The Bowdoin College Athletic Hall of Honor, established in 2002, inducts six members into its ranks biannually for significant achievements within the Bowdoin athletic community. This year’s inductees include an All-American volleyball player, prolific men’s ice hockey coach, a three-sport athlete, an All-American lacrosse goaltender and a national championship winning tennis doubles pairing.
On Wednesday, Bowdoin students gathered in Kresge Auditorium to hear Noelle Lambert speak about her life as a college and professional athlete after losing her leg in a moped accident after her first year at University of Massachusetts Lowell.
BELIEVE IT OR NET
On Wednesday night, the women’s basketball team (4–1; 0–0 NESCAC) scored a comeback win in a nonconference matchup against St. Joseph’s College (4–3). The Polar Bears took the lead in the first quarter but were unable to outscore St.
Mary Rainey ’27 received the ball just inside the box, spun left, dropped a defender and slotted the ball past the William Smith keeper’s near post. When the final whistle blew five minutes later, the Polar Bears made history.
SCRUM-PTIOUS
The women’s rugby team (7–0) defeated Norwich University (1–6) for the second time this season in the NIRA DIII semifinals at Pickard Field last Saturday. A try by Mia Daoust ’27 in the first minute of the game propelled the Polar Bears to 28 unanswered points.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
2022 – 2023 record: 10–14 (2–8 NESCAC)
After finishing last season on a three game losing skid, the recentered men’s basketball team is looking to bounce back in Head Coach Alex Lloyd’s third season at the College.
KICKING AND SCREAMING
On Wednesday, Felipe Rueda Duran ’26, Tyler Huck ’26 and Julian Juantorena ’23 were named First Team All-NESCAC, while Jack Selig ’23 and Carlton Steinberg ’24 were named Second Team. Rueda Duran led the NESCAC with ten goals and six assists, scoring the most goals from a Bowdoin player since 2007.
After winning against Williams College (9–3–5; 6–2–2 NESCAC) in the second round of penalty kicks (PKs) on Saturday, the women’s soccer team advanced to the NESCAC championship for the first time since 2015.
The team was down by one in the first half of the game against Williams, but Ella Olcese ’25 scored a goal in the 80th minute to tie the game 1–1.
On Sunday, the end of daylight savings time signaled jarring 4:30 p.m. sunsets and the onset of a cold winter in Brunswick. But this year, there is a silver lining, or lighting, to the turmoil.
Even though the sun now sets earlier, campus will still shine bright with the addition of LED lights wrapped around the lampposts on the Quad as well as the trees in the Odeum outside Studzinski Hall.
SOLID AS A BLOCK
The volleyball team (11–9; 3–7 NESCAC) won against Brandeis University (9–14) 3–1 last Friday night in Waltham, Mass. with set scores of 25–15, 25–18, 19–25 and 25–23. Skye LaMendola ’27 led the team with 21 kills and 11 digs, followed by Haley Campau ’27 with 11 kills and four blocks.
The sailing team wrapped up its fall season last weekend after competing in regattas across New England. The women’s and open teams both qualified for the ACC Finals, and the team also finished 13th out of 18 teams at the Atlantic Coast Championship.
Ushered in by late October skies and the national anthem sung by Bowdoin goalkeeper Charlotte Iannone ’26, the women’s soccer team took to Pickard Field in its final match of regular season play against Tufts University (7–4–4; 3–4–3 NESCAC).
HAT TRICK (OR TREAT)
On Saturday, the football team (3–3) fell to Wesleyan University (4–2) in its sixth game of the season. The team earned an early lead with a 27-yard strike from Andrew Boel ’24 to Slade Postemski ’26 in the first quarter.
Newly-inaugurated President Safa Zaki flipped the commemorative coin. With the grandstand packed full of alumni, the stage was set for a picture-perfect Homecoming football game. Bowdoin chants rang out across Whittier Field as the Polar Bears scored their fourth touchdown against Bates College.
The women’s rugby team (4–0) remains undefeated after a 48–0 win against the University of New England (UNE). The team previously shut out UNE (3–3–1) in the National Intercollegiate Rugby Association (NIRA) DIII Championship last November, taking home the winning title for the third consecutive year.
CORNERING THE CONTINENTALS
The women’s soccer team (7–3–3; 4–2–2 NESCAC) beat Hamilton College (7–3–3; 3–3–3 NESCAC) 3–1 on Saturday. Hamilton scored within the first minute and nearly doubled its lead in the 17th minute, but Greta Farkas ’24 tied the game in the 22nd minute with a free kick.
THE HOLY TRINITY
The men’s soccer team (7–1–3; 3–1–2 NESCAC) defeated Trinity College (3–5–2; 1–4–2 NESCAC) 3–2 last Saturday afternoon. Trinity scored the game’s first goal early in the second half. In the 69th minute, Ronaldo Cabral ’25 buried the ball under the crossbar with an assist from Felipe Rueda Duran ’26 to tie the game 1–1.
HOT SHOT
The field hockey team (5–2; 2–2 NESCAC) took home its second NESCAC win of the season after defeating Williams College (4–2; 1–1 NESCAC) 2–1 in Williamstown, Mass. last Sunday. Maddie Mrva ’27 put the Polar Bears in an early lead in the fourth minute with an assist by Georgie Coetzer ’23.
The Bowdoin athletics department recently released its updates to the Building and Supporting an Inclusive and Diverse Athletic Community Action Plan as it enters its fourth year. The plan has released four updates since its advent in October 2020, and the athletic department plans to continue to release updates annually.
