From the founding of the College, Trinity students enjoyed outdoor recreation and individual sports such as swimming, boxing, fencing, and horseback riding. Gradually sports became more organized, with the first teams and team sports appearing in the 1850s. Rowing led the way as the first competitive intercollegiate sport, followed by baseball and football. In the nineteenth century, Trinity men competed with students at schools like Yale, Harvard, and Brown, though opponents could include upperclassmen or sport clubs organized by non-students. The first facilities purpose-built for campus sports were a boat-house and a gymnasium. Lawn tennis, track-and-field, bicycling, and basketball emerged by the end of the century. In the early 1900s, student sports competitions garnered greater backing from faculty and administrators, who began to appear as regular spectators and to commit increasing College funds to support athletics and general physical education for all students. The building of Trowbridge Pool in 1929 and later the opening of Ferris Athletic Center in 1969 contributed to the hiring of faculty-level sports coaches, as well as the entrance of Trinity into the New England Small Collegiate Athletic Conference (NESCAC) in 1971. The coeducation of the campus in 1969 introduced even greater variety, complexity, and administration, as well as further opportunities to celebrate the athletic prowess of Trinity students. Currently, the College is a Division III NCAA school with varsity teams for men and women, as well as club and intramural sports. Its teams are called the Bantams.

Baseball was first introduced to the Trinity community through a Baseball Club in the early 1860s. Though the city of Hartford had a baseball club called the Charter Oaks, the sport took some time to gain popularity on campus.

At the end of the Civil War, baseball became the College's most popular sport. Students who had fought in the war brought the game back with them. By the spring of 1866, Trinity had its own varsity team and on June 10, the baseball team played and lost its first game against the Charter Oaks. Trinity continued intercollegiate competitions in 1870, beginning the rivalry between Wesleyan and Trinity. Trinity first beat Wesleyan in 1871, but soon went into a period of inactivity, holding practices but not competing in any collegiate games. By spring of 1874, new green and white uniforms were designed, and the team went on to win several games.

In the spring of 1875, the College made plans to build a new baseball field, the sport remaining incredibly popular. While the plans were successful, the fields were not being maintained, resulting in a no-game season. The next year, the College again tried to address the sport's popularity with the gift of new uniforms and the resumption of building the College its own field. However, the efforts were wasted. By the time the new field was ready, the popularity of baseball had once again diminished. Only seven students showed an interest in playing that season.

During the 1880s and 1890s, baseball became popular again, and the College played against other New England schools, including those that would one day become the New England Small College Athletic Conference and the Ivy League.

Baseball has remained a steady presence since, with over 30 students on the team's roster as of 2023.

Basketball was first introduced to Trinity in 1894 when the men won their first game in December against Hartford Public High School at the local YMCA. Trinity's team continued to play teams from the YMCA until 1897 when they began to compete with Yale and Wesleyan. Official intercollegiate play began in 1905. During World War I, competition halted, but resumed in 1919; the Bantam men saw their first winning season in 1920-21.

The men's team has played on the Stan Ogrodnik court at Oosting Gymnasium, named for two Trinity coaches, since it opened in 1969. Raymond Oosting coached the men's team from 1924 to 1957. Ogrodnik coached the men's team from 1981 to 2008 and, to this day, is the winningest men's basketball coach in Trinity history.

The men's team has boasted three ECAC championships, one NCAA Final Four, and one NESCAC championship.

The women's basketball team began official competition in 1975, achieving a winning record for their first two seasons. They have one ECAC championship and three NCAA tournament appearances.

In 1999, the Trinity Tripod came under fire for its lack of coverage of the women's team in favor of the men's team in a letter to the editor from a junior.

The first inter-collegiate men's cross country team at Trinity was formed in 1915. The first-ever meet was a loss against Springfield. The men's team has held two NESCAC champions and one NCAA National champion, Ryan Bak '03.

The women's cross country team began competition in 1982.

Field Hockey was one of the first women's sports to be played on an intercollegiate level at Trinity.

