Kirkwood Community College - Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Marble sparks No. 11 Eagles to easy win

When your last name is Marble and you play basketball in the state of Iowa, people expect you to be really good.

That's perfectly OK with Carlo Marble, whose father and older brother both starred for the Iowa Hawkeyes during their college careers.

"I think it's a challenge," he said Wednesday night, "and I like challenges."

Marble scored 19 points and played a strong all-around game as the 11th-ranked Kirkwood Eagles rolled by Little Priest Tribal College, 89-58, in a non-conference affair at Johnson Hall.

Roy Marble, Carlo's father, scored 2,116 points for the Hawkeyes from 1985 through 1989 and is the leading scorer in school history. He was an exciting player to watch and a first-round NBA draft pick in 1989.

Sadly, Roy Marble died from cancer in 2015 when he was 48.

Roy "Devyn" Marble, Carlo's older brother, scored 1,675 points during his University of Iowa career and was a second-round NBA draft pick in 2014. He's now recovering from a knee injury after playing pro ball in Greece and Italy.

Carlo Marble, by contrast, is toiling in relative obscurity for the Kirkwood Eagles, coming off the bench for the most part and averaging 8.4 points and 3.6 rebounds per game.

Read more...

No. 2 KCC women win 8th straight

WEST BURLINGTON - Mackenzie Jenkins led a balanced attack with 14 points Wednesday night as the second-ranked Kirkwood Eagles dumped Southeastern Community college, 73-52, in an ICCAC game in West Burlington.

Olivia Usher collected 12 points, seven rebounds and three assists for Kirkwood. Arika Wooldridge finished with 11 points and six rebounds. Awal Ajak had 10 points.

Kirkwood won for the eighth straight time, raising its records to 18-3 overall and 4-0 in the conference. The Eagles are tied for first place in the league with DMACC.

Read more...

Brady Sartorius commits to Kirkwood basketball

Brady Sartorius, a high-scoring guard from Mount Pleasant High School, committed to the Kirkwood men's basketball team Sunday night.

Sartorius, a 6-foot senior, is averaging 22.6 points, 4.7 assists, 3.1 rebounds and 3.1 steals at Mount Pleasant.

"Excited to say I'll be continuing my education and basketball career at Kirkwood!!," he announced on Twitter.

Mount Pleasant is a Class 3A school with a 13-3 record.

Read more...

Ajak leads No. 2 KCC women to win

ESTHERVILLE - Sophomore Awal Ajak scored 14 points, including four 3-point baskets, to lead No. 2 Kirkwood to a 70-46 win over Iowa Lakes here Saturday.

Christmas Puok added 13 points and a team-high nine rebounds for the Eagles (17-3 overall, 3-0 in conference play). Olivia Usher finished with 10 points for Kirkwood.

Lemia Ntor-Ue led Iowa Lakes (6-11, 1-2) with a game-high 16 points.

Kirkwood returns to action Wednesday with a conference game at Southeastern.

Read more...

Wilson, King spark No. 13 Eagles by Lakers

ESTHERVILLE - Doug Wilson and Chris King, who were teammates at Des Moines Hoover High School, provided a strong 1-2 punch for the Kirkwood Eagles Saturday afternoon.

Wilson collected a double-double with 23 points and 12 rebounds as the 13th-ranked Eagles trimmed Iowa Lakes, 72-67, in an ICCAC conference game in Estherville.

King scored 18 points for Kirkwood, including a flurry of seven straight markers late in the game to help claim the victory.

The Eagles raised their records to 13-4 overall and 3-0 in the conference with their fifth straight triumph.

Read more...

Kirkwood raised $2,566 for Ben Jacobson

The fundraiser for Kirkwood assistant basketball coach Ben Jacobson  raised $2,566 on Wednesday night at Johnson Hall.

Jacobson, 34, was diagnosed with brain cancer in October. He returned  to the basketball team in November and is receiving treatments at the  University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics.

The GoFundMe campaign for Jacobson has surpassed the original goal of  $10,000 and the new goal has been set at $15,000.

The NIACC basketball program raised $1,970 at its clinic in Mason City  and presented Jacobson with a check for that amount Wednesday.

Special T-shirts from "Jake's Game" can be ordered through Kirkwood  for $15. Send an email to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with your name and  size. Checks can be written to Kirkwood Athletics. All proceeds go to  Jacobson.

In addition, JacobStrong bracelets are available at the Kirkwood  athletic department office at Johnson Hall for $2.

No. 2 KCC women trim No. 7 NIACC

Arika Wooldridge joined a championship team when she transferred from Winona State to Kirkwood this season.

She played like a champion at crunch time Wednesday night.

Wooldridge made several key plays in the final minutes to help the second-ranked Eagles trim No. 7 NIACC, 68-59, in an ICCAC conference game at Johnson Hall.

The game was tied, 56-56, with five minutes left, but Kirkwood outscored the visitors 12-3 down the stretch for the nine-point victory.

Wooldridge, a 6-foot-2 center from Center Point, re-entered the contest with 3:35 remaining and played a pivotal role from there.

She hit an eight-footer in the lane to beat the shot clock and give Kirkwood a 62-56 lead, then she scored in the low post to make it 64-59 with about a minute remaining.

She also grabbed three key defensive rebounds during that spurt and helped the Eagles raise their records to 16-3 overall and 2-0 in the league.

Read more...

No. 13 Eagles knock off NIACC

Kirkwood Coach Bryan Petersen pulled Chris King and Ethan Meeker into a private meeting prior to the holiday break last month to talk about where the Eagles were headed.

It had been a choppy season at that point and Petersen wanted his two experienced sophomores to help point the Eagles in the right direction.

It's worked.

King and Meeker played important roles Wednesday night as the 13th-ranked Eagles continued their surge with a 76-63 victory over NIACC in a conference game at Johnson Hall.

King popped in six 3-pointers and scored 23 points. Meeker, who missed the first month of the season with a broken hand, contributed eight points, five assists, three rebounds and two steals.

Most of all, they're providing more of the leadership that may have been lacking earlier in the campaign.

"I just wanted more ownership from those guys in particular, because they've been in our program and they've played a good amount of minutes over their careers," said Petersen. "I just wanted more ownership, because at the end of the day this is their last go-round at Kirkwood.

Read more...

'Jake's Game' is big success for Jacobson

Ben Jacobson, smiling broadly, embraced his family and warmly acknowledged all the fans who flocked to Johnson Hall Wednesday night to support him in his fight against brain cancer.

"Unbelievable," was his one-word response when asked what the night meant to him. "Unbelievable."

Jacobson, 34, was diagnosed with Level 2 brain cancer in October. The 2 1/2-inch tumor in the frontal lobe of his brain is inoperable, due to its location, but he has vowed to wage a fierce battle against the disease.

Jacobson has been back on the job as an assistant men's basketball coach at Kirkwood Community College since mid-November and he's extremely appreciative of all the support he's received from the Kirkwood athletic department, the Kirkwood community, friends and fans.

A GoFundMe campaign has raised $10,155 for the Jacobson family to help with expenses, already surpassing the initial goal of $10,000.

The NIACC basketball teams, who were Kirkwood's opponents in the doubleheader Wednesday, raised $1,970 for Jacobson at a basketball clinic and presented Jacobson with a check during a pre-game ceremony.

Read more...