Four Cadets, including W'Town's Brown, earn GNAC honors

With piles and piles of high school playoff games to tackle tonight - and for the next three weeks, really - I am strapped for space in the print editions. That being said, there are releases and other information we cannot ignore, so I'm going to put as much of that on this blog as I can.

Here's a release from Norwich, highlighting four Cadet basketball players who were recently honored by the Great Northeast Athletic Conference. One is former Williamstown three-sport star Kristin Brown, who played out her sophomore season this winter for coach Mark Zacker. Congratulations, Kristin!

-Anna Grearson

Basketball: Four recognized by GNAC

NORTHFIELD, Vt. – Norwich University was represented on the 2011-12 Great Northeast Athletic Conference all-league men’s and women’s basketball squads, released today.

Freshman guard Aliah Curry (Windsor, Mass.) was a second team’s women’s selection, while senior forward Antonio Davis (Albany, N.Y.) was a third team pick for the men.

Curry closed a sparkling first year with 456 points, the second-best single-season scoring mark for a freshman player in Cadets’ history. She ranked among the top five in the GNAC in scoring (18.9 points per game – 2^nd), three-point field goals made per game (3.1 – 2^nd), free throw percentage (78.6 – 5^th) and three-point field goal percentage (34.6 – 5^th) and is among the top 40 in NCAA Division III in three-point field goals (fifth) and points (36^th) per game. Curry’ award marks the 12^th straight year the Maroon and Gold have had at least all-GNAC honor.

Davis, who joined Norwich’s 1000-point club this season, earned his second all-GNAC award after being a second team selection a year ago. He ranked among the top 10 of the league in blocked shots (1.3 – 7^th) and offensive (2.5 pg – 8^th) and defensive (6.3 pg – 4^th) rebounds per game. He’s the Maroon and Gold’s first two-time honoree since Jerrold Williams did so in 2007-08 and is the seventh NU men’s basketball player to earn multiple all-GNAC honors. Davis’ award marks the ninth straight year Norwich has had at least one all-conference honoree.

Coach Paul Booth’s program also had senior guard Leland Brunswick (San Francisco, Calif.) named to the Sportsmanship squad. Coach Mark Zacher’s program had sophomore guard Kristin Brown (Williamstown, Vt.) selected for the Sportsmanship team.

For all the latest Norwich Athletics news go to www.norwichathletics.com, become a fan on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/#!/NUCadets, visit our YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/madkins11100, or follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/NorwichCadets

NU men's & women's hockey remains No. 2 nationally

Nothing changed for Norwich hockey over the weekend, as both the men's & women's teams remain No. 2 in the national polls. The two teams are the No. 1 seeds in the ECAC East tournaments, which continue this weekend with the semifinals and finals. There will be six games this weekend at Kreitzberg Arena, and in-state rival Castleton will play in at least two of them. The Spartan women will face Norwich on Saturday while the Spartan men could face the Cadets in Saturday's final.

-Anna Grearson

Here are the releases about the men's polls from NU hockey contact Derek Dunning:

D3hockey.com Men's Top 15, Feb. 27 2012

Through games as of Sunday, February 26

#	School (1st votes)	Rec	Pts	Prev.
1	Oswego State (20)	22-2-2	300	1
2	Norwich	21-2-2	278	2
3	Amherst	21-3-1	258	3
4	Plattsburgh State	18-4-4	235	4
5	St. Norbert	16-5-5	229	5
6	Neumann	15-7-3	161	11
7	Elmira	15-8-3	155	6
8	Castleton State	18-6-2	150	9
9	St. Thomas	18-5-2	110	7
10	Bowdoin	16-5-3	97	13
11	UW-Stevens Point	14-10-4	93	14
12	Adrian	19-5-1	85	12
13	St. Scholastica	15-8-5	56	8
14	Utica	15-9-2	50	10
14	Hobart	15-10-1	50	NR

 Dropped Out: Manhattanville

 Others receiving votes: Gustavus Adolphus 29, MSOE 22, UW-River Falls 13, Manhattanville 11, Wentworth 3, Middlebury 3, St. Olaf 3

USCHO.com Division III Men's Poll

Minneapolis, Minn./February 27, 2012

The top five spots in the USCHO.com Division III Men's Poll

remain unchanged, including Oswego in the No. 1 slot.

Oswego garnered 16 of 20 first-place votes, while No. 2 Norwich

and No. 3 Amherst were each atop two ballots.

Plattsburgh stays fourth, as does St. Norbert in the fifth spot.

Adrian jumps one to sixth, Castleton is up one to seventh, St.

