Northern Essex completed a doubleheader sweep vs The community college of Rhode Island on April 15th at Trinity stadium by scores of 6-1 and 5-4. The Knights improve to (20-5) and CCRI falls to (14-11).  

Each Knights starting pitchers, Tristan Ciampa (6-0) and Jagger Lovinelli (4- 1) picked up the wins. At the plate, Richard De La Cruz of Boston, MA continued his impressive season collecting a team high of five RBIs. 

 Game one: Knights 6, CCRI 1 

Tristan Ciampa pitcher tossed a seven-inning complete game gem. He struck out nine, allowed three hits and one unearned in the outing.  

The Knights struck first offensively. In the third inning Kameron Levesque of Haverhill, MA hit a leadoff triple to left field. A pair of walks loaded the bases. Anthony Marcano of Boston, MA smashed a fly ball to left field to bring in a run on a sac fly. De la Cruz followed up with an RBI single up the middle to push The Knights advantage to two. The Knights would add another run in the inning to lead 3-0. 

CCRI’s lone run scored on a wild pitch with a runner on third in the top of the sixth inning, 3-1. 

The Knights’ bats got back to work in the in their half of the inning pushing three runs across the plate. Jomar Moreta of Lynn, MA hit a leadoff single to right field. Moreta advanced to second on a stollen base. Domenic Cocenzie of North Providence, RI reached first base on a hit by a pitch. Cooper Smith of Bloomington, MN drove Moreta with an RBI double to center field. De La Cruz scored his second RBI of the evening with a single to right center. The Knights would tack on another run to stretch their lead to five. 

Campina would take the mound again in the seventh inning to finish what he started. He retired CCRI in order for the 6-1 opener victory. 

 Game two: Knights 5, CCRI 4 

Game two was a much closer affair. The Knights edged out CCRI 5-4 with a solid bullpen performance and just enough needed offense.  

Knights starter, Jagger Lovinelli of Huntington beach, CA struggled. Lovinelli’s pitches often caught too much of the plate resulting in consistent hard contact. He surrendered five runs on eight hits and three walks over six innings of work. 

Cooper Smith of Bloomington, MN got the offense started in the third inning with an RBI single to shallow left field to put The Knights in front 1-0. De La Cruz hit an RBI single up to center field to score Smith and take a 2-0 lead. The Knights would add another run to increase their lead to three. 

De La Cruz doubled in two insurance runs to put The Knights up 5-1 in the fifth inning 

CCRI began chipping away at their deficit in the seventh inning when Lovinelli allowed an RBI triple, 5-2. CCRI Doubled in another run, 5-3 to put the tying run at the plate. To minimize the damage head coach Jeff Mejia elected to go to the bullpen and the left-hander’s day was done.  

Mejia turned to Reflin Jimenez of Lawarence, MA to protect the two-run lead. After Jimenez gave up an inherited run to CCRI within one. He bounced back recording the next three outs to secure the 5-4 win and double-header sweep. 

The knights were scheduled to continue their four-game home-stand on Monday April 17th vs. Fisher college JV at the NECC campus field. 

Men’s basketball forward, Luis Reynoso, named to the men’s basketball all-American first team, the first Knight in program history to do so.

In Reynoso’s 2022-2023 campaign he appeared in 32 of the 35 games. Reynoso averaged 19 Points and 25.2 minutes per game. He led the league in defensive rebounds (292) and total rebounds (423). Reynoso was also second in rebounds per game (13.2) and free throws made (218). 

His performance on the court helped lead The Knights to a program best 33-2 overall record and their first NJCAA national tournament appearance in program history in which they placed fifth.

Freshman infielder Domenic Crocenzie of North Providence, RI was named NJCAA national player of the week. The NJCAA announced the selection for the week ending on March 26th. 

The Knights opened region 21 play with a three game series sweep against Roxbury community college that week. In the series Crocenzie batted .857% (6-for-7) hitting one HR and recording 12 RBIs in 30-0, 18-0 and 12-0 wins against Roxbury. His offensive assault earned him the recognition from the NJCAA. 

