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Jan. 12, 2009 PRINCESS ANNE, Md. - After more than a month on the road, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) men’s and women’s basketball programs came home and swept Winston-Salem State University (WSSU) in double-header action and indoor track and field won a total of nine finals at the Coach O Collegiate Invitational. April McBride and Neal Pitt were named UMES Athletes of the Week for the period ending January 4. McBride, of the women's basketball team helped the Lady Hawks to a 1-1 week. She scored 16 points and grabbed a team-high-tying eight rebounds in a 68-58 win at Morgan State December 29. She was 6-of-18 from the floor and 4-for-5 from the foul line in UMES' first conference win of the season, adding two steals, one assist and one block in 34 minutes. McBride then notched her first double-double of the season in a 77-47 loss at Kent State on January 3. She had 11 points and 16 boards, nine on the offensive glass, while shooting 4-of-18 from the field. She also had four steals, two assists and two blocks in 28 minutes against the Golden Flashes. Pitt, of the men's basketball team, scored 18 points which tied for the game high in an 88-56 loss at Nebraska on January 3. He was 8-for-17 from the field including 1-of-7 from downtown against the Cornhuskers. Pitt also had three boards, one assist and one block in 33 minutes. INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD
Several UMES athletes performed well at the Coach O Collegiate Invitational at the William P. Hytche Athletic Center. The non-scoring meet featured collegiate teams from UMES, Coppin State, St. Paul's College and Tiffin University. On the women's side, Saisha Woodward and Joycelyn Wheeler went 1-2 in the shot put with marks of 13.74 and 13.62 meters, respectively. Lady Hawks' freshman Monique Hawkins took the 200-meter dash in a time of 25.83, while finishing in a tie for second in the 60 meters in 8.03. In the women's distance events, UMES took the top-four spots in the 800 as Celia Whyte, Cynthia Anais, Eunice Jones and Tamica Thomas completed the sweep. Whyte won the race in a time of 2:21.38. Merrecia James won the one-mile event in 5:13.15, over a minute faster than the competition. On the men's side of things, Jermol Dix picked up a win the 60-meter hurdles in 8.60, while Jamahl Strachan was sixth in 9.44. Freshman Damian Miles was victorious in the men's 200 in 22.14 and sophomore Corey Alexander won the 400 in 50.95. MEN’S BASKETBALL The Associated Press reported that Blake Griffin had 20 points and 16 rebounds to lead No. 6 Oklahoma to a 100-64 victory over UMES. Oklahoma led 18-15 midway through the first half before scoring 11 straight points. The Hawks (1-9) never got closer than 10 points after that, trailing 48-22 at halftime. Pitt led the Hawks with 18 points and four rebounds on 7-of-17 shooting. Chris Conner chipped in with 12, scoring in double figures for the second straight game. Four UMES players reached double figures and Pitt picked up his third double-double of the season as the Hawks survived a second-half charge from WSSU, 69-66. Pitt scored 19 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lead UMES to its first win over WSSU since the 1968-69 season, a 89-88 victory when the school was known as Maryland State. Freshman Jaime Boyer had a career-high 14 points, all in the first half, and Gary Lee tallied 11 points while Keishawn Mayes finished with 10. WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) announced that McBride and Amber Cook were named Defensive Player and Rookie of the Week respectively, for the period ending January 4. McBride averaged a double-double last week, 12 rebounds and 13.5 points, to help lead the Lady Hawks to a 1-1 mark. Cook, leading all bench players, posted seven points, four rebounds and two assists in UMES' non-conference win over Morgan State on December 30. Eastern Shore standout Casey Morton was also recognized by the MEAC as a top performer. The 2008 MEAC Rookie of the Year averaged 16.5 points last week, while totaling 11 rebounds, seven steals and four assists. In what proved to be an exciting contest between bitter rivals, Delaware State University (DSU) picked up a 59-57 MEAC win in the conference opener for both teams at Memorial Hall. McBride led the UMES offense with 15 points, including nine of 10 from the charity stripe, and had eight caroms while Speed added nine points and six boards. Morton also had eight rebounds. UMES got inspired play on defense from Tyche' Mozie and Cook, who posted seven points, both freshmen in their first conference contest. The UMES women's basketball team came home in style, posting their first home win of the season against WSSU 75-58. The Lady Hawks shot 87.5-percent from the free throw line in the first half of a matchup which, on average, saw a foul committed every 53 seconds. McBride netted her second double-double of the season, breaking her season record for points and finishing with game-highs of 22 points and 12 rebounds. The 6-0 junior spent 38 minutes on the court for the Lady Hawks and shot 14-of-18 from the free throw line. Tiffany Reid and Josephine McLane both finished with 19 points each. McLane hit 6-for-10 from 3-point range and Reid added four rebounds, two assists and two steals to the win. UPCOMING COMPETITIONS Both the men's and women's indoor track and field teams will be back in action in Annapolis, Md. on January 16 and 17 at the Navy Invitational. Both the men’s and women’s basketball programs face off against South Carolina State on January 12 at home in the William P. Hytche Athletic Center. The Lady Hawks tipoff at 5:30 p.m. with the men following at 7:30 p.m.
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