Top-seeded Nuggets await Davenport, Lewis-Clark State

NEW ORLEANS -- For the second consecutive year, Xavier University of Louisiana will be the No. 1 seed in the NAIA Women's Tennis National Championship at Mobile, Ala.

The NAIA announced late Tuesday afternoon the top eight seeds and pairings for the five-day, 24-team tournament. The Gold Nuggets (15-6) have a first-round bye and will play in the second round at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, May 14 against Davenport or Lewis-Clark State. The Panthers (22-4) and Warriors (5-16) will meet in the first round on May 13.

Copeland-Cox Tennis Center (851 Gaillard Drive, zip code 36608, phone 251-208-5181) will be the site of all matches. All women's duals are scheduled for 9 a.m. Mobile is the tournament site for the 11th consecutive year.

The appearance at nationals is the Nuggets' third in a row and their eighth overall -- all in the past 10 seasons.

Xavier is No. 1 in the two most recent coaches polls and has been in the top five in 11 of the last 12 polls. The Nuggets climbed from No. 2 to the top spot after winning 5-3 at home against then-No. 1 Georgia Gwinnett in the championship of the NAIA Unaffiliated Group 2 Tournament on April 26. That victory also earned Xavier an automatic bid to nationals.

A year ago, the Nuggets became the first XU team in any sport to reach the national semifinals. After beating Indiana Wesleyan and Embry-Riddle (Fla.) in their first two tournament duals, the Nuggets lost to William Carey in the semifinals.

Davenport was 16th and Lewis-Clark State 17th in the coaches poll announced Monday. Davenport, another unaffiliated group tournament champion, is making its second straight appearance at nationals and its second overall. Lewis-Clark State earned an at-large bid for its 14th appearance.

Xavier never has played Davenport or Lewis-Clark State.

The Nuggets' all-time record at nationals is 7-7, including five consecutive first-round victories. Their 5-0 decision against Indiana Wesleyan a year ago was their first victory in the second round.

Freshman Nour Abbes, senior Kourtney Howell and sophomore Brion Flowers are Xavier's top three players. Abbes was second, Howell 16th and Flowers 27th in the most recent Intercollegiate Tennis Association NAIA singles rankings, and Howell and Flowers are fifth in doubles. Alan Green is in his 11th season as coach of XU's women's and men's teams.

This is the fifth time in the last six years that both XU teams qualified for the national tournament. After completing final exams on Wednesday, they will depart for Mobile on Sunday afternoon and will participate in an NAIA Champions of Characater function -- a visit to a local school -- on Monday.

Bracket

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

Florida A&M Rallies To Defeat Jacksonville 6-5

Courtesy: Florida A&M Sports Information

TALLAHASSEE, Florida  -- After trailing 4-0 in the fourth inning, Florida A&M (22-24, 13-10 MEAC) rallied to defeat Jacksonville (15-28, 8-12 A-SUN) 6-5 on Wednesday at Moore-Kittles Field. The win was the ninth straight victory for the Rattlers in games decided by one run. Ryan Kennedy, Jeremy Barlow and Michael Birdsong each recorded two hits in the win for the FAMU offense. Cameron Sims earned the win on the mound while Matthew Schaeffer notched his first save of the season.

Sims (3-0) pitched four solid innings of middle relief and only allowed one run on five hits with one strikeout. Schaeffer worked the final two scoreless innings with two strikeouts for the save.

JU grabbed a 1-0 lead in the top of the second on an RBI single by Alex Seifert. Scott Schaub singled off the leg of pitcher Javom Johnakin to lead off the inning and moved to second on a wild pitch. After Michael Babb was walked to put runners on first and second, Seifert’s RBI single to right plated Schaub for the first run of the game. Seifert wound up being thrown out at second trying to extend the play for the final out of the inning.

The Dolphins increased their lead to 4-0 in the fourth. Schaub and Dylan Dillard drew back-to-back walks to start the inning. Braddock Rowe tried to lay down a sac bunt to move the runners up, but a throwing error to first by Johnakin allowed Schaub to score and leaving runners at second and third. Babb’s sac fly to left scored Dillard to make the score 3-0 and Garret Ruckel’s RBI double brought home Rowe for the inning’s third run.

FAMU answered with three runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to make the score 4-3. Kennedy opened the home half of the fourth with a double to left center and Barlow followed with an infield single to put runners on first and second with no outs. Birdsong was hit-by-pitch to load the bases then Ryan Hutson reached on a fielder’s choice allowing Kennedy to score from third for FAMU’s first run of the game. Kendal Weeks then walked with one out as Florida A&M loaded the bases again. Peter Jackson reached on another fielder’s choice scoring Birdsong. With runners on the corners, Hutson and Jackson then pulled off the double steal as Hutson stole home for the third run.

Florida A&M tied the game at 4-4, in the fifth, on Birdsong’s RBI single. For the second consecutive inning, Kennedy and Barlow recorded back-to-back hits to get the offense going. With one out and runners on first and second, Birdsong’s bloop single into right scored Kennedy from second and moved Barlow to third. With two outs, Weeks walked again to load the bases only to see Jackson go down swinging to end the scoring threat.

