UMass Dartmouth finishes at 13-14 overall, Cagle and Gaspar named to LEC All-Star team

(Dartmouth, MA) – Despite a 13-14 overall record, UMass Dartmouth finished 7-7 for fourth place in the Little East Conference and advanced to the LEC semi-finals before closing out their season with a three-point loss the eventual LEC champions from Western Connecticut. The Corsairs’ losing record was their first in 13 seasons, dating back to the 1988-89 season.

UMass Dartmouth had a pair of seniors named to the LEC First and Second Team All-Star squads, while the Corsairs also had the LEC Rookie of the Year. Senior forward Brian Cagle (Norwich, CT) earned his second straight First Team LEC honor, while senior co-captain and point guard Tim Gaspar (Dartmouth, MA) was a Second Team Selection. Freshman guard Devon Maiorano (Rehoboth, MA) captured LEC Rookie of Year honors after being named the LEC Rookie of the Week four times during the season.

Cagle capped an outstanding career at UMass Dartmouth by being selected to play in the New England Intercollegiate Basketball Association’s Senior All-Star game. In 20 games, Cagle led the Corsairs by averaging 16.6 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. Cagle added 22 blocked shots and 33 steals, while shooting .506 from the floor, making 131 of 259 shots.

Gaspar, who teamed up with Cagle for the last four seasons, finished his career by leading the LEC in assists with 6.2 per game and was tied for first in steals with 2.3 per game. Gaspar shot .498 from the floor (116-233), ranking 11th in the LEC, and was third in team scoring, averaging 11.1 points per game with 3.85 rebounds.

In his first season with Corsairs, Maiorano averaged 10.1 points per game with 2.59 rebounds, 53 assists and 29 steals. Maiorano led the Corsairs with a team-high 55 three-pointers on 115 attempts for a .478 percentage, second best in the LEC. He made 91 of 205 (.444) from the floor. Maiorano was the leading freshman scorer in the LEC and 20th overall.

Senior center Sean Walsh (Sandwich, MA) was the Corsairs’ leading scorer in points with 410, averaging 15.2 points per game, tied for seventh in the LEC scoring race. He pulled down a team-high 189 rebounds, averaging 7 rebounds a game plus leading the team with 50 blocked shots, second in the LEC at 1.9 blocks per game. Walsh shot .534 from the floor, fourth best in the LEC, making 165 of 309 shots from the floor. He also led the Corsairs in free throw shooting, connecting on 80 of 123 for .650.

Among the Corsairs’ other top scorers for the season were sophomore guard Matt McAuliffe (Sutton, MA) (8.8 points, 3.1 rebounds) who was the Corsairs second most effective three-point threat. McAulliffe made 49 of 119 attempts for .412, fifth best overall in the LEC. Freshman guard Jeff Hambley (So. Hadley, MA) averaged 7.2 points and 1.6 rebounds per game, while making 43 of 121 three pointers for .355 from beyond the arc. Sophomore forward Matt Lapriore (Grafton, MA) averaged 5.7 points and 2.62 rebounds, while senior forward Jason Wiggins (Bloomfield, CT) had 4.5 rebounds (third on the team) and 5.04 points per game.

As a team, UMass Dartmouth led the LEC in three-point shooting percentage, connecting on 177 of 472 attempts for a .375 shooting percentage. The Corsairs were second in field goal percentage (803-1741, .461) and fourth in scoring offense, averaging 80.4 points per game.