The spring season is quickly approaching, and Cornell coaches and athletes are deep into preparation for their upcoming seasons. Recent mild weather has helped get teams on their respective fields and on schedule toward season openers.
Men’s Crew
“We’ve been blessed with some early spring weather. All week we’ve been on the water,” said lightweight crew coach Todd Kennet. “Guys are working hard. We should be competitive and better than last year.”
Kennet’s squad is coming off of a strong end of last season and boasts leadership in senior captain Joe Kiely, and classmates Scott Triolo and Chris Cotronei.
“They’ve been leaders from the weight room to the water,” Kennet added.
Kennet is equally excited about the freshman lightweight rowers, with rookie Colin Farrell leading the charge. The lightweight crew squad opens at home on April 14th.
Women’s Lacrosse
Fresh off a trip to the NCAA tournament are the women’s lacrosse team and coach Jenny Graap. The Red comes into the season ranked 11th in the preseason and face its most challenging schedule ever.
“We have a whole roster full of dedicated women, led by our senior class which has been the nucleus of the team and huge contributors to the success of the program.”
Graap’s senior class includes tri-captains Lori Wohlschlegel, Katie McCorry, Ginny MIles, as well as All-Ivy goaltender Carrie Giancola.
Cornell has eight freshmen poised to help the Red begin its journey back to the tournament. Lindsey Steinberg and Julia Huey, both midfielders, look to see some action in the Red’s rotation on the field.
The team will travel this Saturday to Baltimore to scrimmage against the No.2 Duke Blue Devils at Towson State’s complex at 1pm.
Softball
Few teams have seen as much success in the spring season than the softball team. The women are looking to repeat as Ivy league champions and continue their tradition of dominance. The Red is led by five seniors who will see plenty of action. Kristen Hricenak and Shara Freeman are both back to supply leadership and experience.
Coach Dick Blood also has a tremendous sophomore class to lean on, most notably All-Ivy first team selections, Erin Sweeney and Kate Varde.
Not to be outdone, the freshmen have enormous talent and will be thrown to the fire as the Red embarks on early season tests in Philadelphia and Florida. Erin Kizer, BIllie Boles, Lauren May, and Lindsey Crumbaugh will all help to solidify the Red’s infield and add power to an already potent lineup.
“The weather has treated us kindly this week, we’ve been able to get on the field. Right now we are trying to get in a lot of intrasquad scrimmaging and live action for our hitters.” said Blood.
The spring looks to be an intriguing one for Cornell Athletics with numerous varsity sports poised to have successful seasons and possible postseason bids.
Archived article by Jamal Henderson