Mississippi Valley Devilettes Bound for Mobile for NCAA Regional

ITTA BENA, Mississippi – The Mississippi Valley State softball team gathered Sunday night in the Devil’s Den on campus to find out where and when it will play in the NCAA Tournament.

As the NCAA Softball Selection Show aired on ESPNU, the SWAC champions was elated to learn the news that they’ll be traveling this week to play in the regional hosted by No. 13 South Alabama in Mobile, which is scheduled for May 17-19. Other teams competing in the regional include Mississippi State and Florida State.

The Devilettes will begin the tournament on Friday against USA at 6 p.m. CST and will be broadcasted live on ESPN3.

“I’m glad that this good group of players gets to keep their season going,” said MVSU head coach Lee Smith. “They worked hard all season and showed what they’re made of at the SWAC Tournament by winning five straight games. They’ve excelled both on the field and in the classroom, so this is something that they definitely deserve.”

It’ll mark the eighth time MVSU has played in the NCAA Tournament. The Devilettes hold a 3-16 record in the tournament, with wins against Missouri and Cornell in 2004 and Chattanooga in 2009.

The Devilettes earned a spot in the tournament following five straight victories in last week’s SWAC Tournament in Decatur, Ala. MVSU defeated Alabama State, 11-3, Saturday to win its eighth tournament title in the last 10 years.    

COURTESY MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

CAU Releases 2013 Football Schedule

ATLANTA, Georgia —  A new dawn is on the horizon for the 2013 Clark Atlanta University football program under the helm of first year Head Coach Kevin Weston as the Panthers unveiled their 2013 schedule highlighted by three first time opponents and five HOME games at Panther Stadium.

With an even number of conference and non-conference games, the Panthers will open the season again this year against the University of West Alabama Sept. 7th on the road followed by their HOME opener against Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) foe Stillman College Sept. 14th.

Four of the next five games will feature games against conference opponents beginning with Fort Valley State whom the Panthers will meet on a neutral turf in Griffin, Ga., for the Iris City Classic. Unlike last season, Clark Atlanta will have a BYE week during the season (9/28) as the team prepares for the AUC rivalry showdown with Morehouse College (@ B.T. Harvey Stadium) that will kick-off the first football Saturday in October. The next HOME contest includes a first time match-up against the College of Faith (Arkansas) followed by a conference divisional game at Benedict College.

This year’s Homecoming game, which will be played later in October than in recent years, will pit CAU against the Golden Rams of Albany State University October 26th in Panther Stadium.

In November, CAU will host two of its final three games versus non-conference opponents at HOME against Shorter University (11/2) another first-time opponent and Edward Waters College (11/9) who last met the Panthers in 2005. To wrap up the 2013 regular season, the Panthers will travel to Baton Rouge, La., for a battle in the Bayou with Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) opponent Southern University Jaguars which will be the first meeting ever between the two teams.

CAU football season tickets will go on sale in July. For all the latest information regarding CAU athletics, stay tuned to  www.clarkatlantasports.com.

2013 CAU Football Schedule

SEPTEMBER
7       @ University of West Alabama (Livingston, Ala.)                                                                                                         
14     STILLMAN COLLEGE                                         
21     Fort Valley State University ** (Griffin, Ga.)                                 
28    OPEN      
OCTOBER
5       @ Morehouse College ** (Atlanta, Ga.)
12    COLLEGE OF FAITH
19    @ Benedict College** (Columbia, S.C.)
26    ALBANY STATE UNIVERSITY **        (HOMECOMING 2013)
NOVEMBER
2     SHORTER UNIVERSITY
9     EDWARD WATERS COLLEGE
16   @ Southern University (Baton Rouge, La.)

Home games in BOLD CAPS are played at CAU Panther Stadium.
** Denotes Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) EAST Division Games.

COURTESY CLARK ATLANTA UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

WKU Hires 16-Year Coaching Veteran Shawn Forrest As Assistant Men's Basketball Coach

ASSISTANT COACH SHAWN FORREST

BOWLING GREEN, Kentucky — Western Kentucky University head men's basketball coach Ray Harper announced Monday the hiring of 16-year collegiate coaching veteran Shawn Forrest as assistant men's basketball coach.

Forrest spent the 2012-13 season at Louisiana-Lafayette, and prior to his time in Lafayette, Forrest had been an assistant coach at North Texas, Arkansas State and Troy, as well as Florida A&M.

A 1998 graduate of Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Forrest helped the Ragin’ Cajuns to the quarterfinals of the 2013 Sun Belt Conference Tournament after coming to Louisiana-Lafayette after spending four seasons from 2008-09 to 2011-12 as an assistant coach at North Texas.

"I am really looking forward to working with Coach Harper and the rest of the staff and student-athletes here at WKU," Forrest said. "The job Coach Harper has done in the last two seasons is very impressive, and I think that WKU is one of the best basketball jobs in the country. It is not every day you get a chance to coach at a school that has been to the Final Four. I have admired this program for a while, and I could not turn down the job when Coach Harper called."

While with the Mean Green, Forrest worked with teams that averaged over 21 wins per season. In 2009-10, the Mean Green went 24-9, won the Sun Belt Conference Tournament crown and advanced to the NCAA Tournament and faced Kansas State in the first round.

