basketball

Vaughn Boler scored 21 points and grabbed six rebounds for the Genesee Community College men's basketball team on Sunday afternoon, but it was not enough as the Cougars fell to Delaware Tech Community College, 82-71 in the finals of the Erie Community College Tip-Off Tournament.

GCC built an early lead but Delaware took a 38-28 advantage into the break.

A 4-0 start to the second half had Genesee back within six, but the Spirit responded and extended their lead back to double-digits and to as many as 17 with twelve minutes remaining.

GCC fought back and cut it down to five late in the second half, but Delaware held off the Cougars and converted at the free-throw line to seal the victory.

E.J. Blackwell added 14 points for Genesee, Theirry Ngarambe grabbed 11 rebounds and Joe Gray and Malik Brown each chipped in ten points.

Boler was named to the All-Tournament Team for Genesee, who returns to action next Saturday at the Monroe Community College tournament.
 

On Saturday...

The Genesee Community College men's basketball team downed conference rival Niagara County Community College 82-77 in their opening contest of the season at the Erie Community College Tip-Off Tournament on Saturday afternoon.

Genesee used a late surge to take a 20 point lead late in the first half, before taking a 43-28 lead into halftime.

The Thunderwolves got off to a fast start in the second half and cut the GCC lead to single-digits before Terryl Coombs scored nine straight points for the Cougars to extend their lead back to 15.

Niagara CCC hung around and closed the gap to within two at 79-77 with about two minutes remaining, but GCC was able to convert three out of four at the freethrow line and came away with defensive stops to hold off the Thunderwolves.

Vaughn Boler and E.J. Blackwell each scored a game-high 18 points for GCC. Boler also added six rebounds and Blackwell chipped in five assists. Coombs ended the game with 14 points, all of which came in the second half. Malik Brown was also in double-digits for GCC, scoring 13 points, Carlton Wright scored nine points and Maurice Bailey added seven points.

2012 March Madness 8TH Grade Champions
 
White team standing from left to right: Greg Mruczeck, Mike Rose, Matt Roach, Coach Alex Brasky, Xavier Green, Nashiem Harris, Coach Cam McDonald
Kneeling from Left to Right. Andrew Mruczek, Alex Candy, Tyler Prospero, Adonis Davis.

2012 Rochester Bash Tourney 8th Grade Champions
 
Blue team standing from left to right: Xavier Green, Terrell Mapes, Coach Alex Brasky, Jacob Schrider, Greg Mruczeck, Nashiem Harris
Kneeling from Left to Right. Mike Rose, Alex Candy, Tyler Prospero, Adonis Davis. Andrew Mruczek

Info and photos submitted by Joseph Prospero.

After earning a first-round bye in the Region III Division II Men’s Basketball tournament, the second-seeded Cougars traveled to Erie Community College on Saturday afternoon to take on a hot Mercyhurst North East team that upset Niagara County Community College on Tuesday night to advance to Saturday’s semi-finals.

Genesee jumped out to an early lead after a Kenton Chan-Man (Brooklyn, NY) three-pointer and two Kevin Nascimento (New York, NY) free-throws gave the Cougars a 7-2 advantage about four minutes in. Mercyhurst then made a 10-2 run to take the lead, but no team held a lead larger than five points during the first half. In total, there were nine lead changes in the opening twenty minutes, and the Saints held a 39-38 advantage at the break.

Mercyhurst took control of the game at the start of the second half. The Saints scored the first five points of the second twenty minutes before Deylon Bovell (Brooklyn, NY) hit his second three-pointer of the afternoon to draw GCC back within three. With a 44-41 lead, Mercyhurst then scored 16 of the next 20 points and opened up a 15 point, 60-45 lead with 14 minutes to play. The Saints held their largest lead at 16 when they led 66-50 with just over 12 minutes to go. Genesee made a push and cut the lead to single digits at 82-73 with four minutes to play, but the Saints capitalized at the free-throw line and held off the higher seed, winning 99-82.

(#1 Deylon Bovell led the Cougars with 25 points in Saturday's loss to Mercyhurst North East)

Genesee shot just 34 percent on the afternoon and were only 4 of 25 from three-point range.

Bovell led the Cougars with 25 points and also grabbed eight rebounds. Tyshawn Ferguson (Chicago, IL) netted 19 points and grabbed nine boards, Chan-Man added 14 points and Nascimento chipped in with 11 points.

Genesee ends the season with an 18-12 overall record and a 10-5 conference record. Mercyhurst North East will move on to face Erie Community College in the Region III championship on Sunday afternoon at 1pm.