Jacksonville regained the lead with a run in the top of the sixth inning, but the Rattlers came right back with a run of their own in the home half of the inning to tie the game at 5-5. Walker opened with a walk and advanced to third on a single from Bennie Robinson. Robinson took second on the play, on an error, as the right fielder was unable to pick up the ball cleanly. Marlon Gibbs tied the game at five as he ripped an RBI single through the right side.

The Rattlers took their first lead of the game and proved to be all they needed with a run in the seventh. After back-to-back walks to Robinson and Gibbs loaded the bases for FAMU with two outs, Dolphin reliever Nathan Disch walked in the go-ahead run as Kennedy walked on five pitches to bring home Jackson.

Jacksonville reliever Disch (0-3) was the losing pitcher after giving up one run in 1 2/3 innings with four walks and two strikeouts.

FAMU had lost 20 straight to Jacksonville before the 6-5 win back on April 8. The Rattlers have now won two in a row over JU.

Florida A&M will travel to Jacksonville tomorrow for game two of the mid-week series. First pitch is scheduled for 6:00 pm.

As always, fans can follow Rattler Baseball on Twitter @FAMUAthletics and live stats will be available via www.FAMUAthletics.com.

 

 Box Score

 

By Michael Morrell/Special to FAMU Athletics

COURTESY FLORIDA A&M UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

Henry Neal Williams: Approach is key in FAMU-FSU talks

TALLAHASSEE, Florida  --  To be clear, the Legislature did the correct thing by referring the matter of the split of the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering to the Board of Governors for study.

The passage of the bill that would have split the college would have been the same as enacting legislation to kill a FAMU engineering school. The Legislature’s action to refer the matter to the BOG removes the process from being under a cloud, and a dark one at that, to full sunlight — or so we hope.

Now for the BOG, one of its grand challenges in its examination of the issue is deciding on the proper approach of the investigation. The approach is very important, because it dictates not only the path the BOG will take but also what questions it will ask. It can take the narrow view and focus on how and what it will take to split the two schools, or the broader view and look more comprehensively at the joint school.

The first approach is myopic and likely to accomplish only ...

CONTINUE READING

FAMU Balances Budget, Gets Additional State Funding

TALLAHASSEE, Florida  -- The FAMU Board of Trustees Budget and Finance Committee held a workshop Monday to discuss the university's budget and budgeting processes.

Administrators say the budget is balanced. They says FAMU's overall operating budget is $171.5 million. They say the university received an additional $35 million from the legislature, plus $1 million to help with online degrees, and $10 million to complete phase two of the Pharmacy building.

Tola Thompson, the FAMU Director of Governmental Relations, says, "The college now currently does about $25 million in federally sponsored research. With additional research space in pharmacy phase two, they will be able to draw down additional federal research dollars which we think will have a huge impact on this community."

The athletics department says it will have ...

CONTINUE READING

Headed to Raleigh: B-CU Cats Earn 13-Seed in NCAA Regional

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida -- With its automatic bid from winning the inaugural Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Championship last week, the Bethune-Cookman University men’s golf team will travel to the Lonnie Poole Golf Club in Raleigh, North Carolina, for the 2014 NCAA Regional being held May 15-17.

Bethune-Cookman earns the No. 13 seed in the 13-team field that includes Atlantic Coast Conference champion Georgia Tech as the regional’s top seed. Other participating teams include Washington, Florida State, Texas A&M, Mercer, Kentucky, Texas Tech, Wake Forest, South Alabama, Memphis, Minnesota and Rice.

“Lonnie Poole is a long course suited for our guys since they hit long,” said B-CU Director of Golf Loritz “Scooter” Clark. “They’re looking forward to it because they want to extend the season as long as they can. They were pumped after the announcement, and immediately went to the range to start hitting after the show.”

Six 54-hole regional tournaments will be conducted May 15-17.  Thirteen teams and 10 individuals not on those teams will compete at each of three regionals while the other three regionals will have 14 teams and five individuals not on those teams. The low five teams and the low individual not on those teams from each regional will advance to the finals.

The NCAA Regional will take place at Lonnie Poole Golf Club, an 18-hole, 7,358-yard course designed by Arnold Palmer and the design team at Arnold Palmer Design Company. The purpose of the facility is to provide a public golf course on the Centennial Campus of NC State University that serves as a venue for the men's and women's varsity golf teams.

For Bethune-Cookman, the upcoming trip will mark the first of its kind to the NCAA postseason as a team. The only other participation in NCAA postseason events for men’s golf has been individual performances in 1999 (Philip Worthington) and last year with current sophomore Ryan Fricker.

“I have to make sure the guys pace themselves, especially with the National Minority Championships coming up this weekend,” said Clark. “They want to give 200 percent for both events, but I need to make sure they don’t run out of gas by the time the NCAA Regional comes around. I kno
w it sounds cliché, but I don’t want them to peak too soon.”

