The Lady Knights are back in action on December 1st and 2nd when they play in the Mercer County Community College Mixer.

#17 Ranked Knights Fall to Hot Shooting Mercer County CC 89-83

The #17 ranked CCRI Knights men’s basketball team lost to the Vikings of Mercer County CC 89-83 in the Mercer County Mixer on Saturday at Mercer County CC. With the loss the Knights record drops to 3-3 on the season.

The Knights and Vikings were in a battle from the opening tip even taking at 39-37 lead into the half but they could not contain the hot shooting Vikings who drained 13 3-pointers led by Ramon Burgos who had seven 3-pointers and a game-high 36 points. The Knights had the lead late in the game Mercer was able to tie the game with just 2:00 left. The Knights failed to execute down the stretch and the Vikings pulled away to win by a final score of 89-83.

Center Alex Diaz (Providence, RI) led the way for the Knights charting a double-double with 21 points, 14 rebounds, with three assists and a steal. Also contributing for the Knights were Co-Captain Pat Dame (Exeter, RI) with 14 points, seven assists and two blocks, Co-Captain Jake Grimes (Pawtucket, RI) scored 13 points with four assists and two steals, Co-Captain Carl Lee (Warwick, RI) added 10 points, a rebound and a block, and Jamal Hinds (Brooklyn, NY) added seven points, three assists and three rebounds.

Head Coach Rick Harris said “This was a difficult loss to swallow after having a lead late in the game. We had nice contributions from a number of players. We need to learn to value defense as much as offense.”

The Knights will face Burlington County CC on Sunday at noon in the finally of the Mercer County Mixer.

#17 Ranked CCRI Knights Men’s Basketball Game versus Alfred State 12/8/07 to be Aired on Cox Sports Channel 3 12/9/07 at 4:00pm!!!

Once again the CCRI Knights men’s basketball team will be a part of the Cox Sports Channel 3 “Cox on Campus” program line-up. Last year the Knights had their first game ever broadcast on local television when they faced Region XXI rival Dean College, the game was played February 21 and aired February 23.

Knights’ fans will be excited to see that the Knights are once again part of the “Cox on Campus” action. This time the Knights will face Alfred State College from Alfred, NY. The Knights game will be played on Saturday December 8th at 3:00pm and the game will be televised on Cox Sports Channel 3 on Sunday December 9th at 4:00pm as part of their “Cox on Campus” line-up.

Shop for the Holidays and Support CCRI Softball at the Same Time!!!

The CCRI Lady Knights women’s fast-pitch softball team is partnering with UnitedScrip to help you with your holiday shopping and to raise funds for their team expenses. You can choose gift cards from over 150 retailers from across the country from Restaurants, Retailers, Entertainment, Home Improvement Stores, Hotels and Travel, Auto and much more!

This is an exciting program because everyone wins you get to get all your holiday shopping done and also at the same time can help the CCRI women’s fast-pitch softball team raise money to support their program. Get your shopping done early this year without leaving the comfort of your home!

Some of the stores you can choose from include: Best Buy, Circuit City, Amazon.com, ITunes, Ticketmaster, Barnes & Noble, Lowe’s Home Depot, Marriott, CVS, Walgreens, Stop & Shop, Dunkin Donuts, Starbucks, Chili’s, The Cheesecake Factory, Outback Steakhouse, Olive Garden, Dave & Busters, Wendy’s, Subway, American Eagle, Bed, Bath & Beyond, Gap, Old Navy, JC Penney, Macy’s, Bob’s Stores, Toys ‘R Us, Staples, Blockbuster, Napster, Showcase Cinemas, Exxon/Mobile, Sunoco…and many more!

For a complete list of vendors to shop from and order go to: http://www.ccri.edu/athl/softball/ and e-mail the CCRI women’s fast-pitch softball Coach Bev Wiley via E-mail: bwiley@ccri.edu with cards you would like by item number and the quantity desired to start shopping today!!!

Knights’ Lee Explodes for 27 to lead CCRI over Dean 85-65

The CCRI Knights Men’s basketball team defeated Region XXI rival Dean College 85-65. With the victory the Knights improve their record to 3-2 on the season and 2-1 in Region XXI.

This game had all the earmarks of a great rivalry game as both teams came ready to play at the jam packed Vincent A. Cullen field house. Co-Captain Jake Grimes (Pawtucket, RI) started the Knights off quickly scoring the games first two baskets to put the knights up 4-0 but Dean’s Jimmy Chaudry dropped a 30 foot 3-pointer to cut the lead to 4-3 at the 18:50 mark. Both teams battled back and forth through the half not giving an inch. Co-Captain Pat Dame (Exeter, RI) drove to the basket with 8:58 giving the Knights a 19-16 lead. Dean fought back with back to back baskets including a 3-pointer by Chaudry to take their first lead at 21-19 with 7:22 left in the half. The Knights closed the half strong as Co-Captain Carl Lee (Warwick, RI) sank a 3-pointer with 1:29 left to give the Knights a 37-31 lead. The Knights went into the half with a narrow 38-34 lead.

