By Steve Carpenter-Hutchinson CC Sports Information

CHANUTE – The No. 1-ranked Hutchinson Community College men’s basketball team saw a double-figure lead slip down to five points with 1:16 remaining and responded to the challenge to earn another Jayhawk Conference road victory on Saturday.

Sophomore Devonte Bandoo posted a double-double and freshman James Rojashad a huge effort off the bench as Hutchinson defeated Neosho County 76-64 at the Neosho County gym.

The Blue Dragons improve to 8-1 overall and is now 4-1 in the Jayhawk Conference heading into Wednesday’s home contest at Colby. Neosho County falls to 3-5 and 1-4 in league play.

Hutchinson led 60-48 with 7:35 to play in the second half. The Panthers fought their way back into the game and trailed 66-61 with 2:20 to play. The Dragons closed out with a 10-3 run, going 8 of 11 from the free-throw line down the stretch.

Hutchinson out-rebounded Neosho County 50-28, getting 20 offensive rebounds. The Dragons also outscored the Panthers 27-12 from the free-throw line.

Bandoo had his first career double-double with 19 points and a career-high 10 rebounds to lead the Blue Dragons. Hitting 7 of 15 shots from the floor, Bandoo added four assists.

Rojas led a big Dragon effort off the bench with a season-high 19 points, going 9 of 10 from the free-throw line. Rojas just missed a double-double with nine rebounds. Rojas helped the Dragons amass a 28-9 advantage in points off the bench.

J.J. Rhymes was the third Blue Dragon in double figures with 10 points. Robert Whitfield had nine points and Rheaquone Taylor had eight points and nine rebounds.

The Blue Dragons had their second-lowest hitting percentage of the season at 37.3 percent (22 of 59). The Dragons were 5 of 16 from 3-point range and 27 of 39 from the free-throw line.

Lual Dung had 16 points to lead Neosho County. Austin Downing added 14, Montrell Dixson had 13 and Branden Fenner had 10 points.

Neosho County shot 42.9 percent (24 of 56), going 4 of 17 from 3-point range and 12 of 19 from the free-throw line.

Trailing 11-7 in the first half, the Blue Dragons surged with a 8-0 run to lead 15-11 after a Bandoo layup with 11:51 to go in the opening half. A Bandoo 3-pointer with 6:20 to go in the half helped the Dragons reach a double-figure lead at 27-17 with 6:20 to go.

Each team shot 40 percent in the first half, but Neosho County trimmed the Hutch lead to 34-30 by halftime.

Neosho County opened the second half with a 7-0 run and took a 37-34 lead after a Fenner 3-pointer with 17:57 to go. A tip-in by Rojas snapped that run and the Dragons reclaimed the lead at 42-39 with a Whitfield 3-pointer at the 15:50 mark.

The lead grew to 10 with Rojas hit two free throws gave the Dragons a 52-42 lead with 12:14 to play. The lead grew to 12 on a Taylor dunk with 9:13 to go. The Dragons maintained a 12-point lead when Bandoo hit two free throws with 7:35 to go gave the Dragons a 60-48 lead.

A Rhymes’ 3-pointer with 4:52 to go stopped a Neosho run and gave the Dragons a 64-54 lead. Neosho County put together a 16-2 run and pulled within 66-61 after a Dixson free throw with 2:20 to play.

With a 69-64 lead at the 1:16 mark, the Blue Dragons closed the game out with a 7-0 run, all seven points coming at the free-throw line.

The Blue Dragons will play host to Colby at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday at the Sports Arena.

By Steve Carpenter-Hutchinson CC Sports Information

CHANUTE – The No. 12-ranked Hutchinson Community College women’s basketball team earned its third-straight Jayhawk Conference victory after a 72-62 road triumph at Neosho County.

The trio of sophomore Alicia Brown and freshmen Jada Mickens and Dejanae Roebuck combined for 53 points to lead the Blue Dragons. Hutchinson improves to 5-2 overall and are over .500 in league play for the first time this season at 3-2. Neosho County falls to 4-5 and 1-4.

Hutchinson built a 34-27 halftime lead despite shooting only 34.4 percent from the field in the opening two quarters. The key for the Blue Dragons was forcing 26 Neosho County turnovers and the Blue Dragons outscored the Panthers 29-15 in points off turnovers.

Brown scored a career-high 19 points on Saturday, hitting 4 of 7 field goals including a 3-pointer. Brown was 10 of 14 from the free-throw line. She added five rebounds and three steals.

