Dillard Volleyball Head Coach Yolanda Brown Named Finalist for HBCU Female Coach of the Year

Coach Yolanda Brown

New Orleans, Louisiana -- It is with great honor that our Dillard University Athletic Department announce that Women's Head Volleyball Coach Yolanda Brown was named a finalist for Female Coach of the Year by The Center for HBCU Media Advocacy, Inc. last week.

Winners will be announced at the Second Annual HBCU Awards, which will be held on the campus of Bowie State University. Nominees for the Female Coach of the Year award will have demonstrated a winning conference record in her respective sport and exemplary ambassadorship for her institution during the 2010-11 academic year.

During the 2010-11 season, Coach Brown's volleyball team finished with an overall record of 20-11, including 5-1 in the GCAC Conference. The Lady Bleu Devils team also captured the GCAC Regular Season Conference title, the GCAC Conference Tournament title and secured a NAIA National Volleyball Tournament berth, all being the volleyball program's first since 2003.

"I was honored and overwhelmed actually," said Coach Brown when asked of her impressions of being nominated. "I received the news via text messaging, so it was shocking, yet humbling and I felt very grateful that someone took the time to acknowledge my efforts and body of work."

The HBCU award nominations is a three-month process in which the HBCU Media Advocacy, Inc. goes through more than 1,300 entries submitted by administrators, students, alumni, faculty and supporters of HBCUs throughout the country. A panel of HBCU chancellors and presidents then names the finalists and winners.

"We were lucky to have such widespread support and participation for our inaugural awards in March of this year," said Jarrett L. Carter Sr., Founder and Executive Director of the Center. "Schools took this year's nomination process very seriously, and combining that with the feedback we received on our last effort, we're proud to show off a slate of nominees and a ceremony that will represent the best of HBCU culture."

During her current tenure in the Dillard Athletic Department, Coach Brown has shown an unflagging determination to restore a winning pedigree back into Dillard's Volleyball team, and as a staff member restoring prestige back to the department.

"Since Hurricane Katrina, our athletic department's goal has been to regain the prominence in all sports," said Coach Brown. "And with our volleyball program being the first conference champion following the storm shows what we have accomplished and the direction we are head in. It's only the start for bigger and better things to come for our athletic department."

Coach Brown has proven excellent ambassadorship and community engagement as Head Volleyball Coach at Dillard University, which is also a criteria for her nomination for this award.

Coach Brown has been instrumental in developing "DU Pink Night", which is a game night to acknowledge Breast Cancer Awareness as well as an all out effort to enlighten and alert students and fans of the symptoms of breast cancer, where to go locally for check-ups and how to reduce the possibly of getting breast cancer in our young adults.

Brown has also developed a "Faculty, Staff and Administrators Night", acknowledging those faculty, staff and administrators that don't always get the credit or recognition for the hard work that they do to academically challenge our student-athletes to help shape them into the best overall person he/she knows they can be before they leave college.

Brown's latest project is organizing and developing a volleyball skills club for underprivileged girls ages 10-13 throughout the Orleans and Jefferson parishes.

"We are building a consistent winner with all sports in our athletic department," said Coach Brown. "I'm only doing what I feel I've been destined to do. I appreciate the acknowledgements and nominations because it will always let me know the importance of my effort and the positive impact I can make in these kid's lives.

By Dillard University Sports Information

VISIT: DILLARD UNIVERSITY
VISIT: DILLARDBLEUDEVILS

Xavier Nuggets outlast Dillard, reach title round of GCAC tourney

Moira Kirk

NASHVILLE, Tennessee — No deficit, it seems, is too great for the Xavier University of Louisiana women's volleyball team.

Moira Kirk had 13 kills and four blocks, and Taylor Reuther had 10 kills, 23 digs and two aces Friday to help the Gold Nuggets rally for a 20-25, 18-25, 27-25, 26-24, 17-15 victory against Dillard in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Tournament.

"It was such a great comeback," said Xavier coach Christabell Hamilton, whose team trailed 15-8 in the fourth set and fought off four Dillard match points — one in the third, two in the fourth and one in the fifth. "When we won I was jumping up and down like a kid, which is something I never do."

Taylor Reuther

Xavier (22-6), the tourney's top seed and only unbeaten team, will play Dillard or SUNO in the championship round of the double-elimination event at 1 p.m. Saturday. It's the first time in the Gold Nuggets' four seasons that they reached the finals.

Dillard, the defending champion and No. 2 seed, and third-seeded SUNO will play at 11 a.m. Saturday in an elimination match. SUNO stayed alive with a 23-25, 25-12, 25-11, 25-9 victory against Tougaloo and a 25-18, 25-12, 25-16 victory against Talladega.

A Xavier victory in the 1 p.m. match will end the tournament. If the Gold Nuggets lose, they and their opponent will meet again at 3 p.m. to decide the championship and the GCAC's automatic bid to the NAIA National Championship, which begins next Saturday.

Patrice Hightower

Chinedu Echebelem's fifth-set kill, her 10th of the contest, saved a Dillard match point and tied the score at 15, then Xavier advanced with its seventh straight victory after consecutive Dillard attack errors.

"We have such fight and such heart," said Reuther, whose kill-dig double-double was her 11th of the season. "I always know we have a chance to come back."

