2B"
SPORTS/The Charlotte Post
Thursday, May 8, 1997
For the Week of May 6 through May 12, 1997
STRUTTIfi'
THEIR
STUFF
Target Sports Mktg. Photo
LAWSON: Classic game
fulfillment of her dream.
T BLACK COLLEGE HOOP STARS SHOW
CASE their skills in ATLANTA
UNDER THE BANNER
WHATS GOING ON IN AND AROUND BLACK COLLEGE SPORTS
CIAA SPRING COACHES: Thece„.
traIIntercolIegiateAthleticAssociation(CIAA)announced
their Spring Coaches of the Year
this week and heading the list were
men's and women's track coaches
that swept both indoor and outdoor
honors. Norfolk State's Steve
Riddickguided his Spartan's men's
teams to both crowns while St.
Augustine's Geoi^e "Pup" Will
iams did the same for the Lady
Falcons and each earned their re
spective coach of the year awards.
Ya. State Sports Photo
WILLIAMS: Sweeps
CIAA women's track
coaching honors.
Williams' indoor team swept to the title scoring 142 points
while the outdoor squad registered 196 in outduelling Nor
folk State. NSU's men's outdoor team rolled up 196 points in
the outdoor championship. Turan Smith of Norfolk State
won the Softball Coach of the Year award after leading the
Spartanettes to a 38-9 mark, 14-2 in the conference and the
1997 championship, his first since 1992. Rookie coach
Larry Freer of Bowie State won the baseball coach's award
after leading the Bulldogs to the conference championship,
a 12-6 conference mark, and overall record of 24-13. For the
fourth consecutive year, Fayetteville State head golf coach,
Ray McDougald won the conference coach's award. The
Broncos finished second in the 1997 championship with a
scored of664. Gladwell Williams of Shaw University was
named the Tennis Coach of the Year after leading the Bears
to a second place finish in the conference, a 8-1 CIAA record
and 10-2 overall mark.
NEW COACH AT MBC> Morns Brown
College has reached back to name a black college veteran
and Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Hall of
Famer as their new basketball coach. Russell Ellington, a
1960 Morris Brown graduate and former football and basket
ball player was named April 15 to head the Wolverine hoops
program. Ellington comes to MBC from Savannah Techni
cal Institute where he has coached since 1993 posting an 80-
45 record. He is fresh off a trip to the National Junior College
Men's Basketball Tournament. Last season, Ellington was
named District 10 Coach of the Year after his team won the
district championship. In 1995 and 1997, Ellington led his
team to the Region XVII Junior College Championship.
Ellington formerly coached and served as athletic director at
Savannah State College in the late '70s and '80s. During that
time he built a record of 267-57 and led the Tigers to three
SIACtitles and an NCAA Division III South Region Cham
pionship. Early in his career, Ellington built a dynasty at
Beach High School in Savannah winning six state titles.
BLACK COLLEGE NFL ROOKIE
FREE AGENT SIGNINIGS
KANSAS CITY CHIEFS
Tommy Dorsey, LB, North Carolina Central
BALTIMORE RAVENS
Richard Alvarado, LB, Jackson State
Robert Walker, DT, Southern
John Williams, DB, Southern
BUFFALO BILLS
Clifford Green, DB, Tennessee State
CINCINNATI BENGALS
Damon Daniels, WR, Delaware State
Michael Jenkins, WR, Hampton
DALLAS COWBOYS
Quincy Culbertson, WR, Jackson State
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS
Owen Neil, OT, Florida A&M
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS
Marvin Bagley, WR, North Carolina A&T
Lee Harvey, DB, Texas Southern
Michael Lattimore, DT, NC Central
PITTSBURGH STEELERS
Marcus Evers, DE, Clark Atlanta
SAN FRANCISCO 49ers
Carlos Thornton, DE, Alcorn State
MEAC BASEBALL ANDSOFTBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS
THE STAT CORNER
WHO ARE THE BEST PERFORMERS IN BLACK COLLEGE SPORTS
BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
Bethune Cookman 10 - Del State 4
Coppin State 7 • NC A&T 4
Florida A&M 21 -UMES1
NC A&T 8 -UMES 3
(UMES Eliminated)
Bethune-Cookman 7 - Howard 1
Coppin State 8 - Florida A&M 7
Florida A&M 11 -NCA&T10
(A&T Eliminated)
Howard 7 - Del State 5 (8 innings)
(Del State Eliminated)
Bethune-Cookman 7 - Coppin State 2
Florida A&M 9 • Howard 5
Florida A&M 8 - Coppin State 5
CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Bethune-Cookman 13 - Florida A&M 4
ALL TOURNAMENT TEAM
Infield
Cecil Christwell, Coppin State
Al Holland, NC A&T
Brian Pisani, Coppin State
Anthony Robinson, Florida A&M
Outfield
Ruffin Bell, Coppin State
Rory Beauford, Bethune-Cookman
Keith McConnehead, Bethune-Cookman
DH
Robert Averette, Florida A&M
Catcher
Keith Maxwell, Florida A&M
Pitcher
Mike Rawls, Bethune-Cookman
Outstanding Performer
Mike Rawls
Outstanding Coach
Richard Skeel, Bethune-Cookman
SOFTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
SC State 3 - Morgan State 2
Bethune-Cookman 7 - UMES 2
Hampton 7 - Delaware State 2
Florida A&M 6 - NC A&T 1
Morgan State 12 - UMES 2
(UMES Eliminated)
NC A&T 7 - Del State 2
(Del State Eliminated)
SC State 5 - Bethune-Cookman 4
Florida A&M 12 - Hampton 1
Hampton 10 - Morgan State 5
(Morgan State Eliminated)
BCC 8 - NC A&T 0
(NC A&T Eliminated)
Florida A&M 9 - SC State 1
BCC 7 - Hampton 2
(Hampton Eliminated)
BCC 6 - SC State 1
CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Florida A&m 3 - BCC 2, 8 innings
ALL TOURNAMENT TEAM
Infield
Kim Browning, FAMU
Tanisha Kemp, Morgan State
Shonda Davis, BCC
Tamara Magee, BCC
Outfielders
Valerie Stoudarnire, FAMU
Shawna Williams, FAMU
lyanna Pullum, BCC
DH
Evangelina Vasquez, BCC
Catcher
Kamilah Johnson, BCC
Pitcher
Stephanie Arnold, FAMU
Outstanding Performer
Kim Browning, FAMU
Outstanding Coach
Veronica Wiggins, FAMU
"Game of their own" goes well
BOX SCORE
BY ERIC N. MOORE
BCSP Correspondent
With the aroma of barbecue ribs
floating through the Morehouse Olym
pic Arena, the Second Annual Mobil
Black College Basketball Classic took a
major step toward respectability last
Saturday. Showcasing players from 17
different black colleges for pro scouts,
an estimated live audience of 1,500 and
an undetermined television viewership,
the Classic presented an atmosphere
that few will soon forget.
"This event represents the realiza
tion of a five-year dream", said Execu
tive Producer LaShun Lawson. "It pre
sents an opportunity to not only display
talents, but also promote Historically
Black Colleges and Universities to the
world."
The festivities began at a reception
Friday night when Atlanta's Extra Point
Club announced its Black College All-
America team. The Club also awarded
its John B. McLendon Trophy to the
outstanding male basketball player at an
HBCU. In his acceptance remarks,
South Carolina State's Roderick
Blakney, a junior guard announced how
he was looking forward to playing in the
Classic next year.
Saturday in the Morehouse Arena
lobby, there was good food and the
obligatory souvenir tee shirt sales with
the Classic logo on the front. On the
gym floor, there was a David vs. Goliath
game setup matching two former coach
ing rivals and an outstanding halftime
show featuring the acrobatics and stunts
of Atlanta's Kids Gym USA.
The South team, comprised of play
ers from the Southern Intercollegiate
Athletic Conference (SI AC) and South
western Athletic Conference (S WAC),
was coached by legendary former Win
ston-Salem State University basketball
coach Clarence "Bighouse" Gaines and
former NBA great Dan Roundfield. On
the opposite bench with players from the
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Asso
ciation (CIAA) and Mid Eastern Ath
letic Conference (MEAC), retired North
Carolina A&T hoops coach Cal Irvin
and former NBA star Walt Bellamy were
calling the shots. Gaines and Irvin, who
where were classmates at Morgan State,
were staunch coaching rivals in the CIAA.
It was the first time they had met on the
court since Irvin retired from A&T 16
years ago.
Alabama A&M's Bethel Hendricks
was selected Most Valuable Player after
leading his South team of predominantly
Division II players to a 114-103 win over
the much taller North squad. Hendricks
scored 18 points and grabbed eight re
bounds for the South team. His 11 first
half points propelled the team to a com
manding 66-45 halftime lead.
Hendricks felt motivated going into
the game. "I was disappointed at not
making the (Extra Point Club's) All-
American team so I felt I had something
to prove", he said. "I also felt I had
something to prove to the Division I
guys and the scouts."
