SAINTS HANDLE HOBART IN LAST HOME GAME

 

Feb. 18: The St. Lawrence Men’s Basketball team beat Hobart, 72-69, Saturday afternoon in their final home game of the year. With the win, the Saints move to 11-3 and second place in the Liberty League, and 13-11. Hobart is now 12-12 overall, 8-6 in the Liberty League.

 

The Saints took control early in the first half, on a three point play from Tyler Shaver, and would go up by as many as 8 before the Statesmen began to chip away at the Saint lead. The visiting squad would eventually take the lead with 7:30 to play in the first half and would stay on top through the break. Going into the locker room, Hobart led 34-30.

 

The game stayed tight through the second half, and the Saints took the lead with just over six minutes to play and would fight to stay on top throughout the rest of regulation. Six of the last seven points were free throws for SLU, and they came through in the clutch, icing the game with under a minute to go.

 

The Saints had two players in double-digits, Shaver and Bela Vonnak. Shaver finished with 14 points and 3 assists, and Vonnak scored 16 and grabbed 6 boards. For the day, SLU shot 44% from the floor.

 

The Statesmen had 4 players in double digits, and shot 40% from the field. John Grazioli scored 18 for the day, and Joe Virgilio scored 16 and added 4 assists. Mike Manning recorded 11 points and 7 rebounds, and Tim Apuzzo scored 10.

 

The Saints will play Feb. 24-25th in the Liberty League tournament at Hamilton. The times are still to be determined.

 

SAINTS WIN OVERTIME NAIL BITER AGAINST HAMILTON, 66-63

 

Feb. 17: The St. Lawrence Men’s Basketball team beat Hamilton Friday night at home to clinch second place in the Liberty League thanks to a come from behind overtime victory. With the win, the Saints move to 10-3 in league, and 12-11 overall. Hamilton is now 11-2 in conference sit atop league standings, and they are 19-4 overall.

 

The first half of play went back and forth and the lead changed hands five times until eleven minutes left when SLU took off thanks to points from seven different Saints. St. Lawrence finished the first 20 minutes of play with a 37-22 advantage heading into the locker room.

 

Hamilton stayed steady and chipped away at the home team lead, taking the reigns with just under 11 minutes left in regulation thanks to a lay-up from Tim Welchons who would finish leading all scorers with 20. Hamilton controlled the rest of the second half, but the Saints were able to chip away at a 6 point deficit thanks to a three pointer from Tyler Shaver that brought SLU within 3. Richard Williams had a clutch basket with less than a minute and a half to play to keep the drive alive, and Bela Vonnak tied it up at 54-54 with a chip in with just under a minute to play. The Saints were able to hold Hamilton at bay and force overtime.

 

Tom Wopperer hit an important three pointer to keep the Saints in the game at the beginning of overtime, and SLU followed it up with tremendous free throw shooting from Shaver and Vonnak to seal the deal.

 

On the night, Vonnak ended with 19 points, and 12 rebounds. Wopperer finished with 14 points and 7 rebounds, and Shaver added 13 points. Jimmy White helped with an amazing 8 assists.

 

For Hamilton, Welchons led all scorers with 20. Tsakane Ngobeni scored 10 points and grabbed 11 boards, and Nick Jones scored 10 for the night.

 

The Saints will close out their regular season schedule tomorrow at home against Hobart at 4:00pm. Hamilton will travel to Clarkson and face off against the Golden Knights at 4:00pm as well.

 

 

VONNAK EARNS ROOKIE OF THE WEEK

 

Feb. 13: Bela Vonnak earned Liberty League Rookie of the Week honors for the sixth time this season, and for the fifth week in a row for his efforts last week against Clarkson, Union, and Skidmore.

 

Vonnak recorded two double-doubles last weekend against Union and Skidmore. Against Union, Vonnak scored 19 points and added 11 rebounds. Against Skidmore on Saturday, he scored 13 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, and added 6 assists. Earlier in the week, Vonnak scored 9 points and added 5 assists in a win at Clarkson.

 

St. Lawrence will look to close out their regular season Feb. 17-18 at home against Hamilton and Hobart.

 

SAINTS TOPPLE SKIDMORE IN LEAGUE ACTION

 

Feb. 11: St. Lawrence University started the second half on a 19-0 run, capped off by a Ben Augliano lay-up, to defeat the Skidmore College men's basketball team 66-49 Saturday afternoon at the Skidmore Sports and Recreation Center. With the win, SLU moves to 11-11 overall, and 9-3 in the Liberty League. Skidmore falls to 4-18 on the year, and 1-11 in conference.

 

Skidmore led 26-24 at the half behind the shooting of Reed Juckett who scored 10 of his game high 17 points in the first half. At the break, Tyler Shaver had 7 points and two steals, and Pat Delmonico had hit two three points for six points. He finished with 11 points on the day.

 

St. Lawrence held Skidmore scoreless for the first 7:05 of the second half, leading by as much as 18 when Shaver hit a three-point shot with 7:33 remaining for a 53-35 lead. Shaver finished with 13 points. Bela Vonnak recorded a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds.

 

The Thoroughbreds cut the lead to as low as 12 points (59-47), when Rich Toni connected on a three-point basket at 3:17. Toni finished with 13 points and seven rebounds. However, the Saint's held off Skidmore's rally for the victory.

 

St. Lawrence will look to close out their regular season Feb. 17-18 at home against Hamilton and Hobart.

 

 

SAINTS FALL TO UNION ON THE ROAD, 90-84

 

Feb. 10: The St. Lawrence Men’s Basketball team lost to Union , 90-84, Friday night on the road in Liberty League men’s basketball action at the Viniar Athletic Center Friday. The Dutchmen improve to 13-9 overall and 6-5 in the Liberty League, while the Saints fell to 10-11 and 8-3.

