The Mariners dynamic duo of sophomore quarterback Dan Circelli (New Hartford, NY) and senior wideout Jay DeBruhl (Camden, SC) connected three times in the endzone on Saturday, Oct. 13 to lead the Blue and Gray to a 30-13 win over Case Western Reserve University. Kings Point traveled to Cleveland, OH to face the Spartans on Finnigan Field. The Kings Point offense gained 427 yards while the defense limited the Spartans to 321 yards and forced four turnovers.

On the second drive of the day for Kings Point, the Mariners returned to their ways of old, using the run game to set up their lethal passing connections. The Mariners drove 64 yards with just one pass attempt, a 16-yard completion, to set up their first points of the day that stemmed from a 19-yard field goal by junior kicker Erik Hedval (Santee, CA) at 2:44. Senior Paul Boulos (Staten Island, NY) recovered a fumble on the Spartans next drive to give the offense the ball back on the Case Western 39-yard line. On the first play from scrimmage, Circelli hit senior Will Felch (Lancaster, TX) for a 35-yard gain to the four. Three attempts later, senior linebacker Luke Wisniewski (Wilmington, DE) plowed his way to paydirt from one-yard out, scoring his second career touchdown. Following the Hedval PAT, Kings Point was ahead 10-0 just three seconds into the second quarter.

The Spartans regrouped following the Mariners' score and were able to get on the scoreboard, piecing together their best drive of the game (80 yards), which culminated with a 20-yard passing touchdown to the far right corner of the endzone at 13:35. After trading three-and-out series', the Blue and Gray offense took to the field at 11:04 at the Case Western 47-yard line. Tailbacks Trenel Hardy (Westbury, NY), a senior, and David McNeal (San Antonio, TX), a sophomore, continued to grind out yardage on the ground as Kings Point marched down the field. The drive ended when Circelli and DeBruhl connected on their first touchdown of the day, a 12 yard score as DeBruhl cut across the left side of the endzone. Hedval converted again on the PAT and USMMA led 17-7. The Spartans advanced to the Kings Point six-yard line on their ensuing possession and had a third-and-one situation, but Kings Point's stingy defense thwarted their attempts for either a score or a first down. Each team had a final offensive series prior to the halftime intermission, but both were forced to punt, as the Mariners entered the locker room with a 17-7 lead.

In the third quarter following a touchback, Kings Point gained the ball on their own 20-yard line. Kings Point converted their two fourth down attempts during the series. On a fourth-and-one at Case's 48-yard line sophomore fullback Kevin O'Connor (Smithtown, NY) gained three yards to keep the scoring drive alive. The second conversion was on the score itself (fourth-and-nine) as the Mariners decided to go for it from 23 yards out and DeBruhl scored his second touchdown of the day from Circelli to end the drive. The 13-play drive ate up 4:44 off the clock as USMMA took a commanding 24-7 lead following Hedval's kick. A 28-yard return by Case Western's John Kobs on the kick-off, gave the Spartans quality field position and they were able to register another tally at 5:16 of the third. However, the kick failed and Kings Point still had an 11-point advantage heading into the final quarter of action.

Kings Point's steadfast defense owned the fourth quarter, stopping key drives and forcing two key turnovers to deflate any momentum that Case Western may have had following their late third-quarter score. The Spartans had the ball at their own 45 and were trying to find a way to get a fist down on a third-and-11 when sophomore Kyle Franklin (Acworth, GA) notched the only sack of the day for a 13-yard loss and forced a fumble on the play. Despite a recovery for Case Western, the Spartans were forced to punt. On Case's next drive, Luke Wisniewski picked off a pass that was going through the middle and returned it 11 yards to take the ball away. The Spartans had another chance after a Kings Point punt at 8:30 but junior Mike Rye (Bel Air, MD) knocked the ball loose on the Spartans 20-yard line and senior Mike Ross (Timonium, MD) grabbed it on the 19. The Blue and Gray offense took to the field for the encore. Hardy rushed once for four yards, and then DeBruhl and Circelli did severe damage once again as they connected for the third time in the endzone for a 15-yard score at 7:24. The PAT attempt failed and Kings Point led, 30-13. The Spartans would have the ball two more times before the final whistle but were unable to get out of their own end of the field. The final nail was driven into the proverbial coffin when junior Mike Brady (Fort Myers, FL) intercepted a pass at the CW 45-yard line and returned it six yards with 2:23 left to play.

