All posts by Jose Rodriguez, Editor-in-Chief / Sports Editor

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Kinsley and Reynoso combined for 28 points in a win over Mustangs

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 On Saturday, Nov. 5,  NECC Knights defeated Central Maine Mustangs 78 to 63 in Concord, N.H., for the tap off classic.

Before the game Coach Darren Stratton told me he talked to his players to clean up all the dirty plays that they did on opening night in the first game of the season.

“That’s the first thing we said to clean up the stuff, clean up the game clean up the turnovers. It’s tough  when you can’t practice you can talk all you want but when you can’t practice it, it’s going to be extremely difficult but that’s the first thing we enforced, we enforced finding a men boxing out and cleaning up the turnover we gave them 22 turnovers, that’s 22 extra position we gave them so we can’t have that we going to lose more than what we going to win,” he said.

The Mustangs won the tap-off against the Knights. The game started at 12:04 p.m.

Central Maine scored first to get things started against the Knights.

Luis Reynoso of Lawrence scored a three pointer to put the Knights up 3 to 2 in the game.

The Knights increased that lead as Jeremiah Melendez of Lawrence made it 6 to 4.

Mustangs tied the game up at 6.

Reynoso put the Knights ahead 8 to 6.

The Knights were up 12 to 8 when Edwin SamMbaka of Paris, France went to the free throw line and made two shots in.

Cristian Kinsley of Lawrence shot a three and made it in Kinsley was five for four on three point line in the first half Kinsley finished with 12 points in the game.

Kinsley and Reynoso combined for 28 points.

“Yeah I think Luis and Cristian as well as some other guys had some excellent game today. Luis and Cristian played all the way through high school. So I think they know each other tendency and they work off each other and was showing today, I mean Luis this weekend I think was man against boys and I think everyone else in the team rally against them and he is firm believer as well as anyone else that there is no special person in this basketball team that everyone has held accountable,” Coach Stratton said.

Philip Cunningham of Haverhill stole  the ball and passed it to Reynoso as Reynoso banged a two pointer to increase the Knights lead.

It was clear the first half that the Knights got the Mustangs number. The Mustangs started to play sloppy basketball all around as the Knights got into their head.

A steal by Reynoso made it in to make it 40-18 in favor of the Knights.

The Knights were taking advantage of Mustangs foul as the Knights was making free throws. The Knights had 11 fouls while Mustangs had 10.

Knights vs NHTI on Nov. 05, 2022 at Concord, New Hampshire
Knights vs NHTI on Nov. 05, 2022 at Concord, New Hampshire Photo by Editor-in-Chief/ Sports Editor Jose Rodriguez

The second half started with Reynoso shooting a two the very next play he stole the ball and passed it to Mehemet Asik “R2” of Ankara Turkey to Melendez to Tre Fite of Massillon, Ohio who scored a three point shot.

The Knights largest lead in the first half was 24 and in the second half was 26.

“The lead slipped away some of the guys we start defending we start doing the simple things we can’t take anything for granted we have to get better every day every possession and I think we felt we took some of the possession, I think Central Maine close out the first half with an 8-0 run and then early in this half they made a 10-0 run because we got lazy, we weren’t very effective,” Coach Stratton said.

The Knights opened the second half with a 10-2 run over the Mustangs.

Metin Yavuz and Asik got technical fouls in the second half.

I ask Stratton why they were able to stay in the game if they got technical fouls.

“When you get two technical you are not allowed to get back in the court each of them receive one technical R2 was from hanging in the basket and Metin was for vulgar language that we got to clean up,” Stratton said.

The Mustangs were on a run against the Knights as they were trying to keep it closer as the run ended on Reynoso three pointer.

Stratton called a timeout, the Knights was in business Ashton Ventola of Danville, N.H. came off the bench by scoring a two pointer.

Coach Stratton used another timeout as he was pretty upset and angry that the team wasn’t playing well the way that Stratton wanted the team to perform during the middle of the second half.

“I was very upset because I had some basketball players on this team that weren’t all about the team, that they were about them self and individual and they have to understand that there is not enough minutes on this basketball game to get everyone involved and they either want to be part of the team or they going to be part of individual and from day one they know I will sign a transfer for any single player on my basketball team to transfer else where…” he said.