 

The Saints pulled within three as late as 1:23 remaining on a layup by Bela Vonnak to make it 85-82. Union then pulled away to lead down the stretch and eventually would earn the victory.

 

St. Lawrence featured two players with double-doubles on the night. Vonnak had 19 points with 11 rebounds, and Tom Wopperer had a game high 12 rebounds with 17 points. Tyler Shaver had 18 points for the Saints.

 

Union shot 48% for the game, and in each half, while St. Lawrence shot 59% in the first half and 53% for the night. Union led going into the locker room 48-41, and only committed five turnovers on the night, while the Saints had a 42-31 rebounding advantage.

 

John Cagianello scored a game high 34 points with four assists for Union . Chris Murphy added 10 points with five rebounds and four assists, and Kyle Grimm had 11 points for the Dutchmen.

 

St. Lawrence will look to get back to the top of league standings starting on Saturday, Feb. 11th at 4 p.m. at Skidmore.

 

 

SAINTS DOMINATE CLARKSON ON THE ROAD

 

Feb. 7: Tom Wopperer and Jimmy White combined to score 41 points as St. Lawrence used a second-half run to sweep the Clarkson University Men’s Basketball team this season as the Knights fell 79-60 in a Liberty League match up Tuesday night at Alumni Gymnasium.

The Golden Knights fell to 4-17 overall and 1-9 in conference play while St. Lawrence improved to 10-10 on the season and 8-2 in the Liberty League. Clarkson closes its road schedule this weekend when they visit Skidmore and Union .

Both teams shot well from the floor in the opening 20 minutes, so neither team was able to get much of a lead through the first half. The Golden Knights enjoyed an early five-point lead on two occasions in the first six minutes, but the Saints came back to tie the score midway through the half at 14-14 and then a minute later went on a 14-7 run to take a 30-23 advantage with four minutes remaining in the half.

St. Lawrence’s Jimmy White led all scorers with 10 points in the first half, shooting 3-for-5 from the floor and 4-for-4 from the free throw line. He also added two assists and two steals while Tom Wopperer scored eight points to go along with his four rebounds. Russ Vitallopaced the Knights with six points and grabbed eight rebounds. Clarkson held a solid advantage on the offensive glass, grabbing 10 rebounds on its own end en route to 11 second-chance points.

The second half saw the Knights close to within four at the 18-minute mark, but the Saints went on an 11-0 run to move their lead to double figures, an advantage they would hold for the remainder of the game. St. Lawrence shot 62.5 percent form the floor (15-for-24) in the second half, while Clarkson’s percentage dropped nine points to 33.3 percent (10-for-30) in the final 20 minutes. Clarkson continued to pound the offensive glass with 22 rebounds, but converted only a handful of their multiple chances.

Erick Vigansky finished with 13 points and seven rebounds, shooting 6-for-11 from the field, to lead Clarkson. Russ Vitallo added 9 points, 10 rebounds, and 6 assists. EJ Harrison and John Chiero each added eight points.

Wopperer scored a game-high 21 points, going 8-for-14 from the floor and 4-for-5 from beyond the 3-point arc, while adding seven rebounds for St. Lawrence. Jimmy White was 6-for-8 from the floor and 8-for-9 from the free throw line for 20 points.

WHITE AND VONNAK RECEIVE

CONFERENCE HONORS

 

Feb. 6: The St. Lawrence University men’s basketball team had two members honored by the Liberty League this week. Senior Jimmy White was selected Guard of the Week, while freshman Bela Vonnak earned his fifth Rookie of the Week award.

 

White is a graduate student from Santa Monica, CA that has been a leader both on and off the court for the Saints. He averaged 17.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 4 assists per game in a pair of Liberty League contests against Rensselaer and Vassar this weekend.

 

Vonnak has been an offensive force for St. Lawrence in his rookie campaign. Many were concerned pre-season that the Saints would lack size inside, but the Canajoharie, NY native has filled that hole nicely. This is his fifth Liberty League Rookie of the Week award, and he is showing no signs of slowing down.

 

The Saints will make the short trip to Potsdam, NY to take on archrival Clarkson University tomorrow night, Tuesday, February 7 th. Tip-off is set for 8:00pm.

 

SAINTS OWN HOME FLOOR AGAINST VASSAR, 81-70

 

Feb. 4: The St. Lawrence Men’s Basketball team beat Vassar Saturday afternoon, 81-70, to move to 7-2 in the Liberty League and 9-10 overall. With the loss, Vassar falls to 3-6 in conference, and 11-8 overall.

 

The Saints gained ownership of the lead just over a minute into play and would hold it through the half, scoring 39 points to Vassar’s 31. Pat Delmonico hit back-to-back three’s around the nine minute mark to boost the Saints, but Vassar’s Daniel Forcella countered with 2 of his own to keep it close.

 

At the half, SLU was shooting over 55% from the floor and 100% from behind the arc. Vassar was 45.8% from the field, and over 66% from behind the arc.

 

The Saints were able to maintain their lead throughout the second half, and came close to losing it with 9 minutes left to play. Kyle Magnus made a lay-up that pulled the Brewers to within 2, but a three-point play from Jimmy White helped the Saints to gain control. They would hold it through the rest of the game.

 

For the game, SLU shot almost 52% from the floor and 81.8% from behind the arc to Vassar’s 43% from the field and 60% from three-point land. For the day, SLU’s Tyler Shaver led all scorers with 27. Bela Vonnak chipped in 20 and 11 rebounds; while White finished with 18 points, 8 boards, and 6 assists.

