Bucknell University Athletics
From the AD's Desk
4/5/2013 8:00:00 AM | Bison Club
April 5, 2013
Greetings Bison Fans!
Another successful winter campaign is now in the books, and what an enjoyable and exciting season it was! The winter was highlighted by Patriot League championships in men's basketball and women's indoor track and field; a remarkable turnaround season for the women's basketball team; outstanding postseason showings by men's track and field and men's and women's swimming and diving; and the wrestling team qualifying two student-athletes for the NCAA Championships.
Coach Dave Paulsen and the Bison men's basketball team produced one of the finest seasons in the 118-year history of that storied program. The team won a school-record 28 games, including victories over teams such as Purdue, La Salle, George Mason and New Mexico State. The Bison went 12-2 in the Patriot League, and then won tough games against Navy, Army and Lafayette in the Patriot League Tournament. For the sixth time in program history, Bucknell competed in the NCAA Tournament, this time as the No. 11 seed in the East Region. Before a large, spirited Bucknell crowd at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky., the Bison made a big second-half run to take the lead, but an experienced Butler team made a few more plays down the stretch to put a bittersweet cap on a wonderful season.
The most emotional part of the loss to Butler was the realization that we would never again get to see seniors Mike Muscala, Joe Willman, Bryson Johnson and Colin Klebon in a Bucknell uniform. This senior class will go down as one of the best in program annals. They won a school-record 92 games in their four years, including a record 78 in their final three seasons. They won three straight outright Patriot League regular-season titles, something that had never been done before in league history. They went to two NCAA Tournaments and one NIT, and individually they left the Bucknell record book in shambles.
Muscala leaves as our all-time leading scorer, and he became the first player in school and league history with over 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds. Not only was Mike the Player of the Year and the Defensive Player of the Year in the Patriot League, but he was also the league's Scholar-Athlete of the Year, a National Academic All-American and one of 10 finalists for the Senior CLASS Award. Johnson will graduate as the all-time leading 3-point shooter in Bucknell and Patriot League history, and Willman played in more games than anyone in Bucknell basketball history.
It will not be easy to replace a senior class that accounted for over 4,600 points and meant so much more in terms of their leadership and grace off the court, but the future still looks very bright. There is plenty of returning talent in the program and another promising recruiting class coming in next fall. And I am very pleased that Coach Paulsen will be here to help the team make another run. Coach Paulsen agreed to a new five-year contract last week, and I am pleased that he will continue to bring his passion and expertise to our men's basketball program for years to come.
Kudos also go out to Aaron Roussell for a terrific 2012-13 women's basketball season. In his first year as head coach, the Bison won 15 games, tripling their victory total from the previous season. The team was lacking in depth this season, but made up for it with hustle and determination. I was very impressed with how the team finished the season. Those depth issues took their toll late in the year and led to an eight-game losing streak. But the team fought back and won a huge game over first-place Navy in the regular-season finale, and then they took down third-seeded American on the road in the Patriot League Tournament quarterfinals. The Bison were knocked out in the semifinals by eventual-champion Navy, but they went down fighting until the very end, and that is clearly going to be one of the hallmarks of Coach Roussell's teams moving forward.
Kevin Donner's women's indoor track and field team continued its dominance of the Patriot League by winning its 15th title in 23 years on Feb. 17 at West Point. The Bison entered the final day of the championship meet with a lead of just 1.67 points over second-place Lehigh. By the end of the day, Bucknell had outdistanced Lehigh by 56 points and runner-up Navy by 52. The Bison received contributions from up and down the lineup, winning five events and scoring points in all 20. Senior Caroline Tolli won the Patriot League title in the mile, and then two weeks later in Boston, she broke the school record in the mile in a third-place finish at the ECAC Championships. Other PL champions included Olivia Massey in the long jump, Alexandra Romanelli in the triple jump, Jennifer Zymet in the 500 meters and freshman Sophia Nnadi in the shot put.
