Thoroughbreds out of the gate
Skidmore’s fall athletic season is under way.
This season, the Thoroughbreds will compete for Liberty League championships in field
hockey, men's and women's soccer, and volleyball. The golf team will play in the Liberty
League qualifier for a shot at the spring championship tournament, and the men's and
women's tennis teams will play a fall schedule to prepare for the spring championship
tournaments.
All-American Kelly Blackhurst '14 looks to lead the field hockey team to a seventh straight NCAA tournament. The Thoroughbreds were 14-6 last season, advancing to the NCAA round of 16. Blackhurst is poised to become the program's all-time leading scorer. She enters the season with 62 goals and 73 assists for 185 career points, 17 behind the record of 202 set in 2010 by current Thoroughbred assistant coach Christine Kemp '11. The team opens the season Aug. 30 at Castleton State and will be home at 4 p.m. Sept. 11 against Oneonta State.
Jeremiah Kneeland is taking over the reigns of the men's soccer team, and will rely on several key players from last year's team that went 10-5-2. Adam Beek '15 was a third-team all-region selection after scoring three goals and adding four assists for 10 points. Goalie Eli Kisselbach '15 played in all 17 games last season, earning eight shutouts. Skidmore travels to the Roger Williams University tournament Aug. 31 and Sept. 1 before returning home at 4 p.m. Sept. 6 to face Sage College.
The women's soccer team hopes to return to the Liberty League tournament after a 2012 record of 4-9-2. Gab Lawrence '14 is back in goal after starting all 15 games and posting five shutouts last year. Defender Jenna Spooner '14 provides valuable experience to a squad that features eight first-year players. Following four road games, the team will play its home opener at 1 p.m Sept. 19 against Oneonta State.
After its eighth NCAA tournament appearance, the Thoroughbred volleyball team is poised to make another run at the Liberty League title. The team was 26-8 last season, finishing first in the league regular season. All-American and Liberty League Player of the Year Corrine Palmer '14 is back for her final season. The team is on the road until a 7 p.m. Sept. 17 Liberty League match against Union College.
The men's and women's tennis teams use the fall to prep for the spring championship season. Both teams will be in the mix when the first rankings come out in October. The men open at the Middlebury Invitational Sept. 14-15. The team's lone home match of the fall is at 1 p.m. Oct. 5 against Trinity College. The women start Sept. 8 at Bard College and will be home just once this fall – at 6 p.m. Sept. 20 against Union College.
The golfers will begin the quest for a seventh straight Liberty League championship with the Sept. 28-29 league qualifier at St. Lawrence. The top four teams advance to the championship match in April. The team will host the Tim Brown Invitational Sept. 7-8 at the Airway Meadows Golf Course.
(Cover photo: Lauren Alexander ’15 (left) Gab Lawrence ’14 in goal, and Keirsten Sires ’14 at a practice session in late August. Photo by Andy Camp)
