Spring Sports Roundup
SIAC
Morehouse swept both the SIAC men's tennis and track and field titles hosted at their facilities in Atlanta over the weekend. The women of Albany State captured the track and field title while the women of Tuskegee won the tennis crown.
Other SIAC spring sports championships will be held this week. The softball championship, with Kentucky State and Albany State as the top seeds, begins Thursday in Columbus, Ga.
The SIAC baseball championships will be held April 30-May 2 in Albany, Ga. at the Paul Eames Sports Complex.
TRACK AND FIELD (Men)
For the fourth consecutive year
Morehouse took home the SIAC Track
& Field Championship, the 15th overall title for the Maroon Tigers.
Unlike last year, where Morehouse dominated the field events, their 15th title came from a steady, well-rounded performance. The Maroon Tigers scored 209 points to outdistance Albany State (153) and Benedict (145).
Event winners for Morehouse included Matt Tuffur (Javelin), Barry Batson (triple jump and long jump) and Dreyfus Clemons (1,500m and 800m).
Eric McCrary of Albany State was named the SIAC Field Most Valuable Performer for the second consecutive year.
Dickson Toroitich of Benedict dominated the track events, finishing third in the 1,500m and 5000m, winning the 10,000m and 3000m Steeplechase to score 32 points. Toroitich was named the SIAC Track Most Valuable Performer.
Coach Willie Hill of Morehouse was named the Outstanding Coach of the Championship Meet.
TRACK AND FIELD (Women)
For the fifth consecutive year the women of
Albany State took home the SIAC Track & Field Championship.
E'Mosha Brinston led the Albany State onslaught as she scored 28 points in the meet to be named the Track Athlete of the meet. Brinston finished first in the 800m and 1,500m while finishing second in the 3000m Steeplechase. Brinston scored 28 of ASU's 217.5 points in the meet.
Fort Valley State finished second with 142 points while Benedict was third.
Other Albany State athletes that won their events were Llonisha Lee (5,000m), Rakedia Wright (100m hurdles), Luatrina Singletary (pole vault), Shabreka Carter (Discus and Hammer) and the 4x100m relay.
Petra McDonald of Benedict scored the most points of all competitors in field events with 36. She was named the SIAC Women's Field Most Valuable Performer and received the honor of the Cleve Abbott Award given to the athlete who scored the most points in the championship. McDonald scored 41 overall points. She finished eighth in the 100m, third in the high jump, fourth in the long jump, fifth in the shot put and second in the Heptathlon.
Coach Ken Taylor of Albany State was named the Outstanding Coach of the Championship Meet.
TENNIS (Men)
Tory Martin and Josh Harris led
Morehouse to a 5-3 victory over Fort Valley
State on Championship Day as they defended their home courts to win
their 30th SIAC Men's Tennis Championship.
Morehouse trailed coming out of doubles play 2-1 but caught fire in singles play to pull out the victory. Freshman of the Year Michael Thomas earned his stripes by sealing the championship for Morehouse. Thomas bounced back after being dominated in the second set 1-6 to win the third set 6-3 clinching the victory for Morehouse.
Morehouse earns an automatic bid for the NCAA Regional Championships. The Regionals will be held May 7-9, 2009 on a campus site to be determined.
All Tournament Team
Singles
Drew Belk and Desmond Watson, Fort Valley State; Josh Harris and Tory
Martin, Morehouse; Avery Coins, Benedict; Miguel Cabral, Tuskegee
Doubles:
Tory Martin/Ben Seagle, Morehouse; Desmond Watson/Drew Belk, Fort Valley
State Miguel Cabral/Ryan Ross, Tuskegee
Outstanding Coach
Terry Alexander, Morehouse
TENNIS (Women)
The women of Tuskegee took home their second consecutive SIAC
tennis title as Constanza Aranda and Jazmine
Scott paced the win
The championship came down to a long stand-off between Salama Shelton (TU) and Stacey Lambert (FVSU). Shelton would take the first set but Lambert would battle back and take the second set. After many rallies, Shelton finally pulled it out giving Tuskegee its second consecutive title and 11th overall, most in SIAC history.
