Saints sign pair of local standouts to start 2008 recruting class
(April 11, 2008)

    Head Coach Matt Sevareid and Presentation College are pleased to announce their first two recruits of the 2008 season, in Shane Cunningham and Spencer Christenson, both of Aberdeen.
    Cunningham played his prep career at Aberdeen Central High School, where he helped lead the Golden Eagles to a State 'AA' Runner-Up finish in 2007, alongside current Saint Michael Babcock. Cunningham has been a varsity-level athlete since his sophomore year in football, basketball and baseball while at Central, and will continue both his basketball and baseball careers at Presentation.
    Christenson has been a four-year varsity letter-winner for the Aberdeen Roncalli Cavaliers in basketball, and graduates in the top 30 in scoring in Roncalli boys' basketball history. Christenson has started at point guard for the Cavaliers for the past two seasons, and looks to be in the mix for several minutes in his first season at PC.
    For the full release on Cunnigham, click here. For Christenson, click here.

Saints fall late to Morris, end season at 7-18
(February 19, 2008)

    After holding a lead for much of the first 40 minutes of the game, the Presentation College Saints succumbed to a late rally by Minnesota-Morris, losing 65-60 in overtime. The win assures Morris a spot in the UMAC playoffs, while Presentation finishes their season at 7-18.
    Despite the end result, the Saints saw a career performance for one of its outgoing seniors, Michael Heim (Chelsea, S.D.). Heim scored 21 points to lead the Saints, while Ryan Dix (Fr., F, Aberdeen, S.D.) had 11 points and 11 rebounds in 19 minutes of play off of the bench.

Saints stumble to Scholastica, Eliminated
from UMAC Post-Season Contention
(February 16, 2008)

    Despite shooting 53.7% from the field on Saturday night, the Presentation College Saints were defeated in their home finale by the final margin of 84-77 by St. Scholastica.
    Both teams shot amazingly well throughout the game, but the difference came at the free-throw line and from behind the three point arc. St. Scholastica benefited from attempting 29 free throws on the evening, making 19, while the hometown Saints only managed to go to the line 13 times throughout the game. Scholastica shot 9-of-13 from behind the three point arc for the game, including two daggers from Andrew Schmitz after Presentation had cut the lead to 4 with less than six minutes to play. Schmitz finished the game with 22 to lead Scholastica in scoring.
    Presentation saw solid contributions from a pair of players on the evening, as Lucas Bruns (Jr., G, Hecla, S.D.) poured in 28 points in 36 minutes of play. Richie Ward, (So., F, Aberdeen, S.D.) came off the bench on senior night and contributed 24 points and 7 rebounds to the effort.
    The Saints, now 7-17 overall and 5-8 in the UMAC, were eliminated from contention for the UMAC Conference Tournament with the loss, and will finish the season at UM-Morris on Tuesday night.

Saints pick up win over LumberJacks,
stay alive in UMAC Playoff Hunt
(February 15, 2008)

    The PC Men picked up a big victory over Northland College Friday night to stay alive in the UMAC Playoff hunt, edging the LumberJacks 58-44 in Aberdeen. Presentation will need to win their next two games to stay alive for playoff contention, as well as get some help from their conference foes in order to qualify for next weekend's Conference Final Four.
    Friday night featured stellar play from three key reserves to propel them to the win. Michael Babcock (Fr., G, Aberdeen, S.D.) led the Saints with 15 points, including five three-point field goals, in 30 minutes of play. Tyler Harrell (Jr., G, Aberdeen, S.D.) also provided a spark off of the bench with seven points, six assists and three steals. Jordan Kline (Jr., F, Aberdeen, S.D.) played perhaps his best game of the season, as he scored four points and tallied five rebounds in just 12 minutes of action -- all in the second half.
    The Saints return to action tomorrow night as they face off with St. Scholastica, as both teams try to remain in the hunt for the UMAC Final Four. Game time is set for 5:00.

