Rush, Nuggets begin fall season with four newbies

NEW ORLEANS — Alan Green, Xavier University of Louisiana's director of tennis, announced Wednesday four signees for the 2017-18 academic year along with his teams' 2017 fall schedule.
    
The Gold Rush, NAIA national runner-up in 2016 and 2017, signed three:

     •  Chris Anders, a junior from Baton Rouge, La., and a transfer from Tyler (Texas) Junior College. Anders is a 2015 graduate of Parkview Baptist School.
     •  Samir Chikhaoui, a sophomore from Lille, France, and a transfer from Eastern Florida State College, a two-year school in Cocoa.
     •  Gabriel Niculescu, a junior from Bucharest, Romania, and a transfer from Troy of NCAA Division 

The Gold Nuggets' signee is Manon Bonada, a freshman from Nimes, France. Bonada joins a program that qualified 11 times for the NAIA National Championships, including each of the last six seasons.
     
XULA will begin its fall schedule Thursday in the HBCU National Championships, a three-day event at College Park, Ga.
     
Anders helped Tyler finish second last season, one point behind ASA Miami, at the NJCAA Division I National Championships. Last season Anders was named to the Region XIV All-Academic Team, and he and Aaron Westerlund climbed as high as 22nd in the NJCAA doubles rankings. Tyler was 22-0 in dual matches in 2017 and 18-3 in 2016.
     
Anders was a three-time LHSAA Division III (Class 3A) state singles champion at Parkview Baptist and helped the Eagles win state team championships in 2014 and 2015. His father is longtime tennis pro Ray Anders.
     
Chikhaoui was a three-time state champion in northern France before helping Eastern Florida finish 11-8 last season, its first as a varsity program. Chikhaoui was NJCAA All-Academic third team.
     
Niculescu was 11-10 in singles and 5-5 in doubles last season for a Troy team that reached the Sun Belt Conference semifinals. As a freshman at NCAA Division I's Chicago State in 2016, Niculescu was Western Athletic Conference Player of the Week, ITA Scholar-Athlete and Academic All-WAC. He helped the Cougars earn an ITA Academic Team Award for their stellar cumulative GPA.
     
Bonada won 20 singles age-group championships in her home country.
     
XULA majors of the newcomers are mass communications for Anders, marketing for Bonada, finance for Chikhaoui and political science for Niculescu.
     
Other fall competition will be the ITA NAIA South Regional Championships Sept. 22-24 at Lawrenceville, Ga., the Battle of the Bayou (men only) Oct. 6-7 at Lafayette, La., and a four-team men's event the first weekend of November at the University of New Orleans. Green said he will add to the fall schedule a third women's tournament.
     
This is Green's 15th season as coach of the Gold Rush and Gold Nuggets. He is a three-time ITA NAIA National Coach of the Year, including each of the past two seasons on the men's side.
     
Returning letterwinners are junior Pierre Andrieu, senior Catalin Fifea and sophomore Moses Micheal on the men's team and junior Charlene Goreau and sophomores Lacee Ancar and Yi Chen Pao on the women's. Fifea and Micheal earned NAIA All-America last season, and Fifea was chosen Louisiana Newcomer of the Year. Goreau was All-America each of her first two seasons.

Ed Cassiere, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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It's a trifecta of GCAC awards for Price, Sewell

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana's Taylor Price and Camren Sewell are 3-for-3 during the 2017 cross country season.
     
For the third time in as many opportunities, both have been chosen as Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Runners of the Week, this time for Sept. 4-10.
     
Price, a sophomore from Missouri City, Texas, and a graduate of Ridge Point High School, produced her second top-10 finish of the season and fourth of her career Saturday at the Allstate Sugar Bowl Festival in Metairie, La. Price ran 5,000 meters in 20 minutes, 32.4 seconds to place seventh out of 63 runners. Price finished ahead of 27 runners from NCAA Division I schools.
     
Sewell, a freshman from Cincinnati and a graduate of La Salle High School, placed 21st out of 54 men and ran the 5K in 18:13.5.
     
