Big Wins

In September, three hundred fans cheered from the Leonard Center stands for the volleyball team’s conference opener against Carleton—and the boisterous crowd got to witness a thrilling highlight in what would become the program’s best season in fifteen years.

Down two sets and trailing in the third, the home team—led by first-year head coach Mary Johnston—came all the way back to beat Carleton by winning the set 25-23 and then triumphing in the next two sets to take the match.

“After the final point, everyone on the court ran together and started hugging each other and jumping up and down,” says Eliza King ’23 (Novato, Calif.), who earned all-conference accolades as an outside hitter. “I could hear the crowd cheering and stomping on the bleachers, and I knew that they were just as excited as we were that we pulled it off. It was so exciting to see everything coming together that we’ve been working toward. And that was the start of what I knew this season could be.”

The victory was the team’s first MIAC win since 2016, ending a streak of forty-one conference losses. It marked the first of four MIAC victories this season, which ended with a 13-12 record, the program’s first winning record since 2006.

The Wrap-Up

• With a team GPA of 3.905 for the 2020-21 academic year, Mac softball posted the highest average among all NCAA softball programs, across all divisions. “I could not be prouder of the commitment, determination, and resiliency shown by our student-athletes,” says head coach Jody Gabriel.
• In the first MIAC game in any sport with two Black head coaches, the football team beat Hamline 23-13 in the annual Paint Bucket matchup. Before the game, head coaches KiJuan Ware from Macalester and Chip Taylor from Hamline participated in the coin toss with their captains to commemorate the milestone.
• Men’s soccer competed in the MIAC playoffs, advancing to the semifinal round after a thrilling comeback against Augsburg in the first round before losing to Carleton to end the season. The Scots posted the third-highest GPA (3.76) in Division III, and Will Orser ’22 (Eau Claire, Wis.) was named an Academic All-American.
• Women’s soccer marked its first winning season since 2017 with a 10-6-2 record. Hannah Conner ’22 (Madison, Wis.) and Dana Gustafson ’22 (Ames, Iowa) were named to the Academic All-District team.