Jeanay Butler and Iva Bobkova had eight kills apiece for Xavier, and Patrice Hightower had nine digs and a career-best 45 assists

"We communicated a lot more those final two sets," Hightower said. "We made adjustments on defense and in our blocking. I wasn't surprised we came back because we've done it all year. I have faith and trust in my teammates. I love this team so much."

Chinedu Echebelem

The Gold Nuggets have won 10 consecutive matches which lasted longer than three sets. They're 3-0 this season against Dillard (18-11), the defending tournament champion.

Xavier's current victory streak includes three matches in which the Nuggets trailed by a set. It was the second time in the program's history that Xavier rallied from a 2-sets-to-none deficit — the other time was against Dillard a year ago at The Barn.

"Those first two sets we weren't playing Xavier volleyball," Hamilton said. "We were not looking like ourselves and that's what frustrated me so much."

Reuther produced 17 digs in the final three sets and finished with a career high.

Jeanay Butler

"We started fighting as a team instead of individually," Reuther said. "That's why we meshed so well and came back as strongly as we did."

There were 15 ties and five lead changes in the third set, which Xavier capped with kills by Echebelem and Bobkova, but the Nuggets never led in the fourth until Kirk closed the set with consecutive kills. Kirk, the GCAC Freshman of the Year, had five kills in that set after the Nuggets trailed by seven.

The fifth set had 10 ties and four lead changes. Xavier led 8-5 after a Dillard attack error, and the Lady Bleu Devils had match point after Paula Ogbevoen's kill made it 15-14. But the Nuggets rallied one more time in a deciding set in which Dillard aided Xavier with eight errors.

"We never, ever give up," Hightower said.

Box score

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

VISIT: GCACSPORTS

XU Gold Nuggets 2-0 on opening day of GCAC Tournament

NASHVILLE, Tennessee -- Top-seeded Xavier University of Louisiana defeated eighth-seeded Edward Waters 25-6, 25-11, 25-14 and fourth seeded Talladega 17-25, 25-12, 25-11, 25-21 in Thursday's opening rounds of the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference women's volleyball tournament.

Moira Kirk had 13 kills, and Taylor Reuther had eight kills and four aces against Edward Waters. Both freshmen had 17 kills against Talladega, and Reuther had 12 digs for her team-leading 10th kill-dig double-double of the season.

Xavier (21-6) needs two victories to win the tournament and secure the GCAC's automatic bid to next week's NAIA National Championship. The Gold Nuggets will play SUNO or Dillard, which met late Thursday, at 6 p.m. Friday. The eight-team, double-elimination event will conclude Saturday.

"The girls came out and played well," Xavier first-year coach Christabell Hamilton said. "The second match we started slowly, but we got it together and finished well. We're really growing and maturing as a team, and that's the most important thing at this part of the season."

Xavier trailed 3-0 and 10-8 in the fourth set against Talladega (21-14), but took the lead for good at 17-16 on a kill by Reuther, who scored five of the Nuggets' final nine points on attacks. Reuther had eight kills in the final set.

Celeste Poe had 13 digs against Talladega, and Iva Bobkova served a season-best five aces. Bobkova and Jeanay Butler served three aces apiece against Edward Waters (4-29).

The Nuggets have won six straight, the second longest streak in the program's four seasons and their best since an eight-match streak in September. They are 7-0 this season on neutral courts.

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
VISIT: XAVIER UNIVESITY OF LOUISIANA
VISIT: XULAATHLETICS

XU Gold Nuggets beat SUNO, win GCAC championship outright

Coach Christabell Hamilton

New Orleans, Louisiana -- Xavier University of Louisiana got 18 kills from freshman Moira Kirk and defeated SUNO 25-12, 15-25, 25-19, 25-8 on Saturday at The Castle to win the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference regular-season championship outright.

The Gold Nuggets (18-6, 9-0) won their first volleyball championship in four intercollegiate seasons. They were 11-26 in 2010 in their first season since 2004.

Kirk hit .533 in 30 attacks and had five blocks. She had four kills during a 10-0 run which gave Xavier a 11-2 lead in the fourth set.

Chinedu Echebelem and Taylor Reuther had seven kills apiece for Xavier, which won its third straight, and Jeanay Butler had five. Reuther had 16 digs, Celeste Poe 12, and Butler and Kia Smith had six apiece. Patrice Hightower assisted on 32 of the Gold Nuggets' 44 kills.

Xavier hit .579 in the first set, then hit .130 in the next to help SUNO (13-9, 7-3) even the match. But the Gold Nuggets, with Kirk collecting five kills, four blocks and an ace, regained control in the third.

"We were too relaxed in the second set and lost our focus," Hightower said. "We didn't make the necessary adjustments, especially with blocking.

"But in the third set we came back out and forgot the second set. I just thought we wanted it more, and we made the adjustments we didn't make eariler."

Senior Iva Bobkova, an All-GCAC performer a year ago but a reserve for the majority of this season, was part of the adjustments.

"We put Iva in the match in the third set to give us a bigger blocker," Xavier coach Christabell Hamilton said. "That allowed us to get in front of some balls we weren't getting to earlier."
SUNO aided Xavier in the final set with errors on eight attacks and two serves. Reuther ended the match with a kill.

2011 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Regular Season Champions
Xavier University of Louisiana Gold Nuggets 
Record: 18-6, 9-0 GCAC
Roster -  click here
(click picture to enlarge)

"The difference this season was attitude," Bobkova said. "People are just more willing to play for each other than last year. We did not have the desire last year.

