SportsWeek
Also Religion and Classifieds May 7? 2015
Rams win CIAA baseball tourney,
orchestrates five-peat
I II ll?ii?j^&Ai . i i 1 ? ttiirt I
Photo by Craig T. Greenlee
Jordan Cummings has performed well as a relief pitcher this season.
BY CRAIG T. GREENLEE
FOR THE CHRONICLE
For the Rams, it's one for the thumb.
Top-seeded Winston-Salem State
University did what was expected and won
three games in a row to add another C1AA
Baseball Tournament championship to its
trophy collection. The Rams whipped
Virginia State 8-3 in the final to bag their
fifth straight league tournament title.
"Each year it gets harder and harder,"
said WSSU Coach Ken Ritsche. "The rest
of the CI A A is getting better and they're
catching up. It's not easy to do this five
times."
Winston-Salem State (38-13) is now in
waiting mode until Sunday when the pair
ings are announced for the NCAA
Regional Championships. The Rams, who
haven't won a game at the regionals in four
previous appearances, are looking for a
breakthrough. The ultimate goal is to win a
regional and advance to the College World
Series. WSSU is ranked 25th in Collegiate
Baseball's national poll for Division II.
"This program is at a point where we
have the talent and senior leadership to
take that next step," said Ritsche. "I
believe we have a definite shot at winning
a regional. With this group, there are mul
tiple players who have that ability to deliv
I '
er at the most critical times."
Leading 5-3 in the championship final,
WSSU came through with a timely flurry
in the eighth inning. Nathan Steger had an
RBI-single and Jacob Barber drilled a two
run double to give the Rams a five-run
cushion. Steger and Barber led the way
with two runs batted in apiece.
Starting pitcher Tyler Scearce (4-0)
worked six innings and allowed two runs
on five hits. Jordan Cummings pitched the
last 1 2/3 innings in relief to seal the win.
Cummings entered the game in the eighth
with one out and two Trojans runners on
base. After walking Corey Grant to load
the bases, Cummings forced two ground
outs to retire the side and squash a poten
tial comeback bid.
A day earlier, Winston-Salem State
topped Virginia State 8-4 in the semifinals.
After the loss, the Trojans battled back to
advance to the tournament final with a 4-3
win over Chowan in a consolation bracket
elimination game.
The Rams did have a close call in the
opening round last Thursday. A late-game
rally helped them to survive in a 5-4 victo
ry over St. Augustine's. WSSU blew a 2-0
lead and trailed 4-2 entering its half of the
eighth inning. Colby Keene singled and
See Rams on B2
Lady Rams offensive display not
enough to prevent season-ending loss
BY CRAIG T. GREENLEE
FOR THE CHRONICLE
The CIAA Softball
Tournament turned into a
marathon of sorts for Winston
Salem State. After suffering a
second-round loss to Chowan
in the double-elimination event,
the Lady Rams faced the chal
lenging task of having to win
three games on the same day in
order to advance to the tourna
ment championship final.
Winston-Salem State (23
22) came close to pulling it off
in consolation bracket games
played last Saturday in Raleigh.
The Lady Rams won their first
two games and needed one
more victory to advance to the
title round.
In spite of putting on one of
its best offensive displays of the
year, Winston-Salem State lost
12-9 to Chowan, the tourna
ment's No. 1 seed. The season
ending setback erased all the
Lady Rams hopes of repeating
as tournament champions.
WSSU went down swinging
with a couple of grand-slam
home runs. On the downside, a
couple of costly errors (four for
the game) didn't help the cause.
"We had a long day, but
coming in, we knew it would be
and we were prepared for that,"
said Coach LaTaya Hilliard
Gray of WSSU. "There were
some very good moments for
us. But at the end of the day, it
all came down to us not being
Sec Softball on B2
Photo by Craig T. Greenlee
Katrina Bartlett hits a grand slam home run during
the CIAA Softball Tournament. /
Photo courtesy of WNBA
Dearica Hamby stands with WNBA
president Laurel Richie after being
chosen in the WNBA Draft.
