Southern volleyball team emphasizing defense

Baton Rouge, LA - Nathaniel Denu’s message to his Southern volleyball team was quite simple after a second-round exit from last year’s Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament: Defensive prowess will determine the success of the 2011 season.

Passing and setting drills were pushed aside this summer as communication, footwork and technique became the focal point of the Lady Jaguars’ preseason preparation.

A barometer of the team’s progress arrives Friday when Southern opens the season in El Paso, Texas, at the El Paso Sports Commission Invitational. Southern will open the tournament with Friday matches against Texas-El Paso and Texas-Arlington before facing Nicholls State and Portland State on Saturday.

Denu hopes his team can reap early benefits from the extra attention to ...

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Outlook is Bright For Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks

PRINCESS ANNE, MD -- The University of Maryland Eastern Shore women's basketball team looks to continue their commitment to excellence and service for the 2011 -2012 season. They look to make a great impact in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference this season and serve as a great representation nationally for the MEAC.

Entering the eight year under the leadership of Coach Fred Batchelor, UMES went 12-19
and 8-8 in conference, last season finishing seventh in the conference respectively. The Lady Hawks advanced to the second round of the MEAC Tournament, falling to second seeded Morgan State. A defensive powered team finished first in the MEAC in shots blocked and third in the nation in defensive three-point field goal percentage.

UMES lost two starters and three letterwinners from the 2010-11 team, including team leading scorer Casey Morton. Morton, a two-time All-MEAC performer and 2007-08 MEAC Rookie of the Year, became the fourth UMES Lady Hawk to score over a 1,000 points last season.

The Lady Hawks will return three starters including two seniors, nine letterwinners, and five promising newcomers who look to make an impact on the continued success of this team.



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Ransome and Parolisi ready to make big difference at VSU

Petersburg, VA - The Virginia State University football team finished last season on a nice note - an appearance in the CIAA championship game - so it is no wonder the Trojans under the direction of coach Andrew Faison look forward to the season opener at Norfolk State University on Saturday. Game time is 6 p.m.

Faison, who enters his 10th season as VSU head coach, has posted a 49-42 record during that span. Prior to the start of the 2010 football season, coach Faison and his Trojans were predicted to finish eighth in the CIAA. Faison guided his team to an overall record of 8-3 and to the CIAA Football Championship game.

The Trojans lost in that championship game, by a touchdown, to Shaw but are in preparations to get back to the CIAA final. Virginia State, the defending Northern Division champions, was ranked sixth (out of 12 teams) in the CIAA preseason poll but were picked second in the Northern Division.



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Gold Nuggets offer campus tryouts Tuesday at The Barn

Xavier won its second straight Gulf Coast Athletic
Conference Tournament championship in 2011.

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana will conduct women's basketball tryouts for the 2011-12 season from 7 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at The Barn.

Participants must be full-time Xavier students and enrolled in a minimum of 12 hours for the fall 2011 semester.

Contact head coach Bo Browder at (504) 520-7333 or rbrowder@xula.edu for more information.

Xavier was 27-7 in 2010-11, ranked 20th in the final NAIA Division I poll and qualified for the NAIA Division I National Championship for the 15th time in 17 seasons. The Gold Nuggets led NAIA Division I in scoring defense and won the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Tournament each of the last two seasons.


By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
VISIT: XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
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Meet the Detroit Lions wideout who’s also a registered nurse

Detroit, MI - In between playing football and earning All-America honors on the track, Detroit Lions wide receiver Nate Hughes got a nursing degree during his college days at Alcorn State. Other than the multiple classes, long days of practice, longer hours studying, three weekly eight-hour shifts at the hospital and the 70-mile roundtrip he had to make between nursing school and the football field, it was a breeze.

The NFL hopeful kept his nursing degree active during three seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars by taking continuing education courses. In his 2009 rookie season, he had five catches and one touchdown in his rookie season with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Hughes spent last season on injured reserve before getting signed as a roster longshot by the Lions.



During this summer's lockout, Hughes took a job as an on-call nurse in his hometown of Macon, Miss. He plans to go to anesthesiology school whenever his football career ends.

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After injury-filled year, Delaware State kickers grab spotlight

Dover, DE - Placekickers are often the misfits of the football field. They practice their craft mostly on the side, while coaches place the majority of their focus on the rest of the team.

But Delaware State University's football team learned firsthand the importance of kickers when its starter got hurt last season. Starter Mario Diaz-Aviles severely sprained his ankle in the first game. Then, after backup kicker Nick Elko also suffered an injury, the Hornets found their cupboards bare.

Without a reliable kicking option, DSU had to go for touchdowns when it got deep in the opposition's territory, rather than trying for what normally would have been routine field goals. New Hornets coach Kermit Blount doesn't want a repeat. To that end, he has added kicking depth.

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ASU Hornets golf teams gear up for season

Montgomery, AL - The Alabama State University women's and men's golf teams have started preparations for the fall portion of the 2011-12 season.

Last season was one of many firsts for the women's team. Among the accomplishments, the team won the Southwestern Athletic Conference Championship, earning an NCAA Tournament berth, as well as capturing the National Minority Collegiate Tournament championship.

The men's team continued to knock on the championship door, finishing second in the SWAC for the third straight year and finishing sixth at the PGA Minority Championship.

"Last year was a transition year to where we are going as a program," fifth-year head coach Gary Grandison said. "I'm excited about this year and optimistic about where we are headed."

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