Bowie State University Sweeps Top Individual CIAA Bowling Honors

CHESAPEAKE, Va. – Bowie State University was a winner before the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Women’s Bowling Championship began at AMF Western Branch Lanes on Friday, March 20, 2015.

The Lady Bulldogs swept the top individual honors during the awards ceremony which preceded the CIAA Championship. Senior Shayla Lightfoot (Henrico, Va.) was named CIAA Bowler of the Year, redshirt freshman Sierra Davis (Dayton, Ohio) was selected CIAA Rookie of the Year and Kenneth Scott was chosen CIAA Coach of the Year.

Bowie State also captured the CIAA Team Highest Grade Point Average Award with a 3.23 GPA in addition to being honored for winning the Northern Division. Fayetteville State University was also honored for winning the Southern Division with a perfect 30-0 division record.

Lightfoot led all CIAA bowlers with a 193.92 average and Davis topped all freshman bowlers in the league with a 172.16 average. Her bowling average was also seventh-best in the CIAA. Scott guided the Lady Bulldogs to their third straight Northern Division crown with a 35-1 division record and a 45-1 conference mark.

Lightfoot and Davis head the All-CIAA Women’s Bowling Team, which is comprised of the top 10 CIAA bowlers with the highest average in conference matches. They join senior Ambrianna Bankston (Ft. Belvoir, Va.) and Keyandra Bankston (Ft. Belvoir, Va.) on the all-star squad as Bowie State led the CIAA with four all-conference selections. Ambrianna Bankston ranked fifth in the CIAA with a 177.61 average and Keyandra Bankston ranked ninth with a 169.69 average.

Rebecca Clements of Virginia State University and Nicole Sciortino of Saint Augustine’s University were placed on the All-CIAA team after posting the second-highest and third-highest bowling averages. Clements ranked second with a 182.50 average and Sciortino ranked third with a 181.44 average.

Two bowlers each from Fayetteville State University and Elizabeth City State University were selected to the All-CIAA squad. Crystal Mujica (179.40) and Jasmin Aponte (169.08) of Fayetteville State ranked fourth and 10^th respectively, in the league. Melissa Borum (175.75) ranked sixth and Brooks Roberts (172.15) ranked eighth for Elizabeth City State.

The CIAA Championship started Friday with preliminary team matches and will continue Saturday with preliminary Baker matches. The total pin count in the preliminary rounds will determine the seeding for the double elimination Baker tournament for the league title, which begins later Saturday and concludes with the quarterfinals, semifinals and championship on Sunday.

Sunday’s play will be live streamed on www.theciaa.com.

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Cameron Knox Earns 2nd Team All-Atlantic Region Honor

BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. – Bowie State University senior guard, Cameron Knox (Baltimore, Md.), has been selected to the Daktronics/Division II Conference Commissioners Association All-Atlantic Region second team.

Knox was selected to the 2014-2015 All-CIAA Team and voted the conference’s Player of the Year. Knox started in 29 games this season and averaged a team-best 17.4 points per game and ranked second in conference scoring. He scored a career-high 31 points versus Livingstone and scored 20 or more points 11 times during the 2014-2015 campaign. He finished his career with 786 points and a career scoring average of 12.3 points per game.

West Liberty’s Seger Bonifant has been named the Atlantic Region Player of the Year and headlines the 2014-15 Daktronics/Division II Conference Commissioners Association All-Atlantic Region Men’s Basketball Team.

Bonifant, a junior from Berlin, Ohio, was the Mountain East Conference Player of the Year after averaging 24 points per game for the Hilltoppers. WLU finished the season ranked fifth in the country and is the host for this week’s NCAA Atlantic Regional Tournament.

Joining Bonifant on the All-Atlantic Region first team are Adam Blazek of Gannon, Devante Chance of Indiana (Pa.), Nick Harney of Fairmont State and Matt Tobin of East Stroudsburg.

The second team consists of WyKevin Bazemore (Winston-Salem State), Tyree Gaiter (Notre Dame College), Wali Hepburn (Lock Haven), C.J. Hester (West Liberty) and Knox.

Sports information directors from NCAA Division II Atlantic Region schools and conferences selected the two Daktronics All-Region teams and voted on the Player of the Year. The process concludes with All-American selections announced later in the month.

The team is sponsored by Daktronics, Inc., an acknowledged world leader in scoring, timing and programmable display systems for virtually every sport at every level of competition.

