Johnson and Knights hold off Mott CC 79-74 to win 3^rd place at NJCAA National Tournament…again!

Monet Johnson makes All Tournament Team

The CCRI Knights women’s basketball team, playing in their fourth game in four days, fought off a late run by the Bears of Mott CC to win 79-74 and earn 3^rd place at the NJCAA Division II Women’s Basketball National Tournament. With the win the Knights end their season with a win and an 18-12 record. This is the second year in a row that the Knights have finished 3^rd at the Nationals.

Monet Johnson (Brooklyn, NY) led the Knights with an outstanding performance scoring 34 points with 14 rebounds, five assists, two steals and a blocked shot. Michelle McNamee (Cranston, RI) had her best game of the season scoring a season-high 15 points on 5-8 shooting from 3-point land with three assists, three rebounds, and a steal. McNamee, an unsung hero established personal best in points with 15, 3-pointers with five, and minutes with 28, saving her best game for the last of the season. Also contributing for the Knights were Tamara Shaw (Norwalk, CT) who scored 11 with nine rebounds, five assists, and three steals, Jenny Kinney (Milford, NJ) who scored eight with eight rebounds and three assists, Co-captain Ana Sierra (Bronx, NY) scored six with four assists and four steals, and Co-captain Renee Buck (FT Gully, Victoria, Australia), playing with a sprained ankle, had four assists and two steals and drew two charges while scoring three points.

The Knights and bears battled early as CCRI tied the game at 15-15 on a 3-pointer by Michelle McNamee at 10:55. McNamee was 3-4 from 3-point land in the first half. McNamee and Monet Johnson paced the Knights in the first half as Monet Johnson scored 12 points capping a 16-4 CCRI run to make the score 37-24 with 1:37 left in the half. The Knights went into halftime up 39-27. Johnson and McNamee continued to pace the Knights in the second half as Johnson hit a lay-up in the left paint with 14:37 to extend the Knight lead to 51-33. Johnson scored 22 of her 34 points in the second half. The Knights got their biggest lead of the night on a 3-pointer by McNamee from the top of the key making the score 67-44 with 6:54 left. Mott CC went on a 3-point barrage over the last five minutes cutting the lead to 75-71 with 37 seconds left on a lay-up by Candace Ward. Free throws from Buck, Johnson and Kinney extended the lead to 79-71 before a 3-pointer from Shaquetta Mance with five seconds left making the final 79-75.

The Knights win 3^rd place in the NJCAA Women’s Basketball National Tournament for the second year in a row. A tremendous feat for a team comprised of eight freshman and only two sophomores. Winning three games at the National Tournament is the most ever at the National Tournament for CCRI bringing the program to new heights.

Monet Johnson averaged 18 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game in the Knights four games at the Nationals, Johnson also set a tournament record with a Tournament high 15 field goals made versus Mott CC, earning her a spot on the NJCAA Division II Woman’s National All-Tournament Team.

The CCRI women’s basketball team, unseeded at the NJCAA Division II National Tournament, keeps their National title hopes alive by upsetting the #3 seed Carl Sandburg College 63-54 to advance the NJCAA Division II Final Four. With the win the Knights record improves to 17-11 on the season while Carl Sandburg drops to 31-3. The Knights will face #2 seed Kirkwood Community College in the Semi-final game Friday at 9:00pm ET (7:00pm MT). Kirkwood CC knocked-off Kalamazoo Valley CC 56-46 to earn their trip to the semi-final.

Monet Johnson (Brooklyn, NY) led the Knights with her second double-double of the National Tournament scoring 19 points and 11 rebounds with three steals and two blocked shots. Also contributing for the Knights were Jenny Kinney (Milford, NJ) who scored nine points with 10 rebounds, Co-captain Ana Sierra (Bronx, NY) and Michelle McNamee (Cranston, RI) both scored eight points each, Co-captain Renee Buck (FT Gully, Victoria, Australia) added five points, six rebounds and four assists. Defensively the Knights got help from Tamara Shaw (Norwalk, CT) who had three blocks and two steals and Odessa Williams (Stratford, CT) had two blocked shots and a steal to go along with her six points.

