The Friday Fives: 3/1/13

Final weekend of conference basketball...tournament right around the corner...spring sports in full swing...what else could you ask for? Start the weekend right with the Friday Fives!

Top Plays 




Marquee Matchups

WBB: Vermont at Hartford, Sat 2 p.m.

MBB: Albany at Stony Brook, Sun 2 p.m.

MBB: Hartford at Vermont, Sun 2 p.m.

SOFT: Binghamton at No. 3 Arizona St., Fri 6:30 p.m

MLAX: No. 20 Albany vs. Yale, Sat 12 p.m.

The Last Time (Conference Championship Edition)...

MBB: An 8 seed beat a 1 seed...Stony Brook 62, Boston U. 58 (2004)

WBB: An 8 seed beat a 1 seed...Boston U. 63, Maine 51 (2005)

MBB: A player scored 40 points...Jose Juan Barea (Northeastern), 41 points vs Stony Brook -- 2005

WBB: A player scored 40 points....Katie Meinhardt (Boston U.), 43 points vs Stony Brook -- 2005

MBB: A team scored 115 points...(7) Hartford 117, (10) New Hampshire 88 -- 2000

Spring Leaders (Off to a Hot Start)

BASE: Adam Mund (Alb), .500 batting average (10 for 20)

SOFT: Demi Laney (Bing), 17 strikeouts in 15.1 innings pitched

MLAX: Lyle Thompson (Alb), 17 points in two games played (12 g, 5 ast.)

WLAX: Claire Petersen (SBU), 19 points in three games played (10 g, 9 ast.)

Linked Up

A new episode of Catamount Weekly hit the presses.

Stony Brook also put out a new episode of the Get Your Red on Minute with some lacrosse action.

UMBC alum Zach Clark is one step closer to the Major Leagues, writes the Baltimore Sun.

Get ready for tomorrow's UMBC at Binghamton women's game on ESPN3 with our promo.

Congratulations to Rally Catamount, who won the #Chance2Dance mascot contest!

Conference Wrap: 2/28/13

Megan Craig and Albany clinched the No. 1 seed.

The playoff picture is beginning to come together in the final week of the season, particularly on the women's side. Last night Albany clinched its first-ever outright regular-season title and is gearing up for its title defense next week. Hartford also locked up the No. 2 seed and another huge game went down in Burlington last night. In other news, the Maine versus Boston U. game was officially cancelled and will not be made up this season. Our thoughts continue to be with the team and the school after the accident. Let's go inside the action last night as we look forward to four men's game tonight.

Women's Basketball

Albany 55, at New Hampshire 46: Box/Recap

• Top Performer
• Megan Craig (Alb): 20 points (9-14 FG; 2-4 FT), 5 rebounds, 1 block, 1 assist, 1 steal
• Big Stat
• While the Great Danes may have come out of the gates a bit slowly, they certainly turned it on in the final 20 minutes. After shooting just seven of 24 from the field in the first half, Albany shot over 50 percent the rest of the way. It also got more aggressive and that led to more free throw attempts.
• Supporting Cast
• Sheeresha Richards helped pace Albany with a near double-double of 10 points and nine boards. For New Hampshire, Morgan Frame led the way with 16 points and 8 rebounds, while Cari Reed netted 11.
• Local Media
• Albany Times Union

Hartford 69, at UMBC 62: Box/Recap

• Top Performer
• Nikkia Smith (Hart): 12 points (5-9 FG; 2-2 FT), 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, 1 steal
• Big Stat
• The Hawks depth helped win this game, as the trio of Daphne Elliot, Shanise Bultron and Ruthanne Doherty combined for 30 points off the bench. While UMBC put up a great fight, it wasn't able to get any scoring from outside of its starting five.
• Supporting Cast
• The Hartford trio we just talked about was led by Bultron's 12 points. UMBC put four of its five starters in double figures, led by 17 from Brittany Crowell and 16 from Raven Harris.

at Vermont 61, Binghamton 43: Box/Recap/Highlights

• Top Performer
• Lauren Buschmann (UVM): 19 points (7-10 FG; 5-8 FT), 12 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 steals
• Big Stat
• Vermont's defense stymied the Bearcats in the first half, holding them to just 15 points on four of 21 shooting from the field. The Catamounts paired that with a hot start, shooting nearly 50 percent and scoring 36 points. Don't count out the extra motivation that Buschmann had on senior night playing in front of her home fans.
• Supporting Cast
• Lauren Wheeler and Niki Taylor also had big games for the Cats, racking up 15 and 12 points, respectively. To lead Binghamton, Jasbriell Swain had 13 points and missed a double-double by just one rebound.
• Local Media
• Burlington Free Press
• Press and Sun

Linked Up

Stony Brook made an appearance in the ESPN men's basketball mid-major poll for the first time this season.