The field hockey team played its first official season in 1971, although there had been a team organized at least a year before. During its first few seasons of play, the field hockey team practiced on the LSC Quad and went 4-1-2 in its first season. Trinity field hockey won the NIAC championship every season from 1984 to 1988 and was the ECAC champion in 1992. Since then, field hockey has had 10 NCAA tournament appearances including one semifinal appearance.

The field hockey team plays at Robin L. Sheppard Field, which was named after the legendary field hockey, women's lacrosse, and women's basketball coach in 2002. Sheppard coached Trinity field hockey for 25 seasons, with an overall record of 240-67-13. Sheppard was also one of the founding members of Venture, which was organized in 2013, and retired from the college in 2015 as a tenured Professor of Physical Education and the Associate Athletic Director.

The first football game at Trinity was played on September 26, 1857, between the freshman and sophomore classes, which the freshmen won and the game became an annual tradition until the 1870s. The first intercollegiate game was played in 1877 against Yale, resulting in a loss. The football team won its first game in 1887 when they beat Massachusetts Agricultural College 32-4. Its first undefeated season came in 1911.

Overall, Trinity's football team has been extremely successful throughout the decades. The NESCAC football championship, established in 2000, has been won by Trinity nine times, the most of any NESCAC school, and Trinity has achieved second place seven times. There have only been five NESCAC championships in which Trinity didn't appear. Trinity football is also tied for the fewest amount of touchdowns allowed in a season (four in 2003) in all of NCAA DIII football, and it has the 20th most wins.

Since 1904, the Trinity football team has played on the Jessee/Miller Field, the tenth-oldest college football field in the United States. It was named after Trinity's head football coaches Dan Jessee (1932-1966) and Don Miller (1966-1998). Miller, who retired in 1998, was the all-time winningest coach in NCAA Division III football history in New England.

Golf first appeared at Trinity in the early 20th century. As it became popular, the Golf Association was formed in 1908. The first tournament was heavily delayed due to weather and had to be handicapped due to light concerns.

Intercollegiate play began in 1935 and was organized by Ray Oosting. Home matches were played at Rockledge Country Club in West Hartford. The first official season in a league came in 1953. The highest-ranked season for the men's team was the 2018-19 season, in which they were ranked eighth.

Women's golf began at Trinity in 2017 with several women competing in tournaments individually. Through the advocacy of Sarah Vimini '19 and Emily Schroeder '20, Trinity joined the NESCAC as an official team in the 2018-19 season. Women's golf has boasted one recipient of the Susan E. Martin Award: Gabriella Christensen '21.

Ice hockey has existed at Trinity as far back as 1889 when the Trinity Tablet reported on the captain of the team. Until 1974, it was played at the club level. The first varsity game was played on November 27, 1974, in a 7-6 loss against Nichols College. During the inaugural varsity season, the men played home games at the Glastonbury Skating Arena. The men's team has won five NESCAC championships and one NCAA championship over the years. Two Trinity alumni were drafted into the NHL: in 1986, Art Fitzgerald (to the Toronto Maple Leafs) and in 2004, John Carter (to the Philadelphia Flyers).

Interest in the creation of a women's ice hockey team first became prominent in 1989. The first club team was formed in 1995 and played its first game in a 3-2 win against the Connecticut Lady Lightning on November 19. The women's team achieved varsity status in 1998-99 and their first winning season was 2007-08. Since 1998, the women's ice hockey team has been NESCAC champion once and has competed in the NCAA tournament twice. From the 2013-14 season to the 2014-15 season, the women were coached by Olympian Jenny Potter.

Since 2006, the men's and women's teams have played at the Albert Creighton Williams '64 Rink at the Koeppel Community Center. Williams was an ice hockey player for two years at Trinity before being killed in a car accident just prior to graduation.

Lacrosse began as aa club sport at Trinity, when books about lacrosse were added to the College's library. In its beginnings, spring lacrosse was mainly for the purpose of keeping football players in shape for the fall season.

The first men's varsity intercollegiate system was established in 1961. Since then, Trinity men's lacrosse has made it to the NESCAC semifinals twice and to the NCAA tournament once.

