News

The Virginia Peninsula Community College men’s basketball team lost a heartbreaker to Sandhills Community College in the Region 10 tournament final Feb. 23. Despite the 87-85 overtime loss, the Gators (14-9) advanced to next weekend’s Mid-Atlantic District tournament at Sandhills. The winner of that four-team event advances to the NJCAA national tournament in Herkimer, N.Y., on March 12-15. Sunday’s game at Patrick & Henry Community College in Martinsville...

Sincere Moore is the leading scorer (18.1 points per game) and rebounder (8.4) for the Virginia Peninsula Community College men’s basketball team. He shoots almost 50% from the field and almost 40% on 3-pointers. His coach, Chris Moore, said, “He finds ways to put the ball in the basket.” Yet Sincere Moore, who isn’t related to his coach, said defense is the strongest part of his game. “I really love playing defense,” he said....

Virginia Peninsula Community College participated in the Hampton Comicon last weekend, handing out an event-specific comic book. The Feb. 22 event ran 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. at the Hampton Convention Center. The comic book, “Gillie the Gator – Journey into the Future,” was written and drawn by Marketing Director Eric Pesola. The book reveals the origins of the College’s mascot and his adventures along the way. It was the first time VPCC has been a...

Virginia Peninsula Community College unveiled a new athletics logo at Saturday's men's basketball game, continuing the rebranding efforts at the College. The Gator remains the mascot, but the artwork was updated with a more refined and distinct look, while putting the College’s name front and center. Faculty, staff, students, alumni and the rest of the VPCC Gator Family participated in a logo survey last year. Comments from the survey factored into the final logo design. The new...

Liz Rizzatto joined Virginia Peninsula Community College in 2016 as a math instructor assistant in the tutoring department, being assigned a temporary space from the start. That all changed at the beginning of the semester when the College’s tutoring center moved into Room 228B in Kecoughtan Hall, across from  the Military & Veterans Services Center. “Now, we have our own space,” said Rizzatto, who now is VPCC’s tutoring coordinator. The...

As an avid sports fan and a former volleyball player and cross country runner, Virginia Peninsula Community College President Dr. Towuanna Porter Brannon has long advocated the benefits of athletics. She approaches the athletics programs at the College the same way she does Phi Theta Kappa (an honor society), Student Government Association or Student Ambassadors. “It is a student leadership development initiative, and I don't think it gets the attention or gets the same credit as...

The Virginia Peninsula Community College baseball team opened the home portion of its schedule by dropping a doubleheader (2-0 and 11-5) to the College of Southern Maryland on Feb. 9. The games were played at War Memorial Stadium in Hampton. In the opener, starting pitcher Zack Easton (Hermitage High School/Richmond) had a strong out for the Gators (0-3) but suffered the loss. He went five innings, giving up two runs (one earned) and two hits. He struck out three. The Gators had just four...

It was easy to overlook Elle Hill and Breyana Harris at last month’s ribbon-cutting for the Newport News Early Childhood Development Center. In a room filled with dignitaries from Virginia Peninsula Community College, the Peake Childhood Center and the City of Newport News, they sat in the last row. However, the ceremony was as much about them as it was about others. Hill and Harris are among those enrolled in VPCC’s Center for Excellence in Early Childhood Development,...

Ambidextrous pitchers, those who can throw left-handed and right-handed, are rare and usually trace their talent to a childhood injury. Not so for Virginia Peninsula Community College’s Zack Easton, although he did break the pinky finger on his right hand as a youth. While he didn’t say he was naturally right-handed, he did most things on that side as a child, except for throwing a football. “We always used to play football in elementary school, and I always...

The Virginia Peninsula Community College baseball team, after its first six scheduled games were canceled because of weather, finally opened the season Feb. 2 at Bryant & Stratton. Unfortunately, the result was a 5-3 loss. After falling behind 3-0 after four innings, the Gators tied the game with one run in the sixth inning and two in the seventh. Justin Bryson (Arbor View High School/Las Vegas) drove in Austin Smith (Creekside/Georgia) in the sixth with a single. In the seventh, the...

Rochelle Pleasant has devoted decades to early childhood education, wearing many hats along the way. From her role as an adjunct faculty member at Virginia Peninsula Community College to serving as a passionate mentor and advocate, she has built an impressive career. Pleasant has worked steadily since entering the field with diverse experience that includes everything from childcare assistant and center director to writing grants and conducting training here and abroad. She has no plans to...