Tuskegee earns an automatic bid for the NCAA Regional Championships. The Regionals will be held May 7-9, 2009 on a campus site to be determined.
All Tournament Team
Singles:
Jazime Scott and Constanza Aranda, Tuskegee; Roberta Robinson and
Chantelle Chiles, Fort Valley State; Lauren Smith, Benedict; Simone Greene,
Clark Atlanta
Doubles:
Deandra Reasonover/Lauren Smith, Benedict; Roberta Robinson/Jesutice
Awoyeye, Fort Valley State; Angela Dixon/Jazmine Scott, Tuskegee
Outstanding Coach
Lenny Gray, Tuskegee
CIAA
TRACK AND FIELD (Men)
For the third straight year and the 11th time in 12 seasons,
Saint Augustine's claimed both the men's and women's
CIAA Outdoor Track and Field championships held Saturday at
Virginia State University.
The Falcons ran away with the men's title, scoring 229.75 points to beat distant second-place Bowie State (76.5). Virginia State (72.75) was third followed by Johnson C. Smith (70.5). The rest of the scores were: Virginia Union (64.25), Livingstone (23.5), Saint Paul's (18) Shaw University (13.75).
The Lady Falcons scored 201 points to earn the women's crown. Bowie State was again second with 125 points followed by Johnson C. Smith with 86 points.
Joe Kindred of Saint Aug's and Elaine Rhoades of Bowie State were named men's and women's field most valuable performers, respectively. The field MVP award was the seventh for Kindred during an illustrious four-year career in indoor and outdoor track and field. Ledford Green of Johnson C. Smith won men's track MVP and Angelique Smith of Saint Aug's captured female track MVP.
The men's winners were Ramon Gittens of Saint Augustine's (100 dash), Green of JCSU (200 dash and 400 hurdles), Josh Scott of Saint Aug's (400 dash), Johnny Shuping of Saint Aug's (800 and 1500 runs), Geoffrey Langat of Virginia Union (5000 run), Jason Boyd of Saint Aug's (110 hurdles), Kindred of Saint Aug's (high jump, long jump, triple jump), Joffery Alcidor of Bowie State (pole vault), Darien Kearney of Virginia State (shot put), Todd Shelton of Saint Paul's (discus throw), and Julius Wright of Johnson C. Smith (javelin throw).
Scott of Saint Augustine's College (45.23) defeated Green of Johnson C. Smith (45.81) in the 400 dash in which both athletes ran the fastest times in NCAA Division I and Division II this season.
The women's winners were Olympic sprinter Barbara Pierre of Saint Aug's (100 dash, 200 dash), Smith of Saint Aug's (400 dash), Kyra Mobley of Saint Aug's (800 run, 1500 run), Racquel Daley of Saint Aug's (3000 run), Shermaine Williams of Johnson C. Smith (100 hurdles), Nikki Boston of Johnson C. Smith (400 hurdles), Andrea Powell of Saint Aug's (high jump), Rhoades of Bowie State (long jump, triple jump), Lakisha Carney of Bowie State (shot put, discus throw) and Brynn Rosser of Virginia State (javelin throw). Saint Augustine's College won the 4x100 and 4x400 relays.
BASEBALL
The Virginia State Trojans captured their third straight
CIAA Baseball Championship with a 7-3 victory over
Saint Augustine's Saturday afternoon at Whaley Colbert Field.
VSU's Daniel Cornett earned MVP honors after coming in to relieve starting pitcher Edrian Pinder. Cornett went 6.1 innings striking out four; He also went 1-2 at the plate with an RBI and a run scored.
VSU finished with a 23-24 while St. Aug's, who beat VSU three times in the regular season, ends with a 24-13 overall record.
