Just Sayin': UMES choice of Collins safe, unimaginative and wrong

PRINCESS ANNE, Maryland --  Well, they did it again.

I almost can’t bring myself to talk about it, but the University of Maryland Eastern Shore has once again managed to take an opportunity to set off a boom across the Shore and the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference that would cause people to take notice.

Instead they went with a great big plop — and everyone shrugged in indifference.
See, I’ve gone through this for a decade.

Ten years.

It feels like longer ...

Larry Lessett, Meredith Smith and Frankie Allen combined for a 59-242 record since my arrival on the Shore, leading me to think that good basketball and UMES would never mix.

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Maryland-Eastern Shore hires WSSU's Bobby Collins as head coach

COACH BOBBY COLLINS
Photo Courtesy: WSSU Athletics

PRINCESS ANNE, Maryland  -- (April 8, 2014) – Bobby Collins, who leads men’s college basketball teams to conference championships and national tournament appearances, will be the next head coach at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore.

Collins, 48, comes to Princess Anne from Winston-Salem State University in North Carolina, where he was named head coach in 2006. His last four Ram teams averaged nearly 20 wins per season and qualified for the NCAA Division II tournament in 2011, 2012 and 2013.

“It feels like I’m coming home, professionally,” Collins said. “I’m looking forward to the challenge of re-engaging with some of my old friends and rivals in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.”

Collins is no stranger to the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. Before taking the Winston-Salem State job, he was head coach for four years at Hampton (Va.) University, where he was MEAC’s 2005 coach of the year. His team won the conference tournament the following season, earning an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

“The university has an opportunity to hire an outstanding coach. He’s an even finer person,” UMES athletics director Keith Davidson said. “He has a proven record of success at his previous institutions.”

Collins was Hampton’s assistant head coach in 2001 when the 15^th-seeded Pirates pulled off one of the most memorable upsets in NCAA tournament history, defeating the 2^nd-seeded Iowa State Cyclones. Two years later, he was promoted to the head coaching position at Hampton and established a school record for most wins by a first-year coach.

“He’s had great coaching experiences where he’s worked previously,” Davidson said. “He’s an excellent recruiter who has great relationships with players and we believe he’s the right person for our program.”

The university and Collins agreed to a four-year contract with a base salary of $135,000.

Collins teaches an offense that puts a high value on fast-break scoring and he believes in employing man-to-man defense roughly two thirds of the time.

He told the UMES search committee he expects his players to be “the hardest working team in the country,” and to follow a strict code of conduct off the court, including taking caps off when indoors and when traveling.

“We are excited that Coach Collins has accepted the opportunity to lead our men’s basketball program,” President Juliette B. Bell said. “He has demonstrated that he is a proven winner and a role model when it comes to guiding student-athletes on and off the court. The University of Maryland Eastern Shore and its Hawk Nation welcome him to our ‘nest.’”

In his 12 years as a head coach at two universities, Collins has compiled a 181-171 record, including his first three years at Winston-Salem State when he was trying to position the basketball program to compete at the Division 1 level. He scheduled road games against the likes of Georgetown, Notre Dame, Kansas and cross-town neighbor, Wake Forest of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Collins graduated from Eastern Kentucky University in 1991 with a bachelor's degree in business administration and management, and was a four-year letterman on the Colonels’ basketball team. He was selected to the Ohio Valley Conference All-Freshmen team and was Honorable Mention All-Conference as a senior. After college, he played in the Helsinki, Finland Classic (tournament), earning MVP honors.

Collins was as an admissions counselor at his alma mater from 1992 to 1994 before joining the Old Dominion University basketball program as a restricted earnings coach.

He was on the Monarchs’ bench in 1995 when the Colonial Athletic Association champions shocked Villanova University during a first-round win in the NCAA basketball tournament.

Collins, the youngest of 10 siblings, is the son of two non-denominational ministers. He grew up in Southern Pines, N.C., where he graduated from Pinecrest High School and helped his team to 18-5 and 20-4 records during his junior and senior years. In 1984, he earned All-State honors and was conference Player of the Year.

COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND EASTERN SHORE SPORTS INFORMATION

XU's Wright receives All-Louisiana honorable mention

MORRIS WRIGHT

NEW ORLEANS -- Xavier University of Louisiana's Morris Wright received honorable mention on the All-Louisiana collegiate men's basketball team announced late Saturday.

A Louisiana Sports Writers Association panel selected the team.

Wright -- a 5-foot-10 sophomore point guard from Zachary, La., a graduate of Zachary High School and a former Baton Rouge Community College standout -- is the only player in Xavier history to lead the team in scoring, assists, steals and 3-point accuracy in the same season. He's the third player in XU history -- the first in 23 seasons -- to reach 400 points, 40 made 3-pointers, 100 rebounds and 50 steals in the same season.

Wright averaged 13.5 points, 3.4 rebounds, three assists and 1.7 steals per game in 2013-14. He shot 47.9 percent from the floor, 43.5 percent from 3-point range (47-of-108) and 79.5 percent from the line. He was All-Gulf Coast Athletic Conference.

Xavier finished 23-9 and won its third consecutive GCAC regular-season championship. The Gold Rush qualified for a fourth consecutive Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I National Championship and tied for 16th in the NAIA Division I coaches postseason poll.

