UALBANY SOFTBALL CAPTURES AMERICA EAST CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP

Great Danes Down Stony Brook, 4-0, to Earn Automatic Berth in NCAA Tournament

Stony Brook, N.Y. – Junior right-hander Amanda Morin fired a one-hit shutout to lead top-seeded UAlbany to a 4-0 victory over fourth-seeded Stony Brook in the America East Conference Softball Championship at Stony Brook’s University Field on Saturday, May 14.

UAlbany (35-12) earns the conference’s automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament. The softball team is the second UAlbany women’s program to earn a Division I NCAA Tournament bid. The field of 64 will be announced Sunday at 7:30 p.m. on ESPNews. The top 16 teams will host four-team regionals on May 20-22.

Morin, who was named the tournament’s most outstanding player, hurled her seventh one-hitter and eighth shutout of the season. The Gansevoort, N.Y. native walked one and struck out seven to improve to 16-2 overall.

"It was nice for the team to come out strong and score some runs," said Morin, whose team had won its second straight America East regular-season title. "It made it easier to pitch with a cushion. We deserve to be in the NCAA Tournament because the whole team played all out all season long."

The Great Danes, who set a program record with 35 wins at the Division I level, gave Morin all the run support she needed with four runs in the first. Amber Maisonet and Kelly Ogden delivered consecutive singles. Maisonet later scored on a throwing error before Ashley Rios smacked a single to plate Ogden. Erika Enocksen added a RBI double to right field and scored on the Seawolves’ second error of the inning.

"This is the next step we have been looking to take for the last couple of years," said UAlbany coach Chris Cannata, whose team made its second appearance in three years in the title game. "The NCAA Tournament is going to be a great experience for the players. They have worked hard all year. We have been focusing on Selection Sunday since day one."

Maisonet, Ogden, Rios and Casey Halloran joined Morin on the all-tournament team.

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#4 Stony Brook (22-36) 000 000 0 - 0 1 4

#1 UAlbany (35-12) 400 000 x - 4 8 1

Stony Brook – Angela Andrews and Rachael Vogl.

UAlbany –Amanda Morin and Ali Meacham.

UALBANY CAPTURES THIRD STRAIGHT AMERICA EAST LACROSSE TITLE WITH 16-7 VICTORY

Albany, N.Y. – Chris Martocchia scored a career-high six goals and Merrick Thomson added five goals and one assist in leading UAlbany to its third consecutive America East Conference men’s lacrosse championship with a 16-7 victory over Stony Brook on Saturday, May 7 at University Field. The Great Danes earned their third straight NCAA berth as the conference’s tournament champion.

UAlbany (10-5) opened the contest with four unanswered goals. Thomson cut to the top of the crease and deposited Luke Daquino’s pass from behind the cage with just one minute and 42 seconds elapsed. Brendan Russell, who had three goals, then scored back-to-back on a pair of bounce shots. His 15-yard blast following an intercepted clearing attempt gave his team a 3-0 lead. Meanwhile, the championship’s most outstanding player Kevin Rae, a senior goalkeeper, made eight of his 14 saves in the first quarter to ensure that UAlbany got off to that good start.

Stony Brook (10-6), who upset top-seed UMBC in the semifinal round, was still within striking distance midway through the second period, when Adam Marksberry tallied an extra-man goal to close the gap to 6-3. But the Great Danes reeled off three consecutive goals and were never in trouble after that point. Freshman Jordan Levine hit the top left corner while running free in the middle of the field after a failed clear. Martocchia scored twice in a 40-second span, the second goal on a shot from the left side in a man-advantage situation.

The Great Danes, who led by six at halftime, would use another three-goal run in the final seven minutes of the third quarter to seal the verdict. Daquino, who had one goal and four assists, finished off Frank Resetarits' crossing pass, before Martocchia and Thomson added goals for a commanding 13-5 margin.

"Our attitude and approach to this game was excellent," said UAlbany coach Scott Marr, whose team reached the 10-win mark, a school record, for the third consecutive season. "This group has learned how to win. They played together and our defense was awesome."

