Having a long-standing history of winning, the sixth-ranked Hopkins women’s soccer team came into this season with a target on its back. The Blue Jays returned to action this past weekend at the Seahawk Invitational.
The men's soccer team opened its 2014 campaign with a successful trip to a tournament in Maryville, Tenn., tying Randolph 1-1 in its season opener on Saturday and defeating Maryville 3-0 the next day.
Coming off their second straight National Championship, the Hopkins Lady Jays entered the season as the top ranked Division III team in the nation, and expectations are high for another successful season on Homewood Campus. Hopkins did not disappoint in its first two meets of the season at the Baltimore Metro Invitational and the Salisbury Fall Classic, easily cruising to victories in both of this past weekend’s races.
While most traditional Athlete of the Week articles begin with an introduction that highlights a Hopkins varsity athlete who has achieved something spectacular throughout the course of the current season, this week’s edition will be slightly different. While not an official Hopkins varsity athlete, our honoree this week is more deserving of this award than is even possible to put into words. She has shown tremendous strength, determination and courage in one of the most tasking events ever created by mankind mentally, physically and emotionally. This event is the Ironman. Our award-winner has now completed two Ironman triathlons in her young career and is looking forward to taking on a third in late September approximately one hour away from Homewood Campus in Maryland. For our readers who are unfamiliar with the details of an Ironman race, the event consists of swimming 2.4 miles, biking 112 miles and finishing the day with a marathon (26.2 miles), accumulating to an astonishing grand total of 140.6 miles. Our honoree winner has already completed two in her lifetime, one in the midst of high school and a second on August 24 in Louisville, Ky. With another race on the horizon, she is more excited to race on behalf of the Blazeman Foundation. Without further ado, The News-Letter would like to honor Jenny Hansen with Athlete of the Week.
After capturing the first Centennial Conference title in Hopkins history last season, the men’s cross country team was right back on track, beginning the season with two dominant wins.
The season began just like last time: a shutout.
Fresh off an undefeated regular season — but a gut-wrenching first round playoff knockout to Wesley — the football team is poised to return to the gridiron as a force to be reckoned with in the Centennial Conference. Jays faithful will remember Wesley quarterback Joe Callahan drilling wideout Steve Koudossou in the bread basket on a post pattern at the goal line for the game-sealing touchdown with just 12.8 seconds to go in the fourth quarter — the death knell for the Jays playoff hopes.
In one of the most important meets of the season, the Hopkins men’s track team traveled to Philadelphia to take on various top-notch competitors at the Penn Relays. The Relays lasted from Friday through Sunday as the Jays had several runners compete throughout the weekend.
The Hopkins women’s tennis team capped off an undefeated season in the Centennial Conference (CC) on Saturday, April 26. This is the eighth straight season this has occurred, and the team has won 80 straight conference matchups.
On Saturday, a surging men’s tennis team ended the regular season with two wins over NC Wesleyan and Washington College in split-squad matches, extending its impressive win streak to eight consecutive matches. The Jays remained undefeated in the Centennial Conference and have now won an inconceivable 74 consecutive conference matches. Hopkins goes into the postseason with an overall record of 16-4 and a 9-0 conference record.
With one-seeds tied up with eight-seeds and a team owner being banned for life from all NBA activities before his team played Game 4, the 2014 NBA Playoffs have proven to be extraordinary and have shocked basketball fans from across the nation.
Freshman shortstop Conor Reynolds is The News-Letter’s Athlete of the Week. He carried a 12-game hit streak into this week, including two three-hit games in the crucial final weekend of the regular season for the Blue Jays that vaulted them into the conference tournament.
On Saturday, the ninth-ranked Lady Jays defeated the 10th-ranked Buckeyes of Ohio State on Homewood Field. In both teams’ regular season finale, senior attacker Taylor D’Amore became the career leader for assists in helping Hopkins improve to 14-4 overall and 3-3 in the ALC to earn the fifth seed. Ohio State fell to 12-5 overall and 4-2 in the ALC, clinching the second seed.
The Hopkins women’s track team competed at the Penn Relays this past weekend in Philadelphia. The women’s 4x400 relay team won the Centennial/MAC conference division of the event.
“Our approach going into the weekend was that each game was like a playoff game," junior outfielder Chris Casey said. "We had to come out and bring our best level of play in order to show why we belong in the tournament. We had to prove this not only to the other teams in the conference, but to ourselves. We backed ourselves into a corner earlier in the season by losing some critical games, but this past weekend was a great opportunity to dig ourselves out."
Starting with a sweep over Franklin & Marshall at home, the men’s tennis team has cruised to a remarkable six-match winning streak over the past two weeks. Last weekend, Hopkins hosted Swarthmore on Friday, battling to a 6-3 win, and won both of their matches with ease on Saturday. Their record boosted to 14-4 on the season and 8-0 in the conference.
As the season presses on, the women’s tennis team has continued to improve from week to week. On Saturday, the Lady Jays topped Centennial Conference opponent Muhlenberg as well as 21st ranked Mary Washington. The two wins extended the team’s win streak to six consecutive games.
The 13th ranked men’s track and field team traveled to Chester, Pa. to compete in the Widener Invitational meet. Many Hopkins athletes had strong performances in this two-day meet to make it a successful weekend for the Jays.
As the sun was setting on Homewood Field, the seventh-ranked Jays prepared to play their third game in nine days and their last at home. The visiting Villanova Wildcats were all that stood in the way of a potential five-game win streak.
Seventh-ranked Hopkins women’s lacrosse fell 12-10 to 12th-ranked Penn State on the road on Friday night. The Jays were outscored 8-3 in the second half by the Nittany Lions, who moved to 9-6 on the season and 3-3 in American Lacrosse Conference Action. The Jays fell to 12-3 on the season and 2-3 in the ALC. Seniors Taylor D’Amore and Sammy Cermack collectively totaled 10 points in the losing effort.
