The annual Maroon Madness homecoming ceremony took place on Oct. 13 to kick off Iona University’s homecoming weekend. 

Along with giveaways, great performances by the Iona dance and cheer teams and competitions between students, the head coaches and rosters of each basketball team were introduced.  

Head coaches for the men and women’s basketball team, Tobin Anderson and Angelika Szumilo, were both met with booming cheers and applauses, as were the entire rosters and each team’s respective staff. The applause given to the men’s center, Osborn Shema, was particularly strong and inviting. 

The dunk contest was electric, with sophomore Isaac Brice taking the victory.  

Both teams clearly have hefty expectations coming into the new year, following up great seasons in 2022. They will have their work cut out for them, though, as there was a great deal of roster and staff changes from last year to now. 

 Anderson said that despite the roster turnover for the men’s team, his new squad has spent a lot of time working together as a fresh season approaches.  

“We’ve been building chemistry all summer; we started in June, had a lot of workouts and trips to the city as a team,” Anderson said. “We have great guys on the team and chemistry will build naturally with adversity.”  

That’s not to say that these teams are tempering their expectations because of turnover, however, as they are as focused as ever on winning.  

“Iona always has expectations to win, it’s always to win, we want to be the best we can possibly be,” Anderson said. “We aren’t focused on those expectations, we always want to win.” Szumilo echoed this kind of mindset at the event, saying they were determined to put a great product out on the court each and every game.  

Anderson expects that his team will adhere to strong values that are a key part of Iona’s philosophy.  

“Everything is different, but some things stay the same,” Anderson said. “Being on time, being a good person, hustling, that’s the standard. But it’s a new situation we have to learn, and I like the direction we’re going.” 

The message being sent is loud and clear. The Gaels are locked in and focused on winning, chemistry will grow as time goes on, and the team is ready to take on anything thrown at them.  

The women’s team has a tough start to the season, with six of their first seven games being away. The men’s schedule doesn’t start off easy either, with the season opener being at the College of Charleston and then the home opener versus Sacred Heart University on Nov. 10.  

That being said, the teams want no excuses and are diving into this year head-first, in spite of the lack of chemistry or experience together.