Bowie State Bulldogs Overcome Turnovers to Defeat Fayetteville State 64-31

FAYETTEVILLE, North Carolina – The #21 ranked Bulldogs of Bowie State University continued its unbeaten streak after defeating Fayetteville State University 64-31 on Saturday afternoon at the Luther "Nick" Jeralds Stadium. With the win, Bowie State improves its record to 5-0 on the season (2-0 CIAA) while Fayetteville State dips to 1-4 overall (0-2 CIAA).

Junior Amir Hall (Bowie, Md.) threw for 329 yards, completing 22-of-32 passes (two interceptions) and four passing touchdowns and redshirt senior Robert Chesson (Annapolis, Md.) rushed for a personal season-best 172 yards on 15 carries and scored two touchdowns to pace the Bowie State offense. Redshirt junior Brandon Britton (Columbia, Md.) recorded game-highs of nine receptions and 129 yards to lead all receivers. The Bulldogs defense was led by senior Johnny Littlejohn (Silver Spring, Md.) with nine total tackles.

As a team, Bowie State rolled up 626 yards of total offense (297 rushing and 329 passing) compared to 344 total yards (206 rushing and 138 passing) for Fayetteville State.



Hall walked into the FSU end zone at the 11:52 mark of the first quarter on Bowie State's opening drive of the game and sophomore Gene Carson (Accokeek, Md.) added the extra point for the early 7-0 lead. Bowie State scored on its very next possession, when Hall connect with redshirt senior Kerrick Pollock (Miami, Fla.) for a 12-yard, pass, catch and score to give the Bulldogs 13-0 advantage at the 8:10 mark.

Fayetteville State's Jacobe Clement (Charlotte, N.C.) gets a pick six and returned it 32 yards to trim the Bowie State lead to 13-7 with 5:04 left in the opening quarter.

The Bulldogs got those points back in a hurry on a Hall to junior Lansana Sesay (Bowie, Md.) 82-yard touchdown pass. Carson's extra point gave Bowie State a 20-7 lead. Redshirt sophomore Brandon Abrams (Baltimore, Md.) punched it in from 1-yard out to give the Bulldogs a 27-7 cushion at the 12:41 mark of the second quarter.

Marquise Watts (La Plata, Md.) recorded his second touchdown of the season, catching an 8-yard pass from Hall at the 10:25 mark to push the Bowie State lead to 34-7 in the second quarter.

David Lamb (Pineville, N.C.) kicked a 28-yard field goal with 5:34 remaining before halftime to cut the Fayetteville State deficit to 34-10. Nigel Peele (Greensboro, N.C.) intercepted a deflected pass from BSU's Hall and returned it 25 yards for a Fayetteville State touchdown with 5:21 remaining before halftime, but the Broncos trailed 34-17.

Another Bowie State turnover was costly as Fayetteville State capitalized to trim the Bulldogs lead to 34-24 with 1:51 left in the second quarter. Stevie Green (Washington, N.C.) rushed seven yards for the score.

Bowie State capped off a 7-play, 75-yard drive with a Hall to Britton 25-yard touchdown with 16 seconds left in the first half to give the Bulldogs a 41-24 advantage.

Bowie State capitalized on an interception by redshirt freshman Tevin Singleton (District Heights, Md.) and converted the Fayetteville State turnover into six points on a 3-yard score by Chesson. Chesson scored again following another Broncos turnover. This time Chesson rushed for another 3-yard score to pad the Bulldogs lead at 55-24 at the 10:57 mark of the third quarter.

Junior Maurice Williams (Baltimore, Md.) scored on a 2-yard run with 1:48 remaining in the third quarter to increase Bowie State's lead to 61-31.

Bowie State's Carson put the final nail in the coffin with 3:20 remaining in the game, following a 44-yard field goal to account for the final margin of 64-31.

The Broncos were led by quarterback Devin Knudsen (Fresno, Calif.) with 131 passing yards (14-30-2) and Donshel Jetton rushed for 94 yards on 20 carries.

The Bulldogs return home for just the second time this season on Saturday, October 7th to host the Hawks of Chowan University. Kickoff time in Bulldogs Stadium is set for 4 p.m.

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Sweet sixteen! Gold Nuggets dominate Dillard again

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana shut down Dillard's hitters Thursday en route to a 25-15, 25-17, 25-8 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference volleyball victory at XULA's Convocation Center.

