 Vassar captures first Liberty League title in program history (Photo: Liberty)
Vassar captures first Liberty League title in program history - Mar 2, 2022 
The Brewers made history today. The Vassar College Men's Basketball team claimed its first Liberty League Championship title in school history by defeating Skidmore 65-48 on Sunday afternoon. The Brewers punch their ticket NCAA Division III Tournament for the first time in program history with the win. Junior Jack Jack Rothenberg (6'4''-G/F) was named the tournament Most Oustanding Performer for his performance throughout the tournament.Junior Kevin McAuliffe (6'3''-G) got the Brewers rolling on a 7-0 when he hit a three-pointer in the opening minute. Juniors Jack Rothenberg and Zach Johnson (6'5''-F) added two quick layups before Skidmore's Ty Lamport broke the streak at 17:40. Vassar held the lead until Riley Greene drained a three to tie 17-17 at 9:08. After a two-minute scoring drought, junior Avni Mustafaj (6'2''-G) passed to Ethan Ellis for the open triple to begin a 9-0 run until 4:19. Vassar would never relinquish the lead for the remainder of the half, and layup by McAuliffe and then a trey from Zev Katz put the Brewers up 31-22. Before the half, Jack Rothenberg netted one more basket, and Vassar took an 11-point lead into the break. The Thoroughbreds opened the second half on a 6-0 run within the first two minutes. Riley Greene then cut the lead to three, scoring on a mid-range jumper. Vassar struggled from the field, going 0-for-7 to start, and did not score until Mustafaj netted an inside layup through contact to make it 35-30 at 15:49. A spin move led to a mid-range jumper from Jack Rothenberg, and then Johnson scored inside to give Vassar a 39-30 lead. Skidmore's Harrison Eichelberger (6'7''-G) drove and scored to keep the score at single digits. The Skidmore defense backed off from Ellis, who took advantage and drilled a three-point shot from the top of the arc to put the Brewers up by 11. Vassar slowly kept building its lead after the slow start, with Jack Rothenberg netting five-straight points. A Mustafaj jumper at 10:28 gave the Brewers a 17-point lead. Greg Skoric (6'11''-F) got Skidmore on the board again, scoring on a jump hook to make it 51-36. Vassar scored the next two baskets, but the Thoroughbreds responded with an 8-0 run until 5:22 to cut the lead to 11. At 4:11, Johnson bodied his way through the Skidmore defense to grab his miss and then tipped the shot back in. Vassar controlled the ball in the final minutes, and Mustafaj drove inside and passed back to Ellis for the three-pointer. To give Vassar a 64-48 lead, Ellis drilled it from the top. Jack Rothenberg had a dominant day, leading the Brewers with 16 points and 16 rebounds, while Johnson netted 15 points and grabbed seven boards. Mustafaj scored 12 points, while Ellis had 11. Skoric paced the Thoroughbreds with 16 points and nine rebounds. Greene added 12 points. Courtesy of libertyleagueathletics.com Liberty Tournament Final: Skidmore - Vassar 48-65 Liberty Tournament Semifinals: RPI - Skidmore 53-70 Ithaca - Vassar 74-76 All-Liberty Awards 2022 - Mar 2, 2022
All-Tournament MVP: Jack Rothenberg (6'4''-G/F) of Vassar Player of the Year: Zach Johnson (6'5''-F) of Vassar Defensive Player of the Year: Dom Black (6'2''-G) of RPI Rookie of the Year: Aidan Rodgers (6'1''-G) of Hobart Coach of the Year: Mark Gilbride of RPI
First Team Dom Black (6'2''-G) of RPI Zach Johnson (6'5''-F) of Vassar Tautvydas Kupstas (6'4''-G-2000) of Skidmore Jackson Meshanic (6'7''-F) of Hobart Luka Radovich (6'6''-F) of Ithaca
Second Team Trent Adamson (6'7''-F) of St.Lawrence Jonny Angbazo (6'5''-F) of RPI Mike Manley (6'0''-PG) of Union, NY Mason Memmelaar (6'6''-F) of RPI Skylar Sinon (6'2''-G) of Ithaca Honorable Mention Avni Mustafaj (6'2''-G) of Vassar Brian Noone (6'2''-G) of Union, NY Greg Skoric (6'11''-F) of Skidmore | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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