Forrest was instrumental in helping land the 2010-11 recruiting class of Tony Mitchell, Jordan Williams, Chris Jones and Roger Franklin, which was ranked as high as No. 31 in the country.

Prior to moving to Denton, Forrest worked as an assistant coach at Arkansas State for six seasons from 2002-03 through 2007-08. He helped the Red Wolves to multiple top-100 recruiting classes, which included a pair of two-time All-Sun Belt Conference players, a Sun Belt Conference Newcomer of the Year, a league-leading scorer, a second-leading scorer and a third-leading scorer.

Forrest joined the Red Wolf staff in August 2002 after serving as the recruiting coordinator at Florida A&M during the 2001-02 season.

While at Florida A&M, Forrest helped the Rattlers to a fourth-place finish in the MEAC, which was the highest the program had finished in 10 years.

Forrest also recruited Terrance Woods, who was a two-time All-MEAC First Team performer. Woods holds the third- and fourth-best single-season three-point field goal totals in NCAA history, and in 2004 he won the NABC All-Star Three-Point Contest at the Final Four in San Antonio.

Prior to his stint in Tallahassee, Forrest was an assistant at Troy for four seasons from 1997-98 to 2000-01. During that time, Forrest worked with the guards and assisted with recruiting, academics and travel.

During his time at Troy, Forrest helped land four-straight top-100 recruiting classes, which produced five all-conference players and two players of the year in the Atlantic Sun Conference. Forrest helped the Trojans to two regular-season Atlantic Sun championships, one tournament title, one NCAA Tournament appearance and one postseason NIT appearance.

Forrest received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff in 1998.

Coaching Career
Troy, assistant coach, 1998-2001 (4 seasons)
Florida A&M, assistant coach, 2002 (1 season)
Arkansas State, assistant coach, 2003-08 (6 seasons)
North Texas, assistant coach, 2009-12 (4 seasons)
Louisiana-Lafayette, assistant coach, 2013 (1 season)
WKU, assistant coach, 2014-present

COURTESY WESTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC MEDIA RELATIONS

NSU Spartans lineman granted a sixth year by NCAA

NORFOLK, Virginia  --  Norfolk State offensive tackle Blake Matthews has been granted a rare sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA because of medical hardship, Spartans coach Pete Adrian said.

Adrian said he got word last Friday from the school's compliance officer that he'd have Matthews back this fall.

"It was welcome news," Adrian said. "That's a big plus for us, just for leadership and things of that nature."

Matthews isn't just another guy on the offensive line; he was the 2011 MEAC Offensive Lineman of the Year as a junior.

He missed all of last season, however, after suffering a knee injury during the team's second fall practice.

Matthews, a 6-foot-4, 315-pound native of Manassas, was first-team All ...

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Hampton U. softball NCAA berth part of building process

HAMPTON, Virginia  --  The person least surprised by Hampton University softball's first conference title and NCAA tournament berth in 17 years is head coach Treena Peel.

"That's been the goal since I got to Hampton," Peel said Monday, "but knowing this year's team and the talent that we have, from the beginning I knew we were the best team. It was just a matter of putting it all together every game day. We did that pretty consistently throughout the season. It's not surprising. It's just that I feel great that we were able to execute and accomplish our goal."

The Lady Pirates (34-24) were placed in the Gainesville, Fla., regional, where they face second-ranked and Southeastern Conference champ Florida (52-7) on Friday at 6 p.m. The four-team regional also includes Big East champ South Florida (43-14) and Southern Conference champ Georgia Southern (32-27).

"Florida's a great team," Peel said. "But that's why you play the game. You never know what's going to happen. Hopefully, we come out and have the game of our life and we end up victorious."

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Plea Deals In FAMU Hazing Case Raise Questions About Whether Charges Will Stick

ORLANDO, Florida  --  Four people have reached plea deals in the 2011 hazing death of a Florida A & M University Drum Major and all have settled for less than the maximum penalties of their charges. Experts say hazing is a crime that has proved difficult for prosecutors, but some say they expect others charged in the FAMU case to see stiffer penalties as a trial date nears.

The latest defendant in the FAMU hazing case to reach a deal with prosecutors is Rikki Wills. Wills was a fellow drum major in FAMU’s “Marching 100” band and prosecutors say he was also aboard the bus the night Robert Champion died after being beaten in a brutal hazing ritual.   Wills’ no contest plea means  the manslaughter charge against him has been dismissed, and he won’t face any jail time. And some say, it’s a familiar scenario when it comes to getting convictions in hazing cases:

“Courts have been very, very light on hazing in the United States. We’ve had about 173 hazing deaths. The combined total of those deaths have only been just a couple years in jail," said Hank Nuwer a Journalism professor at Franklin College in Indiana. He tracks hazing incidents around the world and has also written four books on the subject.



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Lincoln University Blue Tigers Win Fifth PGA Minority Collegiate Championship!

