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| Heron (Auburn athletics) |
Mustapha Heron, Auburn University men’s basketball
The former Sacred Heart standout and first five-star recruit in Auburn men’s basketball history certainly knows how to make a first impression.
The smooth left-hander tallied 26 points in just 20 minutes of action in a 96-68 exhibition win over Montevallo on Nov. 4. Heron was 9-of-12 from the floor, including 3-of-5 from the three-point line. He also connected on 5-of-6 free throw attempts. Heron tallied six rebounds, three steals, one assist and two turnovers.
Heron earned some nice praise from head coach Bruce Pearl, who was a fixture at Sacred Heart games during Heron’s senior season.
“He plays loud, but he’s quiet,” Pearl told Auburn’s Charles Goldberg. “He’s got a lot of noise to his game. He’s extremely coachable. The harder I get on him, the more he seems to respond.”
Auburn opens the regular season on Friday (tomorrow) at home against North Florida at 9:30 p.m. ET/8:30 CT.
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| Mallory (SCSU athletics) |
Mike Mallory, Southern Connecticut State University men’s basketball
Northeast-10 teams are happy that Mallory’s senior season has arrived.
The former Holy Cross standout has been a pain for Owl opponents. Mallory was named first team All-Northeast 10 in the preseason, and SCSU has been picked to win its division. Mallory was also a preseason All-American. He already owns several SCSU records, and he’s not far off of the all-time scoring mark for a career.
Mallory and the Owls took on UConn last Saturday in an exhibition game at Gampel Pavilion on the Storrs campus. Mallory played 35 minutes in the 94-65 loss and scored 14 points. He also filled up the stat sheet with six assists, three rebounds and two blocks.
SCSU opens the season this weekend with two games in the Bridgeport Tournament, hosted by the University of Bridgeport.
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| Vallee (Bay Path athletics) |
Lauren Vallee, Bay Path University women’s volleyball
The former Bristol Central three-sport standout earned second team All-NECC (New England Collegiate Conference) honors for her outstanding play.
Vallee, a junior at Bay Path, was in the top four in the NECC in kills and points per set. She also ranked in the Top 10 in hitting percentage and total kills.
Vallee posted 196 kills, 32 service aces, 145 digs, 21 total blocks and 244 total points.
Bay Path was the No. 5 seed in the NECC Tournament and won its first round match over No. 4 Lesley University by a score of 3-1. Vallee had 15 kills, nine digs and four total blocks (1 solo, 3 assisted).
Brad Grasso, Post University sprint football
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| Grasso (Post athletics) |
It may not have been a good season as a team for the Eagles, but this Wolcott High School graduate put together a solid freshman season.
Grasso finished third on the team in tackles (47), tied for second in sacks (2), was first in forced fumbles (3) and tied for first in fumble recoveries (2).
Grasso’s season-high in tackles was nine against Franklin Pierce University. He tallied eight tackles three times, against Chestnut Hill College, Army and Mansfield University. Grasso only tallied less than five tackles in a game once in seven games, and he had four in that contest.
Grasso recovered two fumbles in a game against Cornell University.
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| James (Newman athletics) |
Sheanna James, Newman University women’s basketball
Take a look at the Kaynor Tech athletics Twitter account, and a familiar face pops up.
In a Nov. 3 post, Sheanna James is seen dribbling the ball against Division I Wichita State in an exhibition game. James, a former 1,000-point scorer at Kaynor Tech, is a junior at Newman University. Newman is a Catholic university located in Wichita, KS.
James played 25 minutes against Wichita State and scored four points to go along with two steals.
James has played against two Division I schools. Besides Wichita State, Newman played an exhibition game against Kansas State. James played 16 minutes against Kansas State and scored two points.
Newman is a NCAA Division II school. Before Newman, James played at the College of Central Floridal, a National Junior College Athletic Association program.
Statistical information obtained from the athletics websites of the players’ schools.
