Ebone Henry Leads UAlbany Women's Basketball to 76-41 Win Over NJIT

ALBANY, N.Y. -- Senior Ebone Henry came off the bench to score 21 points to lead UAlbany to a 76-41 win over NJIT in non-conference women's basketball action on Wednesday evening at SEFCU Arena. The Great Danes improve to 5-2 on the season, while NJIT drops to 4-3.

The teams played an even start to the game, with Keyana Williams scoring all five of UAlbany's points as the Great Danes held a 5-4 advantage with 15:52 on the clock. Henry entered the game shortly thereafter and nailed three straight 3-pointers to put UAlbany ahead, 15-6, with 12:22 to play. NJIT pulled back within seven on a jumper by Rayven Johnson, but the Great Danes continued to roll, building up a 21-10 advantage on a layup by Sarah Royals with 6:42 on the clock.

UAlbany used a 12-6 run to blow open a 13-point lead, 27-14, as Henry converted a conventional three-point play with just over two minutes on the clock in the first half. Johnson and Martina Matejcikova each hit one-of-two free throws to pull the Highlanders back to within 11 with under a minute to play, but Henry hit the final basket with 18 ticks to set the 29-16 halftime score.

UAlbany came out firing in the second half, getting a layup by Julie Forster and a 3-pointer by Lindsey Lowrie to take an 18-point advantage less than a minute in. NJIT responded with two straight baskets by Kimberly Dweck, but the Great Danes came back and scored the next five points to take their biggest lead of the game, 41-20, with just over 17 minutes to play.

The Great Danes continued to roll, using a 3-pointer by Erin Coughlin to take a 26-point lead, 55-29, halfway through the period. Johnson hit two free throws at 8:05 to cut the lead back to 22, but that would be as close as NJIT would get for the remainder of the game. UAlbany outscored the Highlanders, 13-3, over the final five minutes of play to set the final 35-point advantage.

Johnson led NJIT with 13 points, also grabbing eight rebounds. Nicole Maticka added nine points, going 3-of-4 from both the field and the free throw line.

In addition to her 21 points, Henry recorded eight rebounds, four assists and one steal. Megan Craig finished with 10 points, while Shereesha Richards led the Great Danes off the boards with 10 rebounds. The Great Danes shot 46-percent (29-63) from the floor, while also outrebounding the Highlanders, 50-24.
UAlbany will return to action on Saturday, visiting crosstown-rival Siena in non-conference action at the Times Union Center, starting at 5 p.m.

Women's Lacrosse Picked 20th In Inside Lacrosse Top-20 Preseason Rankings

ALBANY, N.Y. - With about two and half months away from the start of the 2013 season for the UAlbany women's lacrosse team, Inside Lacrosse's Face-Off Yearbook has the Great Danes 20th in the 2013 ILWomen's Preseason Rankings. To read more about the UAlbany and the other 19 preseason teams that were picked in the top-20 click here. UAlbany defended its America East Conference Tournament Championship and returned to the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive time in 2012. UAlbany finished the 2012 season with a 12-6 record overall. Notable returners for the Great Danes are senior midfielder Jess Antelmi, senior attacker Rachael Burek, junior attacker Ariana Parker, and junior goalkeeper Anna Berman. Parker returns as an America East Conference First Team selection and both Antelmi and Burek return as Second Team selections.

Albany Men's Basketball Defeats Wagner, 66-63

ALBANY, N.Y. - Having fought off a stomach bug for the past two days, senior guard Mike Black gritted his teeth and scored a team-high 19 points to lead UAlbany past Wagner, 66-63, on Monday, Nov. 26 at SEFCU Arena. The Great Danes 5-2 start matches their best start in Division I history. The only other time UAlbany has started 5-2 in the first seven games was during the 2008-09 season.

"It was a gutsy performance", said head coach Will Brown on the three-point victory over Wagner. "Hopefully our guys can get some rest with the day off tomorrow. I think this was a tough stretch for us and I think our guys were excited to play in this building (SEFCU Arena) and get the win."

UAlbany (5-2) had three players in double-figures, with Black leading the way with 19 points, two rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Fifth-year senior guard Jacob Iati scored 14 points and extended his consecutive games with a made three, going 1-of-6 from behind the arc. Senior center Blake Metcalf tallied his second double-digit scoring game this season with 12 points and six rebounds.

