February 4, 2008

WEEKLY SPORTS UPDATE: Hall of Fame Weekend This Saturday as Bryant Set to Induct Six New Members

Feb. 4, 2008

Bryant Sports News Update
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BASKETBALL TEAMS DROP ONE-POINT HEARTBREAKERS TO BENTLEY; LOOK TO REBOUND TUESDAY AT FRANKLIN PIERCE; HALL OF FAME WEEKEND SATURDAY
The Bryant men's and women's basketball teams dropped a pair of tough one-point games at rival Bentley College on Saturday.  The women's team saw its late-game rally come up just short in falling to the Falcons.  The men nearly pulled off the upset of the year in falling at the buzzer to No. 1 Bentley before a standing room only crowd of 3,000 plus at Bentley's Dana Center Saturday. The teams look to rebound Tuesday at Franklin Pierce. This Saturday marks the annual Hall of Fame Induction Dinner as Bryant welcomes six new members into the hall.

BULLDOG WEEKLY ROUNDUP ...

 MEN'S AND WOMEN'S SWIMMING
The Bryant men's and women's swim teams competed at the University of Bridgeport Saturday with Pace University also taking part in the tri-meet. The teams will be off this week in preparation for the New England Championships Feb. 15-17. The Bryant women placed second with 146 points while the Bryant women defeated Pace in a dual meet, 110-53.  Tom Ferigno (West Chester, PA), Ray Savner (Bethlehem, CT) and Matt Derwin (Cheshire, CT) all racked up a pair of wins.  The women were led by Jess Looney's (Goffstown, NH) wins in the 200 backstroke (2:30.66) and the 1000 freestyle in a time of 9:52.24.

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL (14-7, 9-7 NE-10)
The Bryant women's basketball team split a pair of games over the week. On Wednesday, the Bulldogs got past Saint Anselm 77-56 thanks to Kelsey O'Keefe's (Warren, MA) game-high 24 points. Against Bentley on Saturday, the Bulldogs scored 14 points in a furious comeback against their conference rivals only to come up a point short, 59-58.  Three 3-pointers by freshman Lindsey Hudspeth (Mount Laurel, NJ) helped key the late charge.  Senior Lynne-Ann Kokoski (Hatfield, MA) had 14 points.  Bryant will travel to Franklin Pierce on Tuesday.  The Ravens are currently tied for second in the conference at 12-4 (17-4 overall).  Bryant is currently sixth in the league at 9-7 (14-7).  Franklin Pierce defeated the Bulldogs, 65-54 at the Chace Center back on Nov. 25.

MEN'S BASKETBALL (12-9, 8-8 NE-10)
The Bryant men's basketball team had a wild week. The Bulldogs entered Wednesday's home game with Saint Anselm having just found out they were ranked No. 6 in the NCAA Northeast Region. Riding the news, sophomore guard Cecil Gresham (Bloomfield, CT) torched the Hawks for a career-high 36 points.  Gresham made 8 three's in the game and shot a blistering 76 percent from the floor (13-for-17) in the game.  He would follow with 14 points in a one-point loss at Bentley Saturday.  The Bulldogs nearly upset the top-ranked Falcons as Gresham hit a big three-pointer with 7 seconds left to give Bryant a 68-67 lead.  But Bentley's Yusaf Abdul-Ali, who beat Bryant exactly a year ago with a game-winner with a second left, did the same thing again, going coast-to-coast with the game winner with a second left.  Sophomore guard Chris Birrell (Scituate, RI) averaged 18 ppg and 6.5 assists for the week.  He had 19 points and seven assists in a win over Saint Anselm on Wednesday. He followed with 17 points and 6 assists against Bentley. Birrell made seven three's on the week including five against Bentley.  The Bulldogs travel to Franklin Pierce Tuesday before returning home to host AIC Saturday (3:30 p.m.).