LINCOLN UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI 2013 DIVISION II
 PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Champs
(Credit: Lincoln University Athletics)

PORT ST. LUCIE, Florida -- Four members of the Lincoln men's golf team carded sub-80 scores, and the Blue Tigers won their fifth PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship on Sunday (May 12). The Blue Tigers were the only team in field to register a combined score less than 900, finishing with a three-round total of 898 to win the Division II title. It marked the lowest final score in program history by the Blue Tigers at the PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship.

Steven Mallow finished third in the individual standings, closing play with a 74 after firing a 71 on Friday (May 10) and a 75 on Saturday (May 11). His final tally of 220 was three strokes better than teammate Nick Goeke, who shot a 223 after tallying rounds of 76, 72 and 75. Austin Wheeler had the next-best finish for LU, firing three rounds under 80 with scores of 72, 78 and 76 to finish the tournament with a three-round score of 226.

Kenny Conrad shot a 77 on Sunday to finish with a final score of 234. Conrad had previously shot an 81 in the first round before rebounding to card a 76 on the second. Eric Kosmatka rounded out the team's play at the tournament, ending with a 237 after shooting rounds of 76, 80 and 81.

Lincoln's team score of 898 was more than 20 shots better than the next-closest competitor, as Texas A&M International took second place with a team score of 922. Virginia State finished third (932), Virginia Union took fourth (961) and Fayetteville State, which won the championship over Lincoln in 2012, finished in fifth with a score of 963. Morehouse placed sixth (983) while Paine finished seventh (988) and St. Augustine's rounded out the eight team field with a score of 1,015.

This marks the fifth Minority Collegiate Golf Championship in the history of the Lincoln men's golf program, and the first national title since taking the 2005 championship with a final score of 928. Lincoln had also previously won the championship in 1999 (906), 2001 (904) and 2002 (914).

The 27th PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship, Presented by Brown Capital Management, was played in Port St. Lucie, Fla. on the Ryder Course of the PGA Golf Club.

By Dan Carr, Assistant AD for Media Relations
LINCOLN UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI

Bethune-Cookman men and women earn titles at PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship

2012-13 Bethune-Cookman University Women's Golf Team
Credit: The PGA of America

PORT ST. LUCIE, Florida – It was an exciting final round at PGA Golf Club on Sunday that included two playoffs, with both the men’s and women’s teams from Bethune-Cookman University claiming titles at the 27th PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship presented by Brown Capital Management.

In the women’s division, Bethune-Cookman captured the title in thrilling fashion. The Wildcats defeated the University of Texas-Pan American on the first playoff hole to claim their championship-record 10th overall title.

Both teams finished with a 909 total then headed back to the 18th hole on the Ryder Course for the playoff. In the playoff, each team took the four lowest scores of the five players who played the hole. Bethune-Cookman finished with a total score of 1 under par, while Texas-Pan American finished 1 over par on the playoff hole.

PHOTO GALLERIES: Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Youth Clinic | Sunday

Chicago State University finished alone in third place overall at 935.

The Bethune-Cookman women’s team was led by Andrea Orozco, who was also the women’s team medalist, finishing with a 54-hole total of 4-over-par 220.

The Bethune-Cookman men’s team also won in exciting fashion, making up a four-stroke deficit in the final round, and winning by a single stroke over 36-hole leader Texas-Pan American. Alabama State University finished third, 12 strokes behind Bethune-Cookman.

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Stillman to hold 2013 Down & Dirty Football Camp

CREDIT: STILLMAN COLLEGE ATHLETICS

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama  -- The Stillman College football program will hold the 2013 Stillman Down & Dirty Football Camp from June 18-20, 2012.

The three-day camp established specifically for offensive and defensive lineman will provide instruction in all phases of play "in the trenches" - including stance, starts, pass blocking, pursuit angle, pulling, sepertion and gap control.

"One of the most important but overlooked areas of the game is the play of the lineman," said Stillman head coach Teddy Keaton, who will serve camp director.  "We hope to provide quality instruction over the three-day period and assist lineman in becoming better football players.

The camp is open to students ranging from sixth (6th) grade to high school seniors.

Camp Costs:
$ 250 per camper;
$ 240 for 2 – 5 from same school
$230 for 6 or more from same school

For more information, contact Keaton at teddykeaton@gmail.com or via phone at (205) 247- 8172.

For those who wish to register online, visit www.BishopDullaghan.com

DOWNLOAD 2013 CAMP APPLICATION HERE (PDF)

 
COURTESY STILLMAN COLLEGE SPORTS INFORMATION

Stillman College baseball headed to NCAA Divison II South Region tourney

TUSCALOOSA, Alabama  --  After winning the 2013 SIAC Baseball Championship, the Stillman Tiger baseball team finds itself on the road again ... this time to participate in the 2013 NCAA Division II South Region Tournament.  The Tigers will be one of six teams participating in the four-day tournament with the winner advancing to the Division II World Series in Cary, North Carolina.

The region will feature several national powers as four of the last seven NCAA II national champions will be among the field. Host institution Tampa won the 2006 and 2007 championships and will be joined by fellow Sunshine State Conference member Florida Tech.  Last season's region and national runner-up Delta State will join West Florida, who won the 2011 crown as it represented South Region and Gulf South Conference, along with the 2013 GSC champion Valdosta State.

