ECAC Champs Honored
Mayor Jerry Jennings and the City of Albany honored the University at Albany football team for its 1997 Eastern Football Conference championship and a school-record 11-1 campaign in the City Hall Rotunda on Jan. 23.
Jennings presented Albany football coach Bob Ford with an official proclamation. University President Karen R. Hitchcock and Vice President for Student Affairs James P. Doellefeld were also in attendance at the ceremony.
Track Stars Qualify, Set Records
Halim Wise and Ronald Edmundson posted IC4A-qualifying marks in the 400-meter dash and triple jump, and Xiomara Davila Diaz set a school-record in the women�s 400 meters at the Syracuse Track & Field Invitational on Feb. 7.
Wise was first across the line in his 400-meter heat with a school-record time of 48.75 seconds, and will represent the Great Danes at the IC4A championships on March 7-8. Edmundson, a freshman, won the triple jump with a mark of 47-1, while Harold Valestin jumped the same distance to finish second. Both Edmundson and Valestin will move on to the IC4A meet at Cornell University.
Davila Diaz, a junior from Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, was involved in two school-record performances at Syracuse�s Manley Field House. She was clocked in 56.33 seconds in her 400-heat, and anchored the 4x400 relay, which posted a first-place time of 3:54.81.
Ben Wright
Janna Johnston, an All-America heptathlete, ran the second leg on that record-setting relay, and placed third in the long jump (17-11). One week earlier, Ellakisha Williamson established school records in the 55-hurdles and 200-dash to highlight her team�s efforts at Boston University�s Terrier Classic on Jan. 31-Feb. 1.
Williamson, a junior from Albany, recorded the fastest time by a NCAA Division II athlete this season, when she sprinted 7.85 seconds to finish third in the 55-hurdles. She was also fourth in the 200, and set another Albany mark with a time of 24.82. Sophomore Ben Wright and Luis Soto both qualified for IC4A�s. Wright, of Averill Park, was second in his mile-run heat in 4:15.75, while Soto took eighth in the long jump (23-2.75).
Wise anchored the 4x400 relay to a second-place finish, and the unit�s 3:19.00 showing met the IC4A standard. Rob Naughter, Adam Carl, Pete Melendez and Wright teamed to place the 4x800 relay in the IC4A field. The foursome posted the fastest time by an Albany relay in 10 years with a time of 7:49.5.
Men�s Basketball Tied for 1st in NECC
In a season where Albany is not eligible for NCAA tournament play due to Division I transition rules, the Great Danes are in a position to reach their readjusted goals. Albany is tied for first place in the New England Collegiate Conference standings at press time with a 10-4 record, and are 17-6 overall.
"One of our goals was to win the conference," said Albany coach Scott Hicks, who is in his first season after replacing retired mentor Richard "Doc" Sauers. "Another goal was to win 20 games, while another is to win the ECAC championship and hang a banner in the RACC."
Albany ran off four consecutive victories previous to Saturday�s 89-75 loss at Sacred Heart to place itself into conference title contention. Andre Duncan�s 14 points and 11 rebounds keyed a 68-48 win against Massachusetts-Lowell, and provided his club with its 10th NECC win this season.
Albany finishes its NECC schedule on Sat., Feb. 14, at Stony Brook, before ending up with two home non-conference games against Old Westbury (Feb. 16) and Southern Vermont (Feb. 22).
Dane Notes: Senior Darrin Jahnel became the third Albany player this season to score his 1,000th career point on Feb. 7 ... Jahnel, the 21st player in school history to reach the coveted plateau, has 1,003 overall ... Andre Duncan, who has a 25-game double-figure scoring streak, hit the 1,000-mark on Nov. 28, and is currently eighth on the all-time scoring list with 1,393 points ... Tom McGoldrick ranks 15th in career scoring with 1,070, and achieved the scoring mark on Jan. 29 ... Duncan and McGoldrick each scored 30 points in a recent victory over Bridgeport ... their combined 60 points was the most by an Albany duo since March 1978 ... the Great Danes have posted 17-plus victories for the fifth time in the last seven years ... "Hoop Games - Great Danes Basketball" airs each Saturday at 1:30 p.m. on WNYT-TV (NewsChannel 13)
Women�s Basketball Struggling
The Great Danes have struggled to find victories in recent weeks with a sophomore-dominated squad. Albany dropped a 74-62 decision at Sacred Heart last Saturday, and fell to 12-11 overall and 6-8 in the New England Collegiate Conference.
Albany built a 44-32 advantage with 15:54 remaining behind the play of sophomore guard Dawn DiMicco, who scored a team-high 18 points. Sacred Heart, tied for second in the NECC standings, regrouped with a 17-4 run, and took a 49-48 lead on Jennifer Rimkus� fastbreak layup. The Pioneers, which shot 67 percent from the field in the second half, still led 57-53 with 6:26 left, but then pulled away when Heather Yablonski scored on a follow shot and Jessica Bresnahan nailed a three-pointer.
Melissa Schoonover had 13 points for the Great Danes, while Megan Buchanan added 12.
Dane Notes: Dawn DiMicco was named to the ECAC Division II Honor Roll as she averaged 18.0 points in two games last week ... DiMicco has scored in double figures in eight of her last 10 games ... Kelly Paolino, a junior guard, had a recent streak of 10 straight games in double-digit scoring ... Paolino has moved to seventh in career assists (219) and eighth in career steals (180) on Albany�s all-time charts ... freshman Liz Tucker was named the NECC Rookie of the Week on Feb. 2 .
Mari Warner coached her 400th college game on Feb. 7 ... Albany ends it schedule with an exhibition game against Nor�Easter Storm on Sun., Feb. 22 at 2 p.m.