Saints drop pair of UMAC Contests
(February 9, 2008)

    The PC Men's Basketball team lost a pair of UMAC re-match games this weekend on the road, including a 84-65 loss to Bethany Lutheran on Friday night, followed by a 99-78 defeat at the hands of Martin Luther on Saturday.
    Friday's action featured a quick start and lead for the Saints, as Michael Heim (Sr., F, Chelsea, S.D.) scored five and Lucas Bruns (JR., G, Hecla, S.D.) scored four in the early going to give Presentation a 9-5 lead over the first four minutes of the game. However, Bethany Lutheran countered with a 14-3 run over the next four minutes, and went on to hold the game out of reach for the duration, thanks in large part to their ability to collect 19 offensive rebounds in the contest. The Saints were led by Bruns in scoring with 15, followed by reserve Ryan Dix's (Fr., F, Aberdeen, S.D.) 13 and Heim's 12.
    Saturday afternoon's game against Martin Luther featured a key battle for positioning within the UMAC standings. With a win, the Saints would move into a tie with the Knights at 5-6 in the conference, good for at least a fifth-place tie going into the final three games of play. Unfortunately, the Saints were unable to capitalize on this opportunity, as they allowed the Knights to shoot 31-for-62 (50%) from the field for the game, including going 11-of-18 (61.1%) from behind the three point arc. One highlight for the Saints in the game was the play of reserve Michael Babcock (Fr., G, Aberdeen, S.D.). Babcock posted 14 points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field and behind the arc to tie his career-high scoring mark. The Saints also received 19 points from Bruns, and 13 from both Heim and Richie Ward (So., F, Aberdeen, S.D.).
    The Saints will return to action this weekend for their regular season home-finale doubleheader with games against Northland College on Friday night at 7:30, followed by St. Scholastica at 5:00, both in the Strode Center. The Saints will need to pick up a pair of wins in order to stay eligible for the UMAC Conference Tournament, to be held February 23 & 24 at a location to be determined.   

Saints extend winning streak to four before
falling to UMAC-leaders in rematch
(February 2, 2008)

    The Saints Men's Basketball team picked up their sixth win of the season on Friday night, before falling to conference-leading Northwestern in a rematch of last weekend's games.
    Friday night featured a pair of hot-shooting teams in the second half, as the Saints were able to hold on for their fourth conference victory on the season, defeating Crown College 75-70 in St. Bonafacious, Minn. The two teams combined to shoot 27-for-50 (54%) in the second stanza, but it was the strength of PC's free-throw shooting -- 19-for-23 in the second half -- that proved to be the difference in the game. Danny Kurtz (So., G, Aberdeen, S.D.) scored a season-high 22 points to lead the Saints.
    Saturday night featured a rematch of last weekend's upset, where the Saints handed Northwestern its first UMAC loss on the season. However, the result was turned around in the rematch, as Northwestern outplayed the Saints in nearly all aspects of the game, winning 85-35. Richie Ward (So., F, Aberdeen, S.D.) led the Saints with just nine points, while Northwestern had four players with as many or more. The game was full of highlights for the Eagles, who regained sole possession of first place in the UMAC with the victory.
    The Saints (6-14, 4-6) now sit in fifth place in the UMAC standings, one game out of fourth place, and a trip to the UMAC Conference Tournament. Presentation will return to action on Friday night against Bethany Lutheran College in Mankato, Minn. and Saturday afternoon against Martin Luther College. 

Richie Ward named UMAC Player of the Week
(January 29, 2008)

    Richie Ward was named the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week for his efforts in last week's games. Richie scored a total of 29 points and tallied 18 rebounds as the Saints moved up to fifth place in the conference standings. This is the first men's basketball athlete from Presentation honored by the UMAC this season. (UMAC Release)

Saints win pair of UMAC contests at home, now stand 5th in the conference after three-game winning streak
(January 26, 2008)

