ESPN+ GAME OF THE WEEK

February 2023

BY CODY DALTON & CASSIDY COLLINS

We did it. We made it to the screen.

On Valentine’s Day, the Catawba Valley Red Hawks Men’s Basketball game was one of 24 junior college basketball programs available to stream live on ESPN+.

ESPN+ partnered with the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) to produce the “Game of the Week”, a much-anticipated event which broadcasts sports games played by junior colleges across the country. Once a week, ESPN+ arrives on junior college campuses to film NJCAA football games, baseball games, softball games, and women’s & men’s basketball games.

When the Red Hawks Men’s Basketball team was selected for their match against Patrick & Henry Community College, our athletic department got ready to celebrate.

“We are humbled to be selected for the NJCAA Game of the Week on ESPN+, which can be seen everywhere around the world through their streaming platform,” said Nick Schroeder, Executive Director of Student Life & Athletics. “This is a wonderful opportunity to highlight how amazing Catawba Valley Community College is and how special our student athletes are.”

Stakes were high. Nerves were higher. CVCC faculty, staff, and students were all invited to attend the free event and show support for their Red Hawk Nation athletes, both on the Women’s and Men’s teams.

The first game sparked momentum, as the Red Hawks Women’s Basketball team took on the Louisburg Hurricanes, scoring a 63-48 victory. Team member Keziah Soogrim led the team at 24 points, with rebounds from players Madison Gibson-Blackwell, Alexia Cunningham, and Nijah Cunningham. Rylie Hogg led with assists. After the energetic play from the Women’s Basketball team, the court cleared to get ready for cameras and reporters.

Patrick & Henry traveled from their home base in Martinsville, Virginia to our campus, where they met head-to-head with the Red Hawks Men’s Basketball team at the Tarlton Complex.

The Red Hawks rose to the challengeand put on quite a show. CVCC player Shad Thomas led the game with 21 points and 25 rebounds. Additional team leaders included Braden Graham (13 points), Nasir Gibbs (11 points), Javen Chandler (10 points), and Anthony Allen (10 points). After an intense match, the Red Hawks Men’s Basketball team achieved a nationally showcased victory, with a final score of 83-77.

We made it to the screen, and we won.

Event sponsors included Bumgarner Oil, Catawba Valley Visitor’s Bureau & Hickory Metro Sports Commission, Hannah’s Bar-B-Que, Lance Cook State Farm, Lenoir-Rhyne University, and Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company of Hickory.

WORK-BASED LEARNING ELECTRICAL