The men's track and field team also won five events at the Patriot League Championships and finished a close second to Navy. The Bison have now placed first or second in five of the last six championships, as Coach Donner has done a tremendous job rebuilding the men's program into a league power. Bucknell scored 182 points at this year's meet, which would have been enough to win in many years. Luke Webster broke the Bucknell record in winning the shot put, and Luke has already broken the school mark in the discus outdoors this spring. Justin Hicks won the league title in the 60-meter dash, Ray Holmes won the triple jump, Kevin Keller captured the long jump, and John Westwood, Ryan Johnson, Chris Oesterlin and Andrew Garcia-Garrison combined to win gold in the distance medley relay.
This was Bucknell's year to host the Patriot League Swimming and Diving Championships – we are on a two-year hosting rotation with Navy – and once again the event was a major success.
The Bucknell women's team rode a huge final day to leapfrog Colgate and finish in second place behind Navy. Lauren Perry, Emma Levendoski, Kelly Pontecorvo and Katie Hetherington all won gold medals on the final day to help the Bison come from 24 points down to pass the Raiders. All told, the Bison won seven events this year, tying the program record set by the 2003 league-championship squad.
The Bison men's swimming and diving team finished third at the Patriot League Championships. Mike Nicholson continued his assault on the Bucknell record books. He set new school marks in all three of his individual events (200 IM, 400 IM, 200 breast), and he earned First Team All-Patriot League honors for the third year in a row. Christian Treat also earned First Team All-PL honors – his fourth straight all-conference citation – and he made history by becoming the first men's swimmer to earn three straight Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors.
After the meet, head coach Dan Schinnerer was named Patriot League Women's Coach of the Year for the first time in his career. Errol Carter captured his third PL Diving Coach of the Year honor, Levendoski was named Female Rookie of the Meet and Hetherington was selected as the Female Diver of the Meet.
The Bison wrestling team battled some injuries throughout the year, but they still had two wrestlers qualify for the NCAA Championships. Sophomore heavyweight Joe Stolfi finished third at the EIWA Championships and earned an automatic NCAA bid. Stolfi went 3-2 at nationals in Des Moines, Iowa and finished just one victory shy of earning All-America honors. Senior Corey Lear posted a team-best 26-8 record and was nationally ranked for most of the season. Lear earned an at-large bid to the NCAAs, but he had to withdraw due to an injury. It would have been his second career NCAA appearance.
The strong winter season helped elevate Bucknell into a tie for first place in the Patriot League Presidents' Cup standings. We stood in fourth place after the fall season, but now we are tied with Navy with 68 points in the overall Cup standings. In addition, Bucknell is a close second in both the Men's and Women's Cup races.
This winter we celebrated the 10th anniversary of the opening of the Kenneth Langone Athletics & Recreation Center. It's hard to believe the facility is 10 years old already, as it still feels brand new. This year we have stretched the limits of the KLARC as never before. Kinney Natatorium played host to the Southern Division Men's Water Polo Championship, the Patriot League Championships and the PIAA (Pennsylvania state high school) Swimming and Diving Championships.
In fact, for the first time ever, the PIAAs coincided with the Patriot League men's basketball championship game due to a change in the NCAA men's basketball calendar. But thanks to the hard work of administrative and events management staff, we were able to successfully host both events without a hitch.
The PIAA Championships bring more than $1.5 million into our local economy, with high school athletes and their parents and coaches from all over the state descending on Lewisburg for the week. We are proud to have successfully hosted this event for the last nine years and look forward to continuing our relationship with the PIAA and local swimming community.
And of course it was also a great night in Sojka Pavilion, as the Bison men's basketball team beat Lafayette for the Patriot League championship in front of a packed house. The support from our local community at Sojka Pavilion was amazing once again this season, helping us win our eighth straight Patriot League attendance title.
Also this winter we dedicated our brand new competition squash courts located in Gerhard Fieldhouse, and we have also recently expanded our late-night hours at the KLARC. In partnership with the Dean of Students and and Campus Activities and Programs offices, the Department of Athletics & Recreation is committed to providing Bucknell students with additional recreational opportunities that provide fun and healthy alternatives to alcohol consumption.