For news and results on the B-CU men’s golf team, log on to BCUathletics.com and follow the team (@BCUgolf) on Twitter. You can join the conversation with the hashtag, #bcugolf. Make sure to “Like Us” on Facebook at BCUathletics.


COURTESY BETHUNE-COOKMAN UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS

Tuskegee Softball Heads to Huntsville for NCAA Regionals

Lady Golden Tigers Regional First Pitch will be in Huntsville

TUSKEGEE, Alabama (May 5, 2014) -- The 16 regionals have been set for the 2014 Division II Softball Championship. The Tuskegee Lady Golden Tigers are heading to Huntsville, Alabama where they will face the top seeded Chargers of the University of Alabama in Huntsville.

Tuskegee, received an automated bid into the tournament after sweeping the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) Tournament, enters as the eighth seed. Regional competition will be held May 8-10 or May 9-11. Each winner will advance to the super regionals May 16-17 where they will take on the respective winner from their region (i.e., Atlantic 1 vs. Atlantic 2). The finals will be held May 22-26 in Salem, Va.

The Golden Lady Tigers and Chargers will meet on Friday, May 9th at 5:30 p.m. Live stats are available at: http://www.sidearmstats.com/uah/softball/. The website to follow the progress of the tournament is:

SOUTH 1 REGIONAL

GAME	DATE/TIME (ET)	MATCHUP
Host: Alabama-Huntsville Watch/Live Stats
1	May 9, 3:30 p.m.	No. 4 Rollins (37-11) vs. No. 5 North Alabama (38-16)
2	May 9, 6:30 p.m.	No. 1 Alabama-Huntsville (43-9) vs. No. 8 Tuskegee (29-14)
3	May 10, 1 p.m.	Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner
4	May 10, 4 p.m.	Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser
5	May 10, 7 p.m.	Game 4 Winner vs. Game 3 Loser
6	May 11, 2 p.m.	Game 3 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner
7	May 11, 4:30 p.m.	Game 6 Winner vs. Game 6 Loser (If Necessary)

COURTESY TUSKEGEE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

WSSU softball team gets NCAA assignment

WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina -- The pairings for the NCAA Division II softball tournament were released Monday, and Winston-Salem State will be the No. 4 seed in the Atlantic 1 Regional at Brownsville, Pa., this weekend.

The Rams (28-11), who made the tournament as the CIAA champions, will take on California (Pa.) at 1 p.m., Friday. The top-seeded Vulcans (35-5) are the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference champions and are the regional hosts. Also participating in the double-elimination regional are No. 2 seed West Chester (35-18) and No. 3 Bloomsburg (27-17).

ATLANTIC 1 REGIONAL
GAME DATE/TIME (ET) MATCHUP RESULT
Host: California (Pa.) Watch/Live Stats

1 May 9, 1 p.m. No. 1 California (Pa.) (35-5) vs. No. 8 Winston-Salem (28-11)
2 May 9, 3:30 p.m. No. 4 West Chester (35-18) vs. No. 5 Bloomsburg (27-17)
3 May 10, 10:30 a.m. Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner
4 May 10, 1 p.m. Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser
5 May 10, 3:30 p.m. Game 4 Winner vs. Game 3 Loser
6 May 11, 1 p.m. Game 3 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner
7 May 11, 3:30 p.m. Game 6 Winner vs. Game 6 Loser (If Necessary)

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Alabama State Men's Golf Heads to Auburn Regional

MONTGOMERY, Alabama -- The 2014 Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Men's Golf Champions from Alabama State will not have far to travel for their date in the NCAA Regional Championships.

The NCAA announced the six regional sites today on the Golf Channel and the Hornets found out they will be one of 14 teams to play at the Auburn University Club in Auburn, Ala. The low five teams from each regional will advance to the NCAA Finals along with the low individual medalist whose team is not among the low five.

"We're excited about the opportunity to represent Alabama State and it's a great time to be a Hornet," Head Coach Dr. Gary Grandison said. "If our guys have their mindset where it needs to be we have a chance to do something really special."

The Hornets will not be the only team from the state of Alabama at the Auburn Regional. The University of Alabama, which is the defending NCAA champion and the top-ranked team in the nation, and host Auburn, will also be participating in the Regional.

The Auburn Regional will run May 15-17 at the Bill Bergin designed course which opened in 1999. The Auburn University Club is located on 225 acres which has a course rating of 75.3. The challenging course has a slope rating of 138 on Bermuda grass.

The Auburn University Club is not an unfamiliar course to the Hornets coaching staff as the Lady Hornets played the same course a year ago in the NCAA East Regional Championship.

"We played there last year in the women's regional," Grandison said. "We already have information and we are familiar with the course."

A total of four ranked teams will dot the Regional led by Alabama. Virginia Tech is ranked 12th, Texas is 17th and host Auburn is 25th.

Other teams involved in the regional are New Mexico, Brigham Young, Kennesaw State, Colorado, Louisville, North Carolina, California-Davis, Sam Houston State and St. John's.

