KCKCC – Page 64 – Welcome to Wyandotte Daily!

KCKCC’s Kelcey Hund named national volleyball defensive player of week

Adriana Velez named KJCCC setter of week as Blue Devils post second straight upset win

by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC sports information

Kansas City Kansas Community College freshman Kelcey Hund is the NJCAA Division II National Defensive Player of the Week.

And sophomore Adriana Velez is the KJCCC (Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference) Setter of the Week – both selections coming on the heels of the Blue Devils second upset of national-ranked foes in three days.

On Saturday, KCKCC (9-7) stunned No. 7 Highland in three sets 3-0 and followed up Monday with an identical 3-0 win at No. 18 Neosho County in Chanute.

“We played excellent volleyball, knocking off two ranked teams in two matches,” KCKCC coach Mary Bruno-Ballou said. “We are peaking at the right time; I’m really proud of this group and their attitudes and work ethic.”

The Blue Devils are home for two matches Thursday, facing Cowley College at 4 p.m. and Metropolitan Community College at 8 p.m. Cowley and Metro will square off at 6 p.m.

A libero from Leavenworth, Hund averaged more than six digs per set and passed a cumulative 2.6 in three matches last week. Hund had a whopping 27 digs in the 3-0 upset of Highland and 13 more in Monday’s win over Neosho and currently ranks No. 12 nationally.

In addition to being National Player of the Week, Hund is also the KJCCC Defensive Player of the Week. She is also the second Blue Devil to earn national honors. Sophomore Cassidy Crist was named NJCAA DII Offensive Player of the Week the first week of the season.

“Our starting libero since day one, Kelcey is a great team player,” Bruno-Ballou said. “Selfless, she’s one of the hardest workers in our gym; does all the little things right; uses her voice well; and has stepped in as a leader in the back row. She’s had a great season so far and is getting the national attention she deserves. The greatest kid, we love her and are so very proud of her and her work ethic.”

A native of Bayamon, Puerto Rico, Velez leads the nation in NJCAA Division II in assists with 634, 30 more than the runnerup. She had 40 assists against Highland and 32 against Neosho.

In three matches last week, Velez had 139 assists including 45 in a 3-1 loss to No. 4 Johnson County in a match decided by a total of nine points in four sets and then followed up with an incredible 54 assists in a five-set heartbreaking loss to Allen County.

“Adriana is such a key element in our offense,” Bruno-Ballou said. “She runs a 5-1 offense for our team and does an excellent job – always consistent with a drive to make her successful and a winner.”

Led by Cassidy Crist, KCKCC avenged an earlier 3-1 loss at the hands of No. 18 Neosho. Ranked No. 3 in the nation in kills with 287, Crist had 18 of the Blue Devils’ 36 kills in the 25-23, 25-22, 25-16 blanking.

Michelle Dvorak added seven and Mia Tomasic five. Tomasic also had 10 digs and Crist eight to go along with Hund’s 15 and Velez’ 27 saves.

Mullen wins golf invitational, KCKCC team finishes fourth

by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC sports information

Led by Blake Mullen, Kansas City Kansas Community College got the 2021 golf season off to an outstanding start.

A sophomore from Olathe East, Mullen won the Evangel University Spring Invitational championship as the Blue Devils finished a solid fourth in the 10-team tournament made up mainly of four-year colleges and universities.

Mullen trailed Central Methodist’s Matias Baccola by two shots and Evangel’s Jake Brown by one with an opening round 2-over par 73 but charged from behind on the final round with a par 71 (73-71-144) and one stroke in front of both Baccola and Brown for medalist honors. The tourney was played at Fremont Hills Country Club near Springfield, Missouri, Monday and Tuesday.

“Blake’s putting was sold and he played well enough that he probably could have finished 3 or 4 under par were it not for a couple of holes including an 8 and on a par 5,” KCKCC coach Gary Shrader said. “It was very windy and the course played tough, With Bermuda fairways the ball kept rolling off the side of the fairway.”

Three other Blue Devils golfers finished in the Top 20 led by Carson Towey, a freshman from Andover Central, who tied for seventh with rounds of 78-76-154. Cheney sophomore Dylan Freund tied for 17th with a 78-83-161 and freshman Colby Unruh of Overland Park tied for 20th at 86-80-166.

“It was a good learning experience for our two freshmen,” Shrader said. “We had to designate five players for scoring and our other three players played as individuals and as a coach I didn’t pick the best five. And two players were hurt that affected their scores, Keegan Ellington and Kellen Welsh.”

Jacob Hall of Tonganoxie tied for 24th (86-82-168), Mark Towey of Andover Central shared 29th (87-83-170) and Kellen Welsh of Olathe West was 50th (92-99-191) despite a recurring wrist injury. Ellington was unable to finish because of injury.

Host Evangel took the team title with a 36-hole total of 610 followed by Kirkwood Community College, 612; Central Methodist, 619; KCKCC, 632; Graceland, 671; College of the Ozarks, 678; Dordt College, 686; Westminster, 689; Evangel B, 701- and Crowley Ridge College, 718.

The Blue Devils return to action May 22-23 when they’ll compete in the Washburn Invitational in Topeka. It’s the only tournament Shrader will be limited to five players.

Defense outstanding in Blue Devils’ thumping of Highland

by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC sports information

Kansas City Kansas Community College put the defensive clamps on Highland in racing to a 74-54 win Saturday.

The Blue Devils held the Scotties (7-4) to 10 points the first 15 minutes of play; surrendered just 6-of-35 first half shots for 17.1 percent; and gave up no 3-point goals in a game that was never in doubt.

The win improved KCKCC’s record to 9-6 heading into a Wednesday game at Labette. They’ll return Saturday afternoon to play host to Fort Scott in a game originally scheduled for Fort Scott.

“I think we’re playing our best basketball right now,” KCKCC coach Brandon Burgette said. “We’re are taking pride in defending; a great job tonight of limiting the drive and making Highland take tough shots.”

The Blue Devils had just two players in double figures but 11 of 12 who played scored and all 12 had rebounds. Knocking down 5-of-10 3-pointers, Deron McDaniel had a game-high 19 points; DeAngelo Bell added 12. Robert Rhodes chipped in with a game-high 12 rebounds along with eight points; Shayon Jonloo had seven points and Cody Dortch a pair of treys while Bryce Johnson had eight rebounds as KCKCC won the battle of the boards 47-42.

The Blue Devils built a 25-10 lead with 4:56 left in the first half and went into halftime with a 32-17 lead by limiting a Highland team that had been shooting 46.3 percent to 17.1 percent on just six field goals. The lead buoyed to 61-32 midway through the second half as the Blue Devils intermixed full court and half court defenses that forced 16 turnovers and totally disrupted the Scotties’ offense when the game was decided.

Led by Trey Bates’ six assists, the Blue Devils had 19 assists on 28 field goals.
“When we play fast and under control, we make good things happen,” Burgette said. “We’re a pretty deep team; we come in waves and put on a lot of pressure. When the ball moves, we can get any shot we want.”

The Blue Devils were 28-of-66 for 42.4 percent from the field, 12-of-32 from 3-point (.375) while the Scotties were 20-of-64 (.313) from the field and missed all 10 3-point attempts.