"It's frustrating for me to not play as much, but we always think about the team. I'm definitely happier this year."

Hamilton, hired in mid-June, is the third first-year XU coach to win a conference championship. Giles Wright won the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference men's basketball championship in 1937-38, and Alan Green won the GCAC women's tennis title in 2002-03.

"From the very beginning in August I knew we had a lot of work to do," Hamilton said. "After the first home match I knew I had a good team. I just had to put them all on the same page."

Xavier will close the regular season at 2 p.m. next Saturday against city and GCAC rival Dillard at The Barn, the travel to Nashville, Tenn., for the GCAC Tournament on Nov. 10-12. The tournament winner will receive an automatic bid to the NAIA National Championship.

"We're still not done," Hamilton said. "There's lots more to do. We can celebrate Sunday, but Monday it's back to work."

NOTES: Xavier never had a winning season before this year and won 30 percent of its matches the first three seasons . . . Kirk's kills were her second most this season. She recorded 23 kills Friday in a five-set victory against Faulkner . . . The Nuggets had two service errors -- none until the middle of the third set -- after committing 10 Friday . . . Xavier swept both regular-season matches against SUNO after losing all four, two in the league tournament, to the Lady Knights in 2010 . . . All three XU fall teams won GCAC Championships. The men's and women's cross country squads won their league titles for the sixth straight time this past Saturday.

Box score

Ed Cassiere

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

Stallings, Smith, Rencher step up in Gold Nuggets' victory

NEW ORLEANS — Of the seven freshmen on the Xavier University of Louisiana women's volleyball team, Morgan Stallings, Kia Smith and Alexandria Rencher were the only ones who had played fewer than half the sets this season. Yet all three played important roles Saturday in the Gold Nuggets' 25-13, 25-8, 25-15 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference victory against Edward Waters at Dillard's Dent Hall.

Stallings, who entered the match with six kills, equaled that number in the third set and finished with nine. Smith and Rencher combined for 32 of the Nuggets' 35 assists, with Smith collecting a season-best 19.
All three filled in capably for Chinedu Echebelem and Patrice Hightower, who missed the match because of injuries. But Xavier (14-4, 8-0) didn't miss a step and completed a two-day, three-match sweep against GCAC opponents at Dillard.

Xavier University of Louisiana's 2011 Women's Volleyball Team
      Front row, from left: Kia Smith, Chinedu Echebelem, Joyy Joseph, Celeste Poe, Patrice Hightower and Alexandria Rencher.
      Back row, from left: Morgan Stallings, Kerris Crier, Iva Bobkova, Moira Kirk, Jeanay Butler and Taylor Reuther.
(Click photo to enlarge)

The Gold Nuggets have won five of their last six matches and 13 of their last 15. Saturday's match was Xavier's fifth in four days.

"We expect all our players to be ready to go at any time," Xavier coach Christabell Hamilton said. "Morgan, Kia and Alex haven't played as much as the others, but they've continued to work hard in practice and improve their skills. It was nice to see them step up and play a part in this win."

Moira Kirk hit .421 and led Xavier with 10 kills and four aces. Sophomore Kerris Crier had eight kills and a .727 attack percentage — the first time she's topped .700 in 10 or more attempts and her first time this season with no attack errors. Taylor Reuther had seven kills, seven digs, three aces and hit .429.

Reuther had three kills and three aces during a 13-4 run which gave the Nuggets a 22-11 lead in the opening set. Xavier got four kills and two aces from Kirk and two aces from Iva Bobkova in an 18-2 second-set run. Stallings had three kills during an 8-0 run in the final set.

Xavier finished with 39 kills and hit .297. The Nuggets served 14 aces and finished with a 47-6 ace advantage in their three GCAC matches.

Edward Waters (3-19, 0-8) lost to Xavier for the second time this season.

The Nuggets won't play their next GCAC match until Oct. 29, when they visit second-place SUNO. In between there will be five non-conference matches, with the next one at 7 p.m. Thursday at city rival Loyola. That's a makeup of a Sept. 4 postponement due to Tropical Storm Lee.

Box score

Ed Cassiere

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

XU Gold Nuggets set school record with 12th victory of season

XU head women's volleyball coach
Christabell Hamilton

NEW ORLEANS -- Taylor Reuther's nine kills, five digs and three aces Friday led Xavier University of Louisiana in a 25-8, 25-7, 20-25, 25-6 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference women's volleyball victory against Philander Smith at Dillard's Dent Hall.

The Gold Nuggets (12-4, 6-0) set a school record for victories in a season -- the 2010 team won 11 -- and assured themselves of a winning record in the GCAC for the first time in the program's four seasons. Xavier entered the year 5-17 in regular-season conference matches.

Reuther, who hit .000 in Xavier's previous two matches, played only in the first and fourth sets and hit .500 in 14 attempts. She served all her aces consecutively during the final set.

Kerris Crier had six kills, three blocks and hit .455 in 11 attempts for Xavier, and Moira Kirk continued her hot stretch by hitting .625 with five kills in eight attempts, three aces and four blocks. Kirk hit .480 in the Gold Nuggets' past seven matches and was errorless on attack in four of those contests.