 

For Vassar, Lawrence Avitabile ended with 19 points. William Keiffer had 14 points, and Forcella finished with 12 points and 5 assists.

 

The Saints square off against Clarkson on the road on Feb. 7 th at 8:00 pm to continue their Liberty League schedule. Vassar will compete against Hamilton on Feb. 10 th at 8:00 pm.

 

RPI FINDS WAY AROUND SAINTS, 63-59

 

Feb. 3: The St. Lawrence Men’s Basketball team lost to RPI tonight, 63-59, to fall to 8-10 overall, and 6-2 in the Liberty League. With the win, the Red Hawks move to 7-11 overall, and 5-3 in conference.

 

The first half went back and fourth, with 5 lead changes in the first 20 minutes of play. At the break, the Saints owned a 33-31 lead and had 11 points from Senior Captain Jimmy White. Freshman Richard Williams had 8 rebounds at the break to help keep the ball in the Saints’ possession. For RPI, Tom Schneider had 11 points and 5 boards; he would finish with 18 points and 10 rebounds.

 

St. Lawrence would hold the lead until 9 minutes left in the game, when a jumper from Matt Zepernic gave the Red Hawks the lead that they would hold for the remainder of the game. RPI jumped out to a 9 point game with 2:42 to play, but the Saints fought back thanks to a 3-point play from Tyler Shaver the pulled SLU within 6. White followed with a lay-up with 1:27 to play, but the Saints surrendered a free throw to regain possession. With just 17 seconds to play, Matt Blue pump faked and then hit a long three to bring it within 2. The Saints would eventually lose the free-throw game and trail by 4 when the final buzzer sounded.

 

For the Saints, White finished with 17 points and 7 rebounds. Shaver picked up 11 points, and Tom Wopperer added 10 points in the effort. For RPI, Matt Zepernick tossed in 12 points, while Joe Johnson finished with 9.

 

The Saints will look to avenge their loss Saturday against Vassar at home at 4:00 pm. RPI will travel to play Clarkson at 4:00 pm.

 

 

 

VONNAK EARNS ROOKIE HONORS FOR FOURTH TIME THIS SEASON

 

Jan. 31: Bela Vonnak earned Rookie of the Week honors for the fourth time this season for his efforts last week against Clarkson, Hobart, and Hamilton. Vonnak has been key to SLU's success this season, helping the Saints to a first place ranking in the Liberty League, and a 6-1 record at the mid-point.

 

Vonnak scored 19 points and contributed 12 rebounds on Saturday against Hamilton. He scored 15 points, had 9 rebounds, and added 5 steals on Tuesday night against Clarkson. Vonnak also put in a 14 point, 7 board performance against Hobart on Friday to help the Saints win 2 of 3 league contests last week.

 

SAINTS FALL TO HAMILTON IN FIRST LEAGUE LOSS

 

Jan. 28: Five Hamilton College players scored in double figures as the Continentals defeated visiting St. Lawrence University, 87-76, in a Liberty League game at Scott Field House on Jan. 28. The game featured the teams with the two best records in the league. Hamilton (6-1 league, 14-3 overall) has won four of its last five games. The Saints (6-1, 8-9) had its four-game win streak come to an end.

The game was tightly contested early as there were six ties in the first ten minutes. The Saints led 23-22 with 8:34 left when Hamilton scored the next seven points for a 29-23 advantage with 6:36 remaining. The Continentals stayed in front the rest of the game. Hamilton was up by as much as 20 points (75-55) with 11:50 left in the second half.

Both teams shot the ball extremely well. St. Lawrence made 53.1 percent (26-49) of their field goal attempts and the Continentals shot 52.4 percent (33-63). The difference may have been Hamilton's full court pressure, which accounted for 13 steals and 23 Saint turnovers. The Continentals attempted 14 more shots than the Saints. St. Lawrence still leads the all-time series, 43-41.

 

Bela Vonnak poured in a game-high 19 points with 12 rebounds for St. Lawrence. Leading scorer Tyler Shaver (13.8 ppg) dropped in 17 points and Tom Wopperer added 13 before fouling out.

 

Phil Valenti led the Continentals with 14 points and a game-high five steals. Staunton Peck chipped in 13 points, four assists and three steals. Giorgi Chavleishvili scored 11 of his 13 points in the first half as Hamilton built a 45-39 lead at the break. Nick Jones scored ten points and grabbed nine rebounds off the bench. Tim Welchons added ten points. Welchons leads the Continentals with 15.3 points per game.

The Saints will look to get back on track against RPI at home Friday, Feb. 3 rd at 8:00pm.

SAINTS OVERWHELM HOBART TO STAY ATOP LEAGUE STANDINGS

 

Jan. 27: The Saints had three players in double-digits Friday night as they trounced Hobart 82-54 to stay perfect in the Liberty League. Senior Jimmy White and freshman Bela Vonnak each contributed 14 points, and Tyler Shaver added 13 in the win. SLU is now 6-0 in league, and 8-8 overall. With the loss, Hobart falls to 7-9 overall, and 3-3 in conference.

 

The score went back and forth in the first half of play, and a lay-up from Mike Mastro with 5:04 left gave Hobart a two point lead, but Richard Williams quickly countered with a lay-up of his own to tie the score. Then, Pat Delmonico added 2 three pointers and Matt Blue chipped in one of his own to lift the Saints to a 41-28 half time lead.

 

In the second half, SLU blew the game open as they continued to build on their lead thanks in large part to 61% shooting from behind the arc, and better than 50% from the floor.

 

Pat Delmonico scored 9 points for the Saints, all on three-pointers, in 19 minutes of play. Matt Blue had 8 points and 2 assists in 18 minutes. Richard Williams knocked down 8 points, 7 boards, and 4 assists in 21 minutes.

