Four errors lead to NCCU ousting in MEAC tourney

NORFOLK, Virginia  — As the weather cleared and action resumed in the 2014 MEAC(Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) Tournament, North Carolina Central University committed four costly errors and allowed Norfolk State to score in all of the first four innings to eliminate the Eagles 10-1 in the loser’s bracket on Saturday morning at Marty Miller Field in Norfolk, Va.

The second meeting since Wednesday between these two, the maroon and gray seemed to be ready to go in the top of the first frame when both Carlos Ortiz (Cleveland, Ohio) and Tyson Simpson (Burgaw, N.C.) recorded back-to-back hits to put runners in scoring position with one out. Senior Carter Williamson ripped a hard shot down the right field line that was inches foul and then lined the next pitch into the glove of NSU hurler Devin Hemmerich, who turned an inning-ending double play to stop the threat.

That was the first of many unlucky bounces for the Eagles.

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TSU's Dana Ford Inks Two More for Upcoming Season

Xaiver Richards

NASHVILLE, Tennessee – Men’s Basketball coach Dana Ford announced the signing of two transfers to join the program for the upcoming 2014-15 season. Xavier Richards (St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands) and Christian Crockett (Houston, Texas) join Darreon Reddick as the first signees of the Ford era at TSU.
 

Richards is a 6’2, 195 pound guard comes to TSU from Baltimore City Community College, while Crockett, a 6’6, 210 pound forward, joins the Big Blue from Odessa College.
 

Richards was named to the National Junior College athletic Association All-American third team as he led BCCC to Region XX championship. Richards played in 32 games, averaging 19.2 points on 59.3 percent shooting with 7.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.3 blocks per game.
 

As a freshman, Richards played in all 31 games, starting 10, shooting 56% from the field with a total of 189 points, 116 rebounds, 30 assists, 24 steals and 15 blocks. The incoming junior prepped at Gwynn Park High School (Brandywine, MD). 
 

Christian Crockett

Crockett helped OC to a 22-7 record, playing in 26 games, averaging 7.7 points per game by shooting 54 percent from the field, while grabbing 5.0 rebounds per game.
 

Crockett spent his first season at Mount St. Mary’s of the Northeast Conference. The 6’6 forward made his collegiate debut against Pittsburgh, while also getting time against Georgetown.
 

At Travis High School, Crockett averaged 10 points and six rebounds as a senior and was named First Team All-District and to the HABCA All-Star team while earning a spot on the All-Tournament. He averaged 12 points and seven rebounds in the playoffs to help Travis, ranked 27th in the nation, to a spot in the Texas Class 5A Championship game. As a junior, Crockett started every game while leading the team in rebounding. During the playoffs, Crockett averaged 15 points and six rebounds and was named honorable mention All-District. A three-year letter winner at Travis, he played summer AAU with the Adidas Houston Hoopstars 17U team. 

 

COURTESY TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

WSSU falls to Kutztown 1-0

WEST LAWN, Pennsylvania --  Kutztown scored the game's only run in the top of the ninth inning to win an elimination game against Winston-Salem State in the NCAA Atlantic Regional baseball tournament Friday.

It was the second straight one-run loss for the Rams (36-19), who lost to Shepherd 4-3 on Thursday in the regional opener.

Scott Wells was the tough-luck loser for the Rams, giving up just one run on four hits in 8 1/3 innings.

Pinch-hitter Colin Baker started the winning rally with a leadoff single. Warren Simpson pinch-ran for Baker and moved to second on John Dockins’ sacrifice bunt.

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Cole Joins Lady Rams Basketball Coaching Staff

ANNITRA COLE
Photo Courtesy WAU Athletics

WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina  --  The Winston-Salem State University women’s basketball program will welcome a new addition this week when Annitra Cole joins the coaching staff as an assistant coach. She comes to Winston-Salem State after spending three seasons as the head coach of the Washington Adventist University Shock.

During her time at Washington Adventist, she led the Shock to a 21-55 overall record, including winning nine games last season. She is a 2002 graduate of North Carolina Central University.

Cole will join a Lady Rams coaching staff that has posting winning records for four straight seasons and went 15-12, posted a winning record for the fourth straight season and placed third in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Southern Division.

For more information on Lady Rams basketball, contact the WSSU Office of Athletic Media Relations at (336) 750-2143 or log on to www.WSSURams.com.

COURTESY WINSTON-SALEM STATE UNIVESITY SPORTS INFORMATION
 
BIO
Prior to coming to WAU, Cole served as an intern with the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) where her responsibilities included assisting with the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, assisting with conference and NCAA rules interpretations, and monitoring eligibility checklists and weekly participation rosters.

Cole spent the 2009-10 season as an assistant coach at Hampton University, where they ended their season with an overall record of 20-12, won the 2010 MEAC Championship, and earned an appearance as a No. 15th seed in the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Tournament. Her duties included guard development, monitored academic progress, and organized pink zone event and community service activities.