This will be the 6th time in seven years that Stillman will participate in the South Region Tournament.  Last season, the Tigers and head coach Dony Crawford made history by winning their opening round game against host school Tampa 6-5 in 13 innings before continuing to turn heads defeating Nova Southeastern 6-4 and UAH 11-5.  The Tigers fell in the regional final to Delta State.

 

TOURNAMENT WEBSITE

 

Following is the complete schedule for the 2013 NCAA II South Regional:

Thursday, May 16, 2013 Game 1 - No. 1 Tampa vs. No. 6 Stillman, 11 a.m.
Game 2 - No. 2 Delta State vs. No. 5 Valdosta State, 3 p.m.
Game 3 - No. 3 Florida Tech vs. No. 4 West Florida, 7 p.m.

Friday, May 17, 2013
Game 4 - Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2, 11 a.m.?
Game 5 - Winner of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 3, 3 p.m.
Game 6 - Winner of Game 2 vs. Winner of Game 3, 7 p.m.

Saturday, May 18, 2013
Game 7 - Winner of Game 5 vs. Winner of Game 6, 11 a.m.
Game 8 - Loser of Game 6 vs. Winner of Game 4, 3 p.m.
Game 9 - Loser of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 8, 7 p.m.

Sunday, May 19, 2013
Game 10 - Winner of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 9, 12 p.m.
Game 11 - Winner of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 9 (if necessary), 3:15 p.m.

COURTESY STILLMAN COLLEGE SPORTS INFORMATION

WSSU baseball team to play host to Atlantic Region

WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina  --  Winston-Salem State was awarded the No. 2 seed in the Atlantic Region baseball tournament and will play host to the region later this week.     

The Rams (38-11) will take on fifth-seeded East Stroudsburg (33-16) on Thursday at Wake Forest Baseball Park.
 Coach Kevin Ritsche of the Rams said they were hoping to get the No. 1 seed in the region but he loves the fact they won’t be traveling.

“It’s a big deal not to have to go anywhere but across town to Wake Forest,” Ritsche said. “By the time you travel to a regional and then try to get practice in and everything else it’s definitely rushed.”

The other games on Thursday at Wake Forest Baseball Park will be top-seeded Millersville (38-16) against sixth-seeded Concord (36-18) and third-seeded Seton Hill (39-15) against fourth-seeded Shippensburg (28-20).

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12 student-athletes, 2 managers receive Xavier degrees

First graduation held on the XU campus since 1983. Venue was the new
 Convocation Center

 

Facebook photos

NEW ORLEANS — Twelve student-athletes received degrees Saturday at Xavier University of Louisiana's 2013 commencement at the new XU Convocation Center
    
. It was the first time since 1983 that commencement was held on campus.
Also graduating were two student managers employed by the athletics department.
    
Student-athletes graduating (with high schools in parentheses) were:

    •  LaShelle O. Brawner, Denver, Colo. (George Washington), women's basketball, bachelor of science.
     •  Denzell Amonte Erves, Vicksburg, Miss. (Vicksburg), men's basketball, bachelor of science.

     •  SiMon Chenae Franklin, Baton Rouge, La. (St. Joseph's Academy), women's basketball and track and field, bachelor of science.
     •  Steffen Larue Giles-Osborn, Atlanta, Ga. (Westlake), men's tennis, bachelor of science.
     •  Jasmine Latise Grant, Shreveport, La. (Southwood), women's basketball, bachelor of science.
     •  Cordell James Hadnot, Los Angeles, Calif. (Westchester), men's basketball, bachelor of arts.
     •  Keldra Deanna Hall, Dallas, Texas (Molina), women's basketball and track and field, bachelor of arts.
     •  Christopher Jarrod Iles, Houston, Texas (Alief Hastings), men's basketball, bachelor of science.
     •  Kevin Miller, Baton Rouge, La. (Catholic), men's basketball, bachelor of science.
     •  Anthony Karon Simmons, Rochester, N.Y. (Allendale Columbia), men's basketball, bachelor of science.
     •  Marc Zachary Taylor, Monroe, La. (St. Frederick), men's tennis, bachelor of science.
     •  Brandi Aishah-Khadij Young, Memphis, Tenn. (East), women's basketball, bachelor of science.
    

XU men's basketball graduates Kevin Miller, left, and Anthony Simmons

Facebook photos.

 

Student-managers graduating were:
     •  Kara Marie Keller, women's basketball, bachelor of science.
     •  Jeremy Bernard Pierre, men's basketball, bachelor of arts.
    

Brawner, Hadnot, Taylor and Young completed degree requirements in December. Keller graduated magna cum laude with honors in mathematics.
    

Xavier is one of 38 U.S. colleges listed as a "Best Buy School" in the 2013 edition of the Fiske Guide to Colleges.

 

By Ed Cassiere, SID

XULAATHLETICS

XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA


READ RELATED ARTICLE
522 to receive degrees Saturday at Xavier University commencement

   

Mississippi Valley State Wins SWAC Softball Championship

Courtesy SWAC.org

Photo: Sidney Jackson

DECATUR, Alabama  -- .Mississippi Valley State University captured a consecutive Southwestern Athletic Conference softball championship with an 11-3 decision over Alabama State on Saturday at Wilson Morgan Park.

