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SCOOBA – Headlined by all-region standout Martika Hull inking with McNeese State, the East Mississippi women’s basketball program had three players sign with NCAA Division I universities this week.
Along with Hull heading to McNeese, EMCC freshmen Shelby Crawford (Thomasville, Ala.) and Rickiesha Bryant (Florida City, Fla.) both signed this week with the University of Tennessee at Martin. Qualifiers out of high school, Crawford and Bryant will have three seasons of eligibility at UT Martin.
A product of Meridian’s Southeast Lauderdale High School, Hull concluded her successful two-year playing career at East Mississippi having scored 847 career points (14.4 ppg) on 57-percent field-goal shooting as well as collecting 470 rebounds (8.0 rpg). The 5-foot-11 forward recorded 18 career double-doubles, including 11 this past season en route to garnering NJCAA All-Region 23 honors. In addition, Hull helped lead head coach Sharon Thompson’s EMCC Lady Lions to a two-year composite record of 40-20, including an appearance in the 2009 NJCAA Tournament.
This past season, Hull led the 15-13 Lady Lions in scoring (15.5 ppg) and rebounding (8.8 rpg) in being named to the MACJC All-North State First Team for the second consecutive season. Also a two-time selection to the NJCAA Region 23 All-Tournament team, Hull averaged 13.4 points on 61-percent shooting and 7.3 rebounds as a freshman on EMCC’s 25-7 club in 2008-09.
Crawford, from Thomasville (Ala.) High School, averaged 4.1 points and 3.7 rebounds per game for EMCC as a freshman. The 6-foot-2 forward saw action in all 28 games, including five starts, for the 2009-10 Lady Lions, scoring in double figures on four occasions. A three-year varsity starter at Thomasville, Crawford earned the Lady Tigers’ MVP honor as a prep senior after averaging 12.7 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 2.4 steals and 2.1 blocks an outing in 2008-09.
A 6-foot-3 post player out of Homestead Senior High School in Florida, Bryant averaged 1.8 points and 2.8 rebounds per contest in 20 appearances for East Mississippi as a first-year player. Along with shooting 35 percent (13-of-37 FGs) from the field and 60 percent from the line (9-of-15 FTs) this past season, she topped the Lady Lions with 15 blocked shots on the year. Bryant averaged 13 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks a game as a prep senior at Homestead.
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 15 April 2010 )
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GOODMAN – Winning both games in their final at-bat, the Lady Lions of East Mississippi created a little more breathing room atop the MACJC North Division standings by sweeping Holmes, 6-4 in extra innings and 7-4 in the nightcap, Wednesday afternoon on the road.
Having now won 10 straight division games, head coach Kate Neely’s EMCC Lady Lions moved another game ahead of second-place Itawamba in the standings following ICC’s Wednesday split at Northwest Mississippi. At 16-2 in league play, East Mississippi enters Saturday’s critical doubleheader at Itawamba with a two-game lead over the 14-4 Lady Indians.
During Wednesday’s opener in Goodman, EMCC had to come back from a 3-0 deficit after Holmes’ Kandi Ray capped a three-run third inning with a two-run home run to center field. As EMCC starter Courtney Nunn settled down in the circle with four straight scoreless innings, the Lady Lions chipped away at the lead with solo tallies in the fourth, sixth and seventh frames.
Freshman Mallory Pace, a product of Northeast Lauderdale, led off the fourth and sixth innings with singles and came around to score both times on run-producing at-bats from sophomore Portia Randle of Starkville. Celeste Fontenot, from Baton Rouge, knotted the score at 3-3 to send the contest into extra innings with an RBI double that plated fellow freshman Cayla Coleman, who started the seventh-inning rally with a single.
After both teams scored once in the eighth inning of the international tie-breaker, it was Coleman again who got things rolling for the visitors. The former Clarkdale High School standout singled over lead-off runner Justine Jenkins to third, who proceeded to score the go-ahead run on a passed ball. Fontenot then reached base on a dropped third strike. Following a stolen base by Coleman, DeShuni Sanders pushed across EMCC’s sixth run with a sacrifice bunt.
Nunn, a sophomore right-hander from Jonesboro, La., promptly wrapped up the complete-game, nine-inning victory by retiring the side in order in the bottom of the ninth. In scattering just seven hits – but none coming after the fifth – she finished with six strikeouts while not issuing a walk.
Putting together a 17-hit attack in the nightcap, the Lady Lions, now 18-25 overall, rallied for a three-run seventh inning to break a 4-4 deadlock and ultimately propel them to the key road doubleheader sweep.