After three years in the same capacity at her alma mater, North Carolina Central University (NCCU), Cole helped lead the 2006-07 squad to a 26-6 overall record, including a 17-3 mark in the highly competitive Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA). The team finished the season as 2007 CIAA Champions, and made its fifth appearance in the NCAA South Atlantic Regional Playoffs. Her duties for the Lady Eagles include working with the perimeter players, scheduling, recruiting, travel itinerary, monitoring academic progress, and film exchange.

Prior to returning to NCCU, Cole spent 2004-06 as an assistant coach for the girls varsity team at Riverside High School in Durham, N.C. She was also the head coach of the JV team from 2004-05, while serving as a Graduate Recruiter for NCCU's School of Graduate Studies. Cole has earned two degrees from NCCU, receiving her bachelor's degree in History in 2002, and in 2004 she earned her master's degree in history while spending the 2002-03 basketball season as a graduate assistant coach.

As a student- athlete at NCCU, Cole lettered in basketball for three years (1999-2002) and was a part of a squad that won three CIAA Western Division regular-season titles, advanced to the NCAA Division II Championship "Sweet 16" for the first time in Lady Eagle history, and was named team captain during the 2001-02 season.

A native of Oxon Hill, MD., Cole earned Second-Team All-Met honors at Friendly High School and was team captain from 1995-1997. Cole is a recent graduate of the NCAA Women's Coaches Academy, and a member of both the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA), and The Alliance of Women Coaches.

FAMU Rattlers help to make MEAC baseball strong in the South

NORFOLK, Virginia  --  Coach Jamey Shouppe only has to look at the remaining teams in the MEAC baseball tournament to know that FAMU’s road out of the losers’ bracket could mean facing at least two teams from the Southern Division.

He also knows that if the Rattlers get to the championship game there is no escaping a team from the toughest division in the conference. Teams from the South have been dominant in title games for the past 20 years.

And, it’s shaping up to be more of the same this year.

Four of the remaining teams in the rain-delayed tournament are from the Southern Division. Bethune-Cookman, which has won more titles than any other team in the division, faces defending champion Savannah State for a berth to the title game.

If FAMU wants to be a finalist it will have to ...

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ASU advances to SWAC championship game

NEW ORLEANS  -- This time, the Hornets didn't relax.

In Wednesday's opening-round win over Grambling, Alabama State built an early five-run lead, then had to rally late for an extra-inning victory. On Friday, Waldyvan Estrada went 3 for 5 and Branden Castro drove in five runs to finish the Tigers and send the Hornets to the championship game of the Southwestern Athletic Conference Baseball Tournament in New Orleans.

Alabama State's 15-6 win over Grambling completed the championship matchup of defending champion Jackson State (30-23) and Alabama State (37-19) on Sunday at 2 p.m. The winner will advance to the NCAA regionals on May 30.

"We know we're facing a good ball club, the defending champions," ASU coach Mervyl Melendez said. "We know we're facing one of the better pitchers in this conference in Desmond Russell, so we have to work extremely hard tomorrow to get ready. We have to do what we do best, and concentrate on ourselves."

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Eagles deny Xavier Gold Nuggets a spot in championship round

XU women's tennis vs. Embry-Riddle (Fla.)

Results    •    Facebook photos

MOBILE, Alabama -- Xavier University of Louisiana's women's tennis season ended the way it did a year ago: in the semifinals of the NAIA National Championship.

Fifth-ranked Embry-Riddle (Fla.), recording its second upset in as many days, won 2-of-3 doubles matches and 3-of-4 in singles to defeat the Gold Nuggets 5-2 on Friday at Copeland-Cox Mobile Tennis Center. It was the second straight year that Xavier (17-7) was eliminated as the tournament's No. 1 seed.

"This loss really hurts," XU coach Alan Green said. "It feels much worse than the one last year because this year I thought we had the team to win it all. Today we just didn't do what it takes to get the job done."

After sweeping the doubles in the quarterfinals on Thursday against Northwood (Fla.), the Gold Nuggets fended off two match points to avoid a doubles sweep by Embry-Riddle (18-5). Nour Abbes and Simone-Alyse Ewell led 6-2 on the second court against Anna Gotz and Paola Montero, then lost five consecutive games before scrambling to get into a tiebreaker, then winning it 7-4 after trailing 3-0.

Xavier struggled in its other two doubles matches. Kourtney Howell and Brion Flowers, the NAIA's fifth-ranked tandem, dropped their first five games against top-ranked Hui-I Huang and Kristina Marova before losing 8-6. Sisters Carmen and Brandi Nelson could not capitalize on a 3-2 lead and lost 8-4 to Eva Vilar and Paula Ortiz Couder.

"It seemed like we were fighting for our lives as soon as we stepped on the court," Green said. "We just never could get a grip on the match. Give Embry-Riddle a lot of credit for the way they came out and beat us down the way they did. We were lucky to win at No. 2 doubles. It could've easily been a sweep."

It could've easily been a sweep had Abbes not found a way to play with a stomach ailment -- she started feeling ill late Thursday -- and record both Xavier victories.