The Knights in the last five minutes of the game they started fouling and missing shots. They could have scored more than 78 points during the game which they won 78-63.

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Reynoso 21 points lift the Knights a victory on opening night

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 On Friday, Nov. 4, the NECC Knights defeated New Hampshire Technical Institution NHTI 81 to 69 to begin their 2022-23 campaign for the NHTI tap-off classic.

During the pre game interview NECC Basketball head coach Darren Stratton said he was excited to get the season underway “I’m excited but I know the (guys are) excited more, we’ve been doing workout since September, been practicing since October so I think the kids are more excited to get this under way than I am…” he said.

The game officially started at 7:35 p.m. NHTI won the tip off. Mehmet Asik of Ankara, Turkey fouled with just 38 second in the game.

Luis Reynoso of Lawrence made the two pointer and went to the free throw line for a chance for a three point play. Reynoso finished the game with 21 points.

“Very excited you know (the) team came out came a little slow but we came through in the second half and finished,” said Reynoso.

The Knights committed four fouls in the first five minutes of the game, also they were having a lot of turnover and were playing sloppy basketball. The Knights finished the game with 22 turnovers.

I asked Coach Stratton during the post game about the 22 turnovers that his team had. “It can’t happen, that’s my biggest concern coming in is I think I told you preseason losing Daniel (Almarante) and not having someone in the point guard position, 22 turnover it is just crazy and we just can’t have that to move forward but we are going to try some different things, try some different guys, try to find someone (who) could settle that in and hopefully some one can do that,” he said.

Edwin SamMbaka of Paris, France put the Knights ahead 12 to 11. This was the Knights first lead of the game.  

Stratton called a 30 second timeout when the Knights were losing 15 to 13.

Cristian Kinsley of Lawrence made this a one-point game when he shot it for three to make this game 17 to 16 in favor of NHTI.

NHTI made a pair of free throws to make this game 19-16.

The game was 21-16 when Reynoso made the next four points for the Knights as they were down by a point.

The Knights took a 22-21 lead as Mehemet Asik “R2” of Ankara, Turkey put the Knights on top.

Luis Reynoso strong came up huge for the Knights on opening night
Luis Reynoso huge night for the Knights on opening night Photo by: Bryan Thomas

Reynoso missed one of the two free throws as the Knights were up 23-21. Reynoso was 11 for 13 in the free throw line. Phillip Cunningham of Haverhill increased the Knights lead to four.

Ryan Pacy of Salem, N.H., shot for three and he fall down on the floor. Stratton was arguing that Pacy was fouled as the referee did not look at it that way.

“Ryan Pacy shot a three and they didn’t let him land, they said they let him land but they didn’t let him land and I felt the referee missed but he told me that he let him land so they give him the space and we move forward from that,” he said.

The Knights were down by three when Tre Fite of Massillon, Ohio found Cunningham to make this a one point game.

It was a back and forth game with two minutes left in the first half.

The Knights were trailing by a point, it was 36 to 35 at halftime. The Knights had 14 fouls while NHTI had 12.

In the second half Asik “R2” started the scoring for the Knights. The game was 39 to 38 when Kinsley laydown a three point basket to make it 42-38.

NHTI made this a two point game as the Knights answered back by scoring the next five points, a two point shot by Reynoso and Peter Lopota of Groveland, off the bench, banged a three pointer.

The Knights had momentum to begin the second half, that lead wasn’t big enough, the momentum was taking away a little as NHTI had a lead and the Knights came back to tie the game at 52.

During the course of the game the lead hanged 16 times.

The Knights were winning 56 to 54 when Reynoso was in the free throw line and made both of the free throws in.

The Knights were building up momentum and created this time a large gap against NHTI as Reynoso for the second time in less than one minute was in the free throw line as he connected both shots successfully.

 Pacy stole the ball and run made it into the bucket to put this a 10 point game.

The Knights were up 79-66. The Knights increased their lead to 13 as Cunningham made two shot in as the Knights were up by 15.

Coach Stratton told me the adjustment the team had from the first half to the second half.

“The biggest adjustment we made is we decided to rebound a little bit and finding men? to block out in the first half, they just kill us in the half and we gave up way too many chance opportunity and it wasn’t just coming from the bigs it was coming from the not sure what that should say but gods spot seems weird …it was coming everywhere hopefully we can show this kids in film and clean up some of that can help us move forward,” he said.

