CONTACT: Steve Mullen (518) 629-8063
FOR RELEASE: Immediate, Thursday, April 1, 2004
Saratoga Springs Native Morgan Vittengl to Attend UMass
Seven more Hudson Valley Community College football players have made commitments to continue their education and play football at four-year colleges or universities this fall.
Offensive tackle Morgan Vittengl (Saratoga Springs/Saratoga Springs High School) has committed to the University of Massachusetts. Vittengl earned First Team All-Northeast Football Conference and Second Team All-American honors in 2003. UMass advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA tournament last season and finished the year with a 10-3 record.
Offensive guards Alex Monteleone (Palisades Park, NJ/Palisades Park High School) and Derrick Maul (Brooklyn/Samuel L. Tilden High School) will attend Iona College. Maul and Monteleone, both two-year starters for the Vikings, helped pave the way for Hudson Valley's offense, which gained 400.9 yards per game in 2003. Iona is an NCAA Division I-AA college and is a member of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. The Gaels finished 6-5 last season.
Linebacker Mike St. Fleur (Spring Valley/Ramapo High School) has committed to the University at Albany. St. Fleur contributed 26 tackles and three sacks in 2003. Albany, an NCAA Division I-AA university and a member of the Northeast Conference, finished 7-4 last season.
Quarterback Ryan Gribulis (Kerhonkson/Rondout Valley) has signed a National Letter of Intent to play at American International College in Massachusetts. Gribulis was a First Team All-Conference performer in 2003 after completing 98-of-184 passes for 1,297 yards and 10 touchdowns. American International, an NCAA Division II school that plays in the Northeast-10 Conference, finished 5-4 last season.
Safety Damion Malott (Akron, OH/Akron North High School) earned a scholarship to Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. Malott garnered First Team All-Conference honors in 2003 after leading the Vikings with five interceptions. He also contributed 42 tackles. Edinboro advanced to the NCAA Division II playoffs last season and finished the year with a 9-3 record. The Fighting Scots are members of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference.
Linebacker Dan Pizzarelli (Poughkeepsie/F.D. Roosevelt High School) will attend Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Pizzarelli earned Second Team All-Conference honors after finishing second on the team with 61 tackles in 2003. RPI was 11-2 last season and advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Division III tournament.
Hudson Valley, located in Troy, New York, finished the 2003 season ranked 15th in the final National Junior College Athletic Association poll with an 8-2 record. The Vikings earned an invitation to The Graphic Edge Bowl in Cedar Falls, Iowa. To date, 17 players from last year's team have committed to four-year schools for 2004, including 13 players who have committed to NCAA Division I-A or I-AA schools.
