Albright to Honor Men’s Basketball All-Century Team this Saturday
Monday, January 5, 2009
READING, PA - In the continued celebration of the historic 100th season of Albright College Men’s Basketball, the college community will take a moment to recognize an elite group of individuals on Saturday January 10th at halftime of the Albright College Men’s Basketball game.
After looking back at the countless players and individuals that have been affiliated with this historic program a total of 30 were selected to represent the Albright College Men’s Basketball All-Century team. Amongst the many individuals that will make up this memorable team is Mike DePaul ’56 who closed out his impressive career with 1,452 points. Accompanying him will be all-time leading scorer Tom Pearsall ’63 and former great John Scholl ’69 who left Albright with 1,299 career points and the record for most points in a single game with 54.
Also earning recognition is Bill Carey ’80, Russ McNamee ’80, Mike Reedy ’81, and Bob Ford ’81. All four former players were apart of history when they helped the 1980 team earn a place in the “Elite 8” of the NCAA Tournament.
In looking back just a few short years former standouts like Shawn Swavely ’00 and Matt Kieselowsky ’07 have also had their names added the All-Century Team roster. Swavely still holds his place as the second greatest scorer to ever wear the Red and White jersey; while Kieselowsky sits atop the assist column having totaled more career assists than any other player in history.
Finally with every team there must be a coach and in this case there is no better choice than Dr. Will Renken. Coach Renken who left the program in 1988 has been named the All-Century Team coach for his 33 year tenure that saw him earn the title as the most winningest coach in program history.
All 30 individuals will be honored at the halftime of this Saturday’s Men’s Basketball game which is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. in the Bollman Center. Saturday’s historic event will truly be one for the ages, as Albright fans young and old will have the opportunity to witness another chapter in one of the most historic programs in the nation.
Albright College Men’s Basketball All-Century Team
Dr. Will Renken (All-Century Team Coach) Ed Anlian ‘50 Mike DePaul ‘56 George Conrad ‘56 Ken Van Dine ‘61 Tom Pearsall ‘63 Dick Kauffman ‘65 Mike Klahr ‘66 Bill Kudrick ‘67 Mike Eckenroth ‘68 John Scholl ‘69 Paul Mellini ‘74 Ray Ricketts ‘74 Dan Jones ‘77 Bill Carey ‘80 Russ McNamee ‘80 Mike Reedy ‘81 Bob Ford ‘81 Chip Carey ‘84 Jeff Batturs ‘87 Pat Pruitt ‘92 Jim Hoopes ‘94 Mahlon Hayes ‘95 Dwight Davis ‘97 James Drewry ‘00 Shawn Swavely ‘00 Terron Buchanon ‘04 Trevor Deeter ‘06 Matt Kieselowsky ‘07 Albert Medoro ‘08
Albright Athletics Weekly Wrap-Up
December 29, 2008 - January 4, 2009
Monday, January 5, 2009
Both the Men’s and Women’s Basketball Teams kicked off 2009 with tournaments on the hardwood. After a week and a half hiatus, both looked to come out strong and start the New Year off on the right foot. The Men’s team hosted a tournament here at the Bollman Center, while the Women traveled to Wilkes-Barre, PA to compete in the Lady Monarch Classic at King’s College (PA). Let’s look back on the action and recap the weekend.
Men’s Basketball (9-4)
1/2/09 vs. Brooklyn College, W 82-80 1/3/09 vs. Gettysburg College, L 60-62
The Men’s team opened up the Sheraton Reading Hotel New Year’s Tournament with the Bridges of Brooklyn College. The Red and White busted out of the gate with a solid first half performance, building an early lead and controlling the first 20 minutes of play. The first five minutes of the second half were even better for the Lions, as they started off with a 9-0 run to give them a commanding 13 point lead. Even with that lead Brooklyn had other ideas however, as junior, Richard Jean-Baptiste went off on a span of 7 and a half minutes that saw him score 18 points. Jean-Baptiste finished with 27 on the evening including 22 of them in the second half. With 4 and a half minutes remaining, Jean-Baptiste drilled a three-pointer to give the Bridges a two point lead. Senior Phil Hall would not let his team down on this evening, however. Hall made shots from every angle in the low post as the team looked to their leader to bring them back and get them the victory. Hall hit a lay-up with 2 seconds remaining off an assist from junior point guard, Adam Van Zelst to give the Red and White a two point lead that would hold up despite a last ditch long pass by Brooklyn that was intercepted by Zac Shaeffer, giving the Lions an 82-80 win. Hall finished with 26 points and 8 rebounds on 12-for-15 shooting from the field in a dominating performance. Murphy dropped 17 points in the game including 3-3 from beyond the arc. Also hitting some big shots down the stretch was sophomore Andrew Pomager who finished with 16 points and along with Hall, really battled to keep the Lions in it towards the end. The victory would pit the Red and White against the Bullets from Gettysburg College who easily handled Juniata College in the first game of the tournament.
