Taylor, Abbas ranked nationally in NAIA singles, doubles

Hassan Abbas

NEW ORLEANS — Two men from Xavier University of Louisiana — junior Zach Taylor and senior Hassan Abbas — are ranked nationally in NAIA singles and doubles by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association.

The rankings, the first of the spring semester, were announced this week.

Taylor is 23rd and Abbas 39th in singles, and as a doubles team they're 15th. In the NAIA's South rankings, Taylor is eighth, Abbas 14th and Steffen Giles-Osborn 20th in singles. Taylor and Abbas are fifth in doubles, and Giles-Osborn and Sean Richardson are 10th.

The women's doubles team of Amber Brown and Carmen Nelson is 14th in the South.

Taylor is from Monroe, La., and a graduate of St. Frederick High School. Abbas is from Saltaire, England, and a graduate of Bingley Grammar School. Both are graduates of Ventura College.

Giles-Osborn is a junior from Atlanta and a graduate of Westlake High, and Richardson is from Ellenwood, Ga., and a graduate of Stockbridge High. Brown is a home-schooled freshman from Decatur, Ga., and Nelson is a sophomore from Jonesboro, Ga., and a Faith Academy graduate.

The fifth NAIA team rankings of the season will be announced Tuesday.

Where the NAIA ranks Xavier tennis
Men's Singles
Zach Taylor: 23rd nationally, 8th in South
Hassan Abbas: 39th nationally, 14th in South
Steffen Giles-Osborn: 20th in South
Men's Doubles
Zach Taylor and Hassan Abbas: 15th nationally, 5th in South
Steffen Giles-Osborn and Sean Richardson: 10th in South
Women's Doubles
Amber Brown and Carmen Nelson: 14th in South

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
Xavier University of Louisiana
VISIT: XULAATHLETICS

Xavier University of Louisiana: 4,500-seat Convocation Academic Center to replace The Barn for 2012-13

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana announced Thursday that a 4,500-seat Convocation Academic Center will be constructed across Washington Avenue and near the main campus on a site bounded by Short, Palm and Stroelitz streets.

Test pilings were driven into the site earlier this year. Construction is expected to begin in May, with anticipated completion in late summer 2012.

The facility will include a 4,500-seat arena suitable for athletic and other large-scale events. It will become the home of Xavier men's and women's basketball and women's volleyball and replace The Barn, a 1,300-seat gymnasium opened in 1937.

"This new arena will be a tremendous addition for Xavier athletics," XU Athletics Director Dennis Cousin said. "It will upgrade our already excellent programs and take them a notch higher. It will be a big boost to us in recruiting."

The Convocation Academic Center also will contain classrooms, offices and meeting spaces. A regulation-size auxiliary basketball court also will be included to add flexibility in scheduling practices for the basketball and volleyball teams.

Manning Architects' rendering of Xavier's Convocation Academic Center, which is expected to be completed in late summer 2012.

"This is an exciting time for Xavier," women's basketball coach Bo Browder said. "We've been blessed with a lot of fun, a lot of success and a lot of great memories in The Barn. But I'm looking forward to this new arena and creating some new memories."

A pedestrian bridge will be constructed across Washington Avenue to help the Xavier community better access the new building. And for Xavier athletics, the progress does not stop there.

"There also are plans to construct tennis courts in the near future not far from the Convocation Academic Center," Cousin said. "This will give our nationally ranked tennis teams the ability to not only practice on campus but to also host dual matches, something we haven't done in decades."

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
Xavier University of Louisiana
Visit: XULA Gold Rush & Gold Nuggets

XU Nuggets exit top 25, then lose to first-year NAIA program

NEW ORLEANS — It was a double whammy Tuesday for the Xavier University of Louisiana women's tennis team. First the Gold Nuggets dropped out of the NAIA top 25 for the first time since February 2004. Then they lost their ninth consecutive dual match — 9-0 to SCAD Atlanta at the University of New Orleans Tennis Center.

The Gold Nuggets (2-11) had appeared in 44 consecutive top 25s dating to Feb. 25, 2004, but missed by 10 points this time and fell to 27th overall.

SCAD Atlanta (8-2) — an NAIA independent in its first year of intercollegiate sports but ineligible for rankings or the postseason until 2011-12 — dropped only one set in winning its fifth dual in a row. The closest match was at No. 3 singles, where Christina Swindall defeated XU's Nicole DeLoach 2-6, 7-6 (7-2), 1-0 (10-4).