The Knights stifled Carl Sandburg College with a tremendous defensive effort utilizing five different defensive sets to confuse CSC. This strategy along with great athleticism help the Knights hold Carl Sandburg to just a 25% field goal percentage. The Knights athleticism was showcased as they combined for eight blocked shots: three from Tamara Shaw, two each from Monet Johnson and Odessa Williams and one from Michelle McNamee.

The Knights jumped ahead of Carl Sandburg 13-3 in the opening minutes but a CSC run put them up 19-13 by the 9:45 mark. Carl Sandburg through their struggles still nursed a lead 28-27 lead at the half. The game stayed tight through the second half as Renee Buck broke the 49-49 tie with a left-handed driving lay-up to give The Knights the 51-49 lead with 5:00 left. On the next possession buck drove again and dished a sweet bounce pass to Monet Johnson for the lay-up. Two more second chance points from Johnson capped the 8-0 CCRI run. The Knights held Carl Sandburg to just 3 points down the stretch extend their lead to 11 points, their biggest of the game, to win 63-52.

Coach Grygorcewicz said "This is the biggest upset I’ve ever been a part of" he then added, "I’ve got a 16-11 team with eight freshman and we’re going to the national semi-finals. I can’t believe it. It’s unbelievable"

The Knights head to the Final Four for the second straight year to face #2 ranked Kirkwood CC, of Cedar Rapid Iowa, the team they beat in the 3^rd place game in last years NJCAA Tournament. They will play tonight at 9:00pm ET (7:00pm MT) to see who will advance to the finals to play the winner of the #1Illinois Central College vs. unranked Mott Community College who will play at 7:00pm ET (5:00pm MT).

Go Knights!!!

The CCRI Knights women’s basketball, unseeded in the National tournament, upended the #6 seed Johnson County CC 54-46 in the first round of the NJCAA Division II women’s basketball National Tournament. With the win the Knights improve their record to 16-11 on the season. The Knights next game will be Thursday at 8:00pm ET (6:00pm MT) versus the #3 seed Carl Sandburg College (31-2).

Tamara Shaw (Norwalk, CT) led the Knights with 16 points including two 3-pointers with five steals, five rebounds, and two blocked shots. Also contributing for the Knights were Monet Johnson (Brooklyn, NY) who had a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds, Jenny Kinney (Milford, NJ) who scored 12 points with six rebounds and three steals, and Captain Renee Buck (FT Gully, Victoria, Australia) added seven points, seven rebounds and five assists.

Team defense was the name of the game for the Knights as they aggressively pressed the Cavaliers of Johnson County CC which helped them extend a 14-3 lead to start the game. The Knights scored 20 points off 18 Johnson County turnovers. This strategy helped keep the ball out of the hands of the Cavaliers 3-point shooters hands which are their primary scoring options. The Knights tremendous defensive effort held the Cavaliers to just 19 first half points as the Knights took a 27-19 lead into halftime. Both team started the second half playing sloppily but slowly the Cavaliers were able to tie the game at 38-38 at about the 6:00 mark on a 3-pointer by Becca Buan. Coach Grygorcewicz immediately called a timeout to settle down his young Knight squad his last words to them out of the timeout were "Finish strong!" and that is exactly what they did. Tamara Shaw answered her coach’s request by burying a big 3-pointer to give the Knights the lead for good. Defensively the Knights answered with Jenny Kinney who came-up with three key steals in a row preventing the Cavaliers from getting the ball to their leading scorer Katy Davenport. Down the stretch Shaw, Monet Johnson, and Jenny Kinney sank free throws to seal the victory.

The Knights will now play Carl Sandburg College (31-2) the #3 seed in the tournament at 8:00pm ET (6:00pm MT). If the Knights win they will play the winner of the Kirkwood CC vs. Kalamazoo Valley CC game Friday at 9:00pm ET (7:00pm MT). If the Knights lose they will play the loser of the Kirkwood Kalamazoo game 4:00pm ET (2:00pm MT) Friday.

Go Knights!!!

Knights to face #6 seed Johnson County CC in National Tournament Wednesday at 6pm

The CCRI Knights women’s basketball team will face the #6 seed Johnson County Community College in the first round of the NJCAA Division II women’s basketball National Tournament Wednesday at 6:00pm at Phoenix College in Phoenix, Arizona.

