Pride goeth for the ball.
At least this member of the Regis College Pride does. Senior tri-captain Sarah McNult of Hampstead is one of the nation's leading rebounders.
The 5-10 Pinkerton graduate was ranked 13th nationally in the most recent NCAA Division 3 statistics. She is pulling down 12.1 boards a game and is scoring 10.1 points an outing.
She must bring a particular fervor vs. the "name" schools as she had 20 boards vs. John Jay and 18 vs. Daniel Webster.
McNault's 19 caroms vs. Colby on Jan. 25 put her over 1,000 for her career. She had a huge game vs. the Mules, adding 19 points for her 10th double-double of the season. That ranks her 17th in Division 3 nationally this winter.
McNault wants to be an elementary school teacher and her rebounding philosophy is elementary, too.
"It's just wanting the ball," she said. "When I was younger, my dad (Raymond McNult) would always make me do jumping exercises. He always told me, 'Nobody boxes out.'"
Nobody can box out McNult. And that has been the case for years.
"In high school, as a junior my head coach wasn't even going to pick me for the varsity," recalled McNult. "At the end of the season, I was starting for a state championship team because of hustle and defense."
There was no big countdown for the 1,000th rebound.
"I didn't even know. I had no clue!," she said. "They stopped the game and announced it. I thought it wasn't that big a deal."
Pride coach Julie Plant believes McNult is a big deal.
Plant, who previously coached at URI, said of McNult before the season: "Sarah has developed into a conference dominating post player on both ends of the floor. Her ability to rebound the basketball is unlike any player I have coached."
Big effort for Wang
UMass Lowell junior Danny Wang of Haverhill placed fourth in the 800 in 1:57.25 at the Greater Boston Track Club Invitational. Right behind him was junior teammate Eric McDonald of Groveland in fifth in 1:57.73. Senior William Nguidjoi of Lawrence took thirds in the long jump (21-10) and triple jump (44-5.5).
Other top area GBTC performers included Brandeis sophomore Alex Kramer of North Andover (fourth in mile, 4:20.59), Providence freshman Francis Hernandez of Windham (seventh in invitational mile 4:14.40) and Northeastern senior Brendan Bergson of Georgetown (fourth in long jump 21-8 1/2).
First-rate at Salem State
Junior Tristian Shannon of Andover is averaging 6.9 points and 5.4 rebounds for Salem State. Shannon, who is shooting a team-best .514 from the floor, scored 18 points off the bench in an 85-81 win over Bridgewater State.
Sophomore Justin Nieves of Lawrence is contributing 6.8 points a game.
Turning to hockey, sophomore forward Chris Costigan of Salem has five assists in 12 games for the Vikings.
Coaches' corner
Here are a couple of familiar faces in new places.
Ex-Andover basketball star Sean Ryan, who has coached at St. Anselm, College of Charleston, Holy Cross and BU, is now at Division 1 Central Connecticut.
Ex-Bates track All-American Rich McNeil of Lawrence is coaching at MIT and working in Lawrence for Community Group, a mentoring group for elementary students.
Supreme Supino
At the Dartmouth Relays, Dartmouth junior Chrissy Supino of Windham, who is usually a middle distance runner, placed fourth in the mile in 4:59.79. She also ran on the runner-up 4x400 team. Her blazing 2:11.62 800 at the Terrier Invitational lopped 1.75 seconds off her previous indoor PR and qualified her for the ECACs.
Sophomore April O'Brien of Bradford and junior Elizabeth Short of North Reading are also running for the Big Green.
Carroll helps spark upset
Senior co-captain Pat Carroll of North Andover placed second in the 50 freestyle (22.88) and fourth in the 100 freestyle (51.89) to help the Bates swim team beat Colby for the first time since 2004. Sophomore Jillian Quinn swims for the women's team.
Taryn O'Connell of Georgetown is starting for Bates. The 5-10 sophomore is averaging 6.9 points and 3.2 rebounds in 15.7 minutes a game. She shot 3 of 4 from behind the arc and scored 11 of her season-high 13 points in last week's comeback win over Wesleyan.
Sophomore Colleen Garvey of Haverhill, a reserve forward for the 15-5 Bobcats, is pulling down 2.0 rebounds in 4.8 minutes a game.
Kevin Lentini, a 6-4 sophomore from North Reading, has seen action in four games for the men's team.
Jarret McKallagat, a freshman from Timberlane, placed third in the 60 hurdles (8.56) and fourth in the 200 (23.95) at a recent five-team meet. Sophomore Alicia Fannon of Haverhill finished third in the 3,000 in 10:51.24.
Freshman Caroline O'Sullivan of Andover (hurdles) and Devin Tatro of Haverhill (distance) also run for the Bobcats.
Morgan Magic
Colby junior Brian Morgan of Haverhill placed 10th in the giant slalom and 16th in the slalom at the 10-team Colby Ski Carnival.
Turning to track, sophomore Morgan Lingar of Danville placed sixth in the mile (5:32.70) and ran on the runner-up 4x800 team (9:54.17) in a recent 5-team meet.
Freshman defenseman Tommy Kader of North Reading has two goals and five assists for the Colby hockey team. Tri-captain Liz Osgood of North Andover (2-2—4) is a forward on the women's team. Freshman Andrea Schweitzer of Andover (1-0 record, 21 saves, 3.00 goals-against) is a reserve goalie for the Mules.
Freshman swimmer Benjamin Lewis of Haverhill placed fourth in the 200 backstroke vs. Bates in 2:30.73.
• • •
To contribute information on a local college athlete, e-mail mmuldoon@eagletribune.com.
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