Lincoln University Lions Welcome Jill Freese as their New Head Women's Volleyball and Softball Coach

LINCOLN UNIVERSITY, Pennsylvania -- Lincoln University Athletic Director Harry Stinson III is pleased to announce the hiring of Jill Freese as the university's new Head Women's Volleyball and Softball coach.

"We are excited to add Jill to the Lincoln Lion Family," stated Athletic Director, Harry Stinson. "Her experiences as a former Division I athlete and coach, strong connection to the local Oxford community and desire to lead is a great addition to our staff. I'm excited to see our student athletes have the opportunity to learn from Coach Freese and put them in position to be CIAA and NCAA Champions."

Freese, an Oxford, Pennsylvania native, replaces Amber Sneed who left the university this summer to return to her native state, Ohio, and coach basketball.

"I am beyond thrilled to return to my hometown and lead the Lincoln University softball and volleyball programs," adds Freese. "I am honored to join a department led with strong vision, commitment, and enthusiasm for college athletics."

Freese comes to Lincoln after spending last season as an assistant softball coach at Division I St. Peter's University in Jersey City, New Jersey. At St. Peter's she worked primarily with pitchers, hitters and catchers as the Peacocks posted a five-win improvement and a 48 point increase in their team batting average from their previous season.

A four year softball player at Monmouth University, Freese left her mark on the program, finishing her career ranked fourth on Monmouth's all-time home run list and ninth in RBI's. Freese earned All-MAAC and All-MAAC Tournament honors her senior year.

Freese was a three-sport athlete at Oxford Area High School lettering in softball, basketball and field hockey. She earned first Team all-League honors in each of her four years at Oxford and was First Team all-State her final two seasons.

"I want to thank everyone involved in the hiring process, especially Harry, for trusting my vision as a coach and believing that I was the best candidate to lead Lincoln to future success," adds Freese. "I cannot wait to get started so that we can create something special here at Lincoln University."

Lincoln's women's volleyball team opens their season on September 12 with a match at Notre Dame of Maryland University..

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Olympian David Oliver Named Howard University Director For Track & Field Program

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Director of Athletics Kery Davis named World Olympian and alum David Oliver as its Director for Track & Field Program at Howard University. The announcement was made internally yesterday.

"We are thrilled to welcome one of Howard's most decorated former student-athletes back to the Mecca," said Davis. "David is a globally-recognized track and field champion and brings a unique passion to help student-athletes achieve their dreams on the track, in the classroom and in life after Howard. Most importantly, his personal achievements at the highest levels of competition will be an example to our student-athletes of what you can achieve through hard work, dedication and passion for your craft."



The Denver, Colo., native was destined to be a track & field star after his mother, Brenda Chambers, secured a spot on the 1980 Olympic Team in the 400-meter hurdles. Oliver returns to his alma mater as a highly decorated professional athlete. He was the 2008 Olympic Bronze Medalist in the 110-meter hurdles, and the 2013 World Champion in the same event. On the indoor track and field stage, he earned the Gold medal in the 2008 USA Indoor Championships in the 60-meter hurdles and bronze in the 2010 World Championships. He maintained top 10 rankings in the world for 11 consecutive seasons, and has received several accolades including the 2010 Jesse Owens Award which recognizes the USA's Most Outstanding Track Athlete. A two-time All-American as student-athlete at Howard University, Oliver was inducted into the 2014 Howard University Hall of Fame and the 2016 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Hall of Fame.

"I am happy to be back," Oliver stated. "I am looking forward to taking over the reins and rebuilding our program."

Off the track, Oliver dedicates his time to helping with youth track competitions and mentorship through the David Oliver Indoor Classic in Winston Salem, N.C., and the David Oliver Classic in Washington, D.C., while assisting sponsored athletes in the Quicksilver Track Club in Atlanta, Ga.

"During my tenure I've gotten to know Mr. Oliver very well. I've been impressed with his dedication to his craft that has seen him victorious at the highest level of his sport," said University President Wayne A. I. Frederick. "He represents the best of what Howard University has produced. He understands that our focus in the classroom and on the field must be excellent and I'm confident that he will equip Howard athletes with the tools to ensure their all-around success."

Oliver has been featured in several major magazines, including Essence Magazine, Sports Illustrated for Kids, Sobe Fit Magazine, Stack Magazine, Spikes Magazine, and ESPN the Magazine. In Sept. 2008, he was honored at Howard's 141st Opening Convocation for his outstanding achievements in athletics. Oliver was also honored by the Mayor of Denver with the naming of October 3rd as "David Oliver Day" and receiving a key to the city. He has also received the key to the city of Greensboro, N.C.