The Knights went on to defeat NHTI on their opening night 81-69.

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Knights All-Region Women’s Volleyball

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Knights player's All-Region Women's volleyball
Courtesy neccknights.com

Knights  All-Region Women’s Volleyball

On Monday Oct. 31, NECC Knights Women’s Volleyball players Kaithleen Perez-Flores of Lowell, Ashley Martinez of Lawrence, Caroline Burns of Haverhill, and Eliany Dejesus of Lowell were chosen All-Region Volleyball by the conference volleyball committee for their hard work and dedication on the court throughout the season.

Perez-Flores was in the top five on five of the eight categories of Region 21.

Martinez was in the top 10 on five of the eight categories of Region 21, including ranking first on digs per set with 3.48 and digs with 178.

Dejesus was in the top 20 on five of the eight categories of Region 21.

For the second straight year Perez-Flores was chosen for team one of All-Region. I talked to her about what was the difference between the last two years. “They were different skills level between both teams last year and this year but it still a good talent working with these people, just because it adds more skills to you as much as they add more skills to you so you know it is both experiences for both of us,” she said.

She found out the news that she was chosen All-Region by one of her teammates. “I was pretty surprised, I honestly forgot that they do those awards and I didn’t think that it was going to happen this soon ether but yeah I was pretty excited I was proud of my self and proud of the other girls that also won this title like Ashley(Martinez), Caroline (Burns) and Eliany (Dejesus),” she said.

I talked to her about what kind of support she has received from her family and friends for achieving this award. She mentioned to me that she hasn’t told her family yet and some of her friends found out and they were proud of her as well.

“In the off season I always tried to maintain active like I know last off season it came to me kinda early because I got injured… so get that ankle heel better making sure I was working out as much as I can that way I could give my 100 % and more to the team and to my play,” she said.

I talked to Perez-Flores how she is a great server in the court “Honestly, it is just the consistent practice of serve. I’ve been playing volleyball for almost nine years now and I have been working on that serve and also the clubs and other things that help me progress and become better so you know continue on that practice on that serve that really got me there,” she said.

I asked her if she was surprised that she was in the top five. “I was pretty surprised honestly, because you know there are a lot of girls that we compete with and you know as much as I consider myself a pretty good player although the players that we faced were really good as well as my teammates I didn’t think of getting too far but you know my skills level speaks for itself I guess,” she said.

She is currently majoring in Criminal Justice. During the two years in Northern Essex, she mentioned to me that it taught her to be more organized and prepare for four year college/ university and as an athlete there are going to be ups and down.

I asked Martinez who told her about the news and what was her reaction when she got the news once she was named All Region “A person here present (which was me) told me that I know what was going on. He told me congratulations and…..Suddenly I open Instagram and saw the page of the school and… I was in shock. I didn’t know how to react I didn’t know what is happening or what I got myself into but I knew it was something super good I felt so enthusiastic so happy… my first year my first semester I felt special,” she said.  

“To be honest at first before that I enter the university my vision was that I wasn’t going to be good like it wasn’t going to be sufficient for the team. that my level wasn’t sufficient and I was going to miss …although I knew that I had a lot of heart in volleyball I felt it wasn’t going to be sufficient but when I came and I knew I can do it and like always I tried to give my 100% in everything no matter what in practice and games always tried to put it in heart because what ever you do in practice you going to do it in games and if you don’t put your heart in a sport then why you are here… I felt that what happened to motivate me for this can happen,” she said.

I told her what kind of support did she receive from her family and family “…..my friends they were always there supporting me telling me I can do it you are the best give it everything they were always supporting me some of them came to a few of my games sometimes they help me in practice like my teammates like Kathleen one of them she was always motivate me and helping me,” she said. The part about there being a little distance from family is confusing.

I asked her if she feels honor and privilege that she was named All Region since most of the girls that play volleyball in the past never had a chance to be named All Region. “I really really still don’t believe it that I am in that category like for real, at first I thought it was an error but no, I said Ashley you got to believe it. I said wow, what an opportunity. this has never happened to me and look at me now,” she said.

She also told me for next year that she knows that she can bring her numbers up to be a part of different categories.