After dropping its first game of the tournament, MVSU (25-30) won five straight en route to its conference-leading eigth overall SWAC title. The victories include six consecutive crowns from 2004-2009.

MVSU gathered 13 hits and was powered by Nicole Burr at the plate. Burr finished 3-for-4 with a home run, four runs scored, and four RBI.

MVSU tallied runs in six innings, recording three in the first, without giving up the lead for the game. The Delta Devilettes went scoreless in the fifth while adding four runs in the seventh.

Yasmin Battle, Brittany Lilly, and Xiomara Perez recorded multiple hits. Battle went 4-for-5 with a RBI and two runs scored. Lilly gathered two RBI going 2-for-5 with one run scored. Perez registered a RBI with two hits.

Alexandria Robertson was named tournament MVP. Robertson finished MVSU's six-game tournament slate hitting 8-for-20, with three runs scored, four RBI, five doubles, and one home run. For the game, she went 1-for-3 with a run scored.

Kimberly Spivey (9-9) picked up the win giving up two hits and three runs (two earned). Relief pitcher, Alicia Lorenz, closed out the game scattering four hits, no runs, one walk with five strikeouts in four innings.

ASU (15-33) committed six errors as starting pitcher, Bailey Patt, was charged with the loss. Patt gave up nine hits, seven runs (six earned) while walking four with a pair of strikeouts.

After adding a run in the first to close the deficit, 3-1, the Lady Hornets trailed 5-1 in the bottom of the third.

Brehanna Rodrigues opened the bottom half of the inning with a triple and Tamara Williams walked before stealing second. Makavla Webster singled on a fielder's choice to score a run, and with runners on third and first with one out, an error plated Williams for the Lady Hornets final tally.

Rodigues went 2-for-3 with three runs scored to lead ASU. Webster recorded two RBI on one hit.

BOX SCORE

SWAC SOFTBALL ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Alicia Lorenz (Mississippi Valley State)
Nicole Burr (Mississippi Valley State)
Brehanna Rodrigues (Alabama State)
Meagan Dixon (Alabama State)
Bailey Patt (Alabama State)
Cally Falls (Prairie View A&M)
Leanna Flores (Prairie View A&M)
Canessa Swanson (Jackson State)

TOURNAMENT MVP
Alexandria Robertson (Mississippi Valley State)

Courtesy SWAC.org

Southern turns its focus to SWAC baseball tournament

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana  --  Nasty weather wiped out Southern’s three-game exhibition series against LSU-Eunice this weekend, robbing the Jaguars of a chance to do some fine-tuning before heading to Fort Worth, Texas, for the Southwestern Athletic Conference baseball tournament.

The teams had planned to play once Friday and twice Saturday until rain storms interfered.

The silver lining, Southern coach Roger Cador said, is that a couple more days off gave the Jaguars (20-21) even more time to rest players they hope to soon have back.

“We’re getting everybody back at the right time,” Cador said.

Injuries played a role in Southern’s position as a SWAC tournament bubbl
e team with only two weekends remaining on its Western Division schedule.

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Coach Mom: Mother-daughter bonds extend to playing field

RICHMOND, Virginia (EXCERPT) --  Mother’s Day isn’t restricted to the second Sunday in May for women who coach their children in competitive athletics. It can occur just as easily on a frosty night in November. Or a muggy Saturday afternoon in August.

Virginia Union University Head Women's Basketball Coach
Barvenia Wooten-Cherry coached daughter, Vicki Collier in 2012
Credit: Times-Dispatch.

Virginia Union women’s basketball coach Barvenia Wooten-Cherry knows the feeling. Wooten-Cherry coached her daughter, Vicki Collier, during the Panthers’ 2012 season. Like her mother two decades earlier, Collier became an all-CIAA performer while wearing VUU’s maroon and steel.

“Was it a good experience? No, it was a great experience,” Wooten-Cherry said. “Something inside of me had always wanted the two of us to do great things together on a basketball court. So to actually have the opportunity to be there with her, not only as her mother but also as her coach and mentor, wow. What more could I possibly ask for?”

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Hampton captures MEAC softball tournament, NCAA bid

ORMOND BEACH, Florida  --  Hampton University earned its first Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament championship since 1996 and an automatic NCAA tournament berth, beating Norfolk State 7-3 in a winner-take-all final at Ormond Beach, Fla.

The Pirates finished 4-1 to win the eight-team event. They will learn on a 10 p.m. ESPNU show Sunday night where they are headed for the nationals.

Norfolk State, which needed a rally just to avoid a two-and-out exit on the first day, came within one victory of a memorable title. After dropping their opener, the Spartans ran off a streak of victories.

HU (34-24) has won 15 of its last 18. Freshman Taylor McCoy was named the tournament's most outstanding performer, and Margaret Wilkins and pitcher Jailynn Jackson joined her as HU's representatives on the all-tournament team. Hampton's Trena Peel was named the outstanding coach.