Abbes was nothing short of indefatigable. The freshman produced two straight winners to send her and Ewell into a tiebreaker, then she hit three straight winners during the tiebreaker to put her and Ewell ahead to stay. Abbes ended the doubles when she smashed a forehand down the line.

"I felt terrible after warmups. I wasn't sure I would be able to continue," Abbes said. "I have to give all the credit to (trainer) Allie (Wood). She took great care of me and kept me going, kept me on the court."

Abbes was first off the court in singles after beating Huang 6-3, 6-1, and that tied the dual at 2. But while Ewell and Howell won their opening sets, they couldn't get off the court. Couder beat Amber Brown 6-0, 6-4 at No. 6, Montero defeated Brandi Nelson 6-2, 6-3 at No. 5, then Marova clinched with a 6-4, 6-3 decision against Flowers at No. 3.

"Nour was sick, but she has the heart of a lion," Green said. "She's the type of player who is determined to win, no matter what is going on with her. We needed more of that."

Abbes, the Wilson/ITA NAIA National Rookie of the Year, ended her sensational season 17-0 in singles and 15-2 in doubles. She was 12-0 with Ewell, a sophomore who finished 20-3 in doubles, 19-0 in her final 20 matches.

It was the final XU competition for seniors Howell and Brown. Howell is the Nuggets' only two-time ITA NAIA All-American -- this season's honors have yet to be announced -- and Brown was a four-year letter winner who helped the Nuggets qualify three times for nationals.

Embry-Riddle, which beat fourth-ranked and three-time defending champion Auburn Montgomery in the quarterfinals, will meet second-ranked Georgia Gwinnett for the title at 9 a.m. Saturday. The Grizzlies -- in their second season of varsity competition and 1-1 against Xavier this season -- beat third-ranked Lindsey Wilson 5-2 in the other semifinal. This will be Embry-Riddle's second final; the Eagles lost to AUM in the 2012 title dual.

"As hurt as I feel right now and as hurt as the team feels, at the end of the day we had a very successful year," Green said. "We're disappointed to end it the way we did, but we had a great season. It was a great feeling knowing that we went into every match with a great shot to win."

Results    •    Facebook photos

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

MEAC names Florida A&M's Shouppe top coach

COACH JAMEY SHOUPPE

NORFOLK, Virginia  -- This baseball season was supposed to be one that Jamey Shouppe used to instill his philosophy as first-year head coach of the FAMU baseball team.

He accomplished that and more. So much so that the Rattlers went from being one of the worst teams to first in the MEAC, an amazing turnaround that earned Shouppe the conference’s Coach of the Year award Wednesday.

“I really didn’t look at it as was it going to be a great turnaround,” Shouppe said. “I just looked at it as an opportunity to teach baseball and to get guys to do things the right way.”

Infielder Bennie Robinson, who hit six home runs this season and led the team in hitting (.390) also was named Player of the Year. FAMU also put seven players on the All-MEAC academic team.

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Resilient Jackson State reborn at SWAC Baseball Tournament

NEW ORLEANS -- Ten days ago, playing baseball was the farthest thing from their minds. Ten days ago they were just happy that no one was hurt following a shocking bus fire on their way to take on Savannah State.

 

Now, here they are having won their first two games in the Southwestern Athletic Conference baseball tournament at the MLB Urban Youth Academy at Wesley Barrow Stadium by a combined score of 19-4. Now, Jackson State is in position to claim both the tournament title and the league’s bid to the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship.

 

 The defending SWAC champs had been struggling throughout the season, just 9-15 in the conference and only 27-23 on the year as they headed down I-20 for their penultimate series of the year. They were hoping that the final road trip of the year would bring them together. Those hopes literally went up in flames along with their bus. Fortunately, no one was injured but the team lost most of its equipment, which is no small loss to a small school in difficult financial times.

 

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MEAC Baseball Tournament Postponed Due To Weather

NORFOLK, Virginia -- All games of the MEAC Baseball Tournament today have been postponed until tomorrow due to heavy rain in the Norfolk, Va. area.

FAMU will face Coppin State on Saturday, May 17, at 2:00 pm. The winner will then play at 6:00 pm against the winner of the Norfolk State/NC Central matchup.

  2014 MEAC Baseball Tournament Bracket

COURTESY FLORIDA A&M UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

WSSU falls short in regional opener

WEST LAWN, Pennsylvania — Throughout Thursday’s opening game of the Division II Atlantic Regional baseball tournament, Winston-Salem State’s infield play was terrific, turning three double plays through four innings.

One more double play in the sixth would’ve loomed large in WSSU’s ability to protect a one-run lead and stop a threat by Shepherd. But the inning didn’t turn out the way WSSU would have liked.

After WSSU made an error — its fourth of the game — to start the inning, Shepherd rallied for two runs, then added a run in the seventh on the way to a 4-3 victory at Owls Field.
 

Starting pitcher Jordan Carlton had allowed just four hits and an unearned run in five innings. Trying to protect a 2-1 lead in the sixth, he allowed three hits but the two runs that put Shepherd up 3-2 were unearned. 

Coach Kevin Ritsche of WSSU said he was pleased with Carlton’s performance.

