Walker sparks Bonnies

Defensive specialist Alaina Walker of Pomona locked down on Richmond’s high-scoring Rachael Bilney as the host St. Bonaventure University women’s basketball team continued its best-ever start with a 75-59 victory at the Reilly Center.

Senior Jessica Jenkins of Marion, OH, led a trio of Bonnies (17-2, 4-0 Atlantic 10) in double-figures with 18 points.

St. Bonaventure and Richmond (14-4, 2-2) entered as the two winningest teams in the A-10. The clubs also entered the contest as the two highest-ranked squads.

Walker – a junior, and arguably St. Bonaventure’s best defensive player – shadowed Bilney, who just two games ago hit a school-record eight 3-pointers on her way to a career-best 32-point showing. But Walker, a former standout at Albertus Magnus HS, held her to just two points and four field-goal attempts in 35 minutes of action.

The road for the Brown and White doesn’t get any easier as it heads to Charlotte on Saturday (Jan. 21) in a battle of league unbeatens. The 49ers, who are the lone other club beside Bonaventure with a perfect conference mark at 4-0, were picked to finish fourth in preseason voting. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. from the Queen City.

Fields ignites Red Dragons

Freshman Paul Fields, a graduate of Clarkstown North HS, won his match at 125 pounds and the SUNY Cortland wrestling team, ranked seventh in the nation, went on to defeat visiting Oneonta State, 25-12, at Corey Gymnasium in Cortland.

The host Red Dragons climbed to 14-2 in dual matches, while the visiting Red Dragons fell to 5-7.           

Junior Corey James of Kingston finished the night for Cortland with a 5-0 decision at 285 pounds.           

Fields & Co. go right back into action on Friday and Saturday in the state collegiate championships at Cornell University in Ithaca. First bout is set for 10 a.m. 

Williams College earns milestone victory

Pat Morrissey of Pelham was a reserve defenseman, and Brian McNamara of Bronxville was a reserve centerman as the highly rated Williams College hockey team snapped visiting Wentworth College’s four-game winning streak with an 8-2 victory in Williamstown, MA.

It was the first-ever meeting between the two schools, and the win was the 300th for head coach Bill Kangas, who is 9-1-4 this season.

The Ephs hit the road tonight (Jan. 20), visiting Bowdoin College (6-5-2) in Brunswick, ME, at 7 p.m., and stay on the road on Saturday (Jan. 21), meeting Colby College (3-12) at 3 p.m. in Waterville, ME.

Colby College is captained by defenseman Pat Bursee of West Nyack, while Ben Chwick of Purchase plays at the forward position.

Bursee and Chwick are graduates of the Berkshire School in Sheffield, MA.

Lady Warriors victorious

Freshman forward Meghan Richards of Nanuet posted the first double-double of her career with 12 points and a team-high 14 rebounds, leading the Nyack College women’s basketball team past visiting Post University, 71-65, at Bowman Gymnasium.

The Lady Warriors trailed 38-33 at intermission after a 23-14 run, and took the lead for good with six minutes remaining to post their first win of the season.

Junior guard Khamari Tellis of Chicago led Nayck with 21 points, and also had 13 rebounds, five assists, and a blocked shot.

Nyack travels to Wilmington, DE, on Saturday (Jan. 21) for a contest with Goldey-Beacom College (10-5) at 5 p.m. on the front end of a doubleheader with the men’s teams.

Let us try again

The Nyack College men’s basketball team came thisclose to winning its first game of the season, losing 75-74 to visiting Post University at Bowman Gymnasium.

Trailing by the final margin with six seconds to play, time ran out on the Warriors’ game-winning attempt. 

Nyack’s most balanced offensive attack of the season had five players reach double figures in scoring. Jose Pena-Benjamin of Rahway, NJ, led the way with 21 points on 7-of-13 shooting. 

Chris Hampton of Brooklyn  had 13 points, freshman guard Khalid Samuels of Mount Vernon scored 12, and Chris Gibson of North Plainfield, NJ, and Lafayette Curtis of Staten Island each added 10.  Curtis also pulled down a season-high 15 rebounds in the loss.

The resilient Warriors try again on Saturday with a game against Goldey-Beacom College (7-6) in Wilmington, DE. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m., closing a twinbill that opens with the respective women’s teams.

Freshman guard Julian Wright of Mount Vernon, a graduate of Archbishop Stepinac in White Plains, has appeared in two games for the host Lightning.

Gearing up for Metropolitan Championships

Marist College, coming off an appearance in the Gotham Cup at the New Balance Track and Field Center, will split its squad for the Metropolitan Championships—also as the New Balance Center in northern Manhattan--on Friday, Jan. 27 and the Terrier Invitational in Boston on Friday-Saturday, Jan. 27-28.

Freshman standout Tom Lappas of Pearl River finished seventh in the mile at the Gotham Cup, clocking 4:19.63.

