With the 2011-12 athletic year recently coming to a close, we are excited to present the Top 10 Goshen College Athletic Moments of the Year as voted on by you: the fan. The Top 5 Moments will be released tomorrow (May 31) along with Male and Female Athlete of the Year and Performance of the Year.
#10. HOKUM TITLES
For the first time in the seven-year history of the Goshen Hokum Karem, both the Maple Leaf men's and women's team won the team titles. The men finished with 11 points, putting them two ahead of Grace College and the women ended the day one point ahead of Trine University with 10.
The two teams have combined for four team championships, but the men had last won in 2007 and the women in 2006. In the unique event, runners pair up and trade off running one-mile increments. On the men's side, the pairs finish off 10 miles (or five each), while the women combine to run six (three each).
#9. SOFTBALL RALLY
Down 6-2 to visiting Spring Arbor University heading into the bottom of the seventh inning, the Maple Leafs needed a rally to pull off their first Mid-Central College Conference sweep of the season. And rally is exactly what they did on a blistery cold evening in Goshen.
Five-straight hits to start the frame - including RBI doubles by Christine Stubblefield and Devon Ownby – tied the score. It didn't end there, though. Despite having a runner thrown out at home a batter before, a two-out single by Ame Blankenship ended the contest in the most dramatic of fashions. (Read More)
#8. WILD FINAL INNING
A thrilling final inning saw a lead slip away from the Goshen College baseball before they ultimately rallied for a Mid-Central College Conference split with Mount Vernon Nazarene University. After holding a 4-2 advantage going into the final inning, the Leafs surrendered four runs in the top of the seventh and were suddenly trailing by two with just three outs to work with.
Goshen never made an out in the bottom half, however, sending six batters to the plate including sophomore Josh Schlbach who ripped an RBI single to center field for the game winner. (Read More)
#7. NATIONAL RANKINGS
The Goshen College men's basketball team has used its hot start to the 2011-12 season to earn its first-ever national ranking in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) DII poll in late November. A week after debuting at #19, the Maple Leafs moved up to a program-high #12 riding a 10-game winning streak. (Read More)
#6. FIVE-SET THRILLERS
In three-straight home Mid-Central College Conference tilts, the Goshen College volleyball team went the distance, winning three five-set contests in the matter of five days.
They started the run by avenging a five-set defeat to the Bethel Pilots, pulling out the fifth set 15-12 on a Friday night. The very next day, they cruised in the second and third sets (25-12, 25-15), but needed to overcome a quick 3-0 hole in the fifth to squeeze out a win over Saint Francis. Then, on Tuesday, Goshen rode the back of Stacy Wyse who posted 53 assists, 26 digs, and 14 kills in another thriller (including 16-14 in the fifth) over Mount Vernon Nazarene.