2009 CIAA Baseball All-Tournament Team
Hasteen Simmons Elizabeth City State; Andrew Holt Virginia State; Khattim
Butler Elizabeth City State; Anthione Shaw Saint Augustine's; Michael Knight
Virginia State; Brandon Crump Virginia State; Joseph Pierce Saint Augustine's;
Jonathan Scott Virginia State; Daniel Cornett Virginia State; Shawn McEnhimer
Virginia State; Ryan Wood Saint Augustine's; David Gibson Virginia State
MVP Daniel Cornett- Virginia State
SOFTBALL
Bowie State captured its third straight
CIAA Softball title with a 9-1 win over Fayetteville
State Saturday. The Lady Bulldogs jumped to 6-0 lead early and
were not headed in the final game.
Tiffnay Toney, Tricia Corbin and Danielle McClay led BSU with a pair of hits each. Corbin recorded a game-high four RBI.
The Lady Bulldogs (24-6) now advance to the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regionals.
TENNIS
The Shaw Bears claimed their fifth consecutive
CIAA men's tennis championship on the final day (Saturday) of the 2009 CIAA Spring Championships held
on the campus of Virginia State University. Shaw dominated the men's tournament
by winning each of the three doubles and six singles flights for a maximum team
score of 54 points.
Alexandre Lord-Andrade was named as the Tournament MVP and the 2009 CIAA Men's Tennis Player of the Year; defending both titles from the 2008 Tournament.
The Lady Bears of Shaw won the women's tennis title by one point over host Virginia State. Both schools had tallied 50 team points with the number four singles position set to determine the champion.
Xania Steele (Shaw) defeated Tamilia Hicks (VSU) in three sets to give Shaw 58 team points and the CIAA crown. Virginia State finished second with 57 team points. Bowie State had an impressive showing with 51 team points for third place.
GOLF
Fayetteville State pulled away to capture the 2009
CIAA Golf Championship finishing the Tournament with a two-day score of 583.
Virginia State was second with a score of 613.
Four of the six players named to the 2009 All-CIAA Golf Tournament Team are team members from FSU; Kevin Lyles, Joel Lynn, Jeremy Ringled and Derek Scott. Scott was named the 2009 CIAA Golf Low Medalist for shooting a 74 on day one and an incredible 66 on day two. Lyles shot a two-day total of 147 (69/78); Lynn shot 144 (72-72); Ringled finished with 152 (75/77) and Scott finished with a 140. Bryon Conner finished with a 172 (89/83).
Saint Augustine's finished in third place with a two-day total of 661 (335-326).
SWAC
TENNIS
The 2009 SWAC Tennis Championships came to a close on Sunday with
the Jackson State women and Alcorn
State men claiming the tournament titles.
Angela Rose, who went 3-0 from her #5 singles position for J-State, was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.
Alcorn State breezed to a 4-1 win the final match to take the men's title.
Alcorn State's Alexander Lidzar was 2-0 at the #3 singles spot and was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.
MEAC
TENNIS
The South Carolina State men's and women's teams captured the
MEAC Tennis Championship titles at the Millbrook Tennis Center in Raleigh,
North Carolina. SCSU's men topped the Hampton Pirates, 4-0, to win their eighth
MEAC crown.
South Carolina State's Ivan Milivojevic earned Outstanding Performer accolades after finishing with 3-0 record at the number one singles position and leading his team to the title. SCSU head coach Hardeep Judge won the tournament's outstanding coach award.
The Lady Bulldogs defeated the Florida A&M Rattlers, 4-1, en route to their fifth consecutive MEAC title and sixth overall.
South Carolina State's Sarai Torres recorded a 3-0 mark at the number three singles position and 2-0 mark in doubles play and was named the Outstanding Performer. Judge was named the Outstanding Coach for the fifth time on the women's side.
With the wins, the Bulldogs and Lady Bulldogs receive the leagues' automatic qualification to the NCAA Division I Men's and Women's Championship. Team selections will be announced on ESPNews on April 28.
© 2009 Azeez Communications, Inc.