Xavier's Haywood chosen All-Region; honorable mention for Pirkl

NEW ORLEANS — The American Volleyball Coaches Association has recognized Xavier University of Louisiana seniors Claudia Haywood and Franziska Pirkl on the 2015 NAIA All-Southeast Region team. Haywood is a first-team selection, and Pirkl received honorable mention.
     
Haywood, a 5-foot-11 middle blocker from Memphis, Tenn., and a graduate of Cordova High School, led the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference this year with a .292 hitting percentage. She was first-team All-GCAC her final two seasons, and she was GCAC Tournament MVP this year and in 2013. Haywood finished her career with a .287 hitting percentage, 756 kills and 207 blocks, all of which rank among the top four in XU history.
     
Pirkl, a 5-9 setter from Munich, Germany, and a graduate of Theodolinden Gymnasium, led the GCAC this year with 8.97 assists per set. She was first-team All-GCAC four times, the 2015 GCAC Setter of the Year and a two-time Daktronics-NAIA Scholar Athlete. Her 3,293 career assists are an XU record. Pirkl also produced 227 kills, 116 aces, 754 digs and 103 blocks in her career 7#8212; those latter three numbers rank in XU's top five..
     
The Gold Nuggets were 19-8 this year, and for the fifth consecutive season they won GCAC regular-season and tournament championships and qualified for the NAIA National Championship.

2015 AVCA NAIA All-Southeast Region

Name	Institution	Pos.	Yr.	Hometown
Carol Siqueira	Lindsey Wilson College	OH	SR	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Rebecca Just**	St. Catharine College	OH	SR	Louisville, KY
Makenzie Montano	Lindsey Wilson College	S	SO	Louisville, KY
Jenny Howell	Georgetown College	OH	SO	Cincinnati, OH
Whitney Battoe	St. Thomas University	RS	SO	Naperville, IL
Corri Muha	Georgetown College	MB	SR	Cincinnati, OH
Jordan Strickland**	St. Catharine College	S	SR	Lexington, KY
Jana Kortas	Cambellsville University	RS	SR	Simpsonville, KY
Carolynne Silva	Lindsey Wilson College	MB	SO	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Ana Privrat	Southern Univ of New Orleans	L	SR	Belgrade, Serbia
Michelle Calderon	Webber International Univ.	L	SO	Orlando, FL
Megan Minke	Keiser University	MB	JR	Sisters, OR
Ragni Knudsen	Lindsey Wilson College	OH	FR	Myle, Norway
Claudia Haywood	Xavier University (LA)	MB	SR	Memphis, TN

Honorable Mention

Name	Institution	Pos.	YR	Hometown
Breeanna Navarro	Warner University	MB	FR	Jupiter, FL
Franziska Pirkl	Xavier University (LA)	S	SR	Munich, Germany
Victoria Truehert	Southeastern University	OH	FR	Brandon, FL
Adrienne Czaplewski	Warner University	OH	JR	Winter Park, FL
Lauren Schneidtmiller	Georgetown College	OH	SR	Louisville, KY
Megan Ganser	University of the Cumberlands	MB	JR	Waterloo, WI
Jenna Swaffer	Warner University	S	JR	Henderson, NV
Carla Novaes	Talledega College	OH	JR	Sao Paulo, Brazil

Region Coach of the Year	Andy Cavins, Linsdey Wilson College
Region Assistant Coach of the Year	Steve Benson, Warner University
Region Player of the Year	Carol Siqueira, Lindsey Wilson College
Region Freshman of the Year	Ragni Knudsen, Lindsey Wilson College
Region Libero of the Year	Ana Privrat, Southern Univ. New Orleans

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
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XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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From walk-on to hall of famer: Woodbury in CIAA's 2016 Hall of Fame class

WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina -- Tory Woodbury, one of the best quarterbacks in Winston-Salem State history, is heading to the John B. McLendon CIAA Hall of Fame.

Woodbury, 37, who is the offensive coordinator at Johnson C. Smith, will be inducted at the CIAA basketball tournament in late February in Charlotte.

“Yeah, I won’t have far to go,” said Woodbury, a Winston-Salem native who lives in Charlotte and is in his second season as an assistant coach at Johnson C. Smith.

Woodbury, who was 6-2 and around 185 pounds when he graduated from Glenn High, wound up at WSSU after other options didn’t materialize. He was going to N.C. Central or Mount Olive on partial basketball scholarships.

“When I tell people my story they don’t really believe it, but I’ve always said hard work and a good support system will get you anywhere you want to go,” said Woodbury, who went on to have a three-year NFL career.

