| Annandale-on-Hudson, NY February 5 March Madness has come early to Bard College. With the HVMAC Tournament (and the automatic NCAA berth that comes with it) on Friday, every Raptor player can feel the weight of Bard's expectations on his shoulders. Ian "Shaft" Shaff seems ready to crack under the pressure, making irrational decisions like refusing to buy a textbook for a class in which he is enrolled. Nevertheless, the former HVMAC Player of the Week assures Raptormania that he will be ready to, in the words of another Samuel L. Jackson character, "strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers." Bard defeated Hampshire College 76-59 before 107 hysterical fans in a final tune-up for the HVMAC. Tonight, the Raptors will travel to Purchase, NY, where they will take in the sights and sounds of picturesque Purchase and prepare for the Friday night showdown with number 1 seeded St. Joseph's of Brooklyn. Bard lost an earlier meeting to St. Joe's 75-71, and will look to avenge their defeat and move into the championship game. Raptormania will be there with live radio coverage. The game begins at 8 PM. Following an embarassing start, we felt North Carolina might need basketball genius Greg Dixon's help. We sent this letter to their coach without Greg's permission. UNC did not heed our warnings, and lost to Connecticut, 86-54. |
| Raptormania at Fever pitch as HVMAC Tourney Approaches |