In the second half the Knights broke out offensively and defensively. Defensively the Knights stifled the Bulldogs outside shooting by switching the 3-2 zone and dominated the boards not giving Dean any second chance opportunities. Carl Lee led the offensive attack in the second half where he scored 16 of his 27 points. Lee hit his second 3-pointer of the half at the 13:44 mark as the Knights began to extend their lead making the score 50-39. From there three of the Knights Captains Carl Lee, Pat Dame and Jake Grimes drove the Knights attack over the Bulldogs of Dean College highlighted by another phenomenal aerial Dunk from Lee on a steal by Dame that brought the Knights faithful to their feet at the 3:25 mark making the score 78-56. From there the Knights pulled away to win by a final of 85-65.

Co-Captain Carl Lee led the Knights with a career-high 27 points including three 3-pointers with a team-high six rebounds, three blocks, two steals, and an assist followed by Co-Captain Jake Grimes with 17 points, three assists and two steals. Also contributing for the Knights was Co-Captain Pat Dame who charted a double-double with 16 points, 10 assists and three steals and Alex Diaz (Providence, RI) added 10 points with three rebounds and an assist.

Head Coach Rick Harris said: “Great way to start Region XXI (Division II) play. Nice team win, we played especially well in the second half. Our depth proved to be the difference and Carl Lee had a monster game with his great all-around play (27points, six rebounds and three blocks). Pat Dame also did a nice job settling down and running our team with his 10 assists to go with his 16 points. Any league win is a good one and we just need to build on this and get a little bit better each day.”

The Knights next games will be this weekend when they travel to New Jersey to play in the Mercer County CC tip-off tournament. Saturday the Knights face Mercer County CC at 6pm and Sunday they will face Burlington CC at noon.

14th Ranked Lady Knights Have Four in Double Figures as they Defeat Dean 76-38!!

The CCRI Lady Knights ran past the Dean College last night in a Region XXI contest the final score was 76-38. The Lady Knights had four players in double figures lead by Freshman Taylor Simmons (Norwalk, CT) finished the game with a career-high 17 points. The Lady Knights improve to 2-1 on the season and 1-0 in Region XXI action.

In the first four minutes of the game the Lady Knights jumped out to a 9-2 run which was capped off by a Nicole Girard (Foster, RI) three point field goal. Girard finished the game with seven points and three assists out of the point guard position. Dean then made a small run of there own cutting the CCRI lead to four. That was as close as Dean would ever get as CCRI started to turn up the defensive pressure and energy which was lead by freshman sixth woman Sharniece Williams (Hartford, CT). Sharniece asserted herself immediately by scoring all 10 of her points in the first half and pulled down six rebounds. The Lady Knights were able to push up the lead to 26 before halftime on Guylene Nsiewe (Doula, Cameroon, Africa) fast break lay-up as time expired to make the score 43-17.

In the second half it was more of the same for the Lady Knights as they continued to run their offensive and apply defensive pressure. In the second half the Lady Knights were lead by their preseason All-American Denise Scott (Yonkers, NY). Scott dropped in eight points of her 14 points in the second half and finished the game with six rebounds. One of the big keys for the Lady Knights in both the first and second half was their ability to out rebound the Bulldogs. The Knights out rebounded the Dean three to one. CCRI was lead by Rachel Murray (Gloucester, MA), Jackie Murray (Gloucester, MA), and Guylene Nsiewe who each pulled down seven rebounds. Rachel and Jackie also finished with two points a piece while Jackie dished out four assists.

Joining Simmons, Scott, and Williams in double figures was freshman forward Jill Lewis (Barrington, RI) who finished the game with 10 points on five of eight shooting. Lewis also dished out two assists while pulling down two rebounds. Also contributing for the Lady Knights was LaSheena Boyd (Stratford, CT) and Lauren Harrington (Exeter, RI). Boyd finished the game with four points, three steals and three assists while Harrington add four points, two assists and three offensive rebounds.

Head Coach Marcus Reilly said after the game, “This was a solid team effort with every member of our active roster contributing to the win. Even though it is early in our team's development, this victory puts us in the driver's seat to defend our New England Championship for a fifth straight year.”

