Late January Athletics Update

Men’s Soccer Wrap-Up

The Kings College Men’s Soccer team had their best season in three years, their first three years as a varsity program. Coach Ilyas Tasci said, “We have a good core of student athletes that are loyal, dedicated, and hard working. It is certain that we made some noise in our conference as we missed the playoffs by one game.”

Some of the highlights of the season were beating NAIA Fisher College 4-1 and NCAA St. Joe’s College of Brooklyn 5-3. “We are a very young and dynamic group.” Coach Tasci added, “We started 1 senior, 2 juniors, 4 sophomores, and 4 freshman. The opportunities for incoming freshman players to be an immediate factor is very high compared to some other programs. We are looking to bring in at least 7 freshman each year to continue growing our program’s success. We are very excited about the upcoming season.”

The team enjoyed a fine season, and individual players were rewarded for their efforts. Seth Parks, Peter Murphy and Caleb Trouwborst were all selected as United States College Athletic Association Academic All-Americans. Parks was also selected to the HVIAC All-Conference Team. Freshman goalkeeper Jacob Wright was voted Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Conference Rookie of the Year by conference coaches. Freshmen Emilio Godinez and Felix Bravo were each selected as HVIAC Rookie of the Week during the season. Sophomore Zach Adams was selected HVIAC Player of the Week Honorable Mention four times, or almost half the season! Godinez and Adams were also selected to the Panther Invitational All-Tournament Team hosted by Albany Pharmacy. 2015 looks to be a very promising year for TKC men’s soccer. What are you waiting for? Join our movement!

Women’s Volleyball Wrap-Up

The Lady Lions Women’s Volleyball Team had an amazing season finishing 6-9 overall but 3-2 in the Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Conference. They qualified for the conference playoffs for the first time in the three year history of the program.  Not only did they achieve plenty of team success, there were individual honors as well. Head Coach Tiffany Firebaugh was voted by her HVIAC peers as Coach of the Year. Senior captain Kelli O’Donnell was selected as a United States College Athletic Conference Academic All-American and junior captain Alex Rollis was a USCAA Player of the Week. Both players were named three times as HVIAC Player of the Week Honorable Mention and both were selected to the HVIAC All-Conference Team.

Coach Tiffany Firebaugh had this to say:

At the beginning of the 2014 TKC volleyball season, the girls decided to own the dream of making it to playoffs for the first time. The team made goals and invested in team bonding in a way they had never done before, and I saw the resolve begin to form in their eyes. The season was not without its setbacks, but each time one arose, the setback became an opportunity to practice grit and mental toughness—often through humor.

This easy-going mentality did not compromise the discipline of the team, though. My players saw the seven member team situation as an opportunity for everyone to take responsibility for the dream to make it to playoffs. In practice, teammates held each other accountable, reminding each other that every single rep counted for every single player, because when it came down to game time, there would be no subs. Everyone had a vital role to play.

This attitude is what brought them the history-making run to the HVIAC playoffs, and the highest finish for volleyball in school history thus far. I won Coach of the Year, and I feel deeply honored by that, but I know I did not do it alone; I won Coach of the Year because I had the opportunity to coach a great group of girls who made the choice to invest in each other and become a team. It’s so incredibly cheesy, but it’s just true. Without their decision to be all in, none of this would have happened. And I’m so glad we were all in, together.

Looking ahead to next season, the team will of course miss the leadership of our two outgoing seniors. However, I feel confident in the foundation this team has laid in both work ethic and camaraderie for next season. A real team culture is beginning to arise. I am excited about the new recruits we will have for the fall of 2015, and the depth of game experience and heart they will bring to the floor. The combination of fresh talent and a strong team culture will surely only continue the success the TKC volleyball team has found thus far.

