Feb. 3, 2006
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The Women's Game
The third-place UMES Lady Hawks (7-10, 5-4 MEAC) begin the second half of the conference season with a match-up against the Hampton Lady Pirates (3-15, 3-6) Saturday at the Hytche Center. The Lady Hawks, winners of five of seven before a 21-point loss to first-place Coppin State Monday, are beginning a stretch of playing seven of their next eight games at home.
UMES continues to play without two regular starters due to injury: senior co-captain Jamila Griffith and junior Qiana Cheatham. Griffith has missed eight straight while Cheatham, out for the season, has missed the past seven. Hampton, picked to finish second in the conference preseason poll, has struggled to a 3-15 (3-6 MEAC) record. When the Lady Pirates fell to UMES 68-55 Jan. 7 in Virginia, it was the first time in school history the Lady Hawks had won at Hampton.
Injury Stricken
The Lady Hawks have been hit hard by the injury bug this season, with five players having missed time the past month.
Most notable have been the losses of forwards Jamila Griffith and Qiana Cheatham, two regular starters for UMES. Griffith, the team's leading rebounder, sustained internal injuries during the team's loss to Cent. Conn. St. Dec. 30, and is expected to miss at least one more week. Cheatham, fourth on the team in scoring, suffered a lower left leg fracture in practice Jan. 6. and will miss the remainder of the season.
Junior Natalia Benton missed the game 1.21 at FAMU with a right Achilles tendon injury, but has since returned. Forward Almalika Lemon missed five games with a right knee injury, but was able to return 1.21. Red-shirt freshman Alicia Loxen sustained multiple left meniscus tears in the same knee she injured last season, and is out for the rest of this season.
News and Notes
Toni Kennedy is having a terrific senior season. The former walk-on is second in the conference in scoring (16.1 ppg), first in three-pointers made/game (3.4, also second in the nation as of 1.30) and 3rd in steals/game (2.9). Kennedy won consecutive MEAC Player of the Week awards for the weeks ending Dec. 18 + 25...
Freshman Tiffany Reid is averaging 9.1 ppg (73 pts) and 6.6 rpg (53 rebs) in her eight starts filling in for the injured Jamila Griffith, during which time she has won two MEAC Rookie of the Week awards. Reid won that award three times in a four-week span (the weeks ending Dec. 25, Jan. 8 and Jan. 15)...
Sophomore Kristi Veltkamp has lived up to her billing as a Preseason MEAC First Team selection. She is currently second on the team in scoring and second in rebounding (7th MEAC). Veltkamp leads the conference in blocked shots (UMES leads the MEAC with 3.8 blocks/gm), and is third in field goal pct (50%)...
The Lady Hawks are averaging 59 ppg (475 pts) in the eight games since Jamila Griffith's injury (compared to 72 ppg in nine games beforehand). Overall, UMES is averaging 66 ppg (second in the MEAC). The Lady Hawks lead the conference assists/game (13.2) and asst/turnover ratio (0.65/1), are second in three-pointers/game (6.2) and fourth in FG pct. (38%) and scoring margin (-1.5)...
Free-throw shooting has hurt the Lady Hawks this season. UMES is last (11th/11) in the MEAC in free throw percentage (57%)...
When UMES beat Hampton Jan. 7, it was the first road victory (and only the fifth total) against the Lady Pirates in school history.
The Lady Hawks 10-8 conference record last season gave the team its first winning MEAC season since 1997-'98 (12-6), a span of seven seasons...
LADY HAWKS AT A GLANCE
Probable Starters
Player Pos. Ht. Cl. PPG RPG
5 Rachael Goodwin G 5'6 Sr. 4.6 3.6
Senior from Memphis, Tn...Played 1 1/2 seasons (2002-03, part of 2003-04) at UMES before sitting out last season, re-joined squad this summer...Played in a total of 35 games prior to `05-'06 (5.7 ppg career).
