Clarion head basketball coach Dr. Ron Righter led the Golden Eagles to their sixth straight winning season in 2002, despite having to overcome a number of key injuries.

Righter, in his 14^th year at Clarion, saw the Golden Eagles post a solid 15-11 overall record and a 7-5 mark in the always tough PSAC-Western Division.

The Golden Eagles posted a number of quality wins during the season, including an eleven point victory over NCAA "Final Four" finisher IUP (82-71), a 61-59 victory over California and a 78-74 win over Edinboro, all of whom tied for first in the PSAC-West.

Clarion also defeated the PSAC-East regular season winner West Chester (70-54), but were beset with injuries and illness during the year that hit starters and reserves, making advancement in the PSAC’s and NCAA’s very difficult.

"Under the circumstances I thought our team showed an incredible amount of mental and physical toughness this season," said the veteran Righter. "A lesser team would have gone the other direction. Not our kids. We played tough and fought hard every step of the way. I really believe it was our toughness, combined with a commitment to excellence, that helped us overcome all the adversities. In retrospect, I believe we accomplished a lot this year and I’m proud of the way our veterans handled a very tough situation."

The 15-11 overall record put Righter’s Clarion career mark at 232-141. In the last six years the Golden Eagles have been outstanding with a combined slate of 130-50, or a winning percentage of 72.2%. The Golden Eagles were PSAC Champions in 2001, PSAC-West Champs in 2000 and 1997. Clarion’s PSAC-West record in the last six years is a strong 48-24, or a winning percentage of 66.7%.

Anchoring the Golden Eagles starting lineup this season were guards Rollie Smith (Jr. Cleveland, Oh., St. Joseph’s) and Steve Serwatka (Sr. New Rochelle, N.Y.), forwards David Shearer (Sr. Greensburg, Hempfield) and Allen Stevens (Sr. Philadelphia, Roman Catholic) and center Dale Thomas (Gr. Cleveland Hts., Oh., St. Joseph’s).

Off the bench Clarion used Dereck Rankin (Jr. Brooklyn, N.Y.) and Terrance Stokes (So. Phila., Simon Gratz) at the guards and Stephen Nesmith (Jr. Pgh, Sewickley Academy), Justin Kreefer (So. E. Liverpool, Oh.) and Terrell Scott (So. Phila., Audenreid) at the forwards.

The injuries? Nesmith broke a bone in his hand and missed the first half of the season. Shearer, who played the first few games with what turned out to be a stress fracture in his leg, missed December and part of January while recuperating. Even then his minutes and mobility were limited when he came back. Stokes missed 5 games in mid-season with a leg injury that cut his minutes back following his return, while Serwatka played through a painful foot injury in January, as did Smith with a taped up shooting hand in conference play. Freshman point guard Vince Moley (York) sustained a season-ending knee injury and senior shooting guard James Bigler (Irwin, Penn Trafford) missed most of the season with a severe bronchitis.

Clarion opened the 2001-2002 season with high hopes, ranked 15^th by Basketball Times and 18^th by Division II Bulletin, hosting the Subway/KFC Classic. Clarion pounded Practical Bible 133-75 in the opener, breaking the school record for points scored in a single game (130 vs Misericordia, 1990-91). Seven players hit double figures with Steve Serwatka’s 23 points and Dave Shearer’s 20 points and 7 rebounds leading the way. Dereck Rankin had 7 assists off the bench with Rollie Smith adding 6 assists.

The championship game saw Franklin Pierce earn a tough 86-73 win over the Eagles. Serwatka had 21 and Allen Stevens 18 for the Eagles while both were named to the All-Tourney team.

After defeating Felician (85-80), forward David Shearer, who contributed 14 points and 12 rebounds but was in a lot of pain, was diagnosed with a stress fracture. He sat out the remainder of December.

The Golden Eagles lost in the final seconds to Mansfield (86-82), but rebounded to defeat PSAC-East rival Bloomsburg (68-56) at Tippin Gym. The Eagles stormed to an 18-point lead midway through the first half (30-12) and never looked back. Stevens and Serwatka had 19 each to lead the way, while Smith handed out 8 assists.

The Eagles lost 87-78 in overtime at Cheyney with the Wolves shooting 37 free throws to Clarion’s 3. Serwatka again had 27 points and Smith had 19 with 8 assists. The next day at West Chester, the Eagles rallied for a big 70-54 win against the Golden Rams. Serwatka’s 22 points and Stevens 17 points, 11 rebounds led the way.

