TYLER PACOS
Sports Editor
With the fall sports season quickly approaching the end, winter sports will be starting very soon here for the Fredonia Blue Devils. With a quick turnaround from the two seasons, here is everything you need to know and lookout for this winter sports season on the Fredonia campus.
Men’s Hockey
The men’s hockey team comes off a very successful season to say the least. The Blue Devils managed to go 10-11-1 overall in the 2021-22 season, and 8-8-0 in the SUNYAC.
They managed to qualify for a spot in the SUNYAC playoff tournament, but were knocked off in the first round by SUNY Cortland with a final score of 3-1. Ranked sixth out of ninth in the SUNYAC Coaches Poll, the men’s team is looking to keep their success running into this season.
The squad, led by captains Ethan Kirbis, Antonio Demacopoulos and Craig McCabe, will be a force to reckon with this season. Add netminder Logan Dyck into the mix, who ranked second out of all goalies in the SUNYAC as a rookie and was voted Fredonia State Male Athlete of the Year and Male Rookie of the Year in 2021-22, this team has the potential to do some serious damage this season.
They open the season on Oct. 28 at Trine University, then return home for the start of SUNYAC play, hosting the Buffalo State Bengals on Nov. 4.
Women’s Basketball
Despite exiting the SUNYAC’s last season in the first round against SUNY Geneseo in a very close tilt, the women’s team is hoping to carry their momentum with them into this upcoming season.
Finishing 12-14 overall and 7-11 in the SUNYAC, highly-experienced coach Sarah Cartmill looks to lead the squad back to the SUNYAC playoff tournament in demanding fashion.
The women’s team will open their regular season on Nov. 8 at home in Dods Hall Gymnasium against Hiram College. From there, SUNYAC play will start Nov. 29 as they will travel to SUNY Oswego and take on the Oswego Lakers.
Men’s Basketball
Coach Sean Smiley and his team look to bounce back in the SUNYAC this year, coming off a challenging season in 2021-22.
Finishing 3-22 overall, and 3-15 in the SUNYAC, young-gun and transfer student Aaron Collins looks to keep his success going. After only appearing in 13 games for Fredonia, he managed to lead the team in points with 198, and averaged 15.2 points per game.
A full season with Collins in Fredonia could be a huge impact for the team and may be the answer the Blue Devils are looking for.
The first game is scheduled for Nov. 8 as they travel to Allegheny to take on the Gators, then they will open SUNYAC play on Nov. 29 as the men’s team travels to SUNY Oswego to take on the Oswego Lakers.
Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving
After serving as an interim head coach this past season, William Bradley was officially named head coach during the off-season. Bradley and his team are already in full form here as the season has already begun for both the men’s and women’s team, as they opened up their season against Pitt-Bradford.
Both teams also started up SUNYAC play against SUNY Brockport and SUNY Buffalo State on Oct. 15 as the men’s took two out of the three matches and the women’s dropped all three.
With a busy schedule heading into winter break, the Blue Devils will look to increase their record before the SUNYAC playoff tournament, which is scheduled in February.
Men’s and Women’s Indoor Track and Field
Star performers Haley Lerner and Nick Abdo look to continue their success into this season, which will start during winter break in January with the schedule yet to be determined.
If the indoor track and field season is anything like the cross country season this fall, this outstanding group of athletes will be making a statement across the SUNYAC for certain this upcoming indoor season.
Stay tuned for Fredonia Sports updates throughout the season by checking out our website, tuning into Fredonia Radio Systems, or visit https://fredoniabluedevils.com/index.aspx for real-time updates and stats from our winter sports teams.