With school back in session, the St. John’s athletic teams are back in action. This week, five different teams competed at home and in Long Island, securing some well-earned wins and facing some hard losses.
St. John’s Men’s Soccer Defeats Saint Peters, 2-1
The Johnnies were able to come back after being down at halftime to beat Saint Peters, 2-1, Friday night. The Johnnies’ game slowed after the Peacocks scored the first goal of the game during the 29th minute. Going into the second half, the Red Storm was down 0-1. The Johnnies had to readjust in order to take back control of the game. In the 80th minute of the game, the Johnnies had the momentum to tie the game up with Lenny Cidolit moving the ball and scoring their first goal of the night. After this, a handball was called against the Peacocks, and newcomer Macoumba Ba was able to get the shot, helping win the game for the Johnnies. The Red Storm were set host Temple University tonight at 7 p.m. at Belson Stadium, but the team announced via X that the match has been postponed to 8 p.m. “due to inclement weather.”
St. John’s Women’s Soccer Falls To Lehigh, 4-2
In their first game of a 4-game homestead, the women fell 4-2 over Lehigh University on Saturday night. This marks their first loss of the season with a record of 4-1-1. The game started rough for the women, with no goals in the first half and entering 0-2 against Lehigh. The Red Storm were able to pick up the pace into the second half within the first 33 seconds cutting the lead in half 2-1. The goal came in from Molly McGlame — her first collegiate score — and tied the game with a goal by junior forward Jordan Levy in the 51st minute. However, the Red Storm were not able to keep up the defense after graduate student Ryelle Shuey and junior forward Faith Dobosiewicz went back to back scoring, pulling them ahead to win. The Red Storm will be back in action at Belson Stadium on Thursday night when Yale pays a visit for a 7 p.m. match.
St. John’s Women’s Volleyball Dominates Jack Kaiser Classic
In their home-opening tournament, the Johnnies dominated the Jack Kaiser classic. With the tournament starting Friday morning, the Johnnies experienced a stoppage during their first match, forcing a move from Carnesecca Arena to Taffner Field House to fully defeat Siena College 3-1. Later that evening, the Johnnies were back in Carnesecca going against Stony Brook. The Johnnies were able to win all three sets after a close win in the second set winning 25-23. Their final matchup was on Saturday against Loyola Maryland. Throughout the three sets played, the Johnnies were able to take a good enough lead in the first two sets with scores of 22-25 and 25-27 to win the tournament. A standout performance from sophomore setter and right-side hitter Erin Jones earned her the Tournament MVP award. Jones led the Johnnies with 47 kills and 18 digs over the entire weekend. The team is off to their best start since the 2018 season, 7-2.
St. John’s Cross Country Places Fifth in LIU Fall Festival
The Cross Country team placed fifth at their second meet of the season, the LIU Fall Festival. This is the first time this season that they have placed ahead of 10 other teams in a 5k race. Graduate student Claire Cushing placed in the top five, finishing the 5k with a time of 18:44.4. Head coach Elliott Blount told St. John’s athletics after the race that they have improved from “top to bottom,” and are ready to continue working. Their next meet will be on Sept. 29 in Boston for the Battle at Beantown.
St. John’s Men’s Golf Places Eight and Seventh at the Doc Gimmler
The men placed eighth on Saturday and seventh on Sunday out of 15 teams at their annual home event, The Doc Gimmler hosted at Bethpage State Park Red Course. Though the team did not place high, head coach Phil Wildermuth told St. John’s athletics that he did see a lot of positives come out of their weekend. The men shot one-over with 841 this weekend through 54 holes. With it being the first match of the season, the team is getting ready for the long season. They will be back in action at the MacDonald Cup, hosted by Yale in New Haven, Conn. on Sept. 23 and 24.