In tandem with Bowdoin football’s thousandth game, the position of Bowdoin head coach of football was endowed last week by John Fish ’82, chairman and CEO of Suffolk Construction and Bowdoin football alum.
Fish’s decision to make a financial commitment to the College and its football program was motivated not only by an appreciation for his own Bowdoin experience but also a desire to improve the program in the years to come.
TOP NOTCH(O)
Bowdoin men’s soccer (4–0–1; 1–0–1 NESCAC) played to a 0–0 draw against Connecticut College (3–0–2; 1–0–2 NESCAC) on Sunday afternoon at Pickard Field. Alex Ainsworth ’26 made four saves for the Polar Bears, who were outshot by Conn.
For nearly a decade, the Bowdoin football team (1–0; 1–0 NESCAC) has been playing games on the road without a win—until last Saturday. With a 26–12 victory over Hamilton College (0–1; 0–1 NESCAC) in their season opener, the Polar Bears brought home their first road win since 2014.
If you’ve spent the last four days of cloudy weather riding your bike around campus and listening to “Jackie Onassis” by Sammy Rae and the Friends, you’re in luck. Next Wednesday, Sammy is playing the State Theatre in Portland, and a slate of wonderful artists (and a few comedians) play shows in the greater Portland area in the following weeks.
KILLED IT
The women’s volleyball team swept Swarthmore College (5–1) with a 3–0 win on the first day of the Garnet Invitational in Swarthmore, Pa. last Friday. The Polar Bears earned set scores of 25–17, 25–20 and 25–21, led by Skye LaMendola ’27 with 17 kills, Ella Haugen ’23 with 36 assists and Maya White ’25 with 13 digs.
On Tuesday, setter Ella Haugen ’23 earned 25 assists and nine digs in the volleyball game at the University of Southern Maine (USM), adding onto her three-season career of 2,096 assists, 114 aces and 589 digs.
GOAL DIGGER
In the first nighttime home game in Bowdoin men’s soccer program history, the Polar Bears defeated the University of New England (UNE) 5–1. The win brings the sixth-ranked team to a 1–0–0 record to kick off its season.
FHOCK YES
In a Division III preseason poll released by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA), the Bowdoin field hockey team was ranked 14th in the nation. Bowdoin is one of eight NESCAC teams included in the top-25 ranking.
SMOOTH SAILING
Last weekend, the sailing team ended its regular season with an eighth place finish in the Open New England Fleet Race Championship at Connecticut College. The Polar Bears competed in 14 races over two days with key performances from Hattie Slayton ’23, Chris Lukens ’23, Timmy Gee ’25 and Tbo Antonietti ’24.
Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) met this Wednesday for their final meeting of the year. Both current members and newly elected members of the 2023–24 BSG executive team attended the meeting.
Current BSG president Susu Gharib ’23 began the meeting by speaking about the wellness event BSG is hosting this Friday from 1 to 3 p.m.
The women’s lacrosse team (6–9; 3–7 NESCAC) will take on top-seeded Middlebury College (15–0; 10–0 NESCAC) in the first round of the NESCAC playoffs tomorrow. The Polar Bears enter the playoffs as the eighth seed and are coming off a 15–9 win against Connecticut College (Conn; 5–9; 1–9 NESCAC) and a 15–18 loss to Tufts University (12–3; 8–2 NESCAC).
On Monday afternoon, Alexa McCarthy ’09 returned to Bowdoin to speak about her research on handmade blue paper in the Baroque period in a talk sponsored by the Department of Art History and the Bowdoin College Museum of Art (BCMA).
Clayton Rose met with Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) this Wednesday to answer questions from students about his time at the College and beyond as he prepares to step down from his role as president on June 30.
Last weekend, the women’s track and field team kicked off its outdoor season by taking first place at the Bates Quad Meet in Lewiston. Bowdoin finished with 76 points, followed by the University of Southern Maine (66.5 points), Bates College (58.5 points) and Colby College (1 point).
Last weekend, Kianne Benjamin ’24 broke her own school record and took second place in the 200m at the New England DIII Indoor Track and Field Championships in Boston, Mass. Benjamin also placed third in the 60m and anchored the winning 4x400m relay.
Bowdoin Concert Band and Chorus conducted a variety of performances over the years, and for both groups, Bowdoin students aren’t the only ones performing. The band and chorus are medleys of students, alumni, high school students and all sorts of other community members.
My dad used to point a telescope out of our guest bedroom window on clear nights, swiveling it to see the cratered surface of the moon, the miniscule rings of Saturn or the smattering of stars visible in the suburbs.
In my hometown, the first snow usually falls a little before Halloween. Trick-or-treaters routinely trek up shoveled yet still icy driveways as cold snaps force red and yellow leaves from their branches. Last year, it was early December by the time there was snow on the ground at home.
I spent most of my fall break circumnavigating Kent Island’s tidepools—slipping over mounds of seaweed, hopscotching boulders, singing to periwinkles, bushwhacking a mile in rubber boots and lifting tiny green crabs out of the water. Until I was closed in by the Atlantic in every direction, my experience with the ocean was limited to yearly beach outings and a few whale watching trips in Canada with my family, and I was fascinated by it.
When you think of a forest, maybe you think of an ecosystem. A hierarchy, a function, a mechanism of inputs and outputs driven by competition. Maybe a million tiny elements working asynchronously, maybe a huge, labyrinthine conglomeration of life bound by rain and sunlight and soft dirt.
June, July, August. They run together in my head: traversing mountaintops, skipping towards a yawning sunset, the electric shock to my system stepping into the snowmelt creek. Dry air and heavy head against my pillow.
For eleven weeks, I worked at a summer camp in the Sangre de Cristo mountain range in Colorado.