The 14th ranked Lady Knights are back in action this weekend in the Lackawanna College Mixer in Scranton, PA. On Saturday The Lady Knights will face off versus 13th ranked Harcum College at 6:00 PM. On Sunday the Lady Knights will take on host school Lackawanna College at noon.

CCRI’s Sylvestre Finishes Seventh Earning Second Team All-American at NJCAA National Cross Country Championship

CCRI sent four Cross Country runners to compete in the NJCAA Division III Cross Country National Championship this past Saturday at Sunken Meadow State Park in New York. One in the men’s Division James Sylvestre (Lincoln, RI) and two in the women’s side team Captain Kristen Vanhouwe (North Smithfield, RI) and Michele Finnel (Providence, RI).

James Sylvestre (Lincoln, RI) ran a nice race on a very challenging Sunken Meadow 5 mile course finishing in seventh place in 28:11 which earned him Second Team All-American honors. The individual race was won by Chris Mason of SUNY-Delhi in a time of 27:08. SUNY-Delhi also won the team title with 56 points.

Also running well for CCRI was team Captain Kristen Vanhouwe who finished 22nd on the women’s side in 22:39 and Michele Finnel finished in 41st place in a time of 23:52. Both ladies ran strong races over this very challenging course. The race was won by Anna Bogdanets of Erie CC in a time of 20:22 while the team title went to the home team Suffolk CC with 52 points.

The 2007 season has come to a close for the CCRI Cross Country runners with them continuing their success. For the third year in a row and fourth time in five years the CCRI Cross Country team has produced and All-American.

CCRI Men’s and Women’s Basketball Games to be Broadcast on www.RIsportsnet.com

The CCRI men’s basketball team and women’s basketball teams will team-up with www.RIsportsnet.com to broadcast a limited schedule of games for the upcoming 2007-08 season. The Schedule Kicks-off Tuesday November 13th when the Knights and Lady Knights will battle Region XXI rival Dean College. The women’s game will be at 6pm and the men will follow directly after at 8pm. The complete broadcast schedule can be found on the CCRI Men's and Women's web site.

#17 Ranked Knights Quieted by Quinsigamond CC 82-74

The #17 ranked CCRI Knights men’s basketball team lost a very tough Region XXI battle with the Chiefs of Quinsigamond CC 82-74 on Saturday. With the loss the Knights record falls to 2-2 on the season and 1-1 in Region XXI.

The Knights did not play their best game struggling all night to contain the quickness of the Quinsigamond CC players. The Knights had only one lead, 6-4 early in the game, and trailed the most of the game. The Knights were down 44-40 sat the half and as many as 15 in the second half before they mounted a valiant comeback to tie the game at 67 with just four minutes left but they could not get the lead and Quinsigamond pulled away and went on to win by a final of 82-74.

Co-Captain Jake Grimes (Pawtucket, RI) led the Knights with 21 points, three assists, and three rebounds followed by Co-Captain Pat Dame (Exeter, RI) who scored 16 points with five assists and two steals. Also contributing for the Knights was Co-Captain Carl Lee (Warwick, RI) with eight points, three rebounds and two steals, Kareem Williams (Ontario, Canada) with seven points and seven rebounds, Co-Captain Marc Testa (Smithfield, RI) added eight points with two blocks and an assist, and Jamal Johnson (Fall River, MA) added seven points, two blocks and two steals. Charles Horton led five Quinsigamond players who scored in double figures with 22 points.

Head Coach Rick Harris said: “Tough Region XXI loss. But we must credit Quinsigamond who played an exceptional game. We always seem to get our opponents best game. We just have to go back to work on Monday (practice) and prepare for our home game Tuesday with Dena College. We need a big effort by all Tuesday evening.”

The Knights next game will be tomorrow Tuesday November 13th when they face Region XXI rival Dean College at 8pm following the Lady Knights who will play Dean at 6pm at the Vincent A. Cullen Field House on the CCRI Knights Campus in Warwick.

Former CCRI Volleyball Star Kimiyo Garcia Wins LEC Offensive Player of the Year

Former CCRI Volleyball standout and current Rhode Island College senior middle blocker Kimiyo Garcia (Riverside, RI) was named the Little East Conference Women’s Volleyball Offensive Player of the Year while also earning First Team All-Little East accolades as well.

While at CCRI Kimiyo set four CCRI school records this year including: single-season blocks record with 263, career blocks with 446, single-season kills record with 477, career kills with an astounding 755.

As a sophomore at CCRI Garcia was selected to three All-Tournament teams one at the South Suburban Tournament, The Genesee Tournament, and at the Hagerstown Tournament, along with being voted Tournament MVP of the CCRI Invitational Tournament. More proof to her success this year is that Garcia became the first CCRI Volleyball player ever to selected NJCAA Division II Player of the Week for Women’s Volleyball by the NJCAA a feat she accomplished for the week of 10/11/06.

