Schaake, Connell, Stewart Earn CCC Honors

BOSTON, Mass. – Three members of the Wentworth Institute of Technology men's basketball program have been honored by the Commonwealth Coast Conference when the league announced its major awards and all-conference teams on Tuesday.

Senior Jack Schaake (Hampton, N.H.) was named the CCC Men's Basketball Scholar-Athlete while the sophomore duo of Jack Connell (Walpole, Mass.) and Tyler Stewart (East Taunton, Mass.) were each Second Team All-CCC selections.

Along with Schaake's CCC Scholar-Athlete honor, Western New England sophomore Jake Harrison (South Boston, Mass.) took home the league's top prize as he was named the 2023 CCC Player of the Year. Meanwhile, Nichols graduate student Matthew Alectus (Hollywood, Fla.) took home CCC Defensive Player of the Year honors and Endicott freshman Jeff Hill (Lynn, Mass.) was named the CCC Rookie of the Year. WNE's Colin Tabb earned his first CCC Coach of the Year honor and Gordon won the Team Sportsmanship Award.

Voting for the All-CCC Teams and major awards was conducted by the 10 CCC head men's basketball coaches following the conclusion of the regular season and do not take postseason play into consideration.

A Mechanical Engineering major, Schaake started all 27 games for the Leopards this season, averaging 10.1 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, while shooting .646 from the floor. Schaake's field goal percentage is the second highest in a single season in program history. He had career highs of 19 points in games against Wheaton (Nov. 16) and Nichols (Feb. 7) and pulled down a career-best 13 rebounds in a game against Wheaton on Nov. 16. For his career, he started 44 of the 78 games in which he played, averaging 7.6 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. He finishes with a career field goal percentage of .609, the second highest in program history while also ranking eighth all-time in rebounds per game. Schaake completed co-ops at Vanderweil Engineers and General Electric.

Connell had a breakout sophomore season for Wentworth, leading the team in scoring at 17.1 points per game, which included a team-leading 71 three pointers, to go along with 3.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. His 71 three pointers made this season were the third most in program history. On 10 occasions this season, he scored 20 or more points, including dropping a career-high 33 in game against Suffolk on Jan. 28. He also posted career highs of nine rebounds and eight assists in a game against Curry on Feb. 18. In 46 career games (29 starts), Connell has averaged 12.8 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game. He presently ranks in the top 15 in program history in three point field goals made.

Starting 26 of 27 games, Stewart began the season with a bang, scoring a career-high 21 points and grabbing a career-best 13 rebounds in a game at Sarah Lawrence on Nov. 12. For the season he eclipsed the 20-point mark eight times, including besting his career high with 27 in a game at Gordon on Jan. 5. He also broke his career high for rebounds when he grabbed 17 on two occasions; against Suffolk on Jan. 3 and against Endicott on Feb. 4. He finished the season averaging 15.0 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.2 blocks per game. He shot nearly 64 percent from the floor, good for fourth in program history. In 49 career games (28 starts), he is averaging 11.2 points, 7.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.0 blocks per game.

Wentworth finished the season with a 17-10 record and advanced to the CCC Semifinals.

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