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B-CU Women's Team Leading into Final Round of the 27th PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship

Credit: The PGA of America

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. – The wind picked up on Saturday at PGA Golf Club, but the University of Texas-Pan American men’s team and Bethune Cookman University women’s team played well enough to lead heading into the final round of the 27th PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship presented by Brown Capital Management.

The 2013 edition of the 54-hole Championship, which will conclude tomorrow, features nearly 200 players representing more than 40 colleges and universities.

The Texas-Pan American men, who trailed first-round leader Bethune-Cookman by 11 strokes, were catapulted by Kevin Kirokossian’s stellar 5-under-par 67 on the Wanamaker Course and lead the men’s division I competition by four strokes heading into the final round tomorrow.

PHOTO GALLERIES: Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Youth Clinic |

The defending champion in the division, Texas-Pan American used a second-round 3-over-par 291 for a two-day total of 585.

Bethune-Cookman is now in second place overall at 589. Alabama State University is in third at 594.

“The round was really good today, considering I played the par 5s at one over for the day," said Kirakossian, a senior. “Our team wanted to come out and win the day, shoot the lowest score of any team out there. Then we could see where we stood and try and win it all tomorrow.”

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Outfielder Moore gives WSSU a spark

WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina  -  Travis Moore, a 26-year-old senior at Winston-Salem State, gets it.       

A senior left fielder, he cut quite a path on his way to becoming one of the Rams’ best players this season. 

He went from Greensboro’s Dudley High School (graduating in 2005) to Spartanburg Methodist College to Surry Community College and finally to WSSU.

“I wanted to go out with a bang,” Moore, smiling, said of his final season.

Moore has been a spark plug at the top of Coach Kevin Ritsche’s lineup. He leads the team in hitting with a .399 average and has 41 stolen bases and 32 RBIs.

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Longtime XU venue, The Barn, will be razed on Monday

The final XU competition at The Barn was a five-set women's volleyball victory against city rival SUNO on Nov. 1, 2012. XU's basketball teams played their final games at The Barn
on Feb. 13, 2012, and swept a doubleheader against Tougaloo.

NEW ORLEANS — The Barn, one of the enduring symbols of Xavier University of Louisiana, will be razed next week.

Demolition of the 1,300-seat gymnasium — which opened in 1937 and was the home of XU's Department of Intercollegiate Athletics and the home facility for teams in men's and women's basketball and women's volleyball — will begin Monday morning.

The Convocation Center, a $25 million facility with seating for as many as 4,500, opened in early November to replace The Barn. Both XU basketball teams played their 2012-13 home schedules there. The women's volleyball team played its home matches at The Barn during the fall of 2012 and will begin competition in the new facility in September.
    
"The Barn had a lot of wear and tear, and Xavier outgrew The Barn over the years," said Kenneth St. Charles, XU's vice president for institutional advancement. "With the Convocation Center, we now have a facility which can house the entire campus."
    
The Barn suffered significant damage as a result of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and it qualified for Federal Emergency Management Agency funding. When FEMA gave Xavier the option to use that money for a new facility, the university opted to build instead of renovate The Barn.
    
"But under those conditions," St. Charles said, "Xavier's use of FEMA funding for the Convocation Center required us to tear down The Barn."
    
Xavier's spring commencement, scheduled for Saturday in the Convocation Center, will mark the first time since 1983 that an XU graduation is held on campus.
    
The offices of the men's and women's basketball coaches and the athletics trainers are in the Convocation Center. Opened in October was the Convocation Center Annex, a three-story building about 30 yards from the new arena, to house the other coaches, athletics and recreational sports administrators, health and physical education classes and the instructors of those classes.
    
Xavier officials have yet to determine the future of the space which will be created by The Barn's demolition.


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

XU coach, player, team garner HBCU Awards nominations

2012-13 XU GOLD NUGGETS TENNIS TEAM

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana has received four nominations, three in athletics, for the third annual HBCU Awards.
    
Christabell Hamilton (women's volleyball) was nominated for female coach of the year. SiMon Franklin (women's basketball) was nominated for female athlete of the year. XU women's tennis was nominated for female team of the year. Also nominated was XU's College of Pharmacy for best STEM program (science, technology, engineering, mathematics).    
     

Christabell Hamilton

Hamilton, who resigned after the 2012 season and two years at Xavier, coached the Gold Nuggets to records of 22-8 overall and 10-0 in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference. For the second consecutive year her team won GCAC regular-season and tournament championships and qualified for NAIA National Championship. The Nuggets produced a school-record 11 consecutive road victories and won a regular-season tournament championship for the first time in the program's five-year history.
    
A native of Pago Pago, American Samoa, and a graduate of Eastern New Mexico University, Hamilton departed Xavier with a 45-15 career record. Her teams never lost a GCAC match — 20 in the regular season, eight in tournaments.
    
Franklin, a 5-foot-7 guard from Baton Rouge, La., and a graduate of St. Joseph's Academy, earned honorable mention on the NAIA Division I Women's Basketball All-America Team. She was All-GCAC for the second consecutive year. Franklin led Xavier with 10.7 points, 2.4 steals and 24.9 minutes per game this past season and also averaged three rebounds and two assists. A four-year starter, Franklin is one of nine Gold Nuggets to reach 1,000 points, 300 rebounds and 200 steals in a career and is 17th all-time at Xavier with 1,136 points. She will receive her bachelor's degree from the university on Saturday.
    