 

The Saints held Hobart to 54 total points, and John Grazioli was the only Statesman to make it to double-digits with 10 points. Hobart shot just under 33% from the field, and 16.7% from behind the arc.

 

SLU will look to continue their unbeaten steak tomorrow as they travel to Hamilton to take on the Continentals at 4:00pm. Hamilton is 13-3 on the year, and 5-1 in the Liberty League.

 

 

SAINTS WIN AT HOME, STAY PERFECT IN LEAGUE

 

Jan. 24: The St. Lawrence Men’s Basketball team beat Clarkson at home, 78-54, to stay atop the Liberty League standings at 5-0. Overall, their record is 7-8. With the loss, Clarkson falls to 12-5 overall, 1-4 in league.

 

The Saints scored first on a lay-up from Bela Vonnak, and would not give the lead back all night, as they rolled to their 5 th straight league win in as many contests. Vonnak finished the game one rebounds shy of a double-double with 15 total points and 9 rebounds. The freshman also contributed 5 steals in the effort.

 

SLU rolled, going up by as many as 16 points in the first half, thanks to 45.5% shooting from three-point land. At the end of the first 20 minutes, the score was 34-20 in favor of the home team.

 

In the second half of play, St. Lawrence kept the lead in double digits thanks to double digit scoring from four total players. Tyler Shaver led his team in points with 17, Vonnak, as mentioned above, added 15, Matt Blue chipped in 12 and 4 assists, and Tom Whopperer added 10 and 8 boards.

 

For Clarkson, Russ Vitallo added 16 points in the second half to finish with a game high 19. He also added 7 rebounds to the effort. Brian Salanger was also in double digits for the Golden Knights with 10 points and 3 assists.

 

The Saints will look to continue their winning streak this weekend as they travel to face Hobart on Friday night at 8:00pm, and Hamilton on Saturday at 2:00pm.

 

VONNAK EARNS ROOKIE OF THE WEEK

 

Jan. 24: Bela Vonnak has earned Liberty League Rookie of the Week honors for his play last week against Potsdam, Vassar, and RPI. Vonnak had a game high 23 points against Rensselaer on Saturday and recorded 15 rebounds for his second double-double of the week. Against Potsdam earlier in the week, Vonnak scored 16 points and grabbed 11 boards (7 of them offensive) in 19 minutes of play. He also scored 13 points in 15 minutes on Friday against Vassar to help lead the Saints to a perfect 4-0 start in Liberty League play. This is the third time this season that Vonnak has earned this honor.

 

 

SLU COMES BACK TO DOWN RPI, 73-68

Jan. 21: St. Lawrence University shot 53.6% in the second half while holding Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) to 26.9% to overcome an eight-point halftime deficit and defeat the Red Hawks, 73-68, in a Liberty League contest on the road.  The first place Saints, who made 15-of-28 shots after the break, improve to 6-8 overall and 4-0 in the league.  RPI, which made 7-of-26 second half shots, falls to 5-10 and 3-2.

St. Lawrence erased Rensselaer's 42-34 halftime lead by scoring the first 11 points of the second half to go ahead, 45-42.  The game remained close throughout the remainder of the second half - neither team went in front by more than four points until the final five-point margin.

Freshman forward Bela Vonnak led the Saints with game-highs of 23 points and 15 rebounds, including seven offensive.  He also had an assist, a block and a steal in 29 minutes.  Classmate Tom Wopperer, a guard, added 14 points with three rebounds, an assist and a steal.

Senior forward Tom Schneider paced the homestanding Red Hawks with 20 points and nine rebounds (2 off.) both team-highs.  He also had three assists and a block in 39 minutes.  Matt Zepernick, another senior forward, added 14 points and seven rebounds (4 off.) for Rensselaer, which saw its three-game winning streak snapped.
St. Lawrence plays again on Tuesday when it hosts Clarkson University in a league contest at 8:00pm.     

 

SAINTS DOMINATE, REMAIN UNDEFEATED IN LEAGUE  

 

Jan. 20: The St. Lawrence Men’s Basketball team thwarted a late second half comeback by Vassar with clutch outside shooting and strong defense to defeat Vassar, 76-60, and remain undefeated in Liberty League action Friday night at the Athletic & Fitness Center. With the victory St. Lawrence improves to 5-8, 3-0, while Vassar drops to 7-6, 0-4.  

 

The Saints came out blazing in the first half, shooting 56 percent from the field in building a 38-28 halftime margin. St. Lawrence scored 12 of the games first 16 points to build a 12-4 lead at the 14:31 mark. With the score at 14-9, the Saints went on a 17-3 run, for a commanding 31-14 lead with 4:42 to play. A 3-pointer by Pat Delmonico – the Saints’ only trifecta of the first half – with 2:25 to play propelled St. Lawrence to its biggest margin, 38-16, before the Brewers mounted a strong push in the final two minutes. Vassar scored the final 12 points, five from freshman Brian Butterworth of the half to trail by 10 points.  

 

Vassar was able to close the St. Lawrence margin to four with 13:40 to play in the second half on a driving layup by sophomore guard Tyson Brazell. The Saints remained resilient, however, and went on a 14-8 run to build the margin back to 58-48 on a 3-pointer by junior guard Matt Blue with 7:23 to play. A 3-pointer from SLU senior guard Delmonico with 6:01 to play pushed the lead to 17 points at 65-48 and put the Brewers in another deep hole.  

 

The Brewers went without a basket for the next three minutes and the Saints capitalized to win their game in their last four tries. The Saints will continue Liberty League play Saturday afternoon at 4:00 pm when they travel to RPI.

