Bucknell Bison
Encyclopedia
The Bucknell Bison are the athletic teams of Bucknell University
. The program is a member of the Patriot League
for Division I sports, Division I-AA in football.
Bucknell won the first Orange Bowl (26–0 over the University of Miami
on January 1, 1935). It is also the alma mater of baseball
pitcher Christy Mathewson
who requested burial in a cemetery adjoining Bucknell's campus.
In 2005, the men's basketball team
went to the NCAA
men's basketball tournament and became the first Patriot League
team to win an NCAA tournament game, in an upset of Kansas
(64–63). The victory followed a year that included wins over #9 Pittsburgh and Saint Joseph's. They lost to Wisconsin
in the following round, but received the honor of "Best Upset" at the 2005 ESPY Awards
.
In 2006, the Bison continued their success with high-profile victories at Syracuse, then ranked 19th, DePaul, and Saint Joseph's, a sequence that saw the Bison nearly enter the Associated Press's top-25 rankings. However, those wins were followed by high-profile losses against Villanova, then ranked fourth in the nation, and at Duke, then ranked first. Patriot League play began after the Duke loss, and the Bison did not lose a league game in 2006. The team was ranked 24th in the nation in both the Associated Press
and ESPN
/USA Today
college basketball polls for the week of February 13. This was the Bucknell program's first national ranking, and the first time since the league's creation in 1990 that any Patriot League men's basketball team has been ranked. The team was seeded ninth in the Oakland
bracket for the 2006 NCAA tournament, and defeated the Arkansas Razorbacks
in the first round (59–55). The Bison were defeated by Memphis
in the second round, losing by a score of 72–56. They finished the regular season ranked 25th in the ESPN poll. Entering the 2006–2007 season, the Bison had scheduled a number of high-profile games, including a season opener against Wake Forest
. The schedule also included a match-up against George Mason
, a team that had made the 2006 Final Four. In a tight game, the Bison were defeated by Wake Forest 86–83 in overtime. They did, however, go on to defeat George Mason. Bucknell made it to the 2007 Patriot League Championship Game where they faced Holy Cross
. The Bison lost by a score of 66–74.
In 2006 the Bucknell Men's soccer team went on a surprise run to capture the Patriot League championship. In the semifinal they beat top seeded Lehigh in a game that went to a shootout. Then in the final they defeated Lehigh in a game that also ended in a shootout. This qualified them for the NCAA Soccer tournament. They faced George Mason in the first round and won on an overtime goal. In the second round they fell to fourth ranked Virginia.
In 2006 the Bucknell Women's rowing team won the Patriot League Championship and its Lightweight Women scored a 6th place finish at the National Championship IRA Regatta. The following year the team repeated as Patriot League team champions, and the lightweight eight was crowned national champions at the IRA for the first time.
In 2003, Bucknell made history by becoming the only school in Patriot League history to capture both the Men's and Women's Patriot League Swimming Championship in the same season (2003). These teams were led by seniors Gonzalo Diaz, Christopher Feinthel, Michael Guskey, Geoffrey Konopka, Kurt "Russell" McCoy, Stelios Saffos and Stephen Schwanhausser on the Men's team and seniors Rebecca Dolan and Darby Golino on the Women's team. This historic win was accomplished at the newly opened Kinney Natatorium at Bucknell. The men's swimming and diving team also captured the Division II national championship in 1964.
Bucknell also has a reputable men's lacrosse program that is often nationally-ranked. The team reached the NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship
in 2001. Former head coach Sid Jamieson
is currently ranked 14th in all-time Division I wins. In 2005, the team upset No. 2 ranked Navy during the regular season, and again in 2006 the team upset No. 1 Maryland. In 2008, the team broke into the top 10 National Rankings for only the second time in school history.
Beginning in the 2006–2007 season, Bucknell has re-instituted its men's wrestling program in response to a private donation of $5.6 million from wrestling alumnus William Graham, after it was originally dropped by the university in efforts to be in compliance with Title IX
in 2001. In 2009, the team has a program record of 6 NCAA qualifiers.
In 2008, the Bucknell baseball team entered the Tallahassee regional of the NCAA tournament and upset the Florida State Seminoles, 7–0.
'Ray for the Orange and the Blue!
'Ray, 'Ray, 'Ray, 'Ray,
'Ray for the Orange and the Blue!
Bucknell University
Bucknell University is a private liberal arts university located alongside the West Branch Susquehanna River in the rolling countryside of Central Pennsylvania in the town of Lewisburg, 30 miles southeast of Williamsport and 60 miles north of Harrisburg. The university consists of the College of...
. The program is a member of the Patriot League
Patriot League
The Patriot League is a college athletic conference which operates in the northeastern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I) for a number of sports; in football, it participates in the Football Championship Subdivision...
for Division I sports, Division I-AA in football.
Bucknell won the first Orange Bowl (26–0 over the University of Miami
University of Miami
The University of Miami is a private, non-sectarian university founded in 1925 with its main campus in Coral Gables, Florida, a medical campus in Miami city proper at Civic Center, and an oceanographic research facility on Virginia Key., the university currently enrolls 15,629 students in 12...
on January 1, 1935). It is also the alma mater of baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
pitcher Christy Mathewson
Christy Mathewson
Christopher "Christy" Mathewson , nicknamed "Big Six", "The Christian Gentleman", or "Matty", was an American Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played his entire career in what is known as the dead-ball era...
who requested burial in a cemetery adjoining Bucknell's campus.
