FLUSHING, N.Y. – The City University of New York Wheelchair Basketball team, led by CUNY Advisor for Inclusive and Adaptive Sports,
Ryan Martin, has announced its inaugural schedule for the 2021-22 season.
"It will be a surreal moment when our student-athletes take the court in the National Wheelchair Basketball Association (NWBA) collegiate conference this season," said Martin. "I know I speak for everyone at the University when I say: We are thrilled to release our schedule and have our first games for our men's and women's programs, respectively, in November. Our student-athletes have endured a challenging year and a half. All the credit goes to their resilience, committing to virtual learning, zoom workouts, and finally getting on the court in the Fall. This first class of men and women student-athletes have laid a foundation for youth with disabilities in NYC to see CUNY as a place that recognizes them as equal. CUNY and the CUNY Athletic Conference should be applauded for their continued commitment to this program during these challenging times."
The program kicks off its first-ever campaign with the 'Battle of New York' series, sponsored by the Wheelchair Sports Federation at Hostos Community College. Team CUNY will host the Brooklyn Nets on Nov. 19 with contests at 7:00 p.m. (men) and 8:30 p.m. (women).
On Dec. 3, Team CUNY will host the Nassau Kings for a pair of games and wrap up the series on Dec. 17 against the New York Rolling Knicks before breaking for the new year.
Team CUNY is back on the court in 2022 on Jan. 22-23 for the CUNY Collegiate Invitational at Queens College, hosting a tournament with Edinboro University and the University of Illinois.
The squad will then hit the road for the first time on Feb. 11-12 with men's and women's contests at Illinois, followed by road games at Edinboro on Feb. 28-29.
The NWBA College Nationals are scheduled for Mar. 13-15 at the University of Texas-Arlington.
"We are so happy for our 35 student-athletes to get our men's and women's teams off the ground with some quality games against well-established collegiate and professional teams," said CUNYAC Commissioner
, Zak Ivkovic. "Knowing how Ryan approaches things in general, I am quite certain that we will put forth quality teams that can compete for a spot at the NWBA Nationals in March as Team CUNY is looking to compete at a high level from day one."
The wheelchair team is a result of a 2017 initiative, CUNY's Inclusive and Adaptive Sports platform, providing an opportunity for 11,000 CUNY students with disabilities to participate in four sports — track and field, swimming, tennis and basketball, the first sport the University has adopted as part of this collegiate model. The CUNY wheelchair team is the first of its kind on the Eastern Seaboard.
Joining the ranks of the NWBA is yet another notch on the journey towards national and global prominence as the program continues to make strides since its inception. To date, the platform has over 35-students across 14 CUNY campuses. CUNYAC has hosted several wheelchair basketball clinics across CUNY campuses, including a 'Camp CUNY' clinic at Hostos Community College. With CUNY as a member of the NWBA, this idea has turned into a reality, as CUNY will now be represented on a national stage.
2021-22 CUNY Wheelchair Basketball Schedule
November 19: Team CUNY vs. Brooklyn Nets (at Hostos Community College)
Men's Game: 7:00 p.m. | Women's Game: 8:30 p.m.
*December 3: Team CUNY vs. Nassau Kings (at Hostos Community College)
Women's Game: 6:30 p.m. | Men's Game: 7:30 p.m.
*December 17: Team CUNY vs. New York Rolling Knicks (at Hostos Community College)
Women's Game: 7:00 p.m. | Men's Game: 8:30 p.m.
^January 22-23: Team CUNY vs. Edinboro University/University of Illinois (at Queens College)
February 11-12: Team CUNY at University of Illinois
February 18-19: Team CUNY at Edinboro University
March 15 -19: College Nationals (at University of Texas-Arlington)
*
Battle of New York Series (presented by Wheelchair Sports Foundation)
^ CUNY Collegiate Invitational