Women’s Basketball

The CCRI Lady Knights basketball team hosted the No. 15 ranked (NJCAA Division II poll) Lady Mustangs of Monroe College from New Rochelle, N.Y. on Sunday as part of the 2010 CCRI Basketball Invitational. The Lady Knights lost 65-47, falling to 8-11 on the season.

CCRI fell behind 34-15 but played much stronger in the second half. In the end though, the Monroe’s depth and athleticism proved to be too much.

Captain Erica Pisaturo (Smithfield) led the way for the Lady Knights, scoring 13 points with five rebounds while Cassie Novicky (New Milford, Conn.) scored 12 points with seven rebounds and three blocked shots. Monroe’s April Williams led all scorers with a game-high 18 points including four 3-pointers.

“It was a tough game against a great team from Monroe College,” CCRI women’s head coach Kevin Monagle said. “Hopefully we learned some things about them and about ourselves this weekend.”

The Lady Knights had won their opener at the CCRI Invitational, dropping Union County College 66-63.

The Lady Knights were trailing 38-31 at halftime but kept things close thanks to 20 first-half points from Pisaturo.

CCRI cranked-up the defensive intensity in the second half and got offensive support from Teighlor Clare-Kearney (Manchester, Conn.) and Novicky who combined to score 21 points after halftime. Pisaturo finished with a team-high 22 points and five rebounds, Clare-Kearney scored 19 points and Rajvi Jarvis (Stratford, Conn.) added four points and ripped down a game-high 16 rebounds.

The Lady Knights’ next game will be Saturday the 23rd at 1:00pm when they will host Region XXI foe Roxbury Community College at the Vincent A. Cullen Fieldhouse located on the CCRI Knight Campus in Warwick.

Men’s Basketball

The CCRI men’s basketball team lost both games in the 2010 CCRI Basketball Invitational Tournament over the weekend. The Knights dropped their opener, 79-71, to Monroe Community College and followed up with a 80-71 setback against Genesee Community College in the consolation game. With the losses, CCRI fell to 9-10 on the season.

CCRI and Genesee were tied at 65-65 late in the second half of the consolation game before the Cougars erupted for a 15-6 run down the stretch. Captain Colin Burns (Chepachet) scored a game-high 27 points with eight rebounds and two blocked shots and teammate by Mike Juarez (Cranston) scored a career-high 18 points to help lead the Knights.

Pat Sturdahl (Exeter) contributed eight points and four steals and Apollos Wade (Taunton, Mass.) added seven assists and five rebounds.

The Knights suffered a similar defeat against Monroe in the tournament opener. The team’s were tied 35-35 at halftime when Tribunes guard Bobby Bell fond his long-range shot and knocked down four three-pointers in the second half. CCRI battled back, cutting its deficit to as little as two points, but could not pull-off the upset.

Burns scored 17 points in the loss and TJ McKiver (New Haven, Conn.) charted a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Sturdahl finished with 11 points five assist and five rebounds and Esaie Touze (Providence) added eight points and 10 rebounds.

“I’m pleased with our effort and how we performed,” CCRI head coach Rick Harris said. “We continue to get better and that is our daily goal.”

The Knights next game will be this Saturday the 23rd when they will host Region XXI foe Roxbury Community College at 3:00pm.