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Notables

News and notes from around D-III

March-April, 2002

Denison coaching
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GRANVILLE, Ohio — Denison has named Robert Ghiloni as its new head men's basketball coach. Ghiloni, who is Denison's 20th head coach in the program's 103-year history, comes to Denison from Bishop Ready High School in Columbus where he has been boys' basketball head coach the past 15 seasons. Ghiloni's Ready squad posted an impressive 23-5 record and reached the Division III state tournament finals.

Ghiloni is the second new coach for Denison in two seasons, succeeding Matt Dean, who returned to take the women's head coaching position at Rhodes to after coaching the Big Red to a 6-20 record in 2001-02, not including a forfeit win against Oberlin. Dean succeeded Bill Lee, who was not renewed after a 5-19 season in 2000-01.

A native of nearby Newark, Ohio, Ghiloni graduated from Ohio State in 1981 with a bachelor of science degree in secondary education. He earned his master of science degree in education from Dayton in 1985.

"We are thrilled that Bob has accepted our offer to become Denison's new men's basketball coach. He has been a highly successful and well-respected coach in central Ohio throughout his professional career and he has won without sacrificing his program's integrity." said Denison President Dale T. Knobel. "Bob has earned a reputation in the community as a committed educator and an outstanding leader and those qualities make him a perfect fit for Denison."

Ghiloni directed a dramatic turnaround in the Ready program which resulted in six consecutive winning seasons, two district championships and this year's trip to the state championship. This year, Ready won its first Central Catholic League championship since 1979 and made its first state tournament appearance since 1973.

Along with his coaching duties, Ghiloni was director of admissions at Ready and also has served as director of student and academic affairs and director of guidance. He has also taught courses in world history and American history.

"We're all looking forward to Bob's presence on campus and his contributions to our program," said Larry Scheiderer, Denison's director of athletics, recreation and physical education. "He has already met with our department staff and the student leadership of our men's basketball team, and they all share my enthusiasm."

Prior to coaching at Ready, Ghiloni spent three seasons as an assistant at Capital. Ghiloni has also served as an instructor and administrator for several local and regional basketball camps.

Before transferring to Ohio State as an undergraduate, Ghiloni attended OSU's Newark Campus for two years and played his collegiate basketball there. While at OSU-N, he served as team captain and earned several honors, including the Coach's Award and the McGrevey Scholar-Athlete Award.

At Denison, Ghiloni's appointment also includes academic rank as an assistant professor on the faculty of the University's department of athletics, physical education and recreation, and he will assume other coaching or administrative duties within the department.

In basketball, Andrea Collesidis was Eastern's all-time leading scorer. This past week, she became collegiate lacrosse's all-time leading scorer.

The record-breaker came at the 27:20 mark of the first half, giving the Eagles an early 3-0 lead.

Collesidis is the first and only Division III women's lacrosse player to surpass 300 career goals.

Collesidis will attempt to extend her record and try to continue her chase for other marks as the Eagles have two regular season contests left and have qualified for the PAC tournament.

Collesidis is also climbing up the Division III (third) and all-divisions career Scoring List (sixth) will 375 (314 goals, 61 assists) career points.

An outstanding two-sport athlete, Collesidis was named PAC Player of the Year in women's basketball. She finished her basketball career at Eastern as its all-time leading scorer with 1,956 points.

Former All-American named head coach at MSOE
Jessica Ott, an assistant women’s basketball coach at Milwaukee School of Engineering during the 2001-2002 season, has been promoted to head coach effective immediately. Ott replaces Laurie Brock, who guided the MSOE program since 1997.

Ott, a native of New Glarus, Wis., is a former star player at UW-Stevens Point. She was a three-time WIAC All-Conference player, a D3hoops.com third team Division III All-American and the Pointers team captain for three years. In addition, Ott was selected to the NCAA Division III All-Midwest team in 1997-1998.

Prior to joining the MSOE staff, Ott was an assistant at Stevens Point High School in 2000-2001. That team, with a 26-1 record, was runner-up for the Wisconsin Division I state high school championship.

In addition to other administrative duties that she has in the Raider Athletics Department, Ott has also been appointed senior women's administrator.

Director of Athletics Dan Harris said, “Jessica has great passion and enthusiasm for coaching. She is the ideal young coach to continue the progress of this program that began under Coach Brock. Jess has been a great addition to our staff this year and I am looking forward to the success that I know she will have.”