Coach Jen Rizzotti talks about Hartford's 2013 senior class.

More from Hartford, men's coach John Gallagher talks about his team's "Texas Connection".

A few Stony Brook alums made some noise on the diamond yesterday, as Travis Jankowski was 1 for 2 against the Rockies and Tom Koehler threw two scoreless innings against the Nationals.

WBNG News sat down with Binghamton men's coach Tommy Dempsey for a one-on-one chat.

History Lesson: Women's Basketball Championship

Yesterday we took a look at some men's basketball tournament history, relieving 30-plus year of March goodness. Today, it's time to jump over to the women's tournament which has plenty of history of its own. Four America East squads all time have won games in the NCAA Tournament and three times the conference has had two teams make the field. This obviously speaks to the depth and competitiveness the women bring to the table every single year.

Hartford leads the way with two NCAA wins all-time. The first came in 2006 as an 11 seed over No. 6 Temple and the next one came just two years later when the Hawks downed No. 7 Syracuse as a 10 seed. Just two years after that, Vermont also earned a win as a 10 seed, getting past No. 7 Wisconsin. For the conference to boast three upset wins like that in six years is pretty incredible. Maine started off this great tradition of success back in 1999. The Black Bears, also a 10 seed, beat No. 7 Stanford for the conference's first NCAA win.

Tournament Fun Facts...

Cindy Blodgett

• The No. 1 seed has reached 22 conference finals, winning in 16 of those trips.
• The No. 2 and 3 seeds are tied for the second most titles, both with four each.
• Hartford coach Jen Rizzotti is the all-time championship wins leader with 21 since 1999.
• Maine has seven America East Championship titles, the most all-time. Four of those came in consecutive years from 1995-1998.
• Maine also has the most wins all-time in tournament play, but it is tied with Vermont, as both programs have 34 victories. The Bearcats, however, lead the Catamounts in head-to-head tournament play 6-4.
• Binghamton won its first round matchup last year as a No. 6 seed over No. 3 Hartford. That was the first 6/3 upset in the America East Championship since 2002 when New Hampshire downed the Bearcats.
• Albany won its first championship a year ago, becoming the fourth different team since 2007 to claim a title.
• Cindy Blodgett of Maine set the single-game tournament scoring record with 52 points against Towson in the 1997 quarterfinals. Blodgett scored 128 points in three games that year, which is also an all-time record.
• Sharon Bay of Vermont hauled in 21 boards against Delaware in 1993 to set a tournament record.
• Maureen DiJulia of Hartford has the most assists all-time in a tournament game with 14.
• Maine and Drexel set the championship record with 110 combined points in 1997.

Linked Up

Visit the America East Facebook page to vote for the men's and women's basketball Fan's Choice Player of the Year!

Our four-part video series commemorating Black History Month comes to a close today as we bring you comments from all nine individuals.

Please keep the women's basketball team from Maine in your thoughts as they were involved in an accident last night while traveling to their game at Boston U.

Justin Edwards is up for Fan's Choice Player of the Year and Maine put together a pretty awesome highlight video from his season.

Jeff Borzello of CBS Sports runs down his Freshman of the Year list and Jordan Reed earns a mention in the notes section.

History Lesson: Men's Basketball Championship

With the first round of the 2013 America East basketball championship just over a week away, we thought it would be a good time to take a look into the history books and pull out some fun facts. America East basketball (formerly the NAC and ECAC) goes all the way back to 1980, though the tournament was not seeded until 1983.

Over the past 30-plus years, some great moments have taken place in our championship. Several coaches that have won America East championships have gone on to win championships at conferences such as the Big East and the SEC or even national championships. Several tournament Most Outstanding Players, including Speedy Claxton and Malik Rose, have gone on to successful NBA careers. What we're trying to say is that the upcoming tournament will be a lot of fun. It's been since 2006-07 since the conference has seen a repeat champion and 2009 was the last time the No. 1 seed won. Anything could happen next week in Albany.

Taylor Coppenrath

Tournament Fun Facts...

