The Cavaliers softball program, coming off of a 29-21 season in 2023, looks to make their mark on the 2024 season with 10 sophomores and 11 freshmen players. After winning 24 of the last 31 Region 4 Championships, the Cavs expect to be a strong contender to win their 25th NJCAA Div. II Region Championship and make another trip to the National Tournament.
The Cavaliers will depend on the strong play and leadership of the 10 sophomores, and will look to the freshmen to quickly learn and gain experience to contribute to the team. The consistency of hitting and defense from the infield will be anchored by sophomores Estelle Audette (2B), Emily Jezowski (SS), with utility players Sophia Hulsey and Lauren Waller.
The outfield will be led by Jaelyn Wiers (LF), and Tori Budde (CF). Eve Shultz (C) will help lead a pitching staff piloted by Koralie Morin and Ella White. Fellow sophomore utility player Mackenzie Tome will provide needed depth in the power department.
The incoming freshmen include pitchers Jaelyn Latimer, Katie Newberry and Dylan Rambally; catcher Marguerite Brown; infielders Jordyn Butcher, Drew Hosselton, Koda Morris, Abby Lorenz and Anna Faber; and outfielders Kaylynn Crotz and Brynlee Wright.
With dependable hitting, power, and speed—as well as some young top pitching—the Cavs are expected to compete in a tough Region 4.
The Kankakee Community College Cavaliers fell to the Southwestern Illinois College Blue Storm 6-5 in seven innings Saturday afternoon.
The Blue Storm started the game strong with three runs in the bottom of the first inning and another three in the bottom of the second, which gave them an early 6-point lead.
In the third, the Cavaliers began their response when Dylan Coty scored on an error. Southwestern was unable to score in the bottom of the inning, as KCC’s Peyton Niksch struck out two batters and a third was groundout.
After trailing 6-1 going into the fourth inning, KCC’s Cole Freeman and Curtis McKay had back-to-back runs to narrow the deficit to three runs. Tyler Thompson quickly followed the pair of runs with his own before Amarion Paxton scored to round out the Cavs’ quick response.
The Cavaliers turned on the defensive effort in the bottom of the fifth, as pitcher Hunter Niksch quickly struck out two consecutive Blue Storm batters. Niksch allowed one base before outing a third batter. KCC trailed 6-5 following the powerful inning.
Neither team scored in the sixth and seventh innings, and the Cavaliers came up just one run short, falling 6-5.
The Cavaliers are 3-3-1 early in the season and will continue their road trek when they play NJCAA DI #11 John A. Logan at 2pm Sunday.
The Lady Cavaliers fell to the Oakton Community College Owls 111-63 Thursday night in the Region IV Quarterfinals, ending the Lady Cavs’ 2023-24 season.
The Owls opened the first quarter with 6 quick points, before Aniyah Moody scored a free throw to put KCC on the scoreboard. Amaria Pender scored on a steal by Myllena De Sousa to make the score 6-3.
The Lady Cavs pushed through heavy pressure to score seven more points in the quarter, including four free throws from Jazmyn Smith, a free throw from Pender, and a basket by Valorie Dagg. KCC trailed 22-10 going into the second quarter.
Oakton’s effort increased in the second quarter, but the Lady Cavaliers teamed up and fought for another twelve points – a basket and two free throws from Smith, two points from Zipporah Johnson, a three-pointer from De Sousa, and three free throws by Pender.
The Lady Cavaliers trailed 51-22 going into the second half.
KCC held on to the Owls in the third quarter, outscoring them by one point. Smith had two points and Dagg sunk a three-pointer to match Oakton’s scoring immediately after the half. Pender matched the Owls’ response with seven points, making the score 64-35.
Jazmyn Smith scored an and-one and Dagg had a three-pointer to narrow the deficit. Oakton had six points, but the Lady Cavaliers quickly responded with nine, a three-pointer each from Brianna Sneed and Dagg, and a three-point play from Moody.
KCC matched Oakton’s scoring for the rest of the quarter to start the final quarter 81-53.
Pender kickstarted the Cavs’ ten points in the fourth with two free throws moments into the quarter. Johnson added two points, Tinsley Freeman had a three-pointer and Smith sank a free throw to score the Cavs’ final points.
Oakton powered their way past the Cavaliers to take the win 111-63.
The Lady Cavaliers ended their season with a 14-17 record.