The GCAC weekly award is the eighth of Price's career. Sewell is the first Gold Rush freshman to earn three GCAC awards since Kwame Jackson in 2011.
     
Next for XULA will be the LSU Invitational at Highland Road Park in Baton Rouge, La. The women's 5K will start at 7:30 a.m. Saturday, followed by the men's 6K at 8:10.
     
NOTES:  The GCAC announced this week the date and site of its 2017 championships — Friday, Oct. 20 at Choctaw Trails Course in Clinton, Miss. Choctaw Trails will play host to the meet for the first time since 2013 and the eighth time overall. XULA's men and women are 10-time defending team champions of the conference. Price was a 2016 individual champion.

Ed Cassiere, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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Jackson State kicker Christian Jacquemin looks to bounce back against Grambling State

JACKSON, Mississippi -- Christian Jacquemin isn't about to let one missed field goal define his junior season.

And that's good, because with points coming at a premium in its first two games, Jackson State can't afford it.

The Tiger kicker rode a roller coaster of emotions in Saturday night's 17-15 loss to Tennessee State. He hit a 34-yard field goal on Jackson State's second drive of the game, then drilled a 49-yard field goal to end the first half, missing the school record by one yard.



He even hit a 48-yarder that would have won the game (and would have been good from 60), if not for a Tennessee State timeout just before the snap. But when he booted his second attempt, it missed wide left by six inches.

Jacquemin went to one knee with his head in his hand. Defensive coordinator John Hendrick placed his hand on his shoulder and tried to console him.

It was brutal.

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Jenkins, ASU must match fan challenge with wins

MONTGOMERY, Alabama -- Brian Jenkins knew fans were going to pack ASU Stadium for the Sept. 2 Tuskegee game.

That was a given.

What Jenkins wants is fans to show up in full force every time Alabama State plays at home.

“I’m excited about having that first game packed out, packed to the roof,” Jenkins said the Wednesday before playing the Golden Tigers. “Standing room only, but I think every game should be like that and that’s what I want to challenge our fans to make every game like that.”

A win Saturday against Kennesaw State (1-1) would go a long away in convincing fans to come out and see the hometown Hornets (0-2).

Another 0-3 start for a third straight season under Jenkins won’t.

Fans will show up for SWAC opener Sept. 23 against Prairie View A&M, but more will make their way to ASU Stadium if the Hornets prevail Saturday.



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Improved Grambling State O-line faces tough test in JSU D-line

GRAMBLING, Louisiana – No one had a better vantage point than Martez Carter.

Managing just 77 yards on the ground in the season opener at Tulane, Grambling State’s offensive line, in Week 2 versus Northwestern State in the team’s home opener last Saturday, knew it needed to have a better performance. Carter saw just that.

“Coach always says the biggest jump is from Week 1 to 2. We got back to that drawing board and those guys, they really dug deep,” Carter said of his offensive line. “It’s a pride thing and a dignity thing, and those guys really felt like they had something to prove. As you saw, the outcome was basically that. Those guys got a man on a man, they did a good job of executing and made my job a little bit easier.”

The five-man front, with experienced guys, senior left tackle Trent Scott and sophomore right guard William Waddell, along with three guys getting their second start in left guard Darrell Brown, center Will Jefferson and right tackle Keeyon Smart, pushed the Demon defensive line around for much of the night and paved the way for 204 rushing yards on 39 attempts.

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TSU MBB releases 2017-18 schedule with games against Gonzaga, Kansas

HEAD COACH MIKE DAVIS
TEXAS SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS

HOUSTON, Texas -- The Texas Southern Tigers have released their full 2017-18 basketball schedule. The Tigers will open the season Nov. 11 against Gonzaga at McCarthey Athletic Center in Spokane, Washington.

This season the Tigers will play a total of nine home games at the Health and Physical Education Arena, highlighted by conference games against Prairie View A&M (Jan. 6), and Southern University (Jan. 1). The Tigers game versus the Southern Jaguars will be broadcast live on ESPNU.

Last year, the Tigers won the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Regular Season title for the third year in a row, and were crowned the SWAC Tournament champions, subsequently making their 7th NCAA tournament appearance in school history.