2014-15 Daktronics/Division II Conference Commissioners Association All-Atlantic Region Team

FIRST Team
Name	School	Pos	Ht	Wt	Cl	Hometown
Adam Blazek	Gannon	G	6-1	185	Sr.	Erie, Pa.
Seger Bonifant**	West Liberty	G/F	6-7	200	Jr.	Berlin, Ohio
Devante Chance	Indiana (Pa.)	G	5-11	180	Sr.	Philadelphia, Pa.
Nick Harney	Fairmont State	F	6-8	215	Sr.	Cleveland, Ohio
Matt Tobin	East Stroudsburg	G	6-1	175	Sr.	Hopatcong, N.J.
** Atlantic Region Player of the Year
SECOND Team
WyKevin Bazemore	Winston-Salem St	F	6-4	185	Sr.	Kelford, N.C.
Tyree Gaiter	Notre Dame College	G	5-7	150	Jr.	Cleveland Heights, Ohio
Wali Hepburn	Lock Haven	G	6-4	185	Sr.	Philadelphia, Pa.
C.J. Hester	West Liberty	F	6-4	210	Sr.	West Mifflin, Pa.
Cameron Knox	Bowie State	G	5-11	170	Sr.	Baltimore, Md.

East Stroudsburg Spoils Bowie State Lady Bulldogs’ Home Opener

BOWIE, Md. - The Bowie State University softball team made their home debut on Tuesday afternoon and played great defense, but East Stroudsburg University claimed a doubleheader win by scores of 4-0 and 5-2 in non-conference action.

Bowie State (2-8) was led by freshman Nicoleen Ochoa (Madison, Ohio) with three hits in seven at bats over the two-game set.

The Warriors of East Stroudsburg used a three-hit, third inning to break a scoreless tie and take a 2-0 advantage. Katherine Liedberg led off the third with a double followed by a single up the middle by Mary Wallick, advancing Liedberg to third. Kasey Meckles stepped up and hit a sacrifice fly, scoring Leidberg. A Cara McNeil single pushed Wallick across the dish for the Warriors second run of the contest.

East Stroudsburg (7-4) added a run in the 5^th inning and another run in the 7^th to account for the 4-0 decision in the opening game of the afternoon. Wallick paced the Warriors with three hits while McNeil, Rae Holden and Jamie Smith contributed a pair of hits in the game one victory.

Ochoa took the loss in game one, allowing 12 hits, struck out four and was responsible for Bowie State’s only two hits. Rachael Liguori threw a two-hit shutout to earn the win in the circle.

In the nightcap, East Stroudsburg lit up the scoreboard first in the top of the 1^st inning. McNeil tripled down the right field line for the Warriors first hit of game time, scoring Meckes who reached on a fielder’s choice.

Bowie State scored their first home field points of the season in the bottom of the 2^nd inning. Freshman Jacqueline Pickering (Bowie, Md.) reached via a base on balls and later scored following a bunt single by senior Cassandra Clayborne (Damascus, Md.) to tie the game a 1-all.

The visitors from East Stroudsburg added two runs in the top of the third inning on three hits to take a 3-1 advantage. The big hit of the inning was a one-out triple by Meckes.

The Lady Bulldogs trimmed their deficit to 3-2 in the bottom of the third. Ochoa opened the frame with a single and stole second to get into scoring position. Freshman Emily Lewis (Aberdeen, Md.) grounded out to first, advancing Ochoa to third. Junior Caitlin O’Neill (Elkton, Md.) stepped up and singled through the left side of the Warriors infield, scoring Ochoa.

The score remained 3-2 until the top of the sixth, when Haley Thomas hit a one-out homer to right center to extend the lead. The Warriors added another run in the seventh on an RBI groundout by Meckes.

Allison Mende got the win in relief win for East Stroudsburg, throwing 4.2 shutout innings and allowing just three hits.

Bowie State’s O’Neill took the loss in the circle, giving up nine hits.

The Lady Bulldogs open conference play on Friday (3/20) against Fayetteville State University at 2 pm in Raleigh (N.C.) as part of the CIAA Round-Up at Walnut Creek Softball Complex.

Bowie State Bowling Captures CIAA Northern Division Crown

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. - The Bowie State University bowling team competed in their final CIAA Event of the year March 13^th-15^th and the Lady Bulldogs finished the weekend conference Round-Up with an 11-1 record.  Bowie State finished in first place among the five CIAA Northern Division teams and captured the division title.  The Lady Bulldogs knocked down 12,480 pins over the course of competition.

Elizabeth City State University posted a 9-3 record, good for a second place finish followed by Virginia State University with a 6-6 mark and third place finish.  Virginia Union University matched the Chowan’s record of 2-10, but defeated Chowan in the total-pin tiebreaker with 10,413 pins.

