The Castle Girls 15U team started off the Spring season with a trio of games in the Rose Classic and they took care of business. Not only that, they certainly went up in class, taking on and disposing of two Girls 17U programs. First, Lady Knights played the New England Crusaders 17U team and, using solid team play, won the game 36-23. Next, Castle took on the Premier Basketball 17U squad and again won 50-45. Finishing off the afternoon, the team turned aside the Riverside Lady Hawks 15U team 46-23. Coach Chez Williams could not have been more proud of the strong kickoff weekend. “It was great to see the team come together so quickly. The passing, rebounding and defensive effort were all there. Thee was cohesion offensively and this lead to chemistry up and down the roster. We are looking forward to the season and continuing with the same effort.”

Next up for the ladies is Gym Rat Live in two weeks.

Not only do Castle coaches lead on the travel circuit, but, they also play huge roles on the collegiate and scholastic scenes as well. Coaches Dwight Shaw (Castle G16U) and Chez Williams (Castle G15/13U) just concluded their season with the Caimans of Hostos Community College. It was no ordinary season, however, as they ended as the National Runner-Ups, suffering a 65-56 loss in the NJCAA DIII Women’s Basketball Championship Game. Hostos started the tournament as the No. 11 seed and chopped down all comers before falling to the No. 1 Owens Community College. It was rematch of the 2019 championship, a game that Hostos won. Great run Shaw and Chez. Now it is time to turn to leading the Castle teams to victory!!

Castle coaches are also still leading the way on the NYC scholastic court. Coach Anwar Gladden (G12U) continues his tremendous season at South Shore High School as the No. 1 seed, when the Lady Vikings meet Murry Bergtraum in the NYC “AA” Championship on St. Patrick’s Day, at 5:00pm, at the Barclays Center. Similarly, Coach Kenny Pretlow (B17U) keeps on truckin with Brooklyn Law and Tech, as they are in the NYC “A” semifinals this afternoon against Susan Wagner, at St. Francis College, at 5:00pm. Both South Shore and Brooklyn L&T have Castle student athletes on their rosters.

Even if you are not a fan of the schools, step up and cheer your coaches and fellow Castle players on to victory!! Congratulations coaches!!

If there ever was any doubt, the mystery has been solved. The Castle 8th Grade Girls shouted it out today, “THE CITY IS MINE”. Continuing the victory trail from last weekend, in convincing fashion, the team first took down the Lady Gauchos 34-18 and then bested New Heights 52-46 to win the City is Mine Championship. This is not the first time that the Castle girls beat their fellow locals, but, this time, they reminded the others why they are now the top squad in NYC. The only thing bigger than the wins, was the trophy they brought home. Kudos Ladies!!

Castle Athletics alum Souleymane “Sal” Koureissi and his University of Richmond Spiders teammates are going to the Big Dance as the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament champions, having knocked off Davidson in the tournament final 64-62.  The Spiders take on the University of Iowa Hawkeyes in the First Round in Buffalo, NY on St. Patrick’s Day.

Sal played his scholastic ball at Iona Prep and, along with fellow Castle alum, Josh Alexander, is still prominently shown on the Iona Prep website.  Sal played four years for the Castle Knights, leading the team to numerous tournament championships and playing competitively throughout the country against the best talent, including a 28 point game on the top Adidas circuit.  Sal will be receiving his Bachelor of Arts Degree this Spring with a major in Sociology and a minor in Entrepreneurship.

Best of luck!  Go Spiders!!!

All boys attending the Castle Boys High School (15U, 16U and 17U) tryouts at Hostos Community College must provide evidence of vaccination in order to gain admission to the facility.  Times:  15U-10:00am, 16U-12:00pm, and 17U-2:00pm.  Per Hostos requirements, no parents will be permitted in the facility.  We look forward to seeing you on Saturday.

Castle Athletics dominated the Zero Gravity Winter League Championships on Sunday at House of Sports, nabbing four out of five trophies. On the Boys’ side, Castle went three for three taking home championships in the 11U, 12U and 13U brackets. It might have been four-for-four, but the 14U squad was traveling at the Marquee Hoops Championships. The 12U squad started the Boys’ haul by taking down the Tri-State Thunder 52-32. Virtually all team members got in the scoring column. Over the course of the Winter, the team continued to develop fundamentals and Coaches Bill, Cornell and Ron did a great job working with the boys and helping them improve over the past four months.

The trophies continued to come in when the 13U team took down the Grey Wolves Silver 58-44. This was another example of improvement throughout the Winter months and Coaches Jessie and Darryl should be commended for the Boys development.

The newest team on the block, 11U, continued their dominance of Winter League opponents and ran over the Greenwich Stars 48-16. Coaches Will and Sherman have done a fantastic job molding the team and teaching them the basics of the game.

The Girls 14U similarly went through the Winter League like a hot knife through butter, going undefeated. Coach Baruch led the charges this weekend and they finished off the competition with a 58-33 win over Team Sharp in the final. Team Sharp put up a valiant effort but the Castle press unhinged them and led to some easy buckets.

It should be noted that the two Castle girls teams playing in the 13U bracket toughed it out and were both upset in the semi-finals.

Now, on to the Spring and Summer seasons!!!!