Women's lacrosse played its first varsity season in 1975 and has been relatively successful since its founding. It has won four NIAC championships, five NESCAC championships, and one NCAA championship in 2012. Women's lacrosse has appeared in the NCAA finals five additional times.

Rowing's origins at Trinity began in 1856 with the “Minnehaha Club,” also the first-ever sports club at Trinity, following the popular trend of boating clubs in Hartford. The club first competed with groups in Hartford, but by 1858 was set to compete with other college teams in a regatta held in Springfield, Massachusetts. Days before the regatta, a member of the Yale crew team drowned while practicing, causing the race to be postponed and eventually abandoned. Although crew continued to develop at Trinity in the years following–adopting uniforms and adding more boats–crew's popularity dwindled and would not be revived again until the 1960s.

President Albert Jacobs, who had been an oarsman at Oxford and advocated for crew at Trinity, helped found The Trinity College Rowing Association in 1959, and crew became an unofficial informal sport at Trinity. The team used an abandoned tobacco barn as a boathouse for a number of years, eventually moving into the Bliss Boathouse following its completion in 1959. Crew became an official sport recognized by Trinity in 1966. The women's rowing team at Trinity was formed in 1972, and the team officially became a varsity team at the College in 1976.

The crew team won a notable victory in 1976 when it placed first at Henley's Royal Regatta in England–the team's first win at the international competition–having lost twice previously, and became the second American crew team to ever win the event. In 2014, the varsity women's team won their first NCAA Division III National Championship Regatta.

The first soccer game at Trinity was played in October 1858 against 20 Hartford men. It lost favor during the Civil War and was revived in 1912.

In 1924, two soccer teams of first-years began to scrimmage one another in the fall. Sophomores joined in later in the year. In 1926, a game against the faculty was arranged in which the faculty beat the sophomores. These friendlies continued to occur until a club team was formed in 1928.

The men's soccer team played its first varsity season in 1936. The 1957 team was named the most outstanding soccer team in the nation by the Intercollegiate Soccer Football Association. The men's soccer program boasts five NCAA appearances.

Women's soccer played its first varsity season in 1980. It has one ECAC championship and two NCAA tournament appearances.

Prior to coeducation at Trinity, softball was played as a friendly competition between fraternities or as a fundraising tactic.

Softball became a club sport, and after improving from a 1-10 record to a 6-4 record in three years, was made a varsity sport for women in 1984.

Squash is one of Trinity College's top-performing teams, recruiting athletes at the international level.

Trinity College's first squash court was built with the completion of Trowbridge Memorial Pool and Squash Facility in 1931 and a team was organized the following year. Despite being a small college, Trinity has received national attention for its winning streak in men's squash, winning 252 matches from February 1998 to January 2012. The head men’s squash coach, Paul Assaiante, became the winningest college coach in history.

Trinity's women's squash team first competed at the National Women's Squash Championship in 1979 under coach Roy Dath. The team won College Squash Association (CSA) national titles in 2002, 2003, and 2014.

A new squash complex opened on campus in 1992, located in the Ferris Athletic Center. Squash athletes, called Capital Squash, also volunteer in urban spaces, introducing squash to students from Hartford schools.

In 1929, the Trowbridge Memorial Pool/Squash facility was completed to give students the opportunity “to avail themselves of a form of recreation which is not limited to eleven men or to nine men or to five men.” On October 19, the College celebrated its opening with a swimming demonstration by Yale and Wesleyan, followed by water polo games. A swimming team of over 30 men was formed by 1930, though it was not “yet recognized as a letter sport,” and by 1932, it was considered “a major sport,” competing in its first varsity meet.

The original swimming uniform was described as “tank suits, made out of either lisle, rayon, or silk. The divers are required to have a wool suit with a six-inch skirt. Gold 'T's' at a slight cost are to be sewed on each man's suit, which are a dark blue in color.”

Over the years, the men's swimming and diving team has had two All-Americans and eight All-NESCAC individuals.

The women's swimming and diving team competed in its first varsity season in 1978. It has had 13 All-Americans and two All-NESCAC swimmers.

