12 New Teams

ATHLETICS

BY KEN DEBOLT

men’s and women’s alpine skiing

baseball

softball

women’s bowling

men’s swimming and diving

men’s and women’s indoor and outdoor track and field

men’s and women’s volleyball “Hobart and William Smith have a nearly 200year history of engaging students at the highest levels as scholars and athletes,” says President Joyce P. Jacobsen. “At a time when other colleges and universities are pulling back on sports or even dropping programs, we are doubling down on our commitment to athletics and the experiences our students have as athletes.”

Announced this summer, the Colleges’ 12 new and returning athletics programs join the existing 23 sports to raise the total HWS o erings to 35. New sports include men’s and women’s alpine skiing, baseball and softball, women’s bowling, men’s swimming and diving, men’s and women’s indoor and outdoor track and eld, and men’s and women’s volleyball. Earlier in the year, HWS also announced the addition of a varsity esports team, which debuted this fall.

“This is an exciting time in Hobart and William Smith athletics history,” says Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics and Recreation Deb Steward. “Our coaches have proven that they are outstanding recruiters of high-achieving studentathletes, and we look forward to welcoming more quality student-athletes to our campus.”

The national search is underway for head coaches to lead the new programs, as HWS prepares to recruit student-athletes for the rst season of competition. The expansion begins in the 202223 academic year when Hobart welcomes back alpine skiing, baseball, and swimming and diving, and William Smith adds alpine skiing, bowling and volleyball.

Hobart volleyball begins competition in 2023-24. The following year, Hobart and William Smith will compete in indoor and outdoor track and eld. The plan concludes in the 2025-26 season with the addition of softball.

Once fully implemented, Hobart will o er 17 sports and William Smith will o er 18. In total, the Colleges estimate that the number of student-athletes will expand from approximately 575 to about 750.

“These new and revived sports, and the coaches and students they will attract, will add to the vitality of our already thriving athletics program and to our campus community,” Jacobsen says. “I’m very much looking forward to cheering them all on in the years to come.” Commitment | Achievement | Excellence

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Hobart Football visits the Happiness House preschool program ahead of the annual Tackles and Touchdowns game in October. With donations for each tackle and touchdown made during the game, the event has raised more than $40,000 since 2010 for Ability Partners Foundation and its programs and services. Unlike previous visits to Happiness House, because of COVID protocols, the players could only interact with the children through glass.

During 32 seasons, Hall of Fame field hockey coach Sally Scatton P’02, P’06 racked up 471 wins, including 11 Liberty League Championships and three NCAA Division III National Championships. Scatton, who announced her retirement this summer, “has been a role model and mentor to decades of Heron field hockey players and colleagues,” says Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics and Recreation Deb Steward. “She is a fierce competitor with high standards that have put our program among the best in the country. Sally’s humor, passion for the sport and love for the Herons have made an enormous impact on so many, including me.”

Scatton joined William Smith field hockey as head coach in 1988, leading the program to 30 winning seasons and to national championships in 1992, 1997 and 2000. Under her guidance, Herons earned 57 All-America awards from the National Field Hockey Coaches Association. Scatton, who ranks sixth in Division III history in career wins, was voted National Coach of the Year three times, Regional Coach of the Year six times and took home top coaching honors from the Liberty League 10 times. She was inducted into the Heron Hall of Honor in 2007 and the NFHCA Hall of Fame in 2010.

This fall, Sophie Riskie ’07 took over as Herons field hockey head coach — the first alumna to lead the team. Steward says, “Sophie brings a wealth of knowledge and passion to this leadership role. I’m confident she will build on the successes of this storied program.”

William Smith Head Soccer Coach Aliceann Wilber P’12 became the second coach — and the first woman — ever to hit the 600win milestone in NCAA soccer. She recorded her 600th win with a 2–0 victory over Ithaca College in September. Now in her 42nd season, Wilber is the only head coach to lead the Herons team.

After a 33-year career in college sports, Deb Steward, Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics and Recreation, announced her retirement in October. She will be succeeded by Brian Miller, previously the Colleges’ Associate Director for Athletics and Recreation and Director of Athletic Compliance.

Steward, who has served in a leadership role at HWS for the past 16 years, says she’s “grateful for the trust that our coaches, staff and student-athletes have put in me, and enormously proud of what we have accomplished together.”

“It’s remarkable what Deb has built here,” says President Joyce P. Jacobsen. “In the past 18 months alone, she led our teams through the uncertainty of the pandemic and set us on an exciting course to expand our athletic opportunities. I remain grateful for Deb’s dedication to the Colleges and her strong guidance. She will be missed.”

Among other honors, Steward has been recognized as the Women Leaders in College Sports Division III Administrator of the Year. During her tenure, Steward hired 20 head coaches; broke the Colleges’ single day fundraising record; oversaw athletics achievements that earned conference, regional and national acclaim; and coordinated important athletic and recreation facility advances at HWS.

Miller, who looks forward to working with coaches, staff and students, notes Steward’s support and influence as “a mentor, teammate and great friend whose positive impact on these Colleges is undeniable.”