The Millikin Sports Update
The week in Millikin sports action was kicked off on a cold Saturday at Elmhurst College.
The Big Blue football team matched up against the Elmhurst Blue Jays in their homecoming game. Though for most of the game it looked like Millikin may drop the game against one of the teams in the bottom of the conference standings, Millikin overcame the elements, dealing with an abundance of wind, injuries, some snow and rain, and lots of flying leaves. Cal Pohrte tossed a thirty-three yard touchdown pass to Tyrice Hines who made a diving catch to put the Big Blue ahead by one with just over five minutes to go. Jazontae Howard scored the first touchdown for Millikin, and freshman Reed Raibley knocked in both extra points.
The Big Blue took on rival Illinois Wesleyan this weekend, and they only have Washington University and North Central College left on their regular season schedule.
The Millikin soccer teams also recently matched up with the Titans of Wesleyan, but before that, they headed to Wisconsin on Saturday to match up against the Red Men and Lady Reds of Carthage College. On the men’s side, they tied with Carthage with Bradyn Nokes scoring the Big Blue’s lone goal off an assist from captain Austin Taylor. Captain Isaac Hopper tallied seven saves in goal.
Against Wesleyan, Millikin struck first with Joe Caldarazzo completing a perfectly executed give and go to captain Patrick Dolan for an early goal. The Titans tied the game in the second half, and in overtime, Illinois Wesleyan was victorious.
The women took a win in Wisconsin, beating Carthage 2-1 with two goals from Lucy Koger off assists from Amanda Noser and Amber Bell. Jennifer Miller tallied six saves in goal. They were not as successful against the Titans on Wednesday, losing 3-0. Their final home game, along with the men, occurred on Saturday against the Pioneers of Carroll University.
The triathlon team is moving closer to the NCAA Championships. They head to Tempe, Arizona for the championships. On October 20th, they traveled to Virginia for the Eastern Qualifier in Virginia where junior Morgan Powers led the team with the best time. The team finished fourth out of the six Division III teams that competed.
Millikin’s volleyball team is also still in season. They dominated North Central with Peyton Jackson leading the way with thirteen kills. On Friday and Saturday, they headed to St. Louis to Washington University where they played three games against UT Dallas, the ranked Washington University, and Belhaven University. Their regular season is coming to a close. They still hold the chance of potentially making the conference tournament, and their final conference game is against Carroll University on Tuesday October 30.
The cross country teams headed to the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin in Warrenville. Should they fare well, regionals are held in Colfax, Wisconsin in two weeks, and the Division III Championships in Winneconne, Wisconsin a week later.
As the fall seasons wind down and the weather gets colder, the sports in the gym, on the wrestling mats, and in the pool are starting to heat up. The first swim meet for both the men and the women was Saturday the 27th where they competed against Augustana and Knox College in Rock Island, Illinois.
From the gym, the men’s basketball team was chosen to finish tied for sixth in conference with Carthage. Augustana was chosen to lead the pack. They scrimmaged Washington University in St. Louis as a preseason game, but their first game is not until November 8 when they take on the University of Dubuque at home from the Griswold Center.
On the women’s side, in their first year under new head coach Olivia Lett, Millikin was chosen to take the eighth spot in the conference. Wheaton was picked to take the top slot in the conference standings, and Millikin was listed just ahead of the North Park Vikings.
The final in-season team is the Millikin wrestling team. They participated in their annual blue vs. white intrasquad dual meet on Sunday at their wrestling facility. Their first meet is scheduled for November 1st at home, potentially on the Workman Family Softball Field.
