Notables

Holy Cross assistant coach Andrew Sachs has been named the new head men’s basketball coach at Bethany, as announced Monday by athletic director Tim Weaver.

Sachs replaces Mike Summey, who went 17-12 in one season before stepping down in early June to become the director of basketball operations at Miami (Fla.). Weaver believes Sachs’ work at strong academic institutions at the Division I, II and III levels made him a model candidate to take the reins to the Bison, who have earned a postseason bid each of the past five seasons.

"Andy's extensive experience with winning programs, along with his familiarity with our primary recruiting areas, makes him an ideal fit to lead our men's basketball program,” said Weaver. “He has worked with some great coaches in his career and has enjoyed success wherever he's been. Having spent the last five years in an academic environment like Holy Cross will enable him to understand the necessary balance between academics and basketball for our student-athletes.

“We expect Andy to continue the tremendous success we've had in men's basketball over the last few years and think he can take our program to an even higher level. We look forward to welcoming Andy and his family to the Bethany community."

Sachs has served as Ralph Willard’s assistant at Holy Cross for the past five seasons. During that span, the Crusaders appeared in four Patriot League Championship games, averaged over 20 wins per year, won two regular season titles in 2005 and 2007 and won the Patriot League Tournament in 2007 to receive an NCAA Tournament bid. Holy Cross also earned a NIT bid in 2005, where the Crusaders defeated Notre Dame for the first Patriot League post-season victory.

During his five years, Sachs helped develop two Patriot League Players of the Year, five First Team All-Conference selections and five All-Rookie selections, two of which were named Rookie of the Year.

Before arriving at Holy Cross, Sachs was an assistant for Mike Glick at Archbishop Spalding High School in Severn, Md., in the Baltimore Catholic League. The Cavaliers averaged 28 wins in his three seasons there, claiming two MIAA-A conference titles. He also helped develop 16 players that played in college, including Rudy Gay, now with the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies.

Before Spalding, Sachs was the associate head coach at Division II Indiana (Pa.) for Gary Edwards from 1996-2001, where he helped IUP to 98 wins in five seasons and a NCAA Elite Eight appearance in 2000. Sachs was also the assistant coach for current University of Texas-Dallas coach Terry Butterfield at Virginia Wesleyan in Norfolk, Va., from 1992-1996 and helped lead the Marlins to their first ODAC Championship and a NCAA appearance in 1993.

Sachs’ first job was at his alma mater, Salisbury State, from 1988-1992, where he was also the top assistant for Ward Lambert and helped build the Sea Gulls into an NCAA Tournament contender. During his time there, the Sea Gulls made back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 1991 and 1992. In 1992, the Sea Gulls won a school-record 27 games in a row on their way to the best record in program history (28-2), advanced to the Elite Eight and also helped develop National Player of the Year and Division III’s all-time leading scorer Andre Foreman.

For Sachs, the opportunity to take over a successful program like Bethany is a perfect situation for his first head coaching position.

“I’ve been looking for a chance to put roots down with an established winning program and to join an outstanding academic institution like Bethany is a tremendous opportunity,” said Sachs, who is the 25th head coach in Bethany history. “I’ve had the opportunity to work at two outstanding liberal arts colleges, so I am very familiar the academic surroundings and recruiting those types of kids. In addition, getting a chance to work with an administration, led by Dr. (Scott) Miller, which is helping the school prosper in numerous ways, is a blessing.”

Bethany is slated to return four starters, including a pair of All-PAC performers, as well as three other seniors who have played key roles in the Bison’s 53 victories during their careers.

While Sachs hasn’t been able to watch video on his new team, he has had a chance to speak with the current players and likes the attitude from his squad. That is a good start for a team he says will be very focused on executing in every phase to win a basketball game.

“I’ve coached with a Salisbury team that led the nation in scoring and coached at Holy Cross, which led our league in defense four out of the last five years, but regardless of our style, the bottom line is to win basketball games,” said Sachs. “I will say this will be a team that takes great pride in our defense and doing the little things. Blocking out and taking a charge will be reinforced in practice so it becomes natural in games and is more important than looking at the box score.