Once again, because of only five available players, Xavier was forced to default at No. 3 doubles and No. 6 singles. The good news was that senior Ashley McGill returned to action for the first time in six duals after completing her basketball eligibility Friday.

Xavier's women and men will return to the courts Friday in a 3:30 p.m. makeup match against city rival Loyola at City Park Tennis Center.

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
Xavier University of Louisiana
Visit: XULA Athletics

Abbas, DeLoach selected GCAC Players of the Week

Melissa DeLoach
Fort Washington, MD

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana's Hassan Abbas and Melissa DeLoach swept the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Week tennis awards for March 7-13.

Abbas, a senior from Saltaire, England, and a graduate of Bingley Grammar School and Ventura College, was 3-2 in singles and 3-2 in doubles. Abbas defeated ITA No. 33 Bryan Cox of Westmont 6-4, 7-5 in singles, and he won in singles and doubles in Xavier's 5-4 victory against William Carey at the AUM Invitational.

DeLoach, a senior from Fort Washington, Md., and a graduate of Bishop McNamara High School, won her second GCAC award of 2011 after going 2-0 in singles and 2-1 in doubles at the AUM Invitational.

The next Xavier women's match will start at 3 p.m. Tuesday against SCAD Atlanta at the University of New Orleans, and both Xavier teams will play city rival Loyola in makeup duals at 3:30 p.m. Friday at UNO.

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
Xavier University of Louisiana
Visit: XULA Athletics

Xavier Gold Nuggets see Stars — and lots of OCU free throws

JACKSON, Tenn. (March 18, 2011) — Xavier University of Louisiana lost 67-51 Friday to Oklahoma City in the second round of the NAIA Division I Women's Basketball National Championship. But after losing to OCU by 30, 30 and 38 points from 1999-2003, 12th-year XU Coach Bo Browder is certain the talent gap has narrowed between his program and OCU.

Yet a wide gap in free-throw attempts — the Stars made 20-of-40, the Gold Nuggets 12-of-17 — left Browder searching for answers.

"A reporter asked me after the game about the difference in free throws," Browder said. "I told him I didn't have a good explanation. I will say this — it was a very physical game on both sides. (Oklahoma City) wanted to intimidate us, but we didn't give in to them."

The 2010-11 Xavier University of Louisiana women's basketball team.
Coach Robert "Bo" Browder.  (Photo courtesy of Xavier University).

Fourth-ranked Oklahoma City committed 16 personal fouls, and 20th-ranked Xavier was called for 30, its most since February 2005. XU freshman Carmen Holcombe, starting for the second straight game at center, fouled out, and teammates Keldra Hall, Marchelle Jones, Jazmoné Kelly and Christina Warren had four fouls apiece.

Reserve guard Tiffany Goldwire, one of seven Stars to attempt four or more free throws, led OCU (27-3) with 15 points, seven rebounds and three assists. Lauren Gober added 13 points and six rebounds and scored five points during an 11-0 first-half run which gave OCU the lead for good.

That run, in which five Stars scored and four of them had assists, turned Xavier's last lead (7-6) into a 17-7 OCU advantage with 12:26 remaining in the half. The Stars led 37-20 at halftime thanks to what Browder said was "some of our worst basketball in a long time."

How bad was it? The Nuggets (27-7) shot 25 percent from the floor — there was a 2-of-16 stretch which covered nearly 12 minutes — and tacked on 14 turnovers and 16 fouls in the first half.

Browder still had praise for Oklahoma City, a national semifinalist in 2009 and 2010 and a team ranked second in the coaches poll the majority of this season. "There's no dropoff in them from those earlier times we played them," Browder said. "Their talent on the roster one-through-10 is the best of any team still in the tournament. That doesn't necessarily mean they'll win out, but they have a lot of talent."

Jones, a junior guard playing her last game for Xavier — she is leaving XU and basketball to pursue academic opportunities for her double major of physics and electrical engineering — had 14 points, five rebounds and three steals. Jones was the Nuggets' only double-figure scorer, and she made a pair of 3-pointers in the final three minutes to equal her output of her first 99 collegiate games.

