In the FCS Huddle: MEAC spring football primer

PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania -- The lack of a win in the FCS playoffs since 1999 and a big annual payday have the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference considering significant change to its postseason plans.

The MEAC could relinquish its automatic bid to the playoffs to have its champion face the top team from the other historically black conference in the FCS, the Southwestern Athletic Conference, in an ESPN-funded postseason bowl, similar to MEAC-SWAC Challenge each opening weekend (this year, it's South Carolina State taking on Arkansas-Pine Bluff).

The estimate with a bowl game is that each conference would received $1 million to split among members. Floyd Kerr, the athletic director of last year's MEAC playoff qualifier Morgan State, said in a December radio interview that it's going to happen.

Even if the idea doesn't come off this year, the competitiveness within the 11-team MEAC will be high. Morgan State, Bethune-Cookman, North Carolina A&T, North Carolina Central and South Carolina State combined on a five-way tie for the title a year ago, and each remains in this year's title picture in a conference boasting four new head coaches ... as well as questions across the quarterback position.

Here's a look across the ...

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Southern stings ASU in SWAC Semifinals, 68-66

HOUSTON, Texas  – On paper, the Alabama State men's basketball team shouldn't have been in contention with 2.8 seconds remaining in Friday's Southwestern Athletic Conference semifinal.

The second-seeded Hornets (19-10) were outshot 42.6 percent to 30.2 percent and didn't score their first field goal against third-seeded Southern (18-16) until more than 8 minutes into the game.

But ASU built a 10-point second-half lead, before falling to the Jaguars, 68-66, in the semifinals on Friday afternoon at the Toyota Center.

Southern senior forward Keith Davis was driving to the lane when ASU senior guard DeMarcus Robinson was called for a foul.

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XU's Mandlekar, Vernet earn 2nd GCAC weekly awards of '15

Caroline Vernet: Beat NAIA's No. 21 singles player



Tushar Mandlekar: 3-0 in singles, 2-0 in doubles

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana's Caroline Vernet and Tushar Mandlekar are the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Players of the Week in tennis for March 2-8. Both are two-time recipients this season.       Vernet, a home-schooled freshman from Lyon, France, won all three of her singles matches this past week and is 7-2 this semester. Sunday she defeated Auburn Montgomery's Paula Diaz, No. 21 in the ITA's NAIA rankings, 4-6, 6-2, 1-0 (10-5) at the AUM Invitational in Montgomery, Ala.       Mandlekar, a sophomore from Bhilai, India, and a graduate of Deepak Nagar, went 3-0 in singles and 2-0 in doubles at the AUM Invitational. He was the lone Gold Rush player to win in singles and doubles Sunday at NAIA No. 3 Auburn Montgomery. His current win streaks are eight matches in singles and, with Manav Chakma, seven matches in doubles.       \Mandlekar won the GCAC award for the second consecutive week and has four in his career.       The Gold Nuggets' next dual match will start at noon Sunday at Southern University in Baton Rouge, La. The XU women are 9-6 and ranked xseventh in the NAIA. Next for the Gold Rush will be a 3 p.m. Thursday dual (March 19) at 11th-ranked William Carey in Hattiesburg, Miss. The XU men are 8-2 and ranked sixth. Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director XULAATHLETICS XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA  https://twitter.com/xulagold https://www.facebook.com/

Tennessee State Tigers to Open Spring Practice on March 16

NASHVILLE, Tennessee  –  The Tennessee State football team will start its Spring Camp on Monday, Mar. 16 at 4 p.m.

The Tigers are set to practice on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 4-6 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9-11 a.m. The camp will run for four weeks and culminate in the annual Spring Game on Apr. 11 at 3 p.m.

Big Blue is coming off of a 6-6 season in 2014 for the team’s third straight non-losing season – a feat that had not been done since 1984-86.

The squad will welcome back many young players in hopes of filling the spots of TSU’s all-time leader in passing yards Mike German and the school’s second-leading tackler Nick Thrasher.