There will be live scoring for all three days at GolfStat.com.

COURTESY ALABAMA STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

Coaching Carousel: Is Anyone Coaching at Mississippi Valley State?

In a weird situation, it is unclear who is running the show at Mississippi Valley State

ITTA BENA, Mississippi -- Does Mississippi Valley State have a head basketball coach? In short, I don't know. A lot of media outlets thought that Chico Potts would be let go as the Delta Devils' head man after the season but no announcement ever came from MVSU.

Several sources, including HoopDirt.com have stated that Potts has been ousted at MVSU and that assistant Marcus Thomas is currently running the program. No official announcement of any sort has been made and Potts remains the head man on the MVSU website. HoopDirt speculated that a new coach will not be officially hired until the fiscal year switches over in July.

CONTINUE READING

38 JSU Tigers Graduate During Spring Commencement

COURTESY JACKSON STATE UNIVERSITY MEDIA RELATIONS

JACKSON, Mississippi -- Jackson State University held its 2014 Spring Commencement exercise Saturday, May 3 at Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium and 38 JSU student-athletes received their degrees.

Below is the list of Tigers and Lady Tigers to receive their diplomas.

Fred Hampton (Baseball)

Desmond Russell (Baseball)

Phillip Harvey (Baeball)

Stephen Curtis (Baseball)
Aneko Knowles (Baseball)
Willie Bradford (Basebll)
Charles Tillery (Baseball)
Sergio Parra (Baseball)
Arthur Jordan (Football)
Stephen Capler (Football)
Qua Cox (Football)

EJ Drewery (Football)

Sedric Hogan (Football)

Derrick Jean (Football)

Caleb Lester (Football)

Michael Perkins (Football)

Geoffrey Brady (M-Track)

Justin Lampley (M-Track)

Jamie McIntosh (M-Track)

Samuel Rhoads (M-Track)

Dyanna Scott (Bowling)

Ashlee Ingram (Bowling)

Rashia Yero (Bowling)

Jasmine Dumas (Bowling)

Lauren Aikens (Sofrball)

Arianna Smith (Softball)

Breea Jamerson (Softball)

Patricia Cartwright (Soccer)

Harshini Reddy (W-Tennis)

Angela Condorelli (W-Tennis)

Kesica Jayapalan (W-Tennis)

Brianna Brown (W-Track)

Munirat Balagun (W-Track)

Hannah Porter (W-Track)

Angelica Kelley (Volleyball)

Paige Williams (Volleyball)

COURTESY JACKSON STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEDIA RELATIONS

I-20/59: No injuries when fire destroys Jackson State University baseball team's bus

MIDFIELD, Alabama -- Jackson State University baseball players are returning to Jackson, Miss., after the team's bus was destroyed when it caught fire along Interstate 20/59 eastbound.

The fire began about 2 p.m. Monday near mile marker 116, not far beyond the entrance ramp from Allison-Bonnett Memorial Drive.

No one was injured, according to Midfield police. Firefighters from Midfield and Bessemer responded to the blaze.

Players lost much of their gear and luggage in the fire.

The team boarded another bus to take them back to Jackson and was due to arrive Monday night, JSU spokeswoman Shelia Hardwell-Byrd said.

Brian Anslow, of Bessemer, was driving westbound on I-20/59 when he saw a rear tire on the bus on fire.

CONTINUE READING

Gold Nuggets are No. 1 in NAIA for second straight week

NEW ORLEANS -- Xavier University of Louisiana is No. 1 in the NAIA Women's Tennis Coaches' Top 25 Poll for the second consecutive week.

The Gold Nuggets (15-6) climbed from No. 2 to the top spot a week ago after defeating then-No. 1 Georgia Gwinnett 5-3 in the championship of the NAIA Unaffiliated Group Tournament on April 26. Xavier held on to its ranking on Monday by collecting 12-of-13 first-place votes.

The Gold Nuggets have four victories against teams in this week's top 10.

Xavier is expected to be the top seed for the NAIA National Championship, which will begin May 13 in Mobile, Ala. The NAIA announced Monday that Xavier was one of 24 teams which qualified. Seedings and pairings for the tournament will be revealed by 5 p.m. CDT Tuesday.

The top eight seeds will receive first-round byes and compete in the second round May 14. The championship will be May 17.

Xavier was No. 1 entering the 2013 national tournament before losing in the semifinals.

The NAIA will announce a postseason poll May 21.

The top 25:

1. Xavier
2. Georgia Gwinnett
3. Lindsey Wilson
4. Auburn Montgomery
5. Embry-Riddle (Fla.)
6. Brenau
7. SCAD Savannah
8. Vanguard
9. Northwood (Fla.)
10. Oklahoma Baptist
11. Westmont
12. Graceland
13. Coastal Georgia
14. Milligan
15. Concordia (Calif.)
16. Davenport
17. Lewis-Clark State
18. Indiana Wesleyan
19. Cardinal Stritch
20. Northwestern Ohio
21. St. Thomas (Fla.)
22. Marian (Ind.)
23. Olivet Nazarene
24. Campbellsville
25. McPherson

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

Freshman Nour Abbes making herself at home at Xavier-New Orleans

COURTESY XULA ATHLETICS

NEW ORLEANS  -- Xavier freshman Nour Abbes rarely celebrates her birthday.

