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DENVER, Colorado -- The Chicago State men's basketball team was selected eighth in the Western Athletic Conference coaches and media polls released earlier today before the league's media day. New Mexico State was selected to capture the league title in both polls as it earned seven first-place votes from the coaches and 13 first-place votes from the media. Grand Canyon was picked second in the coaches poll followed by CSU Bakersfield in third and Utah Valley in fourth. UMKC and Seattle U were picked in a tie for fifth with UT Rio Grande Valley in seventh. In the media poll, GCU placed second with CSUB taking third, Seattle getting fourth and Utah Valley finishing fifth. UMKC was selected sixth and UTRGV placed seventh.
The WAC's Preseason Player of the Year award was given to Grand Canyon's redshirt junior guard Joshua Braun. The Green and White open their season schedule on Nov. 12 at the Emil and Patricia Jones Convocation Center against NCAA Division III member Illinois Tech in their homecoming game. Season tickets are currently on sale through www.gocsucougars.com. Patrons can also contact CSU Athletics for ticket information by phone at (773) 995-3742 or by email at gocsutix@csu.edu. 2016-17 Preseason Men's Basketball Coaches' Poll Rank, Teams (1st-Place Votes), Points 1. New Mexico State (4), 45 2. Grand Canyon (3), 44 3. CSU Bakersfield (1), 38 4. Utah Valley, 27 T-5. Seattle U, 25 T-5. UMKC, 25 7. UT Rio Grande Valley, 13 8. Chicago State, 7 2016-17 Preseason Men's Basketball Coaches' All-WAC Teams First Team Ian Baker, NM State Dedrick Basile, CSU Bakersfield Joshua Braun, Grand Canyon Martez Harrison, UMKC Brendan Westendorf, Seattle U Second Team LaVell Boyd, UMKC Antonio Green, UT Rio Grande Valley Zach Nelson, Utah Valley William Powell, Seattle U DeWayne Russell, Grand Canyon Preseason Player of the Year: Joshua Braun, Grand Canyon 2016-17 Preseason Men's Basketball Media Poll Rank, Teams (1st-Place Votes),Points 1. NM State (9), 167 2. Grand Canyon (8), 165 3. CSU Bakersfield (2), 147 4. Seattle U (1), 108 5. Utah Valley (2), 100 6. UMKC (2), 96 7. UT Rio Grande Valley, 56 8. Chicago State, 25 2016-17 Preseason Men's Basketball Media All-WAC Teams First Team Ian Baker, NM State Dedrick Basile, CSU Bakersfield Joshua Braun, Grand Canyon Martez Harrison, UMKC Brendan Westendorf, Seattle U Second Team Jaylin Airington, CSU Bakersfield Antonio Green, UT Rio Grande Valley Dan Kimasa, UT Rio Grande Valley Zach Nelson, Utah Valley William Powell, Seattle U Preseason Player of the Year: Joshua Braun, Grand Canyon
NASHVILLE, Tennessee -- The crispness of the fall air, the orange hues that overtake the treetops, and the squeak of basketball sneakers in gymnasiums across the country. These are just some of the telltale signs that basketball is back. More importantly, the annual countdown to March Madness can begin anew.
As much fun as Midnight Madness can be, the culmination of a long offseason is the tipoff of a team's first game.
With the start of the 2016-17 season quickly approaching, NCAA.com is cracking the books and breaking things down in each of college basketball's 32 conferences.
Here's a look at the Ohio Valley Conference.
Recap:
The race in the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) a year ago saw six of the eight teams enter the conference tournament with at least 10 wins in conference.
In other words, parity was on full display in the OVC.
In years past Belmont and Murray State have been the pacesetters in their respective divisions, finishing in the top spot in three of the last four seasons. But UT-Martin had something to say about that trend last year, edging out the Racers of Murray State for the regular season crown in the OVC's West Division. CONTINUE READING
HOUSTON, Texas -- The crispness of the fall air, the orange hues that overtake the treetops, and the squeak of basketball sneakers in gymnasiums across the country.
These are just some of the telltale signs that basketball is back. More importantly, the annual countdown to March Madness can begin anew.
As much fun as Midnight Madness can be, the culmination of a long offseason is the tipoff of a team's first game. With the start of the 2016-17 season quickly approaching, NCAA.com is cracking the books and breaking things down in each of college basketball's 32 conferences.
Let’s continue on with a look at the Southwest Athletic Conference.
Recap
The 2015-16 SWAC belonged to Texas Southern throughout the regular season, but as happens all too often in small conferences, the Tigers fell short of their one way to get to the Big Dance: winning the conference tournament.
After going 16-2 in regular-season conference play, Texas Southern was upended by Southern in the conference semifinals. That ended the NCAA tournament hopes of the regular-season champs, who had a very strange year after starting 1-11 in non-conference action before winning 17 of their next 19.
