Tuesday, January 27, 2015

XU Rush 8th in preseason, in top 10 for 30th straight time

NEW ORLEANS -- For the Xavier University of Louisiana men's tennis program, the beat goes on.

The Gold Rush were eighth in the NAIA Coaches' Preseason Top 25 Poll announced Tuesday. It's the 30th consecutive top-10 appearance for Xavier in a streak which began May 3, 2011.

Xavier will play its first dual match of 2015 at 3 p.m. Friday against city rival Loyola at XU Tennis Center. XU's and Loyola's women's teams also will play at that time.

The XU men have the same ranking they finished 2014 with. It's the Gold Rush's 60th consecutive top-25 appearance; that streak began April 4, 2007.

Defending champion Georgia Gwinnett, 21-0 last season, is the preseason No. 1. There are six preseason top-25 teams on Xavier's schedule: No. 10 Belhaven (Feb. 7 at XU), No. 22 William Carey (March 19 at Hattiesburg, Miss.), No. 4 Vanguard (March 30 at Costa Mesa, Calif.), No. 19 Lewis-Clark State (March 31 at La Mirada, Calif.), No. 9 Westmont (April 1 at Santa Barbara, Calif.) and No. 3 Auburn Montgomery (April 10 at XU).

All-Americans Kyle Montrel and Nikita Soifer are among six Gold Rush returning lettermen.

The first regular-season rankings will be announced Feb. 17.

The top 25:

1. Georgia Gwinnett
2. Embry-Riddle (Fla.)
3. Auburn Montgomery
4. Vanguard
5. Lindsey Wilson
6. Cumberland
7. Bethany (Kan.)
8. Xavier
9. Westmont
10. Belhaven
11. Concordia (Calif.)
12. Graceland
13. Coastal Georgia
14. Northwood (Fla.)
15. SCAD Atlanta
16. Pikeville
17. Olivet Nazarene
18. Oklahoma Baptist
19. (tie) SCAD Savannah
19. (tie) Lewis-Clark State
21. Mobile
22. (tie) William Carey
22. (tie) Indiana Wesleyan
24. San Diego Christian
25. Webber International

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director 
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA

XU Gold Nuggets 34th overall and still receiving votes

NEW ORLEANS -- Xavier University of Louisiana collected five points Tuesday to rank 34th in the NAIA Division I Women's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll.

The Gold Nuggets (12-10 overall, 5-1 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference) are among others receiving votes for the fourth consecutive week. And for the second time in that period, they're not the GCAC's leading vote-getter.

That distinction belongs to city rival SUNO, which received eight points and is 31st. SUNO won 73-43 at Xavier on Jan. 19 and gave the Nuggets the second-largest home defeat in their history.

But Xavier has won twice since then, both in GCAC road games, and will enter a 3 p.m. Saturday contest at city rival Dillard with four victories in its last five games.

Xavier's next home game will start at 5:30 p.m. Monday against Edward Waters.

The top of the rankings has a familiar look. Freed-Hardeman, defending champion Oklahoma City and Campbellsville are 1-2-3 for the fourth consecutive week. Freed-Hardeman (19-1) is No. 1 for the fifth consecutive poll.

The top 25:

1. Freed-Hardeman
2. Oklahoma City
3. Campbellsville
4. Westminster (Utah)
5. Bethel (Tenn.)
6. Loyola
7. Langston
8. (tie) Oklahoma Baptist
8. (tie) Concordia (Calif.)
10. Montana State-Northern
11. The Master's
12. Vanguard
13. Our Lady of the Lake
14. Wiley
15. MidAmerica Nazarene
16. Shawnee State
17. Westmont
18. Lewis-Clark State
19. Carroll (Mont.)
20. Lyon
21. Lindsey Wilson
22. Great Falls
23. Martin Methodist
24. Columbia (Mo.)
25. Benedictine (Kan.)

Others receiving votes, in order of points:
Texas Wesleyan
Cumberland
Georgetown (Ky.)
Wayland Baptist
Pikeville
SUNO
Culver-Stockton
Baker
Xavier
William Woods
Auburn Montgomery

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director 
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA

Xavier Rush are 19th after 3rd consecutive climb in rankings

NEW ORLEANS -- Xavier University of Louisiana is still winning and still gaining support in the NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll.