Practices are open to the public and locations of each session are to be determined.

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TSU's Dameus Named Top Athlete of the OVC Championship

NASHVILLE, Tennessee – Clairwin Dameus was named Female Indoor Track and Field Athlete of the OVC Championship for her performance in the event on Feb. 27-28.

Dameus, who also won the award last season, tallied 3,856 points in the pentathlon this year including earning top marks in the 60 meter hurdles (8.64 seconds) and the long jump (5.98 meters).

Dameus continued her winning ways on Day One by defending her top seed and earning a maximum 10 points in the long jump competition with a leap of 5.9

3 meters.

On Day Two, Dameus teamed with Amber Hughes and Christian Pryor and Kayla Pryor to repeat as champions in the 4x400 meter relay. The squad clocked a time of 3:48.88 and had to fight off a charge from rival Austin Peay.

The Tennessee State track and field team will start the Outdoor Season on March 19 in the Alabama Relays in Tuscaloosa.

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Rush to play March 19 against Mid-America Christian

NEW ORLEANS -- Xavier University of Louisiana will play at 4:30 p.m. March 19 against 13th-seeded Mid-America Christian in the opening round of the Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Championship at Kansas City, Mo.

The NAIA announced the pairings of the 32-team event Wednesday evening, five hours after revealing that the Gold Rush (24-9) had qualified for a school-record fifth consecutive year and the 16th time overall.

Xavier finished second in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference regular season and tournament. Though unseeded at nationals, the Gold Rush were 19th in Wednesday's coaches poll, and Xavier has the longest current streak of top-25 appearances, 49.

Mid-America Christian, from Oklahoma City, qualified for nationals for the first time. The Evangels (23-10) were the Sooner Athletic Conference regular-season champion, then lost 94-60 to Wayland Baptist in the championship game of the conference tournament.

MACU did not receive a vote in this season's national polls until Jan. 20, when it entered at No. 25. The Evangels climbed eight places the following week after a 92-75 home victory against then-No. 8 Oklahoma Baptist.

It will be the first-ever meeting between Xavier and MACU. It will be Xavier's first game against a Sooner team since a 58-57 loss to Northwestern Oklahoma in the second round of nationals in 2007.

Willie Holley is in his 42nd and final season as MACU's head coach. His teams have won 813 games and four national championships in the National Christian College Athletic Association. The Evangels' leading scorer is 5-foot-5 senior point guard Semar Farris, who has 1,220 points in two years and averages 17.6 points this season. Farris was second-team All-America as a junior.

Dannton Jackson is 273-116 in his 12th season as Xavier's head coach. This will be his ninth appearance at nationals. Junior guard Morris Wright (14.5), senior guard Anthony Goode (12.9) and senior forward Sydney Coleman (12.1) are Xavier's leading scorers.

The XU-MACU winner will play fourth-seeded Freed-Hardeman or Missouri Valley in the second round at 8 p.m. Friday. Two victories would put Xavier in the quarterfinals at 6 p.m. Saturday.

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
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XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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NSU women beat Howard in MEAC quarterfinals

NORFOLK, Virginia -- In a week full of March Madness at Scope, the Norfolk State women were happy to bring some sanity to the MEAC tournament.

Fueled by a 13-0 run to open the game, the fourth-seeded Spartans closed the book on No. 12-seed Howard's Cinderella story with a 67-55 win in a Thursday afternoon MEAC quarterfinal.

With the win, NSU makes its first semifinals appearance since 2005. It was also a historic moment for the school: For the first time the men's and women's programs reached the league's final four during the same season.

"It's exciting for the university, and it just so happens to be in the city of Norfolk, so I think it's great for the community," NSU coach Debra Clark said.

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UMES shocks No. 1 seed Hampton U. women in MEAC tournament

NORFOLK, Virginia -- Hampton University’s tournament streak was destined to end at some point. It didn’t figure to come on this day against this particular opponent.