“I’ve taken a lot from the guys I’ve worked with and one thing I learned from Coach Willard was being very detail-oriented,” said Sachs. “In getting a chance to talk to all the guys, I am impressed with their toughness and I believe we are on the same page. We will do the little things well and be a fun team to watch. Like I said before, the bottom line is winning games and we will not be outworked in reaching our goals.”

A native of Pasadena, Md., Sachs and his wife Paula welcomed their first child, Derek, in December 2008. He received his bachelor's (1990) and master's (1992) from Salisbury State. They plan on moving to Bethany in the near future.

Longtime Lamar (Ark.) High School Girl's Basketball Coach Carl Ramsey is the new Head Women's Basketball Coach at the University of the Ozarks, it was announced by Ozarks' Athletics Director Jimmy Clark.

Ramsey makes the jump to his alma mater after spending the last 29 seasons as head coach at Lamar. Ramsey's senior high teams averaged 22 wins during his career and he has posted a 660-227 (.744) overall record. He led Lamar to eight state tournament appearances during his tenure, including a stretch of four straight years where the Lady Warriors played for the state championship (1987-1991). He won state titles in both 1988 and 1991.

“We are excited about hiring a veteran coach that has won a lot of games during his career,” said Clark. “He is a guy who knows how to win. He has an impressive overall winning percentage, and I believe he will get us back to prominence. He knows how to get the most out of his players. I think he will bring local interest back to the program and he has many ties within the state that can be used for recruiting. I have confidence he can win as a college coach.”

Ramsey, who never had a losing season, guided Lamar to 24 regional tournament appearances. Six of his teams went to the regional championship game, with three of those winning the title. In addition to his coaching career, he has served as the school's athletic director the past 24 years.

“Lamar has been good to me,” said Ramsey. “I felt like I was at a time in my career where I needed a change. I wanted to bring on new challenges. The thought of starting over at something is exciting to me. I am more excited about basketball than I have been in a long time. As coaches, sometimes you get too complacent and you need to get out of your comfort zone. I think this a good opportunity and the timing is right for me. I’ve always had a connection to Ozarks. The thought of coming back where you started your career is enticing. I still have passion for the game.”

Ramsey received his bachelor's degree in Physical Education from Ozarks in 1979. He becomes the fifth head coach in program history and replaces Christina Jost, who took the head coaching job at NAIA Northern New Mexico College after going 15-61 in three seasons at Ozarks.

H. Christopher Rogers was named head men’s basketball coach at Marymount, according to athletic director Bill Finney. Rogers is the fourth coach in the 22 seasons of Marymount men’s basketball. He replaces Scott McClary, who stepped down two months ago to take the head coaching job at Muhlenberg.

Rogers, most recently a head assistant coach at Franklin and Marshall, comes to Marymount with eight years of collegiate basketball experience at the NCAA Division III level.

“We are pleased to have Chris join our coaching staff,” said Finney. “Our search committee was impressed with his dedication and enthusiasm. He has the ability to take our program forward.

“Chris has gained valuable experience at F&M under Glenn Robinson, the winningest coach in NCAA Division III men’s basketball,” Finney continued.

He takes over a team that went 15-13 this past season, advancing to the Capital Athletic Conference championship game. Eleven letterwinners are expected to return.

Rogers was at F&M for five seasons and was involved in all aspects of the basketball program including recruiting and practices for a program that won two regular season Centennial Conference championships and advanced to the 2009 Final Four.

Prior to F&M, Rogers was the head assistant at Lebanon Valley for three seasons. LVC teams won the 2004 ECAC and made the Middle Atlantic Conference playoffs each year. Previously, he was operations assistant for men’s basketball at Villanova and facilities and operations assistant at Pennsylvania.

Rogers is a former Big Ten Conference Scholar Athlete and won Penn State's men’s basketball scholar athlete award and coaches award. He received a bachelor's in kinesiology/health education from Penn State and also has a master's in sport and athletic administration from West Chester.

After seven years at the helm of the Carroll men's basketball program, David Schultz has resigned his position to pursue other opportunities with the Waukesha school district, Pioneers athletic director Kris Jacobsen announced.

"I thoroughly enjoyed my time coaching and working at Carroll. I loved coaching every team and player over the past seven seasons," said Schultz, No. 2 in wins in the program's history at 109-64. "The athletic department and Kris Jacobsen did all they could, but in the end this is a decision that is in the best interest of my family."