After taking down the Tigers, fourth-seeded Southern moved on to the SWAC Championship Game, where it met No. 3 seed Jackson State. That battle was a very entertaining one, with Jaguars guard Adrian Rodgers hitting a jumper with 17 seconds left to lift Southern to a 54-53 win and trip to the NCAA tournament.
NEW ORLEANS — Freshman Russell Harrison opened his college career with 15 points to lead hot-shooting Wayland Baptist in an 83-68 men's basketball victory Friday against NAIA No. 25 Xavier University of Louisiana.
Wayland Baptist (1-0) shot 50 percent from the floor and made 12 3-pointers in 25 attempts. The Pioneers shot 59.3 percent from the floor in the second half.
Harrison made three 3-pointers, and four teammates made two treys apiece. Maurice Redmond scored 14 points, Louis Timms had 13 and Marshall Nelson and Joshua Throns added 10 apiece for the Pioneers. Timms grabbed 11 rebounds and had six blocks and three steals.
Seth Jackson led the Gold Rush (1-1) with 19 points and five rebounds. Jalen David scored 16 points, and Leland Alexander and Lucas Martin-Julien scored eight apiece. Wayland Baptist took the lead for good in the second minute and led 36-28 at halftime. A Timms 3-point play with 9:38 remaining gave the Pioneers their biggest lead, 64-44. Both teams qualified for the Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I National Championship last season. XULA will play host to NAIA No. 5 LSU-Alexandria at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Convocation Center. LSUA will be the first of two top-10 opponents for the Gold Rush next week. BOX SCORE
NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana women's basketball won at home for the second consecutive day, this time in a 76-52 decision against Webber International. Fourteen players scored for the Gold Nuggets (2-0), but only Terriel Ross (11 points) reached double figures. Kelsey Joseph and Gina Smith scored nine points apiece, and Jalyn Hodge had seven. Joseph, a senior guard, matched her career scoring high. XULA outscored the Warriors (0-4) in every quarter, including 28-15 in the second to take a 44-27 halftime lead. The Gold Nuggets twice led by 25 points, the second time after Hodge's 3-pointer with 5:26 remaining. Amber Ferguson led Webber International with 18 points and seven rebounds, and teammate Tiffany Zito had eight points and 10 rebounds. XULA made only three of its final 18 field-goal attempts but still outshot the Warriors 34.8 to 31.7 percent from the floor for the game. The Gold Nuggets were plus-14 in turnovers, made 25-of-29 free throws — they were 9-of-20 the day before — and produced 24 steals, their most in a game since January 2013. XULA freshman point guard Maya Trench collected five steals for the second consecutive game.Aliyah Bell had four steals, and Ireyon Keith had three. XULA opened its 2015-16 season with a 47-42 victory at Webber. The Gold Nuggets' next five games will be against teams 26th or higher in the NAIA Division I preseason coaches rankings. XULA will play No. 3 Our Lady of the Lake at 5 p.m. Friday in the LSUS Classic at Shreveport, La. The Nuggets' next home game will start at 5:30 p.m. Nov. 15 against city rival Loyola, which is ranked 24th. BOX SCORE
CLARKSVILLE, Tennessee -- Freshman Steven Newbold caught his second touchdown of the game with 1.7 seconds left and Lane Clark kicked the extra point to give the Tennessee State football team a 41-40 road win over Austin Peay at Fortera Stadium on Saturday night.
A six-play, 81-yard touchdown drive led by senior quarterback Ronald Butler turned out to be the difference for TSU, which improved to 6-3 overall and 3-2 in Ohio Valley Conference play. On the final offensive play for the Tigers, Butler eluded the pass rush, stepped up in the pocket and delivered a 21-yard strike to Newbold in the corner of the endzone.
Butler turned in another strong performance with four passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns to go with 342 yards of total offense.
On the other side of the ball, Antonio Justice, Jr. led the Tigers’ defense with nine tackles, 1.5 for a loss and one sack.
Austin Peay used a double lateral which gained 42 yards to move to the TSU 24. The Governors needed six more plays to enter the end zone as they scored on the first drive of the game to take a 7-0 lead. This marked the first lead the Govs have held in a game since week one of the season.
The Tigers responded with touchdowns on three consecutive drives to take a 20-9 advantage. Ronald Butler found Steven Newbold at the nine yard line and the freshman did the rest avoiding three governor defenders before crossing the goal line for the Tigers first score. APSU earned two points as the snap on the extra point attempt slipped through the hands of holder Austin Rowley. The Governors picked up the ball and used a lateral to return the other way to make the score 9-6.
The Tigers needed just two plays on their next drive to hit pay dirt. Butler opened the series with a 12 yard run moving to the APSU 27. Butler dropped back on the next play and found Mahlon Medley across the middle for the sophomore tight ends first career touchdown. The score gave the Tigers their forst lead of the game at 13-9.
