Gold Nuggets win HBCU national team title, 3 finals

ORLANDO, Florida — For the first time ever, Xavier University of Louisiana is the queen of HBCU women's tennis.
     
The Gold Nuggets won three finals Saturday and their first overall team title of the HBCU National Championships at USTA National Campus.
     
The Gold Rush won two finals and finished second in men's team scoring.
     
"To see our women finally win the overall championship is a great feeling," 16th-year XULA coach Alan Green said. "All of the ladies contributed to this team win. It was a roller coaster weekend for us, but we finished the job."
     
Four of XULA's five finals victories occurred against NCAA Division I Morgan State. Yi Chen Pao, a junior and an NAIA All-American last season, was a double winner. Pao, a No. 3 seed, defeated Oriane Yehouenou 6-1, 6-0 for the women's C-flight singles title, then teamed with Charlene Goreau to win 6-3 in the B-flight doubles final against Averiana Mitchell and Dana Santiago.
     
Pao and Goreau were a No. 1 seed. In singles, Pao did not lose a set in defeating four NCAA Division I opponents in three days.
     
XULA won both A-flight doubles finals. Third-seeded Mariia Borodii and Farah Bakloutidid it for the Nuggets with a 6-4 victory against fourth-seeded Peggy Rooke and Asmara Faluki, and Shaikh Abdullah and Santiago Perez earned a title for the Rush with a 6-3 decision against Shrey Gupta and Nihit Rawal.
     
Perez is a freshman who made his XULA debut in this tournament.
     
Chris Anders won the C-flight singles consolation title by defeating Jackson State's Fritz Jacobs 8-5.
     
"The men played well and fought hard. And we had some great doubles matches this weekend," Green said. "I'm really looking forward to what these guys can do next spring because we have a lot of potential to be great."
     
It was the second fall tournament for the XULA women and the first for the men. The Gold Nuggets and Gold Rush will conclude their fall schedule on their campus in the XULA Invitational Oct. 12-14.

Results:  Men   •   Women

2018 HBCU National Tennis Championships — Final Team Scoring

Women
19 XULA
18 Morgan State
14 Florida A&M
13 Alabama A&M
13 Jackson State
8 Bethune-Cookman
7 Shaw
5 North Carolina A&T
4 Savannah State
2 Elizabeth City State
0 Johnson C. Smith

Men
25 Bethune-Cookman
20 XULA
17 North Carolina Central
14.5 Morgan State
6 Florida A&M
5.5 Jackson State
5 North Carolina A&T
3 Shaw
3 Alabama A&M
2 Virginia State


Coach Alan Green and Yi Chen Pao, who won two finals.

Ed Cassiere, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
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Gold Nuggets' defense sparkles in GCAC road victory

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas — Xavier University of Louisiana played exceptional defense and spread the wealth Saturday in a 25-5, 25-9, 25-9 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference volleyball victory against Philander Smith.
     
The Gold Nuggets (12-4, 3-0), extended their season-best win streak to six matches. They'll stay on the road and play GCAC newcomer Rust at 6 p.m. Monday in Holly Springs, Miss.
     
For the third time in XULA history and the first time in four years, the Gold Nuggets allowed single-digit points in each set of a 3-sets-to-0 victory. They limited the Lady Panthers (2-8, 1-4) to a minus-.133 hitting percentage, the lowest by a XULA opponent in three years. It was the second straight match that a XULA opponent finished with more attack errors than kills.
     
XULA hit a season-best .446 and had seven players with three-or-more kills. Marine Angely had seven kills and hit a career-best .545, VivicaBOX Price-Spraggins had six kills and hit .857, and Adili Rikondja had six kills and hit .400.

BOX SCORE
     
Nine Gold Nuggets combined for a season-high-tying 14 aces. Taylor Ducros served a career-high-tying three aces, and Mycah Boland, Elena Duru and Beatrice Formilan served two apiece. Boland, a transfer from city rival Loyola, and Duru, a freshman, recorded the first aces of their XULA careers.
     
Chelsea Fagan had five kills for Philander Smith, which dropped its fourth in a row and lost for the 32nd time in its last 33 GCAC matches.

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Morgan State shocks NC A&T 16-13 on Raya's last play FG

GREENSBORO, North Carolina -- Alex Raya's 36-yard field goal as time ran out lifted Morgan State to a 16-13 upset over North Carolina A&T on Saturday night, ending the Aggies' 15-game winning streak.

Raya had tied the game with a career-best 51-yard field goal earlier in the fourth quarter and kicked his first field goal of the season in the third quarter.

"What a great game," said MSU interim head coach Ernest T. Jones. "We were playing against the number one football team in the country in our minds."

"The thing that we liked the most about it is that we stayed true to our identity," added Jones. "We said we wanted to run the football on offense against the number 1 run defense in the conference and we ran the football. And then we wanted to put our quarterback on the move and let him throw, and we did that. And on defense, we said we were going to get after the quarterback and he's going to have to get the ball out of his hands, and we were going to tackle the running back, which we did that."

"We felt good about coming in here and staying true to who we are and we're getting better and better. We got better from week one to week 2, week 2 to week 3, and now week 3 to week 4 and it finally turned into a W."