Oliver obtained his bachelor's degree from Howard University in business administration in 2004. He is married to Emily Oliver and they have one son, Dawson.

For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at www.HUBison.com.

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SC State, Charleston Southern Cancel Saturday Game

SOUTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS

ORANGEBURG, South Carolina -- The South Carolina State versus Charleston Southern football contest, originally scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 9, has been canceled. Both institutions will work together to reschedule the game at a later date.

The game was postponed due to the weather threat posed by Hurricane Irma and the State of Emergency issued by the state of South Carolina.

The SC State versus Wingate University women’s soccer game scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 10 has also been canceled, and will be rescheduled later during the season.

“The safety of our student-athletes and staff is paramount to the Department of Athletics and to the university. When faced with situations such as the impending hurricane expected to impact South Carolina, we always want to exercise caution and use good judgement to ensure students’ safety. I look forward to working with Charleston Southern in an effort to reschedule the game,” said Athletics Director Stacy Danley.

“(Being unable to play this weekend) is so disappointing because we were looking forward to renewing a relationship with South Carolina State in football and play them as we compete in so many other sports. We’re hoping we can get together with them later on this season and look forward to trying to work that out,” said Hank Small, Charleston Southern University athletic director.

Officials at SC State University continue to monitor the path and potential impact of the hurricane to the campus.

While it is too early to determine the potential threat, a number of forecasting models predicts that Hurricane Irma will impact South Carolina early in the week of September 11, causing flooding and strong hurricane-force winds.

The university anticipates that forecasting models will improve as the week progresses and more will be known about Hurricane Irma’s path. As this information becomes available, officials will evaluate weather reports and will consider advisement from state and local emergency management agencies to make the best decisions to ensure the safety of the campus community. The campus community will be notified in advance of any modification to campus operations.

Updates on weather-related issues and other emergencies will be available on the following platforms:

University’s homepage at www.scsu.edu

University’s social media sites
Facebook: www.facebook.com/scstate
Twitter: @scstate1896
E2Campus (Registration Required): This emergency system will send texts and emails of current or imminent threats to registered cell phone numbers and email addresses. To register, click here.

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Finally! Nuggets dig up breakthrough win vs. Badgers

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana defeated Spring Hill 25-18, 25-18, 19-25, 25-22 Thursday for the Gold Nuggets' first-ever volleyball victory against the Badgers.
     
The Gold Nuggets (5-1) lost their 19 previous matchups with Spring Hill (1-1), two last season.
     
Kayla Black's first collegiate double-double, 14 kills and 11 digs, helped spark XULA to its fourth consecutive victory and second in as many home matches. Also producing double-doubles for the Nuggets were Juliana Tomasoni with 12 kills and 19 digs and Tiffany Phillips with 26 assists and 14 digs.
     
Other XULA contributors were Anna Dalla Vecchia with 20 digs, Vivica Price-Spraggins with 12 kills and a .579 hitting percentage, Lauryn Taylor with nine kills and three blocks, Adili Rikondja with eight kills,Hasani Salaam with a season-high-tying four blocks and Eva Le Guillou with 22 assists.
     
Black, Dalla Vecchia, Price-Spraggins, Le Guillou and Taylor are freshmen.
     
"The key for us was consistency," first-year XULA head coach Pat Kendrick said, "and I thought we showed that in the sets we won. Spring Hill is a great team and was a great test for us. We needed that."

BOX SCORE
     
Black had three kills during a 10-0 second-set surge that gave the Gold Nuggets a 12-1 lead. After a fourth-set tie at 11, XULA scored 11 of the next 15 points. Salaam's kill ended the match, which lasted nearly two hours.
     
Payton Gidney had 11 kills, Randu De'Armitt served three aces, Taylor Hurst had nine kills and four blocks, and Cassidi Sterrett had 19 digs for Spring Hill.
     
XULA outhit Spring Hill .196 to .121 — .300 to .134 in the first two sets — and had advantages of 59-41 in kills and 86-70 in digs. In the five most recent meetings before Thursday, Spring Hill outhit XULA .206 to .146.
     
XULA will continue its home stand with a 1 p.m. Saturday match against Tougaloo at the Convocation Center. It will be the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference opener for the Gold Nuggets, who won the last six GCAC regular-season and tournament championships.

