CHAMPIONSHIP HOME - PHOTOS

ROCHESTER, Minn. – Herkimer County Community College (N.Y.) won its first national championship in Division III softball with its 5-2 victory over top-seed Brookdale Community College (N.J.) Saturday on a rain-soaked surface at the McQuillan Softball Complex in Rochester.

In the title game, Herkimer shortstop Tina Karaqui had three hits, including a solo home run along with three runs scored to earn outstanding offensive player and tournament MVP honors. Steph Siriano added a home run and Ashley Sterritt drove in two runs.

In the circle, Toni Secreti earned the win as she went seven full innings, scattering eight hits on the night. She worked through her toughest jam of the tournament when Brookdale loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Due to Friday’s slate of games being cancelled because of rain, Saturday was quite eventful as Brookdale had to win three games to advance through the loser’s bracket to the championship finale. BCC was the top seed but lost in its first round matchup to eighth-seed Dutchess Community College (N.Y.) 4-2.

Herkimer rallied and advanced to the title game with a 6-5 win over Dutchess in the winner’s bracket semifinals, which was played earlier on Saturday. Karaqi had three hits in that game as well and drove in the winning run in the bottom of the seventh inning. Dutchess held a 5-1 lead in the contest before Herkimer surged back with four runs in the sixth.

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Kathleen Sherp – Catcher, Brookdale CC (N.J.)
Ashley Sterritt – 3B, Herkimer County CC (N.Y.)
Alyssa DiMaio – SS, Dutchess CC (N.Y.)
Tabby McBride – 2B, Monroe CC (N.Y.)
Samantha Hosey – P, Brookdale (N.J.)
Rebekah Kitchen – OF, Herkimer County CC (N.Y.)
Lindsey White – P, Itasca CC (Minn.)
Cheryl Hicks – DP, Dutchess CC (N.Y.)
Bobbie Boehler – SS, Brookdale CC (N.J.)
Toni Secreti – P, Herkimer County CC (N.Y.)
Abby Canning – P, Dutchess CC (N.Y.)
Stephanie Siriano – OF, Herkimer County CC (N.Y.)

TOURNAMENT MVP
Tina Karaqi – SS, Herkimer County CC (N.Y.)

COACH OF THE TOURNAMENT
PJ Anadio, Herkimer County CC (N.Y.)

OUTSTANDING DEFENSIVE PLAYER
Bobbie Boehler – SS, Brookdale CC (N.J.)

OUTSTANDING OFFENSIVE PLAYER
Tina Karaqi – SS, Herkimer County CC (N.Y.)

OUTSTANDING PITCHER
Toni Secreti – P, Herkimer County CC (N.Y.)

CHAMPIONSHIP HOME – BOX SCORE – WATCH REPLAY - TOURNEY PHOTOS

Release furnished by Dixie State College Sports Information

ST. GEORGE, Utah -- No. 8-seed Wallace State Community College - Hanceville (Ala.) won its second-ever NJCAA Division I Softball Championship, but had to put in a little extra work to earn the trophy, as the Lions bounced back with a 7-3 victory over No. 2-seed Salt Lake Community College (Utah) Saturday afternoon at the Canyons Complex.

The Lions, who also won the title in 2008, came into play Saturday out of the winner’s bracket, needing only one win to claim the title. Meanwhile, Salt Lake, which had dropped an 8-1 decision to Wallace State Friday night in the winner’s bracket semifinals, avenged that loss and forced a second title game by defeating the Lions 8-0 earlier Saturday.

Salt Lake looked as if it was going to pick up where it left off to start game two as the Lions committed three errors in the first inning, yet the Bruins scored just one run on those extra opportunities to take a 1-0 lead.

After being shutout for the first time in the tournament in their loss to Salt Lake in the first title game on Saturday, Wallace State broke through with a pair of runs in the second inning as infielder Kori Benson connected on a two-run home run to give the Lions a 2-1 lead.

