Kirkwood Community College - Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Goods leads No. 1 Eagles into finals

EAST PEORIA, Ill. - Simone Goods scored 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds Thursday as the top-ranked Kirkwood Eagles spanked Sauk Valley, 83-51, in the semifinals of the Illinois Central holiday tournament.

Kirkwood (14-0) will face 19th-ranked Illinois Central (11-4) in the championship game Friday at 4 p.m.

Shaneequah Watkins stuffed the stat sheet for the Eagles with 12 points, five rebounds, three assists, three blocks and two steals. Deleyah Harris also had a well-rounded game with 10 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals.

Tay Tay Wilson and Megan Axcell contributed 11 points for Kirkwood. Axcell hit three 3-pointers.

KIRKWOOD (83): Harris 4 0-0 10, T. Wilson 4 2-2 11, Puok 0 0-0 0, Hedges 0 0-0 0, Axcell 3 2-2 11, Schmidt 0 0-0 0, Ajak 1 2-2 5, Taylor 0 0-0 0, Watkins 4 4-7 12, Voss 2 0-0 5, Cotton 2 0-0 4, C. Wilson 1  0-0 3, Goods 7 3-3 17, Usher 1 0-0 3, Achenbach 1 0-0 2. Totals 30 13-16 83.

3-point goals - Kirkwood 10 (Axcell 3, Harris 2, T.Wilson 1, Ajak 1, Voss 1, C.Wilson 1, Usher 1).

No. 1 Kirkwood women win 13th straight

EAST PEORIA, Ill. - The top-ranked Kirkwood women's basketball team rolled to its most lopsided victory of the season Wednesday afternoon  with an 87-31 romp past McHenry at the Illinois Central tournament.

The Eagles (13-0) have outscored their opponents 1,040 to 600 this season. They are averaging 80 points and allowing only 46.1 for a winning margin of nearly 34 points per game.

Kirkwood has won its 13 games this year by 56, 53, 41, 41, 39, 36, 35, 30, 28, 28, 26, 14 and 13 points.

Simone Goods led four Eagles into double figures Wednesday with 15 points and eight rebounds. Olivia Schmidt scored 13 points, Deleyah Harris 12 and Megan Axcell 11. Schmidt and Axcell each had three 3-pointers.

Harris, who was named the national Division II junior college player of the week last week, had four steals for Kirkwood. Shaneequah Watkins also had four steals.

Rylee Voss and Olivia Usher grabbed nine rebounds.

KIRKWOOD (87): Axcell 4 0-0 11, Harris 6 0-0 12, T.Wilson 2 2-2 6, Puok 2 0-0 4, Hedges 0 0-0 0, Schmidt 4 2-2 13, Ajak 1 2-2 4, Taylor 1 0-0 2, Watkins 3 0-0 6, Voss 3 0-2 6, Cotton 1 0-0 2, C.Wilson 0 0-0 0, Goods 6 3-4 15, Usher 2 0-0 4, Achenbach 1 0-0 2. Totals 36 9-12 87

3-point goals - Kirkwood 6 (Axcell 3, Schmidt 3).

No. 1 Kirkwood women cruise to 12-0

SOUTH HOLLAND, Ill. - Another day, another lopsided victory.

That was the story for the top-ranked Kirkwood women's basketball team Saturday as it cruised to a 74-33 victory over South Suburban in the South Suburban tournament.

Awal Ajak popped in three 3-pointers and led the Eagles with 15 points. Simone Goods collected 10 points and seven rebounds and was named the MVP of the tournament.

Shaneequah Watkins also scored 10 points for Kirkwood. Deleyah Harris had seven points and was named to the all-tournament team.

Kirkwood raised its record to 12-0.

KIRKWOOD (74): Harris 2 3-4 7, T.Wilson 1 0-0 2, Puok 0 0-0 0, Hedges  1 0-0 2, Axcell 3 0-0 8, Schmidt 0 0-0 0, Ajak 6 0-0 15, Taylor 0 0-0 0, Watkins 4 0-0 10, Voss 3 0-0 6, Cotton 1 0-0 2, C.Wilson 2 0-0 5,  Goods 3 4-5 10, Usher 0 3-4 3, Achenbach 1 2-2 4. Totals 27 12-15 74.

