Smith Notches Seventh 20 Point Effort In Last Nine Games With 27 Points As Men's Basketball Sees Six Game Win Streak Come To End With 92-76 Northeast-10 Setback At Saint Michael's

January 6, 2007

STONEHILL MEN'S BASKETBALL

Saturday, January 6, 2007

Ross Sports Center, Colchester, Vt.

FINAL: SAINT MICHAEL'S 92, STONEHILL 76

COLCHESTER, Vt.-- Senior Chris Cayole (Burlington, Vt.) scored 25 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead four players in double figures as Saint Michael's used a strong start to post a 92-76 Northeast-10 Conference men's basketball victory over Stonehill Saturday afternoon at the Ross Sports Center.

The host Purple Knights (9-6, 7-3 Northeast-10) grabbed sole possession of third place in the league standings by blistering the nets at a 58 percent clip in the opening half of action, as Saint Michael's took an early eight point lead before the visiting Skyhawks (11-4, 6-4 Northeast-10) closed that gap back to three points (22-19) midway through the first half. The Purple Knights then broke things open with a 17-0 run over a 3:45 span to take a 20-point cushion at 39-19 on a Cayole three-pointer with 6:13 remaining in the half en route to a 53-34 advantage at the break, and the hosts maintained that double-digit advantage in the final 20 minutes of play to post their first win in the series between the two schools in over five years, as Stonehill had won six straight since Saint Michael's last win on January 12, 2002 at the Ross Sports Center.

Junior James Sorrentine (Pawtucket, R.I.) added 23 points in the victory for the Purple Knights, while senior Brendan Mullins (Downers Grove, Ill.) chipped in with 18 points on the day for Saint Michael's, as Cayole, Sorrentine and Mullins combined for 14 of the hosts' 15 three-pointers in the contest. Junior Brian Monahan (Kinderhook, N.Y.) added a double-double effort of 15 points and a game-high 12 rebounds for the Purple Knights, who shot 48 percent overall from the field and 50 percent from behind the arc.

Sophomore Nick Smith (Colonia, N.J.) led all scorers with 27 points (two shy of his career-high) and six rebounds in the setback for Stonehill, which saw its six-game winning streak come to an end. Smith posted his seventh 20-point performance in the last nine games for the Skyhawks, who also received 12 points and five boards from senior Soap Toun (Cranston, R.I.) as well as 10 points and seven assists from freshman Randall Stallworth (Toms River, N.J.). Senior Lance Clarke (Cambridge, Mass.) chipped in with eight points, while sophomore Colin Scanlon (Centreville, Va.) grabbed eight boards for Stonehill, which shot 44 percent overall and canned nine three-pointers, as each team grabbed 37 rebounds for the afternoon.

Stonehill hosts Merrimack in a Northeast-10 outing on Thursday evening at Merkert Gymnasium beginning at 7:30 p.m., while Saint Michael's travels to Sparkill, N.Y. on Monday evening to take on St. Thomas Aquinas in a non-league contest that tips-off at 7:00 p.m.