    Balanced scoring from inside and outside continued to be the theme for the Presentation College Saints Men's Basketball team as they captured a pair of wins this past weekend over conference-leader Northwestern College and Crown College.
    Friday night proved to be the biggest win of the season so far for the Saints, as they took down Northwestern College, who was previously unbeaten in conference play. The game featured back-and-forth action throughout, until Michael Babcock (Fr., G, Aberdeen, S.D.) intercepted an errant Northland pass and converted for the fast-break lay-up with 11:29 to go in the second half. From that point on, the Saints would hold the lead and end with a 71-61 victory. The Saints were led offensively by Richie Ward (So., F, Aberdeen, S.D.) Michael Heim (Sr., F, Chelsea, S.D.) and Lucas Bruns (Jr., G, Hecla, S.D.) who posted 14 points each. Ryan Dix (Fr., F, Aberdeen, S.D.) chipped in 13 points off of the bench in just 16 minutes of play.
    Saturday night's action saw a high-scoring first half, with both teams shooting over 50% -- Presentation went 16-of-31 (51.6%) from the field, while Crown posted a 16-of-30 (53.3%) -- to make the halftime score 46-38. However, the combination Presentation's in-your-face defense forcing 14 Crown turnovers and a dismal 2-11 (18.2%) free-throw percentage for the Storm allowed the Saints to secure an 80-62 victory. Michael Heim again led the Saints in scoring with 18 points, while being complimented by Lucas Bruns and Richie Ward with 16 and 15, respectively.
    Presentation (5-13 overall, 3-4 UMAC) now holds sole possession on fifth place in the conference, and will try to crack the top four with a return trip to Crown College Friday and Northwestern College on Saturday.

Saints record first UMAC victory over Northland College (January 19, 2008)
    Led by four scorers in double-digits for the first time on the season, the Presentation College Saints Men's Basketball team notched their first conference victory of the season Saturday night at Northland College in Ashland, Wisc. in a 78-73 victory. The Saints were led by Lucas Bruns' (Jr., G/F, Hecla, S.D.) 17 points, but also received solid contributions from Chris Grey (Fr., G, Aberdeen, S.D.) and Richie Ward (So., F, Aberdeen, S.D.) who each posted 14 of their own. Ryan Dix (Fr., C, Aberdeen, S.D.) played his first significant minutes since returning from an injury that has sidelined him since December, and tallied 11 points and 6 rebounds off of the bench.
    The Saints will next take the court on Friday evening against conference foe Northwestern College at 7:30 P.M. in the Strode Center.

Hot Shooting Carries MSU Moorhead past Saints:                    
    In a non-conference match up the Saints traveled to Moorhead, MN to play Division II opponent MSU Moorhead and were downed 93-64.  The Dragons shot extremely well making a total of 16 three-point baskets. Ryan Rozell led the Dragons with 19 points, Andy Thompson chipped in with 15 points and Blake Strouth added 14.

    Senior guard Jason Heien (Gettysburg, SD) led the Saints with 16 points, including 4-4 behind the arc.  The Saints also got quality minuets from freshmen forward Chris Grey (Aberdeen, SD) who finished with 11 points and three rebounds.  Richie Ward (Aberdeen, SD) added 11 points and led the Saints with 5 rebounds.  The Saints will be back in action on December 27^th, 2007 when they travel to Iowa for the Clarke College Tournament.

Cougars Down Saints in UMAC Showdown:

The Saints were downed 76-61 for their first UMAC lose of the season against conference rival Minnesota Morris.  The Cougars (3-3) shot 54.7% from the field for the game and the Saints shot a cold 37.9% from the field. The Saints were lead by Riche Ward (Aberdeen, SD) who had 19 points and 7 Rebounds, Michael Heim (Chelsea, SD) 12 points , Abe Albee (Rochester MN) added 7 points and 5 rebounds. The Cougars were paced by Will Jensen 26 points and 15 rebounds, Phil Allen had 20 points and Joey Fragodt added 13. Presentation will be back in action on Sunday December 16 when they will travel to play MSU- Moorhead at 3:00 p.m. in a non-conference match-up.  The Saints will resume UMAC Conference play January 11, 2008 when they host Martin Luther College at 7:00 p.m.

2007-08 Season Preview
    The 2007-2008 Presentation Men’s Basketball Team is heading into the season with a new head coach and a group of young local talent.  The Saints do have three seniors returning from last year’s team that had a record of (9-14 Overall) and (6-8 Conference). (read more)

Matt Sevareid named the new Men's Basketball Coach.  (read more)