Early outburst leads SU by UAPB, 15-10

PINE BLUFF, Ark. — The Southern baseball team didn’t get a sparkling effort from its pitching staff Friday. But the Jaguars got enough of what they needed — from reliever Daniel Garcia, from its solid defense and from its suddenly potent offense.

In the opener of a three-game Southwestern Athletic Conference Western Division series, Southern erupted for 14 runs in the first four innings and held off Arkansas-Pine Bluff for a 15-10 victory. It was the first time the Jaguars scored 15 or more runs since March 12, when they opened a three-game road series at Prairie View with a 17-5 win.

It was also Southern’s first game with 10 or more runs since March 27, when the team defeated UAPB 10-7 to complete a three-game sweep in Baton Rouge. Frazier Hall, Wilmy Marrero and B.J. Rowry, the Nos. 3-5 hitters, combined to go 8-for-15 with seven RBIs.

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XU Nuggets beat Union to reach semifinals of NAIA qualifier

Xavier freshman Nicole DeLoach won doubles and singles matches.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Freshman Nicole DeLoach earned doubles and singles victories Friday to help Xavier University of Louisiana's women's tennis team earn a 5-0 decision against Union (Ky.) in the opening round of an NAIA National Championship qualifying tournment.

The Gold Nuggets (4-17), seeded second, snapped a six-dual losing streak and advanced to a 10 a.m. EDT Saturday semifinal against third-seeded Milligan, a 5-0 winner against Bethel (Tenn.). Cumberland defeated Tennessee Wesleyan 5-2, and top-seeded Martin Methodist beat Reinhardt 6-1 in th other quarterfinals.

DeLoach, paired for the first time this season with freshman Amber Brown, defeated Marah Rice and Meredith Dambrus 8-0 at No. 2 doubles. DeLoach clinched the dual with her 6-0, 6-1 victory over Dambrus at No. 4 singles.

Melissa DeLoach, a senior and Nicole's sister, teamed with Carmen Nelson for an 8-5 victory over Diane Proteau and Ximena Aguilar at No. 1. The Gold Nuggets also earned default victories at No. 3 doubles and No. 6 singles.

XU's women won for just the second time in their last 17 duals and won on the road for the first time since Feb. 11. It was the first time this season the Gold Nuggets won without dropping a match.

Xavier defeated Union (2-9) in the postseason for the second time in three years. The first time was in the opening round of the 2009 NAIA National Championship.

Results

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
VISIT: XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
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XU Gold Rush advance to title match by beating Bethel (Tenn.)

Sean Richardson, left, and Steffen Giles-Osborn
 won doubles and singles matches.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — The Xavier University of Louisiana men's tennis team defeated Bethel (Tenn.) 6-0 Friday to reach the championship round of an NAIA National Championship qualifying tournament.

The Gold Rush (12-9), ranked 11th in the NAIA and seeded first in the tournament, will play 23rd-ranked and second-seeded Martin Methodist for the championship at 12:30 p.m. EDT Saturday. The winner will receive an automatic berth in next month's national tourney.

Steffen Giles-Osborn, Sean Richardson and Hassan Abbas won in doubles and singles to help the Gold Rush snap a four-dual losing streak.

Giles-Osborn and Sean Richardson scored the first point of the dual with their 8-2 victory over Paolo Vecchi and Eduardo Espinar at No. 2 doubles. It was the first victory in five matches for the XU juniors.

Abbas and Zach Taylor beat Ryan Weatherly and Kristian Takac 8-3, and freshmen Amir Rahbar and Jonathan Aubrey completed the doubles sweep with an 8-6 decision against Joao Souza and Raphael Sousa.

Abbas clinched the dual with his 6-0, 6-2 victory over Souza at No. 1 singles. Giles-Osborn beat Espinar, an All-TranSouth Conference singles selection, 6-2, 6-1 at No. 3, and Richardson topped Weatherly 6-0, 6-2 at No. 5.

Bethel finished 5-14 and lost 11 of its last 12 duals.

Martin Methodist was a 6-1 winner against Cumberland in the other semifinal. Xavier beat Martin Methodist 6-3 on Feb. 18 at Nashville, Tenn.

