Holy Family Sports Update: Spring Teams and New B-Ball Coach

The following are excerpts from recent releases from the Holy Family University Athletics Department:

Softball Splits Doubleheader

The Holy Family University softball team split a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) doubleheader with Bloomfield College after winning game one, 9-8, as freshman Samantha Borrelli (West Berlin, N.J./Overbrook) scored the winning run in the final inning at Council Rock North High School Saturday afternoon.  The Tigers dropped game two by the score of 6-5.

With the split, Holy Family is now 5-17 overall and 2-4 in the CACC, while Bloomfield is now 18-13 overall and 9-7 in the CACC.

In game one, Holy Family rallied from six runs down to defeat Bloomfield. With the game tied 8-8 in the bottom of the seventh, Borrelli, who doubled earlier in the inning, scored the game-winning run after a wild pitch by sophomore pitcher Lindsey Ciresa.

In game two, Bloomfield had another big inning to take a 6-2 lead after the Deacon’s half of the fifth inning.  Bloomfield had five hits in the inning, including back-to-back run scoring doubles from senior Amanda Bartels and freshman Jocelyn Cabrera to jump start the rally.

Holy Family is back in action on Monday, April 11 as the Tigers host cross-town rival Philadelphia University in a CACC doubleheader.  Game one is scheduled for 3 p.m.

 Women’s 4x400 Relay Team Records First Place Finish

The Holy Family University men’s and women’s outdoor track & field teams competed at the Delaware Outdoor Open hosted by the University of Delaware at Delaware Stadium Saturday afternoon.

The women’s 4x400-meter relay team highlighted the event with a first place finish after the quartet of senior June Cain (Philadelphia, Pa./Martin Luther King), junior Latifah Porter (Philadelphia, Pa./Philadelphia HS for Girls) and freshen Delainey Price (Cheltenham, Md./Frederick Douglas) and Dominique Thomas (Laurelton, N.Y./Law Government Service Magnet) recorded a time of 3:56.93.  Holy Family finished ahead of Division I Delaware (3:58.00) and Towson University (4:01.21).

Holy Family will compete next at Cheyney University on Wednesday, April 13.

 Women’s Lacrosse Drops Conference Tilt

Senior Ryan McGrath scored a game-high seven goals as Georgian Court University defeated the Holy Family University women’s lacrosse team, 21-12, in a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) contest at Tiger Field Saturday afternoon.

Holy Family is now 4-8 overall and 3-5 in the CACC, while Georgian Court improves to 7-4 overall 7-0 in conference play.

Junior Gina Mansi (Washington Twp., N.J./Washington Twp.) and sophomore Stephanie McNesby (Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Ryan) each recorded hat tricks for Holy Family.  Mansi finished the game with three goals, while McNesby tallied three goals and three assists for six points.  Senior Jennifer James (Philadelphia, Pa./Little Flower) contributed two goals and two assists for four points to go along with three draw controls.  Junior Katherine Podlinski (Cherry Hill, N.J./Camden Catholic) also scored a pair of goals for the Tigers.

Holy Family is back in action a week from today when the Tigers host Dominican College in a CACC contest.  Game time is slated for 12 p.m.

R.C. Kehoe Named Head Men’s Basketball Coach

Holy Family University has announced that R.C. Kehoe has been named the new head men’s basketball coach.  The announcement was made by Director of Athletics Sandra Michael.  A Philadelphia native, Kehoe joins the Tigers with nearly a decade of collegiate coaching experience.  He spent the last five years as an assistant coach at the NCAA Division I level with the University of Delaware.

“I am very pleased to announce R.C. Kehoe as our men’s basketball coach,” said Michael.  “R.C. is a true young talent in the coaching profession and his success as a coach and player were attractive to the search committee. His enthusiasm, passion, and experience will certainly lead to the advancement of a successful basketball program. R.C. embraces the Holy Family philosophy, and he is committed to improving our student-athletes in academic, athletic, and service domains. I am impressed with R.C.'s well-conceived plan, and I look forward to the positive influence he will have on our program.”

“I would like to thank Sister Francesca and Sandra Michael for their belief in me as a coach and person who they feel is right to lead the men’s basketball program at Holy Family University,” said Kehoe.  “I am excited and honored to have this opportunity at such a young age in my hometown of Philadelphia.”

Kehoe recently completed his fifth season with the Delaware men’s basketball program in which he helped guide the Blue Hens to the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Championship Quarterfinals.  Kehoe began his stint as part of the Delaware staff in 2006-2007 under first year head coach Monté Ross.

Prior to his arrival at Delaware, Kehoe was an assistant coach at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County in 2005-06.  He joined the UMBC staff under head coach Randy Monroe in the summer of 2005.  While at UMBC, Kehoe assisted in recruiting, scouting of opponents and scheduling.  He also directed individual instruction sessions for the team and coordinated weekly academic meetings with the players.

Kehoe began his collegiate coaching career as an assistant at Shippensburg from 2002-2004.  From there, Kehoe moved up to the NCAA Division I level in 2004-2005 at St. Francis University as an assistant coach.

A native of Philadelphia, Kehoe was a four-year member of the Roman Catholic boys basketball team.  The team won the Philadelphia Catholic League Championship three times (1993, 1994 & 1996).  From 1993-1996 the team finished in the Top-25 in the USA Today rankings.

Kehoe and his wife, Jennifer, have two sons Tyler (10) and Jaxon (5), and two daughters, Paityn (3) and Brooklyn (1).