Nov. 1, 2010

PRINCESS ANNE, Md. -- The Hawks had a tough weekend ahead of them, with the Hawks cross country teams competing in Princess Anne for the MEAC Championship and volleyball taking on their rival Delaware State on the road.

CROSS COUNTRY
The Hawks looked to defend their home field as UMES hosted the MEAC Cross Country Championship on Saturday. The men finished second overall with 85 points and the women placed fifth in the event, with six runners combined placing in the top-15 individual standings.

In the men's 8K run, Basil Melek (Grand Prairie, Texas) finished fifth overall with a season-best time of 25:04.80 to lead the Hawks. Peter Sang (Kapsabet, Kenya) crossed the finished line in seventh at 25:44.60, followed by eighth place finisher Amon Kiprotich (Kapsabet, Kenya) with a time of 25:54.30. Shadrack Martin (Kericho, Kenya) ended in 15th place with a time of 26:33.40.

On the women's 5K run, the Hawks were led by senior Eunice Jones (Lanham, Md.), who ran the best time of anyone during the UMES season with 18:37.30, good for sixth place. Cynthia Anais (Martinique, France) finished in eighth place with a time of 18:52.80.

Norfolk State took first place on the men's side with just 34 points, placing five runners in the top-13. Hampton finished in first place on the women's side with 52 points, with five finishers in the top-16.

VOLLEYBALL
The Hawks suffered their first MEAC loss since 2006 on Friday, falling to Delaware State in Dover in five sets (25-18, 21-25, 25-21, 21-25, 13-15), ending the nation's longest conference streak at 36. Two days later, UMES came back from down two games to defeat Hampton on the road 3-2 (22-25, 16-25, 25-21, 25-17, 15-7) to stay in sole first place of the MEAC Northern Division.

UMES now stands at 18-10 overall and a 7-1 record in MEAC play.

Maline Vaitai (Salt Lake City, Utah) ended with a combined 44 kills in the two matches, including 26 against Delaware State. Kaveinga Lea'Aetoa (Salt Lake City, Utah) had 18 kills against Hampton, finishing with 27 in the two matches.

UPCOMING WEEK (NOV. 1-7)
The Hawks volleyball team will finish their regular season with two final MEAC road matches. On Friday, November 5th at 7:00 p.m. UMES will take on Coppin State in Baltimore followed by a match against Howard in Washington D.C. on Sunday, November 7th at 3:00 p.m. Each match will be broadcast by Dave Vatz on the Hawks Radio Network.

The women's bowling team will head to Fairleigh Dickinson University to play in the FDU New Jersey Jamboree from November 5th to the 7th. UMES will be competing with six other preseason top-10 teams: Tournament-host Fairleigh Dickinson, MEAC rival Delaware State, Vanderbilt, Kutztown, New Jersey City and Sacred Heart.

The men's golf team will play their final tournament of the fall when they head to Savannah, Georgia to play in the Savannah State University Fall Tiger Tournament. They will play a round on Saturday, November 6th and Sunday, November 7th.