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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