Guilford's Strong, Palombo Headline Postseason Honors

SALEM, Va. --- Guilford College junior Ben Strong and head coach Tom Palombo headlined the 2007 Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) postseason awards, winning the conference's player and coach of the year honors, respectively.  Bridgewater freshman Dominic Trawick was named the league's top rookie, and Hampden-Sydney senior guard Matt Green earned the scholar-athlete award.

Strong, a first team selection last season, was a consistent force for Palombo's squad in the paint, leading the Quakers to a second seed in this week's 2007 ODAC Basketball Championship tournament.  Strong led the conference in several statistical categories including scoring (24.0 ppg), rebounding (11.0 rpg) and blocked shots (2.5 bpg) as well as collecting a league-best 15 double-doubles.  His presence was felt on the national level, currently placing fifth in scoring, seventh in rebounding and 14th in block shots throughout all of NCAA Division III men's basketball.  He is the first conference player of the year in Guilford men's basketball history.

This is the second ODAC top coaching honor for Palombo as he shared the honor in 2004 with Emory & Henry's Bob Johnson.  Palombo's Quakers are currently rated 17th in the weekly D3Hoops.com national poll, the second straight week they've held the position.  On the way to 21-3 overall and 15-3 conference records, Guilford ran off winning streaks of 10 and seven games, the latter marking a current trend heading into postseason play.

Trawick, from Manassas, Va., also earned recognition as honorable mention All-ODAC.  He led the Eagles in scoring at 15.2 points per outing, dropping a career-high 35 points in an early season win against Eastern Mennonite.  During that contest, Trawick converted all 19 of a his free throw attempts, a new ODAC record.

Green, a senior guard from Richmond, Va., boasts a 3.91 grade point average in mathematical economics.  The two-time Tiger captain was named to the 2006 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District team.  He is a member of the Student Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC), Classics Honor Society and Eta Sigma Phi.  On the court, Green finished second in the conference in assists with 4.0 per game and shot a league fourth-best 42.0% from three-point range.

For a look at the complete 2007 ODAC Men's Basketball All-Conference Teams, view the entry below or visit the ODAC on the web at www.odaconline.com.

2007 ODAC Men's Basketball All-Conference Teams

First Team
Brandon Adair, Virginia Wesleyan
Greg Bienemann, Washington & Lee
David Carlson, Randolph-Macon
Jason Sager, Eastern Mennonite
Jordan Snipes, Guilford
Ben Strong, Guilford

Second Team
TonTon Balenga, Virginia Wesleyan
Jeremy Dixon, Randolph-Macon
Mike Edwards, Hamden-Sydney
Phil Hawley, Randolph-Macon
Josh LaPorte, Roanoke
Curtis Peery, Roanoke
Dominic Trawick, Bridgewater

Honorable Mention
Steven Echols, Lynchburg
Josh Fox, Bridgewater
Turner King, Hampden-Sydney
Brad Parkes, Eastern Mennonite
Drew Prehmus, Hampden-Sydney
Lance Reasbeck, Emory & Henry
Justin Short, Randolph-Macon

Kurt Axe Memorial Player of the Year
Ben Strong, Guilford

Rookie of the Year
Dominic Trawick, Bridgewater

Coach of the Year
Tom Palombo, Guilford

ODAC/Farm Bureau Scholar-Athlete
Matt Green, Hampden-Sydney