Men’s Basketball: Former New York Knick draft pick Phil Seymore took over the men’s program. The Blue Devils rallied in his first game at the helm for a 98-89 win over Union at the Nazareth tournament. Robert Lyles (Peekskill) had 32 points in the season-opening win. Seymore has relied on Tyrone Clark (Elmira) in the early season, highlighted by Clark’s back-to-back 30-point games in December. Feb. 1 is the annual alumni game.
Women’s Basketball: Former WNBA coach Linda Hill MacDonald took over the women’s basketball program, winning her first game as a Blue Devil, as Becky Hebert (Hilton) converted the game-winning shot in the closing seconds. The Devils began what should be a season of milestones. Hebert is on pace to eclipse the all-time scoring mark of 1,370 currently held by Cheryl Kindzia (2008). Hebert was at 1,230 with 17 regular-season games to go. Fellow senior Jaimie Warren (Lake View) is on pace to join the 1,000-Point Club and has moved up to sixth on the all-time rebound list.
Men’s Cross Country: Fredonia State finished 10th at the NCAA Atlantic Regional at Letchworth State Park. There were 39 colleges competing. The top Blue Devil finisher was junior Chris Shartrand (Ballston Lake), 40th overall. Fredonia State finished third in the SUNYAC championship meet, led by one all-conference runner and three others in the top 25. Zakk Hess (Clyde), a junior, was the Blue Devils’ No. 1 runner and 10th overall, earning him Second Team All-SUNYAC. Just missing out on Third Team honors was sophomore Collin Mulcahy (Batavia), 17th overall. Shartrand was 19th. On Nov. 7, the Devils received a point in the national poll for the first time in school history.
Women’s Cross Country: Senior Kim Foltz (Elbridge) set a women’s cross country record for 6,000 meters – a mark she set three separate times this fall – in the NCAA Atlantic Regional meet when she crossed the finish line in 22:18.4. She finished 27th overall to lead the Blue Devils to 16th place in the 38-team region. Foltz was named All-SUNYAC with her 10th place finish at the conference championship race. The team finished fifth in the SUNYAC.
Hockey: The Devils opened the season with a 3-2 win at No. 8 Oswego. Freshman Christopher Eiserman (Newburyport, Mass.) earned the SUNYAC Goalie of the Week Award for his efforts. Junior Jared Wynia (Calgary, Alberta) leads the team with seven goals at the break. The team ended the first semester at 2-7-2 overall and 2-3-2 in the SUNYAC. The annual Pink the Rink is Feb. 1 when Morrisville State comes to town.
Men’s Soccer: Senior midfielder Chase Lipshie (Port Jefferson Station) made Third Team All-SUNYAC. The Blue Devils finished 5-12-1.
Women’s Soccer: Freshman forward Kristie Kleine (Cazenovia) made Second Team All-SUNYAC. She was joined by senior midfielder Maria Green (Loudonville) on the Third Team. The women were 4-12-2 on the season.
Men’s Swimming and Diving: The men wrapped up a solid first semester by winning their own nine-team invitational. Off the diving boards, Jeff Matter (East Aurora) and Rafael Santiago (Middletown) turned in NCAA zone-qualifying scores. Senior John Estanislau (East Longmeadow, Mass.) earned three SUNYAC Male Swimmer of the Week awards during the first semester.
Women’s Swimming and Diving: Ashley Keller (Lockport) and senior Katelyn Haley (Canandaigua) both qualified for the zone competition during the first semester. The duo claimed three SUNYAC Female Diver of the Week awards in the first six weeks of the season.
Women’s Tennis: At the SUNYAC Tournament, No. 3 singles Miller Barmasse (Lockport), No. 4 singles Molly Zanetti (Saratoga Springs) and No.6 singles Emily Fulkerson (Seneca Falls/Mynderse) earned victories in the consolation-round match vs. Plattsburgh. The Blue Devils finished with an 8-5 overall record.
Volleyball: The Blue Devils entered the SUNYAC Tournament riding the wave of a 15-match win streak before seeing it end. They finished with a 25-9 mark. Sophomore Paulina Rein (Baldwinsville) and freshman Sara Madison (Rochester) made Second Team All-SUNYAC. Third Team choices included sophomore Kelly Edinger (Rochester) and senior Kaitlin Orcutt (West Seneca).