Kimiyo also earned two Post-Season Awards in the 2006 season First Team All-Region XXI for the second straight year. In addition, she became the first CCRI Volleyball player to earn All-American.

Garcia is the first RIC women’s volleyball player to earn the Offensive Player of the Year Award. She was also named the women’s volleyball team’s MVP. Garcia played in 114 games in 32 matches, totaling 465 kills (4.12/game), a .302 hitting percentage, 61 service aces (.54/game), 305 digs (2.7/game) and 127 blocks (1.12/game). She led the team in kills, hitting percentage, service aces and blocks. Garcia was twice named the Little East Conference Women’s Volleyball Offensive Player of the Week, the Defensive Player of the Week once and was selected to the Brandeis Invitational’s All-Tournament Team.

Garcia is a nursing major and a 2003 graduate of East Providence High School and graduated from CCRI in 2007 with an Associate in Arts Degree in General Studies.

RIC Head Coach Luis Carvalho’s team finished the regular season with a 15-17 overall record and a 2-4 (fourth place tie) record in the Little East Conference.

Lady Knights Participate in Making Strides Against Cancer Walk

The CCRI Lady Knights basketball team took part in the Making Strides against Breast Cancer Walk on October 14th at Roger Williams Park. more>>

Five Lady Knights Volleyball Players Earn All-Region XXI Honors

Five Lady Knights Volleyball Players earned first Team All-Region XXI honors. The Lady Knights season ended this past Sunday when they lost in the District “L” Championship to Genesee CC. The Lady Knights won their fourth straight Region XXI title, finishing the season with an excellent 27-18 record on the season and a perfect 8-0 in Region XXI.

Leading the Lady Knights who earned five of the six All-Region XXI Team selections was Co-Captain Setter Ashley Markley (Preston, CT) followed by Middle Hitter Amanda Valentine (West Warwick, RI), Middle Hitter Jen Humphrey (Murfreesboro, TN), Defensive Specialist (Libero) Ashley Mangione (Warwick, RI), and Outside Hitter Stephanie Marquez (Hollywood, FL). Joining the Lady Knights on the All-Region XXI team was Outside Hitter Stephanie Arnold from Dean.

#17 Ranked Knights Upend UConn-Avery Point 103-74 in Home Opener

The #17 ranked CCRI Knights men’s basketball team defeated the Pointers of UConn-Avery Point 103-74 in their home opener last night at the Vincent A. Cullen Field house. With the victory the Knights improve their record to 2-1 on the season and 1-0 in Region XXI.

The Knights jumped out to a quick 14-3 lead five minutes into the game after back-to-back three pointers by Co-Captains Jake Grimes (Pawtucket, RI) and Pat Dame (Exeter, RI). From there UCAP called a timeout to re-group but the Knights stayed focused and were able to extend their lead to 19 on a driving lay-up by Pat Dame making the score 41-22 with 3:07 left in the first half. UCAP tried to cut into the lead before half but the Knights maintained a commanding lead going into the break 48-30.

The Knights were bale to keep the pointers at bay for the second half. With a comfortable lead the Knights were able to infuse some of their reserves into the game to get valuable game experience. The starters and reserves were able to extend the Knights lead to 25 leaving little excitement for the Knights fans until Carl Lee (Warwick, RI) brought the house down when he drove the ball down the lane and elevated over the whole UCAP defense and delivered a monster dunk which brought the entire crowd to their feet. From there the Knights coasted to a 103-74 victory.

Co-Captain and pre-season First Team All-American Pat Dame led the way for the Knights scoring 21 points with five assists. Three other Knights scored in double figures including Co-Captain Jake Grimes with 11 points with two assists, two steals and two rebounds, Kareem Williams (Ontario, Canada) 13 points, four rebounds and an assist, and Carl Lee (Warwick, RI) added 13 points, three assists and a rebound. Also contributing for the Knights was Jamal Johnson (Fall River, MA) scored nine points, three rebounds and a blocked shot and Mike Noonan (Westport, MA) added nine points via three 3-pointers with two assists and two steals.

Head Coach Rick Harris said: “Nice team win coming off the long weekend. We will continue to learn and develop as a team. This is a nice start, but the season is a marathon not a sprint.”

The Knights next game will be this Saturday the 10th when they travel to play Quinsigamond CC at noon. The Knights next home game will be Next Tuesday when they will face Dean College at 8pm as part of a doubleheader following the Lady Knights who will play Dean at 6pm.