The Gold Rush (16-6 overall, 5-1 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference) climbed for the third straight week, moving from 20th to 19th Tuesday. It's Xavier's highest rank since the preseason, when it was 13th.

Xavier won 73-59 Monday at Voorhees and improved its win streak to a season-high five games.

The Gold Rush are in the top 25 for the 43rd consecutive time. That's the longest active streak among NAIA DI men's teams. Xavier appeared in 56 of the last 57 top-25s.

The GCAC has three top-25 teams for the sixth time in as many polls this season. Talladega climbed from sixth to fourth, and Philander Smith dropped from 24th to 23rd. Talladega will visit Xavier at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 9.

Campbellsville, No. 1 for the past three polls, dropped to sixth after losing both its games this past week. Ascending to the top spot is Cal State San Marcos, which received 5-of-10 first-place votes and is No. 1 for the first time since Dec. 9.

Xavier will visit city rival Dillard at 5 p.m. Saturday, then play Edward Waters at 7:30 p.m. Monday at XU's Convocation Center.

The top 25:

1. Cal State San Marcos
2. Pikeville
3. Hope International
4. Talladega
5. Freed-Hardeman
6. Campbellsville
7. Benedictine (Kan.)
8. Dalton State
9. Wayland Baptist
10. Arizona Christian
11. Our Lady of the Lake
12. Great Falls
13. Columbia (Mo.)
14. (tie) Concordia (Calif.)
14. (tie) Martin Methodist
14. (tie) Georgetown (Ky.)
17. Mid-America Christian
18. Montana Western
19. Xavier
20. Oklahoma Baptist
21. Evangel
22. Bethel (Tenn.)
23. Cumberlands
24. Philander Smith
25. LSU-Alexandria

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director 
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA

Southern U.Track and Field turns in notable marks at UAB

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana  -- Southern University Men’s and Women’s track and field recorded several top-three finishes during a two-day span at the UAB Vulcan and UAB Green and Gold track meets last weekend in Birmingham, Ala.

UAB Vulcan Invite, Friday, Jan. 23

Harold Fluellen finished fifth in the 60-meter hurdles with a speed of 8.33. Montel Brown sprung for a sixth-place finish in the high jump with a mark of (1.90m). Yanik Duffus collected an impressive finish in the 60 meters as he finished with a time of 6.97, while also placing in the top ten during the 200 meters (22.36). John Haynes’ performance in the 800 meters allowed him to place in the top ten with a time of 1:56.34.

The women’s 4x400 relay team earned a sixth-place finish with a time of 4:00.63. Deandra Deveaux gained the longest distance in the women’s long jump with a mark of 5.28 meters for the SWAC. Tiana Cephers collected a leap of 10.31m in the triple jump, while Georgeanna Felder received a tenth-place finish in the shot put, nailing a mark of 11.55m.

UAB Green and Gold Invite, Saturday, Jan. 24

Southern’s John Haynes placed third in the 400 meters with a mark of 49.85. Yanik Duffus placed fifth in the 60 meters (7.04), followed by Justin Pearson in seventh (7.16). Harold Fluellen’s 8.44 time secured him a fourth-place finish in the 60-meter hurdles. Tylor Lighten gained a sixth-place finish in the 200m with a time of 22.36. The men’s 4x400 relay team placed fifth with a mark of 3:26.75.

Southern’s experienced field corp garnered the teams highest mark led by Georgeanna Felder, who produced a second place finish in the women’s weight throw with a mark of 17.09m. Ashley Shepard’s 5.47m jump earned her a third-place finish in the long jump. Celeste White gained a third-place finish in the 5000 meters with a time of 19:54.79, while Reyna Anderson crossed the finish line first for the Jaguars in the 200 meters with a time of 25.33. The women’s 4x400 relay team received an eighth-place finish with a mark of 4:02.94. Briana Radford tossed a 13.90m throw in the shot put finishing fourth in the field.