 

 

POTSDAM HALTS SAINTS STREAK

 

Jan. 17: The St. Lawrence Men’s Basketball team lost tonight to the visiting Potsdam State Bears, 75-68 to bring their two game win streak to a halt. The Saints took the lead just 2:30 minutes into the game and led by as many as 11, but could not hold on for the win as Potsdam took control with just under 7 minutes left. The Saints are now 4-8 overall, and 2-0 in the Liberty League. With the win, the Bears improve to 7-6.

 

A lay up from Bela Vonnak tied the game just 2:22 minutes into the game, and a jumper from Jimmy White 20 seconds later boosted the Saints into the driver seat and they held on through the rest of the first half, leading by as many as 11 points at three different times.

 

The highlight of the first half came on a lay up attempt from Potsdam’s Ernst Ducena which was blocked by SLU’s Richard Williams. White grabbed the rebound and heaved it down court to Ben Augliano who took 2 dribbles and dunked it for the 2 point score.

 

The first half was all St. Lawrence and at the end of the first 20 minutes of play, the score was 34-25 SLU. Williams had 8 boards and 6 points, and he would finish the game with 11 rebounds and 9 points for the near double double.

 

For Potsdam, Damon Brown recorded 10 points and 7 boards for the first 20 minutes. He would finish with 12 points and 8 rebounds.

 

In the second half of play, the Saints were able to protect the lead, giving up points, but then regaining control. They led by 9 points 4 times, but could not close the door as two free throws from Brandon Siskavich tied the game for Potsdam. A lay up from Edane Barton 30 seconds later gave the Bears in ownership of the lead and they would not surrender it.

 

A three-pointer from Tyler Shaver with 6:23 left to play brought the Saints to within one point, but Potsdam was able to pull away and go up by as many as 7, keeping SLU at bay until the final buzzer.

 

For the night, Potsdam’s Barton led all scorers with 27. Shaver led Saint scorers with 18, and Vonnak contributed 16 points and 11 rebounds for his second double-double in a week, his other coming last week against Plattsburgh. Jimmy White added a game high 6 assists on the evening, and Sebastian Kurtz grabbed 9 rebounds in the loss.

 

The Saints will return to conference play this weekend when they travel to Vassar for a Friday night game at 8:00pm; they then face off against RPI on Saturday at 4:00pm.

 

 

VONNAK EARNS LEAGUE HONOR

 

Jan. 17: Freshman Bela Vonnak earned Liberty League Rookie of the Week Honors for his efforts last week against Plattsburgh, Skidmore, and Union. For the week, Vonnak averaged 12.0 points and 7.3 rebounds in three games to help SLU go 2-1 including a narrow loss to Plattsburgh on the road.

 

Vonnak recorded a double-double against Plattsburgh last week, scoring 16 points and grabbing 10 rebounds and shooting 8 of 11 from the floor. He then added 20 points and 12 rebounds over the weekend against Skidmore and Union to help SLU begin their league run a perfect 2-0.

 

SAINTS STUN UNION WITH BUZZER BEATER

 

Jan. 14: The St. Lawrence Men’s Basketball team upset visiting Union 61-60 at the buzzer on a jump hook from Richard Williams to win their second straight league contest. With the win, the Saints advance to 4-7 overall, and 2-0 in the Liberty League. Union falls to 9-5 overall, 2-1 in league.

 

At the beginning of the game, the Saints jumped out to a 8-2 lead thanks to 6 points from Freshman Bela Vonnak. Union clawed back into the game and took the lead with just under three minutes to play in the first half. SLU was able to keep it close and a Williams’ layup just before the half kept them behind by only 4 going into the locker room.

 

At the end of the first 20 minutes, the score was 28-24 Union, in spite of 8 points and 6 rebounds from Vonnak.

 

In the second half, the Saints kept it close and pulled within 3 points on a long three pointer from Matt Blue with 10 minutes left. They were then able to pull within one thanks to a reverse lay up from Tyler Shaver. Union’s Brian Scordato promptly hit a three to increase the Dutchman lead to 4.

 

SLU continued to fight and took the lead with 6:21 left on a three pointer from Pat Delmonico. Scordato then hit another 3 to retake the lead and Union would keep it until the final second.

 

Vonnak hit two clutch free throws with just 1:15 left to pull the Saints within 5. SLU then pressured the in bounds pass and stole it, which led to a Tom Wopperer lay up and foul. He added a free throw to pull St. Lawrence within 2 with just one minute left.

 

Union then made a free throw, but Vonnak answered back with two more of his own. Union had a one point lead, the ball, and 42 seconds on the clock. They milked the clock and missed a shot with 7.8 seconds left. The rebound was a jump ball, and the possession arrow gave it back to Union. On the in bounds pass, the ball was deflected and another jump ball was called, this time SLU won the arrow with 4.6 seconds left and the whole floor to go.

 

Wopperer took it out for the Saints and his pass was deflected out of bounds by a Union defender. The Saints were given the ball on the sidelines with 3.6 seconds remaining. Wopperer then passed it in to midcourt where Ben Augliano was waiting. Augliano riffled it in the middle of the paint to Williams whose jump hook just beat the buzzer to give the Saints the 61-60 victory at Burkman Gymnasium.

 

On the day, four Saints scored double digits. Shaver had a team high 14 points and added 3 assists. Vonnak recorded 12 points, 8 boards, and 2 blocks. Wopperer and Williams each had 10 points.

 

For Union, Scordato led with 22 points and a team high 6 rebounds. Chris Murphy had 9 points and 4 assists. Jim Rahill had 8 points and 4 steals.

 

The Saints will look to keep their streak alive this Tuesday against Potsdam as they face the Bears at 7:00pm at home.

