2009-2010 Athletics Annual Report

Merrimack College

Dear Alumni, Friends, and Fans of Merrimack Athletics,It is hard for me to believe that more than a year has passed since I began my tenureas Director of Athletics at Merrimack. The time has certainly gone quickly, and I takethat as a sign of how successful (and busy!) the year was and how exciting our futurewill be. Our new College President, Chris Hopey, has an energy and passion for athletics that equals ours in the department. We are excited to partner with Chris as we continue to pursue excellence and make a difference in the lives of our student-athletes.

Last year I spoke about my vision for Merrimack Athletics both from a competitive and academic standpoint. As you read the ensuing pages, you will seethat we were able to reach many of our goals. First and foremost we once again had academic success including a department grade point average higher than 3.0; that’s higher than the GPA of the entire College. Athletically, we were able to winNortheast-10 championships in Football and Men’s Lacrosse while three of ourteams qualified for the NCAA Tournament. As you have no doubt heard me say numerous times, the student-athlete experienceis our number one goal and one of four priorities with the others being winning,recruiting and revenue generation. Due in large part to successful recruiting by ourcoaches, we have been able to win both in the classroom and on the court, field andice, all of which leads to a better experience for our student-athletes. Based on ourend-of-the-year surveys, our student-athletes told us that they, too, felt they had agood year from an experiential standpoint.

In the area of revenue generation, we brought in approximately 33% morethan we were budgeted for. Thanks to an increased hockey attendance and generousdonations for the Lawler Renovation Project including over 200 donors in the Buy-a-Seat campaign, we will have a much improved arena for the hockey team toplay in and for graduation to be held as well as other campus events. New chair back seats will be completely installed in December, as will a new student seatingsection behind the goal.

By completing this project we will now be able to turn our attention to manyother facility needs including tennis courts, a turf field, gym floor, new locker roomsand increased seating at the current turf field.

Finally, last year I spoke about telling our story and engaging key audiences.Hopefully you have enjoyed these stories, written on our website or appearing in thelocal, regional and national media, this past year and will continue to follow ourheadlines. I’d like to share one simple story to summarize what a terrific experienceour student-athletes have here at Merrimack.

Many of you reading the annual report know the name Stephane DaCosta. A rising sophomore hockey player from France, Stephane was named the 2010National Rookie of the Year and the Hockey East Rookie of the Year as a freshman.Following our final game of the season in the Hockey East Tournament, 17 NationalHockey League teams called hoping to sign Stephane to a professional contract.Most people thought Stephane would sign especially given the money he could make.But Stephane decided to stay for another year, and he did so because he loved beingin college and loved being at Merrimack. I remember him saying to me how muchfun it was to be with his friends on a warm summer spring day and watching ourother teams play.

As adults we often say that college was the best four years of our lives. Our goal in athletics in to ensure that all of our student-athletes, like Stephane, feel the same way.

Kind Regards,

Donate online at www.merrimackathletics.com

A Message From the Athletic Director

The 2009-10 year was another very successful season in the classroom for Merrimack’s student-athletes. The entire student-athlete body earned a 3.06 cumulative spring GPA,which is higher than the campus average of all Merrimack students. Fifteen student-athletesearned a perfect 4.0 GPA, 27% or 100 student-athletes earned a 3.5 GPA or better, and 56%or 209 student-athletes earned a 3.0 or better.

Leading the way was Robbie Sabadoz from the men’s soccer team. A sophomore who tiedthe school record with 19 goals in 2009, Sabadoz was named the Merrimack Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year and received the Northeast-10 Player of the Year and Scholar-AthleteSport Excellence Award. He was also named an All-District academic honoree by CoSIDA.

Senior goaltender Andrew Braithwaite was selected as the Hockey East Scholar Athlete of the Year for thethird time in four seasons. Recording a perfect 4.0GPA for the third time, Braithwaite was joined by 10 of his teammates, who all earned a 3.0 GPA or better.A Merrimack hockey player has won the Hockey East Top Scholar-Athlete Award nine times since itsinception 19 years ago, most among any school.