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Celebration Bowl: Alcorn State Braves vs. North Carolina A&T Aggies

Air Force Reserve Celebration Bowl: Alcorn State Braves vs. North Carolina A&T Aggies

Date: Dec. 19, Noon ET on ABC

Location: Atlanta | Georgia Dome

Alcorn State Braves

Best moment: Alcorn State won its second consecutive SWAC title when it dismantled Grambling State in the SWAC championship on Saturday. The 49-21 win healed the deep wounds that remained from a homecoming loss to Grambling State in mid-October. In the rematch, Alcorn State made sure there would be no repeat of that October performance. It turned a 28-14 halftime lead into a four-touchdown margin midway through the fourth quarter to claim a second straight conference championship.

Lowest moment: It would be that midseason loss to Grambling State, a game in which Alcorn State also led 28-14 at the half. In the first meeting, however, Alcorn State blew the lead and lost in overtime 35-34. Costly second-half fumbles allowed Grambling State to climb back into the game, but the pivotal mistake came in overtime when Alcorn State’s game-tying extra point was blocked.

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FAMU AD Overton hoping to establish Classics in Atlanta, Miami

TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- If Florida A&M Athletic Director Milton Overton Jr. has his way, FAMU’s football team won’t have to play “money games” against FBS opponents.

Overton said he’s hoping to establish FAMU-owned Classic games in Atlanta and Miami. Those games would be against FCS opponents, and would eliminate the need for games against teams like Ohio State, Miami and South Florida.

FAMU was hammered by South Florida 51-3 in the Rattlers’ season opener.

In the most recent Florida Classic against Bethune-Cookman in Orlando’s Citrus Bowl, the Rattlers made “about $800,000,” Overton said. He added Classics in Atlanta and Miami are what fans asked for when he released a survey in September.

“The surveys, the data and the money all make sense,” Overton said.

“The logical move, for FAMU, is to play Classics. I’m grateful and I know FAMU is grateful for the opportunity to play some of these games that we have to play right now. But I preface it by saying we have to play them.”

Overton said FAMU’s athletics business model before he started in August didn’t include the formation of Classics owned by the university.

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Gold Nuggets win on road again after trailing by 17

MONTGOMERY, Alabama -- For the second time this season, Xavier University of Louisiana's women's basketball team has won on the road after trailing by 17 points.

The Gold Nuggets (9-2), ranked 21st in NAIA Division I, rallied in the final 11 minutes Saturday for a 62-60 victory against Faulkner.

Whitney Gathright scored 23 points for Xavier, 13 during the rally. Donyeah Mayfield scored 14, and Joi Simmons had 10.

Xavier missed its first 13 field-goal attempts of the game and its first 12 attempts of the second quarter, and the Gold Nuggets trailed 44-27 after Brandy Alley made 1-of-2 free throws for Faulkner at 1:16 of the third quarter. But Xavier outscored Faulkner 35-16 thereafter, getting eight points from Mayfield, seven from Mikayla Bates and six from Simmons. The Gold Nuggets pressed extensively on defense and scored 17 points from 11 turnovers during the rally.

Mayfield's basket with 36 seconds remaining put the Gold Nuggets ahead to stay, 60-58, and Gathright made a pair of free throws with two seconds to play to make it 62-58.

Xavier's other comeback from 17 down was Nov. 14 in a 91-86 overtime victory against NAIA No. 7 Our Lady of the Lake in the LSUS Classic at Shreveport, La.

China Leary scored 14 points and Alley 11 for the Lady Eagles (4-5), who led for nearly 35 1/2 minutes. Xavier led for just 89 seconds, all in the final two minutes.

Xavier shot a season-low 25 percent from the floor, making 20-of-80 attempts -- 5-of-45 in the first half. Faulkner shot 36 percent. Xavier committed 15 turnovers and gained a season-high 34.

"Call us the cardiac kids," XU coach Bo Browder said. "This is a tough group. They stay positive when we get behind. They don't mind battling through some things. We got shots we wanted, but they wouldn't fall. Our shooting was so awful. We missed 2-footers, we missed 5-footers. We had 15-footers that went in and came out. So we had to win it with our defense."

Browder is 399-144 in 17 seasons as Xavier's coach. Including 10 games as interim coach at Evansville in 1995-96, Browder's record at 4-year colleges is 401-152 in 18 seasons.

It was the Gold Nuggets' sixth consecutive victory. They'll break for semester exams next week, then resume their schedule Dec. 17 against Indiana Wesleyan, ranked 10th in NAIA Division II, in the Cruzin at Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

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Sights and Sounds from 2015 SWAC Football Championships

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Lenorris Footman sparks Alcorn State to SWAC title

HOUSTON, Texas — One hour before kickoff of the Southwestern Athletic Conference Championship Game, Alcorn State had not announced who would be starting at quarterback.

Following a 49-21 rout of Grambling, the Braves can feel confident that they have two good choices going forward.

When healthy, the Braves have played 2014 SWAC co-Offensive Player of the Year John Gibbs Jr.

With Gibbs only at 85-90 percent following a high ankle sprain from earlier in the season, the Braves went with sophomore Lenorris Footman, who put on a show.

