Ever since the conference’s formation in 1971, off-season workouts with coaches have been a NESCAC no-no. But under that recognize the loss of games and competitions due to COVID-19, NESCAC spring sports coaches were allowed to work with their teams this fall.

For first-year 乐播传媒 Bobcats in traditional spring sports like baseball, lacrosse, and softball, being allowed to practice with their coaches and new teammates right away this fall has been a unique experience in a unique time 鈥� and a silver lining in an otherwise difficult transition to college.

Video by Aaron Morse/乐播传媒 College

“I lost my season last year, and it was hard to practice over the summer,” said men’s lacrosse player Lowell Hairston ’24 of Reisterstown, Md.

“Just being out on the field in any capacity has been honestly fantastic. Even with the modified drills with less people on the field and not being able to hit each other, it鈥檚 been so worth it.”

For head men’s lacrosse coach Peter Lasagna, being able to bound around Garcelon Field with his team “has been an exquisite joy. The reason why we know each other, the reason that we are connected, is because of our shared passion for lacrosse. For us to be able to actually experience that together in their first months of college has just been wonderful.”

They aren’t necessarily “normal” practices, with drills being modified to fit physical-distancing guidelines and, you know, everyone wearing masks. But to first-year students, none of that really matters.

Getting to know the coaches right away has been a crucial component of the fall practices for spring sports student-athletes. Hairston is already learning a lot about coach Lasagna.

“He鈥檚 honestly one of the most empathetic people,” Hairston said. “But he鈥檚 also just funny and knows when to get serious on the field too.”

Over at Leahey Field, pitcher Jack Potash ’24 of Seymour, Conn., was able to face live hitting for the first time in an entire year.

“I have been pitching pretty much since I have been playing baseball,” Potash said. “I did not get a chance to play this summer so it felt good; it鈥檚 always nice to go back on the mound.”

Learning from older peers is a big aspect of the 乐播传媒 experience as a whole. And it’s no different in the world of athletics. One thing the more experienced Bobcats have emphasized is that flexibility is the key to success.

“Being able to adapt to different situations is definitely a huge thing,” said women’s lacrosse player Madie Donovan ’24 of Cohasset, Mass. “I think our upperclassmen are awesome and have really helped with that transition, you know getting up to speed with lifting and practices and class, all at the same time.”

When it comes down to it, the strong 乐播传媒 community continues to shine through, even in difficult times.

“I just love it here,” Hairston said. “I have not had an experience like this. I have not been able to be in a community like this in…forever. So this is truly unique.”

The 乐播传媒 baseball team put together its best NESCAC East season in program history this year, finishing with a record of 9-3.

Last Saturday, we traveled to Brunswick to cover the Bobcats’ twin bill vs. Bowdoin. Needing one win to clinch a spot in the , 乐播传媒 won both.

“You know everybody was locked in from the moment we woke up,” said sophomore Christian Beal of Flossmoor, Ill. “When this team needs a win, we find a way to win, and that鈥檚 special.”

Needing one win vs. Bowdoin last weekend to clinch a spot in the NESCAC tourney, 乐播传媒 got two, and had some fun along the way:

Justin White ’19 of聽Whitesboro, N.Y., is a special story in his own right. When White was a first-year, he got cut from the team. He made the squad as a sophomore but didn’t record his first collegiate hit until mid-April last season.

Now, he’s one of the key reasons 乐播传媒’ offense is much-improved this season, ranking eighth in the NESCAC with a .536 slugging percentage in conference games.

“He鈥檚 an example for guys, anybody out there that鈥檚 really struggling with playing time and not getting in and not getting the results that you want, to stick with it and push through and work hard and it will eventually pan out,” said head coach Jon Martin.

White’s “crazy journey” to the starting lineup is just one of many story lines to watch this weekend at the NESCAC tournament in Waterville, Maine.

Cut from the team as a first-year, Justin White ’19 has come on strong:

On the volleyball court, captain Julia Panepinto ’20 of Buffalo, N.Y., is the one dishing out the assists. Off the court, Panepinto’s teammates assist her.

She’s taking the rhetoric course 鈥漃residential Campaign Rhetoric,鈥� in which students mount a full-blown mock presidential campaign on campus. And Panepinto is one of the candidates.

“At every campaign event, the team is there,” Panepinto said. “So there is such a supportive environment we have, and I think it鈥檚 unparalleled.”

It’s a supportive, but also very competitive, environment. Practices are intense.

“It can get a little snippy,” Panepinto says with a smile. “Only seven people can start on game day and each of us wants to be one of those seven.”

Mix those two ingredients together and you have the best season for the program in nearly a decade.

The Bobcats went 14-8 during the regular season, the program’s most wins since 2009. Now, the Bobcats head to the NESCAC tournament for the fourth straight year under head coach Melissa DeRan.

Each season, 乐播传媒 has increased its win total under DeRan but the Bobcats are still looking for their first win in the NESCAC tournament since 2003.

“Obviously being in the tournament is great, the NESCAC is a fight, day in and day out,” DeRan said. “But, that鈥檚 not good enough anymore and it鈥檚 time for us to make an impact now that we鈥檙e there.鈥� 聽

Fans who’ve seen 乐播传媒 football run-run-run the ball on offense in recent years are in for something completely different when the at 1 p.m. Saturday for the 2018 season opener.

The Bobcats are about to flip the script.

New head coach Malik Hall and his coaching staff have brought the air raid offense to 乐播传媒, which has run the triple option for the last eight years.

The offense is well-known at the Division I level, where , and it puts a premium on passing, with up to five receivers running routes. Where 乐播传媒 ran the ball 70 percent of the time in 2017, the Bobcats could flip that ratio in 2018.