Kelly Pasquantonio, who graduated with a degree in sports medicine, was named a finalist for theNortheast-10 Scholar-Athlete of the Year award andthe NCAA Woman of the Year honor. Pasquantonio,who played both field hockey and lacrosse, was a two-time Merrimack Female Scholar-Athlete of theYear award winner.

The women’s lacrosse and women’s cross countryteams received the first-ever Northeast-10 TeamSport Excellence Award for posting the highest GPA ofany Northeast-10 school in their respective sport.

For the third straight year, the men’s cross country team recorded the highest GPA among Merrimack’s men’s teams with a 3.24 mark. On the women’s side, the women’s cross country team, led by Academic All-Americans Julie Binney, Christine Fisher, JenniferRichard and Katelyn Meagher, posted the top team GPA at 3.49.

Thirteen student-athletes from 10 different programs were named to the Northeast-10 All-Academic Team, while a school-record 209 student-athletes were Northeast-10 Commissioner’s Honor Roll recipients.

In all, 11 sports, including all eight female teams, totaled GPA’s over 3.0,while four sports, men’s soccer, women’s soccer, women’s cross countryand men’s cross country earned national academic honors by having a3.0 or better team GPA.

2009-2010 Athletics Annual Report

Academic Success

Top 5 Women’s Team GPAs1. Cross Country 3.492. Tennis 3.283. Soccer 3.264. Lacrosse 3.255. Field Hockey 3.19

Top 5 Men’s Team GPAs1. Cross Country 3.242. Baseball 3.063. Soccer 3.034. Tennis 2.945. Hockey 2.93

BASEBALL - Following the program’s most successful campaign in Joe Sarno’s tenure, the Warriors won their firstplayoff game in 10 years and compiled the most wins (21) since 1999. The 21-19 mark also put them over the .500mark for the first time since 1997. Winning the first two games of the Northeast-10 Championship over top-seededSouthern Connecticut and three-seed New Haven behind starting pitchers Ryan O’Rourke and Dylan Ellis, respectively,the Warriors were among the final four teams remaining at the tournament. In a record-setting year for O’Rourke, thelefty hurled 79.0 innings to strike out 93 batters, good for 193 in his three-year career and tops among all Merrimackpitchers. Senior captain and three-time all-Conference infielder Brendan Pyburn ended his career with 200 hits,becoming the third player all-time to reach 200.

MEN’S AND WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY – The men’s and women’s cross country teams recorded the highestmale and female team GPAs respectively at Merrimack in 2009-10. The women’s team featured four Academic All-Americans, Julie Binney, Christine Fisher, Jennifer Richard and Katelyn Meagher and finished seventh in the conference and sixth at the Northeast Regionals. The women’s team also posted the top GPA among its Northeast-10competitors, winning the NE-10 Team Academic Excellence Award. Meagher, who was Merrimack’s top runner atevery event, was a Northeast-10 All-Conference selection. The men’s team, depleted by injuries and sickness for much of the season, finished 14th at the Northeast-10 Championship.

MEN’S BASKETBALL – Setting a program record with a third straight trip to the NCAA tournament, the men’s basketball team went 21-9 for the second straight year. Under 30th year head coach Bert Hammel, Merrimack earneda berth in both the Northeast-10 and NCAA East Regional semifinal. Senior All-American and two-time Bob CousyAward finalist Darren Duncan finished his illustrious career in North Andover as the third all-time scorer (2,049).Starting all 117 games of his career, Duncan finished sixth all-time in Division II with 825 assists and set an all-timemark for free throws made (725), shooting a lifetime 79% in the Northeast-10 Conference. For the second straightyear, Merrimack was the top-scoring team in the Northeast-10 (77.9 ppg) to go with a league-best 9.39 steals and 8.83threes per game. At year’s end, Duncan and 2010-11 captain Dee Mency were named to the Northeast-10 All-Conference team.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL – Earning a second straight trip to the Northeast-10 tournament, fourth year head coach Helen Williams helped Merrimack knock off a No. 1-ranked team (Franklin Pierce) for the first time in programhistory. As the 12-seed entering the Northeast-10 tournament, the Warriors became just the third team in the moderntournament era to upset the five-seed (Saint Rose) in the first round of the playoffs. The Warriors were led by seniorcaptain Casey Miller who became the all-time leader at Merrimack in three-pointers made (187), while becoming the17th player to score 1,000 points in her career (1,240). All-Conference sophomore guard Genn Roy led the chargedown the stretch, scoring 20-plus points in three of the last four games.

