Midnight Madness - Halloween Edition

The past two seasons a strong Trinity Basketball tradition has been missing, but Midnight Madness made a great comeback last Thursday, October 28th. Sponsored by the sororities and fraternities, the student body really got behind this year's Halloween theme (the winner of the costume contest was a pregnant cookie monster - although there was a strong push for Monty Python's one armed Black Knight). The event began with the introduction of the Men's and Women's Basketball teams and consisted of a few dance routines (our first-years showing their moves), a faculty/student knock-out game, a short team scrimmage, and finished off with a dunk contest. First-year guard, Matt Selling, came away the winner with the most creative dunk of the night. It was an overall fun night and did a great job of raising excitement for the start of basketball season.

King of the Court - Fall 2010

October 15th not only marks the first day of NCAA basketball, but it also is the date for Trinity Basketball's Fall King of the Court Competition. The competition is made up of five tests (vertical leap, agility, sprint, bench press reps, conditioning) and each individual on the team is awarded points for their rankings in two categories per test (test performance and percentage increase from prior semester's test). Broken up into smaller groups, testing started from 8 a.m. and lasted for approximately three hours. The team came out and gave great effort in hopes of being crowned "King of the Court."

So with that being said, our Fall 2010 "King of the Court" is sophomore guard, Joel Van Essen. Joel placed high on the vertical leap, agility, and finished first in the conditioning. His hard work in the off-season truly showed, as he also recorded high improvements in four of the five tests. With his tremendous work-ethic, it will be a challenge for the rest of the team to claim Joel's title in the spring.

2010-11 Season Begins

Even though Trinity's campus was very quiet this morning, as students were on their fall break, Sam's Gymnasium was far from silent. Today marked the first day of NCAA Basketball and the Tigers kicked the season off with a great day of competition. While most Division I programs will open their season with a Midnight Madness (we hold ours later in the schedule - this year it is October 28...mark your calendars!), Trinity Basketball was in the gym by 8 a.m. with the bi-annual "King of the Court" Challenge. We will have a write-up on KOTC soon, but in short, it was a terrific effort by all of the players and really demonstrated the focus and dedication this year's squad - just ask a few of the guys that finished the conditioning portion of the challenge (see picture below for evidence!).

In the afternoon, we had our first practice of the season. The coaching staff couldn't be more impressed with the work ethic and energy brought by all participating players. The competition level was tremendous. It will be exciting to see how this group progresses as a unit, because the talent is definitely there.

Tomorrow will be another eventful day, as one of the strength and conditioning trainers from the San Antonio Spurs will be working out our team in the morning and we will again have a team practice in the evening. Looks like the guys are going to be sleeping well the next few nights!

Tigers Add Another Seat to the Bench

Trinity Basketball is proud to introduce our newest addition to the coaching staff—Hunter Taylor. In addition to assisting for the Tigers, Coach Taylor will be entering his first year in law school at St. Mary’s University. Last year, he was an assistant coach on Joe Wootten’s staff at O’Connell High School in Washington, D.C., while also working as a legislative staffer for Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison.

Coach Taylor, a native of White Oak, TX, earned his Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing from the University of Texas in 2005 and earned his Master of Arts in Education from the University of Mississippi in 2008.

Trinity Basketball will immediately benefit from his passion for the game and enthusiastic approach.

What is Division III?

As the NCAA continues to define the identity of Division III athletics (refer to above video), now would be a great time to share an article written a few years back (1999 to be exact) by a Cornell College student-athlete. It is a terrific perspective on what drives a Division III athlete to take on such a difficult task as managing academics and athletics – especially when he/she strives to be successful in both arenas.


Why We Play Division III Athletics

It's not about getting a scholarship, getting drafted, or making SportsCenter. It's a deep need in us that comes from the heart.

We need to practice, to play, to lift, to hustle, to sweat. We do it all for our teammates and for the student in our calculus class that we don't even know.

We don't practice with a future major league first baseman; we practice with a future sports agent.

We don't lift weights with a future Olympic wrestler; we lift with a future doctor.

We don't run with a future Wimbledon champion; we run with a future CEO.

It's a bigger part of us than our friends and family can understand.

Sometimes we play for 2,000 fans; sometimes 25. But we still play hard. You cheer for us because you know us.

You know more than just our names. Like all of you, we are students first.

We don't sign autographs. But we do sign graduate school applications, MCAT exams, and student body petitions.

When we miss a kick or strike out, we don't let down an entire state. We only let down our teammates, coaches, and fans. But the hurt is still the same.

We train hard, lift, throw, run, kick, tackle, shoot, dribble, and lift some more, and in the morning we go to class. And in that class we are nothing more than students.

It's about pride—in ourselves, in our school.

It's about our love and passion for the game. And when it's over, when we walk off that court or field for the last time, our hearts crumble. Those tears are real. But deep down inside, we are very proud of ourselves.

We will forever be what few can claim...college athletes.

- Sean Sornsin, Dec. 3, 1999 edition of The Cornellian