ALEX RAYA

The game was a nonconference matchup between the Bears (1-3), who were picked last in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference the preseason favorite and fourth-ranked FCS Aggies (3-1), who went 12-0 last season, capped by a win over Grambling in the Celebration Bowl.

North Carolina A&T, which was going for a school record 12th-straight home win, had won 39 straight games when leading after three quarters. On Nov. 9, 2013 at Morgan State the Bears won 24-23 when Chris Moller kicked a 27-yard field goal as time expired.

After Raya's long field goal, the Aggies went 49 yards in 14 plays before Noel Ruiz missed a 43-yard field goal with 3:19 to play. The Bears then drove from their 26 to the NCA&T 19 before Raya's kick after two timeouts.

Coach Jones spoke about the game-winning drive.

"I said Raya, we're going to go down to try and score. Raya tell me where I need to get to and we'll at least get you there. We said we were going to just throw the football until we crossed over midfield, and then we were going to try and get it in field goal range. We thought we could beat them one-on-one with our tight end and we thought we could beat them one-on-one with Corey Holmes and we did both of those things and that worked."

DeAndre Harris started the drive with a 34-yard connection to Jack McCracken and picked up another first down with a 13-yard pass to Deontaye White. Three runs picked up eight more yards.

"This win was amazing," said senior offensive lineman Josh Miles. "It was the first time Morgan State has beaten A&T in a very long time. It's amazing to go out and get a win against a ranked opponent, even though this was an out of conference game. All my teammates and coaches went out and did the job to the best of their ability and everybody played at the top of their game and it was just amazing to see. The entire offensive line kept pushing the whole time and DeAndre Harris – I've never seen him play a game that well, and I know he's going to keep playing even better. It was just amazing watching my boys play like that."

Morgan State had a 270-208 advantage in total offense and both teams had two turnovers.

Senior linebacker Rico Kennedy simply summed up the Bears' thrilling victory, "It's a new day!"

"We've been believing in Coach Jones," said senior linebacker Rico Kennedy. "We just thank God-- and like I said, it's a new day. This was like the MEAC championship this week. We felt whoever won this game was going to be outright MEAC champions and we just wanted it more. Big plays by Alex Raya and our O-line, the snapper, our defense and just everybody! I just want to thank the Lord. He's been so good and we're just going to keep this thing going. It's a new day!"

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Bonnett-led Surge Lifts FAMU Past SSU Tigers, 31-13

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Congrats Rattlers! Great to see the Rattlers rebound and Head Coach Billy Joe and the 1998 National Champions on the field once again. #fangsup @FAMU_1887 @MEACSports

7:46 PM - 22 Sep 2018

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TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- Redshirt sophomore Bishop Bonnett led a 28-point second half scoring surge to power the Florida A&M Rattlers to a 31-13 home victory over Savannah State in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference opener for both teams.

Bonnett, a Jacksonville, Florida native, was nearly a one-man wrecking crew for FAMU. Rushing for 89 yards and a score, while electrifying the Bragg Stadium crowd and rousing his team in the process with a 69-yard pass reception, which saw him leave the Savannah State defense in his wake.

All told, Bonnett accounted for 159 total yards from scrimmage and two TDs, lifting the Rattlers (2-2, 1-0 MEAC) out of a 7-3 halftime hole, after a first half struggle on offense.

Senior Yahia Aly’s 27-yard field goal with 2:11 left in the half put the Rattlers on the board finally, to counter Savannah State’s first period tally, a four-yard run by J. Baldwin with 9:15 left.

Bonnett’s 69-yard catch-and-carry, capped a four-play, 80-yard drive with 6:51 left in the third, vaulting the Rattlers ahead to stay at 10-7. Freshman Deshawn Smith powered in from one-yard out four minutes later (2:51) to extend FAMU to a 17-7 edge.

Sophomore Azende Rey dashed in from four yards out with 11:58 left in the game, to push the Rattlers farther ahead at 24-7, but the gritty and determined Tigers (0-3, 0-1 MEAC), would not relent, mounting a desperation, 11-play, 85-yard drive, capping it with a two-yard plunge by Jaylen McCloud with 6:31 left. The PAT try failed, leaving FAMU ahead, 24-13.

Bonnett, the man of the hour, sealed the deal for the Rattlers just moments later (5:39), with a nine-yard run for a the final 31-13 count.

SATURDAY’S NUMBERS: FAMU announced Saturday’s crowd at Bragg Stadium of 16,644…. Behind Bonnett in the Rattler ground game (89 yards on nine carries), was senior Devin Bowers, who had 49 yards on eight carries and Deshawn Smith with 28 yards on seven carries, with a TD.

Freshman Xavier Smith led the Rattler pass catchers with five receptions for 47 yards, followed by Marcus Williams with four grabs for 44 yards, while Bonnett finished with two catches for 70 yards… Junior QB Ryan Stanley had an off night of sorts, going 14 of 20 for 166 yards, one score and two interceptions….. Punter Chris Faddoul averaged a nifty 46.2 yards on five punts….

Linebacker Elijah Richardson led the Rattler Defense with 11 tackles (7 solos) with two tackle for loss. Safety Terry Jefferson had eight tackles, including a sack and a tackle for loss, while defensive end Antoino Miller had two tackles for loss, one sack and five total tackles Saturday.

WHAT’S ON TAP: The Rattlers hit the road to close September next Saturday in Durham, N.C., to face the North Carolina Central Eagles at 1:00 p.m.

