Men’s Cross Country | Sept. 30 | Paul Short Invitational
This past Saturday, the Vassar men’s cross country team traveled down to Bethlehem, PA, for one of the biggest meets in the country, the Paul Short Invitational. The highly competitive meet included schools from Division III as well as Division I. The Brewers stepped up to meet their competition, with many runners earning personal bests. Leading the pack was senior Miles Takiguchi ’23, who ran a program record 24:22.0, good for 12th place overall in the Brown race. Vassar’s next finisher was Aidan Mayer ’24, who ran a gutsy race, crossing the line in 25:52.2. Junior Andrew Blackburn ’24 cranked out a lifetime personal best of 25:59.4, and rookie Davis Anderson ’26 pulled out an impressive 26:02.6. Jose Magana ’25 had a strong debut 8k with a time of 26:14.8, and first-year Charlie Brodkin ’26 broke 30 minutes for the first time in his career with a personal best of 28:53.5. The team finished 29th of 45 teams in the Brown Race, and will next head to New London, CT, for the Connecticut College Invitational on Oct. 15.
Women’s Cross Country | Sept. 30 | Paul Short Invitational
The women’s cross country team went down to Bethlehem, PA, this past Saturday to face off against some of the best teams in the country, including teams from both Division I and Division III at the Paul Short Invitational. The Brewers finished 24th out of 46 teams in the highly competitive field, and had some incredibly strong performances from individuals as well. Augusta Stockman ’23 ran a personal best time of 22:02.9, the fourth fastest time in program history, and placed 38th overall in the Brown race. Not too far behind her was the duo of Clara Wiesler ’24 and Noni Pattington ’25, who finished back-to-back in times of 22:52.1 and 22:52.9 respectively. Annika Mueller-Hickler ’26 had a strong day, running a 23:30.5 to round out the scoring five. Amaavi Miriyagalla ’24 also ran a big lifetime best of 24:24.1, finishing seventh among the Brewers. Next up for Vassar is the Connecticut College Invitational on Saturday, Oct. 15.
Field Hockey | Oct. 1-4 | 1-1
The Vassar Field Hockey team split its two games this week, losing a close 1-0 game to Ithaca on Oct. 1 and winning a double overtime thriller by a score of 2-1 against #20 SUNY Cortland on Oct. 4. Against Ithaca, the Brewers battled the whole way through the game, playing strong defense and getting some good chances but never quite getting one in the net. The game stayed deadlocked at 0-0 for well over three quarters until Ithaca scored a goal with 1:38 remaining, handing Vassar a heartbreaking defeat. The Brewers quickly rebounded with a huge win over 20th-ranked SUNY Cortland just a few days later on Oct. 4. After a scoreless first quarter, Vassar got on the board first with a goal from Maggie Werner ’24 early in the second quarter. The Brewers once again played strong defense throughout the match and were able to keep Cortland off the board deep into the fourth quarter. But with under four minutes to go, the Red Dragons finally scored to tie things up and eventually send the game into overtime. Goalie Sarah Dumaresq ’24 kept Cortland at one goal with some big saves in the first overtime period. After having some chances of their own in overtime, Vassar finally pulled through with the game winner from Leilani Llamas ’25 in the second overtime period. With the win, Vassar improves to 7-3 on the season. Next up for the Brewers is their Senior Day matchup against Union College on Saturday, Oct. 8.
Men’s Soccer | Oct. 1 | W 1-0
This past Saturday, Oct. 1, the men’s soccer team stayed undefeated in Liberty League play with its 1-0 win over Union College. The Brewer’s got some early chances, but were finally able to cash in in the 26th minute, when senior Ryan Lane ’23 headed the ball into the net. Strong defense kept Union off the board heading into halftime. In the second half, the Brewers had some more great chances, but just weren’t able to convert any into goals. Union had some great chances of their own, but along with solid defense, goalkeeper Eric Wnorowski ’23 was able to keep Union off the board. The win improved Vassar’s record to 7-3 on the season, including 3-0 in league play. Next up for the Brewers is a matchup against Skidmore in Saratoga Springs, NY, on Saturday, Oct. 8.