Seahawks clamp Camels, 68-34

NEWPORT, R.I. - Salve Regina University men's basketball (2-0) snaps a three-game skid to Connecticut College (1-2) by handing the visiting Camels a 68-34 defeat in non-league action at the Rodgers Recreation Center.

It marked the seventh win for the Seahawks in 21 meetings with the Camels, and the 34-point difference was the largest margin of victory for either team in the series. Salve Regina's 34 points allowed was its second-fewest in the history of the program (54-31 win against Gordon College on February 4, 1993), and only the third time a Seahawk team has held its opponent under 40 points.

While the Seahawk game was highlighted by consistency, the Camels were marred by turnovers (25) and poor shooting (11-of-41 from the floor - 26.8%, and nine of 18 free throws - 50.0%).

Sophomore Barrett Hanlon (Hopkinton, Mass.) led all players with 16 points for the Seahawks, nine in the first half when he made five of six free throws. Hanlon also grabbed nine boards.

Freshman Nicholas Bates (Danvers, Mass.) had his first career double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds, all on the defensive glass. Bates was a perfect five-for-five from the charity stripe.

The Camels scored the first five points of the game on a 3-pointer from Rob Harrigan (Milford, Conn.) and a layup by Pat Deegan (Weymouth, Mass.). The Camels utilized 14 players in the game but did not have any player reach double figures in scoring.

Senior Patrick Dinneen (Medfield, Mass.) started an 8-0 run for Salve Regina with a layup at 18:18. Hanlon had the next six points.

Senior Jeff Bielefeld (Littleton, Mass.) scored five of his seven points over a 2:23 span to grow the Seahawk lead to four (13-9) at 12:45. Sophomore Chris O'Keefe (Lexington, Mass.) launched a 3-pointer at 8:20 launching a 16-0 run for Salve Regina. Bates had an old-fashioned three-point play for the game's first double-digit lead (24-13) at 7:46. The 16-0 run pushed the Seahawk advantage as high as 21 points in the first half (34-13 at 3:31).

Dinneen opened the second frame with a 3-pointer before Matt Vadas (Spring Lake Heights, N.J.), a 33-point scorer on Sunday in his team's 82-59 win over Western New England, hit a turnaround baseline jumper to start a mini 4-0 run for the Camels. After Bo McKinley's (Westport, N.Y.) free throw at 17:24, the Camels were never closer than 17 points.

Senior Scott St. Lawrence (Litchfield, N.H.) had a pair of layups during an 11-2 run for Salve Regina over a 6:53 span. Four different Seahawks had a 3-pointer during another 2:23 span and an 11-0 run - including freshmen Tommy Keyes (Berkley, Mass.) and Evan Lerner (Hopedale, Mass.).

Vadas led the Camels with eight rebounds and shared his team's high-scorer crown with Zuri Pavlin (New York, N.Y.), six points apiece.

Salve Regina begins a six-game road trip with a visit to Norton, Mass., to meet the Lyons of Wheaton College on Thursday, November 21. Connecticut College hosts Eastern Connecticut State University next Tuesday.