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Norfolk State Spartans Take 2nd Straight Road Win at SCSU

ORANGEBURG, South Carolina -- Juwan Carter passed for 281 yards and both threw and ran for a touchdown, and the Norfolk State defense came up with several big plays in a 17-7 win over South Carolina State on Saturday night at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium.

Carter threw a 6-yard TD pass to Isaiah Winstead in the first quarter and scored on a 1-yard run in the second to give the Spartans (2-1) a 14-0 lead, which they held until late in the third quarter.

SCSU (0-3), which was stymied for much of the game by the NSU defense, cut the deficit in half on an 81-yard TD pass play from Tyrece Nick to De'Montrez Burroughs with 1:07 left in the third quarter. But NSU's defense came up with a fumble recovery when Bobby Price fell on a loose ball on the NSU 2-yard line early in fourth quarter. NSU then drove 86 yards in eight plays, a drive which Josh Nardone capped with a 29-yard field goal with 10:29 left to make it a two-score ballgame (17-7).

The Spartans put it away by holding SCSU on downs twice in the final 10 minutes, giving NSU its second straight win in Orangeburg (last was in 2016) after losing its first nine games all-time at SCSU.

The NSU offense came out clicking. The Spartans were held on downs in SCSU territory on their first drive, but that didn't slow them down. On NSU's next possession, Carter led a six-play, 76-yard drive which he capped with a 6-yard TD strike to Winstead on 3rd-and-goal to give the Spartans a 7-0 lead at the 8:20 mark of the opening quarter.

NSU's next possession resulted in a 10-play, 62-yard march, with Carter sneaking in from the 1 on another 3rd-and-goal play. Nardone's point-after put NSU ahead 14-0 with 12:40 remaining in the second quarter.

The Spartans carried that 14-0 lead deep into the third quarter. SCSU finally found its footing offensively when Burroughs won a jump ball along the Bulldog sideline, kept his balance and found the end zone on an 81-yard pass play with 1:07 left in the third quarter.

SCSU forced an NSU punt and was driving deep into the Spartan end of the field when NSU came up with its second takeaway of the game. Safety Nhyre' Quinerly stripped Nick on a quarterback keeper and Price fell on the loose ball at the Spartans' 2-yard line.

NSU then regained the momentum with an 86-yard drive, its longest of the game. Carter hit Justin Smith for 33 yards, Aaron Savage ran for 26 yards and Gerald Hulett rushed for 34 to set up Nardone's field goal.

The Spartans then forced two turnovers-on-downs to seal the win.

NSU gained 413 yards of offense. Carter completed 22-of-38 passes for 281 yards. Winstead caught a career-best seven passes for 67 yards, while Chuma Awanna had a career-high 69 yards receiving on four receptions. Savage led the ground game with 79 yards rushing on 12 carries.

Dale Craig had seven tackles and two of NSU's four sacks. Quinerly also made seven tackles and had an interception in the first half, his third of the year, to go with the forced fumble in the second half.

The game did not count in the MEAC standings, as NSU only plays seven non-conference games this season.

The Spartans are back at home for a 4 p.m. MEAC game next Saturday against Delaware State.

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Morehouse Beats Miles 23-21 on Sims-to-Gooden Hail Mary

COURTESY: SIAC SPORTS

CHICAGO, Illinois -- Morehouse College beat Miles College 23-21 in the XXI Chicago Football Classic when sophomore quarterback Michael Sims (Detroit, MI) connected with senior wide receiver Tremell Gooden (Atlanta, GA) on hail mary on final play of the game at Soldier Field in Chicago, Ill. in front of 20,093 fans on Saturday afternoon.

With the win the Maroon Tigers (4-0) stay undefeated while the Golden Bears (0-4) remain winless on the season.

Down 21-17 with only 1:10 remaining in the ball game and no timeouts MHC drove the ball 84 yards on eight plays capped by the Sims-to-Gooden hail mary giving Morehouse the victory.

The Maroon Tigers got off to a slow start as Miles scored on the opening drive of the game when quarterback Daniel Smith scored on a quarterback keeper from 49 yards out giving MC the early 7-0 lead. The Golden Bears continued to put pressure on MHC and extended their lead to 14-0 when Smith connected with Leonard Tyree on a 27 yard TD pass.


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Morehouse finally got on the board when sophomore kicker Fernando Sdelamora (Fairburn, GA) connected on a 24 yard field goal with 11:29 remaining in the first half making the score 14-3. MHC got closer when sophomore running back Santo Dunn (Griffin, GA) capped an eight play, 45-yard drive that took 3:49 off the clock with a four-yard plunge cutting the lead to 14-10 going into the half.

The Golden Bears provided the only scoring of the 3rd quarter with another Smith-to-Tyree connection from 37 yards out extending the MC lead to 21-10 going into the 4th quarter.

After an MC turnover sophomore fullback Tre'Vion Baker (Atlanta, GA) plunged it in from the two yard line cutting the Miles lead to 21-17 with 14:55 remaining in the ball game.

Dunn again led the Morehouse offensive attack after rushing for 150 on only 18 carries and a touchdown while Sims completed 18-of-35 passes for 217 yards and one touchdown. Tamarick Vanover Jr. led the receiving corp with four catches, for 58 yards while Gooden finished with two catches for 60 yards and a touchdown.