In 2005, the men's basketball team
Bucknell Bison men's basketball
The Bucknell Bison men's basketball team represents Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania in NCAA Division I competition. The school's team competes in the Patriot League and play their home games in Sojka Pavilion.-NCAA Tournament results:...
went to the NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
men's basketball tournament and became the first Patriot League
Patriot League
The Patriot League is a college athletic conference which operates in the northeastern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I) for a number of sports; in football, it participates in the Football Championship Subdivision...
team to win an NCAA tournament game, in an upset of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
(64–63). The victory followed a year that included wins over #9 Pittsburgh and Saint Joseph's. They lost to Wisconsin
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
in the following round, but received the honor of "Best Upset" at the 2005 ESPY Awards
ESPY Awards
An ESPY Award is an accolade presented by the American cable television network ESPN to recognize individual and team athletic achievement and other sports-related performance during the calendar year preceding a given annual ceremony. The first ESPYs were awarded in 1993...
.
In 2006, the Bison continued their success with high-profile victories at Syracuse, then ranked 19th, DePaul, and Saint Joseph's, a sequence that saw the Bison nearly enter the Associated Press's top-25 rankings. However, those wins were followed by high-profile losses against Villanova, then ranked fourth in the nation, and at Duke, then ranked first. Patriot League play began after the Duke loss, and the Bison did not lose a league game in 2006. The team was ranked 24th in the nation in both the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
and ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
/USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
college basketball polls for the week of February 13. This was the Bucknell program's first national ranking, and the first time since the league's creation in 1990 that any Patriot League men's basketball team has been ranked. The team was seeded ninth in the Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
bracket for the 2006 NCAA tournament, and defeated the Arkansas Razorbacks
Arkansas Razorbacks
The Razorbacks, also known as the Hogs, are the names of college sports teams at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The term Arkansas Razorbacks properly applies to any of the sports teams at the university. The Razorbacks take their name from the feral pig of the same name...
in the first round (59–55). The Bison were defeated by Memphis
University of Memphis
The University of Memphis is an American public research university located in the Normal Station neighborhood of Memphis, Tennessee and is the flagship public research university of the Tennessee Board of Regents system....
in the second round, losing by a score of 72–56. They finished the regular season ranked 25th in the ESPN poll. Entering the 2006–2007 season, the Bison had scheduled a number of high-profile games, including a season opener against Wake Forest
Wake Forest University
Wake Forest University is a private, coeducational university in the U.S. state of North Carolina, founded in 1834. The university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina, the state capital. The Reynolda Campus, the university's main campus, is...
. The schedule also included a match-up against George Mason
George Mason University
George Mason University is a public university based in unincorporated Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, south of and adjacent to the city of Fairfax. Additional campuses are located nearby in Arlington County, Prince William County, and Loudoun County...
, a team that had made the 2006 Final Four. In a tight game, the Bison were defeated by Wake Forest 86–83 in overtime. They did, however, go on to defeat George Mason. Bucknell made it to the 2007 Patriot League Championship Game where they faced Holy Cross
College of the Holy Cross
The College of the Holy Cross is an undergraduate Roman Catholic liberal arts college located in Worcester, Massachusetts, USA...
. The Bison lost by a score of 66–74.
In 2006 the Bucknell Men's soccer team went on a surprise run to capture the Patriot League championship. In the semifinal they beat top seeded Lehigh in a game that went to a shootout. Then in the final they defeated Lehigh in a game that also ended in a shootout. This qualified them for the NCAA Soccer tournament. They faced George Mason in the first round and won on an overtime goal. In the second round they fell to fourth ranked Virginia.
In 2006 the Bucknell Women's rowing team won the Patriot League Championship and its Lightweight Women scored a 6th place finish at the National Championship IRA Regatta. The following year the team repeated as Patriot League team champions, and the lightweight eight was crowned national champions at the IRA for the first time.
In 2003, Bucknell made history by becoming the only school in Patriot League history to capture both the Men's and Women's Patriot League Swimming Championship in the same season (2003). These teams were led by seniors Gonzalo Diaz, Christopher Feinthel, Michael Guskey, Geoffrey Konopka, Kurt "Russell" McCoy, Stelios Saffos and Stephen Schwanhausser on the Men's team and seniors Rebecca Dolan and Darby Golino on the Women's team. This historic win was accomplished at the newly opened Kinney Natatorium at Bucknell. The men's swimming and diving team also captured the Division II national championship in 1964.
NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship
The annual NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship tournament determines the top men's field lacrosse team in the NCAA Division I, Division II, and Division III....
in 2001. Former head coach Sid Jamieson
Sid Jamieson
Sid Jamieson was Bucknell University's initial head coach for the men's college lacrosse team, serving from the inception of the program in 1968 until his retirement in 2005. He compiled a record of 248 wins and 240 losses to rank 15th among all Division I collegiate lacrosse coaches in victories...
is currently ranked 14th in all-time Division I wins. In 2005, the team upset No. 2 ranked Navy during the regular season, and again in 2006 the team upset No. 1 Maryland. In 2008, the team broke into the top 10 National Rankings for only the second time in school history.
Beginning in the 2006–2007 season, Bucknell has re-instituted its men's wrestling program in response to a private donation of $5.6 million from wrestling alumnus William Graham, after it was originally dropped by the university in efforts to be in compliance with Title IX
Title IX
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 is a United States law, enacted on June 23, 1972, that amended Title IX of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In 2002 it was renamed the Patsy T. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act, in honor of its principal author Congresswoman Mink, but is most...
in 2001. In 2009, the team has a program record of 6 NCAA qualifiers.
In 2008, the Bucknell baseball team entered the Tallahassee regional of the NCAA tournament and upset the Florida State Seminoles, 7–0.
Fight song
'Ray Bucknell, 'Ray Bucknell,'Ray for the Orange and the Blue!
'Ray, 'Ray, 'Ray, 'Ray,
'Ray for the Orange and the Blue!