Xavier hit .490 in its three winning sets, but a minus-.056 in the third set dropped the Nuggets to .264 for the match. The Nuggets served a season-best 18 aces, led by Jeanay Butler's season-high-tying four. Nine of the 11 Nuggets who served had at least one ace, and Morgan Stallings and Alexandria Rencher had two apiece.

Celeste Poe and Butler led Xavier with eight digs apiece. All 12 Nuggets played at least two sets, and Kirk and Crier were the only Nuggets to start in all four.

Philander Smith (1-10, 0-3), a first-year GCAC member, lost its seventh straight. But the Lady Panthers extended the match by scoring six of the final seven points in set three. Whitney McDaniel scored the final three points on kills.

Dillard is playing host to 12 matches involving six of the GCAC's eight teams Friday and Saturday. Xavier will play Tougaloo at 7 p.m. Friday, then close its weekend against Edward Waters in a 10 a.m. Saturday match.

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

Xavier Gold Nuggets 5-0 in GCAC after four-set win at Dillard

NEW ORLEANS — Taylor Reuther had 19 kills and a season-high 21 digs Saturday in Xavier University of Louisiana's 24-26, 25-16, 25-12, 25-18 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference women's volleyball victory at Dillard.

The Gold Nuggets (10-3, 5-0) won for the ninth time in 10 matches.

Chinedu Echebelem had 10 kills and 16 digs for Xavier, Moira Kirk had 10 kills and three blocks, and Patrice Hightower had a season-high-tying 10 digs and a career-high 42 assists. Celeste Poe had 19 digs, one less than her career best.

It was the second time in the Nuggets' four-year history that they won on the road after losing the first set. It was the first time they did it on an opponent's floor, and it was the first time in four tries that they beat Dillard at Dent Hall.

"I always wanted to come to Xavier and break records," said Echebelem, who recorded her second kill-dig double-double of the season. "I'm glad to do it as a team."

Dillard (5-7, 0-2), the defending GCAC Tournament champion, opened the match with a 10-1 run. Xavier rallied for ties at 20, 21, 23 and 24, but the Lady Bleu Devils closed the set with a Monica De Alcantara kill and a Jessica Goods-Morris block.

"We just had to calm down, relax and get in a groove after that start," Hightower said. "We were shaking and nervous. Ne (Echebelem) got a kill, got us pumped up and got us going."

Xavier trailed only twice more after the first set — at 3-2 and 4-3 in the fourth. Reuther's kill put the Nuggets ahead to stay at 5-4, and she ended the match with a kill.

Reuther recorded her team-leading seventh kill-dig double. She hit minus-.333 in 15 attacks the first set but .419 in the final three sets.

Dillard's 6-1 run in the fourth set cut Xavier's lead to 13-12 and prompted first-year Xavier coach Christabell Hamilton to call timeout. Then the Lady Bleu Devils committed attack errors on each of the next four rallies, and Dillard never challenged seriously again.

"Our team had to come together quickly after that start," Hamilton said. "Dillard is the defending champion, and you don't want to give them that kind of lead at their place. We stayed in there and started to fight."

Paula Ogbevoen led Dillard with 10 kills.

The teams will meet again Nov. 5 at The Barn. Next for the Gold Nuggets will be a two-match home stand — 7 p.m. Wednesday against the University of New Orleans, then 5 p.m. Thursday against Prairie View A&M — before returning to Dillard for GCAC matches against Philander Smith and Tougaloo on Friday and Edward Waters on Saturday.

NOTES: Xavier is 36-14 all-time (16-4 home, 8-4 away, 12-6 neutral) when winning the first set and 4-62 (2-16 home, 1-29 away, 1-17 neutral) when losing the first set . . . Attendance was 800 . . . Poe had eight digs in the first set . . . Xavier was 5-17 in GCAC regular-season matches its first three seasons.

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

Crier helps XU become lone unbeaten in GCAC matches

TALLADEGA, Ala. -- Kerris Crier had a career-best nine kills and a career-high-tying five blocks Saturday to lead Xavier University of Louisiana to a 25-8, 25-20, 25-12 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference women's volleyball victory against Fisk.

Crier's three kills and two blocks helped the Gold Nuggets (9-2, 4-0 GCAC) turn a 2-0 deficit into a 9-4 first-set lead. Xavier scored the final nine points of that set and the first eight points of the third set.

Xavier, the lone unbeaten team in GCAC matches, extended its school-record win streak to eight and set another XU mark for GCAC victories in a season. The 2010 team held the previous mark of three. The Nuggets have six remaining conference matches.

Xavier hit .397 with a season-low eight attack errors. Chinedu Echebelem had eight kills and hit a season-best .421, and Moira Kirk had seven kills and hit a season-high .778.

Fisk (3-15, 1-3), despite just six available players, posed problems for the Nuggets in the second set. The Lady Bulldogs took a 10-7 lead and rallied for a tie at 18 after an 8-1 Xavier run. But Echebelem rescued the Nuggets with five kills in the final nine rallies, including attacks which scored XU's final two points.

Kirk also had five blocks, and Iva Bobkova had three, all in the third set. Taylor Reuther had eight digs and Celeste Poe six. Kirk and Jeanay Butler each served two aces; Butler has nine in the last thee matches after serving one in the first eight matches.

Xavier went 3-0 in two days against GCAC opponents. The Gold Nuggets will travel to Southern for a 7:30 p.m. Monday match, then visit city rival and defending GCAC Tournament champion Dillard in a 6 p.m. match next Saturday. The Lady Bleu Devils were not among the six GCAC teams involved in the 13 matches at Talladega.

