Bluejays settle in their nest during winter pre-season

We all love immersing ourselves and cheering at a game, but Bluejay fans may be stomping their feet for another reason — they’re cold. Luckily, as the air gets chilly, winter season sports enjoy the indoors.

In the next few weeks Elmhurst University will be able to see our men and women’s basketball teams hit the courts, the wrestling team face off on the mats, and the bowling team step onto the lanes once again.

The first men’s basketball game is Nov. 10, and the team is ready to get back on the court after their successful season last year. 

“I look forward to playing in front of our great Bluejay fans,” said senior captain Myles Thomas. “We aren’t nothing without our fans and us being able to play in front of a packed crowd on Nov. 10 and making them happy is what me and the guys look forward to the most.”

Thomas continued, “We truly have the best fans in the country.” 

As the preseason continues, the coaches will get to have more time with the team, who have been hard at work throughout the offseason under the leadership of their captains. 

“We’ve seen major jumps in everyone’s strength and knowledge of the game,” said senior captain Wes Hooker. “We have older guys and great coaches that are able to help all the players out, so we just feed off of each other.” 

This season is going to be an interesting one to watch after their success in getting second in the NCAA National Tournament last year, especially with half the team being first-year students. 

With the experience from returning members and the work the team has put in so far, Head Coach John Baines thinks they can continue working on the dreams of last year.

“I felt like our campus needed a shot in the arm and I felt like that really helped everybody in a lot of ways and it really pumped a lot of blood into everybody,” said Baines. “I’m hoping we can do that again. I think we can build on what we did last year.”

The women’s basketball team has dreams lingering from last year too. With their first game on Nov. 8, a couple of days before the men, they have been working hard to improve.

Last year’s team was young, considering seven seniors a part of the starting lineup had graduated a year prior. However, the women on the team got better after each game, according to Head Coach Tethnie Carrillo.

This year they have worked on building where they left off. A majority of the team is still here from last year and they are incorporating the skills of the first-year students who have joined the team.

Senior Taylor Harazin has seen how different the team is from last year and how much they have improved. 

“We all have a mindset of “we” instead of “me”, together as a team. I think that us being disciplined and held accountable will help us achieve our goals for this season,” said Harazin.

Carrillo is excited to show how hard the team has worked over this last year and throughout their preseason.

“We have speed at the guard spot, knock down shooters and post players that can demand the paint,” said Carillo. “It is the perfect combination, and we are working hard to get all the pieces to fit well together.” 

Senior captain Sophia Micos looks forward to the upcoming season with the work everyone has put in so far during the preseason.

“Pre-season has been a lot of fun, especially with a lot of new talent coming in with the freshmen and transfers but also having a lot of returners has helped to balance out the energy in the gym, and the competitiveness is definitely something that will roll into this coming season,” said Micos.

This expectant energy is influencing the new members on the team too. Freshman Reilly Webb is looking forward to playing with the team and is already reaching for the same goals the team has had in mind since last year. 

“I’ve worked towards this my whole life and now that I’m finally here, I am so ready to play, especially with a team like this,” said Webb.

They continued, “I am also looking forward to working with the coaches. They’ve been so helpful and open-minded with us that I’m really ready to pick their brain about every aspect of the game.”

Webb’s excitement for the collegiate experience links most of the first-year athletes. Freshman Zachary Carter shares similar feelings about the wrestling team.

“Man, I’m just looking forward to being on the team,” said Carter. “It’s my first year; I want to gain this whole experience of college wrestling. Also, I’m excited to actually have a room to work with and improve my game.”

The wrestling team has their first match Nov. 4. Head Coach Steve Marianetti looks forward to continuing the team’s success from last year. 

They were third in the conference championships and had two members of the team compete in Nationals, junior Jake Mora and graduated student Jimmy McAuliffe.

“Every year is just a new challenge with your group of guys, so we’re looking to improve on our conference finish,” said Marianetti. “We’re always looking to win the conference championship and I think we have a handful of guys who have a real shot of making the national tournament.” 

With official practices underway, the team is working hard to achieve those goals and to grow as a team.

“The team is really looking forward to winning and competing,” said junior Matt Schuster. “We form bonds with the team every day and it is a sport that creates a relationship unlike any other when we all have goals and are going through the experience together.”

Photo by- Alyssa Kuehne