FIELD HOCKEY – The 2009 field hockey team posted the best one-year turnaround in program history under second year head coach and womensfieldhockey.com Division II Coach of the Year, Anne Rounce, with an eight-winimprovement and the program’s first ever berth in the conference semifinals. Northeast-10 Conference Co-Rookie of the Year, womensfieldhockey.com Rookie of the Year, Merrimack College Female Rookie of the Year and All-American April Daugherty led the Warriors and all of Division II with .76 assists per game on the way to a school-record 40 points. With an 8-1 home record, Merrimack set a program mark for home wins, goals scored (64), saves(199) and the highest national ranking in program history (No. 8). A talented corps of freshmen, including KerriBergquist, Jen Otis, Katie Zubkus and Daugherty promise to build the program, having started a combined 83 gamesin their first year in North Andover.

FOOTBALL – The football team earned a share of the Northeast-10 Championship, its second-ever title, with a 6-2conference record. Led by Northeast-10 MVP and Merrimack Male Athlete of the Year James Suozzo, the Warriors ledthe region in offense and ranked sixth nationally in total offense. Led by an offensive line that allowed only 11 sacks,fewest in school history, Anthony Smalls became the second running back in school history to record 1,000 rushingyards in a season, while the potent offensive attack set team school records for scoring (349 points), total rushingyards (2,516), total yards (4.826), and first downs (226). There were many individual school marks set as well, four byChris Laham, who graduates as the program's all-time leader in touchdowns (38), receiving touchdowns (36), points(228) and receiving yards (2,411). In all, 11 players were named to the all-conference team, including nine first-teamselections.

HOCKEY – The Merrimack hockey program returned to prominence in 2009-10 as the Warriors recorded a Division Ischool record 16 victories and won a Hockey East playoff game for the first time since 1998. Led by Co-Hockey East Coach of the Year Mark Dennehy and the 2010 NCAA and Hockey East Rookie of the Year Stephane Da Costa,Merrimack posted a 12-3-1 home record, marking the most wins at home in one season in school history. They alsobeat every Hockey East team at home and overall for the first time ever while qualifying for the playoffs with a 16-19-2(12-13-2 HEA) record for the first time under Dennehy. The Warriors also sold out two home games, marking the firstsellout at Lawler Arena since 2002. Andrew Braithwaite was named the Hockey East Scholar Athlete of the Year for thethird time in four seasons, while 10 of his teammates were also named to the squad, posting a GPA of over 3.0.

Team Results

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DID YOU KNOW?

Merrimack finished sixth in the Northeast-10President’s Cup Standingsand ranked fourth amongthe 15 Division II sports it sponsors.

Two teams (football, men’slacrosse) won Northeast-10Championships, the first at Merrimack since2006, while three teams(women’s soccer, men’sbasketball , men’s tennis)earned NCAA bids.

Merrimack recorded a 70%winning mark at home, 60%winning percentage in theNortheast-10 and 57% winning mark overall, thebest in each category in thelast five years.

There were 12 All-Americanselections, eight athletichonors and four academicselections.

Through fundraising, ticketrevenue and sponsorshiprevenue, the AthleticDepartment brought itapproximately $2.29 million, well ahead of thegoal of $1.74 million.

Pitcher Ryan O’Rourke (’10)was drafted by theMinnesota Twins in the 13th round of the MajorLeague Baseball AmateurDraft. O’Rourke, who is playing for Elizabethton of the Rookie League, is the earliest draftee inMerrimack baseball history.