After losing at Millersville, the Eagles ran off three straight wins against Shippensburg (72-42), East Stroudsburg (91-61) and Kutztown (77-56). Stevens had 19 points and 3 steals against Shipp, while center Dale Thomas showed an inside presence with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Thomas notched 18 points against East Stroudsburg, then came back with 12 points and 12 rebounds against Kutztown. Stevens led the Eagles with 23 against the Bears.

Three straight road losses at Edinboro (76-62), Indiana (72-67) and New Haven (87-75) put the Eagles at 7-7 overall, but the blue and gold fought back with wins over Lock Haven (70-46) and Slippery Rock (77-55).

Clarion hosted PSAC-West leading Cal on Feb. 4^th and the Golden Eagles won a key 61-59 contest. With the game tied at 59, Rollie Smith drove the lane and fed Allen Stevens for a layup with 3 seconds left for the win. Stevens had 18 points and Serwatka 17 to lead the way, while Shearer grabbed 11 rebounds to help control the boards.

Then Edinboro came to Tippin Gym and the Golden Eagles responded with another outstanding performance defeating the Scots 78-74. Down by 10 at halftime, Clarion rallied behind Smith’s big second half, including two free throws with 1.2 seconds left to give the Eagles the big win. Smith had 14 points, 5 assists and 3 steals, while Serwatka had 18 and Shearer added 16 points and 10 rebounds.

After a tough loss at Lock Haven (61-59) in the final seconds, the Eagles rallied for big wins over Pitt-Johnstown (68-57) and Slippery Rock (74-60), setting up the big return game against IUP.

The Golden Eagles upset #13 ranked IUP 82-71 at Tippin Gym on Feb. 16^th. Clarion led 35-31 at halftime and never looked back as the Golden Eagles were 10 of 10 from the free throw line in the final minute to salt the game away. Stevens led the way with 22 points, while Shearer collected 18 points and 8 rebounds, Smith 16 points and 3 rebounds, with Thomas posting 9 rebounds and 7 steals.

Clarion finished the regular season with a 74-67 win over New Haven, then traveled to IUP for the first round of the PSAC Playoffs. The Eagles played the Indians close, but lost a tough 62-55 decision despite a 26 point performance from Serwatka. The Eagles played great defense in the loss forcing 20 IUP turnovers while making 15 steals. Shearer led the effort with 5 steals and 8 rebounds, while Stevens and Thomas had 4 steals each.

The Golden Eagles put three 1,000 point career scorers on the court at the same time this season in seniors David Shearer, Allen Stevens and Steve Serwatka. The remarkable accomplishment marked only the 8^th time in PSAC history that three 1,000 career scorers played together in the same season.

"I believe the accomplishment shows the quality of basketball these young men have played throughout their careers and how their unselfishness has led to Clarion’s overall success," said Clarion mentor Ron Righter. "They have a mutual respect for each others game and the game of basketball, that’s what helped them be so successful. When you consider that Rollie (Smith) also has over 900 points in three seasons, you can see how unselfish a team we have had."

Shearer, a senior forward , despite be injured most of the season, still managed to average 9.1ppg and 7.2 rebounds, while collecting 48 steals and handing out 41 assists. A second team PSAC-West choice in 2002, he was a first team selection in 2000 and 2001 and the 1999 West "Rookie of the Year". He finished his career with 1,248 points (#12) and 794 rebounds (#7). He is only the 5^th player in Clarion history to score more than 1,200 career points and grab over 700 rebounds. He also had 215 career steals and 160 assists. He finished third in career free throws attempted (527) and made (379), shooting 72% for his career.

Stevens, a three-year starter at forward/center, had a strong all-around season averaging 14.3ppg, 5.7 rebounds, made 34 steals, handed out 25 assists and blocked 12 shots. Stevens was rewarded with a first team PSAC-West selection. Allen finished his career with 1,192 points (#17) and 521 rebounds (#20) and is only the 13^th player to go over 1,000 points and 500 rebounds combined. He added 117 career steals and 85 assists, while shooting 72.4% from the foul line (305 of 421).

Serwatka, a senior shooting guard, and only a two-year performer after transferring from Sullivan C.C., made a strong impact as a Golden Eagle. This season he was 4^th in the PSAC in scoring (17.5ppg), plus contributed 58 assists, 32 steals and 76 rebounds. He ranked #2 in the nation in free throw percentage at 91.7% (66 of 72) and #1 in the PSAC, while also breaking Clarion’s single season record set by Alvin Gibson (87.4%) in 1981. Steve was named a second team PSAC-West choice in 2002 and 2001. Serwatka averaged 20.2ppg in 2001 while chipping in 70 assists, 49 steals and 98 rebounds. In only two seasons he scored 1,041 points, handed out 128 assists, 81 steals and 174 rebounds. He also set the school record for career free throw percentage at 86.1% (155 of 180), breaking the old record of 83.7% by Punky Barrouk (1984-88).

