Cranford, NJ – Last night the Army Prep Black Knights concluded their road stretch with a nail-biter at Union Community College. 

After starting out behind 11-2 the Prep team settled down and stayed within striking distance of the UCC Owls.  Going into the half trailing 28-35 the Knights came out strong with a 6-0 run that shocked the solid Union team, but failed to take the lead until the middle of the second half on a three point basket by CJ McElrath (10 points). 

Union stormed back and went up five with only 4 minutes to play.  Army’s boost came from forward Kirk Van Slyke who, despite being whistled for his fourth foul early in the second half, stepped off the bench and netted a three-point bucket to pull the team within two points.  After a crucial stop on the defensive end, Van Slyke shot and sank a pull-up jumper while being fouled.  He stepped to the line and casually finished the old-fashioned three point play. 

After Union tied the game with 13 seconds on the clock, Army Coach Cory Sinning called timeout and called the play to put the ball inside.  With 3 seconds to play Jordan Springer scored the game winning bucket on one of CJ McElrath’s career-high 11 assists. 

Springer finished the game with 18 points on a perfect night from the field (8-8) and free-throw line (2-2) while grabbing 8 rebounds.  Ella Ellis led all scorers with 23 points (on 10-16 shooting), 17 of which were in the second half.  Ellis and Zach Ricketts combined for 12 rebounds (6 each). 

Brett Phillips contributed with 3 assists and Jan Redmond aided the Black Knight effort on the defensive end forcing two turnovers. 

The Black Knights do not play again until they host South Kent on Wednesday, December 3 at 5 P.M. 

Edison, NJ – Army Prep Men’s basketball took the floor against a talented Edison Job Corps Academy team last night and left victorious.  The Black Knights, who improved to 2-2, started out strong and finished the first half ahead by one point, 37-36. 

Kirk Van Slyke’s 20 first-half points led the scoring onslaught.  The second half was a defensive game in which Army Prep kept Edison JC to 21 points.  The game was hard-fought and the lead changed hands many times.  The Black Knights sealed the deal from the line to take the final lead by 6 points. 

Van Slyke led all scores with 29 points and also added 7 rebounds.  Ella Ellis provided a solid addition of 12 points and 7 caroms.  Jordan “The Round Mound of Rebound” Springer pulled in a game and career high 9 boards and Zach Ricketts rounded out the rebounding with 6 rebounds including two huge rebounds in the final minutes. 

Ricketts also added 9 points on three 3-point baskets, two in the high scoring first half and one in the second half to help seal the victory.  CJ McElrath’s 6 assists led the team and helped dictate the tempo of the second half.  The story of the night was the great free-throw shooting in which the Army team netted 19 of 20 throws from the charity stripe. 

The Black Knights round out their pre-holiday road stretch at Union Community College on 18-November in Cranford, NJ at 7 P.M.

Bethlehem, PA – Last night the Army Prep Men’s Basketball Team sealed its first victory over a tough Northampton CC team and improved their record to 1-2.  Despite trailing early in the game, the Northampton Spartans never led by more than a handful of points. 

The Spartans edged the Knights at halftime 29-27.  The Knights stayed close the whole second half and took the lead with a few minutes to play and never looked back.  They held on to win by two. 

Ella Ellis led the Black Knights in scoring with 17 points on 7-13 shooting including 3 trifectas while drawing 2 offensive fouls on the defensive end. 

Kirk Van Slyke added 16 points.  Jordan Springer rounded out the Black Knight offense with 12 points and a team-high 7 rebounds.  Guard CJ McElrath contributed with 6 assists. 

The Black Knights will travel to Edison, NJ Thursday November 13, where they will play Edison Job Corps Academy at 6 P.M.

Fort Monmouth, NJ – The Men’s Basketball team was in action today as they took on Notre Dame Prep for the second time this weekend.  The Black Knights took another loss to NDP 95-55 to go 0-2 on the season. 

Leading the Knights in scoring was Ella Ellis who totaled 12 points.  CJ McElrath added 11 points and 4 assists.   Also contributing to the effort was Kirk Van Slyke who tallied 11 points and 5 rebounds on the day.  Jordan Springer also tallied 6 caroms.  The Black Knights will be back in action Monday, November 10th at Northampton Community College.  Tip-off is 8 pm. 

Fort Monmouth, NJ – The Army Prep Men’s Basketball team officially opened its season this past weekend against Notre Dame Prep.  After getting off to a good start, the Black Knights went into halftime trailing five points.  Notre Dame Prep started the second half on a 19-4 run and never looked back.  The Black Knights suffered their first loss of the season 95-76 to NDP. 

In the scoring column, Kirk Van Slyke led the Knights with 24 points and 5 rebounds, while CJ McElrath and Zach Ricketts tallied 17 and 15 points, respectively.  CJ also added 6 assists.  Jordan Springer and Ella Ellis (5 rebounds) added 10 points each. The Black Knights will be back in action on Saturday, November 1, 2008 to take on Notre Dame Prep for their second game of the season.