Report to the Community

athletiCs ............................................................................

Johnson County Community College BASEBALL The JCCC baseball team won 43 games in 2009, a record under head coach Kent Shelley.

The team also ranked among the top hitting and pitching teams in the country. Individually, a school­record 11 players were selected to the All­East Jayhawk Conference team, and three of those players were named to the All­Region VI team. Shelley reached a milestone in his career, winning his 600th career game.

MEN’S BASKETBALL The Cavaliers, led by head coach Mike Jeffers, captured their second NJCAA Division II National Championship by defeating Kirkwood Community College, 63­49, at Mary Miller Gymnasium in Danville, Ill. JCCC also won the 2001 national title. The Cavaliers finished the season with a 26­9 record. Sophomore guard Nafis Ricks was named the tournament MVP and was joined on the All­Tournament Team by freshmen Jared Henry and Kenny Moore. Ricks also was named first­team All­American and was selected the NJCAA and National Basketball Coaches Association Player of the Year. Jeffers was named the NJCAA, NABC and Kansas Association of Basketball Coaches Coach of the Year. Jeffers also captured his 300th win as the Cavaliers’ head coach.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL The 2008­2009 JCCC women’s basketball season saw a change at head coach. Ben Conrad immediately instilled his style of basketball, and despite some bumps, his team played suffocating defense from the first tip to the final buzzer. The Lady Cavaliers won 19 games and captured their 10th straight Region VI Division II title. One of the leaders on the team was Danielle Shows. The sophomore forward was selected to the 2009 Junior College/Community College State Farm Coaches All­America Basketball Team. Shows was also recognized as an honorable mention performer. She is only the third player in JCCC history to earn this honor. She also was named as a first­team All­East Jayhawk Conference and first­team All­Region VI D­II performer.

MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY The men’s cross country team recorded two wins, had three second­place finishes and three third­place finishes during the regular

season. In championship events, the Cavaliers placed second in the conference, third in the region, 11th at the National Cross Country Championship and third at the NJCAA Half Marathon Championship. Three JCCC athletes raced to All­Region VI honors.

WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY The 2008 JCCC women’s cross country season will rank with the best in team history. JCCC participated in nine scoring events in the season and came away winners seven times.

The Lady Cavaliers won the Maple Leaf Invitational, Cavalier Cup, Tabor Invitational, JCCC Short Course Invitational, Emporia State Invitational, the East Jayhawk Conference Championship and the NJCAA Half Marathon Championship. JCCC also placed second at Region VI and sixth at the NJCAA Cross Country Championship. The half marathon win gave JCCC and head coach Mike Bloemker their fourth national half marathon championship and fifth overall national title.

Temer Yimer and Francis Gipson were cross country and half marathon All­Americans.

Yimer also was the conference champion.

GOLF The JCCC golf team capped the 2008­2009 campaign with a 16th­place finish at the NJCAA Golf Championship in Huntsville, Ala. The Cavaliers’ 16th­place finish ties the ninth­ best effort in team history. In addition, three members of the team were among the top 15 players in the final Kansas Jayhawk Conference point standings for the season. Sophomore Miles Christensen finished among the top five to earn first­team all­conference honors.

Freshmen Trevor Johanson and Nate Allison earned honorable mention honors.

GOLDEN GIRLS DANCE TEAM At the National Dance Alliance Collegiate Dance Championships, the Golden Girls dance team finished second overall in the Challenge Cup for Division III, which tied the team’s highest finish in the competition. Two team members were honored: team captain Courtney Coppel received the Cavalier Award and Chrissy Birkholz received the Most Valuable Player award.

MEN’S SOCCER JCCC put together a solid regular season and battled to the end for the conference title.

JCCC tied for second with Hutchinson with a 9­1­1 conference mark, just behind Barton County, which finished 10­1­0. JCCC finished 2008 with a 12­7­1 record, JCCC’s best campaign since the 2005 season. A total of nine players earned all­conference honors, and five of those players also earned All­Region VI accolades.

WOMEN’S SOCCER All season long, Region VI schools Hutchinson Community College and Barton County Community College received national notoriety, each appearing in the NJCAA women’s soccer poll, but when the dust settled, it was Johnson County who emerged as the top team in Region VI. The Lady Cavaliers captured the NJCAA Region VI women’s soccer title, defeating nationally ranked Barton County, 4­3. JCCC reached the championship match by downing Hutchinson, 1­0. In addition, a total of six individuals earned postseason honors from JCCC.

SOFTBALL The JCCC softball team won the Region VI/District E title and qualified for the NJCAA National Tournament for a third straight season. The Lady Cavaliers finished the season among the top 10 nationally with a 34­13 record, which included a 27­game win streak.

JCCC also had six players earn all­conference honors, and eight were named as All­Region VI performers. In addition, head coach Kelly Latendresse won her 100th game.

MEN’S TENNIS The JCCC men’s tennis team posted an 18­2 record, won the Kansas Jayhawk Conference and Region VI titles and finished seventh at the NJCAA Championship. Individually, Ross Gelina and Luka Radulovic earned All­American by placing second at No. 3 doubles. At the region championship, JCCC athletes won four of the six singles titles and two of the three doubles championships.

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