Press Release

PURPLE KNIGHTS CLOSE SEASON WITH SPLIT VERSUS SAINT ROSE SMC women rally for 71-64 win; Saint Rose men hold off SMC, 85-77 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                               FOR MORE INFORMATION February 22, 2005                                                                               Contact: Seth Cole                                                                                                          Phone: (802) 654-2537 COLCHESTER, Vt. – Saint Michael’s College closed out the 2004-05 season on Tuesday with a split versus the College of Saint Rose in Northeast-10 Conference basketball action at the Ross Sports Center. In the opener, the Saint Michael’s women rallied past Saint Rose, 71-64, and in the nightcap, the Golden Knight men held off the Purple Knights, 85-77. In the women’s game, Saint Michael’s (8-18, 5-17 NE-10) closed the game with a 16-4 run to pull past the Golden Knights. Junior Brigid Hegarty (North Andover, Mass./Central Catholic) came off of the bench to tally a team-high 19 points, connecting on 5-of-7 3-point attempts. Sophomore Jevy Rayner (Westminster, Vt./Bellows Falls Union) added 18 points and six rebounds for the Purple Knights, which shot 8-of-13 from beyond the arc. For Saint Rose (13-13, 10-12), sophomore Mary Lewis (Roxbury, Mass.) had a team-best 21 points, seven steals and four assists, while classmate Courtney Ludwig (Shaftsbury, Vt./Mount Anthony Union) chipped in 11 points and four steals. The Golden Knights outrebounded Saint Michael’s, 49-43, but shot just 35 percent from the field and 11-of-19 from the foul line.   After spotting the visitors an 8-0 lead to start the contest, Saint Michael’s heated up offensively to take a 37-33 lead at intermission. Hegarty sparked the rally by scoring 14 first-half points, draining four 3-pointers, as the Purple Knights shot 6-of-10 from 3-point land in the opening period. The second half was tight throughout, as there were four ties and five lead changes in the final 20 minutes. A lay-up by Lewis with 16:36 remaining gave Saint Rose its first lead of the stanza, 41-39, and the Golden Knights pushed their lead to 60-55 with less than seven minutes to go on a pair of Ludwig free throws. Saint Michael’s answered back, however, and evened the score at 62-all with 3:13 to play on two free throws from freshman Katie Barthelmes (Contoocook, N.H./Hopkinton). Lewis tied the game at 64-all with 2:26 on the clock, but Hegarty’s fifth and final 3-pointer with 1:31 left gave Saint Michael’s the lead for good, 67-64. Saint Rose, meanwhile, went 0-4 from the field in the final two minutes, while missing both its free throws and committing a pair of costly turnovers. In the men’s contest, Saint Rose (20-7, 17-5) outscored Saint Michael’s, 40-29, in the second half to clinch the second seed and a first-round bye in the upcoming NE-10 Playoffs. Senior Adonist Barber (Schenectady, N.Y.) notched a game-high 24 points, eight rebounds and three steals for the Golden Knights, while junior Brad Shove (Pittsfield, Mass.) became the 20th player in program history to score 1,000 career points by connecting for 22 points. For Saint Michael’s (7-20, 4-18), freshman James Sorrentine (Pawtucket, R.I./Saint Raphael Academy) led a balanced scoring attack with 18 points and six assists. Sorrentine drained 6-of-10 3-pointers to set the program record for 3-pointers (97) and 3-point attempts (242) in a season. Junior BJ Robertson (Burlington, Vt./Burlington) added 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting, classmate Mike Keating (Saint Paul, Minn./Cretin-Derham Hall) chipped in 15 points and five assists, and senior Eric Swiezynski (Wilmington, Mass./Wilmington) posted 13 points and a team-high six rebounds in the final game of his career. Both teams blistered the nets in the first half, as Saint Michael’s opened up a 48-45 lead at intermission. The Purple Knights shot 65.5 percent in the period (19-of-28), including 8-of-14 from beyond the arc, while Saint Rose connected on 18-of-30 shots in the stanza (60 percent). In the second half, a jumper by sophomore Brendan Mullins (Downers Grove, Ill./Downers Grove South) gave the hosts a 57-52 lead with 14:58 remaining, but the Golden Knights scored the next six points to take their first lead of the period, 58-57. A Mullins’ 3-pointer again pushed the Purple Knights’ lead back to five, 63-58, but two Barber free throws gave the Golden Knights the lead for good, 71-69, with 6:31 to go. Saint Michael’s closed its deficit to 78-75 with 2:22 to play, but the Purple Knights missed their next four shots, and Saint Rose sealed the win by making all four of its free throw attempts in the final 30 seconds. Prior to each contest, Saint Michael’s honored a pair of four-year seniors playing in the final game of their collegiate careers. On the women’s side, co-captains Julia Boynton (Concord, N.H./Concord) and Nia Campos (Bronx, N.Y./Horace Mann) were recognized, and for the Purple Knight men, Kyle Dietrich (West Lafayette, Ind./West Lafayette) and Swiezynski were honored. Men's box score Women's box score  ###PURPLEKNIGHTS###

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