The Mariners offense held the ball for over 36 minutes of possession time and gained 241 yards on the ground and 186 yards in the air in a well-balanced attack. It was the first time since the Blue and Gray's 24-21 win at Coast Guard on Nov. 13, 1999, or since Dan Circelli took over the starting quarterback role, that Kings Point has gained more yardage on the ground than in the air. The effective ground attack was led by three speedsters. McNeal led the team with 90 yards on 23 attempts, while Hardy added 51 yards in 11 tries. Junior David Kozich (Clymer, PA), who came on late in the game, averaged 9.1 yards per carry as he gained 82 yards in nine attempts.

Circelli was 13-24 with no interceptions for 186 yards and three touchdowns, continuing his streak of 11 consecutive 175-yard or more passing games. DeBruhl made seven snags for 119 yards and hauled in all three passing touchdowns of the day. He made a season-long 42-yard reception late in the first half of play and carried the ball once for a gain of seven yards. Felch had three receptions for 43 yards. O'Connor also had a catch of 16 yards to add to his key fourth down-converting rush of three yards.

Defensively, junior linebacker Jason Rowland (Fort Myers, FL) was the key playmaker with 13 tackles, two for loss, and two break-ups. Boulos recovered a fumble and had nine tackles in the Mariners' victory. Franklin had 10 stops, the only sack of the game, two tackles for loss, and a forced fumble while sophomore David McIlravy (Virginia Beach, VA) and Luke Wisniewski each had eight tackles. A trio of Mike's had impacting plays for the defense as well. Ross had a fumble recovery, a break-up, and seven tackles while Rye forced a fumble and Brady notched an interception.

Hedval added six points for Kings Point in the win with his 19-yard field goal and had a 3-4 PAT performance. The two kick-off returns of the day were fielded by freshman Andrew Ghiglia (Arroyo Grande, CA), who gained 29 yards, and junior Tom Flanagan (Crystal Lake, IL), who fielded a short kick and ran it back 16 yards. Will Felch handled punt-return duties and had two for 41 yards. Sophomore Jeremy Moseley (Chapin, SC) punted the ball six times, averaging 33.0 yards per kick.

A special thanks goes out to the Northern Ohio Chapter of the Alumni Association for all of their support during the trip. This friendly contingent of alumni made the entire traveling party feel at home and provided the Mariners with a delicious post-game meal and some terrific sea stories as a terrific celebration was had by all.

The Kings Point women's cross country team had their best race of the season as all five scorers ran personal-bests on a tough course at the Allentown Invitational. The women stepped up to their toughest competition of the year and crossed the finish line with a very competitive showing. The highlight of the day was the race of senior captain Brigitt Clausing (Menomonie, WI) who, despite trailing in the first mile, ran the fastest time of her career with a 20:47 clocking. She placed 46th in the loaded women's loaded field, which included three of top-ten women's teams in the latest NCAA Division III National Rankings. Next across the line for Kings Point was sophomore Victoria Gigante (Old Bethpage, NY) with a time of 21:01 in 58th place. She was followed by rookie Chrissy Anderson (North Vernon, IN) in 67th place, and senior Alison Gaudiano (Fairfax, VA) in 90th. Freshman Pearl Gray (Lansdale, PA) was the final Kings Point runner to cross the line. The women placed 13th in the 29-team field.

The men's team was without its top-three runners this weekend, as they were taking a training break to prepare for the challenging next few weekends. The team was led by a breakthrough performance from freshman Drew Williams (Lancaster, OH) who placed 60th cutting nearly 30 seconds off of his personal best. Describing the rookie's race, Head Coach Gary Gardner stated, "Drew has been getting better and better with each race and we are looking forward to seeing how fast he will be by the time the regional meet rolls around."