Wagner (1-3) senior guard Jonathon Williams scored a game-high 26 points and seven rebounds, shooting 10-for-11 from the field and 6-of-6 from the free-throw line. Teammates Dwaun Anderson and Eric Fanning combined for 16 points and five rebounds.

With a nine-point leading at the half, UAlbany looked to extend the lead early in the second half. The Great Danes started off with a 10-4 run through the first 4:28 of the second half for the game's largest lead of 15, 46-31. Redshirt-freshman Peter Hooley capped the run with his only three-pointer of the game from the far corner.
UAlbany kept the lead in double digits until the final three minutes of the game, as Wagner looked for a final push for its second win of the season.

A layup and a perfect 4-of-4 from the free throw line by the Seahawk's Williams was able to bring the game down to four, 65-61, with 48 seconds remaining. A turnover by Sam Rowley in the UAlbany offensive zone gave way to a William's layup to put Wagner within two, 65-63, with 34 seconds remaining.

However, Iati handled the ball past half court and was fouled to hit one free-throw to ice the game and give UAlbany its fifth win of the season.

The Great Danes came right out of the gate with an 9-2 run to start the game with 15:42 remaining in the first. Black opened with the game's first three then was followed with a bang-bang play from John Puk to Metcalf for the layup.

The Seahawks responded with 16-8 run to grab their first lead of the game, 18-17, with 7:09 remaining. Williams paced Wagner with eight of his game-high 24 during the stretch.

Both teams traded buckets for the next three minutes until UAlbany sparked a 12-3 run to end the half with a nine-point lead, 36-27. Hooley helped the run with five points and two assists.

Megan Craig Earns First America East Player of the Week Honor of Her Career

ALBANY, N.Y. – UAlbany's Megan Craig earned her first career America East Women’s Basketball Player of the Week honor, after registering a career week and leading the conference in scoring, as announced by the league office on Monday.

Craig, a native of Whangerai, New Zealand led the conference in scoring with 19.5 points per game, while shooting 64.3 percent from the floor, to lead UAlbany to a 1-1 record last week. The sophomore center also averaged six rebounds per game. In a mid-week game at Michigan State, Craig scored 12 points and pulled down three rebounds in 20 minutes of action. In a home win over Dartmouth on Saturday, Craig scored a career-high 27 points in 31 minutes, and just missed out on her first career double-double with nine rebounds. She also finished with one assist and one block against the Big Green to lead the Great Danes to victory.

BU Volleyball Draws #1 Penn State

VESTAL, N.Y. – Binghamton, the 2012 America East Volleyball Champions, will face No. 1 overall seed Penn State in the first round of the 2012 NCAA Volleyball Championship, the NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Committee announced Sunday. The 64-team field was revealed during the 30-minute selection show on ESPNU. Thirty-one conferences were awarded automatic qualification and the remaining 33 slots were filed with at-large selections to complete the bracket.

The Bearcats (13-17) will challenge the five-time national champion Nittany Lions (29-2) on Friday, Nov. 30 at 7 p.m. in University Park, Pa. The winner will face the winner of the Yale and Bowling Green matchup on Saturday, Dec. 1.

“It’s not unexpected,” head coach Glenn Kiriyama said of the matchup against the top-seeded Nittany Lions. “My first thought was ... ‘not them again!’ Penn State is a very good team and one of the biggest teams in the country so they will have a huge height advantage over us. They are a complete team ... that’s why they are No. 1. We want to go in and play well, play our best brand of volleyball and represent the America East. We will look to control the ball on our side of the net.”
Binghamton is making its third trip to the NCAA Volleyball Championship and fittingly will play Penn State for the third time. The Bearcats were swept by the Nittany Lions in both 2005 and 2009. Penn State has won championships in 1999, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 and recently won its 15th Big Ten title.

The Bearcats earned the America East’s automatic bid to the NCAA Championship with a five-set victory over UMBC in the semifinals and then a sweep of No. 1 Albany in the championship match. Junior captain Grace Vickers was named the Most Outstanding Player while senior hitter Iva Partaleva and sophomore setter Amanda Dettmann joined her on the All-Tournament Team.
The last America East team to win an NCAA Championship match was Albany, who beat Cleveland State in the first round in 2007.

