It's not a royal household, but at IU Southeast, 'Grenadiers' still have 'great stature'

Tennis, cross country added to intercollegiate line-up

By Jim Stammerman

Chancellor F.C. Richardson (left) and Jim Morris, IUS basketball coach and athletic director are all smiles as they display the NAIA regional basketball championship trophy.

The eight intercollegiate sports teams at IU Southeast are unique. According to the NCAA, they are the only college teams in the nation that have a grenadier (right) as their mascot.

A "grenadier" is described in the dictionary as "a member of the first regiment of the royal household infantry; a soldier of great stature." The team mascot is a caricature of a British soldier similar to those that are seen guarding public buildings in London, complete with a tall, oversized black hat.

For many years, IUS had four intercollegiate sports teams -- men's and women's basketball, men's baseball and women's volleyball. This year, new men's and women's tennis teams and men's and women's cross country teams were added. IUS teams compete in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and are members of the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (KIAC).

According to campus lore, nearly 30 years ago when IUS fielded its first official intercollegiate basketball team, a student contest to select a team mascot resulted in the name "River Rats" as the winner. However, the committee overseeing the selection reviewed the situation and -- thanks to a history professor who admired the British -- came up with the grenadier as the IUS mascot.

Jim Morris has been the men's basketball coach for 22 years and athletic director for almost as long. In the 1996-97 season, his team was NAIA regional champion and advanced to the NAIA national tournament but lost in a first-round game. This year's women's basketball team advanced to the NAIA Northeast Regional Tournament this week in Philadelphia; but with limited funding, the team and coaches are having to make a 14-hour bus trip to the tournament.

Bill Ryall, part-time tennis coach, recruited many talented tennis players among current IUS students for his first-year women's team, and they were able to capture the KIAC conference title last fall.

IUS women's tennis team (left to right): Jazmin Hall, Amy Sowers, Kelly Barto, Amy Entemen, Heather Ravert, Coach Bill Ryall, Monica Amster, Heather Davis, Beth Rawert, Leah Starrett, Betsy Receuver, Christina Wilson. Last fall, the team took the KIAC conference title.

The athletic program is supported mainly through student activity fees. Many athletes receive partial scholarships, but no one is given a full scholarship. According to Morris, the basketball teams spread what would amount to about two full scholarships among the entire team.

An athletic booster group, the Grenadier Club, also provides support for the IUS athletic teams.

Basketball home games are played in the 1,620-seat Activities Building. The baseball team has its own field on campus. There are six tennis courts on campus for the tennis teams.

Morris said that a large number of IUS students participate in an extensive intramural sports program in everything from basketball to bowling. There is healthy competition each year for the campus fraternity and sorority intramural championship trophies.

Plans for adding additional intercollegiate teams in the future at IUS are now being studied, according to Joelyn Ainley, IUS vice chancellor for student affairs.

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