2022 P&HCC Fall Sports Update
Volleyball
The 2022 Lady Pats campaign came to an end in the quarterfinals round of the Region 10 DIII tournament on October 20. P&HCC, under the leadership of first year head coach Brandi Woods, finished the season with an overall record of 2-13 and a 2-8 mark in conference play. Both of the Patriots' victories came over Southwest Virginia CC, including a 3-0 sweep on September 8 and a thrilling five-set road match 3-2 on October 6. The Lady Pats were led by freshman middle blocker Emma Hankins, who earned second team All-Region 10 honors.
"Our 2022 season was a learning experience for all of us. We had two sophomores that returned from last year's team and nine girls that started for the first time this year. Five of those nine will be graduating in the spring, along with our sophomores," Woods said. "These ladies showed tremendous growth on the court and off the court as people throughout the season, and I strongly believe our record was not a reflection of the amount of talent these girls have and what they are capable of. I look forward to seeing what next year has in store for P&HCC volleyball."
Golf
The P&H Golf team participated in four matches this fall accumulating one win and a second-place finish. The win came in the season opener at the Oak Hollow Invitational in High Point, North Carolina while the second-place finish came in the Davidson–Davie Storm Invitational at Colonial Country Club in Thomasville, NC. Freshmen Ethan Cutteback and Seth Moore received All-Tournament team honors.
Team captain, Cameron Robertson, was also a vital part of the season's success, as well as sophomores Peyton Whitlow and Joshua Dalton who made great improvement over the fall season.
"With three new players coming in, we are excited and feel that we have the potential to go from the bottom of the standings last year to region champions in the spring," says head coach, James Draper.
The Patriot Golf team has high hopes for their spring season as they have accumulated the lowest scoring average of all teams in the region.
Men's Soccer
The 14th-ranked Patriots currently hold an impressive 11-3-1 record and have won four consecutive matches heading into the NJCAA DII Southeast District Championship on Friday, November 4 against Georgia Military College at Smith River Sports Complex at 7:00 p.m.
P&HCC reached the Championship contest on the heels of a dramatic 2OT victory over Cape Fear CC in the Region 10 Championship on Saturday, October 29. Full box score available here.
Following the victory, defender Carlos Trott, midfielder Chris Rosales Blanco and forward Enrique Jacobs all earned first team All-Region honors. Goalkeeper Martin Morse, defender Salvador Bernal Parra and midfielder's Richard Salinas and Sean Paul Negron received second team recognition. Kau Mendes was also an honorable mention. Coach Brennan Murphy received his fifth Region X Coach of the Year honor while sophomore, Carlos Trott, earned Region X Player of the Year for the season.
It was another regular season to remember for the Pats, as the squad reached as high as No. 6 in the NJCAA rankings - the highest ranking in program history. P&HCC's only three regulation losses of the season came by scores of 3-2 to Jones College on September 2, 1-0 against nationally ranked Daytona State College on September 17 and 1-0 to Louisburg College on October 11. The Pats are outscoring opponents by an impressive margin of 47-19 and hold victories over Bluefield University, Greensboro College and a top-25 opponent in Georgia Military College. The Patriots are also unbeaten in home contests in 2022.
Women's Soccer
Under first year head coach and former P&HCC student athlete Arthur de Souza, the 2022 Lady Pats season concluded with a 9-0 defeat at the hands of Cape Fear CC in the Region 10 tournament on October 27. The Patriots finished the latest campaign with an overall record of 1-9-1, securing their lone victory 4-0 over Lenoir CC on September 27.
"For me, this season was all about resilience and learning, and doing the best we had with the numbers we had," said first year coach, Arthur de Souza. "The young women on our team bought in on what we wanted to achieve and did everything they could to make the best of this season. I couldn't be more thankful for them and the support we got from our athletic staff!"
P&HCC Women's Midfielder Deon Cruickshank earned second team All-Region 10 honors, while goalkeeper Grace Webster was an honorable mention.
Women's Tennis
The women's tennis team this fall at P&HCC competed against three different NCAA DIII schools (Ferrum College, Salem College, and Mary Baldwin University) as well as two NCAA DII Schools (Emory & Henry College and Winston-Salem State University).
This year's squad consisted of several local talents including Emily Vaught of Bassett High School, Blair Cole of Halifax High School and Bree Tatum from Magna Vista High School.
Cole won two out of her three singles matches played throughout the year at the number two singles spot, while Vaught also reached the quarterfinals of the first ever Golden Acorn Invitational at Mary Baldwin in the singles draw and also fought her way to the semifinals in the doubles draw with partner Tatum. In competition at Ferrum, P&HCC lost only one match of the three played, with the one lost match reaching a third set tiebreaker.
"This season has been one to be very proud of. Not only for our Lady Pats tennis team and our college, but for the Martinsville community as well. Even with limited numbers, we have been able to compete with some more established programs in only our first year of collegiate play," first year head coach Jon Smith said. "I believe that what these young women are doing can help bring excitement about tennis to our community and surrounding area while also inspiring the next generation of tennis players. None of this would be possible without our amazing athletics administration and the young women of the Lady Pats tennis team. Our successes this year would not be possible without them, and I'm very thankful to have a small role in something as special as this program."
Cross Country/Track
Following an impressive showing at the Roanoke College Invitational on October 14, the P&HCC Cross Country/Track squad will head to Westerfield, MA to compete in the NJCAA DIII Men's and Women's Cross Country/Track National Championships the morning of November 5.
In Roanoke, Alheli Ramos-Garcia broke a program record in the women's 6K with a time of 25:19. Ramos-Garcia is also the school record holder in the women's 5k with a speedy time of 20:10 and earned Region 10 and DIII Runner of the Year honors, while freshman Riley Brim finished as P&HCC's top male with a time of 32:47.
Riley Brim earned All Region X honors while Alheli Ramos-Garcia raked in first place at the Region X Cross Country Championships, NJCAA Region X Division 3 Player of the Year, and was also named the Region X Runner of the Year.
Click here to follow live results from the National Championships, hosted by Holyoke CC.
Men's Basketball
The Patriots will open the 2022-23 regular season and Region 10 play on Wednesday, November 9 at home against Davidson-Davie CC at 7:00 p.m. inside Stone Hall. In preseason action, P&HCC has already battled Carolina University and Bluefield State College before a final scrimmage at West Virginia State University on October 29. View the full slate of games here.
Be sure to follow men's basketball @GoPHCCHoops for the latest updates and watch every Pats home game live via the P&HCC Athletics YouTube page.
Women's Basketball
Following six straight road contests to begin the 2022-23 campaign, the Lady Pats will open Region 10 regular season conference play against Louisburg College at Stone Hall on Saturday, November 12 at 1:00 p.m. The Patriots opened the season with a 92-80 loss to Bluefield University on October 22.
P&HCC will look to build upon a 2021-22 season in which the Lady Pats battled top-seeded Wake Tech CC in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament and also had Natalia Nascimento and Eva Brill named to the Region 10 All-Academic Team.
Watch all Lady Pats home games via the P&HCC Athletics YouTube page.
Wrestling
The Patriots wrestling team expects another impressive season for 2022-2023. After a national tournament appearance last season with Temonte Gray, Coach Lange's squad looks to continue to build on the program's early success with a roster of eleven wrestlers. Their campaign will be largely on the road until the Patriots host the wrestling regionals in Martinsville, Virginia on February 10.
Be sure to follow wrestling (@phccwrestle) on Instagram and view their 2022-2023 season schedule here.