Tennis first appeared as a lawn tennis club formed in 1878; the sport quickly became popular. By 1883, Trinity had six lawn tennis clubs that made up the Trinity College Lawn Tennis Association. The best of these teams were selected for a varsity team that first played intercollegiate competitions in 1882. In 1883, Trinity headed the effort to form the Intercollegiate Lawn Tennis Association, with the first meet held in Hartford. Trinity's blue and gold were first worn in a tennis meet in October of 1883.

Trinity boasted one of the most successful collegiate tennis teams in the country until 1896 when they withdrew from competition due to being unable to keep up with other schools' growing student bodies.

The men's non-lawn tennis team played its first intercollegiate match in 1896 in a win against Wesleyan. The men's tennis team competed in their first varsity season in 1909 and has made four NCAA tournament appearances.

The women's tennis team competed in its first varsity season in 1972 and has made three NCAA tournament appearances.

Track and field at Trinity has existed since the 1880s, and a men's team was formed in 1895. The men's team has had one NCAA qualifier, Ryan Bak '03, who qualified four times, won the NCAA Division III National Championship for two indoor track events, and was named NESCAC Runner of the Year (2001, 2002), New England Runner of the Year (2002), and NCAA Division III National Indoor Track and Field Athlete of the Year (2003). The men's team has also had five NESCAC champions, 10 New England champions, and one ECAC champion.

The first Black athlete to letter in a sport was Ralph F. Davis '53 who ran track.

The women's varsity track and field team was formed in 1983, though there were Trinity women competing in intercollegiate track meets beginning in 1980. Amanda Rival '01 won the NCAA Division III Heptathlon in 2001, and Trinity has had five qualifiers, five NESCAC champions, 12 New England champions, and two ECAC champions.

Women's volleyball was first organized in 1983 under coach Robin Sheppard as a club sport. The team achieved varsity status in 1985. Since then, it has made the NESCAC semifinals twice. The volleyball team plays in Ferris Athletic Center at the Ray Oosting Gymnasium.

The first appearance of wrestling at Trinity was during “sports nights” in Alumni Hall held during World War II. Wrestling became a club sport in 1971 before achieving varsity status in 1975. There have been 20 seasons where a wrestler was a national qualifier and 11 where one was an All-American.

Trinity College Club sports are an opportunity for students to participate in a sport they love that is not represented in Trinity's Athletics teams, but with more rigorous training and structure than an intramural team. Organized and run by students, Club Sports work with the recreation office to hire coaches, plan and schedule practices, schedule contests, and work with an operating budget. Each club sport, like all student clubs on campus, must have a constitution and student leaders responsible for the team.

Club Sports can be competitive or non-competitive. Unlike intramurals, competitive club sports compete against other college's clubs.

Trinity Competitive Club Teams:

• Men's Basketball
• Boxing
• Equestrian
• Men's Rugby
• Men's Soccer
• Women's Soccer
• Ski Team
• Cheerleading
• Rock Climbing
• Trap & Skeet

Trinity Non-Competitive Club Teams:

• Badminton
• Golf
• Men's Lacrosse
• Women's Lacrosse
• Running
• Tennis

Intramural sports leagues are recreational, co-ed teams that compete within the Trinity environment as an alternative to the more disciplined and rigorous college athletics teams.

Intramural sports have long been an important part of Trinity College's programs. In an effort to focus on the importance of learning outside of the classroom and physical health beyond collegiate sports, the College has continuously funded programs that motivate students to be physically active and engaged with the campus community.

When G. Keith Funston became College president in 1945, one of his main initiatives was to further support intramural sports. This again became a priority in the College's 1992 Strategic Plans.

Intramural sports teams include:

• basketball
• flag football
• soccer
• softball
• ultimate frisbee
• volleyball

Students must register to participate and compete in end-of-season Championships.

From 1890 to 1891, a group of sophomores participated in a bowling club. Later, the club expanded into a multi-class team, which lasted into the 1970s.

