Xavier's Abbes, Albrecht, Bruins win titles at HBCU tourney

NOUR ABBES
XU CAREER SINGLES RECORD: 21-0

JONESBORO, Georgia  -- Xavier University of Louisiana's sixth-seeded Nour Abbes defeated Southern's third-seeded Darnesha Moore 6-4, 6-0 Saturday to win the women's A-flight singles title of the HBCU Tennis National Championships.

Abbes was one of three Xavier sophomores to win a title. Adam Albrecht beat Prairie View A&M's James Jackson 8-1 in the men's C-flight consolation final, and Sha'Nel Bruins defeated Prairie View's Stacy Lackey 8-6 for the women's C-flight consolation title.

Abbes' championship is the first by an XU woman in the main draw of this tournament. She won four singles matches in three days, with the final three victories against NCAA Division I opponents. Xavier competes in the NAIA.

Abbes is 21-0 in singles during her XU career.

Abbes and Carmen Nelson lost 6-3, 7-5 to Bethune-Cookman's Maria Sablina and Mina Matsuba in the women's doubles A-flight semifinal.

Albrecht advanced to his final with an 8-1 victory against Prairie View's Malik Morris, and Bruins beat Alcorn State's Ann Kazarina 8-4 in her semifinal.

"Once again, Nour showed what an outstanding player she is," XU coach Alan Green said. "She survived several service breaks in the first set of the final, regained her focus and cruised to victory in the second. She had a great tournament, beating three of the top four seeds.

"Consolation titles always are won by the hungriest players who rebound from early losses in the main draw. Adam and Sha'Nel both worked hard and played very well the final two days to earn their hardware."

Xavier has won 11 HBCU titles all-time. Abbes' and Bruins' titles were the first for the Gold Nuggets since 2008.

It was the first of three fall-semester tournaments for the Gold Rush and Gold Nuggets. Xavier will play host to the USTA / ITA NAIA South Regional Championships beginning Friday at XU Tennis Center and City Park.

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
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XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA

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Alcorn State rolls to 52-9 win over Mississippi Valley

LORMAN, Mississippi  -- John Gibbs Jr. threw two touchdowns and ran for a third as Alcorn State beat Mississippi Valley State 52-9 on Saturday.

Gibbs was 9 of 18 for 141 yards. He also ran for 57 yards on 11 carries. Arron Baker and Darryan Ragsdale each scored a pair of rushing touchdowns for the Braves (3-1, 1-0 SWAC).

Gibbs threw a 41-yard TD pass to Billy Shed and 26-yarder to Brandon Vessell early in the second quarter for a 35-0 lead at halftime.

The Delta Devils (1-3) scored late in the

third on a safety, followed by a 39-yard touchdown pass from Patrick Ivy to Tavis James. They trailed 35-9 as the final quarter got underway.

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FVSU Wildcats pickup SIAC win over Clark Atlanta 19-18

FORT VALLEY, Georgia –  Fort Valley State University holds off Clark Atlanta University on a blocked kick attempt by FVSU's Aaron Davis after Clark Atlanta scored with .55 seconds left for an 18-19 score.
 
Fort Valley State scored 13 fourth-quarter points to beat Clark Atlanta University 19-18 on Saturday, September 20 at Wildcat Stadium in Fort Valley, Ga.
 
The Wildcats, 2-1 overall and 1-0 in the SIAC (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference), totaling 317 yards offensively, while allowing 304 yards on defense with the help of 8 tackles-for-losses.
 
FVSU's Otis Brown and Malcolm Eady combined for 261-yards in rushing, with Brown rushing for 129-yards and Eady another 102.
 
Clark Atlanta (1-2; 0-2) scored the first, as Tayl Montavious capped off a 16 play, 89-yard drive with an 11-yard touchdown run, Austin Casillas kick failed at the 12:47 mark in the second quarter.
 
The Panthers added six more points in the third quarter with 13:18 left on the clock when Daniel Matthews went up the sideline for a 50-yard touchdown run, Montavious rush failed to increase the score to 12-0.
 
FVSU's Otis Brown connected with Renard Williams on a 20-yard touchdown pass to put the Wildcats on the scoreboard to complete a 4 plays, 55-yard drive, Brown pass failed making the score 6-12.
 
Brown completed a 4 play, 57-yard drive with 6:23 left on the clock as Brown went around the right side for a 46-yards run to give the Wildcats their first lead, Juan Serna kick attempt good for a 13-12 lead.
 
With 4:49 remaining in the fourth quarter, CAU' Earl Trenton pass was pickoff by Kentorius Jackson at the Wildcats 48-yard line and returned 40-yards to the Panthers 12. Brown finished the drive off with a 14-yard touchdown pass to Drelon Freemon, Serna kick attempt failed with 2:03 left on the clock for a 19-12 lead.
 
CAU started the final drive on FVSU 48-yard line with 2:03 left, Trenton connected on a 22-yard touchdown pass to Montavious with: 55 second left in the game. FVSU's Aaron Davis blocked Casillas kick attempt that would have tied the game.
 