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Former Grambling State Basketball Player Fatally Shot

DAVID COPELAND
COURTESY GSU ATHLETICS

CHESTERFIELD, Virginia  -- A Chesterfield Community High School graduate who was the school’s all-time leading basketball scorer and went on to play at Grambling State University in Louisiana was fatally shot early Thursday during an apparent argument outside his home, police said.

David Emmanuel-Sinclair Copeland, 23, of the 3300 block of Meadowdale Boulevard, was found dead when officers arrived about 12:43 a.m. to investigate a report of shots fired. Another man who police said was known to Copeland and with him at the time was also shot and taken to VCU Medical Center with wounds that were not considered to be life-threatening. His identify has not been disclosed.

Police said they believed there were two suspects in the shootings, but they did not immediately have a description.

The shooting appeared to have followed an altercation in a parking lot at the apartment complex, said Chesterfield police Capt. Chris Hensley.

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FAMU Rattlers Fall To Savannah State 14-6 at the MEAC Tournament

Courtesy Florida A&M Sports Information

NORFOLK, Virginia  – Florida A&M (25-25, 14-10 MEAC) took a 5-2 lead into the sixth inning but fell 14-6 to Savannah State (22-29, 11-13 MEAC) at the MEAC baseball tournament on Thursday afternoon at Marty L. Miller Field. The loss snapped a six-game winnings streak for FAMU. The Rattlers gave up five runs in the fifth inning and committed four errors in the eighth inning in the loss. Bennie Robinson extended his consecutive games reaching base streak to 46 games while going 3-for-4 with two runs scored.

Rattler starting pitcher David Duncan (5-5) took the loss after allowing six runs on 10 hits in 5 2/3 innings with five strikeouts and four walks. Duncan struck out four of the first seven batters he faced.

FAMU grabbed an early 2-0 lead in the first inning. The Rattlers recorded four straight hits to start the game, while Marlon Gibbs and Ryan Kennedy each had RBI singles in the inning.

SSU tied the game at 2-2 on three hits as they sent eight batters to the plate in the top of the third. Todd Hagen led off the inning with a walk and David Richards singled to center to put runners on first and second with no outs. After a deep fly out to center by Charles Sikes that allowed Hagen to tag up and move to third, Mendez Elder crushed an RBI double against the wall in right center. Aaron Hoffer’s ground out to short plated Richards to tie the game at two. A two out walk would load the bases for the Tigers but Mike McHugh went down swinging to end the inning.

The Rattlers regained the lead, at 5-2, on Jared Walker’s bases clearing triple in the fourth. Jeremy Barlow drew a full count walk to open the home half of the inning and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Michael Birdsong was also walked to place runners on first and second with no outs. Kendal Weeks followed with a single through the left side to load the bases. Peter Jackson struck out for the second out before Walker’s three-run triple with the bases loaded gave FAMU the lead.

SavannahState took their first lead of the game at 7-5 with five runs on five hits in the top of the sixth. The lead proved to be all that the Tigers needed. Lee Moore came in to pinch hit for McHugh and singled to left. Hector Benitez bunt single in the very next at bat put two on with no outs. Moore advanced to third on a fly out from Hagen and scored as Richards grounded out to short. A wild pitch sent Benitez to third and Elder’s RBI single to center plated Benitez for the second run of the inning. The Tigers first lead came on Hoffer’s two-run triple to make the score 6-5 and Nix’s RBI single to right accounted for the fifth run of the inning.

Florida A&M cut the lead to one with a single run in the seventh inning. Gibbs’ RBI double scored Robinson, who had reached on an error, from first to cut the Savannah
State lead to 7-6.

The Tigers bats were relentless as they continued to score with seven runs in the eighth and ninth innings for the final score of 14-6. SSU had eight hits in final two frames but FAMU added four costly errors in the eighth to aid the damage.

Tiger reliever Austin Robinson (1-4) earned the win after only giving up one hit and no runs in 1 2/3 innings of work. Robinson had two strikeouts and one walk.

Florida A&M will face Coppin State on Friday, May 16 in an elimination game. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 pm. CSU defeated MEAC Northern Division No. 1 seed Delaware State 6-1 in an elimination game on Thursday evening. Game times could change as inclement weather is moving through the Norfolk, VA area.

As always, fans can follow Rattler Baseball on Twitter @FAMUAthletics and live stats for the tournament are available via www.meacsports.com.

BOX SCORE

2014 MEAC TOURNAMENT BRACKET

By Michael Morrell/Special to FAMU Athletics
COURTESY FLORIDA A&M UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

Top-ranked Embry-Riddle (Fla.) eliminates XU Gold Rush

MOBILE, Alabama -- Top-ranked and defending champion Embry-Riddle (Fla.) won a pair of close doubles matches Thursday en route to a 5-0 men's tennis victory against ninth-ranked Xavier University of Louisiana in the quarterfinals of the NAIA National Championship.

