Athletics

Go, Surge!

Cincinnati State athletics provide opportunities for students to enhance their overall experience at the College by encouraging lifelong wellness, sportsmanship, and academics.

Cincinnati State currently fields teams in five sports: women’s and men’s basketball, women’s and men’s soccer, and golf. All five teams regularly compete under the rules and regulations of the National Junior College Athletic Association Region XII (Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio) and play a very competitive junior college schedule. After playing for Cincinnati State, many student- athletes go on to play for four-year schools.

The Cincinnati State Athletic Department is under the leadership of the Director of Athletics,Theresa Check. Staff members include Wil Cagle, women’s soccer coach; Ron Harris, interim women's basketball coach; Mike Combs, men’s soccer coach and fitness center director; Andre Tate, men’s basketball coach; and Scott Webb, golf coach.

The Cincinnati State athletic program wins Ohio Community College Athletic Conference All-Sports Award

For the third consecutive year, the Cincinnati State athletic program has won the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference All-Sport Award. The award is given to the top OCCAC junior college athletic program that experiences the most overall success amongst all of its fielded teams.

banner During the 2010-11 athletic season, Cincinnati State had an impressive run. The men's soccer team went undefeated in the conference and had a historic run all the way to NJCAA D-I national finals, finishing with an overall record of 22-3-0. Men's basketball and women's basketball both finished second in the conference standings. The Lady Surge also went on to win the Region XII Championship and earned a trip to the NJCAA D-II national tournament. Ending the year with an explanation point was the men's golf team which finished second in the conference, won the regional tournament and finished third in the NJCAA D-III national tournament.

Next behind Cincinnati State in the OCCAC All-Sports rankings was Owens Community College, followed by Columbus State, Sinclair, Edison, Cuyahoga, Lakeland and Lorain.

Cincinnati State celebrates tremendous 2010-2011 achievements

Dr. O'dell M. Owens and the Cincinnati State community came together Thursday to celebrate the achievements of its student athletes, coaches and support staff.

There was plenty to celebrate. Consider:

The men’s soccer team made it to the championship game of the national tournament and wound up with a second-place national finish.

The women’s basketball team also played in the national tournament, won three of the four games it played there, and finished with a No. 7 national ranking.

The men’s golf team made it to the national finals last year, finishing fifth, and this coming week leaves to compete again in the national finals.

A year after making it to the championship game of the national finals, a men’s basketball team so decimated that it often had only two or three players on the bench nonetheless finished second in the Ohio Community College Athletic Association, and came away thinking it should have won.

In an address that went far beyond sports, Dr. Owens thanked the athletes for the recognition they brought Cincinnati State, and predicted that employers would look favorably on their success in team sports. It’s likely, he said, that many of the athletes honored Thursday will be regarded as successful.

“Yes, you’re a role model, but you’re bigger than that,’’ Dr. Owens told the assembled athletes. “When you leave here you have a bigger responsibility. Yes, you’re a role model, but you’re bigger than that. You have an obligation to be on the team of humanity."

While most of the awards at Thursday’s banquet were based on athletic achievement, several incorporated other elements.

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The evening’s most prestigious prize, the President’s Award, for example, was reserved for the student-athlete who best exemplified the desire to succeed both academically and athletically and also demonstrated a commitment to excellence, personal integrity, all-around community awareness and dedication to Cincinnati State. It was presented to Austin Morgan, who for the past two years has been a tremendous presence on the field and in the Cincinnati State community. A standout student in math, Morgan served as a student-tutor to any student seeking help in the subject and as the Cincinnati State mascot during Surge basketball games and campus events. Austin was a model student in the classroom with a 3+ cumulative GPA and often times made the Dean's List.

On the field, Austin Morgan was a 2-year starting goalkeeper and led the Surge to back-to-back conference championships in 2009 and 2010, the 2010 Region XII Championship, the 2010 District Championship, and the NJCAA Div. I National Championship finals. Morgan, who graduated early with a secondary education associate's degree, proved to be one of the best goalkeepers in the NJCAA ranking 15th in the nation with a 0.68 goals against average in 2010. He was named Ohio Community College Athletic Association's Goalie of the Year in both 2009 and 2010.

"Austin is a guy who everyone liked and everyone will miss," Head Coach Mike Combs says.

Since leaving Cincinnati State, the Cincinnati native from Colerain High School signed a letter of intent to play for NCAA Div. I Coastal Carolina University and has moved down to South Carolina to get a head start on transitioning to his new school and team.

Special awards for the year were also presented to Gus Perdikakis, manager of the women’s basketball team, for dedication to the Surge athletic programs, and to Jake Jones, a member of the men’s soccer team, for academic achievement. Shardai Morrison-Fountain from the women’s basketball team was named Female Athlete of the Year; the Male Athlete of the Year was Cody Clark from the men’s soccer team.

Cincinnati State athletics continue to build a winning tradition

In recent years, Cincinnati State has proved to be one of the most successful junior college programs in the nation. Women's basketball repeated as champions of the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference in 2009 and 2010. Women's soccer finished ranked 13th nationally among all junior colleges. The most crowning achievements were earned by the 2010 men's basketball, the 2010 men's soccer team, the 2011 women's basketball team and the 2010 & 2011 men's golf teams as each program competed in the NJCAA National Tournament and made school history with record breaking results as shown below:

Men's Basketball - 2010 NJCAA National Runners - Up, OCCAC Champions, Overall Record: 27-9, Head Coach: Andre Tate

Women's Basketball - 2011 NJCAA National Tournament Birth, 2011 NJCAA Region XII Champions, #7 National Ranking, Overall Record: 24-11, Head Coach: Theresa Check

Men's Golf - 2010 & 2011 NJCAA National Tournament Qualifier, 2010 & 2011 NJCAA Region XII Champions, Head Coach: Scott Webb

Men's Soccer - 2010 NJCAA National Runners Up, NJCAA Region XII Champions, OCCAC Champions, #2 National Ranking, Overall Record: 22-3-0, Head Coach: Mike Combs

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Support the Surge!

Everyone is encouraged to attend Cincinnati State’s athletic events. Support the Surge and build pride in the Cincinnati State community. Admission to games is free with a valid SurgeCard.

For the Surge basketball, soccer, and golf schedules, stats, and coach contact information, click here.

Click here to watch live broadcasts of home Surge basketball games!

Athlete Spotlight

Learn more about Cincinnati State's talented athletes.

Athletic Hall of Fame

The Cincinnati State Surge Athletic Hall of Fame recognizes and celebrates the outstanding athletic contributions of Cincinnati State coaches, graduates, and administratiors. Click here to download a nomination form.

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