2009-2010 UNIVERSITY OF DAYTON MEN’S BASKETBALL
2008-2009 REVIEW The presidents and chancellors of Atlantic 10 institutions have made a strong commitment to making the academic and athletics equation work. Over the years, the league membership has strived to better recognize the academic accomplishments of its student-athletes. The Commissioner’s Honor Roll, which cites every Atlantic 10 student-athlete with a 3.5 grade point average or better, recognized 1,247 student-athletes in the Fall 2007 while 1,106 were named to the Spring 2008 Honor Roll.
Atlantic 10 Conference 230 South Broad Street Suite 1700 Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 545-6678 Fax: (215) 545-3342 www.atlantic10.org
Commissioner:...................................... Bernadette V. McGlade Associate Commissioner:................................. Jackie Campbell Associate Commissioner:........................................... Ray Cella Assistant Commissioner:................................Celene McGowan Assistant Commissioner:....................................... Megan Kahn Director of Communications:............................... Stephen Haug Associate Director of Communications:............AnnMarie Person Assistant Director of Championships:........................ Brad Jones Assistant Director of Compliance:............................ Kelly Webb Communications Intern:........................................... Ben Rohde Championships Intern:...........................................Pat Halloran Coord. of Men’s Basketball Officials:......................... Jim Satalin Coord. of Women’s Basketball/Field Hockey Officials:......... Marie Koch Assg. of Soccer/Softball Officials:..................... Nick Cinquanto Assg. of Volleyball Officials:.....................................Bill Stevens Assg. of Baseball Officials:..................................... Nick Zibelli
On March 2, 1975, the idea of what is now the Atlantic 10 Conference was conceived. What started as an eight-school, men’s basketball-only affiliation has grown into a 14-university, 21-sport league that is universally hailed as one of the best conferences in the country. That growth and prominence is a direct result of the ideals and commitments of the member institutions of the Atlantic 10 - the University of Dayton, Duquesne University, Fordham University, The George Washington University, La Salle University, University of Massachusetts, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, University of Rhode Island, University of Richmond, St. Bonaventure University, Saint Joseph’s University, Saint Louis University, Temple University, and Xavier University. On June 2, 2008, Bernadette V. McGlade was named the fifth full-time commissioner in Conference history, replacing Linda Bruno, who held the position for 13 years. McGlade’s experience in collegiate athletics as a student-athlete, coach and administrator spans more than thirty years. “Bernadette’s deep experience with arguably the class-act athletic conference [Atlantic Coast Conference] in the country makes us incredibly excited to be bringing her on board as commissioner of the Atlantic 10 Conference,” said Father Michael Graham, Xavier University president and president of the Atlantic 10 Presidents’ Council.
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The league sponsors Academic All-Conference teams in each of its sports and honors one student-athlete per sport as the A-10 Student-Athlete of the Year. In 2007-08, 192 student-athletes earned Academic All-Conference recognition. Moreover, the Atlantic 10 provides four postgraduate scholarship grants to qualified student-athletes. The Atlantic 10 Conference had 34 teams among the 712 Division I sports teams honored by the NCAA with public recognition awards for their latest multi-year Academic Progress Rate scores. These teams posted multi-year APR scores in the top 10 percent of all squads in their respective sports. Saint Louis and Xavier led the Atlantic 10 in the number of high-performing squads receiving awards with six teams each. In 20 of the 21 sports sponsored by the Atlantic 10, the league’s Academic Progress Rates (APR) were at or above the conference average nationally according to the most recent data released by the NCAA. Men’s swimming & diving standout Brad Byars of Saint Louis was among 58 NCAA winter-sport student-athletes to earn an educational grant for the upcoming academic year through the NCAA postgraduate scholarship program. Byars will continue his education at Saint Louis University where he will pursue a Juris Doctorate and Masters of Health Care Administration. The Atlantic 10 Conference, with a total population of nearly 74 million people within its geographic footprint of eight states and the District of Columbia, will crown champions in 21 sports this season: baseball, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s cross country, field hockey, men’s golf, women’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s indoor and outdoor track & field, women’s rowing, men’s and women’s soccer, softball, men’s and women’s swimming & diving, men’s and women’s tennis, and women’s volleyball. 2007-08 REVIEW For the 14th time in Conference history and fifth since 2000, the Atlantic 10 Conference ear ned multiple at-large berths to the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament as league champion Temple was joined by Xavier and Saint Joseph’s in the field of 65. Xavier advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament for the second time in program annals and became the 11th team to reach the Elite Eight as a member of the Atlantic 10. XU ended the year ranked eighth by ESPN/USA Today and 12th by the Associated Press. Charlotte, Dayton, Massachusetts and Rhode Island earned NIT bids, with Dayton advancing to the quarterfinals and UMass reaching the finals. In addition, Richmond garnered a berth in the inaugural 16-team College Basketball Invitational In women’s basketball, George Washington reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year and was joined in the tournament by Temple and A-10 champion Xavier. It marked the third time in four seasons that three teams from the Conference received NCAA berths. Charlotte and Dayton also represented the league in postseason play as they garnered WNIT bids. For the first time since 1985, two teams from the Atlantic 10 advanced to the NCAA Women’s Volleyball Championship as A-10 champion Dayton and runner-up Xavier earned berths. It marked the Musketeers’ first-ever NCAA at-large bid, while UD reached the second round for the first time since 2003. In men’s soccer, A-10 champion Massachusetts reached the semifinals of the NCAA College Cup and ended the year ranked fourth in the final NSCAA/Adidas top 25, while Saint Louis made its second consecutive NCAA appearance and earned a No. 12 ranking in the NSCAA/Adidas poll at the end of the season. Charlotte seized its first-ever A-10 women’s soccer championship and third NCAA Tournament berth. In softball, UMass won its 20th league championship and advanced to the NCAA Regional finals, Richmond captured its seventh straight A-10 women’s swimming & diving championship and Massachusetts took home the men’s crown for the third consecutive year and 10th time overall. Charlotte climbed to 18th in the national baseball polls during the regular season and defended its A-10 title, while Temple took home its first league championship in women’s lacrosse since 2004. In cross country, La Salle won its fourth consecutive women’s crown while the Explorers’ men’s team won their sixth title in the past seven years. Massachusetts captured its first A-10 field hockey championship since 2001 and downed Princeton in NCAA play.