The Eagles (20-3) won their 10th in a row and will play fourth-ranked Vanguard or fifth-ranked Lindsey Wilson at 1 p.m. Friday. The Gold Rush finished 13-12 and are the only program in XU history to reach the national quarterfinals three consecutive years (2012, 2013, 2014).

Deni Zmak and Simon Felix scored the final four points of tiebreaker -- and overcame two Xavier match points -- to defeat Kyle Montrel and Nikita Soifer 9-8 (8-6) at No. 1 and give the Eagles a 2-0 lead in the dual. Patrick Besch and Jaime Sanchez-Canamares Rios completed the doubles sweep with a 9-7 victory at No. 3 against Viktor Svoboda and Adam Albrecht.

Svoboda and Albrecht trailed 3-0 but rallied to take 6-5 and 7-6 leads. In Montrel and Soifer's match, neither team led by more than a game.

"In doubles we missed a great chance to close out a couple of matches and grab the momentum," XU coach Alan Green said. "At No. 1 doubles we missed a shot by an inch with match point. But I can't fault our effort. We played and fought hard against Embry-Riddle and throughout the tournament."

Felix gave Embry-Riddle a 4-0 lead when he beat Jordan Harrell 6-0, 6-0 at No. 4 singles. Miguel Lopez Gomez clinched when he beat Albrecht 6-0, 6-0 at No. 6.

It was the second dual of the day for Xavier, which defeated eighth-ranked Belhaven 5-4 after being rained out Wednesday.

"This tournament was a great experience," Montrel said. "But we need to get to the finals and win it one year. If we add a couple more solid players next year, we'll be fine."

After a 6-9 start, Xavier won seven of its final 10 duals to clinch its fourth consecutive winning season. There were seven victories against ranked teams -- two in the NAIA's top 10 -- and two victories against NCAA Division I opponents.

It was the final XU competition for Svoboda, the team's lone senior and a three-year letterman.

Results

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

GSU avoids elimination in SWAC tournament

NEW ORLEANS  -- A seven-run seventh inning helped Grambling stave off elimination Thursday in a 14-8 win over Texas Southern at the Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament in New Orleans.

The Tigers trailed 8-6 heading into the seventh before exploding for seven runs to advance to Friday’s elimination game against the winner of Alabama State and Alcorn State. Alabama State sent Grambling to the loser’s bracket following Wednesday’s 11-10 win in 11 innings.

Korey Hall’s two-run shot in the seventh tied the game against Texas Southern, and Juan Bueno broke things open with a three-run double to right center.

Bueno finished 3-for-5 with four RBIs and three runs scored. Hall, Roger Diaz and Johnathon Timeo all added two RBIs each.

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ASU Hornets survive meltdown, beat Grambling 11-10

NEW ORLEANS  --  Even a home run by Dillon Cooper couldn't save Alabama State's pitching staff from a complete collapse in the opening game of the Southwestern Athletic Conference Baseball Tournament at MLB Urban Youth Academy's Wesley Barrow Stadium in New Orleans.

Cooper, who was 0 for 3 and batting just .194 when he stepped to the plate in the eighth inning, blasted a two-run home run to left center off Grambling reliever Zach Moreau for his third home run of the year and a 10-9 lead over the Tigers.

Just as quickly, Hornet ace-turned-closer T.J. Renda surrendered a home run to Travaurs Bell that tied the game.

It took a leadoff double by Richard Amion in the bottom of the 11^th and a bases-loaded walk to Raul Perez to rescue the Hornet pitching staff in an 11-10 win over Grambling State on Wednesday night.

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JSU in good APR standing, but not every SWAC school

JACKSON, Mississippi  -- All Jackson State sports are in good shape for the 2014-15 postseason, but not all of its Southwestern Athletic Conference brethren was as fortunate.

The NCAA released APR figures updated for the 2012-13 year, and five of the 10 football programs are ineligible and face APR penalties. However, according to The Pine Bluff Commercial, those teams will still be able to compete for the SWAC football championship this fall.

That means if Mississippi Valley State, Alabama State, Prairie View A&M, Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Southern football were to win their respective divisions, they can go to the SWAC championship in December despite their low APR scores. (All Southern sports face bans due to unusable data).

"As a result of the decision for basketball, all teams are eligible for postseason play in the SWAC," the league told The Pine-Bluff Commercial, adding that an official statement will be released soon.

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Gold Nuggets reach NAIA semifinals for 2nd straight year

MOBILE, Alabama  -- Compared to the second round the previous day, Xavier University of Louisiana women's tennis coach Alan Green was considerably happier with his team's performance in the quarterfinals of the NAIA National Championship.

The Gold Nuggets (17-6), top-ranked and top-seeded at this event, throttled ninth-ranked Northwood (Fla.) 5-0 on Thursday to reach the semifinals for the second consecutive year. Prior to 2013, no XU team in any sport had reached the national semifinals.

Xavier will play fifth-ranked Embry-Riddle (Fla.) -- a 5-3 winner against fourth-ranked and three-time defending champion Auburn Montgomery -- at 9 a.m. Friday.

After becoming the first-ever women's top seed to lose a match in the second round -- Xavier beat Davenport 5-2 -- the Nuggets did not drop a set against Northwood (15-5) and needed slightly less than 2 1/2 hours to clinch.

