Medaille Sports

It was a back and forth affair all afternoon as Medaille swept the pesky Pitt-Bradford Panthers at home. In the first game, Medaille and Bradford traded runs in the first inning, as well as alternating (5) run innings in the bottom of the fifth and top of the sixth. It would take extra baseball to determine the winner of game one, when in the bottom of the eighth, junior Brandon Lumadue (Cheektowaga, NY/West Seneca East) (pictured), with a man on second and third, hit into a walk off error as the Bradford shortstop booted a ground ball ending the game (7-6). Lumadue would go (2 for 4) with (1) run, (1) walk and (1) RBI and senior Brian Vital (North Grafton, MA/Grafton) would throw (2.2) innings in relief, giving up just (1) run while striking out the side in both the seventh and eighth innings. (more…)

Medaille Mavericks men’s volleyball has set fire to the NECVA Western Division all season long, and on Friday, they were recognized for doing so. Head Coach Keith Koch was named NECVA Western Division Coach of the Year, becoming the fifth Medaille Head Coach to earn Conference Coach of the Year honors in 2009-10 (Dan Krzyzanowicz, Pete Lonergan, Mike MacDonald, Jake Beiter). The Mavs also had (6) first and second team nominees, more then any other school in the Western Division. Getting named to the first team were senior Ryan Murdie (Kenmore, NY/Kenmore East), senior Andy Nawotka (Grand Island, NY/Grand Island)(pictured), junior Ryan Maxwell (Amherst, NY/Sweet Home), and junior Dan Jackson (Hamburg, NY/Hamburg). Selected to the second team were sophomore Nick Johnson (Buffalo, NY/Canisius), and freshman Erin Kelly (Clifton Springs, NY/Midlakes). Medaille College (20-9) also learned their fate in the upcoming NECVA Tournament on Sunday, being seeded (8) in the (16) team field. The Mavericks will face off against the Hawks of SUNY New Paltz on Friday, April 9 at 8pm. The winner will advance to the quarterfinals and face the winner of the (1) Rivier, (16) New Jersey City match-up on Saturday, April 10.

The Medaille College basketball teams will hit the hardwood this evening in NCAA Tournament First Round action.  If you would like to keep up with the teams you can do so online.  The women face Lebanon Valley at 5:00pm on the campus of Marymount University the game will have a live audio stream that you can listen to by clicking here  and you can view Live Stats of that game by clicking here.  The men will face Nazareth College in Memorial Hall at Plattsburgh State at 6:00pm.  This game will have a live video stream that can be accessed here and you can also follow via Live Stats by using this link.  The winners of both of these games will play in the second round tomorrow at 7:00pm on the campuses of the first round games.  Stay tuned to www.medaillesports.com for all of the Tournament action.

The AMCC announced its All Conference teams and postseason award winners today and the Mavs received several accolades.  Senior Keith Hack (Hopewell Junction, NY/John Jay)(pictured) was named the AMCC Player of the Year one year after earning first team honors in 2009 as he lived up to his Preseason Player of the Year designation.  Hack would accompany head coach Mike MacDonald onto the men’s award scene as Coach Mac was named Coach of the Year for the third time in his four seasons at the helm of the Mavericks.  On the women’s side head coach Pete Lonergan also earned his third Coach of the Year distinction as he led the Lady Mavs to a perfect conference record and a (25-2) record.  Two Second Team nods were awarded as Amanda Sahhar (Orchard Park, NY/Orchard Park) and Kacie Mills (Buffalo, NY/Kenmore East) landed there while sophomore Meghan Dougherty (Buffalo, NY/Nichols) received Honorable Mention honors.  Both the men’s and women’s team won AMCC Regular Season and Tournament titles earning NCAA Tournament bids in the process.  The Mavericks will face Nazareth College on Friday (3/5) at 6:00pm at Plattsburgh State while the Lady Mavs will take the floor on Friday at 5:00pm against Lebanon Valley College on the campus of Marymount University.  Click here to see all of the AMCC award winners.

