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VUU'S GILBERT WINS GAINES AWARD: Salisbury, NC (April 11, 2016) – The National Sports Media Association (NSMA) has named Virginia Union University women’s head basketball coach AnnMarie Gilbert and James Jones, Yale University head men’s basketball coach, as the 2015-16 Big House Gaines College Basketball Coaches of the Year. Gilbert & Jones will be recognized at the NSMA’s 57th Awards Ban- quet on June 20 in Salisbury, NC. "We are pleased to recognize Coach Jones and Coach Gilbert for the outstanding jobs they did this sea- son," NSMA executive director Dave Goren said. "Both of their teams had historic seasons and truly deserve this award." Gilbert finished her first season at Virginia Union with a 28-3 record. The Panthers won both the CIAA Northern Division title and the CIAA Tournament cham- pionship, before winning three games in the NCAA Di- vision II Tournament (Atlantic Region Champions) and making it all the way to the Elite Eight (national quarter- finals). The Gaines Awards are named for Winston-Salem State University head men’s basketball coach Clarence ‘Big House’ Gaines. During 47 seasons as WSSU's head coach, Gaines’s teams won 828 games, including the 1967 NCAA Division II national championship. FOR THE WEEK OF APRIL 12 - 18, 2016 © AZEEZ Communications, Inc. Vol. XXII, No. 37 NFL DRAFT JUST TWO WEEKS AWAY; SPRING CHAMPIONSHIPS GET UNDERWAY A STEAL?: NC Central defensive back Ryan Smith is a talent that some feel should be a late round pick in the NFL Draft. NFL Combine Photo NFL DRAFT FORECASTS ™ UNDER THE BANNER WHAT'S GOING ON IN AND AROUND BLACK COLLEGE SPORTS BCSP Notes Benedict sweeps SIAC tennis titles JONESBORO, Ga. – Benedict swept the 2016 Southern Intercol- legiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) Women's and Men's Tennis Cham- pionships Saturday afternoon at the Clayton County International Tennis Complex. The Tiger women defeated Tuskegee 5-1 and the top seeded Benedict men defeated Morehouse, 6-1 to take their second consecutive title. Both teams will represent the SIAC in the upcoming NCAA Division II playoffs. Benedict swept the women's doubles and held Tuskegee to just one win in singles after Reida North defeated Karla Flores 6-2, 6-4, and 3-6 in the No. 1 position. The Tigers got their final two wins in singles from Danielle Rios with set scores of 5-7, 6-3, and 6-4 over Navilla Paul at No. 3 to secure the tournament title. Benedict swept the top four men's singles and Brandon Sanders and Philippian Stamps gave Morehouse its only win with an 8-6 victory over Takudswa Muswere and Zibusiso Ndimande at No. 2 in doubles play. Rios was named the SIAC Women's Tennis Championship MVP and Nathaniel Pinkney was MVP for the men. Gary Taylor was selected as the Most Outstanding Coach. WOMEN'S ALL-TOURNAMENT SINGLES\ Reicia North, TUS Navilla Paul, TUS Tori Pradier, CAU Daniella Rios, BEN Danyelle Copeland, BEN Esther Zelaya, BEN WOMEN'S ALL-TOURNAMENT DOUBLES\ Reicia North/Monica Thomas, TUS Danielle Rios/Danyelle Copeland, BEN Karla Flores/Esther Zelaya, BEN MEN'S MVP COACH OF THE YEAR Nathaniel Pinkney, BEN Gary Taylor, BEN MEN'S ALL-TOURNAMENT SINGLES Everette Reese, MHC Terrell Green, MHC Yonuwaba Pumpa, STL Takudswa Muswere, BEN Zibusiso Ndimande, BEN Nathaniel Pinkney, BEN MEN'S ALL-TOURNAMENT DOUBLES Brandon Sanders/Philippian Stamps, MHC Nathaniel Pinkey/Quentin Eloise, MHC Justin Payton/Juan Hernandez, MHC Gilbert SIAC SOUTHERN INTERCOLLIGIATE ATHLETIC CONFERENCE CONF ALL EAST W L W L Albany State 9 3 11 29 Claflin 10 5 17 23 Paine 9 5 20 16 Benedict 6 6 22 11 Morehouse 4 11 16 21 Clark Atlanta 3 11 7 28 WEST Spring HIll 13 2 22 14 Miles 12 3 25 12 Stillman 