Hampton captures MEAC softball tournament, NCAA bid

ORMOND BEACH, Florida  --  Hampton University earned its first Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament championship since 1996 and an automatic NCAA tournament berth, beating Norfolk State 7-3 in a winner-take-all final at Ormond Beach, Fla.

The Pirates finished 4-1 to win the eight-team event. They will learn on a 10 p.m. ESPNU show Sunday night where they are headed for the nationals.

Norfolk State, which needed a rally just to avoid a two-and-out exit on the first day, came within one victory of a memorable title. After dropping their opener, the Spartans ran off a streak of victories.

HU (34-24) has won 15 of its last 18. Freshman Taylor McCoy was named the tournament's most outstanding performer, and Margaret Wilkins and pitcher Jailynn Jackson joined her as HU's representatives on the all-tournament team. Hampton's Trena Peel was named the outstanding coach.

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B-CU Women's Team Leading into Final Round of the 27th PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship

Credit: The PGA of America

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. – The wind picked up on Saturday at PGA Golf Club, but the University of Texas-Pan American men’s team and Bethune Cookman University women’s team played well enough to lead heading into the final round of the 27th PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship presented by Brown Capital Management.

The 2013 edition of the 54-hole Championship, which will conclude tomorrow, features nearly 200 players representing more than 40 colleges and universities.

The Texas-Pan American men, who trailed first-round leader Bethune-Cookman by 11 strokes, were catapulted by Kevin Kirokossian’s stellar 5-under-par 67 on the Wanamaker Course and lead the men’s division I competition by four strokes heading into the final round tomorrow.

PHOTO GALLERIES: Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Youth Clinic |

The defending champion in the division, Texas-Pan American used a second-round 3-over-par 291 for a two-day total of 585.

Bethune-Cookman is now in second place overall at 589. Alabama State University is in third at 594.

“The round was really good today, considering I played the par 5s at one over for the day," said Kirakossian, a senior. “Our team wanted to come out and win the day, shoot the lowest score of any team out there. Then we could see where we stood and try and win it all tomorrow.”

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Outfielder Moore gives WSSU a spark

WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina  -  Travis Moore, a 26-year-old senior at Winston-Salem State, gets it.       

A senior left fielder, he cut quite a path on his way to becoming one of the Rams’ best players this season. 

He went from Greensboro’s Dudley High School (graduating in 2005) to Spartanburg Methodist College to Surry Community College and finally to WSSU.

“I wanted to go out with a bang,” Moore, smiling, said of his final season.

Moore has been a spark plug at the top of Coach Kevin Ritsche’s lineup. He leads the team in hitting with a .399 average and has 41 stolen bases and 32 RBIs.

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Longtime XU venue, The Barn, will be razed on Monday

The final XU competition at The Barn was a five-set women's volleyball victory against city rival SUNO on Nov. 1, 2012. XU's basketball teams played their final games at The Barn
on Feb. 13, 2012, and swept a doubleheader against Tougaloo.

NEW ORLEANS — The Barn, one of the enduring symbols of Xavier University of Louisiana, will be razed next week.

Demolition of the 1,300-seat gymnasium — which opened in 1937 and was the home of XU's Department of Intercollegiate Athletics and the home facility for teams in men's and women's basketball and women's volleyball — will begin Monday morning.

The Convocation Center, a $25 million facility with seating for as many as 4,500, opened in early November to replace The Barn. Both XU basketball teams played their 2012-13 home schedules there. The women's volleyball team played its home matches at The Barn during the fall of 2012 and will begin competition in the new facility in September.
    
"The Barn had a lot of wear and tear, and Xavier outgrew The Barn over the years," said Kenneth St. Charles, XU's vice president for institutional advancement. "With the Convocation Center, we now have a facility which can house the entire campus."
    
The Barn suffered significant damage as a result of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and it qualified for Federal Emergency Management Agency funding. When FEMA gave Xavier the option to use that money for a new facility, the university opted to build instead of renovate The Barn.
    
"But under those conditions," St. Charles said, "Xavier's use of FEMA funding for the Convocation Center required us to tear down The Barn."
    
Xavier's spring commencement, scheduled for Saturday in the Convocation Center, will mark the first time since 1983 that an XU graduation is held on campus.
    
The offices of the men's and women's basketball coaches and the athletics trainers are in the Convocation Center. Opened in October was the Convocation Center Annex, a three-story building about 30 yards from the new arena, to house the other coaches, athletics and recreational sports administrators, health and physical education classes and the instructors of those classes.
    
Xavier officials have yet to determine the future of the space which will be created by The Barn's demolition.


By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA

XU coach, player, team garner HBCU Awards nominations

2012-13 XU GOLD NUGGETS TENNIS TEAM

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana has received four nominations, three in athletics, for the third annual HBCU Awards.
    