The Lady Pirates blitzed Maryland Eastern Shore during the regular season. They entered the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament on an eight-game win streak, while UMES had lost three of four before a first-round win Tuesday.

But No. 8 seed UMES never rattled and took down the five-time defending champs 52-50 Wednesday at Scope Arena, the dagger Jessica Long’s baseline jump shot with less than a second remaining.

“They played well the entire 40 minutes,” HU coach David Six said. “They were very effective in what they did defensively, and ultimately it was our undoing.”

Hampton (18-12) lost its first MEAC tournament game since 2009. The Lady Pirates were 15-0 in MEAC tournament games under Six, who was 88-8 in the conference in his six seasons before Wednesday.

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Hampton U. beats No. 3 seed UMES, will face Norfolk St. in MEAC semifinal

NORFOLK, Virginia -- Thirty-six good minutes trumped four spotty ones and extended Hampton University’s basketball season at least one more day.

The sixth-seeded Pirates weathered poor free-throw shooting and a Maryland Eastern Shore comeback for a 76-71 win Thursday in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament quarterfinal at Scope.

“I thought we played beautifully for 36 minutes,” HU coach Ed Joyner Jr. said. “I thought for 36 minutes we put on a clinic. But in the last (four) minutes, mainly because of free throws, we allowed them to get back into the ball game. But at the end I’m proud of my guys because they gutted it out.”

Hampton (14-17) earned a semifinal berth against second-seeded Norfolk State on Friday at approximately 8 p.m. The Spartans, who defeated South Carolina State in their quarterfinal Wednesday, swept both games against HU during the regular season.

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Southern men advance in SWAC tournament

HOUSTON, Texas -- Guards Tre Lynch, Trelun Banks and Adrian Rodgers combined to score 44 points as third-seeded Southern defeated sixth-seeded Alabama A&M 64-60 in the quarterfinals of the Southwesten Athletic Conference tournament Thursday afternoon in the Toyota Center.

Lynch came off the bench to score a game-high 16 points, making 6-of-9 field goals and Banks and Rodgers scored 14 each.

The Jaguars (17-16) will play second-seeded Alabama State, which defeated Mississippi Valley State 93-81 on Wednesday, in a semifinal game at 2:30 p.m. Friday.

Southern trailed 29-27 at halltime but outscored the Bulldogs (9-20) 13-2 to start the secondl half. A&M got within three with a minute left, but Lynch’s jumper from the lane and four free throws by Rodgers completed the Jaguars third victory against the Bulldogs this season.

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Prairie View A&M moves into SWAC semis with 62-56 win

HOUSTON, Texas — Tre Hagood scored 20 points and Montrael Scott 19 to lead fourth-seeded Prairie View A&M to a 62-56 victory over fifth-seeded Jackson State on Thursday night in the Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament.

On Friday, the Panthers (15-17) will take on top-seeded Texas Southern in a semifinal.

Raeford Worsham had 16 points and 17 rebounds, his fourth double-double this season, for the Tigers (11-21). Janarius Middleton also scored 16 points and Derrell Taylor added 10.

The Panthers shot 51.9 percent in the first half to take a 35-26 lead with Hagood scoring 10 points. They built their lead to 11 with 16 minutes to go before Jackson State cut it to 55-52 with 2:28 left on Javeres Brent's jumper after the Panthers suffered through a 1-for-9 stretch from the field. But a basket from Hagood and five Panthers free throws offset two baskets from Taylor down the stretch.

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Hornets' second half run stings MVSU in SWAC tourney

HOUSTON, Texas – Jamel Waters knew he had a chance to reach a personal milestone, but his focus was on leading the Alabama State men's basketball team into the Southwestern Athletic Conference semifinals.

The junior guard from Birmingham accomplished both — scoring 20 points for the second-seeded Hornets (19-9) to eclipse the 1,000 point mark in a 93-81 SWAC Quarterfinal win over seventh-seeded Mississippi Valley State (6-26) on Wednesday afternoon at the Toyota Center.