Hribar resigns women's position at Susquehanna
SELINSGROVE, Pa. — Susquehanna head women's coach Mark Hribar has resigned after 15 seasons with the Crusaders, director of athletics Don Harnum announced March 27.

Hribar, who turns 48 on April 5, compiled a 237-139 record (.630) at Susquehanna and was the winningest coach — men's or women's — in school history.

He guided the Crusaders to 13 consecutive winning seasons from 1988-89 through 2000-01, 11 trips to the Middle Atlantic Conference playoffs and four NCAA Division III playoff berths during his 15 seasons on the Susquehanna sidelines.

"It's been a great run, and we've had some great players come through the program in 15 years," said Hribar. "I am thankful for the opportunity afforded to me over the years by Susquehanna, but I just don't have as much energy to do things as they need to be done." Hribar is also an English teacher at East Juniata High School.

After serving as the boys' basketball coach at East Juniata High School from 1982 to 1987, Hribar became head coach at Susquehanna in the fall of 1987 and posted a 10-13 record in his initial season of 1987-88. That would be his last losing record until the 2001-02 season, when the Crusaders finished 9-15.

In 1989-90, Hribar's squad went 16-10 and tied for the MAC Northwest League title, setting up a run of success over the next three seasons that featured three straight league titles and two MAC Northern Division championships (1990-91 and 1991-92) as well as three NCAA Division III tournament appearances.

He was named MAC Northern Division Coach of the Year in both 1990-91 and 1991-92 as the Crusaders went 23-5 and 21-6, respectively, in those two seasons.

In 1994-95, Hribar led the Crusaders to a 20-7 record and the Middle Atlantic Conference championship game, while his 1998-99 squad finished 17-10 and earned a fourth NCAA tournament bid for Hribar behind the play of senior forward and Jostens Trophy winner Kristen Venne, who averaged 21.4 points per game that season.

Hribar is a 1976 graduate of Mansfield University with a bachelor of science degree in elementary education.

Carr resigns after two years at Lynchburg
LYNCHBURG, Va. — Lynchburg College announced Monday evening that Ron Carr, head men's basketball coach, has resigned his part-time coaching position effective at the end of the spring semester.

In two seasons at LC, Carr posted a 6-44 record — earning a 2001 Old Dominion Athletic Conference Tournament berth after winning three of the last four regular-season games. Carr came to Lynchburg after a one-year stint as head mentor at Rockbridge County High School in Lexington, Va., and nine seasons at neighboring Longwood. He led the Division II program to a 127-124 record in his tenure, while his 1993-94 squad posted a school-record 23 wins, a No. 19 national ranking in the final coaches poll and advanced into the NCAA Tournament.

"We commend coach Ron Carr for his hard work and dedication the last two seasons," said Lynchburg College Director of Athletics Dr. Jack Toms. "The athletic department wishes him the best in his future endeavors."

The search to fill the opening will begin immediately.

NJAC sweeps CUNY/NJAC All-Star game
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — After dropping the inaugural CUNY/NJAC Senior All-Star Challenge last season, the New Jersey schools took it right at the New York City team, and claimed the championship of the Metropolitan Area with a thrilling 115-113 victory at the College of Staten Island.

The NJAC squad ended the first quarter on an 8-0 run to take a 37-29 lead and extended it to a 20-point margin halfway through the second quarter. Only a furious comeback by the City University of New York cut the deficit to two, 115-113 with 10 seconds left, on a free throw by CUNY Player of the Year David Paul. On the subsequent play Medgar Evers’ Khalil Nixon made a steal, setting up a final shot by the CUNY team. But a basket by Staten Island’s Paul, a D3hoops.com third team All-America selection, was launched clearly after the buzzer, resulting in a 115-113 win by the New Jersey Athletic Conference

"The game was so cool," said the 6-7 Nixon, the CUNY’s game MVP. "It was a fun way to end the season. We also had a blast at the practices. We had great chemistry, even with 20 guys on the roster. It was an experience that I think each of us seniors could build on in the future."

Rashaan Barner of William Paterson was named MVP for the NJAC team thanks to a game-high 25 points on 11-for-13 shooting from the field. Also for New Jersey, Rutgers-Newark’s Asnar Fortney scored 18 points, New Jersey City’s Irv Jenkins had 17 points and Ramapo’s Robert Anderson chipped in with 12.

