UMES Lady Hawks signs an Elite Lady, Sweeney Style

Chester, VA -- For Shawnee Sweeney, life's motto is simple. Life is only as good as what you make of it. The harder you work the better you will become. That is not just a life lesson that is a basketball lesson for the Thomas Dale (High School) senior. Since Sweeney was five years old, shooting hoops was a poignant part of her life.

"My dad taught me how to shoot and I would keep working on it. That drive to wanting to get it right, to be perfect came natural to me," Sweeney said. Those long hard-working hours have paid off as Sweeney signed her letter of intent to play Division I college basketball at the University of Maryland-Eastern Shore next fall.


Videographer: sweeney2tes; Shawnee Sweeney signs to UMES. Shawnee posted a 4.2 GPA, is in the top 25 of her senior class and played all five positions on the court at Thomas Dale H.S.

"At first I was interested in going to Virginia Wesleyan or Christopher Newport, but at the very end of my high school season, Maryland of Eastern Shore got in touch with me and asked me to come for a visit," Sweeney said. "It was love at first sight with the school, the facilities to the coaches and players."

Sweeney who primarily played shooting guard and averaged about 15 points per game liked the fact that Maryland of Eastern Shore's coaches took the time to come see her play.

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Second-half surge pushes Savannah State beyond Maryland Eastern Shore

Savannah State women's basketball coach Cedric Baker admitted some things could be better, some a little worse, while summing up the Tigers' .500 season pretty accurately.

The positive shined brightly at Tiger Arena on Wednesday night. SSU received key contributions from its bench and used a solid defensive effort in the second half to pull away from Maryland Eastern Shore, 71-50.

The Tigers raised their record to 7-1 at home while evening their overall mark at 8-8. A year ago, SSU finished 9-21 overall, so .500 has a nice ring right now. "This was an important win for the program," Baker said. "The kids have bought into what we've been telling them."


UMES Announces Annual 'Take a Kid to the Game' Day

PRINCESS ANNE, Md.- The University of Maryland Eastern Shore today announced its annual NCAA® Men's and Women's Basketball Take A Kid to the Game® day will be held on Saturday, January 15 when the Hawks take on the Florida A&M Rattlers at the W.P. Hytche Athletic Center. The Lady Hawks take on the Lady Rattlers at 2 p.m. with the men's teams following at approximately 4 p.m.

Area youth ages 12 and younger are invited to experience the college game day atmosphere and action with a free ticket when accompanied by an adult with paid admission.

"We are excited to once again host a youth-focused game day at the Hytche this season," said G. Stan Bradley, Assistant Athletic Director for External Affairs. "We hope the community will embrace this event and bring children out to experience a college athletic event at the UMES campus, while cheering on the Hawks."

SAVANNAH STATE'S HOT SHOOTING SECOND HALF SINKS UMES, 71-50

SAVANNAH, Ga. - Savannah State shot 53.8 percent in the second half, breaking open a tie game at halftime on its way to a 71-50 win over the University of Maryland Eastern Shore women's basketball team at Tiger Arena Wednesday.

Ezinne Kalu scored 18 points on 7-for-9 shooting to help the Lady Tigers even their record to 8-8 while Amber Cook (Greensboro, N.C.) paced UMES with a career-high-tying 16 points and eight rebounds in its sixth consecutive defeat. Casey Morton (Mardela Springs, Md.) became the fourth player in UMES women's basketball history to eclipse the 1,000-point barrier with a 3-pointer in the first half and finished with 10 points.

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Maryland - Eastern Shore hosts Manhattan Lady Jaspers

Manhattan-Maryland Eastern Shore Game Notes

Game 7: Manhattan Lady Jaspers (4-2) at Maryland Eastern Shore Lady Hawks (1-2)

Monday, December 6, 2010-6 p.m.

Princess Anne, Md.-Hytche Athletic Center (5,500)

 

Live Webcast: www.umeshawks.com

Live Audio: www.gojaspers.com,www.umeshawks.com

TONIGHT'S GAME
Manhattan (4-2) hits the road for the first time in five games tonight, as the Lady Jaspers visit Maryland Eastern Shore (1-2). The Lady Jaspers have won three straight, including a 68-51 triumph over New Hampshire on Friday night.

The Lady Hawks defeated UMBC in their season opener, but have lost two straight since, including a 73-50 defeat at Syracuse on Wednesday night. Tonight's game is Manhattan's only non-conference contest outside the State of New York.