Johnson County Community College was ranked #9 in the last poll of the season. The Knights are led by Monet Johnson (Brooklyn, NY) who averages 16.96 points and 9.4 rebounds per game, Jenny Kinney (Milford, NJ) averaging 10.69 points and 8.1 rebounds per game and Tamara Shaw (Norwalk, CT) who averages 8.96 points per game. The Knights are returning to National tournament for the third consecutive year. If the Knights win versus Johnson County they will face the 3^rd seed in the tournament Carl Sandburg College.

Last year the Knights finished third as they got a bye I the first round, beat Bismarck State in the second round before losing to eventual National Champion Monroe CC in the third round and ended the season with a victory over Kirkwood CC to finish 3^rd.

Good Luck Knights!!!

Owens, Little and Victor earn All-Region XXI honors

The CCRI Knights men’s basketball team is well represented on the All-Region XXI Team. The team is headed by the Nation’s leading scorer Marvin Owens (Bridgeport, CT), who averaged 27.4 points per game. Owens also set the CCRI single season scoring mark with 794 points and the CCRI All-time scoring mark with 1,407 career points. Owens also averaged eight rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 2.75 steals per game. Owens is joined on the All-region team by Travon Little (Danbury, CT) who averaged 11.4 points and 8.9 rebounds per game and Marquis Victor (Lawrence, MA) who averaged 14.4 points per game including 60 3-pointers.

Rounding out the All-Region XXI team was Jarrell Jackson from Massasoit CC, Anthony Wynn, and Keenan Kelly (Warwick, RI) from Dean College.

Congratulations to the Knights and all of the 2005-06 All-Region XXI Team members.

CCRI Baseball Spring Training day 3-4 Re-cap

Freshman Alex Magnan (Warwick, RI) had a dominant outing striking out seven allowing one earned run over six innings pitched gaining a victory over a team that had beaten the Knights the previous day. Offensively the Knights were helped by Captain Seth Desautel (Cumberland, RI) who had two hits with two RBI and Drew Powell (Osceola, FL) who also had two hits and two RBI. With the win the Knights record improves to 3-2 on the season.

Brad another dominant outing by a CCRI pitcher as Brad Hertzler (East Providence, RI) pitched a complete game shutout over highly touted #8 ranked Brookdale CC pitching seven innings allowing just three hits striking out six while walking just two batters. Offensively the Knights were led by Eric Page (North Kingstown, RI) who drove in Drew Powell (Osceola, FL) with the games winning run in the fourth inning. Powell then provided some insurance as he drove in Jang Won-Lee (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) who had singled earlier in the sixth inning with a sacrifice fly giving the Knights the 2-0 lead and eventual margin of victory. Huge win over #8 ranked Brookdale CC, which was a World Series participant in 2005, shows that CCRI belongs among elite teams in Division II baseball nationally. With the win the Knights record improves to 4-2 on the season.

Frank Mazza (North Kingstown, RI) earned his first victory of the year pitching five strong innings allowing one earned run and fanning nine while Jessie Ladig (Deerfield, FL) earned his first college save in the victory. Offensively Matt Ranaudo (Milford, CT) had two hits including a Homerun Jang Won-Lee (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) added two more hits to improve his batting average to a team-leading .455. This was a great way to end the spring training trip with timely hitting and a great performance from Frank Mazza. With the win the Knights improve their record to 5-2 on the season.

CCRI fast-pitch softball Spring Training Day 4 Re-cap

Jen Dupont (Lincoln, RI) dominated Northland pitching a one-hitter over five innings with five strikeouts and no walks to earn her second win of the season. Offensively the Knights were led by Jasmine Bonanca (Swansea, MA) who was 3-3 with a triple, double, a single with 3 RBI, and a stolen base and Lindsay Laurie (Warwick, RI) who was 2-2 with an RBI and two runs scored. The Knights combined for nine hits and capitalized on Northland fielding errors to build on their lead scoring two runs in the first, three in the second and six in the fourth. With the win the Knights record improves to 3-4 on the season.