Thomas falls two spots to No. 8, Bowdoin rises three to No. 9 and

the Milwaukee School of Engineering remains tenth.

Gustavus Adolphus is up three to No. 11, previously-unranked

Neumann enters the rankings at No. 12, Elmira falls four to No.

13, Wisconsin-River Falls drops one to No. 14 and

Wisconsin-Stevens Point joins the rankings this week at No. 15.

Team             (First Place)   Record   Pts  Last Week

 1 Oswego                    (16)   22- 2-2   296     1

 2 Norwich                   ( 2)   21- 2-2   279     2

 3 Amherst                   ( 2)   21- 3-1   261     3

 4 Plattsburgh                      18- 4-4   236     4

 5 St. Norbert                      16- 5-5   219     5

 6 Adrian                           19- 5-1   185     7

 7 Castleton                        18- 6-2   174     8

 8 St. Thomas                       18- 5-2   154     6

 9 Bowdoin                          16- 5-3   126    12

10 Milwaukee School of Engineering  20- 6-1   123    10

11 Gustavus Adolphus                15- 6-5    70    14

12 Neumann                          15- 7-3    67    NR

13 Elmira                           15- 8-3    64     9

14 Wisconsin-River Falls            16- 9-2    46    13

15 Wisconsin-Stevens Point          14-10-4    33    NR

Others receiving votes: St. Scholastica 26, Middlebury 13,

Wentworth 12, Utica 7, St. Olaf 6, Hobart 2, Williams 1.

The USCHO.com Poll is compiled weekly and consists of 20 voters,

including 18 coaches of Division III programs and two men's

hockey writers. USCHO.com provides in-depth coverage of college

hockey.

Gills for Player of the Game

As awful as it is to admit this, sometimes the Senior Day stuff gets repetitive.

During Saturday afternoon's Senior Day festivities prior to the Norwich University men's hockey game, I was privileged to witness perhaps the most touching moment in my experience covering Senior Days.

Paula Gills, who sings the Canadian and U.S. national anthems for Norwich athletics, was asked to sing at Fenway Park for the Cadets' Frozen Fenway game against Babson back on Jan. 13. Linda Freeman wrote an excellent piece about Gills' experience singing in Boston and Kevin Hartmann took an amazing photo of her during one of the anthems. But on Saturday, she did something special for one graduating Norwich hockey senior, also before a game agaisnt Babson.

Pasha Kozhokin, a defenseman for the Cadets, hails from Kharkiv, Ukraine, though he played junior hockey in Boston and went to the Canterbury School in Connecticut. While the five other seniors had family share in the introductions with them, Kozhokin's parents were unable to be there. His girlfriend stepped in, however, which I imagine was a big moment for both of them.

The Canadian and U.S. anthems are sung at Norwich because, I assume, of the number of Canadian players both on the Cadet rosters and on many of the opposing team's rosters.

But on Saturday, Gills sang the anthem of Ukraine first. She said to the crowd of more than 1,500 at Kreitzberg Arena that because his family was unable to be with him from the Ukraine, she and Norwich were bringing the Ukraine to him. Holding the lyrics to the anthem, Gills sang the beautiful piece - in Ukranian - as if she'd sung it at every game. No one could tell she had spent hours watching a YouTube video of the anthem being sung for Ukranian heavyweight champion boxer Wladimir Klitschko (here it is, with English translation) (and here's the Klitschko version) and had practiced by writing the words out phonetically. There was a Ukrainian flag hung on the railing below the Canadian, U.S. and Vermont flags on the near side of the arena, and it remained there for the entire game (Norwich tied Babson 4-4).

It was a special moment for Kozhokin, Gills, and everyone there to take it in. Bravo to Gills and Norwich for orchestrating the whole thing. Bravo.

-Anna Grearson

NU men's & women's hockey each remain No. 2 nationally

Both USCHO.com polls were released today, and both Norwich University hockey programs remained in the No. 2 slots. The Cadet men were surpassed by Oswego in a prior poll and the women still sit behind RIT, one of the few teams to defeat Norwich this season.

Both teams will host ECAC East quarterfinal games this weekend after both earned No. 1 seeds in the conference tournaments. The women will host Nichols at 3 p.m. on Saturday, followed by the men vs. the University of New England.

-Anna Grearson

Here are the releases from USCHO.com:

USCHO.com Division III Men's Poll

Minneapolis, Minn./February 20, 2012

Oswego stays atop the USCHO.com Division III Men's Poll this week

after getting 16 of 20 first-place votes.

No. 2 Norwich and No. 3 Amherst each garnered two first-place

votes.

Plattsburgh stays fourth, while St. Norbert and St. Thomas trade

places this week as St. Norbert moves from sixth to fifth.

