Press Release

SMC SPLITS DOUBLEHEADER WITH SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE SMC women edge Penmen, 58-56; SMC men’s rally falls short, 71-65 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                               FOR MORE INFORMATION January 27, 2005                                                                                Contact: Seth Cole                                                                                                          Phone: (802) 654-2537 COLCHESTER, Vt. – Saint Michael’s College and Southern New Hampshire University split a pair of close contests in Northeast-10 Conference basketball action on Thursday at the Ross Sports Center. In the opener, the Purple Knight women edged Southern New Hampshire, 58-56, and in the nightcap, the Southern New Hampshire men held off Saint Michael’s, 71-65. In the women’s contest, sophomore Jevy Rayner (Westminster, Vt./Bellows Falls Union) forced an offensive foul on Southern New Hampshire’s Danielle Graunke (Penfield, N.Y.) with four seconds remaining, helping the Purple Knights snap a six-game losing skid and avenge a 64-50 loss to the Penmen on Jan. 11. Rayner led the way with 16 points and a career-high tying 13 rebounds, notching her third double-double in the last five games. Sister Dani Rayner (Westminster, Vt./Bellows Falls Union) added 14 points, and junior Holly Reeves (Arlington, Mass./Arlington Catholic) chipped in 10 points for Saint Michael’s (5-14, 2-13 NE-10). For the visitors, senior Jenn Hogan (Nashua, N.H.) notched a game-high 18 points, connecting on 6-of-9 3-pointers. Graunke added 15 points and nine rebounds, while freshman Heather Marino (Billerica, Mass.) netted 11 points for Southern New Hampshire (4-15, 1-14). Neither team could establish momentum in the first half. Saint Michael’s opened its biggest lead of the contest, 23-16, on a free throw by Dani Rayner with 7:19 to go in the period. Southern New Hampshire closed the half on an 11-5 run, however, to cut its deficit to 28-27 at intermission. In a see-saw second half that featured four ties and seven lead changes, Jevy Rayner was the difference. She tallied 13 points and eight rebounds after halftime, and her basket with 1:13 remaining gave the Purple Knights the lead for good, 57-56. After each team missed a jump shot, the Penmen held the ball for one shot in the waning seconds. Following a timeout, Graunke drove to the basket, but Rayner slid over to create the offensive foul and turnover. Dani Rayner’s free throw with 0.9 seconds left sealed the win, and the visitors couldn’t get off a shot following a miss on the second free throw attempt. In the men’s game, 25th-ranked Southern New Hampshire (15-4, 11-4) forced 26 Purple Knight turnovers, including 18 in the first half, in snapping a two-game losing skid. Junior P.J. Young (Boston, Mass.) led the way with 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field, junior John Baiano (Staten Island, N.Y.) tallied 10 points, eight steals and five assists, and classmate Miguel Gonzalez (Jamaica, N.Y.) chipped in 10 points for the Penmen. Freshman James Sorrentine (Pawtucket, R.I./Saint Raphael Academy) paced the Purple Knights with 15 points in 40 minutes of action, while junior BJ Robertson (Burlington, Vt./Burlington) added 13 points and four assists off of the bench as Saint Michael’s dressed just eight players due to several injuries. Senior Eric Swiezynski (Wilmington, Mass./Wilmington) chipped in 12 points and a team-high eight rebounds, and is just five points shy of becoming the 36th Purple Knight to record 1,000 career points, while classmate Kyle Dietrich (West Lafayette, Ind./West Lafayette) netted a career-high nine points for Saint Michael’s (5-15, 2-13), losers of seven straight contests. In a sloppy first half, the visitors scored 22 points off of Saint Michael’s turnovers in opening up a 38-29 lead at intermission. Young record 12 points on 5-of-5 shooting in the period, while Baiano tallied seven points and seven steals in the frame. In the second stanza, Southern New Hampshire extended its lead to 18 points, 55-37, on a dunk by freshman Sam Carey (Manchester, N.H.) with 11:35 remaining. Saint Michael’s was still down by 16 with 6:58 to play before going on a 15-2 run, capped by Robertson’s jumper with 2:20 to play, to cut its deficit to 63-60. However, four straight misses and a pair of turnovers stalled the Purple Knights’ run, and the Penmen made 6-of-11 free throws in the final two minutes to clinch the win. Both teams return to action on Saturday. Southern New Hampshire visits Assumption College in a league doubleheader, while Saint Michael’s travels to Saint Anselm College for a pair of contests, beginning with the women at 1:30 p.m. The Purple Knights’ next home contests are Feb. 5 versus Le Moyne College, with the women at 1:30 p.m. and the men at 3:30 p.m. Women's Box Score Men's Box Score  ###PURPLEKNIGHTS###

For more information please contact the SMC Sports Information Office at (802) 654-2537
Last Revised: October 25, 2002