USI Women’s Basketball
The USI Women’s Basketball team entered this season looking to defend their Ohio Valley Conference regular season and tournament titles.
The big three of Vanessa Shafford, senior guard, Madi Webb, graduate forward/center, and Meredith Raley, graduate forward, fought a valiant final campaign as Screaming Eagles.
Despite falling short of repeating as champions, the team experienced great high points, hosting two Women’s National Invitational Tournament games and defeating a tough Murray State team on the road. They also traveled all the way to Puerto Rico, for the Puerto Rico Clasico, finishing 2-0 in that series. The Biggest strength of the team was the camaraderie the players established over the season. The team truly lived in the moment, taking nothing for granted, something that many spend countless hour striving to do.
USI Men’s Basketball
The USI Mens Basketball season began relatively strongly, highlighted with a win against Indiana State on December 2. However, during the new year, the team struggled to get a semblance of consistency. Junior guards Damoni Harrison and Jayland Randall led the team in scoring per game, during the season. Stephen Olowoniyi, sophomore forward, led the team in blocks and rebounds per game.
As of April 24, 14 members of the 24-25 squad have entered the transfer portal, leaving Braxton Jones, junior guard, and the 2024 freshman recruiting class as likely returns next year.
USI Women’s Soccer
The 2024 women’s soccer team played a strong season in the Ohio Valley Conference (16 points), with a record of four wins, two losses, and three draws. Emerson Grafton, junior midfielder, led the team in goals scored (3) and assists (6) during the season. The Squad qualified for the OVC tournament, receiving a first round bye.
They lost in the Quarterfinals to Morehead State by a score of 2-1. This season was the strongest campaign for USI since they joined the Ohio Valley Conference in 2022.
USI Men’s Soccer
The men’s soccer team opened the season with an inspiring loss against a hardened Butler University team by a score of 1-2. Unfortunately, the team struggled to find form for most of the season largely due to injuries. The team lost its first seven matches to open the season.
Following a massive 8-0 loss against Bellarmine, the squad started to play better winning two of its next three, against Rose-Hulman and Eastern Illinois University. Despite this improved of form, the finished 1-7-2 in conference play, finishing one spot higher than last season’s finish.
Jackson Mitchell, sophomore forward, David Davila, freshman forward and Ahiro Nakamae, freshman midfielder, finished the season tied with the most goals at three apiece. Each Player also had two assists as well.
USI Volleyball
The Volleyball team’s 2024 season was truly an enigma. They stayed strong out the gate, opening the season with matchups against tough opponents featuring Ohio State University, University of Florida, and Indiana University to prepare them for the season.
In September, they beat the University of Evansville twice, once at home and once on the road. They extended the winning streak to three games with a win against Indiana University-Indianapolis. They followed this run by splitting matchups against Southeast Missouri State and winning two out of the next three against the University of Tennessee-Martin and Eastern Illinois University. The team experienced early success in the Ohio Valley conference, with a record of 3-2.
Unfortunately, this was the peak of their success as they would go on to lose their next thirteen in a row. The team finished the season with a record of 8-22, 3-15 in conference. Ashby Willis, sophomore outside hitter, led the team in points per set with 3.18, while Carly Sobieralski, senior setter, led the team in assists per set with 9.97.
Swimming and Diving Team
The men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams continued to build off their success from last season. The men’s side finished with a record of 3-6, while the women’s team finished 5-4. Caiya Cooper, sophomore freestyle specialist, and Reagan Holmes, sophomore freestyle/individual medley specialist, were consistent contributors for the women’s swim team, both setting records in the 500 meter freestyle, and 100 meter freestyle events.
The diving team continued to impress behind the excellence of Nathan Deputy, sophomore diver, and Anna Bunnell, freshman diver. Both divers set school records in the 3-meter dives, but Deputy set a school record of 304.20 on Jan. 25 against Eastern Illinois, which finished the season fourth overall in the entire Summit League. The diving team as a whole continues to develop into a strong formidable squad.
Both teams saved their best for last, as they had strong performances at the Summit League Championships. Both sides improved by at least 90 points.
USI Cross Country
The Men’s and Women’s Cross Country teams were a consistent example of excellence this season. The Mens side finished third in the Angel Mounds Invitational, second in the UT Martin Ohio Valley Conference Preview and first in the Ohio Valley Conference Championships. Brady Terry, senior, led the squad with multiple first place finishes most notably in the OVC championships with a time of 24:20.30.
The Women’s side finished first in the Angel Mounds Invitational, first in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournaments.
Audrey Comastri, senior, was someone who served as a leader in the locker room, and provided guidance to the team. She also contributed on the stat-sheets with two fourth place finished in the OVC Championship and UT Martin OVC Preview, and a fifth place finish in the Angel Mounds Invitation.