The Tigers put together their longest drive on the next possession. TSU used nine plays to travel 92 yards for the final TSU score of the first half. Earl Harrison, in his first action in three games, broke through the middle of the line for a 43 yard run to the APSU 49 on the first play. The Big Blue offense continued the drive by converting on a 3rd-and-18 as Butler found Chris Rowland streaking down the middle of the defense for a 25 yard reception.
Three plays later the Tigers were in another third and long, only to see Butler connecting on a 17 yard pass play to Mazio Rhodes for another first down. On the very next play, Butler scampered for the first of his two rushing touchdowns as he went 13 yards untouched. The score extended the TSU lead to 20-9.
Austin Peay charged back with 10 unanswered points to cut the TSU lead to one at 20-19 as the two teams entered the locker room.
The second half began with Erick Evans carrying on back-to-back plays of seven and 19 yards as the Tigers crossed into Governors territory. Butler teamed with Patrick Smith for the only time in the game on a 39 yard strike, making the score, 27-19. Smith scored his 11th touchdown of the season and the 21st of his two-year career.
Butler continued his six touchdown night with the longest run in his career. The senior quarterback opted to keep the ball and broke around the right side of the line and outran the defense 84 yards. The scoring play gave TSU its largest lead of the game, 34-19.
The Governors came storming back with 21 straight points, taking a 40-34 lead with 1:05 remaining, setting up the Tigers final drive.
Newbold finished the game with four receptions for 72 yards and two touchdowns. The true freshman now has five scoring catches on the season.
Next up for TSU is a home game versus Tennessee Tech on Nov. 12 at Hale Stadium. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. and the game will serve as Senior Day for the Tigers.
GAME NOTES: TSU captains were Ebo Ogundeko, Thomas Burton, Chris Collins and Ronald Butler… TSU won the coin toss and chose to kick off to start the game… Opening kickoff was at 3:59 p.m. … Official attendance was 6,041… TSU leads the all-time series with Austin Peay, 13-6… TSU is 2-0 in Sergeant York Trophy games this season… Freshman Steven Newbold picked up his first multi-touchdown game… Redshirt junior Patrick Smith registered his 21st career touchdown reception… Sophomore tight end Mahlon Medley caught his first career touchdown… Ronald Butler’s 84 yard touchdown rush was the longest of his career. Butler rushed for a career-high 130 rushing yards… Austin Rowley recorded a season-long 53 yard punt in the third quarter. His previous best this season was a 49 yarder… Saturday’s victory was the first for TSU in a road Ohio Valley Conference game since Nov. 22, 2014 at Murray State.
Quarterback Ronald Butler
“Only God. He brought me through it and only He can bring you through it in every aspect of the way. All I can say is, I love this team. We fought together and stuck together.”
- On the feeling of winning
“I knew that we had to take care of the ball. We’ve still got a lot of guys outside who can make plays. The way their defense set up, I saw pre-snap reads that we could make plays. Those guys did a great job. On the last play, give credit to Steven Newbold just making a play.”
- On the last drive
Wide Receiver Steven Newbold
“Honestly, the confidence is always there. We know the offense has a lot of talent. On the final drive, we just executed. The coaches made some good calls on the final drive, and everything came together.”
- On the confidence of the offense with the game on the line
“On the last play, all credit to Ronald Butler. He made a good play and put it up there for me to go up and get it.”
- On the last play
Defensive End Ebo Ogundeko
“It’s just us growing up as a team. We did it together as a family and us playing our roles as a family. We continued to focus on what we had to do. Coach Reed talks about it all the time, and it starts the beginning of the week until game day.”
- On getting back to winning
“After Austin Peay’s last drive, Steven (Newbold) said ‘Ebo, big bro, I’ve got you.’ I didn’t really take it into consideration about what he said until after he scored the touchdown. We didn’t have much time on the clock, but I had a lot of confidence in our offense. That was just unbelievable.”
- On the offense’s last drive
Defensive End Dell Porter
“For us, we’re getting back on track. We hate to lose, but we love to win. We’re getting back on track and we’re winning. We just have to make it consistent and keep doing it.”
- On getting back to winning
“To be honest, with all my heart, I have all the confidence in the world that our offense is going to do what they have to do. I haven’t seen an offensive player give up yet this season, so I feel 100 percent sure that Butler and the wide receivers and the offensive line would do great.”
