Senior Captain Imbrie Packard Leads by Example and Desire
“I hope they look at my work ethic and how much I want to win,” says men's basketball two-year captain Imbrie Packard of his younger teammates. “Being the captain, I want to be a leader both on and off the court. I try to be an example to the other players.”
Packard, otherwise known as “Pack” to his coaches, teammates, and friends, credits former Union standout C.J. Rogers, a senior All-Conference player during Packard's sophomore year, for the leadership traits that he carries today.
“C.J. was never the captain because he went on a term abroad for a semester, but in my mind, he was the best leader on the team,” explains the 6'5 forward. Now, as his career in a Garnet uniform heads into the homestretch, Pack continues to leave his own impression as a team leader.
“His leadership skills are outstanding,” says head Coach Bob Montana. “Pack is a very disciplined kid and he provides a great example to the other kids both in school and on the court.”
Pack grew up in Lower Marion, a suburb of Pennsylvania. He is the middle child with one brother two years his senior and another six years his junior. Packard has been playing basketball since the seventh grade. Though his younger brother shares Pack's love of sports, his older brother did not. Never the less, Pack is very close to his older brother and admires him.
“He always knew how to treat people,” he says. “And people really like him for it. I think that one of my best traits is something I've learned from him. Just like him, I always treat people with respect.”
Four years ago, when faced with the decision of which college to choose, Pack selected Union for its academic reputation, for the quality of its basketball program, and for the fact that Union did not put him on the admissions' wait list.
“I didn't want to wait to go to school,” he explained. “I didn't even come for a visit or anything. I just showed up the first day of class.”
However he decided upon the college, it turned out to be the right decision for him.
“I have great friends here and I enjoy my life here,” he says. “I also enjoy mentoring the younger kids on the basketball team.”
A lot of great memories have been made with the Dutchmen on the basketball court, but one in particular stands out in Packard's mind; one that doesn't claim himself directly as the hero.
“On my 21st birthday we played a game at Hobart and all of my family was there to watch,” he remembers. “It was a tie game with 10 seconds left and the inbound ball was stolen by a Hobart player who scored. That put us down two points with six seconds left in the game. My roommate, Ryan Freundlich (the only other senior on this year's team) caught the ball and scored. We won that game in overtime.”
“Imbrie is a kid that I've enjoyed coaching for four years,” says Montana, whose Dutchmen are assured of their seventh consecutive winning season. “His best asset to this team is his energy and intelligence. He's a skilled and very good defender so he can contribute in many different ways. Imbrie is capable of being a starter, but he can come off the bench too because he has that tremendous energy. He evaluates situations on the court and reacts to them very well. Off the bench, he gives us scoring and rebounding. From a defensive standpoint, he can guard perimeter players. That combination of quality and skill is something that not too many players possess.”
Though he's not positive on what he wants to do after graduation, Packard, a math major, thinks he would like to go to Vietnam.
“I'm half Vietnamese (on his mother's side) so I think it would be interesting to live there and work maybe work for a year and see what it's like,” he says.
Whatever he decides to do in his future, Imbrie Packard will never have to worry about the past four years and the impact he has made on his teammates or for the basketball program.
Junior Forward Ryan Freundlich Typifies The Dutchmen's Basketball Success
It is amazing how fast four years can fly. Now, with just six games left in the regular season, the basketball career of senior forward Ryan Freundlich is heading down the homestretch. At 15-4, the Dutchmen are assured of their seventh consecutive winning season and the player who best typifies the success of the program the last two years is Freundlich.
The 2001-02 season featured three seniors in the starting lineup. Shooting guard Aaron Galletta (who graduated as the program's all-time leading scorer), forward C.J. Rodgers (who finished his career as one of the program's career rebounding leaders and is a member of the 1,000-point club), and point guard Jason Manning (among the all-time leaders in career assists), led the Dutchmen to a 21-4 record and the team's first NCAA tournament berth since 1983-84.
While that team was expected to achieve, the 2002-03 squad missed another NCAA berth by losing at Hamilton, 74-70, in the championship game of the UCAA post-season tournament.
This year, after losing at defending national champion Williams by seven points in the season opener, the Dutchmen won 10-straight. Heading into the final six games of the regular-season, Union is fighting for a berth in the four-team UCAA post-season event with the tournament champions earning the conference's automatic berth in the national tournament.
Perhaps the one player that typifies the Dutchmen's success over the last two seasons is Freundlich. The Springfield, New Jersey, native, who has been an off-the-bench role player throughout his career, moved into the starting lineup and has had two banner seasons.
“Ryan has had more success scoring inside while providing us with rebounding, interior defense, and someone to pick up a charge or two,” said Montana. “We feel Ryan gives us some energy at the post position, and provides us with quality play.”
In some ways the last two editions of Dutchman basketball may be harder for the opposition to defend than it was when Galletta and company were leading the team. In 2000-01 opposing coaches looked to keep the score down by pressuring Galletta. Keep Rodgers off the boards and the Dutchmen faced a rebounding disadvantage. Get Manning in foul trouble and who runs the floor?
But the Dutchmen's key to success the last two seasons has been a blue collar “lunch pail” approach that finds almost every game with a new hero. This year sophomores John Cagianello (Wethersfield, CT/Wethersfield), Brian Scordato (Mt. Kisco, NY) and Chris Murphy (Hastings-on-on-Hudson, NY) along with junior Devon Bruce (Guilderland, NY) draw the majority of the scouts' attention. However, Packard, junior T.J. Ramey (Ballston Spa), Jim Rahill (Amherst, NY), Joseph Mackey (Flushing, NY), Tyson McCabe (Guilderland, NY) and Darcy Bonner (Chicago, IL) come off the bench and do an excellent job of keeping the pressure on while defending the lead.
As for Freundlich, he continues to work hard to get the most out of his God-given talents. Whether in the starting lineup or off the bench, Ryan Freundlich typifies what it means to wear a garnet basketball uniform because brings his lunch pail with him every time he laces up his sneakers.