Schultz, hired at Carroll prior to the 2002-03 season, took over a Pioneers team that finished 2-21 during the 2001-02 season and built the program into a Midwest Conference contender. The Pioneers reached the NCAA Tournament in 2006 and 2007, making the Sweet 16 two seasons ago after beating Augustana and St. Thomas on their home floors.

"I am very proud of what the program accomplished and I feel I have left the program in better shape than when I arrived," Schultz added. "I am thankful to have been able to build lifelong friendships with players, family and staff at the university."

Schultz has maintained dual part-time employment over the past several years that included coaching at Carroll while also working as a part-time physical education teacher in the Waukesha school district. He resigned from Carroll to accept full-time employment in the Waukesha school district.

Jacobsen said the resignation came as a surprise, saying Carroll was in the process of putting together a full-time employment package. "I am very disappointed that Coach Schultz decided to end his tenure as the Carroll men's basketball coach," she said. "The university has explored full-time employment opportunities for Coach Schultz on numerous occasions and it was our hope that he would become a full-time member of the university."

A national search for Schultz's successor will begin immediately.

Gordon has appointed Tod Murphy as its new men’s basketball coach. Murphy succeeds Mike Schauer, who coached Gordon for the last seven seasons before assuming the head coaching post this month at Wheaton (Ill.).

For the past six years, Murphy has been the lead assistant coach at UC Irvine, his alma mater. Prior to that, he spent two years as an assistant at UC Riverside. At Irvine, Murphy has been the recruiting director, offensive coordinator, and a principal scout. UCI finished tied for third last year in the Big West Conference.

A 6-9 forward, Murphy had a stellar career as a player. At UCI, he was the team MVP for three straight years, and was twice named All-Conference. As a senior he received honorable mention in the voting for All-American status. After graduating from UCI with a degree in economics, Murphy went on to play professional basketball for more than a decade, including five years in the NBA.

Early in his career, he helped lead the Albany Patroons to the Continental Basketball Association title, and was selected the MVP of the playoffs. He then became the starting forward on the first Minnesota Timberwolves club in 1989, winning the team’s defensive player of the year award and leading the NBA in fewest turnovers. During his five years in the NBA he also had stints with the Los Angeles Clippers, Houston Rockets, and Detroit Pistons. Along with his NBA experience, Tod played for several top international clubs, including teams in Italy, Greece, Spain and Japan.

Kate Pearson has been named head women’s basketball coach at Cabrini. Pearson will take over leadership of the women’s basketball program July 1 following five seasons as an assistant coach with the Cavaliers.

“Kate’s experience as a phenomenal Division III player and as our assistant coach for the past several years makes this a perfect opportunity to promote a good person from within,” said athletic director Joe Giunta. “She excelled ... at the University of Scranton (as Kate Pierangeli) and has been a major part of our success as an assistant coach at Cabrini. The Cabrini women’s basketball program is in great hands with Kate.”

Pearson inherits a Cavaliers team that has captured two consecutive conference titles and has advanced to back-to-back NCAA Tournaments. In 2008-09, Cabrini finished with 23 overall victories, the program’s highest win total since the 1994-95 season.

“I am ecstatic to become the head women’s basketball coach at Cabrini College,” Pearson said. “This program has experienced a great deal of growth and success the last few seasons and I look forward to continuing that tradition.”

Pearson joined the Cabrini sidelines in 2004-05 as an assistant to head coach Bobbi Morgan. In four seasons alongside Morgan, the Cavaliers posted a 66-41 overall record, captured one CSAC championship, advanced to one NCAA Tournament and appeared in two conference title games.

Last season, Pearson helped guide Cabrini to its second consecutive CSAC crown and trip to the NCAA Tournament under head coach Bernadette Laukaitis. The Cavaliers claimed the conference regular season title for the first time since the 1996-97 campaign.

Pearson played four seasons at perennial Division III power Scranton under legendary head coach Mike Strong. With Pearson in the backcourt, the Lady Royals owned a 95-18 record, captured two Middle Atlantic Conference titles and appeared in three NCAA Tournaments.

