After months of waiting and practicing, the men’s tennis team will officially return to AU tonight. The tennis program was cut following the 2016-17 school year, but has returned after a one year hiatus. With the return of the program comes a brand new wave of players. The team currently has a roster of 12, consisting of seven freshmen, one sophomore, three juniors and a senior. Two-thirds of the team has no collegiate experience, so head coach Bryant Beard will be forced to … [Read more...]
Moran and Furnish highlight the Ravens’ early success
The Raven baseball team has put together a very promising start, building off of their success from last season. The team finished their non-conference season with an 8-6 record, good enough for fourth in the HCAC thus far. Part of their early success is due to their excellent starting pitching, specifically from junior Joe Moran. After making nine starts a season ago and posting an impressive 3.75 ERA, Moran came into the season as the likely ace. He has solidified himself in that role … [Read more...]
AU hires Barton as next swimming and diving coach
AU announced Friday that it has selected Tanner Barton to be the second swimming and diving coach in program history. The announcement came with the news that AU will be launching its diving program under the new head coach. Barton spent the 2017-18 season as a graduate assistant at his alma-mater of Ball State. He spent last season as an assistant coach at Cleveland State University. “I am blessed and honored to be leading the swimming and diving programs here at AU,” said … [Read more...]
Baseball team heads to Florida
AU’s baseball team will travel to Florida over spring break to compete in the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational. The Ravens will play in eight games against teams from all around the country. The annual team trip to Florida provides not only a test of the team’s skill on the diamond, but also gives the players and coaches a chance to bond. Head coach Matt Bair has both of these things in mind as the team prepares to make the week-long trip. “First and foremost, our spring trip to … [Read more...]
Men’s basketball team defeated by Bluffton
The men’s basketball team lost to Bluffton 79-68 in the first round of the HCAC tournament Friday. Despite defeating the Beavers twice in the regular season, AU fell behind in the first half and was unable to come back and win. After putting together a four-game win streak at the end of the regular season, it appeared that the Ravens were poised to make a postseason run; however, the team shot just 28 percent in the first half and trailed by 13 at halftime to open tournament … [Read more...]
Lacrosse programs set to kick off
The men’s and women’s lacrosse teams will begin play this week. AU’s newest sports programs were first announced back in 2015 as a part of the school’s development initiative to the athletic department. They began play in 2017 as a club team and will now begin their first full season as a school sponsored sport. As with any new sport, the players and coaches are excited to be a part of the first team in school history. AU hired Jacob Ashton to coach the men’s team and Colin McSharar to … [Read more...]
Swimmers perform well in conference championships
Both swim teams competed last weekend at the second annual swimming and diving conference championships. The women’s team placed third out of six teams, and the men placed fourth. AU does not currently have a diving team, so they were unable to capture as many total team points as other conference schools. The women tallied 320 points, just 19 points behind Rose-Hulman. The ladies had the highest score for a team not receiving diving points. The men posted a score of 173.5, … [Read more...]
Basketball team rides hot streak into the tournament
After an up-and-down season, the men’s basketball team was able to finish strong by winning four games in a row out of five. The Ravens lost on the road to Defiance, the last-ranked team in the conference, before returning home to defeat top-ranked Hanover in a major upset. That sparked a streak where the men took down three teams who finished above them in the HCAC standings. On Saturday, they lost 96-89 in a close contest to third-ranked Transylvania, wrapping up their regular … [Read more...]
“Hits4Hope” challenge begins for AU’s baseball team
AU’s baseball team is gearing up for another season, but their focus this offseason has been on something larger. The team has been partnered with Secret Families of Madison County, a nonprofit providing Christmas presents for less fortunate families around the county, for several years now. Head coach Matt Bair wanted to take things further this season. “A couple of years ago when I took the job at AU, I was introduced to this ministry here in town,” said Bair. “They provided us an … [Read more...]
Men’s basketball seeks consistency as the tournament approaches
The men’s basketball team finds itself in fifth place in the HCAC following a huge upset win over conference leading Hanover. With just four games left, the Ravens will need to put together a few tough wins in order to secure a spot in the postseason tournament. Over the next ten days, the men will face off against four other teams also looking to solidify their position in the tournament. They will play sixth ranked Manchester and fourth ranked Bluffton on the road before coming home to … [Read more...]