Merrimack has added men’s and women’s indoorand outdoor track beginningin 2010-11, pushing theschool’s intercollegiatesports total to twenty.

Six Merrimack hockey players were invited to NHLRookie Camps in July. Twoplayers, Kyle Bigos and JoeCannata, have been draftedby NHL teams.

Eight Merrimack student-athletes recently took part in the first-ever MerrimackSuperstars competition.Filmed on the Merrimackcampus in the summer, log on to www.merrimackathletics.com for complete footage and highlights.

MEN’S LACROSSE – The Merrimack men’s lacrosse team captured its second-ever Northeast-10Championship, defeating top-ranked and unbeaten Le Moyne 12-11 in overtime in the finals in Syracuse.In all, the Warriors finished 13-3 (9-1 NE-10) and had six players named to the All-Conference team, ledby the NE-10 Goalkeeper of the Year Cory Spinale and the NE-10 Rookie of the Year Corey Lunney. Spinalewas also named a first-team All-American and was a NE-10 All-Academic selection in his final season inNorth Andover. The Warriors became just the second team in 42 tries to defeat Le Moyne in Syracuse.Lunney led the conference in goals per game and was third in points per game, while seven playersreached double-digits in goals, led by 46 from Lunney and 20 from Bryan MacPhie.

WOMEN’S LACROSSE – Featuring a program-record ten-game winning streak and a #9 national rank-ing, the Merrimack women’s lacrosse team concluded 2010 with a 12-3 record in third place in theNortheast-10. Led by the womenslacrosse.com National Division II Coach of the Year Corinne Baker,Merrimack’s offense was ranked in the top-five nationally, led by 47 goals and 81 points from All-American Mia Basile. Sophomore Colleen Strachan, who tallied 35 goals and 40 points, was named thenational Unsung Hero by womenslacrosse.com. Reaching the conference tournament semifinals, five stu-dent-athletes were named to the all-conference team. The Warriors also recorded the top GPA amongNortheast-10 women’s lacrosse teams, earning the NE-10 Team Sport Excellence honor.

MEN’S SOCCER – Under 28th year head coach Tony Martone, the men’s soccer team finished fifth in theNortheast-10 behind Northeast-10 Player and Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year, Robbie Sabadoz. Thesophomore striker matched a program record 19 goals while ranking fifth in Division II in goals per game(1.12). Winning the final four games of the season, Merrimack earned its fifth straight tournament berthand top-five finish in the Northeast-10. Receiving NSCAA All-Academic honors with a team GPA of over3.0, senior captain Greg Motta joined Sabadoz on the all-Conference team as well as the Northeast-10 all-Academic team. The Warriors also collected the Northeast-10 Conference sportsmanship award.

WOMEN’S SOCCER – With a Conference record 25th consecutive trip to the Northeast-10 postseason,the Warriors made their third straight trip to the NCAA tournament under 25th year head coach GabeMejail in 2009. Behind three-time All-American and the Merrimack Female Athlete of the Year GabrielleGramprey, the Warriors captured their 26th straight winning season. Gramprey graduates as only the11th scorer in Merrimack history to reach 100 points in her career, while finishing seventh on the all-timescoring list with 114 points and sixth all-time with 41 goals. One of just three Merrimack teams to reach the NCAATournament, Merrimack was named an NSCAA all-academic team, while Lindsey deMont and Kerri Domohowski earnedNE-10 All-Academic recognition.

SOFTBALL – Finishing two games out of the Northeast-10 tournament, the Warriors won their final three games of theseason behind the senior leadership of Casey Conetta, Emily Cummings, Jill Bradford and Atlee Cahill. With a .393 bat-ting average, junior shortstop Kristen Lemay led the Merrimack offense, while maintaining a .936 fielding percentage toearn second team all-Conference honors. Conetta and sophomore Monique Gosselin were also named to the all-Conference team, each landing on the third team. Conetta batted .366 with 27 RBIs, including three home runs as asenior. Gosselin hit for power this spring with a team-best .762 slugging percentage, 40 RBIs, nine home runs, threetriples, 16 doubles and a .459 on-base percentage.

