HU Lady Pirates use strong second half to beat Saint Peters

JERSEY CITY, New Jersey  –  The Hampton University women’s basketball team picked up speed late in the first half and carried that into the second half on Thursday, beating host Saint Peter’s 62-40 at the Yanitelli Center.

The Lady Pirates (9-4) have held each of their last five opponents under 50 points. Hampton is also a perfect 6-0 on the road so far this season.

Senior forward Keiara Avant (Chesapeake, Va.) led three Lady Pirates in double figures with 14 points, while junior forward Alyssa Bennett (Hampton, Va.) added 13 points and tied her career high with 13 rebounds.

Junior guard Nicole Hamilton (Hampton, Va.) added 10 points and seven assists.

Saint Peter’s, in looking for its first win of the season, hung tough early, going up 11-9 at the 13:02 mark of the first half after a layup from Kristal Edwards. The Lady Pirates fought back, capping an 8-1 run with a layup from sophomore guard Kenia Cole (Burtonsville, Md.) at the 9:26 mark to give Hampton a 17-12 lead.

The Peacocks took a 20-19 lead with 4:26 left in the half, when Lovisa Hagberg hit a jumper to cap an 8-2 Saint Peter’s run. But the Peacocks only had one more field goal for the rest of the half, and the Lady Pirates closed the frame with a 14-2 run.

Senior guard JoNiquia Guilford (Chesapeake, Va.) capped that run with a baseline jumper as time expired, sending Hampton into the locker room with a 33-22 lead.

A 9-3 Hampton run opened the second half, as the Lady Pirates took a 42-25 lead with 13:16 to play after a layup from Avant. The run ballooned to 22-10 when Bennett hit a fastbreak layup with 7:22 remaining to give the Lady Pirates a 55-32 lead.

From there, the Peacocks never got any closer than within 20.

Hampton’s largest lead of the night came with 5:11 to play, after Cole hit a free throw to put the Lady Pirates up 58-34.

The Lady Pirates shot 38.7 percent (24-for-62) from the floor – including a 41.4 percent (12-for-29) clip in the second half. Hampton also went 10-for-12 (83.3 percent) from the free throw line, and the Lady Pirates out-rebounded the Peacocks 44-37.

Hampton also scored 29 points off of 23 Saint Peter’s turnovers.

The Peacocks (0-10) shot just 27.3 percent (15-for-55) from the floor and hit just one of their 13 3-pointers. Saint Peter’s only converted six field goals in the second half.

Aziza May and Kaydine Bent each had a team-high 10 points for the Peacocks.

The Lady Pirates will return to action on Sunday, when they head to Blacksburg, Va. to take on Virginia Tech at 2 p.m. For more information on Hampton University basketball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.

Box Score

COURTESY HAMPTON UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

HU football coach dismisses two assistant coaches



Head Coach Donovan Rose
HAMPTON UNIVERSITY

HAMPTON, Virginia  --  Hampton University head football coach Donovan Rose fired two assistant coaches as part of a staff shake-up in the wake of the Pirates' disappointing season.

Defensive coordinator Keith Goganious and wide receivers coach Lamar Thomas were let go, Rose announced Friday.\

Goganious was the coordinator for the past three seasons and was on the Pirates' staff the past four years. Thomas, a former NFL receiver for the Miami Dolphins and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was on the staff for two years.

Earnest Wilson, who just completed his first season as offensive coordinator, will remain in that position and will coach running backs, rather than quarterbacks. Running backs coach David .

Hampton finished 3-7 overall, 3-5 in the MEAC this season, its worst since 1991. The Pirates' defense took a step back this year, allowing 30.4 points and 362.2 yards per game. Two years ago under Goganious, HU was third in FCS in total defense (271 ypg) and fourth in pass defense (141 ypg).

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MU Continues Homestand Saturday Against NC Central

MILWAUKEE, Wisconsin --  The Marquette University men's basketball team (8-3) continues its season-long four-game homestand Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. CT when the squad welcomes North Carolina Central to the BMO Harris Bradley Center. Sports32 will feature the television broadcast, with Dennis Krause (play-by-play) and Jim McIlvaine (analyst) calling the action. The two programs will be meeting for this first time and the matchup will mark the conclusion of the non-conference campaign for MU in 2012-13. After Saturday's outing, Marquette will welcome Connecticut (Jan. 1) and Georgetown (Jan. 5) to begin BIG EAST Conference competition.

MU Hoping To Continue MEAC Success

While Marquette is meeting NC Central for the first time, the Golden Eagles do own a perfect 26-0 record in program history versus teams currently in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC).

The Golden Eagles have collected the most victories (5-0) against Morgan State and Coppin State and most recently defeated Savannah State 71-51 on Dec. 15.

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Virginia Tech returns to action, hosting N.C. A&T

BLACKSBURG, Virginia  --  The Virginia Tech women's basketball team will be back on the court following the holiday break to host North Carolina A&T on Friday, Dec. 28 in a 2 p.m. contest at Cassell Coliseum.