2013-14 All-Louisiana Men's Basketball Team

FIRST TEAM
Jonathan Blount, senior, Centenary
Shawn Long, sophomore, Louisiana-Lafayette
Johnny O'Bryant, junior, LSU
Elfrid Payton, junior, Louisiana-Lafayette
Jalan West, sophomore, Northwestern State

SECOND TEAM
Louis Dabney, sophomore, Tulane
Brandon Davis, senior, LSU-Shreveport
Ledrick Eackles, senior, McNeese State
Jordan Mickey, freshman, LSU
Kenneth Smith, junior, Louisiana Tech

THIRD TEAM
Calvin Godfrey, junior, Southern
Alex Hamilton, sophomore, Louisiana Tech
Will Nelson, senior, LSU-Shreveport
Tylor Ongwae, junior, Louisiana-Monroe
McCall Tomeny, junior, Loyola

PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Elfrid Payton, Louisiana-Lafayette
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR: Will Nelson, LSU-Shreveport
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: Jordan Mickey, LSU
COACH OF THE YEAR: Bob Marlin, Louisiana-Lafayette

HONORABLE MENTION
DeQuan Hicks, senior, Northwestern State
Dantrell Thomas, senior, Nicholls State
Morris Wright, sophomore, Xavier

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
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New-look Lane expects to keep improving

JACKSON, Tennessee --  The alarm clock doesn’t bother Lane quarterback T.J. Ayers.

Lane’s football team used to practice at 3:45 p.m., after classes, but this spring interim coach Malik Hoskins started conducting practices at 5:30 a.m.

Hoskins sees a positive sign in his players’ reception of the change, and Ayers participates willingly as he thinks about pushing toward a conference title and getting the city of Jackson more involved with the team.

“Honestly we feel like everybody in the SIAC is not up at 5:30 a.m.,” Ayers said.

After a 6-4 season last year, Lane
football closed its spring practices Saturday with a scrimmage at Lane Field. Approximately 100-150 supporters attended.

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Celtics' Robinson set to show he's up for Howard Bison college challenge

OCALA, Florida  -- All Alizah Robinson wants is a chance.  A chance to show he has the goods to succeed at the next level.

The Trinity Catholic defensive back knows he is undersized. But the confident senior also knows that what he lacks in height, he more than makes up for with speed, agility and instinct.

 

That much was evident on the football field last fall when Robinson earned a starting spot right out of the gate in his only year at Trinity.

The transfer from Lecanto put together enough solid game film to send away to colleges, and when Howard University came calling with a spot on its team, Robinson jumped.

 

"This opportunity has eliminated (the size issue) with me," the 5-foot-8, 150 pounder said. "I've never had my talent questioned. As long as I keep getting bigger, I know I have what it takes to perform at the college level."

 

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St. Aug sweeps ECSU to secure berth in CIAA baseball tourney

ELIZABETH CITY, North Carolina  —  Both Jeremy Sandifer (Jr./Virginia Beach, VA) and Bryan Rivera (Jr./Cidra, Puerto Rico) had masterful pitching performances as Saint Augustine’s University swept Elizabeth City State University 3-1 and 11-0 in a CIAA baseball doubleheader at Knobbs Creek Park on Saturday, April 12, 2014.

With the wins, the Falcons qualified for the CIAA Baseball Tournament, which will be held April 17-19 in Petersburg, Va. The Falcons entered the day two games ahead ECSU and needing two victories in the four-game series to gain the fourth seed in the tournament.

After Saturday, the Falcons are 8-10 in the CIAA and 16-26 overall. The Vikings are fifth at 4-14 in the CIAA and 7-19 overall.

Sandifer set the tone on the mound in the first game. He threw a one-hitter and struck out six batters with four walks in seven complete innings. Rivera followed with a five-hitter and 16 strikeouts for a seven-inning complete shutout. He did not walk a batter. After Saturday, Rivera leads the CIAA with 68 strikeouts and Sandifer is third in the conference with 54 strikeouts.

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10th-ranked Rush defeat 13th-ranked Crusaders 8-1

NEW ORLEANS -- Five from Xavier University of Louisiana won in doubles and singles Saturday in an 8-1 men's victory against William Carey at the XU Tennis Center.

It was the fifth victory of the season for the Gold Rush (7-9) against a ranked NAIA opponent. Xavier is ranked 10th, and William Carey (8-7) is 13th. Xavier is 2-0 against the Crusaders this season.

"Everyone played hard, which I was really proud of," XU coach Alan Green said. "We were ready to play, took charge from the beginning, played strong in doubles and never let up. I hope that will continue."

Nikita Soifer and Jordan Harrell, partners for the first time since the fall semester, gave Xavier a 1-0 lead when they defeated Aleksei Tumakov and Michael Vetter 8-3 at No. 3 doubles. Viktor Svoboda and Adam Albrecht followed with an 8-3 victory against Jose Ruda and Lukas Moritzen, and the Gold Rush completed the doubles sweep when Kevin Chaouat and Tushar Mandlekar beat Ricky Keppeler and Phillipp Mueller 8-4 at the top flight.

Chaouat and Mandlekar are 9-2 as a doubles team this semester.

Mandlekar gave Xavier a 4-0 lead with a 6-2, 6-0 decision against Vetter at No. 4 singles. Soifer, playing No. 1 singles, clinched for the Gold Rush when Keppeler retired after trailing Soifer 7-5, 1-0.

Chaouat defeated Ruda 6-2, 6-0, and Harrell and Svoboda won third-set super tiebreakers to give the Rush an 8-0 lead. Harrell beat Moritzen 4-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-3), and Svoboda defeated Mueller 6-4, 3-6, 1-0 (10-8).

Svoboda snapped his four-match singles losing streak and won for the first time since Feb. 28. It was the first time in eight opportunities this season that Svoboda won in doubles and singles in the same dual.

Both Xavier teams will travel to Jackson, Miss., to play Jackson State at 1 p.m. Sunday. Green announced an addition to the men's schedule -- 3 p.m. Wednesday at the University of New Orleans.

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
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