The second runner for Kings Point was sophomore Josh Bibb (Norman, OK) in 89th followed by senior Scott Bachmann (San Diego, CA) in 96th. Junior Dave Byun (Los Alamitos, CA) placed 111th and the scoring was rounded out by sophomore Joe Baran (Wappinger Falls, NY) in 114th. Both the men's and women's teams are now striving to win the Skyline Conference Championship Invitational race next weekend.

Results from the meet can be found at: www.GeoCities.com/XcResults

The Mariners' Dan Dugan (Bend, OR) won the Manhattanville College tri-match on Oct. 10 with a low score of 76 on Maple Moor Golf Course in White Plains, NY. Kings Point fell as a team to both the host, Manhattanville, by a 338-332 score and to the College of St. Rose (338-324).

Also competing for the team were sophomore Ty Shimada (Westport, CT) who shot an 82, sophomore Tim Reinemo (Nantucket, MA) with an 89, and junior Jay Iungerich (Fort Morgan, CO). While only four scores were used to compute the team tally, sophomore Ryan Sharrar (Franklin, PA) and freshman Jacob Henschel (El Dorado Hills, CA) also played and finished the course shooting a 96 and 97 respectively.

The Mariners continued their stranglehold on the Skyline Conference last week, posting a 2-0 record and ensuring that Kings Point would be awarded the #1 seed and home field advantage heading into the Skyline's post-season Tournament on Oct. 31 and Nov. 3. The winner of the Skyline Championship will receive an automatic qualifying bid to the NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Championship Tournament. Kings Point posted a 3-0 win over Manhattanville on Oct. 10 and a 1-0 win against the Ducks of Stevens Tech on Oct.13 to improve to 7-0 in Conference play. Overall, Kings Point is 9-3-1.

Wednesday, Oct. 10 saw the Blue and Gray post a 3-0 shutout in Purchase, NY against the Manhattanville College Valiants. Rookie Josh Wooster (Houston, TX) opened the scoring in the 22nd minute when he converted on a breakaway that stemmed from a throw by freshman goalkeeper Aaron Kleinerman (Marshfield, MA). Junior captain Will Corrigan (East Williston, NY) added a score with five minutes left in the first half. Senior Mike Martino (Lindenhurst, NY) and junior Suni Sukduang (Rochester, NH) took control of a ball at the midfield and passed it through to Corrigan for the goal. Later in the second half, Corrigan added his second tally of the night. Freshman Chris Brune (Woodbridge, VA) took a shot that deflected and Corrigan notched the goal following the rebound.

In the Stevens Tech game, Corrigan continued his barrage and converted on a 25-yard blast to give the Mariners a 1-0 win on Lower Roosevelt Field on Oct. 13. Corrigan's goal came with 28:15 remaining in the first half of action. The tally came in similar style to the first goal he had at Manhattanville and assists were again credited to Martino and Sukduang. Kings Point outshot Stevens Tech, 12-4 in what was a very evenly-matched contest. Kleinerman had eight saves in his second consecutive shutout win.

On the year, Corrigan is the Mariners' leading goal-getter with eight. He also has a team-high 20 points. Seniors Kevin Piotrowski (Londonderry, NH) and Chris Hill (Hauppauge, NY) rank second in goals with four. Suni Sukduang has a team-high seven assists. In the net, the Mariners have had two rookies sharing most of the time in James Papazis (Malverne, NY) and Aaron Kleinerman. Papazis has made five starts and owns a 0.68 goals-against-average while Kleinerman has seven starts.

The Mariners had a 2-2 overall week, winning against SUNY Farmingdale and Hunter while falling to Western Connecticut and Kean. Kings Point is now 11-11 overall and 4-0 within the Skyline Conference.

