Fall sports broke records, entered NAIA semifinals and gained both regional and national recognition.
Out of the three fall teams, both soccer and cross country fell short of players. Although the lack of athletes limited overall participation, their individual talents still left a mark.
On Dec. 4, the cross country team’s three NAIA qualifying runners Matt Cagigal, Richard Bourkeart and Mary Erin Imwalle were all named to the Louisiana Sports Writers Association All-Louisiana team. Finance senior Cagigal, who was an individual champion at the GCAC meet in October, regrets that Loyola wasn’t always able to compete as a team.
“It makes it hard. You can’t compete as a team, so you have to work that much harder as an individual,” Cagigal said. Still, the three individual athletes made it to regionals despite the tribulations of a scant number of runners.
Women’s soccer struggled with revolving players who came and went due to injuries and personal issues. The strain kept them from finishing the season, ending at the William Carey University game on Oct. 20 in Hattiesburg, Miss.
“It just got to the point where we were risking players’ health and strength by playing with no substitutes,” said Heather Whitfield, international business freshman. Whitfield, who scored a hat trick in their season debut victory against Crichton College, is a firm advocate of her surviving teammates’ commitment to finishing strong.
“Success is going from failure to failure and still being able to pick yourself up,” Whitfield continued, bearing in mind that they ended 2-11. “I know quite a few of us would give our all in these games and the result would in no way represent how we played.”
As frustrating as the results were, the women didn’t relax their efforts. International business freshman Jordann Webster and chemistry sophomore Kathryn Conroy both made the GCAC All-Conference second team. During the team’s final match against William Carey, the goalkeeper’s 28 saves established an NAIA record. Conroy was also recognized as a key defensive player.
Volleyball’s season ended with a loss to Berry College at the NAIA regional semi-finals in Cleveland, Tenn. The team enjoyed a consistently strong season and ended 21-11.
“I think we finished on a high note,” coach Tommy Harold said. “At the end of the year, we were playing our best.”
Nicole Mundy can be reached at [email protected].
