Standish, Maine - In what has already been a busy month for the Monks, sophomore Elbie Murphy and senior, Chad Pulkkinen earned First and Second Team All-Independent honors, respectively, and head coach Rob Sanicola was named the Association of NCAA Division III Independents Coach of the Year.

The two players are two of 17 players across the nation to be honored by the members of the National Association ofNCAA Division III Independents. The nation's twenty-five men's head coaches selected the Coach of the Year, Player and Rookie of the Year, and All-Independent teams.

For the year, the 6-foot-2, senior Pulkkinen averaged 16.8 points and 2.9 assists per game. He shot 40.1 percent from the field, including 38.2 percent from three-point range, and 85.7 percent from the free throw line. He finished his career with the Monks with 1,123 points, which is good for 19th on the all-time scoring list at Saint Joseph's. Pulkkinen, the top 3-point shooter on the team, ranks as the second all-time leader in 3-pointers made (192), 6th all-time in free-throw percentage (.759) and 10th all-time in 3-point field-goal percentage (.341).This is the first time he has been voted to the Second Team All-Independent.

Sophomore guard Elbie Murphy had one of the best all-around offensive seasons ever by a Monk, scoring a career-best 16.0 points, grabbing 5.3 rebound, 4.2 steals, 3.6 assists per game, all good for first on the team. Murphy's 4.2 steals per game ranked him first in NCAA Division III basketball. His 121 steals on the year broke the all-time individual season record of 111, formerly held by Allen Fields '91. Murphy received Division III All-Independent honors for the first time, as he was selected to the First Team by the coaches.

Rob Sanicola led Saint Joseph's College to a 22-8 overall record, including an 89-80 victory over top-seeded Lincoln University (PA) in the title game of the AD3I Northeast Men's Basketball Championship. The Monks also made school history with their first appearance in the ECAC Division III New England Championship. They were awarded the #2 seed and made an appearance in the championship game before losing to Western New England College. This is the first time that Sanicola has won the AD3I award.