October 20, 2008
From the Nashua Telegraph:
College Journal: Coaches excited about upcoming basketball season

The following article was published in the Nashua Telegraph October 20, 2008
A link to the original article can be found by clicking here.

By Tom King, Staff Writer

Nashua, N.H. – The magical day that men's and women's college basketball coaches circle on the calendar has come and gone.

Yes, the balls are bouncing again in the Rivier College Muldoon Center and Daniel Webster's Vagge Gym. Raiders coach Dave Morrisette started his men's basketball season at the ripe hour of 6 a.m. this past Wednesday, while later that afternoon new Eagles head coach Dave Faucher, most known as the long-time Dartmouth College coach, welcomed the troops.

You want numbers? Faucher, thanks mainly to the recruiting of former Eagles coach Jeremy Currier, had 22 players on the floor. And the Raiders weren't far behind with 17.

Faucher's return to the college hardwood was noteworthy.

"I actually enjoyed the last few days," he said. "We have good numbers, good athleticism, and they're very willing. It's superseded everything I thought.

Faucher has plenty to build from, with last year's GNAC Rookie of the Year, 6-foot-2 guard Chris Hanson (Salem, Mass.), who averaged 13.4 points and 4.6 boards a game, leading the way.

"He can shoot it, we're working on the other parts of his game," Faucher said.

Salem's Steve Savage, now a sophomore, has added about 10 pounds to his frame that averaged just over nine points a game last year. Faucher has also liked how returnees Adam Landry, Brian Inge (the team's third leading scorer a year ago) and Chris Voukides (also of Salem) have looked.

"They all love basketball," Faucher said. "The problem is we have to move slow because everything is so new. The offense is complex, terminology different, etc."

But the key is the coaching change hasn't pushed players away. In fact, Faucher is organizing a 'B' team of about 10 players that will take on smaller institutions outside the New England Collegiate Conference, such as Northern Essex Community College in Haverhill, Mass. and Southern Maine Community College in South Portland, Maine.

Meanwhile, Morissette has 10 new players to blend into his program, with two Nashuans, senior point guard Lance Bisson and junior big man Felipe Lima leading the way.

"We got a good group, a lot of new kids, a lot to put in, a lot to work with," said Morissette, whose team is coming off a 13-13 season. "I've been spoiled the last few years with all the veterans."

Some new faces to watch: 6-5 Mark Williams (Malden, Mass.), guard Will Snyder out of northern New Jersey, 6-4 Shawn Stoodley (Salem) and former 6-2 Arlington Catholic standout Joe Granato, to name a few. Certainly fans think of what this team did two years ago come tourney time, winning the GNAC, but that's the furthest from the head coach's mind right now.

"I'm always eager," Morissette said, "but I can't think about (projections) right now. There's just too much to do."

DWC fifth at golf championships

The Daniel Webster College golf team placed fifth out of seven teams at the inaugural New England Collegiate Conference championships last weekend at Chicopee (Mass.) Country Club, with Springfield College taking the title with a two-day total of 646.

The Eagles finished with a 704, ahead of Elms College (720) and Newbury (778), and were led by Dave Jamieson (Buzzards Bay, Mass.), who tied for 10th overall of 34 with a two day total of 167 (85-82), while Mike Fuller (Chelmsford, Mass.) tied for 12th with a 189 (89-80).

Adam Greeno (Brandon, Vt.) placed third for the Eagles and was 21st overall (94-89-183), followed by Mike Adams (Frankfort, Maine) in 22nd (97-88-185) and Greg Repko (Stratford, Conn.) in 32nd (109-107-216).

Honor roll

• First, the good times keep rolling for Merrimack's Amanda Wilson and the DWC women's volleyball program, which has already notched a school record 10 wins this season.

Wilson, a freshman outside hitter, earned her third Rookie of the Week award this season after hitting .200 while averaging 1.67 kills and 1.33 digs and service aces per set.

She recorded four kills with no errors on 12 attempts and added four aces and seven digs in a loss to Mount Ida. She followed that up with nine kills, two aces, and four digs against Regis and finished up with two kills, six aces, and a dig in a victory over Becker.

• It was a clean sweep for the Eagles, as Concord's Kristina Rieger was named NECC Player of the Week as well.

In three recent matches, Rieger, a junior middle backer, registered a .425 attack percentage, averaging 2.33 kills per set and 1.22 digs per set. She six kills and one error on 15 attempts and added four digs and three blocks in the Mount Ida contest, then had six kills, seven digs, two aces and two blocks vs. Regis and ended her stupendous stretch with nine kills, three aces and a block over Becker.

• Eagles freshman field hockey goalie Amy Prince of Hope Valley, R.I. was named both NECC Player and Rookie of the week.

She began with eight saves, including six in the first half, in a recent 2-1 win over Wheelock College. Then, despite allowing six goals in a 6-0 loss to Thomas College, Prince made a season-high 20 saves, including 12 in the second half. To put things in perspective, DWC was outshot 26-1 by the Terriers.