 

SAINTS TOP SKIDMORE 81-64 TO ENTER LEAGUE WITH WIN

 

Jan. 13: The St. Lawrence Men’s Basketball team topped the visiting Skidmore Thoroughbreds tonight 81-64 to begin their Liberty League run with a win. With the win, the Saints advance to 3-7 on the year. Skidmore falls to 3-9 overall.

 

In the first 7 minutes of play, the Saints jumped out to a 12-2 lead with 6 quick points from Tom Wopperer. Pat Delmonico pushed SLU out to a 15 point lead with a three pointer with 8:50 left in the first period. At the end of the first half, score was 45-35 Saints, and two Saints were already in double digits. Wopperer had 12 points and was 5 of 7 from the field, and Pat Delmonico had 10 points and was a perfect 3 of 3 from behind the arc.

 

St. Lawrence kept Skidmore at bay in the second half, never letting their lead fall to less than 12, and earning a 25 point spread twice. By the end of the game, 11 Saints had scored. SLU shot 48% from the field on the night, Skidmore shot 43% from the field. The Saints also capitalized on 7 of 17 three pointers to help their cause. Delmonico finished with 15 points on the night. Tyler Shaver, Bela Vonnak, and Kai Cameron-Gilsey all had 8 points.

 

The Saints will look to stay undefeated in the Liberty League tomorrow against Union at home at 4:00pm.

 

 

PLATTSBURGH USES THE THREE POINT

SHOT TO DEFEAT SAINTS

Jan. 10: The St. Lawrence University men’s basketball team gave a gritty performance on Tuesday night against Plattsburgh State, but the Cardinals’ 8-14 shooting from behind the arc propelled them to a 69-64 non-conference victory over the Saints.

 

St. Lawrence (2-7) was able to grab an early three point lead on the road when Tyler Shaver made a lay-up a mere five minutes into the game, putting his team up 11-8. However, Plattsburgh would soon erase that lead, and after a basket by Anthony Williams gave the Cardinals a 19-13 lead, Mike Dietz hit a three pointer to swing the momentum further to the home team, extending the lead to 22-13 with 8:49 to play in the opening half.

 

Williams would then sting the Saints with a three pointer to put Plattsburgh up 32-19 just over four minutes later. After Sebastian Kurtz made one of two from the free throw line to cut the lead to twelve, freshman Tom Wopperer hit a three pointer of his own to bring the Saints to within nine, 32-23.

 

It was again the three pointer that hurt St. Lawrence, though, as Williams converted another long range shot with 52 seconds in the first half to put the Cardinals ahead 41-23. Although Wopperer made a lay-up before the teams went to the locker rooms, Plattsburgh seemed to have things in hand.

 

Although the Saints may lack experience this season, they by no means lack effort or pride. In the second half, they gave their coach Chris Downs everything they had and clawed their way back into a game that seemed over at the half. Freshman Richard Williams hit a jumper only 2:29 into the second frame that brought the Saints to within nine points. Plattsburgh would again turn to Anthony Williams to stop the Saints momentum, and he would do so with another crushing three point basket with 15:59 to play in the game, restoring his team’s 15 point cushion.

 

The teams exchanged baskets, neither able to put any sort of momentum together until the Saints Bela Vonnak and Richard Williams each made a lay-up to cut the lead to six, 57-51, with 9:36 to play in regulation. Plattsburgh again went to the three point shot, only this time, it was Jerrad Dumont taking a pass from Anthony Williams to hit the big bucket and restore the nine point lead.

 

The Saints kept battling inside, and Vonnak became a key weapon for St. Lawrence. He again converted a lay-up, this time with 2:31 to play in the game to bring the lead to five, and after a Cardinal free throw put the home team up six, Wopperer answered with a basket of his own to make the score 67-63.

 

After St. Lawrence’s Richard Williams was fouled by Plattsburgh’s Travis Gorham with 28 seconds to play and his team down four, the freshman made one of two free throws to bring the lead to within one possession. Freshman Ben Augliano fouled Gorham, who missed his free throw attempt and the Saints had a chance to tie for the first time since the score was 4-4. However, Tom Wopperer’s three point effort missed with 17 seconds to play in the game, and fittingly, Anthony Williams iced the game with a pair of clutch free throws, bringing the final tally to 69-64.

 

The Saints were led by freshman Tom Wopperer, Bela Vonnak, and Richard Williams. Wopperer tied for a game high in scoring, totaling 22 points on 9-16 shooting. Vonnak had a double-double, scoring 16 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Williams also had a solid game for the visiting Saints. He scored nine points, grabbed eight boards, and managed three assists. Anthony Williams finished with 22 points, including 4-5 from three point range, to lead the Cardinals to the victory.

 

The Saints have now completed a rigorous non-conference schedule, and will be ready to take on the Thoroughbreds from Skidmore College to open Liberty League play on Friday, January 13 th in the Burkman Gymnasium. Tip-off is set for 8:00pm.

 

 

SAINTS OPEN 2006 IN STYLE,

UPSET OSWEGO 91-83

Jan. 6: The year 2006 couldn’t have gotten off to a better start for the St. Lawrence University men’s basketball team. The Saints (2-6) had five players score in double digits, including 18 points each for Tom Wopperer and Tyler Shaver, and went on to upset the top team in the SUNYAC, Oswego, 91-83.

 

The game was a fast-paced affair from the start, with each team putting pressure on the ball and trying to create turnovers. Neither team was able to grab a lead larger than three until Saints guard Tyler Shaver knocked down a three pointer with 10:17 to play in the first half to give his team a five point cushion at 24-19. The home team was able to extend their lead to ten when freshman Ben Augliano converted a lay-up to push the score to 34-24.