Charlotte defended its league title in men’s golf and earned the school’s first-ever No. 1 ranking in any sport during the regular season. The 49ers finished in a tie for eighth at the NCAA Championship and ended the year ranked in the top 10 in every major poll. Xavier won its first-ever men’s tennis title and earned the accompanying NCAA automatic berth, while Temple claimed its first A-10 women’s tennis crown since 2003. Rhode Island’s women’s rowing team claimed its first-ever A-10 championship, Charlotte defended its women’s indoor and outdoor track & field titles, the 49ers’ men’s team captured the indoor crown while Rhode Island won its third consecutive men’s outdoor track & field championship. In all, 437 teams have represented the Atlantic 10 Conference in postseason play since the 1976-77 campaign. Individually, the 2007-08 campaign was a great success both in competition and in the classroom. Kimberly Beck of George Washington garnered Associated Press and WBCA honorable mention women’s basketball All-America honors in addition to being tabbed a finalist for the Nancy Lieberman Award, presented to the nation’s top point guard. Massachusetts senior Gary Forbes, the 2008 Atlantic 10 Player of the Year in men’s basketball, was named an honorable mention All-America by the Associated Press, while Stanley Burrell of Xavier was tabbed a Defensive All-America by CollegeInsider.com. Massachusetts’ Zack Simmons, a member of the College Cup All-Tournament Team, was named a third-team men’s soccer AllAmerica and the Umbro/Soccer News National Player of the Year. Calum Angus of Saint Louis garnered second-team men’s soccer All-America acclaim and Charlotte women’s soccer standouts Whitney Bryant and Sam Huecker earned fourth-team freshman All-America honors. Charlotte catcher Chris Taylor, the Atlantic 10 Co-Player of the Year, earned third-team All-America baseball honors, while Billy Barber of Richmond and Charlotte’s Corey Shaylor and Joe Yermal garnered freshman All-America accolades. In softball, Massachusetts junior Brandice Balschmiter received second-team All-America distinction, her third All-America honor in as many seasons. Alli Lokey of Temple was named a second-team All-America in field hockey, while Temple’s Whitney Richards received third-team women’s lacrosse All-America honors. Teammates Jonas Enander Hedin and Corey Nagy of Charlotte garnered third-team and honorable mention All-America golf honors, respectively, with Enander Hedin being tabbed a finalist for the prestigious Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan and Jack Nicklaus National Player of the Year awards. Jamie-Lee Richards and Erin Schroeder of Dayton and Xavier’s Jill Quayle received honorable mention All-America honors in women’s volleyball; La Salle’s Sean Quigley claimed All-America honors in men’s indoor (3,000 meters/5,000 meters) and outdoor (10,000 meters) track & field; teammates Lauren Beaudreau and Katie Sieben of Richmond qualified for the U.S. Olympic Women’s Swimming & Diving Trials, while Quigley competed in the 10,000 meters at the U.S. Olympic Trials. Atlantic 10 student-athletes thrived in the classroom as well. In all, 12 Atlantic 10 student-athletes were named to ESPN The Magazine/ CoSIDA Academic All-America teams. First-team Academic All-America honorees were Lamarra Currie of Charlotte (women’s track & field), St. Bonaventure’s Randy Moley (baseball), Lindsey Ozimek of Charlotte (women’s soccer) and Fordham’s Mary Beth Puccio (softball). Second-team Academic All-Americans included Paul Amess (men’s golf) of Temple, St. Bonaventure’s Brianna Bricker (softball), Jonas Enander Hedin (men’s golf) of Charlotte, Dayton’s Laura Matthews (softball) and Doug Rappaport (men’s soccer) of Massachusetts. Those named third-team Academic All-Americans included Kaelyn Caldwell (women’s soccer) of Massachusetts, George Washington’s Sarah-Jo Lawrence (women’s basketball) and Katelyn Murray (women’s basketball) of St. Bonaventure. Charlotte’s Lindsey Ozimek (women’s soccer) was named to the Lowe’s Senior CLASS All-America first-team, while Carlene Hightower (women’s basketball) of La Salle, George Washington’s Sarah-Jo Lawrence (women’s basketball) and Brian Roberts of Dayton (men’s basketball) garnered second-team distinction. The Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award recognizes student-athletes for great achievement during competition and in the classroom while celebrating the loyalty of seniors who honor their four-year commitment to their universities. The acronym “CLASS” stands for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School.