Her mindset before a game so she can be focused is listening to music.

A goal that she has in mind that she wants to focus on during the offseason is to be part of a club of volleyball. She also would love her level to go up to the max. She also told me that she would like to play professional volleyball.

Burns is the Knights captain. She got the news that she was an All-Region by her co-captain “Kaithleen texted … I was really confused at first then I was kinda looking at it and I was really surprised honestly so good achievement,” she said.

She never imagined her first year playing volleyball for the school that she was going to be part of All-Region, she said. “No honestly, I haven’t played for two years and I got a text from coach (Pelosi) …I was kinda doing it for fun because I missed it. I didn’t think I actually (would) make All-Reginal or anything.”

I ask Burns what kind of support did she receive from her family and friends. “It was hard at first like practicing everyday and balancing school work so my parents were really good about helping me all of that and my friends also were very encouraging, like I also play in a new position so my teammates were really helpful and my coaches,” she said.

She was surprised and thankful that she got this award. “I really thought this wouldn’t happen. I just was playing for fun and trying to do my best, I didn’t think of anything honestly,” she said.

An improvement that she wants to work on for next year is her strength and to get stronger.

She mentioned to me she has been playing volleyball since six or seventh grade and she is a biology major at Northern Essex.

I tried to interview Dejesus for this achievement but it was unsuccessful.

Editorial

My last semester at NECC and future plans

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Hello everyone my name is Jose Rodriguez, i am currently the Editor-in-Chief and the Sports Editor here in the college.

This is also my last semester, as my time at NECC is coming to an end in a few month.

I want to say that I had so many great memories in this short period of time.

Meeting new people, new friends and also this is a safe environment for everyone.

All of the teachers want you to do great in your school work.

If you need help or you are stuck with something don’t be afraid to ask.

Also we have tutoring services and all different kinds of sources in the college to help you succeed in life.

When I had English Comp 1 and 2, I usually go to the writing center and they were helpful and gracious enough to help me creating a outline or a rough draft.

I only had to take one math course during my time in NECC and it was Quantative Reasoning. The math tutors were there to help me to build on my math skills.

If it wasn’t for those tutors I still don’t know if I would’ve pass that course. Math is my weak subject but some how I manage to pull it off and pass with a C+.

In the spring semester of 2022 I took six classes and also I took a winter intersection course and I still managed to pass all of my credits and have a GPA over 3.0.

Currently I have a 3.4 GPA and on top of that I cover sports for Northern Essex, interviewing players and athletes before and after each game and writing a story about the game.

Sports is my passion, I eat, sleep, breath sports, we can be here all day. That’s why I chose my major Journalism and Communication with a concentration in Journalism.

In the spring of 2023 I will be heading to Salem State University to continue on with my education carrer and earn a bachelor degree.

I am still planing to get involved with the student newspaper to become a sports editor for the Salem State Log and they also have a radio station.

My plan is to have an intense interview with athletes and coaches on the radio, also to have my own opinion about the sports that are coming  and the games that recently passed.

My goal is to have a master degree in Journalism before I become a professional play by play baseball announcer and a sports talk show host.

I feel with the skills that I have developed at NECC and also being the PA announcer during home games for basketball and baseball and the skills that I am going to have at Salem State I am going to be prepared and I feel really blessed.

Slider, Sports

Knights soccer season ends in penalty shots

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On Tuesday, Oct. 25, Holyoke Community College defeated the Knights to advance to the next round of the playoff.

The game at Whittier Tech ended in a 1-1 tie and Holyoke advance to the semifinals due to penalty kicks.

In the first half the Knights had a big chance to put this game one nothing in their favor. In the 19 minutes in the game Sam De Amorim of Methuen passed to Fadi Serhan of Middletown as the Knights did not scored.

One minute later Holyoke cashed in as Michael Grochowski of Westfield scored the first goal of the game to make this 1-0 in favor of Holyoke.

In the first period Holyoke was playing more aggressive then the Knights.

In the 44 minutes of the game Johnathan Diaz of Methuen shot the ball, the goalie  jumped and prevented the Knights from scoring. Diaz was so close to tie the game.

In the first half the Knights had five shots on goal while Holyoke had 10. The Knights had four corner kicks and Holyoke one, both teams also had three offsides.