The Lady Bulldogs turned in a 4-0 record on the opening day of play, defeating Chowan (780-774), Virginia State (829-791), Virginia Union (872-748) and Elizabeth City State (845-754).  On Saturday, Bowie State opened up with back-to-back wins, beating Virginia State (815-762) and Chowan (860-750). The Lady Bulldogs dropped a tough 870-840 decision to Elizabeth City State but bounced back to knock off Virginia Union 863-762.

During Sunday's Baker play, the Lady Bulldogs topped Chowan (756-626), Virginia State (790-773), Virginia Union (858-742) and Elizabeth City State (904-861) in the final round of play.

Senior Ambrianna Bankston (Ft. Belvoir, Va.) led the effort for the Lady Bulldogs individually.  She knocked down 1,736 total pins, averaging 173.60 per game over the weekend.  Redshirt freshman Sierra Davis (Dayton, Ohio) followed with 1,694 total pins and a 169.40 average and was honored the CIAA Newcomer with the highest average.  Junior Keyandra Bankston (Ft. Belvoir, Va.) tallied 1,673 total pins for the Lady Bulldogs followed by senior Shayla Lightfoot (Henrico, Va.) who totaled 1,405 pins (175.63 average) for Bowie State.

Junior Ashley Wade (Richmond, Va.) and freshman Makyra Bankston (Ft. Belvoir, Va.) also competed for Bowie State and knocking down 1,259 and 578 total pins respectively.

The Lady Bulldogs’ season record improves to 68-14 heading into the conference championships in March 20-22 at the AMF Western Branch Lanes in Chesapeake, Va. 

Rice milk, soy milk, almond milk – safe or not?

Should You Ditch Dairy for These
“Alternative” Milks?

I grew up in a world where milk was milk. It came from a cow, and that was that. And of course everybody believed milk was good for you. A few people drank skim milk. That was about as far as anyone went toward the idea that anything about milk might not be healthy.

But go to any grocery store today and you’ll find as many as six different “milks” – some from animals, some from nuts, some from rice and some from a fruit. Today I’m going to break down the different types of milk so you understand which ones provide sound nutrition and which types increase the risk of disease, including cancer. . . .

Continued 

Big Train College Round Up and Players In MLB and On the way!

BT College Round-Up: 3/13/2015 Brandon Lowe (BT '14) is batting .378 this year for the Terps We are now a month into the season, and the snow is finally subsiding on the East Coast.  College baseball players all around the country are hitting their groove and showing to the world what type of player they are.  This round up will highlight the important stat lines of Big Train players on their college teams. Read More

Big Train Players in MLB Cody Allen (BT '08, '10) warming up at Indians' spring training The Bethesda Big Train has seven former players who are contributing for their respective Major League Baseball team in spring training. These players are working hard to make it on the official big league roster for the regular season. Spring Training provides these athletes with the opportunity to face Major Leaguers, giving management an idea of how the player can perform against the top talent. Brian Dozier (BT '06) played last season in the majors for the Minnesota Twins. His season included a trip to the Home Run Derby at the All Star Event. So far this spring, Dozier is 5/8 at the plate including a double, an RBI, and a run scored. Dozier is poised to be the starter at second base for the Twins. Cody Allen (BT '08, '10) is looking to be the full-time closer for the Cleveland Indians. Last season, he had his lowest ERA in his three seasons in the Big Leagues at 2.07 in 76 games. This spring, Allen has pitched two innings, allowing no runs on two hits. Michael McKenry (BT '04) has been in and out of the starting lineup since his MLB debut in 2010. Now, he is in his second stint with the Colorado Rockies, where he hit .315 last year as a backup catcher. So far in the spring, McKenry is 4/9 with a double and two RBI. Matt Bowman (BT '10-'12) has spent most of his career in the minors. As a pitcher on the Mets spring training roster, Bowman pitched two innings, allowing no runs on two hits in his first outing. Joe Mantiply (BT '10) was invited to participate in spring training with the Detroit Tigers. He has already recorded his first save this spring. Hunter Renfroe (BT '11-'12) is considered to be one of the most highly touted prospects in not only the San Diego Padres system, but in all of Major League Baseball. This spring, Renfroe has scored two runs in six at-bats. Matt Long (BT '06) has spent his minor league career in the Los Angeles Angels' farm system. Over this past winter, he was traded to the Dodgers, and then immediately traded again to the Milwaukee Brewers. As an outfielder for the Brewers this spring, Long is 1/4 with a walk and a stolen base. It is still early spring, but look for these seven players to continue their hard play as they hope to continue playing for their Major League teams.