This will be the last time you will see a byline with the name “Aaron Freeman” in The Scout for the foreseeable future.
For those who don’t know, I will be leaving Bradley at the end of the semester to “study abroad” and participate in the Communication Department’s Hollywood Semester.
I promised myself that this column wouldn’t be all about me leaving and all that mushy crap. I’m also allowed only one goodbye column and this will not be it.
So, let’s talk some Bradley sports.
In the past, I’ve written about how excited I was for the future of some of our athletic teams.
Well, now, I’m starting to re-think some of my past enthusiasm toward Bradley athletics, after what can only be described as a major disappointment so far this year.
Let’s start before classes even started and what I call a terrible omen to set off the year.
Toward the end of the summer, as it has been well-documented, a Bradley men’s basketball player was arrested on a domestic battery charge. Safe to say, not the greatest of news to begin the year for Athletics after having to answer questions stemming from said player’s arrest.
Then, we move on to the beginning of the semester, where there was a lot of anticipation for the two major fall sports after last season’s successes.
Coach Jenny Maurer and the volleyball team were coming off of a Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) tournament appearance for the first time under Maurer, and the team welcomed in three well-accomplished freshmen.
The soccer team, headed by coach Jim DeRose had just won the MVC tournament and made it to the second round of the NCAA tournament. Although the team lost major parts of their championship season, they still had lofty goals and returned multiple up-and-coming players from last season’s roster.
I won’t give you the season recaps for each team, but to put it simply, both teams fell flat of any major goals they had, and in the process, took a large step backwards in the progress felt one year ago at this time.
With the volleyball team finishing the year off with a remarkably poor record of 2-26, there are simply no words to touch on the disappointment of that program. The 2-26 mark is the worst in the 31-year history of the program in which statistics were kept.
On the pitch, for the fourth time in DeRose’s 18-year career, a Bradley soccer team finished the season with a record under .500 (9-11 this season).
Yes, the other minor fall sports such as both men’s and women’s cross country succeeded including the women’s squad capturing the MVC title as well as numerous golfers, both men and women, taking individual awards.
These smaller sports, however, don’t garner as much attention as the main fall spectator sports of volleyball and soccer.
On to the start of the main sports for the winter season, and safe to say the most followed sports on campus, for a glimmer of hope into next semester for our sports teams: men’s and women’s basketball.
Women’s basketball’s record (0-6), which you can’t find anywhere on Bradleybraves.com, is not reflective of how hard head coach Michael Brooks has his team playing. The women’s squad has played some very tough competition, and their first five games to start the season were on the road.
Now for the men’s basketball team, that now sit at 3-4 on the young season. The Braves now enter their toughest road stretch of the season starting Dec. 6 at Memphis and then Dec. 9 at Kansas St. Head coach Geno Ford’s team has only five players returning who saw action last year.
So, it is understandable that it may take some time to mesh. But, junior Warren Jones’ 33 points on Tuesday night in the Braves’ 84-73 victory over Central Michigan shows that the team’s play is on the up.
Yet, I’m two and a half years into watching, analyzing and breathing Bradley Athletics, and to be honest, I’m exhausted. While I’ve been at Bradley, there has not been consistent winning from the Athletic Department as a whole. One team will do well each season, if any, and that does not show a sign of a successful athletic department.
So, as I take my five-month break from covering Bradley sports in their entirety, I am putting my small amount of hope left that our winter teams can get on track to surprise everyone by winning some games and making a run at a title.
You stay classy, Peoria. I’ll be back soon.