The Bruins had a chance to put up a big number in the bottom of the fifth frame as Salt Lake loaded the bases with no outs on a pair of hits and a hit by pitch. However, Wallace State starting pitcher Lindsey DeFee was able to escape the jam by only allowing just one run off a sacrifice fly from Susan Duke, which knotted the score at 2-2.

The Lions then put the game away in the seventh. Wallace State sent 10 batters to the plate, scoring five runs. Benson and Katie Gentle both produced two-run singles, which gave Wallace State a commanding 7-2 advantage.

Salt Lake tried to mount a rally in its final at-bat as Maddy Woodard knocked a solo home run with one out to left field, which was followed by a Lyndsey Healy single. However, DeFee slammed the door shut as she induced a championship-clinching double play to end the game.

DeFee, who was named Tournament MVP and Most Outstanding Pitcher, struck out three and scattered five hits and three runs, two earned, to pick up the win. She posted a 3-0 record during the tournament with a 4.14 ERA in 25.1 innings in the circle. Opposing batters mustered only a .245 average against her during the tournament.

Wallace State (55-12) finished with 12 hits, with Benson accounting for two and a game-high four RBIs. Gentle also had two hits and two RBIs.

Bruin starter Kailey Christensen, who posted a shutout versus Wallace in the first title match, pitched into the second inning of game two, but was touched up for two runs on three hits in the frame and took the loss. Woodard finished with three hits to lead the Bruin offense.

Salt Lake’s Malia Campos had one hit in the deciding title game and scored two runs. She earned the tourney’s Most Outstanding Offensive Player honor after posting a .426 batting clip with a home run and eight RBIs while in St. George. She also scored 15 runs.

The Bruins of Salt Lake ended their 2013 season at 53-11 overall and national runners-up for the third straight year.

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Yvette Alvarez – Pitcher, Pima CC (Ariz.)
McCauley Flint – Pitcher, Salt Lake CC (Utah)
Maria Alexander Ortiz – Catcher, Pima CC (Ariz.)
Lindsey DeFee – Pitcher, Wallace State CC (Ala.)
Maddy Woodard – SS, Salt Lake CC (Utah)
Madeline Lee – 2B, Wallace State CC (Ala.)
Katherine Harrison – 1B, Chipola College (Fla.)
Brittany Gillison – OF, Wallace State CC (Ala.)
Kristi Belshe – OF, Lake Land College (Ill.)
Katie Gentle – OF, Wallace State CC (Ala.)
Sydney Stuever – OF, Butler CC (Kan.)
Whitney Holt – UT/DP, Salt Lake CC (Utah)

MOST OUTSTANDING OFFENSIVE PLAYER
Malia Campos, Salt Lake CC (Utah)
.462 / 1 2B / 1 HR / 8 RBI / 15 RS / 3 SB

MOST OUTSTANDING PITCHER
Lindsey DeFee, Wallace State CC (Ala.)
3-0 / 4.14 ERA / 25.1 IP / 13 K / .245 OBA

MOST OUTSTANDING DEFENSIVE PLAYER
Kori Benson – 3B, Wallace State CC (Ala.)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
Lindsey DeFee, Wallace State CC (Ala.)

KAREN L. SYKES OUTSTANDING COACH OF THE TOURNAMENT
Jayne Clem, Wallace State CC (Ala.)

Photos courtesy of St. George Parks & Recreation...and Russell Moore, Wallace State CC

CHAMPIONSHIP HOME - FULL RESULTS - PHOTOS

LUBBOCK, Texas – The 2013 NJCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship came to an exciting conclusion Friday evening at The Rawls Golf Course in Lubbock. After trailing in the team standings throughout the tournament, Central Alabama Community College fought back edge Odessa College (Texas) on the tournament’s final day by one stroke. The national championship is the seventh for Central Alabama’s men’s golf program and first since its three consecutive titles from 1999-2001.

Odessa held a one-stroke advantage on CACC 866 (+2) to 877 (+3). Central Alabama had four players shot par or better on the tournament’s final day, including a 68 Andrew Klasing to lead a team score of 283 (-5) and move its four-round score to 1,150 (-2). The Wranglers, however, slipped to second in the standings with a team score of 285 (-3) on Friday, which set Odessa back to three-over at 1,151 (-1).