 

The Lakers from Oswego State didn’t back down, however, and would grind their way back into the game. After Nicholas Perioli hit a three pointer to cut the lead to five, Mat Burridge made two free throws to bring the Lakers within three, 38-35, with 1:43 to play in the first half. The Saints regrouped, though, and after a quick lay-up by Tom Wopperer brought the lead back to five, Tyler Shaver’s shot with two seconds remaining in the first half came off the backboard right to an airborne Augliano, who laid the ball in as the buzzer sounded. St. Lawrence went to the locker room with a 42-35 lead.

 

That momentum carried over to the second half for the Saints, who seemingly answered every threat Oswego made. When the Lakers trimmed the lead to a mere four points at 49-45, the Saints immediately responded with a 14-5 run capped by one of Pat Delmonico’s three three pointers to make the score 63-50. The three point field goal may have been the Saints biggest weapon, as they shot 11-20 for the game, including on with 7:39 to play in the game by Tom Wopperer that gave St. Lawrence their largest lead of 15, 70-55.

 

The Lakers would make one final push, as they clawed back to within seven points when Perioli hit a jumper with 1:16 to play in regulation to make the score 85-78. The Saints clutch free throw shooting would put the game away though, as they made six of their last eight attempts in the final minute while Oswego pressured the ball. When Erik Roberson’s last second shot was rebounded by Shaver, the Saints had secured their second and biggest victory of the season.

 

The Saints can celebrate their victory thanks to their outstanding team effort, as five players scored in double digits. Wopperer and Shaver each scored 18, while Augliano netted 12 points, and guards Matt Blue and Pat Delmonico each had 11 points. Graduate student Jimmy White also played well, totaling nine points and five assists, and freshman Richard Williams had six points and nine boards in 29 minutes of play.

 

The Lakers, who dropped their second game in a row, were led by an outstanding all-around effort from Mat Burridge. Burridge scored 28 points and grabbed seven boards, as the Saints had trouble stopping him on the inside. His efforts were met by teammates Ahmad Mims and Nicholas Perioli, who scored 13 and 18 points each, respectively.

 

The Saints will look to take their momentum and carry it into Plattsburgh, NY where they will meet the Cardinals on Tuesday, January 10 th. Tip off is set for 8:00pm.

 

 

WOPPERER SELECTED ROOKIE

OF THE WEEK BY LIBERTY LEAGUE

Dec. 13: Freshman Tom Wopperer, who has gotten his career off to a great start at guard for the Saints, was awarded the Liberty League Rookie of the Week Award for his excellent effort versus Ithaca and Alfred.

 

Wopperer has been a force on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor thus far for St. Lawrence. He is averaging over 11 points per game, and also leads the team in steals.

 

This past weekend, the freshman guard went 8-12 from the field on the road against the Bombers, scoring 20 points. He also added 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and a steal. Versus Alfred, Wopperer tallied another 15 points on 5-11 shooting, grabbed 3 boards and had 2 steals.

 

Wopperer and the Saints have finished the 2005 portion of their season, and will next take the floor in 2006 when the SUNY Oswego Lakers visit Canton, NY on Friday, January 6th. Tip off is set for 7:00pm.

 

 

 

SAXONS USE LATE RUN

TO TOP SAINTS, 84-70

Dec. 10: The St. Lawrence University men’s basketball team held four point lead almost midway through the second half, but were unable to hold on as Alfred used a 10-0 run late in the game to defeat the Saints 84-80 at the McLane Center in Alfred, NY on Saturday afternoon.

 

The Saxons held an early five point lead at 9-4 almost seven minutes into the opening half when Todd Dersham knocked down a three pointed to give the home team the advantage. The Saints (1-6) were pesky, though, and after Tyler Wright made a lay-up to cut the Alfred lead to two, guard Matt Blue connected with a three pointer of his own to give the Saints a 19-18 lead with 7:51 to play in the first half.

 

Alfred showed their resiliency, rattling off a run of their own. The Saxons used two three pointers by Ryan Hallett to take an eight point lead and extended it to 10 with 1:47 to play in the opening frame when Dersham made a jump shot to make the score 37-27. The Saints kept the lead within striking distance, though, after jump shots from Ben Augliano and Blue brought the advantage down to six heading into halftime, 37-31.

 

The beginning of the second half seemed to project a down-to-the-wire finish, as the teams battled up and down the floor. Freshman Tom Wopperer netted three of his team high 15 points for the Saints with 18:28 to play in the game to give the visitors a 39-38 lead. Fellow freshman Bela Vonnak converted a lay-up just over four minutes later to give St. Lawrence their biggest lead at 48-44.

 

The home team would respond in a big way. The Saxons went on a quick 10-0 run in just over a minute and a half, capped by a three point basket from Hallett to give Alfred a six point lead at 54-48. The Saints were unable to make big shots at this critical point in the game, as Alfred extended their lead to 12 on a lay-up by Dersham with just under nine minutes to play in the game.

 

It was Alfred’s shooting in the second half that would due in the Saints, as the Saxons shot 52% from the floor in the later frame while St. Lawrence only managed 38%. Alfred used their hot hand late in the second half to preserve the win, jump shooting their way to a twenty point cushion with only two minutes to play. Although the Saints would claw their way back to within 14, it was too little too late and Alfred won the contest.

 

St. Lawrence was led by freshman Tom Wopperer, who has consistently put up solid numbers so far this season. The guard had 15 points, 3 rebounds, and two steals. Tyler Shaver and Matt Blue also held up their end of the scoring for the Saints, totaling 12 and 11 points, respectively.

 

The game on Saturday is the last for the Saints in 2005, and they will next take the court on Friday, January 6th, 2006 at home versus the Lakers of Oswego. Tip-off is set for 7:00pm.