Christabell Hamilton (women's volleyball) was nominated for female coach of the year. SiMon Franklin (women's basketball) was nominated for female athlete of the year. XU women's tennis was nominated for female team of the year. Also nominated was XU's College of Pharmacy for best STEM program (science, technology, engineering, mathematics).    
     

Christabell Hamilton

Hamilton, who resigned after the 2012 season and two years at Xavier, coached the Gold Nuggets to records of 22-8 overall and 10-0 in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference. For the second consecutive year her team won GCAC regular-season and tournament championships and qualified for NAIA National Championship. The Nuggets produced a school-record 11 consecutive road victories and won a regular-season tournament championship for the first time in the program's five-year history.
    
A native of Pago Pago, American Samoa, and a graduate of Eastern New Mexico University, Hamilton departed Xavier with a 45-15 career record. Her teams never lost a GCAC match — 20 in the regular season, eight in tournaments.
    
Franklin, a 5-foot-7 guard from Baton Rouge, La., and a graduate of St. Joseph's Academy, earned honorable mention on the NAIA Division I Women's Basketball All-America Team. She was All-GCAC for the second consecutive year. Franklin led Xavier with 10.7 points, 2.4 steals and 24.9 minutes per game this past season and also averaged three rebounds and two assists. A four-year starter, Franklin is one of nine Gold Nuggets to reach 1,000 points, 300 rebounds and 200 steals in a career and is 17th all-time at Xavier with 1,136 points. She will receive her bachelor's degree from the university on Saturday.
    

SiMon Franklin

The Xavier women's tennis team, coached by Alan Green and led by nationally ranked singles players Kourtney Howell, Brion Flowers and Amanda Materre, will enter next week's NAIA National Championship as the top seed. When the Gold Nuggets were voted No. 1 in the April 16 coaches poll, it was the first time a Xavier team in any sport had been ranked first in the NAIA. The XU women are 17-7 overall and 10-0 against ranked NAIA opponents. The Gold Nuggets have three victories against NCAA Division I opponents.
    
The nominees for male alumnus of the year include Lane College and Super Bowl XLVII standout Jacoby Jones. His mother, Emily London-Jones, is Xavier's director of student financial aid.
    
The Center for HBCU Media Advocacy Inc. sponsors the awards, which also will be presented for arts and community engagement.
    
Xavier is one of 38 U.S. colleges listed as a "Best Buy School" in the 2013 edition of the Fiske Guide to Colleges.

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 

Former FAMU student Rikki Wills pleads no contest in hazing case

ORLANDO, Florida  --  Former FAMU drum major Rikki Wills, who insists that he tried to shield his college roommate Robert Champion from a brutal hazing in Orlando in 2011, pleaded no contest today to felony hazing  resulting in death.

Wills, 25, will not be sentenced until next month. But he will not face a jail sentence, said Assistant State Attorney Nicole Pegues.

Wills, who was set to stand trial Monday, accepted a plea offer from prosecutors who hope to use his testimony to build a stronger case against the 11 remaining defendants in the hazing scandal that led to the suspension of the iconic Florida A&M University band.

Champion, 26, one of six student leaders of the band, was ...

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ASU to meet VSU in NCAA South Sub-Region 1 tourney

VALDOSTA, Georgia  --  The Blazers open the region tournament against Albany State tonight at 7 p.m., following the conclusion of the earlier game that pits St. Leo, the champion of the Sunshine State Conference, and Tampa, the No. 4 seed in the region.

VSU is a combined 4-0 against Albany State this season, outscoring the Golden Rams 45-3 in those games. Despite the dominance over the Golden Rams, the Blazers aren’t overlooking anyone, especially Albany State, which was to win the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournament last weekend, securing the automatic bid.

“They hit a lot of home runs in the conference tournament; they hit a whole lot of home runs,” Valdosta State head coach Thomas Macera said. “If you leave it over the plate they can hit it and they hit a lot of them in the conference tournament. So you can’t look past them or you will be in the loser’s bracket Saturday. We have got to worry about Friday first.”

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Winston-Salem Rams await D-II pairings announcement

WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina  --  No. 14 Winston-Salem State was back at work this week, preparing for the Division II national tournament.

The Rams (21-6) will find out who they’ll play late Sunday night when the field of 64 is announced, and they most likely will play at West Liberty (W.Va.) in the South Atlantic Regional, which will start March 16.

“We’ve spent this week trying to get their morale back up and just working on a lot of things we need to sharpen up,” said Coach Bobby Collins, who gave his players three days off after last week’s loss to Bowie State in the CIAA Tournament semifinals.

“We are back full bore at practice now, and it’s just a matter of knowing that we want to make a run, and it’s not a CIAA run this time, but a run at the national title.”