Mickens posted her third double-double of the season with 18 points and 12 rebounds. Mickens was 8 of 16 shooting.

Roebuck had 16 points and eight rebounds. Vivian Chigbu was next for the Dragons with six.

For the game, the Blue Dragons shot 40.7 percent (24 of 59), including 3 of 8 from 3-point range and 24 of 41 from the free-throw line. The Dragons had a narrow 38-35 rebounding advantage. Hutch had 17 turnovers. The Dragons tied a season high with 13 steals.

Beth Hawkins knocked down four 3-pointers and led Neosho County with 12 points. Erica Birch had 11 points.

The Panthers shot 35.7 percent (20 of 56), going 6 of 22 from 3-point range and 16 of 24 from the free-throw line.

Hutchinson led 17-15 after one quarter. The Panthers tied the game at 17 after a Birch layup with 9:49 to play in the second quarter and took a 22-21 lead on a DeQuandra Lyles tip-in with 7:16 to play in the period. Then tied at 24, the Blue Dragons went on a 7-0 run to build a 31-24 lead with 2:32 remaining after a Chigbu layup after her blocked shot on the other end. Hutch led 34-27 at halftime despite hitting only 11 of 32 shots in the opening two quarters.

The Dragons opened the second half with a 7-1 run to build a 41-28 lead after a Brown 3-pointer with 7:17 to play in the third quarter. Neosho County immediately answered with a 12-1 run over the next 3 minutes and cut the Dragon lead to 42-40 with 4:29 to go in the third after a Lexy Watts free throw. Roebuck nailed a 3-pointer on Hutch’s next possession and the Dragons pushed the lead back to 10 after a Chigbu bucket gave the Dragons a 51-41 lead with 2:15 remaining in the third quarter. Hutch led 53-45 after three periods.

A Mickens’ layup pushed the lead to 13 at 60-47 with 6:56 to play and the Hutch lead never dipped into single digits again. The Dragons had their highest-scoring quarter of 22 in the fourth.

Hutchinson plays host to Colby on Wednesday with a 5:30 p.m. tipoff at the Sports Arena.

By Steve Carpenter-Hutchinson CC Sports Information

(Photo courtesy of Allie Schweizer, Hutchinson CC Sports Information)

Sunday, November 5, 2017

LIBERAL – The Hutchinson Community College Volleyball team won its 10th Region VI Volleyball championship since 2004 after the Blue Dragons stunned No. 3 Seward County in the Region VI Tournament finals on Sunday.

The Blue Dragons defeated Seward County in three deuce sets 25-23, 26-24, 30-28.

Hutchinson advances to the NJCAA Division I National Volleyball Tournament in the Hutchinson Sports Arena on November 16. The Blue Dragons will take a 27-12 record into the national tournament.

Hutchinson advanced to the program’s 15th Region VI final since 2001 with a 25-13, 25-18, 25-15 semifinal victory over Garden City. This is the fifth Region VI championship in head coach Patrick Hall’s six seasons with the Blue Dragons.

The Saints led their season 33-2.

Blue Dragon middle hitters Tatyana Ndekwe and Patricia Joseph keyed the Blue Dragons in the championship match.

Tatyana Ndekwe led the Dragons with 13 kills and five total blocks, including one solo stuff. Patricia Joseph added eight kills on 14 swings with four block assists.

Page Hiebert had a double-double with 10 kills and 10 digs. Nina Pevic added seven and Leonie Wienkaemper had five.

In the Garden City match,

In the Garden City match, Hiebert had 12 kills and Ndekwe added 11 kills and three blocks to lead the second-seeded Blue Dragons to a 25-13, 25-18, 25-15 semifinal victory.

The Blue Dragons out-hit Garden City 47-31 in the match in defeating Garden City for a third time this season.

Patricia Joseph had eight kills, Nina Pevic had seven kills and Katie Jorn had five kills in the victory.

A full recap on all of Sunday’s Blue Dragon action will move later tonight.

[ By STEVE CARPENTER ]

[ HUTCHINSON CC SPORTS INFORMATION ]

Photo courtesy of Joel Powers, Hutchinson CC Sports Information

The Hutchinson Community College men’s basketball team’s defense was overpowering all night on Saturday at the Sports Arena. It took a while, but the offense joined in.

The Blue Dragons held NEO to 22.4 percent shooting and forced 25 turnovers as No. 1-ranked Hutchinson blitzed the Golden Norse 87-42 in a battle of 2-0 teams at the Sports Arena.