The Nuggets, 5-17 in their first three seasons of GCAC matches, became the lone team unbeaten in conference when Talladega defeated Tougaloo 25-7, 25-12, 25-17 in the match which followed Xavier-Fisk.

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

XU's Kirk tames Lady Tigers with 13 kills, .650 percentage

TALLADEGA, Ala. — Moira Kirk produced 13 kills and a .650 attack percentage Friday to lead Xavier University of Louisiana to a 25-12, 25-12, 25-10 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference women's volleyball victory against Edward Waters.

The Gold Nuggets (8-2 overall, 3-0 GCAC) won their seventh in a row to extend a school record and moved a half-match ahead of Tougaloo in the conference.

Kirk had no attack errors for the first time this season. She hit .600 or better in a match for the third time, and for the first time she reached double figures in kills in consecutive matches. Kirk had 12 kills in a three-set sweep of Talladega earlier in the afternoon.

Xavier never trailed in any of the three sets, and first-year coach Christabell Hamilton used 11 of 12 players in the rout. Freshmen Kia Smith and Morgan Stallings both produced their first two kills of the season. Stallings also recorded her first block.

Starting setter Patrice Hightower did not play after the first set, and kills leader Taylor Reuther sat out the third. Alexandra Rencher had 16 assists and Smith seven in relief of Hightower.

Jeanay Butler served a season-best four aces and finished with a XU-best seven for the day.

Xavier closed the first set with a 12-4 run, had a 9-1 run in the second set and scored 11 of the first 12 points in the third. Edward Waters (2-10, 0-2) did not produce a kill until the 16th rally.

Xavier hit .275. It was the third straight match the Gold Nuggets hit .200 or higher, the first time that's happened since Xavier reinstated the program a year ago. The Nuggets had a 9-1 advantage in aces, including Celeste Poe's two and one apiece from Hightower, Rencher and Reuther.

Xavier will conclude its GCAC series at Talladega with an 8 a.m. Saturday match against Fisk, which led 5-2 and 9-5 in its fifth set against Tougaloo before losing 15-13. Fisk rallied from a 2-sets-to-none deficit.

NOTES: The Lady Tigers were Xavier's first neutral-site opponent of the season . . . It's the third time in Xavier's four seasons that the Nuggets won twice in one day. The other times were Sept. 11, 2004, and last Nov. 12 during the opening day of the GCAC Tournament . . . The Nuggets have won 10 consecutive sets and 21 of their last 23.

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

XU Nuggets defeat Southern, extend school-record win streak

NEW ORLEANS — Freshmen Taylor Reuther, Chinedu Echebelem and Moira Kirk combined for 31 kills Monday to lead Xavier University of Louisiana to a 25-20, 25-22, 25-22 women's volleyball victory against Southern at The Barn.

The Gold Nuggets (6-2) extended their school-record win streak to five and tied another XU mark with their fifth home victory of the season. Xavier is 3-0 against SWAC opponents and unbeaten at home.

Reuther had 12 kills — her team-leading sixth match of the season in double figures — Echebelem had 11, and Kirk had eight. Reuther also had two aces and a season-high-tying 17 digs in her fourth kill-dig double-double. Echebelem had a season-best .385 attack percentage with just one error in 26 attempts.

Xavier University of Louisiana's 2011 women's volleyball team
      Front row, from left: Kia Smith, Chinedu Echebelem, Joyy Joseph,
Celeste Poe,  Patrice Hightower and Alexandra Rencher.
      Back row, from left: Morgan Stallings, Kerris Crier, Iva Bobkova,
Moira Kirk, Jeanay Butler and Taylor Reuther.
(Click photo to enlarge)

XU senior setter Patrice Hightower, in her first start since an injury in late August, had nine digs and a season-high 34 assists.

Ja'Quincia Willliams had 13 kills for Southern (3-11), and Beonka Savoy and Amber Shelby had seven apiece. Savoy and Kirsten Buggage had 10 digs apiece, and Payton Mitchell had five blocks.

Xavier rallied from deficits of 15-12 in the first set, 12-5 in the second set and 5-1 in the third. Kills by Kerris Crier, Jeanay Butler and Reuther ended the sets.

Xavier used a 7-1 first-set run which included three consecutive Southern attack errors to take the lead for good at 19-16. The Gold Nuggets never led in the second set until a Williams attack error gave them a 19-18 advantage. The Lady Jaguars tied the set at 22, but Kirk's kill put Xavier ahead to stay.

Four Southern attack errors fueled an 8-1 Xavier run in the final set which put the Nuggets ahead to stay at 9-6. Blocks by Williams and Chanda Journet against Reuther closed Xavier's lead to 21-20, but a Kirk kill and two straight Southern attack errors moved the Nuggets to match point.

Xavier outhit Southern .275 to .189 and had advantages of 43-37 in kills and 5-1 in aces. The Lady Jaguars committed 29 total errors, one more than Xavier.

It was the first match between the teams. They'll meet again at 7:30 p.m. next Monday in Baton Rouge. But before then Xavier will travel to Talladega, Ala., for three Gulf Coast Athletic Conference matches. The Nuggets will play Friday against Talladega at 1 p.m. and Edward Waters at 5 p.m., then play Fisk at 8 a.m. Saturday.