The winners from each of the four Regional sites (West Lafayette, Ind., Omaha Neb., Berkeley, Calif., and Austin, Texas) advance to the NCAA National Semifinals, which will be held on Thursday, Dec. 13 in the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky. The National Championship match is set for Saturday, Dec. 15.

ALL SESSION tickets for the First and Second rounds MUST be purchased at the Bryce Jordan Center Ticket Office or by calling 1-800-NITTANY beginning on Monday, Nov. 26 at 10 a.m. up until Friday, Nov. 30 at Noon. All session tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for youth and students and $8 for groups (20 or more). SINGLE SESSION tickets WILL ONLY be available at Rec Hall on Friday and Saturday and are $8 for adults, $6 for youth and students and $5 for groups.

Megan Craig Scores a Career-High 27 Points to Lead UAlbany to a 62-49 Win

ALBANY, N.Y. -- Center Megan Craig scored a career-high 27 points on 12-of-17 shooting to lead UAlbany to a 62-49 win over Dartmouth in non-conference women's basketball action on Saturday afternoon at SEFCU Arena. The Great Danes improved to 3-2 on the season, while the Big Green fell to 1-2.

 

Dartmouth started the game with an 11-2 run over the first five minutes of play, but the Great Danes kicked it into high gear, outscoring the Big Green, 21-2, over the next ten minutes. UAlbany scored 13 straight points before Dartmouth ended the rally, before the Great Danes scored the next nine points of the game.

Faziah Steen hit a jumper for the Big Green to attempt to get Dartmouth back on track, and nailed two free throws at 3:41 to cut the lead to seven, 25-18. However, Ebone Henry and Sarah Royals scored on back-to-back layups to put UAlbany back on top by 12 with under a minute to go. Abbey Schmitt connected on two free throws to cut the lead back to 10, 30-20, before halftime.

 

UAlbany came out of the locker room firing on all cylinders, building up a 40-21 lead behind eight straight points from Craig, along with a layup by Julie Forster, with 14:35 to play. Steen played the roll of rally-ender again for Dartmouth, hitting two free throws, but Craig responded immediately after at the other end of the court, to keep UAlbany ahead.

 

Dartmouth succeeded in cutting the lead to 12, 45-33, with nine minutes on the clock, as Kamala Thompson recorded a steal and a layup. UAlbany would not fold, as Lindsey Lowrie nailed a 3-pointer with 7:28 to play, but the Big Green cut the lead back to 10 on a jumper by Thompson with 4:22 on the clock. The Great Danes continued to pressure,and Erin Coughlin scored UAlbany's final five points on two free throws and a 3-pointer. Nicola Zimmer scored the lastbasket of the game to set the final 13-point deficit.

Steen scored a team-high 15 points for Dartmouth, while Thompson added 10 points for the Big Green. UAlbany held Dartmouth to 31.3-percent (15-48) shooting from the floor, forcing the Big Green into 26 turnovers.

 

Besides her career-high point total, Craig added nine rebounds, one assist, and one block, while Forster recorded eight points, seven boards, and a career-high seven steals. Henry also contributed with nine points, four assists, four steals, and two blocks in 32 minutes of action. UAlbany shot 43.6-percent (24-55) from the floor, finishing with 13 steals, despite being out-rebounded by Dartmouth, 40-35.

 

UAlbany will return to action on Wednesday, hosting NJIT in non-conference action at SEFCU Arena at 7 p.m.

SYRACUSE, GEORGETOWN MEET IN SOCCER SWEET 16

WASHINGTON – Two BIG EAST rivals square off on Sunday, Nov. 25 when Syracuse (14-6-1) visits third-seeded Georgetown (18-3-1) for a third-round NCAA Tournament match at 1 p.m. at North Kehoe Field. The Orange and Hoyas are two of 16 remaining teams with a shot at the national championship. This is uncharted territory for both sides at neither Syracuse nor Georgetown has ever advanced this deep into the postseason.

HOW THEY GOT HERE
Syracuse earned one of the NCAA Championship's 26 at-large berths and is making only its second NCAA appearance, and first since 1984. The Orange defeated Ivy League champion Cornell, 1-0, in the opening round, and dispatched 14th-seeded VCU in the second round, 3-2, in double overtime.

Georgetown is making its fourth appearance in the national tournament. The Hoyas earned an at-large invitation and the tournament's No. 3 overall seed. Following a first-round bye, Georgetown defeated Charlotte, 1-0, in the second round to advance.