"I can't tell you what I told our team in my pregame pep talk," Green said, "but the message was to dominate today. And we did. We responded well."

Sisters Carmen and Brandi Nelson, a loser at No. 3 doubles against Davenport, were first off the court against Northwood when they beat Livia Toth and Julia Ferraz 8-3. Nour Abbes and Simone-Alyse Ewell, 11-0 as a doubles team, gave the Nuggets a 2-0 lead with their 8-2 decision against Adelaide Wood and Melaine Snowberger. Then Kourtney Howell and Brion Flowers, ranked fifth by the NAIA, completed the doubles sweep with an 8-5 victory against Justyna Wojcik and Valentina Souki.

The Nelsons' resurgence in doubles was symbolic of the Nuggets' improvement from the previous round.

"I am really proud of the way the Nelsons played," Green said. "I got on them pretty hard yesterday and benched Brandi in singles after they lost. They took the message very well.

"Today Brandi gave me what I was looking for. She responded like an adult and didn't get down on herself. She bounced back."

Brandi Nelson did not win in singles but was one of three Nuggets leading matches when the dual ended. Earning the final two victories for Xavier were Nour Abbes and Kourtney Howell, both 6-1, 6-1 at the top two flights.

Abbes improved to 16-0 by beating 12th-ranked Wojcik. Howell earned her 15th victory of the season by defeating Souki.

Xavier has 10 victories this season against ranked NAIA opponents and is 6-1 against the top 10. The Nuggets were 2-0 in 2013 against Embry-Riddle, including a 5-3 victory in the national quarterfinals.

Results

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
https://twitter.com/xulagold
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Gold Rush edge past Belhaven 5-4 to reach quarterfinals

MOBILE, Alabama -- Freshman Adam Albrecht, in the final match on the court, won a pair of tiebreakers Thursday to give Xavier University of Louisiana a 5-4 men's tennis victory against Belhaven in the second round of the NAIA National Championship.

Albrecht defeated Enrico Patriarca 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-1) at No. 6 singles to advance the ninth-ranked Gold Rush (13-11) to the quarterfinals for a school-record third consecutive year.

Eighth-ranked Belhaven finished 16-5.

Xavier will play top-ranked and defending champion Embry-Riddle (Fla.) at 5 p.m. Thursday.

"I've been playing 12 years, and I think this is the first time I've won two tiebreakers in a match," Albrecht said. "I just try to keep calm in tiebreakers and play each point like it's a practice match."

Albrecht (10-9) became the sixth XU male this season to reach double-digit victories.

"I made a last-minute decision to go with Adam at No. 6, and it paid off for us big-time," XU coach Alan Green said. "I'm so proud of Adam for being ready and coming through in crunch time for us."

Nikita Soifer and another freshman, Tushar Mandlekar, won in doubles and singles for Xavier. Soifer and Kyle Montrel won 8-4 at No. 1 doubles against Nikita Lisov and David Mejia, then Soifer gave the Rush a 3-2 lead when he beat Lisov 6-2, 6-1 at No. 2.

Mandlekar and Kevin Chaouat built a 5-1 lead but needed to win the last two games to prevail 8-6 at No. 2 against Andre Borghi and Patriarca, then Mandlekar gave the Rush a 4-3 lead when he beat Mejia 7-6 (7-5), 6-1 at No. 5.

Mandlekar tied Montrel for the team lead in singles victories with 16.

The victory was the seventh in the last nine duals for Xavier, which moved two victories above .500 for the first time this season and assured itself of a fourth consecutive winning season.

The victory was the seventh for the Gold Rush this season against a ranked opponent, and this one came against a Belhaven team which won 5-4 at home against Xavier on Feb. 15. The Gold Rush eliminated the Blazers in the second round at nationals a year ago.

"Our guys knew this would be a tough matchup, and they fought hard all day," Green said.

This is the first time the Gold Rush have won twice in the same national tournament. Xavier advanced to the quarterfinals after first-round byes the past two years.

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
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Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame to Honor Legendary Basketball Team

NASHVILLE, Tennessee  -- The Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame will honor the three-time champion Tennessee State men’s basketball team this weekend during the 2014 Induction Banquet events.

From 1957-1959, the TSU men's basketball team won three consecutive NAIA National Championships and became the first team to ever accomplish the feat.

The Tigers were led by legendary head coach John McLendon who ended up finishing his TSU career with a .878 winning percentage.

On the court, the team featured prolific players such as Dick Barnett and John Barnhill. Barnett is still the school's all-time leading scorer with 3,209 and Barnhill is 19th.

The duo helped the Tigers amass a 94-8 record during the three-year stretch including a school-record 32 wins during the 1958-59 season.

The Tigers won their first of three championships in 1957 when the team beat South East Oklahoma, 92-73. TSU went on to defeat their next to opponents in the championship game by double-digits as well.

Barnett was named MVP of the National Championship for his performances in the 1958 and 1959 games.