Footman passed for 202 yards and three touchdowns, while running for another 101 yards and a fourth score.

“Lenorris is a young man that we knew was a great football player. He just needed his opportunity,” Alcorn State coach Jay Hopson said.

“We have two outstanding quarterbacks. Usually there is a big drop off from 1 to 2, but not with them.”



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Second-half comeback leads Prairie View A&M past Lamar

PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas – The Prairie View A&M Lady Panthers clawed their way back from a 12-point, third-quarter deficit Saturday before claiming an 80-72 win over visiting Lamar.

Jeronia Allen and Lamaria Cole scored 20 points apiece for the Lady Panthers (4-1), who matched their best five-game start to a season since 1986. Cole also had six assists and four steals for Prairie View A&M, while Allen's 20 points marked a season and PVAMU career high for the juco transfer.

"Overall it was a good collective team effort. We were able to get back to where we needed to be defensively in order to start making a run in the third and fourth quarters," Prairie View A&M head coach Dawn Brown said.

"We were waiting for Lamaria Cole to show up offensively for us, she came out in the third period and really got going in the fourth. Jeronia Allen stepped up and gave us some scoring when we were going through a little drought offensively."

Addesha Collins scored a game-high 25 points for the visiting Cardinals (2-5), who remained winless in their five games against NCAA Division I opponents.

Prairie View A&M used a 9-1 run between the 7:05 and 1:28 marks of the third period to chip away at Lamar's lead. Cole capped the run with a steal and fast-break layup to cut the Cardinal lead to 54-50 with 2:26 remaining in the third quarter.

The Lady Panthers trailed by as many as 14 points in the first half as Lamar built a 44-35 halftime lead. The Cardinals' long-range shooting helped build their first-half lead, as they drained 50 percent (7 of 14) of their treys in the first half; they shot 42 percent (10 of 24) for the game from behind the arc.

"This is the first time this season we've seen a team that can shoot the three-ball as well as they did tonight," Brown said. "Defensively we had to make some adjustments and wait until halftime to get back to the board and draw some things up differently that we were going to have to do in order to stop the bleeding from behind the circle."

With the momentum shifting into the Lady Panthers' favor, Cole gave PVAMU a lead it would not relinquish with 8:33 remaining in the game when she converted a layup while getting fouled by Laka Blache. The ensuing free throw gave the Lady Panthers a 60-59 lead.

Later in the period, Lamar's Baileigh O'Dell cut Prairie View A&M's lead back to one point at 66-65 when she knocked down a 3-pointer with 5:58. It was O'Dell's third trey of the game and second in as many possessions.

From there, the Lady Panthers went on a 10-1 run to put the game out of reach of their visitors; Tori Carter came away with a steal and then took the ball half the length of the court for a fast-break layup to give the home team a 78-68 lead with 1:46 left to play.

Carter scored 10 points for the Lady Panthers. Larissa Scott recorded her fourth double-double in five games, scoring 12 points and grabbing 13 rebounds for Prairie View A&M.

The Lady Panthers will have 10 days to rest before their next game. They will travel to Atlanta, Ga., to face Georgia Tech on Tuesday, Dec. 15, at 6 p.m. Eastern Standard time.

The game at Georgia Tech is part of a three-game road swing before Christmas, as the Lady Panthers will then head to Kansas to play in Wichita State's Shocker Winter Classic.

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Nine Players Scored as Savannah State Women’s Basketball defeats Alabama State 60-49

MONTGOMERY, Alabama -- Nine players scored as the Savannah State University women's basketball team (2-4) snapped its four game losing streak to defeat Alabama State University (1-5) 60-49 in Dunn-Oliver Acadome Saturday night.
 
Junior guard Kenyata Hendrix led the Lady Tigers with 14 points and added two assists, two blocks, three rebounds and three steals, while sophomore guard Lauryn Fields added 11 points with three rebounds, three assists and two steals.  Fields 11 points and five made free throws were career highs.
 
Junior guard Rhianna Warren tied a career-high with nine points and with four field goals made, and added two rebounds, three assists and two steals, while junior guard Chelsea Frazier and sophomore guard Deyja Brown each added five points and four rebounds.  Frazier's four rebounds were a career-high.
 
Junior center Tiyonda Davis added a season-high 13 rebounds and five blocks with a steal and four points.  The 13 rebounds gives Davis 523 career rebounds, which moves her into fourth most in school history in the Division I era.  Sophomore forward Shanikwa Buie added a career-high nine rebounds and four points and two steals.

As a team, the Lady Tigers shot 83.3 percent (15-for-18) from the free throw line and recorded 12 steals compared to four steals from Alabama State.  SSU also shot 5-for-13 (38.5 percent) from the 3-point line and had four more rebounds (42-38) than ASU.  Hendrix was perfect from the free throw line going 6-for-6, while Fields shot 5-for-8 from the charity stripe.
 