"It's a real good accomplishment, but I just want to thank my teammates," said the humble three-year starter after the Hornets defeated MVSU for the third time this season and extended their win streak against the Delta Devils to seven games.

ASU will face third-seeded Southern or sixth-seeded Alabama A&M in the semifinals at 2:30 p.m. Friday. The Jaguars and Bulldogs will meet in the quarterfinals at 2:30 p.m. Thursday.

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TSU advances to SWAC semis with another win over Alcorn State

HOUSTON, Texas -- Last week, Texas Southern defeated Alcorn State to clinch the SWAC regular-season basketball championship at the H&PE Arena.

On Wednesday at Toyota Center, the two teams met again. This time there was more at stake.

TSU again beat the Braves. And with the 95-74 win, the Tigers advance to the SWAC Tournament semifinals on Friday, where they could potentially meet Prairie View, which plays its first game in the tournament on Thursday.

"We were trying to set the tone here, being the first game," said Tigers forward Malcolm Riley, who had a team-high 21 points with 10 rebounds. "We're going to keep it going. We did a good job of that. We really emphasized it on the defensive end."

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Talladega beats Rush, repeats as GCAC champ

NEW ORLEANS -- Repeat MVP Shondel Stewart scored 20 points Sunday, leading NAIA No. 1 Talladega to a 76-58 men's basketball victory against Xavier University of Louisiana in the championship game of the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Tournament at the Convocation Center.

The Tornadoes (28-4) won the tournament for the second consecutive year and earned the GCAC's automatic berth to the Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I National Championship, which will begin March 18 at Kansas City, Mo. The Gold Rush (24-9) -- ranked 18th and owner of NAIA DI's longest streak of top-25 appearances, 48 -- will receive strong consideration for an at-large bid. Pairings will be announced Wednesday.

Brandon Peters scored 19 points, Courtney Mack 14 and Wendell Pierre 13 for Talladega.

Morris Wright scored 21 points, Sydney Coleman 16 and Anthony Goode 13 for Xavier. Coleman grabbed nine rebounds.

In the final five minutes, Talladega pulled away by making 17-of-18 free throws and outscoring Xavier 21-4.

For the game, Talladega outshot Xavier 50 to 39.6 percent from the floor and made 31-of-41 free throws to Xavier's 15-of-19. Peters was 15-of-17 from the line.

Xavier shot better than 60 percent from the floor in both of its tournament victories, including a season-high 63.8 percent Friday against Dillard.

Xavier twice led by five points in the first four minutes before Talladega rallied for a 30-28 halftime advantage. There were two ties and five lead changes in the second half before Pierre's basket with 8:16 remaining put the Tornadoes ahead to stay, 51-50.

Joining Stewart on the five-player all-tournament team were Peters, Wright, Coleman and Teviin Morris of Philander Smith.

Coleman extended his streak of consecutive field goals made in the tournament to 21 before missing three times in the final 7:49. Those were his only misses of the tournament.

Xavier seeks a school-record fifth consecutive invitation to the national tournament and its ninth of the last 11 seasons.

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
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XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
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SUNO defeats Gold Nuggets 55-47 for GCAC title

NEW ORLEANS -- Brandy Broome scored 13 of her 18 points in the second half Sunday and lead top-seeded SUNO to a 55-47 women's basketball victory against Xavier University of Louisiana in the championship game of the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Tournament at the Convocation Center.

The Lady Knights (21-4) won the tournament for the second time in three years and earned the GCAC's automatic berth to the NAIA Division I National Championship, which will begin March 18 at Independence, Mo. The Gold Nuggets (18-15), are expected to miss the national tourney for the first time since 2009 and just the third time in the last 21 seasons.

Broome, the tournament MVP and the GCAC's regular-season player of the year, narrowly missed a triple-double. The senior guard had 13 rebounds, five assists and nine steals, all game highs.

Marquetta Stokes scored 12 points for SUNO, and Rayvin Miller had 10 points.

