Through four consecutive years of strong recruiting, head coach Mark Godomsky has put together a winning men’s alpine ski team capable of competing at the top level of the Eastern NCAA Division I racing circuit.
The men's team returns NCAA qualifier Charlie Reed '06 and will look for Rory Kelly '07, Jody Centauro '08, and first-year students Jared Hourihan '09, Christian Talmage '09, and Sam Witherspoon '09 to bolster the squad. The season begins January 20-21 with the Colby Carnival at Sugarloaf.
The women's alpine ski team returns a strong group led by senior Abbi Lathrop. In addition, returning skiers Caitlin Healey '06, Ashley Best '07, McKenzie Wessen '07, Brett Wagenheim '08, and Alissa Consenstein '08 will work hard to improve on last season's results. The Colby Carnival, January 20-21 at Sugarloaf, opens the competition.
The men's Nordic ski team, led by seniors Kris Dobie '06 and Brandon Smithwood '06, has high expectations for the 2005-06 season. Both seniors had impressive results last season, with Dobie placing a career-best 20th at the St. Michael's carnival and Smithwood a career-best 14th at the Bates carnival.
Team MVP Fred Bailey '07 was the top skier, missing NCAA nationals by only a few places. He had an impressive 11th at the Bates carnival and scored numerous top-20 finishes. Bailey also was third in the classic race at the NENSA Eastern Championships at the end of the season. Adding to the depth of this strong team is Austin Ross '08, John Swain '08, Jeff Alden '07, and Andrew Herstein '07. Silas Gill '09, a three-time Junior Olympic All-American, will round out this impressive squad. Colby will begin competition with the Eastern Cup at Sugarloaf, January 14-15.
A young Colby women's Nordic ski team showed improvement in the 2004-05 season. This year's team will be led by Hillary Easter '06 and Alex Jospe '06, who both had solid results on last year's carnival circuit. Easter, also a cross-country runner, was part of the team that placed fifth last year at the NCAA Division III cross-country nationals. Jospe spent part of last year training in New Zealand and expects to post her best results in the upcoming season.
Aime Schwartz '08, Katie Klepinski '08, and Jess Harold '08 are young skiers who are expecting big improvements in the upcoming season. Kathleen Maynard '09 is a talented runner and impressive skier who finished 16th at the Junior Olympics this past season. Competition begins January 14-15 with the Eastern Cup at Sugarloaf Mountain.
The men's basketball team headed into exams on a positive note by stunning Bowdoin, 75-73, on December 10. Andrew Jenkins '06 scored a game-high 27 points and had four assist to lead the Mules. Colby held on as Bowdoin had chances to tie and win the game in the final 3.3 seconds of the contest.
Colby's other three wins have come against Lesley (93-90), Maine-Presque Isle (100-47) and Brooklyn (78-58). Losses have been to Chicago (63-53), Denison (74-71), Babson (62-56), and Southern Maine (77-68). The cagers are back on the hardcourt December 29-30 for the Maine Event tournament at Southern Maine.
The women's basketball team is off to a solid start under first-year head coach Lori Gear McBride. Colby won its own tournament, the Colby Invitational, defeating Newbury (75-38) and Husson (51-48). The hoopsters won their next two contests against Maine Maritime (65-58) and Rivier (77-52) before falling to Emmanuel (63-58) and to two nationally ranked teams, Southern Maine (63-24) and Bowdoin (73-51). Katie McCabe '08 and Tracey Nale '07 lead the squad with 10.6 and 10.1 points per game, respectively. McCabe also leads the Mules in rebounding with 7.1 per contest. Colby is back in action December 30-31 when it travels to Worcester Polytechnic Institute for tournament action.
The men's ice hockey team won seven straight before coming up short against archrival, Bowdoin, 3-2, at Alfond Rink in what was otherwise a celebratory evening. Colby recognized the 50th Anniversary of the Alfond Rink with a special pre-game ceremony. President William Adams, legendary coach Jack Kelley, and captain of the 1955 team, Charlie Morrissey '56, were on hand for festivities that took place before a packed house. The following evening the Mules and Polar Bears battled again in Brunswick, and once again Colby found itself one goal down, with a final score of 7-6.
TJ Kelley '08 leads the team with five goals and 13 assists for 18 points. Tied for second with 16 points,Greg Osborne '07 had scored the most goals with 11 and Josh Reber '08 leads the squad in assists with 14. First year Andy Cook '09 has played the lion's share of the minutes minding the net. He has a .895 save percentage and has recorded a 3.18 goals-against average. Colby is off until January 3 when it travels to Curry College.