In the 51 minutes of the game the Knights missed an opportunity to tie the game. The Knights missed a lot of opportunities during the game that they couldn’t cash in.

The Knights in the second half were playing more aggressive than the first half.

Four minutes left before the regulation was over Leonard Rodriguez Ortiz of Methuen scored a game tying shot to force this game to overtime.

“Great feeling you know, I love it I loved it all at the moment at the end of the day it is what it is,” said Coach Eusebio Marote.

Knights Soccer lost in the quarterfinal game against Holyoke on Oct. 25 at Whittier Tech in Haverhill
Knights Soccer lost in the quarterfinal game against Holyoke on Oct. 25 at Whittier Tech in Haverhill Photo by Editor-in-Chief / Sports Editor Jose Rodriguez

The Knights had 11 shots on goal while Holyoke had nine. The Knights had two corner kicks while Holyoke had one. Holyoke had two offside while Knights had none. Knights one fou; and Holyoke five during the second half.

In overtime Diaz almost ended but he missed the shot.

During overtime you play 10 minutes with five minutes in between break.

The first half ove overtime Knights had four shots on goal Holyoke none. The Knights also had one corner kick while Holyoke none. Both team had no offside and no fouls.

In the second half of overtime the referee ejected a fan out of the stadium.

In the second half of the final 10 minutes of overtime, the Knights had five shots on goal while Holyoke had two. Two corner kick for the Knights. Both teams did not had an offside. Holyoke had two fouls while the Knights had zero.

During the penalty shots Holyoke made four goals and the Knights three to eliminate the Knights from the postseason.

“Yeah they only had one chance and they put it away, it’s stupid honestly in my opinion they get one chance and end luckily… it’s just a very unfortunate game to be honest I think we were definitely deserved it more in my opinion, I don’t care what everyone says,” said Coach Marote.

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Knights volleyball season ends in semifinals

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On Sunday, Oct. 23, Community College of Rhode Island (CCRI) Women’s  Volleyball defeated NECC Knights three sets to none in the semi finals at The David M. Bartley Center for Athletics & Recreation in Holyoke.

CCRI Knights won set one 25-19, won set two 25-18 and won the third and final set 25-14.

The winner of this game will play in the championship against Mass Bay or Holyoke.

The game officially started at 12:02 pm

In the first set Haileigh LaFlamme scored the first Knights points when the Knights were trailing 3-1.

The Knights went on to score four more points and take a 5-3 lead.

CCRI tied and took the lead but NECC fought back. When the game was tied at nine a nice save by Ashley Martinez of Lawrence prevented  CCRI from scoring.

The game was 12-11 NECC trailing, but a spike from Caroline Burns of Haverhill tied it up at 12.

CCRI then took the lead and increased that lead by three.

The Knights of NECC were losing 21 to 16 when the timeout was called. CCRI was on a run against Knights.

NECC lost to CCRI 25 to 18.

In the second set the Knights of NECC were losing 2-0, but the Knights scored three straight points to make this game 3-2 in favor of NECC Knights.

NECC Knights vs CCRI Knights semifinals
NECC Knights vs CCRI Knights semifinals Photo by Editor-in-Chief / Sports Editor Jose Rodriguez

The game unfortunately was tied at five after CCRI took the lead. The Knights of NECC did not read the ball if it was in or out. When the ball is out and you don’t touch it, it means the point goes to your team but if it was in and you don’t touch it the point goes to the other team.

After the game I interviewed NECC Knight Women’s Volleyball head coach Mike Pelosi of Haverhill and we talked about reading the ball.

“It wasn’t a pattern that I noticed but what I would say about that is we got percentages and we go off our best guess, so we never know, not even the person hitting the ball and serving the ball know where it is going to land so defensively we tried to read patterns and tried to read the trajectory, we tried to read the spin and in or flow with the ball and make an educated guess where is going in or out,” said Pelosi.

The Knights of NECC were down by five, they were losing 13 to 8.

CCRI’s largest lead of the game so far is 11 when they were down 19 to 8. Who was down 19 to 8, I am a bit confused of whether it is CCRI leading or NECC leading at that point.

CCRI increased that lead to 12 when they were losing 21-9.