Defensively, senior linebacker Julien Turner (Pickerington, OH) again led the Maroon Tiger defense as he finished with a a team-high 11 tackles and two tackles-for-loss while senior defensive end Antonio Johnson (Birmingham, AL) chipped in with eight tackles. Transfer defensive end William Callaway (Scottsdale, GA) had four tackles and one sack in the winning effort.

Morehouse out-gained Miles 417-to-252 in total offense with 200 coming on the ground. MHC was 3-for-4 in the redzone while holding MC to 0-for-2. The Maroon Tigers also turned the ball over for the first time this year on two Sims interceptions.

The Maroon Tigers will kick-off SIAC conference play next weekend as they travel to Frankfort, Ky to take on the Thorobreds of Kentucky State University. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m.

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#13 Langston Knocks Off SAGU 35-20

LANGSTON, Oklahoma -- A second half surge by the No. 13 Langston Lions turned the tide as the Lions held off the Southwestern Assemblies of God Lions 35-20 Saturday night at W.E. Anderson Stadium.

After trailing 6-0 at halftime, the Lions kicked into high gear in the third quarter when Jaylen Lowe tossed a 15-yard touchdown pass to Daylon Person and scored two drives later on a 23-yard run to put Langston in front 14-13.

On the following drive the Lions went right back to work when Lowe hit Michael Andrade for a 62-yard touchdown to pad their lead at 21-13 with 10:54 remaining. Langston closed the game out with two more scores, the first a 45-yard run by Cameron Booty and the final score coming on a 64-yard touchdown pass from Lowe to Michael Colston.

Lowe finished 17-for-27 for 296 yards and three touchdowns; he racked up 43 yards on 10 carries with one score. Booty led the ground game with 125 yards on 15 carries with one score.

Isaiah Shaputis led the aerial attack with six receptions for 57 yards; Andrade and Colston's touchdown receptions for 62 and 64 yards respectively were the lone catches for the duo.

Langston (2-1, 2-0) hosts Sooner Athletic Conference opponent Wayland Baptist next Saturday at 2 p.m.

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North Carolina A&T Aggies Double-Figure Winning Streak Ends

EAST GREENSBORO, North Carolina – North Carolina A&T lost a 16-13 football game to Morgan State Saturday night at BB&T Stadium thanks to a 36-yard field goal by MSU’s Alex Raya as time expired.

There are some realities that go along with that reality. The Aggies lost their first football game in 665 days.

Their ownership of the longest current winning streak in the nation (Division I-FCS) has ended at 15. N.C. A&T’s 11-game home winning streak also disappeared. Lamar Raynard is now 29-1 as N.C. A&T’s starting quarterback. The Aggies streak of 39 straight games without blowing a fourth-quarter lead also ended. The last time the Aggies blew a fourth-quarter lead was to MSU on Nov. 9, 2013. N.C. A&T’s No. 4 national ranking is also gone and depending on the mood of the voters, their top-10 national ranking may also be history. Their streak as the No. 1 black college football is also likely gone.

But here are a few more realities.

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BOX SCORE

Hampton is no longer in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. This fact left some MEAC teams with seven conference games because Hampton occupied their respective schedules before leaving for the Big South. Therefore, the conference to designate some games as non-conference contests to ensure each team plays seven conference games. N.C. A&T and Morgan State knew coming into the season that their game would be one of those non-conference games between two conference schools.

So, the reality is, the Aggies can still finish undefeated in the MEAC and they are very much in contention for another Celebration Bowl bid at Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

“The ultimate goal is to get back to Atlanta,” said N.C. A&T head coach Sam Washington who missed his opportunity to stand alone with the best start of any first-year coach in N.C. A&T history. Instead, both he and Hornsby Howell share their honor at 3-0.

“But getting back to Atlanta depends on what we do from here,” Washington continued. “We have to be more demanding in everything we do. We have to act like, walk like and talk like a champion in everything we do from this moment on.”

Morgan State (1-3) came right after the defending MEAC and HBCU national champions on Saturday. They kept the Aggies (3-1) offense stymied and they ran the ball effectively against an Aggies team who has led the MEAC in rushing defense six out of the last seven years. N.C. A&T was just 1-for-12 on third downs.

Even though the Aggies offense had its troubles, the Bears were not having much success against the Aggies ‘D’. That is why when fifth-year running back Marquell Cartwright scored on a 19-yard run to give the Aggies a 13-10 lead with 2:24 in the third quarter, it looked like the Aggies may weather the storm thanks to their impressive defense.

Raya stepped into assists against the Aggies defensive resistance to being upset. Raya booted a career-high 51-yard field goal to tie the game at 13 with 9:18 to play. The Aggies got the ball back and backup quarterback Kylil Carter drove the Aggies 14 plays down the field including a pass interference call on 3rd-and-19 that gave the Aggies a 1st-and-10 at the MSU 24-yard line.

A false start and two incompletions led to the Aggies having to set up for a 43-yard field goal. Sophomore kicker Noel Ruiz connected on a career-high 43-yard field goal two weeks ago against Gardner-Webb. But his 43-yard attempt on Saturday sailed wide right giving the Bears the ball back.

On the first play of the drive, MSU quarterback DeAndre Harris threw it deep to Jack McCracken for a 34-yard completion to the Aggies 40. A 13-yard completion to Deontaye White led to Raya’s game-winner.