THE LADY HAWKS
Maryland Eastern Shore (1-2) has played just three games this season, the fewest among all Division I teams. The Lady Hawks enter tonight's contest on a two-game losing streak after suffering a 73-50 defeat at Syracuse on Wednesday night. This is the Lady Hawks' first home game since their season-opening 64-52 win over UMBC on Nov. 14.

Senior guard Casey Morton paces the Lady Hawks in both scoring and rebounding. She averages 11.7 points and 5.7 points per contest. Junior guard/forward Kwinnyata Mercer averages 10.5 points per game off the bench, while junior guard Amber Cook contributes 10.0 points and 5.3 rebounds to go along with a team-leading 2.3 assists and 2.0 steals per outing. As a team, the Lady Hawks are shooting .417 (20-of-48) from three-point land, while holding their opponents to just .151 (8-of-53) shooting from beyond the arc.

Maryland Eastern Shore was picked to finish ninth in the MEAC Preseason Poll.

THE LADY JASPERS
The Lady Jaspers (4-2), who are coming off a 68-51 home victory over New Hampshire, have won three straight and are two games above .500 for the first time in Head Coach John Olenowski's tenure. Manhattan is looking to win four straight for the first time since Jan. 2-11, 2004.

Senior guard Abby Wentworth is the only Manhattan player averaging double-figures in the scoring column with 14.0 points per game. She also leads the Lady Jaspers in assists (4.2 apg) and steals (3.0 spg), and ranks second in rebounding (5.3 rpg). Junior forward Lindsey Loutsenhizer averages 9.0 points and 4.7 rebounds per game, while junior forward Nadia Peters leads Manhattan with 6.7 boards per contest. Peters also averages 2.5 assists and a team-high 1.5 blocks per game.

After playing four straight at home, tonight's game is the start of the span where Manhattan plays three out of four on the road.

SERIES HISTORY
This is the first time that Manhattan and Maryland Eastern Shore areplaying in Princess Anne. Both previous meetings took place at Draddy Gymnasium, including last season's 88-58 Lady Jaspers victory. The only other time the teams met, Manhattan notched a 78-51 win on Nov. 30, 1991. The Lady Jaspers are 8-1 all-time against members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.

UMES Hawks will try to break through

PRINCESS ANNE -- The University of Maryland Eastern Shore men's basketball team finished 8-8 in Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference play last season, sporting its best record in close to a decade. While, in past campaigns, breaking even in the conference would be welcomed, UMES coach Frankie Allen is far from satisfied. Allen, in his third year at the helm, looks to continue with the progression of a program that has seen its go from 4-28 in 2007-08 to 7-23 in 2008-09 to 11-21 last season.

"This is an opportunity for us to have a breakthrough season," Allen said. "It was a down program when we got here, and it has made significant progress."

UMES Routs Wesley in Exhibition Win

PRINCESS ANNE, Md. - Senior Casey Morton (Mardela Springs, Md.) and sophomore Chelsea
Sanders (Rochester, N.Y.) scored 15 points each, including nine apiece in the second half, as the University of Maryland Eastern Shore women's basketball team rolled to an exhibition victory over Division III Wesley, 87-51, in front of 1,469 at the William P. Hytche Athletic Center.

The pair were two of four players to score in double figures in the win. Juniors Bria Jackson (Rochester, N.Y.) and Amber Cook (Greensboro, N.C.) also had 11 and 10, respectively, while the UMES defense forced 33 turnovers and grabbed 23 steals.

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Fred Batchelor Up Close, Videographer: UMESHAWKSATHLETICS

UMES Hawks, perched in third place, eye second

Photo: University of Maryland Eastern Shore head women basketball coach Fred Batchelor (4th Year).

4 regular-season games left

PRINCESS ANNE, MD -- University of Maryland Eastern Shore women's basketball coach Fred Batchelor, not long ago, had been reluctant to talk about where his team was in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference standings. The Hawks only recently crossed the halfway point of the MEAC schedule, and there was a lot of basketball left, Batchelor would point out, and a lot of room to move up or down in the standings.

Well, after a weekend road trip that included a loss to the MEAC's top team, North Carolina A&T, and a big victory against Norfolk State, the Hawks are sitting in a tie for third place. They have just four games remaining, three of which are at home, beginning with Saturday's homecoming contest against Florida A&M.

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