ROAD WARRIORS
Of the 16 teams remaining in the NCAA Tournament, Syracuse, Fairleigh Dickinson and San Diego are the only ones to win two road games to get to the third round. The Orange is 7-2-0 in true road matches this season and 9-3-0 away from the SU Soccer Stadium overall.

CLARK KEYS COMEBACK WIN
Senior Louis Clark (Brighton, England) cored twice to lead the Orange back from a 2-0 deficit to beat 14th-seeded VCU, 3-2, in the NCAA second round on Nov. 18. Clark notched SU's first goal in the 21st minute, and tallied the golden goal in double overtime to lift the Orange to victory. Clark was rewarded with College Soccer News and TopDrawerSoccer.com Team of the Week honors for his performance.

It was Clark's first two-goal game of the season, and his second game-winning goal of 2012.

SCOUTING GEORGETOWN
The Hoyas shared the BIG EAST Blue Division regular-season championship with Connecticut and enter Sunday's contest with an 18-3-1 overall record. Georgetown has been ranked in the top 10 nationally since mid-September. They are currently sixth in the nation, and earned the highest ranking in program history (No. 4) on Oct. 30 and Nov. 5.

The duo of senior captain Steve Neumann and freshman Brandon Allen keys the Hoya attack. Allen, the BIG EAST Rookie of the year, leads the club with 30 points (14 goals, two assists). Neumann has 26 points, including a BIG EAST-best 12 assists. The only other Georgetown player in double figures is Andy Riemer with 17 points (eight goals, one assist).

Tomas Gomez and Keon Parsa have shared time in goal this season. Gomez has 59 saves, a 14-1-1 record and seven shutouts. Parsa has 31 saves, a 4-2-0 record and three clean sheets. Gomez recorded two saves last time out versus Charlotte.

THE GEORGETOWN SERIES
Despite being in the same conference, SU and Georgetown have not played since 2009, and have only met twice since 2006. SU is 5-10-1 all-time against the Hoyas, including a 2-5-1 record in Washington, D.C. GU has won the last four pairings, including a 2-0 victory in the aforementioned 2009 clash.

UP NEXT …
The winner of Sunday's third-round match advances to the NCAA quarterfinals and will face either Tulsa or San Diego.

UAlbany Women's Basketball Drops 67-35 Decision to Michigan State

EAST LANSING, MICH. -- Despite a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds from Julie Forster, UAlbany dropped a 67-35 decision to Michigan State in non-conference women's basketball action on Wednesday evening at the Breslin Center. UAlbany drops to 2-2 on the season, while Michigan State improves to 4-0.

Forster scored the game's first points, and came up with a block at the opposite end, but Michigan State followed with an 8-0 run, getting back-to-back baskets by Klarissa Bell to give the Spartans a 10-4 advantage, with 15:36 to play in the first half. Michigan State continued to roll, controlling the play in the paint to build up a 14-4 advantage before Lindsey Lowrie hit a 3-pointer to attempt to spur a Great Dane rally.

The Spartans held UAlbany to just 3-of-12 shooting from the field, and built up a 31-9 advantage with nine minutes to playon a 17-2 run, behind 11 points from Bell. However, Lowrie hits her second three of night, as the Great Danes slowly started chipping away at the MSU lead, getting to within 42-24. Center Megan Craig dropped in eight points, but the Spartans held onto a 46-26 advantage at the end of the half, behind six 3-pointers.

Michigan State started off the second half much like the first, outscoring the Great Danes 10-6 over the first nine minutes. Jasmine Hines hit consecutive buckets to put the Spartans up, 60-32, with nine minutes to play, before MSU went on to score five more unanswered points to build up a 33-point advantage. Forster hit the final basket of the game with 4:04 on the clock, while Becca Mills went 1-of-2 from the free throw line with 1:30 to play to set the final score.

Bell led all players with 19 points, while Hines added 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the floor. Thomas and Annalise Pickrel chipped in with 11 points apiece for the Spartans, who shot 48.1-percent (26-54) from the floor, including going 8-of-18 from beyond the 3-point line.
Craig led UAlbany with 12 points, while Lowrie chipped in with six points on her two 3-pointers. Forster also recorded three blocks, three steals, and two assists to lead the Great Danes.
UAlbany will return to action after the Thanksgiving holiday, returning home to host Dartmouth at SEFCU Arena on Saturday at 2 p.m.

