CONTACT: Jeff Foley (518) 629-8085 or (518) 373-1262
FOR RELEASE: Immediate, Thursday, September 13, 2001
http://www.hvcc.edu
Hudson Valley's Football Team Will Play
SUNY Morrisville At La Salle Institute On Saturday
Hudson Valley Community College's football team will host Northeast Football Conference (NFC) rival SUNY Morrisville at 1 p.m. on Saturday, September 15. Due to construction of a minor-league baseball stadium at Hudson Valley, the game will be played at Troy's La Salle Institute.
The Vikings (1-0) defeated SUNY Canton, 21-0, on September 9. All-American wide receiver Shawn Miller (Troy H.S.) had six receptions for 69 yards and two touchdowns to earn NFC Offensive Player of the Week status. SUNY Morrisville (0-2) is coming off a 26-20 loss to non-league opponent Nassau Community College.
In week three of the 2000 campaign, SUNY Morrisville captured a 14-12 victory against the Vikings. With five minutes remaining and Hudson Valley trailing 14-6, the Vikings recovered a SUNY Morrisville fumble. Gary Jones then scored on a three-yard run, bringing the Vikings to within two points. Hudson Valley went for the tie on the extra-point attempt, but Jason Owens' pass fell just beyond Miller's outstretched arms, incomplete.
Hudson Valley won five of its final six games in 2000, finishing the season with a 6-3 record and winning the NJCAA Region III title. SUNY Morrisville posted a 6-5 record.
Hudson Valley and SUNY Morrisville have played each other every year since 1997, with the Mustangs owning a 3-1 edge in the series. The Vikings came out on top in 1998.
On offense this year, the Vikings are led by Miller, who holds Hudson Valley's record for receptions in a game (11), and Derrick Dyer (Roosevelt H.S.), a wide receiver who stands 6-foot-4 and runs a 4.5-second 40-yard dash. Defensively, second-year inside linebacker Gary Smith (Concord H.S, DE) had eight tackles and an interception against SUNY Canton. Smith was part of a strong defensive effort - the Vikings held SUNY Canton to 96 yards of total offense.
Quarterback Tom Britton, who has passed for 210 yards and three touchdowns in two games, leads SUNY Morrisville. Britton also has run for 64 yards and a score. Defensive back Greg Green has recorded two interceptions.
Hudson Valley's football program was established in 1969. At the time, Hudson Valley was one of only two junior colleges in New York to field a varsity football team. Since then, nearly 300 Hudson Valley football players have earned scholarships to four-year schools and 15 have gone on to play professionally. The Vikings competed in the Coca Cola Bowl in Iowa in 1980. In 1996, Hudson Valley posted an 8-0 record, part of a dominant stretch that included 15 straight victories.