Alex Mahlik led Central Alabama with a team best 283 (-5) to finish in a tie for sixth overall. Andrew Klasing finished in a tie for eighth with a three-under-par 285.

While Central Alabama and Odessa were battling for the team title another was taking place for individual medalist honors. Heading into the final round on Friday, five golfers were tied for the overall lead at five-under-par (211) but none would end up winning the title.

Sitting in a tie for ninth after three rounds at 213 (-2), Akse Olsen of Wallace State Community College (Ala.) turned in his best performance of the four-day event with a five-under-par 67 in the final round to push his total for the tournament to 281(-7). Meanwhile, Meridian Community College’s (Miss.) T.J. Morgan carded a 70 (-2) on Friday to tie Olsen for the lead.

The two participated in a playoff on the No. 18 hole. Morgan bogeyed the par five hole while Olsen made par to emerge as the 2013 champion.

New Mexico Junior College’s Elliott Whitley, Iowa Western Community College’s Jose Pelayo and Keith Greene of Brevard Community College (Fla.) finished in a tie for third place at six-under (282).


Akse Olsen (right) of Wallace State is congratulated by NJCAA President Joe Tubb.

Photos by John Weast

COMPLETE RESULTS - PHOTOS

2013 NJCAA DIII Men's Tennis Champion - Gloucester County College (N.J.)

PLANO, Texas – Gloucester County College (N.J.) made history Thursday night (May 16th) at the NJCAA Division III Men’s Tennis Championship in Plano. The Roadrunners edged Nassau Community College (N.Y.) by half a point in the final team standings to earn its fourth-consecutive national title. Gloucester is the first program to win four straight championships in Division III men’s tennis since the division was created in 1997.

Gloucester picked up titles in the No. 5 and No. 6 flights of singles competition. In the No. 5 finals Nick Louis defeated Anish Puri of Oxford College of Emory (Ga.) in two sets 6-2, 6-0. Tim Durham needed three sets (6-4, 4-6, 6-2) to defeat Rich Mills of Bergen Community College (N.J.) in the No. 6 finals.

The Roadrunners was bolstered in the final standings thanks to runner-up finishes by Mike Perrone in No. 2 singles and Jon Sjolander in No. 4 singles. The GCC duo of Durham and Aaron Williams also finished as the runners-up in No. 3 doubles.

Nassau did all it could to take the title away from Gloucester. The Lions advanced to the finals in three singles flights and won them all. After finishing as the runner-up a year ago, Matt Kallenberg defeated Gloucester’s Perrone in the No. 2 singles title match 4-6, 6-2, 6-2.

In No. 3 singles, Nassau’s Roey Heymann took down Zac Hersman of Oxford in two sets 6-3, 6-2.

Kevin Burgess won his second straight singles national title with his 6-3, 6-4 victory over Gloucester’s Sjolander in No. 4 singles. At the 2012 championship he won the No. 5 singles title.

Burgess and Kallenberg also repeated as the champions in No. 2 doubles for Nassau, defeating Ezio Cecere and Carlos Munoz of Bergen 6-0, 6-2.

Bergen finished third overall with 21 team points. Oxford and Brookdale Community College (N.J.) rounded out the top five.

Photo courtesy of Collin College (Texas) Athletics

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – For the fourth time in eight years the NJCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Track and Field Championships will be held in Hutchinson, Kan. The 2013 edition will take place May 16-18 at Gowans Stadium on the campus of Hutchinson CC.

Fans can follow all the action through the meet’s central webpage where links to heat sheets, live results, daily recaps, and more is accessible. Live video of all running events on the final two days of the meet will be aired live on NJCAA TV via HCC’s Blue Dragon Network.

The Texans and Lady Texans of South Plains College (Texas) will both be defending their national championships from 2012. The two teams have swept the national championship trophies in the sport the last four years with the Texans capturing six-straight titles. Winning the 2013 edition of the DI outdoor championships would put the SPC men in a tie for second all-time with seven consecutive championships. Barton CC (Kan.) won seven consecutive from 1998-2004. Blinn College (Kan.) owns the most consecutive national championships with nine from 1987-1995.

