XULA sweeps four GCAC Player of the Week awards

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana swept all four Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Week awards for April 17-23. The GCAC announced Tuesday that XULA's recipients are:

• Women's field: Drew Chatters (junior from Lake Charles, La./St. Louis Catholic High School), who won the javelin at the GCAC Championships for the third consecutive year Saturday. Chatters broke the GCAC meet record for the second time; she did it on her final throw (36.90 meters/121 feet, 1 inch).

• Women's track: Brianna Pace (sophomore from Junction City, Kan./Junction City High School), who scored in five events at the GCAC meet and led the league-champion Gold Nuggets with 26 points. Pace placed second in the 800-meter run (2:29.33) and 3,200 relay (10:32.98), third in the 1,500 (5:22.86) and 5,000 (22:14.58) and fourth in the 3,000 steeplechase (13:47.90). She was all-conference in four events by virtue of top-3 finishes.

• Men's field: Keairez Coleman (sophomore from Harrisville, Miss./Mendenhall High School), who became the first XULA male since 2004 to win the triple jump at the GCAC meet. His mark of 14.19 meters (46 feet, 6 3/4 inches) is a PR and the fourth longest in the history of the meet. His marks in the long jump (6.55m/21-6, fourth place) and shot put were season bests.

• Women's tennis: Charlene Goreau (sophomore from Toulouse, France/Raymond Naves School), who won in singles and doubles on the first court against ranked opponents and dropped just two games along the way in the Gold Nuggets' 8-1 home victory Saturday against NAIA No. 11 LSU-Alexandria. Goreau beat the ITA's No. 33 NAIA singles player, Sara Andrade, 6-1, 6-0 and teamed with Emma Kranendonk to defeat No. 12 Andrade and Gisela Amor 8-1.

The GCAC awards are the second of the season and fourth of Coleman's career and the fifth of the season and the eighth of Goreau's career. Pace is a first-time winner in track — she won three cross country awards in 2015 — and Chatters won for the first time this season and the third time in her career.

XULA's track teams will compete Friday and Saturday in the Southern Miss Open at Hattiesburg, Miss. Both tennis teams have concluded their regular seasons and are expected to receive at-large bids to next month's NAIA National Championships at Mobile, Ala.


Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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