In the wake of knocking off 11-time conference champion University of Maine-Machias last month, it is only fitting the 1993 Northeast College Conference champion UMaine-Presque Isle men’s basketball team walked off with an armful of postseason conference honors.

Charles Pearson, UMPI’s talented sophomore forward, was named NCC Most Valuable Player after averaging 16.8 points and 6 rebounds per game for the Owls. Pearson scored 30 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in UMPI’s 78-62 win over defending champ UMM in the conference title game.

Karl Henrikson, the fourth-year coach of the Owls, was named NCC Coach of the Year. Henrikson guided UMPI to a 17-11 record and a berth in the NAIA District 5 playoffs. It was UMPI’s first conference championship in 12 years.

Also named to the All-NCC team were UMPI sophomore guard Bernard Grenway and senior forward Shawn Manter. Grenway averaged 14.9 points and 2.1 assists, while earning all-league honors for the second straight year. Manter, a first-time selection, averaged 12.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 4.1 assists.

Two members of the UMM Clippers joined the Owls on the all-conference squad. They are freshman forward P.J. Bristol, who led the five-team NCC in rebounding (14 rpg). He also averaged 13 points a night for UMM Coach Sean Casey. Sophomore forward Ralph Hirtle got the all-league nod, averaging 14.5 points and six rebounds per game for UMM.

Freshman forward Dale Black of Unity College (17 ppg, 8.8 rpg) rounds out the All-NCC squad.

The NCC’s top scorer was Greg Chesley of UM-Augusta (18.2 ppg). Freshman point guard Simon Mitchell of UMPI took the league’s assist crown (6.8 apg).

Next year, UMPI will be a member of the Western Maine Athletic Conference.

As if first-year University of Maine football coach Jack Cosgrove didn’t have enough to worry about after three of his players recently tested positive for steroids (he also has to fill two open assistant coaches positions), along comes the weather to threaten his first spring practice.

Cosgrove said the Black Bears are scheduled to open spring workouts April 10, two weeks from Saturday. But with the practice field still under a couple of feet of snow, it appears Maine will be reduced to practicing in the field house much of the time.

“We’ve got to go April 10th, there’s no way around it,” said Cosgrove, who became Maine’s 34th head coach last month after Kirk Ferentz left to become offensive line coach with the NFL’s Cleveland Browns. “We’ll go indoors if we have to. Right now, I’m just hoping the big guy upstairs gives us a lot of sunshine between now and then. I’m still planning for us to get half our practices in outdoors.”

As far as the search for two assistant coaches (a secondary coach, plus Cosgrove’s offensive coordinator’s position), Cosgrove said the process is ongoing.

“The application date doesn’t close until March 31, so it will be after that,” Cosgrove said. “I’m hoping to move fairly quickly.”

On the steroids front, Investigator Bill Laughlin of the UM Department of Public Safety said the investigation is ongoing into where the three UM football players obtained the drugs which caused them to flunk the NCAA random testing program in late January.

“We’re continuing on,” said Laughlin. “It’s been tough because everyone was gone until this week. Nothing has developed at this point. If something develops, we’ll let you know.”

In addition to Raymond Alley of Husson being named to the NAIA Division II All-American first team, the state of Maine placed two individuals on the second team.

Junior forward Greg Collymore of St. Joseph’s College in Standish and Paul Peterson, a junior center for Westbrook College, were named to the country’s second-team dream squad.

University of Southern Maine men’s basketball coach Al Sokaitis will serve as the enrichment coordinator for the YES (Youth Education through Sports) Program to be held in conjunction with the NCAA Div. I Final Four on April 3, in New Orleans.

Sokaitis, who has served as the lead speaker at the Final Four on three previous occasions, will conduct four sessions to groups of 125 students.

“As a coach, you always talk about excellence and reaching potential,” said Sokaitis. “We need to really impress upon young people the importance of education and the critical part athletic participation can play in achieving personal goals.”