Weekly Recap - May 24 - 30

It was a quiet week around campus as the final team in competition traveled to Greensboro for the preliminary rounds of the NCAA Track and Field Championships.

Gabrielle Houston has been named the CSU Athlete of the Week after qualifying for the quarterfinals of the 200 meter dash, this past weekend. Houston ran 23.69 in the first round of the event, finishing 13th overall, easily making the field of 24 for the quarterfinals.

Houston went on to finish 15th overall, missing a spot in the semifinals by three spots and a mere 0.2 seconds. She was the only Charleston Southern athlete to get out of the first round this weekend.

Track and Field @ Preliminary Rounds - NCAA Championships
As mentioned, it was a disappointing weekend for the Bucs as they took to Greensboro with high hopes of qualifying for the semifinals as many as five events in Eugene, Ore., but came up empty. On the men's side, Javon Young and Levi Brooks continued to battle leg injuries, failing to qualify in their open events (the 100 and 400 meter dash, respectively). Dantwan Spreads had a pair of opportunities to advance, including the 100 and 200 meter dash. Those three, along with Anthony Ward tried to limp through the 4x100m relay, but also came up empty. Houston was the lone CSU woman to copmete, making it out of the first round of the 200 meter dash, but came up just short in round two.

Houston will still compete at the AT&T USA Track and Field National Championships, while freshman Rob Grabill will compete at the USA Track and Field Junior National Championships at the end of June.

With no one making it out of the meet, the collegiate season for CSU comes to an end, as does our weekly recaps. Continue to check in with us as we will have other features over the summer, and will pick back up full force in August.

Weekly Recap - May 17 - 23

As we approach the final full week in May, we have officially wrapped up all of the home events for the year, with only two programs still competing. Baseball ended their season this weekend, while golfer Kelvin Day had an outstanding showing and a top-25 finish in the NCAA Southeast Regional.

Brantley Meier earned CSU Athlete of the Week honors, finishing the year fourth in the Big South with a school-record 84 hits. In his final week of action, Meier hit .389 with seven hits to overtake the record, set in 2006 by Justin Fyle.

He scored two runs and had a double this week, knocking in three RBI. He had a 1.00 fielding percentage for the week, a .455 on base percentage and was a perfect 4-for-4 on stolen base attempts for the week. He ends the season on a career-best 10 game hitting streak.

Kelvin Day also earned consideration for the honor this week.

Baseball vs. UNC Wilmington – L, 6-5
The baseball team added a midweek game against UNC Wilmington, and for the second time this year, fell by a run to the Seahawks. The Bucs made it interesting, though, as they rallied from a 6-1 deficit in the seventh inning to get within a run. Kyle Ward and Corey Deighan pitching a combined 3.1 innings of scoreless relief to finish the game and give CSU a chance.

Baseball vs. High Point L, 15-7, 10-8, 16-11
It was perhaps one of the strangest series of the year, with CSU needing a sweep over the Panthers, who were battling for a fourth-place finish, in order to qualify for postseason play. The sweep came, but certainly not how the Bucs wanted it, falling in a 13-inning affair in game two, and a rain-delayed and lightning-shortened game three. Meier took advantage of the series to break the school record for hits (84), and will look to improve that mark next season. He ends the season on a 10-game hitting streak that will carry over to next year.

Kelvin Day @ NCAA East Region
The lone participant from CSU, Kelvin Day shot a combined 214 (+4) to place 21st overall at the NCAA Division I Southeast Regional at the Capital City Club. By earning a bid to the tournament, he became the first Buccaneer to do so since Shawn Hall went in 2006. Hall went on to finish 52nd in the tournament. Day moved to as high as 12th overall after shooting an even par on day two, but a two-over in the final round moved him to 21st.

What’s Coming Up?
May 27 – 29 – Track and Field @ NCAA East Regional Championship

Don't forget the following links:
Twitter
Facebook
YouTube
Video Streaming
Live Stats
Purchase pictures of your favorite Bucs
And CSUsports.com for all the latest CSU news and information

Weekly Recap - May 10-16

After the past week’s Big South Softball Tournament, only a pair of sports and an individual is still in competition. Baseball has only one midweek game against UNC Wilmington as well as a very important early-weekend series against High Point left in their regular season. The track and field programs have the NCAA First Round in Greensboro at the end of the month, while Kelvin Day represents CSU as an individual in the NCAA East Region this week.

With a school record performance in the heptathlon, Patria Norman has been named this week’s CSU Athlete of the Week. Norman finished eighth overall in the competition with a two-day, seven-event total of 4,728 points.

Norman finished in the top-10 in all but one event, including a victory in the shot put competition. She also finished as the runner-up in the 100 meter hurdles and third in the long jump.

Brantley Meier and Megan Hall were also nominated for the honor.

May 11 – Baseball @ Georgia Southern – L, 12-7
Drew Woodall hit his first collegiate home run, and the team hit a season-high four homers with Jesse Cadenhead, Nick Chinners and Derek Smith also homered, but even that wasn’t enough to get the victory on the road.

May 12 – Baseball @ South Carolina – L, 10-2
It was a rough start for CSU as they faced one of the best and hottest teams in the country in a midweek affair. After giving up four homers and a 7-0 lead in the first couple of innings, CSU fought hard the rest of the way, scratching out a pair of runs, including a home run by Matt Still.

