The Marion College Titans men’s basketball team started and finished a perfect season Saturday, Feb. 9. Indiana Wesleyan University’s Wildcats took the name Titans and donned throwback jerseys for the day, honoring the school’s Marion College roots from 1968-88.

The official scoresheet may have said IWU, but the packed house in Luckey Arena knew it was a day to “Remember the Titans.”

Maybe the Titans wouldn’t have admitted it before the game, but this matchup versus the co-Crossroads League-leading Bethel College Pilots was a must-win. Marion delivered in dramatic comeback fashion to steal a 67-65 victory.

“It’s a huge win,” Titans coach Greg Tonagel said after the game. “To come off a two-game losing streak, to be down most of the game: It says a lot about our guys. I’m proud of the resiliency and proud of the togetherness that we showed.”

Marion fought back from being down as many as 11 points in the first half and 10 points halfway through the second.

In addition to playing in front of more than 40 Marion College athletics alumni who were honored at halftime, the Titans had even more to play for Saturday. After a victory against Bethel earlier in the season, Pilots players let frustration get the best of them following the game. That emotion carried over to this contest’s postgame as well, as Bethel’s Jordan Bowerman (sr) went after Marion’s George Jones IV (sr) on the court right after the buzzer. Taylor Schoen (sr) stepped in for the Titans to keep Bowerman away.

“After they were talking crap last game, we wanted to beat them so bad,” said Patrick Hopkins (sr) who scored 18 points and blocked Bethel’s last-chance shot at the end of the game.

“Beating Bethel and being on top, I feel like it will just propel us to the end of the year and give us exactly what we needed.”

“It definitely gives us momentum,” added Jordan Weidner (jr), who led the Titans with 19 points. “We’ve been struggling coming off two straight losses, and I think it was huge to have this big win against another team we’re head-to-head with at the top of the conference. We definitely needed the win.”

By beating the Pilots, the Titans improved IWU’s record to 12-4 in the Crossroads League and 23-5 overall on the season. Coupled with the Taylor Trojans loss to Huntington, this gave the Wildcats a one-game lead over Bethel, Taylor and Grace College.

“We work hard in the preseason to get ready for games like this, and our hard work definitely paid off,” Hopkins said. “That’s another reason why I love our team: We can fight through any game; we can win by one or win by two, it doesn’t matter. We know we’re going to pull it out in the end because we play so well together. It’s fun winning with these guys.”

With the Crossroads League tournament less than a week away, Tonagel said this game laid out the plan for the rest of the season and what his team must do to finish strong.

“We had a lot of contributions from a lot of the guys. It wasn’t just the big two. When we [do that] we’re pretty tough to beat,” Tonagel said. “Hopefully, this gives us some momentum; hopefully we get back to playing the basketball we know we can play.”

That momentum continued to the next game Tuesday, when IWU defeated Taylor 52-49, guaranteeing at least a share of the Crossroads League Championship. The Wildcats’ final game of the season is Saturday against Goshen at Luckey Arena.

By Michael Caley

The Indiana Wesleyan University men’s soccer team received accolades as six members were honored with All-Crossroads League selections. The soccer team already captured the Crossroads League regular-season title, and now stands as one of the most decorated teams in the conference.

Five players and head coach Mark Castro were each honored Saturday Nov. 3, with postseason awards. Three Wildcats were given All-Crossroads League First Team honors and two were named to the All-Crossroads League Second Team. Castro was awarded Crossroads League Coach of the Year.

Midfielders Lucas Carpenter (sr) and Geoff Bowman (jr) both earned All-Crossroads League First Team Selections this year.

Carpenter spent the year in the middle of the field, where almost all of what he does goes unnoticed in the stat column. The holding midfielder is one of the most important positions on the field, according to Castro.

“[Carpenter] has always been a mainstay in our program the last three years,” said Castro. “He’s a leader, and he leads mostly by the way he plays.”

Bowman led the Crossroads League in assists, both in league and non-league play. He had 10 assists on the year, five of which came in league play. Bowman added to his stats with six goals on the year.

“He is a driving force behind our program,” Castro said about his offensive team leader.

For Carpenter and Bowman, this is the first year the duo will finish more than one game above .500. The 13 wins this year is more than Carpenter or Bowman have had in any previous year.

While postseason accolades have dominated the news, Castro believes the team’s success was already attained before conference play began.

In the first few weeks of the fall schedule, the soccer team took off toward Colorado to play a few games and bond, with each other and God.

