Five from Xavier receive GCAC's weekly player awards

NEW ORLEANS -- Xavier University of Louisiana collected five Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Athlete/Performer of the week awards for Feb. 24-March 2: Angelica Alexander in women's outdoor field, Catherine Fakler in women's outdoor track, Brent Kitto in men's outdoor track, Simone-Alyse Ewell in women's tennis and Viktor Svoboda in men's tennis.

Alexander, a senior from Shreveport, La., and a graduate of Byrd High School, cleared 5 feet, 6 inches in the high jump at the Mississippi College Opener to meet the A-qualifying standard for the NAIA Outdoor National Championship. Alexander finished second in that event and was third in the triple jump (32-3 3/4) and fourth in the long jump (16-7 1/4).

Fakler, a junior from Phoenix, Ariz., and a graduate of Xavier College Preparatory Roman Catholic High School, won the 1,500-meter run (4 minutes, 47.69 seconds) and the 5,000 (18:43.25) at the Mississippi College meet. Her 1,500 time is the best outdoors in the NAIA this season.

Kitto, a sophomore from Chalmette, La., and a graduate of Holy Cross High School, ran the men's 1,500 in 4:06.60 to finish second out of 30 runners at Mississippi College. It was Kitto's XU track debut, and he was 12 seconds faster than the Gold Rush's best 2013 time in this event.

Ewell, a sophomore from Detroit and a graduate of The Roeper School, won in singles and doubles to help Xavier earn a 5-4 victory against Brenau in a matchup of top-10 NAIA teams. She teamed with Amber Brown for an 8-6 victory against Valeria Savina and Kelley Cohron at No. 3 doubles, then rallied from deficits of 5-2 in the second set and 4-1 in the third to defeat Savina 2-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-4 at No. 5 singles and clinch XU's first-ever dual victory against Brenau.

Svoboda, a senior from Kamenice, Czech Republic, and a graduate of Vitezna Plan, earned his first singles victory of the season, 7-6 (7-4), 1-6, 1-0 (12-10) against Douglas Boe of West Florida, the third-ranked team in NCAA Division II.

The GCAC weekly awards are the first for Alexander, Kitto and Ewell. Fakler is a nine-time winner (two in track, seven in cross country), and Svoboda has won five times.

Xavier's men's and women's track and field teams will compete next in the McNeese Cowboy Relays at Lake Charles, La., on March 15. Next for the XU tennis teams will be 9 a.m. Friday duals against Coastal Georgia in the opening round of the AUM Invitational at Montgomery, Ala.


By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
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