Brandi Young scored nine points, and Hall and freshman Chelsea Broussard scored seven apiece for Xavier. Broussard grabbed nine rebounds, her third highest total of the season, and Hall had seven. Danielle Kennebrew's six rebounds were her second-most this season.

Xavier limited senior guard Donica Cosby, a first-team NAIA All-American last season, to eight points and 2-of-9 from the floor. But XU's Warren — the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Year and a 19-point scorer Wednesday against Lee (Tenn.) — had seven points in 25 minutes and was 3-of-10 from the floor in her final Xavier game.

Oklahoma City led by double digits for the final 27:18. Broussard's 3-point play at 12:56 cut the Stars' lead to 46-36, but Xavier never got closer. OCU answered Broussard's points with an 18-7 run which gave the Stars their biggest lead, 64-43, with 3:04 remaining. Still Xavier outscored Oklahoma City 31-30 in the second half.

The Stars outshot the Nuggets 39.3 to 32.7 percent from the floor. Xavier had a 41-40 rebound advantage but had a season-low two assists and gained a season-low 13 turnovers, almost half of XU's per-game average. Xavier finished with 21 turnovers, and the deficit of eight matched its worst of the season.

Xavier is 0-6 in the second round at the national tournament — Browder's teams are 0-2 — and four times Oklahoma teams eliminated the Nuggets in that round. The Stars have done it twice, and they also have a first-round victory against Browder's first XU team in 1999.

"We fought hard for 40 minutes and I'm proud of that," Browder said. "We were not fully loaded up here because of some injured players, but we'll be OK. We had a great year, and I'm thankful to these young ladies for stepping up and making it happen when we had some tough times."

Box score

NOTES: Ashley McGill, Xavier's other senior, did not attempt a shot in 14 relief minutes . . . The 16-point losing margin was Xavier's largest since a 73-56 loss to Lambuth in the first round of the 2008 national tournament . . . Xavier allowed a school-record-low 50.1 points per game and likely will hold on to No. 1 in NAIA Division I for the second consecutive season. The Gold Nuggets allowed 52.1 points per game in 2009-10.

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
Xavier University of Louisiana
Visit: XULASports.com

NAIA Division I National Championship: Xavier Gold Nuggets beat Lee again, advance to second round

Gold Nuggets Coach Bo Browder
(Grambling State 1994) 
13 season record: 300 wins, 109 losses
(Photo provided by Xavier University)

JACKSON, Tenn. (March 16, 2011) — Senior forward Christina Warren scored 19 points Wednesday, and Xavier University of Louisiana's defense excelled again in a 63-53 victory over Lee (Tenn.) in the opening round of the NAIA Division I Women's Basketball National Championship at Oman Arena.

The Gold Nuggets (27-6), ranked 20th in the final coaches' poll, defeated the 13th-ranked Lady Flames (25-7) by double digits for the second time this season and limited them to 29.4-percent field-goal shooting. Xavier entered the tournament No. 1 in scoring defense in NAIA Division I and fourth in field-goal percentage defense.

Xavier will play fourth-ranked Oklahoma City, an 87-45 winner against Montana Tech, in the second round at 10:45 a.m. Friday.

Box score

Warren, the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Year, scored 15 points
to carry Xavier to a 33-22 halftime lead. Brandi Young's basket with 14:13 remaining gave Xavier its biggest lead, 39-22, and the Nuggets pulled away with a 10-4 run after Lee closed to 53-49 at 4:38.

"I wasn't concerned about finishing this game," XU Coach Bo Browder said, "because we had a good learning experience at nationals last year."

Last year Xavier led Cumberlands 43-36 in the 34th minute before losing 67-62 in overtime in the opening round at nationals. This time the Nuggets led for the final 34:26 and took the lead for good on a Marchelle Jones basket.



Jones had 14 points, including 8-of-8 free throws, five rebounds and two steals, and Young had 13 points, four rebounds and a career-high-tying six steals.

The Nuggets ended a five-game first-round losing streak at nationals — the last victory had been 64-55 against Trevecca Nazarene in 2003 — and gave Browder his 300th victory a head-coach at four-year colleges. Browder is 298-101 in 12 seasons at Xavier, and he was 2-8 as Evansville's interim head coach to close the 1995-96 season.

"It's good to end the drought," Browder said. "That's been the million-dollar question — when are the Nuggets going to win at nationals again? It's always great to make it to nationals, but it's extremely difficult to win once you get there. Winning games at nationals is like getting some dessert."

