Lady Braves Drop Two at Mars Hill Classic

The UNCP women’s basketball team dropped two games at the 2009 Mars Hill Classic, falling 92-82 to host Mars Hill on Nov. 20 in their opening game and 80-72 to Lenoir-Rhyne Nov. 21 in their second tournament game.

The Lady Braves’ defense forced plenty of turnovers in the two losses, but were unable to keep their opponent’s shooting percentages down as both Mars Hill and Lenoir-Rhyne shot over 48 percent from the floor.

In the Lady Braves first game against Mars Hill, junior forward JaToya Kemp paced the Black and Gold with 22 points and eight rebounds in the post.

Braves Split Two Games at 2009 Pembroke Classic

UNCP freshman Shahmel Brackett stops and pops for a mid-range jumper over the Coker defense in a 74-65 loss to the Cobras on Nov. 21. Brackett finished with 11 points.

The UNCP men’s basketball team finished with a 1-1 record at the 2009 Pembroke Classic held Nov. 20-21 at the English E. Jones Center, taking an easy 87-67 win over regional rival St. Andrews before falling 74-65 to the Coker Cobras in their second game.

For the two-game tournament, the Braves shot just over 52 percent from the floor, but turnovers in the Braves’ second game against Coker cost the team an undefeated record at the event.

Against St. Andrews, a high powered Braves’ offense made its presence known on the court as the Black and Gold shot 54.4 percent from the field, including a season high 54 percent from behind the 3-point arc.

“The biggest thing we talked about was playing with more effort – starting with our defense and rebounding,” UNCP head coach Ben Miller said. “It also goes into [the] offense. There’s a lot of effort that goes into playing offensively. We focused on effort and togetherness and playing as a team. We had two good days of practice and then saw some good signs tonight in those two key areas.”

Black and Gold Spotlight: Brandon Thomas

What do expect from the team as the 2009 season starts up?
Well I expect a lot out of us because I feel that we are a team with great talent.  I expect everybody to play their role because we all can help each other get better in some way shape or form. I mean I know we are going have our ups and downs, but what team doesn’t?

Describe your experience as a student-athlete at UNCP.
My experience as a college student here at Pembroke is great because I get so much love from everybody, from teachers to students, even when I have a bad game they still show love. I’m just enjoying it as much as possible because I haven’t always been the player that people come to like. Before Coach Miller came I never got to touch the court, so I thank god everyday that I get to play and try to stay humble, but at the same time enjoy it.

What is your most exciting basketball moment in your career?
One of the most exciting moments in my career…that’s a tough one.  It was when we had the sports banquet last year and I got recognized for all my success from last year. I was so happy because I thought people didn’t really recognize all the stuff I did because been working so hard to get where I am today.

Braves’ Grapplers Compete at Iowa City Duals

The Black and Gold wrestling finished with a 2-2 record at the Nov. 20 Iowa Duals in Iowa City, Iowa, posting wins in their first two matches against Cornell (IA) and Iowa Lakes Community College before falling to Coe College and No. 1 ranked Iowa in their final two contests.

The Braves picked up a 19-17 decision over Cornell (IA) and a 21-16 win over Iowa Lakes to register their two victories. 

In both matches, the Braves had to come back in their final two bouts to pull out the victory.

Against Cornell (IA), The Black and Gold picked up two early wins in the 125-pound and 133-pound weight classes as No. 5 ranked Russell Weakley and Timdarius Thurston picked up wins in their respective weight classes.  Weakley used a 5-4 decision to pick up the win while Thurston registered a 19-8 major decision to give the Braves the early lead.

Black and Gold Spotlight:Brandon Thomas

What do expect from the team as the 2009 season starts up?
Well I expect a lot out of us because I feel that we are a team with great talent.  I expect everybody to play their role because we all can help each other get better in some way shape or form. I mean I know we are going have our ups and downs, but what team doesn’t?

Describe your experience as a student-athlete at UNCP.
My experience as a college student here at Pembroke is great because I get so much love from everybody, from teachers to students, even when I have a bad game they still show love. I’m just enjoying it as much as possible because I haven’t always been the player that people come to like. Before Coach Miller came I never got to touch the court, so I thank god everyday that I get to play and try to stay humble, but at the same time enjoy it.

What is your most exciting basketball moment in your career?
One of the most exciting moments in my career…that’s a tough one.  It was when we had the sports banquet last year and I got recognized for all my success from last year. I was so happy because I thought people didn’t really recognize all the stuff I did because been working so hard to get where I am today.

UNCP Falls to Arkansas Tech 41-13 in Playoffs

Braves’ running back Travis Daniels ran for 78 yards in the Black and Gold’s 41-12 loss to Arkansas Tech in the first round of the NCAA Football playoffs.

