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Men’s Basketball Announces Incoming Student-Athletes
Four players added for the 2002-03 season

August 1, 2002

American coach Jeff Jones added four players to his roster for the 2002-03 season.

WASHINGTON -- American University’s men’s basketball coach Jeff Jones has announced that four student-athletes will be added to the program with the start of the Fall 2002 semester.

Jamaal Caterina (Portland, Maine/Brewster Academy [N.H.]), Jernavis Draughn (Triangle, Va./Potomac Senior), Jarrod Kohl (Ravenna, Ohio/Crestwood) and Raimondas Petrauskas (Mazeikiai, Lithuania/Lithuanian Physical Culture Academy) will join the squad that celebrated one of the best seasons in school history last year.

“As a group, these young men address our need for frontcourt players,” commented Jones who enters his third season as head coach of the Eagles. “We feel like in their own way, each of these players will contribute to the team’s success this season.”

Caterina is a 6-6, 190-pound freshman forward. An athletic wing player, he comes to AU from the Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H.

“Jamaal is a skilled all-around performer who is extremely eager to learn and improve,” said Jones. “That attitude will help him make an impact this season.”

Draughn returns to American after playing at Hagerstown CC last season. A 6-5, 205-pound forward, he played at AU in the 2000-01 season, averaging 6.9 points and 4.2 rebounds per game. Draughn is a quick player who can play inside or on the perimeter.

“We’re very happy to have Jernavis rejoining our program,” Jones said. “He is a terrific young man and a versatile performer who will make an immediate contribution.”

A 6-10, 225-pound center, Kohl comes to American from Crestwood High School in Ravenna, Ohio. An athletic big man, he runs the court well.

“Jarrod is an athletic player with size whose defense may be a little ahead of his offense,” Jones remarked. “We’re really excited about his potential.”

Petrauskas comes to American from Lithuania where he last attended the Lithuanian Physical Culture Academy. A 6-7, 215-pound sophomore forward, Petrauskas is a physical player who can play in the high post and is an aggressive rebounder.

“Raimondas’ work ethic and attitude are refreshing,” Jones said. “He is an extremely tough player who really battles in the lane. We needed a player with his physical nature.”

American University, which fields a 19-sport NCAA Division I athletics program featuring 10 women’s sports and nine for men, recently completed its inaugural year of membership in the Patriot League. Chartered by an Act of Congress in 1893, American University features students from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and more than 160 nations worldwide.