NCMC Lady Pirates basketball placed 6th in the recent NJCAA DII Women's Basketball Championship held in Port Huron, MI. The showing matches the schools best national finish in the tournament (2007) and eclipsed total tournament wins with two. Overall, the Lady Pirates concluded the year with a record of 26-7 plus Region XVI and Central Plains District championships.
NCMC, the 8th seed in the 16 team tournament, opened action with a solid 75-50 win over Niagara County CC, the winner of the East A district. In the elite 8 round, top seeded and eventual national champion Kirkwood CC was too much for NCMC with the final score of the game at 72-49. Once in the consolation bracket, the Lady Pirates handled Muskegon CC 60-52 before falling to local rival Johnson County CC 72-56 in the 5th place game.
Head coach Jenni Croy had these comments about her team's effort in the tournament. "We really took it one game at a time. Our girls were determined to win that first one to prove we belonged as an 8 seed or higher. Facing Kirkwood, we knew it was going to be tough. After that game we knew we needed to regroup and win that third game vs. Muskegon. That win put us into the 5th place game and met our goal of playing on the very last day we could possibly play. Four games in five days is tough, especially against the toughest teams in the country!"
Nora Ford was one of a dozen player to make the All-Tournament Team for 2022. The sophomore guard concluded the year averaging 16.9 points per game on 41% shooting. In the tournament's four games, Ford totaled 61 points for the Lady Pirates.
"This team was full of girls who love the game, who played for each other and just had that grit needed to play at a high level. They didn't care who scored or who got the credit. This team was very unselfish and got excited to see the success of their teammates as well as their team," commented Croy.
The program now begins to look forward to the 2022-23 season where they aim to build on this year's success. "They will be determined to get back to the tournament. It was an awesome experience," concluded Croy.
