Niagara College Sports Report Nov. 27
Niagara College’s women’s basketball team (6-2) pushed its winning streak in Ontario Colleges Athletic Association West Division play to four games by defeating the Redeemer Royals 78-40 and the Fanshawe Falcons 59-50.
Leading the way for Niagara against Fanshawe were: Janee Harrison with 16 points, seven rebounds, two steals and a block; Taryn Mitchell with 16 points, six rebounds, two steals and an assist; and, Lexxus Bell with 12 points, five rebounds, four assists, three steals and a block.
“Coming in we had some injuries and we had an injury early in the second quarter,” Niagara head coach Chris Rao said. “I think it was a great representation of our team and how deep we are. We really had a next player up identity today and we rebound tremendously together.”
Top Niagara performers against Fanshawe were: Mitchell with 18 points, 11 rebounds, two steals and two assists; Molly Taylor with 13 points, 10 rebounds, four steals, two assists and a block; Griffin Lack-Shane with nine points, nine rebounds, one assist and a steal; and, Bell with eight points and seven boards.
“Fanshawe is a good team and credit to them. They play very hard,” he said. “I’m glad we matched it.”
Mitchell was named Niagara’s female athlete of the week after playing a combined 69 minutes and putting up 34 points, 17 rebounds, four steals and three assists.
Niagara hosts St. Clair (6-1) Friday at 6 p.m.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
Niagara’s men’s basketball team improved to 5-4 in OCAA action by knocking off the Redeemer Royals 100-50 and the Fanshawe Falcons 80-61.
Playing well for Niagara against Redeemer were: Ethan Alino-DelaCruz with 16 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals; Khayden Stewart with 13 points, four steals, three assists and a rebound; and, Jason Sache with 12 points, two rebounds and an assist.
“This was a great team win with numerous players having an impact on the game. We put in a strong defensive effort and combined it with solid shooting and good decision making in transition,” Niagara head coach Phil Mosley said. “It was nice to see players get playing time and build their confidence.”
Leading the way against Fanshawe were: Adrian Pajor with 23 points, three rebounds and an assist; Reggie Williams with 13 points, four assists, two steals and a rebound; and, Raheem Dennis with six points, eight rebounds, two blocks and a steal.
“It was a very crucial win against a good team which sits close to us in the standings. Adrian Pajor was able to take full advantage of being inserted into the starting lineup and finished with 23 points,” he said. “Once again, we were able to play deep into our roster and each game we see glimpses from players who take advantage of their minutes and down the road will have the confidence to contribute in big games.”
Pajor was named Niagara’s male athlete of the week after recording a career-high 23 points against Fanshawe going 6-for-9 beyond the arc while adding three rebounds and an assist in 19 minutes. He also contributed 10 points, two steals and two rebounds against Redeemer.
Niagara hosts St. Clair (7-1) Friday at 8 p.m.
WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL
Niagara’s women’s volleyball team (6-3) had a .500 week, losing 3-2 to Redeemer (22-25, 25-22, 18-25, 25-20 and 9-15) and defeating Mohawk 3-1 (25-21, 21-25, 25-15 and 25-20).
Performing well for Niagara against Redeemer were: Abbey Gooder with 13 kills, five digs and two service aces; Kyleigh Baxter with 11 kills, 10 digs, two assists and a service ace; Montanna Taylor with 27 assists, 10 digs and nine kills; and, Rachael Bickford with 18 assists, seven digs and three kills.
Leading the way against Mohawk were: Sam Cormier with 10 kills, seven blocks, six digs and an assist; Bickford with 23 assists, four digs and two service aces; and, Taylor with 13 digs, 11 assists, nine kills and four service aces.
“I am extremely pleased with the outcome of today’s game. The team executed our game plan, stayed composed and rallied behind each other throughout the match,” Niagara head coach Elaine Pilgrim-Susi said. “We dominated at the net limiting Mohawk’s middles and our serving accuracy improved tremendously. Our player of the game was Sam Cormier who was a wall at the net defensively with seven solo blocks, three block assists, and six kills throughout the match.
Niagara is at Humber (9-0) Thursday before hosting Fanshawe (1-8) Saturday at 1 p.m.
MEN’S VOLLEYBALL
The Knights men’s volleyball team (7-2) had a perfect week with 3-1 victories over Redeemer (25-21, 16-25, 25-21 and 25-20) and Mohawk (25-23, 22-25, 25-21 and 25-20)
Sparking Niagara to the win over Redeemer were: Micah Nieuwets with 12 kills, four digs, four blocks and a service ace; Carter Thurman with 28 assists, seven digs, three kills and a service ace; Matthew Perron with 11 assists and two digs; and, Elijah Bugiardini with eight kills, five digs, an assist and a service ace.
“The guys were efficient and executed the game plan to a T. They competed and embraced the loud and fun atmosphere that is Redeemer,” Niagara head coach Steve Stone said. “We were able to limit our errors and put pressure on them.”
Topping the stat sheet versus Mohawk were: Thurman with 39 assists, 13 digs, one kill and a block; Micah Nieuwets with 13 kills, 14 digs and an assist; Ashton Nieuwets with 12 kills, 10 digs and two blocks; and, Bugiardini with 10 kills, 10 digs, four blocks and a service ace.
“Nice to get the win today. The boys were able to execute and really played a clean game of volleyball,” he said. “I felt Micah really stepped up and helped lead our team in that game. Also, Elijah was super efficient attacking and locked down the net with his blocking. All in all, everyone contributed and as a team we played together.”
Niagara is at Humber (5-4) Thursday before hosting Fanshawe (7-2) Saturday at 3 p.m.