COURTESY SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC MEDIA RELATIONS

UDC Firebird Spotlight - Denikka Brent, Women's Basketball

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Denikka Brent is a standout senior and mechanical engineering major on the women’s basketball team from Chesapeake, Virginia.  Denikka started playing basketball in the 5th grade with great influence from her uncle, whom she considers more like her older brother. Her father, David Brent, has a career in the Navy which required her and her two younger siblings to live in many places including Tennessee and Virginia Beach.

Denikka Brent was honored for scoring her 1,000th point in a road
game at American International College on Dec.1, 2014.

Favorites:  Denikka loves seafood and is an exceptional pianist. Not only does she come from a family of athletes, but also a family of musicians. She has played the piano seriously since her sophomore year in high school. As a musician, she is a big fan of music including gospel, hip-hop, R & B, and rap. Her favorite artist is Beyoncé.

About UDC/Future Career Plans: Denikka was highly recruited and ultimately wanted a school with an engineering program. She loves Washington, D.C., and plans on returning to the area to work. She aspires to one day pursue a career in engineering, then earn her Master’s degree and continue her education with a Ph,D. in Aerospace Engineering with a concentration in NASA.

She says her student-athlete experience at UDC has thus far been great. She notes her professor, Dr. Kline, has taught her a lot and has been an encouraging force behind her studies and athletic career.

Basketball Career: Denikka’s most noted highlights of her basketball career include wining the East Coast Conference Championship and reaching the 1,000-point milestone. To prepare for games, she keeps to herself by listening to music. On the court, she finds she “thinks about a lot”, but her main focus is on winning. The advice she would give to other student-athletes is balancing athletics and academics. Also, she added that you must manage your time wisely.

Quote from Coach Lester Butler, Jr. -  “Denikka has been the face of the women’s basketball program for the last three years. She is everything you want in student-athlete – a great student and a special talent on the basketball court. She will go down as one of the greatest players to ever play for this school.”

High School: Brent is a 2011 graduate of Booker T. Washington High School...played guard for the basketball team...1st Team All-District and Team MVP…also was a member of the National Society of high school Scholars, Math National Honor Society, and National Honor Society…graduated 4th in her class with a cumulative GPA of 3.85

Personal: Daughter of David and Medina Brent...has two siblings, Destinee and David...Mechanical Engineering major…favorite athletes include Kobe Bryant, Maya Moore and Lebron James… favorite food is seafood…favorite movie is The Temptations … favorite musicians are Beyonce and Chris Brown…also recruited by Florida A&M, East Carolina, Longwood, and Furman… greatest athletic experience is getting to the NCAA tournament in her freshman year… dream as a college athlete is to make it to the NCAA tournament one more time and to win the conference title…greatest athletic influence is her father.

COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA SPORTS INFORMATION

Albany State women scorch visiting Claflin

ALBANY, Georgia — The Albany State Lady Rams’ basketball team got their second win in three games Monday night as they returned home and defeated Claflin 65-52 at the HPER Gym.

The win puts the Lady Rams at 8-9 on the season and 7-3 in the SIAC.

The second half started with a putback from Artisha Holston, which sparked a 9-0 run by the Lady Rams. They held the Lady Panthers scoreless for the first five minutes of the half and went on to build a 48-28 lead with 12:20 left.

Claflin, however, did not go away. The Lady Panthers chipped away at the lead and with 5:41 remaining, Jaquanna Davis hit a lay-up and drew a foul. She sank two more free throws on the next Claflin possession to make it an eight-point game with five minutes left, capping a 20-6 run.

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Virginia State on five-game winning streak heading into big CIAA tilt

RICHMOND, Virginia -- Virginia State (13-5, 7-2) travels to Maryland on Wednesday to face Bowie State (16-5, 8-1) in the first of two games between the two teams atop the CIAA Northern Division. The Trojans currently sit at 4-0 in the division, the Bulldogs are 3-0.

Virginia State enters the game on a five-game winning streak since losing back-to-back games to Shaw and Winston-Salem State early this month. Bowie State has won four straight since a loss to Shaw on Jan. 10.

The Trojans have played nine conference games and are holding CIAA teams to 60.8 points per game - lowest in the conference. The Bulldogs are allowing a third-best 68.6 points per game.

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