This week in sports: Snapshot of the February slate

Around campus right now, there is a sense of quiet before the storm. And no, I’m not talking about the snow blizzards—I’m talking about the past week’s notable lack of sporting events. But don’t get used to it.

While the wrestling, swimming and basketball teams all had outings last weekend on January 21, the rest of the week’s calendar has been… bare. Not a single event took place between Sunday, January 22, and Thursday, January 26. Wabash fans have had little choice but to sit around and twiddle their thumbs.

But fear not, dear Cavemen, for February brings with it a slew of athletics events to feast on. So many, in fact, that the athletics schedule for some days includes no fewer than 11 separate events. It is all quite dizzying. But once more, fear not, for The Bachelor has you covered. So, let’s break down what all to expect in February’s crazy athletics calendar.

Basketball: Conference championship on the line

With the basketball team more than halfway through the conference portion of their season, it’s crunch time for Coach Brumett and his men. But topping the NCAC standings will be no easy task. On Saturday, January 21, the Little Giants barely scraped out an over- time victory against perennial underperformers Oberlin, and even that wouldn’t have been possible without the last-second heroics of Vinny Buccilla ’25.

Barring some kind of miracle, Wabash needs to win out to have any chance of securing a second consecutive NCAC title. Wabash (14-4, 7-2 NCAC) is currently third in the conference standings behind first-place Wooster (15- 3, 9-1 NCAC) and second-place Ohio Wesleyan (13-6, 8-2 NCAC). The Little Giants play these teams again on February 18 and February 4 respectively.

The NCAC Tournament commences on February 21, beginning with the quarterfinals.

Swimming & Diving: Championship month

The swimming and diving team has wrapped up its regular season schedule and now moves into a month-long post-season spell. Across four days on February 8-11, the team will compete in the NCAC Championships, hosted at Denison’s Trumball Aquatics Center.

Leading the charge for the Little Giants will be two-time NCAC Athlete of the Week Caleb McCarty ’23. The senior from Decatur, Indiana, posted two individual victories against NCAA Division I opponents Valparaiso University and Eastern Illinois University on Friday, January 20.

The team will then compete at the Last Chance Meet at Indiana University’s Councilman Billingsley Aquatic Center on February 18.

Lacrosse: All fired up

There is a lot of hype around the Wabash lacrosse team right now. In part, this is because of the team’s amazing social media efforts of late. But it’s mainly because of the genuine conviction that this team can go places.

Head Coach Chris Burke has a young bunch of players to work with. Of the 20 men listed on the lacrosse roster, 10 of them are freshmen and only three are seniors. This may be a long-term project, but there is a lot of expectation on this group of newbies.

Lacrosse opens its season on Wednesday, February 15, with the visit of Anderson University. The team has several non-conference games before diving into NCAC play on March 25 against Hiram.

Wrestling: Regionals await

The wrestling team continues to go from strength-to-strength, finishing first out of four teams at the Wabash College Invitational on Saturday, January 21. The wrestlers have two more meets before heading to the NCAA DIII Central Regional Championships on February 24-25. This year’s regionals will be hosted at Case Western Reserve University.

Volleyball: Jam-packed schedule

After a 2-1 opening to the season, the volleyball team dives head-first into serious competitive action this coming month. Between January 27 and March 4, the Little Giants play 20 non-conference games, a packed schedule by anybody’s books.

On February 17-18, Chadwick Court will host a home invitational. Over the weekend, Wabash will play St. Norbert College, Trinity Christian College and Marian University. That weekend will be the last chance to see the Little Giants at home before the start of conference play in March.

Track & field: Indoor finale

After a string of good indoor results in recent weeks, the track and field team is looking forward to two different NCAC events in the month of February. On February 18-19, the Little Giants compete in the NCAC Multi-Event Championship at Denison University. Then, on February 24-25, the team will compete in the NCAC Indoor Championships hosted by DePauw University.

Tennis: No traveling necessary

The tennis team returns to action on January 28 when they take on the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and Cardinal Stritch University at UW-Whit water. But after that, the team doesn’t hit the road for an entire month.

On February 4, the Little Giants host an alumni match at the Collett Tennis Center. The team then embarks on six consecutive home contests, including matchups against Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, Earlham College and Principia College.

Conference play does not be- gin until April. Nevertheless, the NCAC earlier this week released its preseason coaches poll. Wabash received 25 total points, tying them for fifth place in the season-opening rankings.

Baseball: Stepping up to the plate

Last but certainly not least, many Wallies will be excited to hear of the return of America’s pastime. Over the weekend of February 17- 19, the team travels to Rhodes College, Tennessee, where they will play games against Rhodes, Augustana College (Ill.) and the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. But unfortunately for Little Giants fans, the first home ballgame of the season does not take place until March 26 against Illinois Wesleyan University.