Brown's three pointer to start the game gave the Lady Tigers an early 3-0 lead, but the Lady Hornets scored eight of the next 10 points to take a three-point lead, 8-5, with 7:10 remaining in the first quarter.  SSU scored the next five points after a layup by Brown and a three-point shot by Frazier for a 10-8 lead with 4:17 left. 
 
After a free throw, a jumper, a layup and a three-pointer by Alabama State gave ASU a two-point lead, 16-10, with 2:14 remaining in the first quarter.  But the Lady Tigers outscored the Lady Hornets by a point, 6-5, during the rest of the quarter and trailed ASU by five points, 21-16, after a quarter of play.  Brown led SSU with five points, while Hendrix added four points and Davis and Buie each added four rebounds during the quarter.
 
The Lady Tigers scored the seven of the first eight points of the second quarter from a Hendrix three, a sophomore forward Destini Bush layup and a Fields layup to take a point lead, 23-22, with 5:47 remaining in the second quarter.  Alabama State took a point lead after a layup, 24-23, with 5:24 remaining in the first half.  The Lady Tigers finished the second quarter, scoring the final four points after two sophomore forward Jada Young free throws and a jumper by Buie to lead Alabama State by three points, 27-24, at the half.
 
Brown and Hendrix led SSU with five points each at the half, while Davis added seven rebounds and three blocks and Buie added six rebounds and four points.
 
Warren gave SSU an eight-point lead after a three-pointer and a layup to start the third quarter, 32-24, with 8:39 remaining in the quarter.  A layup by Hendrix gave the Lady Tigers a 10-point lead, 34-24, with 7:01 left, but ASU scored 17 of the next 19 points to capture a five-point lead, 41-36, with 3:17 remaining.  The Lady Tigers outscored ASU 9-3 during the rest of the quarter to lead by a point, 45-44, after three quarters of play. Warren and Hendrix led SSU with seven points each during the third quarter.
 
The Lady Tigers scored the first eight points in the fourth quarter to capture a nine-point lead, 53-44, with 5:55 remaining in the game.  ASU's first points of the quarter didn't come until 3:41 remaining in the quarter with a layup to cut SSU's lead to seven, 53-46.  The Lady Tigers outscored the Lady Hornets 7-3 during the rest of the quarter to capture the 11-point win. 
 
The Lady Hornets were led by Britney Wright with a double-double, 13 rebounds and 14 points, and Danielle Clark and Kayla Tucker each added nine points, whilew Clark and Jasmine Peeples added six rebounds.
 
The Lady Tigers continue its six-game roadstand with a trip to Piscataway, N.J., to face Big Ten opponent Rutgers on Saturday, Dec. 12 at 4 p.m.

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Kellenberger: How was the SWAC title game? It was great

ATTENDANCE: 40,352

HOUSTON, Texas -- On an afternoon filled with moments that ran the gamut from delightful to sublime to giggle-inducing to positively SWAC-tastic, I must first share with you my favorite of them all.

It came with a second remaining in the first half, a fact that was the subject of some debate and required an official review. So they took a look, and then the ref turned on his mic in order to tell us the ruling — only to find out that he had to wait a moment because someone else had a mic and wanted to tell us all about the “official” SWAC Championship Game postgame party at Groove’s, hosted by someone named Kirko Bangz (guessing that's not a given name) and featuring .75-cent drinks until 11 p.m.

This is when Groove’s loses me, because there’s a time and age in your life when cheap drinks are worth any amount of hassle. But then you wake up one day and you’re 32 with a wife and kids, and the kind of people showing up there on Saturday night to pay three quarters for a cup of booze are most assuredly looking for a different kind of good time than you are. But I digress, because the point of the whole story is this: it was at this moment, with the ref patiently waiting at midfield, that I went all-in on the SWAC Championship Game. Alcorn beat Grambling, 49-21, but the whole thing won me over.

What happened at NRG Park on Saturday … well, it was amazing. I’ve never seen ...



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Alcorn repeats with SWAC Championship win over Grambling

HOUSTON, Texas -- Even though a decision had been made earlier in the week, Alcorn State coach Jay Hopson didn't tip his hand as who would start at quarterback for the Braves on Saturday against Grambling State.

Confident with both, Hopson went with Lenorris Footman over John Gibbs Jr., who has been nursing a high ankle sprain. Footman didn't disappoint, leading the Braves to their second straight SWAC Football Championship at NRG Stadium.

Footman directed the Braves' dominating 49-21 blowout before a crowd of 40,352. While Footman passed for 202 yards and three touchdowns, and rushed for 101 yards and a score, he had plenty of help.

Darryan Ragsdale, the Offensive Player of the Game, ran for 188 yards and safety Warren Gatewood collected three interceptions. The win was extremely satisfying coming against Grambling, which beat the Braves in the regular season 35-34 in overtime.

