Pearl River's O'Sullivan Named To All-Metro First Team

Pearl River kicker Conner O’Sullivan has proved he can kick from anywhere on a football field this fall. Whether it be working out with his coaches or nailing 52-yarder on a windy fall day, the senior has shown that he is one of the biggest weapons in section one football.

The crew at MSG Varsity recently announced the All Metro first and second team along with the honorable mention and it came to no surprise that O’Sullivan made it to the top of the list of specialists. The first team is made up of the top 25 players from the tri-state area.

College Sports Notes

RCC Lady Hawks on roll, take aim on another victory

Coach Rick Jacobson and the Rockland Community College women’s basketball team--which is riding a six-game winning streak and has visions of a Region XV championship dancing in its collective head--are hoping to wrap up another victory Wednesday night in Suffern before breaking for the holiday.

The Lady Hawks, 7-4 overall, host Borough of Manhattan CC (3-7) at 6 p.m. in a preliminary to the men’s contest.

“I got a team this year, that’s the word on the street,” enthuses Jacobson, a Nanuet resident working his third season on the sideline. “Of our four losses, three were by five points or less. We don’t have a big center, but we have a lot of team speed, and move the ball around.”

Leading the charge is Nikki Saponaro of Nanuet, a transfer from Johnson & Wales University in Providence, RI, who was just named Mid-Hudson Conference athlete of the week.

Saponaro, an alumna of Nanuet High, is averaging a team-high 10.7 points a game as the 2-guard, to go along with 3.5 assists a game and close to three steals each time on the court.

“She drives, she shoots … between creating steals, she’s shooting lights out from three-point range,” noted Jacobson. “She is shooting 45 percent from three-point range, which is phenomenal. She’s just an all-around threat.”           

Saponaro scored 15 points in the Lady Hawks’ 61-27 rout of Bronx, and 17 points in a 77-69 victory over Kingsborough to earn Mid-Hudson Conference accolades.

Several players complement Saponaro, including point guard Christine Brezovsky, another Nanuet High graduate. The Towson (MD) University transfer is averaging 8.5 points, three assists and three steals a game, and is hitting 93 percent of her shots from the free-throw line.

Jacobson also had high praise for 3-guard Katie Sovak of Tuxedo, who is also above 10 points a game and is averaging five rebounds.

“She can be used at the point, too, and also at the 4-(guard),” Jacobson continued.

“We don’t have a lot of height,” repeated Jacobson, “but we share the ball very well. We don’t have just one person to guard; you have to guard everyone.”

Another threat is Melissa Loughhane of Pearl River, who has been scoring eight points a game and grabbing five rebounds each game. She is also a long-range threat, hitting 30 percent from beyond the arc.

Despite the Lady Hawks’ offensive strength, the team defense has also contributed to the hot streak, and has been stingy throughout the season.

RCC is leading Region XV, allowing just 46.5 points a game, a testament to their team speed.

“We use a match-up zone, a zone, man-to-man, and trap and press a lot,” said Jacobson. “For sure, we make the most of our team speed.”

Following Wednesday night’s game, the Lady Hawks break until Jan. 3 in the New Year when they will be home again, this time to welcome Hostos CC at 6 p.m.

Walker is wonderful

Albertus Magnus alumna Alaina Walker, a junior defensive specialist, locked down on the University of Buffalo’s leading scorer, Brittany Hedderson, holding her to just nine points, nine below her average, in a 76-45 victory.

Hedderson, a senior from Ontario, was coming off a 31-point performance against Canisius.

Walker, a junior, also scored nine points for the Bonnies, all in the second half, finishing with five rebounds, a team-high three assists and two steals.

St. Bonaventure (8-1) closed the first half on a 16-0 run in just over two minutes and never looked back en route to a historic victory: the 31-point margin is the largest in series history, spanning 23 games.

The Bonnies visit Colgate (1-10) in Hamilton on Thursday at 2 p.m.

Mortarboard musings

Clarkstown North graduate Donna Straub of Congers is a freshman all-around competitor on the powerhouse Towson University women’s gymnastics team. The Tigers, the six-time defending Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference champion, are off until Jan. 15 when they visit Ursinus in Collegeville, PA. Other colleges competing that day are West Chester and Wilson.