Abbes doesn’t see the point if she can’t enjoy the moment with her family, so far away.

Tennis has taken her from a small clay court in Tunisia, located on the northern tip of Africa, to New Orleans, where at Xavier she is the highest-ranked ITA/NAIA singles player in school history.

The sport, full of time demands, has also stunted opportunities for her to make friends. Since age 9, tournaments and training dominated her childhood social calendar. And now, she’s separated from her three sisters and parents, far from routine for a Tunisian teenager, especially a young woman in her country’s conservative culture.

The Mediterranean Sea never seemed so distant.

CONTINUE READING 

Gold Rush heading to nationals for 6th consecutive year

XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA MEN'S TENNIS TEAM
ROSTER

NEW ORLEANS -- Xavier University of Louisiana earned a sixth consecutive bid to the NAIA Men's Tennis National Championship by virtue of a No. 9 ranking in the coaches poll Monday.

The Gold Rush (11-11) are one of 24 teams which qualified. Xavier received the fourth of 10 at-large bids.

The national tournament will be played May 13-17 at Mobile, Ala. The NAIA will announce seedings and pairings by 5 p.m. CDT Tuesday.

This is the second time that a Xavier program qualified for a national tournament six consecutive years. Women's basketball did it from 1994-99.

Xavier is No. 9 for the second straight week. The Gold Rush are in the top 25 for the 28th consecutive time and the 31st time in the last 32 polls.

Six Gold Rush victories this season are against ranked NAIA opponents. Two more occurred against NCAA Division I teams.

Xavier was a national quarterfinalist in 2012 and 2013.

The NAIA will announce a postseason poll May 21.

The top 25:

1. Embry-Riddle (Fla.)
2. Auburn Montgomery
3. Georgia Gwinnett
4. Vanguard
5. Lindsey Wilson
6. Cumberland
7. Westmont
8. Belhaven
9. Xavier
10. Bethany (Kan.)
11. Concordia (Calif.)
12. Northwestern Ohio
13. Aquinas
14. (tie) Graceland
14. (tie) William Carey
16. Coastal Georgia
17. Bethel (Tenn.)
18. Webber International
19. Davenport
20. Warner
21. Pikeville
22. Lewis-Clark State
23. Olivet Nazarene
24. Northwood (Fla.)
25. Oklahoma Baptist

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

AAMU James Spady presents Bulldog Football Camps 2014

COURTESY AAMU ATHLETICS

NORMAL, Alabama -- Head football coach James Spady will host his first football camp at Alabama A&M from June 2-5 and June 14.

The June 2-5, events will be traveling camps with four cities and dates already scheduled.

The June 14, camp will be a 7 on 7 passing camp and a OL/DL Big Man camp.

Each camp will be conducted by the AAMU coaching staff and provide position specific instruction and technique work. Campers will be given the chance to compete in 1-on-1 and group situations. The AAMU staff has experience on the high school, college and professional levels. Come experience football the Bulldog way, "Smart, Fast & Physical!"

 

Camp Brochure

Camp Waiver

 

One Day Skills Camps

$30 per camper

Huntsville Camp—June 2 @ AAMU Football Complex

Birmingham Camp—June 3 @ Huffman High School

Montgomery Camp—June 4 @ Faulkner University

Mobile Camp—June 5 @ Blount High School

**Locations and Times are subject to change**

Registration for One Day Skills Camps will begin at 8:30am local time. Camps will begin at 10am. Walk-up campers are welcome.

7on7 Passing Camp & OL/DL Big Man Camp Saturday, June 14 @ AAMU Football Complex $225 per team for 7on7. $50 for each additional team. $25 per camper for OL/DL Big Man Camp (capped at $225 per school)

Registration will begin at 8 a.m. local time. Camps will begin at 10 a.m. Lunch will be provided to all campers.

**Camp information and registration forms can also be found at www.aamusports.com. Walk-up campers are welcome.**

WHAT TO BRING TO CAMP
Cleats
Tennis Shoes
Mouthpiece

Registration forms can also be faxed to Coach Matt Sanders at 256-372-5373.

Questions can be directed to Coach Matt Sanders at matthew.sanders@aamu.edu or 256-372-5096.

**All camp attendees are required to complete a camp waiver form. Waiver forms must be completed for participation in the camps.

 

COURTESY ALABAMA A&M UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION 

SWAC officially moves Baseball Tournament to New Orleans

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - The Southwestern Athletic Conference has selected the New Orleans MLB Urban Youth Academy at Wesley Barrow Stadium as the site for its upcoming 2014 SWAC Baseball Tournament.