DI OUTDOOR TRACK & FIELD NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS | MAY 16 - 18, 2013

Gowans Stadium / Hutchinson Community College
Hutchinson, Kansas
Website - Schedule - Twitter Updates

Watch Running Events Live (May 17-18) on NJCAA TV

Chuck Muncie was a member of the 1971 Arizona Western College football team that capped off an impressive 9-1 season with a 28-12 El Toro Bowl win over Ellsworth CC (IA). He was the team’s leading rusher. From AWC, Muncie moved on to a very successful career at the University of California-Berkeley and then in the NFL with the Saints & Chargers.

From NFL.com - Former San Diego Chargers, Saints Star Chuck Muncie deat at 60

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – A total of 127 golfers from 37 NJCAA member colleges are scheduled to participate in this year’s women’s golf national championship at the Longbow Golf Course in Mesa, Ariz., May 13-16.

Of the 37 colleges represented, 17 have full teams (5 participants), including defending national champion Redlands Community College (Okla.).

Results after each round of competition will be posted on the official tournament website as well as the NJCAA Women’s Golf Championship page.

Round 1: Individual Results - Team Results

RESULTS

COLUMBIA, Md. – The outdoor track & field 2013 season came to a close Saturday, May 11th for the Division III ranks of the NJCAA. Gloucester County College (N.J.) finished atop the women’s team standings while host Howard Community College (Md.) won the men’s team championship.

Gloucester athletes finished third or better in 12 events, including first place finishes by Shaneen Datts in the heptathlon (3356 points) and Catherin Daugherty in the 1,500 meters (5:02.15). Datts also took home second place in the 100 meter hurdles (17.00).

The Roadrunners finished with 136.5 team points. Mohawk Valley Community College (N.Y.) came in second with 104 points and Prince George’s Community College (Md.) finished third with 96.

Howard was flat-out dominant in the men’s division, winning seven events and placing third or better in 21. Jahil Petgrave and Darius Bell were two of the top performers for Howard. Petgrave took first in both the 200 meters (21.59) and 400 meters (47.30) while Bell posted the top mark in the high jump (6’ 10.75”) and placed second in both the long jump (24’ 0.75”) and triple jump (47’ 9”).

Also capturing individual national titles were Edgar Propst (800 meters – 1:55.04) and Filagot Dinku (5,000 meters – 15:55.96) as well as Howards 4x100 and 4x400 meter relay teams.



Howard Community College (Md) - 2013 NJCAA DIII Men's Outdoor Track & Field Champions
Photo courtesy of Howard CC

Note: First place finishers of each event and first place relay teams earn First Team NJCAA All-American honors. Second place finishers of each event and second place relay teams earn Second Team NJCAA All-American honors.

TOURNAMENT RESULTS - WATCH REPLAY - PHOTOS


GARDEN CITY, N.Y. – For the fifth consecutive year, the national championship trophy in NJCAA men’s lacrosse belongs to Onondaga Community College (N.Y.). The Lazers defeated Nassau Community College (N.Y.) 15-11 in the national title game at NCC’s Mitchel Athletic Complex on Sunday, May 12th.

OCC is the first NJCAA program to win five straight national championships since Herkimer County Community College (N.Y.) accomplished the feat from 1992-96. Even more impressive, Onondaga (17-0) clinched its fifth national championship with an undefeated record for the third-consecutive year. The Lazers currently boast a 70-game winning streak, which is the longest ever at any level of collegiate lacrosse (NCAA and NJCAA).

Onondaga jumped out to a 4-0 lead through the first quarter and increased its lead to 8-1 before Nassau was able to outscore the Lazers 6-1 in the final three minutes of the half to make the score 9-7.

The contest remained tight for much of the third quarter before a Tim Barber found the back of the net with 4:08 left in the period. Three more OCC players scored in the period to outdistance Nassau 13-7.