BY CRAIG T. GREENLEE
FOR THE CHRONICLE
Dearica Hamby is getting paid to
play a game she used to hate. The soon
to-be Wake Forest graduate will soon be
headed west to play with the San
Antonio Stars of the WNBA. Hamby,
who was selected in the first round as
the sixth overall pick, is the school's
first women's player to be chosen in the
WNBA Draft.
"I know that it's happened, but it
hasn't hit me yet," said Hamby, in refer
ence to being a top draft pick. "Being
there on draft night brought it all out.
Still, it probably won't really sink in
until I actually arrive in San Antonio."
The next week-and-half figures to be
a hectic time for Hamby, who will move
to Texas in the coming days. Training
camp for the Stars begins on May 17,
and she'll fly back to Winston-Salem for
commencement cepemonies on May 18.
Hamby, an afhletic power forward,
readily admits that she had no game
when she first attempted to play the
game as a grade-school youngster. Back
then, she had far more height than talent.
As a high school sophomore, Hamby
grew by five inches. By the end of her
senior season, she had sprouted to 6
feet-3. Several colleges pursued Hamby,
who chose; Wake Forest over Florida,
South Carolina, South Florida and West
Virginia.
After her freshman year at Wake, a
gradual transformation began to take
place. Hamby stepped it up as a tour de
force (averaged 21.1 points and 10.9
rebounds per game) in her junior and
senior seasons. Along the way, she was
twice-named All-ACC and was
Honorable Mention All-American. As a
freshman, though, Hamby had no reason
to entertain thoughts about becoming a
pro athlete one day.
"Quite honestly, I never saw this
coming," she said. "What I did know is
that I wanted to work around basketball.
I wanted to be a rep for Nike. I didn't see
me playing basketball as a career."
See Hamby on B2
Next
level for
Wake
Forest's
Hamby:
Headed
to WNBA
Lady (Rams Scoreboard
CIAA Softball Tournament
WSSU 15, Virginia Union 5
Chowan 5, WSSU 2
WSSU 4, Virginia Union 1
WSSU 10, Virginia State 2
Chowan 12, WSSU 9
Friday Fitness Fest - Fighting Obesity with Fitness, Education & Empowerment
SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE
Recently the American Medical Association named
obesity as a disease, thereby recognizing its impact on
overall health. African-American women outnumber all
other racial and ethnic groups in terms of obesity in the
U.S., and African-American women in North Carolina are
less likely to engage in physical activity, less likely to eat
the recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables, and
are more likely to be obese.
To address this concern on a local level, the
Department of Human Service Studies at Winston-Salem
State University implemented The COACH APPROACH
To Obesity Prevention: Changing Outcomes, Attitude,
Character and Health; a research study aimed at develop
ing a new approach in treating and preventing obesity in
African-American women. The study, implemented in
February 2014, was funded by a grant from the Centers for
Medicare and Medicaid Services. Over 200 local Africa"
American women, ages 30-65, were recruited to partici
pate in this unique intervention designed to improve the
psychosocial wellbeing and physical health of African
American women. The study will officially end in
September 2015.
To celebrate the program's success and acknowledge
the program participants' commitment, the Department of
Human Service Studies will sponsor a free community fit
ness, health & wellness event, Friday, May 8 from 5 p.m.
8 p.m. at Rupert Bell Recreation Center, located at 1501
Mt. Zion Place. The Friday Fitness Fest will provide atten
dees opportunities to enjoy an evening of free fitness, edu
cational awareness and empowerment. This fun event will
include a healthy cooking demonstration (Chef Betty
Thompson Morton), Cardio Kickboxing (Instructor
Hoyatt Allen), Krazy Hip Hop Cardio (Instructor Kristie
Woodruff), Sittercise (Instructor Dorinda Phillips) and
Soulful Line Dancing (Instructor Pat Degraffenreidt).
Complimentary glucose, blood pressure and cholesterol
screenings will be provided by the WSSU RAMS
K.N.O.W. How Mobile Unit. A small number of local
wellness vendors will be in attendance to provide health
and wellness information.
The event is free. In the event of rain, all activities will
be conducted at the Gateway YWCA located at 1300 S.
Main St., WS. For more details call 336-750-8915.
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336-750-3220
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