“I thought Morgan and their staff did a fantastic job preparing for us,” said Washington who saw the Aggies lose for the first time since a 39-10 loss to Richmond on Nov. 26, 2016. “They knew exactly how they were going to attack us. It was very subtle, but it was enough. The quarterback killed us, and they held our offense to 13 points. That surprised me. If you told me early in the week they would hold our offense to 13 points, I would have said, ‘no way.’”

MSU did hold the Aggies to 208 yards of total offense. It was the Aggies lowest output since gaining 145 yards against S.C. State on Nov. 7, 2015. The Aggies did get on the board first in the second quarter as a Mac McCain III interception at the MSU 29 led to Raynard connecting with senior tight end Leroy Hill for a 23-yard touchdown pass.

The Aggies tried to surprise the Bears by going for the 2-point conversion as Raynard’s pass did not connect with Darryl Johnson, Jr., who normally plays defensive end for the Aggies. The missed point would loom large later. MSU answered quickly with a 10-yard touchdown as they
headed into the locker room ahead 7-6. Raya opened the second half with the first of his three second-half field goals, a 40-yarder to give the Bears a 10-6 lead.

N.C. A&T will have to get right back to work as they face S.C. State, 7 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 27 at BB&T Stadium. The game will be aired live on ESPNU.

“All we can do is get to back to work and correct what we need to correct,” said Washington.

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Houston defeats Texas Southern 70-14

HOUSTON, Texas -- The Texas Southern Tigers Football team dropped a 70-14 decision to the University of Houston Cougars in a game that marked only the second meeting between the two institutions.

UH took a 49-0 lead at the 12:38 mark of the third quarter before the Tigers put their first points on the board with a 1-yard Terio Brown touchdown. Brown's score was setup by a 44-yard touchdown reception from Tariq Buchanan which got TSU inside the Cougars' red zone.

Houston would subsequently add two more scores before the Tigers got a spark off the bench when quarterback Jay Christophe entered the game and connected on a 95-yard touchdown pass to Bobby Hartzog which brought the score to 63-14 after a successful Aaron Cuevas' extra point.

The 95-yard completion for a score tied a record for the longest touchdown reception allowed by UH in school history dating back over 25 years (1991). Hartzog led all receivers in the contest tallying a total of 173 yards on nine receptions and one touchdown.



Houston would add another score with under five minutes remaining bringing the score to 70-14 which would be the final score of the contest.

BOX SCORE

For the game the Tigers amassed 338 yards of total offense (60 R, 278 P) while Houston racked up 671 yards (285 R, 386 P).

Defensively Texas Southern was led by Sean Jones who tallied 10 stops on the nights including six solo tackles.

The Tigers will get set to enter a bye week before returning to home to face Alabama A&M on Oct. 6 at BBVA Compass Stadium.

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West Virginia State Yellow Jackets Fall to Shepherd

INSTITUTE, West Virginia -- The West Virginia State University defense struggled and Shepherd University's dominance of the series between the Mountain East Conference football combatants continued Saturday.

Three-time defending conference champion Shepherd held the Yellow Jackets to 49 yards during a dominant first-half performance en route to a 27-7 victory at Dickerson Stadium at Lakin Field.

The Rams (2-1, 2-1 MEC) held a 20-0 halftime lead, and had a touchdown called back on a penalty in its 38th consecutive victory over State dating to 1980. That season, coach Oree Banks' Yellow Jackets (1-3, 1-3) posted a 12-7 win toward a 6-5 season in the now-defunct West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

State coach John Pennington cited a lack of energy from his team, which will try to bounce back this week when it visits Glenville State for a noon game on Saturday.

"That's what I talked to the team about," Pennington said. "It's a big game we should've been up for. At the end of the day, it's hard to get excited when you're not doing anything on offense."

This marks the first time in four games this season that WVSU has not scored at least 31 points. On a more positive note, for the second time the Yellow Jackets have given up fewer than 30. The first time was in a 33-12 win over UVa-Wise. On Saturday, it was against the league's second-best scoring team.

However, the Yellow Jackets' inability to sustain drives cost it in the first half when its first five possessions combined for 22 plays and 60 yards.

The Rams, who are guided by first-year coach Ernie McCook, outgained WVSU 297-49 in the first half, but still mustered just 20 points. Shepherd had to settle for field goals following drives of 90 and 36 yards.

State's defense bent, but seldom broke, giving up 528 yards – 210 rushing and 318 passing. When WVSU quarterback Faustino Saucedo connected with Zach Pate on a 46-yard touchdown pass with 1:11 left in the third, energy returned to the Yellow Jackets and the crowd.

Shepherd gained 3 yards on its next possession, but a holding penalty on State the next time it had the ball, stalled a drive.

The Rams reached the WVSU 23 during an 11-play drive, but an incomplete pass on fourth down ended the threat.

Given another chance, the Yellow Jackets had an 18-yard pass play from Saucedo and Pate to almost reach midfield, but an interception two plays later negated the threat.5288

"The players, the coaches, all have to do better," Pennington said. "Every play on there is designed to score. There was a penalty, there was a guy missing a play here or there – it wasn't the same guy every time – we just couldn't get a collective 11 guys doing what they were supposed to be doing and that starts with the coordinator, and that's me."

