White Mules brace themselves for blast of winter weather

Tuesday, November 22, 2005

By TRAVIS LAZARCZYK
Staff Writer

By TRAVIS LAZARCZYK

Staff Writer

Gone from the Colby College men's ice hockey team are All-American defenseman Patrick Walsh and one of the top scorers in program history in Nick Bayley, as well as eight other players. But the Mules still have plenty of talent to compete in what is arguably the toughest league in Division III, the New England Small College Athletic Conference.

"Other guys need to pick it up," head coach Jim Tortorella said. "One of the things about recruiting is projecting how guys will develop. What do those sophomores do when they become juniors? What do the juniors do when they become seniors?"

Colby finished last season 15-8-2, reaching the conference semifinals. The Mules opened the season on Friday with a 4-1 win over Babson, then the No. 10 team in the country, and closed the first road trip of the year with a 4-1 win at UMass-Boston.

"Any time you get four points on the first weekend of the season, it's a good thing," Tortorella said.

Tortorella has eight freshmen in the lineup, and some have already begun contributing big plays. First-year goalie Andy Cook (Golden Valley, Minn.) made a combined 41 saves on 43 shots, including 35 saves against Babson, to win both games. Junior Ben Grandjean (Waterford, Conn.) could also see time in net for the Mules.

"The thing I liked with Andy is his calming affect with the team," Tortorella said. "Against Babson, there would be a little bit of a surge, and Andy's there. There's another surge and Andy's there. Benny has experience and needs to be ready to play. It's too early to say that Andy is the number one goalie."

Sophomore forward Josh Reber (Edina, Minn.) is the top returning scorer, with nine goals and 17 assists last season. Junior Greg Osbourne (Stoughton, Mass.) had three goals over the weekend. Junior Patrick Rutherford (Truro, Novia Scotia), freshmen Joel Covelli (Carlisle, Ontario) and Cass Buttafuoco (Rockville Centre, N.Y.) and sophomore T.J. Kelley (Ridgefield, Conn.) should also contribute offensively.

The defensive unit is led by sophomore Arthur Fritch (South Boston, Mass.), who led the Mules with 22 assists last season, seniors Jake Bayley (Cambridge, Ontario) and Ryan O'Flanagan (Toronto, Ontario) and sophomore Joe Rothwell (Unionville, Ontario). Freshman Chris Talbert (Hinesburg, Vt.) is also in the blue line mix.

Colby's women's basketball team also went 2-0 on their opening weekend, playing their first games for new head coach Lori Gear McBride. In wins over Newbury and Husson, the Mules forced a combined 62 turnovers.

"That's kind of how we want to play this year," McBride said. "Put a lot of pressure on the other team."

McBride inherits a team that with just one senior went 6-18 last season, but it's also a team that has four returning starters and eight players who saw significant minutes last year. Returning to the team are Waterville's Tracey Nale, who took last season off, and Kate Emery (Westford, Mass.), who was in Europe last year.

"(Nale) has done a great job. She's such a welcome surprise. She adds a really good offensive presence," McBride said. "(Emery) is another welcome surprise I wasn't expecting."

Top returning players include a trio of sophomores, post player Katie McCabe (Watertown, Conn.), the team's leading returning scorer, guard Regina Wohl (Westbrook), and point guard Kathleen Nicholson (Tuftonboro, N.H.).

"Regina is the best 3-point shooter on the team. Nicholson is a big guard (5-foot-8) and gives us nice size from the point guard and some good shooting as well," McBride said. "(McCabe) is a strong inside player."

McBride hasn't had much time with her full team. McCabe, guard Laura Williamson (Manchester, Conn.) and forward Megan Davis (Hopkinton, Mass.) joined the team late due to overlap with the soccer season.

"We're getting there. With the NESCAC, having only two weeks to prepare before your first game is tough. They're adjusting to a new system," McBride said.

The Mules don't have to go far for some tough games. Conference rival Bowdoin and Bates are ranked in the top 25, as is the University of Southern Maine.

"Our schedule is going to be tough," McBride said. "That's good. We need to be challenged."

The men's basketball team opened the season 0-2 with a pair of losses at a tough University of Chicago tournament. The Mules return five letterwinners who each started at some point during last season's 14-8 campaign. The top four returning players are center Drew Cohen (Briaircliff Manor, N.Y.), forwards Andrew Jenkins (Gorham) and Nate Dick (North Attleboro, Mass.) and guard Nick Farrell (Aspen, Colo.).

"Those four are the experienced guys," head coach Dick Whitmore, now in his 35 year on the Colby bench, said. "I think Nick Farrell has the chance to be among the top point guards in the NESCAC and New England Division III. Drew has potential. His ability to go inside and out is big."

Valley High School graduate Mark Gaudet, a sophomore guard, started both games in Chicago. Gaudet hit 4-of-8 3-point tries on the weekend.

"(Gaudet) has really worked to get the chance to play," Whitmore said. "He's got great ability to shoot."

Farrell and Jenkins could help offset the scoring lost by the graduation of Patrick McGowan, an all-conference selection and 1,000 point scorer.

The women's hockey team split a pair of games over the weekend. Coming off a 7-11-3 season, the Mules are young, with forward Lindsay Barada (New Canaan, Conn.) and defenseman Lauren Goethals (Needham, Mass.) the only seniors on the roster. A trio of freshman forwards, Laura Anning (Ingramport, Nova Scotia), Rebecca Julian (South Windsor, Conn.) and Nicole Crocker (Dover, Mass.) led the team in scoring over the weekend.

Sophomore Genevieve Triganne (Point-Claire, Quebec) is back in net after posting a 2.87 goals against average and a .904 save percentage last season.

Travis Lazarczyk -- 861-9242

tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com