The Tigers will look to repeat this season, with this year's SWAC tournament being once again hosted in Houston with the event now moving to the Delmar Center.

2017-18 Men's Basketball Schedule 

From Head Coach Mike Davis:

On the non-conference games on this season's schedule:
"This schedule gives us another great opportunity to play really good teams on the road. I think our non-conference schedule prepares us for our conference play, and that's the most important thing for us, is to try to win our conference regular season and our conference tournament. "

On the conference games on this season's schedule:
Hopefully we can win some non-conference games and we can get a lot of fans, students, and alumni to come out and support us. Our alumni are doing a great job of coming to support us at games, and as always we want to build our student body fan-base, and hopefully we can win some of these non-conference games, which will really help in that area."

On his overall analysis of this year's team:
"We lost three grad/seniors this past year. We're hoping to continue to perform the way we have in the past and continue getting better this year."

For the latest breaking news surrounding Texas Southern basketball, please continue to visit us online at tsusports.com and on Twitter @TXSOTigers.

2017-18 Men's Basketball Schedule 

Date Opponent Location Time
11/11/2017 Gonzaga Spokane, Wash. 9:00 pm
11/13/2017 Washington State Pullman, Wash. TBA
11/16/2017 Ohio State Columbus, Ohio 8:00 pm
11/18/2017 Syracuse Syracuse, NY 6:00 pm
11/21/2017 Kansas Lawrence, Kan. 7:00 pm
11/24/2017 Clemson Clemson, SC 8:00 pm
11/30/2017 Oakland Oakland, Mich. 8:00 pm
12/2/2017 Toledo Toledo, Ohio 8:00 pm
12/11/2017 Oregon Eugene, Ore. 5:00 pm
12/14/2017 Baylor Waco, Texas 7:00 pm
12/16/2017 Wyoming Laramie, WY TBA
12/18/2017 TCU Ft. Worth, Texas 7:00 pm
12/23/2017 BYU Provo, Utah TBA
1/1/2018 Southern HPE Arena 4:00 pm
1/3/2018 Alcorn State HPE Arena 7:30 pm
1/6/2018 Prairie View A&M HPE Arena 7:30 pm
1/13/2018 Jackson State Jackson, Miss. 5:30 pm
1/15/2018 Grambling State Grambling, La. 7:30 pm
1/20/2018 Mississippi Valley State HPE Arena 7:30 pm
1/22/2018 Arkansas-Pine Bluff HPE Arena 7:30 pm
1/27/2018 Alabama A&M Huntsville, Ala. 5:30 pm
1/29/2018 Alabama State Montgomery, Ala. 7:30 pm
2/3/2018 Prairie View A&M Prairie View, Texas 7:30 pm
2/10/2018 Jackson State HPE Arena 7:30 pm
2/12/2018 Grambling State HPE Arena 7:30 pm
2/17/2018 Mississippi Valley State Itta Bena, Miss. 5:30 pm
2/19/2018 Arkansas-Pine Bluff Pine Bluff, Ark. 7:30 pm
2/24/2018 Alabama A&M HPE Arena 7:30 pm
2/26/2018 Alabama State HPE Arena 7:30 pm
3/1/2018 Southern Baton Rouge, La. 7:30 pm
3/3/2018 Alcorn State Lorman, Miss. 5:30 pm
3/6/2018 SWAC Tournament TBD TBA

TEXAS SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

FAMU Classic will be played Saturday in Tampa despite Irma

TAMPA, Florida -- The FAMU Tampa Classic is going to be played as scheduled.

Florida A&M will play host to Tennessee State in Tampa on Saturday, the Rattlers' first time playing a home game in that city since 1996.

The game was in some doubt because of the impact of Hurricane Irma, but officials Tuesday confirmed plans to play.

All first responders will be given free tickets, along with their families. Donations for relief efforts will also be accepted.

Raymond James Stadium will be the site of three games this weekend: No. 22 South Florida will meet Illinois on Friday, the FAMU game is Saturday and the ...



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