"We got a good team," said Ragsdale, who picked up 147 yards in his first three carries, including an 84-yarder that opened the scoring. "Coming into this game everybody had one mindset. And we just accomplished that."



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Turnovers kill Grambling as Alcorn captures SWAC title

HOUSTON, Texas — A brick wall. Grambling ran into it. Alcorn State's rushing attack ran through it.

In a nutshell, that's what Saturday's Southwestern Athletic Conference championship game came down to. And the results weren't pretty for the Tigers.

Grambling, which spent the last 12 months waiting for its shot to throw the Tigers' name in the SWAC supremacy conversation, saw their chance come and go during a miscued-filled three-plus hour effort.

Winners of nine straight games coming into the weekend, Grambling dropped a 49-21 loss to Alcorn State in the SWAC championship game to end the Tigers' dream season.

Alcorn State (9-3) put on a clinic in how to win back-to-back conference championships as the Braves produced a wire-to-wire win to avenge a 35-34 overtime loss to Grambling (9-3) back in October. The SWAC's top-ranked rushing offense piled up 613 yards of total offense and 410 rushing yards.

"We ran into a brick wall tonight," Grambling coach Broderick Fobbs said.



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Tuskegee ends the year 10-3 in the NCAA DII Super Region 2 championship game

CARROLLTON, Georgia -- With each week that passed, the 2015 Tuskegee University Golden Tigers football team made history as they progressed through the NCAA Division II playoffs.
 
Unfortunately, they ran into another school attempting to rewrite their school's record books in the University of West Georgia on Saturday afternoon – falling to the top-seeded Wolves 35-6 in the Super Region 2 championship game.

"I am disappointed that we lost," Tuskegee University head coach Willie Slater said. "At the same time, I think they have a very good football team and they were the main reason we lost for sure. I thought we got exploited up front and gave up too many big plays, and the reason we gave up the big plays is because he had time throw.

"Offensively, we had opportunities to make a few big plays and we missed those. The difference is that they made their big plays and we missed our chances. The team with the most big plays and the least amount of turnovers, wins 100 percent of the time. That is primarilty what happened to us."
 
On Saturday, the Golden Tigers made struck early when they forced a West Georgia turnover on their opening possession – the second consecutive game they were able to do so. After a reception by Shaq Hall over the middle was stripped by Jewell and recovered by Osband Thompson, the Golden Tigers used eight plays to move the 33 yards for the game's first score.
 
After converting a third down with a 12-yard run by Kevin Lacey, the junior quarterback went around left end and stretched into the end zone for the 6-0 lead with 10:21 remaining in the first quarter.
 
Unfortunately for Tuskegee, the Wolves responded with 35 unanswered points beginning at the 8:24 point in the first when Brandon Walton caught a 35-yard pass from quarterback Dallas Dickey. The Wolves scored just one more time in the first on a 66-yard pass to Qa Walker for 14-6 halftime lead.
 
West Georgia was able to put the game away with two fourth-quarter touchdowns, with the final one coming with 6:06 remaining in the game.
 
Tuskegee (10-3) had their chances beginning in the second quarter when they drove the ball down inside the West Georgia five. The Wolves' defense responded and forced a Lacey interception at the six-yard line by David Singleton.
 
The Golden Tigers also came up big on defense when Cedric Cuff came around the right end and blocked a West Georgia field goal attempt with 23 seconds remaining in the third quarter.
 
Jewell Ratliff ended his Tuskegee career with 11 tackles – all solo in the loss. He also had one sack, two tackles for loss and a forced fumble. Michael Robinson and Ricky Norris each finished with six tackles each for the Golden Tigers.
 
Offensively, Lacey led the Golden Tigers with 17 yards on 11 carries and 91 yards through the air. Desmond Reece and Travis Hawkins each ended the day with a pair of catches for the Golden Tigers.
 
After falling to Miles and having to miss a week of action, the Golden Tigers responded by qualifying for the NCAA Division II playoffs for the third consecutive year. They followed that up with more history as they defeated Catawba in the opening round for their first playoff victory in school history, and made even more as they defeated the University of North Alabama – not only defeating the Lions for the first time – and advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals for the first time.

"I am really proud of our guys," Slater said. "We didn't have to go through this ceremony too many times before this year, and we have done it three times this year. We could have very easily not been doing it all, we were in that position. I am proud of our guys, and proud of their effort."
 
Not to mention the many records that were broken, or tied this season, as the Golden Tigers recorded five interceptions against Morehouse (tying a record set in 1986) and they set a new single-season interception mark with 23. The team also had 10 all-conference selections, three all-region selections, the SIAC Player and Defensive Player of the Year, and a Second Team CoSIDA Academic All-America.

"We had a lot of young players," Slater said. "We had a lot of first-year players that have not gone through an offseason program with us. That makes me look forward to the offseason program. We demand a lot of during the offseason, and we need to get bigger, faster and stronger before they leave."
 