Senior guard Brooke McKinnon, the Southern States Athletic Conference Co-Player of the Year, was 4-of-13 from the floor and scored 12 points for Lee, an NAIA semifinalist a year ago and in its seventh consecutive appearance at nationals. McKinnon was the Lady Flames' only double-figure scorer.

Xavier shot 44.2 percent the floor — the Nuggets' third-best percentage in 20 games at nationals and their highest since 1997 — and produced defensive stands in which Lee missed 12 and 10 consecutive field-goal attempts. Xavier has limited 15 opponents this season, including the last three, to less than 30 percent from the floor.

"Lee has a great program," Browder said. "They weren't going to give anything to us. We had to go out and earn it."

Xavier's next opponent, Oklahoma City, was No. 2 in the coaches poll for most of the season and was the Sooner Athletic Conference regular-season champion. No Gold Nuggets team has reached the quarterfinals, and Oklahoma teams eliminated XU three of the previous four times in the second round — including a 91-53 Oklahoma City victory in 2003.

NOTES: Lee entered the game No. 3 in NAIA Division I in scoring defense . . . Xavier reached 27 victories for the third time in four seasons . . . It's the fourth time in Louisiana collegiate history that the same school produced men's and women's basketball teams with 27 victories apiece in the same season. LSU did it in 2005-06, and Louisiana Tech did it in 1983-84 and 1984-85 . . . The Xavier-Oklahoma City winner will play in the quarterfinals at 2 p.m. Saturday against California Baptist or Shawnee State . . . Xavier has won 20 straight games — 13 this season — when shooting at least 40 percent from the floor and outerebounding the opponent in the same game.

NEXT GAME: Xaiver University of Lousiana Gold Nuggets (27-6) vs. #4 Oklahahoma City (26-3), Friday, 10:45 a.m. CDT . Sign Up and Watch -- CLICK HERE

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
Xavier University of Louisiana
Visit:  XULA Athletics

NAIA Division I National Championship Tournament: Xavier Takes Down Lee in First Round, 63-53

JACKSON, Tenn. - (Box Score) Xavier (La.) took down Lee (Tenn.), 63-53, in the first round action at the 2011 NAIA Division I Women's Basketball National Championship Wednesday in Oman Arena. The win for the Gold Nuggets (27-6) snaps a six-game losing skid at the National Championship dating back to 2003 when they defeated Trevecca Nazarene (Tenn.) in the first round. Xavier moves on to face #1 seed Oklahoma City in the second round Friday at 10:45 a.m. CDT.

The Lady Flames exit from their eighth National Championship with a 6-7 all-time mark in the event and wrap up their season at 25-7.

Leading the way for Xavier in the first half was Christina Warren. The senior forward had 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting to help the Gold Nuggets to a 33-22 halftime advantage. In the opening 20 minutes, Lee was only able to knock down six of its 24 shot attempts (.250). The Lady Flames were able to find a better touch in the second half, shooting 33 percent, but it was not enough as Xavier's offense remained steady (.423).

Warren went on to finish as the game's leading scorer with 19 points and was one of three Gold Nuggets players to pull down five rebounds. Also pouring in double-figure efforts were Marchelle Jones and Brandi Young with 14 and 13 points, respectively. Young also had six steals.

Lee's offense was directed by a 12-point outing from Brook McKinnon. She was the only Lady Flame to score in double figures, as the next highest scorer was Angela Spann with nine points. Hollie German had a game-high nine rebounds in the loss.

NEXT GAME: Xaiver University of Lousiana Gold Nuggets  (27-6) vs. #1 Oklahahoma City (26-3),  Friday, 10:45 a.m. CDT .  Sign Up and Watch -- CLICK HERE

By Amanda Dahl, NAIA Manager of Sports Information & Media Services

Giles-Osborn clinches Gold Rush victory vs. Crusaders

MONTGOMERY, Ala .(March 13, 2011) -- Steffen Giles-Osborn rallied Sunday for a 5-7, 6-4, 6-2 No. 3 singles decision against Dominik Kardell to clinch Xavier University of Louisiana's 5-4 men's tennis victory over William Carey in the AUM Invitational.

Georgetown (Ky.) defeated Xavier's women 6-3.