Junior Matt Panebianco of Tappan placed 18th in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:00.99, and also ran the mile in 4:33.88.

Sophomore Nick Hughes of Stony Point is also running distance for the Red Foxes.

On the women’s side, junior Jackie Gamboli of Stony Point placed 22nd in the 3,000-meter run with a time of 11:12.60. Also competing for the Red Foxes are Tara Nuccitelli of Suffern and Julie Hudek of Pearl River, both at the middle distances, and sprinters Ailish Rowley and Nicole Weir, both of Pearl River.

Hawks squawk

The Rockland Community College men’s basketball team, which is struggling this season at 3-14, visits Kingsborough CC (6-11) in Brooklyn on Saturday (Jan. 21), and then returns home to Suffern on Jan. 24 to welcome Suffolk County CC (7-6).

Taj Bridgers of White Plains is averaging nine points per game for the Hawks, while Griff Sheridan of Orangeburg, a graduate of Tappan Zee, is averaging five points.

On the women’s side, the Lady Hawks are a very-fine 11-5 under Coach Rich Jacobson. They also visit Kingsborough CC (4-9) on Saturday, and are also home on Jan. 24 against Suffolk County CC (3-3).

Nanuet High graduates Christine Brezovsky and Nikki Saponaro are averaging 8.2 points and 11.3 points, respectively, for RCC while Melissa Loughhane of Pearl River is contributing eight points a game, and Shawan Crooks of White Plains is providing six per game.

Lady Warrior honored           

Nyack College women’s basketball player Khamari Tellis of Chicago has been named player of the week by the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference for her performance in two conference games against Concordia College and Post University. 

Tellis, a junior, scored 31 points in an overtime loss to Concordia, with 29 of those points coming after the first half.  Tellis also played a huge part in the Nyack offense in a victory over Post, netting 21 points while pulling down 13 rebounds and dishing out five assists.

Nyack returns to action Saturday (Jan. 21) against Goldey-Beacom College (10-5) in Wilmington, DE. Tip-off is set at 5 p.m. in the front end of a doubleheader with the men’s teams.

Dominican splits in Bronxville

The Dominican College men’s team was upended, but the women’s team swept to victory against their counterparts from Concordia College in Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) basketball games at the Meyer Athletic Center in Bronxville.

The host Clippers rallied from a nine-point deficit to win 76-73 while the Lady Chargers prevailed 68-59 behind guard Lindsey Lopez of Elmwood Park, NJ, who led all scorers with 21 points.

K.C. Jentzen of Nanuet added nine points for Dominican, which raised its overall mark to 7-6 and 7-1 in the conference.

 The men were led by guard Leon Porter of Laurel, MD, who had the game’s only double with 14 points and 12 rebounds.

Khaleev Ginyard of Brentwood and A.J. Burton of New Rochelle each added 14 points as Dominican fell to 9-6 overall and 2-5 in conference action.

Dominican returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 21, at Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia. The women are scheduled to tip off at 1 p.m., followed by the men’s game at approximately 3 p.m.

STAC men extend success

Omar Kellman of the Bronx set the pace with 16 points and nine rebounds, leading three scorers in double-figures as the St. Thomas Aquinas College men’s basketball team earned a 62-58 victory over NYIT. The win was the Spartans’ fifth in their last six games, improving their season tally to 7-8, 3-3 in East Coast Conference (ECC) play. The Bears fell to 5-10 overall, 2-4 in the ECC.

In STAC’s previous game, a 61-60 victory over Felician College, junior Justin Brown of Uniondale recorded his 1,000th career point.

The Spartans return to action for an ECC showdown at Mercy College in Dobbs Ferry on Saturday, Jan. 21 at 3 p.m. before returning to Sparkill to face the University of Bridgeport (10-6) on Wednesday, Jan. 25 at 7:30 pm at Aquinas Hall as the back end of a twinbill with the women’s teams.

Lady Spartans on slide

Briana Sloper of Williston Park had 17 points and eight rebounds, but the St. Thomas Aquinas College women’s basketball team struggled in the second half and lost  to visiting NYIT, 72-59.

The loss was the sixth straight for STAC, dropping the Lady Spartans to 7-9 and 2-4 in the East Coast Conference.

NYIT improved to 10-6, 4-2.

The Lady Spartans are hopeful of breaking the slide on Saturday (Jan. 21) in an ECC showdown at Mercy College in Dobbs Ferry at 1 p.m. STAC returns to Sparkill on Wednesday, Jan. 25 at 5:30 p.m. at Aquinas Hall, meeting Bridgeport (5-11) in the front end of a doubleheader with the men’s teams.

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The 'College Sports Notebook' is published each Friday. Please send items of interest—including local athletes competing at out-of-town colleges—to marcmaturo@aol.com.

About this column: Stay posted on local college athletics, and local students playing at out-of-town colleges; runs Fridays.