Saucedo completed 16-of-25 passes for 244 yards with a touchdown but was sacked three times. He is playing for the injured Austin Hensley, who was lost for the season.

Running back Calil Watkins, who was third in the MEC in rushing entering the game, had 75 yards on 19 carries. Pate (4-85) and A.J. Barrette (4-80) combined for 160 yards receiving on eight catches for an average of 20 yards per reception.

The WVSU defense was busy against the normally pass-heavy offense of the Rams. Shepherd passes the ball more than 62 percent of the time, but almost flipped the script on the Yellow Jackets, running the ball 38 times compared to 40 pass attempts. The Yellow Jackets knocked down 12 of Bagent's passes. Bagent was 23-of-40 for 318 yards and a pair of scores.

Zyan Sturdivant ran for 110 yards on 22 carries for the Rams, after he had only 134 yards rushing in the first two games of the season combined.

Following State's visit to Glenville next week, the Yellow Jackets return to Institute for a 1:30 p.m. Homecoming meeting against Kentucky State University.

By RICH STEVENS
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Morton, Big Plays Spark Record-Setting PVAMU Panthers Win

PINE BLUFF, Arkansas  – QB Jalen Morton had a record-setting game in a record-setting night for Prairie View A&M football in a 62-13 win at Arkansas-Pine Bluff in the Southwestern Athletic Conference opener for both teams.

 
Morton accounted for 511 yards and six touchdowns as he set a single-game school record with 255 rushing yards, and tied a school record with four rushing touchdowns. Morton broke John Payton's 64-year old school record of 253 rushing yards set in 1953. It was the fourth time in school history a Panther player rushed for four touchdowns (Ed Price 1952; Payton 1954; Archie Seals 1958).
 
The Panthers (2-3 overall, 1-0 SWAC) set a school record with 815 total yards, breaking the previous mark of 772 yards in a 62-59 double overtime loss at Southern on Sept. 14, 2013.
 
RB Dawonya Tucker, who entered the weekend as the leading rusher in Division I (both FBS and FCS), had his third 100+ yard rushing game of the season with 11 carries for 120 yards and a touchdown.
 
PVAMU exploded for 35 first-quarter points. It took the Panthers only 10 plays to score four touchdowns:

• Morton scored on a career-long 89-yard run on the second play of the game.
• On the next snap from scrimmage following a UAPB field goal, Morton connected with TE Zarrian Holcombe on a career-long 75-yard scoring pass.
• Morton's 37-yard scoring run ended a three-play, 83-yard drive.
• Following a fumble recovery by Jason Dumas, a Morton-to-Markcus Hardy 6-yard scoring pass ended a four-play, 29-yard drive for a 28-3 lead with 6:54 to play in the first quarter.

Caleb Broach's nine-yard scoring run ended a seven-play, 84-yard drive for 35-3 lead after one quarter.
 
Tucker (24 yards) and Morton (1 yard) had scoring runs sandwiched around an Arkansas-Pine Bluff touchdown as the Panthers led 49-10 at halftime.
 
Following a 40-yard punt return by Ju'Anthony Parker, Morton ended a 48-yard drive with his rush into history. His 21-yard scoring run set the school record for rushing yards in a game and tied the school record for rushing touchdowns in a game.
 
In the fourth quarter, Trazon Connley connected with Kaleb O'Bryant on an 88-yard scoring pass for the final Panthers, who had their highest-point total since a 67-12 win over Allen in 1959.
 
Prairie View A&M returns to action Saturday facing Grambling in the 93rd State Fair Classic at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. The Panther Sports Network pregame show begins with Panthers Countdown To Kickoff at 3:30 p.m. at pvpanthers.com/sportsnetwork prior to kickoff at 4 p.m.

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Tuskegee drops home opener to Missouri S&T

TUSKEGEE, Alabama -- Roderick Chapman returned Missouri S&T's opening kickoff back 90 yards for a touchdown and never trailed Tuskegee, who dropped its home opener 16-7 Saturday afternoon at Cleve L. Abbott Memorial Alumni Stadium. It would mark the first home loss since a 45-26 defeat in the NCAA Playoffs from November of 2016 against North Carolina Greenville.

Despite the carer high in receiving yards (166) from Javarrius Cheatham on seven catches and one touchdown, the Golden Tigers were held scoreless for three quarters of the game. The Greenville, Ala native helped chipped away a 10 point deficit when he hauled in a 62 yard touchdown from Ahmad Deramus, which made the score 10-7 with 8:30 left before halftime.

Tuskegee (2-2) was stout on defensive only surrendering 172 yards of total offense and was led by Terance Leatherwood and Davoris Thomas who each earned seven tackles. Leatherwood also added three sacks. Kalil Gray, Ricky Norris and Rorrick Steward chipped in five tackles apiece with Norris registering a sack as well.

Tuskegee's first drive of the second half took up 3:55 seconds occupying 53 yards on eight plays, but stalled in the redzone after a blocked field goal denied the Golden Tigers a chance at tying the game. On TU's ensuing possession, they would again stall in the redzone, this time moving the ball for 69 yards on 13 plays. On 3rd and 1 from the S&T 12 yard line with 6:58 left in the contest, Deramus threw an interception which all but ended Skegee's rally.