3-point goals - Kirkwood 8 (Ajak 3, Axcell 2, Watkins 2, C.Wilson 1).

No. 1 Kirkwood women roll to 11-0

SOUTH HOLLAND, Ill. - Simone Goods tossed in 21 points Friday as the top-ranked Kirkwood Eagles raised their record to 11-0 by spanking Joliet, 93-54, in the first round of the South Suburban Classic.

Deleyah Harris scored 14 points for Kirkwood, Shaneequah Watkins had 11, Rylee Voss scored 10 and Olivia Usher had 10.

KIRKWOOD (93): Harris 5 1-3 14, T.Wilson 1 0-0 3, Puok 1 0-0 2, Hedges  1 0-0 2, Axcell 2 0-0 5, Schmidt 2 0-0 6, Ajak 2 0-0 4, Taylor 0 0-0  0, Watkins 4 3-5 11, Voss 4 2-2 10, Cotton 1 0-0 3, C.Wilson 0 0-0 0,  Goods 8 5-5 21, Usher 4 2-5 10, Achenbach 1 0-0 2. Totals 36 13-20 93.

3-point goals - Kirkwood 8 (Harris 3, Schmidt 2, T.Wilson 1, Axcell 1,  Cotton 1).

Harris paces No. 1 Kirkwood women

When Deleyah Harris was a freshman in high school, her AAU basketball team played in a boys summer league to test their skills and see how they stacked up.

"We lost every game," she said Wednesday night with a smile.

It paid off, however.

"It made you want to compete a lot more," said Harris. "Everybody always says boys are faster and stronger, so it made you try to show a lot more and try to compete. It helped me out a lot."

That experience against the guys in Omaha made her better and made her tougher, and now she's one of the top players for the No. 1 junior  college team in America.

Harris stuffed the stat sheet Wednesday with 20 points, seven steals, five rebounds and four assists as the top-ranked Kirkwood Eagles strolled to an 84-43 victory over John Wood Community College at  Johnson Hall.

Kirkwood, which climbed into the No. 1 spot in the NJCAA Division II rankings this week, raised its record to a perfect 10-0.

"We all feel really good about it, but like Coach (Kim Muhl) tell us, everybody is out to beat us," said Harris, "so we practice two times as hard now  what we are No. 1."

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New lineup sparks Kirkwood men

It's mid-December and the Kirkwood Eagles have already played 12  games, but Coach Bryan Petersen is still juggling his lineup and searching for the right formula that will give them a shot at another national crown.

He may have found a few answers Wednesday night.

Kirkwood started a new four-guard lineup against John Wood Community College and posted a comfortable 84-64 victory in a non-conference game at Johnson Hall.

Petersen has tinkered with the lineup much of the season in search of the right starting lineup and the right combination of subs.

"Day-by-day, we're still looking for a lot of answers from our group,"  he said. "You never have it completely figured out. Everybody says by January you should know your team, hopefully.

"It's not January yet, but at the same time I thought we'd probably be  a little further along than we are right now."

Petersen has a lot of talented players to choose from, including six guys who helped the Eagles capture the NJCAA Division II title last March and a talented group of newcomers.

Talent is not the issue, but chemistry and team cohesion are still a work in progress. The Eagles have a respectable 9-3 record, but they are no longer ranked No. 1 in the country and they lost to Black Hawk  College last week after drilling them by 44 points earlier in the year.

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Kirkwood women jump to No. 1 in NJCAA

It's only December, but the Kirkwood women's basketball team is already enjoying a terrific season.

Hall of Fame Coach Kim Muhl collected his 800th victory at Kirkwood two weeks ago and now the Eagles have climbed into the No. 1 spot in  the NJCAA Division II national rankings.

The Eagles (9-0) were ranked No. 2 last week, but they changed spots with Pima, Ariz., after Pima fell to 9-2 for the campaign.