For more information on Tuskegee University athletics, follow us on Twitter @MyTUAthletics and like us on Facebook.

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TSU introduces Haywood as new Head Football Coach

HOUSTON, Texas -- Texas Southern University has introduced Michael Haywood as the next head football coach of the Tigers football program. Haywood, who has worked on the coaching staffs with some of college football's greatest mentors, was officially named Texas Southern's 16th head football coach on Dec. 4, 2015.

Haywood has established himself as a coach with the ability to turnaround football programs as evident with the success he enjoyed at his last coaching stop Miami (Ohio). It took Haywood just two seasons to turn the Redhawks into a championship program.

After going 1-11 in his first season, Haywood led the Redhawks to an 8-4 record in his second season and a MAC East title. The Redhawks then emerged victorious in the 2010 MAC Championship Game against Northern Illinois University, winning by a final score of 26–21. He was named the 2010 Mid-American Conference football Coach of the Year.

Prior to joining the Redhawks Haywood spent the four previous years as offensive coordinator at Notre Dame (2005-08).



"We want to take the football program here at Texas Southern University to the next level, said Haywood. "I want our football program to be structured around student-athletes that display outstanding character, a strong work ethic, and are disciplined so that we can send the message around the country of what a magnificent program and University we have here."

TSU Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics Dr. Charles McClelland said that Haywood's experience and success at five different Bowl Championship Series (BCS) schools made him the obvious choice as the next leader of the Tigers program.

"When we started this process we did so with the thought in mind that we wanted to build a championship caliber program here at Texas Southern and build it the right way," said McClelland. "With that in mind we wanted to bring in the best possible head coach available and that happens to be none other than Mike Haywood."

Dr. John Rudley, President of Texas Southern University, agreed with McClelland's assessment of Haywood.

"We are very excited to have Mike take over the helm of our football program," said Rudley. "We've always had the vision of getting the program to the next level and it started several years ago when we looked to bring a first class facility to our fans, student-athletes, and supporters. Now for us the next step in reaching our goals centers around putting together a championship quality product on the field. We feel without a doubt the individual that will help us reach that next goal is Coach Haywood as proven by his success as both an assistant and head coach."

In Haywood's first season at Miami, the 2009 RedHawks posted a 1-11 overall record. However, an exceptional recruiting class and a group of solid transfers had Miami's prospects for success headed upwards. The RedHawks averaged 343.5 yards per game, including 273 passing yards per contest in his debut campaign.

Since 1995, Haywood has been associated with three Top Ten teams and six other Top 25 clubs. His mentors have included former FBS Coaches of the Year Nick Saban, Mack Brown, Charlie Weis and Lou Holtz.

Through Haywood's four seasons as the offensive coordinator and running backs coach at Notre Dame (2005-08), the Fighting Irish averaged nearly 27 points per game. He took over the majority of Notre Dame's offensive play calling in 2008 and the result was an additional 103 yards per game over the previous season.

Haywood has coached running backs since 1994 at four different schools and tutored rushers that received All-America and All-Conference accolades. He helped develop the talent in players that etched their name in their respective school's records book and produced future National Football League players in Darius Walker, Cedric Benson, LaBrandon Toefield, Domanick Davis, Kevin Faulk, Rondell Mealey and Cecil Collins.

A key figure in Notre Dame's offensive explosion in 2005, Haywood was named NCAA Division I-A Assistant Coach of the Year that season by the American Football Coaches Association. The honor recognized not only Haywood's outstanding coaching credentials, but also his stellar work in the community throughout his coaching career.

Haywood's return to familiar turf in South Bend was the latest stop in a successful career as one of college football's top assistant coaches for the past 22 years.

A four-year football letterman at Notre Dame (1982, 1984-86), Haywood has been a collegiate coach for a total of 23 years. He joined Weis's staff following two years at Texas under Brown. Prior to that, he was running backs coach at LSU for coaches Gerry DiNardo and Saban.

Haywood is no stranger to the Southwestern Athletics Conference, as his mother attended Texas Southern University.

Haywood has coached every position and has coordinated offense, special teams and recruiting. He has recruited the Midwest as well as Florida, Texas, Louisiana, California, Canada, Oklahoma and Arkansas.

Born Michael Anthony Haywood on Feb. 26, 1964, in Houston, Texas, he played flanker during his freshman season at Notre Dame (started five games and caught 13 passes for 128 yards in 1982), then moved to cornerback where he was a significant contributor and starter from 1984-86 (13 career starts, 78 tackles, five interceptions, two blocked kicks). Recruited by Gerry Faust, Notre Dame's coach during Haywood's senior year was Lou Holtz.

Haywood is a 1986 graduate of Notre Dame with a bachelor's degree from the College of Arts and Letters.

He has one child, a son Michael Christopher.

For the latest breaking news regarding TSU Tigers Football please continue to visit www.tsusports.com.

