SIX STUDENT-ATHLETES EARN WEEKLY CONFERENCE HONORS

Dec. 9: In a winning weekend for St. Lawrence University athletics, six student-athletes earned Liberty League weekly accolades on Monday in recognition of their outstanding performances in the athletic arena throughout the last week.

The Saints’ basketball teams were undefeated on the court last week, as the men’s squad defeated region rival Plattsburgh State on Tuesday by an 82-71 margin.  Senior tri-captain Tom Wopperer (Manlius, NY/Fayetteville-Manlius) was named Liberty League ‘Guard of the Week’ after tallying his 1,000th point early on against the Cardinals and went on to have one of the best games of his career, scoring 36 points, which included shooting 9-for-13 from three point range. The senior was 12-for-18 from the floor and guided the Saints to the victory over Plattsburgh State.  Wopperer is the 19th player in St. Lawrence history to achieve the milestone.

On the women’s side of the court, the Saints enjoyed a 3-0 week, which included a win against Plattsburgh State, as well as Maine Maritime and Norwich at the Ed Hockebury Classic, where the Scarlet and Brown earned their second consecutive tournament crown.  Senior forward Katie Palmer (Bourne, MA/Falmouth Academy) was named the Tournament’s MVP on Saturday after scoring 40 points between the two games. On Friday against Maine Maritime, the senior tallied 27 points in 25 minutes, shooting 9-for-13 from the floor, including 5-for-7 from three point range, while also grabbing eight rebounds and three steals. On Saturday against Norwich, the Bourne, MA native posted 13 points and eight boards, five steals and four assists to help the Saints to a 74-68 win over the Cadets.  Her efforts earned her Liberty League “Forward of the Week” honors.

Rookie Katherine Edgerton (Shelburne, VT/Champlain Valley Union) was named the conference’s “Co-Rookie of the Week” after having an impressive showing last week, as the guard tallied 31 points in three games. In the championship game of the Classic, Edgerton posted a team high 16 points and collected six rebounds to pace the Scarlet and Brown to the tournament title.

In the pool, the Liberty League Championships took place, with the Saints’ men’s team coming in fourth and the women coming in fifth overall.  In the diving well, senior Jason Johnson (Newark, NY/Newark) won the one-meter board with a score of 429.65, earning his first ever automatic NCAA cut.  His third place finish on the three-meter (396.60) helped him earn the conference’s ‘Co-Diver of the Year’ honor, as well as ‘Co-Diver of the Week’ recognition.

The men’s squash team enjoyed success at the Hamilton Round Robin.  Junior Nick Pearson (Philadelphia, PA/Chestnut Hill Academy) was named Liberty League Performer of the Week after he helped the Saints to a 3-1 team record at the event and was perfect in the four spot for the Saints with 3-0 wins over Stanford and Hamilton and a 3-1 win against Franklin and Marshall. He is now 6-1 on the season.

Teammate and first-year athlete Thomas Kraft (Seattle, WA/Seattle Academy) also earned weekly conference accolades, as he went unbeaten in the Hamilton Round Robin.  He went 3-0 at seven and won 3-0 allowing just one point at five against Colgate. All three of his wins at seven were in straight games.  He was named Rookie of the Week for his efforts.

As the semester winds down and students prepare for finals, Saints’ athletics slows down as well, with the last competition of 2008 slated for this upcoming weekend.  On Tuesday night, the Saints’ men’s basketball team hopes to reverse last year’s loss to neighboring Potsdam State as they travel down the road to the Bears’ den to play at 7:00pm.  The team, along with the women’s basketball team, will host Ithaca College on Saturday afternoon in back-to-back contests.  The #4 women’s ice hockey team will travel to #8 Mercyhurst for a two-game series, while the men’s squad will host the University of Vermont on Saturday evening.  The men’s and women’s indoor track and field teams also debut for the season as they get set to host the Holiday Relays on Saturday.