Results

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
VISIT: XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
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Howard Lacrosse Drops to Jacksonville in NLC Quarterfinals

Saturday, Apr. 30
Howard  vs. Liberty, 9 a.m. —  Live Stats •Live Video
Jacksonville vs. Davidson, 11:30 a.m. —  Live Stats •Live Video
High Point vs. Longwood, 2 p.m. —  Live Stats •Live Video
Presbyterian vs. Detroit Mercy, 4:30 p.m. — Live Stats •Live Video

DAVIDSON, N.C. – The Howard lacrosse team fell in the quarterfinals of the National Lacrosse Conference Tournament on Friday at Richardson Stadium at the hands of the Jacksonville Dolphins. Senior Desiree Cox and freshman Courtland Lackey led the Bison with three goals a piece in the 22-7 loss.

Lackey got Howard (4-12) on the board quickly with 28:55 on the clock, responding to JU’s Morgan Derner who scored in the opening seconds of the match. Jacksonville (13-4) went on to take a 13-0 run in the first half before Cox and Chastity Dailey recorded late goals. Lackey was the only member of the Bison to record an assist, giving her four points in the game to lead Howard.

Howard’s leading scorers – Lackey and Cox – each dispersed two goals in the second half helping the Lady Bison to hold their NLC opponents 7-4 after halftime. Goalkeeper Amber Meeks recorded 15 saves in the match while Dolphin’s Elizabeth Gatch recorded four.

Overall HU was outshot 46-15 and Jacksonville maintained the draw control advantage 21-10. Cox was credited with four draw controls on behalf of HU. The Lady Bison were narrowly edged in groundballs 28-19. Leading the Bison in groundballs was Sydney Satchell with five. Five members of the Lady Bison recorded a caused turnover.

The loss marked the second time the Lady Bison dropped to the Dolphins this season. The Lady Bison will face Liberty University at 9:00 a.m. Saturday in the double elimination tournament.

For more updates on the Howard lacrosse team during the offseason, visit www.howard-bison.com.

By Tiffany White, Sports Information Assistant
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Hampton's Ellis Selected in NFL Draft Third-Round

Ellis a Jet

Hampton University defensive tackle Kenrick Ellis was taken in the third round of Friday's NFL Draft by the New York Jets. Ellis, 6-foot-5 and 346 pounds, was the 30th pick of the third round and the 94th pick overall.

"God is good," Ellis said from his home in Florida on Friday night. "I feel blessed and highly favored."

Ellis is the first Pirate to be drafted since Kendall Langford was selected in the third round by the Miami Dolphins in 2008. Langford, a defensive end, was the 66th overall selection that season. Ellis had 94 tackles and eight sacks in his senior season at HU. Earlier this week, he said he had some things to work on, like his footwork, to succeed in the NFL, but was looking forward to getting the chance.

Hampton NT Kenrick Ellis has lots of talent.

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- Rex Ryan and Mike Tannenbaum made a cameo appearance as themselves Friday night on a taped episode of "CSI: NY." Turns out the New York Jets have been conducting their own crime-scene investigation. Kenrick Ellis represents a big risk for Rex Ryan and the Jets.

About 30 minutes after the TV show aired on CBS, the Jets used their third-round draft pick on massive nose tackle Kenrick Ellis, who is facing up to 20 years in prison on a felony assault charge. Ellis, who allegedly broke the jaw and nose of a man last April in an altercation on the Hampton (Va.) University campus, is scheduled to stand trial on July 12, according to an April 27 story in the Daily Press of Newport News, Va.

Most players are worried about a lockout keeping them from training camp. Ellis could be doomed by a lock-in.

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Albany State University survives long, long day

ALBANY, GA — Albany State interim baseball coach Kenyan Conner was momentarily speechless following Friday night’s SIAC Tournament game against Miles. Then he aptly described his team’s 18-12 win. “Long,” he said about the four-hour game where his team nearly blew a 15-0 lead.

The sixth-seeded Rams hung on and are still alive in the SIAC Tournament, but now they have no room for error entering the final two days of the event.

After committing five errors in a 5-3 quarterfinal loss to the No. 2 seed Stillman College Tigers, the Rams avoided bowing out of the double elimination tournament Friday at Paul Eames Sports Complex by knocking off Miles.

'Bama athletes think about home

ALBANY, GA - Some people who survived those storms in Alabama are in Albany this week at the SIAC Baseball Tournament. While they're playing ball or rooting for their teams, all of them said their hearts are back home.