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NEW 12 MEMBER GRAMBLING LEGENDS SPORTS HALL OF FAME CLASS INCLUDES NFL STANDOUTS, COLLEGE CHAMPIONS

GRAMBLING, Louisiana  --  The Grambling Legends Sports Hall of Fame has announced a 12-member class for 2013 that includes former NFL stand-outs Frank Cornish and Woodrow Peoples, basketball All-American Rex Tippit and record-breaking collegiate quarterback Bruce Eugene, among others. 

Induction ceremonies will be held at 6 p.m. Saturday, July 13, 2013, at the Hobdy Assembly Center on the campus of Grambling State University. Tickets are $75 each; tables of 8 are available for $600. A reception for this year’s inductees will be held at 6:30 p.m. Friday, July 12, 2013 at the Eddie G. Robinson Museum on the GSU campus. This event is open to the public. 

Tickets may be purchased through the PayPal link on the group's Web site at gramblinglegends.net, or by contacting Albert Dennis III by phone at (318) 261-0898 or by email at albertdennis3 @bellsouth.net. 

Advertisements in the souvenir program are also available: Quarter pages are $150; half pages are $300; full pages are $500. Ad deadline is June 20. For more information on advertising, please contact Dennis.

 

Tippet and fellow inductee Robert Piper helped Grambling to the only men’s college basketball title in Louisiana history. Both Cornish and Peoples appeared in the Super Bowl. Additional biographical information on all 12 forthcoming Grambling Legends Sports Hall of Fame inductees follows …

 2013 GRAMBLING LEGENDS HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES

 

HILLARY BOSSIER: Led the nation with a 0.53 ERA in 1961, as Grambling claimed its first-ever SWAC baseball title. Bossier and Co. then advanced for the first of four national NAIA tournament appearances through 1967 under R.W.E. Jones. Bossier later pitched for two seasons with the Midwest’s minor-league affiliate of the New York Mets – going 6-2 in 1962 with 71 innings pitched.

 

JAMIE CALEB: A do-anything player, Caleb completed half of his passes in 1958 - putting him in the Top 10 all-time at Grambling - even while leading the Tigers in rushing. Drafted in the 16th round, he played for both Cleveland and Minnesota between the 1960-65 NFL seasons, a stint that included the Vikings’ inaugural campaign. His final pro game was an NFL title game loss to the Packers.

 

FRANK CORNISH: A two-way player for Eddie Robinson, Cornish earned first-team all-SWAC honors at offensive tackle in 1965 as Grambling claimed the league crown. He later played seven NFL seasons for Chicago, Cincinnati, Miami and Bills, advancing to the 1972 Super Bowl with the Dolphins. Cornish also played one season for the World Football League’s Jacksonville Sharks.

BRUCE EUGENE: A three-time finalist for the Walter Payton Award, Eugene led Grambling to SWAC titles in 2002 and again in 2005, when the Tigers went undefeated for just the third in school history. He left Grambling having claimed every major passing record, many of which had stood since his coach Doug Williams played for the Tigers in the 1970s.

 

WILBERT FRAZIER: Frazier averaged 17 points a game between 1961-65 as Grambling claimed consecutive basketball titles, posting a career-high 29-point average as a senior. Though selected at 12th overall by San Francisco in the 1965 NBA Draft, Frazier elected to play in the ABA, joining Houston and then the New York Nets. He also played six seasons in the Continental Basketball Association.

 

MIKE HOWELL: A standout safety at Grambling, this eighth-round NFL draft pick played with Cleveland and Dolphins for eight seasons, making 27 pro interceptions including a career-high 8 in 1966 with the Browns. He joined the Dolphins in time to take part in the NFL’s only perfect season in 1972, ending his career with a Super Bowl title.

 

PAULA MAYO: A two-sport collegiate star, Mayo averaged 30 points and 15 rebounds per game at GSU before becoming part of history in 1979. The Houston Angels, behind 36 points by Mayo, claimed the first-ever women’s pro title championship. Mayo, known affectionately then as “Moose,” was named all-pro in two of the Women’s Professional Basketball League’s three seasons of existence.

 

JOHN MENDENHALL: A first-team 1971 All-SWAC defender as Grambling claimed a league title, Mendenhall was a Senior Bowl invitee before coming a third-round pick in the 1972 draft. He then played in116 games over nine NFL seasons for the New York Giants and Detroit Lions, posting a career-best 10 sacks and 7 forced fumbles in 1977.

 

WOODROW PEOPLES: A stand-out guard as Grambling claimed a second straight SWAC title in 1967, Peoples was twice named to the Pro Bowl during his 13-year stint in the pros - both times with San Francisco. He concluded his NFL career with Philadelphia in the 1980 Super Bowl. Peoples has already been named to the American Football Association’s Semi-Pro Football Hall of Fame.