The women's volleyball team moved over the .500 threshold with a 30-21, 30-24, 30-25 win over visiting SUNY Farmingdale on Oct. 9 in Liebertz Gymnasium. The Blue and Gray were led by the offensive tandem of senior captain Kelly Glanding (Newark, DE) and freshman Jessica France (Cleveland, OH) with nine and eight kills respectively. Glanding also registered a team-high seven blocks, including six solo efforts, while France picked-up a team-high 20 digs in the match. Junior Aileen Villano (Sacramento, CA) had 17 digs and freshman setter Maggie O'Connor (Smithtown, NY) notched 31 assists.

The very next night, the Mariners headed off to Danbury, CT as they faced Western Connecticut State University and fell in three games by scores of 22-30, 14-30, and 16-30. France had a team-high nine kills, four blocks, and 10 digs for Kings Point. Glanding and sophomore Jena Jeffries (Columbia, SC) each had 10 digs as well. Glanding notched seven kills and four blocks in the loss. Villano used her powerful serve to gain five aces. O'Connor added 19 assists to her season totals.

Over the weekend, the women's volleyball team hosted a tri-match with Kean and Hunter. The first match saw the Blue and Gray fall to the Cougars of Kean (18-30, 15-30, 26-30). France and junior Mickey Stark (Fargo, ND) tried to jumpstart the offense with their seven and five kills respectively. Kings Point then turned it around and won their first five-game match of the year against the Hunter College Hawks. Picking up an amazing 104 defensive digs, the Mariners won the exciting match by scores of 28-30, 30-26, 19-30, 30-18, 15-11. Glanding and France were deadly from the front row. Six blocks and a team-high 17-kill performance were turned in by Glanding, while France had 16 kills. Jeffries also helped the offense tremendously with 13 kills of her own. Villano led the defense with 22 digs. France and Glanding each registered 20 while Stark and Jeffries had 19 pick-ups apiece. O'Connor set 50 assists in the thrilling win.

Kings Point traveled to Grove City, PA this weekend to compete in the Division III Water Polo Championships. Kings Point was 3-3 overall as their season ledger moved to 8-14 in 2001. The Mariners posted victories over Penn State-Behrend, Washington and Jefferson, and Gannon while losing to Johns Hopkins, MIT, and Slippery Rock.

On Friday night, Kings Point took on one of the top teams in Division III in Johns Hopkins and suffered a 14-9 loss. The Blue Jays jumped ahead 5-1 in the first quarter of play and despite being able to keep the lead down to two or three goals the remainder of the game, Kings Point was unable to close the gap. Junior captain Paul Kim (Los Angeles, CA) had three goals, four steals, and four assists in the loss.

Saturday morning saw the Blue and Gray return to the pool for a match against Penn State-Behrend. The Mariners posted a commanding win with 20-2 final score. Sophomore Peter Roh (Cypress, CA) notched four goals and an assist while rookie Brett Collins (Portland, OR) had a goal, five steals, and three assists. Freshman Chris Rentner (Oak Park, IL) played one game in net for Kings Point and he made three blocks. Net was tended by junior Chris Byrne (Phoenix, AZ) during the other three quarters, who made seven stops. In their mid-afternoon match, the Blue and Gray fell to MIT, 12-8, before coming back in the evening to defeat Washington and Jefferson, 15-8. In the later game, Kings Point exploded to take a 9-2 lead at the half and never looked back. Three Mariners scored hat-tricks en route to the win. Kim, Collins, and sophomore Jeff Boden (Rancho Palos Verdes, CA) each notched three goals in the win.

The tournament concluded on Sunday with two games for Kings Point. In the first match, the Mariners took on Division II foe Gannon and swam away with a 14-12 win. Junior Corey Gustafson (Ojai, CA) was an overpowering presence as he scored seven goals. Junior Colin Adler (Houston, TX) registered seven steals and four assists while Kim had three goals, four steals, and two assists. Kings Point then played Division I Slippery Rock and lost 11-6 in their final game. Freshman Matt Alexander (Pasadena, CA) had the top performance for USMMA with two goals and five steals.