33 Toni Kennedy G 5'6 Sr. 16.1 2.9
Senior from Baltimore, Md. led team in scoring last season (10.0 ppg) after walking onto team...JUCO transfer from Labette C.C. (Parsons, Ks., `02-'03) and Grayson C.C. (Denison, Tx., `03-'04)...All-time leading scorer at Dunbar HS (1,128 pts), won three consecutive state championships (`00-'02).
15 Tiffany Reid F 5'9 Fr. 7.1 5.4
Freshman from Philadelphia, played at National Christian Academy (Ft. Washington, Md.) after starring at Strawberry Mansion HS in the Philly Public League...Made first-team all-Public League two consecutive seasons.
3 Kristi Veltkamp F/C 6'3 So. 13.0 6.1
Voted to Preseason All-MEAC First-Team...Sophomore from Hudsonville, Mi. finished second on the team in scoring (8.8 ppg) and rebounding (4.5 rpg) her freshman season...Won State and National Homeschool championships in 2003 for Lansing Homeschool (with teammate Alicia Loxen).
25 Daynese Stowe C 6'2 Sr. 2.9 2.6
Senior from Philadelphia missed three games (12/6- 12/17) with a lower back injury...2004 transfer from Florida C.C. (Jacksonville, Fl.)...Played in 26 games last season, averaged 4.0 ppg and 3.3 rpg.
Reserves
Player Pos. Ht. Cl. PPG RPG
11 DeVaughn Hailey G 5'5 Fr. 6.3 3.2
Freshman from Camden, NJ...Played at Woodrow Wilson HS, where she started for four seasons...Helped team win the South Jersey championship and the New Jersey Group III Tournament of Champions Final in 2005.
12 Jasmine Speed F 5'10 Fr. 0.4 0.4
Freshman from Chesterfield, Mi....Played at Anchor Bay HS.
*21 Qiana Cheatham F 5'10 Jr. 8.5 3.4
Junior from Baltimore, Md. out for remainder of season with lower left leg fracture suffered in practice Jan. 6...Started final six games of last season (11.2 ppg).
22 Adrienne Brown G 5'5 Fr. 0.6 0.2
Walk-on from Springdale, Md....Attended prep school at The Patterson School (Lenoir, NC) in 04-05...Played at Charles H. Flowers HS (Landover).
23 Natalia Benton F/C 6'3 Jr. 3.1 4.0
JUCO transfer from Monroe C.C. (Rochester, NY) where she won consecutive Division II NJCAA National Championships (`04, `05) and was named to the All-Tournament Team last season...Originally from Brooklyn, NY.
*24 Alicia Loxen G 5'6 Fr. 0.0 0.0
Red-shirt freshman from Owosso, Mi. out for rest of season with multiple meniscus tears in left knee (missed all of last season with a torn left ACL).
32 Almalika Lemon F 6'1 Jr. 1.0 1.5
JUCO transfer missed five games (12/30- 1/16) with a right knee injury...Played at Frank Phillips College (Borger, Tx., `03-'04) and NE Oklahoma A&M (Miami, Ok., `02-'03)...Originally from Manhattan, NY.
*35 Jamila Griffith F 6'0 Sr. 12.0 3.1
Currently out with internal injuries suffered Dec. 30 against CCSU...Voted to Preseason All-MEAC Second-Team...Led team in rebounding last season (7.6 rpg), was third in scoring (8.3 ppg)...2003 transfer from Tallahassee C.C. (Tallahassee, Fl.), originally from Barbados (West Indies).
50 Brittany Adkins F 6'1 So. 2.7 3.4
Sophomore from Millsboro, De., played in 26 games her freshman season...Played at Sussex Tech. HS where she made first-team all-state senior year.
*Currently Inactive due to injury
The Men's Game
The UMES men's basketball team (5-14, 2-7) begins the second half of the conference season with a match-up against the third-place Hampton Pirates (8-9, 6-3) Saturday at the Hytche Center. The Hawks, losers of six out of seven coming in including a 26-point decision at Coppin St. Monday, are beginning a stretch in which they will play six of their next seven games at home.