The fifth-seeded Genesee Community College women’s basketball team traveled to fourth-seeded Erie Community College on Wednesday night for the play-in round of the Region III Division II tournament and the right to move on to the weekend‘s final four at Mercyhurst North East. The two teams split the regular-season series with one win apiece, each team winning on the road.

The Lady Cougars opened the game by taking a 5-0 lead less than a minute in. Their press-defense kept Erie off the scoreboard for more than the first three minutes of the game before the Lady Kats converted on two free-throws to end the drought. Erie scored five more unanswered points to grab the lead, a lead they would hold on to for quite some time. Trailing 14-9 halfway through the opening twenty, Jasmine Armstead (Rochester, NY) hit her second three-pointer of the half as the shot-clock expired to draw Genesee back within two. The Lady Cougars would then struggle, scoring only seven points in the final ten minutes of the first half, and trailed 26-19 at the break. They were just 8 of 38 shooting from the field in the opening twenty minutes.

(#14 Nanase Akagami looks for #15 Carrie Blunt in GCC's double-overtime loss to Erie Community College on Wendesday night)

ECC scored the first eight points of the second half and took their largest lead at 34-19 with 17 minutes remaining in regulation. After Genesee head coach Christie McGee-Ross called a timeout, the Lady Cougars started to come back. Carrie Blunt (Syracuse, NY) and Nicole Laird (Alexander, NY) combined to score GCC’s next seven points and trimmed the Erie lead to ten. The Lady Kats extended their lead to 13 before Genesee made another push. Blunt and Armstead each hit two free-throws and cut the lead to single digits with just over ten minutes to play. After a Rachel Kohlhagen (Attica, NY) layup got GCC to within four, Blunt tied the game at 48 with back-to-back short jumpers. Erie then used a timeout to their advantage, going on a 9-0 run after the stoppage to take back the lead. Blunt then went back to work and scored two straight baskets to make it a 57-52 game with just over four minutes remaining. A Chyna Lennox (Moseley, VA) free-throw and another three-pointer from Armstead followed an ECC basket to get GCC back to within three before the Lady Kats went on a 7-0 run in a two-minute span to once again take a double-digit lead at 66-56. Kayla Golden (Lackawanna, NY) then converted on four straight free-throws to make it a 66-60 game before Blunt and Lennox each scored a bucket, making it 66-64 with less than a half-minute to play. After an ECC free-throw, Lennox banked one in with 14 seconds left to bring GCC to within one at 67-66. The Lady Cougars sent Erie back to the free-throw line where they converted both freebies to take a three-point lead with ten seconds left. Needing a triple to tie, Genesee was unable to get a good look from three-point range and instead settled for a layup from Blunt, cutting the ECC adavntage to one at 69-68 with under three seconds to play. The ensuing inbound was then stolen by Kohlhagen who was fouled while shooting as time expired. With no time left on the clock, the sophomore missed the first free-throw but made the second to tie the game at 69 and send it to overtime.

(Chyna Lennox (yellow) puts in two of her 14 points on Wednesday night in the opening round of the Region III Division II women's basketball tournament)

Lennox gave Genesee the lead to start the extra session with a quick basket, and the Lady Cougars led 75-72 with just over two-minutes to play after a couple of Jalessa Rogers (Syracuse, NY) free-throws. An ECC basket made it a one-point game with 30 seconds to play before Armstead once again extended the lead to three, going two-for-two at the free-throw line. Erie transitioned quickly, however, and tied the game at 77 with a three-pointer with 20 seconds remaining. Lennox gave GCC the lead back with a layup with ten seconds to play, but the Lady Kats were able to get the equalizer with five seconds left and sent the game to double-overtime, the score all tied at 79.

The Lady Cougars played the majority of the second overtime without their top-three scorers. Blunt and Golden each fouled out in the first overtime and Armstead followed less than a minute into the second overtime. Genesee never had a lead during the second extra-session and were outscored 12-7. It took ten extra minutes, but the Lady Cougars eventually fell to the Lady Kats, 91-86.

Blunt led all scorers with 31 points and also collected 21 rebounds. She scored 27 of her 31 points in the second half and the first minute and a half of overtime before fouling out. Armstead finished with 15 points and eight boards, Lennox tallied 14 points and also collected nine rebounds, Rogers chipped in with 11 points and Golden nabbed 12 rebounds and finished with four points.

The loss ends the season for Genesee. They finish the year with a 9-22 overall record and were 4-7 in conference play during the regular season and tournament play. With the win, Erie Community College moves on to the semi-finals of the Region III Division II tournament and will play the number one seed Mercyhurst North East Lady Saints on Saturday afternoon at Mercyhurst North East.

The Genesee Community College women’s basketball team closed out the regular season with a victory at Niagara County Community College on Saturday afternoon, cruising past the Lady Thunderwolves 90-52.