Comments on TSU's hiring of Micheal Haywood from former Texas Longhorns head coach Mack Brown:

"When he took the head coach job at Miami (Ohio), he won in a program that was really struggling. I think TSU has hired a great person that will do a tremendous job for them. He's intelligent. He's passionate. He has missed coaching so much since he has been out that he will bring a tremendous amount of energy to their program. He will get some great players on that campus."

COURTESY TEXAS SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

XU's Hill, Jones, Pirkl are NAIA Scholar-Athletes

NEW ORLEANS — For the second consecutive season, Xavier University of Louisiana has three Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athletes in women's volleyball. Jodi Hill, Kayla Jones and Franziska Pirkl were named to the 2015 team Friday.
     
Hill, Jones and Pirkl are among 428 from 162 schools to receive the honor this season. Xavier produced half of the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference's six Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athletes. Hill and Pirkl earned the honor for the second consecutive year.
     
Student-athletes are nominated by their institution, must maintain a minimum grade-point average of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale and must have achieved junior academic status to qualify for Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athlete.
     
Hill, a senior from Prairieville, La., and a graduate of Dutchtown High School, is a political science major and a two-time All-GCAC Tournament selection. Jones, a junior from Kansas City, Kan., and a graduate of Piper High School, is a psychology major who produced 273 digs and 22 aces as a part-time starter the past two seasons. She was a sophomore athletically in 2015.
    
Pirkl, a senior from Munich, Germany, and a graduate of Theodolinden Gymnasium, is a mass communications major, a four-time first-team All-GCAC player and the 2015 GCAC Setter of the Year. Her 3,293 career assists are an XU record.
     
The Gold Nuggets were 19-8 this year, and for the fifth consecutive season they won GCAC regular-season and tournament championships and qualified for the NAIA National Championship.

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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Football Preview: Tuskegee Golden Tigers Face West Georgia Saturday (LIVE STREAM VIDEO)

Live Video (12 Noon Eastern Time)

TUSKEGEE, Alabama -- For the third straight week, the sixth-seeded Tuskegee University Golden Tigers will hit the road; however, this week the stakes are raised just a bit higher as they are playing for a berth in the national semifinals.

Tuskegee (10-2) travels to face top-seeded West Georgia (11-1) on Saturday afternoon at University Stadium, with kick-off scheduled for 12 noon (est)/11 am (cst) in the NCAA Division II quarterfinals – or better known as the Super Region 2 championship game.

The two teams are no strangers to one another, as they met last season in the opening round of the NCAA Division II playoffs in Tuskegee. In that game, West Georgia was able to hold off Tuskegee and escape with a 20-17 victory and used that victory to propel themselves to the 2014 NCAA Division II national semifinals.

Tuskegee advanced to the game with a pair of victories over third-seeded Catawaba (26-16) and a last-second victory over second-seeded North Alabama (35-31) last week. In the win over North Alabama, the Golden Tigers led most of the game but needed the final drive to advance to the quarterfinals. Tuskegee marched down the field, converting a fourth down and a third-and-long, which led to a score when Dennis Norfleet took the ball around left end and dove into the end zone with just 19.1 seconds remaining.

West Georgia took a similar path to the quarterfinals; however, the only difference between the two teams is that the Wolves had a first round bye being the top seed. The Wolves needed a last minute drive when quarterback Dallas Dickey scored the game-winning touchdown with just over three minutes remaining to defeat Valdosta State, 27-20.

Norfleet leads the Golden Tigers offensively with 39 carries for 224 yards in the playoffs. He is averaging 5.7 yards per rush and is averaging 112 yards per game in the playoffs this season. For the year, Norfleet has 752 yards on 104 carries and four touchdowns. Meanwhile, quarterback Kevin Lacey has 206 yards rushing, and has passed for 1,859 yards (108-of-244) with 14 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.

Lacey's favorite targets on offense are Marquel Gardner (25 catches for 414 yards and five touchdowns), Desmond Reece (22 receptions for 384 yards and one touchdown) and tight end Leo Gilbert with six touchdowns for an offense that is averaging 30.3 points per game – including 30.5 points per game in the playoffs.

Defensively, SIAC Player and Defensive Player of the Year Jewell Ratliff lead the Golden Tigers with 137 tackles (including 59 solo), 13.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. The senior has also recorded five interceptions, and has three touchdowns this season – two off of interceptions, and one off a blocked field goal.

Sophomore safety Jonah McCutcheon leads the Golden Tigers with seven interceptions, while ends Daryl George (12 quarterback hurries and 4.5 sacks) and Julian Morgan (nine quarterback hurries and 9.5 sacks) provide the pressure on the quarterback for a defense that yields just 17.1 points per game.

Meanwhile, Devontae Jackson leads West Georgia in rushing with 910 yards on 126 carries. He has also scored seven touchdowns, and is averaging 75.83 yards game and 7.2 yards per carry. Dickey is the team's second-leading rusher with 529 yards on 121 carries and four touchdowns.