CCNY’s Aki Trent, who was 3-for-7 from behind the arc for 17 points, led the CUNY team. Trent’s last 3-pointer came with 25 seconds left in the fourth quarter, as CUNY attempted to come back from a 104-94 deficit with 1:47 remaining. John Jay’s Howard Hutchinson added 13 points, Paul finished with 12 points and nine rebounds, while Hunter’s Darryl Munroe also had 12 points.

In last year's inaugural event for senior all-star teams from the two leagues, the CUNY won at New Jersey City 87-83.

The NJAC women also won, defeating the CUNYAC 75-70. The NJAC squad was up 41-35 at halfitime of the 48-minute game but a 8-0 CUNY run in the middle of the fourth quarter knotted the score at 67-67 with 4:37 left to play. One minute later, holding a 69-68 advantage, Ramapo’s Tara Larkin scored on a breakaway layup to hold off the CUNY team for the duration of the contest.

Larkin was named the game’s Most Valuable Player from the winning team with 21 points. No one else scored in double-digits for the NJAC team, as all 12 players scored.

"It’s a great opportunity for our seniors," said CUNY’s coach Eric Harrison from Lehman. "To be a part of this first women’s game is a pleasure and it will be annual classic for the two leagues. It’s unfortunate that we only had seven seniors, if we had a few more, the result could have been different."

Hunter’s Melodie Abrook was named MVP from the CUNY squad with 8 points and a game-high 16 rebounds. Abrook and her teammate Shevon Collins, who had a game-high 22 points and 11 caroms, won the CUNYAC championship on their home floor. Lehman’s all-time leading scorer, Desirae Ross had 18 points on the night, while her teammate Ivellise Rosario added six points and 9 assists. Another Hunter veteran, Shanell Sapp had 12 points and 10 rebounds.

"It was my first time participating in an event like this," said Hunter’s Sapp. "It’s a great way to top off my career. Plus, I don’t think I ever played 43 minutes in a game before."

Western Conn's
Rajcula retires
to accept
teaching post
By Jim Stout
D3hoops.com

Despite the way it may appear, Jody Rajcula isn't giving up on the game of basketball. Quite the contrary.

Rajcula hopes to make basketball — and other sports — better in the future. She's just not going to coach the Western Connecticut State women's basketball team anymore.

Rajcula, the Hall of Fame player and coach who built Western into one of the top programs in New England during her 21 seasons, resigned March 20 to join the University's physical education department.

While many people — including herself at times — saw Rajcula as someone who might possibly coach for forever, the chance to join the physical education department at this pivotal time caused her to consider her options.

In her new faculty position, Rajcula will be given the opportunity to shape and expand the PE department's coaching certification program, a program that few people even know exists. She also hopes to add parental sports awareness and education courses to the curriculum, and set up a program that attracts, trains and turns out qualified game officials for all sports into the Danbury-area community.

Rajcula, who compiled a 383-168 record in her 21 seasons, didn't resign her college coaching position because of the bad youth coaching, bad parenting and bad officiating that she saw in her travels.

But if she can improve all three areas in the future with her teaching and curriculum development, she will be doing her job and providing everyone that covets athletics with a vital service.

There's a chance that Rajcula, a member of Connecticut Women's Basketball Hall of Fame, will eventually become chairman of the physical education department at Western. She has previously served as the interim chair, filling in for associate professor Phyllis Cooper, who is retiring.

Rajcula plans to continue with her role as a faculty advisor to Western's student-athletes.

"I hope that with my 21 years of college coaching experience, and with my experiences as an athlete and everything that I've seen over time that I can make a positive influence in this relatively new area,'' said Rajcula.

"As everyone knows, the number of young people, both men and women, that are playing sports from the high school level down to elementary and youth level has grown tremendously. There aren't enough qualified coaches and officials to go around in many cases. The parental problem is one that I think everything is aware of.

"The physical education department at Western Connecticut has already started to head in the direction of addressing these issues,'' she added.

"Hopefully I can help bring it along even further, while at the same time doing an even better job of servicing the basic needs of undergraduate students in physical education and wellness.''

It's fitting that Rajcula is taking a pioneering approach to higher education and athletics at this stage of her career. That's because her earlier life was marked by the same type of groundbreaking work, first as a player at Southern Connecticut State in the mid 1970s, and later as a coach at Western.

Rajcula, a Brookfield, Conn, native, played women's college basketball at Southern before it was fashionable — Southern was Division I back then — and later played in the first women's professional entity, the short-lived Women's Basketball League.