 

ROBERT PIPER: A member of Grambling’s legendary NAIA-winning championship basketball squad in 1961, Piper would later serve as GSU’s athletics director from 1997-98 before he passed after a battle with cancer. Piper had previously served as basketball coach at Western High School in Washington, D.C., where he mentored future Grambling Legend Larry Wright Sr.  

 

REX TIPPIT: Tippit was a team captain as the Tigers claimed the state of Louisiana’s lone national basketball championship, earning high praise from teammate and future NBA Hall of Famer Willis Reed, who called Tippit “the best player on the team.” Tippit claimed All-America honors in both 1960-61 before becoming a ninth-round pick in the 1961 NBA draft by the Syracuse Nationals.

 

RICHARD HARRIS: A first-team All-SWAC defender for Grambling in 1970, Harris played eight pro seasons after being picked fifth overall in the NFL draft by Philadelphia. He claimed all-rookie honors with the Eagles, then later played for Chicago and Seattle. Harris went on to serve 11 seasons as a coach with Canadian Football League, and also claimed a trio of semi-pro titles as a head coach.

Résumés flooding in for ASU OC position

ALBANY, Georgia  — Almost the moment news broke that Albany State offensive coordinator Uyl Joyner was leaving the Rams to accept a similar position at Dougherty High, ASU coach Mike White was inundated with interest.

 

“As soon as that article was in the paper, I started getting tons of interest,” White said, referring to The Herald’s article on Friday announcing Joyner’s departure. “But we haven’t narrowed anything down yet.”

 

Dozens of résumés are in the hands of White, but he said it could be weeks before Joyner’s successor is named.

 

“There really isn’t a leading candidate right now,” he said. “There really isn’t a certain way to do this. You just have to look at what you have and what is out there.”

 

Sources told The Herald that former ASU offensive coordinator Steve Smith was a possible candidate, but White said on Tuesday that Smith, who left the Rams two years ago to accept a job at Division I Tennessee State, isn’t currently in the picture.

 

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Benedict College Announces 2013 Football Schedule

COLUMBIA, South Carolina  --  Three home games and three Classics highlight the 2013 Benedict College tentative football schedule, it was announced by the school.

The Tigers open the season on Sept. 7 in the Ohio Classic in Dayton, Ohio, where they will face Central State University, the alma mater of Benedict head coach James Woody.

The following week, Benedict will travel to Ettrick, Va., to take on Virginia State University in a non-conference game.

On Sept. 21, Benedict and South Carolina State will renew their interstate rivalry when they meet in the Palmetto Capital City Classic at Williams Brice Stadium. The Tigers and Bulldogs last played each other in 2010.

The Tigers will face Fort Valley State University on Sept. 28 in the Augusta City Classic in Augusta, Ga.

The Tigers will play their first home game in Charlie W. Johnson Stadium on Oct. 5, hosting Miles College. That game is designated Church, Family, Community and Greek Day.

Benedict is on the road again on Oct. 12 to face Stillman College in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Homecoming is set for Oct. 19, when the Tigers will host Clark Atlanta University.

Two road games follow, with Benedict at Morehouse College on Oct. 26 and at Albany State University on Nov. 2.

Benedict wraps up the 2013 regular season with a home game on Nov. 9 against Lane College. That game is designated as Take A Kid To The Game Day, as well as High School Day and Senior Day, where Benedict will honor its football seniors.

BENEDICT COLLEGE TIGERS 2013 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
Date   Time   Opponent  Game Location

9/07/13 TBA Central State Dayton, Ohio
9/14/13 3 p.m. Virginia State Ettrick, Va.
9/21/13 4 p.m. South Carolina State Columbia, SC Williams-Brice Stadium
9/28/13 2 p.m. SIAC Fort Valley State Augusta, Ga.
10/05/13 2 p.m. SIAC Miles # Columbia, SC Charlie W. Johnson Stadium
10/12/13 6 p.m. (Eastern) SIAC Stillman Tuscaloosa, Ala.
10/19/13 2 p.m. SIAC Clark Atlanta @ Columbia, SC Charlie W. Johnson Stadium
10/26/13 2 p.m. SIAC Morehouse Atlanta
11/02/13 TBA SIAC Albany State Albany, Ga.
11/09/13 2 p.m. SIAC Lane % Columbia, SC Charlie W. Johnson

# - Church, Family, Community, Greek Day
@ - Homecoming
% - Take A Kid To The Game, High School, Senior Day


COURTESY BENEDICT COLLEGE SPORTS INFORMATION

Winston-Salem State's Collins humbled by latest honor

BOBBY COLLINS
HEAD COACH, MEN''S BASKETBALL
WINSTON-SALEM STATE UNIVERSITY
(Photo Courtesy: WSSU Rams Athletics)

WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina  --  Bobby Collins, the men’s basketball coach at Winston-Salem State, has been selected to participate in the NCAA Black Coaches and Administrators Achieving Coaching Excellence Program.