In the series opener he hit a solo HR, a triple and drove in seven RBIs. He led off game two with a triple and scored four more runs. Crocenzie collected another RBI with a sacrifice fly in the series finale. 

The Knights were scheduled to head on the road to play a double header against Holyoke community college on April 2nd. 

The Knights (9-5) wrapped up their three-game home stand with a 12-0 victory against Roxbury community college (0-3) on March 26th at Trinity stadium. 

Richard de la Cruz of Boston, MA had an impressive day at the plate going (2-for -3) driving in six RBIs with a double and HR. Kyle Hsu of Brookline, NH collected two RBIs and went (1-for-3). 

Alex Sweeney of Raymond, NH was handed the ball to start. He struck out eight Tigers allowing one hit and two walks over 3.0 scoreless innings of work. 

The Tigers found themselves quickly in a 3-0 hole when de la Cruz launched a three-run home run over the centerfield wall in the first inning. 

With the bases loaded in the bottom of the second inning, de la Cruz came through with another big hit crushing a base clearing double into right center field. The Knights added two more runs in the inning to lead 9-0. 

Sweeney turned the game over to the bullpen in the top of the fourth inning with Jagger Lovinelli of Huntington beach, CA. Lovinellie gave up a leadoff single. The base runner advanced to second base on a fielder’s choice. A walk issued by Lovinelli put runners on first and second base in what would be The Tigers best scoring chance. Lovinelli bounced back striking out the next two batters to escape the jam. 

The knights went to the bullpen again for the fifth inning going to Reflin Jimenez of Lawarence, MA. The first batter he faced flied out to left field. Jimenez allowed a single to left field to the following batter. A ground ball to the shortstop induced a double play and secured a 12-0 win. 

The victory extends The Knights winning streak to 10 and improves to 9-5 this season. 

The Knights headed on the road for a double header against Holyoke community college on April 2nd.  

The Knight’s kicked off their first home stand of the season March 24th with a bang outscoring Roxbury community college by a combined score of 48-0 in a double header. The Knights, who were dominant both on the mound and at the plate, claimed game one 30-0 and game two 18-0. Each game was halted after the fifth inning by a 10-run rule. 

Game One: NECC 30, Roxbury 0 

The Knights lineup produced led by Domenic Crocenzie of North Providence, Rhode Island (2- for-2, HR, 3 runs and 7 RBIs) and Kyle Hsu of Brookline, NH ( 2-for-2, HR, 4 runs and 2 RBIs) who both hit home runs. As a team, The Knights collected 22 hits and 22 RBIs. 

The Knights pitching was equally impressive, throwing a combined no-hitter. Tristan Campina (4-0) of Wilmington, MA got the start. Campina struck out six Tigers over 3.0 innings. 

Riley Stys of Lowell, MA and Erik Whitehead of North Andover, MA were called out of the bullpen for the last two innings. 

Stys tossed a clean fourth inning with a strikeout. Whitehead closed the game with a 1,2,3 inning fifth inning to complete the combined no-hitter. 

The Tigers pitching staff, however, was the opposite story. Starter Ramon Pena Morillo (0-1) allowed seven runs, six earned, on five hits. The Tigers bullpen didn’t fare better, giving up 16 hits and issuing five walks.  

The Knights (7-5) put this game away early scoring 11 runs in the first inning. They tacked on two runs in the second inning and six in the third inning to stretch their lead 19-0. The Knights offensive bursts continued with 11 runs in the fourth inning to push the lead to 30-0 after five innings. 

Game two: NECC 18, Roxbury 0 

In game two The Knights (8-5) picked up where they left off scoring 11 runs in the first inning. The Knights scored three runs in the second and four in the fourth inning to lead 18-0. 