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Jen Dupont (Lincoln, RI) relieved Amy Lemmon (North Attleboro, MA) and threw 5 2/3 innings allowing two earned runs with eight strikeouts to earn her third win of the season. Offensively the Knights were led by Heather Lynch (Warwick, RI) who was 4-4 with a 3-run inside the park homerun, three singles and four RBI and Alyse Fram (Lincoln, RI) who was 3-5 with a double, two singles and three runs scored. Also contributing for the Knights were Jasmine Bonanca (Swansea, MA) who was 2-2 with two RBI and a stolen base, Kara Serapiglia (Johnston, RI) was 2-5 with three runs scored and a stolen base, and Christina Campopiano (Johnston, RI) went 2-5 with two runs scored. The Knights fell behind Northland 6-1 in the second inning but came back to rally for eight runs in the fourth, three runs in the sixth on the 3-run inside the park homer by Heather Lynch and two more in the seventh to win 14-7. With the win the Knights improve their record to 4-4 on the season.

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CCRI fast-pitch softball Spring Training Day 3 re-cap

Ashley Vachon (West Warwick, RI) pick-up her first win of the season as she pitch five innings allowing just two runs on five hits with two strikeouts and four walks. The Knights bats came alive again as Heather Lynch (Warwick, RI) was 3-3 with a double an RBI, two runs scored and a stolen base, Alyse Fram (Lincoln, RI) was 2-3 with a double, two RBI and a run scored. Jasmine Bonanca (Swansea, MA) was 2-4 with two stolen bases and two runs scored, and Jenna Peters (Lincoln, RI) was 2-3 with an RBI and a run scored. The Knights scored two runs in the third, one in the fourth and then erupted for eight in the fifth while holding PSH to just two runs two win in five innings by the mercy rule 11-2. Wit the win the Knights improve their record to 2-3 on the season.

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CCRI held KVCC at bay for the first two innings until the KVCC offense came to life scoring eight times on nine hits in the third inning off CCRI starter Jen Dupont (Lincoln, RI). KVCC added two more ruins in the fourth inning off Amy Lemmon (North Attleboro, MA). The Knights only scored one run on two hits one from Lindsay Laurie (Warwick, RI) and one from Heather Lynch (Warwick, RI). With the loss the Knights record falls to 2-4 on the season.

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CCRI fast-pitch softball Spring Training Day 2

Jen Dupont (Lincoln, RI) pitched five strong innings though she was still feeling the affects of a cold striking out eight walking one while allowing four runs. The Knights bats came alive as Christina Campopiano (Johnston, RI) went 3-3 with a walk and a run scored, Heather Lynch (Warwick, RI) was 2-2 with a double, a walk, an RBI, and Alyse Fram (Lincoln, RI) was 2-4 with a stolen base and a run scored. The Knights scored four runs in the first, three runs in the third and five in the fifth before the game was halted due to the mercy rule. The Knight get their first win of the season and improve their record to 1-2.

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Amy Lemmon (North Attleboro, MA) pitched pretty well but the CCRI defense did not help her, as she gave-up six runs, four earned over three innings. Glen Oaks CC exploded for six runs in the third inning on due to timely hitting and errors by the Knights. The Knights were poised to answer in the third scoring three runs and if not for a bang-bang line drive double play to end the third off the bat of Christina Campopiano (Johnston, RI) the game might have had a different outcome. Jasmine Bonanca (Swansea, MA) was 2-3 with 2 RBI, Kara Serapiglia (Johnston, RI) also had two hits in four at bats. With the loss the Knights record falls to 1-3 on the season.

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CCRI fast-pitch softball Spring Training Day 1 Re-cap

The CCRI Knights women’s softball team lost first game of the season to a very tough Kalamazoo Valley team by a score of 2-1. Amy Lemmon (North Attleboro, MA) pitched an excellent game giving up only two runs scattering six hits over six innings with one strikeout. KVCC led off the 5^th inning with a home run and followed with one more run to take a 2-0 lead. The Knights answered with one run scored as Alyse Fram (Lincoln, RI) got a base hit and Kara Serapiglia (Johnston, RI) scored on a KVCC throwing error. That is as close as the Knights would get losing 2-1. Nicole Brierley (Lincoln, RI) had a good day at the plate going 2-3 in the loss. With the loss CCRI falls to 0-1 on the season.

