The Fall Frenzy is heating up as teams prepare for the Fearsome Four. The remaining teams faced off this Wednesday and Thursday on their Expresso bikes to determine who moves on to the championship. Here were the matchups:
(1) Schoolcraft College vs. (13) SUNY – Binghamton
(2) Georgia Gwinnett College vs. (3) Carnegie Mellon University
Team action from the Electric Eight
The sparks were flying in the Electric Eight! SUNY – Binghamton, who entered the tournament as the #13 seed, pulled off their second straight upset, this time beating #7 University of Rochester. The Bearcats were relentless, finishing with 1,126 miles from 85 different riders. Rochester posted a respectable 706 miles but it was not enough for the Yellowjackets to advance.
The most intense battle of the tournament so far played out between #2 Georgia Gwinnett College and #10 University of Virginia at Wise. Both teams topped 1,200 miles, with Georgia Gwinnett winning at the line with 1,282 miles to University of Virginia at Wise’s 1,222 miles. University of Virgina at Wise managed to stay within striking distance the entire time led by Team Captain Sarah Smith, who clocked 167 miles. Altogether, four riders from the #10 seed topped the 100-mile mark, but the incredible efforts of the top riders from the Virginia crew were not enough to overcome the depth of Georgia Gwinnett’s team. By the end of the round Georgia Gwinnett College was over 100 riders strong, and led by Kevin Anthony with 220 miles!
Top seed Schoolcraft College cruised to victory over perennial contender #9 Marist College. The ultra-efficient #3 Carnegie Mellon University will make their second straight Fearsome Four appearance after defeating #6 University of South Dakota with 1,157 miles from just 35 riders.
Individual tournament riders
Riders are also competing individually. For every ten miles ridden, riders receive a lottery ticket. At the end of the tournament, one lucky rider will win $500! Even if a team drops out, riders can continue earning tickets and bragging rights!
Top rider John King from Houghton College has now traveled an incredible 720 miles in six days of actual race time. It appears as though John will be the king of the tourney, but Kevin Anthony of Georgia Gwinnett is still in the running and has topped 600 miles. Thomas Marshall of University of South Dakota (410 miles), Jim Seay of Schoolcraft (349 miles), and Jared Ring of University of Virginia at Wise (302 miles) round out the top five riders. Sundae Gaspari of Georgia Gwinnett has taken over as the top female rider in the tourney with 218 miles.
Tune into the Fall Frenzy from October 25-26 to see who will advance to the championship for the chance to win the title and the coveted Golden Spokes trophy! A full recap will be available in the NIRSA news in the coming days!
- For more information, contact Expresso Coach, Ross Stensrud .
- If you are interested in highlighting your campus or a NIRSA member’s achievements on your campus, pitch us your ideas.
Ross Stensrud is currently Chief Marketing Officer and coach at Expresso. He can be reached at rstensrud@ifholdings.com.