Adrian moves up one to No. 7, Castleton drops one to No. 8,

Elmira is up two to No. 9 and the Milwaukee School of Engineering

is again tenth this week.

At No. 11, St. Scholastica is up one place, Bowdoin jumps two to

12th, Wisconsin-River Falls drops four to No. 13, Gustavus

Adolphus rises one to No. 14 and Utica falls two ranks to No.

15.

In addition, eight other schools received votes.

Team             (First Place)   Record   Pts  Last Week

 1 Oswego                    (16)   21- 2-2   296     1

 2 Norwich                   ( 2)   20- 2-2   275     2

 3 Amherst                   ( 2)   20- 3-1   266     3

 4 Plattsburgh                      17- 4-4   232     4

 5 St. Norbert                      15- 5-5   215     6

 6 St. Thomas                       18- 4-2   201     5

 7 Adrian                           19- 5-1   162     8

 8 Castleton                        17- 6-2   141     7

 9 Elmira                           15- 7-3   127    11

10 Milwaukee School of Engineering  19- 5-1   114    10

11 St. Scholastica                  15- 7-5    90    12

12 Bowdoin                          15- 5-3    84    14

13 Wisconsin-River Falls            16- 9-2    50     9

14 Gustavus Adolphus                14- 6-5    45    15

15 Utica                            15- 8-2    32    13

Others receiving votes: Neumann 21, Wentworth 16,

Wisconsin-Eau Claire 12, Middlebury 7, Wisconsin-Stevens

Point 7, Williams 4, Manhattanville 2, Plymouth State 1.

The USCHO.com Poll is compiled weekly and consists of 20 voters,

including 18 coaches of Division III programs and two men's

hockey writers. USCHO.com provides in-depth coverage of college

hockey.

USCHO.com Division III Women's Poll
Minneapolis, Minn./February 20, 2012
 
Not much changed in the USCHO.com Division III Women's Poll from
last week to this week, including RIT remaining the top-ranked
team among the voters.
 
RIT earned 14 of 15 first-place votes, with No. 2 Norwich getting
the other first-place vote.
 
Amherst remains third, while Middlebury is again fourth.
Plattsburgh moves from sixth to fifth.
 
Gustavus Adolphus falls two to No. 6, Elmira stays seventh, as
does Wisconsin-River Falls at No. 8, Concordia (Minn.) at No. 9
and Wisconsin-Superior tenth.
 
Team             (First Place)   Record   Pts  Last Week
 1 RIT                       (14)   23- 1-1   149     1
 2 Norwich                   ( 1)   22- 2-1   136     2
 3 Amherst                          19- 4-1   110     3
 4 Middlebury                       18- 3-3    89     4
 5 Plattsburgh                      17- 5-3    86     6
 6 Gustavus Adolphus                19- 2-2    79     4
 7 Elmira                           20- 4-1    76     7
 8 Wisconsin-River Falls            19- 4-2    43     8
 9 Concordia (Minn.)                13- 4-4    22     9
10 Wisconsin-Superior               15- 7-3    12    10
 
Others receiving votes: St. Thomas 5, Bowdoin 3, Trinity 3,
Adrian 2, Manhattanville 2, St. Scholastica 1.
 
The USCHO.com Poll is compiled weekly and consists of 15 voters,
all coaches of Division III programs. USCHO.com provides in-depth
coverage of college hockey.

NECBL to field 10 teams in 2012

I got this release last week and just re-found it in my email. It appears another team has left the NECBL, bringing the total from 12 (last year's total) to 10. Vermont Mountaineers GM Brian Gallagher said this impacts his team minimally - just a few games will change. I'll let you know those changes as they are known to us.

-Anna Grearson

NECBL To Field 10 Teams in 2012

The New England Collegiate Baseball League will enter its 19th season with ten teams. This was determined at a League Board meeting on Tuesday, February 7th.   The ten members are: Danbury Westerners, Holyoke Blue Sox, Keene Swamp Bats, Laconia Muskrats, Mystic Schooners, New Bedford Bay Sox, Newport Gulls, North Adams SteepleCats, Sanford Mainers and Vermont Mountaineers. The NECBL fielded a 10-team league as late as 2001.   The League will continue to have a team in every state in New England.   The principals of the Old Orchard Beach and North Shore teams- Doug Ayotte and Tim Haley respectively- have informed Commissioner Mario Tiani that they are pursuing different directions. The NECBL wishes Mr. Ayotte and Mr. Haley good luck in their new chapters.   The NECBL remains committed to its mission of bringing world-class baseball to New England communities. Four of the ten NECBL teams averaged over 1,500 fans per game last season while two more averaged over 950. Nearly 300,000 people saw an NECBL game in 2011.   The NECBL also remains committed to building strong members who have deep roots within their communities. The League is confident that all ten fit this criteria. The ten teams are fully committed to playing out the NECBL's motto of "Keep your eye on the Dream." As not-for-profit entities, all ten organizations place the highest emphasis on their player's summer experiences.     With these changes, the League remains confident that it will continue to provide fans outstanding baseball in 2012. Nearly 100 NECBL alumni were drafted by Major League Baseball last June. Nine NECBL alumni made their Big League debuts, bringing the total of NECBL players to make the Majors to 77.   The 2012 NECBL season opens on June 7th.