On the mound, The Knights pitching staff held Tiger’s bats at bay allowing one hit. Starter Jairo Vazquez (2-0) of Lawerence, MA tossed 3.0 scoreless innings striking out eight and giving up one hit. Freshman Emilio Guzman of Everett, MA relived Vazquez in the top of the fourth inning and retired the side in order. Freshman Right-hander Dane LeBert of Woburn, MA was next out the bullpen and closed out the five-inning game by striking out the side. 

Crocenzie led the team in hits going (4-for-4, 3 runs, 4 RBIs and a walk). 

The Knights continued their home stand against Roxbury on Sunday, March 26th at Trinity stadium. The first pitch was set for 2:00 P.M. 

The knights beat The college of Dupage 89- 66 on March 18th to claim fifth place in Northern Essex community college’s first appearance in the national NJCAA tournament. They finished the season 2-1 in tournament play and a 33-2 overall season record. Additionally, they secured a NJCAA region 21 and NJCAA East region district title.  

An impressive performance by The Knights bench carried the bulk of the offense scoring 51 points. Darlin Santiago of Salem and Phillip Cunningham of Haverhill each scored 18 and 10 points. 

Luis Reynoso of Lawarence recorded his 28th double-double of the season knocking down a team high 19 points and 13 rebounds.  

The victory concludes the most successful season in the program’s history and the 20th season under head coach Darren Stratton. 

After a loss in the quarterfinals The Knights rebounded on March 17th with a 67-62 victory over Mohawk Valley community college to advance to the 5th place game. This was their 32nd win in 34 games.  

NJCAA’s first team all-region member Luis Reynoso of Lawarence recorded his 27th double-double of the season. Reynoso dropped 25 points and grabbed 15 rebounds. Darlin Santiago added 12 points off the bench. Johnathon Ligisi of Hamilton, ON and Mehmet Asik of Ankara, Turkey added seven points each.  

Defensively, Edwin SamMbaka of Paris, contributed holding Mohawk Valley to 34% shooting, well under their season average.  

The Knights faced College of Dupage on March 18th at the Herkimer college campus for the right to claim 5th place in the NJCAA national tournament.   

The Knights fell 69-67 against Northampton community college on March 16 in the quarterfinals of the NJCAA tournament. Down by two in the closing seconds of the game, Luis Reynoso of Lawarence attempted a shot from behind the arc that rimmed out as time expired ending their quest for a national championship.  

The Knights jumped out to a fast 7-0 start. Northampton responded with an offensive burst of their own taking the lead on a 13-0 run. The Knights trailed by 11 points 17-28 midway through the half. NECC stormed back with an 12-1 run to even the score at 29-29. The Knights took a one-point deficit into halftime, 34-33.  

The Knights took on Mohawk Valley college in the consolation round on March 17th at noon on the Herkimer campus. 

For the first time in five years NECC students hit the slopes at Gunsmoke mountain in Gilford, N.H. for a skiing trip on March 10th. Nine students participated in the NECC athletics and recreation sponsored trip led by engineering professor Douglas Leaffer. Students enjoyed the trails on Gunsmoke mountain with both snowboards and skis. Professor Leafer is planning on chaperoning future trips to other skiing areas. 

On March 6th it was announced by the NJCAA men’s region 21 committee three Knights, Luis Reynoso and Jeremiah Melendez both of Lawarence and Mehmet Asik of Ankara, Turkey received national recognition. In addition, Darren Stratton was named regional head coach of the year.  

In 29 games Reynoso averaged 19.2 points per game and recorded 26 double-doubles. He also ranked second nationally in rebounding with 13.3 rebounds per game. Reynoso’s performance earned him a spot on the first team all-region. 

Also receiving honors were Melendez and Asik. Melendez was selected to join the third team all-region. He averaged 11.3 points per game and shot 47% percent. Meanwhile, Asik was named an honorable mention for the second consecutive season, averaging eight points this season.  

Head coach Darren Stratton won the regional head coach of the year award. Stratton led the team to their first national tournament appearance in program history. In his 20th season leading the program, The Knights won 27 consecutive games and finished 31–1 overall. Under his tenure The Knights are 288-203 with a 587% winning percentage.