“I think that CCRI had a very strong roster this year, and I think that’s credit to the coach, they did a good job recruiting and he did a great job training his team, …. CCRI played today, (it’s)very clear to me

that they were practicing and developing with intensity and I have no doubt if I work (at) one of his practices I (would) see the players sprinting around the entire time they (were) very focused…” said Coach Pelosi.

The Knights of NECC were on a 5-1 run when CCRI coach called a time out.

The Knights of NECC were still down 22-14 and they lost the second set 25-18.

In the third set the Knights of NECC got a few points early to begin the set.

Heather Walsh of Harwich made a nice block from keeping the Knights of CCRI from scoring.

The Knights lost 25-14 in set three.

Slider, Sports

De Amorim lifts the Knights to a victory over Bristol

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On Saturday Oct. 22, the NECC Knights defeated Bristol Community College 1-0at Ronald F. Arieta Football field in Taunton.

The game started at 4:30 p.m.

In the 17th minutes of the game the Knights had an opportunity to strike first. Sam De Amorim of Methuen shot the ball, but it was saved by the goalkeeper as the Knights did not score.

De Amorim was arguing with the referee, also few other players as well, that Bristol touched the ball but it didn’t gone  the Knights favor. Other players was arguing as well.

In 26 minutes De Amorim scored the only goal for the Knights, that it was the game changer in the game that goal was the difference of the game. De Amorim also scored three goals two days prior in the Oct. 22 contest against Bristol.

Knights soccer in a match against Bay Hawks
Knights soccer in a match against Bay Hawks Photo by Editor-in-Chief / Sports Editor Jose Rodriguez

“(He’s) been a big player you know for us, definitely big that we got the result today, definitely not easy very difficult, so it is what it is we got the win though,” said Coach Eusebio Morate.

The Knights had four shots on goal and Bristol five shots on goal. The Knights had four fouls, Bristol five, the Knights had two offside, Bristol none. Bristol had four corner kicks while Knights none.

In the 53rd minute of the game Jaden Shaut of Haverhill almost scored on a corner kick as the ball curved and hit the post.

The Knights had their first corner kick of the game in the 58 minutes of the game.

The Knights weren’t playing aggressive throughout the entire game.

In the 64th minute, there was nice save by Anhuar Ramos Garcia of Nashua, N.H.

The Knights had a yellow card in the 74th minutes of the game.

The referee wasn’t consistent for the entire match.

“It’s just a couple calls that make no sense to me and they know it wasn’t 50/50 and they call for the other team so that (got) me pissed a little bit…” said De Amorim.

The Knights had two shots on goal and Bristol eight shots on goal. Bristol also had four fouls and the Knights two. Both teams also had three corner kicks.

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Knights volleyball loses as they get prepared for the playoff

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On Thursday Oct. 20, Great Bay Community College defeated NECC Knights three sets to none in Portsmouth N.H.

The Knights lost set one and set two identical 25-23, and they lost the third and final set 25-21.

After a long intro ceremony of Great Bay  senior Anna Layfield of Portsmouth N.H. final regular season game it was now time for volleyball action.

The game officially started at 6:13.

It was back and forth game in the beginning of the first set.

Caroline Burns of Haverhill scored the first point of the game, a spike by Kaithlene Perez-Flores tied at five.

The Knights made a few more points but they were trailing. A tip by Burns tied this game at 8 a piece.

The Knights were up by two the score was 10 to 8.

Great Bay came back to tie the game at 12.

The Knights were up by two when they had a 16 to 14 lead over Great Bay.

It was a good match up in the first set, either team could’ve won it, it could’ve gone either way.

The Knights were up 20 to 18 and needed five more points to win the set.

The game was tied 22-22 after assistant head coach, coach Marissa Reardon called a timeout.

After the time out Great Bay went on a 3-1 run to defeat the Knights 25-23 on set one.

The Knights’ momentum in the beginning of the sets was good but in the middle and the end of the set the momentum shifted into a negative way.

“Yep, that happened throughout the sets, we had enough stamina through the beginning and by the end we kinda keep losing it and I think that definitely affects the score,” Coach Reardon said.

In the second set Great Bay started off a little hot.

Great Bay was out of order, the point was awarded to the Knights, Great Bay was up by three, the Knights were losing 9 to 6.

