As fall sports seasons start to come to a close, Trinity’s teams are gearing up for the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) championships. This year, Trinity University will not be hosting any of the conference championships. Each team will travel to a different school in the SCAC to compete for a title. Check out a recap of each team as they prepare for their tournaments in the upcoming weeks.
Cross-Country
The Tiger cross-country teams swept the competition in Seguin this past weekend, winning both the men’s and women’s SCAC championships. This was the women’s first SCAC championship since 2013. Four women finished in the top five at the meet, with a total of 21 points. Laura Taylor, a sophomore biology major, won the women’s race with a time of 21:22.13. Taylor set the new SCAC record time. The men snagged their second title in the last three years. Michael Erickson, a senior engineering major, finished in second place with a time of 25:19.45.
“Michael has really been able to pull it together this season, and it’s so perfect with it being his senior year,” said head cross-country coach Emily Daum.
This is the first time in Daum’s career that she was able to capture victories on both the men’s and women’s sides.
“It was definitely a team effort and I couldn’t be more proud of both teams,” Daum said.
The Tigers will continue their post-season races next weekend in their regionals race in Newport News, Virginia.
Volleyball
With an 11-3 record in conference, the women’s volleyball team is heading into the SCAC championship as the No. 2 seed. This year, the tournament will be held in Kerrville. In 2016, the Tigers took home the SCAC championship with a victory over Southwestern University. The Tigers have a first round bye, so they will automatically advance to play the winner of Southwestern and Centenary at 6 p.m. on Nov. 3. Stay tuned next week for our recap of the volleyball SCAC Championship.
Soccer
The men’s soccer team is headed to the University of Dallas on Nov. 3 for their SCAC championship. With a 12-1 record in conference, the Tigers have clinched the No. 1 seed in the tournament. The Tigers are looking to capture their 16th consecutive SCAC championship and NCAA playoff appearance. Although the bracket for the championships has not been released yet, the team is looking forward to the tournament.
“We have been doing everything we can to prepare for the tournament,” said sophomore goalkeeper Blake Lieberman. “Soccer is a very unforgiving game and one moment can decide the outcome of the tournament.”
The women’s soccer team will be competing for the SCAC championship in Shreveport, Louisiana. The Tigers have taken the No. 1 seed in the tournament after posting a dominant 11-0 record in conference. The brackets have not been released, but the Tigers are coming into the tournament hot off a 14-game winning streak.
“Our mentality going into the SCAC tournament is the same as it’s been, just with more on the line,” said senior midfielder Julia Kelly. “To us, losing is unacceptable, and now if we lose our season is done. We are just going to take it game by game.”
Their first matchup will be on Friday, Nov. 3. For now, the Tigers are working on consistently taking advantage of scoring opportunities.
“We have become very good at creating chances to score, and now we must finish each chance and execute on each play,” Kelly said.
