Photos courtesy of Sean Elliot
On Oct. 16 and 24, 29 seniors across five teams celebrated with family, friends, and teammates with games dedicated to their athletic careers at Conn. Beside the pool, on the court, and across two fields, the Camels posed with homemade posters, flowers, and portraits before games with major championship and seeding implications. Families came from across the country to see their leaders perform against bitter rivals and hopefully bring home a win for the white and blue. The College Voice will recap the senior day(s) of these five rosters and the players who the game was dedicated to.
Men’s Water Polo
The men’s water polo team was away during Senior Saturday, and instead had their senior day on Oct. 16 in a match against the University of California, Merced. This was the first match between the two programs, and captains Ethan Hipsky and Jesse Ellis, joined by senior Cormac Stevens, sought to help the roster to a victory. The three played in their 27th, 35th, and 15th collegiate matches, using their experience to help make the first face-off between the Camels and Bobcats a spectacular one. The first three periods were competitive, with Ellis and Stevens combining for three of the eight team scores in an 8-7 lead going into the fourth quarter. Unfortunately, the Bobcats outscored the white and blue 3-1 in the final period, putting a mark in the loss column for the Camels. Ellis led the team in points with two goals and two assists, and an additional steal to top off his scoring. Stevens would also log a steal to go with his goal. Even in the late game collapse, the Camels put on a spectacle for the 109 family members and fans in attendance in a match that was even down the stretch.
Women’s Field Hockey
The 11 a.m. slate of Senior Saturday kicked off its Silfen iteration with women’s field hockey matching up against #6 Bowdoin College. The families of five seniors—captains Megan Pons, Maddie Mason, and Sadie Gearan, as well as Frances Brisbane and Kellyn Scheel—helped make up the 225 strong crowd that cheered on the seniors for their combined 167 minutes. After taking photos with families and sharing bouquets, the roster strapped up for a dogfight against a top tier program across the country. Mason started the 54th game of her career at forward; Gearan started her 39th career game after getting consistent playing time in 2024 at the same position; and Pons started her 44th game over the past three years in the midfield. Scheel was appearing in her 42nd game as an important part of the forward rotation while Brisbane did not make an appearance in this game. The Camels struck first with a goal 36 seconds into the game by Elizabeth Bonner ‘26. The first period remained mostly quiet with Bowdoin getting three unsuccessful shots, followed up by another unsuccessful three in the second period, matched by three consecutive shots by the Camels to end the period. The score, 1-0 Conn to close out the first half. The fortune for the white and blue shifted in the third quarter as the Polar Bears fit in two goals in quick succession with the Camels only getting one shot attempt in the period. The Camels fought back in the final period but ended up falling short on their final two shot attempts, the last of which was by Mason. The 1-2 final score is the most competitive margin that the Camels have had against Bowdoin in the past nine years, only rivaled by a 0-1 loss in 2023. While it is taboo to call any loss a ‘good loss,’ this match was the closest thing to it and taking such a strong team to the wire was an absolute success.
Women’s Soccer
As field hockey duked it out with Bowdoin on Silfen, women’s soccer was doing the same on Freeman Field. In a rivalry that has been competitive over the past half-decade and with the team coming off a 1-2 loss to Trinity College earlier in the week, fireworks were the only guarantee for this matchup. Eight seniors were celebrated in this one: Zola Alcaro, Emma Ward, and Una McCorry started in their ninth, 47th, and 40th collegiate games; while Lilla Kate Tucker, Maya Griffin, and Paige Maffei would combine for 126 minutes off the bench; and Olivia Smith and Anna Kalapatapu did not take the field. With 189 fans and family members in attendance, portraits of the seniors, and a 2-5-1 conference record, the roster was poised for a must-win game with major NESCAC Championship implications. Just like the field hockey match, the Camels struck early with a goal by Chloe Koubel ’28 less than four minutes into the game. The Camels buckled down on defense with their rotation taking up the reins toward the end of the period. Tucker would take the last shot of the half, and while unsuccessful, left Conn up 1-0. The seniors began taking over the second half with Alcaro and Griffin combining for half of the team’s shots in that period. While none of theirs reached the back of the net, Danica Zicha’s ‘30 did with just under 30 minutes left in regulation and cemented a 2-0 victory for her upperclassmen.
Men’s Soccer
The men’s soccer team hoped to repeat the success of the women as nine seniors suited up for their match against Bowdoin. This matchup was especially interesting for the Camels as the program hadn’t lost on senior day since their 1-2 loss to Bowdoin in 2015; at a minimum, there could not be a repeat of that result. Casey Shea at keeper, Marco Perugini at midfielder, Gavin Mpiana at forward, and captains Max Haberman and Charlie Miles on defense were the senior starters, starting their eighth, 57th, 44th, 60th, and 76th respective games for the white and blue. Charlie Emery, Anish Reid, and Max Weiss would log a combined 69 minutes as substitutes; Kevin Hwong did not log any minutes. With 297 family members and other supporters in attendance, the next iteration of the Conn/Bowdoin rivalry commenced at 2 p.m. Unlike the other earlier matches, there was no early scoring as Perugini took the first shot of the game after over seven minutes of play. Through the first half, the Camels would outshoot the Polar Bears 10-4 with Perugini, Haberman, and Weiss accounting for half of the team’s shots. In the second half, the Polar Bears would break the scoreless streak 54 minutes in, forcing Conn to respond. With time ticking, Weiss would push the pace with less than 17 minutes left in regulation to tie the game up at 1-1. For the rest of the match, the offensive production would slow down and the game would end on a missed shot by Miles. The Camels extended the tie streak with Bowdoin to six straight but still put on a good show for another successful senior day.
Women’s Volleyball
At the same time as the men’s soccer team, the women’s volleyball team was facing off against Wheaton College down at Luce Field House. For senior day, the team would be taking on a team that none of the seniors would have ever played against with the last matchup between the Camels and Lyons coming in September 2019. Even with the lack of familiarity, the Camels were on a three game winning streak going into the matchup and looking to extend that by another for their four seniors. Seniors Caroline Festersen, Evie Lockwood Mullaney, Rae Wartelle, and Taylor Merrifield took the court and they took over the game as a quartet in all facets of the match. Wartelle and Lockwood Mullaney were first and third on the team in kills with 16 and five, and Festersen, Wartelle, and Merrifield led the team in aces with three, three, and two, respectively. Wartelle added another three blocks and Merrifield added two assists and 11 digs. The Camels defeated the Lyons in dominating fashion, going 75-49 in a three-set match that couldn’t have gone much better.