SiMon Franklin

The Xavier women's tennis team, coached by Alan Green and led by nationally ranked singles players Kourtney Howell, Brion Flowers and Amanda Materre, will enter next week's NAIA National Championship as the top seed. When the Gold Nuggets were voted No. 1 in the April 16 coaches poll, it was the first time a Xavier team in any sport had been ranked first in the NAIA. The XU women are 17-7 overall and 10-0 against ranked NAIA opponents. The Gold Nuggets have three victories against NCAA Division I opponents.
    
The nominees for male alumnus of the year include Lane College and Super Bowl XLVII standout Jacoby Jones. His mother, Emily London-Jones, is Xavier's director of student financial aid.
    
The Center for HBCU Media Advocacy Inc. sponsors the awards, which also will be presented for arts and community engagement.
    
Xavier is one of 38 U.S. colleges listed as a "Best Buy School" in the 2013 edition of the Fiske Guide to Colleges.

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

Former FAMU student Rikki Wills pleads no contest in hazing case

ORLANDO, Florida  --  Former FAMU drum major Rikki Wills, who insists that he tried to shield his college roommate Robert Champion from a brutal hazing in Orlando in 2011, pleaded no contest today to felony hazing  resulting in death.

Wills, 25, will not be sentenced until next month. But he will not face a jail sentence, said Assistant State Attorney Nicole Pegues.

Wills, who was set to stand trial Monday, accepted a plea offer from prosecutors who hope to use his testimony to build a stronger case against the 11 remaining defendants in the hazing scandal that led to the suspension of the iconic Florida A&M University band.

Champion, 26, one of six student leaders of the band, was ...

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ASU to meet VSU in NCAA South Sub-Region 1 tourney

VALDOSTA, Georgia  --  The Blazers open the region tournament against Albany State tonight at 7 p.m., following the conclusion of the earlier game that pits St. Leo, the champion of the Sunshine State Conference, and Tampa, the No. 4 seed in the region.

VSU is a combined 4-0 against Albany State this season, outscoring the Golden Rams 45-3 in those games. Despite the dominance over the Golden Rams, the Blazers aren’t overlooking anyone, especially Albany State, which was to win the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournament last weekend, securing the automatic bid.

“They hit a lot of home runs in the conference tournament; they hit a whole lot of home runs,” Valdosta State head coach Thomas Macera said. “If you leave it over the plate they can hit it and they hit a lot of them in the conference tournament. So you can’t look past them or you will be in the loser’s bracket Saturday. We have got to worry about Friday first.”

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Winston-Salem Rams await D-II pairings announcement

WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina  --  No. 14 Winston-Salem State was back at work this week, preparing for the Division II national tournament.

The Rams (21-6) will find out who they’ll play late Sunday night when the field of 64 is announced, and they most likely will play at West Liberty (W.Va.) in the South Atlantic Regional, which will start March 16.

“We’ve spent this week trying to get their morale back up and just working on a lot of things we need to sharpen up,” said Coach Bobby Collins, who gave his players three days off after last week’s loss to Bowie State in the CIAA Tournament semifinals.

“We are back full bore at practice now, and it’s just a matter of knowing that we want to make a run, and it’s not a CIAA run this time, but a run at the national title.”

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NEW 12 MEMBER GRAMBLING LEGENDS SPORTS HALL OF FAME CLASS INCLUDES NFL STANDOUTS, COLLEGE CHAMPIONS

GRAMBLING, Louisiana  --  The Grambling Legends Sports Hall of Fame has announced a 12-member class for 2013 that includes former NFL stand-outs Frank Cornish and Woodrow Peoples, basketball All-American Rex Tippit and record-breaking collegiate quarterback Bruce Eugene, among others. 

Induction ceremonies will be held at 6 p.m. Saturday, July 13, 2013, at the Hobdy Assembly Center on the campus of Grambling State University. Tickets are $75 each; tables of 8 are available for $600. A reception for this year’s inductees will be held at 6:30 p.m. Friday, July 12, 2013 at the Eddie G. Robinson Museum on the GSU campus. This event is open to the public. 

Tickets may be purchased through the PayPal link on the group's Web site at gramblinglegends.net, or by contacting Albert Dennis III by phone at (318) 261-0898 or by email at albertdennis3 @bellsouth.net. 

Advertisements in the souvenir program are also available: Quarter pages are $150; half pages are $300; full pages are $500. Ad deadline is June 20. For more information on advertising, please contact Dennis.

 

Tippet and fellow inductee Robert Piper helped Grambling to the only men’s college basketball title in Louisiana history. Both Cornish and Peoples appeared in the Super Bowl. Additional biographical information on all 12 forthcoming Grambling Legends Sports Hall of Fame inductees follows …

 2013 GRAMBLING LEGENDS HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES

 

HILLARY BOSSIER: Led the nation with a 0.53 ERA in 1961, as Grambling claimed its first-ever SWAC baseball title. Bossier and Co. then advanced for the first of four national NAIA tournament appearances through 1967 under R.W.E. Jones. Bossier later pitched for two seasons with the Midwest’s minor-league affiliate of the New York Mets – going 6-2 in 1962 with 71 innings pitched.

