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College Roundup Meath’s Mulvey paces Iona to MAAC title

February 16, 2011

By Staff Reporter

By John Manley

Iona’s Vinny Mulvey won the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference’s men’s cross-country championship for the second straight year last week. The senior from Ashbourne, Co. Meath, covered the five-mile course in 23 minutes, 42.30 seconds. Mick Byrne’s Gaels swept the first through fifth positions in taking the team honors. Senior Tom Carey, from Castleconnell, Co. Limerick, placed fifth in 24:09.

Mercyhurst’s Ciaran Brewster finished 43rd in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship in Michigan. Brewster, a junior from County Longford, ran the fastest time (28:20.14) over the 8,000-meter course for Mercyhurst.

Men’s Soccer

Gavin Woods is having another productive season for Norwich University. The Belfast senior had two goals in a 4-0 shutout of Southern Vermont and assisted on two tallies in the Cadets’ 7-1 victory over Johnson & Wales. Woods has been joined this year by freshman Barry Reid, also from Belfast, who earlier this season scored two goals and assisted on two others in Norwich’s 4-0 victory over Johnson State. Norwich is 10-3-0 overall and 6-0-0 in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference.

Christian Brothers’ Barry Gibney scored the winning goal in the 86th minute of the Bucs’ contest with Tampa. The junior from Dublin scored from inside the box on a reverse. CBU added another tally three minutes later to salt the victory, 2-0. CBU, coached by Ballina, Co. Mayo, native Gareth O’Sullivan, climbed to 11-2-0 and 2-1-0 in the Gulf South Conference.

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Kevin McCloskey wore the hero’s laurels after knocking in the winning goal in the second overtime period that enabled Rio Grande (12-4-2, 7-2-0 American Mideast Conference) to defeat Tiffin, 1-0. McCloskey is a sophomore from Belfast.

Freshman John Frost scored a goal in Mercyhurst’s 2-1 triumph over West Virginia Wesleyan. He is from County Waterford. The Lakers (10-4-1, 3-0 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) are coached by John Melody, a native of Dungarvan, Co. Waterford.

Bryan Harkin booted in the third goal as 25th-ranked Fairfield stopped Canisius, 3-0. Harkin is a sophomore from Derry. The Stags are now 10-2-2 overall and 5-2-0 in the MAAC.

Scranton’s James Houlihan, a senior defender from Dublin, earned an assist in Scranton’s 5-3 victory over Allentown. The Royals are 7-7-1 and 3-2-1 in the Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom Division.

Clemson posted a pair of one-goal victories last week, improving to 10-3-1 overall and 2-3-0 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The victims were Davidson, 3-2, and Wake Forest, 2-1. Trevor Adair, a Belfast native, pulls the strings at Clemson.

Old Dominion picked up a win and a tie to run their record to 8-4-2 overall and 5-0-1 in the Colonial Athletic Association. They walloped Mount St. Mary’s, 7-0, then tied Virginia Commonwealth, 2-2. Belfast’s Alan Dawson heads the soccer program at Old Dominion.

Vermont split a pair of 1-0 contests with America East Conference opponents. The Catamounts knocked off Northeastern, 1-0, then lost to Boston University by the same score. Roy Patton’s team is 10-7-0 overall and 6-2-0 in conference play. Patton is from Belfast.

Another coach with Belfast roots, Gary Hamill, led Wingate to a split last week. They defeated South Carolina-Aiken, 6-2, before losing to Pfeiffer, 2-1. Wingate is 7-7-1.

Fairleigh Dickinson-Madison got by Lycoming, 1-0. FDU, coached by Belfast native Tom McLoughlin, is 6-9-1.

Penn State, ranked 15th in the nation, lost to Michigan State, 2-0. They are now 10-4-1 overall and 3-2-1 in Big Ten play. Gorman, too, is of Belfast origin.

Dartmouth, coached by Dublin’s Fran O’Leary, lost its first Ivy League match of the season. Columbia beat them, 2-1. The Big Green is 8-4-0 overall and 3-1-0 in the Ivy League.

Women’s Soccer

Christian Brothers’ Tracy Mulligan scored a goal against Tampa on a free kick after a foul just outside the box. That made the contest, 1-0, but Tampa stormed back to score four goals to take a commanding lead. CBU, coached by Gareth O’Sullivan, answered back, however, with four goals of their own to win, 5-4, in overtime. Mulligan is a junior from Dublin. CBU won its next outing over North Alabama, 2-0, and is now 12-2-0 overall and 5-0-0 in the Great South Conference.

After suffering a 9-4 loss to Middlebury on Sept. 27, Keene State has gone undefeated in its last 10 contests, allowing just four goals in that span, while pitching seven shutouts. Keene’s recent victories came at the expense of Eastern Connecticut State, 5-2, Beloit, 6-0, and Mass.-Boston, 8-0. The Owls, coached by Denise Lyons, are 12-5-3. Lyons is a native of Newcastle West, Co. Limerick.

South Carolina exhibited vastly improved play last week. Sue Kelly’s team took Auburn to two overtime periods before losing, 3-2. But Carolina then won its first Southeastern Conference match of 2000, by prevailing over Alabama, 3-1. The Gamecocks are 4-14-0 overall and 1-7-0 in the SEC. Kelly is from Cork.

Mercyhurst improved to 12-1-2 (7-0-1 in the GLIAC) by defeating Ferris State, 3-0. The Lakers, ranked sixth in Div. II, are now unbeaten in their last 12 matches. John Melody coaches Mercyhurst.

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