- On the play of the offense
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2016 OVC
Tennessee State 41, Austin Peay 40 MEAC
Bethune Cookman 41, Morgan State 10
North Carolina A&T 30, South Carolina State 20
North Carolina Central 38, Delaware State 19
Savannah State 31, Norfolk State 14
SWAC
Mississippi Valley State 41, Arkansas Pine Bluff 7
Alabama State 14, Jackson State 7
Grambling State 56, Alabama A&M 17
Southern 26, Texas Southern 10
Prairie View A&M 31, Alcorn State 27
OTHER HBCUs
West Virginia State 52, Concord 45
William Jewell 48, Lincoln (Mo.) 17
Kutztown 32, Cheyney 6
Warner 42, Edward Waters 21
Langston 40, Lyon 12
Southwest Assemblies of God 57, Texas College 39
SIAC
Tuskegee 13, Miles 10
Fort Valley State 21, Albany State 17
Kennesaw State 56, Clark Atlanta 0
Southwest Baptist 54, Central State 34
Benedict 39, Kentucky State 35
Morehouse 24, Lane 21
CIAA
Winston-Salem State 28, Fayetteville State 21
Bowie State 56, Elizabeth City State 7
Johnson C. Smith 30, Livingstone 8
Shaw 35, Saint Augustine's 32
Chowan 73, Lincoln (Pa.) 0
Virginia State 48, Virginia Union 21
MONTGOMERY, Alabama -- Alabama State had to put the crushing loss in last week’s Magic City Classic behind it as a conference title contender came to ASU Stadium on Saturday.
The Hornets defense bounced back with a vengeance.
Alabama State freshman linebacker Darron Johnson and senior linebacker Kourtney Berry each had nine tackles as the Hornets defeated Jackson State 14-7 in a game where the defenses ruled the day.
The Hornets (3-6, 3-5 SWAC) held the Tigers to just 294 total yards with just 60 coming on the ground.
Defensive lineman Roderick “Ghost” Henderson had seven tackles and two tackles for loss. Defensive back Ronnie Scott broke up a pass with 5:16 left on fourth down to seal the victory.
“It feels great to win a game like this,” Johnson said. “We’ve got to continue to finish strong, and that’s what we focused on this week.”
PINE BLUFF, Arkansas --There were a lot of firsts at Golden Lions Stadium on Saturday.
Unfortunately for UAPB, none of them were good.
Mississippi Valley State picked up its first victory of the season with a 41-7 rout over UAPB in front of an announced crowd of 1,347.
It was the first time the Golden Lions (1-8, 1-6 SWAC) have lost to Mississippi Valley State (1-8, 1-6) under UAPB Coach Monte Coleman. It was also the first time that a Delta Devils quarterback threw for three touchdowns this season. Against the Golden Lions, Mississippi Valley State actually had two quarterbacks accomplish that feat.
Sophomore Slade Jarman, who was getting his first start of the season, was 17-of-23 passing for 214 yards and 3 touchdowns. Junior Austin Bray, who had started the previous eight games, was 6-of-6 passing for 96 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Jarman threw two first-half touchdowns, both to receiver Booker Chambers. He connected with Chambers from 9 yards out with 8:15 left in the first quarter and then again on a 26-yard post route with 13:24 left in the second quarter.
A Delta Devils team that came into Pine Bluff averaging just 10.1 yards rushing per game managed to run all over UAPB. Mississippi Valley State carried the ball 14 times for 40 yards in the first quarter.
BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- Just as quickly as the door opened, Southern’s defense slammed it shut.
Saturday was an off night for the Jaguars offense as they tried to gain traction against Texas Southern, but their defense took advantage of the opportunity to step up.
The Tigers picked up their only touchdown on an interception return, and Southern’s defense nearly picked up a shutout. The Jaguars gave their offense all the time it needed to find its footing in a 26-10 win at A.W. Mumford Stadium.
“If you can keep people out of the end zone, you‘ve got a chance to win football games,” Southern coach Dawson Odums said. “We gave up some yards, but overall we did a good job of limiting them on third down. Texas Southern made some plays, but we had timely turnovers.”
Two of those turnovers came after Texas Southern drove inside the SU 20-yard line. Tre’Veon Epps made a diving interception to turn back a second-quarter TSU drive. In the third quarter, Danny Johnson stepped in front of TSU’s Malik Webb to stop another drive.
Texas Southern’s lone offensive points came in the third quarter after the Tigers had first-and-goal at the SU 7. TSU went backward and eventually settled for Eric Medina’s 32-yard field goal.
BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- Uncharacteristically poor focus and execution on offense wasn’t enough to keep Southern from winning its sixth straight game.
Southern finished with 496 yards of offense but spent large chunks of the game looking out of sorts on offense. The Jaguars required the defense to rise to the occasion and the offense to come through in the clutch to pull off a 26-10 win against Texas Southern at A.W. Mumford Stadium.
“I thought in the second half, we played a lot better, inspired, made some plays,” Southern coach Dawson Odums said. “Defensively, we gave ourselves a chance to win. Offensively, we did enough to win a football game.”
Southern’s lead was four points when the fourth quarter started, but it quickly swelled back into double digits after a short field goal that was followed by a Roshaud Turner interception on TSU’s next play from scrimmage. That turnover set up the Jaguars (6-2, 6-0 SWAC) at the TSU 27-yard line.
