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Feb. 10, 2009 PRINCESS ANNE, Md. - Basketball is battling through the heart of their conference schedule at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) as the No. 4 ranked women’s bowling team continues to shine in the lanes. Junior April McBride and freshman Ahkeem Gauntlett earned UMES Athlete of the Week honors for the period ending February 1, 2009. McBride had a stellar week, scoring her 1,000th career point in a win over Morgan State. In that game she also scored a career high 29 points grabbing 11 rebounds. Her efforts were rewarded with a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Player of the Week accolade. The prior game she posted more career highs with 11 rebounds and seven blocks against Bethune-Cookman. Gauntlett posted the top mark in the 200-meter dash and ran the third leg on the 4x400-meter relay team that was third in their event at the Penn State National Invitational January 30-31 at the Horace Ashenfelter III Indoor Track. He posted a time of 21.80 in the 200-meter race, just missing the provisional standard and helping the relay team to a time of 3:14.80. MEN’S BASKETBALL Coppin State University (CSU) senior guard Tywain McKee scored 22 points and grabbed five rebounds leading the Eagles to their sixth consecutive win, 65-48, over UMES at the William P. Hytche Athletic Center. Junior Neal Pitt had his sixth double-double of the season, with 22 points and 12 boards for the Hawks, who dropped their third straight at home Freshman Keishawn Mayes, coming off the bench for the first time this season, also had a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds. Four UMES players scored double figures led by Chris Conner's game-high 24, but the Hawks fell to Longwood, 98-86, on the road. Marc Davis, Neal Pitt and Gary Lee tallied 15, 13 and 10 points, respectively, for UMES which dropped its first road game in three outings despite shooting a season-high 52.3 percent. Howard's Eugene Myatt scored a game-high 22 to lead the Bison past UMES, 72-65, at Burr Gymnasium in Washington, D.C. Pitt picked up his eighth double-double of the season with 17 points and a game and career-high 18 rebounds for the Hawks, who dropped their fourth consecutive game and fell to 6-16 and 2-7 in MEAC play. Mayes and Lee came off the bench for 12 points apiece. Tyler Hines chipped in with eight points and eight rebounds. WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Two made free throws with four seconds on the clock pushed the CSU women's basketball team over the UMES 71-69. The loss gives the Lady Hawks a 5-3 record in the MEAC and stops their second longest winning streak under Head Coach Fred Batchelor. McBride continued her dominating play. The 6-0 junior fouled out of competition, but not before recording her seventh double-double of the season with a team-high 20 points and game-high 10 rebounds. Freshman Adobi Agbasi finished the game with a career-high 13 points, shooting a perfect 4-for-4 from the floor and 83-percent from the free throw line. Other Lady Hawks in double digits were Josephine McLane and Casey Morton. McLane tied Agbasi with 13 points and Morton finished with 12 adding a game-high six assists to the effort. It was a big week for McBride. After scoring her 1,000th point, she was named MEAC Athlete of the Week. McBride had needed just six points to hit the grand milestone going into the Lady Hawks game against MEAC rival Morgan State. She finished the contest with a career-high 29 points and 11 rebounds to record her sixth double-double of the season in the win. She was also named the Heritage Sports Radio Network (HSRN) National Player of the Week. McBride scored 12 of her game-high 20 points from the free throw line, as the Lady Hawks outlasted Howard University 54-49. UMES (10-10) is now 6-3 in the MEAC after topping the Lady Bison. This is the fourth straight game McBride has scored 20 or more points and her fifth straight double-double as she added a game-high 13 rebounds to the day. Tiffany Reid was the only other Lady Hawk in double digits with 10 points. WOMEN’S BOWLING It is after all cold and flu season. That season has hit the Lady Hawks of UMES pretty hard, in fact, one bowler missed a whole day on the lanes this past weekend due to illness while others struggled. Still the defending National Champions didn't go down without a fight. They finished sixth in the Kutztown Invitational and posted a 7-4 record, bettering their overall mark to 73-24. Individually they posted six games over 200. To no surprise, Maria Rodriguez remained hot. After averaging over 240 at last week's Lady Bulldog Invitational, she posted a 200.8 average on tougher lane conditions. She recorded a 209, 235 and 208 on the day and a pin fall of 1,205. She was the second highest rolling bowler at the event and earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team. Paula Vilas posted a 237, a career high and two games of 198, just short of that esteemed 200 mark. Martha Perez rolled a 204 and a 205 and was 23rd overall with a 181.17 average. On day two UMES came out strong in Baker games, posting wins over North Carolina Central (748-719), #19 St. Francis College (635-611) and Hampton (770-693). They then advanced to the placing round where they topped Medaille four games to one before falling again to #14 Morgan State four games to two for sixth place. Coming off of a stunning performance at the Lady Bulldog Classic where she took home tournament MVP honors, Rodriguez was named the MEAC Bowling Athlete of the Week for the second straight week. This is the third time Rodriguez has earned the award this season and the second straight. The 2008 All-American also rolled a 235 against the #16 Adelphi. All in all she tallied three team games with 200 or better. Rodriguez's play, along with the rest of the Hawks', earned them a 7-4 mark to improve UMES to 74-24 on the season. INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD
Freshman sprinter Ahkeem Gauntlett posted the top mark in the 200-meter dash and was the third leg in the 4x400-meter relay that took third at the Penn State National Invitational Jan. 30-31 at the Horace Ashenfelter III Indoor Track. Gauntlett won the 200 in 21.80, just missing the NCAA provisional standard, and helped the relay team to a time of 3:14.80. Thomas Keane-Dawes, Allodin Fothergill and Paul Jones-Burden comprised the rest of the Hawks' team in the event. The Hawks and Lady Hawks had a total of six other top-10 finishes for the meet. Senior Merrecia James was fourth in the women's 1 Mile in 5:05.04. Jones-Burden crossed sixth in the 400-meter dash invitational in 48.68, while Keane-Dawes came in eighth in the 400 in 49.97. Cynthia Anais took ninth in the women's 800 meters in 2:15.23. James Moore and Charles Elmer had solid showings in a pair of field events. Moore was eighth in the high jump with a mark of 2.01 meters. Elmer was ninth in the long jump with a jump of 7.01 meters. UPCOMING COMPETITIONS UMES Basketball is celebrating Homecoming on February 14, 2009 in the William P. Hytche Athletic Center against MEAC rival North Carolina A&T. Festivities begin at 2 p.m. Lady Hawk bowling continues competition at Morgan State University on February 14, 2009. Indoor track and field will be competing in the MEAC Championships on February 14, 2009. |