Trana Hopkins scored 16 points and Vinnie Briggs 10 for Xavier, and Whitney Gathright grabbed a career-best nine rebounds.

Xavier led 25-22 at halftime. Miller's basket with 12:59 remaining put SUNO ahead to stay, 35-34. It was still a 1-point game in the final six minutes before Kishaun Williams scored a pair of baskets in an 8-0 run. Williams' second score concluded the run and gave SUNO a 51-42 lead with 1:19 remaining.

SUNO outshot Xavier 38.9 to 25.8 percent from the floor, 42.9 to 24.1 in the second half.

SUNO denied Xavier its fifth GCAC Tournament title in six years. The Gold Nuggets won the tourney in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014.

This was the closest of three meetings this season between the longtime city rivals. SUNO defeated the Gold Nuggets by 30 points at Xavier in January and by 10 at SUNO in February.


Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
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UMES women advance in MEAC Tournament

NORFOLK,Virginia -- Trailing 17-9 on Tuesday afternoon to North Carolina Central, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore women needed to make some plays if they wanted to stay alive in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament.

But that's just what they did at both ends of the court.

The defense ratcheted up the pressure on one end and freshman forward TeAmber Burke scored seven of the team's next nine points off the bench.

The Hawks (12-16) took their first lead — 18-17 — since the opening possession, on a Burke free throw with nine minutes to go before the half.

"TeAmber's play off the bench was huge," Hawks coach Fred Batchelor said. "Her 15 points was the difference in the first half. It was huge because it allowed us to get in our pressure which they had problems with."

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Hill Leads Women's Basketball To Upset of SC State at MEAC Tournament

NORFOLK,Virginia  -- Sophomore guard Jasmine Hill scored a career-high 20 points to lead four players in double figures and help Howard University upset South Carolina State, 70-57, in the first round of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Tournament at the Norfolk Scope Arena.

The Lady Bison (4-26), the Number 12 seed, advance to the next round where they will play Norfolk State, the Number 4 seed, on Thursday at 2:30 pm.

Howard, which lost to the Number 5 Lady Bulldogs (16-12) in their only game this season in Orangeburg, SC, set the tone early in the first half as junior guard Imani Bailey came off the bench to score 10 points and Hill and sophomore forward Sydni Johnson contributed seven each. It helped the Lady Bison maintained a 34-28 lead at the half despite not having leading scorer, Victoria Gonzales, who played only seven minutes due to foul trouble.

"It was a hard-fought game and our young ladies stepped up today," said Howard Coach Tennille Adams. "We are not our record. The toughness and competitiveness in which we play does not always show up in the win column."

In the second half, Howard opened with a 14-9 run that opened a 48-37 lead six minutes into the second stanza.The rally was fueled by Hill, sophomore guard Allese Morrison and Johnson, who combined for 12 of the points.

From there, Howard controlled the tempo and kept the Lady Bulldogs at bay, maintaining a double-digit lead the rest of the way.

SCSU's Kourtney Williams, Jasmine Coleman and Jazzmine Johnson took turns scoring, but each time South Carolina State would get close, Howard would have an answer.

"We didn't expect this kind of performance from them," noted Williams.

The Lady Bison had one of their better shooting performances of the year, hitting on 54 percent (27 of 50) for the game, including 61 percent in the second half. The Howard defense limited the Lady Bulldogs to 33 percent shooting and held a 40-33 advantage on the boards.

"Howard played extremely well," said South Carolina State coach Doug Robertson. "They shot the ball extremely well and we didn't defend the way we needed to. They were the better team for 40 minutes today."

In addition to her 20 points on eight of 13 from the field, Hill added four steals and a career-high seven rebounds. Johnson added 14 points, Morrison with 10 and Bailey with 14 off the bench.

"Jasmine Hill and Imani Bailey stepped up in a big way," said Adams. "I'm glad we have it all coming together now at tournament time."