Four Knights Soccer Players Earn All-Region XXI Honors

Four Knight Men’s Soccer players earned All-Region XXI honors. The Knights season ended when they lost in the District Semi-final to Massasoit CC 2-0. However, the season ended on a high note with four Knights soccer players earning All-Region XXI honors.

Earning First Team Honors was Paul Wilson (Pawtucket, RI) who led the way for the Knights offensive attack who charted an impressive 11 goals and five assists for 27 total points. Also earning First Team honors was Defender Devin Walshe (Coventry, RI) who was a stalwart on the Knights potent defense. Earning Honorable Mention All-Region honors was Midfielder Ian Sanborn (North Scituate, RI) who scored four goals for eight total points and Co-Captain Defender Derek Anderson (Richmond, RI) offered tremendous leadership on the field while anchoring the stingy Knights defense.

Great Season Knights!!!

Seven Lady Knights Soccer Players Earn First Team All-Region XXI Honors

Seven Lady Knight Soccer players earn First Team All-Region XXI honors. The CCRI Lady Knights season ended last Sunday when they were defeated by Monroe CC 2-0 in a very well played game at the CCRI Soccer complex in Lincoln. However, the season will end on a high note with seven All-Region selections.

The Lady Knights left their mark on Region XXI garnering seven of the eleven First Team All-Region XXI selections. The honorees include: Co-Captain Midfielder Stephanie Grassini (Warwick, RI), Co-Captain Midfielder Jill DeLuca (West Warwick, RI), Forward Ashley Maisano (Bristol, RI), Forward Jessica Collinson (West Kingston, RI), Midfielder Amy Torres (Warwick, RI), Defender Nicole Kufel (Oradell, NJ), and Goalkeeper Samantha Danielson (Burrillville, RI).

Co-Captain Midfielder Stephanie Grassini was third on the Lady Knights in scoring with six goals and 14 assists for 26 total points in just 10 games for the Lady Knights, Forward Jessica Collinson Led the Lady Knights in scoring with 18 goals and four assists for 40 total points, Forward Ashley Maisano was second on the Lady Knights in scoring with 12 goals and 12 assists for 36 total points. Co-Captain Jill DeLuca was a great combination player acting as a midfield stopper and was also fourth on the Lady Knights in scoring with nine goals and six assists for 24 total points, Amy Torres was also a Midfielder who roamed the field assisting on defense while adding to the Lady Knights scoring attack with four goals and six assists for 14 total points, Nicole Kufel was a dual threat acting as the stopper on the Lady Knights “All-Freshman defense” and also serving as a reserve forward scoring five goals and six assists for 16 total points, and Goalkeeper Samantha Danielson was the last line of Defense for the Lady Knights charting an impressive six shutouts in eight games with a miniscule .26 goals against average allowing just two goals in 675 minutes in net.

Also earning All-Region XXI honors were: Megan McDowell Dean, Lecia DiPietro Dean, Elizabeth Gamache Dean, and Kristine Mellino Dean.

Knights’ Sylvestre, Vanhouwe, and Finnel Advance to Cross Country Nationals

Three CCRI Knights runners advance to the 2008 NJCAA Nationals with solid personal best performances. James Sylvestre (Lincoln, RI) finished in 2nd place in the men’s 8k with a time of 26:58. James ran with the top five runners from start to finish and was only out kicked by Middlesex runner Ron Hall in the last 50 meters of the race. Halls’ time was 26:56. Kristin Vanhouwe (North Smithfield, RI) and Michele Finnel (Providence, RI) also advance to the National Championship. Vanhouwe and Finnel held their own, in a women’s race that had the strongest field of Junior College Lady runners in recent years. Vanhouwe took an amazing 50 seconds off her personal best to finish in seventh place in a time of 21:14 while Finnel ran her best time of 22:18 to capture 11th place. The women’s race was won by Brittany Carter of Suffolk CC in a time of 19:39.

Three other Knights ran very well at the Northeast District Championships. All three ran personal best times for the season but failed to advance to the National Championship race. Katie Clukey (Smithfield, RI) ran the women’s 5k in 24:54 for 17th place. This was Katie’s best time by over 30 seconds. Kevin Mann (West Warwick, RI) ran the men’s race in 32:33 good for 37th place and a personal best time by over two minutes. Chris Allegretta (Warwick, RI) finished in 42nd place in the men’s race in a personal best time of 34:14.

James Sylvestre, Kristen Vanhouwe, and Michele Finnel will now focus their sights on the National Championship race this Saturday November the 10th hosted by Suffolk CC at Sunken Meadow State Park in New York.