Based on the competitive sport popular throughout the 19th century in England, Trinity's Coaching Club was a student organization in which students raced stage coaches. One student would control the team of horses (four-in-hand or six-in-hand). Introduced in the 1880-1881 academic year, it was revived occasionally throughout the late 19th century.

Cricket made its first appearance in the late 1870s as an alternative to baseball, which varied in popularity. The Cricket Club was founded in 1880 in large part by those Trinity students who originated from St. Paul's School in Concord, New Hampshire, but was gone by the spring of 1881.

The Cricket Club lost to Harvard in November of 1880 by a score of 40 to 50. Though the enthusiasm for it was short-lived, there was thought of Trinity's joining the Intercollegiate Cricket Association. It was the cricket team that engaged the first professional coach for a Trinity team–Charles Russell, a professional who had played on cricket teams in the New York and Philadelphia areas.

By 1881, the fad of cricket had passed in favor of baseball, which was not just a favorite at Trinity but throughout the United States.

Trinity's Cycle Club, which entailed racing bicycles, was formed during the 1890s, during a craze of bicycle clubs in the United States and England. The club's president was Professor Luther.

During the late 1880s, the bicycle evolved from the “ordinary,” in which the front wheel was more than twice the size of the rear, into the recognizable “safety” silhouette of today, in which the rear and front wheels became the same size. Thanks to the remodel, bicycling became efficient and transportive, leading to an increase in bicycling for recreation and competition. Colonel Albert Pope, a Hartford businessman, owned a factory that put out tens of thousands of bicycles per year, and the demand for bicycles led to a demand for better roads.

Almost every Trinity student in the 1890s owned his own bicycle and that was his main source of transportation.

The Trinity men in the 1890s who were interested in athletics participated in games and races put on by Hartford's Columbia Bicycle Club, and put on races for “Trinity Field Day” in Charter Oak Park. One Tablet details the results of the “Two mile safety bicycle race:” C. A. Monaghan, Class of 1893 won and broke a new record with a time of 00:06:43, which was beaten by J.A. Wales, Class of 1901, at 00:04:57.

The club lasted until at least 1898. However, two-mile bicycle races continued to be held as part of track and field meets in subsequent years.

• Ferris Athletic Center
• Natatorium
• Memorial Field House
• Trowbridge Pool and Squash Facility
• Hazelton Fitness Center
• Trinity Varsity Weight Room
• George A. Kellner Squash Courts
• Friends of Trinity Boathouse
• Trinity Soccer Field
• Koeppel Community Sports Center
• Paul Assaiante Tennis Center
• Trinity Softball Field
• Murren Family Field/DiBenedetto Stadium
• Jessee/Miller Field
• Robin L. Sheppard Field
• Oosting Gymnasium
• Wickham Park

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Baseball

The History of Trinity College (1967) by Glenn Weaver, pp. 156, 166-167, 210.

Basketball

Men's Basketball All-Time Schedule

Men's Baskteball Coaching Records

Men's Basketball All-Time Postseason Results

Women's Basketball All-Time Schedule

Women's Basketball All-Time Postseason Results

The 2020 Athletics Hall of Fame Class

Trinity College in the Twentieth Century (2000) by Peter and Anne Knapp, p. 135.

The Trinity Tripod, 09/02/1999.

The Trinity Tripod, 09/15/1981.

The Trinity Ivy (1977), p. 178.

The History of Trinity College (1967) by Glenn Weaver, p. 230.

Bowling

The Trinity Ivy (1969).

History of Trinity College (1967) by Glenn Weaver, p. 220.

Cycling Club

History of Trinity College (1967) by Glenn Weaver, p. 220.

Coaching Club

History of Trinity College (1967) by Glenn Weaver, pp. 197, 210.

The Trinity Ivy (1881).

Cross Country

Cross Country All-Time Honors

Interview: Ryan Bak of Trinity College (Alumni)

The Trinity Tripod, 10/29/1915.

Field Hockey

Trinity Field Hockey All-Time Post-Season Results and Honors

Trinity women fighting athletic inequalities..., 11/15/2021.