The ACE program, scheduled June 5-8 in Indianapolis, is designed to provide additional professional development opportunities.

“It’s a very big honor, and I’m excited,” said Collins, an 18-year veteran who called his selection the biggest honor of his career.

“They just pick 12 coaches from throughout the country, so this is something that I’m very humbled by but I’m also grateful.”

Collins, the second-longest serving men’s basketball coach at WSSU behind the late Big House Gaines, will start his ...

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Robinson Completes A&T's Recruiting Class

GREENSBORO, North Carolina  --  After signing two athletes in November, North Carolina A&T head women’s basketball coach Tarrell Robinson completed his first recruiting class this week with the signing of Whitney Martin, junior college transfer Jessica Warren and Division I transfer Dana Brown. 

Martin (5-9, Guard, Charlottesville, Va., Miller School of Albemarle), Warren (6-2, Forward/Center Olympia, Ill., Kaskaskia College ) and Brown (5-7, Guard, Willow Springs, N.C., UNC Wilmington) will join MaKayla Williams (5-9, Guard, Wakefield, N.C., Wakefield) and Kenya Hailey (6-1, Forward, Greensboro, N.C., Southeast Guilford) as the members of Robinson’s first recruiting class.

“We’re excited about the two new additions to our women’s basketball program,” Robinson said.  “Whitney and Jessica will add much needed depth for us on the perimeter and in the paint for the upcoming season.  My staff has done an excellent job of identifying and then securing what our needs were going into next season.”

Martin averaged 11.1 points and 6.1 rebounds per game her senior year, helping the Mavericks to a 25-9 record. She was a two-time, first-team All-Blue Ridge honoree, as well as a two-time all-state recipient.  She led the Mavericks to two state championships in her three seasons at the varsity level. They won consecutive VISAA DIII State Championship titles in 2010and 2011. She also helped the Mavericks win the 2013 Blue Ridge Conference championship title.  She also competed for the Cap City Ballerz AAU program.

“Whitney brings size and a legit scoring threat from the perimeter for us,” Robinson said.  “We were fortunate that she became available during the late signing period.  She is an excellent student in the classroom. I expect her to come in and immediately compete for playing time as a freshman. She will play guard or forward spot during her time here.”

Warren is transferring to A&T after finishing her freshman season at Kaskaskia College in Centralia, Ill. For the Blue Angels, Warren averaged 5.8 points and 7.7 rebounds per game, and shot 41 percent from the field. She ranked 14 in the nation among NJCAA Division I programs with 63 blocks.

She started 22 of 29 games as a freshman, helping the Blue Angels to a 24-9 overall record and an appearance in the Great Rivers Athletic Conference Championship title game.  The Blue Angels also competed in the NJCAA National Championships, losing to Blinn College in the first round.  

“Jessica has the athleticism and ability to give us another defensive presence in the paint,” Robinson said. “She’s very agile and gets off the floor extremely quick.  She also has a developing offensive game with a soft shooting touch around the rim.  It’s rare that you are able to get a junior college player who has three years to play in your program. She is expected to come in and compete for a starting role at the power forward position for us.”

Brown joins guard Whitney Martin (5-9, Charlottesville, Va.), forward/center Jessica Warren (6-2, Olympia, Ill.)  guard MaKayla Williams (5-9, Wakefield, N.C.) and forward Kenya Hailey (6-1, Greensboro, N.C.) as the members of Robinson’s first recruiting class.  .

Brown, who was an Associated Press All-State selection from Enlo

e High following her senior year, had a solid freshman season for the Seahawks in 2012-13.  At UNC Wilmington, Brown averaged 5.7 points and 3.0 rebounds per game.  She started in 22 of 31 contests, and shot 26 percent from the floor and 72 percent from the free throw line.  The Seahawks finished the season 5-26 overall, including a 56-47 loss to A&T on Jan. 3 at Trask Coliseum.




COURTESY NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION 

Southern Maryland's Thomas Stone guard M.J. Briscoe commits to North Carolina A&T Aggies

WALDORF, Maryland  -- Thomas Stone guard M.J. Briscoe had to wait patiently until after his senior season to pick up his first Division I scholarship offer, but his marathon recruitment ended Monday with a sprint to the finish.

Briscoe orally committed to North Carolina A&T this week, choosing the Aggies over Morgan State and a pair of late-charging suitors. The 6-foot-1 guard said Loyola (Md.) and Miami (Ohio) both stepped in with offers on Monday.