Southern then called five consecutive run plays for Lenard Tillery, who finished with his fifth consecutive 100-yard rushing day. Tillery fumbled his last carry of the drive away, but it was recovered in the end zone by freshman guard Jerimiah Abby to extend Southern’s lead to 23-10.
BALTIMORE, Maryland -- For a moment Saturday, football was fun for the Morgan State fans. When the Bears' Will King raced 88 yards with the second-half kickoff at Hughes Stadium, folks looked up from their smart phones and cheered. A minute later, quarterback Chris Andrews scrambled 17 yards for a score and Morgan State crept to within 20-10 of Bethune-Cookman, the four-time defending Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference champion.
End of rally. Bethune-Cookman scored three more touchdowns to win, 41-10.
It was the fourth straight defeat for the Bears (2-6, 2-4 MEAC), who found yet more ways to lose. Two ugly punts that went a total of 33 yards. Three face-mask penalties. A total of 32 yards rushing, most of that near the end when all was lost. For the day, Morgan State averaged 1.1 yards per carry. The reason, in part, was because the Bears changed their offensive line coach at midseason, players said.
"We're putting in new schemes and simplifying the offense to make plays and get wins," guard Matthew Thompson (Perry Hall) said. "Offensively, we have good chemistry — we've just got to keep pounding the ball. There's light at the end of this tunnel; we're always one block away from breaking a big run." CONTINUE READING
PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas -- Home games for the Prairie View A&M University football team in 2016 are not for the faint-of-heart Panther fan.
Slow starts have led to exciting finishes. Weather delays, blood pressure medicines, defibrillators, energy beverages, virtual seat belts, and rollercoaster rides have all been a part of this year's fan experience at Panther football on The Hill.
However, with three games played at the new Panther Stadium, PVAMU football remains unbeaten, and, after Saturday's 31-27 come-from-behind win over two-time defending SWAC Champion Alcorn State, the Panthers (6-3 overall, 6-1 SWAC) remain in the hunt for the SWAC Championship Game or FCS playoff berth.
"I think we like giving our fans close games at home, but I'm proud of the guys," Panther head football coach Willie Simmons said. "I'm proud of the way they fought and responded, being down again early, never quitting. These guys have the heart of a champion. I'm happy to see them respond to adversity in good ways and see them continue to fight and plug through."
QB Jalen Morton accounted for four touchdowns (two passing, two running), and Sta'Fon McCray and Caleb Broach combined to rush for 141 yards as Prairie View A&M defeated the Braves (3-5 overall, 3-4 SWAC) for the second straight season.
"I've got to tip my hat to Alcorn State," Simmons said. "That's a first class organization. It's a reason why they are the two-time defending champs. I know a lot of those guys there, a lot of those coaches. They run a fine program. We knew it was going to be a 60-minute ball game. We're happy to be able to do enough in all three phases."
Prairie View A&M trailed 14-0 late in the first half before getting on the board twice in the final minute of the first half. McCray's 6-yard scoring pass from Morton with 32 seconds to play cut the Panthers' deficit in half. On the ensuing kickoff, Alcorn State failed to cover and Arthur Lockett recovered at the Alcorn 15. Armaury Martinez' 32-yard field goal on the last play of the half cut the PVAMU deficit to 14-10.
The Panthers scored on their third straight possession to open the third quarter. The five-play, 64-yard drive ended with Morton's 13-yard touchdown run to put Prairie View A&M in front for the first time, 17-14 with just over 13 minutes to play in the third quarter.
After the Braves regained the lead, the Panthers scored touchdowns on back-to-back possessions. Morton eluded defenders and fired a 44-yard pass to Darius Floyd in the end zone, who made a diving catch to put the Panthers ahead to stay, 24-21, with just over four minutes to play in the third quarter.
On the ensuing PVAMU possession, Morton led the Panthers on one of their most impressive drives of the season. Driving 85 yards in 13 plays, taking more than 6 ½ minutes off the clock, Christian Rousseau's eight-yard run on a fake field goal on fourth-and-three from the Alcorn State nine-yard line gave the Panthers a first down.
Morton's one-yard score on the next play gave the Panthers a 31-21 lead with just over 10 minutes to play in the game.
After Alcorn scored with under seven minutes to play, PVAMU's Treveon Billings blocked the PAT to give the Panthers the final margin. The defense sealed the deal, holding the Braves without a first down on the final two possessions.
The Panthers return to action next week in the final home game of the season against SWAC Western Division co-leader Southern at 1 p.m. (www.pvpanthers.com/tickets), again looking to stay in the hunt for the postseason.
"We keep finding ways to get it done," Simmons said. "Hopefully, we can figure out why we keep starting so slowly. I don't know if it's what we're eating, where we staying. I don't know, but we have to figure something out. We have a really good Southern team coming in right now that's undefeated in conference play. It'll be hard to start slow against that bunch, and be able to beat them. We have to come faster next week. Again, if we can continue to finish the way we're doing, I like our chances."