Junior forward Justin Daniels of Suffern won nine of 13 face-offs at the Northeastern University hockey team upended No. 18 UMass Lowell, 3-2, for its sixth straight victory heading into the holiday break. The Huskies, now 7-7-2 on the season after a rough start, last put together a six-game streak from Dec. 6, 1997 to Jan. 3, 1998. Northeastern travels to Minneapolis, MN, for the Mariucci Classic hosted by the University of Minnesota on Dec. 30-31. The Huskies’ first-round opponent will be against Princeton (4-9-2, 3-7-1 ECAC), and then they take on the winner/loser of the other side of the bracket, facing either Niagara (5-5-6, 4-2-5 Atlantic) or Minnesota (14-5-1, 11-3-0 WCHA).

The Nyack College men’s basketball team continues to search for its first win of the season following an 88-68 loss to Philadelphia University. Senior forward Lafayette Curtis of Staten Island had a team-high 15 points for the Warriors, who return to action on Dec. 30 at Dowling College at 7 p.m. The Nyack women, also looking for their first victory, try again on Dec. 30 when they host St. Anselm’s at Bowman Gymnasium in a non-conference game. Tip-off is 5 p.m. Meghan Richards of Nanuet, a freshman forward, is averaging seven points and three rebounds a game. She also has six assists and nine steals.

The Southern Connecticut State University men's basketball team, including freshman guard Luke Houston of Pearl River, is back in action after a week off for final exams. The Owls turn their attention to Concordia College on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. at Moore Field House in New Haven, CT. Both teams are 5-4. Houston is already making an impact, averaging seven points a game.

Former Tappan Zee standout Ryan Sheridan of Blauvelt, a senior guard, had four points, an assist and four steals as the Oswego State men’s basketball team (8-1, 5-0 SUNYAC) handed the 14th-ranked Buffalo State Bengals (6-1, 3-1) their first loss of the season in dominating fashion, 85-71. The Lakers host Cazenovia College (4-17) tonight, and then break until Jan. 3 when they travel to Edinburg, TX, to challenge the University of Texas-Pan American.

Andrew Shepard of West Nyack had another strong day in the distance freestyle events, but the College of Mount Saint Vincent men’s swimming team was overtaken at Skyline Conference rival Old Westbury, 98-66. Shepard, a sophomore and Clarkstown South alumna, won the 1,000-yard event with a clocking of 12:33.49.  Shepard, and freshman Xavier Salce of Brooklyn, who won three events, also had strong efforts in the 500-yard freestyle and the 100-yard freestyle, respectively. Shepard placed second in the distance event in 6:04.63, while Salce closed out a strong day with a second-place finish in the 100-yard freestyle in 58.06. The Dolphins (1-5) return to action on Jan. 11 when they travel to league rival Mount Saint Mary. Meet time in Newburgh is set for 6 p.m.

Senior guard Carol Johnson of New City is averaging 10 points and five rebounds per game for the Pace University women’s basketball team that has won seven of its first nine games. Johnson also has 22 assists and 10 steals for the Lady Setters, who host 8-0 Assumption College of Worcester, MA, on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. Pace hosts St. Thomas Aquinas College of Sparkill on Dec. 30, also at 1:30.

Yesterday’s Results:

Sport: Boys Basketball (Tuesday)

Game: Tappan Zee vs. Pearl River

Score:

Highlights: Bill O’Shea led Tappan Zee with 16 points, Brendan Donohue added 12 and Pat Peterson tacked on 11. Austin O’Toole scored half his teams points (23) in the loss. Tappan Zee would go on to last night.

Sport: Boys Basketball

Game: Nanuet vs. Pearl River

Score: Pearl River Won 58-41

Highlights: Sean Wilson and Kevin Degnan each had 18 points for the Pirates as Pearl River cruised past Nanuet. Mat Mulligan and Turee Jackson had 12 points each in the loss.

Sport: Ice Hockey

Game: North Rockland vs. Pearl River

Score: Pearl River Won 3-1

Sport: Girls Basketball

Game: Suffern vs. Albertus Magnus

Score: Albertus Magnus Won 67-32

Highlights: Kelly Guarino led all scorers with 21 points and Maeve Parahus added 18 in the win. Suffern’s Kaitlyn Wood picked up 11 points.

Today’s Schedule:

In girls basketball, Pearl River will host Clarkstown South at 4 p.m.

In wrestling, Pearl River heads to Clarkstown North at 4:30 p.m.