Strong Defensive Effort Propels #17th Ranked Knights in 75-62 Win over CC of Beaver County

CCRI Men’s Basketball team opened their season defeating the Community College of Beaver County 75-62 on Saturday at the Genesee Community College Tip-Off Tournament. With the win the 17th ranked Knights start the season 1-0.

The Knights were able to win this game with a tremendous defensive effort. Carl Lee (Warwick, RI) led the defensive effort for the Knights who recorded an astonishing nine blocks while also stealing seven. Lee finished the game with five blocks and two steals. The Knights jumped out to a 38-30 halftime lead and never looked back. Sophomore Jamal Hinds led the Knights in the first half where he scored 12 of his 16 points.

In the second half Beaver County was able to cut into the Knights lead twice getting the game down to six points however could never get closer. The Knights showed great composure down the stretch of the game allowing just one shot on the defense end and executed their offensive with solid clock management to seal the victory.

The Knights balanced offensive attack was led by pre-season First Team All-American Pat Dame (Exeter, RI) who dropped 25 points while dishing out five assists and two steals. Sophomores Jake Grimes (Pawtucket, RI) finished the game with 14 points on 6-7 shooting from the floor and Carl Lee added in nine points and eight rebounds.

Head Coach Rick Harris said after the game, “The victory was a total team effort. We have worked very hard for the past month to prepare for this opener. I could not be happier with the player’s attitudes and efforts. We do know we are a work in progress and have much work to be done. We must continue to get better little by little each day.”

The Knights are back in action on Sunday when they play in the finals off the Genesee Community College Tip-Off Tournament versus the host school Genesee Community College.

17th Ranked Knights Fall to Hot Shooting Genesee CC

CCRI Knights Men’s Basketball team suffered its first setback of the year by falling to Cougars of Genesee CC 90-75. With the loss the Knights fall to 1-1 on the season.

The Knights jumped ahead of Genesee early in the game with a quick nine to two lead. However, the Cougars quickly go on track and took a 39-32 lead into the locker room. The continued shooting at a blustering pace to start the second half and were able to stretch their lead to as many as 20 points. The Knights never quit as they cut the 20 point lead down to nine with 55 seconds remaining in the game. The run was led by key reserves Sam Jones (New London, CT), Kris Wood (Central Falls, RI) , Roger Yarce (Cranston, RI) , Jason Collier (Killingly, CT), and Alex Diaz (Providence, RI). This forced the Cougars to bring back their starting five to finish the game. The Cougars finished the game with six players scoring in double figures and shot 58% from the field as a team.

Pat Dame led the Knights with 17 points and seven assists and Jamarl Johnson added in 14 points with seven rebounds. Dame and Johnson both were named to the All Tournament Team.

Head Coach Rick Harris said after the game, “This was a great weekend for our team which is a work in progress. I am extremely pleased with our support of each other. We will get better from this experience. There was a playoff type atmosphere up here and it will better prepare us for future games. We will lick our wounds and come out focused and determined for our home opener on Tuesday versus UCONN-Avery Point.

The Knights are back in action for their Home Opener this Tuesday at 7 PM in Vincent Cullen Field House on the Warwick Campus versus UCONN-Avery Point.

14th Ranked Lady Knights Run Past Herkimer County CC 80-47

The CCRI Knights ran early and ran often to run past a good Herkimer County CC squad. The Lady Knights won there season opener 80-47. With the win the Lady Knights start the season 1-0.

The first half was all Lady Knights as they started the game off with a 20-0 run. In the first half the Lady Knights were led by their pre-season First team All-American selection Denise Scott (Yonkers, NY). Scott paced the Lady Knights in the first half by scoring nine of her team-high 14 points. Helping Scott out in the first half was freshmen point guard Jackie Ricci (North Providence, RI) who scored all 10 of her points in the first half. The Lady Knights took a commanding 43-14 lead in to half time.

The Lady Knights in the second half continued to execute their offensive and ran the ball when opportunities arose. With the starters out for most of the second half the Lady Knights were able to integrate a lot of new faces to the program. Freshmen Taylor Simmons (Norwalk, CT) and Sophomore LaSheena Boyd (Stratford, CT) joined Ricci and Scott in double figures. Simmons finished the game with 13 points and five rebounds while Boyd added in 12 points including two three-pointers and 2 steals. Rounding out the scoring for the Lady Knights was Nicole Girard (Foster, RI) with five points, Jill Lewis (Barrington, RI) with seven points, and Guylene Nsiewe (Duola, Cameroon, Africa) added six points.

Head Coach Marcus Reilly said after the game, “This game gave us the ability to start off the season with many positives. A quality win that every member of the roster contributed to gave us a good base to work from.”