The venue, located in Pontchartrain Park in New Orleans, La., is a replacement site after the league decided to move the tournament from LaGrave Field as a result of student-athlete safety concerns. LaGrave Field was host to last year's SWAC postseason tournament in Fort Worth, Texas.

“We would like to apologize to the fans, families, coaches and administrators for the delay and inconvenience the decision of switching venues may present," said SWAC Commissioner Duer Sharp. “The health and welfare of the student-athletes will always be our primary concern.”

The tournament will follow its original schedule at the New Orleans MLB Urban Youth Academy and will be held from May 14-18. The championship game on the final day is slated for broadcast on ESPNU.

“We would like to thank the New Orleans Major League Baseball Urban Youth Academy for hosting the SWAC Baseball Tournament," Commissioner Sharp added. "We believe the venue will give our fans and student-athletes a great experience. The MLB Urban Youth Academy is a state-of-the-art facility and the SWAC has been tied in with the Urban Youth Academies for several years through MLB's Urban Invitational."

At least one team from the SWAC has been featured in all seven editions of the MLB Urban Invitational, which the annual round-robin collegiate baseball tournament designed by Major League Baseball to place a spotlight on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) and their baseball programs. The 2014 Urban Invitational featured two schools from the conference (Grambling State and Southern) with the New Orleans MLB Urban Youth Academy serving as one of four sites during the round robin play.

“We are looking forward to hosting the SWAC Tournament, especially as it will give the young Academy participants the experience of witnessing collegiate baseball played at a high level of competition and serve as a source of motivation and inspiration for their future,” said Ben Baroody, Senior Director, Baseball Development, Major League Baseball. “This is a terrific opportunity to not only showcase our facility, but extend our relationship with SWAC, which has been an integral part of our annual Urban Invitational tournaments.” 

ABOUT THE NEW ORLEANS MLB URBAN YOUTH ACADEMY

The New Orleans MLB Urban Youth Academy at Wesley Barrow Stadium opened in 2012 replacing a 55-year-old facility that was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. The new facility has capacity for 650 fans, with a 200-square-foot climate-controlled press box, a public address system and new LED scoreboard. It also features administration facilities, including two 300-square-foot conference rooms. The baseball field also features professional-sized artificial turf with a clay pitcher's mound. Other components include a three-lane batting practice cage outdoors and a two-lane indoor batting practice building. The facility operates in partnership with the New Orleans Recreation Development Commission on a dynamic youth program that provides free, year -round baseball and softball instruction as well as educational and baseball vocation programming for young people from underserved and urban communities throughout southern Louisiana

 

ABOUT THE SWAC

The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), established in 1920, is a college athletic conference headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., which is comprised of historically black universities in the Southern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I for all sports and the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).

 

COURTESY THE SWAC MEDIA RELATIONS

 

Shaw Honor Student Arrested For Studying Past Library Hours

RALEIGH, North Carolina  -- Na'eem Wilkins is not someone whose Shaw University classmates would expect to see in handcuffs. But such was the predicament Wilkins, 21, a honor student and drum major for the school band, found himself in after refusing to leave the university library after it closed at 11 p.m.

VIEW THE VIDEO REPORT

S.C. State alums know Eckstrom talking out of ignorance

COLUMBIA, South Carolina  --  Nobody had to tell Dr. Horace Goggins – a legendary civil rights figure and the first black candidate for the Rock Hill school board – that a white politician in South Carolina said something stupid about black people.

Again.

This time it was Richard Eckstrom, the state’s comptroller general. Apparently because he is so busy counting money, he has missed decades of achievement by black people.

Eckstrom said this week that students go to S.C. State University in Orangeburg because they can’t get in anywhere else.

That means the predominantly white schools. The schools that, until 50 years ago, by law and custom did not allow blacks.

“South Carolina State was all we had,” said Goggins, who graduated from there in 1950. “We had students as smart then – and now – as any white student. But the whites didn’t want us at their schools.”

CONTINUE READING

Read more here: http://www.heraldonline.com/2014/05/01/5924160/sc-state-alums-know-eckstrom-talking.html#storylink=cpy

West Viginia State Tennis Team Falls in Regional Final

WEST VIRGINIA STATE UNIVERSITY WOMEN'S TENNIS TEAM
2013/14 MOUNTAIN EAST CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS
ROSTER
 

INDIANA, Pennsylvania (May 4)  -- The WVSU women's tennis team came up just short in its bid to qualify for the NCAA "Sweet 16" final round Sunday when it dropped a hard fought 5-3 decision to host Indiana University-Pa.

Senior Cora Berna and sophomore Charlotte Sandy recorded singles wins and the team of senior Andreea Slusarciuc and Brittany Franco won at first doubles to account for the Yellow Jackets' scoring.

The Jackets defeated Slippery Rock 5-1 in the semifinals on Saturday behind wins from Franco, Slusarciuc, and Berna in singles and victories by the Franco/Slusarciuc team and Berna and Nadia Grlj at second doubles. 

This was the seventh straight NCAA tournament appearance for the WVSU women's tennis team. The Jackets ends the season with a 14-6 record. 