On paper, the North squad had a
significant size advantage with three of
itsl 1 players standingsix-seven or taller.
The South’s tallest player was Kentucky
State's James Crutcher at six-eight.
No other player stood above six-six.
"I knew we could run the floor with
our guards", said Hendricks. "But I
wasn't sure how we would handle their
big guys."
The South used the quickness of
guards William Burr (Clark Atlanta)
and DerrickMcGriff(Alabama State)
to overcome their lack of size. Burr
didn't score but handed out six assists
and had five steals. McGriff, an two-
time All-SWAC performer, chipped in
13 points.
The North was led by Coppin
State's Reggie Welch who led all scor
ers with 25 points. He was followed by
Kimani Stewart (N.C. A&T) with 19
points and Eric Harris (St Augustine's)
with 18. Morgan State's Chris Watson
was the games top rebounder pulling
down 10 boards in just over 22 minutes
of play.
With corporate s'ponsorship from
Mobil Oil, And 1, and McDonalds, the
Classic appears to be finding the finan
cial support to grow and develop.
Lawson hopes that a developing rela
tionship with HostCommunications will
help expand corporate support of the
game.
NAME
FG
3FG FT
REB
TP-
WATSON, Chris
2-5
0-1 3-4
10
7
STEWART. Kimani
8-13
2-3 1-2
4
19 4
NURSE, Chris
1-2
0-0 0-0
1
2 ■
WHITFIELD, Maurice
3-5
0-1 5-7
5
11 I
WELCH, Reggie
8-17
3-7 6-8
1
25
MINCEY, Maurice
0-1
0-1 0-0
0
0
BELL, Al
1-7
0-4 1-1
0
3 :
CARMICHAEL, Rodney
3-5
1-2 0-0
2
7 .
BEST, Joseph
0-0
0-0 1-2
1
0
HASKETT, Mario
4-7
2-5 0-0
5
10
HARRIS, Eric
9-12
0-0 0-0
4
18 '
TOTALS
39-74 8-24 17-24
37
103^
SOUTH
NAME
FG
3FG FT
REB
Tp;
WILSON, Monty
5-10
0-2 4-6
4
14
LOPEZ, Sam
4-6
0-0 0-0
6
8
McCall, Marcus
4-7
0-0 7-10
4
15'
BURR, William
0-2
0-2 0-0
3
0 4
McGRIFF, Darrick
3-8
0-3 7-8
3
13
JACKSON, Montavius
1-4
0-2 3-4
4
5 '
JOSEY, Ervin
6-8
2-2 2-2
1
16 1
CORKER. Wallace
1-6
0-2 3-4
4
5 ^
HOWARD, Kevin
1-7
0-0 1-2
3
3
HENDRICKS, Bethel
6-10
0-0 6-10
8
18
CRUTCHER, James
4-7
1-2 8-8
4
17 ;
TOTALS
35-75 3-15 41-54
47
114
OFFICIALS: Tony Means, Bruce Beil, & Terry Moore ,
North 45 58 103
South 66 48 114
Stats by The Onnidan Group
Lawson and her Target Sports Mar-'
keting organization enjoy a large and dedi- *
cated volunteer group. Several volunteers,*
some who drove nearly four hours to be at
the contest, talked about their commit-'
ment to the Classic.
"I believe in LaShun's vision", said.^
Cynthia Hill, a black college graduate and-*
former resident of Atlanta who drovej
from Birmingham to help sell tee shirts in’^
the lobby. "We need to do whatever we^
can to promote our colleges." '*
Pine Bluffs move to SWAC almost complete
LUT WILLIAMS
BCSP Editor
The long winding road back to
membership in the Southwestern Ath
letic Conference (SWAC) for the Uni
versity of Arkansas Pine Bluff may
see its fulfillment when the conference
holds their Spring Meeting, May 21-23
in New Orleans.
Among the major decisions before
presidents and officials then will be
voting on UAPB's re-entrance to the
conference after a 27-year absence.
Pine Bluff was voted affiliate mem
bership in the SWAC at last Spring’s
meeting and, barring any unexpected
occurences, should be voted in as a full
member this time around. The school
however will not be eligible for champi
onships until the 1998-99 season.
The news of the impending move
back to the SWAC has generated excite
ment on campus, amongst alumni and
with administrators, said Carl Whim
per, the school's public information di
rector who also serves as head of sports
information.
He along with athletic director, H.
O. Clemmons, the school's coaches and
otheradministratorswill attend the meet
ings at the New Orleans Intercontinen
tal Hotel. They are expecting to be re
ceived warmly.