10 5 16 21 Kentucky State 6 10 11 23 Tuskegee 5 7 9 20 LeMoyne-Owen 6 11 6 29 Lane 0 15 1 29 PLAYERS OF THE WEEK PLAYER Aaron Williams, Sr., 1B/DH, MILES - Had two 3-hit games in 3-1 week. Hit .642 (9-of-14) with 2 doubles, 5 runs and a RBI. Nick Vitale, 6-2, Sr., CF, STILLMAN - In 4-0 week, hit 7-of-15 (.467) with 7 runs, 2 RBI, 7 runs. PITCHER Dakota Todd, Jr., RHP, STILLMAN - Pitched complete game vs. KSU win on earned runs giving up six hits with three Ks. CENTRAL INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION CIAA SWAC SOUTHWESTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE DIV ALL EASTERN W L W L Alabama State 15 0 23 12 Jackson State 6 6 17 15 Alcorn State 6 6 7 20 Alabama A&M 3 8 6 28 Miss. Valley State 2 12 4 24 WESTERN Grambling State 11 4 13 16 Arkansas Pine Bluff 8 4 11 19 Texas Southern 9 6 15 15 Prairie View 4 10 9 19 Southern 3 11 8 21 PLAYERS OF THE WEEK HITTER Dondrayas Harris, Jr., OF., SOUTHERN - Hit .769 (10-of-13) with 5 RBI in four games. Had two doubles, two triples, 1 HR for 19 total bases. Hit for cycle vs. GSU. PITCHER Charles Philpott, Jr., RHP, PRAIRIE VIEW A&M - Struck out 12 in 8 innings allowed 2 hits and walked four. Improved to 1-4 on the season. MID EASTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE MEAC CONF ALL NORTHERN W L W L Norfolk State 7 4 13 15 Delaware State 6 5 6 24 Coppin State 6 6 8 22 Maryland-E. Shore 4 8 9 22 SOUTHERN Florida A&M 11 1 21 10 Bethune-Cookman 7 5 14 19 NC Central 5 7 17 18 Savannah State 4 8 9 24 NC A&T 3 9 8 27 PLAYERS OF THE WEEK PLAYER Kyle Vaas, Sr., DH, NSU - Went 4-for-7 (.571) with two doubles, one triple, four RBI, two runs scored in two wins. Nathan Bond, Sr., OF, B-CU - Hit .647 (11- for-17) in four games vs. Sav. State. Belted 2-run HR. PITCHER Matt Outman, Jr., P, NSU - Threw a complete game allowing three hits vs. DelState. Fanned seven in shutout win. ROOKIE Danny Rodriguez, Jr., RHP, B-CU - Went 8-for-17 with 2 RBI, 3 runs. CONF ALL W L W L Chowan 11 4 17 20 Winston-Salem State 5 3 18 17 St. Augustine's 7 5 12 27 Virginia State 3 8 4 26 Lincoln 1 7 5 22 PLAYERS OF THE WEEK OFFENSE NA. PITCHER NA DEFENSE NA COACH NA 2 0 1 6 B L A C K C O L L E G E B A S E B A L L (Results, Standings and Weekly Honors) MID EASTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE MEAC CONF ALL NORTHERN W L W L Delaware State 10 2 17 16 Norfolk State 5 2 11 17 Morgan State 5 3 10 21 Hampton 4 5 12 22 Maryland-E. Shore 2 5 8 19 Coppin State 2 7 2 22 Howard 1 5 5 23 SOUTHERN Florida A&M 9 0 21 20 Savannah State 6 0 16 17 Bethune-Cookman 6 3 11 26 NC A&T 2 7 13 23 S. C. State 1 5 4 17 NC Central 0 9 3 34 PLAYERS OF THE WEEK PLAYER Brianna Harris, So., SS, SAV. ST. - Hit .615 in three wins over NCCU. Had 8 hits, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 8 runs scored and 5 RBI. Added 2 steals. PITCHER Kenya Pereira, Jr., P, FAMU - Had 3.25 ERA in three games.Allowed two runs in 7.0 innings and had 9 Ks in win over NC A&T. ROOKIE Cortni Jones, Fr., 3B, SAV. ST. - Went 6-for- 12 in three wins over NCCU with one run and two doubles. SWAC SOUTHWESTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE DIV ALL EASTERN W L W L Alabama State 9 0 18 19 Alcorn State 8 4 12 21 Miss. Valley State 7 5 11 21 Alabama A&M 5 7 7 26 Jackson State 3 5 6 20 WESTERN Texas Southern 10 2 17 13 Prairie View 6 6 9 18 Arkansas Pine Bluff 3 9 12 28 Southern 1 7 4 15 Grambling State 1 8 4 23 PLAYERS OF THE WEEK HITTER Tonney Hawkins, So., OF., UAPB - In five games, hit .571 (8-for-14) with 2 RBI, 1 triple and two runs scored. Had three multi-hit games. PITCHER Laurie Rodriguez, So, P, TEXAS SOUTHERN - In three appearances, posted 2-1 record in 14.1 innings, giving up seven hits, 4 runs, striking