UMES, featuring nine freshman on its roster, has more than doubled its entire win total from the 2004-'05 season (2-26). The Pirates, led by George Wash. transfer Jaz Cowan, have won seven of their last nine following a 1-7 (0-1 MEAC) start to the season. Hampton beat the Hawks 73-64 in Virginia Jan. 7 led by 19 points and nine rebounds from Cowan.
Starting Slowly
The 2005-'06 Hawks have been plagued by slow starts this season. In 15 of the team's 19 games, UMES has fallen behind by at least seven points in the first 12 minutes (excluding 11.18-UMBC, 12.3-Morehead St., 1.23-B-CC and 1.28-Morgan). In the first 12 minutes of those 15 contests, the Hawks' average largest deficit is 13 points (192).
By in large, UMES has then out-played its opponent over the final 28 minutes. In nine of the aforementioned 15 games, the Hawks outscored their opponent after the first 12 minutes (by an average of eight points following the largest deficit).
Three times this season UMES has fallen behind by double-digits prior to scoring a point- the Hawks trailed
14-0 at Rutgers, 17-0 at Norfolk St. and 15-0 vs. Del. St.
News and Notes
UMES has been led on offense recently by a three-pronged attack of freshman guards: Jesse Brooks, Ed Tyson and Troy Jackson. All three have scored in double figures in four of the last five games...
Jackson is averaging 18.1 ppg the last eight games (145 pts), including a career-high 33-point outburst at Morgan St. 1.28. He has twice been named MEAC Rookie of the Week (the weeks ending Jan. 8 + Jan. 29), is scoring a team-high 17.0 ppg in MEAC contests...
Tyson is averaging 13.1 ppg the last ten contests (131 total pts). Twice during that span, he was named MEAC Rookie of the Week (the weeks ending Dec. 18 + 25)...
Brooks has already become the top distributor in the conference. He leads the MEAC in apg (5.3), asst/to ratio (1.79/1) and is second in minutes/game. He is averaging 13.2 ppg the past five (66 pts)...
Senior Tim Parham has lived up to his billing as a Preseason MEAC Second Team selection. He leads the conference in rebounding, is 8th in scoring and 3rd in FG pct, and was named MEAC Player of the Week (week ending Dec. 25). Parham has recorded eight double-doubles in 19 games (he led the MEAC with 11 in `04-'05)...
The Hawks are third in the MEAC in scoring (65 ppg), but 10th/11 in points allowed (76 ppg). UMES is shooting only 59% from the foul line (10th/11 in MEAC), and 39% on field goals (10th/11)...
Sophomore Ryan Leak suffered a torn ACL, MCL and medial meniscus in his left knee at Howard Dec. 10, and is out for the season...
When UMES improved to 2-5 on Dec. 3, it became the first time in four seasons that the squad picked up its second win before its 14th game. The Hawks had started three consecutive seasons at 1-12...
UMES HAWKS AT A GLANCE
Probable Starters
Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG
10 Jesse Brooks G 6'1 170 Fr. 8.1 3.4
Freshman from Severn, Md...Played last season at Notre Dame Prep School (Fitchburg, Ma.)...Played at Archbishop Spalding HS, where he finished 2nd all-time in assists and was a teammate of current UCONN star Rudy Gay.
5 Ed Tyson G 6'3 205 Fr. 11.1 3.1
Freshman from Baltimore, Md...Played at Walbrook HS where he won the 2005 Maryland class 4A state championship and was ranked amongst the top guards in the state...Nicknamed and commonly referred to as "Butz."
15 Troy Jackson G 6'3 175 Fr. 11.1 2.7
Freshman from Wilkes Barre, PA...Played at Laurinburg Prep School (Laurinburg, NC) in 2004-05, and before that at Scranton HS (Scranton, Pa.).
44 Antonio McMillion F 6'5 210 Jr. 10.3 4.3
JUCO transfer from Colby C.C. (Colby, Ks.) where he averaged 15.6 ppg last season...Attended Central Connecticut St. (CCSU) from 2002-2004, but missed `02-'03 with eye injury and played only 7 games in `03-'04...Played at Randallstown HS where he won the Maryland class 3A state championship in 2002 (senior season) and was named Third-Team All-State.
