Could this be The Year?
Tuesday November 08, 2005 Category: Sports Permanent Link
The buzz on campus is that this could be a very big year for both men’s ice hockey and basketball. A few bold pundits predict that the basketball team will go all the way to the “Big Dance”.
The last time Cornell made playoffs was in 1988. (Here is a list of past champions.) Since then, it’s been Penn and Princeton sharing the top honors. The last time Cornell won the Ivies in ice hockey? You guessed it: 1996.
The Daily Sun published it’s Winter Sports preview earlier this week. Here are a few of the headlines:
Basketball
It’s finally going to happen. After a 17-year hiatus from the NCAA tournament, expect the Red to be the first college basketball team to punch a ticket to the Big Dance come March. If Cornell does actually take the conference crown, it will be the first time that a team other than Penn or Princeton earns the Ivy League’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament since the Red did it in the 1987-88 season.
Forwards Bring Depth to the Floor
With eight of 14 players on the mens basketball team’s roster listed as forwards, head coach Steve Donahue will have a endless number of possible lineups to throw at opponents this year. “We have other options of playing big or small depending on who we play,” Donahue said.
Guards Look to Lead Red’s Championship Drive
Ka’Ron Barnes ‘04, Cody Toppert ‘05—every year it seems the Cornell men’s basketball team loses a starting guard to graduation, leaving holes and question marks for next year’s backcourt. Yet each season, head coach Steve Donahue and his returning squad fill that space in a way that brings them one step closer to an Ivy championship.
Senior co-captain Lenny Collins is ready to lift the Cornell men’s basketball team to greatness—literally. “We have an award in the weight room,” head coach Steve Donahue said. “He won it last year and his numbers are even better this year, so he continually works at that. He has the respect of his teammates because of it, [and] now he’s [even] done more verbally.”
Dow Takes Charge of Basketball’s Point
While Canada’s Steve Nash was on his way to winning to the NBA’s MVP last year, another Canadian point guard was having his own breakout season for the Cornell men’s basketball team. The continued progress of junior Graham Dow, from from Burlington, Ont., into one in the league’s premier point guards figures to play heavily into the Red’s run at an Ivy title this season.
While the graduation of center Eric Taylor ‘05 is an undeniable loss to the men’s basketball team—he was Cornell’s 2005 MVP and the first three-year captain in school history—the Red is fortunate to have proven reserves ready to…
Hockey
With the departure of Vermont to Hockey East comes the arrival of Quinnipiac to the ECACHL. League breaker? Unlikely, as many of the usual suspects will probably reign again at the top of the conference during the 2005-06 season.
Captain Hopes To Lead Team Back to Frozen Four
When senior captain Matt Moulson opened the 2005-06 campaign with three goals and two assists in a weekend split with Michigan State, it was no surprise to his head coach, Mike Schafer ‘86. “I think his goal-scoring is reflective of his practice habits,” Schafer said.
Abbott Leads Cornell With Passion, Drive
He skates every game as if he has something to prove, racing up and down the ice in a kamikazi-like fashion. He’s not the biggest guy on the ice, but sometimes, he hits like one. He has become one of the key players on the Red who has been an integral cog in head coach Mike Schafer’s ‘86 physical system which demands out-working the opposition.
If the hockey team is going to make its second Frozen Four appearance in four years, it is going to do so on the strength of its final line of defense—goaltender David McKee. Last season, the junior enjoyed one of the best seasons in the history of college hockey—posting a 27-5-3 record and a 1.24 goals against average.
Blueliners Seek to Stop the Competition
Saying that Charlie Cook ‘05 and Jeremy Downs ‘05 will be difficult to replace is an understatement. During their time at Cornell, the duo anchored a Red defense that compiled the best four-year goals per game average in the history of college hockey at 1.59.
Gleed Takes Charge in Leading Defense
Senior defenseman Jon Gleed often does not attract too much attention on the ice. He’s often the relatively anonymous player who focuses on doing the things that do not get noticed as much, such as making checks, blocking shots and protecting the puck.
Rourke Steps Into Captain’s Role
With all the adjustments to a new school, league, system and teammates, most student-athletes that join teams as transfers are happy to break in as a backup or supporting player. Not so for senior forward Ryan Rourke, who depsite having just one season with the team under his belt has earned a leading role as one of the tri-captains of the men’s basketball team.
Here is one student columnist’s take on all the excitement. But it’s not just the men getting all the glory. The women’s volleyball team is undefeated in Ivy League play, and on track to win a conference championship.
Of course, the Big Red Sports website has all the news and schedules. Now, with annoying pop-ups!