Asked to sum up the new offense, quarterback Brendan Costa ’21 of聽Westport, Mass., says, “throw, throw, throw!” But it’s a little more complicated than that.

That’s where new offensive coordinator Custavious Patterson comes in. Described by wide receiver Marcus Ross ’19 of聽Mansfield, Texas, as a “coaching genius,” Patterson comes to 乐播传媒 after stints at Wagner and Fordham universities.

“We led the nation in total offense at Fordham when I was there,” he says. “I remember that it took them a little longer to catch on” than his 乐播传媒 players.

“These kids here are like geniuses. They’ve caught on and acclimated really, really fast. We have a few things to clean up with them, but they’re on it.”

In softball, the art of slap hitting involves getting a running start and, in the words of 19th-century baseball star “Wee Willie” Keeler, “hitting ’em where they ain’t.”

Very few do it better than Caroline Bass ’21 of Newton, Mass., and Andrea Russo ’19 of聽Cheshire, Conn.

Russo has 120 career hits entering Friday afternoon’s 鈥� just seven shy of the 乐播传媒 career hits record.

Meanwhile, this year Bass broke the program records for hits and runs scored in a single season.

Their prowess at the top of the order has propelled 乐播传媒 to a program-record 20 wins this season.

Imagine being at a golf tournament and hearing the gallery shout out advice like “Cup your wrist!” or “Rotate through!” during Jordan Spieth’s backswing.

That’s par for the course during a cross country race, where spectators crowd close to the runners, cheer enthusiastically, and sometimes offer tips like “Take deep breaths” or “Only one last hill!”

We’ve always wanted to know what top-flight runners think of all that advice. So, right before they headed onto the course for the NESCAC Women’s Cross Country Championship on Oct. 28, we asked a few Bobcat runners their thoughts about a few choice cheers.

The 乐播传媒 men and women return to action on Saturday, Nov. 11, for the NCAA New England Regional Championships at the University of Southern Maine.

Good things happen in threes. So do great things, especially for Bobcat sports this past week. Take a look:

1. Women’s rowing captures Head of the Charles title

Guided by senior coxswain Hanna De Bruyn of Old Lyme, Conn., the 乐播传媒 women’s varsity eight set a course record on Oct. 22 to win the women’s collegiate eights at the prestigious Head of the Charles Regatta.

De Bruyn and her crew navigated the serpentine 4,800-meter course on the Charles River in 16:01.182, outpacing last year’s Head of the Charles winner Wesleyan by 16.863 seconds.

乐播传媒 women’s rowing captured the women’s collegiate eights at the Head of the Charles on Oct. 22. (Photograph by Daniel D’Ottavio)

2. Men’s soccer qualifies for NESCACs with amazing goal vs. Colby

The 乐播传媒 men’s soccer team heads to the NESCAC championship tournament thanks to a miraculous goal scored in the final minute of the Bobcats’ regular-season finale at Colby on Wednesday afternoon.

Sophomore Beaufils Kimpolo-Pene of the Bronx, N.Y., knocked in the rebound of his initial saved shot聽with 24 seconds left in the second overtime period.

乐播传媒 plays at top-seeded Tufts Saturday at 2:30 p.m. in the NESCAC quarterfinals.

3. Field hockey also beats Colby, in final seconds, to earn NESCAC bid

For the third straight year, the 乐播传媒 field hockey team beat Colby in the final game of the season to earn a spot in the NESCAC tournament. Here’s what it looked like:

With the win, 乐播传媒 earns the eighth seed in the NESCAC tournament and visits top seed and No. 2 nationally ranked Middlebury on Saturday. The NESCAC quarterfinal match is set for 12:00 p.m.

Undefeated and No. 1 in the land, the continues its quest for a at noon Saturday in a semifinal game vs. Middlebury at Garcelon Field, which is .

乐播传媒 beat Middlebury a month ago on Senior Day, but the win didn’t satisfy the Bobcats. Up by eight early in the second half, 乐播传媒 saw the Panthers score seven unanswered goals in the third quarter before pulling out a 15鈥�12 win.

鈥淲e definitely had a bad taste in our mouth after the game,” says defenseman Charlie Gravina ’17 of Fair Haven, N.J. “But we found a way to win, found a way to hold them down and keep putting goals in the back of the net.鈥�

Middlebury beat 乐播传媒 twice in 2016, including a NESCAC tourney win that ended the Bobcats’ season. “We still have a chip on our shoulder from last year,鈥� says attackman Andrew Melvin ’17 of Medfield, Mass.

Head coach Peter Lasagna likes the fact that his team is still champing at the bit. “Maybe it’s a measure of our progress that simply beating Middlebury on Senior Day wasn鈥檛 enough.”

A win tomorrow puts 乐播传媒 into the title game at noon Sunday vs. the winner of tomorrow’s other semifinal matchup, between Tufts and Wesleyan, which kicks off at 3 p.m. at Garcelon.

The undefeated and No. 4 nationally ranked 乐播传媒 men’s lacrosse team visited Brunswick on Wednesday to take on No. 16 Bowdoin.

The Bobcats trailed by three goals midway through the fourth quarter, but as head coach Peter Lasagna puts it: “We’re going to keep on fighting and our best shooters are going to keep shooting until we score.”

You’ll want to watch what happens next.

With the victory, 乐播传媒 is 9-0 on the season and faces .

The Panthers beat 乐播传媒 twice in 2016 so the Bobcats are extra-motivated for Saturday’s tilt. “They ended our season last year, so that was one of the worst feelings you could possibly have,” says senior captain Kyle Weber.

Lasagna compares this week’s slate of tough games to taking final exams, coming up next week for 乐播传媒 students. “They did a very good job on their first exam,” Lasagna says. “Now we just have to get ready for Saturday’s exam.”