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All Sports Preview: Titans fall behind while new contenders rise

With the first intramural sport season won and done, it is time to revisit the entire intramural scene for this school year and see how clubs are handling the loss of senior stars and the gain of rushee prospects. 

The current concern is not so much about which club is ahead, but how the defending women’s champion Gamma Rho is behind. While this is not an uncommon scenario for them to be in, being closer to last place than first place is. And a blowout loss to Theta A in football does not bode well for them either. Athletic Director Sophie Mae Smith spoke on the situation. 

“Honestly, we just got to do our best,” Smith said. “That’s really all you can do, just put your best foot forward. We’ve only had one sport, and there’s many more to go, so we’re just gonna keep working hard and having a great attitude.”

Smith gave several athletes, from new rushees to senior veterans, on Gamma’s squad who she thinks will be stepping up this year.

“Natalie, the Katies, Addie Neal; there are just so many of them,” Smith said. “I feel like we just have so many that I’m forgetting names, but there are people who are going to be really great this year.” 

Meanwhile, the top girl’s club, Lambda Chi Zeta,came out hot in softball and did not let the questionable final affect them. Their newest big name, Sydney Hampton, joins a large roster of top athletes from the likes of Mattie Baird, Anna Strother, Maddy Gauthier and more. But the club’s true star player is their chemistry and teamwork, as athletic director Olivia Hampton explained. 

“I think we’re all really good as a team together, and that’s what keeps us together,” Hampton said. “I think everyone is going to step up and do great things, unite to win and do good.”

The freshmen class is finally beginning to shine, with athletes like Anna Shirey, Jaylee Wills and Sian Loveless setting themselves a part in the football scene. While the class is still struggling for wins, the class’ chemistry will prove invaluable as the rest of the sports come and go. 

Theta Theta Theta is another club who, like Gamma, would have preferred better results in softball. Their football wins finally removed them from the last place tie with Beta Beta Sigma and Iota Kappa Phi (both clubs still stand at zero points as of right now), but there is still a long road ahead for them. Athletic director Allie Neilson spoke on some of the players who will be stepping up for Theta.

“Holland Reese is a new soccer player,” Neilson said. “We still got Maddie H for one more semester as well.”

Reese has already made a splash in the intramural scene with her speed, giving Theta some additional athleticism in light of an injured Raquel Fanelli. Theta might not have the roster to win all sports yet, but they definitely will make other clubs work for their wins.

Over on the men’s side, another usually front-running team is playing from behind. After winning softball several years in a row without elimination from the playoffs since intramural director Rick Judd has begun tracking, Chi Lambda Phi won zero A league games and tied with Alpha Gamma Omega at dead last in all sports rankings. Athletic director Parker Landes spoke on what happened.

“I think in softball, we couldn’t get our groove,” Landes said. “And toward the end we felt better, but we lost a lot of good softball seniors, so it was hard to fill the sport. Going forward, we’re really gonna have to lock in.” 

While Chi has been chiseling away at the lead Delta Gamma Sigma acquired, the softball runner-ups being the upperclassmen team composed of sophomores still going through the rush process gives Delta a massive lead in the all-sport rankings. The good news for Chi though is a majority of the upperclassmen finalist team are now in their club, including Damien Talamantes, Noah Page, Jacob McWatters, Landon Parker and more. Not to mention, they will be joining returning stars like Caleb Hensal, Cole Klaassen and reigning intramural athlete of the year Carter Neal. 

As if the early lead was not enough, Delta will be aiming for a back to back all-sports title for the first time since 2008. Although all their intramural players have been filled with talent, determination and depth, athletic director Troy Pearman took some time to hype up junior Dysen House in particular.

“House is always gonna be around, whether he’s on the A team or filling in roles on a B team,” Pearman said. “I’m really excited to see his athletic talents put to work, as well as a couple of the younger guys in the club get to prove themselves.” 

Fellow athletic director Garrett Webster also shared some consistent athletes in Delta.

“I think I’m looking forward to TJ,” Webster said. “He’s better than your average player in about every single sport, but he’s also a consistent player that I’m ready to look for here and see how he does.”

Kappa Sigma Tau is usually a contending club, and this year feels no different. Athletic director Caleb Connor spoke about the teamwork of Kappa and how it will be what steps up for the club.

“I think we got a lot of talent across the board, and I’m really excited,” Connor said. “We remember what we won last year, and now we’ve gotten better. We just have a lot of talent, it’s hard to pick one or two guys to step up for us.”

Here are the current all sports rankings as of Oct. 8, 2024.

Women’s:

First Place: Lambda Chi Zeta (135)

Second Place: Freshmen Class (105)

Third Place: Gamma Rho (60)

Fourth Place: Upperclassmen (50)

Fifth Place: Theta Theta Theta (20)

Tied-Sixth Place: Beta Beta Sigma & Iota Kappa Phi (0)

Men’s:

First Place: Delta Gamma Sigma (161)

Second Place: Upperclassmen (110)

Third Place: Kappa Sigma Tau (74)

Fourth Place: Freshmen Class (50)

Fifth Place: Chi Lambda Phi (31) Sixth Place: Alpha Gamma Omega (0)

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