In one record-setting game during the 1958-59 season, the Tigers battled in-state foe Knoxville College. TSU scored an all-time high of 150 points in the contest and won by a record 92 points.

In three seasons, the team scored over 100 points 26 times thanks to McLendon's fast paced style that revolutionized the game of basketball.

McLendon ended his TSU career after the third championship and he is now a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame.



COURTESY TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

Updated 5/15: 2014 HBCU Football NFL Free Agent Signings

POS    PLAYER  TEAM    COLLEGE

WR Tyler McDonald, New England Patriots, South Carolina State *(minicamp invitee)
S    Kimario McFadden, Atlanta Falcons, South Carolina State
CB Keith Lewis, Tampa Bay Bucs, Virginia University-Lynchburg
LB Carlos Fields, Oakland Raiders, Winston-Salem State
DT Rob Smith, Oakland Raiders, Jackson State
RB Isaiah Crowell, Cleveland Browns, Alabama State
LB Joe Thomas, Green Bay Packers, South Carolina State
DB Justin Blake, Washington Redskins, Hampton
WR Lee Doss, Washington Redskins, Southern
CB Qua Cox, Indianapolis Colts, Jackson State
WR Greg Moore, Indianapolis Colts, Lane College
K/P Bobby Wenzig, Kansas City Chiefs, Alabama State *(minicamp invitee)
DB David Van Dyke, Kansas City Chiefs, Tennessee State
TE  A.C. Leonard, Minnesota Vikings, Tennessee State
DE Francis ("Frank") Mays, Philadelphia Eagles, Florida A&M
OL Karim Barton, Philadelphia Eagles, Morgan State
S    Dexter Moody, Baltimore Ravens, Albany State (Ga.)
DB Deji Olatoye, Baltimore Ravens, North Carolina A&T
WR Eddie Poole, Washington Redskins, Bethune-Cookman *(minicamp invitee)
 S    Nick Addison, Houston Texans, Bethune-Cookman *(minicamp invitee)
WR Jermaine Jones, New York Jets, Saint Augustine's U. *(minicamp invitee)
LB Brandon Denmark, Kansas City Chiefs, Florida A&M
SS  DeRon Furr, Kansas City Chiefs, Fort Valley State
DT Leon Minto, Houston Texans, Johnson C. Smith U.
OL Nathan Isles, Seattle Seahawks, North Carolina A&T

*Tryout 

Florida A&M Blanks Coppin State 10-0 To Open MEAC Tournament

NORFOLK, Virginia  -- Florida A&M (25-24, 14-10 MEAC) opened the MEAC Baseball Tournament with a 10-0, mercy rule, win over Coppin State (11-33, 9-15 MEAC) on Wednesday evening at Marty L. Miller Field. The win was the sixth straight for the Rattlers. Kendal Weeks pitched five shutout innings for the win, while scattering four hits with three strikeouts and one walk. Ryan Kennedy paced the FAMU offense going 2-for-3 with three RBI and a run scored, while Marlon Gibbs was 3-for-4 on the night.

The win was the first MEAC Tournament win for the Rattlers, five years to the day, since they defeated Maryland Eastern Shore 12-2 back on May 14, 2009.

FAMU jumped out to a 6-0 lead as the first six batters reached base in the first inning. The Rattlers chased Eagles starter Jhar Devilme from the game as he threw 41 pitches in the opening frame. Devilme allowed six runs (four earned) on three hits and walked four batters. Kennedy put the Rattlers on the board as he roped a two-run double into the left center gap for an early 2-0 lead. Three more runs were walked in with the bases loaded and another run scored as Devin Perry reached on a fielder’s choice. Coppin State pitchers combined to throw 58 pitches in the first.



The Rattlers added a single run in the third, to make the score 7-0, on Bennie Robinson’s RBI single that scored Jared Walker from first on a hit and run.

Coppin State’s first scoring opportunity came in the fifth inning. Bryant Miranda singled to left to lead off the fifth inning and after a pair of fielder’s choice outs, Colin Dower singled through the right side putting runners at first and second. Jeffrey Fitch followed with an infield single to load the bases before Weeks sent John Walls down swinging to strand the bags full and kept the shutout in tact.

Florida A&M increased its lead to 8-0 in the fifth. Walker led off with a single to left and took second as Robinson grounded out to the pitcher. Gibbs walked to place runners on first and second as Kennedy followed with an RBI single into left center.

Matthew Schaeffer came into pitch for FAMU in the sixth and walked Jack Kraft to open the inning. Schaeffer struck out David Hamlett for the first out before pinch hitter Jonathan Calvin’s infield single put runners on the corners. Miranda struck out and Chris Godfrey grounded into a fielder’s choice to end the inning.

FAMU pushed its lead to 9-0 with a run in the seventh.

CSU loaded the bases again in the eighth but failed to score. Kraft and Hamlett drew back-to-back walks to start the inning off reliever Cameron Sims. Both runners moved up a base as Bryant grounded out to second and Godfrey was hit-by-pitch to load the bases, but William Brown flew out to left for the third out.