Women’s Soccer Wrap-Up

The Lady Lions Women’s Soccer Team enjoyed another fine season with a 9-5 record, bringing their three year record as a varsity program to 24-15-1. For the second year in a row they finished second in the regular season in the Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference behind Albany Pharmacy.  They have an 8-2 conference record over the past two years with both losses coming to Albany Pharmacy. TKC again advanced to the HVIAC Conference Championship game as they did in 2013 but again fell to the Panthers of Albany Pharmacy!  The team was 7-0 against NCAA D3 teams in 2014. The Lady Lions were also ranked 9th in the 45 team United States College Athletic Association.

Sophomore captain Genesis Castrellon was named as the HVIAC Player of the Year and freshman Aleena Cruz was named HVIAC Rookie of the Year as voted by conference coaches. Castrellon also repeated as a USCAA All-American selection and she led the HVIAC in scoring for the second year in a row. Both players were also named to the HVIAC All-Conference Team where they were joined by junior captain Caitlin Essex. The three players also finished second, fifth and ninth respectively in the USCAA scoring race. Castrellon picked up six HVIAC Player of the Week recognitions, while Cruz appeared five times on that list and Essex once. Freshman Maizy Medley was also tabbed as an HVIAC Rookie of the Week midway through the season.

For the third year in a row the team was nationally recognized by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America with their Team Ethics and Sportsmanship Award.  This award is given to teams who are not issued any red card ejections during the season and have a limited amount of yellow card cautions from referees. In three years as a varsity program the team has no red cards and only two yellow cards. They are part of a group of about 50 women’s soccer teams out of 1200 nationwide that earn this distinction each year. The Lady Lions play hard, and they play fair and are proud to represent The King’s College out on the field and across the Northeast.

Men’s And Women’s Golf Wrap-Up

The TKC Men’s and Women’s Golf Team began their first season as a varsity sport under the guidance of accomplished golf instructor and coach, Thomas Palmgren. The team could not be in better hands! Coach Palmgren said: Our golf team had an outstanding season though it was only our first season as a varsity sport. We were only four players strong but extremely committed. We didn’t win any of our matches, but the team certainly made its presence felt. Lead by Victoria Li we sent a resounding message to our competition that The Kings College is on the move, with Victoria winning the chipping contest at Penn State during a conference event and gaining lowest winning score amongst all female competitors. During our first golf event Victoria shot 5th amongst all competitors male and female. To have a co-ed golf team lead by a female player in college sports is a very big deal, we all need to salute Victoria and the rest of the team for their efforts.

The college’s athletic department and I have been working very hard to bring to our school students with golf interest and skills. We also are aware that there are a number of students enrolled presently who have the skills to play competitive golf, we hope to encourage them to come out for the team. If we could put together those who are here and convince a few applicants who seem to be interested, I believe 2015/2016 golf season will be a break through year for our golf program.

It goes without saying that my expectations for the future of our golf program are high. Success comes at a price, that price is defined by hard work, discipline, responsibility and commitment which are the cornerstones of any great endeavor. I look forward to the upcoming year and working with the wonderful students our school has brought together.

Women’s Cross Country Wrap-Up

The TKC Women’s Cross Country Team enjoyed a successful and productive season as they officially became a varsity sport at King’s after operating as a club team for the past few years. The athletes all saw their 5K times drop over the course of the season and all had some impressive performances along the way. Team captain, Kéyah Harvey, received Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Conference Player of the Week Honorable Mention several times was selected to the HVIAC All-Conference Team.

Coach Jeremy Hardy had this to say: I think we had an awesome start considering we are transitioning from a club sport to a collegiate program. The women’s side really stepped up in showing a lot of commitment and dedication and paving the way for this program. The team captain, Kéyah Harvey, did a great job of leading our small team of women both in competition and in training. Our team placed in 5th at The 2014 HVIAC Conference Championship after coming in 6th one year ago. Lacking the numbers to score as a team at the USCAA Nationals in Syracuse, the ladies still had some strong performances on the big stage.

The accomplishments of this season really opened the eyes for future recruits. I’ve receive multiple emails concerning athletes wanting to be apart of our new program. I feel next season we will be very competitive and we are hoping to grow in number on both sides.