By Peyton Johns, Sports Editor & Kaity Hersee, Staff Writer
Men’s Basketball
Starting off December strong, junior Benjamin Bill was named the ECC men’s basketball player of the week for Nov. 24 through Nov. 30.
This marked the third consecutive week that Bill has held an award for the conference. On Dec. 5, the men hosted Queens for the conference opener for the first time. Coming off of their most successful season to date of 28-1 and winning the ECC regular season undefeated, the men topped the Knights 76-51, improving them 9-0.
Additionally, this game honored Adriane Z. Williams, an impactful, kind and incredible piece of Daemen faculty that the community unfortunately lost in October. The university’s HOPE Center offers a care cupboard, named after Williams, for people in need of personal care items and non-perishables to support the campus community. Donations are always welcome in the HOPE Center on the first floor of Duns Scotus.
On Dec. 7, the men defeated Molloy 94-62 with junior Zach Philipkoski leading with 16 points.
Dec.12 took the men on the road at Mercy for Coach Mike MacDonald’s 500 win. The men were victorious over the Mavericks, with Philipkoski leading the game with 27 points.
On Dec. 14 the men beat ECC opponents, STAC 79-60, climbing up to No. 3 in the men’s NCAA DII standings.
On Dec. 17 the Wildcats held a matchup against Assumption. That contest began a four-game stretch of non-ECC opponents for the Wildcats, winning 77-67 over the Greyhounds.
Now victorious of 45 straight games, the men hosted Saint Michael’s College on Dec. 20, defeating them 73-61.
Improving to 15-0 on New Year’s Day, the Wildcats hosted Adelphi with a win of 72-68. Senior Justin Hemphill scored a season record of 23 points and 9 rebounds.
The men traveled to Franklin Pierce on Jan. 5 for a close game win of 78-72 against the Ravens. Philipkoski led the game with 20 points, his sixth time this season.
Back to our ECC games, Jan. 9 brought a huge win to Amherst with the men defeating UDC 85-47.
On Jan. 11, the men hosted Staten Island for a win of 88-70 with Philipkoski leading the game with an impressive season high of 28 points.
On Jan 16. The men defeated Queens College 75-67, making this their fiftieth straight win; the longest active regular streak across all three NCAA divisions. This is no small victory.
Jan. 18 was one of the most memorable for the Wildcats, beating Malloy 116-74, hitting triple digits for the first time and continuing the men’s 51 straight game streak.
But, this streak unfortunately saw its 51 consecutive winning streak come to an end on Jan. 21 at Gannon, 61-79. This loss marked the Wildcats’ first regular-season loss since Feb. 9, 2024, sending their overall record to 20-1 this season.
Jan. 24 was one for the books as senior guard Justin Glover led the game to victory (90-65) over D’Youville with 18 points, hitting his 1,000 point of his Daemen career.
The men’s basketball team is 50-2 (as of Jan. 31) since the start of last season. On Jan. 31, our men’s team hosted their suits and sneakers: coaches vs. cancer game, which was a part of the initiative to raise awareness and donations for The American Cancer Society.
The game was a part of a nationwide initiative in late January where coaches used their platform to encourage and support the initiative that raised over $179 million in over 30 years to support cancer research and patient programs.
Approximately 279 were in attendance. During the game, the cheerleaders went through the stands during media time-outs to collect money for the Cancer Society. Anyone can donate online to this link: American Cancer Society. The men lead victory against Roberts Wesleyan 81-60.
Women’s Basketball
With only two losses this season (as of Jan. 31), the women’s basketball team has had an exceptional season so far. On Dec. 5, the women were victorious at home versus Queens College, winning 68-62 in a neck-and-neck battle.
On Dec. 7, they beat Molloy 78-66, leading the conference at 2-0. On Dec. 12, Daemen hit the road and beat Mercy 60-4, recording an impressive 17 steals. The women held an opponent to under 50 points for the second time this season, and under 60 points for the fourth time.
Dec. 14, the women overtook St. Thomas Aquinas 65-55, with junior Sophie Auer leading the team with 17 points throughout the game. Then, traveling way beyond Daemen’s normal stomping grounds, the women traveled to Kingsville, TX, to take on Texas A&M-Kingsville, beating them 80-75. Senior Cecilia Lapertosa recorded a double-double and a career-high in points during that game with an outstanding 28 points.