Jasmine Armstead (Rochester, NY) put the Lady Cougars in front 4-0 early on, scoring the first two baskets of the game. NCCC took it’s only lead with 12 minutes to play in the first half when they made a 7-0 run to take a 12-9 advantage. Genesee responded with a 19-0 run of their own and regained the lead for good. Carrie Blunt (Syracuse, NY) scored 14 points in the opening twenty minutes and started a 19-3 run to end the half for GCC, giving the Lady Cougars a 52-27 advantage at the break.

Kayla Golden (Lackawanna, NY) scored 12 points in the second half to keep Genesee comfortably in the lead, as the Lady Cougars gave up back-to-back NCCC baskets only one time during the final twenty minutes. Chyna Lennox (Moseley, VA) played well inside, scoring ten of Genesee’s 52 points in the paint. Blunt finished the afternoon with 20 points and 13 rebounds, Golden added 19 points, Armstead tallied 14 points and Lennox ended with 17 points and grabbed eight boards.

Genesee finishes the regular season with a 9-21 overall record and a 4-6 conference record. They will now move on to the Western New York Athletic Conference Tournament. The first round will send Genesee to Erie Community College on Wednesday night to take on ECC, with the winner moving on to the weekend’s final four which will take place at Mercyhurst North East.

The Genesee Community College men’s basketball team controlled their own destiny on Saturday afternoon when they traveled to Niagara County Community College. A win and the Cougars would earn the second seed and a first-round bye in the Western New York Athletic Conference Tournament and a free pass into the semi-finals. A loss and the Cougars would host a play in game on Tuesday night for the right to move on to next weekend‘s final four. Not wanting to have to play the extra game, Genesee defeated NCCC for the second time this season, beating the Thunderwolves 80-70.

The Cougars trailed only once in the game when NCCC jumped out to a 3-0 advantage on their first possession. Mike Glenn (Fairport, NY) and Kenton Chan-Man (Brooklyn, NY) quickly erased that deficit with back-to-back three pointers to give Genesee the lead. Genesee held Niagara in single-digit scoring for more than the first eight minutes of the game and opened up a 21-9 lead. Donte Meredith (Bronx, NY) came off the bench to score eight first half points to help the Cougars to a 40-25 advantage at half time. Tyshawn Ferguson (Chicago, IL) cancelled out a number of NCCC scoring chances by taking four first half charges.

Glenn extended the Genesee lead to start the second half by scoring the Cougars first five points before having to leave the game due to injury. GCC held their largest lead at 20 points when they led 55-35 with twelve minutes to play. Niagara made a mid-half run to cut the lead to ten before Kevin Nascimento (New York, NY) and Meredith hit back-to-back three’s to extend the lead once again. The Thunderwolves did score the game’s final seven points, but ran out of time and could not mount a comeback.

Meredith finished with a game high and career high 18 points, Ferguson recorded a 14-point 14-rebound double-double, Chan-Man netted 14 points, Nascimento added 12 points and six rebounds, Glenn scored 11 points before leaving the game and Deylon Bovell (Brooklyn, NY) chipped in with ten points.

The Cougars finish the regular season with an 18-11 overall record and a 10-4 record in conference play. The win gives GCC a first round bye and a pass until Saturday, when they will play the winner of Niagara County Community College and Mercyhurst North East. That game will be played on Tuesday night at Niagara County Community College.

The Genesee Community College women’s basketball team dropped their final regular season home game of the season to Alfred State College on Tuesday night, falling to the Lady Pioneers 86-74.

After an even start, Genesee took it’s first lead late in the opening twenty minutes, when back-to-back baskets from Kayla Golden (Lackawanna, NY) and Jalessa Rogers (Syracuse, NY) gave the Lady Cougars a 21-17 advantage with six minutes left to play. Golden scored ten first half points before The Lady Pioneers closed the half on a 14-7 run and held a 31-28 lead at the break.

Genesee fell further behind to start the second half as Alfred State increased its lead to twelve at 53-41 behind 13 quick points from Haley Witchella. GCC fought back and got an old fashion three-point play from Rogers to make it a six point game with about four minutes left to play before Witchella and the Lady Pioneers took back control and extended their lead back to twelve for the win.

Rogers scored 15 second half points and had 17 total in the ball game. Golden finished with a team high 18 points and also grabbed nine rebounds, Chyna Lennox (Moseley, VA) chipped in with 14 points and Jasmine Armstead (Rochester, NY) added nine points. Witchella finished with 34 points, 27 in the second half, and 26 rebounds for Alfred State.

Genesee falls to 8-21 on the year and will finish out the regular season on the road Saturday when they travel to Niagara County Community College for a 1pm start.