The Championship game of the tournament was the exact opposite for the Lions as the first game. The team struggled shooting from all over the hardwood and was unable to stop Gettysburg’s efficient ball-moving offense. Long droughts without points and consistent play by the Bullets left the Lions baffled and in a deep hole down 13 points at the end of the first half. With 9 minutes remaining in the game, the Lions looked even worse off as they trailed their opponent by 18 points. Then sophomore, Matt Ashcroft, came off the bench and decided to do something about that. With 2 quick three-point daggers, Ashcroft had given the Red and White life, and new hope to think they could turn this game around. The defensive intensity picked up and the shooting improved, and with just under a minute remaining, Ashcroft hit his 5th three-pointer of the night and the Lions had cut the lead to 7. Gettysburg missed on their possession and then Adam Van Zelst joined the three-point party and cut the lead to 4. The Bullets failed to convert on the first half of a one and one from the charity stripe and the Red and White quickly grabbed the rebound and Andre Murphy was able to finish a lay-up to cut the lead in half to 2 with 20 seconds left in the contest, adding a free throw on the foul, making it a one point game. Unfortunately after Murphy’s three point play the Bullets would not miss their free throws and even despite a good look on a fade-away jumper by Murphy would not fall and the Bullets came away with a 62-60 victory. Ashcroft finished with 15 points to bring the Lions back and kept them in the contest. Hall (10) and Murphy (11) both finished in double-digits and their respective efforts on both nights gave them the honor of being on the All-Tournament team for the tournament.
Women’s Basketball (8-4)
1/3/09 vs. Susquehanna University at King’s College (PA), W 74-54 1/4/09 at King’s College (PA), W 73-65
The Lions opened up the Lady Monarch Classic by taking on Susquehanna University. The Lions came out playing well and took an early lead over the Crusaders and never looked back. The Red and White played shut down defense in holding their opponents to 38% shooting and a 0-for-12 effort from beyond the arc. Senior Bre Dillon was able to lead the Lions with a 19 point effort on 7-for-14 shooting from the field. She had 3 assists and 3 steals, as well, contributing to her solid all-around effort. Annie McMahon (14) and Jessica McGinness (12) joined Dillon in double figures, helping them cruise to an easy victory in the first round of the Classic. Mallory Olsheski continued her impressive rebounding skills by grabbing 9 boards on the afternoon. The 74-54 win would propel the Lions to the Championship game where they would take on the host, King’s College, who defeated Rutgers-Camden in their first game.
The Championship game was very similar to the Lion’s first game of the tournament, as they took an early lead and never once let the Lady Monarch’s grab that lead away from them. Dillon again paced the offense, this time scoring 20 points in leading the Red and White to another impressive offensive display. Dillon shot 8-for-11 from the field and also had 6 assists and 4 rebounds. Yet again, Jessica McGinness (15) and Annie McMahon (11) were able to join Dillon in the double-figures category for the game. These performances found spots on the All-Tournament team for McGinness and McMahon. Dillon’s back to back efforts enabled her to win the honor of Tournament MVP for the weekend. The Lions continued their impressive defense in holding their opponents to 37% shooting from the field. They also managed to outrebound the Monarchs by a total of 44 to 37, also contributing to the victory for the Lions.
Albright Represented on MASCAC Fall Academic Honor Roll
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
ANNVILLE, PA - The Middle Atlantic States Collegiate Athletic Corporation Fall Academic Honor Roll, which notes academic excellence by student-athletes, contains 561 honorees which was announced by Executive Director Ken Andrews Tuesday morning.
The Honor Roll comprises those student-athletes of sophomore class standing or higher who participated in a varsity-level sport and registered a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 (4.00 scale) or higher and completed the playing season in good standing.
Albright College had a solid representation on this year’s Academic Honor Roll as 36 student-athletes were recognized by the conference. Included on this year’s team was Men’s Soccer First Team All-Conference selection Maarten Kootstra (Mt. Penn, PA/Antietam), and Football First Team All-Conference honorees Tanner Kelly (Clearfield, PA/Clearfield) and Matt Christ (Birdsboro, PA/Reading Central Catholic).
READING, PA - In the continued celebration of the historic 100th season of Albright College Men’s Basketball, the college community will take a moment to recognize an elite group of individuals on Saturday January 10th at halftime of the Albright College Men’s Basketball game. 
Both the Men’s and Women’s Basketball Teams kicked off 2009 with tournaments on the hardwood. After a week and a half hiatus, both looked to come out strong and start the New Year off on the right foot. The Men’s team hosted a tournament here at the Bollman Center, while the Women traveled to Wilkes-Barre, PA to compete in the Lady Monarch Classic at King’s College (PA). Let’s look back on the action and recap the weekend.
