Bulldogs take their games to the big stage

Class of 2009 graduates Pat McKenna and Zack Greer drafted into the professional ranks.

Despite playing different sports, baseball graduate Pat McKenna ’09 and men’s lacrosse standout Zack Greer ’09 MBA both ended successful college careers with similar fates. Not only did the pair share the athletic department’s Male Athlete of the Year award, they were both drafted by their respective professional sports leagues at the conclusion of their spring seasons.

A four-year starting shortstop for the Bulldog baseball team, McKenna was selected by Major League Baseball’s Detroit Tigers in the 27th round of the 2009 baseball draft, going as the 810th overall pick on June 10.

After leading Bryant men's lacrosse to a 10-5 record, Greer, the NCAA’s all-time leader in goals scored, was selected third overall by the Long Island Lizards in the 2009 Major League Lacrosse (MLL) draft on May 27.

“Bryant University and the entire Bulldog family are so proud of both Zack and Pat for all that they have accomplished," said Bryant Director of Athletics Bill Smith. "For them to continue on with their careers at the professional level is exciting not just the two of them, but for the Bulldog men's lacrosse program, the baseball program, and the athletic department as a whole. We wish them the very best of luck and will be watching to see what they continue to achieve.”

‘All-out hustle type’

In 2009, McKenna finished one of the finest four-year careers that Bryant has ever seen. He started all 223 games over the last four years and set program records for both games started and games played. He also finds himself atop the Bryant record books in career triples (15), walks (113) and assists (801), while he sits third in runs scored (154), fourth in doubles (44), tied for fifth in home runs (22) and tied for fourth in hits (234). McKenna had a career batting average of .289, including hitting .319 over his last three seasons. In 2009, he finished third on the team in hitting with a .338 average while leading the team in home runs (12) and runs scored (62).

With his selection, McKenna becomes the first Bryant baseball player drafted since Doug Johnson ’02 was selected by the Colorado Rockies in the fifth round (142nd overall) in the 2002 draft. McKenna signed with the Tigers on June 15.

In a recent interview with TigsTown.com, a Web site that follows players in the Tigers minor league system, McKenna reflected on getting the call that he was drafted.

Pat McKenna '09, former star shortstop on the Bryant baseball team, was drafted by Major League Baseball's Detroit Tigers.

“You always dream about being able to play professional baseball as a little kid,” says McKenna. “Then as the years go on, you’re in high school and you hear about guys getting drafted, and then again in college, and you’re kind of wishing you could be in the same position.”

A scouting Web site, Scout.com, described McKenna, as an “all-out hustle type that plays hard in every situation. He’s got very good hands that can play any infield position and enough of an arm to work on the left side of the infield. He can make all the plays in the field.”

Earlier this month, in one of his first games as a professional with the Tigers rookie team in Lakeland, FL, McKenna recorded a hit, three walks, and two stolen bases. (Follow McKenna's first season in the Tigers minor league system.)

Weaknesses: ‘Not many’

While Greer joined the Bulldog men’s lacrosse team for only one year, he leaves Smithfield, R.I., as the leader of one of the most memorable and tide-turning seasons in program history. A four-time All-American and 2009 Tewaaraton Trophy finalist – lacrosse’s version of the Heisman – Greer is the first-ever Bryant lacrosse player to be drafted into the professional ranks.

He leaves his mark not just on the Bulldog record books but the NCAA ones as well. For his career, Greer recorded an NCAA Division I record 248 goals, also tying the career points-scored mark with 353. The 2009 co-captain averaged a nation's-best 4.53 points per game and was tied for the sixth-most total goals in 2009 (42). His 2.80 goals per contest tied him for second in the country while his 1.73 assists per outing were good for No. 10.

Just days before the MLL draft, Quint Kessenich, a lacrosse analyst for ESPN, examined Greer’s game. His strengths, he said, were Greer’s “ability to catch and finish.” Perhaps more remarkable were his weaknesses, which Kessenich, a former All-American goal keeper at perennial powerhouse Johns Hopkins University, says are “not many.”

After one year at Bryant, Bryant men's lacrosse standout Zack Greer '09 MBA was drafted by the Long Island Lizards of Major League Lacrosse.

In his first professional game, just two days after being drafted, Greer began to live up to the hype. He potted four goals and dished out an assist in a win at Toronto in a game that was played not far from his hometown of Whitby, Ontario. He took home MLL Rookie of the Week honors for his efforts.

“It was a lot of fun,” Greer said according to a Yahoo! Sports recap of the contest. “I had a lot of family and friends in the stands. This was a nice way to get that first one under my belt.”

In only five games, Greer has registered 12 goals, which is good for fifth on the team that has compiled a 5-5 record. Greer also represented the Lizards in the 2009 MLL All-Star game. (Follow Greer's first season with the Long Island Lizards.)