Mar 23, 2006
By Jim Fenton, Enterprise staff writer
SPRINGFIELD - The best season in the 57-year history of Stonehill College men's basketball just keeps getting better.
Making their first appearance ever in the NCAA Div. 2 Elite Eight, the 12th-ranked Skyhawks acted like national tournament veterans on Wednesday night.
They put together a solid quarterfinal-round performance to earn a 69-59 victory over Tarleton State University of Texas at the MassMutal Center, moving Stonehill into the Final Four.
Five months after reporting for training camp as a team picked to finish eighth in the Northeast-10 Conference, the Skyhawks are only two wins shy of a national title.
"We're just trying to take everything in right now,'' said Stonehill senior point guard Chris Kraus. "We're unbelievably excited to be in the Elite Eight and now, the final four.
"We're enjoying the ride, but we're really trying to stay focused and achieve our goal of winning the national championship.''
The next step in that process takes place tonight at 8:30 p.m. when Stonehill (27-6) meets fifth-ranked Winona State University of Minnesota, 30-4 and riding a 20-game winning streak.
A victory over the Warriors would send the Skyhawks into Saturday afternoon's nationally televised title game against either defending champion Virginia Union or Seattle Pacific.
"I'm just really happy for the guys getting this experience,'' said Stonehill coach David McLaughlin, a Brockton native. "Right now, it's a matter of getting them some rest and getting ready for (tonight).''
The Skyhawks can probably expect more loud support from their fans who made the trek up the Massachusetts Turnpike.
Six busloads of students, plus a number of other fans were on hand, and the impressive showing made it feel like Stonehill was playing on its home court, Merkert Gym.
With the seven other teams in the Elite Eight from other parts of the country, the purple-clad Skyhawks' fans dominated the arena. The announced crowd was 3,023 with a vast majority from Stonehill.
"You kind of say once the ball goes up, it won't be important, but that was a huge crowd for us,'' said McLaughlin. "We filled up one whole side of the gym. It was family, students, faculty, staff and alumni support. Everywhere I turned, it was one of those groups.''
The Skyhawks didn't let those who made the 200-mile round-trip down, overcoming a shaky start against Tarleton State to grab a 36-22 halftime lead.
Stonehill had the advantage up to 17 points in the second half thanks to Marquis Taylor (17 points, 11 rebounds), Kraus (17 points, five assists and four steals) and reserve Soap Toan (12 points on 4-for-5 shooting from 3-point range).
The Texans, who were behind, 51-34, with 11:35 remaining, threw a scare into the Skyhawks, however.
Tarleton State trimmed the Stonehill lead to 63-59 with 2:32 to go, using a full-court press that took the Skyhawks out of their rhythm.
But Kraus made four foul shots and Lance Clarke (nine points, six rebounds, four steals) added a layup with 49 seconds to play to end the Texans' comeback bid.
Stonehill was never rattled as Tarleton State made its mad rush down the stretch as the experience in the Skyhawks' lineup paid off.
"That's what it's all about,'' said McLaughlin. "That's how you get here with that kind of experience.''
Stonehill, which got off to a slow start at the offensive end, used an 11-2 run to open a 29-14 lead with 4:21 left in the first half. Tarleton State made only 31 percent of its shots in the opening 20 minutes, allowing the Skyhawks to build a cushion.
"We were all very anxious at the start,'' said Taylor. "We were all looking forward to this game for the past week. It was a matter of getting the jitters out and once we settled down we were able to capitalize, move the ball around and play the way we normally play.''
Stonehill caught a break early in the second half when John Davis, the leading scorer and rebounder for Tarleton, fouled out with 16:27 remaining. Davis was on the bench with four fouls when he was called for a technical, ending his season.
The Texans rode the scoring of Nic Gamble (17) and LaShon Sheffield (13) to make it interesting. A 17-5 run over 5:28 allowed Tarleton to threaten Stonehill before the Skyhawks held on.
"It was great to have the crowd here because they really picked us up and got us over the hump,'' said Taylor.
Stonehill held the Texans to 40 percent shooting, and Tarleton had 20 turnovers and just three assists.
"I thought we really made some great defensive stops early,'' said McLaughlin. "When you hold a team to 30 percent for a half, you're really setting a tone.
"Getting that lead and extending that lead in the first half really helped us and made them play catchup in the second half.''
The best season in the program's history goes on for at least one more night with a chance to have a special ending on Saturday.
"The big thing for the four seniors is we don't want our careers to end,'' said Kraus. "It's going to end at some point, either with a national championship or a loss. We just want to stay focused.''
