A&T upsets Hampton

GREENSBORO, N.C. — With its 74-63 victory over first-place Hampton on Monday night, N.C. A&T took an important first step toward climbing the MEAC ladder.

Playing in their fourth straight game without guard Nic Simpson, the Aggies (12-14, 7-5) weathered 27 points from Kwame Morgan to pull away from the Pirates (19-6, 9-3) in the final minutes in the Corbett Sports Center.

Simpson, who likely will be sidelined until the final week of the season with a knee injury, is A&T's second-leading scorer at 14.6 points per game. "This team has really stepped up. They really have. It just doesn't show all the time," A&T coach Jerry Eaves said. "To have lost Nic, the team has made a decision they can win."

Aggies' Streak Comes To An End

GREENSBORO, N.C. - There were times on Monday when it looked like North Carolina A&T's streak would end without much of a fight.

That is until the Aggies started to fight. They took conference-leader Hampton's best shots, and kept getting off the canvas. But missed opportunities on the offensive end, and made Hampton free throws finally finished off the Aggies in a 74-66 loss to the Pirates.

The loss brought to an end one of the most impressive streaks in MEAC history. The Aggies went four years without losing to a conference opponent at home. The winning streak lasted 30 games. It lasted so long; no current player on the roster was an Aggie when the streak began.

"A streak like that says you have had one of the better programs for a long time," said N.C. A&T head Patricia Cage-Bibbs.

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NEXT GAME: SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 19 @ SOUTH CAROLINA STATE, 2 P.M., ORANGEBURG, S.C.

FAMU women's basketball team celebrates after a big victory

There was a bit of a celebration in the locker room of the Florida A&M women's basketball team at the Lawson Center. And, it had nothing to do with the fact that the Rattlers are now in sole possession of third place in the MEAC.

The postgame merriment Monday night was spurred by the Rattlers reaching a team goal for the first time in a conference game when they defeated Delaware State University 68-46. The 46 points allowed was the cause for celebration.

Holding conference opponents to 55 or fewer points is one of the team's goals set by coach LeDawn Gibson, but FAMU has not been able to do so against a conference opponent until Monday night.

FAMU men win seventh straight game at home

Simply put — there is no place like home for the Florida A&M men's basketball team.

Amin Stevens scored 16 points and the Rattlers fought off a late surge from Delaware State University for a 69-63 victory to complete a four-game home stretch without a loss at the Lawson Center. The Rattlers improved to 10-1 at home and extended their consecutive win streak to seven on their home floor.

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NEXT GAME: FEBRUARY 19, 2:00 P.M. @ HOWARD UNIVERSITY, WASHINGTON, D.C.

Doyle's Career-High 38 Leads Lady Bison Over Norfolk State

NORFOLK, VA – Saadia Doyle led all scorers with a career-high of 38 points en-route to a 66-49 rout over Norfolk State (8-14, 1-11) on Mon. Feb. 14. Doyle also pulled down a game-best 10 off the glass and went 17-for-20 from the charity stripe. The sophomore is now 47 points away from 1,000. With the win, the Lady Bison improve to 7-5 in conference play.

HU (11-15, 7-5 MEAC) started the game with seven unanswered points – capped by an Adele Walton three-pointer. The Lady Bison pushed the advantage to double-digits, 13-2, with a pair from the line by Doyle at the 13:10 mark. Howard kept its double-digit lead throughout the half and went into intermission with a comfortable 21-point cushion, 33-12.

In the first 20 minutes, Howard held the Spartans to just 20 percent shooting (5-for-24) while going 12-for-22 from the field for a 54 percent clip.

In the second period, the Spartans rattled off nine straight to make it 35-22 at the 14:25 mark. The Lady Bison ended the run with a jumper by Holmes. Howard led by as many as 18 (51-33) midway through the half, but Norfolk used a 10-4 run to cut it to 55-43 at the 7:25 mark. The Spartans would not get any closer, however.

For the game, the Lady Bison shot 43.5 from the field (20-for-46) and converted 22 Spartan turnovers into 29 points. Prior to today’s matchup, Norfolk lead the meac in field-goal percentage, shooting 40 percent on the season. However, The Lady Bison held the Spartans to 28.8 percent from the floor. Howard also edged NSU on the glass 37-33 – including 27 defensive rebounds.

Tamoria Holmes was the only other HU player to finish in double-digits with 11 points and five rebounds. Kara Smith chipped in with seven points, four boards, and four assists.

For Norfolk State, Sarah Daily was the only player to finish in double figures with 10 points. Whitney Long tallied nine nine points behind 3-of-6 shooting from behind the arc.