The Gold Nuggets (11-2, 5-0) have beaten the Lady Bleu Devils (11-9, 3-2) 16 consecutive times, and this is the first time during the streak that Dillard — which hit minus-.009 with 21 kills and 22 errors in 109 attacks — finished with a negative hitting percentage.

XULA, meanwhile, hit .237 with 36 kills and 14 errors in 93 attacks.

"I thought we finished well," first-year XULA head coach Pat Kendrick said. "We started the match a little flat emotionally, but we finished with a good energy."

Kayla Black hit .318 with 10 kills, eight digs and three aces for the Gold Nuggets, who are 6-0 at home this season. Adili Rikondja produced a season-high-tying eight kills, a season-high .500 hitting percentage and — for the third straight match — a career-high tying four blocks.

Lauryn Taylor had seven kills and hit .250; both were her second-best figures of the season. Anna Dalla Vecchia had 19 digs, 10 in the first set, and reached double figures for the ninth consecutive match. Juliana Tomasoni served five aces — she's the only Gold Nugget to serve an ace in every match this season — Amanda Perry served two aces, and Jaida Dowd had a career-best four blocks.
XULA split the setting role again, with freshman Eva Le Guillou collecting 21 in her first collegiate start and Tiffany Phillips getting 12.

Taylor, Le Guillou, Black, Dowd and Dalla Vecchia are freshmen.

XULA won 36-of-38 sets in its last 12 meetings with Dillard.

Corneisja Harrison had six kills for Dillard but hit minus-094 in a match-high 32 attacks. Shelby Stewart and Tristan Cojoe had five kills apiece, Cojoe had four blocks, and Alexis Barnett had 13 digs.

XULA had advantages of 11-0 in aces, 54-41 in digs and 7-5 in blocks. The teams will meet again Nov. 2 in the Gold Nuggets' regular-season finale at Dillard's Dent Hall.

XULA's victory dropped Dillard from second to third place in the GCAC, and Tougaloo (5-2) climbed to second. XULA, which seeks a seventh consecutive GCAC regular-season and tournament championship, is the only team with fewer than two conference losses.

The Gold Nuggets will play William Carey in a non-conference match at 6 p.m. next Thursday at the Convocation Center.

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Ed Cassiere, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
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Rush advance 2 to ITA regional consolation semifinals

LAWRENCEVILLE, Georgia — Xavier University of Louisiana's Pierre Andrieu and Gabriel Niculescu won twice apiece Saturday to advance to the men's singles consolation semifinals at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association NAIA South Regional Championships.

Andrieu defeated Point's Sam Blackburn 8-4, then SCAD Atlanta's Jonah Tewes-McCoy 8-0. Niculescu beat SCAD Atlanta's Jordan Skalet 8-2, then Point's Julien Pereira 8-6.

Semifinals will start at 10 a.m. EDT Sunday at Georgia Gwinnett College. Andrieu will play SCAD Atlanta's Patric Toren, and Niculescu will play Brewton-Parker's Caleb Bellamy. Semifinal winners will meet at 11:30 a.m.

All other XULA players were eliminated in the main draw. The recap:

• Catalin Fifea, seeded fourth in men's singles, lost 6-4, 6-2 to Georgia Gwinnett's Mika Kosonen in the round of 16.
• Samir Chikhaoui defeated Middle Georgia's Octavio Tamola 4-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-7) in the men's singles round of 16, then lost 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 1-0 (10-2) to Georgia Gwinnett's second-seeded Gilad Berman. All three of Chikhaoui's singles matches in this tournament were decided in super-tiebreakers.
• Charlene Goreau, seeded second in women's singles, defeated Point's Katie Larck 6-0, 6-1 in the round of 16, then was upset 6-0, 6-3 by Georgia Gwinnett's Emerald Able in the quarterfinals.
• Freshman Manon Bonada upset SCAD Atlanta's eighth-seeded Katrina De Guzman 6-2, 6-3 in the women's singles round of 16, then fell 6-1, 6-1 to Georgia Gwinnett's fourth-seeded Margarida Abreu in the quarterfinals.
• Yi Chen Pao lost 6-3, 6-1 to Georgia Gwinnett's seventh-seeded Debora Scurt in the women's singles round of 16.
• In the women's doubles quarterfinals, Goreau and Bonada lost 8-1 to Georgia Gwinnett's Henar Garcia Munoz and Chiari Rebecchi.