Men’s Track and Field: Six men who scored at last year’s SUNYAC indoor meet led the Blue Devils into the indoor season. Sophomores Eric Williams (Batavia) earned points in the 60-meter hurdles and 200 meters, Collin Mulcahy (Batavia) in the 800 meters and the mile, and Kyle Collins (Suffern) in the 3,000 meters. Other returnees earning points last season were junior Kow Emphirim-Donkor (Endicott) in the 60-meter dash, junior Zakk Hess (Newark) in the mile, and senior Ben Goebel (Victor) in the pole vault. The Blue Devils distance medley relay quartet of Mulcahy, sophomore Jeremy Kozlowski (Dunkirk), sophomore Connor Hayward (Victor), and Hess also earned SUNYAC points. The outdoor scoring list of returnees include Williams (winner of the 110-meter high hurdles); Mulcahy in the 800 and 1,500 meters; Hess in the 1,500; Tyler Gajewski (Dunkirk) in the javelin and decathlon; Doug Imperi (Angola) in the decathlon; and Chris Shartrand (Ballston Spa) in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Williams and Kozlowski were also part of the scoring 4-by-100 relay.
Women’s Track and Field: The women’s list of returners is led by five SUNYAC indoor point scorers last year: senior Emily Cummiskey (Clarence) in the long jump and triple jump, junior Nicole Desens (Hopewell Junction) in the shot put and the 20-pound weight throw, junior Meghan Devine (Clarence) in the triple jump, and sophomores Anna Dambacher (Divermon, Ill.) and Olivia Kurbs (Lockport) in the 200-meter dash and the pole vault, respectively. The returnees who scored at the outdoor SUNYAC meet are Devine and Jenna Fiacco (Verone) in the javelin; Loren Metzger (Fairport) in the hammerthrow; Kurbs in the pole vault; Kayleigh Wasielewski (West Seneca) in the heptathlon; Anna Hourihan (Buffalo) in the 5,000 meters; Amanda Cocchiara (Hilton) in the 3,000-meter steeplechase; and Kim Foltz (Elbridge) in the 1,500 meters. Dambacher, Cummiskey, and Lexi Perez (Hamburg) were part of the 4-by-100 relay which also earned points at the outdoor meet.
Baseball: Top seniors for the Devils include pitcher Sean Larson (Angola) and second baseman Connor Lorenzo (Rochester). Both were named all-stars in the Carolina Virginia Collegiate League this past summer. Sophomore Carl Wolf (Hilton) was named the Rochester Collegiate League Pitcher of the Year, and redshirt junior Steve Sturm (Amherst) returns to the rotation after sitting out last year. Junior College transfers Ricky Mendiola (Williamsville) had 17 doubles at Erie Community College – 5th in the NJCAA – and Anthony Schiro (Sanborn), a two-time NJCAA World Series participant at Niagara County Community College, highlight a recruiting class that includes 16 new faces. Games in Butler, Pa., and Rochester, N.Y., precede the spring trip to Fort Myers, Fla.
Softball: The top returning player, sophomore Alyssa Morgan (Homer), was Second Team All-SUNYAC and Third Team NFCA All-Region as well as the Fredonia State Female Rookie of the Year. Her .421 batting average was third-best in team history and third in the SUNYAC during 2013. The team heads to Clermont, Fla., in mid-March for its annual spring trip. The Blue Devils will be under new leadership in 2014 as Tony Ciccarello was named head coach.
Lacrosse: The Blue Devils finished last season ranked No. 19 in NCAA Division III by the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association. Top returnees include IWLCA Empire Region First Teamers Katie Kleine (Cazenovia) and Marissa Cussins (Corning). That pair plus Mary Bruton (Palmyra) were All-SUNYAC. Kristie Kleine, sister of Katie and All-SUNYAC in soccer, is a top freshman. The season begins March 1 in Maryland, followed by the Spring Fling ’14 in West Palm Beach, Fla.