With one out in the seventh, EMCC strung together four consecutive singles that produced one run off the bat of Courtney Castleberry. Two batters later, Coleman once again came through in the clutch with a two-out, two-run single for her fifth hit of the afternoon.
In relief of Barry, who pitched two batters into the fourth inning, Nunn worked the final four innings to notch her 15th victory of the season. Despite surrendering two runs in the fifth to allow the Lady Bulldogs to tie the score at 4-4, Nunn maintained her composure and kept the home team off the scoreboard over the final two frames. She gave up five hits during her second-game relief effort, while fanning three and once again not allowing a runner via the base on balls.
With a quartet of Lady Lions having two-hit efforts in Wednesday’s opener, seven EMCC starters produced multiple-hit outings in the nightcap, including three hits apiece by Coleman and Sanders. With two singles and two runs scored in the second game, Leigh Ellen “Hootie” Barefield had a two-run single that initially gave EMCC a 3-1 lead in the third inning and later triggered the team’s seventh-inning rally with her second hit of the contest.
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 15 April 2010 )
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RAYMOND – The East Mississippi men’s golf team concluded its spring campaign with a seventh-place finish at this week’s MACJC State Championship played at Eagle Ridge Golf Club.
Head coach Dale Peay’s EMCC Lions carded team scores of 305 and 315 on Monday and Tuesday, respectively, to finish the two-day event just four strokes out of fourth place. Two-time defending NJCAA Region 23 champion Mississippi Gulf Coast (289-298—587) claimed the team title with a 2-stroke victory over Northeast Mississippi (289-300—589). Copiah-Lincoln placed third with a 596 total (301-295).
Northeast’s Blake Hatfield (68-73—141) earned individual medalist honors for the Hinds-hosted tournament with a 1-stroke win over Alex Rowland of Itawamba (70-72—142).
For East Mississippi, freshman Jackson Bryant garnered a spot in the upcoming NJCAA Region 23 Championship by finishing in a three-way tie for 12th place in the state tournament with a two-day score of 150 (76-74). A former standout at Natchez’s Trinity Episcopal Day School, Bryant ranked second on the EMCC squad with his 76.1 stroke average during the fall campaign.
Though missing the regional cut after carding a two-round score of 156 (79-77) this week, EMCC sophomore Michael Lauseng was named MACJC All-State First Team after completing the 2010 regular season ranked second in the state with his 74.63 stroke average. The Bossier City, La., native trailed ICC’s Rowland (74.38) by one-quarter of a stroke in just missing out on claiming the prestigious Hubert Tucker Award, which earns an automatic exemption into next month’s NJCAA Championship in Arizona.
Fellow EMCC sophomore Will Black, of Calhoun City, tied Lauseng for 25th place (76-80—156) in this week’s MACJC State Championship, while sophomore Trey Adams (76-84—160) of Belmont and freshman Ian McAdams (77-91—168) of Madison Central rounded out East Mississippi’s scorecard.
Hinds Community College and Eagle Ridge Golf Club will also host the upcoming NJCAA Region 23 Men’s Golf Championship, slated for April 25-26 in Raymond.
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 14 April 2010 )
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SCOOBA – The Lady Lions of East Mississippi grabbed sole possession of first place in the MACJC’s North Division softball standings by sweeping Coahoma, 8-0 and 22-5, in a pair of run-ruled home contests played Monday afternoon on the Scooba campus.
With Itawamba splitting at home with rival Northeast Mississippi to begin the week, head coach Kate Neely’s EMCC Lady Lions have moved one game ahead of the Lady Indians atop the divisional standings with a 14-2 league mark. East Mississippi and ICC will meet Saturday in a key doubleheader set to begin at 2 p.m. on the Fulton campus.
In Monday’s opener in Scooba, the Lady Lions got the most out of their eight hits – all singles - to produce an 8-0 victory. After manufacturing a run in the first, EMCC scored three more times in the second on four hits and two Coahoma miscues. The home team added two scores in the third and fourth innings, while keeping the Lady Tigers off the scoreboard, to seal the opening-game triumph.
Freshman DeShuni Sanders, a former New Hope standout, was 3-for-3 with two runs scored and two stolen bases in the contest. Fellow frosh Justine Jenkins, of Caledonia, added a pair of run-scoring singles for EMCC.
Sophomore right-hander Courtney Nunn notched her 13th win of the season by allowing just three singles, while striking out eight and walking a pair through five innings. Coahoma’s only serious threat came in the fourth when Taneshia Burgess and Racquel Burdette led off the inning with back-to-back singles. Nunn proceeded to strike out the side en route to earning her second shutout of the year.
