STANDISH, ME - The Huskies led by as much as 22 points early in the second half, but St. Joe's battled back, led by SO Alberto Rue (Jamaica Plain, MA) and his 14 second half points, to tie the game at 60 apiece with 5 minutes remaining. The Monks rally barely fell short as Rue grabbed a steal and rattled the rim with a last chance 40 foot heave as time expired. Rue and SO Ray Eatmon (Huntington, NY) each scored 17 points to lead the Monks. SO Greg Whitaker (Presque Isle, ME) led the Huskies with 16 points. SJC falls to 7-7 with the loss while USM improves to 8-9.

With the win, Southern Maine takes home the Costello Cup, which is named for Richard "Doc" Costello in appreciation for his outstanding contributions to college basketball. Costello became the first college coach to win 200 games in both men's and women's basketball. Coach Costello guided the University of Southern Maine men to a 207-144 mark from 1956-71, and from 1977-87, led USM's women to a 213-67 record.

Each year, the winner of this game takes possession of the coveted Costello Cup until the teams meet again the following season. The first cup was awarded to USM during the 1989-1990 season. In the 19-year history of the Costello Cup Challenge, Saint Joseph's has taken home the trophy 10 times, USM 9. The Monks' overall W-L record versus Southern Maine now stands at 27-32.

Southern Maine shot 44.1% (15-34) and made 6-15 3-points attempts in the first half to take a 13 point lead going into halftime. Huskies senior guard Foster Oakley (Mt. Vernon, ME) hit 3 of 4 three point shots to tally 9 points and sophomore forward Greg Whitaker made 5 of 9 field goal attempts to net 12 points in the opening half.

Southern Maine opened the second half with a 11-2 run highlighted by seven points from SR Jamaal Caterina (Portland, ME) to take a 22 point lead, 50-28, at the 16 minute mark.

St. Joe's fought back with a 10-0 run of their own to come within 12 points with 12 minutes remaining. Alberto Rue hit his first of four second half 3-pointers during the run and netted 11 points in 4 minutes to bring his team within 8 points at the 10 minute mark.

FY Eric Friend (Portland, ME) made a layup to tie the game at 58 apiece with just under seven minutes remaining. USM's FY Troy Jellison (Bangor, ME) countered with a jumpshot after a scramble under the net to put his team back up by two. The Monks reinstated the tie game, 60-60, when FY Chris Davis (New York, NY) made a layup with five minutes left in the game to cap the two minute see-saw battle.

Southern Maine went on to score seven unanswered points to take a 67-60 lead with 2 minutes left. The Monks wouldn't go down without a fight, however, and scored 6 points in the next minute to come within one point of the lead.

The Huskies shooters made all four free throw shots in the remaining 30 seconds to take a 5 point lead with 3 tics left on the clock. The Monks crowd erupted when Rue hit his fourth three-pointer of the half to make it a two point game, 71-69. The following Huskies in-bounds pass was intercepted by Rue, who directed a 40 foot last hope shot that rattled the rim and left the Royal Blue faithful breathless.

The Monks outscored the Huskies 43-32 in the second half and made 45.9% (17-37) of their FG attempts in the latter stanza.

St. Joe's JR Elbie Murphy (Loudonville, NY) chipped in with 12 points and 6 assists while Chris Davis scored 9 points and grabbed 6 boards off the bench for the Monks.

For the Huskies, Caterina and SR Drew Coppenrath (Barnet, VT) each scored 14 points and Foster Oakley added 12 points in the victory.

Saint Joseph's College will travel to New Haven, CT to take on GNAC rival Albertus Magnus College on Saturday, 1/26 at 3:00 PM.



Southern Maine vs St. Joseph's (Me.)
01/24/08 7:00 PM at Standish, Maine

SOUTHERN MAINE 71, ST. JOSEPH'S (ME.) 69

SOUTHERN MAINE (8-9)
Greg Whitaker 6-14 2-4 16; Jamaal Caterina 4-11 5-5 14; Drew Coppenrath 7-12
0-0 14; Foster Oakley 4-6 0-0 12; Troy Jellison 3-10 0-0 8; Josh Daniels 1-8
2-2 4; Nick Gooding 1-5 1-1 3; Ian Hebert 0-2 0-0 0; Luke Pollock 0-1 0-0 0;
Troy Gabriele 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-69 10-12 71.

ST. JOSEPH'S (ME.) (7-7)
Raymond Eatmon 8-11 1-2 17; Alberto Rue 6-15 0-0 17; Elbie Murphy 5-15 2-4
12; Chris Davis 4-8 1-3 9; Eric Friend 2-5 2-2 7; Scot Vachon 1-8 1-1 3;
Tyler Kelley 1-4 0-0 2; Alonso Davis 0-0 2-2 2; Mitch Ouellet 0-3 0-0 0;
R.J. Mattison 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-69 9-14 69.

Southern Maine................ 39 32 - 71
St. Joseph's (Me.)............ 26 43 - 69

3-point goals-
Southern Maine 9-29 (Foster Oakley 4-6; Greg Whitaker 2-5;
Troy Jellison 2-7; Jamaal Caterina 1-2; Josh Daniels 0-6; Drew Coppenrath
0-3)
St. Joseph's (Me.) 6-20 (Alberto Rue 5-11; Eric Friend 1-2; Chris
Davis 0-1; Tyler Kelley 0-1; Mitch Ouellet 0-1; Elbie Murphy 0-4)

Fouled out--Southern Maine-None, St. Joseph's (Me.)-None

Rebounds-
Southern Maine 51 (Greg Whitaker 10; Jamaal Caterina 10)
St. Joseph's (Me.) 37 (Raymond Eatmon 6; Alberto Rue 6; Chris Davis 6).

Assists-
Southern Maine 13 (Troy Jellison 5)
St. Joseph's (Me.) 18 (Elbie Murphy 6)

Total fouls-
Southern Maine 16
St. Joseph's (Me.) 16.

A-300

USM takes home the Costello Cup