Simone Goods leads a balanced attack for Kirkwood at 13.8 points and  7.6 rebounds. Deleyah Harris (9.4 points), Shaneequah Watkins (9.3), Olivia Usher (8.6) and Awal Ajak (8.3) are the next top scorers.

The Eagles are outscoring their opponents by an average of 20.1 points  per game. Their victory margins have been 28, 13, 30, 14, 28, 53, 35, 26 and 36, with none of the games in single digits.

The Kirkwood men's basketball team, which was ranked No. 1 in the  preseason poll as the defending national champion, has dropping  completely out of the Top 20 following an 81-73 loss to Black Hawk College last week for its third setback of the campaign.

Kirkwood hosts John Wood College in a doubleheader Wednesday night at  Johnson Hall. The women's game is scheduled for 5:30 and the men's game is set for 7:30.

Wentzien paces No. 6 Eagles by Lincoln

LINCOLN, Ill. - Miles Wentzien scored 18 points and grabbed nine  rebounds Saturday as the sixth-ranked Kirkwood Eagles topped Lincoln  College, 65-55, in a junior college basketball game.

Chris King and Da'Rion King scored 10 points apiece for Kirkwood (8-3).

The Eagles got off to a slow start and trailed 26-25 at halftime  before taking control in the second half.

Trayvon Tyler led Lincoln (7-5) with 17 points.

KIRKWOOD (65): Triplett 0 0-0 0, Harp 1 1-2 3, Jackson 2 0-0 5,  Wentzien 8 0-0 18, Meeker 3 1-1 7, Fagan 1 2-4 4, C.King 4 1-2 10,  Marble 0 0-0 0, Oliver 0 0-0 0, Henry 3 2-2 8, D.King 5 0-1 10. Totals  27 7-12 65.

LINCOLN (55): Jackson 0 0-0 0, Tyler 6 2-5 17, Nelson 2 3-4 7, Hopp 1  0-0 3, Parker 5 0-0 10, Hill 0 0-0 0, Watkins 0 0-0 0, Wynn 1 0-0 2,  Grady 1 0-0 2, Simpkins 5 0-0 14, Robinson 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 5-9 55.

Halftime - Lincoln 26, Kirkwood 25. 3-point goals - Kirkwood 4  (Wentzien 2, Jackson 1, C.King), Lincoln 8 (Simpkins 4, Tyler 3, Hopp  1).

No. 2 Eagles roll to 9-0 record

MARSHALLTOWN - Shaneequah Watkins tossed in 20 points Wednesday night  as the second-ranked Kirkwood Eagles rolled to a 77-41 victory at Marshalltown.

Simone Goods collected 13 points and nine rebounds for Kirkwood, which raised its perfect record to 9-0. Deleyah Harris chipped in with 10 points.

Claudia Morente scored 11 points for Marshalltown (4-7). The hosts hit only 12 of 52 shots for 23.1 percent.

Kirkwood posted 77 points despite shooting 4 of 27 on 3-pointers.

KIRKWOOD (77): Harris 5 0-0 10, T.Wilson 0 1-2 1, Watkins 7 4-7 20,  Goods 6 1-1 13, Usher 4 1-1 9, Puok 1 0-2 2, Hedges 0 00 0, Axcell 1  0-0 3, Schmidt 0 2-2 2, Ajak 2 3-4 8, Taylor 0 0-0 0, Voss 2 0-0 4,  Cotton 1 0-0 2, C.Wilson 0 1-2 1, Achenbach 1 0-0 2. Totals 30 13-21 77.

MARSHALLTOWN (41): Araoz 1 0-2 2, Cantu 0 0-0 0, Siliga 0 2-2 2,  Morente 4 2-4 11, Eduardo 1 2-4 5, Kavanh 2 0-0 6, Pothast 0 0-0 0,  Roberts 0 0-0 0, Doby 0 1-2 1, Roth 3 4-7 10, Weston 1 2-2 4. Totals  12 13-23 41.

3-point goals - Kirkwood 4 (Watkins 2, Axcell 1, Ajak 1), Marshalltown  4 (Kavanh 2, Morente 1, Eduardo 1).