All of our spring sports are now well underway, and many of them are already coming down the stretch with big league games coming up. The Bison men's lacrosse team has enjoyed a terrific spring so far. Frank Fedorjaka's squad is off to a 9-2 start, with four of the wins coming against nationally ranked opponents. The best win was a 9-8 thriller at No. 2 Cornell. That victory, followed by a comeback win at No. 20 Albany, elevated the Bison to a No. 6 national ranking in the Nike/Inside Lacrosse Media Poll, which is the highest ranking in program history. The Bison have critical games coming up against Army, Lehigh and Colgate to finish the regular season. The Colgate game can be seen on CBS Sports Network on Apr. 20 at noon.
Spring football kicked off last week and will culminate with the annual Orange/Blue spring game on Saturday, Apr. 20, at 7 p.m. The level of focus and enthusiasm is very high, as this is a group that is intent on contending for championships in the very near future. Be sure to check out the list of incoming recruits for next season. Coach Joe Susan is very optimistic about this first class of scholarship student-athletes. The Bison return five all-conference players and 16 starters next season.
We are very excited to be taking Bison Athletics on the road again this spring. The Bison Club will be hosting receptions in seven different cities throughout the month of May. In a very special addition this year, former Bucknell President and Bison Athletics Hall of Famer Gary Sojka will be traveling along with many of our head coaches to each of the spring events. Gary will provide his perspective on the university's “We Do.” capital campaign and how it affects Bison Athletics.
The “We Do.” campaign officially launched on campus on Homecoming Weekend last fall, and since then President Bravman has already hosted very successful campaign events in San Francisco and Pittsburgh. The campaign tour continues in Boston and New York City in the fall, with more dates to be announced for 2014.
The future of Bison Athletics is very exciting – and it is going to be challenging at the same time, particularly with Boston University and Loyola University Maryland joining the Patriot League next year. Initiatives such as the renovation of Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium, and the implementation of merit aid in football and other sports all symbolize how the rapidly changing world of collegiate athletics impacts us every day here at Bucknell.
You can play a major role in our future by joining the Bison Club. Without the generous support of our annual Bison Club donors, our 93 Patriot League championships and 17 Presidents' Cups over the last 23 years would be just a dream.
It is quite easy to contribute to the Bison Club ONLINE, or to find out more about the Bison Club and its member benefits, please contact Todd Newcomb at 570-577-1771.
Finally, I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge two significant honors that were recently bestowed upon two of the legends of Bison Athletics. Sid Jamieson, who was the first and only head coach of the Bucknell men's lacrosse team from 1968-2005, was inducted into the American Indian Athletic Hall of Fame on March 16 in Kansas City, Mo. Sid has remained faithful to his native heritage throughout his life, and he incorporated much of that tradition into his teaching and coaching at Bucknell. Since retiring as head lacrosse coach eight years ago, Sid has remained at Bucknell in an important fundraising capacity, and his knowledge and friendship has been invaluable to me as director of athletics.
The same weekend that Sid was being honored in Kansas City, associate director of athletics for sports medicine Mark Keppler was presented with the Trainer of the Year award by the Central Pennsylvania Chapter of the National Football Foundation. He received the award in front of more than 800 people in State College. Mark is completing his 27th year as Bucknell's head athletic trainer. He succeeded the legendary Hal Biggs in that capacity, meaning Bucknell has had only two head athletic trainers since 1948!
My sincerest congratulations to Sid and Kep on these well-deserved honors!
To all of our loyal followers, enjoy springtime … and GO BISON!!!
All the best-
John P. Hardt
Director of Athletics & Recreation
Bucknell University
Previous installments of "From the AD's Desk"
-- August 15, 2005
-- September 26, 2005
-- December 1, 2005
-- April 6, 2006
-- August 3, 2006
-- August 28, 2006
-- October 22, 2006
-- March 26, 2007
-- May 25, 2007
-- August 8, 2007
-- November 20, 2007
-- March 30, 2008
-- June 10, 2008
-- June 12, 2008
-- Aug. 18, 2008
-- Dec. 19, 2008
-- Apr. 3, 2009
-- June 18, 2009
-- Aug. 21, 2009
-- December 21, 2009
-- April 1, 2010
-- June 15, 2010
-- April 15, 2011
-- November 28, 2011
-- July 13, 2012
-- Aug. 24, 2012
-- Dec. 14, 2012