Deramus, who was starting only his fourth career game, completed 15 of his 34 passing attempts for 294 yards. Peyton Ramzy caught three passes for 61 yards while teammate Steven Hodges also hauled in three receptions for 61 yards.

The Golden Tigers struggled running the football as no running back earned over 50 yards. Freshman Taurean Taylor led TU on the ground with only 34.

TU returns home to host Lane College in the Hall of Fame game next Saturday at 1 p.m. The game can be seen live on Flo Sports. Live audio coverage will also be available on the Tuskegee Digital Network.

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Alcorn Runs All Over MVSU in 56-20 Win

ITTA BENA, Mississippi  – A 665-200 edge in total yards and 462-22 advantage in rushing resulted in a 56-20 victory for the Alcorn State University football program over Mississippi Valley State on Saturday at Rice-Totten Stadium.

Six of Alcorn's (3-1, 1-0 SWAC) seven touchdowns came on the ground as the team won its third straight game. Senior P.J. Simmons tallied a career-high 210 yards and a touchdown, and freshman Marquise Forman registered a career-high 119 yards and two touchdowns.

Junior quarterback Noah Johnson rushed for 139 yards and three touchdowns, and also threw for 203 yards and a score. His top target was junior Chris Blair who hauled in seven catches for 92 yards.

MVSU (0-3, 0-1 SWAC), which was coming off a bye week, was led by Steven McIntosh who posted 80 receiving yards. Quarterback Chris Fowler was limited to 79 yards on 8-for-24 passing and an interception. Defensively, Patrick Harbin had a game-high 11 tackles.

The Braves sacked Fowler five times and backup Dejerric Bryant once. Senior Sterling Shippy wrapped-up 1.5 sacks and 2.5 tackles for a loss. Alcorn also grabbed two interceptions by senior Brady Smith and junior Daylon Burks.

After the team's exchanged punts on their opening drives, the Delta Devils scored on their second series to go up 7-0 at the 9:27 mark. The scoring play was a 4-yard quarterback keeper by Fowler. MVSU was assisted by a 15-yard personal foul call on the Braves after an 18-yard rush by Fowler.

Alcorn got it going after an interception by Smith sparked the team. Smith cut in front of the MVSU wide receiver on a slant route. The turnover resulted in points after Simmons broke loose for a 33-yard touchdown run to the right to tie it 7-7 with 7:33 left in the first. The drive was kept alive after a 14-yard reception by junior Raidarious Anderson, the reigning SWAC Offensive Player of the Week winner, on a 3rd-and-11.

The Braves got the ball back after a three-and-out by the defense, including a sack on third down by junior Kwanzi Jackson. The offense marched down the field again after a 13-yard run by Johnson, followed by a big 46-yard carry by Simmons through the middle. Though, the Braves had to settle for a 20-yard field goal which was good by junior Corey McCullough to put Alcorn up 10-7 with 2:31 remaining in the first.

On the very first play of the second quarter, the Braves had the ball when Johnson sprinted right through the center like a race car with no breaks and outran the entire MVSU defense untouched for a 64-yard touchdown. It gave Alcorn a 17-7 edge.

The Braves were on the move again midway through the second quarter. Johnson completed a 13-yard pass to Blair and a 15-yarder to freshman Juan Anthony. The scoring play was a 10-yard scramble to the left by Johnson as he stretched the ball across the goal line to make it a 24-7 game.

Alcorn got the ball back late in the half with good field position after an interception by Burks. It resulted in a 22-yard field goal by McCullough to increase the advantage to 27-7.

MVSU opened the scoring in the second half with a 90-yard punt return by Booker Chambers for a touchdown which cut the deficit to 27-14 with 10:36 to go. There was originally a flag on the field for a suspected illegal block, but it was picked up.

The Braves responded with a seven-play, 76-yard drive to go back up 34-14 at the 7:58 mark in the third. The scoring play was a run-option as Johnson pitched to Forman for a 15-yard touchdown to the left. The drive included a 20-yard rush by Simmons and a 14-yard reception by senior Charles Hughes.

Alcorn marched down the field again on its next drive, capped by a 6-yard screen pass for a touchdown to Pringle as he carried a defender into the endzone. It ended a seven-play, 70-yard drive which included 13-yard runs by Johnson and Forman. The Braves led 41-14 with 3:03 left in the third.

The Braves extended their edge to 47-14 with 9:43 remaining in the fourth. The scoring play was a 6-yard stretch run to the left by Forman, but the extra point was missed. The series included a 24-yard reception by junior Kyontez Everett on third down, and a 13-yard reception by Blair.

Alcorn added-on with a 50-yard touchdown rush through the middle by Forman. It upped the lead to 54-14 with 6:30 left.

MVSU scored on its final possession of the game. It came on a 3-yard lob pass to Quinn McElfresh. The extra point was blocked by junior Theron Bonds and returned all the way back for two-points by sophomore Qwynnterrio Cole.

Junior Javen Morrison, the reigning HBCU National Player of the Week and SWAC Defensive Player of the Week honoree, finished with five tackles and two pass break-ups.

The Braves will play their second straight conference road game next Saturday at 6 p.m. when they head to Southern. Alcorn is 36-27-2 all-time against SU and beat the Jaguars 48-31 last season at home.

NOTES
- The Braves won their sixth straight game over the Delta Devils and lead the all-time series 45-15-1. Alcorn has outscored MVSU 318-78 over the last six games.