Pearson was a three-time D3hoops.com All-Region selection and earned MAC First Team honors three times. She lists first all-time in program history in career three-point field goals made (181) and attempted (551). Pearson also ranks fourth all-time in assists (427), fourth in steals (263) and sixth in free-throw percentage (.742). She lists 11th all-time, scoring 1,292 career points.

Pearson was also a three-year letterwinner with the women’s lacrosse team at Scranton, winning two MAC crowns and appearing in two NCAA Tournaments. She was a three-time MAC First Team honoree. Pearson was named the Tom O’Hara Award recipient in 2004 as the school’s top female athlete.

Pearson’s ties to Cabrini extend well before her first season as an assistant coach with the women’s basketball team in 2004-05. Her mother, Dianne, coached the Cavalier women’s soccer team for nine seasons from 1993-2001.

Pearson graduated from Scranton in 2004 with a bachelor of arts degree in communication. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in secondary education English at Cabrini. Kate and her husband, Mike, were married in May 2009 and reside in West Chester, Pa.

Bard and Rochester Tech will join the Liberty League as full members, beginning in the 2011-12 season. The announcement was made official today by Jim McLaughlin, Liberty League president.

“We’re delighted to welcome Bard and RIT into the Liberty League,” said McLaughlin. “Both of these outstanding institutions share the ideals of the Liberty League in terms of student-first philosophy and approaching intercollegiate athletics as an integral part of the overall educational experience. We look forward to the contributions that Bard and RIT will make to the league, both academically and athletically.”

Bard is currently a member of the Skyline Conference, while RIT is in the Empire 8. Bard’s five-year record in men’s basketball is 25-101, 29-87 in women’s basketball and it will be the Raptors’ third conference affiliation in five seasons, after the school left the NEAC. Both Bard head coaching positions are currently open. RIT is 75-57 over the same period in men’s basketball, 43-73 in women’s basketball.

“Bard is very pleased to accept membership into the Liberty League, a long and well respected conference with a clear focus on the balance of the student-athlete experience,” said athletic director Kristen Hall. “Our academic profile blends nicely with that of the league’s membership and we look forward to the future experiences that our student-athletes will have with our peer institutions.”

“We are very pleased and honored to have gained acceptance in to the Liberty League,” said RIT athletic director Lou Spiotti. “The Liberty League is a premier NCAA Division III conference composed of colleges and universities with values and aspirations similar to those of RIT. This is a historic move for RIT and for our intercollegiate athletics programs and we look forward with great anticipation to our new association."

Rochester Tech sponsors Division I men’s ice hockey, as do several other Liberty League schools, and will maintain its Atlantic Hockey affiliation.

Dennis Collins, commissioner of the North Coast Athletic Conference passed away suddenly, Sunday, June 14, from a heart attack.

Collins became the conference's first and only commissioner when the league began its first playing season in 1984. For 25 years, he led one of the most successful conferences in all three divisions of the NCAA.

He was a respected national leader and has served as president of the NCAA Division III Commissioners Association, a group he helped to organize in 1989. From 1992-96, he served as a member of the NCAA Council, the national association’s equivalent of a board of directors. In the same period, he chaired the NCAA Dist. IV Postgraduate Scholarship Committee, served on the Division Special Restructuring Taskforce and in 1999, completed a six-year term on the NCAA Interpretations Committee. He was awarded the prestigious Meritorious Service Award from the Div. III Commissioners' Association in 2006. He was a founder of the Intercollegiate Officiating Association, a cooperative amongst 27 NCAA/NAIA colleges that provides regional officiating services. Collins served 17 years as that group’s chief administrator. He served on Presidential Advisory/Visiting Committees at both Carnegie Mellon and Bates. He also served on the Games Committee of five Kickoff & Pigskin Classics, college football's opening games, between 1984 and 2002. Over the years, Collins guided two membership expansions of the NCAC -- one in 1988, adding Earlham and Wittenberg, and the most recent, the addition of Hiram and Wabash in 1998.

Prior to coming to the NCAC, Collins served five years as communications director for the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics. He also was sports information director/athletic-alumni director at Case Western Reserve and news director/sports information director at Otterbein. For an eight-year period, he operated his own firm, Collins Communications, which provided public relations and photographic services to regional and national clients such as the National Football League.