42 Tim Parham F/C 6'9 240 Sr. 14.1 9.7
Voted to Preseason All-MEAC Second-Team...Led MEAC in rebounding (8.6 rpg) and double-doubles (11) last season...All 11 of those double-doubles came in last 19 games (0 in prior 34 career games)...Announced eligibility for 2005 NBA Draft last April before withdrawing to return for senior season...Now in his third season playing at UMES...2003 transfer from Ellsworth C.C. (Iowa Falls, Ia.) where he played one season (2001-'02).
Reserves
Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG
1 Qavotstaraj Waddell C 6'11 240 Fr. 4.1 5.1
Red-shirt freshman from Norfolk, Va., sat out last season to complete year in residence...Named preseason MEAC Top Newcomer by Street & Smith's College Basketball...Played at Coastal Christian Academy HS (Virginia Beach) where he teamed with NY Knicks' center Jackie Butler.
*3 Dorian Pierce G 6'0 170 Fr. 0.9 0.8
Freshman from Jackson, Mi., academically ineligible as of January 30.
13 Art Valentine F 6'7 215 Jr. 1.0 1.1
JUCO transfer from Fulton-Montgomery C.C. (Johnstown, NY), where he averaged 16 ppg over his 2 seasons...Originally from Harlem, NY.
20 Terrell Harris G 6'1 175 Sr. 2.4 0.7
Walk-on from Philadelphia played in final 5 games of last season... Played baseball for UMES in 2004, pitched in 20 games (0-1, 9.89 ERA).
22 Shaun Warrick G 6'0 150 Fr. 0.5 0.5
Freshman walk-on from Philadelphia, played at Lutheran HS.
23 Hagay Barav G 6'3 195 Fr. 3.6 0.7
Freshman from Hertzeliya, Israel was activated after missing the first 11 games of season with a left MCL sprain...Served in Israeli Army three years.
24 C.J. Prince G 6'3 200 Fr. 0.0 1.0
Freshman walk-on from Teaneck, NJ, played at Teaneck HS.
30 Tal Cohen F/C 6'8 230 So. 0.3 0.6
Played in 27 games last season...Sophomore from Hadera, Israel, played on the Israeli Junior National Team while in the Israeli Army for three years.
*32 Ryan Leak F 6'4 185 So. 3.0 2.0
Out for remainder of season with torn ACL, MCL and medial meniscus suffered 12.10 at Howard...Played in 27 games last season, averaged 5.7 ppg.
45 Brandon Moore F 6'9 195 Fr. 0.0 0.8
Walk-on red-shirt freshman from Baltimore, Md. (Southern HS)...Sat out last season to complete year in residence.
*Currently inactive due to injury
UMES Hawks (5-14, 2-7 MEAC)
2005-06 Schedule:
Previous Games
Date Game Result
11/10 Davis & Elkins. (Ex) W 82-68
11/14 ^at #20 Iowa L 41-86
11/15 ^v. Utah Valley St. W 75-72 (OT)
11/18 at UMBC L 65-75
11/19 at St. John's L 40-77
11/25 Nicholls St. L 69-71
12/1 at Marshall L 56-66
12/3 at Morehead St. W 65-59
12/7 at Rutgers L 50-92
12/10 at Howard* L 68-79
12/17 at #15 George Wash. L 72-98
12/20 at Brown W 59-57
1/4 N.C. A&T* W 77-75 (OT)
1/7 at Hampton* L 64-73
1/9 at Norfolk State* L 62-74
1/16 Delaware State* L 67-70
1/21 at Fla. A&M* L 92-96 (OT)
1/23 at Beth-Cook.* L 82-86
1/28 at Morgan St.* W 76-67
1/30 at Coppin St.* L 53-79
Upcoming Games
Date Game Result
2/4 Hampton* 4:00 pm
2/6 Norfolk St.* 7:30 pm
2/13 at Delaware St* 7:30 pm
2/18 Florida A&M* 4:00 pm
2/20 Beth.-Cookman* 7:30 pm
2/25 Morgan State* 4:00 pm
2/27 Coppin State* 7:30 pm
3/1 at S. Carolina St* 7:30 pm
3/4 Howard* 4:00 pm
3/6-11 MEAC Tourney TBA
*denotes MEAC conference game
^at Guardian's Classic (Iowa City)
Larry Lessett- Head Coach
Lawrence Lessett, Jr. is in his second season as head coach of the Hawks. While this position marks his debut as a Division I head coach, he has amassed almost thirty years of coaching experience from the high school level through the professional ranks.
