With the first semester winding down and everyone studying for finals, the winter sports teams are starting their conference play hoping to make a splash before winter break starts.  
Men’s basketball opened their season with an 89-74 loss to Skidmore, but then bounced back in a big way knocking off number nine in the country, WPI 77-65. They lost two straight at the hands of Plymouth State and Middlebury and opened up NAC play with a win over NEC. They continue NAC play this Friday and Saturday against Maine Maritime and Husson.
Women’s basketball is off to a 5-1 start. They won the Fairfield Inn & Suites Women’s Basketball Classic by defeating Framingham State and UMass-Dartmouth. They then lost against 15th ranked Williams 64-57. They have since bounced back to beat Plymouth and in-state rival Middlebury. Just as the men, they opened up conference play beating NEC 65-35. They also play Maine Maritime and Husson this Friday and Saturday. Also, shout out to Alyssa Leonard as she became the 13th Spartan to score 1,000 career points.
Women’s ice hockey is currently standing at 6-5.  They dropped a 2-1 contest to second ranked Norwich. The Spartans, at times in this game, outplayed the Cadets. To me, they show they can play with the best in the nation. Going in to play Middlebury, they were riding a three game win streak, but fell 5-0. They’ll play SUNY Potsdam before hosting the Rutland Herald Invitational beginning on Jan. 10.
The men’s hockey team is currently sitting at 5-4-1 after losing their contest to Norwich. The Spartans were riding a two game win streak, after suffering a hiccup against Tufts in the first round of the Rutland Herald Invitational. The Spartans play a late night game against Plymouth State this Saturday, so come out and watch. Also bring a teddy bear with you, as it is the annual teddy bear toss game.
In national sports, baseball’s free agency has kicked off with a bang. The New York Yankees went out and picked up Catcher Brian McCann, and outfielders Jacoby Ellsbury, and Carlos Beltran. The total bill for those three players when all their contracts are up: 283 million dollars.
The worst deal in this free agency is the Seattle Mariners paying 240 million dollars to Robinson Cano. By the time his contract ends, he will be 41 years old. His numbers are going to decrease in a couple of years, which means the Mariners are going to pay him 24 million dollars a year to be an average second baseman at best halfway through his contract.