There was barely an intercollegiate program in place at Western when she took over the women's team in 1981-82. The school was a NAIA member for her first two seasons, and played just 16 games during her inaugural campaign.

Before she was through, Rajcula compiled 10, 20-win seasons and led to Colonials to 10 NCAA Division III tournament appearances. From 1984-85 to 1999-2000, Western either qualified for the NCAAs or the ECAC New England tournament all 16 seasons. It won two Little East regular-season titles and one playoff championship after joining the conference in 1993-94.

Though the Western women went a combined 21-31 over Rajcula's final two seasons, the Colonials still managed to reach the LEC playoff championship game in 2000-01. They were still a team that opponents dreaded facing.

Rajcula also served during her tenure on the executive committee of the Women's Basketball Coaches Association. She was the driving force behind bringing the women's Division III Final Four to Danbury in 1999-2001.

"Jody clearly was one of the top coaches in New England; and she was one of the top coaches for a long time. She's going to be missed,'' said veteran Southern Maine coach Gary Fifield.

"It's tough job in Division III and it's becoming even an tougher job every year in New England, with so many schools and so much competition for players.''

Springfield coach Naomi Graves, herself a pioneering New England player two decades ago and a Hall of Fame inductee at the University of Rhode Island, said Rajcula's retirement possibly signified the beginning of a changing landscape.

"Those of us who played the game in its earlier stages and benefited the initial effects of Title IX have been around for a while now,'' said Graves.

"It could be that we're starting to see the passing of the torch. It doesn't getting an easier being a coach, and now there's an entire generation of players who are eventually going to move on and carry on in our footsteps. It's going to be strange — and a little sad — to look down at the other end of the court next season and not see Jody.''

No telling whom opponents might see on the bench in 2001-02. Unlike with football, neither the women's nor the men's basketball programs at Western have a fulltime assistant coach. The opening is expected to attract a wide variety of stellar candidates, particularly when coaches from around the country convene at the Division I Final Four in San Antonio next week.

But Western's lack of a full-time assistant doesn't mean a void of qualified candidates at home. Chief assistant Val Light has worked under Rajcula for 13 seasons, was a head coach for two years at Teikyo Post University and holds a masters degree. She also works full-time for the state department of corrections.

First-year assistant Lisa Mikelic joined the staff on an exploratory basis in 2001-02 after working for 10 years as a Division I assistant at Boston University, Canisius and Fairleigh Dickinson. She, too, has a masters degree and is a member of the Connecticut Athletic Hall of Fame after excelling for Diane Nolan at Fairfield University in 1987-91

"I'm sure (athletic director) Ed Farrington is going to do a great job of getting absolutely the right person for the position,'' said Rajcula. "He doesn't want and I don't want the program to take even the slightest step backward. I know it's not going to.''

Carroll lets men's coach McDonough go
WAUKESHA, Wis. — Carroll College officials announced that the college will not renew the contract of head men's basketball coach Sean McDonough. His contract expires on June 30, 2002.

Carroll will immediately begin a search for McDonough's replacement. McDonough's Pioneers went 2-21, 2-14 in the Midwest Conference, including a season-opening 17-game losing streak.

Haklin dismissed from coaching job
KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Kalamazoo College announced the dismissal of Joe Haklin from his duties as men's basketball coach Wednesday, March 6, a move the school termed "an internal personnel matter."

According to an official release, "The College considers his dismissal as head basketball coach an internal personnel matter, and it does not comment on internal personnel matters."

He was dismissed Monday. Haklin will remain an associate professor of physical education.

The move comes following a season that saw the Hornets tie with Hope for the runner-up spot in the MIAA standings at 8-4, finishing 17-10 overall. He compiled an overall record of 218-166 in 15 seasons. His Hornets finished as high as second in the MIAA four times and got a bid to the 1996 NCAA Tournament.

"I realize I'm not the first coach to be relieved of his coaching duties, and I'm quite certain I won't be the last," Haklin told the Kalamazoo Gazette on Wednesday morning.

"I am having many different feelings about the situation — anger, shock, disappointment," said junior Nathan Burns, who was named Sunday as the team's captain for next season. "It's hard to see him go, especially looking forward to next year. We will still move forward, but we will sorely miss coach Haklin. All coach Haklin did was coach with his heart, and that's all we could ask for."

Kalamazoo junior Scott Montmorency agreed. "Right now I am just disappointed and upset about the decision to remove coach Haklin in light of very successful season we just finished, and the great position we have put ourselves in for next season," said Montmorency.

