On February, 20, 2009, in response to the need for budget cuts, the University of Vermont athletic department chose to eliminate the varsity baseball and softball programs after the 2008-2009 academic year.
Each of the programs has been a loyal mainstay on baseball and softball scenes within the state, as well in department lore. Baseball was the first program started at the university and consistently has one of the highest amount of native Vermonters on its roster.
HAMDEN, Conn. – Senior Mike Trimboli (Norwalk, Conn.) scored 24 points in his home state to help the University of Vermont men’s basketball team survive a late scare and defeat Quinnipiac 84-79 at the TD Banknorth Sports Center on Sunday afternoon. Vermont led by as many as 20 in the second half, but the Bobcats cut it to a one possession game on a three with eight seconds left. The Cats have now won five of their last six overall as they improved to 6-3 with the victory.
A pair of free throws from junior Marqus Blakely (Metuchen, N.J.) gave Vermont a 70-50 lead with 6:37 left in the contest, but Quinnipiac (6-4, 2-0 Northeast Conference) would outscore the Cats 29-14 down the stretch.
James Feldeine hit a deep three with 8.1 seconds left that cut the Cat lead to 82-79, but with the Bobcats forced to foul sophomore Joey Accaoui (Lincoln, R.I.) closed it out with a pair of free throws with six ticks on the clock.
“We were up 20 in the second half and lost our composure a bit with some silly turnovers. I give Quinnipiac a lot of credit, they played hard today. I thought Maurice gave us a nice spark offensively and Mike didn’t miss a shot from the floor. We will take the win, but I am a little disappointed that we let them cut it all the way down to three,” said Vermont head coach Mike Lonergan.
The Catamounts used a hot-shooting first half that saw them connect on 16 of their 26 shots (61.5 percent) and take a 44-29 halftime lead. A pair of free throws from Feldeine with 8:56 to go in the frame cut Vermont’s lead to 21-18, but the Cats responded with a 12-2 run over the next 2:40 to extend their lead to 33-20.
Senior Colin McIntosh (Milton, Mass.) netted the first four in the run that saw five different Cats score. Trimboli led all scorers at the break with 12, as all nine Catamounts that played in the first half scored.
In the second half Quinnipiac made it 58-45 on a Louis Brookins lay-up, before a 10-3 spurt by Vermont pushed it to a 20-point edge with 7:18 to go. Quinnipiac would get it under double digits for the first time in the second stanza when Feldeine finished a lay-up that made it 72-64 with 4:17 remaining.
Trimboli was a perfect 7-for-7 from the floor and grabbed six rebounds to go with five assists to lead Vermont. Blakely added 16 points, six rebounds and five blocks, while Maurice Joseph (Montreal, Quebec) had a big game going 4-for-6 from the floor for 15 points. Feldeine led all scorers with 26, as four Bobcats reached double figures, while Justin Rutty went for 22 and 10 boards.
Vermont finished the game shooting 50 percent from the floor and went 28-for-34 from the line, but turned the ball over 25 times.
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 21 December 2008 )
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