- Alcorn won its conference opener for the seventh year in a row.

- The Braves entered the game as one of 21 teams in the nation to score on 100 percent of their trips in the red zone. Alcorn stayed perfect by going six-for-six tonight.

- Johnson entered the game ranked 13th in the country in completion percentage (.684). He will improve his rank after going 18-for-23 (.783) in the air.

- Simmons, the SWAC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, broke his previous career-high of 172 yards set last season against Alabama A&M at home. He averaged 8.8 yards per carry tonight.

- Forman's 119 rushing yards broke his previous career-high of 58 yards against Louisiana College this season. He registered his first multi-touchdown game of his career.

- Alcorn improved to 9-0 when leading at halftime over the last two seasons

- The Braves entered the week ranked No. 4 in the HBCU Poll.

- Alcorn assistant coach Pat White was inducted into the WVU Sports Hall of Fame today. He was not present for his induction as WVU hosted Kansas State since he was on the sideline with the Braves. White's brother Coley was present on his behalf.

- Alcorn's captains were Johnson, Smith and Shippy. The Braves won the coin toss and deferred to the second half.

Quoting Alcorn head coach Fred McNair
Opening Statement
"We've got a lot of things we have to work on. We still have way too many penalties, especially personal fouls. Most of these penalties are really unnecessary where guys didn't need to do it, but it's something we obviously need to clean up. We play a good team next week against Southern and if we keep committing penalties like this it's going to cost us. Our team executed well tonight at times, but we need to play a good four quarters which we haven't done yet."

On the rushing yards
"Our guys did a really good job of blocking. We just have to execute and play to our potential. We saw flashes of it tonight and we see what we're capable of, but overall I believe we can do better. I thought coach [Ryan] Stanchek did a great job of calling plays and we really tried to attack them."

On the defensive performance
"Our defense has been stingy the whole year. I didn't like giving up that last touchdown at the very end there when we were on the ball at should have made a play. We also gave up a big special teams touchdown, but the defense has been playing well. We just have to be more consistent offensively and take advantage of our opportunities."

Quoting senior running back P.J. Simmons
On his career night
"The O-Line just opened up holes all night and I tried my best to hit them full speed. I just wanted to do whatever I could to help the team secure a victory."

On when he realized tonight could be a career night for him
"I really wasn't thinking about that at all. I just went out there with the mindset that I just have to do my job and do whatever it takes to help the team win."

On how big it is for the team to run for 462 yards
"It's really big because we've known we were capable of it. With the O-Line that we have, we're capable of doing it every week."

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Duke Pulls Away from NCCU in Second Half

DURHAM, North Carolina – North Carolina Central University was within one score of its ACC foe late in the second quarter, but Duke University pulled away from the Eagles after halftime for a 55-13 victory in the seventh edition of the Bull City Gridiron Classic at Wallace Wade Stadium.

Duke started the game off with a quick scoring drive with quarterback Quentin Harris throwing a touchdown pass to Davis Koppenhaver.

On the ensuing kickoff, Duke kicker Collin Wareham kicked and recovered an onside kick. That drive was then capped off by a 15-yard rushing touchdown by Harris making the score 13-0 before an NCCU offensive snap.

Harris threw another touchdown for the Blue Devils, this time to running back Brittain Brown pushing the Duke lead to 20-0 at 6:10 of the first quarter.

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NCCU's offense started slowly, but gained momentum with a 10-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a 20-yard touchdown by running back Isaiah Totten.

The Eagles defense also generated some momentum when a Harris fumble was scooped up and returned 55 yards for a touchdown by NCCU defensive back Jordan McRae, trimming the Blue Devils lead to 20-13 with 12:26 remaining in the opening half.

The NCCU defense was stubborn, making fourth down stops on back-to-back Duke drives. Unfortunately for the Eagles, they were not able to turn either stop into points.

Late in the half, Harris connected with Johnathan Lloyd for another Duke touchdown, making the score 27-13 at the intermission.

The second half was all Blue Devils. Duke scored three touchdowns in the third quarter and one in the fourth. The Eagles were unable to find the end zone in the final 30 minutes.

For NCCU, quarterback Naiil Ramadan threw for 51 yards on 6-of-15 passing attempts. Chauncey Caldwell and Dominique Shoffner also took snaps for the Eagles in the second half.

The running game worked well for the Eagles. Totten managed to rush for 88 yards on 12 carries, averaging 7.3 yards per carry with a long run of 59 yards. Tyquan Watson and Jordan Freeman also added a combined 39 yards on the ground for NCCU.

Defensively, the Eagles were led in tackles by Davanta Reynolds with nine. Darius Royster and King Kiaku finished with eight tackles each for NCCU, while Daejon Weeks contributed seven takedowns and forced a fumble.

For Duke, Harris finished the game with 202 yards passing and three touchdowns through the air, along with a rushing touchdown. Chris Katrenick added 54 yards and another touchdown for the Blue Devils.

The Blue Devils rushing attack was led by Brown with 118 yards on 13 attempts. Also, Deon Jackson finished the game with 96 yards on 20 carries.

NCCU (1-2) returns home to play Florida A&M next Saturday (Sept. 29) in its first conference game of the season. Duke (4-0) hosts Virginia Tech.



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