Let’s face it, we all hate this time of year. School is starting, winter is coming, you have to start wearing sleeves again, and you have to trade in your shades, sunscreen and sun visors for $200 textbooks.

These are all things we hate about the fall but with this time of year comes something we can all rally behind, sports. In the fall, we get to hear the glorious sound of shoulder pad meeting shoulder pad on our very own blue turf. We get to see the ball being perfectly placed into the back of the soccer nets on Kayo Field. Up in the Charger Gym, we get to see our volleyball players dominate their opponents spike after spike. We also get to hear the grunts and feel the wind from our tennis and cross-country teams.

These six sports help us recover from a glorious summer, but they also help us get back into the groove of things. You may not remember what these team did last season, but here’s a little recap to help jog your memory.

Chargers football capped off the 2016-17 season with an overall record of 7-4 and a record of 6-3 in the NE-10 Conference. The Chargers dominated the NE-10 conference by beating Pace, American International, Bentley, Merrimack, and Southern Connecticut State twice. Their only losses in the conference came at the hands of Assumption, Stonehill, and LIU Post, two out of the three being perennial powerhouses. The biggest story of the season came from senior linebacker, Tyler Condit. Condit broke both New Haven and NE-10 Conference records for career tackles. This is an impressive feat given the fact that Condit only recorded 42 tackles his freshman year before securing the starting position his sophomore year. With that being said, after his freshman year he averaged 12 tackles per game, which is incredible because you don’t even see a lot of NFL players averaging that many tackles a game. Chargers football will look to capitalize on their success this past season as we move into the 2017 season.

Chargers volleyball was one of the most successful teams in the school’s arsenal, as they were able to capture their fifth NE-10 conference championship in program history against Adelphi. The Chargers finished third in the conference compiling a 11-3 NE-10 Conference record and a 20-9 overall record. With the conference championship under their belt, the Chargers received an automatic bid into the NCAA DII tournament, where they lost to Daemen College in the semifinal round. Overall, these ladies had a great season, and they look to duplicate their success in their quest for conference championship number six.  

Men’s soccer did not have a great year in 2016. The Chargers struggled on the road posting a dismal record of 1-7-1 away from Kayo Field. They also struggled within the NE-10 Conference compiling a 3-9-1 record. The one bright spot in the men’s soccer season was that they posted a 5-3-0 record on the friendly confines of Kayo Field. The Chargers started the season strong by winning their first three non-conference games against Molloy, Felician, and Georgian Court, but it all went downhill from there. Men’s soccer was never able to win consecutive games since their initial three game win streak, and they ended the season losing seven of their eight final games. Men’s soccer will look to have a rebound season in 2017.  

Women’s soccer had as much success as their male counterparts. Women’s soccer started the 2016 season with a three-game win streak against Queens College, NYIT, and Saint Thomas Aquinas, which are all non-conference opponents. After that they played a double overtime thriller against conference rival Le Moyne which ended in a 0-0 draw. The Chargers then went on to win two more games throughout the season before ending the season on an eight-game losing streak. Overall, women’s soccer went 5-12-1 with a 2-11-1 conference record. Much like the men’s team, the women struggled on the road compiling a 1-7-1 but made up for it by winning four of their nine home games. In order for women’s soccer to improve, they have to get better at playing away from home, if they are able to do that they will surely have an improved 2017.

he other two sports that will be competing in the fall are women’s tennis and men’s and women’s cross country. Last season women’s Tennis won their third straight NE-10 Team Academic Excellence Award. The team recorded a conference-best 3.63 grade point average throughout the 2016-17 academic year.

Both men’s and women’s cross country finished 13th out of 15 teams in the NE-10 Conference Championships. The women finished higher than the men in most invitationals, but both teams failed to win one invitational during the 2016-17 season.

Tennis will open up their season at home against Post University on Sept. 7. Cross country begins their quest Sept. 1 at Adelphi.            

Overall, these first six sports that start as soon as we get back to campus will get the school spirit running through our veins. As soon as we are done with our classes for the day we can sit back, relax and enjoy a great competitive Division II game whether it be at Kayo field, Charger Gym, the tennis courts or Dellacamera Stadium.

Who knows we might even get to see a championship along the way.

Go Chargers!