Rattler pinch hitter Tevin Covington recorded his first hit of the season as he doubled home Ryan Hutson in the bottom of the eighth for the final score of 10-0 in a called mercy rule game.

CSU starter Jhar Devilme (3-4) suffered the loss.

Florida A&M will face SavannahState (21-29) in round two of the winner’s bracket at the MEAC Tournament on Thursday at 4:00 pm.

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

BOX SCORE

2014 MEAC TOURNAMENT BRACKET

By Michael Morrell/Special to FAMU Athletics
COURTESY FLORIDA A&M UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

Rain postpones XU Rush, Belhaven until 8:30 a.m. Thursday

MOBILE, Alabama -- Rain forced the postponement of Xavier University of Louisiana's men's tennis dual Wednesday against Belhaven in the second round of the NAIA National Championship.

The ninth-ranked Gold Rush (12-11) and the eighth-ranked Blazers (16-4) will meet at 8:30 a.m. Thursday at Copeland-Cox Mobile Tennis Center. All eight men's duals were pushed back to that time.

In the first round on Tuesday, Xavier defeated Hastings 8-1, and Belhaven had a bye.

The Xavier-Belhaven winner will play the Embry-Riddle (Fla.)-Coastal Georgia winner at 5 p.m. Thursday in the quarterfinals. Embry-Riddle is the defending champion.

Sandwiched between the men's rounds will be the four women's quarterfinals matches at noon. Xavier's top-ranked women will play Northwood (Fla.), which is ranked ninth.

The rain began at approximately 12:15 p.m. and continued most of the afternoon.

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
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Gold Nuggets snap Davenport's 20-dual winning streak

MOBILE, Alabama -- Top-ranked Xavier University of Louisiana got doubles and singles victories from Nour Abbes and Kourtney Howell in a 5-2 decision against Davenport in the second round of the NAIA Women's Tennis National Champipnship on Wednesday.

The Gold Nuggets (16-6) will play ninth-ranked Northwood (Fla.) at 9 a.m. Thursday in the quarterfinals.

Xavier ended the 20-dual win streak of 16th-ranked Davenport (23-5Abbes, the Wilson/ITA NAIA National Rookie of the Year, and Simone-Alyse Ewell defeated Puck Luttikhuis and Marcie Kooyers 8-1 at No. 2 doubles to put Xavier ahead to stay.  Howell and Brion Flowers gave the Nuggets a 2-0 lead when they defeated Alyssa Fuentes and Emily Spiech 8-2 in a matchup of NAIA top-10 teams.

Abbes improved to 15-0 in singles this season -- and gave Xavier a 3-1 lead -- when she defeated Fuentes 6-0, 6-1 at the top flight. Howell made it 4-1 when she beat Spiech 6-1, 6-2 at No. 2.

Amber Brown, who received her bachelor's degree from Xavier on Saturday, ended the dual when she beat Montserrat Elizondo 6-0, 6-1 at No. 5. Xavier led the two matches still on court.

"The top of the lineup took care of business as usual in singles and doubles," XU coach Alan Green said. "We're looking for the entire lineup to play that way. That's what we're going to need the rest of the week. We have no margin of error for the rest of this tournament."

Northwood advanced with a 5-4 victory against eighth-ranked Vanguard.

NOTES: This is the first XU women's team in any sport to reach the NAIA quarterfinals in consecutive years . . . Xavier reached the semifinals in 2013 . . . Xavier defeated Northwood 6-3 at a neutral site in Florida during the 2013 regular season . . . Abbes is 10-0 with Ewell, whose doubles win streak is 17 . . . Fuentes and Spiech had won 19 of their last 20 doubles matches before losing to Howell and Flowers . . . The Nuggets are 5-0 all-time at nationals against teams from the Midwest.

Results

 

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
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SWAC Football Media Day date announced

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- The Southwestern Athletic Conference announced its date for the 2014 edition of Football Media Day for Friday, July 18. For a consecutive year, the event will be held at the Birmingham Marriott located at 3590 Grandview Pkwy.

The date is set two days later than last year's media day which was the largest turnout in recent years, drawing more than 400 attendees and members of the media.

For a third consecutive year, the event will air live via SWAC Digital Network featuring a stage session and one-on-one interviews on the set of SDN. In addition, league head coaches and student-athletes will also join SDN live audio stream as part of the continuous coverage on www.swac.org.

Four new head coaches are slated to attend, including three first timers in the SWAC ranks with James Spady (Alabama A&M), Broderick Fobbs (Grambling State), and Harold Jackson (Jackson State). Rick Comegy, the longest tenured head coach in the SWAC, will be attending his eighth football media day, but his first at the helm of Mississippi Valley State.

A more detailed schedule with information on head coaches and student-athlete interview times will be released at a later date, however the event production will include:

 

SWAC Commissioner Address

Photo Opportunitites

Season Preview by Head Coaches

Championship Promo

SWAC Preseason Teams Announced

SDN Video Stream and SDN Radio

SWAC Audio Drops

Print Media Interviews

One-on-one TV Interviews

 

COURTESY SWAC MEDIA RELATIONS