"We're going down as a full staff,"
Whimper said.
Clemmons, a UAPB graduate, spent
20 years as the school's men’s basket
ball coach and is in his fifth year as
athletic director. School president, Dr.
Lawrence A. Davis, Jr., also a UAPB
grad, has been at his post since 1991.
They have been the driving forces to
wards reentering the conference.
"From a financial standpoint, the
only way to go was to join the SWAC,"
said Whimper. The school was granted
provisional I-AA member status by the
NCAA last summer. That designation
meant the school had to abide by NCAA
rules and regulations for the past year.
"That basically gave us a year to get
everything together," said Whimper.
They should reach full NCAA member
ship status after July 1 of this year.
sas Classic, faces Grambling in the Red
River Classic in Shreveport, La. and
plays Mid Eastern Athletic
Conferfence defending champion
Howard in St. Louis' Gateway Classic.
The school, located on 318 acres in
Pine Bluff the state's fourth largest city,
has about 3,000 students, said Whim
per, and is the only predominantly black
state-supported institution.
In basketball this year, Pine Bluff
played a predominantly Div. I schedule
fnishing 10-14 under head coach Harold
Blevins, a UAPB alumnus and former
NBA draft choice. The most significant!
win was a 66-64 win over the University
of Houston in Houston.
Among the notable athletic products
of UAPB are former Pittsburgh Steelers
all-pro defensive eqd L. C. Greenwood,
a 1969 graduate, former Washington
Redskins defensive tackle Manny
Sistrunk and Bob Brown, a defensive
tackle with the world champion Green
Bay Packers teams of the 1960s.
CLEMMONS: UAPB Athletic Directordriv
ing force behind rejoining the SWAC.
UAPB, originally known as Branch
Normal College, competed in the SWAC
as Arkansas AM&N beginning in the
early 1940's. Upon leaving the SWAC in
1970, the school competed in the NAIA's
Arkansas Intercollegiate Conference for
three years before being thrown out of
the conference for fighting. They com
peted as NAIA independents before re
joining the AlC from 1983-87. They
have been NAIA independents since then.
In 1991, the school's football pro
gram was given the "death penalty" by
the NAIA for rules violations. That pre
vented UAPB from competing in foot
ball. The university decided not to field a
team in 1992. UAPB grad LeeHardman
took over the program in 1993 and led the
team to the NAIA finals in 1995.
Ironically, hard financial times led
to the school’s decision to leave the
SWAC. Whimper said administrators at
the time thought in-state travel in the
AIC would be more feasible and
managable than the cross states travel
required to compete in the SWAC. Eco
nomics is also at the root of their return.
"Games (football) against the
Gramblings and Jackson States gener
ate more funds," said Whimper noting
that the school's loyal fans are looking
forward to a football schedule that in
cludes all eight SWAC schools this year
and play in three classic games. UAPB
opens with Lane College in X\[tArkan-
BCSP Notes
T DON'T HOLD THAT TIGER: The Jackson State
University golf team is awaiting word on securing their second consecu
tive bid to the NCAA golf championship. Coach Eddie Payton was in
New York and unavailable for comment. The Tigers are not ranked in the
top five of their district but have put together a record worthy of NCAA
consideration. The top five in the district are invitted to the central Region
Championship along with one at-large team. The Tigers finished seventh
out of 20 teams in the Dr. Pepper Intercollegiate Championship in
Pottsboro, Texas with a three-round score of 906 (302 average). Southern
Methodist, the third-ranked team in the District finished first. JSU
finished fifth out of 15 entrants in the Border Olympic Golf Tournament
on March 22-23 with a score of 870 (290 average). Last year the Tigers
won seven tournaments and the SWAC championship en route to earning
the first ever berth for a black college in the NCAA Div. 1 championship.
They captured their seventh consecutive conference title this year but
have not posted as impressive a record or scoring average as last year's
team. Last year's squad had an impressive 297 stroke average.
T NOT MISSING IN ACTION: NBA fans had to notice the
play of black college products Darrell Armstrong and Lindsay Hunter
in the first round of the playoffs. Armstrong, a Fayetteville State hoops
product, was a key factor defending Miami's Tim Hardaway as his
Orlando Magic took the Heat to the limit in a five-game series. Hunter,
a starting guard for the Detroit Pistons out of Jackson State, scored 27
points as the Pistons defeated Atlanta in game three of their five game
series. Among other notable black college products making playoff
appearances were Charlottte's Anthony Mason (Tennessee State) and
New York's Charles Oakley (Vii^inia Union).