Looking back on a year to remember

By Dan Brodhead

While many teams endured a year of missed opportunities and disappointing finishes, the 1997-98 year had some unforgettable moments of personal and team achievement. In many cases, athletes and teams exceeded expectations on their way to athletic glory. While the men's hockey team, which had a historic season culminating in a regular-season ECAC championship, was the centerpiece of Yale's athletic program this year, it wasn't the only squad to excel.

Pinnacle of performance

COURTESY SPORTS PUBLICITY OFFICE Fencer Ayo Griffin, SM '00 took the NCAA Foil Championship in March.

Ayo Griffin, SM '00, faced a mental and physical challenge unlike any other on Sun., Mar. 22. He was in South Bend, Ind., competing for the ultimate individual college fencing prize: the NCAA Foil Championship. After winning his semifinal match, Griffin prepared for a head-on collision with Pennsylvania's Yaron Roth. His 15-13 victory made him arguably America's best collegiate fencer and earned him a place in Bulldog history as the first Eli to win an individual fencing championship.

A national championship in any sport at any time is an incredible feat, but Griffin hadn't counted on this kind of success going into the NCAA tournament. "I went in without expectations," he said. "I knew I wanted to improve my eighth place finish of last year, but I really just wanted to fence well against good fencers."

"It is rare to have a chance to do something with that kind of permanence," Griffin added. "The win is certainly one of the highlights of my fencing and my Yale career.

"As I went into the final round, the importance of the bout gave me an extra boost," he said. "You never know how many chances you'll get to do something like that."

Wrestling to the top

Griffin was right. Chances to excel at the national level are rare, but such an opportunity presented itself to the club wrestling team last month.

The Bulldogs travelled to Dallas, Tex. on Sat., Mar. 14, to battle the best wrestlers from across the country. The entire time, their sights were set on the National Collegiate Wrestling Asssociation (NCWA) title. Zach Kaufman, SY '00, and David Bow, TD '00, won Yale's first two matches as the squad gained momentum in front of an energized crowd that began to back the underdog Bulldogs.

Co-captain James Gutierrez, CC '99, was slated to wrestle next. "It was a long match," Gutierrez said. "My opponent was from near where I live in California and our styles were similar. It was quick wrestling and the crowd was really into it. I kept telling myself `I'm going to win. I don't know how, but I'm going to win.'" In overtime, Gutierrez did just that. Indeed, five of Yale's six wrestlers won in the semifinals, and the squad knew it was a shoo-in for the NCWA team championship.

"It was a significant moment in all of our Yale careers," Gutierrez said. "When we won and later when we got back to campus and received varsity letter sweaters, we recognized the significance of the championship. It was an outstanding performance and has given us great hope for the future of the program."

Thrills on the hard court

JULIA TIERNAN/YH David Tompkins, SY '99, helped the Elis to their best season in four years.

Most students didn't get a chance to watch as Griffin and the wrestling team rose to the top. However, there were still many thrilling moments on campus. On Sat., Jan. 31, the Yale and Harvard men's basketball teams clashed in a packed John J. Lee Amphitheater. The Bulldogs were at the top of their game early, leading the favored Crimson by 14 at halftime. In the second half, Harvard's furious defense cooled off the Elis, and the Crimson tied the game at 55 as time expired. But the tenacious Elis were not about to throw in the towel in the face of this momentum shift. "Our mental toughness was crucial," guard Emerson Whitley, SY '98, said. In the extra period, Yale came out with the zest they exhibited in the first half. As the home crowd roared, Yale emerged victorious, 71-65.

Any win over Harvard is big, but this one set the tone for the Blue's strong run to a solid 7-7 finish in league play. It was the team's best league performance since the '94 campaign. "We lost the night before to Dartmouth and the win over Harvard definitely refocused us for the rest of the season," Whitley said.

The men's exciting victory over Harvard wasn't the only memorable event on the basketball court this year. On Fri., Feb. 13, Katy Grubbs, SM '99, became the 12th Eli woman to reach the 1,000 point milestone in her Yale career. In a masterful performance, Grubbs carried her team to 66-43 victory against Pennsylvania, exploding for 27 points--a career high. "I got into a zone and felt I could score at will," she said.

Behind Grubbs, the women finished 14-12 (8-6 Ivy), their best season in four years. "It was great to have that kind of a game against a Penn team that was about equal with us in the standings. It made a difference in the key win," Grubbs said.

Historic season

JULIA TIERNAN/YH Next year's captain Keith McCullough, BR '99, powered the Blue to its first NCAA tournament appearance since 1952.

The year, however, unquestionably belonged to the men's hockey team. Despite a 10th place league ranking in the pre-season coaches' poll, the Bulldogs won the ECAC crown, setting school records for wins and attendance along the way. Though the season provided for many exciting moments, two were particularly thrilling.

The culmination of Yale's dream season was the league clincher at Rensselear Polytechnic Institute (RPI). After tying Dartmouth 2-2 and losing to Vermont 4-3 at home, Yale led Clarkson by only one point going into the final, pressure-packed weekend with the regular-season title and the guaranteed NCAA bid still up for grabs. The injury-depleted Elis played excellent defense as Yale and RPI were deadlocked at 1-1 after two periods. A successful season came down to just 20 minutes of hockey, and the Bulldogs took control. Jeff Hamilton, SM '00, scored for the 2-1 lead and, late in the third, Matt Cumming, JE '98, sealed the title with an empty-netter from mid-ice. Yale hockey had captured its first ECAC title. "We had thirty guys that weren't supposed to win, and we did it all year long," captain Ray Giroux, BK '98, said. "After RPI, when we found ourselves in the locker room celebrating the ECAC championship and the bid to the NCAA tournament, it made it all the more worthwhile."

After the RPI win, the long-awaited playoffs were still ahead. In the quarterfinal round, Yale battled a feisty St. Lawrence team in three of the season's tightest games. Giroux fired a low wrist shot past the St. Lawrence goalie with 55 seconds left to play to tie the first game at 3-3. The score stood after overtime. The Bulldogs needed more last-minute heroics to tie the second game. Yale trailed 3-1 at 7:40 into the third period, and chances of victory seemed even more far-fetched as Daryl Jones, PC '98, was whistled for a five minute major penalty as time ran down. But John Chyz, BR '99, scored a short-handed goal and the Elis killed off the Saints' power-play. Minutes later, Jay Quenville, SY '00, scored, tying the game and culminating the unlikely comeback. The next night, Yale took the series with a decisive 4-1 win. "The consistent quality of play during that series was great for Yale and college hockey," Giroux reflected.

Indeed, moments such as the St. Lawrence series displayed the heart Bulldog athletes have shown all year long. With tremendous intensity, they battled back from late deficits and overcame pessimistic pre-season predictions. Thrilling fans and surprising themselves throughout the year, Yale athletes in all sports and at all levels, had memorable seasons.

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