The Lady Knights are back in action on Sunday when they play in the finals off the Genesee Community College Tip-Off Tournament versus the host school Genesee Community College.

14th Ranked Lady Knights Fall Short to 23rd Ranked Genesee CC

In a battle of two top 25 teams the #14 ranked CCRI Lady Knights fell short to the 23rd ranked Genesee CC Lady Cougars 70-67 in overtime. With the loss the Lady Knights record falls to 1-1 on the season.

The first half was a seesaw affair with Genesee jumping out to a quick 12 point lead at 20-8. The Lady Knights responded to pull ahead 27-25 with about five minutes to go in the first half. The Knights got the lead up to as many as eight points in the first half. However, going into the half the Lady Cougars cut that lead to five points 36-31. Denise Scott led the Lady Knights in the first half where she scored 13 of her 15 points.

The Second half was very similar to the first half with both teams going up and down the floor at an extremely high pace and with high intensity. The Lady Cougars were able to take Scott out of the game in the second half holding her to just two points. This allowed them to get back in the game and regain the lead that they had held early in the game. The Lady Knights were able to tie the score at 61 with some clutch shots from freshmen Jill Lewis (Barrington, RI), Nicole Girard (Foster, RI) and Lauren Harrington (Exeter, RI) with about a minute to go in the game. Both teams earned huge defensive stops in the last minute and the game went to overtime tied at 61.

In overtime the Lady Knights just ran out of gas sending the Lady Cougars to free throw line eight times where they scored seven of their nine overtime points. The Lady Knights had a chance to gain the lead when Rachel Murray (Gloucester, MA) had a shot blocked on beautiful block from Chatanie Williams combined with a couple of free throws sealed the game for the Lady Cougars.

Denise Scott led the Lady Knights with 15 points followed by Jill Lewis and Nicole Girard who scored 11 points each. Freshmen Lauren Harrington added nine points while Sharniece Williams added four points and pulled down a team-leading 10 rebounds. Jill Lewis and Denise Scott were each selected to the All-Tournament team.

Head Coach Marcus Reilly said after the game, “While this was a tough road loss, it gave our young roster a quality learning experience. With key contributions from many different players I am confident we will be able to build on this game and execute better down the stretch when we are faced with this situation again.”

The Lady Knights next game will be Tuesday November 13th when they will host Region XXI rival Dean College at 6:00pm at the Vincent A. Cullen Field house on the CCRI Knights Campus in Warwick.

CCRI Lady Knights Soccer Team Loses to Monroe CC 2-0 In District Final

The CCRI women’s soccer team lost 2-0 in the District “G” Finals yesterday in Lincoln to perennial power Monroe Community College 2-0. With the win Monroe advances to the NJCAA National Tournament (Elite 8) in Albany, GA.

However, the CCRI Lady Knights came out fast and furious and dominated play throughout most of the first half of play battling Monroe to a 0-0 tie at the half. CCRI tightly “marked” every Monroe player and pressured them whenever and wherever they could. Head Coach Dennis Grassini was quite pleased with the first half effort of his team. “As we all know, Monroe is a very good solid team and they beat us handily earlier in the regular season 6-0 in Rochester, NY but we knew they were not six goals better than us. I am so proud of our team. We had a game plan to throw at Monroe and the players executed it perfectly throughout the entire first half of play. We really threw them off of their game. With a little bit of luck we could have been up 1-0 at the half!” he said. “Freshman Ashley Maisano (Bristol, RI) came in off the outside midfield position and very nearly beat Kimika Forbes, the Monroe goalkeeper,” said Grassini.

As the second half of play began Monroe seemed to put their game at another level as they came out strong and missed on several excellent scoring opportunities. “I just think we were a bit tired after playing such a tremendous and tight marking first half of soccer. We beat them to almost every ball in the first half and I think it really took its toll on us,” said Head Coach Dennis Grassini. “I really think the difference was that they had more bench depth”, he said. Just a little over ten minutes into the second half of play Monroe’s Victoria Begy took a nice pass from Rachel Murphy and she fired a powerful 20-yard shot into the top of the CCRI net giving Monroe an early second half advantage of 1-0. However, the Lady Knights did not give up and continued to put some pressure on Monroe as they came right back a short time later as they were awarded a corner kick. Freshman Ashley Maisano (Bristol, RI) sent a beautiful corner kick that connected with Freshman Nicole Kufel (Oradell, NJ) on a beautiful header shot to the far corner of the goal but the Monroe goalkeeper Forbes came out of no where leaping horizontally to make a spectacular save! “That was certainly a momentum breaker and perhaps a turning point in the game”, said Coach Grassini. “If we score it’s a 1-1 game,” he said. Unfortunately for the Lady Knights Monroe’s Victoria Begy scored again on a free kick right outside the 18 yard box to make the score 2-0. “Just like in any other sport a team misses on a great opportunity at one end of the field and the other team comes right back and capitalizes at the other end of the field,” said Grassini. Associate Head Coach Kathy Bannan added “Crystal Sullivan (Johnston, RI) played outstanding throughout the game and her punts were just tremendous…You really couldn’t fault her on any of the goals scored today, they were just great well placed shots.”

