Le Moyne College - Black Robe Yearbook (Syracuse, NY)

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Siena Away Win . Opening the season with Siena in the Albany Armory before a large crowd including many students, the 1955-56 edition of the Dolphin basketball forces scored a roughly contested victory by a 78-71 margin. Although the Dolphins led through most of the game, the Indian five never quit pressing and threatened often. Behind only once and then for a short time in the first quarter, the Dolphins showed talent and a slight case of first night jitters. ln the second half Cavellier was injured and Kenyon fouled out, allowing Siena to close within six points of the Dolphins. Cavellier showed great form by hitting for 20 points and dominating the boards. Dietz and Kenyon added to the victory by contributing 17 and 15 points respectively. For Siena, Tim Hill was high man with 28 points. St. Peters Away XVin The Dolphins notched their second win of the season by defeating St. Peter's 73 to 69 and thereby moved into top spot in the M. A. A. C. standings with a 2-0 record. Starting slowly, the Dolphins were held to a 30-29 deficit at the half but hit their stride late in the game to grab the victorv. Dietz and Mack provided the offensive guns in the late rally while Cavellier and Czajka rebounded strongly. The Green and Gold forces finally moved into the lead with two minutes left to play and copped the verdict. Scoring honors for Le Moyne went to Dietz with 21 points while Kenyon netted 17. St. Peters was led by Banas who was the game's top scorer with 24. Season opens - Cavellier controls tip St. Michaels Home XVin Playing for the first time before a home crowd, the Green and Gold cagers easily scored a 68-58 victory over St. Michaels. The game marked the resumption of intercollegiate double- headers with Syracuse University after a lapse of five years. The Dolphins looked ragged in the first half and were on many occasions the victims of their own poor ball handling. In view of this, the Dolphins were held to a close 27-25 halftime lead. After the intermission however the Green and Gold hit for 52927 of their shots and moved to a commanding lead. Dick Kenyon was the top man for Le Moyne as he hit for 20 points. Dietz was next in line with 18. Kuchar led the visitors with 14. . 7 1 va f gal I. -.l Ready to take off Dec. 13 Oswego Wfin On December 13, the Le Moyne Dolphins travelled to Oswego and soundly defeated their hosts by an overwhelming 97 to 53 score. By virtue of their victory, the Green and Gold kept alive their four game winning streak. The Dolphins were led by Dan Cavellier who netted 19 points before his home town crowd. He was followed by Ed Czajka who contributed 16 and showed his best form of the season. The Dolphins caught fire in the first few minutes and were never troubled by the teachers. Their lead soon mounted to twenty points and Tom Niland saw fit to let his reserves take over the game. The second squad continued the onslaught in the same fashion as the regulars, as Zeke Spaulding paced the attack. Former Le Moyne student jay Stonger was high for the Teachers, netting 18 points.

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V A I T Y 1955-56 Season's ' Record BJCYYIQE hloyne 78 hdoyne 73 hdoyne 68 Ddoyne 97 Ddoyne 95 hdoyne 86 hdoyne 93 hdoyne 94 Ddoyne 70 hdoyne 72 hdoyne 72 hdoyne 72 hloyne 55 hdoyne 92 hdoyne 72 hdoyne 96 Bdoyne 88 hloyne 78 hdoyne 90 hloyne 90 hdoyne 61 hdoyne 73 hloyne 82 Rear, L-Rg Mack, Hennessy, Bergen, Spaulding, Mowins, Scarborough, Hollen' back, T. Niland, Coach. Frontg Smolinski, Czajka, Kenyon, Cavellier, Dietz. Marking one of the most successful seasons in Le Moyne history, the Dolphins, under Tom Niland, boasted a fine 16 and 7 record for the 1955-56 campaign. The season was opened and concluded with victories over archrival, Siena. Verdicts were also taken from such top squads as St. Peter's, Boston College, and Sampson. The Green and Gold started their season with five straight victories before tasting defeat in the Quantico Tournament. In this holiday festival, the Dolphins copped the consolation title. The squad was unable to conquer such old foes as St. Bonaventure, Manhattan, and Niagara and were dumped by a flashy Steubenville quintet. However the Green and Gold showed themselves formidable opponents and can be justly proud of their success. Individually the Dolphins showed-fthat they - had members that could hold their own with anyone. Smashing the all-time scoring record and leading the Dolphins was Dick Kenyon. A The slender star dropped in 1380 points as OPPONENT l , a varsity performer and earned himself a place Siena . in Le Moyne athletic history. Following Kenyon St. Peter's was another record breaking scorer. Bob Dietz, St, Micheal'5 top point getter of the season, broke the three Oswego year scoring record as he totaled 1085 points Scranton for his career. The sparkplug of the Dolphins Quantico was diminutivelenny Mowins who, with Iona Kenyon, co-captained the Green and Gold Georgia Tchr's St. Bonaventure quintet. Mowins' hustle and defensive skill were vital factors in furthering the Le Moyne Cortland cause. Bill Phillips, who regained his eligi- Niagara bility at mid-year, came through with several Sampson Air Base good games and played an important role in Steubenville bringing home the successful season. Zeke Boston College Spaulding was the fifth senior to conclude his Manhattan varsity career. Not a prolific scorer, he proved Sf- Lawrence to be a capable and steadying influence on Clarkson other squad members. These five will long be Hobart remembered as an imporant part of Le Moyne Iona athletic histor Gannon College St. Bonaventure Cortland Siena y. Dan Cavellier and Bob Smolinski provided the height for the squad and Bob Canty showed well, in his performances. Ron Mack, Frank Bergen, Ed Czajka, Bob Scarborough and Bob Hollemback rounded out the squad and provided plenty of reserve strength. Tom Niland Director of Athletics