Dickey has also passed for 1,721 yards (144-of-232) with 17 touchdowns and six interceptions. His favorite target this season has been Shaq Hall with 49 receptions for 500 yards. He has recorded five touchdowns.

Meanwhile, Qa Walker has 27 catches for 526 yards and eight touchdowns for a Wolves offense that is averaging 38 points per game.

Defensively, Dylan Donahue with 11 sacks and 15 tackles for loss, while Alex Armah has eight sacks and Marlon Chapman leads the Wolves with 66 tackles for a defensive that yields just 15.3 points per game.

Gates will open at 10:30 am (est)/9:30 am (cst) on Saturday, and tickets are still available by clicking here.

For more information on Tuskegee University athletics, follow us on Twitter @MyTUAthletics and like us on Facebook.

COURTESY TUSKEGEE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

XU's Gathright is Louisiana Co-Player of the Month

NEW ORLEANS — Whitney Gathright's rousing start to the 2015-16 Xavier University of Louisiana women's basketball season has earned her Louisiana Co-Player of the Month for November from the Louisiana Sports Writers Association.
     
Gathright, a 5-foot-4 senior point guard from New Orleans and a graduate of John Curtis Christian School, shared the award with Northwestern State's Beatrice Attura and Louisiana-Lafayette's Kia Wilridge. Each received three votes from a 12-member LSWA panel.
     
Gathright averaged 14.3 points, five rebounds, 4.9 assists and 2.6 steals in leading the Gold Nuggets to six wins in their first eight games, including a 4-1 record against ranked NAIA opponents. She scored 33 points — the most by a Xavier player in a game since 1998 — in a 91-86 neutral-site victory Nov. 14 against NAIA No. 7 Our Lady of the Lake. She scored 16 points in the final 6 1/2 minutes of regulation after the Gold Nuggets trailed 64-47, and her 3-pointer at 1:22 of overtime put Xavier ahead to stay and gave her 1,002 career points. The comeback from 17 down was the biggest in Gold Nuggets history.
     
Gathright produced 18 points, a career-best 11 assists and zero turnovers this past Friday in a 68-57 home victory against NAIA No. 18 Langston.
     
Gathright is the first Gold Nugget to receive an LSWA honor during the season since Brittany Powell was Louisiana Player of the Week in January 2010. Ensuing LSWA awards in 2015-16 will be weekly.
     
The Gold Nuggets are in Montgomery, Ala., for games against Auburn Montgomery at 5:30 p.m. Friday and Faulkner at 4 p.m. Saturday. The next Nuggets home game will start at 3 p.m. Jan. 2 against LSU-Shreveport at the Convocation Center.

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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Nuggets win in OT; Browder earns 400th victory

MONTGOMERY, Alabama  —  Freshman Kiera Robinson scored five of her career-high 17 points in overtime Friday, leading NAIA No. 21 Xavier University of Louisiana to a 74-71 women's basketball victory against Auburn Montgomery.
     
It was the fifth consecutive victory for the Gold Nuggets (8-2), and Bo Browder earned his 400th victory as a head coach at 4-year colleges. Browder is 398-144 in 17 seasons at Xavier. He was 2-8 as interim coach at Evansville in 1995-96. His overall total is 400-152.
     
Robinson scored a pair of baskets in a 5-0 run to begin overtime and give Xavier the lead for good. The 6-foot forward was 8-of-11 from the floor and grabbed six rebounds.
     
AUM (6-3), which led 37-35 at halftime and 59-52 with 8 1/2 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, missed 3-pointers at the end of regulation and overtime.
     
Whitney Gathright, announced Thursday as Louisiana Co-Player of the Month for November, had 11 points, four rebounds and five assists for the Gold Nuggets. Trana Hopkins and Joi Simmons scored nine points apiece, and Donyeah Mayfield and Jasmine Bush scored eight apiece. Bush matched her career scoring high and made 4-of-4 free throws after the Warhawks cut Xavier's lead to two with 21 seconds remaining in overtime.
     
Mayfield and Simmons grabbed seven rebounds apiece. Simmons reached a career best.
    
 Reggotta Craig had 22 points and 12 rebounds for AUM. Jatoria Carter scored 20 points, and Jada Williams had 17 points and 10 rebounds. The Warhawks, who received votes in the preseason coaches poll, used six players due to injuries.
     
Xavier outshot AUM 38.2 to 31.9 percent from the floor.
     
It was the teams' first meeting since the 1998-99 season. Xavier is 2-0 this season in overtime, and it was the Gold Nuggets' first non-conference overtime victory on an opponent's floor since 1984.
     
Xavier will remain in Montgomery to play at Faulkner at 4 p.m. Saturday. The Gold Nuggets' next home game will be Jan. 2.

BOX SCORE

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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