The Stillman College baseball Tigers from Tuscaloosa had a former teammate killed in the tornadoes that flattened their town. Three members of the Miles College baseball Bears from Birmingham lost their rental homes at school, while two players' families lost their homes.

Many of the fans at today's games lived through the killer storms. Katie Watkins' fiance is one of the coaches for Stillman College's baseball team. She was in her apartment in Northport during the tornadoes. "He had gone to be with a girl, to protect her...

Defending champion Rams open 2011 SIAC tourney today at home

ALBANY, GA — When Albany State junior shortstop William Smalls talks, interim baseball coach Kenyon Conner said his team listens. That was clear during Wednesday afternoon’s practice when Smalls spoke about preparing for this week’s SIAC baseball tournament, which starts today at Paul Eames Park.

“We are ready to play, man,” the SIAC Player of the Year candidate said. “Just like in the military, get your soldiers up and get ready to go to war.” “War” starts today at 10 a.m. when the No. 6 Rams (25-23 overall, 10-5 SIAC) host No. 3 Tuskegee (16-15, 11-4) in the opener of the eight-team, double-elimination tournament.

The Rams, who have won 11 of their last 18 games, hosted and won last year’s SIAC Tournament. Conner said pressure to repeat lingers in the back of his players’ minds.

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READ RELATED ARTICLES:
Stillman College student killed by tornado
The Crimson White confirms 8 student deaths

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XU Rush, Nuggets seek automatic bids at NAIA qualifier

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — The postseason begins Friday for the Xavier University of Louisiana tennis teams in a qualifying tournament for the NAIA National Championship at Champions Club.

The event is for conferences which did not qualify for automatic bids to the national tournament. But automatic bids will be awarded to the men's and women's champions of this two-day tourney.

Coach Alan Green, middle, hopes to take his women
 to the NAIA National Championship for the fourth
 consecutive year and his men for the third straight year.

The Gold Rush (11-9), ranked 11th in the NAIA coaches poll, are seeded first in the four-team men's bracket and will play fourth-seeded Bethel (Tenn.) (5-13) at 1:30 p.m. EDT. XU's women (3-17), still receiving votes in the national poll, are seeded second out of eight teams and will play seventh-seeded Union (Ky.) (2-8) at 10 a.m. EDT.

XU seeks its fourth consecutive berth in the women's draw of the NAIA National Championship and its third consecutive berth in the men's field. The national tournament will start May 17 in Mobile, Ala.

"That's a primary goal every year — to get our teams to nationals and then see how far they can go," eighth-year XU Coach Alan Green said. "There are automatic bids on the line. We want to get those bids this weekend and, in the case of our men, not have to depend on an at-large selection."

XU's men reached the top 10 for the first time in the program's history on March 8 and stayed there for two additional polls. A 6-3 victory at Vanguard on March 4 was the Gold Rush's first against an NAIA top-10 opponent.

NAIA National Championship Qualifying Tournament (seedings in parentheses) MEN Semifinals — Friday Xavier (1) vs. Bethel (Tenn.) (4) Martin Methodist (2) vs. Cumberland (3) WOMEN Quarterfinals — Friday Xavier (2) vs. Union (Ky.) (7) Milligan (3) vs. Bethel (Tenn.) (6) Martin Methodist (1) vs. Reinhardt (8) Cumberland (4) vs. Tennessee Wesleyan (5)

The Gold Nuggets have dropped six straight and 15 of their last 16 duals. But after playing the entire regular season with just five players, walk-on freshman Courtney Martin was added to the postseason roster to help the Nuggets avoid forfeits at No. 3 doubles and No. 6 singles.

Seniors Hassan Abbas (13-6 singles, 13-7 doubles) of the Rush and Melissa DeLoach (7-15 singles, 11-11 doubles) of the Nuggets lead their respective teams in combined victories.

Martin Methodist, ranked 23rd in the men's poll, is seeded second in the qualifier. XU beat Martin Methodist 6-3 in Nashville, Tenn., on Feb. 18.

Martin Methodist's 18th-ranked women are seeded first. The Gold Nuggets are seeded one spot higher than Milligan, even though Milligan received 39 more points than XU in the most recent national poll.

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
VISIT: XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
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