Power-Cassidy is Patriot League MVP; NCAA is next
Bronagh Power-Cassidy led Holy Cross to the Patriot League Women’s Basketball Championship on Sunday in a 66-61 win over Boston University in Boston. The sophomore forward from Dublin was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player for her performance over the three-game stint.
Holy Cross eliminated American, 73-44, last Monday in quarterfinal action on their home floor in Worcester, Mass. Power-Cassidy scored 12 points on 4-of-10 shooting from the floor, including 2-of-4 from outside the three-point arc, and 2-of-2 from the foul line.
The Crusaders took care of Lehigh, 71-54, at home on Thursday to advance to the championship match. Power-Cassidy lit up the scoreboard with 27 points on 10-of-16 shooting from the floor, including 5-of-10 from long range, and 2-of-2 from the foul line. She also hauled in seven rebounds and rejected four Lehigh shots.
Power-Cassidy was again high scorer in the title tilt against BU. She scored 21 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the floor, including 2-of-4 from Faneuil Hall, and 5-of-5 from the victim’s compensation line. She also spread the wealth with a game-high five assists.
The MVP award went to Power-Cassidy on the strength of her hot shooting, which saw her sink 58 percent of her field goal attempts and all nine of her free throws.
Holy Cross (24-8) opens the NCAA Division 1 tournament on Friday in College Park, Md. against Maryland (25-6). The winner of that game goes on to face the winner of Arizona vs. West Virginia, which will also be determined on Friday in College Park.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
Lafayette’s C.J. Fulton, a sophomore from Belfast, earned All-Patriot League third team recognition. He averaged 10.4 points per game, along with 5.1 rebounds and 5.1 assists. The Leopards (11-23) advanced to the championship game of the Patriot League tournament, where they lost to Colgate. Fulton, hobbled by an undisclosed injury, did not see action in this contest.
Anticipating NCAA action this week are Grand Canyon’s Aidan Igiehon and Iona’s Silas Sunday. Igiehon, a 6-10 junior from Clondalkin, Dublin, will be ready if called upon for the Lopes (24-11), who have a date with Gonzaga on Friday in Denver. Sunday, a 7-foot freshman from Lucan, Dublin, will suit up for Iona (27-7), which faces UConn in Albany on Friday in first-round action.
The season ended with a thud for Sanmi Fajana and his Wisconsin-Parkside teammates in the first round of the NCAA Division 2 playoffs with an 85-60 loss to Missouri-St. Louis on Saturday in Indianapolis. Fajana, a sophomore forward from Dublin, scored nine points on 4-for-7 shooting from the floor, including 1-of-2 from the Speedway, and hauled in five rebounds. He averaged 5.5 points per game this season, hitting 59 percent of his field goal attempts and 57 percent from three-point range. The Rangers finished with a 21-9 record.
MEN’S GOLF
A second-round 76 upended any ideas that Chattanooga’s Paul Conroy had of winning the Tiger Invitational hosted by Jason Dufner at the Robert Trent Jones Grand National in Opelika, Ala. The sophomore from Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford shared the first-round lead, having opened with 67. He recovered with 69 to close out the tournament, which put him four strokes under par for 54 holes and seven off the winning number shot by Auburn’s Carson Bacha. Florida Atlantic’s Alex Maguire, a senior from Mornington, Co. Meath, combined rounds of 75, 70 and 70 to garner a share of 20th place. South Alabama senior Jack Hearn from Carrick-on-Suir, Co. Tipperary posted scores of 73, 74 and 73, good for a share of 38th place.
Jordan Logue of Mississippi College shot rounds of 73, 69 and 72 to finish tied for ninth place in the Buccaneer Classic at Irene Golf & Country Club in Memphis. The Belfast senior was two strokes under par for the event and six off the winning score posted by Caleb Bopp of Christian Brothers.
Wake Forest’s Mark Power finished joint-22nd in the Wake Forest Invitational at Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina. The Kilkenny senior combined rounds of 73, 71 and 73 to finish seven strokes over par and 10 off the winning score of Nathan Petronzio of Southern Methodist.
Kansas State’s Luke O’Neill finished joint-34th in the Colleton River Collegiate in Bluffton, S.C. The junior from Galway was poised for a top-10 finish after consecutive rounds of 69 until a closing 75 dumped him down the leaderboard. He finished three strokes under par for the event and eight behind medalist August Meekhof of Michigan State. Memphis freshman Cian O’Connor from Roscommon shot 74, 72 and 76 to take down a share of 64th place.
