JOE NATHAN '97 SELECTED TO 2008 MLB ALL-STAR GAME

Stony Brook, N.Y. - Former Stony Brook University baseball great and current closer for the Minnesota Twins, Joe Nathan `97, was named to the American League All-Star team for the third time, Major League Baseball announced on Sunday. The 79th Major League Baseball All-Star Game, the last to be played in the current Yankee Stadium, will be televised nationally by FOX on July 15 at 8 p.m.

Nathan currently ranks third in the Major Leagues with 25 saves, posting a 1.25 ERA in 36.2 innings of work. Since taking over as Minnesota's closer in 2004, Nathan ranks second among all Major League closers with 184 saves -- trailing only the Padres' Trevor Hoffman.
He has a career record of 43-18 with a 2.89 ERA, striking out 595 batters in 585.1 innings of work. Nathan was a two-time Academic All-American in his time with the Seawolves and was also inducted into the Stony Brook Athletics Hall of Fame on Dec. 6, 2006 when he became the first former Stony Brook student-athlete to have his number retired.

JOE NATHAN CAREER STATS

FOUR LONG ISLAND DUCKS SELECTED TO 2008 ALL-STAR GAME

(Central Islip, N.Y., July 6, 2008) – Long Island Ducks team officials today announced that four members of the team have been selected to participate in the 2008 Atlantic League All-Star Game. Pitchers Randy Leek and Joe Valentine will be joined by outfielder Ray Navarrete and catcher Jamie Pogue on the Liberty Division squad.

“We’re proud of what these players have been able to accomplish in the first half of the year,” says Ducks general manager Michael Pfaff. “Each has been a key contributor to our club and is deserving of this honor.”

Navarrete has followed a career season with even higher offensive numbers this year, batting .326 in 58 games. He is tied for the league lead with 15 home runs and 19 doubles, which, along with one triple, put him atop the league in extra-base hits with 35. The New Jersey native owns a .609 slugging percentage and has driven in 51 runs. He is second in the league with 53 runs scored. Pogue is hitting a career-best .288 with five homers and 24 RBI. The catcher has committed only three errors in 45 games this year, and is widely regarded as one of the best game-callers in the Atlantic League.

Leek anchors the Ducks starting rotation with a 5-2 record and a 4.18 ERA in 15 starts this season. He has struck out 46 batters while walking just 19, and has pitched a team-high 90.1 innings. Former big leaguer Valentine leads the club with eight saves, and owns a 3-2 record with a 3.13 ERA. The Ducks closer has struck out 20 hitters in 19 appearances, and the league is batting just .202 against him.

Navarrete, Pogue, Leek and Valentine will represent the Ducks on the Liberty Division squad at the 2008 All-Star Game, which takes place July 16 at Commerce Bank Ballpark, home of the Somerset Patriots, in Bridgewater, New Jersey. Ducks manager Dave LaPoint will manage the squad, which takes on the Freedom Division team for league bragging rights. All-Star selections were the results of fan, media and front office polling, which took place throughout the league and individual team Web sites.

The Long Island Ducks play their home games at Citibank Park and are in their ninth season of play in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. For further information, visit http://www.liducks.com/, or call (631) 940-3825.

EMILY HARDY JOINS STONY BROOK WOMEN'S BASKETBALL STAFF

Hardy comes to Stony Brook after two years at Long Island University

July 1, 2008

Stony Brook, N.Y. - Stony Brook women's basketball head coach Michele Cherry has announced the hiring of Emily Hardy as assistant coach. Hardy replaces Jessie Boylan, who resigned to pursue other career opportunities.
For the past two years, Hardy served as director of basketball operations for Long Island University's women's basketball team. At LIU, she was responsible for tape exchange, community service and the players' academic progress. Hardy also served as an interim assistant coach, the latter half of the 2007-08 season.
"I'm very pleased to welcome Emily Hardy to the Seawolves' family," Cherry said. "Emily's background in the America East conference coupled with the valuable experience she gained at Long Island University working not only in operations, but also as a coach, has fully prepared her to step into the role we need her to fill. Her enthusiasm and work ethic will mesh nicely with our team and our staff."
A 2006 graduate of the University of New Hampshire, Hardy was a four-time letterwinner and two-time captain for the Wildcats. Hardy graduated with a degree in international affairs and humanities. She recently earned a master's degree in political science during her time at LIU.

SBU'S DUCH '08 HEADED TO VICTORIA!

Victoria makes deal with Langley for recent Stony Brook graduate.

Monday, June 23, 2008

Rhys Duch '08 made a decision and stuck to it. Despite being drafted by the Langley Thunder, the former Junior Shamrocks all-star said he would either play for the Victoria Shamrocks, or he wouldn't play Senior A men's lacrosse at all.
Over the weekend, Duch got his wish.
The Shamrocks traded a first-round pick in next year's draft for the right-handed scorer, and will have Duch at practice tonight.
"It's exciting. It's kind of dream when you're a kid. Now it's a reality," said Duch, who wanted to follow in the green and white footsteps of his dad Mike Duch. "There was never any option for me to go anywhere else but Victoria."
"If I had to play against [the Shamrocks], then I'd be rooting for the team I was playing against."
A recent graduate of Stony Brook University in New York, Duch's college field lacrosse commitments meant he never played a full schedule with the Junior Shamrocks, yet he always managed to wind up among the B.C. Junior A Lacrosse League's top scorers, and was the team MVP in 2006. In the 70 appearances of his junior career, he averaged four points a game, including racking up 27 goals and 41 assists in 16 regular season games last season. During eight playoff contests, he had 12 goals and 17 assists.
"He would just rocket to the top of the charts," Victoria GM Chris Welch said. "These are the most impressive numbers we've seen in a long time from a Victoria born-and-bred product."
Due to previous commitments, Duch won't be available for the Shamrocks game in Langley on Wednesday night, but he could be in the lineup for the team's home game on Friday against Maple Ridge.
Welch described Duch as the complete package -- a player who is intelligent, patient, has good hands, and a good shot, as well as being able to move the ball well, see the floor, and make good decisions. One of those decisions was to take a shot that the Shamrocks could work a deal, and he scored on that one, too.
"He's been waiting for this day for awhile, and we've been waiting for it too," Welch said. "He's a building block -- a key piece of our future."