BUFFALO NEWS

 

Grand Island's Bergman claims rookie award

5/10/2002


Grand Island native Nick Bergman, a freshman on the St. John Fisher baseball team, has been named the Empire 8 Conference's Rookie of the Year.

The first baseman started 32 of the Cardinals' 34 games, hitting .319 with four home runs, 23 RBIs and 26 runs scored. Bergman and fellow Grand Islander Chris Remus, a junior third baseman, were named to the all-conference first team.

Sophomore outfielder Patrick Craig (St. Joe's) - who won the rookie award last year - was named to the all-conference second team.

Elsewhere, University at Buffalo coach Bill Breene and Jamestown Community College coach Kerry Kellogg will be assistant coaches on a State University of New York all-star team participating in an international baseball tournament in Russia in June.

Cortland State coach Joe Brown is the head coach of the team, which will include 21 players from the SUNY system. The SUNY team will play teams from Japan, South Korea, Europe and Russia at Moscow State University from June 23 to July 1.

MEN'S LACROSSE: Attackman Dan Keating (Orchard Park) scored his third goal of the game with 2:06 left in the second overtime to give UB (13-5) a 13-12 victory over Minnesota-Duluth (15-3) in a loser's bracket game at the United States Lacrosse Intercollegiate Associates national tournament in St. Louis.

Dave Stoller (Williamsville East) had four goals and goaltender Dave Reed (Sweet Home) made 23 saves for the Bulls, who were outshot, 52-29. The Bulls killed off 12 of 13 Minnesota-Duluth power-play opportunities, going 0 for 5 on the man up themselves.

Reed, midfielder Steve Federico (Orchard Park) and defenseman John Stickl (Grand Island) were named to the Central Collegiate Lacrosse Association first all-star team. Keating, midfielder Doug Kubiak (Williamsville North) and attackman Jack Goldsmith made the second team.

Stickl, who was a member of an NCAA Division II championship team last season at Adelphi before transferring to UB, has also been selected to play on the English national team in the ninth Lacrosse World Championships in Perth, Australia.

Stickl, a political science major, qualifies for the team because his mother, Kim, was born in England. He earned his spot in a tryout last summer, when a field of 40 was trimmed to 23. The Games are July 6-14.

The championships have been dominated by Team USA. The Americans have won all but one of their matches over the last 35 years. Canada, led by former Buffalo Bandits General Manager John Mouradian, won in 1978.