• Since 2004, the No. 6 seed has beaten the No. 3 seed in the quarterfinals eight times, including the last five years. Two of those No. 6 seeds -- UMBC in 2009 and Vermont in 2006 -- made it to the championship game, becoming the lowest seed to advance that far.
• The No. 1 seed has reached the finals 24 times and won 19 times. However, the No. 1 seed has won the championship just twice since 2007.
• New Hampshire coach Bill Herrion has the most wins all-time in the America East championship, with a lifetime record of 21-12. Herrion once led former America East member Drexel to three consecutive championships.
• Taylor Coppenrath (Vermont) set the all-time championship scoring record with 43 points versus Maine in the 2004 finals.
• Future pro Malik Rose (Drexel) hauled in a record 22 rebounds versus Boston U. in the 1993 quarterfinals.
• Maine's Jeff Sturgeon set the championship assists record with 16 helpers against Niagara in 1983.
• The most combined points in a tournament game came back in 2000 when Hartford beat New Hampshire in 2000 by a score of 117 to 88, combining for 205 points.
• The longest game in tournament history was a triple overtime contest between Vermont and Boston U. in the 1981 quarterfinals. Since the tournament began seeded its participants in 1983, two games have gone into double overtime. Last year Vermont beat Hartford 77-73 and in 1983 Niagara beat Maine 78-76.

Linked Up

WBNG News in Binghamton put together a two-part series called "On the Rebound: Rebuilding the Bearcats". In this first video, WBNG sat down with freshman Jordan Reed and in today's piece they talk with senior Jimmy Gray. Make sure to give these a look.

Albany track & field standout Kathryn Fanning is as accomplished in the classroom as she is on the track.

Keep voting for your favorite #Chance2Dance video on our Facebook page!

Megan Barry is the Hartford Mooyah Athlete of the Week.

Check out this box score from yesterday's Yankees vs. Orioles spring training game. Former UMBC pitcher Zach Clark threw a scoreless inning of relief for the O's!

AEC Rewind: 2/25/13

It was a big weekend for America East basketball, with men's teams earning Bracketbuster wins over MAAC foes. It was also a big weekend for the standings, with the Stony Brook men and Albany women earning at least a share of the respective regular-season titles. Spring sports also continued to kick into gear and we'll have more on those sports for you tomorrow. For now, let's get all caught up on the weekend in basketball with today's AEC Rewind.

Box Scores, Recaps and Highlights

Men's Basketball

Albany 58, at Fairfield 50*: Box/Recap

• Top Performer
• John Puk (Alb): 13 points (4-7 FG; 5-6 FT), 7 rebounds, 1 steal
• Big Stat
• While Albany usually puts up nearly 17 three-point attempts per game, against Fairfield it only attempted six shots from downtown. Instead, the Great Danes got to the free throw line, a lot. The key to winning the close game was nailing 70 percent of those free ones as a team.
• Supporting Cast
• Sam Rowley posted 13 points and four steals to help guide his squad to a win. Hats off to Derek Needham of Fairfield, who led the Stags with 15 points.
• Local Media
• Albany Times Union
• Troy Record

Boston U. 68, at UMBC 59: Box/Recap

• Top Performer
• Maurice Watson Jr. (BU): 19 points (8-15 FG; 0-3 3FG; 3-3 FT), 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
• Big Stat
• The Terriers struggled from the three-point line in this one, but they made their free throws (11-13). On the other side, UMBC couldn't make the most of its 23 trips to the line, only converting on 13 of those attempts. The Retrievers were better in the second half, keying their comeback, it wasn't enough to overcome Boston U.
• Supporting Cast
• D.J. Irving also had a big game, piling up 17 points and nailing three from distance for the Terriers. Chase Plummer led UMBC with a big 18 point effort to go along with eight rebounds. Brian Neller (13), Ryan Cook (11) and Joey Getz (10) also reached double-digits.

at New Hampshire 68, Binghamton 56: Box/Recap/Highlights

• Top Performer
• Jordan Reed (Bing): 24 points (9-19 FG; 2-5 3FG; 4-4 FT), 16 rebounds, 5 assists
• Big Stat
• Though the Bearcats' top three scorers outscored the top three scorers from New Hampshire 48-44, the difference in this one came from the bench. The Wildcats had a 20 point edge in bench output, paving the way for a 12 point victory.
• Supporting Cast
• Patrick Konan had a big game to lead the Wildcats' victory, racking up 18 points and eight boards while shooting 50 percent from the field. Ferg Myrick also posted a double-double with 11 points and 10 boards. Brian Freeman (14) and Jimmy Gray (10) joined Reed in double-figures for the Bearcats.
• Local Media
• Press and Sun

at Stony Brook 69, Maine 53: Box/Recap

• Top Performer
• Tommy Brenton (SBU): 13 points (3-9 FG; 7-9 FT), 20 rebounds, 7 assists
• Big Stat
• The Seawolves dominated the paint in this game, outscoring Maine 44-28 inside. This charge was led largely by the continued development of Jameel Warney. Stony Brook also racked up 20 bench points to the Black Bears' eight.
• Supporting Cast
• The aforementioned Warney had 15 points while continuing to shoot at a high percentage. Dave Coley also helped out with 12 points for Stony Brook. Alasdair Fraser led the Black Bears with 15 points while Justin Edwards chipped in 12 points.
• Local Media
• Newsday
• Bangor Daily News