MEN’S TENNIS – With a third straight and third-ever trip to the NCAA tournament, the Warriors advanced to theConference Championship for the second straight season. With a 9-1 NE-10 mark, Merrimack dropped just 14 individ-ual matches on the year in conference play. Tim McHugh earned the 2009-10 Northeast-10 Conference F. Paul BoganMemorial Sportsmanship Award and was one of six Warriors named to the all-Conference team at year’s end.Sophomore Sean Pahler received first team honors at No. 4 singles play, while Max Eppley (No. 2), Petar Golijanin (No.3) and McHugh (No. 6) landed on the second team for their singles play success. Golijanin was also named to the all-Conference Rookie Team.

WOMEN’S TENNIS – Earning the eighth and final spot in the Northeast-10 Conference tournament, the Warriors’ season came to an end at top-seed Southern New Hampshire in late April. Leading Merrimack were seniors CaitlinDunn and Cristina Lucin, both receiving all-Conference recognition from the Northeast-10. The captain,Dunn was rec-ognized by the league as the 2009-10 Northeast-10 Conference F. Paul Bogan Memorial Sportsmanship Award winner.Lucin, who finished 11-1 at No. 1 singles in the Northeast-10, was named to the all-Conference second team and afinalist for the Merrimack College Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year with a 3.97 GPA.

VOLLEYBALL – The Merrimack volleyball team won a program-record 21 matches in 2009, led by the Northeast-10Libero of the Year Alyssa Pickert. Despite the 21 victories, the Warriors missed out on the conference tournament,recording just an 8-7 NE-10 mark. Molly Cindric and Shaunda Forcier joined Pickert on the all-conference team.Arguably the highlight of the season was capturing the ECC/NE-10 Challenge with victories over Bridgeport, New YorkTech and Queens. Pickert will return for her senior year as the program’s all-time leader in career digs, while setterElyse Lorenz returns for her final season with the most assists in program history. Cindric will likely reach the schoolmarks for kills and blocks in 2010.

2009-2010 Athletics Annual Report

Donate online at www.merrimackathletics.com

The Merrimack athletic department raised over 1.2 million dollars for the LawlerRenovation Project, and phase one of the renovations have begun and will be completed intime for the home-opener on October 16th against UConn on Homecoming weekend. Thisphase of the construction will include new blue chair back seats on the entire home side of the arena, new bleacher seating behind the goal at the parking lot side of the arena, adirect entrance from the Blue Line Club to the seating area, a new press box on the homeside of the arena, movement of the penalty box and scorekeepers box to the home benchside, movement of the graphics portion of the scoreboard to the opposite side, code workwhich includes sprinklers, wall reinforcements and ADA compliance, and a paved walkwaynext to the arena from the parking lot that will replace the man-made dirt walkway.

The next phase of the renovations will be completed at the latest in December following theNortheastern game on December 4th and prior to the January 8th game at home againstMaine. These renovations include new blue chair back seating on the entire visitor’s side, awalkway underneath the visitor’s side for the visiting team with direct access to the bench,new lighting and an additional heat recovery system.

New sound systems, signage, and a midfield logo were purchased for the turf field, whilenew softball dugout covers and new baseball and softball tarps were installed before the2010 spring season. Signage for the baseball and softball fields will be ordered prior to the2011 seasons, while future plans call for a renovated lobby, new turf practice field, newtennis courts, and expanded seating at the turf field.

Facilities

Construction inside Lawler Arena began in lateMay and will be completed in early October priorto Merrimack’s first game against Connecticut onOctober 16. Log on to merrimackathletics.comfor updated photo galleries of the renovationsthroughout the summer.

WOMEN’S SOCCER ALUMNI GAME – SUNDAY, AUGUST 29The Merrimack women’s soccer team will host its annual alumni game on Sunday, August 29at 12 p.m. at Warrior Field. For more information or to register to play, please contact headcoach Gabe Mejail at 978-837-5989 or at mejailg@merrimack.edu.