Stats
Pender and Smith led the Lady Cavaliers with 16 points each. Dagg had 11 points. Moody added 6 points. Johnson had 4 points. De Sousa, Sneed, and Freeman all added 3 points apiece.
The Cavaliers fell to the Sauk Valley Community College Skyhawks 88-77 in NJCAA Region IV play Thursday night.
In the first quarter, the Cavaliers had an early basket from Khylan McKennie to give them a 2-0 lead. The Skyhawks responded with seven points, but Noah Mason put a stop to the scoring with a basket, which was quickly followed by points from Rashad Smith and Dwain Nash to briefly give KCC the lead.
After three points from Sauk Valley, Quesim Anderson stole the ball and scored two free throws. Nash added two more free throws and Mason had another basket to put the Cavaliers up 14-10, giving them their biggest lead of the first quarter.
The Skyhawks outscored the Cavaliers by twelve points late in the second quarter, giving them a 42-29 lead by the end of the first half.
Despite defensive pressure from the Skyhawks following halftime, KCC used two three-pointers from Mason, an old-fashioned three-point play from McKennie, and a free throw from Lucas Burton to close the deficit to eleven points.
KCC hung with the Skyhawks for the remainder of the game, but it would not be enough to close the gap. After McKennie tipped in the final basket of the game, the Cavs closed out the game 88-77.
The Cavaliers’ record is 18-11 and they will travel to play in the NJCAA Region IV Quarterfinals on Tuesday.
Stats
McKennie led the Cavaliers’ scoring with 19 points, 6 rebounds, a steal and a block. Woods added a double-double with 15 points, 13 rebounds and 3 assists. Mason also had 15 points (3 3-pointers), 4 rebounds and 2 assists. Smith had 10 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists. Burton added 9 points, 5 rebounds, a steal and a block. Nash had four points and two assists. Anderson and Jaden Walls completed KCC’s scoring with 3 and 2 points, respectively.
The Cavaliers defeated Wright College 85-45 in NJCAA Division I Region IV play Thursday night, extending their winning streak to three games.
In the first half, the Cavaliers used a strong offensive effort to put plenty of space between KCC and Wright College, highlighting several of their six sophomores on Sophomore Night in the process.
Khylan McKennie and Chavez Woods kicked off the Cavs’ scoring with a basket apiece to give KCC an early 4-0 lead. The Rams managed two points before Lucas Burton scored twice from the free throw line and McKennie had four quick points, including a big steal and dunk to put the Cavs up 10-2. Woods sank a three-pointer to put KCC up by 11 points.
Wright College scored two baskets before KCC had a dramatic run, resulting in 21 uninterrupted points, including a three-pointer each for Quesim Anderson and Woods.
The Rams stuck with the Cavaliers for the remainder of the half, but KCC’s 36-8 lead proved too big to overcome and KCC finished the first half leading 44-20.
The Rams scored first in the second half, but KCC’s Burton and Anderson responded with three and two points, respectively. Despite pressure from Wright College that saw the Rams narrow KCC’s lead to 51-29, the Cavaliers scored seven consecutive points, including a classic three-point play from Burton and a basket from Woods.
Anderson scored two points on a coast-to-coast steal, followed by two free throws from McKennie, to put the Cavaliers up 62-31. The Rams scored four points, but a basket each from Burton and Jaden Walls, coupled with a three-point shot from Noah Mason, put a quick stop to their momentum. The Cavaliers were up 79-36, before Wright College put up five points.
KCC held onto their lead, taking the 85-45 win.
The Cavaliers improved to 17-10 and will play Malcolm X College on the road Saturday at 3pm.
Stats
All six sophomores saw the scoreboard, with Burton leading the Cavaliers with 18 points. Rashad Smith added 17 points. McKennie and Woods added 14 points apiece. Anderson had 9 points. Mason and Dwain Nash had six and five points, respectively. Jaden Walls rounded out the Cavaliers scoring with two points.
The Lady Cavaliers, led by sophomore Jazmyn Smith’s double-double, bounced back from an early eight-point deficit to defeat the Kishwaukee College Kougars 85-72 in NJCAA Region IV action Monday night.
Smith scored the first basket of the game for the Lady Cavaliers, but Kishwaukee quickly responded, turning the score 5-2 in their favor. Smith then scored on an assist from Valorie Dagg, before sinking the and-one basket to tie the game at five. Dagg matched a three-pointer from the Kougars, before Kishwaukee scored eight points to put them up 16-8.