"Our entire team was shocked and very hurt by the college's decision, since we have put so much time into making our program one of the elite in the MIAA."

More from the Kalamazoo Gazette.

Jason Wiertel is one of two D3hoops.com All-American selections to lead Carthage to the Final Four.

Three of the five first-teamers on the men's side led their teams into the NCAA Tournament, while all the efforts of Bridgewater's Kyle Williford and Misericordia's Willie Chandler could not lead them to the dance.

Our women's team is led by 2002 Jostens Trophy winner Heather Kile from Swarthmore and center Kari Groshek, who helped lead UW-Stevens Point to the Final Four. Marymount's Candice Brown leads our second team and has the Saints in the national semifinals as well.

Adam Jones

Heather Kile

A senior, Kile is the all-time Centennial Conference leader in scoring with 1,965 career points and ranks second in the conference career rebounding category with 1,263 career boards. Heather averaged 18.6 points per game this season and shot 50.5% from the field. The forward/center also recorded 310 rebounds, 88 assists and 70 steals. She finished as Swarthmore’s all-time leading scorer and rebounder and is the only player to be named first team all-conference all four years. In addition to Heather’s contributions on the court, she is a three-year women's lacrosse starter and honorable mention all-conference.

As a computer science major, Heather has maintained a 3.5 GPA. She is a two-time Verizon Academic All-American. Kile serves as a volunteer for the Swarthmore Special Olympics and several free basketball clinics sponsored by the local Swarthmore Recreation Association and the Chester YMCA (a center for at-risk youth). She completed a summer internship for the “I Do Foundation” and designed/launched the Web site for the non-profit organization.

Jones led the Beavers to the Iowa Conference title the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2002 and averaged 19.3 points per game. He was named the Iowa Conference’s Player of the Week three times in a row and was recognized on the D3hoops.com Team of the Week on Jan. 6. He was named the Iowa Conference Player of the Year for the second time, finishing the season leading the conference in 3-point percentage shooting 43.2% from behind the arc and knocking in 80 treys on the season. He shot an impressive 84.5% from the line while recording 60 assists and 27 steals from his guard position.

Adam is scheduled to graduate in May with a degree in Elementary Education. He has a 3.3 GPA and has volunteered numerous hours in Storm Lake helping teach diversity in local elementary classrooms. Adam has served as a community speaker at the local Kiwanis and Rotary Clubs and volunteered as a local teaching assistant, lending a hand with one-on-one instruction to local elementary school students. He is an active member of the local FCA Chapter at Buena Vista and St. Mary’s Catholic Church. He worked along with his Buena Vista teammates to teach a “Bullying” unit to students at Storm Lake Middle School, reinforcing the values of being good to others and showing respect.

The purpose of the Jostens Trophy is to honor the true Division III student-athlete — the athlete that shows excellence in the classroom, on the playing floor and in the community. In addition to the Trophy, the Wooldridge Scholarship, a $1,000 donation, will be presented in the name of the winner to his/her institution. The scholarship was named after Dan Wooldridge, a Salem Rotarian and retired commissioner of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference, honoring him for his dedication to Division III athletics. The 2002 Jostens Trophy winners were chosen by a national selection committee consisting of college coaches, former athletes, college administrators and selected members of the media. The national committee voted on players based on three criteria: basketball ability, academic prowess and community service.

Buyer beware, however — just one of the four men's sectional hosts advanced to the Final Four last season, and none of the four women's hosts did.

But never fear. In 2000, one of the women's sectional hosts advanced and one of the men's sectional hosts got to the Final Four.

Photo by Pat Coleman, D3hoops.com Tara Schmitt played all 40 minutes and had a team-high four assists for UW-Stevens Point.

The defending men's champs, Catholic held on to defeat Hampden-Sydney 74-68 and advance to the Sweet 16 for the fifth consecutive season, while the West's top seed, St. Thomas, lost at home to UW-Oshkosh in overtime. The entire men's Sweet 16 is set as well as the women's.

See Saturday's full men's and women's schedule and results.

Notables 2003-pres.

2003 Notables
February 15-28
February 1-14
January 16-31
January 1-15

2002 Notables
December 16-31
December 1-15
November
October-early Nov.
September-October
June-August
May
March-April
February 22-28
February 15-21
February 8-14
February 1-7
January 22-31
January 15-21
January 8-14
January 1-7

2001 Notables
December 16-31
December 1-15
October-November
July-September
June
May
April
March

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