Defensively, the Wildcats LeRon Furr led the team with 14 tackles (7 solos) and 1.5 tackles-for-losses, while Stefon Harper racked up 12 tackle (6 solos). Ryan Bowman added 8 assisted tackles, Billy Sparks 7 (1 solo) and Jackson and Brian Walker had one interception each.  
 
The Wildcats will travel to Columbia, SC., on Saturday, September 27 to play the Tigers of Benedict College at 6 p.m.

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Henderson's Record-Setting Performance Leads Lincoln Past Quincy

JEFFERSON CITY, Missouri  -- Morris Henderson broke a GLVC record and two Lincoln single-game marks with six rushing touchdowns, leading the Lincoln football team to a 42-13 win over Quincy on Saturday (Sept. 20).

Henderson broke the Lincoln and GLVC single-game records for rushing touchdowns with five in the first half, then added a sixth for good measure in the fourth quarter to cap off a 19-carry, 145-yard performance. Henderson, who also added two receptions for 13 yards and 22 more yards on a kickoff return, broke the GLVC mark of four, set in 2012, and the Lincoln record of four, set multiple times. Henderson's six rushing scores are the most in a game by any NCAA Division II player this season and his 36 points are also a new LU single-game record.

Backing up Henderson's big day was a Lincoln defense that gave up just six points to the Hawks. The Blue Tigers allowed Quincy to convert just eight of 18 third downs and only two of its six fourth down attempts. Lincoln entered the game ranked sixth in the country in sacks and added six more on Saturday to go with nine total tackles for loss. Leading the way was Jeremy Rives, who made 21 tackles, currently the most in a game by an Division II player, and finished with 2.5 tackles for loss. Rives' tackle total was just one shy of the GLVC single-game record of 22.

Quincy (1-2, 0-1 GLVC) entered Saturday's game ranked second in the GLVC in rushing defense, but the Blue Tigers amassed 233 yards on the ground on 40 attempts. Owen Jordan added 134 yards passing on an efficient 16-for-21 performance. Khiry Draine led the receiving corps with six receptions for 63 yards whileBryson Winfrey added 31 yards on five catches. Christopher Willis caught two passes for 27 yards.

Lincoln (1-2, 1-1 GLVC) scored on each of its first two drives, with Henderson scoring from 21 and 17 yards out to give Lincoln a 14-0 first quarter lead. Quincy's only points of the first half came courtesy of its defense, as defensive lineman Mykel Tuiolosega-Suifanua recovered a fumble after the ball slipped out of Jordan's hands in Lincoln's end zone. The Blue Tigers responded by scoring touchdowns on each of its next three drives, with Henderson scoring on 28, six and 41-yard runs. The last touchdown came right after Lincoln's defense forced the Hawks to punt from in their own end zone, with Willis returning the punt to the Quincy 41-yard line.


The Hawks attempted to get back into the game in the third quarter, marching 75 yards on its third quarter-opening drive to score on a one-yard scamper with 8:37 remaining in the quarter. Quincy tried some trickery on the PAT attempt, lining up to kick the extra point before snapping the ball to a runner in an attempt to get two points. The Blue Tigers were ready for the play, though, as Rives and Delano Johnson stopped the runner short of the goal line.

Lincoln closed the scoring on the first play of the fourth quarter with a one-yard dive by Henderson capping a nine-play, 43-yard drive. A strong all-around performance by Lincoln's running backs helped the Blue Tigers chew down the clock in the second half, including three carries by Byron Williams for 22 yards in the fourth quarter.Mustafa Rose finished the game with seven rushes for 39 yards while Rashyied Melvin gained 15 yards and Willis added five on an end around.

Defensively, Paul Dodson added 16 tackles while Treston Pulley, Kareem Joyner and Kerry Roby each finished with nine. Pulley also had 1.5 sacks while Roby broke up a pass and made an interception. Davon Walls also made 1.5 sacks and finished with two tackles for loss and five total takedowns. Eric Howard had an eight-yard sack, Boomer Gorn and Malcolm Pickens each assisted on a tackle for loss and Derrick Nash added a quarterback hurry.

The Blue Tiger special teams had another strong day, with Julio Segura averaging 60.6 yards and three touchbacks on seven kickoffs. Two of Segura's three punts pinned the Hawks inside their own 20, with Segura averaging 35.7 yards on those kicks. Andrew Fishel made all six of his point-after kicks, with the sixth making Fishel Lincoln's career leader in successful point-after tries. Fishel, a true sophomore, has made 50 point-after kicks in 14 games as a Blue Tiger, breaking the previous career mark of 49, set by Gerald Walker from 1963-65.

Lincoln, which joined the Great Lakes Valley Conference this season as a football-only member, won its first GLVC game as well as the first-ever meeting between the Blue Tigers and the Hawks. Dating back to last season, Lincoln is now 3-1 in its last four conference games, all of which have been played at Dwight T. Reed Stadium.

The Blue Tigers will get their first shot at a GLVC road win next Saturday (Sept. 27), when Lincoln travels to Kirksville, Mo. to play Truman State at 7:00 p.m. CDT.




