By Taylor Nigrelli
Assignment Sports Editor
After witnessing a banner year for St. Bonaventure athletics in 2012, Bonnie fans suffered through disappointing campaigns for nearly every varsity team.
The two most prominent teams on campus, men’s and women’s basketball, both missed their respective Atlantic 10 tournaments a year after they both made NCAA tournament appearances. To make matters worse, none of the fall sports made much noise in conference play, while the spring sports have struggled mightily thus far.
However, there were some bright spots and exciting moments for the Brown and White faithful this year. A few athletes turned out spectacular efforts while some teams exceeded expectation. In fact, there were seven remarkable performances, accomplishments achieved and milestones reached worth recognizing this year.
7. Sudbrook earns 600th win
The baseball team helped the 28th-year head coach earn his 600th win in exciting fashion. Trailing rival Saint Joseph’s 5-4 heading into the top of the ninth inning, the Bonnies rallied to win, 6-5. Sudbrook’s 600 victories represent the most of any coach for any sport in St. Bonaventure history.
6. Basketball teams raise banners
St. Bonaventure honored the men’s and women’s 2012 NCAA tournament teams in banner-raising ceremonies before each team’s home opener. The men’s team received two banners, one for its A-10 championship and one for its second round appearance in the NCAA tournament. The women’s team also earned two banners for its undefeated A-10 regular season title and for its run to the Sweet Sixteen. Both teams followed the ceremonies with victories to open the season.
5. Men’s basketball makes it cloudy in Philadelphia
Coming off a six-game losing streak (including four by 19 or more points), the Bonnies salvaged the season by beating eventual NCAA Tournament nine seed Temple and preseason A-10 favorite Saint Joseph’s in consecutive games in Philadelphia. Junior guard Matt Wright exploded for 40 points total in the two games. The Bonnies were unable to complete the Philly sweep, however, as they fell to La Salle at home in overtime later in the season.
4. Women’s soccer thrills in double OT
The women’s soccer team continued its run as St. Bonaventure’s most successful sports team this year by appearing in its fifth consecutive A-10 tournament. But the road to the postseason tournament was not as smooth this year as it had been in the past — the squad needed to win each of its final three games to qualify. With the season on the line in double overtime against Xavier, sophomore Molly Curry buried a shot to give the Bonnies a victory. Incredibly, Curry repeated this feat the next week in double overtime against Massachusetts. The team clinched its fifth consecutive postseason appearance with a 2-1 win over Rhode Island days later.
3. Rugby earns spot in National Sweet Sixteen
Only months after adopting the “Bonnies” nickname, the men’s rugby team crushed Rutgers 69-11 to become one of 16 teams to earn a spot in the D1-AA USA National Rugby Championship. The squad will travel to Pittsburgh to participate in the tournament starting this weekend.
2. Mosley scores 39 vs. UMass
Over the course of the season, senior Eric Mosley transformed himself from a streaky scorer off the bench to the Bonnies’ most dangerous scoring option. The guard from Louisville, Ky. caught fire against the Minutemen and put on a show the crowd in the Reilly Center will not soon forget. He finished 12-18 from the field, including 5-8 from beyond the arc to finish with 39 points as the Bonnies captured a 99-94 victory. The total represents the most a St. Bonaventure player has ever scored in an A-10 contest and the most in any regulation game since 1978.
1. Men’s swimming and diving wins A-10 Championship
Because of St. Bonaventure’s fiscal limitations and relatively small student population, A-10 championships tend to be few and far between. It’s difficult, then, for an A-10 Championship to be anything but the best sports moment of any given year. This was no ordinary conference championship, however; the Bonnies completely dominated the competition. After six consecutive years of finishing second to Massachusetts, the Bonnies finally defeated the Minutemen for the 2013 A-10 men’s swimming and diving championship and earned every conference award along the way. Sean McNamee was named Coach of the Year, sophomore Vatslav Lets earned Most Outstanding Performer, senior Mike Murphy was named Most Oustanding Diver, Coach Stephanie O’Callaghan was honored as Men’s Diving Coach of the Year and Most Oustanding Rookie went to freshman Viacheslav Shchukin.
Swimming isn’t nearly as popular of a sport as basketball, and the team doesn’t garner as much attention as the basketball players do. But at the end of the day, what matters is what’s accomplished on the court, field, pitch or pool. This year in St. Bonaventure sports belonged to men’s swimming and diving.