KCC used two points from Myllena De Sousa, five more from Smith and two from Harmony Reynolds to narrow the Kougars’ lead to just two points, before a buzzer-beating three point shot from Kishwaukee put the Cavaliers down 22-17.
Several Lady Cavaliers teamed up to turn the game around for KCC in the second quarter, including Reynolds, Smith, and Dagg, who scored twelve points in quick succession to give the Lady Cavaliers the lead 27-26. Tinsley Freeman scored two points and Reynolds sank a three-pointer to expand the lead 32-26.
After the Lady Cavaliers matched Kishwaukee’s response late in the quarter, De Sousa scored three points to give KCC a 44-37 lead to end the half.
The Lady Cavaliers scored five uninterrupted points immediately into the second half, including two from Reynolds, two from De Sousa and one from Smith to put KCC up by twelve points. Kishwaukee responded with two baskets, but it was not enough to stop the Lady Cavaliers, as Reynolds and Smith teamed up for another seven points.
KCC scored another twelve points in the quarter, including a three-pointer from Freeman and another five points from Smith.
Smith opened the fourth quarter for KCC with a free throw that extended their lead to 69-55. Shortly after, Kayla Jackson interrupted a scoring run from the Kougars with a three-pointer, putting the Cavaliers ahead by eleven.
Kishwaukee increased their effort offensively, scoring twenty-five points in the final quarter, but KCC maintained their effort on both sides of the court, granting them the dominant 85-72 victory.
KCC improved to 14-14 this season and will travel to play Malcolm X College at 5pm Tuesday.
Stats
Smith led the Cavaliers with 34 points, 32 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 blocks. Reynolds added 20 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists. Freeman had 9 points and 9 rebounds. De Sousa had 7 points, 4 rebounds and 6 assists. Jasmine Ferrero and Dagg each added 5 points and 3 assists. Jackson had 3 points and 5 rebounds. Brianna Sneed had 2 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists. Aniyah Moody rounded out the Cavs’ scoring with 2 points and 2 rebounds.
Kankakee Community College established a lead and didn’t let it go in a victory Tuesday on the road in Joliet.
The Cavaliers started with an early 10-2 lead, followed by Noah Mason hitting back-to-back three-pointers. After matching the Joliet Junior College opponents basket-for-basket, Khylan McKennie caught a defensive rebound and scored, kickstarting a KCC scoring surge of nine uninterrupted points to make their lead 38-24. The Wolves scored four points, but KCC responded with nine more before halftime, including a three-pointer from Rashad Smith and four points from Chavez Woods.
The Cavaliers stifled JJC’s attempts to close the gap in the second half. A nine-point run by the Wolves was briefly interrupted by two points from Dwain Nash, but KCC shut it down with three points from Lucas Burton and two more from Woods. Nash scored four points, including a big steal and basket, and McKennie added two more. That made the Cavs’ lead 67-45.
The Cavaliers matched the Wolves for the rest of the half, ultimately taking the win, 81-72.
The Cavaliers improved to 15-10 and will travel to play Daley College Saturday at 1pm.
Kankakee Community College had success from the free throw line to secure an 84-76 NJCAA Region 4 victory over Joliet Junior College on the road Tuesday night.
A free throw from Jaida Taylor gave the Cavaliers their first point of the game, which the Wolves quickly matched. KCC’s Valorie Dagg, Amaria Pender, and Myllena De Sousa teamed up to score six points, giving them a 9-3 lead. KCC kept with the Wolves offensively, until six points from JJC’s Ashanti Brown tied the quarter at 13.
The score stayed close, and the Lady Cavs entered halftime leading 33-32.
Following halftime, a six-point JJC run was matched by KCC in the form of two free throws by Jazmyn Smith and four points from De Sousa. KCC matched JJC’s scoring throughout the quarter until an eight-point run by Brown gave the Wolves a 58-50 lead. Jasmine Ferrero closed out the quarter for the Cavs, scoring two points to narrow the deficit to 58-52.
Seventeen of KCC’s 32 points in the final quarter came from free throws. Despite trailing 65-58 early in the fourth, the Lady Cavaliers turned the game around when Pender scored back-to-back baskets. Four points from Smith and two from Taylor flipped the score in KCC’s favor, 68-65. JJC scored twice to briefly take a one-point lead, but Ferrero sank a three-pointer to come through for KCC and take back the lead for good. KCC scored the rest of their points from the free throw line, as Taylor, Smith, Pender and Ferrero combined for 11 out of 12 shots.
