men’s basketball
October 29, 2026
Men’s basketball: onward and upward
As the Goshen College men’s basketball team prepares for the upcoming season, Dwight Gingerich, the head coach and athletic director, is focused on improvement, team chemistry and building on the experience gained last year. Finishing 9-19 overall last year and 2-16 in the conference, they are looking for improvement in both areas. Gingerich said one of the team’s biggest goals is to improve every day at practice while continuing the progress the team made last season. They have several returning players, so he believes that the team is in a better position at the beginning of this season than last...
March 13, 2025
Capps out, Bowen named interim
On Wednesday, Goshen College announced Erik Bowen as the interim head coach of the men’s basketball team. The move comes a week after the athletic department relieved Kyle Capps of his coaching duties with the men’s basketball team on March 5. In an email sent to players at the time, Chad Coleman, interim athletic director, said, “This was a difficult decision, and I appreciate the time and effort [Capps] has given to our program.” Capps was the head coach for three seasons, after serving under former head coach Jon Tropf as an assistant and then associate coach, from 2020-22....
March 5, 2025
Capps fired after three seasons
The Goshen College athletic department fired Kyle Capps on Wednesday morning. Capps was the head coach of the men’s basketball team. Capps was the head coach for three seasons, and posted a record of 8-76 across his entire tenure. During the 23-24 season his squad went 0-28. In the Crossroads League, he finished his career 1-53 – the lone win came against Taylor University on Jan 26, 2023, when the Maple Leafs won 72 – 65. GC finished last in the conference every year Capps was at the helm. His career winning percentage of .095 ranks lowest among all former...
November 3, 2024
‘Unity’ the goal for men’s basketball
After going winless in their 2023–24 campaign, the Goshen College men’s basketball team is looking for better results with a revamped roster. With 10 transfers, one freshman and seven returners, the team is older and looking to take advantage of that this year. When asked about the roster reset, Judah Simfukwe, a junior player returning for his third season, said, “It’s a great opportunity. I know last year we were super young, so we have [10] transfers or so that are juniors and seniors. So they bring a lot of basketball, a lot of playing time to our team, which...
January 18, 2024
Men’s basketball faces a difficult Crossroads
The Goshen men’s basketball team lost to Taylor 79-71 this past Saturday, falling to 0-17 this season. Karson Jenkins led the Maple Leafs with 27 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double, also dishing out a team-leading 4 assists. Isaac Miller, Judah Simfukwe and Marcus Northern contributed 10 points each, with Kevin Cota adding 8 points and 8 rebounds. Despite the loss, Jenkins felt positive about the team’s effort. “We fought hard; we played together,” he said. “We played one of our better games of the season, and… we have a young team. As we get more experienced… we’ll be...
November 2, 2023
New faces on men’s basketball
The men’s basketball team opened their season in Winona Lake, Indiana, at the Lancer Tipoff Classic against Madonna University. They fell to the Crusaders 81-61, with sophomore Karson Jenkins leading the team with 22 points and 6 rebounds. The following day they played Kentucky Christian University, where they lost 77-76. The team was marshaled by Judah Simfukwe, a returning sophomore, who scored a career-high 27 points. Jenkins picked up 14 points and 4 rebounds, and freshman Kevin Cota led with 7 boards. The Maple Leafs were ahead of KCU 37-33 going to the half. In the second half, the Leafs...
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 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....
November 3, 2022
Basketball begins season looking for growth
College basketball returned to Goshen last weekend, as the Goshen College women’s basketball team won two games at the Ruth Gunden Memorial Classic while the men fell to the University of Northwestern Ohio. “We sure are energized, and we’ve got a lot of talent,” said Stephanie Miller, the women’s head coach, after the Goshen team’s 75-68 comeback victory over William Jessup University, a private California school. “We’re very young,” Miller said, “and you can see that. We’re making a lot of mistakes…we’re not really 100% sure about anything. I think it’s just gonna take some time for us to really...
February 25, 2022
Men’s and women’s basketball seasons come to an end
The Goshen College men’s and women’s basketball teams battled against Bethel University at home on Saturday in the annual US Highway 20 Cup. The women’s team came out on top, winning 108-98, whereas the men’s team fell short, finishing the last game of their season 63-84. On Tuesday, the women’s team also wrapped up their season after losing to Indiana Wesleyan University in the conference tournament. “I was disappointed in the result tonight and felt like we are a much better team than we showed out there,” said Stephanie Miller, the women’s basketball coach, after the Tuesday game. “But what...
October 28, 2021
Men’s and women’s basketball preview
The Maple Leaf Men’s and Women’s Basketball teams both tipped off their 2021-2022 season against Andrews University this week. The men’s team has added three freshmen and three transfers to their roster after finishing 3-24 a season ago. Despite the young group, Head Coach Jon Tropf feels that his team is prepared for what’s to come. “We have given these guys a lot and have been very demanding but we have grown a lot over the preseason, and I expect to continue to see improvement every day,” Tropf said. “We will play better basketball as the year goes on.” Their...
March 12, 2021
GC basketball represented in all-conference awards
On Wednesday, Crossroads League officials announced the 2020-2021 men’s and women’s basketball all-conference selections. Four Maple Leafs made the list, with a pair of second-team all-conference players in junior forward TaNiece Chapman and senior guard Tahj Curry. Junior guard Graysen Cockerham and red-shirt junior Austin Branagan each picked up all-conference honorable mentions. The top returning scorer on the women’s side is TaNiece Chapman, who, along with a second-team all-conference nod, hit 1,000 career points, led the team in scoring with 13.2 points per game and was ranked eighth in the NAIA Division I for total rebounds with 244. For Cockerham,...
February 11, 2021
Men’s basketball team plagued by losing streak
It’s been a tough season for the men’s basketball team as they struggle picking up wins this season. The Leafs are 1-13 in their conference and 3-21 overall, with an average losing margin of 15.8 points. The team has yet to win a game on the road and is currently on a 13 game losing streak. They have been short-handed recently, losing their second-leading scorer and redshirt-junior forward, Austin Branagan to a knee injury. Still, the Leafs continue to put up tough performances against nationally-ranked teams, but struggle to finish down the stretch. A majority of the problem lies within...
January 21, 2021
No timeout for sports
Despite a combined eight canceled games over the holiday break between the men’s and women’s basketball teams, the season surges on for both squads. The men’s team got off to a slow start as the holiday break began, dropping their first three contests vs. Taylor University, Indiana Tech and Indiana Wesleyan University. Despite the big loss, the Leafs were not rattled, returning home to beat the Spring Arbor Cougars in overtime, 70-68 just three days later. The Leafs were unable to capitalize on the momentum from their overtime victory however, and are now in the midst of an eight game...
November 5, 2020
GC basketball takes the court
The Goshen College men’s and women’s basketball teams are gearing up to take the court for another season, this one will be unlike any other. The men’s team kicked off their season with an 84-76 home win over East-West University on Oct. 27, but fell to Lawrence Technological University 80-70 this past Tuesday, putting the Maple Leafs at 1-1 on the season. Men’s head coach Jon Tropf acknowledged the team’s uneven start and recognized there is still work to be done on both sides of the ball. “We have done some good, and some bad through two games,” Tropf said....