The late offers “didn’t really affect me that much because in my mind, I had already decided where I was going,” said Briscoe, who plans to sign next week. “It just gave us something else to talk about and take into consideration.”

Briscoe, who averaged 19.3 points per game as a senior, took an official visit to North Carolina A&T last month and was sold on the chance to make an impact right away for a team that graduated seven seniors off its NCAA tournament squad.

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Fifty-Eight Student-Athletes Graduate From St. Augustine's

RALEIGH, North Carolina  --  Fifty-eight student-athletes and cheerleaders graduated from Saint Augustine's University this past weekend at the school's 2013 Commencement, held on the lawn of the campus Quadrangle.

Twenty-five percent (25%) of the graduating class were student-athletes and cheerleaders. The total number of graduates was 228. The percentage surpasses last year's percent number (22%).

Among the graduates were All-American football player Tyron Laughinghouse (Greenville, N.C.), who received numerous national, regional and conference awards including Beyond Sports Network Division II Special Teams Football Player of the Year and CIAA Special Teams Football Player of the Year. CIAA Baseball Player of the Year Ariel Polanco (Harlem, N.Y.) and football player Franklin James (Hampton, Va.) also were in the graduating class. James received The Fannie Glovenia Carter Baker Scholarship, given each year in honor of President Dianne Boardley Suber's grandmother, Mrs. Glovenia Carter Baker, to a graduating senior.

Cynthia Marshall, the Senior Vice President of Human Resources for AT&T Services, Inc., delivered the commencement address at the event on Sunday, May 5, 2013. The class of 2013 made history as the first graduating class of Saint Augustine's University. On Aug. 1, 2012, the school changed its name from Saint Augustine's College to Saint Augustine's University.

The ceremony capped another successful academic year for the school's athletic program. St. Aug won CIAA championships in five sports this season including men's cross country, women's cross country, men's indoor track and field, women's indoor track and field and men's outdoor track and field. The men's track & field team won the NCAA Division II indoor championship, and the women's basketball team won the CIAA team highest grade point average award in its sport.

Below is a list of the 2013 student-athletes who graduated from St. Aug and their respective sports:

Bachelor of Science (School of Applied Health and Medical Sciences)
Cum Laude (3.40-3.59 GPA)
Abeje Carrington – Volleyball, Softball

Romeo Deloatch – Football
Franklin James – Football
Ja'Nia Jones – Bowling, Softball
Katelyn Parson – Cheerleading
Gerkenz Senesca – Men's Track & Field
Najah Watson – Bowling
Julius West – Men's Track & Field
Jeremy Wilkins – Baseball

Bachelor of Science (School of Business, Technology and Sport Management)
Summa Cum Laude (3.80-4.00 GPA)
Keisha Parris – Volleyball

Magna Cum Laude (3.60-3.79 GPA)
Rory Nixon – Football, Men's Track & Field

Cum Laude (3.40-3.59 GPA)
Theodore Bacote – Football
Mallory Felder – Men's Tennis
Scharlawn Hubbard – Women's Basketball

Hilberto Ayala – Football
Anthony Boone – Track & Field
Nicholas Chamblee – Basketball
Stedman Gardner – Football
Anthony Holloway – Baseball
Derek Johnson – Golf
Jonathan Kindred – Men's Basketball
Tyron Laughinghouse – Football, Basketball
Ariel Polanco – Baseball
Christopher Rogers – Baseball
Amber Thomas –Cheerleader
Gerald Marshall – Football
Steven Woods – Men's Basketball

Bachelor of Arts (School of Liberal Arts and Education)
Cum Laude (3.40-3.59 GPA)
Daniel Pittman – Golf
Aisha Taylor – Cheerleading

Charles Clark – Cheerleading
Lakesha Fowler – Women's Tennis
Christopher Grant – Men's Basketball
Brandon Houston – Football
Tawanna Lynn – Bowling
Tiana Morris – Women's Basketball, Volleyball, Women's Tennis
Christian Pride – Football
ShRhonda Ross – Cheerleading
Keaven Russell – Football
Claude Simeus – Men's Track & Field

Bachelor of Science (School of Sciences, Mathematics and Engineering)
Jermaine Browne – Football
Jone' Harris – Football
Kharea Roseboro – Football
Deonte Toliver – Football
Alejandro Crisostomo – Baseball

Bachelor of Arts and Science (School of Social and Behavior Sciences)
Cum Laude (3.40-3.59 GPA)
Ramadana Simmons – Softball

Nicketa Bernard – Women's Track & Field
Che Brown – Football
Jasmine Cobbs – Women's Track & Field, Women's Cross Country
Christopher Dalton – Football, Men's Track & Field
Keianna Evans – Women's Basketball
Brittany Hicks – Volleyball
Christopher Johnson – Men's Basketball
Cory Landrum-Smith – Golf
William Martin – Golf
Chantel Floyd – Softball
Vaniecia Reaves – Cheerleading
Shane Russell – Football
Darnea Sayles – Cheerleading

COURTESY SAINT AUGUSTINE'S UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

B-CU takes aim at 4th consecutive MEAC softball title

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida  --  Bethune-Cookman overcame a rough start to finish in a familiar place.

