NDC men, women eye good fortune this winter

David S. Glasier continues his look at area college basketball programs with previews of the Notre Dame College men’s and women’s programs, with the women in good stead and the men eyeing improvement.

The return of Notre Dame College senior forward Will Voorhees makes the Falcons a team to watch in the always tough Mountain East Conference.

Through two games this season — impressive victories over Slippery Rock and California (Pa.) University — the 6-foot-8, 240-pound Lima native is averaging team-high totals of 22.5 points, 12.6 rebounds and 4.5 assists.

In the 77-75 win over Slippery Rock in Fairmont, W.V., Voorhees’ jump shot with three seconds remaining proved to be the margin of victory. The fast start for Voorhees is helping erase painful memories of the 201718 campaign and the seasonending leg injury that sidelined him after four games.

Minus the services of their pre-season All-America forward, and with NDC coach Tim Koenig having to cut ties with two other players for disciplinary reasons, the Falcons skidded to a 6-22 finish after averaging 18 victories the previous three seasons.

Now, with Voorhees at the top of a reinvigorated rotation, the Falcons are seriously pursuing an MEC title and the program’s first bid to the NCAA Division II tournament.

“I really like where we are,” Koenig said before the the season-opening trip to West Virginia. “Typically, our conference gets three teams in the (NCAA) tournament. We’re definitely in that discussion.”

As for the soft-spoken Voorhees, he’s beyond pleased at being back in the thick of things.

“I did the best I could last season, supporting my teammates on the sideline, but is was definitely frustrating,” he said.

“When I got back into the gym and started practicing again, I forgot how it felt to be guarded aggressively and have someone try to take the ball away from me,” he added with a smile.

Through two games, the Falcons are getting solid production from sophomore guard Halil Parks (16.0 points, 3.0 rebounds), freshman guard Isaiah Sanders (14.5 points, 6.0 rebounds) and senior forward Angelo Cugini (13.0 points and 11.5 rebounds).

The top reserves are freshman guard Kameron Harris (4.5 points), junior guard/forward Drew Scarberry (3.0 points, 3.0 rebounds) and freshman forward Hamish Warden (1.5 points, 6.0 rebounds).

Voorhees