It took a comeback on “Sophomore Night” for the Genesee Community College men’s basketball team, but the Cougars earned a conference win in their final regular season home game of the season against Alfred State College on Tuesday night, 85-82.

Mike Glenn (Fairport, NY) got the Cougars off to a fast start by scoring 16 of the team’s first 18 points of the game. Despite the hot start from Glenn, the Cougars struggled, only shooting 29% from the floor in the opening twenty minutes. The Pioneers took advantage of GCC’s poor shooting and six first half three-pointers of their own to grab a 13-point, 43-30 lead at the half.

Alfred State held their largest lead at 15 points early in the second half before the Cougars made their comeback. Genesee made a 12-4 run in a four-minute span to trim the Pioneer lead to one at 56-55 with just over nine minutes left to play. After an Alfred State basket, Tyshawn Ferguson (Chicago, IL) and Kenton Chan-Man (Brooklyn, NY) each capitalized on three-point plays to give the Cougars the lead back at 61-58. Chan-Man went on a stretch where he scored nine straight points to extend the GCC lead to nine, and went 4-4 at the free-throw line down the stretch to help the Cougars hold off the visitors.

(#21 Mike Glenn scores 37 points in GCC's win over Alfred State)

Glenn finished with a game high and a season high 37 points and also grabbed seven rebounds. Chan-Man finished with 25 points, Ferguson added nine points and Deylon Bovell (Brooklyn, NY) chipped in with eight points and nine boards. Genesee improves to 17-11 on the season and will close out the regular season this Saturday at Niagara County Community College at 3pm.

Riding a two-game losing streak, the Genesee Community College men’s basketball team needed a win against Jamestown Community College on Saturday afternoon to keep their hopes for a top seed in the Western New York Athletic Conference playoffs alive. The Cougars got that win, downing the Jayhawks, a team that defeated them by three earlier in the season, 68-59.

Genesee fell behind early thanks to four-of-six shooting from three-point range for Jamestown. A Kevin Nascimento (New York, NY) layup tied the game at 20 with four minutes to go in the first half before Mike Glenn (Fairport, NY) scored the final seven points in the opening twenty minutes to send GCC into the locker room with a 30-25 lead.

Glenn finished a 10-0 run of his own by hitting his first three-point shot attempt to start the second half to give the Cougars a 33-25 lead. Genesee did not trail in the second half but saw their lead drop to as low as six, when Jamestown made it a 55-49 game with 2:30 remaining, before Tyshawn Ferguson (Chicago, IL) completed a three-point play to stretch the lead back to nine. GCC finished the game off at the free-throw line and snap their short two-game losing streak, beating the Jayhawks to even the season series at one win apiece.

Five Cougars finished the afternoon scoring in double figures, led by Kenton Chan-Man (Brooklyn, NY) and Glenn who each finished with 18 points. Ferguson ended with 12 points and Deylon Bovell (Brooklyn, NY) and Nascimento each finished with 10 points.

Genesee improves to 16-11 on the season and are now 8-4 in conference play. They will host Alfred State College on Tuesday night at 8pm for their final regular season home game of the year.

Trailing by 14 with a little over eleven minutes to play, Genesee Community College women’s basketball Coach Christie McGee-Ross called a timeout to get her team to calm down. The result, a 38-15 run to end the game on Saturday afternoon, earning a 73-64 victory over visiting Jamestown Community College.

The Lady Cougars began the afternoon by shooting only a little better than 23 percent from the floor in the first half. They trailed by ten at the break, 29-19.

The pivotal timeout in the second half came with 11:32 to go in the game and Genesee trailing 49-35. After the timeout, Carrie Blunt (Syracuse, NY) and Jasmine Armstead (Rochester, NY) combined to go on an 8-0 run to inch the Lady Cougars closer. With 5:30 remaining, GCC trailed 49-55 before Jalessa Rogers (Syracuse, NY) and Kayla Golden (Lackawanna, NY) scored four points each in a span of three minutes, eventually tying the game at 57-57. Chyna Lennox’s (Moseley, VA) free-throws with 1:40 left gave GCC a 61-60 lead, their first since a 9-8 advantage just eight minutes into the game. Genesee would not relinquish the lead and closed out the game at the free-throw line, earning their third conference victory of the season.

The Lady Cougars saw two players end the afternoon with double-double’s. Golden tallied 17 points and 11 rebounds and Blunt had 11 points and 15 boards. Rogers grabbed 15 rebounds to go along with six points, Armstead finished with a game high 21 points and Lennox chipped in with ten points. Genesee improves to 8-20 on the season and are now 3-5 in conference play. They will host Alfred State College on Tuesday night at 6pm for their last regular season home game.