The Black and Gold football team saw their 2009 season come to a close Nov. 14, as the Braves fell 41-13 to Arkansas Tech in Russellville, Ark., in the first round of the NCAA Division II Football playoffs.

The No. 5 seeded Braves mustered up just 295 yards of total offense against the No. 4 seeded Wonder Boys, while the Arkansas Tech offense threw for over 500 yards against the Black and Gold defense.

 “They always found away to keep going, when we put them in 3-12, ATU seemed to always get a first down,” UNCP head coach Pete Shinnick said.  “We as a team need to play perfect in order to win and I felt we played close, but ATU played nearly perfect football and I congratulate them on that.”

 ATU scores
Arkansas Tech took control of the matchup early as the home team engineered a four play, 60-yard drive to take a 7-0 lead.  Arkansas Tech quarterback Nick Graziano completed two passes for 53 yards on the drive, including a 43 yard pass to wide receiver Landon Turner for the Wonder Boy’s first touchdown.

Six minutes later, Arkansas Tech round the end zone again, this time on a four yard rush by running back Cody Burns to give ATU a commanding 14-0 lead with 5:59 left in the first quarter.  Graziano again carved through the Braves’ defense, picking up 35 yards on the six play drive for the score.

Ndhlovu Named All-Region

The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association named UNCP freshman runner Pardon Ndhlovu to the Southeast All-Region team Nov. 11.

Ndhlovu joined three other Peach Belt Conference runners with the All-Region selection.

The Black and Gold freshman is the first cross country runner in UNCP history to make the All-Region team and was named the Peach Belt Conference runner of the week twice in 2009.

On Nov. 7 during the NCAA Southeast Regional 10K race, Ndhlovu finished third out of the four PBC All-Region selections with a time of 32:14.

With his time at the regional meet, Ndhlovu qualified for the 2009 NCAA Division II Cross Country National Championship held at Southern Indiana University in Evansville, Ind.  Ndhlovu will be the first UNCP representative in 28 years at the national championships.

Laza Honored by PBC

Black and Gold senior libero Andrea Laza was honored by the Peach Belt Conference Nov. 9 for her efforts with the UNCP volleyball team.

Laza broke the conference record for career digs Nov. 6 against Flagler.  Laza recorded six digs against the Saints to set the record, with her career total now standing at 2,261 digs through four seasons.

During the week, the Cary, N.C., native also totaled 28 digs against Francis Marion on Nov. 4 and six digs against Armstrong Atlantic on Nov. 7.

Laza is currently sixth in the conference with 407 digs in 2009.

The senior is averaging 3.8 digs-per-set this season.

Lady Braves Recognized

Black and Gold women soccer forwards Britney Joiner and Anna Svensson were honored by the Peach Belt Conference Nov.6 as both players were named to the all-PBC second team.

Joiner, the 2008 Peach Belt Conference Freshman of the Year, played 17 games for the Lady Braves in 2009.  The sophomore finished the season with 24 points on 11 goals and two assists whole taking 61 shots for the Black and Gold.

The Jacksonville, N.C., native was also one of two UNCP players to register a hat trick in 2009, posting three goals in a Sept. 9 matchup against the St. Andrews Knights.

Joiner is currently fifth in the conference in shots take and goals and is tied for sixth overall in total points.

Svensson joined Joiner on the all-conference second team after leading the Lady Braves in points in 2009.

The freshman tallied 29 points on a team-high 13 goals.  Svensson also had three assists this season.  The offensive dynamo took 82 shots this season and was second in the conference in points.

The Norrkiping, Sweden native was tied for third in the conference in points-per-game and total goals and was second in the PBC with five game winning goals.

Sevensson was named the PBC Player of the Week twice in 2009.

Armstrong Atlantic’s Kristin Burton was named the Peach Belt Conference Player of the Year and North Georgia’s Chris Adam earned conference Coach of the Year honors.

Pullin Named to All-PBC Team

UNCP sophomore Andy Pullin was named to the 2009 All-Peach Belt Conference men’s soccer team Nov. 6, joining 21 other conference players on the distinguished list.

Pullin registered 33 points on 13 goals and seven assists this season.  Pullin’s 13 goals was the Black and Gold’s highest total since 2004, when former UNCP standout, Trond Myrland, hit the 13 goal mark.

The Guatemalan native was one of 12 members on the conference’s first team honor list.  With Pullin’s selection, the Braves have now ha a student-athlete on the men’s soccer all-conference team for nine straight years.

Pullin finished second in the conference in points, total shots, points-per-game and goals.  Pullin was also tied for third in the conference in assists.

Lander’s Adam Arthur and Clayton State’s Kyle Timm earned PBC Co-Player of the Year honors, while Flagler’s John Lynch earned Coach of the Year laurels.