St. Bonaventure Bonnies
University	St. Bonaventure University
Conference	Atlantic 10 Conference
NCAA	Division I
Athletic director	Bob Beretta
Location	St. Bonaventure, New York
Varsity teams	19
Basketball arena	Reilly Center
Baseball stadium	Fred Handler Park at McGraw-Jennings Field
Soccer stadium	Tom and Michelle Marra Athletics Field Complex
Lacrosse stadium	Tom and Michelle Marra Athletics Field Complex
Mascot	Reilly the Bona Wolf
Nickname	Bonnies
Fight song	"Unfurl the Brown and White"
Colors	Brown and white[1]
Website	gobonnies.com

TheSt. Bonaventure Bonnies (formerly theSt. Bonaventure Brown Indians from 1927 to 1992^[2]) are the varsity intercollegiate athletic programs ofSt. Bonaventure University, based inSt. Bonaventure, New York between the two towns ofAllegany andOlean. The Bonnies compete in theNational Collegiate Athletic Association'sDivision IAtlantic 10 Conference,^[3] of which it has been a member since 1979.^[4] The programs' mascot is the Bona Wolf and the colors are brown and white.^[5][6]

They have collectively won 13 team conference championships, as well as numerous individual conference titles and accolades.

A member of theAtlantic 10 Conference (A-10), St. Bonaventure University sponsors teams in nine men's and eight women'sNCAA sanctioned sports. The Bonnies men's lacrosse program competed as an associate member of theMetro Atlantic Athletic Conference through the 2022 season, after which the A-10 established a men's lacrosse league.^[7]

The Bonnies were coached byLarry Sudbrook for 35 seasons. The team captured Atlantic 10 division championships in 2000 and 2002. The 2004 squad won the Atlantic 10 championship and made its first appearance in theNCAA tournament. They are currently coached by Jason Rathbun.

The men's basketball program has enjoyed success on and off throughout its history, including anNCAAFinal Four appearance in1970,^[8] and anNIT Championship in 1977.^[9] St. Bonaventure's most recent NCAA tournament appearance was in2021, where it lost in the first Round to LSU. Its most recent victory was in the2018 Tournament where the Bonnies won their play-in game againstUCLA. The win marked the program's first NCAA tournament win since reaching the Elite Eight in 1970. The Bonnies would drop their next game, a 77–62 loss toFlorida. Currently, St. Bonaventure's head men's basketball coach isMark Schmidt.^[10] St. Bonaventure won the Atlantic 10 regular season and tournament championships in 2021.

NBA Hall of FamerBob Lanier played at St. Bonaventure, leading them to the 1970 Final Four.^[8] The men's and women's basketball teams play at the 4,860-seatReilly Center.^[11] The playing surface was renamed Bob Lanier Court in a dedication ceremony on October 12, 2007. Lanier attended along with his mother, sister, and daughter.^[12]

In the 2011–2012 season, the Bonnies women's basketball team had the best season in their history. They accumulated a record of 31–4 in the regular season, including a perfect 14–0 record in the Atlantic 10 conference. They were ranked as high as 16th in the national polls and earned a 5th seed in the NCAA tournament. They beatFlorida Gulf Coast andMarist in the Tallahassee Regional to advance to the Sweet 16, where they lost to eventual national runner-upNotre Dame. The women's basketball team made its second NCAA tournament appearance in 2016. The program's head coach is Jim Crowley, one of the winningest coaches in Atlantic 10 history.

In 2017, St. Bonaventure announced plans to add men's lacrosse as a varsity team, beginning in the 2018–2019 academic year.^[13] In the program's fourth varsity season, it captured the 2022MAAC regular season championship. The Bonnies are coached byCanadian Lacrosse Hall of Fame inducteeRandy Mearns. Goalie Brett Dobson, who won back-to-back PLL Championship Game MVP honors with the Utah Archers in 2023 and 2024, was an All-American with the Bonnies. Zack Belter was selected by the Buffalo Bandits 19th overall in the 2022National Lacrosse League Entry Draft. Belter also saw success winning theCan-Am Senior B Lacrosse League with the Tuscarora Tomahawks in 2023.

St. Bonaventure fielded anAmerican football team sporadically from 1892 to 1970. The program gained national recognition in the post-World War II era under CoachHugh Devore, a former All-American player at Notre Dame. The Brown Indians compiled a record of 25-9-1 during his tenure, which ended after the 1949 season (http://archives.sbu.edu/football/the_history.htm).

The Brown Indians had a wrestling team in 1927, led by player-coachEd George,^[14] and again in 1954, coached by Mike Green. They were winless each season, going 0–2 in 1927 and 0–1 in 1954. Due to their lopsided loss toAlfred Ag Tech in 1954, they discontinued the sport.^[15]

While currently a club team, St. Bonaventure had aDivision III from 1982 through 1993. The Brown Indians had success as an independent recording four consecutive winning seasons before joining theECAC West in 1986. After a 19–11 mark the program declined and finished near the bottom of the conference for six years before the program dropped from Division III to club status.^[16]

The school's current mascot is the Bona Wolf, the third mascot in school history.^[5] The wolf is a reference to theWolf of Gubbio, a story from the life ofSt. Francis. The school's colors, brown and white, reflect the colors ofFranciscan friar robes. The university is closely affiliated with this religious order.^[17]

From 1927 to 1992, St. Bonaventure's mascot was the Brown Indian. The school's athletics logo during this period featured a stylized letter "B" with awar bonnet hanging over the left side. As part ofan ongoing debate over Native American mascots, however, this was changed to the Bona Fanatic.^[18] This new mascot was poorly received, so much so that costume wearers were assaulted by St. Bonaventure fans. After only a few years (1996–1998) in existence, the Fanatic was dropped in favor of the current Bona Wolf.^[19]

• Tom Stith, 1960, consensus First Team^[20]
• Tom Stith, 1961, consensus First Team^[20]
• Bob Lanier, 1968, consensus Second Team^[20]
• Bob Lanier, 1970, consensus First Team^[21]
• Andrew Nicholson,2012, AP Honorable Mention^[22]
• Jaylen Adams2018, AP Honorable Mention

Name	Year	City	Sport	Country	Medal
Ed Don George	1928	Amsterdam	Wrestling	United States	4th
Lou Gregory	1932	Los Angeles	Track	United States	DNF
Barry Mungar	1988	Seoul	Basketball	Canada	6th
Norman Clarke	1988	Seoul	Basketball	Canada	6th
Garvin Ferguson	1988	Seoul	Swimming	Bahamas	32nd, 48th
Tom Fitzgerald	1996	Atlanta	Handball	United States	9th
Ayse Diker	2000	Sydney	Swimming	Turkey	43rd
Stef Collins	2012	London	Basketball	England	11th

Name	Year	City	Sport	Country	Medal
Kevin Whalen	2004	Athens	Wheelchair tennis	United States	Round of 16

Source:^[23]

The school fight song is "Unfurl the Brown and White."^[24] The song was written by St. Bonaventure graduates L.G. O'Brien 1925 and C.R. Kean 1924.^[24]

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