Eli Kales, Caden Koontz, Carrie McDonald, Austin Barish and Demi Pappas
Georgetown students live and breathe college sports. Being knowledgeable about life on campus includes keeping up with the latest news and status of all Hoya teams. Below is some brief information to get you started on what you need to know about a few of Georgetown’s athletic programs this upcoming school year. For details on other fall sports, check out our coverage this fall!
Football
Georgetown football is back for the 2021 season, following a year in which the Hoyas’ season was canceled because of the Patriot League’s decision to nix athletic competition last fall. This year, Georgetown will be looking to come back from its hiatus on a strong note. Forty-seven players on the Hoyas’ 2021 roster are listed as first-years or sophomores and therefore will earn the chance to prove themselves with two years of fresh talent playing for the first time in NCAA competition. Senior linebacker Palmer Nix was named to the 2021 Patriot League Football Preseason All-League Team, a distinct honor as Nix hopes to lead the Hoyas to victory in his senior season. Georgetown was predicted to finish sixth in the Patriot League Preseason Poll, as voted on by Patriot League head coaches and sports information directors. The Hoyas’ season begins at home, on a recently renovated Cooper Field, against Marist on Sept. 4. Be sure to cheer on your Hoyas!
Men’s Soccer
Georgetown is a soccer school and Head Coach Brian Wiese is a campus legend. He led the men’s soccer team to its first national championship in 2019, and Georgetown students rejoiced in every building on campus. Throw in four Big East tournament championships in six years and a long series of alumni playing professional soccer and you have a storied, elite, top-tier program. The Hoyas are perennial title contenders, and names like Ifunanyachi Achara, Dylan Nealis, Derek Dodson, Rio Hope-Gund and Jacob Montes are synonymous with greatness around the Hilltop. Montes managed to sign a professional contract with Crystal Palace in England’s Premier League this year, while the other five were drafted into Major League Soccer. Head up to Shaw Field behind Yates Fieldhouse to see the Hoyas in action. Georgetown’s season begins Aug. 26 against UC Irvine.
Women’s Soccer
Ranked eleventh in the United States Coaches Preseason Poll, Georgetown women’s soccer is a force to be reckoned with as the team looks to build upon a successful 2020 campaign. Although Georgetown’s star forward and Big East Offensive Player of the Year, Jenna Menta, graduated in May, the team is still stacked with talent and an exciting level of depth. Players to watch this season include Olympian, Big East Midfielder of the Year and graduate student Daisy Cleverley and Big East Defensive Player of the Year and graduate student Kelly Ann Livingstone, as well as junior forward Gia Vicari, who was voted onto the All-Big East team last season. The Hoyas will aim for a dominant performance in the Big East, having won four out of the last five tournament championships, including 2020. Georgetown will also look to advance further in the NCAA tournament after suffering its only defeat of the 2020 season on penalties against Texas Christian University in the Round of 16. Overall, the team is hungry for more success and has the talent to back up its ambitions. Be sure to check out the Hoyas at Shaw Field this fall, beginning with a game against NC State on Thursday.
Men’s Basketball
The 2020-21 men’s basketball team was picked to finish last in the Big East Coaches’ Preseason Poll. The Hoyas shattered expectations by winning the Big East Tournament and advancing to March Madness. The championship was the Hoyas’ eighth, the most conference tournament titles in Big East history, and the first under Head Coach Patrick Ewing (CAS ’85). As a player, Ewing led Georgetown to three national championship games and its only national championship in 1984, cementing himself as one of the greatest players in college basketball history. Entering his fifth season as head coach, Ewing will look to build on last year’s success behind Big East Tournament MVP, sophomore guard Dante Harris. Ewing has also brought in one of the best recruiting classes in the country, including the son of Hoya legend and Hall of Famer Dikembe Mutombo (SLL ’91), Ryan Mutumbo. The season kicks off Nov. 13 at Capital One Arena, where the Hoyas play all of their home games. At the heart of Georgetown basketball is the late John Thompson Jr. Thompson coached the Hoyas from 1972 to 1999 and transformed it into the storied program it is today. Thompson’s impact on his players and the game of basketball cannot be understated; may his memory live forever.
Women’s Basketball
In the 2021 Big East Conference standings, Georgetown women’s basketball finished in eleventh place, with an overall record of 2-15. But don’t let these statistics fool you: The Big East is arguably the most competitive conference in NCAA women’s basketball, dominated by powerhouses UConn and Marquette. The Hoyas’ season was a captivating one, and the team played every game with a whole lot of heart. This upcoming season, expect to see the team rise in the rankings. The squad is led by returning senior forward Jillian Archer and junior forward Graceann Bennet. Players to watch include sophomore guard Kelsey Ransom, who started all 17 games as a freshman and led the season’s scoring last year, and guard Milan Bolden-Morris, a graduate student who averaged 32.1 points per game.
