TSU Welcomes Head Men's Basketball Coach Brian 'Penny' Collins

NASHVILLE, Tennessee  -- The Tennessee State community welcomed new Head Men's Basketball Coach Brian "Penny" Collins with an introductory press conference at Hankal Hall on campus on Monday. Collins is the 18th Head Coach in program history. The press conference included remarks from TSU President Dr. Glenda Glover, TSU Director of Athletics Teresa Phillips and TSU Men's Basketball Coach Brian "Penny" Collins. 

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DR. GLENDA GLOVER

“We welcome coach Brian ‘Penny’ Collins back to TSU to take the helm as TSU’s men’s basketball coach, and to take us to the next level to what TSU has a tradition of doing and that is winning championships. Mr. Collins being a player and a coach is used to that. Coach Collins returns to TSU to make his mark on the program. He’s bringing experience and hometown knowledge that will help us recruit local talent and continue building a winning team. We appreciate the legacy he brings.”



TERESA PHILLIPS

“We have chosen a person who is a thinker, a leader, motivator and a competitor – all attributes that will support our ultimate goal, which is to win championships while building champions. He brings a fresh enthusiasm, and I trust that he will infuse a higher level of energy to Gentry Center, and he’ll reach out to the community, while also engaging our students. We will need every constituent, everybody in the fold, to come together if we are to bring ourselves back to that championship level that we all would like.”

“A successful athletic program can become a foundation for building and increasing your enrollment, for exploding your fundraising and for bringing national exposure to your university. That is what athletics can do.”

“No engine can drive a positive agenda for a university as quickly and as powerfully as a winning athletics program.”

BRIAN "PENNY" COLLINS

“This is something I’ve been thinking about since I was a child.”

“My sophomore year in high school, I wanted to be president of the entire student body… That was a time I realized I could be a great leader, and not only on the basketball court, but my sophomore and junior year, I was allowed to lead my entire high school.”

“Helping [Lonnie Thompson (Cumberland University)] build that program provided me with the confidence to be the head coach at the age of 26.”

“My last five years, I’ve played in five conference tournament [championship] games. But, it’s not about me at all. It’s about the players and the hard work we put in with those players. I want to continue that here.”

“This is my dream job. I am going to win here. I am going to recruit locally. We’re also going to recruit nationally. We’re going to go after athletes that have high character. We’re going to go after athletes that come from winning programs. We’re going to go after student-athletes that want to be a part of something special.”

“I want our coaches to be all about them, and that’s one thing I can say Coach [Dana] Ford and his staff has done. They have changed the culture. The guys here believe they can win, and I just want to build on that.”

“We want to play fast. I want to get out and score. I want to take a little of every place I’ve been. We’re going to press, we’re going change defenses. We’re going to keep teams off balance. We’re going to make it a track meet.”

“You better go out and get your season tickets now. We will make the Gentry Center the toughest place to play in the OVC.”

“We will be in the community. We will be involved. You will see us. You will see me. You will see our staff. You will see our players. We will be getting involved with kids, and community service events around the whole city. For them to come here, we will go to them as well.”

“TSU is important to me because of the trailblazing alumni that have come before me. It’s the historical figures who have not only come from athletics, but this institution as well. I think about the games that I saw in the Hole when it was packed. I remember the early 90’s, leaving Memphis to come into town for the holidays, and seeing Carlos Rogers and Frankie Allen have this gym tore up. People were hanging from the rafters. I remember Anthony Law having a turkey bone screaming at the fans and other teams. I remember Coach Phillips and her staff had the best team in the OVC. I remember going to football games having Leon Murray throw bombs. I remember tailgates and being excited for homecoming parades like it was Christmas Eve. The Aristocrat of Bands and their symphonic songs – it’s amazing that they can play music that can make you feel pure joy. The world-renowned Tigerbelles and Wilma Rudolph. The frats and sororities who wear their colors with pride and badges of honor. ... So much culture and passion. I think about Jefferson Street. It’s the smiles I see on people’s faces.”

“For every great player that left the city, that will change. I will guarantee that.”

“I want to motivate this city. Not just the players, the students, the staff… I want to motivate this whole city.”

“We’re going to play fast. We definitely want to go inside, but there’s nothing off the table of what I want to do. I’m trying to see what the personnel is like and make a decision from there.”

“There are no rewards without effort and investment. Today we will begin that process.”



TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS

XULA sweeps GCAC weekly awards in track and field

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana swept the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Week awards in track and field for March 19-25. The winners are:

     •  Women's field — Tamia Scott.
     •  Women's track — The 400-meter relay team of Martina Latting, Alexis Milton, Justyce Riggs and Ry-Anne Riley.
     •  Men's field — Edward Angel.
     
There were no nominees in men's track.
     
Scott, a sophomore from Lafayette, La., and a graduate of Carencro High School, finished seventh in the javelin at the Rice Victor Lopez Classic in Houston with a season-best 34.28 meters/112 feet, 5 inches. She finished ahead of seven NCAA Division I athletes.
     
The relay team produced the program's second-fastest time ever, 46.86 seconds, and placed fifth. It was the fourth time in as many meets this season that the team produced an A-qualifying mark for the NAIA National Championships. Latting and Milton are juniors from Opelousas, La., and graduates of Westminster Christian Academy. Riggs is a sophomore from Fort Walton Beach, Fla., and a graduate of Choctawhatchee High School, and Riley is a sophomore from New Orleans and a graduate of Lusher Charter School.
     
Angel, a freshman from the Houston suburb of Fulshear, Texas, and a graduate of Seven Lakes High School, high-jumped a season-best 2.07 meters/6 feet, 9 1/2 inches to place third and beat seven NCAA DI athletes. Angel already had met the NAIA A-qualifying standard.
     
XULA will travel to Alabama Friday for the University of Mobile Invitational. Field events will start at 9:30 a.m., and track events will start at 11 a.m.
     
NOTES:  XULA has the NAIA's fastest women's 400 relay time this season, according to the Track & Field Results Reporting System. Latting, Milton, Riggs and Riley ran a school-record 46.66 at the Louisiana Classics meet in Lafayette March 17 . . . Angel is No. 2 on the 2018 NAIA high jump list.

XULA's 2018 GCAC Track and Field Players of the Week
Feb. 26-March 4
Men's Field — Edward Angel
Women's Field — Calah Williams
Women's Track — 400 Relay Team of Raven Davis, Alexis Milton, Justyce Riggs, Ry-Anne Riley

March 5-11
Men's Field — Edward Angel
Women's Field — Alysia Terry
Women's Track — 400 Relay Team of Martina Latting, Alexis Milton, Justyce Riggs, Ry-Anne Riley

March 12-18
Men's Field — Brandon Matthews
Women's Track — 400 Relay Team of Martina Latting, Alexis Milton, Justyce Riggs, Ry-Anne Riley

March 19-25
Men's Field — Edward Angel
Women's Field — Tamia Scott
Women's Track — 400 Relay Team of Martina Latting, Alexis Milton, Justyce Riggs, Ry-Anne Riley

Ed Cassiere, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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Goreau, Abdullah collect GCAC awards again

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana tennis standouts Charlene Goreauand Shaikh Abdullah are Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Players of the Week for March 19-25.
     
Goreau, a junior from Toulouse, France, won for the fifth time this season and the 13th time overall to extend her GCAC career record. Abdullah, a freshman from Hyderabad, India, won for the second time.
     
Goreau won in doubles (with Angela Charles-Alfred) and singles in the Gold Nuggets' 7-2 home victory against NAIA No. 11 LSU-Alexandria. Goreau and Charles-Alfred defeated Ariadna Cabezas and Claudia van den Brink 8-3, then Goreau beat Miljana Milojevic 6-0, 6-2 to continiue her recent dominance in singles.
     
Goreau is unbeaten in singles since Feb. 10. Her current singles win streak is nine. In her last eight singles matches — seven victories and one unfinished — Goreau won 94-of-102 games. Eight of her completed 15 sets during that time were by 6-0.
     
Abdullah was the only Gold Rush player to win in doubles and singles in a 5-4 home loss to NCAA Division I Abilene Christian, the Southland Conference leader. Abdullah and Antoine Richard defeated Josh Sheehy and Paul Domanski 8-5, then Abdullah beat Niko Moceanu 6-2, 6-3.
     
Both XULA teams will return to the courts late next week — at home against NCAA DI opponents. The Gold Nuggets, ranked fifth in the NAIA, will play Southern at 3 p.m. April 6, and the second-ranked Gold Rush will play Troy at 9 a.m. April 7.