at Vermont 87, Canisius 79*: Box/Recap/Highlights

• Top Performer
• Ethan O'Day (UVM): 22 points (9-13 FG; 4-4 FT), 4 rebounds, 2 blocks
• Big Stat
• Vermont plays most of its games in the low 60's, slowing down the pace and getting big stops. But in this one the points were flying left and right and the Catamounts set a new season-high with 87 points. Shooting nearly 55 percent in the final 20 minutes didn't hurt anything either.
• Supporting Cast
• Five Catamounts, including O'Day, reached double-digits against Canisius. Trey Blue and Clancy Rugg both had 17, while Luke Apfeld (14) and Sandro Carissimo (10) also helped out. Harold Washington led the Golden Griffins with 29 points and four steals.
• Local Media
• WCAX News

* = Bracketbusters game

Women's Basketball

Albany 68, at Vermont 52: Box/Recap/Highlights

• Top Performer
• Shereesha Richards (Alb): 24 points (7-12 FG; 10-15 FT), 8 rebounds, 3 steals
• Big Stat
• The Albany defense was at it again, converting for 24 points off of 25 Vermont turnovers. Even without Ebone Henry, five Great Danes had at least one steal, including Lindsey Lowrie who led the way with six takeaways.
• Supporting Cast
•  Lowrie had 19 points while accounting for all five of Albany's three-pointers on the day. Julie Forster also had 12 points. For Vermont, Lauren Buschmann had a season-high 21 points while Niki Taylor also chipped in 15.
• Local Media
• Burlington Free Press

Binghamton 55, at New Hampshire 42: Box/Recap

• Top Performer
• Jasbriell Swain (Bing): 11 points (2-8 FG; 0-1 3FG; 7-10 FT), 12 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 assist
• Big Stat
• Both teams struggled from the field in the first half, but the Bearcats came out in the second half and knocked down 10 of their 25 shots (40%). While doing this, they were able to hold New Hampshire to just 13 of 57 shooting for the game, paving the way for their fifth win of the year.
• Supporting Cast.
• Mallory Lawes had 11 points on three triples for Binghamton while Kara Elofson also chipped in 10. For the Wildcats, Cari Reed led the way with 13 points and Kelsey Hogan had 12.
• Local Media
• Press and Sun
• Seacoast Online

at Boston U. 72, UMBC 51: Box/Recap/Highlights

• Top Performer
• Chantell Alford (BU): 26 points (9-17 FG; 2-6 3FG; 6-7 FT), 5 assists, 3 steals, 2 assists
• Big Stat
• Late in the second half, the Terriers went on a 15-2 run that sank the Retrievers, who had fought their way back into the game. With Alford and Mo Moran combining for 40 points, Boston leaned on its seniors in a big way to win this game.
• Supporting Cast
• Moran paired her 14 points with Alford's 26 to help lead the way and Rashidat Agboola nearly picked up a double-double with nine points and eight boards. For UMBC, Raven Harris led the way with 15 points and Ashley Lambert kicked in an even 10.
• Local Media
• Boston.com

Stony Brook 56, at Maine 53: Box/Recap/Highlights

• Top Performer
• Dani Klupenger (SBU): 18 points (6-9 FG; 6-9 3FG), 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block
• Big Stat
• This was a tale of two halves for the Seawolves, who shot just 21.9 percent in the first half. When the clock reset to start the final 20 minutes, however, Stony Brook came out firing and nailed 14 of 28 shots from the floor to overcome a halftime deficit.
• Supporting Cast
• Sabre Proctor had a game-high 19 points for Stony Brook and Gerda Gatling hauled in 13 rebounds. Lauren Bodine poured in 16 points to lead Maine while Liz Wood contributed 13 in the loss.
• Local Media
• Newsday
• Bangor Daily News

Linked Up

Binghamton senior forward Javon Ralling has earned his spot with hustle, writes the Press and Sun.

Though it wasn't the career she had planned, New Hampshire senior Jilliane Friel has had a huge impact on her team.

Bearcats' freshman Jordan Reed earns a mention in Jon Rothstein's latest.

Stony Brook senior Tommy Brenton is a finalist for the Lou Henson Award.

If you missed any of the mascot dance videos, check them all out here. Make sure to vote for your favorite on Twitter using the #Chance2Dance hashtag!