Hutchinson improves to 3-0 overall as it heads to the Tabor College JV on Tuesday in Hillsboro. NEO falls to 2-1. In Saturday’s earlier game, North Lake College defeated the Tabor College JV 90-61.

The Blue Dragons posted their largest margin of victory in the all-time series against NEO. Saturday’s 45-point victory topped the previous high of 38 set in 2014 (105-67). The 42 points allowed on Wednesday were the fewest allowed to the Golden Norse in the 23-game series. The previous NEO low output against Hutchinson was 54 points in 2012.

The last time the Blue Dragons held an NJCAA Division I opponent to 42 or few points was Fort Scott, which scored 39 in a Region VI Tournament opening-round victory in 2011.

Hutchinson’s defense limited NEO to 11 of 49 shooting (22.4 percent). The Norse had only six 2-point goals in the contest. Hutch forced 25 NEO turnovers, 14 by Blue Dragons steals. The Dragons outscored NEO 26-10 in points off turnovers.

The Blue Dragons held NEO scoreless for stretches of 6:36 and 3:26 of the opening half, but led only 17-10 with 5:57 remaining in the half. Over the final 25 minutes, 3 seconds of the game, Hutchinson outscored NEO 70-32.

Sophomore J.J. Rhymes led another balanced scoring attack for Hutchinson with 15 points on 6 of 12 shooting.

Freshmen Curtis Hollis and Rheaquone Taylor had 13 points each off the bench to lead a 54-19 advantage in points off the bench.

Freshman Josh Creach posted his first career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Devonte Bandoo had nine points and eight rebounds. Robert Whitfield had seven points.

The Blue Dragons shot only 40.7 percent (33 of 81), hitting a season-high seven 3-pointers in 19 attempts and 14 of 21 from the foul line.

Hutchinson out-rebounded NEO 60-33 with 24 offensive rebounds. The 60 boards tie for the third-most boards in team history matching games against Pratt (2008), Coffeyville (2015) and Garden City (2017).

Dylan Ven Eyck had nine points on three 3-pointers to lead the Norse.

Neither team could get its offenses going in the first half. Bandoo scored the first points of the game at the 18:02 mark and the Blue Dragons proceeded to go scoreless for the next 5:01. Rhymes’ tip-in with 13:01 left gave the Dragons a 4-3 lead.

The Dragons led 11-9 at the first-half media timeout and their offense started to show signs of life. A Whitfield transition layup after an NEO turnover gave the Dragons a 17-9 lead. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Whitfield and Curtis Hollis pushed the lead to 14 at 26-12 with 4:27 to play. A Hollis layup with 1:53 left pushed the Dragon lead to 35-15. The Dragosn led 36-21 at halftime.

Hutch scored the first 11 points of the second half and held NEO scoreless for the first 3:57 of the period to lead 47-21 on a Rhymes jumper. The lead went to 30 (57-27) on a Taylor free throw with 13:06 remaining. It reached 40 on a Taylor jumper with 6:45 left for a 70-30 advantage. Hutch’s largest lead was 47 points.

By- Steve Carpenter-Hutchinson CC Sports Information

HUTCHINSON, KS-The NJCAA top-ranked Hutchinson Community College Men’s Basketball team continues a very busy opening week with matchups against North Lake College and NEO on Friday and Saturday at the Sports Arena.

The 2017 National Champion Blue Dragons had a successful start on Wednesday with a 102-56 victory over the Friends JV to win their 11th consecutive season opener.  Friday night the Blue Dragons won over Northlake 87 to 62.

 

NEO opened its season on Wednesday with a 90-63 victory over Central Baptist College, as well as an easy win over Tabor College JV on Friday night in the early contest at the Sports Arena.

Hutchinson’s match-up with North Lake will be the fifth in series history. The Blue Dragons are 4-0 against the Blazers. The 2015 meeting at the Sports Arena was a close one, but Hutchinson pulled out a 73-68 victory.

The Blue Dragons and Golden Norse will do battle on Saturday for the 23rd time in a series that started in 1957. The Blue Dragons have won five in a row in the series and has a 14-8 series advantage over NEO. Last season, the Dragons defeated the Norse 90-57.

The Blue Dragons will close out their non-conference schedule on Tuesday with a trip to Hillsboro to take on the Tabor College JV in a 7:30 p.m. matchup.

The Tabor College Junior Varsity is the fourth team this weekend in the Arena.

