News Argus, March 2000
From Page One
TOURNAMENT, From page 1
8 straight points.
Patterson and Marcus Best said that this
year's title felt better than last year.
"It feels good. The first year, people didn't
expect us to win," said Patterson. "This year,
we were the hunted being the top team in the
ClAA game after game."
"It's a great feeling. We worked hard to get
where we are and it paid off," said Marcus
Best.
The Rams won their 10th ClAA tournament
in the 55-year history of the event. Virginia
Union (14) and Norfolk State (12) are the only
teams to have won more titles.
Center Tyrone Robeson, a red shirt fresh
man, injured his knee with 12:17 to play in
the game. Dr. Walter Eziegbo, the team doc
tor, said Robeson likely had a complete tear
of a ligament and he would likely be out for
the rest of the season.
As the the Division II playoffs approach,
coach Duckett says that Robeson's injury will
affect the way he uses his lineup.
"It does affect our rotation and obviously
the depth at that position," he said. And of
course, he's a good player and you always
miss good players, but we will have to find a
way to get it done."
The Rams won their 12th consecutive game
and earned a No. 1 seed in the South Atlantic
Region of the Division II playoffs.
The six team Regional will be held on the
campus of Wingate University. The Rams
and Wingate, the No. 2 seed, will get a bye.
The Rams will play the winner of No. 4
Gardner-Webb vs. Georgia College & State on
Friday, March 10 at 6 p.m.
English, the team's center, said theRams
have met two of their three goals they set for
themselves this year.
"Before the season, we had three goals-win-
ning the western division title, winning the
ClAA championship, and our next goal on
our board in our locker room is winning the
national title."
MARTIN, From page 1
"To this day I tell my sons that because we
didn't have much growing up we had to be
creative and make our own toys," he said.
Martin also tells them how as children they
would go down to the junkyard and find old
bicycle frames and make bikes and old
wagon parts and make wagons because their
parents could not afford to buy them.
"Being able to fix and work on old cars,
bicycles, wagons, and other things helped my
brother and me become gooti with our hands
and develop good mechanical skills."
I le lived in the kind of community where
everyone was hard working, and where
adults found it appropriate to look after the
well being of the children.
"If your parents were unable to tend to you,
there was always another adult in the com
munity to look after you," he said.
Martin attended Carver School from
kindergarten through 12th grade. Because
many teachers who taught at Carver lived in
his community, they had a close relationship
with his parents. Parents expected for their
children to behave a certain way at home,
while teachers expected the children to
behave a certain way at school.
1 he neighborhood included lots of children
who found joy in playing all kineis of sports.
In high school, they played basketball, foot
ball, softball and other team sports Martin
played tennis and basketball.
In school, Martin was known as a serious
student. "I always worked hard, practiced
hard and played hard. I was a very serious
student as well as a serious athlete," he said.
Martin had a few role models growing up,
one being his father. Another person who
inspired him was Joe Williams, his former
tennis and basketball coach. He was one of
his best role models. He taught Martin to be
competitive but to control his emotions and
develop discipline. Williams attended N.C.
Agricultural and Technical State University,
and he had a major influence on Martin going
to college - specifically to N.C. A&T
Martin's brother and sister - and other fam
ily members - also attended N.C. A&T.
He followed in their footsteps after graduat
ing No. 2 in his senior class.
When Martin arrived at N.C. A&T, he had
no fears or anxieties because many of his
family members were there - in fact, a cousin
was his roommate for three years.
Martin majored in electrical engineering.
Courtesy of Harold Martin
Chancellor Harold Martin (clockwise), wife DaVida
and sons Harold Jr. and Walter.
He became a member of the Engineering
Society, and he later became president of Eta
Kappa Nu, an honor society for electrical
engineers.
In his junior and senior years, Martin
became involved in tutoring, where he devel
oped an interest in teaching.
Martin feels that he matured greatly while
at college.
1 learned how to cope being away from
home and I took more responsibility for what
1 wanted to do. Since my only obstacle was
that I didn't have much money, I had no
choice but to learn how to make it being
away from home."
In college years, he said he learned that he
could be anything he wanted to be, and he
wasn't afraid to pursue his dreams.
In his junior year, Martin's high school
sweet heart, DaVida Wagner arrived at N.C.
A&T. She graduated from East Forsyth High
School and she would major in math educa
tion.
They are two years apart. Because of the
age difference, Wagner attended summer
school and took heavy course loads.
After they had dated for two years, they
decided to marry.
Once Martin earned his degree in electrical
engmeering, he began working on his mas
ter's (also at N.C. A&T) while his wife fin
ished her undergraduate degree. After she
graduated, and before Martin could finish his
master's, his wife decided to attend law
school at Wake Forest University.
After Martin received his master's in elec
trical engineering, he taught electrical engi
neering at N.C. A&T, where other faculty
members encouraged him to pursue his Ph.D.
He decided to attend Virginia Technical
University. His wife joined him in Virginia
when she graduated from law school.
The Martins returned to North Carolina in
1980. They moved to Winston-Salem.
Harold Martin Jr., their first child was born
in 1980. In 1986, Walter, their second child,
was born.
Harold Martin Jr. is a sophomore at
Morehouse College, and Walter is an eighth-
grader at Kernersville Middle School.
Martin said that what makes his marriage
work is that he and his wife have similar
interests and values, the same temperament,
and that they enjoy doing simple things like
going to dinner and talking and renting
movies.
Martin said that he instills in his family the
same values that his parents instilled in his
family when he was growing up - having
respect for self, respect for others and others'
property, and having strong values for educa
tion.
"Love and the belief in God and respect for
one another are what keeps our family strong
and together," Martin said.
Looking back on his life, Martin said that
he has no regrets and that he would love to
relive his childhood and college years all over
again.
"From my childhood my fondest memory
was when my family would all come together
in our home ... while in college I made some
good buddies and we did everything togeth
er ... some fond memories with my wife were
our prom, our marriage and the birth of our
sons."
Martin wants to be a positive role model by
being a good father and a good husband.
"I'm very passionate about what I do and
you have to understand that it takes hard
work and preparation. I'm very fortunate to
have a great family, a good job, the availabili
ty of both my parents, and the chance to see
my boys maturing into fine young men. My
wife would definitely say about me that 'this
guy always works hard!"