Knights in action against Great Bay
Knights in action against Great Bay Photo by Editor-in-Chief / Sports Editor Jose Rodriguez

The Knights scored the next three points, including two of them from Heather Walsh of Harwich.

The game was tied at nine and at 10 apiece.

The Knights took a one-point lead over Great Bay and they increased that score by three.

The Knights had a 13-10 lead.

Great Bay scored a few points to inch even closer.

Great Bay then took advantage of some miscommunication for the Knights.

The Knights were up 23-18, two points away from winning the set.

Great Bay went on a 7-0 run to beat the Knights and had commending two sets to none lead.

“I don’t think we were in the correct position I think that definitely affected the scoring,” Reardon said.

In the third set the Knights were down 4-0, which means Great Bay had a 11-0 run going back to the end of the second set that Great Bay finished 7-0.

Ashley Martinez of Lawrence scored the first point of the Knights.

The Knights started a run on their own, the Knights went on a 5-0 run to take 5-4 lead over Great Bay.

Great Bay bounced back and was up by two.

Burns hit the ball to made it 9-8 as the Knights were losing by a point, Perez-Flores tied and Martinez give the Knights the lead.

Just like that the Knights had a 10-9 lead.

Eventually Great Bay was up 14 to 13 when coach Reardon called a timeout.

Great Bay then increased that lead to five.

The Knights cut Great Bay deficit by two as they were losing 22-18.

The Knights lost in set three 25-21 and lost in three straight sets.

I asked coach Reardon what happened during the game — the Knights beat this team back in the Sport and Fitness Center on Oct. 13, three sets to one.

“Yeah, I guess you have good games and you have bad games and I think this is the game that we could’ve won but I don’t think we played the best that we could’ve,” Reardon said.

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Knights volleyball, rally, but fall short at Brockton

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On Tuesday Oct 18, NECC Knights lost three sets to two against Massasoit Community College in Brockton.

The Knights lost the first set 25-10, they lost the second set 25-20, the Knights won the third and the forth set identical 25-18 but they felt short in the fifth set 15 to 7.

The game officially started 7:40.

Warriors was up in fast gate against the Knights.

Warriors scored the first six point to begin the game before the Knights scored the next two.

The Knights was down by 12 they were losing 14 to 4 when assistant head coach Marissa Reardon called a timeout.

“I don’t know, I don’t have really excuses for that but I guess we just didn’t played our best I told them and they need to step it up for the rest of the sets,” said assistant head coach Marissa Reardon of Lawrence.

Kaithlene Perez-Flores of Lowell spike the ball for a few times during the first set but it was out and the warriors was awarded with the point.

The Knights didn’t have nothing to show for in the first set as they were losing 19 to 5.

The Knights got three more point but the deficit was to large for the Knights.

The Knights lost the first set 25-10 against Massasoit.

Knights vs Massasoit volleyball
Knights vs Massasoit volleyball Photo by Editor-in-Chief / Sports Editor Jose Rodriguez

In the second set the Knights had their first lead of the game by scoring the first two points.

Warriors tied but the Knights bounce back by scoring the next seven points the Knights were on a 10-2 run against Warriors.

“Yeah, I think on that one we were starting to get our stamina back and I feel like some games you have a really rough first set and as the sets goes on they started to wake up a little bit more so that’s what happened on that set,” she said.

The Knights was up 12 to 4 the Knights was up by eight.

The scored was 14 to 9 when Anny Lommete of Lawrence pass out.

It was a long delay the referee told both teams to practice for a little before play resume.

Warriors was on a 5-0 run to tied the game at fourteen and they took the lead.

The Knights was down by three when they tied the game at 18.

The Warriors was on a 7-2 run to finished the second set.

In the third set the Knights was down a little early losing 6 to 3.

The Knights were working hard to set the points that they needed as they were down a run 9 to 8 in favor of the warriors.

The Knights tied the game at 9 and took the lead.

Eventually it was a back and forth game in the third set.

A miscommunication of the Knights Warriors took advantage to tied at 14.

The Knights was in a run as they increased their lead to six the Knights was up 20 to 14.

The Knights increased their advantage as they were three points away from winning the third set.

The Knights won set three 25-18.

In the forth set the Knights was on a 6-2 run to start the set.

Warriors tied the game at eight.

