Marietta College Athletics

Jan. 16, 2011
A Warm Winter Break

The Marietta College Basketball Program got off to a very impressive 10-0 start heading into Christmas time. We had a lot to prove to everyone and through hard work and focus we were able to experience success. After returning from Christmas break, we faced another challenge: a trip to California where we would be playing two more games. It would be different for us as a team and we would have to adapt to these changes if we wanted to continue our winning ways.

To begin with, I would like to thank everyone who made this trip possible for our team.  We were able to go to California free of charge to us players. It most certainly made our trip much more enjoyable. Instead of having to worry about expenses, we were able to focus on having a good time and winning basketball games. Although the main goal was to win two basketball games, we had some down town to explore. It was very exciting because some of us, like myself, had never been to California before. The highlight of our sightseeing would have to be the day we spent in Hollywood. We were able to walk along the Boulevard and experience the west coast life style. Although the sightseeing was a blast it wasn’t even close to the best moment on our trip. That would belong to our two games.

Our first game against the University of Redlands was a 30-point blowout. It was probably one of our best overall team efforts of the year. It really showed how deep of a team we truly have. Our next game is one that we won’t soon forget. It was against the University of La Verne. This was a tight game the entire way as our biggest lead was only four points. At the end of the game we found ourselves down by one. After racing the ball up the court with time winding down the final shot rested in Trevor Halter’s hands. He put it up and drained a three-pointer with .4 seconds left. Everyone went nuts and it was the best imaginable way to end our California trip. Overall, the trip was a great experience that ended with an exclamation point with the buzzer beater.


Nov. 4, 2010
Official Beginning of a New Journey

It has been an extremely long and grueling first month of practice. There have been countless hours spent during practice. There also has been just as many hours put into individual work and weightlifting. The main reason that you work your tail off in practice is to see results when the lights are on; and in our case on Monday night. The first game of the season for our Pioneer basketball program tips off Monday night against Denison at 7:30 p.m. All of our hard work in the preseason, practice and scrimmages has been aimed at one goal: winning. Everyone in our program is chomping at the bit to finally be able to go out and play an actual game. It will be a good measuring point to how we are going to do this season. It also should be an exciting night for the students, faculty and community members because it is a “White Out.” This should make for a good atmosphere inside at Fenton Court. If we want to have the season that we want to have we must perform against Denison on our first home game. The journey to having a successful season in the OAC begins Monday. We must be extremely focused on the game at hand and not get caught looking forward to the rest of the season. Each game is a stepping stone to the next one. Our junior class is eager to see three years of work invested into our program put into motion, our sophomore class is ready to experience success at this level, and our freshman are excited to display how talented they are. The official beginning of a new journey for the Marietta Men’s Basketball Program begins Monday night against Denison at 7:30 at Fenton Court. 

Oct. 27, 2010
A New Level of Focus

There are only a certain number of days in a collegiate basketball career. From the day you set foot on campus as a freshman to your senior season, you must take advantage of the opportunities that are given to you. For the basketball program, we have been given the best opportunity of all: to take the program to places it has never been and while en route to doing that win an OAC championship. However, as our returners know from last year’s disappointing season, winning at this level does not come easy. That’s why starting this year we have all come into the school year with a new level of focus. This includes everything from working hard in the classroom to the basketball court.

Our pre-season conditioning program was by far the hardest it’s been in my three years here. Everyone made it through knowing that in turn it would lead to success. We also now know that we have to out work every team in the OAC if we want to win the league championship. People this year have been highly motivated in everything we do. My teammates are getting extra shots up on days off, lifting more than what is asked of them and playing open gyms for longer than the desired time. Freshman caught on quickly to how things are going to be done in Marietta if we wish to be successful.  ur preseason work ethic has really set the tone going into the beginning of practice.

Practice is a completely different animal than preseason workouts. Things happen so much quicker and you have to be even more focused than you were before. Having a strong nucleus of returners has really helped this transition for the incoming freshmen. We have completed our first week and a half of practice and honestly it is the best span of practice that I have been a part of here at Marietta. People are moving fast, they are playing with intensity and are mentally focused to everything the coaches are telling us. It is a completely different feel this year than it has been in the previous two seasons. Of course, the past two years everyone on the team wanted to win. But this year all of us in the basketball program are doing what it takes to prepare to win. We understand that having a bad practice can directly correlate to a loss later on in the season. All of us returners understand this and the freshman have realized it too. Practices will continue to be intense and we will continue to get the most out of them to better prepare us for the season. Everyone in the basketball program is ready to take a large step this year. We will find out exactly where we stand this Saturday at 5"3- p.m. when we scrimmage West Virginia State. I hope to see all of you there. Until my next blog, Go Pioneers!