UAlbany Football Earns Nine All-NEC Honors

SOMERSET, N.J. – After winning a share of the Northeast Conference title last weekend and boasting the best record the program has ever seen at the Division I FCS level, the University at Albany football team had nine players awarded all-conference honors, announced by the league office Wednesday evening. The Great Danes had six named to the first team -- Drew Smith, Kadeem Williams, Ocieka Bakou, Jon Morgan, Leon Saddler, and Paul Layton – and three to the second team in Ryan Kirchner, Anthony Bazzoffi, and Dean Mercuris.

Senior tailback Drew Smith capped a historic career with three rushing touchdowns in Week 12, making him the all-time leader for touchdowns scored (45) and co-leader for all-time rushing touchdowns (40). In four active seasons, Smith accrued 3,196 career rushing yards and 4,721 all-purpose yards, both good for second all-time. This season, the Schenectady, N.Y. native eclipsed the 1,000 rushing yards mark for the second time in his career and the 10th time in program history, rushing for 1,001 yards and 18 touchdowns, while totaling 1,280 all-purpose yards. Smith also led the NEC and ranked fourth at the FCS level for scoring (11.40). The honor marks his second all-conference selection in as many years.

Likewise, senior Ryan Kirchner earned second-team honors for the second year in a row. Kirchner is UAlbany’s all-time receptions leader hauling in 172 career catches. This season, Kirchner led the squad with 50 receptions for 578 yards, while scoring three touchdowns. He was also the Great Danes’ top punt returner, totaling 100 yards on special teams.

Offensive linemen junior Kadeem Williams earned his second consecutive first-team all-NEC award, while senior Anthony Bazzoffi was named to the second team. The duo helped UAlbany to the league’s top-ranked scoring offense (34.1), and limited opponent sacks to just 1.45 per game. Bazzoffi capped his career with his first career touchdown in the season finale, rushing across the goal line from the one-yard line.

Earning first-team honors for the second straight season, senior inside linebacker Jon Morgan led UAlbany with 72 tackles, three interceptions, and two blocked kicks this fall. The Copiague, N.Y. native finished his career ranked eighth all-time at UAlbany with 265 career tackles.

Senior defensive tackle Ocieka Bakou totaled 28 tackles this fall, while also making a number of big turnover plays, putting himself on the conference’s first team. Bakou forced and recovered two fumbles, blocked two punts (both against Colgate), and returned a fumbled for a touchdown in the Great Danes’ title win over Central Connecticut State. In his career, Bakou accrued 95 tackles and 7.5 sacks. Fellow defensive lineman senior Dean Mercuris also earned conference honors. Mercuris ranked fourth on the squad with 49 tackles this season, as well as two sacks, an interception, six pass breakups, and one fumble recovery.

Earning his second all-NEC honor in his career, senior cornerback Leon Saddler tallied 36 tackles, a team-high 10 pass breakups, and a fumble recovery this fall. Saddler totaled 125 tackles in his career with the Great Danes, as well as two interceptions.

Junior Paul Layton averaged 40.4 yards per punt this fall, including a program record 82-yarder against Wagner. Through three seasons, Layton currently owns a program-best average of 41.0 yards per punt in his career (159 punts, 6,519 yards).

In the 14 seasons UAlbany competed in the Northeast Conference, the Great Danes earned 137 first or second team all-conference honors. An end to an era, UAlbany will compete in the Colonial Athletic Association next year.

UAlbany’s nine honorees this fall marked the most all-NEC selections of any team, with Wagner and Duquesne each claiming eight. The recipients of all honors were determined by a vote of the conference’s nine head coaches.

Jessica Longstreth Named NFHCA Division I Second Team All-American

ALBANY, N.Y. -- UAlbany senior Jessica Longstreth was named to the National Field Hockey Coaches Association Division I All-America Second Team, as announced by the organization.

Longstreth, a native of Richboro, Pa,) led the conference in assists this season with 17 and was fifth in the country in assists per game (.81). A graduate student, Longstreth was named America East Player of the Week in back to back weeks this season, as she helped Albany capture its third title in five years. The midfielder was a unanimous First-Team All-Conference selection