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CCRI had an off game as starting pitcher Jen Dupont (Lincoln, RI) felt a little under the weather but still took the mound. It was clear early that she was not on her game as KVCC exploded for seven runs in the third inning, Dupont gave way to Ashley Vachon (West Warwick, RI) who gave up two runs over 2 1/3 innings. CCRI only managed two hits over seven innings, one from Heather Lynch (Warwick, RI) and one from Alyse Fram (Lincoln, RI) in the loss. With the loss CCRI falls to 0-2 on the season.

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#15 ranked Knights to face Lackawanna CC in District Tournament semi-final

The #15 ranked CCRI Knights men’s basketball team will face Lackawanna CC in the District IX Northeast District semi-final 1:00pm Saturday at Lackawanna CC. The Knights come into the District Tournament with the #4 seed will play Lackawanna CC who earned the #1 seed defeating the #9 ranked Mercer County CC 76-73 in the Region XIX Championship game.

In the other semi-final game #2 seed Orange County Community College will face #3 seed Mercer County Community College at 3:00pm. The semi-final winners will face each other in the District IX Championship game Sunday March 12^th at 1:00pm.

The Knights semi-final game will be a rematch of the 2004-05 District Championship game, which the Knights won last year, both teams have yet to meet this year. The Knights defeated Mercer County CC 91-85 November 19^th at Mercer and Orange County CC 81-74 December 3rd in Warwick.

Jennings Earns Second Team All-American at Indoor Track Nationals

The CCRI men’s and women’s indoor track team sent three qualifiers to the National meet at Kansas State University in Manhattan Kansas Friday March 3^rd and Saturday March 4^th. On the women’s side there was Jasmine Jennings (Warwick, RI) and Sherilyn Nicholas (Taunton, MA) on the men’s side there was Mike Dolan (South Kingstown, RI).

Jasmine Jennings (Warwick, RI) placed second in the weight throw with a toss of 54’4". This throw gave Jennings second team All-American honors for the second year in a row.

Sherilyn Nicholas (Taunton, MA) finished in 8^th place in the 800m run. This was Sherilyn’s best finish at the Division I indoor track Nationals in any event. Sherilyn made it to the finals in the 800m with a prelim time of 2:27.80, which was her seconded best time in the event ever. Sherilyn did not fair as well in the pentathlon were she finished 9^th with a score of 2677.

On the men’s side Mike Dolan (South Kingstown, RI), CCRI’s only male athlete at the Championships, finished in 14^th place in the weight throw with a toss of 44’11".

Johnson and the Knights halt #18 ranked Harcum 74-65 win District Championship

The CCRI Knights women’s basketball team defeated #18 ranked Harcum College 74-65 to win the District IX Northeast District Championship. With the win the Knights improve their record to 15-11 and earn their third straight trip to the NJCAA Division II National Tournament in Phoenix Arizona March 15-18th.

Monet Johnson (Brooklyn, NY) led the Knights scoring 36 points with 11 rebounds, two steals and a block. Odessa Williams (Stratford, CT) came off the bench to score 17 points with seven rebounds, four assists and a block. Also contributing for the Knights were Tamara Shaw (Norwalk, CT) with five points and seven assists, Jenny Kinney (Milford, NJ) scored five points with eight rebounds while Renee Buck (FT Gully, Victoria, Australia) added five assists and five steals.

The Knights were extremely frustrated with the Harcum College full-court press as it helped Harcum score the last eight points of the first half to take a 30-28 lead. In the second half they continued to press and play aggressive defense, which helped Harcum take a 49-41 lead early in the second half. The Knights fought back with a 3-pointer by Tamara Shaw, two baseline jumpers from Jenny Kinney, and a shot from the top of the key from Odessa Williams to keep the game close. Then Monet Johnson took over scoring 23 of her 36 points in the second half coming from multiple fast breaks which gave the Knights the lead with 8:00 left and they never looked back. From that point on the Knights played tremendous man-to-man defense, while Johnson and Williams controlled the boards holding Harcum to just two field goals in the last eight minutes. Free throws down the stretch from Ana Sierra (Bronx, NY), Williams and Johnson sealed the deal for the 74-65 victory. An ecstatic Head Coach Cas Grygorcewicz said: "We’re off to Phoenix!"

The Knights have earned their third straight trip to the NJCAA Division II National Tournament in Phoenix Arizona March 15-18^th.