HOCKEY GOLF OUTING - FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 10The Merrimack hockey program will host its fourth annual Friends of Merrimack Golf Outingon Friday, September 10, 2010 at the Windham Country Club. The event, which begins with a1:30 p.m. shotgun start, is $175per player, $50 for dinner and$200 to sponsor a hole. The feeincludes lunch, dinner andawards ceremony, green fees,golf cart, use of club facilitiesand a fabulous player gift. Toregister or for more information,please contact the MerrimackCollege Athletic Office at 978-837-5341 or email athletics@merrimack.edu. A detailed brochure will be available shortly.

FIELD HOCKEY ALUMNI EVENT– SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 25The Merrimack field hockey program will host its alumni event and post-game barbeque onSeptember 25 on Warrior Field. All alumni are encouraged to attend Merrimack’s game withSouthern Connecticut and then attend the post-game tailgate event. The annual alumnigame will be held in the spring. For more information, please contact head coach AnneRounce at rouncea@merrimack.edu.

MEN’S SOCCER ALUMNI GAME – SATURDAY, OCTOBER 9The Merrimack men’s soccer team will host its annual alumni game on Saturday, October 9at 10 a.m. at Warrior Field. Stick around after the alumni game and root for the Warriors asthey take on New Haven at 1 p.m. For more information or to register to play, please contacthead coach Tony Martone at martonea@merrimack.edu.

HOMECOMING WEEKEND – FRIDAY-SUNDAY, OCTOBER 15-17Featuring the grand opening of the renovated Lawler Arena, Merrimack College will host itsannual Homecoming Weekend from October 15-17. On Saturday, the football kicks off ahome tripleheader, hosting Saint Anselm at 1 p.m. at Warrior Field. Volleyball will then hostrival New Haven in a big conference match at 4 p.m. in the Volpe Gym, before hockey opensthe renovated Lawler Arena at 7 p.m. against the University of Connecticut. Events acrosscampus are scheduled for the entire weekend. Call the athletic office at 978-837-5341 fortickets or with any questions.

CROSS COUNTRY ALUMNI MEET – SATURDAY, OCTOBER 16The Merrimack cross country team will host its annual alumni meet on Saturday, October 16at 10 a.m. at the Volpe Complex. Please contact head coach Chris Cameron atcameronc@merrimack.edu for more information.

WOMEN'S LACROSSE ALUMNI GAME - SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23The Merrimack women's lacrosse team will host its annual alumni game on Saturday,October 23 from 9-11 a.m. on Warrior Field. Contact head coach Corinne Baker atbakerc@merrimack.edu for more information or to participate.

Alumni Events Football and HockeySeason Tickets on SaleNow!Call the Athletic TicketOffice at 978-837-5324 oremail Athletic MarketingManager Will Rothermelat rothermelj@merri-mack.edu to receiveinformation on or sign upfor season tickets for the2010-11 football andhockey teams.

WANT TO STAYINVOLVED? Sign up for Merrimack E-Newsletters today!Log on to merrimackath-letics.com and sign up to receive Merrimackelectronic newslettersdirectly to your mailbox.Alums, parents and fanscan register to receivethe latest information,featuring coaches’ letters, season updatesand offseason news fromany or all of Merrimack’s20 intercollegiate sports.

Merrimack on AndoverTV and 1400 AMFor the second straightyear, Merrimack hasteamed up with AndoverTV. All home football,men’s basketball,women’s basketball andhockey games will be televised on tape delaythroughout the yearlocally on Andover TV.Log on to merrimackath-letics.com for a completeschedule. For the secondstraight season, allMerrimack hockeygames will be broadcastlive on 1400 AM. For thethird straight year, allhome football, men’sbasketball, women’s basketball, and hockeygames will be web-streamed online at merrimackathletics.com.

2009-2010 Athletics Annual Report

Merrimack College Athletic DepartmentVolpe Complex

315 Turnpike StreetNorth Andover, MA 01845