BCU Athletics Launches New Brand Identity

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida - Starting Wednesday, May 25 at 10 a.m., Bethune-Cookman University Department of Athletics launched its' new brand identity and department wide campaign in the first of a three-day series of releases across all of the B-CU athletics social media platforms. Follow along on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.


COURTESY BETHUNE COOKMAN UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

Nuggets in final top 25 for 11th time in 12 seasons

NEW ORLEANS — For the fifth consecutive year and the 11th time in the last 12 seasons, Xavier University of Louisiana women's tennis is in the final NAIA top 25 of the year.

The Gold Nuggets (8-14) dropped from 17th to 19th in the postseason coaches poll announced Tuesday. Xavier qualified as an at-large selection for the NAIA National Championship at Mobile, Ala., and lost 5-2 to Northwestern Ohio in the opening round May 17.

The top-25 appearance is the Gold Nuggets' 39th in a row dating to May 1, 2012. They've appeared in the top 25 in 84 of the last 94 polls dating to Feb. 25, 2004 (excluded is the 2005-06 season, when Xavier did not field a team).

Georgia Gwinnett, which defeated Lindsey Wilson 5-4 Saturday in the national final, received all 12 first-place votes to become the first unanimous No. 1 this season.

NAIA Women's Tennis Coaches' Postseason Top 25 Poll
(first-place votes in parentheses — records through end of season)
Rank Team Record Points Last

1 Georgia Gwinnett (12) 18-2 312 1
2 Lindsey Wilson 21-5 302 3
3 Auburn Montgomery 21-4 292 2
4 SCAD Savannah 18-2 282 4
5 Brenau 17-7 269 5
6 Cardinal Stritch 19-2 260 6
7 William Woods 19-3 250 10
8 Indiana Wesleyan 33-7 245 8
9 Westmont 10-8 231 7
10 Middle Georgia 15-8 223 9
11 Davenport 25-6 209 12
12 William Carey 12-12 200 13
13 Northwestern Ohio 14-10 187 15
14 LSU-Alexandria 12-7 176 19
15 Olivet Nazarene 14-11 168 16
16 Mobile 12-7 162 23
17 Keiser 11-9 148 14
18 Arizona Christian 17-5 147 11
19 Xavier 8-14 137 17
20 Cumberland 12-9 132 18
21 Lewis-Clark State 8-14 103 20
22 McPherson 13-5 99 22
23 St. Thomas (Fla.) 8-8 96 21
24 Reinhardt 12-5 89 24
25 Georgetown (Ky.) 18-9 68 25

Dropped from rankings: none
Others receiving votes: Marian (Ind.) 43, Missouri Valley 31, Southeastern (Fla.) 25, Milligan 21, Morningside 19, Ottawa 17, Asbury 9, Texas Wesleyan 7, SCAD Atlanta 6, San Diego Christian 6,

 Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
twitter.com/xulagold
www.facebook.com/xulagold 

NAIA runner-up Rush climb to No. 2 in postseason poll

NEW ORLEANS — Three days after recording the highest-ever finish by a Xavier University of Louisiana team in an NAIA national tournament, the men's tennis team earned a program-record No. 2 ranking Tuesday in the postseason coaches poll.

The Gold Rush (17-8) won three times this past week in the NAIA National Championship at Mobile, Ala., before losing 5-2 to unbeaten Georgia Gwinnett, which won a third consecutive national title.

Xavier was No. 4 in the preseason, climbed to third in the season's third poll March 1 and remained there through May 9 in the final poll before nationals. The top-25 appearance is Xavier's 77th in a row — the streak began April 4, 2007 — and it's the Gold Rush's 47th consecutive top-10 ranking.
This is the third time in four years that an XU tennis team ranked among the top three in the postseason. The XU women were No. 3 in the final polls of 2013 and 2014.

Georgia Gwinnett was a unanimous No. 1 for the 19th consecutive poll.

NAIA Men's Tennis Coaches' Postseason Top 25 Poll
(first-place votes in parentheses — records through end of season)
Rank Team Record Points Last

1 Georgia Gwinnett (9) 26-0 219 1
2 Xavier 17-8 212 3
3 Lindsey Wilson 17-4 202 7
4 Dalton State 19-6 201 5
5-tie Northwestern Ohio 16-4 188 4
5-tie Auburn Montgomery 19-5 188 2
7 Keiser 20-4 178 6
8 Coastal Georgia 13-4 170 8
9 William Carey 13-8 160 9
10 Aquinas 23-8 154 10
11 Lewis-Clark State 12-10 148 12
12 Cardinal Stritch 17-8 147 11
13 Westmont 10-9 133 14
14 Cumberlands 13-8 122 18
15 Warner 16-5 120 20
16 Olivet Nazarene 15-9 118 16
17 McPherson 13-6 102 15
18 Reinhardt 14-4 101 13
19 Mobile 11-8 99 17
20 Bethany (Kan.) 13-4 92 19
21 Middle Georgia 11-9 75 21
22 Pikeville 11-5 74 22
23 Campbellsville 14-11 65 23
24 Tennessee Wesleyan 18-4 55 24
25 IU Southeast 16-12 45 25

Dropped from rankings: none
Others receiving votes: Missouri Baptist 35, Marian (Ind.) 33, Southeastern (Fla.) 22, Asbury 10, Cumberland 6, Our Lady of the Lake 5, Hastings 5, Indiana Tech 3, SCAD Atlanta 3

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
twitter.com/xulagold
www.facebook.com/xulagold 

FAMU baseball coach Shouppe: ‘Those guys gave everything they had’

TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- Florida A&M’s record-setting baseball season is over surprisingly early, and head coach Jamey Shouppe has had some time to look back at a tournament run that started with title aspirations and ended with a loss to Norfolk State.