Also playing their final games in a Clarion uniform this season were center Dale Thomas and guard James Bigler.

Thomas, a graduate of Middle Tennessee State who transferred to Clarion for his final year of eligibility, had a quality season. He averaged 10.3ppg and 7.0 rebounds, led the team with 49 steals and dished out 22 assists. Dale connected on 54% of his field goal attempts (118 of 217) and had 7 blocked shots. Combined with his Middle Tennessee State stats, he finished his overall career with 791 points and 535 rebounds.

Bigler, who only played in 6 games because of an illness, made a solid contribution as a Golden Eagle. Last year his three, three pointers at IUP in the playoffs helped Clarion advance and eventually win its first PSAC title. He had 137 career points and a game high 20 points against Goldey Beacom.

Also having his third strong season was junior point guard Rollie Smith. Smith averaged 12.8ppg, led the team with 124 assists, and added 24 steals. He shot 81.8% from the free throw line (54 of 66), and nailed 68 of 175 three’s (38.9%). He had a high game of 24 points vs Cal, 10 assists against Slippery Rock and 7 rebounds against Mansfield. He ranked #2 in the PSAC in turnover ratio, probably the most telling stat for a quality point guard. In his career Smith now totals 906 points, 351 assists, 258 rebounds, and 100 steals. He is shooting 81.6% from the foul line (168 of 206) and has canned 164 of 418 three pointers, a solid 39.2%. His 351 career assists rank 7^th all-time.

Making contributions this season were guards Dereck Rankin and Terrance Stokes and forwards Justin Kreefer, Stephen Nesmith and Terrell Scott.

Rankin, a speedy point guard, averaged 4.9ppg, dished out 60 assists (2^nd on team), 22 steals, shot 68.4% from the foul line and 41.9% from three point land (13 of 31). A junior who transferred from Sullivan C.C., he returns to join Smith in the backcourt for 2003.

Stokes, a sophomore guard who also plays small forward, averaged 3.5ppg, 2.9 rebounds, with 19 assists and 13 steals. A strong defensive player, his return gives the Eagles three guards in 2003.

Kreefer, a sophomore forward, gained plenty of valuable experience while chipping in with 2.6ppg, 17 rebounds and 7 assists.

Nesmith, a three-year veteran, made a solid contribution despite injuries. He played in 17 games and had 27 points and 23 rebounds. He now has 163 career points and 189 rebounds.

Scott, a sophomore center, played in 13 games and grabbed 13 rebounds while blocking four shots.

CLARION NOTES: Clarion continued its fine home play under Righter ... The Eagles were 11-2 at home this year and have a strong 73-18 record (80.2%) the last 6 seasons in the friendly confines of Tippin Gym ... Righter has a 14-year home record of 145-57 (71.8%)... The Golden Eagles face a daunting recruiting task looking to replace 51.2ppg and 22.8 rebounds per game that have graduated ...Clarion has a rich tradition of men’s basketball ... Dating back to 1971 Clarion has an overall men’s record of 536-315, a 63 % winning percentage ... The Golden Eagles have won the PSAC-West 11 times including 1971, 73, 77, 79, 80, 81, 83, 84, 85, 97 and 2000... 1971 and 73 under Ron Galbreath, 77, 79, 80 and 81 under Joe DeGregorio, 83, 84 and 85 under Dr. Richard Taylor and the last two under coach Righter... Prior to 1981 Clarion went to the NAIA Nationals in 1976-77 when the team went 27-3 and in 1979-80 when the Eagles were 23-6... In the 1977 NAIA Tournament Clarion defeated Augsburg (88-84), then lost to Grand Valley (79-65)... In the 1980 tournament Clarion defeated Grand Canyon (83-75), Loras, Iowa (79-71), then lost to Huron S.D. 61-52... The PSAC went completely to the NCAA the following season and Clarion went to the NCAA Playoffs in 1981 ... The Eagles defeated Monmouth 80-78 in the semi final game, then lost 84-61 to Cal Poly SLO in the Regional Finals at Monmouth, New Jersey... All three tournament appearances were under coach DeGregorio ... Clarion’s 1952 team won the NAIB District title and went to the NAIB Nationals under Ben Kribbs and lost their first tournament game to Utah State 85-68.