TOWSON, Md. - With the 2024-25 season officially behind us, the Landmark Conference proudly looks back on a year full of solid performances and meaningful achievements across all 10 member schools. Over the next two weeks, we’ll be featuring a different institution each week with their top moments and stories. Check back often and click the link below to explore the full recap.
Landmark Conference Yearbook
The 2024-2025 season proved to be a magical one for the Catholic men’s basketball program. After receiving an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament field, the Cardinals ripped off three victories, defeating Franklin & Marshall, Randolph-Macon, and Roanoke to reach their first Elite Eight since winning the national championships in 2001.
Catholic snagged an at-large bid into the field after a 22-5 regular season in which they fell to Drew in the Landmark title game. The bid put them into the Division III national field for the 16th time.
The magical run to the program’s sixth Sweet 16 and third Elite Eight started in Lancaster, Pa., as the Cardinals opened up at host Franklin & Marshall on March 7. Catholic was dominant, opening up a 46-29 halftime lead before closing out an 84-50 victory. Dan Buckley led the way with 17 points and five threes in the opening 20 minutes, finishing the game with 22 points and four rebounds in just 26 minutes. Brian Herbert added 17 points and six rebounds while Charley Hepting provided 15 points, five rebounds, and four assists.
After posting the largest victory in the program’s NCAA Tournament history, the Cardinals set their sights on sixth-ranked Randolph-Macon in the second round. Once again, it was a red-hot start for Catholic as it jumped out to a 39-22 lead in the opening frame. Catholic’s defense was outstanding, holding the Yellow Jackets to just 34.5 percent shooting in the victory. Landmark Conference Player of the Year and NABC All-American Sean Neylon paced Catholic with 19 points while Herbert added an efficient 18 points on eight shots. Not only did the win send Catholic to the Sweet 16 for the first time in more than two decades, but it also made head coach Aaron Kelly the sixth coach in program history to reach 100 wins.
The victory sent Catholic to Hartford, Conn., where it would take on #20 Roanoke in the Sweet
16. In an opening half quite the opposite of Catholic’s first two tournament games, the Cardinals found themselves trailing by 13 at the break, and by as many as 19 in the second half. However, the Cardinals came storming back, eventually outscoring the Maroons 55-42 in the final 20 minutes to force an extra period. Catholic took the lead with 1:49 left in overtime, holding on for a 95-91 victory and trip to the Elite Eight for the first time in 24 years.
After the game, Kelly noted “I told these guys in the locker room, I’ve been coaching for 17 or 18 years and that was probably the wildest game I’ve been involved in.”
With Neylon sidelined with an illness, CJ Ruoff stepped into a primary role and scored a career-high 36 points to pace Catholic. Herbert and Buckley combined for 41 points in the game's final 25 minutes to join forces with Ruoff and lead Catholic to victory. Ruoff’s performance made him just the second Cardinal in program history to score 36 points in an NCAA Tournament game, joining Bryson Fonville in 2015.
While the victory secured Catholic’s third trip to the Elite Eight, it marked the program’s first trip as a member of the Landmark Conference and made them just the second team in conference history to reach the Sectional Final, joining the 2012 Scranton Royals.
“The first check off the list to becoming a good program is winning the conference,” said Buckley. “But as you get better and better, you want to perform at a national level and I think credit to our program and Coach Kelly, we are getting to that point. Last year, we won the conference, and it was the greatest thing ever, and now we have a chance to go to the Final Four, which is even more fun.”
The magical run concluded in Connecticut, as the Cardinals fell to host Trinity College, 86-63. The Cardinals came flying out of the gates, taking a 14-2 lead, but the Bantams proved to have too much for anyone to handle as they would go on to win the NCAA Division III Championship over top-seeded NYU.
“The whole year for us was about collecting experiences together,” said Kelly. “In all four games we played, I was never thinking about what happens next. I was thinking about how much I love coaching these guys and want to do it for as long as we can. It ended tonight, but I have zero regrets, and we will look back on this experience with a tremendous amount of gratitude.”