The Knights and Warriors played back and forth game.

The Knights was up by two as they increased their lead to four.

Warriors was fighting back a little but the Knights never quite as they were up 20 to 15 they were five points away from forcing a set five in Brockton.

They did just that the Knights came back down two sets to none to force a decisive set five.

I ask assistant head coach Reardon how big was coming down two sets to none and hopefully winning the fifth set that they came close but they didn’t ?

“I mean I don’t know I feel after the middle two sets were identical. I felt like the girls did very well they just kept their stamina up they work on communicating” Reardon said. “I felt like they played okay for the fifth set but I definitely see them play a little bit harder in the first set,” she said.

The Knights are looking to comeback two sets to none and win the game just like the did over the weekend on Oct. 15 against Bulldogs on their first game of the tri-match.

When the fifth and final set of the game begins the warrior scored the first two before the Knights scored a point.

The Knights was losing 10 to 6.

Knights comeback felt short in Brockton as they lost the fifth set 15 to 7.

Slider, Sports

Knights volleyball won both games of their tri-match

and  

On Saturday Oct 15, NECC Knights Volleyball defeated Mass Bay Community College in three straight sets in the second game of their tri-match and won both games of their doubleheader.

The Knights won the first two sets identical 25-16 and won the third set 25-17.

The Knights faced Mass Bay back in Newton on Oct. 6, when the Knights won three straight sets back in their place.

During the Knights warm up before the second game of their tri-match Ashly Martinez of Lawrence was down on the floor for several minutes and the trainer had to come and check on her but the good thing was she was ready to go in the beginning of the first set.

“She ended up getting a few muscle spasms so we had to wait for a few minutes so by the time the first set was about to start she was able to play so we were able to put her on the set,” said assistant head coach Marissa Reardon.

The game officially started at 3:48 pm.

The Knights started the game on a 5-1 run over Mass Bay a nice serve by Heather Walsh of Harwich that the ball just snuck in to made it 7-3.

I asked Reardon about the run that the Knights had “Yes, that we did that was definitely helpful to our outside hitter for helping out she (Kaithlene Perez-Flores) has a great serve so that’s definitely work,” said Reardon.

The Knights were up 12-5, they were up by seven when Mass Bay decided to call a timeout.

The Knights increased their lead by 10, they were up 19 to 9.

The score was 20-13 in favor of the Knights when the Knights were out of rotation.

The Knights had three total out of rotation during the game against Mass Bay.

Kaithlene Perez-Flores of Lowell made it 24-16, it was a set point for the Knights as Mass Bay hit the ball out and the Knights won set one 25-16 to Mass Bay.

Eliany Dejesus of Lowell set up Caroline Burns of Haverhill for a spike
Eliany Dejesus of Lowell set up Caroline Burns of Haverhill for a spike Photo by Editor-in-Chief/ Sports Editor Jose Rodriguez

In the second set the Knights were down early the Knights were looking to rally against Mass Bay. The Knights did just that, the Knights didn’t just tie they took the lead.

The Knights increased their lead to five when Perez-Flores was serving. It was 15-10 with three points that she scored made it 18-10 as they were up by eight.

A spike by Caroline Burns of Haverhill made it 21-11 in favor of the Knights.

Burns gave the finishing touches in set two, she tapped the ball with her two hands up. The ball went in as the Knights took care of business in the first two sets and had a commanding two sets to none lead.

In the third set the Knights hadn’t got a lead early in the match until they tied the game at 9 and took a 11 to 9 lead over Mass Bay.

Mass Bay went on a run against the Knights.

I asked Reardon about the slow start the Knights had in the third set.

“ I think our stamina was there in the first two sets and I think it declined a little bit in the beginning of the third (set) but I was very grateful they were able to pick it up at the end of the third set to win the game,” said Reardon.

The Knights were looking to rally after the time out and they did just that. They tied  the game at 17.  

The Knights took the lead as Perez-Flores passed it over to Martinez for a spike to make it 18 to 17.

The Knights went on a run late in the third set to defeat Mass Bay three set to none. 25-17 was your final for set three.

I ask Ashley Dominguez of Lawrence how is it fell having two wins in one game ?

“It feels amazing to see our team has grown and we have a connection know we played better know it’s just amazing the feeling is great,” she said.