Bo Tripoldi and Rhys Duchs each had two goals for the Seawolves, who had won five of their last seven games entering the championship final. Jason Cappadoro added three assists. UAlbany’s Resetarits handed out a career-best six assists for an attack that scored 10-plus goals for the tenth time this season.

"We didn’t settle for anything but a championship," said Russell, who joined Rae, Daquino, Thomson and defenseman Patrick McSweeney on the all-tournament team. "Our seniors represent Coach Marr’s first recruiting class, so we were on a mission this week. I tried to be more assertive, and it always helps when you make that first shot of the game."

The Great Danes, who played Princeton and last year’s national champion Syracuse in their previous two NCAA appearances, will find out their opponent on Sunday evening when the tournament field in unveiled.

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America East Conference Men’s Lacrosse Championship

UAlbany 16, Stony Brook 7

Stony Brook – Scoring: Bo Tripoldi 2-0, Rhys Duchs 2-0, Adam Marksberry 1-1, Chris Tracey 1-0, Michael Trojanowski 1-0, Jason Cappadoro 0-3, Gregory Karanzalis 0-1, Sean Chamberlain 0-1, Goalkeeper(s): Matt Ural (30:00, 3 saves, 10 GA), Brendan Callahan (27:51, 4 saves, 6 GA), Errol Wilson (2:09, 0 saves, 0 GA).

UAlbany – Scoring: Chris Martocchia 6-0, Merrick Thomson 5-1, Brendan Russell 3-0, Luke Daquino 1-4, Jordan Levine 1-0, Frank Resetarits 0-6, Craig McDonald 0-1; Goalkeeper(s): Kevin Rae (60:00, 14 saves, 7 GA).

UAlbany Men’s Outdoor Track Claims Its 2nd America East Championship In Three Years

Vestal, N.Y. – Gered Burns and Kamar Elliott finished first in their respective events to lead the University at Albany men’s track and field team to the 2005 America East Conference Championship at Binghamton University’s Track Stadium. Burns won the 1,500-meter run with a time of 3:53.63 to set a facility record, while Elliott posted a distance of 47-feet, 5.75-inches to take first place in the triple jump.

The Great Danes, who finished the competition with 192.83 points, had six individual champions. Jonathan Jones, Marc Pallozzi, Eric Opuana and Andy Allstadt all finished first in their respective events on the first day of competition to help UAlbany to the team championship. Elliott also placed second in the long jump on Saturday.

Allstadt, who won the 10,000-meter run, also placed third in the 5,000-meter run on the second day with a time of 15:07.12. Michael Lynch placed second in the shot put with a distance of 48-feet, 4.75-inches. Sheldon Gomes also posted a second-place finish in the triple jump with a leap of 47-feet, 3-inches.

"This was really gratifying because it was a total team effort," said UAlbany coach Roberto Vives, whose squad was edged out for the title at last year's outdoor championship by one-half point after winning the 2003 crown. "We learned how to close out in a meet that was competitive right to the end. We had several people step up their performances, including Sheldon Gomes coming back from hernia surgery to take second in the triple jump. That kind of effort helped our team score."

The UAlbany women finished fifth in the team standings by scoring 83 points. Alyssa Lotmore paced the Great Danes, placing second in the 5,000-meter run with an ECAC-qualifying time of 17:17.53. Lotmore also finished fourth in the 1,500-meter run in 4:37.94.

Joy Williams led the team in the field events, finishing second with a 42-foot, 5.25-inch performance in the shot put.

Northeastern, with 192 team points, won the women’s championship, followed by Boston U. , New Hampshire and Binghamton .

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MEN

1. UAlbany 192.83, 2. New Hampshire 177, 3. UMBC 110, 4. Binghamton 98.5, 5. Maine 86, 6. Northeastern 76.67, 7. Boston U. 58, 8. Stony Brook 23, 9. Vermont 21, 10. Hartford 6.

WOMEN

1. Northeastern 192, 2. Boston U. 124.5, 3. New Hampshire 113, 4. Binghamton 95.5, 5. UAlbany 83, 6. Maine 76, 7. UMBC 72, 8. Vermont 60, 9. Stony Brook 25, 10. Hartford 12.