COURTESY WEST VIRGINIA STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

Louis Belt gets 100th career win as Bluefield State wins Atlantic Regional 1 Title

2014 MEN'S TENNIS ATLANTIC REGIONAL 1 CHAMPIONS
 BLUEFIELD STATE COLLEGE BLUES
 

BLUEFIELD, West Virginia  --  The Bluefield State Men's Tennis team came out on top 5-0 of Shaw University today in Day 2 action of the 2014 NCAA DII Men's Tennis Atlantic 1 Regional here in Bluefield, West Virginia.

The Big Blues came out strong winning all the doubles matches having a 3-0 lead going into the individuals. For Doubles: Sophomore Jacob Carey and Senior Piotr Kruk won 8-5, Sophomore Aziz Yuldashev and Junior Vishwesh Sinha won 8-4, and Junior Connor Pickering and Senior Vlad Catlan won 8-3.

Aziz Yuldashev finished first winning his match 6-1 and 6-1 to give the Big Blues a 4-0 lead. Then, Jacob Carey finished his match 6-2 and 6-2 for the Big Blues victory.

Head Coach Louis Belt got his 100th win on the Men's side for his career at BSC. Congratulations to Coach Belt and the Big Blues!

The Men's Tennis team is now 18-3 and will take on the winner of the Central 2 Regional on May 14th at 4pm in Altamonte Springs, Florida.

BOX SCORE

COURTESY BLUEFIELD STATE COLLEGE ATHLETICS MEDIA RELATIONS

Shaw Men's Tennis Ends Season With 5-0 Loss To Bluefield State

2013/14 SHAW UNIVERSITY BEARS TENNIS TEAM
ROSTER 

BLUEFIELD, West Virginia (May 5, 2014) -- The Shaw University men's tennis team was swept 5-0 by Bluefield State in the second round of the NCAA tournament in a match played at Bluefield (WV) City Tennis Courts Monday afternoon.

The Bears - the fourth seed in the Atlantic Region - finish their season 15-6, while top seeded Bluefield improves to 18-3 and advances to the Sweet Sixteen.

Bluefield, who beat the Bears 5-1 earlier this season, swept the doubles, with Shaw's Charles Silva and Sergio Cuartas proving to be the most difficult out, losing to Jacob Carey and Piotr Kruk 8-5.

Gafur Sirojiddinov and Andre Monti fell 8-4 in the number two doubles slot, while Bach Tran and Juan Sanchez fell 8-3 at the number three spot.

The Blues finished off the first-to-five win by claiming victories at number one singles with Carey defeating Silva 6-2, 6-2, and Aziz Yuldashev downing Tran 6-1, 6-1 at number three singles.

The loss brings a conclusion to the Shaw career of Silva - the CIAA Tennis Player of the Year - and Monti.

Box Score

COURTESY SHAW UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS

Shaw Edges Chowan in NCAA Atlantic Regional Tournament

COURTESY CHOWAN HAWKS ATHLETICS

BLUEFIELD, West Virginia  (May 4)  --  The Shaw University men's tennis team defeated Chowan University 5-2 on Sunday afternoon in the first round of the NCAA Atlantic Regional Tournament.  The Bears advance to face Bluefield State University on Monday in the Regional Championship match while the Hawks' season ends with a 17-10 overall record with the loss.

Pedro Aiala and Danilo Galovic earned an 8-3 doubles victory over Gafur Sirojiddinov and Andre Monti at the number two position.  Farid Hajizada and Ivan Doubograev came up short in the number one spot after suffering a 9-7 setback to Charles Silva and Sergio Cuartas while Bach Tran and Juan Sanchez edged Tristan Martin and Sasha Kirsanov 9-8 in the third position, allowing the Bears to take a 2-1 lead.  Hajizada and Doubograev end the year 20-5 in doubles play with Martin and Kirsanov finishing the season with a 16-10 mark.

In singles play, Hajizada triumphed over Silva 6-4, 6-3 at the number one position to finish the year with a 23-5 singles record.  Cuartas defeated Aiala 6-3, 6-0 in the number two position while Sanchez topped Carlos Ramirez 6-0, 6-1 in the fourth spot. Galovic fell to Monti in the sixth position resulting in the 5-2 win over Shaw.  Matches in the third and fifth positions remained unfinished using the first-to-five format.

Aiala competed in his final match for the Blue and White on Sunday.  He was a member of two CIAA Runner-up teams while earning All-CIAA honors.

The Hawks finished as CIAA Regular Season Co-Champions in 2014 and were the first team to earn an at-large bid in any sport in school history.

 COURTESY CHOWAN UNIVERSITY HAWKS SPORTS INFORMATION

First Lady's brother Craig Robinson fired as Oregon State basketball coach

COACH CRAIG ROBINSON
A.B., Sociology, Princeton University, 1983
M.B.A., Finance, University of Chicago,
Graduate School of Business, 1992

Robinson has 3 years remaining on his contract and the university is expected to owe him $4.2 million.
 