Ed Cassiere, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
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Florida A&M Rattlers Drop Thursday Heartbreaker To NCCU, 21-14

TALLAHASSEE, Florida – The old saying “History Repeats Itself” was never a more appropriate way to describe the recent football history between Florida A&M and North Carolina Central.

That the visiting Eagles (3-1, 2-0 MEAC) turned Houdini for the third straight year to escape with a 21-14 fourth quarter victory was not surprising.

Nor was the frustration and disappointment that the gritty and determined FAMU Rattlers (2-3, 1-1 MEAC) felts yet again after another near-miss against Central.

Take away Davant Reynolds pick six off FAMU quarterback Ryan Stanley with 5:02 left in the first period, and the game might have had a different outcome.

The Eagles scored first when quarterback Chauncey Caldwell dashed in from 18 yards out for a 7-0 lead with 5:18 left in the opening stanza. Reynolds’ pick six came just 16 seconds later, staking the visitors to a 14-0 lead.

But the Rattlers dug deep and pulled themselves back into contention in this heavyweight battle, when Devin Bowers capped a 14-play, 86-yard matrch with a one-yard run with 10:27 left in the half, cutting the Central edge to 14-7.

The Rattler Defense opened the door for the tying score with under seven minutes left in the half, sacking NCCU’s Caldwell on the Eagles’ one-yard line and recovering a fumble.

Four plays later, Bowers tossed a fourth down jump pass to Kevin Newman for a 14-14 count after Khalil Clark’s PAT, with just over five minutes to play.



After, the game settled into a defensive struggle until Central’s final possession late in the fourth quarter, where they had won the two previous games in the series in 2015 (27-24) and 2016 (17-13).

The Eagles took possession after a FAMU punt was downed at the Rattler 47-yard line, driving the distance in eight plays, with halfback Isaiah Totten barging in from nine yards out with 2:02 left.

FAMU would turn the ball over on downs, with NCCU running out the clock.

LOOKING AHEAD: The Rattlers head to Norfolk, Va., next Saturday to face off against the Norfolk State Spartans in a 1:00 p.m. game at Dick Price Stadium.... The next home game will be Saturday, Oct. 14 against the North Carolina A&T Aggies in the annual Homecoming game in Bragg Stadium. Kickoff will be 3:00 p.m.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS: Rattler Nation showed up strong for the nationally-televised thriller at Bragg Stadium, with 18,488 partisans filling the stands, many arriving after the 7:30 p.m. kickoff…

The FAMU Defense held the Eagles to just 241 total yards Thursday, the second fewest yards allowed this season, after the 202 allowed in the opener to Texas Southern…. The FAMU Offense fared slightly better with 258 total yards, as they passed for 185 yards and rushed for 73…. Bowers had 76 yards rushing on 19 carries, rushing for a score and tossing a TD strike…

Stanley went 19 for 31 for 182 yards, with one interception…. Brandon Norwood led FAMU with six catches for 37 yards, but was robbed it appeared of a crucial diving catch which would have sustained a fourth quarter drive, despite a lengthy replay review….

Linebacker Elijah Richardson, who went down late with an undisclosed injury, led the FAMU defense with 10 tackles, inckuding three tackles for loss…. End Elijah Price had a monster game, with six tackles, two sacks, three tackles for loss and two forced fumbles.

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Howard Bison Overthrow Bethune-Cookman Wildcats in Fourth Quarter Effort

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- With less than a minute remaining, the Howard University Bison capitalized on a 4th-and-2 situation to secure their home-opening Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference win of the 2017 campaign over the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats, 26-24.

With the clock dwindling, freshman quarterback Caylin Newton marched the squad down and ran a 5-yard touchdown for the go-ahead score with 39-seconds reigning on the clock, closing out a 45-yard pace on nine plays.

B-CU had multiple opportunities to regain the lead, but HU's defense rose to the occasion forcing four straight incomplete passes.

With the victory, Howard snapped its six-game skid against the Wildcats while winning the first HU versus B-CU in D.C. contest since 1996.

Offensively, the home squad racked up 500 total yards with 343 on the ground, along with 157 yards in the air. Four Bison had 50 or more rushing yards, led by Newton and Anthony Philyaw. Newton finished with 140 rushing yards and two TDs, while Philyaw, the MEAC Preseason Player of the Year, added 93 yards in the victory.

