Thunder Sports Report

Abram and Rusty talk about the ramifications of the NCAA's blanket waiver allowing all athletes an extra year of eligibility due to COVID. This episode features part two of our interview with Luke Anthony involving his plans and how he feels athletes can make use of the free year of eligibility. We also hear from Dr. Paul Lee about the Masters of Global Leadership program in the Wheaton Grad School and how it may be a fit for Wheaton athletes looking to further their education during their extra year.

After technical difficulties last week, Abram and Rusty are back to finish their recap of the winter sports season with a look at the wrestling, indoor track and field, and swimming seasons. Freshman swimmer Sophia Pelling is this week's guest after she earned CCIW Co-Rookie of the Year honors despite not swimming competitively since she was 12 years old.

The Thunder Sports Report returns with Rusty and Abram reviewing the successful completion of the winter sports season. Luke Anthony joins the podcast to talk about rediscovering the joy of competition and what it was like a season with no fans.

Abram Erickson and Don Crowder discuss an 87-75 victory for the seventh-ranked Thunder men's basketball team against a spirited Carthage squad on Feb. 5, 2021.

Abram Erickson and Don Crowder share their thoughts following Wheaton's 67-58 victory against Millikin in King Arena on Jan. 30, 2021

This week's guest is wrestling All-American Carlos Fuentez who joins the pod to talk about the role his faith played in overcoming injuries at the beginning and end of his career. Carlos also talks about his memorable National Championship match and what drove him to pursue mission work in Ukraine in the midst of the pandemic.

Abram and Rusty discuss the recent winter sport schedule release by the CCIW and how protocols put in place at Wheaton will shape the ultimate success of the winter season. They also take a look at each winter sport schedule and the challenges that lie ahead for each program.

We're back for the first pod of 2021! Our guest this week is 2019 Wheaton graduate Aston Francis, who was recently named to the D3hoops.com First Team All-Decade Team. Aston is currently in quarantine in the country of Georgia where he will soon begin his professional career with Basketball Club Mega in the Georgian A-League. Aston and Rusty talk about the honor of being named to the All-Decade Team, how a buzzer beater in Bloomington added a new tool to his arsenal, how a missed shot against Augustana ultimately led to the game-winner in the Elite 8, and injuries during his record-breaking senior season and during his professional pursuit.

This week's guest is one of the most decorated track and field athletes in Wheaton's history and a three-time Academic All-American. Wheaton's first-ever CCIW Man of the Year award winner, Leif Van Grinsven was an All-American decathlete during his time at Wheaton and currently is finishing his masters degree in England while working for the World Health Organization as part of their CoVID-19 Incident Management Support team. Leif and Rusty talk about how the decathlon translates to his role in managing a global pandemic and the 24 hours that started with Track Nationals in Geneva, Ohio and ended in Geneva, Switzerland.

In this episode, Rusty and Abram look back at what stood out about one of the more unique semesters in Wheaton's history and look ahead to what may be next heading into the winter.