out 15 with ERA of 1.46. Leads conference in fewest hits per start (6.79), runs per game (3.55) and batting average against (.254). CENTRAL INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION CIAA DIV CONFALL NORTH W L W L W L Chowan 2 0 8 0 19 12 Virginia State 2 1 7 2 9 13 VIrginia Union 5 3 8 6 8 9 Bowie State 1 1 5 3 9 17 Lincoln 0 0 0 6 0 6 Elizabeth City State 0 5 2 9 3 16 SOUTH J. C. Smith 5 1 8 4 9 11 Winston-Salem State 3 1 8 2 21 18 Shaw 3 1 4 6 9 24 Fayetteville State 1 1 5 3 13 17 St. Augustine's 2 2 4 6 5 19 Livingstone 0 8 1 13 5 18 PLAYERS OF THE WEEK OFFENSIVE NA DEFENSIVE NA PITCHER NA COACH NA SIAC SOUTHERN INTERCOLLIGIATE ATHLETIC CONFERENCE CONF ALL EAST W L W L Spring HIll 20 0 33 14 Albany State 9 2 11 20 Claflin 14 5 22 17 Tuskegee 8 4 10 27 Miles 7 4 7 6 Stillman 12 7 12 10 Benedict 5 3 5 5 Kentucky State 6 5 7 6 Lane 7 13 15 15 Clark Atlanta 4 15 7 26 Fort Valley State 2 15 2 25 LeMoyne-Owen 2 17 2 18 Paine 1 12 1 13 PLAYERS OF THE WEEK PLAYER & PITCHER Kaylin FInch, Fr., P/SS, TUS - Hit .733 (11-for-15) in four games with five runs, five RBI, one double and two HRs. Also finised the week 2-1 on mound with three complete games, a 3.00 ERA allowing 20 hits in 21 innings, giving up 13 runs, 7 earned with 16 Ks, 11 in two conference games. 2 0 1 6 B L A C K C O L L E G E S O F T B A L L (Results, Standings and Weekly Honors) PLAYER / POS / SCHOOL / SIZE RATED AT THE POSITION PROJECTED Johnta Hebert, RB, Prairie View - 5-9, 195 55th Free Agent Darryan Ragsdale, RB, Alcorn State - 5-10, 187 69th Free Agent Anthony Jordan, RB, Bethune-Cookman - 5-11, 212 72nd Free Agent John Gibbs Jr., QB, Alcorn State - 6-5, 226 28th Free Agent Antonio Hamilton, FS, SC State - 6-0, 192 36th Free Agent Akil Blount, ILB, Florida A&M - 6-2, 238 25th Free Agent Cory Carter, P,Texas Southern 5-9, 200 9th Free Agent Torian White, OT, Hampton - 6-6, 318 35th Free Agent ShaqAnthony, OG, Tennessee State - 6-4, 290 40th Free Agent Deon King, OLB, Norfolk State - 6-2, 218 49th Free Agent Gabe Terry, OLB, Tennessee State - 6-2, 225 65th Free Agent Willie Quinn, WR, Southern - 5-5, 155 102nd Free Agent Dennis Norfleet, WR, Tuskegee - 5-6, 159 147th Free Agent CIAA GOLF (M) April 14-16 Charlotte, NC Larkhaven Golf Club OUTDOOR TRACK AND FIELD (M & W) April 22-23 Charlotte, NC J. C. Smith University BASEBALL April 28-30 Cary, NC USA Baseball Training Complex SOFTBALL April 28-30 Raleigh, NC Walnut Creek Complex TENNIS (M & W) April 28-30 Raleigh, NC Millbrook Exchange Tennis Center MEAC GOLF (M) April 21-23 Savannah, GA Crosswinds Golf Club TENNIS (M & W) April 21-23 Norfolk, VA Folks-Stevens Tennis Center OUTDOOR TRACK AND FIELD (M & W) May 5-7 Greensboro, NC NC A&T State University BASEBALL May 19-22 Salisbury, MD Perdue Stadium SOFTBALL May 12-14 Orm. Beach, FL Ormond Beach Sports Complex SIAC OUTDOOR TRACK AND FIELD (M & W) April 14-16 Rock Hill, SC Winthrop Univ. - Belk Track Cmplx. GOLF (M) April 18-20 Tucker, GA Heritage Golf Links SOFTBALL April 28-30 Hampton, GA Lovejoy Softball Complex BASEBALL April 28-May 1 Ozark, AL Eagle Stadium SWAC TENNIS (M & W) April 15-17 New Orleans, LA City Park Tennis Center GOLF (W) April 18-19 Alexanderia, LA Links on the Bayou Golf Club GOLF (M) April 18-20 Alexandria, LA Oak WIng Golf Club OUTDOOR TRACK AND FIELD (M & W) May 6-8 Huntsville, AL Louis Crews Stadium SOFTBALL May 11-14 Irondale, AL Shea Brothers Softball Complex BASEBALL May 18-22 New Orleans, LA Wesley Barrow Stadium SPRING CHAMPIONSHIPS SCHEDULE STAT CORNER WHO ARE THE BEST PERFORMERS IN BLACK COLLEGE SPORTS Draftables LUT WILLIAMS BCSP Editor There appear to be only two football players from the black college ranks – both from South Carolina State – surely to be taken in the upcom- ing April 28-30, 2016 NFL Draft in Chicago. Bulldogs' defensive tackle Javon Hargrave and tight end Temarrick Hemingway are both rated just inside or outside the top ten at their re- spective positions, a good grade for getting into the seven-round draft set for the three-day confab at the Auditorium Theater. This will be the 81st NFL draft of eligible players. Hargrave, Hemingway and North Carolina Central defensive back Ryan Smith were the three black college players among the 332 invited to February's Combine and they continue as the three most likely to go two weeks from now in the draft. Hargrave (6-1, 309), a two-time MEAC de- fensive player of the year and FCS all-American, has been getting rave reviews since his season ended in November. He first had a standout performance in prac- tices leading up to January's East/West Shrine Game in Tampa, Florida. He dominated the one- on-one drills and was rated by some to have been the best player there showing an excellent combi- nation of quickness and power. That would not be surprising to MEAC coaches and fans who watched him dominate play at the line of scrimmage for the last two years. He racked up 29.5 sacks over that span while posting 45.5 tackles for losses. He continued with an impressive performance at the Combine where he ran 4.93 in the 40-yard dash, had 29 repetitions on the 225-pound bench press, had a 34.5-inch vertical jump and 109-inch (9'1") broad jump. Representatives from 23 NFL teams -- in- cluding defensive line coaches from the Cincin- nati Bengals, Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Steelers and Tennessee Titans -- descended on Or- angeburg, S. C. for South Caro- lina State's pro day on March 30, primarily to get another close-up look at Hargrave. Chad Reuter, a draft analyst at NFL.com, rates Hargrave the fifth most explosive player in the entire draft. He is rated well inside the top 100 prospects overall by both CBS Sports.com's NFLDraftScout.com (83rd up from 93rd) and Draftek, and is rated tenth by Draftek as a 4-3 defensive tackle and 11th by NFL DraftScout.com. Hargrave is expected to be taken by the third round though both indicate he is rising up draft boards. Hargrave's teammate Hemingway (6-4, 241), an MEAC first teamer, has also been put- ting up eye-opening performances and getting great reviews. He had three best marks for tight ends at the Combine. His 40 time of 4.71 seconds, his 6.88 seconds in the 3-cone drill and 11.5 seconds in the 60-yard shuttle topped all oth- ers at the position. Scouts like his quickness off the ball and long, easy gait and believe he will be a nightmare matchup for linebackers at the next level and could even play at wide receiver. Because of his size, they are con- cerned about his blocking ability on the line. In a draft not thought to be full of talent at tight end, Draftek has him as the ninth best at the position while NFL DraftScout.com has him one better at eighth. His projection as the 214th best prospect in the draft by Draft- ek translates to a sixth-round selection. NFL DraftScout.com projects him to the fifth round. Smith ran a sub-4-5 time at the Combine (4.47) while jumping 36 inches in the vertical jump and 122 inches (10'1") in the broad jump. He is rated the 35th and 39th cornerback by the two services but an interview on NFL DraftS- cout.com says he is a top 100 prospect and will be a steal for whoever drafts or signs him. DRAFT MATES?: South Carolina State teammates, defensive tackle Javon Hargrave (l.) and tight end Temarrick Hemingway (r.), are expected to be the first two black college players taken in the April 28-30 NFL Draft. The Best of the Rest From NFL DraftScout.com