SAINTS TOPPED BY MIDDLEBURY

IN FINAL MINUTE

Nov. 27: The St. Lawrence University men’s basketball team had a six point lead at the half, but was unable to keep their host, Middlebury College, quiet in the second half. The Panthers fought back, and scored with 35 seconds remaining to take a 68-66 lead, which they would not relinquish.

 

St. Lawrence and Middlebury exchanged baskets in the early going, with neither team able to establish an outright lead. The Saints (1-3) took a three point lead (15-12) after Shane Connolly connected from beyond the arc with 13:46 to go in the first half. That seemed to spark the Saints, who went on to extend their lead to eight points ten minutes later when freshman Tom Wopperer knocked down a pair of free throws. With the Saints up 31-27, sophomore Tyler Shaver took a pass from freshman Bela Vonnak and laid the ball in to give his team a 33-27 half time lead.

 

Although the Saints kept their momentum steady in the early going, they were unable to put Middlebury away for good. After a Tyler Wright lay-up with 9:10 to play in the game gave the Saints a seven point cushion, Tom Wopperer took a pass from Vonnak off a missed free throw and made a three pointer to give the Saints their largest lead at 57-47.

 

Middlebury would regroup, though, and bounced back with quality shot selection and good defense. After Andrew Harris knocked down a jumper, Ben Rudin converted two free throws to bring Middlebury back to within two. After Mike Walsh tied the game for the Panthers at 61-61 with 4:19 to play, Evan Thompson passed the ball to Sam Daly who gave Middlebury their first lead in the game with a mere 3:41 to play.

 

After the Panthers took the lead to five points at 66-61, Tyler Shaver made a big three pointer to pull the Saints to within two. Vonnak would tie the game with 1:08 to go, making a lay-up off a pass from Tyler Wright. However, the Panthers went inside to Mike Walsh who made a critical lay up with 36 seconds to play in regulation. Ben Rudin had a chance to put the game out of reach for Middlebury, but he missed both free throws with nine seconds remaining. The Saints got the ball to Shaver, who’s three point shot just came up short as the buzzer sounded.

 

The Saints were led by Shaver, who shot 7-12 from the field to accumulate 17 points, three rebounds, and an assist. Freshman Tom Wopperer chipped in 12 points to go along with five boards, and grad student Jimmy White had 10 points and 7 rebounds. St. Lawrence returns to action at home to take on the Rochester Yellowjackets on Wednesday, November 30 th. Tip off is set for 7:00pm.

 

 

 

SAINTS DROP HOME OPENER

TO SUNY BROCKPORT

Nov. 22: In a game full of energy and momentum changes, the SUNY Brockport Golden Eagles defeated the St. Lawrence men’s basketball team 77-74 in an emotional contest that went right down to the buzzer.

 

The Saints (1-2), who opened the season last weekend with a 1-1 record at the Penn State-Behrend Tip Off Tournament, got off to a nice start in their home opener versus Brockport. The Saints, who trailed 7-4 in the early going, went on a 19-4 run capped by a three point play by sophomore Tyler Wright with 8:55 remaining in the first half, giving them a 23-11 lead.

 

However, Brockport would close the gap as the first half winded down. After Jerry Cheves made a steal in the open court and took it the distance for an open lay up, the Golden Eagles kept the pressure on the Saints and shrank the eleven point lead to four at the half, 35-31.

 

The second half started exactly as planned for the Saints, who were able to keep Brockport on their heels. Sophomore Tyler Shaver knocked down a clutch three pointer with just under four minutes gone in the half, quickly followed by a Jimmy White lay up to give the Saints a five point lead. Their lead would stretch to eight when Tom Wopperer fed fellow first year student Bela Vonnak under the basket for an easy bucket with 9:53 left in regulation.

 

After a 30 second timeout, however, Brockport had regrouped and started to pull their way back into the game. Jerry Cheves hit a three point basket with 8:09 off a Saint turnover to bring the Golden Eagles within two at 57-55. Brockport, who hadn’t held the lead the entire second half, finally grabbed the lead with 5:34 to play when Dan Rubertone hit two free throws to put the Golden Eagles up 61-60.

 

The Saints responded though, much in part because of the play of their young big men. Ben Augliano was a defensive spark for the Saints, totaling four blocks on the evening and made a lay up with 3:27 to play to tie the score at 66-66 after the Saints had fallen behind by four. However, Brockport was tough down the stretch, grabbing a four point lead at 72-68 when Ben Bellucci converted for a two point basket with under two minutes to play.

 

The Saints, trailing 74-70, got the ball into their most experience player’s hands when Jimmy White, a graduate student, made a beautiful pass to lead Augliano who finished the play with a backboard-rattling dunk that gave the Saints life with 46 seconds to play. After a free throw by Amparo put the Golden Eagles up 75-72, Bela Vonnak took another great pass from White, making a lay up to pull the Saints to within one.

 

After calling their final timeout, the Saints were forced to foul Ben Bellucci, and the senior responded by making two clutch free throws with only eight seconds left on the clock. Down by three, point guard Shane Connolly was able to break a trap at the three point line and get the ball to Shaver who had an open look from the corner. The sophomore’s shot hit off the front of the rim, and the Brockport team emptied onto the floor celebrating their opening win of the young season.

 

The Saints were led by their young core group, who’ve gotten off to a bright start in the 2005-2006 season. Sophomores Tyler Shaver and Tyler Wright finished with 19 and 12 points, respectively. First years Ben Augliano (12 points/5 rebounds/4 blocks) and Bela Vonnak (13 points/9 rebounds/1 block) made their presence felt on the inside.

 

The Saints will get a chance to even their record on Sunday, November 27 th when they travel to Middlebury College. Tip-off is set for 2:00pm.

Saint Fast Facts