David Schamis
Wide receiver David Pantelis ’25 carries the ball during the Harvard game. Pantelis caught the game-winning touchdown pass from quarterback Nolan Grooms ’24.
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Soccer
Next to the room in the Kenney Center at the Yale Bowl where the players meet at halftime, there is a photo of the handsome Dan I accompanied by a quote or, more likely, a reminder: “The dog the the hungrier gets the bone.”
Entering The Game, the stakes for Team 150 – Yale’s 150th football season – were clear. Harvard had already clinched a share of the Ivy title, but a Yale victory would give the Bulldogs their own claim to the crown. On a day of big stops and game-changing special teams plays, Handsome Dan’s adage proved true, as the hungry Bulldogs held on for a 23-18 victory.
More than 51,000 people were in attendance for a windy fall day in New Haven. Early on, the blue and white seemed to have the advantage in energy, with a blocked punt allowing Yale to score a quick touchdown early in the second quarter that established a 10-0 lead. The Bulldogs had two more good chances to score, thanks to an interception and a second blocked punt, but neither of Harvard’s two turnovers gave Yale any points.
Harvard snagged a touchdown late in the half, and what could have been a 24-0 Yale lead at halftime was instead a closer 10-6 battle.
In the second half, Yale increased its lead with a methodical touchdown drive, only for Harvard to respond with two quick touchdowns that gave the Crimson the lead for the first time all afternoon, 18-17. With less than eight minutes left and momentum shifting in Harvard’s direction, Joseph Vaughn ’24, who also had an interception and ten tackles to lead the defense, forced a Harvard fumble at their 14-yard line. This allowed quarterback Nolan Grooms ’24 to make the game-winning pass to David Pantelis ’25 in the end zone. Harvard had several nail-biting opportunities in the final minutes to take the lead, but the defense held on to seal the victory. “Our defense played so well that I never wavered in my confidence in our ability to win the game,” Grooms said afterward.
Yale shared the Ivy championship with Harvard and Dartmouth; all three teams finished 5–2 in Ivy play. What’s even more special for the 150 team is the back-to-back championships, a feat that hasn’t been accomplished since 1981. “Every year I ask the seniors to plant seeds that you’ll never see grow and leave here better than you found them,” said head coach Tony. Reno. “These guys did it at a level I’ve never seen before.”
And the real Ivy League trophy remains with Yale. Reno said, “We still have it from last year, and we beat Dartmouth head to head, we beat Harvard head to head, so we’re keeping it.”
Men’s football
It’s the shot heard around the world of college football. In the 89th minute of an NCAA first-round game, Yale and Bryant, both Bulldogs, were scoreless. But then midfielder Max Rogers ’24 saw an opening. “I had actually been watching the goalie the whole game and noticed he was very aggressive in his positioning,” said Rogers, a first-team All-Ivy selection. “I always had it in the back of my mind.” When Yale regained possession, he launched a booming kick from midfield that floated over the helpless goalkeeper and straight into the back of the net.
With a thoughtful decision, Rogers sent Yale to the NCAA second round for the first time since 1999. “It was a combination of knowing the goalie might be off his line and also being extremely tired afterwards 88 minutes of play,” Rogers said with a laugh. “I looked up and saw the goalkeeper was on the edge of his box and I thought: ‘Why not?’ »
To get there, Yale found its stride late in the season, going undefeated in its final five Ivy matches, including two victories to win the inaugural Ivy Tournament.
After the win over Bryant, the Bulldogs ultimately lost 2-0 to Hofstra in the second round, but they still had their best finish in nearly a quarter century.
Tim Goodenow
Audrey Leak ’24, seen here in a game against Penn, was named MVP of the Ivy Tournament, which the Bulldogs won.
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Volleyball
In 2022, the volleyball team went on a 17-game winning streak and only lost one Ivy match all season. How can you top that? The answer was another 17 consecutive victories and a unbeaten Ivy League season, the program’s first since 2012.
During that stretch, Yale didn’t just win: it dominated. They lost just nine sets while winning 51, and they only trailed four times.
Winning the Ivy Tournament gave the Bulldogs their second straight invitation to the NCAA Tournament. In the first round, they faced No. 5 Penn State, a tough opponent that has appeared in all 43 editions of the playoffs. Yale lost to the Nittany Lions but fought back: they won the second set and nearly won the third before losing three sets to one.
Until then, perhaps the biggest challenge Yale players faced was their own teammates. “Our team is very deep this year,” says Audrey Leak ’24, first-team All-Ivy selection and Ivy League tournament MVP. “Our starters are challenged every day in practice, which makes our team ready to compete in every game.”