SAVANNAH, Georgia -- It was Senior Night on Saturday night at Savannah State’s T.A. Wright Stadium, but a freshman stole the show.
Freshman quarterback TJ Bell, in only his third start, threw three touchdown passes and ran for another to lead the surprising Tigers to an easy 31-14 victory over Norfolk State.
SSU (3-4, 3-2 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) won its second straight game and captured its third win of the season, the most for the school since 2008.
The 17-point margin of victory for the Tigers was their largest since beating Edward Waters by 21, 45-24, in 2009.
It snapped a seven-game losing streak to the Spartans and it was Savannah State’s first win over Norfolk since 2004.
“I’ve always been comfortable at quarterback,” said Bell, who played the entire game for the first time.
BOWIE, Maryland -- The objective of the day was simple ... Win! From the opening possession, that's exactly what Bowie State football did on Saturday afternoon, routing Elizabeth City State 56-7 to win the CIAA Northern Division title and punched their ticket to the CIAA Championship game. The 56 points were the second highest all-time for Bowie State versus Elizabeth City State and the highest point production of the year for the Bulldogs. Prior to the game, 13 Bowie State seniors were honored along with a special Senior Day presentation to ECSU senior Victor Tabbs (Suitland, Md.) who tragically loss his father a week ago which did not allow him to take park in Senior Day at the Vikings home finale. The Bulldogs amassed 657 yards of total offense with sophomores Amir Hall (Bowie, Md.) and Robert Chesson (Annapolis, Md.) leading the attack. Hall passed for 296 yards, completing 18-of-27 passes and three touchdowns. Chesson carried the ball 17 times for a game and career-high 223 yards and scored two touchdowns. Seniors Nyme Manns and Jordan Garrison, both of Baltimore (Md.), were BSU's top receivers with 53 and 51 yards respectively. Bowie State's defense was led by redshirt freshman Oluwaleke Ajenifuja (Beltsville, Md.) and graduate student Kevaugn Townsend (Fort Washington, Md.) with seven tackles each. Graduate student Antoine Young (Washington, D.C.) tallied six tackles while senior Heleaince Gates (Philadelphia, Pa.) along with redshirt freshman Victor Mack (Odenton, Md.) recorded five tackles apiece in Senior Day. Elizabeth City State (5-5, 4-3 CIAA, 3-2 North) were led offensively by quarterback Daquan Neal (Franklinton, N.C.) with 202 passing yards, completing 16-of-36 (one interception). Neal scored ECSU's only touchdown of the afternoon on a 3-yard run early in the second quarter. Deshon Saunders (Suffolk, Va.) was the leading ground gainer for the Vikings with 79 yards on nine carries. James Roe (Richmond, Va.) and Montrez Brunson (Norfolk, Va.) caught three pass each for 65 and 21 yards respectively in the loss. The Vikings defense was paced by Jonathan Turnage (Greenville, N.C.) with a half dozen tackles and the Elizabeth City State trio of Malcolm Cherry (Lewiston, N.C.), Jaelen Williams (Raleigh, N.C.) and Caymen Battle (Miami, Fla.) contributed five tackles each. Bowie State opened the scoring on a Chesson 57-yard scamper just 45 seconds into the game. Freshman Gene Carson(Accokeek, Md.) added the extra point for the early 7-0 lead. A Hall 1-yard run around the left side gave the Bulldogs a 14-0 lead at the 9:47 mark of the first quarter. On ECSU's next possession, Bowie State blocked a Joshua Laverty (Edenton, N.C.) 30 yard field goal attempt and scooped up by sophomore Bryson McAdams (Odenton, Md.) for an 82-yard return for a touchdown to push the Bulldogs lead to 21-0. Bulldogs sophomore Maurice Williams (Baltimore, Md.) scored his fourth TD of the season at the 7:45 mark of the second quarter from five yards out and Chesson followed that with a four yard score a little over four minutes later to extend the Bowie State lead to 35-7 at the half. Hall and Chesson teamed up for an 8-yard pass, catch and score with 5:55 left in the third quarter. Graduate student Tony Squirewell (Upper Marlboro, Md.) recorded his first touchdown of the season when he hauled in a 48 yard pass from Hall with 2:46 remaining in the third to extend the Bowie State lead to 49-7. The Bulldogs closed out the scoring early in the fourth quarter on a Hall to sophomore Deron Smith (Bowie, Md.) from 55 yards away to account for the final 56-7 margin. Bowie State (7-3, 6-1 CIAA, 4-1 North) will face Winston-Salem State (8-2, 7-0 CIAA, 5-0 South) for the second consecutive season for the CIAA Championship next Saturday at 2 p.m. in Salem, Va.