B-CU jumped out to an early 7-0 advantage after a 20-yard run from Larry Brihm.

Moments into the second stanza, Guy Lemonier Jr. recovered a fumble in the end zone and tied the contest, 7-7.

On the next possession, the Wildcats went down and reclaimed the lead with a 23-yard touchdown pass from Brihm to Frank Brown, 14-7.

With halftime approaching, Howard tied the game at 14 apiece after a 5-yard TD pass from a Newton to Philyaw connection.

The opening drive after intermission, was capped by a 9-play, 74 yard drive by the Bison on a 1-yard QB sneak from Newton for HU's first lead of the game for a score of 20-14.

Bethune-Cookman responded with an opening drive in the third quarter and regained the advantage, thanks to an extra point, 21-20.

Midway through the third, B-CU increased their lead on a 42-yard field goal, 24-20, before HU secured its 26-24 win in the final minutes of play.

Howard's Dezmond Wortham racked up 129 all-purpose yards, including 78 receiving.

Defensively, Leon Fields II had a team-high 5.5 tackles, including one for loss. Freshman Tye Freeland added three tackles, a forced fumble, and pass breakup in the victory.

For B-CU (1-3), they amassed 384 total offense. Michael Jones led the way with 112 on the ground, while Brown provided 84 receiving yards and a TD in the loss.

After next weekend's bye, HU (2-2) hosts reigning MEAC Champions, the North Carolina Central Univerbsity Eagles. Game-time is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Greene Stadium.

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

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Bonada, Goreau advance in 2 brackets at ITA regional

LAWRENCEVILLE, Georgia — Xavier University of Louisiana's Manon Bonada and Charlene Goreau won in doubles and singles Friday at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association NAIA South Regional Championships.

Bonada and Goreau defeated SCAD Atlanta's Giulianna Hull and Madison Umbaugh 8-4 to advance to the women's doubles quarterfinals, where they'll play Saturday against Georgia Gwinnett's Henar Garcia Munoz and Chiari Rebecchi.

In singles, Bonada beat Reinhardt's Albane Queinnec 6-1, 6-4, and Goreau — the No. 2 seed — defeated Rebecchi 6-3, 6-4 to reach the round of 16.

Others from XULA advancing to the round of 16 in the main draw are:

• Yi Chen Pao, a 6-1, 6-2 women's singles winner against Point's Maddi Marler.
• Catalin Fifea, the No. 4 seed in men's singles and a 6-1, 6-0 victor against Reinhardt's Nikita Hrynov.
• Samir Chikhaoui, a 6-2, 4-6, 1-0 (10-6) men's singles winner against SCAD Atlanta's eighth-seeded Alberto Menendez.

The three-day tournament will conclude Sunday. All matches are at Georgia Gwinnett.

Ed Cassiere, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
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Gold Nuggets hit .647 in 3rd, improve to 4-0 in GCAC

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana hit .647 in the third set Thursday to put the finishing touches on a 25-22, 25-19, 25-12 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference volleyball victory against SUNO at The Castle.
     
Juliana Tomasoni had a season-high-tying 15 kills and hit .448. She had nine digs and two aces.
     
XULA rallied from a 17-12 first-set deficit.
     
The Gold Nuggets (10-1, 4-0) have a nine-match win streak, the fourth longest in school history. SUNO is 3-11, 2-3.
     
Vivica Price-Spraggins had eight kills and hit a season-high-tying .636 for XULA. Kayla Black had six kills and eight digs, and Adili Rikondja had five kills and a career-best four blocks. Tiffany Phillips and Eva Le Guillou had 15 assists apiece, and Anna Dalla Vecchiahad 11 digs to reach double figures for the seventh consecutive match.
     
XULA outhit SUNO .348 to .092 for the match and had advantages of 43-26 in kills and 8-1 in aces. Le Guillou and Kaelan Temple served two aces apiece.
     
Alexandria Douglas had nine kills for SUNO.
    
XULA has won 74 of its last 76 GCAC matches. Including conference tournaments, the Gold Nuggets have won 89 of their last 91 matches against GCAC opponents.
     
The Gold Nuggets will travel to the University of Mobile for a 7:30 p.m. Tuesday match. XULA's next home match will start at 6 p.m. next Thursday against Dillard.

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Ed Cassiere, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
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