XULA's 2018 GCAC Tennis Players of the Week
Women
Jan. 22-28 — Charlene Goreau
Jan. 29-Feb. 4 — Charlene Goreau
Feb. 5-11 — Mariia Borodii
Feb. 12-18 — Mariia Borodii
Feb. 19-25 — Charlene Goreau
Feb. 26-March 4 — Charlene Goreau
March 5-11 — Mariia Borodii
March 12-18 — Mariia Borodii
March 19-25 — Charlene Goreau

Men
Jan. 15-21 — Pierre Andrieu
Jan. 22-28 — Samir Chikhaoui
Jan. 29-Feb. 4 — Catalin Fifea
Feb. 12-18 — Shaikh Abdullah
Feb. 19-25 — Samir Chikhaoui
Feb. 26-March 4 — Catalin Fifea
March 12-18 — Samir Chikhaoui
March 19-25 — Shaikh Abdullah

Ed Cassiere, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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Nuggets remain No. 5, but there's a change at the top

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana, 2-0 since the previous NAIA women's tennis coaches poll, maintained its No. 5 position Tuesday in the fifth national ranking of the season. But there was a significant shift at the top.
     
Keiser earned its first-ever No. 1 ranking as a result of its 5-4 Saturday victory at the previous No. 1, Georgia Gwinnett. The Grizzlies had been atop the last 16 polls, the last 14 as a unanimous No. 1.
     
Keiser received 12-of-14 first-place votes. Georgia Gwinnett, now No. 2, and No. 3 Lindsey Wilson received one first-place vote apiece.
     
The Gold Nuggets (11-7) improved their win streak to eight, their longest since 2013, with a 7-2 Saturday home victory against LSU-Alexandria, which remained 11th. The XULA women have eight victories this season against top-20 NAIA opponents.
     
XULA is idle this week. The Gold Nuggets will begin a three-dual home stand April 6 — one week from Friday — at 3 p.m. against NCAA Division I Southern.
 

NAIA Women's Tennis Coaches' Top 25 Poll (first-place votes in parentheses — records through March 25)

RANK	PREVIOUS	SCHOOL		RECORD	POINTS
1	3	Keiser (Fla.) [12]		17-1	373
2	1	Georgia Gwinnett [1]		11-2	361
3	2	Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) [1]		2-1	348
4	4	SCAD Savannah (Ga.)		9-2	336
5	5	Xavier (La.)		11-7	331
6	6	William Carey (Miss.)		6-1	314
7	8	William Woods (Mo.)		7-3	291
8	7	Northwestern Ohio		4-3	290
9	9	Indiana Wesleyan		23-2	276
10	10	Cardinal Stritch (Wis.)		5-5	275
11	11	LSU-Alexandria (La.)		6-3	251
12	12	San Diego Christian (Calif.)		6-5	247
13	13	Middle Georgia State		9-4	229
14	16	Brenau (Ga.)		7-6	220
15	15	Westmont (Calif.)		7-5	202
16	14	SCAD Atlanta (Ga.)		6-4	192
17	18	Arizona Christian		9-8	182
18	17	Campbellsville (Ky.)		9-1	178
19	20	Cumberland (Tenn.)		6-7	155
20	19	Martin Methodist (Tenn.)		3-7	148
21	22	Union (Ky.)		7-3	132
22	21	Mobile (Ala.)		8-5	129
23	23	St. Thomas (Fla.)		5-6	106
24	24	Reinhardt (Ga.)		7-5	100
25	25	Olivet Nazarene (Ill.)		5-4	74

Others Receiving Votes: Georgetown (Ky.) 57; Huntington (Ind.) 48; Marian (Ind.) 28; Southwestern (Kan.) 24; Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) 21; Tennessee Wesleyan 15; Loyola (La.) 13; Cumberlands (Ky.) 13; Coastal Georgia 12; Asbury (Ky.) 9

Ed Cassiere, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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No. 3 Keiser defeats No. 2 Gold Rush 6-3

ORLANDO, Florida — It had been nearly three years since Xavier University of Louisiana men's tennis lost to a ranked NAIA opponent other than Georgia Gwinnett. But it happened Tuesday when third-ranked Keiser beat the No. 2 Gold Rush 6-3 at the USTA National Campus courts.
     
The Seahawks (12-4) trailed 2-1 after doubles, then won 5-of-6 singles matches. Nicolas Guerschanik clinched with a 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 victory against Antoine Richard on the second court.
     
XULA (8-8) got its points from Samir Chikhaoui, a 6-3, 6-3 winner against Adrian Frutos at No. 3 singles, and from its top two doubles teams, Shaikh Abdullah and Richard at No. 1 and Pierre An
drieu and Chris Anders at No. 2.
     
Abdullah and Richard defeated Guerschanik and Marc Algeri 8-6, and Andrieu and Anders beat Vicente Lagos and Arthur Bonnaud — the ITA's 11th-ranked tandem — 9-8 (7-5).
     