BOX SCORE BOWIE STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION
FAYETTEVILLE, North Carolina – Winston-Salem State rode the back of sophomore running back, Kerrion Moore, who finished the day with 259 all-purpose yards, and the defense rose to the occasion in the second half, as the Rams came away with a 28-21 road win over Fayetteville State at Luther "Nick" Jeralds Stadium.
After a scoreless and defensive first quarter, Winston-Salem State would finally break the scoreless tie with 1:04 left before halftime, when Rod Tinsley would find an open Anthony Rook in the back of the endzone, for a 15 yard touchdown pass and catch to give the Rams a 7-0 lead.
The FSU Broncos would not waste any time in answering the Rams score, as Brian Walker would return the kickoff 99 yards for a score to tie the game with 45 seconds remaining before the half.
WSSU would begin their drive with just 37 seconds left before halftime, and on the first play, Rod Tinsleywould find an open Demeeko Jones down the middle for a 42 yard completion. Two plays later, Tinsley would find Canard Brown in the corner of the endzone for a 33 yard touchdown, to give the Rams a 14-7 advantage heading into the locker room at the half.
Coming out for the second half, the Fayetteville State Broncos, marched down the field in nine plays, covering 33 yards, before stalling and settling for a 27 yard David Lamb field goal, to cut the WSSU lead to 14-10.
The Rams would regroup and with 4:36 left in the third quarter, Rod Tinsley would hook up with Kerrion Moore for the play of the game. Tinsley would hit Moore on a crossing route, and Kerrion Moore would do the rest. Moore raced up the right sideline, hurdling a Bronco defender, and finishing off the pass 70 yards later with a touchdown, moving the Rams to a 21-10 lead.
Midway through the fourth quarter, Justus Pickett would score from one yard out, and Will Johnson would connect on the PAT to seemingly put the game away with a 28-10 advantage.
But on this day, in a rivalry game, it's never over until the clock hits triple zeros. The FSU Broncos would march down the field and with 2:23 left to play, DeMarius Davis would find Marquez Beeks for an eight yard touchdown pass, to cut the lead to 28-18.
The Broncos would attempt and recover the ensuing onside kick, and with 59 second left, David Lamb would hit a 25 yard field goal to cut the lead to 28-21.
FSU would attempt a second onside kick, but this time, the Broncos would be called for illegal touching, as they recovered the ball before it went ten yards, giving the ball to the Rams, and allowing them to run out the clock for the 28-21 win.
Kerrion Moore had his best day ever at WSSU, as he finished the game with 122 rushing yards on 19 carries, and Justus Pickett ran for 45 yards on nine carries with one touchdown. Rod Tinsley rushed five times for 25 yards and Xavier Quick also rushed five times for 16 yards.
Kerrion Moore led the Rams receivers with seven catches for 116 yards and one ESPN Top Ten touchdown pass and catch. Moore caught a crossing pass, and hurdled a Bronco defender and raced 70 yards for a touchdown down the right sideline. Demeeko Jones finished with three catches for 45 yards, and Canard Brown had two catches for 40 yards and one touchdown. Anthony Rook finished with three catches for 30 yards and one touchdown. Quincy Jackson (18 yds), and Michael Benis (2 yds) each finished with one catch.
Cameron Sullivan led the Ram defenders with 11 tackles and 1.5 tackles for a loss, and Jarrell Bright had nine tackles, 2.5 tackles for a loss and two sacks. Jayron Rankin had an outstanding day, finishing with eight tackles, two tackles for a loss and an interception. Braxton Daye seven tackles and 0.5 tackle for a loss, while Tyrell Flemming had five tackles, Xavier Gregory also had five tackles 1.5 tackles for a loss and one tackle and one pass breakup. PJ Clyburn also picked up five tackles and De'Andre Blevins had four tackles, as did Amyl Smith and Jack Nimmons. Smiht also picked up 0.5 sack and 0.5 tackles for a loss.
Winston-Salem State will immediately turn their attention to the CIAA Championship Game, and its opponent, Bowie State University. Bowie State defeated Elizabeth City State, 56-7 on Saturday to secure the Northern Division.
WSSU and Bowie State will compete for the CIAA Championship crown on Saturday, November 12th, at Salem Stadium in Salem, VA. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:00 pm, and the game will air nationwide on the ASPiRE Network.
Golden Tigers trailed the entire contest until Branden Wilson went into the end zone
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama | As the clock ticked down to triple zero, the 14th-ranked Tuskegee University football players ran around the Legion Field turf. Some were hugging fans, others were jumping around with teammates and one was even doing a snow angel around the hash marks near the Tuskegee sideline.
The reason? The Golden Tigers battled back from a deficit they faced for the first 58 minutes of the contest to turn back Miles and hush the home stands with one big play after another, punching the ball in with 1:15 remaining on the clock and defeating Miles 13-10 Saturday night in a Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) contest.