Box score

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
VISIT: XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
VISIT: XULAATHLETICS
VISIT: GULF COAST ATHLETIC CONFERENCE

XU Gold Nuggets beat SUNO for school-record 4th straight victory

NEW ORLEANS -- Taylor Reuther had a season-high 20 kills Saturday, and Celeste Poe had a career-best 20 digs to help Xavier University of Louisiana defeat SUNO 25-12, 22-25, 28-26, 24-26, 15-9 in Gulf Coast Athletic Conference women's volleyball at The Barn.

The Gold Nuggets (5-2, 1-0) set a school record with their fourth consecutive victory. It was the first time they beat the Lady Knights (3-3, 0-1) after going 0-4 against them a year ago.

Chinedu Echebelem had 10 kills and a season-high 17 digs for Xavier. Moira Kirk had seven kills, five digs and five blocks, and Kerris Crier had six kills, five digs and five blocks. Reuther had three aces and 13 digs.

Zipporah Washington had 16 kills and 14 digs for SUNO. Sabrina Scott had 10 kills, and Christal Hollins had nine kills and 12 digs. Shametria Gonzales had 15 digs.

Reuther had five kills in the final set, but it was an out-of-bounds SUNO attack -- one of the Lady Knights' 67 total errors -- which put Xavier ahead to stay at 4-3. Two late Reuther kills moved the Nuggets to match point, and another SUNO attack error ended the two-hour, five-minute contest.

Xavier scored 19 of the first 24 points to open the match, but SUNO evened at one set apiece after rallying from a 20-18 deficit.

Xavier saved three set points before winning the third set, but SUNO evened the match again with the help of 15 fourth-set kills, including four by Hollins.

"Our first set was phenomenal. I was so confident," Xavier coach Christabell Hamilton said. "But then we became individuals instead of staying together, so it was a long night.

"We have to continue to focus and work on being more consistent. We left the door open for SUNO, gave them a little room, and they walked right in and made it a match."

SUNO, which finished second in the 2010 GCAC Tournament and eliminated Xavier in the semifinals, dropped its second straight.

The victory was just the second for Xavier in 21 matches against in-city opponents.

Xavier, which had 46 total errors, outhit SUNO .193 to .083 and had advantages of 52-48 in kills, 9-3 in aces and 74-58 in digs.

For the first time in the program's four seasons, Xavier is 4-0 at home and three victories above .500. The Gold Nuggets will conclude a three-match home stand with a 7 p.m. Monday contest against Southern. SUNO will play host to city rival and defending GCAC Tournament champion Dillard at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

NOTES: It was the first time that Xavier won its GCAC opener . . . Xavier has two five-set victories in each of its four seasons. The other one this year was Aug. 29 at home against Mobile . . . Southern will be Xavier's third NCAA Division I opponent this year. The Nuggets already have beaten Alcorn State and Mississippi Valley . . . Xavier's Sept. 4 match at Loyola, which was postponed because of Tropical Storm Lee, was rescheduled for 7 p.m. Oct. 13 at The Den.

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

Xavier Nuggets sweep at Alcorn State for first road win of season

LORMAN, Miss. — Xavier University of Louisiana's women's volleyball team won 25-16, 25-14, 25-21 Friday at Alcorn State for its second three-set victory in as many days and first road victory of the season.

"We did great," Xavier coach Christabell Hamilton said. "I gave our players the game plan after watching Alcorn play Dillard the other night. Then they went out and carried out the game plan. Our hitters stepped up, our defense was solid, and Alex (Alexandra Rencher) was much more comfortable as our setter than she was the last two matches.

"All around we played well. We never faced any serious deficits. We were in front most of the match. It was good to get a win on the road."

The Gold Nuggets (3-2) will play Mississippi Valley at 3 p.m. Saturday at The Barn. It will be Xavier's fourth match in five days.

Alcorn State, an NCAA Division I member, is 1-7 and winless in two home matches. The Lady Braves are 5-155 since the start of the 2005 season.

Xavier, an NAIA member, has 11 victories in four seasons against NCAA Division I. The Nuggets have won four straight against Alcorn dating to 2004.

Box score

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

NAIA kills leader helps 7-0 Badgers defeat Xavier in three

MOBILE, Ala. — Yiting Cao, the NAIA leader in kills per set and a third-team All-American in 2010, had 15 kills, a .542 attack percentage, 12 digs and two aces Tuesday to lead Spring Hill to a 25-10, 25-20, 25-12 women's volleyball victory against Xavier University of Louisiana.

The Badgers, 7-0 for the first time in the program's history, never trailed in any set and outhit the Gold Nuggets .442 to .061. Spring Hill also had advantages of 43-24 in kills, 7-3 in aces and 46-33 in digs.

Taylor Reuther led Xavier (1-2) with 12 kills, three digs and three aces but was denied a third consecutive kill-dig double-double. Moira Kirk had six kills and four digs, and Celeste Poe had nine digs. Alexandra Rencher, a freshman setter playing in her hometown, led the Nuggets with 18 assists.

Four XU errors in the first seven rallies helped Spring Hill grab an 8-1 lead. The Nuggets closed to 9-4 after a Reuther kill, but Cao produced a kill and an ace to start the Badgers on an 8-3 run. Cao finished the set with her sixth kill, three more than Xavier.

