Sept. 27, 2010
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. -- The Hawks wrapped up the weekend with a strong performance from the volleyball and cross country squads on the road. Plus, the men's golf team went to Atlanta and participated in its first official tournament of its first season since 1961.
VOLLEYBALL
University of Maryland Eastern Shore earned second place at the North Carolina Central Tournament over the weekend, going 3-1 overall. They defeated the other three MEAC opponents in the tournament, including Hampton 3-1 and sweeping South Carolina State and North Carolina Central 3-0. Their only loss came against tournament winner East Tennessee State, 0-3.
The Hawks improved to 8-9 on the season, going 7-2 in their last nine matches.
All-Tournament Team selection Samantha Chukwura (Brooklyn, N.Y.) registered 39 kills and four blocks for the Hawks, including at least eight kills in each match. Kaveinga Lea'Aetoa got 40 kills and six aces for UMES, including 15 kills against Hampton.
CROSS COUNTRY
The University of Maryland Eastern Shore men's and women's cross country teams each placed third in their respective races at the Towson Invitational late Saturday morning.
In the men's race, sophomore Basil Melek (Grand Prairie, Texas) and senior Amon Kiprotich (Kapsabet, Kenya) were the lone runners to prevent a sweep by Navy, who won the race with 18 points. Melek placed third with a time of 25:58.83 while Kiprotich finished 11th in 26:50.06 to lead the Hawks to a third place team finish with 81 points.
The UMES women finished third with 92 points while Towson ended the day with a perfect score of 15 points. Junior Cynthia Anais (Martinique, France) ran a 19:54.80, which was good for 7th place with fellow senior Eunice Jones (Lanham, Md.) finished 9th in 20:14.80.
GOLF
Paul Cecil finished tied for 15th overall in the individual standings with a score of 75 as University of Maryland Eastern Shore finished ninth out of nine teams in the 25th Black College Hall of Fame Golf Invitational in Atlanta, Ga. This was UMES's first tournament of the new season since forming the team.
As a team, the Hawks finished with a score of 335. Cecil led the Hawks with a score of 75, followed by Michael Veverka (Brunswick, Md.) with 82 and Matthew Sampogna (Brooklyn, N.Y.) with 83. Christopher Toney (La Plata, Md.) ended with a 95 and Sedrick Bailey (Baltimore, Md.) shot a score of 100.
UMES ATHLETICS
Redshirt senior Samantha Chukwura (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and sophomore Basil Melek (Grand Prairie, Texas) have been named University of Maryland Eastern Shore Athletes of the Week for the period ending Sept. 26.
UPCOMING WEEK (SEPT. 27-OCT. 3)
The Hawks volleyball team will get their first home games underway as it hosts the Hawk Invitational, featuring the UMES and the MEAC North taking on teams from the MEAC South. UMES will take on North Carolina A&T on Friday, October 1st at 7:00 p.m. for their home opener at William P. Hytche Athletic Center. The following day, Saturday, October 2nd, the Hawks will face North Carolina Central at 9:30 a.m. followed by a match against Norfolk State at 5:00 p.m. All three matches will be broadcast by the Hawks Radio Network.
Other matchups during the Hawk Invitational at the William P. Hytche Athletic Center include one other Friday matchup, Coppin State vs. North Carolina A&T at 4:30 p.m., as well as four other non-UMES matches on Saturday: Coppin State vs. North Carolina Central at 11:00 a.m., Hampton against North Carolina A&T at 12:30 p.m., Norfolk State facing Coppin State at 2:00 p.m., and Hampton facing North Carolina Central at 3:30 p.m.
The UMES softball team will play three exhibitions in the Norfolk State Tournament on Saturday as they prepare for the spring season. At 11:00 a.m. the Hawks take on the College of the Abermarle followed by a 1:00 p.m. game against Virginia Wesleyan and a 5:00 p.m. match against tournament host Norfolk State.