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Miscues, turnovers stymie Alabama A&M in loss to Texas Southern

HOUSTON, Texas  -- Alabama A&M wasn't able to overcome four first-half turnovers – including two inside the Texas Southern 10-yard-line – and fell to the Tigers 45-23 Saturday night at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston.

It was the Southwestern Athletic Conference opener for the Bulldogs (0-1 SWAC, 1-3 overall). Texas Southern improves to 2-0, 4-0.

One of the turnovers came when quarterback Jaymason Lee was sacked and fumbled on the final play of the half at the Tigers' 14-yard-line. Lee also threw an interception in the endzone with the Bulldogs at the Texas Southern 3 with 4:09 left in the half. However, the Tigers were stopped on Dexter Reese's first interception of the season at the goal line. Lee also had a fumble at the Bulldogs' 9 with 2:37 left in the first quarter.

The game started badly for the Bulldogs when Brendan Johnson misplayed the opening kickoff and it was recovered by Texas Southern in the end zone for a touchdown.

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North Carolina A&T Aggies Roll Past Chowan Hawks, 59-0

GREENSBORO, North Carolina -- North Carolina A&T knows what it has in sophomore running back Tarik Cohen. As the conference season approaches, the Aggies need to make sure their other offensive parts are finely tuned.

It certainly looks that way. A&T’s offense ran with precision in a 59-0 blowout of Division II Chowan Saturday night at Aggie Stadium.  

Junior quarterback Kwashaun Quick had a career night, finishing 15 of 21 for 215 yards and three touchdowns. His completions, completion percentage (.714), passing yards and touchdown passes were all career highs. His 55-yard touchdown pass toXavier Griffin in the first half was the longest completion of his career.

In the process of scorching the Hawks defense, Quick connected with 10 different Aggie receivers. Senior receiver Desmond Lawrence benefited the most with five receptions for 38 yards and a touchdown.

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To top off his day, Quick also had another stellar rushing performance with 82 yards and a touchdown on seven carries. It marked the third time this season he has rushed for more than 80 yards in a game.

“I felt like we came out a little sluggish, but we picked it up real quick,” said Quick. “We connected in the passing game like we’ve wanted to do all year. We just took what the defense gave us and tried to execute the best we could. It turned out pretty good for us.”

Cohen wasn’t completely absent from the Aggies offense. Even though his four-game streak of rushing for 100 yards or more was snapped with his seven-carry, 35-yard performance, Cohen did add three rushing touchdowns to his season total of seven. It was his second career three-touchdown game after scoring three times against Florida A&M last season.

“I felt like we played a good all-around football game,” said Cohen. “Our offense was going hard; our defense was going hard; we were really connecting. Everything was functioning well.”

Donald Mattocks served as the Aggies’ defensive star on Saturday. Mattocks intercepted a school record three first-half passes. The Aggies intercepted five passes from Chowan quarterback Dain McDonald.

Mattocks would have returned one of those interceptions for a touchdown but was called for excessive celebration before he stepped into the end zone. Instead of a touchdown, the ball was moved back to the Chowan 17-yard line where two plays later Quick found Lawrence open underneath for a 15-yard touchdown reception that gave the Aggies a 52-0 lead.

It was the biggest halftime lead in school history and it was the most points ever scored by an Aggies team in the first half.

“It was a lopsided win, but a win is a win,” said head coach Rod Broadway. “I thought our guys played well in the first half and played like you should play when you’re playing a team like that. We are going to try to make some improvements before we go up to (Washington DC) to play.”

The Aggies (1-0) begin conference play next week when they travel to the nation’s capital to face the Howard Bison 1 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 27 at Greene Memorial Stadium. 

Freshman Marquell Cartwright led the Aggies in rushing with 87 yards on 14 carries.

Well, I don’t know,” said Broadway when asked whether the Aggies were ready conference play. 

“I feel good about our players and our team and our coaching staff and what we are doing. We just have to prepare and get ready. I know that we have to make a lot of improvements between now and then, which is always the case around here.”

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A&T 59, Chowan 0

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HBCU Alumni and Students Head To Soldier Field As The Sun Washed Away The Rain At The 17th annual Chicago Football Classic

CHICAGO, Illinois -- It started off rainy and wet but the sun soon came out and shined on the 2014 Chicago Football Classic. The annual charity event that puts a spotlight on the academic advancement of Chicago youth took place at Soldier Field on Saturday afternoon to a lively crowd that came ready to show their support and respect for historically black colleges and universities.

The day which culminated in a football battle between Central State University and Morehouse College, began with the 2014 H.B.C.U. College Fair and Empowerment Summit, and High School battle of the bands. The college fair, which had over 25 historically black colleges and universities in attendance, focused on financial planning, as both parents and students prepare to take on the most daunting task of beginning their college career, paying college tuition.

As fans began to fill the seats for Central State University vs Morehouse College, the atmosphere was nostalgic and very familiar to any student or alumni of a historically black college or university. The bands, dance ensembles, and Color Guards, were all there to give Soldier Field a little HBCU flavor.




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