Faculty Profile: Robin L. Sheppard

The Trinity Tripod, 11/16/1971.

The Trinity Tripod, 09/24/1971.

Football

Football All-Time Schedule

NCAA D3 Football Records

Past NESCAC Champions

Trinity College in the Twentieth Century (2000) by Peter and Anne Knapp, pp. 20, 48.

The History of Trinity College (1967) by Glenn Weaver, p. 106.

Trinity Tablet, 10/23/1902.

Golf

Women's Golf All-Time Post-Season Honorees

Trinity College Men's Golf Record Book

2022-23 Men's Golf Roster

The Trinity Tripod, 11/07/2017.

The Trinity Tripod, 04/30/1935.

The Trinity Tripod, 10/27/1908.

The Trinity Tripod, 10/23/1908.

Ice Hockey

Men's Ice Hockey All-Time Schedule

Men's Ice Hockey All-Time Post Season History

Women's Ice Hockey Year-By-Year Records

Women's Ice Hockey All-Time Post Season History

Women's Ice Hockey Roster

"Men's Hockey Erupts...", 2/27/2022.

The Trinity Tripod, 11/14/1989.

The Trinity Tripod, 11/26/1974.

"Crash Kills Trinity Athlete...", 03/15/1964

Trinity Tablet, 2/9/1889.

Intramurals

Trinity College Intramurals

Trinity College in the Twentieth Century (2000) by Peter and Anne Knapp, pp. 119, 489.

Lacrosse

Men's Lacrosse Post Season History

Women's Lacrosse Post Season History

Alumni Friends' Gift...

Trinity College in the Twentieth Century (2000) by Peter and Anne Knapp, p. 48.

The Trinity Tripod, 04/16/1991.

The Trinity Tripod, 12/10/1912.

The Trinity Tripod, 03/15/1912.

Rowing (Crew)

The Trinity Reporter, Spring 2016, pp. 32, 33-34.

A Brief History, 02/03/2010.

Trinity College in the Twentieth Century (2000) by Peter and Anne Knapp, pp. 276, 277-278.

The Trinity Reporter, September 1976, p. 1.

The History of Trinity College (1967) by Glenn Weaver, pp. 104-105.

Squash

Trinity College in the Twentieth Century (2000) by Peter and Anne Knapp, pp. 72, 377, 431.

The Legacy That Can't Be Squashed

Soccer

Men's Soccer All-Time Post Season Honors

Women's Soccer All-Time Post Season Honors

2022 Women's Soccer Roster

Trinity College in the Twentieth Century (2000) by Peter and Anne Knapp, p. 48.

The History of Trinity College (1967) by Glenn Weaver, pp. 106, 164.

The Trinity Tripod, 10/26/1928

The Trinity Tripod, 11/19/1926.

The Trinity Tripod, 11/05/1926.

The Trinity Tripod, 11/15/1924.

The Trinity Tripod, 10/18/1924.

Softball

Softball All-Time Post Season History

Trinity College Softball Facebook

The Trinity Tripod, 03/13/1984.

The Trinity Tripod, 05/07/1935.

Swimming and Diving

Swimming & Diving All-Time Honors

Trinity Swimming and Diving Facebook

The Trinity Tripod, 12/16/1930.

The Trinity Tripod, 20/15/1929.

Tennis

Men's Tennis All-Time Post Season Honors

Women's Tennis All-Time Post Season Honors

Trinity College in the Twentieth Century (2000) by Peter and Anne Knapp, p. 46.

The History of Trinity College (1967) by Glenn Weaver, p. 211.

Track and Field

All Time Track Honors

The Trinity Ivy (2002).

The Trinity Tripod, 05/20/1980.

The History of Trinity College (1967) by Glenn Weaver, p. 211.

Trinity Tablet, 10/26/1895.

Volleyball

Volleyball All-Time Post Season Results

The Trinity Tripod, 10/01/1985.

The Trinity Tripod, 04/12/1983.

Wrestling

Wrestling All-Time Honors

History of Trinity College (1967) by Glenn Weaver, p. 99.

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