South Carolina State got a team-high 13 from Coleman and 10 from Amber Howard.

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Hampton U. earns needed rest after MEAC win

NORFOLK, Virginia -- Silver linings abounded for Hampton University's men after their Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament opener.

The Pirates believed they were better than a No. 6 seed, and thus merited a later start than opening day.

But Hampton's 91-71 win against Morgan State on Monday night at Scope provided a jolt of confidence. It permitted the Pirates to shake off a late-season dip that saw them lose three of their final four games.

Because of the tournament format, the Pirates (13-17) also have a couple of days to rest and prepare for Thursday's 6 p.m. quarterfinal matchup against No. 3 seed Maryland Eastern Shore, a team they defeated in the regular season.

Perhaps most important, it gives leading scorer and rebounder Dwight Meikle time to recover from an ankle injury he suffered in Monday's win.

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FAMU Rattler Baseball Crushes Mercer 14-2

TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- Florida A&M (7-7, 4-2 MEAC) pounded out a season-high 16 hits and a season-high 14 runs to crush Mercer (9-9) 14-2 at Moore-Kittles Field on Tuesday afternoon. FAMU has now won six of its last eight games. Five Rattlers had a multi-hit game including Marlon Gibbs who went 3-for-5 with a double, four RBI and three runs scored. Kendal Weeks (2-1) had a strong outing on the mound, pitching eight innings and only allowing two runs (one earned) on three hits with two strikeouts for the win.

Jared Walker went 2-for-3 with a run scored, Alec Wong was 2-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored, Jeremy Barlow went 2-for-4 with two RBI and AJ Elkins was 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored. Robby Jolley recorded a pinch hit, three-run, home run in the eighth inning for his first hit of the season.

The Rattlers scored three runs on four hits in the first inning to grab a 3-0 lead. Walker led off the home half of the first with a bunt single and moved to second on a passed ball. Wong also reached on a bunt single, which allowed Walker to advance to third with no outs. Gibbs plated Walker for the first run of the game while reaching on a fielder’s choice. Gibbs then stole second and came around to score on Ryan Kennedy’s RBI single back up the middle. Still with one out, Brian Davis singled through the left side and a wild pitch moved the runners to second and third. Kennedy later scored the third run of the inning on Barlow’s RBI groundout.

Charlie Madden led off the top of the second inning, on the first pitch, with a solo home run to left for the Bears to cut the lead to 3-1.

FAMU scored four runs in the fifth inning to extend their lead to 7-1. Gibbs, Barlow and Peter Jackson each had a RBI in the inning as eight Rattlers went to the plate.

Florida A&M increased its’ lead to 8-1 with a run in the sixth inning. AJ Elkins led off the sixth with a double off the fence in left and went to third on a sacrifice bunt from Walker. Wong’s sac fly to left scored Elkins for the eighth run of the game.

The Bears would score an unearned run in the eighth to make the score 8-2. Pinch hitter Jackson Ware reached on an error and went to second on a groundout before scoring from second on Nate Moorhouse’s RBI single up the middle.

The Rattlers poured on six more runs in the bottom of the eighth for a final score of 14-2. Jolley recorded his first hit of the season in the inning, a three-run home run to left. Gibbs also had a two-run single in the inning to highlight the scoring.

Mercer starter Ryan Askew (2-2) who’s normally in the weekend rotation for the Bears suffered the loss. Askew allowed three runs in the first inning on four hits.

Florida A&M and Mercer finish up the mid-week series on Wednesday afternoon at Moore-Kittles Field. First pitch is scheduled for 4:00 PM.

BOX SCORE

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Coppin State holds off Bethune-Cookman 64-60 in MEAC 1st round

NORFOLK, Virginia -- Sterling Smith had 14 points, Daquan Brickhouse made two game-clinching free throws with two seconds left and ninth-seeded Coppin State beat No. 8 seed Bethune-Cookman 64-60 on Tuesday in the first round of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament.