Lessett came to Princess Anne after spending three years as a global scout for Magic Johnson International Basketball. Prior to that he served as head coach of the Magic City Snowbears of the International Basketball Association (IBA), where he coached the team to a franchise record in wins and a playoff appearance in his only season.
No stranger to the college ranks, Lessett has made several collegiate stops in his career, most recently as head basketball coach and athletic director of Hiwassee College in Madisonville, Tennessee. He has also served as an assistant coach at Mercer University, De Anza College, Georgia Southwestern College, Georgia College, Santa Barbara City College, Western New Mexico University, Loyola Marymount University and Cal State Northridge.
Lessett received a Bachelors degree in Physical Education from Cal State Northridge in 1983 and a Masters degree in Phys Ed and Health from Georgia College in 1991.
Assistant Coaches
Meredith Smith- Assistant Coach
Meredith Smith is in his second season as the first assistant men's basketball coach with the Hawks. He has returned to his alma mater after accumulating almost 30 years of high school coaching experience. Smith graduated from UMES, then Maryland State College, in 1975.
Smith became head coach men's basketball coach at Southern High School in Baltimore City in 1978 and held that position for 24 seasons. During that time he compiled a win-loss record of 414-145, giving him the second most victories in Baltimore City Public School history. Smith won 25 playoff games, including three Maryland State Championships, two Maryland Scholastic Association Conference Championships and a Baltimore City Championship in 1999-2000.
In 1993 the Baltimore Sun named Smith their "Coach of the Year." He holds a Bachelor's degree in Secondary and Physical Education from UMES and a Master's degree from Coppin State University.
Bert DeSalvo- Assistant Coach
Bert DeSalvo is in his first year as an assistant coach for the Hawks, primarily responsible for film exchange and budgeting. He comes to UMES after serving one year as the Girls' Varsity Head Coach at Chariho High School in Rhode Island.
While at Chariho, DeSalvo led his team to a playoff appearance in 2004-'05 with an 11-14 overall record. From 2001-'04 he was the Boys' Junior Varsity Head Coach at South Kingstown High School (R.I.), leading his team to a co-division championship in 2001-'02. DeSalvo has also coached at the middle school level and for several AAU teams.
DeSalvo received a Batchelor's degree in History from the University of Rhode Island in 2002.
MEAC 2005-06 Preseason Predicted Order of Finish
Rk School Points
1. S Car. St. (10) 402
T-2.*Delaware St. (6) 370
T-2.Hampton (4) 370
4. Norfolk State 240
5. Florida A&M 238
6. Coppin State 230
7. Bethune-Cook. 202
8. N Carolina A&T 146
9. Morgan State 138
10. Howard 78
11. MD East-Shore 26
(first-place votes in parenthesis)
*2005 regular season and MEAC Tournament champion
Preseason MEAC First Team
G Antonio Webb, Beth-Cook.
G Tony Tate, Florida A&M
G Jahsha Blunt, Delaware St.
F Thurman Zimmerman, SC St.
C Bruce Brown, Hampton
Second Team
G Tony Murphy, Norfolk St.
G Jeff Granger, Hampton
F Darius Glover, Florida A&M
F Tim Parham, UMES
F Brian Mason, SC St.
Preseason Player of the Year:
Bruce Brown, Hampton
-Selected in a vote by MEAC coaches and Sports Information Directors
