Green
ROCHESTER, Minn. — Owens Community College claimed the NJCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Championship after defeating Hostos (NY), 65-56, at the Rochester Regional Sports Center Saturday night.
Playing for Owens (27-4), the No. 1 college team in the nation most of the season, is Delta graduate Brooklyn Green.
Green averaged 7.3 points, 3.2 rebounds, and shot 38 percent from the field this season. Her best game was back on Jan. 19 against Lorain County Community College, when she scored 19 points on 7 of 11 shooting and 5 of 8 from three point range.
While at Delta, Green was a two-time NWOAL Player of the Year, twice earned first team all-district honors, and made special mention All-Ohio.
The rematch of the 2019 national title game was neck-and-neck throughout, but it was the Express that pulled away in the fourth quarter to claim the title.
The championship is the first women’s basketball national title for Owens, and the first time since 2003 that the same school has won both the NJCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Championship title and the NJCAA Division III Volleyball Championship.
The Owens volleyball team also claimed the national title in fall at the Rochester Regional Sports Center .
In a basketball game that saw nine ties with nine different lead changes, Owens found their stride in the fourth quarter as they outscored Hostos 23-9.
The Express used the depth on their bench to gain momentum as turnovers proved costly for the Caimans.
Owens displayed a well balanced offense as three players scored in double digits.
Dasia Hardison posted a game-high 21-point performance, including four three-point field goals made, seven rebounds, and four assists.
Hayley St. John was 6-for-8 from the field, scoring 12 points with three steals, playing the entire game except for two minutes.
Malorie Schroeder helped spark the Express offense in the fourth, coming off the bench with three minutes left in the third quarter.
In 13 minutes of work, Schroeder scored nine points with four rebounds and two assists.
After receiving a first-round bye, the Express started its 2022 national tournament campaign on a high-note. The top seed topped No. 8 Prince George’s in a 61-46 victory during the first round.
In the semifinal round, Owens knocked off fourth-seeded Rochester on the Yellowjackets’ home court inside the Rochester Regional Sports Center.
The Express advanced to the championship game on a Taylor Starks buzzer-beater from three-point range. Owens defeated Rochester , 66-63, while shooting 41.1 percent from the field.
Owens’ Cierra Harris was named the Most Valuable Player of the 2022 NJCAA DIII Women’s Basketball Championship.
Harris averaged 12 points per game and 10 rebounds per game over three contests, including grabbing 17 boards against Prince George’s in the quarterfinals.
Express head coach Stephen Perry was named the Coach of the Tournament after leading his team to a national title in his fourth year as head coach, and 15th overall as a member of the coaching staff.
Owens led the way with three members garnering all-tournament honors.
In addition to Harris, the Express landed two other student-athletes on the All-Tournament team: Taylor Starks and Dasia Hardison.
