Over the past two decades, there have been 15 international Men’s Basketball players from 15 different countries at Marist College. Is this just a coincidence or a part of a tradition at Marist of international recruitment by the Men’s Basketball program?
There was growing concern that Marist was only able to develop “Quadruple A” players, meaning that they produced players that were talented enough to get drafted, but not good enough to stick professionally. That was until September 9, 2016, when Kevin McCarthy toed the rubber for the first time as a pitcher for the Kansas City Royals.
Transferring to a mid-major after playing basketball for an ACC school may seem to some like a downgrade, but Marist College forward Alana Gilmer disagrees. After leaving Virginia Tech for Marist, she found her true home in Poughkeepsie.
On August 26, 2016, Vander Weide was charged with a DWI and indefinitely suspended from the basketball team at Missouri State, but was allowed to stay in school.
When she was going through what she described as “rock bottom,” Vander Weide turned to her faith for guidance.
Year by year, more athletic departments across the country are adapting to a new type of athlete, one that does not run, jump and lift weights. This athlete is a gamer, a true gamer that sits in front of a screen using their quick twitch fingers to control the virtual world.
And the team, slowly swaying with their arms around one another, repeat it again. “Musa musa musa.” The circle sways a little faster. “Aye olè, bali wae bali wae!” Reinhardt and Bongiorni smile to each other as the team repeats the last part. Now it’s time to get loud.
Jaycox recorded strong seasons both her freshman and sophomore seasons, but her junior season ended at 10 games after enduring a stress fracture in her shin. She went into the summer and into the preseason with a goal common to many of her teammates: to win the MAAC Championship.
The typical college student will reluctantly go to class, do their homework when they’re supposed to and hang out with friends in their free time. The typical student-athlete also does all of this, and will practice and work out every day on top of it. Such a relaxed schedule is not typical for one Marist sophomore.
The limited field times and practice spaces are ongoing issues at Marist College. If you have never experienced Tenney Stadium at 5 a.m., consider yourself lucky. There are teams on the field before the sun rises, before the birds start chirping, and before the entire campus wakes up.
The 2017-2018 basketball season signaled a big step onto the national stage for Marist and it’s athletic department. The school, along with all of their Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference counterparts, began broadcasting all basketball games on ESPN3.