Jordan Saunderson led the Lazers with six goals and one assist. Randy Staats tallied four goals and an assist. OCC goalie Warren Hill was named the defensive player of the game with 18 saves.

Ranked No. 1 the entire season, Onondaga defeated CCBC-Essex (Md.) 18-7 to advance to Sunday’s title game. Nassau defeated Genesee Community College (N.Y.) 15-6 in the semifinals.

Photo courtesy of Nassau CC Athletics

All-Tournament Team
Blake Hurt, Genesee CC
Bobby Wheeler, Genesee CC
Tony Rossi, CCBC-Essex
Roberto Dennis, CCBC-Essex
John Brandofino, Nassau CC
Kevin Teresky, Nassau CC
James O'Boyle, Nassau CC
Luke Haggerty, Nassau CC
Brett Williams, Onondaga CC
Randy Staats, Onondaga CC
Quinn Powless, Onondaga CC
Ryan Vella, Onondaga CC

Steve Caravana Offensive MVP
Jordan Saunderson, Onondaga CC

Steve Caravana Defensive MVP
Warren Hill, Onondaga CC

SCOOBA – Due to the forecast of continued wintry weather to begin the work week for a widespread area of Mississippi, Monday night’s scheduled basketball doubleheader between home-standing East Mississippi Community College and visiting Mississippi Delta Community College has been postponed.The MACJC North Division hoops twin bill between EMCC and...

MERIDIAN – The visiting East Mississippi Community College basketball teams battled rival Meridian Community College to a pair of four-point decisions Thursday night at Graham Gymnasium on the MCC campus. In the nightcap, the short-handed EMCC Lions held on for a 67-63 victory, while the Lady Lions...

SCOOBA – The East Mississippi Community College basketball teams tipped off the new calendar year by sweeping visiting East Central Community College Tuesday night at Keyes T. Currie Coliseum on the Scooba campus. The home-standing EMCC Lady Lions snapped an eight-game losing skid with a 67-60 triumph over the...

SCOOBA – The East Mississippi Community College basketball teams tip off the new calendar year by taking on a pair of rival schools this week. EMCC opens the week by playing host to East Central Community College Tuesday evening on the Scooba campus. A 5:30 p.m. women’s game...

SCOOBA – In conjunction with the beginning of a new calendar, East Mississippi Community College has officially launched its new athletics website – www.EMCCAthletics.com – to kick off 2013.An interactive site hosted by PrestoSports, www.EMCCAthletics.com continues to feature improved traditional elements about EMCC’s six NJCAA-affiliated athletic programs as well as...

MESA, Ariz. – A short-handed East Mississippi Community College men’s basketball squad gave a valiant second-half effort against host Mesa Community College only to have a gutsy, comeback attempt fall just short Sunday evening. In the end, the visiting Lions dropped a controversial 84-81 decision in the...

MESA, Ariz. – The Lions of East Mississippi Community College couldn’t overcome a 14-0 second-half run by Salt Lake (UT) Community College in dropping a 68-61 decision during Saturday’s semifinals of the fourth annual Fiesta Bowl Junior College Shootout being held at Theo Heap Gym on the campus...

MESA, Ariz. – The East Mississippi Community College Lions never trailed en route to claiming a 73-59 victory over 18th-ranked Central Arizona College in Friday’s quarterfinals of the fourth annual Fiesta Bowl Junior College Shootout being held at Theo Heap Gym on the campus of Mesa Community College....

SCOOBA – The Lions of East Mississippi Community College will conclude the 2012 calendar year portion of their basketball schedule by competing in the prestigious Fiesta Bowl Junior College Shootout this weekend in Mesa, Ariz. The three-day, eight-team hoops tournament will tip off Friday at Theo Heap...

SCOOBA – The 15th-ranked Lions of East Mississippi Community College put the finishing touches on their successful 8-2 football campaign by placing four players on the 2012 NJCAA Football All-America Team, as announced Wednesday by the NJCAA’s national office headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colo.Headlined by sophomore free safety Justin Cox...