SGTC’s Goudelock and Wazeerud-Din earn NJCAA Region XVII honors

March 3, 2020
Lady Jets sophomores Niya Goudelock, 3, and Yasriyyah Wazeerud-Din, 13, named to the NJCAA Region XVII All-Tournament team. Goudelock was the MVP for the tournament.
Lady Jets sophomores Niya Goudelock, 3, and Yasriyyah Wazeerud-Din, 13, named to the NJCAA Region XVII All-Tournament team. Goudelock was the MVP for the tournament.

     South Georgia Technical College Lady Jets sophomore transfer Niya Goudelock helped lead her teammates to an impressive come from behind 69 – 63 victory over the second ranked Georgia Highlands Lady Chargers in the National Junior College Athletic Association’s Region XVII tournament recently. 

    Her outstanding play along with her teammate Yasriyyah Wazeerud-Din earned them recognition on the NJCAA Region XVII All-Tournament team and allowed Goudelock to earn the Most Valuable Player honors for the tournament.

   The Lady Jets fell behind as many as 22 points against Georgia Highlands in the second quarter.  South Georgia Tech managed to cut that deficit to 18 points at the half trailing 47 – 29.  Sophomores Niya Goudelock and Yasriyyah Wazeerud-Din were two of five players who earned double-digits in that match-up.

   Yasriyyah Waxeerud-Din led the team in scoring with 14 points, 11 of which came in the second half during the Lady Jets impressive come from behind efforts to capture their fourth consecutive NJCAA Region XVII tournament title.  She had 17 points in the semi-final game against East Georgia State College.

   Niya Goudelock and GCAA Player of the year Shamari Tyson and freshman center Femme Sikuzani all contributed 12 points in the championship game. 

   Goudelock hit back to back lay-ups with a little over seven minutes remaining in the game to give the Lady Jets a narrow 62 – 58 lead.  The Lady Jets were able to maintain that lead and come up with the 69 – 63 win and earn the right to advance to the NJCAA District J championship.

   The Lady Jets travel to Spartanburg, South Carolina on Saturday, March 7th at 1 p.m. to take on Spartanburg Methodist for the opportunity to advance to the NJCAA National tournament for the fourth consecutive time.  Spartanburg Methodist was the winner of the NJCAA Region X tournament.  They have a 20 – 7 record.

   SGTC and Spartanburg Methodist met in the District J championship game last season and the Lady Jets were able to post an impressive 100 – 51 win.  The two teams met earlier this season in the SGTC Thanksgiving Classic.  South Georgia Tech took the win 77 – 57.

   The Lady Jets are 29 – 2 on the season.  Coach James Frey was named GCAA Co-Coach of the Year and Lady Jet Shamari Tyson was selected as the Player of the Year for the Conference.  Yasriyyah Wazeerud-Din was named first team All-Region and sophomore Anna McKendree was selected second team All-Conference.

    This is the second year in a row that the Lady Jets have been unbeaten in the conference.  The Lady Jets are hoping to make their 4th consecutive trip to the NJCAA National Tournament in Lubbock, Texas March 17th – 21st with a win over Spartanburg Methodist Saturday in the District J competition.