Xavier and Spring Hill traded points on the first 14 rallies of the second set, then consecutive kills by Megan Haber, Sha Sha Buchanan and Cao put Spring Hill ahead to stay at 10-7. Xavier was within 16-14 after Reuther's kill and consecutive aces, but three Cao kills helped the Badgers clinch.

Abbey Roam led the Badgers in the final set with four kills, including the match-ending attack.

Buchanan finished with 12 kills, a .611 attack percentage and three aces. Roam had seven kills and 12 digs.

Spring Hill is 34-5 since the start of the 2010 season and has won 14 of its last 15 at home. The Badgers are 10-0 all-time against Xavier and have the most victories of any XU opponent.

It was Xavier's third consecutive match against a Southern States Athletic Conference opponent to start the season, but it was the first time the Nuggets failed to win a set. They lost in five sets at Belhaven on Aug. 26 and defeated Mobile in five at The Barn on Aug. 29. Spring Hill has lost just one set this season.

Xavier will play Judson (Ala.) at 7 p.m. Thursday at The Barn in the first of three matches in as many days. The Nuggets will travel to Alcorn State on Friday and play Mississippi Valley at 3 p.m. Saturday at The Barn.

NOTES: XU's match against Judson will be White Out Night — fans are encouraged to wear a white shirt Thursday . . . Spring Hill received four points in the Tachikara-NAIA Coaches' Top 25 Poll announced Tuesday and ranked 39th overall . . . Xavier will play four of its next five matches at home.

Box score

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

Belhaven escapes in the fifth to spoil Hamilton's XU debut

JACKSON, Miss. -- For just the second time in Xavier University of Louisiana's women's volleyball history, the Gold Nuggets forced a fifth set after losing the first two.

But Belhaven escaped with a 25-19, 25-17, 18-25, 24-26, 15-12 victory Friday in the 2011 opener for both teams and the XU debut of head coach Christabell Hamilton.

"We started off slow and very timid. It was the collegiate debut of our seven freshmen, and they were very much overwhelmed," Hamilton said. "But once we got our rhythm, things started clicking for us."

Xavier outhit Belhaven .260 to .085 in the final three sets after the Blazers outhit the Nuggets .273 to minus-.057 in the first two.

2011 XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA GOLD NUGGETS VOLLEYBALL TEAM
(Click photo to enlarge--credit: XULA Sports Information)

No. Name Pos. Ht. Yr. Exp. Hometown High School (Previous College/JC)
7 Iva Bobkova RS/OH 5-10 Sr. 1L Brno, Czech Republic Ludvika Danka (New Mexico Military JC)
13 Jeanay Butler OH 5-8 Fr. HS Fort Mill, S.C. Charlotte Country Day
4 Kerris Crier MB 5-9 So. 1L Houston, Texas Westfield
12 Chinedu Echebelem OH/DS 5-6 Fr. HS Dallas, Texas Duncanville
8 Patrice Hightower S/DS 5-5 Sr. 1L New Orleans, La. McGehee
3 Joyy Joseph DS 5-2 Sr. 1L Donaldsonville, La. Ascension Catholic
15 Moira Kirk MB 5-9 Fr. HS Dallas, Texas Bishop Lynch
1 Celeste Poe L/DS 5-4 Sr. 1L Cerritos, Calif. Gahr
14 Alexandra Rencher S 5-6 Fr. HS Mobile, Ala. Davidson
2 Taylor Reuther OH 5-7 Fr. HS Metairie, La. Dominican
6 Kia Smith S 5-6 Fr. HS Humble, Texas Nimitz
9 Morgan Stallings MB/RS 5-7 Fr. HS Spring, Texas Klein Oak

HEAD COACH: Christabell Hamilton (Eastern New Mexico 2005), first season
ASSISTANT COACH: Darrilyn Broussard (Xavier 1986), third season
GRADUATE ASSISTANT COACH: Brittney Johnson (LSU 2011), first season
VOLUNTEER ASSISTANT COACH: Lashira Williams (Virginia Union 2011), first season

Freshmen accounted for 36 of Xavier's 45 kills, with Taylor Reuther collecting 16 and Chinedu Echebelem 10 in their debuts. Reuther also had 17 digs and two aces, and senior Celeste Poe had a career-high-tying 16 digs.

Taylor Williams had 16 kills and 20 digs for Belhaven. Christina Atwood had 13 kills, Samantha O'Malley 11 and Natalie Davis 10 for the Blazers. Katherine Owen had 17 digs, and Serita Owen had six blocks.

Belhaven outhit Xavier .154 to .121 for the match, and both teams had 63 digs. The Blazers had eight more kills than Xavier, plus advantages of 7-3 in aces and 11-5 in blocks.

Belhaven did not drop a set in beating Xavier twice last season. The Blazers won at Xavier in the Nuggets' 2010 opener, which was XU's first intercollegiate match since 2004.

"To stick it out and fight to the fifth set showed heart and character," Hamilton said. "The upperclassmen did a good job in being good leaders and keeping things calm out there.

"It's tough to fight that hard and not get that win, especially on the road, but we now know what we are capable of. We are coming back Sunday to keep working on getting better."

Xavier will play its home opener at 7 p.m. Monday against Mobile at The Barn.


