Most people on campus probably envision winter break as a time for Grinnell’s student-athletes to get a taste of free time that is typically unavailable to people who attend class, practice and weight sessions every day during the academic year. For Grinnell’s basketball and swimming teams, however, winter break lands during the heart of their seasons. The S&B sifted through box scores and post-game articles to bring you the highlights from Grinnell’s winter break competitions.
Women’s basketball
The Pioneer women’s basketball team posted a 3-2 record over break. Following Wednesday night’s home loss to Cornell College, they sit at .500 for the month of January. From an individual perspective, Kayla Morrissey ’18’s dominance particularly stands out. Morrissey has been posting double-doubles on a consistent basis, and has made it into the top five of the team’s all-time scoring list and second all-time in free throws made. The women sit at 7-8 overall, and with a month left, they face familiar conference foes the rest of the way.
Men’s basketball
The men’s basketball team is coming off a winter break in which they won three games and lost another three. The wins included hard-fought victories in conference matchups, and the losses came at the hands of talented teams such as Nebraska Wesleyan, which is 17-2, and Monmouth, which sits just above Grinnell in the conference standings. In the Pioneers’ 107-93 victory over Lake Forest, they recorded their 1,000th program win, an impressive feat for coaches David Arseneault Sr. and David Arseneault Jr., who have been at the helm for over a third of those victories. Vinny Curta ’19 leads all divisions of the NCAA in scoring, averaging 33.4 points per game.
Women’s swim and dive
The women’s swimming and diving team started their return from break on a team trip to Florida, where they trained and competed in a duel against Connecticut College in Naples. Connecticut College is nationally ranked, and although the Pioneers lost, they posted some impressive individual performances, including Summer White ’18 winning the duel on the diving board. The Pioneers’ only other meet during break was the Grinnell Invitational on Jan. 19 and 20, at which they took first place. The win at the Grinnell Invitational was the first in 10 years for the Pioneers. They compete again this weekend at Macalester College.
Men’s swim and dive
Just like the women, the men’s swimming and diving team traveled to Naples, Florida to compete against Connecticut College at the beginning of January, where they lost 83-143. However, also like the women, they won the Grinnell Invitational, where Paul Cover ’21 set a school record in the 100-yard butterfly. Besides Cover’s record, Joshua Cottle ’18 won the 1650 freestyle and Michael Lee ’18 won three-meter diving. The men will travel with the women to Macalester College this weekend.