[ By STEVE CARPENTER ]

[ HUTCHINSON CC SPORTS INFORMATION ]

Photo courtesy of Allie Schweizer, Hutchinson CC Sports Information

Five players scored in double figures as the Hutchinson Community College men’s basketball team won the battle of NJCAA No. 1 teams on Friday.

The Blue Dragons, defending Division I national champion and preseason No. 1, defeated North Lake College, the defending champion and current No. 1team in Division III, 87-62 at the Hutchinson Sports Arena.

Hutchinson improves to 2-0 and will play 2-0 Northeastern Oklahoma A&M at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday. North Lake (0-1) will play the Tabor College JV at 5:30 p.m. Earlier on Friday, NEO defeated Tabor 84-52.

Freshman James Rojas came off the bench to lead the Blue Dragons with 16 points on 4 of 6 shooting with seven rebounds. Rojas was 8 of 10 from the free-throw line.

Rojas led a dominant effort in the paint for the Blue Dragons, who outscored the Blazers 50-34 in the paint.

Sophomore Devonte Bandoo had 14 points and three assists. Sophomore J.J. Rhymes and Kai Mitchell had 11 points each. Mitchell had nine rebounds and Rhymes added eight points. Mitchell also had a career-best seven assists. Curtis Hollis was the fifth Blue Dragon in double figures with 10 points. Sophomore Sal Nuhu added eight points and nine rebounds.

The Blue Dragons shot 48.3 percent overall (29 of 60), going just 2 of 17 from 3-point range and 27 of 38 from the free-throw line. Hutch had a 50-31 rebounding advantage, but had to overtime 18 turnovers.

The Lakers were 25 of 71 from the field on Friday (35.2 percent), hitting 4 of 23 from 3-point range and 8 of 10 from the foul line. North Lake had 16 turnovers.

Darrell Watson had a game-high 21 points to lead North Lake. Byrale Carter added 12.

The Dragons scored the first seven points of the game, but trailed 10-9 after a Watson layup with 14:25 to play. Leading 20-18, the Blue Dragons reeled off eight unanswered points capped by a Bandoo three-point play for a 28-18 lead with 7:27 to play in the first half.

Hutch had a 12-point lead after a Bandoo 3-pointer gave the Dragons a 33-21 lead with 6:27 to go, but the Lakers pulled within six at 33-27 after a Tremont Moore short jumper with 4:11 to go.

The Dragons regained a double-figure lead after a Rhymes 3-pointer with 1:41 left in the half gave the Dragons a 42-31 lead. Neither team scored in the remainder of the half. There were four lead changes and two ties in the first half.

The Dragons started fast in the second half as the lead grew to 16 at 48-32 after a Kai Mitchell dunk. North Lake stayed within striking distance as Watson scored with 14:02 to play cut the Hutch lead to 53-42. That was the closest the Blazers got for the remainder of the game.

A tip-in by Rojas gave the Blue Dragons their first 20-point lead at 70-50 with 7 minutes to play. The lead grew to 31 after two Josh Creach free throws with 1:11 to go make it 87-56.

Hutchinson outscored North Lake 45-31 in the second half shooting 48.3 percent. (17 of 35). The Blazers were held to 34.1 percent in the final 20 minutes (14 of 41)

BLUE DRAGON FOOTBALL

# 16 Hutchinson (6-2, 3-1) at # 6 Independence (6-1, 4-0)

When: Saturday, October 28, 2017

Where: Riverside Park-Emmott Field, Independence, Kansas

Kickoff: 9:30 p.m. *Coundown to Kickoff at 9:00 p.m.*

Live Radio: KHUT-FM (102.9); KWBW-AM/FM (1450/98.5), 12:30 p.m.

Live Video: Blue Dragon Sports Network, 9:20 p.m.

Twitter: @bluedragonsport

By Steve Carpenter-Hutchinson CC Sports Information

For the second-straight week, the Hutchinson Community College football team is in a nationally ranked matchup with plenty riding on the eventual outcome of the Jayhawk Conference.

The No. 16-ranked Blue Dragons travel to No. 6 Independence for a 9:30 p.m. kickoff on Saturday at Emmott Field in Riverside Park in Independence.

The game will be broadcast live on Blue Dragon flagship station KHUT-FM (102.9) and sister stations KWBW-AM/FM (1450/98.5). The veteran broadcast team of Rusty Hilst (play-by-play), Daren Dunn (analysis) and Glen Grunwald (sidelines). The broadcast begins at 9 p.m. with Countdown to Kickoff.

