to all winners and nominees! Athlete of the year: Nelson Kemboi This year, Kemboi was named All-American in Cross Country for the third consecutive year after his performance at the NAIA National Championships. In Track and Field, he was named All-American on the third day of the NAIA Indoor Championships. He now holds four All-American titles. The junior also broke...
March 30, 2023
Volleyball ends with a win
On Saturday, the Goshen College men’s volleyball team closed out their season with a win against Lawrence Technological University. The Leafs defeated Lawrence Tech in a 3-1 victory. The team started off strong, taking an early lead and winning the first set 25-18. The next set was closer, as GC allowed Lawrence Tech to trail by just a few points for the entire set, but the Leafs still managed to close out the set 25-23. The Leafs held a tight lead for most of the third set, but Lawrence Tech took charge and scored three consecutive points to close out...
March 30, 2023
Track and field moves outside
Last Saturday, the men’s and women’s track and field teams traveled to Cedarville, Ohio to compete in the Yellow Jacket Collegiate Open. The Leafs’ day began early with a 5:00 a.m. departure from Goshen. The weather conditions were less than ideal for an outdoor meet, as the team faced winds of 29 mph and gusts up to 54 mph. Additionally, there was a lightning strike near Cedarville University facility that caused the meet to be delayed by an hour and a half. For the women’s track team, freshman Mady Axsom tied for fourth in the high jump with a height...
March 23, 2023
Tennis opens spring with victory
Last Saturday, the Goshen College men’s and women’s tennis teams started off their spring season with a win. The teams traveled to Terre Haute, Indiana where they competed against Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. The teams competed indoors, since the temperature was in the low 20s. The men competed with a full lineup of six, while the women went in short-handed with four players, since three players were unable to compete. Meaghan Godzisz starts her serve. Photo contributed by Justin DeWeese Despite having to forfeit courts, the women still pulled ahead, beating Rose-Hulman 5-4. The men won as well, coming away...
March 23, 2023
Softball continues strong start
For the first time since 2001, the Goshen College softball team won their first four conference games. Before Tuesday’s games against Marian University, the Leafs were on a seven-game winning streak and unbeaten in conference play. The Leafs dropped two close games to the Knights, who are ranked No. 23 in the nation, but still hold a conference record of 4-2 and an overall record of 12-7. Sitting at fourth in the Crossroads League, the Leafs are behind only teams that are either receiving votes or nationally ranked. In early March, the Leafs traveled to Florida. When they arrived, they...
March 16, 2023
Athletics mid-season check-in
Now that Goshen College students have returned from spring break, spring sports are fully underway, with many teams reaching critical points in their seasons. Here’s a look into what they’ve accomplished so far, as well as what’s to come. The softball team is currently on a five-game win streak, after finishing up their spring break trip in Florida with three wins and two more yesterday against Bethel. They are currently 10-5 after the doubleheader victories. Neither game was close: The Leafs trounced the Pilots by 9-3 and 16-5 to put them at two wins and zero losses in conference play....
March 16, 2023
Men’s volleyball moves forward
The Goshen College men’s volleyball team is heading into the final stretch of the regular season. There are five games left and three of them are against nationally ranked teams. They currently have a record of 6-10 and a conference record of 4-9. The Leafs are also 5-4 when playing at home. The Leafs played two spring break games at home, one against Cornerstone University and one against Aquinas College. The game against Cornerstone, a team that is receiving votes in the national poll, was lost 3-1. Hasan Hadzik, a junior, led the team with 16 kills and eight digs....
February 23, 2023
Phillips named new women’s volleyball coach
Last Monday, Jeff Phillips was announced as the new head coach of the Goshen College women’s volleyball team. Phillips is the 12th head coach in the program’s history. Previously, he coached on-and- off at Wawasee High School, where he had a winning record of 146-119 across the span of seven years. He served in coaching positions at two other northern Indiana schools, spending two years at Warsaw High School and one year at Tippecanoe Valley High School. Phillips was also a head coach at Empowered Volleyball Club in Fort Wayne, Indiana and program coach for the Outland Volleyball Club. Additionally,...