CCRI battled Monroe tooth and nail to the very end but just did not have the horses to keep up with the high powered Tribunes. “We lost to a very good team today and we take nothing away from them. The Monroe coach (Tracey Britton) is a good friend and I know that there has always been a mutual respect that we have for each other and our women’s soccer programs. They are a classy program and I’d have to say that are kids are just as classy. I couldn’t be prouder of each and every one of our players; they literally played their hearts out for us, themselves, their fans, and CCRI!” said Coach Grassini. Adding “This team accomplished many great things this season only allowing 10 goals while scoring 81…They set a new record by recording 11 shutout victories in a row and they were ranked in the top ten in the nation in both the NJCAA and the NSCAA National polls.”

Monroe CC advances to the NJCAA Division I National Tournament in Albany, GA from November 15-18th.

Lady Knights Volleyball falls to Genesee CC 30-14, 30-25, and 30-20 in District L Championship

On day one of the District L Tournament Genesee Community College and CCRI qualified to play in the championship game. Genesee defeated Harcum 3-0, CCRI defeated Harcum 3-0, and

Genesee defeated CCRI 2-1.

In the Championship match the Genesee CC squad just had too much experienced depth for the Lady Knights despite the best efforts of the eight Lady Knights players who tried their hardest. The Lady Knights lost game 1 30-14, battled very tough and almost pulled out game two but fell 30-25, and Genesee pulled away in the third game winning by a final of 30-20.

Every Lady Knight contributed led by Co-Captain Ashley Markley (Preston, CT) with 28 assists 10 digs, two kills, two blocks, and an ace followed by Amanda Valentine (West Warwick, RI) had 14 kills four blocks, two digs, and an ace. Also contributing for the Lady Knights were Jen Humphrey (Murfreesboro, TN) had 11 kills, four digs, two aces, and a block, Ashley Mangione (Warwick, RI) had 18 digs and an ace, Jess Greene (Warwick, RI) had three digs, two blocks, and a kill Alexandra Dlugosz (Scituate, RI) had six digs, Tia Becker (Clark Fork, ID) added seven digs, two assists, and a block, and Stephanie Marquez (Hollywood, FL) added eight digs, three kills, and three aces, even injured Co-Captain Catherine Fleming (Riverside, RI) helped with encouragement and support from the bench.

Head Coach Ray DeAngelis said “It was a great season. The kids played hard and I never felt like they quit on themselves at anytime and with five players returning we have a lot to look forward to for next year.”

CCRI Shortstop Luis Chacon Commits to URI

CCRI Knights sophomore shortstop, Luis Chacon from West Warwick, RI, has committed to play baseball next year, 2008-09, at the University of Rhode Island. CCRI Head Baseball Coach Ken Hopkins feels that “Luis has many professional qualities and will be a great addition to the URI baseball program.”

Chacon is the fifth Knights baseball player to sign with D1 schools in the past few seasons. He follows: Brad Muldoon who attended Central Connecticut, Brian Thurber who attended Central Connecticut, Greg Allen at URI, Brad Hertzler who went to Maine now pitching in the Oakland A’s minor league system, and Andy McNulty at Seton Hall, as recent Knights who have moved on to play at the Division I level.

#17 Ranked Knights to Face Community College of Beaver County at Genesee Tip-off Classic

The #17 ranked CCRI Knights Men’s Basketball team will open their season on the road at the Genesee CC Tip-off Classic in Batavia, New York versus the Community College of Beaver County this Saturday at 4:00pm. If the Knights win they will face the winner of the Genesee CC versus Gloucester CC game Sunday at5 if they lose they will face the loser of the same game at 1pm Sunday.

The #14 ranked CCRI Lady Knights women’s basketball team will open their season at Genesee CC versus Herkimer CC.

The #14 ranked CCRI Lady Knights women’s basketball team will open their season at Genesee CC versus Herkimer CC at 2pm. If the Lady Knights defeat Herkimer CC they will face the winner of the #23 ranked Genesee CC versus Gloucester CC game Sunday at 3:00pm if they lose they will face the loser of the same game at 11:00am Sunday.