After Nick Christiansen missed his fourth field goal of the game, a 49-yard attempt, the Golden Tigers took possession of the football with 2:54 remaining and no timeouts. And the offense responded quickly. After a first down catch was ruled incomplete on the Tuskegee sideline, Kevin Lacey hit Javarrius Cheatham for a 12-yard gain and a first down at their own 39-yard line. The next play, Lacey hit senior Dekendrick Moncrief on the sideline for a 14-yard gain to the Miles 47-yard line which forced a Miles timeout with 2:24 to play.
The Golden Tigers faced a second down after an incomplete pass when Lacey hit Moncrief for 14 yards to the Miles 33. On the next play, senior tight end Leo Gilbert ran across the field and caught his lone pass of the game. He turned the pass and catch into a 23-yard gain and set Tuskegee up at the Miles 10-yard line. After a false start call pushed the ball back to the 15, senior fullback Jerome Lewis caught a 13-yard pass from Lacey and set the Golden Tigers up first and goal at the two-yard line with just over 90 seconds to play. On the very next play, senior fullback Branden Wilson sent the crowd into mass histeria with a two-yard plunge that gave the Golden Tigers the lead.
However, there was still time on the clock when Miles got the ball back - only the Golden Bears were out of timeouts which forced them to play quickly.
After an incomplete pass from David Whipple, the All-SIAC quarterback found Mitchell Parker for a 12-yard gain and then on third down hit William Kelly for a three-yard gain with 33 seconds remaining. On fourth and seven, Whipple's pass short hopped the receiver and all Tuskegee had to do was kneel the football for the victory.
For the ninth time this season, the Tuskegee (8-1) defense kept an opponent from 300 yards of total offense as they held Miles to 283 (187 passing and just 96 rushing). It was also the sixth time this season that the Golden Tigers have held an opponent under 100 yards rushing in a contest. Junior Kalil Gray led the Tuskegee defense with nine tackles, while junior Osband Thompson finished with eight. Fellow linebacker Quavon Taylor finished with six tackles.
The defense recorded three sacks and nine tackles for loss, while recording three pass breakups.
Lewis led the Golden Tigers offensively with 41 yards rushing on just three carries, while catching two passes for 29 yards. The Golden Tigers rushed for 100 yards as a team, with Brandon Gainer picking up 35. Lacey finished with 201 yards passing on 15-of-32 passing with a pair of interceptions. Meanwhile, Desmond Reece led the team with five catches for 63 yards.
Tuskegee returns to action next weekend on the road against Albany State, with kickoff time to be announced this week. The game will be carried on the Tuskegee Digital Network.
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NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana survived four Talladega match points in the final nine rallies Saturday and earned its sixth consecutive Gulf Coast Athletic Conference volleyball tournament championship with a 16-25, 21-25, 27-25, 25-13, 20-18 victory at Dillard's Dent Hall. The Gold Nuggets (16-16) earned a sixth consecutive bid to the NAIA National Championship, which will begin Nov. 19. Tournament MVP Juliana Tomasoni had five kills in the final set, including the match winner. Teammates Hasani Salaam and Amanda Perry joined Tomasoni on the all-tournament team. XULA trailed 23-19 in the third set before getting five kills from Taylor Ducros to extend the match. XULA evened the match at two sets apiece after an early 8-1 run which included a pair of assisted blocks by Tomasoni and Salaam. "We knew what we were capable of," Tomasoni said. "We just put everything together. We started over from the third set, and everything worked out. Our communication was so good, and we were more efficient." The fifth set had 10 ties and six lead changes. XULA won the championship on its second match point. XULA rallied from a 5-1 deficit in the fifth to take 7-5 and 13-10 leads, but an attack error and two Talladega kills tied the set at 13. Yet the Lady Tornadoes were unable to clinch despite serving for match point at 15-14, 16-15, 17-16 and 18-17. Preceding Tomasoni's kill was Salaam's block which gave the Gold Nuggets a 19-18 lead. XULA outhit Talladega .250 to .219. Tomasoni had 23 kills and hit .385, Ducros hit .455 with a career-best 21 kills, and Salaam had 10 kills, four blocks and hit .318. Perry had 14 digs and Kayla Jones 12, and Ralitsa Slanchev served three of the Gold Nuggets' nine aces. XULA won the GCAC regular-season championship by two matches over Talladega but lost in five sets at Talladega this past weekend — its second conference defeat in six years. Talladega (21-13) entered the final with a 10-match win streak. The Lady Tornadoes won in five sets Friday against Dillard in the semifinals and rallied from an 8-4 deficit in the fifth. The Saturday victory gave XULA a sweep of all four GCAC fall championships. The men's and women's cross country teams repeated as conference titlists Oct. 22 — 10th in a row for each. Volleyball secured the regular-season title, also the sixth in a row for XULA, by winning at SUNO Oct. 20.