Spring Hill lineup:  Starters 1 Payton Gidney, 2 Emmarose Neibert, 14 Katelyn Bobinger, 15 Morgan Eiland, 17 Sarah Senft, 18 Randi De'Armitt . . . Libero 6 Cassidi Sterrett
XULA lineup:  Starters 6 Tiffany Phillips, 7 Adili Rikondja, 9 Hasani Salaam, 14 Juliana Tomasoni, 16 Kayla Black, 17 Vivica Price-Spraggins . . . Libero 20 Anna Dalla Vecchia


Ed Cassiere, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
XULAgold.com
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Price, Vaughan make all-time school list at MC Opener

CLINTON, Mississippi — Taylor Price and Maliya Vaughan recorded two of the fastest 4,000-meter times in Xavier University of Louisiana women's cross country history at the Mississippi College Season Opener Friday.
     
Price's time of 16 minutes, 35.68 seconds is No. 3 on the Gold Nuggets' all-time list. Vaughan's time of 17:07.58 ranks sixth. The school record is 15:34.
     
Price, Vaughan and Camren Sewell were the only XULA runners to finish in the upper half of the individual standings. Price was 22nd and Vaughan 29th out of 96 women, and in the men's 5K Sewell (18:33.92) was 41st out of 92 runners.
     
The Gold Nuggets placed seventh out of 13 teams with 210 points and finished ahead of NCAA Division I members Alcorn State and Jackson State. The XULA men also outscored Alcorn but placed 10th out of 12 teams with 291 points.
     
Unattached Daphney Stanford was the first woman to finish (14:45.82). The first collegiate finisher was Kate Mattox (14:46.95) of Southern Miss, which had the first 10 collegiate finishers and won the team title with a perfect 15 points. In the men's division, Jackson State's Henry Kiplagat won in 16:15.92, and Mississippi College outscored Louisiana Tech 33-76 to win the team title.
     
XULA's other runners were Brianna Pace (65th, 20:03.17), Hajjia Mohammed (69th, 21:05.98) and Chinyere Jones (78th, 23:24.22) in the women's race and Oji Wells (66th, 20:38.03), Darrick Williams (72nd, 21:14.26), Ammiel Williams (83rd, 22:54.66), Ayinde Abanu (86th, 25:07.50) and Aaron Grundy (91st, 33:19.00) in the men's.
     
Next for XULA will be a 5K at the Allstate Sugar Bowl Festival in Metairie, La., a New Orleans suburb. The women will race at 7:50 a.m., followed by the men at 8:25.

Ed Cassiere, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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Tuskegee Ranked After Week 1 in NCAA AFCA Poll

TUSKEGEE, Alabama --After week 1, the Tuskegee football team is ranked 22rd in the NCAA American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) poll.
 
The Golden Tigers won their second straight game over Alabama State, earning a 14-6 win on Saturday. 

Jonah McCutcheon sealed the victory for Tuskegee (1-0) with a 46-yard interception return for a touchdown with 10:57 left.  The win now makes head coach Willie Slater 6-2 all-time against ASU.

Jamarcus Ezell completed a 55 yard pass to Peyton Ramzy with 1:28 left in the first half to take a 7-0 lead.  That score marked the 11th time out of the last 13 games against ASU that the Golden Tigers have scored first.

Ezell finished the evening going 7-of-17 for 139 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions.  Ramzy hauled in 66 yards on a pair of catches on the night.

Defensively, preseason All-American Osband Thompson led the Golden Tigers with 14 tackles, two QB hurries, and one forced fumble. Thompson had 10 of those stops at halftime. McCutcheon and Kevin Dawson each had seven tackles while Darnell Hill and Kenderrius Whitehead totaled six tackles apiece. Terance Leatherwood notched TU's lone sack on the evening.

Punter Dalton Hall came up huge for the Golden Tigers. The Hartsville, South Carolina native punted 10 times for 392 yards landing three inside the 20-yard line.  He also finished with a long of 55 yards.

ASU's only score came with 1:26 left in the game when Kobie Jones connected with Alex Johnson for a 3-yd touchdown pass.

The Golden Tigers will face Albany State in Phenix City next Saturday IN the annual Labor Day Classic. Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. EDT.

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Vanderbilt, Mason want to 'create opportunities' for historically black colleges

NASHVILLE, Tennessee -- Disparity in college athletics is nothing new. College football just has shinier and more glaring examples of it.

For every Texas locker-television-nameplate, there’s a program with facilities out-done by many powerhouse high schools.

That money divide, thanks to mainly to huge television deals, becomes even worse when the comparison showcases teams out of the SEC and Big 10 to historically black colleges and universities, like Grambling State whose facilities were so decrepit that athletes boycotted.

“Mid-major schools have challenges in meeting their financial needs. I don’t think that is just something that is principally an issue for historically black colleges (and universities),” said Tennessee State athletic director, Teresa Phillips.

While Tennessee State is a HBCU, the program plays in the Ohio Valley Conference, a true mid-major conference.

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