Howard is back in action on Sat. Feb. 19 when it hosts Florida A&M for its annual Pink Zone initiative. The game is slated for 2 p.m.

By Jamilah Corbitt, Assistant Director of Sports Information
Howard University

Coach Steve Davenport determined to make SSU's football team a success

By Whitney Hunter, The Tiger's Roar

Coach Steve Davenport may be a newcomer on the scene, but he is determined to make Savannah State University's football team the team to watch in 2011.

The married Atlanta native and father of one, has always had a love of sports dating back to his days as a All-American wide receiver at Southwest Dekalb High School and a wide receiver for Georgia Tech.

"I was a little league baseball player and never played football until I got into high school and I've always been a sports guy," Davenport said.

The new head coach started off 2011 by hiring former Georgia Tech football players William Bell, Thomas Balkcom, C. Angelo Wyatt, Greg Lester and former All-Pro wide receiver for the Atlanta Falcons, Terance Mathis, as his new assistant coaches.

"I have the up most confidence in the gentlemen I hired and have known them for quite some time," Davenport said.

In addition to the five assistant coaches, Davenport has landed 24 recruits from various parts of the country. Davenport is confident the new recruits will be the boost that SSU needs.

" I think these guys are good football players and good students as well," Davenport said." I think they will be a tremendous asset to the SSU community."

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Thomas, Killebrew lead WSSU Lady Rams to first CIAA title in school history

Final Results

Hampton, VA - The Winston-Salem State Lady Rams claimed their first Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association indoor track & field championship Sunday after a specatular two-day effort at the meet. The Lady Rams finished the meet with a team total of 99 points, topping second-place Johnson C. Smith's 95 total points. It was the strong performances in the middle distance and relay events that propelled the team to its first indoor track & field championship in school history.

"We knew what we had in our athletes and believed in them and this weekend, they performed," WSSU interim head track & field coach Inez Turner said. "We used a great strategy and everybody stepped up."

The Lady Rams played to their strengths as the team dominated middle distance and field events at the meet. After winning the women's distance medley relay on the first day of the meet, the Lady Rams kept things going on the second day, taking four of the top five spots in the women's 800m run. Freshman Brittney Killebrew, the 2010 CIAA Women's Cross Country champion, took first place in the women's 800m run with a 2:27.44 while sophomore Manuela Rigaud added a strong second-place finish in 2:28.75. Fellow sophomore Tyrah Winfrey took third in the event with a 2:29.06 while senior Ashley Fraser added a fifth place finish at 2:33.19.

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By WSSU Office of Athletic Media Relations

Saint Augustine's Falcons Win CIAA Indoor Track Crown

HAMPTON, Va. - Saint Augustine's College took its 13th straight men's title, and Winston-Salem State earned its first women's crown Sunday in the 2011 CIAA Indoor Track and Field Championships at the Boo Williams Sportsplex.

Led by men's field MVP Orlando Duffus and men's track MVP Josh Edmonds, the Falcons scored 155 points to run away with the win. Winston-Salem State was second with 80 points and Bowie State was third with 68 points.

The Lady Rams won the women's championship in their first year back in the CIAA after an attempted move to Division I. Their victory snapped Saint Augustine's College's steak of 14 consecutive league titles. Led by women's field MVP Dedricka Thomas, the Lady Rams scored 99 points to nip Johnson C. Smith, which finished second with 95 points. Virginia State placed third with 70 points.

Both Duffus and Edmonds sparked the Falcon men. Duffus won the triple jump, tied for third in the high jump and placed fifth in the long jump. Edmonds won the 200 dash, ran the second leg on the winning 4x400 relay team which included Dahmyir Owens, Jameel Walcott and Antonio Abney, and placed second in the 400 dash for the Falcons.

Thomas of the Lady Rams finished second in the long jump, high jump and triple jump. Shermaine Williams of Johnson C. Smith was named track MVP after winning the 60 hurdles, the 60 dash and the 200 dash.

By Saint Augustine's College Sports Information Office

Final Results

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TSU ready to put experience to use

TSU Coach Michael Robertson

Last season, Michael Robertson shepherded a young Texas Southern baseball team to the best record in the program's Division I history and the Southwestern Athletic Conference's Western Division title. One year later, Robertson returns a veteran-laden team that is poised to again be a force in the SWAC.

The Tigers lost just two seniors from last season's 30-26 squad that went 18-6 in the SWAC and fell in the semifinals of the conference tournament. They retained all three of their weekend starting pitchers and two stoppers in the bullpen. The roster is stocked with potent hitters.
The ingredients are there for another successful run.

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