 

JAMIE CALEB: A do-anything player, Caleb completed half of his passes in 1958 - putting him in the Top 10 all-time at Grambling - even while leading the Tigers in rushing. Drafted in the 16th round, he played for both Cleveland and Minnesota between the 1960-65 NFL seasons, a stint that included the Vikings’ inaugural campaign. His final pro game was an NFL title game loss to the Packers.

 

FRANK CORNISH: A two-way player for Eddie Robinson, Cornish earned first-team all-SWAC honors at offensive tackle in 1965 as Grambling claimed the league crown. He later played seven NFL seasons for Chicago, Cincinnati, Miami and Bills, advancing to the 1972 Super Bowl with the Dolphins. Cornish also played one season for the World Football League’s Jacksonville Sharks.

BRUCE EUGENE: A three-time finalist for the Walter Payton Award, Eugene led Grambling to SWAC titles in 2002 and again in 2005, when the Tigers went undefeated for just the third in school history. He left Grambling having claimed every major passing record, many of which had stood since his coach Doug Williams played for the Tigers in the 1970s.

 

WILBERT FRAZIER: Frazier averaged 17 points a game between 1961-65 as Grambling claimed consecutive basketball titles, posting a career-high 29-point average as a senior. Though selected at 12th overall by San Francisco in the 1965 NBA Draft, Frazier elected to play in the ABA, joining Houston and then the New York Nets. He also played six seasons in the Continental Basketball Association.

 

MIKE HOWELL: A standout safety at Grambling, this eighth-round NFL draft pick played with Cleveland and Dolphins for eight seasons, making 27 pro interceptions including a career-high 8 in 1966 with the Browns. He joined the Dolphins in time to take part in the NFL’s only perfect season in 1972, ending his career with a Super Bowl title.

 

PAULA MAYO: A two-sport collegiate star, Mayo averaged 30 points and 15 rebounds per game at GSU before becoming part of history in 1979. The Houston Angels, behind 36 points by Mayo, claimed the first-ever women’s pro title championship. Mayo, known affectionately then as “Moose,” was named all-pro in two of the Women’s Professional Basketball League’s three seasons of existence.

 

JOHN MENDENHALL: A first-team 1971 All-SWAC defender as Grambling claimed a league title, Mendenhall was a Senior Bowl invitee before coming a third-round pick in the 1972 draft. He then played in116 games over nine NFL seasons for the New York Giants and Detroit Lions, posting a career-best 10 sacks and 7 forced fumbles in 1977.

 

WOODROW PEOPLES: A stand-out guard as Grambling claimed a second straight SWAC title in 1967, Peoples was twice named to the Pro Bowl during his 13-year stint in the pros - both times with San Francisco. He concluded his NFL career with Philadelphia in the 1980 Super Bowl. Peoples has already been named to the American Football Association’s Semi-Pro Football Hall of Fame.

 

ROBERT PIPER: A member of Grambling’s legendary NAIA-winning championship basketball squad in 1961, Piper would later serve as GSU’s athletics director from 1997-98 before he passed after a battle with cancer. Piper had previously served as basketball coach at Western High School in Washington, D.C., where he mentored future Grambling Legend Larry Wright Sr.  

 

REX TIPPIT: Tippit was a team captain as the Tigers claimed the state of Louisiana’s lone national basketball championship, earning high praise from teammate and future NBA Hall of Famer Willis Reed, who called Tippit “the best player on the team.” Tippit claimed All-America honors in both 1960-61 before becoming a ninth-round pick in the 1961 NBA draft by the Syracuse Nationals.

 

RICHARD HARRIS: A first-team All-SWAC defender for Grambling in 1970, Harris played eight pro seasons after being picked fifth overall in the NFL draft by Philadelphia. He claimed all-rookie honors with the Eagles, then later played for Chicago and Seattle. Harris went on to serve 11 seasons as a coach with Canadian Football League, and also claimed a trio of semi-pro titles as a head coach.

Résumés flooding in for ASU OC position

ALBANY, Georgia  — Almost the moment news broke that Albany State offensive coordinator Uyl Joyner was leaving the Rams to accept a similar position at Dougherty High, ASU coach Mike White was inundated with interest.

 

“As soon as that article was in the paper, I started getting tons of interest,” White said, referring to The Herald’s article on Friday announcing Joyner’s departure. “But we haven’t narrowed anything down yet.”

 

Dozens of résumés are in the hands of White, but he said it could be weeks before Joyner’s successor is named.

 

“There really isn’t a leading candidate right now,” he said. “There really isn’t a certain way to do this. You just have to look at what you have and what is out there.”

 

Sources told The Herald that former ASU offensive coordinator Steve Smith was a possible candidate, but White said on Tuesday that Smith, who left the Rams two years ago to accept a job at Division I Tennessee State, isn’t currently in the picture.

 

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