The three-time defending Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference softball champ is once again one of the favorites heading into the conference tournament at the Ormond Beach Sports Complex.

The Wildcats (17-33, 11-3) are the No. 1 seed in the Southern Division and will open tournament play at 10 a.m. Thursday against Northern Division fourth seed Coppin State (16-23, 9-9).

“I never looked at it as a rough start,'' said B-CU coach Chris Cochran, whose squad was 3-23 halfway through the season. “I looked at it as where we are and let's get better. (The players) have stuck together all year, worked hard all year and wanted to be a good team.

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Undrafted Howard University LB Pough out to make impression

BUFFALO, New York  --  He may not have a prototype NFL linebacker body and his 40 time might be far from blazing, but Bills rookie linebacker Keith Pough is about as big an undrafted playmaker as you’re going to find on the defensive side of the ball. That’s why the Howard University product has lofty goals as he prepares for Buffalo’s rookie minicamp this weekend.

“My expectations are to impress the coaches enough to be an instant contributor to the team,” Pough told Buffalobills.com. “I know there are a lot of challenges in terms of learning the system and get used to the speed of the game, but that will come with time. My goal is nothing short of being a first-year starter and contributing right off the bat.”

Pough (6’2” 239) was the 2012 MEAC Conference Defensive Player of the Year. He finished his career with an astounding 71 tackles for loss, 28.5 of which came in his sophomore season when he led the nation in tackles behind the line.

While he admits his defensive coaches put him in good position to make plays, he also made sure he did his homework for upcoming opponents.

“I pride myself on film study and preparing ...

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XU Gold Rush receive first-round bye for third straight year

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana earned a third consecutive first-round bye and its highest seeding ever Tuesday in the NAIA Men's Tennis National Championship at Mobile, Ala. The Gold Rush will play at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, May 15 against the winner of a May 14 opening-round match between Belhaven and Spring Arbor.
    
The XU men (14-7) are seeded sixth after receiving a No. 7 seed a year ago and a No. 8 seed in 2011. Their appearance at nationals next week will be their fifth in a row.
Copeland-Cox Tennis Center will be the site of all matches. All men's duals are scheduled for 9 a.m. The championship round of the 24-team, single-elimination event is scheduled for Saturday, May 18.
    
Xavier, Auburn Montgomery, Embry-Riddle (Fla.) and Westmont are the only NAIA men's teams to receive first-round byes each of the last three seasons.
    
A year ago the Gold Rush defeated Point Loma Nazarene 5-0 to become the first XU team in any sport to reach the national quarterfinals since 1973. Embry-Riddle eliminated the Rush 5-1 in the quarterfinals.
    
Senior Loic Didavi, sophomore Nikita Soifer, freshman Kyle Montrel and junior Viktor Svoboda are Xavier's top players. Didavi was fourth, Soifer 17th and Montrel 34th in the most recent Intercollegiate Tennis Association NAIA singles rankings. In doubles, Didavi and Montrel were 15th, and Soifer and Svoboda were 23rd. Didavi and Svoboda both played for Xavier in 2012. Alan Green is in his 10th season as coach of XU's men's and women's teams.
    
The XU men will enter the tournament with 11 victories in their last 14 duals and five victories this season against ranked NAIA opponents. The Gold Rush have four victories against NCAA Division I opponents.
    
Xavier never has played Spring Arbor but won 5-4 at home against Belhaven on Feb. 28. In the coaches poll announced Monday, Belhaven was ranked 11th, and Spring Arbor was among others receiving votes and 34th overall.
    
The two most recent men's champions, Fresno Pacific (2011) and Oklahoma Christian (2012), no longer compete in the NAIA. Embry-Riddle is seeded first, and Auburn Montgomery — winner of six of the past 11 titles, including 2010 — is seeded second. A second-round victory could match Xavier against third-seeded Vanguard, 22-0 and the tournament's only unbeaten team, in the quarterfinals.