The Lady Cavaliers scored 24 of 27 free throws during the game, ultimately taking the win 84-76. They improved to 13-12 and will host the Mineral Area Tech College Thursday at 5:30pm.
Stats: Pender (26 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals); Smith (20 points, 3 rebounds, 4 steals, 3 assists); De Sousa (10 points, 2 rebounds); Dagg (8 points, 6 rebounds); Taylor (7 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals); Ferrero (6 points, 4 rebounds).
Head Coach Keith Cooper is entering his seventh season with the Cavaliers. Coach Cooper has posted career record of 160-93-1 at KCC. Cooper has been awarded two NJCAA Div. II Region 4 District C Coach of the Year awards. Under Cooper’s guidance, KCC has won two NJCAA Div. II Region 4 Championships and the team has been in the Region Final Four every season except for 2020 (due to COVID). During Cooper’s tenure, 20 softball players have attained NJCAA Academic All-American status, and the entire team has earned the NJCAA Academic All-American Team award twice.
Before becoming KCC’s head coach, Cooper was a community leader and coach of youth sports at various levels for 23 years. He held multiple positions on local league boards of directors, and was president of the Kankakee Knights of Columbus Little League, Knights of Columbus Bronco League, Kankakee Elks Pony League, and the Kankakee Valley Colt and Palomino League.
Cooper’s involvement as a coach has taken him to many tournaments at Illinois State University in Normal; Central Michigan University in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan; and three State Fast Pitch Softball Tournaments in National Softball Association in Illinois.
Prior to becoming the head coach for Lady Cavs softball, he assisted with the KCC Women’s Basketball team as official scorekeeper for home games and often traveled with the team.
Coach Cooper was born in Kankakee, raised in Limestone, and graduated from Kankakee High School in 1990. He is a former KCC student, where he studied Law Enforcement. Cooper worked for AT&T for 18 years.
He and his wife, Lisa, reside in Kankakee. They have four children and nine grandchildren.
Asst. Coach Teders enters his sixth season coaching for the Cavaliers. He brings a wealth of sports knowledge and coaching experience. Since Coach Teders joined the staff, the team has amassed a 133-69 record.
Coach Teders grew up in the area and was an all-star athlete through his high school career in football and baseball. He played baseball at KCC, as well as playing on several slow pitch softball teams. Teders has been involved in coaching for the past 21 years in softball, baseball, and football, and brings extensive knowledge of the mechanics of pitching for both women and men.
Outside of sports, Teders is a union carpenter with many years of experience in residential and commercial construction. He and his wife, Lori, have three children and two granddaughters.
Coach Mikayla Cole enters her 4th year as an assistant coach at KCC. She is a graduate of Bishop McNamara High School in Kankakee, where she excelled at softball all four years under Coach Laura Harms, a 2002 KCC graduate and former Chicago Bandits professional softball player. In high school, Coach Cole was an all-area player, as well as Bishop McNamara’s MVP her senior year. Cole played travel softball for eight years. In her last year of travel ball, Cole pitched and won the national title game.
Coach Cole was a pitcher and outfielder at KCC under Coach Cooper. Both years with the Cavaliers, she led the team in batting average and went to the NJCAA Div. II National Tournament. Cole graduated from KCC in 2019 with an Associate in Arts transfer degree.
In addition to her assistant job with the Cavaliers, Cole coached her younger sister’s team to three straight championship games. She also has been the junior high coach at Donovan, head JV coach at Clifton Central High School, and Nash Middle School coach. She now coaches 16u travel softball for Champaign Blue Ice Elite and offers pitching and hitting lessons.
Cole recently had her first child. She also enjoys spending time with her siblings, twins Kloie and Keegan. A huge fan of the Pittsburgh Steelers and Boston Red Sox, she enjoys watching as many games as possible.
Coach Kayden Mines enters her second year as an assistant coach at KCC. She is a graduate of Knoxville High School in Illinois, where she played softball all four years. She was on KCC’s softball team in 2020, when the season was canceled because of COVID-19. She did play the 2021 season for the Cavaliers. Head Coach Keith Cooper said, “We are very excited to see what challenges Coach Mines brings to the team, and congratulate her in her exciting new role.”