Head coach Casey Meister and the Cavaliers are set to begin the 2023-24 season having high expectations as they work toward tip off Nov. 4 against Lansing Community College.
Meister returns for her third season at the helm of the Lady Cavaliers basketball program, and her goals and expectations remain high. The Cavaliers continue to climb and improve after a tough 9-9 record during the COVID-affected season of 2021. Meister’s 2021-22 group finished with 10 wins and the 2022-23 season ended with 14 wins.
“My expectations are to get back to our 20+ win tradition and compete and win a Region Title,” said Meister. In an effort to prepare for the Region IV season and a championship appearance, the Cavs will take on an ambitious schedule.
“Our Region is tough,” Meister added. “The top-tier teams have reloaded, and the teams chasing them have brought some serious talent, so everyone has gotten stronger. Our success on the court will be determined by our ability to adapt to the college game and how well we overcome challenges along the way. We’ll have opportunities to play multiple nationally ranked teams. We are excited about that, and hope to compete with each and every one of them.”
This year’s team is made up of nine newcomers, all eager to make their mark at KCC. The new faces for the Cavaliers this year are freshmen Jasmine Ferrero, Tinsley Freeman, Zipporah Johnson, Aniyah Moody, Harmony Reynolds, Jaida Taylor, and transfers Kayla Jackson, Amaria Pender and Brianna Sneed.
Valorie Dagg, Myllena De Sousa and Jazmyn Smith return as the experienced leaders of the group both on and off the court.
“I’m really excited about our depth this season,” Meister said. “We have our returning All-Region IV player in Jazmyn Smith, who we hope can continue her dominance in the paint to go along with this group and I really feel like we have the right pieces in place to shake things up a bit.”
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).
Coach Meister begins her second season at the helm for the Lady Cavaliers for the 2022-23 season.
Prior to becoming head coach, Meister served seven years as the assistant coach for KCC, and the Cavaliers earned an overall record of 147-59 (.714). Postseason accomplishments included four Region 4 Championship titles, four national tournament appearances including 4th and 7th place finishes.
She has coached three All-Americans, 10 Academic All-Americans, and helped place 22 athletes at the next level. Before coaching at KCC, Meister spent six years as a high school teacher and coach at Tri-Point High School (2008-14). A 2006 graduate of KCC, Meister was a two-time All-Region 4 honoree and was MVP of the All-Region 4 Tournament Team (2006). She earned NJCAA All-American honors in 2005 and 2006, and played in the 2006 national tournament.
Meister is in the elite “1,000 Point Club,” finishing with 1,014 points at KCC. In 2019, Coach Meister was inducted into the NJCAA Region IV Hall of Fame. After KCC, Meister continued her basketball career with a full scholarship to Chicago State University (NCAA Div. I). Her competitive mentality led her to Olivet Nazarene University (NAIA Div. I) to finish her senior year on scholarship. During that season (2007-08), ONU won the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament, led the country in team scoring average, was nationally ranked, and made an NAIA National Tournament appearance.
A native of Diamond, Meister earned IHSA All-State honors in 2003 and 2004 at Reed-Custer High School. She resides in Ashkum, IL with her husband, Todd, and their three children, Hadley, Harper and Hudson.
Coach Meister also serves as KCC’s assistant athletic director. Both roles give her the ability to work directly with student-athletes and build a foundation of trust, dedication, and success in the place she calls home.
Jenny Coronelli brings energy and excitement to the coaching staff. A former KCC player, Coronelli is in her second year as an assistant coach with the program she attributes much of her personal success to. As a KCC player, Coronelli experienced success including two National Tournament Runner-Up finishes and an overall record of 57-10.
After KCC, Coronelli continued her collegiate basketball career at Kentucky Wesleyan University, a NCAA Div. II school where she completed a bachelor’s degree in sports management. She earned a master’s degree in teaching from Olivet Nazarene University and became a physical education teacher for a local school district. She is currently working on a doctoral degree in curriculum and instruction at Aurora University. Her resume also includes 13 years of middle school coaching and one season as a KCC assistant alongside retired coach Donnie Denson.
Coronelli lives in Bourbonnais with her puppy, Bootsie May, and cannot wait to see what this season has in store.