INDOOR TRACK
The Bryant indoor track & field teams took part in the University of Rhode Island two-day Mega Meet over the weekend at URI's Mackal Field House.  The women finished seventh out of seven teams competing with 12 points.  Host URI won the meet with 249.5 points followed by UNH in second with 175 and third-place UMass at 131.5.  Quinnipiac (48), Central Connecticut (19) and Rhode Island College (15) rounded out the scoring placing fourth, fifth and sixth respectively.  Stephanie Montagano (Wakefield, MA) picked up four points with a fifth-place finish in the 800 meters.  Montagano finished in a time of 2:27.66. Amber Torrey (Plainfield, NH) finished seventh in the shot put with a mark of 36 feet, 7.75 inches and was  seventh in the weight throw (46-11.5).  The men finished in a tie for fourth with Quinnipiac with 30 total team points. URI was first with 271.5 points followed by UNH (144.5) and UMass (117).  RIC and AIC were sixth and seventh respectively.  Bryant was led by Alex Engel's (Spencer, MA) sixth-place finish in the 200 meters in 22.94 seconds.  Freshman Thomas O'Connor (Westwood, MA) took second (50.58).  Bryant will travel to the Valentine Day Invitational hosted by Boston University next Friday and Saturday.

BULLDOG NOTES ...

PRESSLER FAMILY TO BE HONORED BY WORDS UNLIMITED
Words Unlimited, the statewide organization of sports writers, sportscasters and sports publicists, will hold its 62nd annual Sports Awards Banquet on Sunday, Feb. 17, at The Radisson on Post Road in Warwick.   The reception will begin at 5:30 p.m. and dinner will be served at 6:30 p.m.   Tickets are priced at $35 each and may be obtained by contacting Johnson & Wales University director of athletics John Parente at (401) 598-1604, or any Words Unlimited member.  Among the various honors and awards handed out during the evening will be the 2007 Story of the Year which will go to Bryant men's lacrosse coach Mike Pressler and family.    Forced to resign amid false accusations of rape against his men's lacrosse team at Duke, Pressler was named head coach at Bryant University in August of 2006. Pressler and his family uprooted to Rhode Island to start anew at Bryant. He continued to stay involved with the support of the three Duke players throughout the winter months leading up to all charges being dropped. He led the Bulldogs to their first conference regular season title and No. 1 regional ranking in 2007.

HALL OF FAME CLASS ANNOUNCED; SIX TO BE ENSHRINED FEB. 9
The Bryant University Department of Athletics is pleased to announce the Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2008.  This year's class features five former student-athletes and one contributor who will be inducted during the annual Hall of Fame and Induction Dinner on Saturday, February 9, 2008 in the Bello Center's Stepan Grand Hall.  The six new members of the hall of fame, as chosen by a 10-person committee, are: Bishop Feehan and Medway, MA native Jeff Renga '03 (Baseball); Ron Renaud '81 (Contributor); Heather Lopes '96 (women's basketball); Marcie Monaco '99 (volleyball); Philip Goss '81 (cross country); and Ray Lyons '97 (men's golf).  This year's class will bring the total number of members of the Bryant University Athletics Hall of Fame to 78.  For more information, please contact Jason Sullivan at jsulliva@bryant.edu or signup online at http://www.bryantbulldogs.com/

LORENZO PERRY DRAFTED BY NEW ALL-AMERICAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE
2006 All-American Lorenzo Perry (Providence, RI) has been drafted in the 47th round by the Arkansas franchise of the New All American Football League. Perry left Bryant as the program's greatest player. He is the school's all-time leader in rushing touchdowns with 36 and racked up 3,259 rushing yards in his two years at Bryant after transferring from UMass-Amherst. Perry led the Bulldogs to a share of their first NE-10 Conference championship and the program's first NCAA playoff game in 2006. His senior year he rushed for 1,924 yards and 20 touchdowns while garnering All-America recognition.

The All American Football League® is a for-profit, professional football league. Teams will initially operate as divisions of League whose football operations will be run by a quasi-independent board and General Manager. Some of the League's teams will be hosted by universities with Division IA football programs and other teams will play in independent venues. Games will be scheduled in the spring and early summer.  League teams will employ only those players who have both completed their college football eligibility and earned a four-year degree. This policy is expected to have a very positive impact on universities' NCAA Graduation Success Rate and their Academic Progress Rate. To the extent practical, graduates of host universities will play for the team hosted by their alma mater.

* BRYANT MEN'S BASKETBALL GAME TO AIR ON COX-3
For the second year in a row, Bryant men's basketball will capture a state-wide television audience.  Cox Sports Channel 3 of Rhode Island  will broadcast the Bulldogs' Northeast-10 Conference showdown with Southern Connecticut State University on Saturday, February 16 at the Chace Athletic Center as part of "Cox On Campus."  The game will be taped and aired on Cox Channel 3 on Sunday, February 17 at 7 p.m.

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