According to Castro, six players committed their life to Christ in one day, with another doing the same the following day. A few days later while the team was whitewater rafting in the Arkansas River, 10 teammates were baptized. Carpenter was one of those teammates.

“Being one of those 10 that were baptized was kind of a life-changing experience,” Carpenter said. “Colorado was amazing.”

Carpenter also said the team committed the season to God, and players were more than willing to let Him dictate the direction this year. He believes that played a huge part in being successful.

“We hadn’t played a game yet, and it had already been a success in our eyes,” said Castro.

The team spent almost 24 hours a day together all week, taking part in team-building activities, training and devotionals.

By Quinn Nofziger

And so it begins!

The highly-anticipated basketball season has its first game and win in the 2012-2013 season in the books. On Tuesday, with 1,300 fans on site, the Indiana Wesleyan University men’s basketball team waged a hard fought game to claim a 91-74 victory over Saint Xavier.

With the No. 4 Indiana Wesleyan and No. 14 Saint Xavier matching up well, everyone expected an exciting game at Luckey Arena. The Wildcats were looking for a different outcome than last year’s 13-point loss at Saint Xavier.

“We were good on both ends of the ball, but not great,” said IWU head coach Greg Tonagel. “But it’s a good start and stuff we can build on.”

The Wildcats shot well from the field (63.6 percent) and very well from behind the 3-point line (47.4 percent) and ended with 15 turnovers.

The scoring was even throughout the entire first half, with Saint Xavier holding a 44-40 lead at halftime. Wildcat guard Jordan Weidner (jr) had the hot hand at the end of the half, scoring the team’s last nine points.

The Wildcats came out from the break on fire, and never looked back as they outscored Saint Xavier by 21 in the second half. The team looked as if it had an extra spark after halftime and everything came together.

“We struggled in the first half, but came out with energy in the second half,” said Aaron Martin (sr). “It was all about unity, and we represented that well tonight.”

Martin sparked the team with his outside shooting in the second half, finishing the game with seven 3-pointers, and 27 total points.

“Last year we struggled being a second-half team and really emphasized our focus on coming out stronger and perform better,” said Weidner. “Tonight we all knew our roles and executed well, which allowed us to come out on top.”

Both Weidner and Martin led the scoring for the Wildcats, tallying 28 and 27, respectively.
“We have three more games this week, so we have got to have a quick turnaround and start to focus on the next games ahead,” Tonagel said.

The season is far from over, but a championship is at the top of the team’s goal sheet.
Tonagel added, “If we continue to improve every day and grow as a team; stay unified, then we have a chance to compete for a league championship, which puts us in a position to be a national competitor.”

The Wildcats’ next game will be on Thursday at Assembly Hall when No. 1 Indiana Hoosiers (NCAA DI) hosts the IWU an exhibition game.

by Brice Davis

Amidst the intense fog, rain, mud and muck of this fall, it finally seems as though both the Indiana Wesleyan University men’s and women’s soccer teams have done what they set out to do this season: weather the storm of last season. Last year, the women’s soccer program finished 9-9-1 and the men 11-10.

This season, both teams came out hot, winning a combined 15 games in the first two months of the season, while only suffering two losses. With such a successful start to the season each program has painted an optimistic picture entering the postseason. But with success comes a new hunger, a second gear and hopefully a second wind to compete for something much greater: championships.

“It has been great working with the other seniors and having such strong leadership for the team. We balance each other really well and work on leading as a whole rather than as individuals,” said women’s goalkeeper Jamie Speidel (sr).

Establishing good team chemistry has been nothing short of a blessing to the Wildcats, but to women’s head coach John Bratcher it has also been a season of adjustments.

“Changing our formation has allowed us to be in a better spot going into the postseason,” said Bratcher. “It is important to win these next two out of three in order to create some momentum going into the tournament.”
The IWU men clinched their first-ever Crossroads League Championship Oct. 16, and their first outright conference title since 2007.

Captains Tad Gilbert (jr) and Geoff Bowman (sr), respectively, have been a part of the 2012 Wildcat transformation since 2010 and are very familiar with the necessary tools it takes to be successful down the stretch in the postseason.

“Home field advantage is crucial going into the postseason. We have yet to lose a game at home,” said Gilbert. “The Crossroads League has been very competitive this year so far and will continue to be throughout the postseason.”

Win or lose, come tournament time, both the IWU men’s and women’s soccer team are very young. The men have 14 underclassmen and the women have 16, with 10 of those being freshman.

Both programs have redeemed themselves of last season and are currently in the middle of writing a new chapter in the story of IWU soccer.