February 23, 2023
Frustration yet progress: Basketball ends
Both the men’s and women’s 2022-2023 basketball seasons have come to a close. The men finished with a record of 3-25 and the women finished 7-21. Micah Spatt, center, led the Leafs in celebrations this year. Ashly Christison//The Record The leading scorer on the men’s team was senior Elias Ramirez, with a total of 367 points, averaging 13.1 points per game (PPG). Kaden Johnson, a freshman, led the team in rebounds and blocks with 214 and 24, respectively and averaged 7.9 boards a game. Johnson’s season high was 16 rebounds against Marian on Jan. 7. Greg Johnson II, a sophomore,...
February 16, 2023
Track preps for conference
The men’s and women’s track and field teams will be traveling to Indiana Wesleyan University (IWU) to compete in the Crossroads League Indoor Championships on Friday and Saturday. The last two weeks have been full of success — including breaking a school record. On Feb. 4, the Leafs competed at Indiana Wesleyan in the IWU Midwest Classic. The meet started off well for the Maple Leafs, with a National ‘A’ Standard by the women’s 4×800 relay. Juniors Summer Cooper and Mia Wellington, sophomore Stephany Claudio and freshman Britney Ortega ran a combined time of 9:43.28. This time earned them third...
February 16, 2023
Softball starts slow, but wins at home
The Goshen College softball team kicked off their season last Friday with a double-header in Brighton, Michigan. The Leafs’ day was marked with fast pitchers and hard hitters. They first competed against Concordia University of Michigan, which defeated the Leafs in a 8-0 shutout. The second game yielded similar results, with the Leafs falling to Lawrence Tech University (LTU) 4-0. In the first matchup against Concordia, GC’s freshman starter Esme Pico struck out the final batter of the first inning, keeping the game scoreless going into the second. Concordia rebounded quickly, though, scoring two in the inning. Another source...
February 2, 2023
Track teams ‘want a national standard’
The men’s and women’s track and field teams competed in the 2023 Hillsdale Wide Track Classic on Jan. 28. This is the third meet of the year heading into the middle of the season. In the previous meet, Nelson Kemboi, a junior, hit the national “A” standard in the 3,000 meter race with a time of 8:37.58. Summer Cooper, also a junior, hit the national “A” standard in the mile with a time of 5:06.98. Freshman Madison “Mady” Axom jumped a height of 1.62 meters (5 feet 3.75 inches). This jump tied the school record and earned her third place....
February 2, 2023
Men’s basketball triumphs over the Trojans
Goshen College men’s basketball team played a conference game at home against the Taylor Trojans on Jan. 26. The game was scheduled for the night prior but was postponed due to inclement weather. Earlier in the season, the Maple Leafs fell to the Trojans 59-79 in Upland, IN. Before Thursday, the Leafs had not beaten the Trojans since 2019, in a game led by Judah Simfukwe with 14 points and Kaden Johnson, who had nine rebounds and six assists. The Leafs started the game behind the Trojans by 4-5, but then went on a 10-0 run, leading the game 14-5....
January 26, 2023
Softball Swings into Preseason
The Goshen College softball team will debut their 2023 season on Feb. 10. This season, the Leafs are under the direction of Luke Wagner, who took over the position of head coach in August 2022. Wagner previously coached at Rhodes College, an NCAA Division III institute in Memphis, Tennessee, for 11 seasons. During his time there, he racked up the most wins of any coach in the program, with 217 wins and a 58.8% win percentage. Wagner is also pushing his teams toward academic success. Over Wagner’s years at Rhodes College, his teams earned “Top 100” GPA status, an award...
January 26, 2023
Women’s basketball bouncing back
The Goshen College women’s basketball team is more than halfway through the season, and they have their eyes set on the Crossroads League tournament. This season started off strong with the team winning their first three games, but it eventually slowed down. During winter break, the Leafs went 1-7, but the team culture remains unbreakable. Head coach Stephanie Miller described the team as feeling “frustrated but hopeful.” “I am so proud of this group for the way they are being resilient during a difficult time,” said Miller. “This group is doing a really good job of just understanding that it’s...