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Dietz scores against Scranton Quantico Tournament The Le Moyne Dolphins captured the consolation round of the Quantico Invitational Tournament by defeating Georgia State Teachers and Iona, after losing to the host Marines in the opening game. In the Quantico contest, the Marines jumped to a quick lead which they never relinquished. Scoring steadily and with comparative ease, the Marines pushed to a 54-39 half time advantage. The second half was just like the first with the winners hitting consistently. The Dolphins did rally a little but not enough to overcome the big deficit. The final score read 109-86. The Marines were led by Guerin who netted 28 points. Kenyon paced Le Moyne with 27 while Dietz hit for 18. In their second outing against Iona, the Dolphins were a far better squad. They moved to a fast lead and never trailed through- out the contest. Iona found the range late in the second quarter and cut Le Moyne's lead to a 46-41 margin. In the second half the Dolphins put on a tremendous offensive burst and hit with amazing accuracy. The onslaught continued all through the period and the final tally showed the Green and Gold with a 93-70 verdict, In the final game of the tournament Le Moyne nipped a fast moving Georgia State squad by a 94-90 margin. The game was closely played and the Professors held a 49-48 edge at half time. In the second stanza Bob Dietz hit with great consistency and enabled the Dolph'ins to wrap up the 94-90 win and capture the consolation title. Dietz was the top man for the Dolphins with 35 points. For the Teachers, All-American candidate Chuck Scranton Home Win Closing their pre-holiday schedule, Tom Nilands cagers scored their fifth straight victory by smashing Scranton 95 to 72 before a large Memorial crowd. Le Moyne started rapidly and completely outclassed their rivals. At halftime, the Dolphins had moved to a substantial 42 to 23 margin. In the second half the onslaught continued with Le Moyne showing even more power. Tom Niland saw fit to empty his bench and the reserves hit with great consistency. Big Ed Czajka paced Le Moyne's reserves by hitting for 16 points and controlling both backboards. Top scorer in the game was Bob Dietz as he poured in 21 points although seeing only limited' action. Dan Cavellier was close behind with 20. Kenyon was limited to 13 as he fouled out early in the half. For the visitors the top scorers were Ed Curtis who netted 20 and Tom Oltorik who scored 13. Smo misses, Czajka follows Webb had 40 points. Cavellier nets two against B. C. St. Bonaventure Away Loss In the first game of the new year, the Dolphins traveled to Olean and were defeated by a score of 80-70. By virtue of the win, the Bonnies extended their home winning streak to 57 games and maintained their mastery over the Dolphins. Several factors contributed to the loss. Le Moyne found it difficult to play well on the small court and were the victims of some extremely bad calls on the part of the officials. These coupled with the great play of Mc Cann and Crough of the Bonnies presented too much of an obstacle for the Dolphins to overcome. Le Moyne trailed till the last nine minutes of play when two shots by Kenyon put them into the lead. At this point the officials came up with their poor calls and the margin was short lived. Dick Kenyon led all scorers by netting 24 points. Dietz continued to enjoy a good night and hit for 13. For the winners, Mc Cann scored 19 as did Rokose. jim Crough was close behind with 18.