Game Information
Radio: 100.7 FM WNMX
Talent: Mike Lefko, play-by-play
TV: None
Live Stats: Link
Live Video: None
Game Notes: Link
Game Audio: Listen

The Series- Virginia Tech and North Carolina A&T have met just one other time in program history, with the Hokies picking up an 85-56 win on Dec. 5, 2007 in Blacksburg.
- This is the first of two consecutive games for the Hokies against teams from the MEAC. Tech will face Hampton on Sunday, Dec. 30 at 2 p.m.
- Virginia Tech is 16-3 all-time against teams from the MEAC.

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Horne: Late addition (Rick Comegy) won't change timeline for finding football coach at FAMU

Head Coach Rick Comegy
JACKSON STATE UNIVERSITY

TALLAHASSEE, Florida  --  It was back to the drawing board for the search committee that is helping FAMU find its next head football coach.

A snafu during the application process, which closed on Dec. 11, left out Rick Comegy, 59, the current head coach at Jackson State.

Members of the committee were informed of the omission, interim sports information director Vaughn Wilson told the Democrat on Wednesday.

Athletic Director Derek Horne later said that members of the committee received Comegy’s resume for review. He expected those to be completed by late Wednesday or today.

“It’s one application and we forwarded it to them (the committee),” Horne said.

“If there is any slow up it might be little to minimum. The good thing about the committee is even though some of them might be off for the holidays they can review it and get their responses back to us.”

Horne said he is still on his timeline to have a coach in place by Jan. 12. Last week, Horne said that he would like to start the interview process on Jan. 2, when FAMU resumes business.

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The Comegy File....

• Currently head football coach for Jackson State University Tigers from 2006 to present; Comegy has a JSU career record of 32-24; Tigers played in 2012 SWAC Championship game with UAPB; Won 2007 SWAC Championship;  Under Comegy's leadership the Tigers have produced 27 All-SWAC selections, the SWAC Defensive Player of the Year, AFCA All-American (Marcellus Speaks-2008), SBN All-Americans QB Casey Therriault and Renty Rollins (2010) SWAC Championship Game Offensive Player of the Game (Jimmy Oliver-2007) and Defensive Player of the Game (Domonique Johnson-2007). Wide receiver Jaymar Johnson was drafted by Minnesota in the sixth round of the 2008 draft and Domonique Johnson and Marcus Benard signed NFL contracts (with Denver and Cleveland respectively) in 2009.
• Served under College Football Hall of Famer and former FAMU Head Coach William "Billy Joe" at Central State University (Ohio) in 80's and 90's.
• Won four Black College National Championships (1986, 1987, 1988, and 1989) as an assistant coach under Coach Billy Joe at Central State University (Ohio).
• Served as Division II Tuskegee University head coach for ten years with a career record of 90-26 (.776) (1996-2005).
• Won the 1995 NAIA National Football Championship as head coach at Central State University (Ohio).
• Served as head football coach at Cheyney University 1990-1991.
• Served as head baseball coach at Colgate University 1980-1984, amassing a 33-90 career record.
• Served as assistant football coach at Colgate University 1978-1984.
• Served as assistant football coach at Millersville State University (Pa.) 1975-1977.
• Played college football at Millersville State University (Pa.) as a defensive back in the 1970's.

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UMES Competes in Terrapin Classic for Final Games of 2012

COLLEGE PARK, Maryland  --  The Lady Hawks head to the University of Maryland to compete in the Terrapin Classic starting on Friday. On Friday, UMES takes on Hartford at 2:30 p.m. at the Comcast Center. The next day, the Lady Hawks will either face Maryland at 4:30 p.m. or Brown at 7:00 p.m.

The Terrapin Classic will be a tournament format, with the winners of Friday's games playing each other on Saturday and the same with the defeated teams.

Tickets for the event will be available through Maryland's athletics web site and at the arena. Fans who buy a ticket for Friday's games may buy a ticket for Saturday's games at half-price. Parking is free in lots around the Comcast Center for both days.

UMES comes into Friday at 4-6, while Hartford stands at 8-3.

• LAST TIME OUT: UMES earned its fourth win of the season, using a 23-point performance from Karona Roach to defeat in-state rival UMBC 51-45 at the Hytche on December 21st. With UMBC leading 35-28 with 11:30 left to play, the Lady Hawks finished the game on a 23-10 run, holding off the Retrievers in the final minute to earn the win. Roach's 23 points was a career-high, adding five boards, while Shawnee Sweeney tallied 10 points and two assists. For UMBC, Bria White finished with a team-high 15 points, while Raven Harris had 12 points, seven steals and six rebounds.

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Year In Review: The top 10 local college stories of 2012

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida  --  Football is king in this country, and so it was on the local college scene this year. While Bethune-Cookman dominated its conference, Stetson put together its first team in 56 years, reigniting football fever on the west side of the county.

Our local colleges also excelled in other sports. Here is a look at the top 10 local college stories of the year:

 

1. Bethune-Cookman football makes playoffs, re-signs coach

 

The Wildcats went undefeated in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference for the first time in 28 years and qualified for the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs for the fourth time in school history — the second time in three years since Brian Jenkins became head coach.

 

The season wasn't without controversy, however. Jenkins refused to let his players speak to the media after a loss at Miami, and he was ejected from the Morgan State game, which led to a reprimand and fine from the MEAC.

 

After the season, Jenkins showed interest in the head coaching job at Southern University, but the day before his scheduled interview in Baton Rouge, La., he signed a contract extension to remain with the Wildcats.

 

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