Christendom Crusaders at the Top of Their Games

Christendom basketball teams, both men and women, have done very well this year, setting records along the way. The Lady Crusaders earned their first-ever win over a Division III opponent when they beat Wilson College in November 2007. Coach Nancy Bauer’s squad has also racked up other impressive victories against Northern Virginia Community College and Lancaster Bible College, another Division III opponent. The women’s team was led in the Fall semester by Rebecca Harris, who is in Rome this semester but is still ranked an impressive 7th in the country for the USCAA in scoring based on her average of just over 17 points a game. Junior transfer Abby Hill ranks 16th in the nation for the USCAA in points per game, averaging just over 14.

The Christendom men’s basketball team has also enjoyed impressive success. The Crusaders finished the year on a four-game winning streak, which included a win over Division III St. Joseph’s of Brooklyn and a win over Roanoke Bible College in the championship of the Shenandoah Chesapeake Conference. Even though the Crusaders have lost two key starters, Marion Miner and Matt Hadro, to the Rome program, many other players have stepped up to make up for their absence – of special note is Freshman Matthew Rensch who averaged 16 points in each of his last 4 games.

Nationally, Christendom’s men’s team ranks 2nd in field goal percentage, shooting just over 50% from the field as a team. They rank 4th in three point percentage, 6th in free throw percentage, and 7th in points allowed. Individually, the Crusaders are just as accomplished. Senior Greg Monroe ranks 1st in the nation in field-goal percentage, shooting a remarkable 66%. Monroe also ranks in the top 25 in many other categories: scoring average (just over 16 a game); rebounding; double doubles; and free-throw percentage. Marion Miner, who is now in Rome, also made the national list, ranking 7th in the nation in free-throw percentage (80%) and in the top 15 in three point percentage. Senior guard Pate Quest makes the list, ranking in the top 10 for assists per game, and ranking 6th in the country in steals per game at just about 3 per game.

This remarkable success of the Crusader teams builds upon a successful fall sports season as well. In soccer, freshman Johnny Ciskanik ranked in the top 25 players in the country in points per game and helped the men’s team win the Shenandoah-Chesapeake conference. The Lady Crusaders also had a great soccer season, finishing 7-2-1 with wins over Lancaster Bible College and Wilson College, both of which are Division III teams. Junior Ky Leopold led the women with an average of almost 2 goals per game.