The teams have met in the opening round each of the past three seasons — with Coppin State winning two straight.

Coppin State will play top-seeded North Carolina Central (24-6), the reigning tournament champions, on Wednesday in the quarterfinals.

Brickhouse finished with eight points for Coppin State (8-22), including an off-balance 3-pointer with the shot clock winding down for a 60-53 lead with 3:04 left.

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MEAC report | S.C. State men win, will face NSU

NORFOLK, Virginia  -- Jalen White and Edward Stephens both scored 16 points and seventh-seeded South Carolina State survived a late rally Tuesday night.

The Bulldogs (11-21) will face second-seeded Norfolk State in a quarterfinal game at 8 tonight.

S.C. State made 6 of 8 3-pointers in the first half to build a 19-point lead and withstood a second-half surge. The Aggies (9-23) shot 54.2 percent in the second half to tie the game at 52-52 with 3:43 remaining before S.C. State pulled away.

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SWAC rescinds suspensions to Coleman, Purnell

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- Southern University officials have been notified by the Southwestern Athletic Conference of the immediate reinstatement of two players who were initially suspended for suspected involvement in Saturday's on-court altercation at Texas Southern.

In communication provided to Southern athletics, The SWAC office rescinded the suspensions of senior guard Kendra Coleman and sophomore forward Cortnei Purnell "in light of additional video review by the Conference office."

Both Coleman and Purnell are eligible to play in Southern's tournament game and will not have to serve a one game suspension.

Southern has also been elevated to the No. 1 seed as a result of Texas Southern's decision to withdraw from the 2015 SWAC Tournament at the Toyota Center in Houston. The Jaguars will face No. 8 seed Mississippi Valley State in the tournament quarterfinal round Wednesday night at 6 p.m.

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TSU women’s basketball team could play in WNIT

HOUSTON, Texas -- Although the Texas Southern women’s team will not have a chance to compete in the women’s NCAA Tournament with its withdrawal from the Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament this week, the Tigers still have postseason hopes through the Women’s National Invitation Tournament, which will announce its 64-team field on Sunday night.

Each conference receives an automatic berth in the WNIT, and TSU, as the regular-season SWAC champion, would be the conference’s most likely candidate.

A WNIT spokesman said the tournament will consult with the SWAC and Texas Southern on a potential tournament invitation.

TSU withdrew from the SWAC tournament this week after ...

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Southern loses share of SWAC title; Texas Southern withdraws from tourney after brawl, sanctions

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- The Southwestern Athletic Conference took away Southern’s share of the conference regular-season title Monday night as it suspended seven Jaguars and eight Texas Southern players for their involvement in a brawl Saturday.

The suspended Southern players will be unavailable when the Jaguars play Grambling in a quarterfinal game in the SWAC tournament at noon Wednesday in the Toyota Center in Houston.

That leaves six Jaguars eligible to participate.

The Lady Tigers announced Monday night that they would not participate in the tournament because their suspensions left them incapable of fielding a full five-person lineup.

The altercation, which included cheerleaders and spectators, erupted with 12:37 left in the game and Southern leading 51-49 in a showdown for first place in the regular-season finale. After the officials imposed mandatory ejections for each player who left the benches during the skirmish, the game was declared a double forfeit because neither team could field five players.



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VUU women's basketball coach Wooten-Cherry resigns

RICHMOND, Virginia -- Virginia Union University women's basketball coach Barvenia Wooten-Cherry has resigned, the school announced Monday afternoon.

Wooten-Cherry just finished her fifth season with the Panthers, who went 9-18 overall and 4-12 in the CIAA this year.

“We accept Coach Wooten-Cherry’s resignation and thank her for all of her efforts while leading our women’s basketball program," VUU athletics director Joe Taylor said in a press release. "We wish her success in all of her future endeavors."

Wooten-Cherry returned to VUU, her alma mater, in 2010 and compiled a 48-85 (.361) record with the Panthers. She spent the previous 10 years as the coach of Prince Georges Community College.


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