Heading into the new semester, we’re looking back at the highlights and hard work of Simpson’s student athletes completed in fall 2021.
Women’s Soccer
Starting off with a team that has shown massive improvement, women’s soccer had its best season in 10 years. Ending with an overall record of 13-6-1 and a conference record of 6-2, women’s soccer had a successful season with many breakout players, including five all-conference nods.
Juniors Lizzie Arnburg, Abby Cozzoni, Cassie Nash and senior Megan Roberts all were named to the All-A-R-C First Team, creating the largest Simpson presence on the first-team since 2006.
Sophomore Brenny Frederick earned honorable mention accolades.
Nash had an especially stellar season with 13 goals, 7 assists and 33 points. Nash was named to the 2021 United Soccer Coaches Women’s All-Region Second Team.
Men’s Soccer
Like the women’s team, men’s soccer also had an impressive season achieving the highest tournament seeding since 2001. They completed the season with a 7-7-2 overall record and a conference record of 5-2-1.
With 10 goals during the 2021 season, junior Jordy Triana-Vasquez has been named to the 2021 Region IX Third Team. This makes him the 12th men’s soccer player in program history to earn this achievement. Triana-Vasquez ranked fifth in the American Rivers Conference.
Senior Ian Dean claimed his second career Academic All-America honor.
Both Triana-Vasquez and Dean, along with junior Alan Imamovic and senior Enrique Idehen all were named to the 2021 Men’s Soccer All-Conference Team. Junior Roderick Orellana-Lemus achieved the honorable mention squad.
Volleyball
Simpson volleyball played in the A-R-C tournament for the first time in eight seasons. Volleyball ended their season 8-15 overall and 4-5 in their conference.
Junior Jessica Jacobs achieved a spot in the A-R-C First Team while junior Marissa Salber and sophomore Iman Ghalibaf both achieved honorable mentions.
Jacobs had a standout season with 341 kills for a league-best 4.15 per set average. She hit .247 against league defenses, granting her eleventh place on the conference leaderboard.
Men’s Cross Country
Men’s cross country had a record-breaking season, achieving sixth place in regional rankings, the highest regional ranking in program history.
Junior Spencer Moon and senior Harry Dudley both ran in the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships, the first time Simpson has had two runners compete since 1986. Moon placed 118th while Dudley placed 264th place at the national level.
The team finished third place at the American Rivers Conference Championships with Moon, Dudley and sophomore Louden Foster achieving all-conference honors.
Women’s Cross Country
Women’s cross country also made history with the best finish at conference championships since 2009 and entering regional rankings for the first time in program history.
The Storm women placed fourth at the American Rivers Conference Championships. Senior Cat Lucht paved the way with a finish in 24:03.1, only 20 seconds under a spot on the all-conference squad.
Women’s cross country entered the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Midwest Region Rankings at tenth place.
Football
Simpson football ended their 2021 season 1-9 overall and 1-7 in their conference.
Three Storm football players landed on the All-American Rivers Conference Football team. Senior offensive lineman Mason Spree was selected to the First Team. Senior defensive lineman Jack Bootsmiller and junior linebacker Wyatt Schaben achieved honorable mention.
Seniors Spree and Joe McNally were honored by the 2021 Football Academic All-District Team for their academic and athletic achievements this season.
Men’s Basketball
The Simpson men’s basketball team is sitting at a 4-10 record and will attempt to snap a seven-game losing streak on Wednesday night against rival Central College. Junior Andrew Curran leads the team in points per game with an average of 12.7. Senior Chris Honz leads the team in rebounds with an average of 6.8 per game.
Women’s Basketball
The women’s basketball team is on the hunt to repeat as American Rivers Conference Champions. Overall they have a record of 14-1 with their only loss coming to the Division I Drake Bulldogs in a non-conference game earlier this season. Nationally, they are currently ranked No. 4 in the latest D3hoops.com Top 25 poll and No. 7 in this week’s Women’s Basketball Coaches Association standings. The Storm leads all Division III schools with the best free throw percentage (82.4), total number of assists (332) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.52).
Wrestling
The Storm wrestling team has been performing well so far this season. They have a 5-2 overall record with a little over a month left this season. Senior Shyler Langley leads the team this season with 18 overall wins. Senior Dylan McChesney has won 13 times to increase his career win total to 54. Most recently, he earned the 125-pound title at the Central Under Armour Invitational.
Indoor Track and Field
Simpson’s track and field program opened their indoor season on Dec. 10th at the Central Holiday Preview where the team had multiple career-bests and top-10 performances. Max Cleveland ran the best time in the 300-meter dash since 1992 to win the event. Most recently, the team won five gold medals at the Dutch Athletics Classic where the men placed third and women placed fourth. Max Cleveland, Drew Klein, Jason White, Emma Angus and Abby Loecke all had first-place finishes.
Swimming and Diving
The swimming and diving program had a successful run at the end of the semester. In their last meet of 2021, five school records were broken at the Pioneer Classic hosted by Grinnell. Alyssa Harris broke two individual records and played a major role in the new relay records. The women’s team broke both the 400-yard and 800-yard freestyle relay in addition to the 200-yard medley relay. The Storm looks to start 2022 off with more top performances as they travel to the ​​Grinnell Invitational at the end of this week.
Other Accomplishments
Women’s golf’s first-year Madeline Streicher was named the American Rivers Conference Golfer of the Week for two weeks in a row.
Women’s tennis seniors Emily King and Anna Wanek were recognized for both singles and doubles on the 2021 Women’s Tennis All-Conference Team.
Men’s tennis senior Peter Walkwitz competed in the B-Singles flight of the American Rivers Conference Individual Tournament, earning bronze.