Tournament bracket  (PDF)

Xavier Men's Tennis at the
NAIA National Championship (3-4)

Date (Day)	Round	Opponent	W/L	Score
May 12, 2009 (Tue.)	1st	Oklahoma Christian	W	5-4
May 13, 2009 (Wed.)	2nd	Auburn Montgomery	L	0-5
May 18, 2010 (Tue.)	1st	Tennessee Wesleyan	W	5-3
May 19, 2010 (Wed.)	2nd	Fresno Pacific	L	1-5
May 18, 2011 (Wed.)	2nd	Vanguard	L	3-5
May 16, 2012 (Wed.)	2nd	Point Loma Nazarene	W	5-0
May 17, 2012 (Thu.)	QF	Embry-Riddle (Fla.)	L	1-5

By Ed Cassiere, SID
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA

Top-seeded XU Gold Nuggets to play Wildcats or Mariners

NEW ORLEANS — Top of the bracket to you, Xavier Gold Nuggets.
    
Xavier on Tuesday was awarded the No. 1 seed for the 2013 NAIA Women's Tennis National Championship at Mobile, Ala. The Gold Nuggets (17-7), No. 1 in the past three coaches polls after ranking 13th in the preseason, were one of eight teams to draw a first-round bye in the 24-team, single-elimination event. Xavier will play in the second round at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, May 15 against Indiana Wesleyan or Coastal Georgia. The Wildcats and Mariners will meet in the first round on May 14.
    
Copeland-Cox Tennis Center will be the site of all matches. All women's duals are scheduled for 1 p.m.
    
The appearance at nationals is the Nuggets' second in a row and their seventh overall — all in the past nine seasons. But this will be the first time that the XU women have a first-round bye. The Nuggets are 5-1 in the first round at nationals and 0-5 in the second round.

 A victory would make this the first XU women's team in any sport to reach the NAIA quarterfinals. The Nuggets will need four victories to win Xavier's first NAIA national team championship. The championship round is scheduled for Saturday, May 18.

Junior Kourtney Howell, freshman Brion Flowers and sophomore Amanda Materre are Xavier's top three players. Howell was sixth, Flowers 31st and Materre 37th in the most recent Intercollegiate Tennis Association NAIA singles rankings, and Howell and Flowers were the No. 1 doubles team. Alan Green is in his 10th season as coach of XU's women's and men's teams.
    
The Gold Nuggets will enter the tournament with a nine-dual win streak, and they're 10-0 this season against ranked NAIA opponents. They defeated fifth-seeded William Carey and second-seeded Auburn Montgomery on consecutive days in early April. Auburn Montgomery is the two-time defending NAIA champion and winner of eight of the last nine titles and 10 of the last 13.
    
Xavier defeated Coastal Georgia 8-1 in the AUM Invitational on March 9. Xavier and Indiana Wesleyan have not met since the Nuggets won 6-3 in the opening round at nationals in 2010. In the coaches poll announced Monday, Coastal Georgia was ranked 16th, and Indiana Wesleyan was 17th.

Tournament bracket  (PDF)

Xavier Women's Tennis at the
NAIA National Championship (5-6)

Date (Day)	Round	Opponent	W/L	Score
May 17, 2004 (Mon.)	1st	Lee (Tenn.)	W	8-1
May 18, 2004 (Tue.)	2nd	Auburn Montgomery	L	0-5
May 16, 2005 (Mon.)	1st	Indiana Southeast	W	9-0
May 17, 2005 (Tue.)	2nd	Brenau	L	0-5
May 12, 2008 (Mon.)	1st	McKendree	W	7-2
May 13, 2008 (Tue.)	2nd	Vanguard	L	1-5
May 12, 2009 (Tue.)	1st	Union (Ky.)	W	8-1
May 13, 2009 (Wed.)	2nd	Berry	L	3-5
May 18, 2010 (Tue.)	1st	Indiana Wesleyan	W	6-3
May 19, 2010 (Wed.)	2nd	Auburn Montgomery	L	0-5
May 15, 2012 (Tue.)	1st	Vanguard	L	3-6

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA

Lamar State College-Port Arthur Woods signs D1 scholarship with NCCU Eagles

Kieran Woods

PORT ARTHUR, Texas  --  Kieran Woods became the third of three Lamar State College-Port Arthur basketball sophomores to sign a Division I scholarship, inking his letter of intent to North Carolina Central University on Tuesday.

Woods joins fellow sophomores Evan Sims and Ty Allen as every sophomore playing for Lamar State-Port Arthur this past season advanced to the NCAA Division I ranks. Sims signed to play for the University of Louisiana at Monroe while Allen will play for Tennessee Tech University next season.

Woods, a graduate of Crane High School in Chicago, joined LSC-Port Arthur this past season, starting in 21 games for the Seahawks. He averaged 15.6 points a game as a guard for the Hawks, hitting 49 percent from the field and 67 percent from the free throw line. His top game of the 2012-13 season came on a road trip to Paris Junior College where he scored 36 points with four rebounds and two assists. The 36-point performance is the second-best in school history.

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