The Gold Rush (10-5), ranked eighth in the NAIA, never trailed, but William Carey tied the dual at 4 when Younes Hidass defeated Sean Richardson 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 at No. 5 singles. Then Giles-Osborn, ranked 24th in NAIA singles by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, overcame a first-set loss to score his second victory in his last six singles matches.

Giles-Osborn and Hassan Abbas won in doubles and singles for XU's men, who won two of three duals in this event. Fourteenth-ranked Giles-Osborn and Sean Richardson beat Toni Gauta and Hidass 8-2 at No. 2 doubles, and Abbas and Zach Taylor defeated Jody Claassen and Thomas Rizk 9-8 (8-6) at No. 1. Abbas gave Xavier a 3-1 lead when he beat Rizk 6-1, 6-1 at No. 2 singles.
Abbas is 4-0 in singles and 4-0 in doubles in two seasons against William Carey.

Freshman Amir Rahbar scored Xavier's fourth point with a 6-3, 6-0 decision against 50th-ranked Gauta at No. 4.

"The match was a grinder until the end," XU Coach Alan Green said. "William Carey has a very good team, and the match could have gone either way. They are very underrated and easily a top-15 team.
"The atmosphere was loud and raucous at a neutral site. We will have to deal with a team with a loud crowd and a bad taste in their mouth when we play at Carey in a few weeks. It will make for a good match, and we can't wait to play them again."

The Gold Nuggets (2-9) lost their seventh in a row and, for the fourth straight time, forfeited the No. 3 doubles match and the No. 5 and 6 singles matches because of a depleted roster. But the XU women -- specifically, sisters Melissa and Nicole DeLoach -- still won three matches, as many as they won in their previous six duals combined.

The DeLoaches won 8-0 against Emily Krick and Rhyan Martin 8-0 at No. 2 doubles. Then Nicole beat Shelby Eden 6-2, 6-2 at No. 4 singles, and Melissa followed with a 6-0, 6-2 decision over Natalie Hill at No. 3 to cut Georgetown's lead to 4-3. But 47th-ranked Adrienne Bartlett clinched for the Tigers (2-5) at No. 1 when she defeated Carmen Nelson 6-4, 6-2.

Georgetown was ranked 25th in the NAIA preseason poll and 15 points from the top 25 in last week's rankings.

The Nuggets' next match will start at 3 p.m. Wednesday against Rutgers at City Park Tennis Center, and it will be their fifth of the season against an NCAA Division I opponent. The XU men, who have played seven duals in the last 10 days, will return to competition in a 3:30 p.m. makeup March 25 against city rival Loyola at the University of New Orleans.

Xavier drops pair of duals at AUM Invitational

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (March 12, 2011) — Both Xavier University of Louisiana tennis teams lost Saturday in the AUM Invitational. The Gold Rush, ranked eighth in the NAIA, lost 9-0 to unbeaten and fifth-ranked Oklahoma Christian. The Gold Nuggets, ranked 24th, lost 5-1 to Campbellsville.

Xavier scored its lone point at No. 2 women's doubles when sisters Melissa and Nicole DeLoach defeated Stacey Drew and Kristen Hamrick 8-3.

Xavier won only three other sets. Zach Taylor of the Gold Rush won a second-set tiebreaker in a 6-3, 6-7 (7-5), 1-0 (10-7) loss to Thomas Van Cauter at No. 1 singles, and the DeLoach sisters were both up a set when their dual was halted.

The Gold Rush (9-5) lost for the third time in four duals, including two losses to top-10 opponents. The XU men lost for the second time in as many seasons to Oklahoma Christian (11-0) since the Gold Rush's 5-4 victory over the Eagles in the opening round of the 2009 NAIA National Championship.

"The score of the men's match does not indicate how it was played," XU Coach Alan Green said. "This was a competitive fight and the guys played real hard. It took four hours to knock us off. I'm really proud of the fight we put up against a potential national champion. Oklahoma Christian has that good of a team."

Xavier's women extended their losing streak to six duals, their longest in Green's eight seasons. Campbellsville is 2-2.

Both XU teams will play their final duals of this event at 9:30 a.m. Sunday. The Gold Nuggets will play Georgetown (Ky.), and the Gold Rush will play William Carey. Both opponents received votes in last week's coaches polls.

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
Xavier University of Louisiana
Visit: XULA Athletics