The great Lady debate

I know I am going to ruffle more than a few feathers with this one, but I can't keep quiet anymore.

Enough with the Lady (enter mascot here) business.

This isn't aimed at any one team in particular, and I know historically there are college teams that have used to moniker forever - the Lady Vols at Tennessee, the most obvious example - and I know a lot of our local high school teams use it, too.

But I can't stand it.

The Lady Tide and the Tide are the same thing, so why the Lady? The Crimson Tide are the Crimson Tide. You don't hear anyone call the boys team the Man Tide or the Boy Tide or the Gentleman Tide. The girls teams are just as much the Crimson Tide as the boys are. Same with the Raiders, Highlanders, Solons, Trojans, Wildcats, Blue Devils, Red Devils, Gumbies, Warriors, Phoenix, Marauders, Galloping Ghosts, Hilltoppers, Indians, Vikings, Rebels, Seahorses, Presidents, Cosmos, Catamounts, Cadets, Green Knigts, Eagles, Golden Horde (what IS a Golden Horde, for that matter?), Mounties, Minutemen, Colonels, Terriers, Patriots, Hornets, Wasps, Yellow Jackets, Yellowjackets, Phantoms, Cougars, Red Hawks, Raptors, Badgers, Spartans, Chargers, Crusaders, etc. 

At the Aud a few years back, the Lake Region girls basketball team wore jerseys that said 'Lady Rangers' across the front. I remember making a loud complaint about it in the press box, echoing my argument above. I said, "The boys teams aren't called the 'Man Rangers!' And one of my sports media compatriots responded with, 'Wouldn't they be the Mangers?' Exactly.

In college, one of the first things we journalism students were taught was to drop the Lady. They weren't the Springfield College Lady Pride, they were the Pride, just like the men's teams. 

Of course there are schools that use two different mascots for the boys teams and the girls teams - BFA-St. Albans uses Bobwhites for the boys and Comets for the girls, but that's because the boys are named after an actual BFA coach, Bob White, and the girls are named for the same reason, after longtime coach Dario Comi. And I am pretty sure MSJ uses both the Mounties and the Green Wave, though I'm not sure the Rutland-area Catholic school uses the nicknames in terms of boys and girls.

I don't mean to offend anyone, nor do I mean to sound like an uber-feminist. But really. They are the Blue Devils whether they're playing boys soccer or softball. 

Your thoughts?

-Anna Grearson

200th basketball win for Musty...yeah, but hold on...

Last summer I wrote a column about Oxbow coach Brian Musty, lauding his tireless efforts at the Bradford high school. He's the only coach I know of who coaches in all three seasons - and all summer - and who isn't a grumpy guy because of it.

So when Oxbow athletic director Rich Thornton told us that Tuesday night's win over U-32 was Musty's 200th varsity girls basketball win as a coach, I had to ask: Yeah but, how many is that overall?

Thanks to Thornton for doing the legwork for me, which reveals Musty's coaching record at 346-294-11 since he began coaching at the varsity level at Oxbow in 1993. It does not count his performance as track coach from 2001-2003. According to Thornton, Musty "started out by coaching middle school baseball and basketball between 1989-1991 and has been teaching at Oxbow since 1994."

He has a 200-118 record in girls basketball, dating back to 1997. He has a 111-145-11 record in girls soccer, dating back to 1993. His record in girls lacrosse is 35-31, dating back to 2008. He still coaches all three sports, at the varsity level, and all of his teams reached the postseason last academic year. his girls soccer team made it to the D-III finals this fall, and his basketball team is sitting on an unbeaten 10-0 record going into tonight's game at Lamoille. This spring, the lacrosse season promises to be just as sweet.

The best part is, Musty doesn't like to talk about his own record.

"It's the kids'," he would say.

He brought his Olympians to Lamoille tonight, and I'm hoping for an 11-0 record for this season and for overall win No. 347.

Congratulations, Coach!

-Anna Grearson