Spring Championships Update
TRACK and FIELD
The men of Grambling State and the women of Southern won championships at the Outdoor Track and Field championships.
GSU won the men's title scoring 184 points to beat out Jackson State (140) and Prairie View (138). The Tigers were particularly effective in the distance events, finishing 1-2-3 in the 3000 meters, 1-3-4-5-6 in the 10,0000 meters, 1-3-6-8 in the 5000 meters and 1-2-5 in the 1500 meters. Anthony Fairweather with two firsts, Feedly Bonneau with two firsts, Sielle Towett, Terron Daniels and Winston Sims led the onslaught.
Southern (143 points) held off Grambling 140) and Alabama State (137) to take the women's title. Kaisha Weeks won the 100 meter hurldes, finished second in the 400 meter hurdles and third in the 100 meters. Jacqueline Dix had a busy day winning the javelin and shot put competition and finishing fourth in the discus. Monica Robinson finished second in the long jump and pole vault and third in the triple jump. Erikka Thomas won the 2000 meter steeplechase and the 5000 meters, was fourth in the 3000 meters, second in the 1500 meters and sixth in the 800 meters.
The Devilettes of Mississippi Valley State University repeated as softball champions with a two game sweep (4-0, 5-3 ) of the Lady Jaguars of Southern University Sunday in Itta Bena, Mississippi.
After losing to the Lady Jaguars yesterday and holding an 0-2 record against them on the year the host Devilettes clearly entered the game as the underdog. However, MVSU road the arm of All-SWAC pitcher and tournament MVP Jalana Brown and became the first team in the conference to ever repeat as champions. MVSU and Southern each placed three representatives:
SOFTBALL
The Florida A&M women's softball team scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to nip archrival and five-time defending league champion Bethune-Cookman, 4-3 in the second and deciding game, to capture their seventh MEAC softball title Sunday at Disney's Wide World of Sports.
Sunday's title win ended a five-year drought for the Lady Rattlers, who won six of the first seven league titles (1993-95; 1997-99), before Bethune-Cookman (2000-04) began its' run of dominance. Hampton (1996) won the only other league title.
FAMU (37-31), dropped the opening game Sunday, 8-3, as B-CC (47-17), used a 12-hit attack and rode the pitching of Lauren McCoy to hold off the Lady Rattlers and force a second and deciding game.
The deciding game went to extra innings tied, 2-2, where the international tiebreaker rules were employed. B-CC pushed across a run in the eighth inning to go up 3-2. The Lady Rattlers responded with two in the bottom of the inning for the win.
Danielle Brown (17-10) got the win in the deciding contest and was named the most outstanding performer. She went 2-5 in each of the final games, driving in four runs with a pair of homers, one in each game, and scoring two runs. She pitched the final game after working three innings in the first game.
FAMU will represent the MEAC in an NCAA softball regional the weekend of May 20-22. The pairings will be announced May 15.
Morgan State women and Florida A&M men won the 2005 MEAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships at the Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
The Lady Bears won their second MEAC title with a point total of 155. The Rattlers won their second straight and 11th overall Outdoor Track & Field Championship. Sophomore Yvette Lewis of Hampton totaled 55 points en route to winning the women's outstanding performer award and the Bears' Alan Mitchell captured the men's honor.
The Lady Bears won four gold medals, four silver medals and six bronze totaling 14 in the three-day championships. Head Coach Neville Hodge won his first MEAC women's title with Morgan State and was named the 2005 Outstanding Coach.
Lewis who earned points in six events winning the long jump, triple jump, 100 meter hurdles and 200 meters. She qualified for NCAA Regionals in all four events that she won. Defending women's champion, Hampton finished second with a point total of 131. Howard finished third with 88.5 It was a long three days for Mitchell who competed in the decathlon, javelin throw, discus throw and the pole vault winning the decathlon and javelin events.
FAMU (126) edged out N.C. A&T (117). The Rattlers captured 10 medals (three gold, five silver, three bronze). Florida A&M's 11 outdoor titles are the most in MEAC history, surpassing South Carolina State with 10.
Top seed North Carolina A&T lost a six-run lead, but rallied to defeat No. 6 Norfolk State 10-9 in the baseball championship game on Sunday at Cracker Jack Stadium.
A&T, which did not lose in the tournament, won its third MEAC baseball title, while the Spartans came up empty for the third time in the championship round. NSU was making its first trip to the title round since 2001.
It didn't come easy for the Aggies. They took a 6-0 lead in the first inning, only to see NSU rally as it had in each of its three tournament wins. In the end, A&T's relentless hitting attack proved too much. The Aggies pounded out 17 hits.
A&T's Joe McIntyre was named the tournament's most outstanding player.
© 2005 Azeez Communications, Inc.