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ROBERT SANICOLA Head Coach Sixth Season, Saint Joseph's '99 (207) 893-6673 E mail: rsanicol@sjcme.edu

On May of 2003, Robert Sanicola assumed the head coaching position at Saint Joseph's College and took over one of the most prestigious programs in New England and one of the most daunting rebuilding projects in the college’s basketball history.

Four years into his Saint Joseph's College tenure, Monk fans have recognized Sanicola's accomplishments under obstacles as he and his staff have carefully built their program on a solid foundation of young, talented student-athletes.
The Monks faithful have seen glimpses of the program's potential and are encouraged by the team's no-quit playing style and never-ending optimism of their energetic, fifth-year head coach.

A guard on some of the most successful Saint Joseph's College men’s basketball team, he was a three time winner of the Charles Warren Award, emblematic of his hard work in the pre-season. Sanicola’s reputation was upheld immediately upon his arrival on “The Lake” when his first four Saint Joseph's recruiting classes were filled with young and promising talent.

The Monks have made positive strides on the court as well, Sanicola’s 2006-07 squad was his most successful to date, as a team loaded with 6 seniors and 5 sophomores played a full Division III Independent schedule and posted an impressive 22-8 record – the most wins by a Saint Joseph's College men’s team in nine years. The Monks finished the season with a Division III Northeast Independent Championship and also led Saint Joseph's College to an appearance in the title game of the ECAC Division III New England Championship. For his efforts he garnered the Association of Division III Independents and State of Maine Coach of the Year honors.

In his third season, Sanicola’s Monks overcame perhaps their biggest challenge to date, entered the 2005-06 season with high hopes and expectations finishing the previous season with a respectable 15-12 overall record and having made a postseason tournament in three of the previous four years. The Monks had to answer several questions that would surely hinge on the success of the 2005-06 season.

Sanicola completed and injected the winning formula that produced a 19-8 overall record and an appearance to the championship game of the NCAA Division III Independent Tournament. The Monks 19 wins ranked second in wins in the last 6 season to the 2003-04 Monks, who finished 20-5 and made an appearance in the NCAA Tournament.

Even though Saint Joseph's College returned three starters to the 2005-06 team, and returned just two experienced player coming off the bench to go with six newcomers. With the loss of their two leading scorers, senior captain Steve Monteiro and Jon Pratt the Monks’ would rally around each other and leaned on their talent, desire and competitiveness to win basketball games.

In his second season in 2004-05 Sanicola took the court with five newcomers, and just three returning starters. The Monks fought their way to a better record than the previous season, 15-12, including an impressive berth to the Division III Independent Championships.

In his first season in 2003-04, Sanicola inherited a team with only two players from the previous season and he added a handful of walk-ons. The team - which was summarily dismissed by all prognosticators as having no chance to be competitive and perhaps finish winless - surprised everyone by winning nine games, including seven in-state wins, including in-state rival Husson College.

Sanicola and his overachieving Monks finished the season 9-16 and won over the Monks faithful and with their defensive intensity and no-quit attitudes.

The previous four seasons, Sanicola served as an assistant at Saint Joseph's College under his former coach, Rick Simonds. He was promoted to first assistant during the 2000-01 season.

In 4 seasons as an assistant at Saint Joseph's, Sanicola contributed to a winning tradition that resulted in four winning seasons with a combined record of 69-37. During his four-year tenure, the Monks made three conference championship appearances, and a Maine Athletic Conference Championship, which included a berth to the NAIA Division II National Championships in 2002.

During the college's inaugural season as an independent member of the NCAA Division III, the Monks obtained an at-large bid to the national tournament.

	TONY DIBIASE Assistant Coach Second Season
DiBiase returns for his second season on the Monks staff after coaching high school basketball in Maine for over 30 years. He has coached boys' varsity basketball at Machias High School , Noble High School , Gorham High School , Portland High School and most recently South Portland High School . During this time he obtained a career record of 392 wins. "I am very pleased to have Tony on our staff," said Coach Sanicola. "He is a passionate and dedicated coach who will bring so much to our program. With over 30 years of experience, DiBiase has developed a great network in the coaching fraternity in New England, especially the State of Maine , which should be very beneficial. We are thrilled to add another committed and first class coach to our program." Tony is currently a physical education teacher at South Portland High School . While coaching basketball for the Red Riots he compiled a record of 211 wins which is the most in South Portland history. He led his teams to 6 SMAA Championships as well as 9 Western Maine Finals in addition to the 4 state titles. Throughout his career, 27 of his teams have qualified for post season tournament play. Tony is highly respected by his colleagues for his analytical ability and game preparation. "It is never easy to play a Tony DiBiase team because they are always well prepared and highly motivated," recently commented an SMAA coach. Coach DiBiase has served as the Director of Hoop Mountain Basketball where he specialized in teaching basic skills and basketball strategies to college bound players. He also directed and organized the Big Red Basketball Camp and Big Red Summer Basketball League for high school students in the Portland area for the past ten years. As an athlete at Westbrook High School , Tony achieved All-State status in football, baseball, and basketball. He went on to play Division I college baseball and football at UMO where he was named to the All East Team and selected to play on the 1976 College World Series Team. This past year, he was inducted into the Maine Baseball Hall of Fame.
CHRIS WILLER Assistant Coach First Season Saint Joseph's '04
Monks Head Basketball Coach Rob Sanicola ‘99 has announced that Chris Willer ‘04 has been added to his staff as an assistant coach. Willer served as the head coach of the Poland Regional High School Varsity Boys Basketball program for the last three years and guided the Knights to postseason play in both 2006 and 2007. During his two years as a player at St. Joe’s, Willer was known to be a hard-nosed competitor who possessed an excellent work ethic. These traits were recognized by his teammates after his sophomore season when he received the James Killoran Award, given annually to the individual who is voted by team members as the hardest worker in practice throughout the season. “We are thrilled to add Chris Willer ‘04 to our basketball staff and College Community," adds Coach Sanicola. “I’m excited to have Chris back; he was always one of my favorite players. He’s a great competitor and possesses a terrific understanding of basketball. Chris is going to bring a great personality along with a high level of enthusiasm to our program, and in turn will be a valuable asset in everything we do here at Saint Joseph's College.” As a high school player, Willer helped lead Valley High (Bingham, ME) to a 75-5 record and three consecutive state titles while tallying 1,127 points and 483 assists as a four-year varsity player. Willer graduated with honors from Saint Joseph's College in 2004 with a degree in Physical Education. He currently teaches Physical Education and serves as the Co-Curricular Director at Minot Consolidated School. He resides in Poland, ME with his wife Jill and his baby daughter Genevieve.