In the nightcap, the Lady Lions had to rebound from an early 2-0 deficit, as EMCC starter Nashedra Barry struggled with some first-inning control problems by issuing three bases on balls and giving up both runs on wild pitches. The wildness theme continued into the home half of the first with the Lady Lions managing to plate six runs on only two infield hits. Aided by seven bases on balls, three hit batsmen and three wild pitches from Coahoma starter Jami Taylor, East Mississippi owned a 13-2 lead after just two innings.
EMCC’s seven-run second frame, which featured four walks, was highlighted by two-run singles by freshmen Celeste Fontenot and Whitney Sumrall. Earning the start at catcher in the second contest, Sumrall added another two-run single in the Lady Lions’ nine-run fourth inning to finish the game with five runs batted in and three runs scored.
In registering the complete-game victory, Barry scattered five hits and allowed five runs, while fanning six and also walking a half-dozen, in five innings of work.
Again with eight hits as a team in the nightcap, East Mississippi also had multiple-hit outings from Fontenot and Sanders, who both went 2-for-4 at the plate with two RBI and a pair of runs scored apiece. For the day, Sanders enjoyed a 5-for-7 afternoon with four runs scored and four stolen bases.
Prior to heading to Fulton to take on second-place Itawamba in Saturday’s pivotal MACJC North Division twin bill, the division-leading EMCC Lady Lions will first travel to Goodman to meet Holmes in a Wednesday doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 13 April 2010 )
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SCOOBA – The East Mississippi Lions reached the 20-win mark and evened their divisional baseball record by sweeping Coahoma, 11-3 and 7-1, Saturday afternoon at Gerald Poole Field on the Scooba campus.
With EMCC improving to 20-14 overall and 7-7 in MACJC North Division play, Lion hurlers limited visiting Coahoma to just seven total hits and combined for 23 strikeouts during the doubleheader sweep.
In Saturday’s opener, the Lions jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead when Hilton Gibson hit a two-run triple to the opposite field and later scored on Tyler Aldridge’s groundout. Following a two-run third, EMCC added three more scores in the fourth, including a sacrifice fly by Randy Frederick, to make it an 8-1 contest.
Coahoma got its first run of the game in the top half of the fourth when Adrian Lee tripled to open the inning and later scored on J’Darrion Jackson’s infield groundout. EMCC starter Kameron Heiser seemed to be cruising along after getting the first two Tiger hitters in the fifth to ground out. However, the freshman pitcher walked the next two batters and then loaded the bases by hitting Demarcus Rieves with a pitch. Lee followed with a two-run single to left for his third hit of the contest. Heiser was then lifted for left-handed reliever Jose Acosta after walking Broadis Toles.
The Lions proceeded to get those two runs back in the home half of the fifth, aided by Derek Beach’s RBI double to the opposite field. EMCC tacked on another run in the sixth to account for the 11-3 final when Brandon Kiewel singled home Gibson, who had led off the inning with a double.
Gibson, a former New Hope High School standout, went 2-for-4 in the opener with three runs batted in and two runs scored. A sophomore from Heidelberg Academy, Beach was 2-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI.
Heiser improved to a team-leading 5-1 on the mound, as the former West Lauderdale product allowed four hits, while striking out six and walking four, over 4.2 innings of work. Acosta went 1.1 innings and Matt Wigington nailed down the opening-game win by working a scoreless seventh.
In the nightcap, the Lions benefitted from three Coahoma miscues, two hit batsmen, two bases on balls and a wild pitch to score five times in the second on only one hit. The visitors used two of their three hits in the contest to produce their lone score in the top of the third. A two-out single by Lee was followed by another single by Rieves that scored Lee when EMCC right fielder Alex Lummus threw errantly to third base in an attempt to get the lead runner.
EMCC promptly got the run back in the bottom of the third when Kiewel raced home on a wild pitch after drawing a two-out walk and moving to third on Beach’s double. Gibson completed a 3-for-6 afternoon at the plate – all extra-base hits – with a run-scoring sacrifice fly in the sixth for the final run of the nightcap.
Meanwhile on the mound for the Lions, sophomore right-hander Corey Luke returned to the hill following an injury layoff to produce five very effective innings. The former Philadelphia High School product fanned 11 Coahoma batters, while walking three and allowing just the pair of third-inning singles, in picking up his first win of the campaign. Sophomore Tyler Richardson came in to contribute two shutout innings, allowing just a seventh-inning single to Robert O’Neal while striking out four and issuing a pair of walks.
Head coach Tony Montgomery’s EMCC Lions will play a trio of road doubleheaders during the coming week, sandwiching a Wednesday non-divisional twin bill at Wallace Community College Selma between a Tuesday set at Northeast Mississippi and a Saturday doubleheader at Itawamba.
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 11 April 2010 )
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