The Corpus Christi 7th grade boys (8-2) hosted a very tough team from St. Aidan's. The game was a tough battle from beginning to end with the Lions coming out victorious 43-30 in front of a packed house.

Unfortunately for St. Aidan's, their bench was depleted due to some season-long injuries, but nonetheless, they fought hard and left it all out on the court. It was a tough game for all involved, due to geography, as most kids were friends with the majority of the other team's players.

The Lions received excellent play from Justin Pilla (4 points, 5 rebounds) and Dylan Dekanchuk (3 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds). The Lions did a tremendous job of moving the ball around and finding the open man and it showed as everybody on the team ended up in the scorers box. The Lions were led by Matt Rudolph (9 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists) and Nick Goncalves (9 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists). The glass was patrolled by Pascal Poropat (6 points) and Rick Cunha (5 points). The guard play throughout the game was extremely consistent and defense was near impenetrable thanks to Tyler Kapela (5 points), Christian Lird (4 points) and Matt Sliwinski (3 assists and several screens).

One of the highlights and reasons why the Lions have had such great fortunes at their home court is due to the fact that the cheerleaders, under the direction of coordinators Diane Maher and Cheryl Monaco and coaches Gina and Christina, were present and as always were very vocal.

The halftime show was nothing short of the Super Bowl halftime show. Several of the boys have commented that a lot of teams come into our home court and aren't used to the noise. The team seems to play off the loud cheering.

On Sunday, Feb. 11, the Corpus Christi 7th grade boys (9-2) hosted a game against a tough, never-say-die team from St. Joseph's of Garden City at Corpus Christi. The game was a battle all the way with the halftime score 17-15 in favor of the Lions. The second half the fans heard the Lions roar as Corpus Christi played relentless defense and contested every pass, shot and move by St. Joseph's, prevailing at the end 54-35.

The 7th grade team spread the ball around beautifully and continually looked for the open man all game long. Several times, once the ball crossed half court, it was touched by all five players and did not touch the floor. The passing and ball movement was so good that every player on the team scored at least four points. The boys only missed two foul shots all game. All are hoping they have peaked as the playoffs approach and the team heads into their final regular season game.

The Lions were led in scoring by Matt Rudolph (19 points), Christian Lird (10 points) and Tyler Kapela (5 points). Matt Sliwinski (4 assists), Pascal Porapot (6 rebounds), Justin Pilla (6 rebounds), Rick Cunha (5 rebounds), and Nick Goncalves (9 rebounds) all contributed four points each.

The boys would like to give a shout out to the cheerleaders who did not cheer this game but came down on their own to support the 7th graders. They were Gabriella Maher, Jessica Monaco, Catiana Perreira and Nicole Simoes, who have been so supportive that they have joined the boys in their post-game dinner celebration.

The team was thrilled to have the Corpus Christi CYO moderator, Deacon John Reinhart, present and rooting on the boys. Deacon John stated how impressive it is to see the boys constantly looking for the open man and "the boys really put the team and winning first before themselves."

Deacon John had a big impact he has on these children as they were excited he was able to join them for the post-game dinner celebration. On February 25, the 7th grade Lions have their last regular season home game at 2:15 p.m. against St. Catherine of Sienna.

This game will have playoff implications as just one game separates first place Corpus Christi and third place St. Catherine's.

The team would like to thank Hofstra University Athletics for their donation of warm-up jerseys to the 7th grade team, and for being there to support the program.

If you and your family are interested in seeing some excellent Division I college basketball, Hofstra University is the place to be. The school has been very supportive of Corpus Christi. Tickets to Hofstra games called by obtained by calling (516) 463-TIXX.

For information on Corpus Christi CYO, please see their new website, corpuschristicyo.com.

As the Corpus Christi CYO girls basketball season has come to an end, the 4th grade girls team has a lot to be proud of.

As the season began, there was a real sense of optimism, as the team had a year of competition under its belt and with a more balanced attack, the coaches were expecting some real improvement over last year.

Beginning with the first game and continuing right through every game of the season the improvement was noticeable. The confidence and understanding on the court was quite evident.

The kids knew the score each and every game but the coaches stress that it's not about the score, but about improving, understanding and progressing.

The low post and board play was consistently controlled by Charlotte Renker, Corrine Joyce, Kelly Behan and Juhi Goyal. The play coming from the wings became better each game, led by Rebecca Katinas, Ekim Buyuk, and Samantha Santomauro. The point guard play was in great shape all year under the leadership of Sarah Rudolph, Meaghan Carr Fragiacomo and Susanna Miranda. All were extremely impressed with the steady improvement of Emily Abrams but unfortunately she was lost to the team halfway through the season with a broken bone. A big surprise to the team was the play of newcomers Emily Pusey and Daniella Ludwig. Both came into the season never playing or understanding the game itself, and both truly came to excel during the second half of the season.

Coach Tom Renker would like to thank Mike Joyce for stepping up and assisting in any way he could. The coaches look forward to next season with the girls as the sky's the limit with the improvement made this year.