Dec. 21 took the women to Sin City, where they unfortunately fell to Montana State Billings 55-63. Although it was a loss for the Wildcats, Claire Pikett notably led the game with 19 points.
Back at home on Jan. 1, the women started off the new year strong with a win of 75-62 over Bentley, with senior Shyla Montgomery leading the game with 16 points.
Jan. 3 brought a big win at home with a 76-42 win over Franklin Pierce, forcing 25 turnovers. Ne’vaeh Buntley led the game, scoring 18 points.
On Jan. 9, the women beat the District of Columbia 67-54 at home. With the Firebirds allowing 21 turnovers, Buntley led with 17 points, while Kyleigh Chapman recorded 12 of the game’s rebounds and 5 steals.
The women dominated Staten Island on Jan. 11 with a 78-52 win at home. This win put the women at 6-0 for ECC, with Pikett’s 22 points leading the game. Jan. 16 brought the Knights back to Amherst for a Wildcats dominating win of 81-43, with Buntley leading with 22 points. On Jan. 18, Daemen beat Molloy 73-60. The Lions allowed 32 turnovers, with Auer leading the game with 18 points. Jan. 23 brought D’Youville to Lumsden for a conference game versus the Wildcats, resulting in a Daemen victory of 63-45.
Finally, on Jan. 31, the women dominated against Roberts Wesleyan 86-49. The game’s attendance was 136, and the crowd did not disappoint with their support. The Wildcats only allowed Roberts to score 3 times in the last quarter, with Buntley leading the game with an impressive 24 points and 6 steals. After this win, the Women stayed undefeated in the ECC with a record of 10-0.
Men’s Volleyball
On Jan. 8 the men’s volleyball team began its season with two games in sunny Southern California. This marked an unfortunate start to their season with losses against UC San Diego, Pepperdine, Mount Olive, Charleston (WV), and NJIT.
Jan. 27 marked their first season win against Roberts at home.
Women’s Bowling
The women’s bowling team played in the Northeast Classic, hosted by Sacred Heart, beginning on Jan. 16. That day, they played Kutztown (L), Howard (W), Delaware State (L), Mount St. Mary’s (L), and Molloy (W).
The next day, they played the following: William Smith (L), Maryland Eastern Shore (L), North Carolina A&T (L), Morgan State (L), and UAB (L).
Finally, for January, the women played LIU (W), Molloy (W), and Adelphi (L).
Women’s Track & Field
On Dec. 6, senior Patsy Oberholzer placed third in the 5,000 meters with a time of 19:20.28 while sophomore Kylie Piekarski came in fifth at 20:16.72.
Dual student athlete senior Becca Schultz, who does track and field and soccer, took fourth in the 60-meter hurdles, crossing the finish line in 9.68 seconds, while junior Skylar Savage finished one spot behind Schultz, posting a time of 9.73 seconds. Savage also placed seventh in the 60-meter dash final, with a time of 8.24 seconds. In the 600 meters, sophomore Lia Brasacchio placed sixth, with a time of 1:44.90.
Junior thrower Julia Petry finished fourth in the shot put with her final throw and personal best of 11.13 meters.
Finally, Savage placed fourth in the long jump with a personal best of 5.31 meters. Shultz finished seventh in the same event with a distance of 4.92 meters.
Men’s Track & Field
Men’s track & field began their indoor season in early December at the Houghton December Classic. They resulted in two first-place finishes and one third-place finish.
Junior Ethan Keating placed gold in the 5,000-meter race, also accomplishing his personal best time of 15:33.16. With this, he’s now ranked third in program history. Freshman Simon Evans placed sixth in the same event with a finishing time of 16:06.05, placing him ninth in program history, as well.
Sophomore Devon Mendez placed seventh in the 60-meter hurdles with a final time of 9.10 seconds. Johnson finished the mile race in 4:30.35, breaking the program record that he previously held by just over a second.
Freshman Ibrahim Hakizimana placed seventeenth in the same event with a time of 4:53.01.
Additionally, Johnson took third after posting a time of 9:15.08 in the 3,000-meter race.
Freshman Brendan Smukall placed tenth in the 600 meters with a time of 1:38.48. Finally, junior Owen Dernbach finished twentieth in the long jump with a leap reaching a height of 5.92 meters.