The Medaille College women’s basketball team (25-2) is heading to Arlington, Virginia for the First Round of the NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Tournament.  The Lady Mavs will face Lebanon Valley College (23-4) on the campus of Marymount University.  This will be the second time these two teams have met as Lebanon Valley hosted Medaille in the ECAC South Tournament on March 2, 2005, they outlasted the Lady Mavs in that contest (71-64).  The Lady Mavs advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in the last five years by beating Pitt-Bradford in the AMCC Championship game (59-52).  Lebanon Valley fell to Messiah College (60-55) in the Commonwealth Conference Championship game but received an at-large bid to appear in the first tournament in program history.  Click here to download the interactive tournament bracket.

The Medaille College men’s basketball team (23-4) will face Nazareth College (18-9) in the First Round of the NCAA Division III Men’s Basketball Tournament on Friday (3/5).  That game will be played on the campus of Plattsburgh State, the SUNYAC Championship winner.  The Mavs advanced to the Tournament after winning their second straight AMCC Regular Season and Tournament Titles, defeating Pitt-Bradford (89-77) in the championship game.  The Golden Flyers upset top seeded St. John Fisher in the Empire 8 title game (65-64) to advance to the NCAA Tournament for the seventh time in program history, it is the second appearance for the Mavericks.  Click here to download the interactive bracket.

Let the craziness begin!  The AMCC Final Four fields have been solidified and the Mavericks are hoping that home court advantage will prevail as postseason play opens up on Friday.  The top seeded Lady Mavs (23-2) will face #4 Penn State-Altoona (20-6) to open the festivities at 1:00pm on Friday (2/26).  The second semifinal will pit #3 Frostburg State (19-7) against #7 Pitt-Bradford (10-16) who upset second seeded Pitt-Greensburg in the quarterfinals.  That game will tip-off at 3:00pm.  On the men’s side the #1 Mavs (21-4) will host #4 Frostburg State (17-8) at 6:00pm with #2 Pitt-Bradford (16-10) vs. #3 Penn State-Behrend (18-7) rounding out the semifinal action at 8:00pm.  The 2010 men’s final four matchups mirror the 2009 final four.   The Championship games will be played on Saturday (2/27) with the women hitting the court at 1:00pm and the men at 3:30pm.  The winners of the AMCC Tournament will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.

While most Medaille College students were spending time with their families over the winter recess, the Medaille College women’s basketball team took some time away to teach the game of basketball to local children.  The Lady Mavs conducted a trio of basketball clinics throughout Buffalo as they went to St. Benedict’s, Sts. Peter & Paul and St. Leo’s parishes to teach the fundamentals of the game.  The Lady Mavs performed the community service in an effort to reach out to children while promoting the great game of basketball.  Many of these kids will play shortened games during halftime’s of Medaille College men’s and women’s basketball games as the season continues to unfold.  The photo above was following the Lady Mavs home victory over AMCC rival Pitt-Greensburg on January 16, 2010 when these kids showed off their skills at the intermission in a competitive contest.  The Lady Mavs return home this weekend when they host Franciscan University on Saturday (1/30) at 1:00pm.

The Medaille College men’s volleyball team won it’s third match in two days as it rolled to a (3-0); (30, 15), (30-25), (30-26), win over NECVA rival SUNY IT at home. The win completed a busy weekend, one which saw them win their three matches by a combined score of (9-0). Today, the Mavs were led by sophomore Sam Arnold (East Aurora, NY/East Aurora) who tallied (23) assists and junior Dan Jackson (Hamburg, NY/Hamburg) once again led the team in digs with (9). Sophomore Nick Johnson (Buffalo, NY/Canisius) (pictured) also contributed to the Mavericks victory, leading Medaille with (11) kills. The win improves the Mavs record to (6-2) overall and (2-0) in NECVA conference play. Medaille will next take to the court on Wednesday (2/3) when the Mavs travel to Hilbert for a 7:00pm NECVA Western Division match-up.

The Medaille College men’s basketball team stands at #21 on the D3hoops.com national poll courtesy of their (13-0) record.  Due to the teams early success head coach Mike MacDonald (pictured) was extended an invitation to be on the web sites weekly national radio show called “Hoopsville”.  The show airs from 7:00-9:00pm EST on Thursdays & Sundays and Coach Mac will be interviewed live at 8:00pm tonight (1/10).  You can listen to “Hoopsville” live by clicking on this link.  The Mavs will take the floor again on Wednesday (1/13) as they head to Pitt-Bradford for an 8:00pm rematch of last years AMCC title game.