The Gold Rush had not lost to a ranked NAIA opponent not named Georgia Gwinnett since May 14, 2015, when Vanguard won 5-4 in the quarterfinals of the national tournament at Mobile, Ala. Between then and Tuesday XULA rattled off 16 straight wins against that group, including decisions against sixth-ranked Keiser in the 2016 quarterfinals and third-ranked Keiser in the 2017 semifinals.

Results    

XULA won 5-4 Monday at Embry-Riddle, the first-ever Gold Rush victory against a top-10 team from NCAA Division II. Keiser lost 6-3 at Embry-Riddle March 14.
     
Earlier Tuesday the NAIA announced its fifth coaches poll of 2018. XULA was No. 2, and Keiser was No. 3. The next team rankings will be revealed April 10.
    
Next for the Gold Rush will be a 9 a.m. dual match April 7 — one week from Saturday — against NCAA Division I member Troy at XULA Tennis Center.
 

NAIA Men's Tennis Coaches' Top 25 Poll (first-place votes in parentheses — records through March 25)

RANK	PREVIOUS	SCHOOL	RECORD	POINTS
1	1	Georgia Gwinnett [14]	21-0	374
2	2	Xavier (La.)	7-7	362
3	3	Keiser (Fla.)	11-4	350
4	6	Lindsey Wilson (Ky.)	4-0	334
5	5	Northwestern Ohio	4-3	327
6	7	William Woods (Mo.)	6-5	306
7	8	Mobile (Ala.)	15-1	298
8	16	Cumberland (Tenn.)	11-1	288
9	9	Cardinal Stritch (Wis.)	7-3	283
10	10	Arizona Christian	13-6	256
11	4	Campbellsville (Ky.)	8-2	251
12	11	Middle Georgia State	9-3	249
13	12	William Carey (Miss.)	6-2	232
14	13	San Diego Christian (Calif.)	6-5	229
15	15	Reinhardt (Ga.)	8-2	201
16	14	Westmont (Calif.)	5-5	200
17	17	Asbury (Ky.)	7-1	174
18	17	Coastal Georgia	8-6	162
19	22	Union (Ky.)	7-3	158
20	20	Lawrence Tech (Mich.)	13-3	143
21	19	Tennessee Wesleyan	6-3	131
22	21	McPherson (Kan.)	4-3	120
23	23	Indiana Wesleyan	23-4	110
24	24	St. Thomas (Fla.)	5-5	90
25	25	Point (Ga.)	12-4	85

Others Receiving Votes: Texas A&M-Texarkana 62; Aquinas (Mich.) 36; Cumberlands (Ky.) 32; Bethany (Kan.) 32; Loyola (La.) 25; Judson (Ill.) 18; Missouri Valley 12; Marian (Ind.) 11; Lindenwood-Belleville (Ill.) 5; Hastings (Neb.) 4; Hope International (Calif.) 3; Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) 3

Ed Cassiere, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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Gold Rush rally past D2 No. 8 Embry-Riddle on road

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida  — Xavier University of Louisiana men's tennis earned its first-ever victory against a top-10 NCAA Division II opponent when it rallied for a 5-4 victory Monday against Embry-Riddle.
     
The Gold Rush (8-7), ranked second in the NAIA, trailed 4-2, then got singles victories from Pierre Andrieu, Samir Chikhaoui and Antoine Richard. Richard, playing singles for the first time this season, clinched with a 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 victory against Andres Donayre on the second court.
     
The Eagles, ranked eighth, are 9-4.
     
"Outstanding win. Our guys played big," XULA coach Alan Green said. "They fought to the end and never gave up."
     
Andrieu defeated Mickael Faucher 6-2, 0-6, 6-2 on court six — it was Andrieu's sixth victory in his last seven singles decisions — and Chikhaoui beat Lucas Bos 6-2, 7-6 (7-4).
     
First off the singles court was XULA's Shaikh Abdullah, who beat Deepak Vishavkarma 6-2, 6-2 for his fourth consecutive victory.
     
Embry-Riddle won 2-of-3 doubles matches. The Eagles' Donayre and Rodolfo Arreygue, ranked third nationally, beat Abdullah and Richard 9-8 (7-4). Chikhaoui and Gabriel Niculescu defeated Vishavkarma and Faucher 9-8 (7-2) on the third court.
     
XULA will play NAIA No. 3 Keiser at 2 p.m. EDT Tuesday at a neutral site in Orlando, Fla. — the USTA National Campus courts.

Results

Ed Cassiere, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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