The Rattlers (31-21) went 1-2 in the double-elimination MEAC tournament, dropping games to Bethune-Cookman and the Spartans on Monday in Salisbury, Md., despite being the No. 1 seed from the conference’s South Division.

After two days of weather delays, FAMU’s bats were uncharacteristically cold in the losses, and Shouppe said the team didn’t play its best defense. The pitching finally came through for the Rattlers, but the team’s typically overpowering hitters couldn’t get timely hits.

FAMU lost to Bethune-Cookman 5-2, then lost to Norfolk State 4-2. The Wildcats went on to win the tournament and will represent the MEAC in an NCAA Regional.

“I was numb after the game,” Shouppe said. “I was numb for the next 24 hours after the game. We went cold, offensively. The bats had kind of carried us for most of the season and we were just flat. Nothing went our way.”

CONTINUE READING

DSU Appoints Dr. James Ammons as New Provost

DR. JAMES AMMONS

DOVER, Delaware -- Delaware State University today announced the appointment of Dr. James H. Ammons as its new Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs after months of searching and days of campus interviews with various stakeholders.

Dr. Ammons – a native of Winter Haven, Fla. – is currently a professor of political science at Florida A&M University (FAMU), his alma mater. His career at FAMU spanned two separate tenures totaling 27 years as a tenured professor and executive administrator – including serving as that institution’s president from 2007-2012 and as its provost and vice president of Academic Affairs from 1995-2001.

In between those FAMU tenures, Dr. Ammons was the chancellor at North Carolina Central University from 2001-2007.

Dr. Ammons’ wealth of experience includes leading each institution’s strategic planning process and aligning those outcomes with academic excellence and quality programs. A few highlights in Ammons’ career are the development of 22 new degree programs, increased enrollment and the re-establishment of the FAMU College of Law.

DSU President Harry L. Williams said the faculty, students, Search Committee, Board of Trustees and Administrative Council selected Ammons as their first choice in this search. “I’m excited about the opportunity to bring Ammons into the fold of DSU,” Dr. Williams said. “We are fortunate to have an individual of such great talents and academic experience. I’m particularly enthusiastic that Ammons has the background and experience which will allow him to hit the ground running.”

Dr. Ammons said that he is excited about the opportunity to join the community of scholars at Delaware State University. “It’s an honor to be a part of the academic excellence that is evident at DSU,” he said. “I have worked across the HBCU arena and I am impressed with the magnitude of innovation and student success that is displayed at Delaware State University.”

Dr. Ammons’ number one priority at Delaware State University is to continue to “move the needle” on retention, graduation and gainful employment at DSU. “Together, we will continue to strive to be a model HBCU and a model for higher educational institutions around the world,” the new provost said.

He has a Bachelor of Science in Political Science from Florida A&M, a Master of Science in Public Administration and a Ph.D. in Government, both from Florida State University.

Dr. Ammons will replace Dr. Alton Thompson, who resigned from the University on March 4. The new provost and vice president of Academic Affairs will begin his post at DSU on July 18th.

COURTESY DELAWARE STATE UNIVERSITY MEDIA RELATIONS

Claflin track coach gets top honor

ORANGEBURG, South Carolina -- Claflin University head track and field coach Lincoln London has been named the 2016 U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country NCAA Division II Men’s Outdoor Track & Field South Region Coach of the Year. This is London’s second national honor this season, as he earned the same accolade for the 2016 indoor season.

Sophomore Trisana Fairweather was named the 2016 USTFCCCA NCAA Division II Women’s Outdoor Track & Field South Region Track Athlete of the Year.

The award winners were determined by a vote of USTFCCCA member coaches. Only those individuals from USTFCCCA member programs are eligible for awards.

London, who in his third year leading the Claflin program, coached athletes to NCAA Automatic times in the 400 meters and the 4×400 meter relay. The relay is ranked No. 1 in the South Region and is No. 2 on the national list.

CONTINUE READING

Bryan Henry: FAMU Ending doesn’t take away from season

TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- We always preach to our Florida A&M team how hard the game of baseball is. Baseball is a game of failure, and it’s more about how you handle and respond to that failure that will determine how good of a player or team you are.

Unfortunately, we now have to wait until next season to respond to the way our season ended.

Our season didn’t end the way we wanted it to end, losing to Bethune-Cookman and Norfolk State Monday in the MEAC Tournament. But hey, that’s baseball.

We will not let two games take away from the incredible season we had this year. That would not be fair to the seniors that have helped build up this program. They helped last year’s team reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history and put up a 30 win season this year for the first time in a long time.

CONTINUE READING