CORVALLIS, Oregon – Oregon State Athletic Director Bob De Carolis announced today that Head Men’s Basketball Coach Craig Robinson has been relieved of his duties effective immediately, and that a national search for Robinson’s successor has begun.

“I want to thank Coach Robinson and his family for their contributions to Oregon State University,” said De Carolis.  “This was a difficult decision, but after further evaluation, I believe it is in the best interests of our student-athletes, our basketball program and our University.”

Robinson completed his sixth season at the helm of the Beavers in March, compiling an overall record of 94-105; 39-69 in Pac-12 play.

Robinson was hired April 7, 2008 as the 20th head coach in the program’s history.  He arrived in Corvallis after spending two years as the head coach at Brown University.  Prior to Brown, he served as an assistant coach at Northwestern University for six years.

OSU Director of Athletics Bob De Carolis will be available to the media at 1:30 p.m. today -- Monday, May 5 -- in the Gill Coliseum media room (Room 15). The event will also be live-streamed at pac-12.com/videos/oregon-state-university-2

COURTESY OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS

Opinion: Robinson appears on the surface to be a good match for FAMU.  With $4 million forthcoming from OSU, money may not be his issue ... With Hall of Famer Cheryl Miller signing on as head women's basketball coach at NAIA Division I Langston University last week and former Indiana/UAB Coach Mike Davis raising the profile of Texas Southern basketball, why not FAMU signing a higher division I head coach?  New FAMU athletics director Kellen Winslow has a tough job in finding the right person to re-build Rattler basketball. Go Rattlers!

South Carolina Comptroller General Eckstrom need of a history lesson about S.C. State and HBCUs.

THE ISSUE: Remarks about university and future; OUR OPINION: S.C. State can be proud of its open-door mission.

COLUMBIA, South Carolina  -- South Carolina State University President Thomas Elzey says the words of S.C. Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom were misunderstood. Eckstrom says his Wednesday comments were not meant to belittle S.C. State and its students. Plenty of people disagree with both.

Amid the university’s plea for financial help before the State Budget and Control Board, Eckstrom diverted the focus and created a furor when he spoke about S.C. State and his position on support for and survival of the Orangeburg institution.

Eckstrom made the comments in expressing his hesitancy to provide the university a loan out of concerns about S.C. State’s ability to pay the money back.

“It’s servicing a student body that doesn’t have the ability to bail the university out,” Eckstrom said. “These aren’t kids that are coming from wealthy parents, from wealthy connections in the community. These are kids that are going there because they can’t get into these other schools.”

“They can’t afford it,” Eckstrom said. “So what we’re saying is the university can bail itself out?”



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2014 AT&T Nation's Football Classic® Tickets Now On Sale!

Howard University and Morehouse College meet in annual game at RFK Stadium; Student Section tickets available at campus locations.

Washington, D.C. -- Countdown to the Battle in the Capital! Events DC announced today that tickets for the 4th annual AT&T Nation’s Football Classic®  went on sale at 10 a.m. on Friday, May 2 at Ticketmaster, the Howard University Box Office at Cramton Auditorium and the Morehouse College Bookstore. The Howard Bison meet the Morehouse Maroon Tigers at RFK Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 13 at 3:30 p.m. “The AT&T Nation’s Football Classic has become an exciting black college sports experience that has lived up to the hype each year with competitive games and thrilling finishes,” said Erik A. Moses, managing director of Events DC Sports and Entertainment Division. “This year will be no different, and we look forward to seeing waves of maroon and blue in the stands at game time.” For the first time, Student Section tickets will be sold at Campus locations only. Ticket prices are as follows (plus applicable fees): Student Section tickets - $15 (sold at campus locations only; school ID must be presented) Lower Bowl tickets - $25 Mezzanine tickets - $50 Suites & Group Sales for 20 and more begin June 1. The Howard University Box Office at Cramton Auditorium is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (2455 Sixth Street, NW. Washington, DC 20059). The Morehouse College Bookstore is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (830 Westview Drive, Atlanta, Ga. 30314). For more information on the AT&T Nation’s Football Classic, please visit www.nationsfootballclassic.com.                                                    About the AT&T Nation's Football Classic® The AT&T Nation's Football Classic® is a black college football game held annually at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. This year, the game features Morehouse College versus Howard University. Organized by Events DC, the AT&T Nation's Football Classic® was created to celebrate the passion and tradition of the college football experience, recognize the history of service to others by the students, faculty and alumni of historically black colleges and universities, highlight the unity of African American culture, and honor the heritage and excellence of these proud institutions.

ABOUT HOWARD Founded in 1867, Howard University is a private, research university that is comprised of 13 schools and colleges. Students pursue studies in more than 120 areas leading to undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. Since 1998, the University has produced two Rhodes Scholars, two Truman Scholars, a Marshall Scholar, 30 Fulbright Scholars and 11 Pickering Fellows. Howard also produces more on campus African-American Ph.D. recipients than any other university in the United States. For more information on Howard University, call 202-238-2330, or visit the University's Web site at www.howard.edu.