Box score

NOTES: Reuther, a standout last season at St. Mary's Dominican High School in New Orleans, did something no Gold Nugget did last season -- reach 15 kills and 15 digs in the same match.  Erin Vincent had three kill-dig double-doubles in 2010 and didn't record her first until XU's 16th match . . .Belhaven's Ashley Stathas, an assistant at USC Upstate the past four seasons, also made her collegiate head-coaching debut . . .The only other time Xavier reached a fifth set after dropping the first two was in a Gulf Coast Athletic Conference home victory against Dillard last season . . .Hamilton said the Nuggets' GCAC opener against SUNO at The Barn on Sept. 17 was pushed back to 4 p.m.

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
VISIT: XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
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Broussard, Johnson, Williams join Hamilton's XU staff

Coach Christabell Hamilton

NEW ORLEANS — Head coach Christabell Hamilton has completed her first-year women's volleyball staff at Xavier University of Louisiana with the addition of Darrilyn Broussard as assistant coach, Brittney Johnson as graduate assistant coach and Lashira Williams as volunteer assistant coach.

The Gold Nuggets will begin their season at 7 p.m. Friday at Belhaven, then play their first home match at 7 p.m. Monday against Mobile at The Barn.

This will be Broussard's second stint on the volleyball staff. She was Greg Castillo's assistant on the first two XU teams in 2003 and 2004. Broussard will retain her duties as women's associate head basketball coach, and the 2011-12 season will be her 11th on Bo Browder's staff. The Nuggets are 260-76 during Broussard's basketball coaching tenure, winning a combined 10 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament championships and qualifying for nine NAIA National Championships.

Darrilyn Broussard

Brittney Johnson

Lashira Williams

Johnson recorded 326 kills, 1,932 assists, 501 digs and 166 blocks the past four seasons as a setter and right-side hitter at LSU and helped the Tigers reach the NCAA Tournament every year. As a senior she led the SEC in assists per set, earned All-South Region honorable mention from the American Volleyball Coaches Association, was first-team All-Louisiana, second-team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District and COBRA Magazine's Setter of the Year. She won the Jesse Owens Athletic Award, presented to the LSU student-athlete with the highest grade-point average, two consecutive years. She was LSU's nominee for NCAA Woman of the Year in 2010-11.

Johnson is a native of Baton Rouge, La., and was a volleyball and basketball standout at University High School.

Williams had 695 kills, 651 digs and 101 aces the past four seasons while playing outside hitter and middle blocker at Virginia Union University in Richmond. She was VUU Female Athlete of the Year in 2010-11 and had a 3.7 grade-point average in college.

Williams is a native of Cleveland, Ohio, and a graduate of Glenville High School. She coached the 16s volleyball team in 2010 at U-TURN Sports Performance Academy in Richmond.

Johnson and Williams are first-year students in Xavier's College of Pharmacy. Both received bachelor's degrees in the spring — Johnson in accounting and Williams in biology.

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

Six more 2011 graduates sign scholarships with Xavier Nuggets

Jeanay Butler

Chinedu Echebelem

Moira Kirk

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana women's volleyball coach Christabell Hamilton announced Tuesday the signing of six more student-athletes for the 2011 roster. All will be freshmen this season, and four are from Texas.

Signed to scholarships with the Gold Nuggets are:

• Jeanay Butler, a 5-foot-8 outside hitter from Fort Mill, S.C., and Charlotte (N.C.) Country Day School.

• Chinedu Echebelem, a 5-6 outside hitter/defensive specialist from Dallas and Duncanville High School.

• Moira Kirk, a 5-9 middle blocker from Dallas and Bishop Lynch High School.

• Kia Smith, a 5-6 setter from Humble, Texas, and Nimitz High School.

•Morgan Stallings, a 5-7 middle blocker/right-side hitter from Spring, Texas, and Klein Oak High School.

• Alexandra Rencher, a 5-6 setter from Mobile, Ala., and W.P. Davidson High School.

Alexandra Rencher

Kia Smith

Morgan Stallings

Butler, a native New Orleanian, was all-state last season and led all North Carolina players with 5.6 kills per game. She had 452 kills in 2010 and produced more than 1,000 kills, a school record, during her career. She helped Country Day finish second in Class 3A in the North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association state playoffs in 2007 and 2008.

Echebelem was first-team all-district each of her last three years for Duncanville. She helped the Pantherettes win a District 5-5A co-championship in 2010 and the 7-5A championship in 2009.

Kirk was first-team all-state each of her final three seasons in the Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools. She had 301 kills and 143 blocks as a senior for Bishop Lynch, which was 34-8 and finished second in the 5A state playoffs. Kirk played for First Baptist Academy from grades 9-11.

Smith was first-team all-district in 2010, team MVP and president of her senior class. Stallings did not play for her high school but played two years of club volleyball for the Houston Slam. Rencher was a three-year starting setter for Davidson and was honorable-mention all-county as a sophomore. She also played basketball and helped Davidson reach the 6A state semifinals her junior season.

Kirk, Smith and Stallings ae biology/pre-medical majors. Echebelem and Rencher are chemistry/pre-medical majors, and Butler is majoring in psychology. Xavier's first day of classes was Monday.

Seven of Xavier's 12 players this season will be freshmen. Announced in February was the signing of outside hitter Taylor Reuther of Metairie, La., and Dominican High School. The Gold Nuggets will open their season at 7 p.m. Friday at Belhaven and play their first home match at 7 p.m. Monday against Mobile at The Barn.

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