The game will also be videostreamed on the Blue Dragon Sports Network (www.bluedragonsports.com).

Hutch and Independence play its most meaningful game against each other since 2010 when they met in the semifinals of the Region VI Playoffs. Independence led in the third quarter, but Hutch rallied for a 24-17 victory.

The Blue Dragons look to rebound from their first Jayhawk Conference loss of the season after then No. 16 Butler came to Gowans Stadium and never let the Dragons get untracked in a 38-10 win over Hutchinson.

That means that Independence is the lone remaining unbeaten in league play. Since getting pounded by Iowa Western 72-21 in the season opener, the Pirates of reeled off six-straight wins, including a 4-0 mark in conference play.

If Hutchinson wins, the Blue Dragons and Pirates would again be tied for the Jayhawk Conference lead. If the Pirates win, Independence would have a two-game lead on the field with three games to play.

Last week, the Blue Dragons committed a turnover on the third play from scrimmage that Butler returned for a touchdown. Hutch found itself down 21-3 at halftime and only mustered 171 yards of total offense and just three first downs in the second half.

Independence had its bye week last week. The Pirates earned their sixth consecutive victory on Sunday, October 15 in a 9-6 victory at Highland. Before that game, the Pirates were averaging 36.0 points per game in their previous five outings.

Last season, the Pirates came to Gowans Stadium and defeated the Blue Dragons 18-16, one of six losses by Hutchinson that were by seven points or loss.

The Blue Dragons are looking to win the Jayhawk Conference championship for the first time since 2014. Independence hasn’t won a conference title since 1937 according to the most up-to-date KJCCC records.

Eagle Audio Click Here

 

 

 

 

 

BLUE DRAGON MEN’S BASKETBALL

Hutchinson vs. Sunrise Academy Preseason Scrimmage When: Thursday, October 19 Where: Hutchinson Sports Arena Game time: 8:45 p.m. Admission: Free to public

Steve Carpenter-HutchCC Sports Information

Blue Dragon fans can get a preseason look at the 2017-18 Hutchinson Community College men’s basketball team on Thursday in a scrimmage at the Sports Arena.

The Blue Dragons will scrimmage Sunrise Academy from Wichita at 8:45 p.m. in the third of four preseason scrimmages. The scrimmage was originally scheduled for 6:30, but was changed because of scheduling issues.

Hutch’s final preseason scrimmage will be October 25 at Newman University.

There is no admission for the scrimmage and all east, south and west entrances to the Sports Arena will be open.

Anticipation is high for the Blue Dragons after winning the 2017 NJCAA national championship, the third in school history.

Hutchinson returns six players from last year’s 35-2 team that won the national title for the first time since 1994.

DERBY, KS – The Hutchinson Salthawks suffered their first loss of the football season at the hands of the defending 6A State Champion Derby Panthers at Derby Stadium in front of a 5,000 plus capacity crowd.

In their previous meeting, Derby delivered Hutchinson a punishing 40 – 7 defeat. This time around? Just more of the same. The final score between Derby and Hutchinson was a 61 – 18 blowout in Derby’s favor.

Hutchinson’s defense took a beating in the first half, giving up 29 points. That put it down 29 – 18. The defense wasn’t great in the second half either, allowing another 32 points.

Hutchinson’s senior running back Joesiah Galindo rushed for 193 yards on 24 carries including a 74 yard gallop in the first quarter for his only touchdown of the game.  Quarterback Trevor Rhoades scored from 1 yard out to give the Salthawks their last lead of the game early in the 2nd quarter at 18-15.  Rhoades had 15 carries for 63 yards rushing and was 1 for 1 passing for zero yards in the air.  Derby’s Brody Kooser shreded the Salthawk defense with 186 yards on 10 carries including 3 touchdowns.  Grant Adler was 5 of 13 for 146 yards and 2 touchdowns, both to Tyler Brown.  Adler’s longest TD pass was for 82 yards.

The victory got Derby up to 3-1. The defeat brought Hutchinson down to 3-1.

Both teams are aiming to improve upon those records in their upcoming games. Derby will square off against Bishop Carroll this Friday at 7:00 PM. Like Derby, Bishop Carroll is also ranked highly in the state, so the team can expect a competitive contest. As for Hutchinson, it will battle it out against Eisenhower in Goddard on Friday at 7:00 PM.

9/22 @ 7p	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Final
Hutchinson	10	8	0	0	18
Derby	15	14	20	12	61

 

 

 

 

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