He was a graduate of Ohio State with an undergraduate degree in journalism and served four years in the U.S. Coast Guard. He is survived by his wife Jeanne, and three grown children, Jennifer, Kate and Michael, as well as his mother, sister, brother and their families.

Cornell rising senior Chris Handke was selected Thursday by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 41st round of the Major League Baseball draft, even though he's had far more success as a center for the Rams than a pitcher.

Handke is 6-11, 235, and was taken No. 1,237 overall. Although the right-hander pitched in just six games this season and compiled a 15.19 ERA, the Dodgers saw something they liked.

"I had talked with the Dodgers before the draft," Handke said. "I thought there was a decent chance they would take me, but you never know how things will work out. ... I checked online after lunch and that's when I found out. The Dodgers called (Thursday) night around 10. It's definitely exciting."

Handke, one of 19 Division III baseball players drafted, drew attention from scouts last month at the Perfect Game USA showcase event in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where his fastball topped out at 93 miles per hour. Handke said he started to get phone calls two or three days after the showcase.

In three seasons at Cornell, Handke has made 17 appearances on the mound, including two starts. He has a career 10.12 ERA with 25 walks and 11 strikeouts in 21.1 innings.

Handke is better known on the basketball court. A second team all-IIAC center, Handke helped lead the 2008-09 Rams to the conference tournament title and a berth in the Division III NCAA Tournament. He averaged 9.8 points and 6.3 rebounds and set a single-season school record with 45 blocks.

"I enjoy both sports," Handke said. "I've always had people tell me that because of my height and I can throw the ball hard at times that I had a lot of upside and potential in baseball. It's something I'm obviously interested in doing."

Handke said he has until the middle of August to negotiate a contract with the Dodgers, but he plans to return to Cornell for his senior year.

"I told the Dodgers that I want to finish my degree at Cornell and complete my basketball career." said Handke, who carries a 3.9 GPA with a major in biochemistry and molecular biology.

Alverno coach Brad Duckworth, sophomore Alicia Kontowski and Centenary junior guard Kristen Camuso represented the USA on a 10-day, four-game tour of Italy. The tour was organized by American International Sports Tours.

The first game of the tour was an exhibition game played near Florence, Italy on Thursday, May 28, against a B1 level team where the American team fell 84-80.

“This was our first experience with international play. The physical style surprised us a little,” Duckworth said.

Two days later near Venice the American team got things moving in the right direction with a 71-47 victory, led by Kontowski’s game-high 21 points, in the first of the friendly competition games.

“Alicia played great and our team really figured out how to match the intensity and play of the Italians. Once we had our first win we knew that we could handle ourselves,” Duckworth said.

“Playing in Italy was extremely different than playing in the U.S.,” said Camuso. “They have so many different rules so it took a little while to get used to things, for example there are only 24 seconds on the shot clock, the paint is a different shape and rules for traveling are also different.

On June 1, the team traveled to San Marino for the semifinal game facing another B1 level team. The American team rolled to a 72-59 victory. Kontowski continued her hot shooting pouring in 15, including three three-pointers.

With only five players available for the third game, five Italian players joined the squad to play a B1 team. Camuso finished with seven as her team pulled out the victory. The final contest of the trip came against an all-star lineup of the A2 and B1 Italian teams.

“Our team really came out inspired to win this thing. It was a great 6 minutes of basketball but then the length of the week and tired legs hit us for a while,” Duckworth said. “We talked at halftime about finding a way to push through it.”

After a back and forth third quarter the American team found itself down three with two minutes to play in the game. Following a timeout the American team, which also included former Susquehanna guard Ashley Polcovich and Baptist Bible's Holly Walton, was boosted by a layup by Camuso, the 2009 NCAA Division III leader in 3-point field goals per game.

Trailing by one the American team created a turnover that led to Camuso getting fouled. Camuso went 2-for-2 at the foul line to put the team up one.

Needing another big defensive series the American team once again came up with a stop as Kontowski snatched a defensive rebound with seven seconds remaining. She was immediately fouled and went 1-for-2 from the line to increase the lead to two. The 40-foot last second attempt by the Italian team fell short as the American team won 86-84. Kontowski finished with nine points in the final.

"I got to see and experience things I never thought I'd get to see," Camuso said, "and if anyone gets a chance to play overseas as I did I would highly recommend it.”