Big plays key in Shorter's 44-21 blowout of Edward Waters

Jacksonville, Florida -- The big play has become a staple of the Shorter University football program since its Mid-South Conference championship season in 2008. Noticeably absent over the past few weeks, the big play made a return for the Hawks on Saturday.

Shorter rushed for 343 yards and forced three turnovers as part of a 21-point second quarter in a 44-21 rout of Edward Waters College Jacksonville.

Kenny Foster ran for 89 yards and two touchdowns and T.J. Telfair chipped in with 66 yards and a score for the Hawks (5-3), who scored on three plays of 20 yards or more in rebounding from its worst rushing output in school history a week ago in a loss to Cumberlands

"We have to have big plays," said Shorter head coach Phil Jones. "When you run the ball as much as we do, you have to take advantage of big play opportunities when they present themselves. We did that today.

"I am proud to come down here and get a victory," Jones added. "What Edward Waters has done with that new staff and those talented players is amazing. You have to tip your hats to them."



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Edward Waters ends William Carey season

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - William Carey University’s 2011 season came to an end Friday as the Crusaders fell 7-4 to Edward Waters College in NAIA National Tournament Opening Round action at Sliwa Stadium in the Daytona Beach Bracket.

Earlier Friday, No. 4 seed Carey overcame a five-run deficit to take a 10-6 victory over third-seeded Campbellsville (Ky.). Taylor Martin (4-2) went the full nine innings, surrendering six runs on 11 hits, two walks and three strikeouts. Carey finishes the 2011 campaign at 31-27.

Against Edward Waters, after a scoreless first and second inning, play was halted in the top of the third inning for nearly an hour due to inclement weather. Once the delay was over it was Edward Waters that struck the critical blow. The Tigers scored one run in the fourth and two more on an inside the park home run in the fifth inning.

Crusaders fall in tournament opener

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – William Carey University stranded 17 runners and surrendered eight two-out runs as it fell to Edward Waters College 10-7 in the NAIA National Tournament opening round Thursday. The Crusaders (30-26) left the bases loaded in the fourth, fifth and ninth innings.

The Tigers (34-24) opened a 2-0 lead in the third inning, scoring on a squeeze play and with an RBI single from Neil Martino. Carey got one run back in the bottom of the third as Quin Stokes doubled to right field to score Jordan Prout.

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Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) To Receive MEAC/SWAC Sports Main Street Global Exposure

GCAC president Kiki Baker Barnes

The Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) and its member institutions of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Division I level, need our support for their athletic programs.

The GCAC was established in 1981 and recently (2010) went through a major transformation with the six (6) non-HBCU institutions leaving for the Southern States Athletic Conference and the Red River Athletic Conference. This move left six (6) small, mostly private HBCUs institutions under the GCAC banner.

The president of the GCAC is Dillard University's Athletic Director and head women's basketball coach Kiki Baker Barnes. Barnes was unanimously voted in by her peers as the 17th president of the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference at the 2009 fall meetings, making her the first African-American woman to hold the position.

She is one of only two African-Americans named to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics' (NAIA) newly formed National Administrative Council and a member of the Black Coaches and Administrators (BCA) professional organization. Upon her installation as conference president, Barnes stated, "now is a critical time in the history of the conference as it attempts to draw new members and build new rivalries, and I look forward to the challenge."

Talladega College will be leaving the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) and will be rejoining the GCAC in 2011-12 academic year, along with Philander Smith College  (Little Rock, AR). Voorhees College decided in July 2010 not to accept an invitation to join the conference. Further expansion of the GCAC remains one of the conference's most important goals, in addition to raising its profile and sports branding by member institutions.

The conference fields 13 sports programs--Men's Basketball, Golf, Soccer, Cross Country, Track and Field, Tennis and Baseball; and Women's Softball, Volleyball, Basketball, Cross Country, Track and Field, and Tennis. Not all institutions are able to field teams in each sport, and may have as few as three programs, like Fisk University. Playoff bids for sports like tennis, soccer, baseball and golf will have to come by way of play-in tournament games with the NAIA's Association of Independent Institutions.

Current GCAC member institutions are: (click each name for auto link to each college athletic website)

1. Dillard University Bleu Devils, New Orleans, LA
2. Edward Waters College Tigers, Jacksonville, FL
3. Fisk University Bulldogs, Nashville, TN
4. Southern University at New Orleans Knights, New Orleans, LA
5. Tougaloo College Bulldogs, Tougaloo, MS
6. Xavier University of Louisiana Gold Rush/Gold Nuggets, New Orleans, LA
7. Talladega College Tornadoes, Talladega, AL
8. Philander Smith College Panthers, Little Rock, AR

Edward Waters College is the only football playing member of the conference and plays as an NAIA Independent for football. The EWC Tigers recently selected Bethune-Cookman University's assistant Brad Bernard as its new head football coach. Bernard tapped B-CU assistant coach Greg Ross as the Tigers new offensive coordinator and Millsaps College (Miss.) assistant Lane Powell as his defensive coordinator.

The basketball powerhouses this season are Tougaloo Bulldogs (27-4) and Xavier Gold Rush (men) (27-5) that are bracketed in the NAIA Division I National Championship Tournament in Kansas City, Missouri on March 16-22.  The Xavier Gold Nuggets women's team (26-6) are also participants in the national championship tournament in Kansas City.

Many thanks to Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director at Xavier University of Louisiana who has been sending us stories on the Gold Rush and Gold Nuggets nationally ranked Tennis Teams. This pushed us to take a closer look at what was going on with the GCAC and examine the historic academic powerhouses that are charter member institutions, i.e., Dillard University, Tougaloo College and Xavier University of Louisiana.

Check back often for links to articles on our student-athletes from the fifth HBCU conference -- the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference.

Thank you to our growing 380,706 readers world-wide that continue to confirm that Historically Black Colleges and Universities are as relevant today, as they will be when Jesus comes.  Please continue to provide your financial support to our HBCU Institutions, especially to the sports and music programs which are a cornerstone to American society and culture. Thank you also for the nearly one million page views from the readers from 176 countries/territories, above all, our active members of the American military services.

This amazing Blog continues to prove each day that "one person can make a difference in the world."

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VISIT: the naiasports and GCAConf.com

Videographer: ewc1777; Edward Waters College Triple Threat Marching Band vs. North Carolina Central University Marching Sound Machine ( Nov. 2010)