May 13-14 – Softball @ Big South Championship
The Buccaneers did exactly what they couldn’t afford to, lost in the first game, falling 8-3 to Gardner-Webb in the first game of the 2010 Big South Championships. In a double elimination tournament, it doesn’t sound like it would be a major blunder, but it forced CSU to win three games on Friday and three more on Saturday if they wanted to win a championship. They started the trek with a victory Friday over Presbyterian, but couldn’t overcome the home team as Coastal Carolina used a big inning to end the season for CSU. They still finished with 30 wins, the most since 1993 and the first winning season since 2001.

May 14-15 – Track and Field @ Georgia Tech
CSU decided to take on the best in hopes of improving placement, and even adding qualifiers, to the NCAA First Round as they went to Georgia Tech. It didn’t happen, despite a number of solid performances for CSU. Before the Ga. Tech meet, Patria Norman also went to Wake Forest, setting a new school record in the heptathlon, but even that wasn’t enough to get her into the NCAA meet.

May 14-16 – Baseball @ UNC Asheville
The baseball team continued to struggle on the road in big south play, suffering a sweep at the hands of UNC Asheville, including two one-run losses in the final two games of the series. In the race to the finish line, CSU now finds themselves in ninth place, 1.5 games behind Asheville, and will need to win a couple of games this weekend against High Point.

What’s Coming Up
May 18 – Baseball vs. UNC Wilmington – 2 p.m.
May 20 – Baseball vs. High Point – 2 p.m.
May 21 – Baseball vs. High Point – 2 p.m.
May 22 – Baseball vs. High Point – 2 p.m.

Don't forget the following links:
Twitter
Facebook
YouTube
Video Streaming
Live Stats
Purchase pictures of your favorite Bucs
And CSUsports.com for all the latest CSU news and information

Weekly Recap - May 3 - 9

After finishing finals, the athletes went back to work, including women’s golf action in the NCAA Tournament, track traveling to last chance meets, and home series in baseball and softball. More importantly, a number of CSU student-athletes walked across the stage at the North Charleston Coliseum as they graduated from the University on Saturday.

Trea Steele has been named this week’s CSU Athlete of the Week after pounding a pair of home runs on Thursday against Howard.

Steele had three hits in the first two games of the four-game series, including the two homers. Her second proved to be the game-winner in game two as she sent one over the wall in the fourth inning to put CSU up 3-2.

Gabrielle Houston and Jana Matthews were also nominated for the honor.

May 6 – 8 – Women’s Golf @ NCAA East Regional – 23rd
The women’s golf team knew they were in for a challenge, going up against 16 of the top-50 teams in the country in the NCAA East Regional. With a three-day score of 948 (+84), CSU ended up in 23rd place overall. Perhaps the saddest part of the result is that it means the end of the careers of Madison Jeter, Katrin Rumpf, and Olivia Jordan-Higgins, three seniors who have put CSU golf at the top of the Big South. The senior class won the Big South twice during their careers, including this year’s championship with a Big South record score of 881 (+17)

May 6 – 7 – Softball vs. Howard – W, 5-0, 3-2, 5-4, 8-7
If the softball team was looking for some momentum going into the Big South Tournament, they got it in the form of a four-game sweep of Howard. The victories clinched a winning season for CSU, who sits at 29-26-1 this year. They need just one victory in the tournament to post the most wins for the program since 1993. The home careers of seniors Megan Hall and Caitlin Allen also came to an end. Obviously, we hope that their careers continue for a couple more weeks with a run through the Big South Tournament, but if not, it is another class that has stuck through the difficulties of changing coaches, and now has their team on the rise, as CSU finished tied for third in the Big South.

May 7 – 9 – Baseball vs. Liberty – L, 7-5, 4-1, 13-4
The baseball team had plenty of chances to steal one or two games from the second-place team in the league this weekend, but came up empty as they were swept by Liberty. The most disappointing part of the weekend, though, had to be the injury sustained by freshman Jon Matthews. As Matthews squared to bunt in game two, he was drilled in the face with a pitch. He stayed in the game briefly, but was then taken out of the game and to the hospital where he had to have surgery. It goes without saying, but our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family, and we hope that you will say a prayer for him as well. Jesse Cadenhead continued to be hot at the plate, extending his hitting streak to five games, while Brantley Meier extended his streak to nine games from the leadoff spot.

May 8 – Track and Field @ Orange and Purple Classic
Lavon Allen, Anthony Ward and Dominique Riggins each ran season-bests for CSU this weekend. Although neither time was fast enough to earn a bid to the NCAA First Round, they will have another chance this week. Marcus Schoultz likely would have run a personal best as well, but kicked his blocks out on the start. Gabrielle Houston broke her own school record in the 100 meter dash, hitting the USATF qualifying standard for the AT&T USA National Championships in June. Rob Grabill qualified in the hammer throw for the USATF Junior National Championships, while Tamisha Foster missed the qualifying mark in the triple jump by 0.01 meters, and will likely get it this weekend at Georgia Tech.

What’s Coming Up?
May 11 – Baseball @ Georgia Southern – 6 p.m.
May 11 – 12 – Track and Field @ Wake Forest Invitational
May 12 – Baseball @ South Carolina – 7 p.m.
May 13 – Softball vs. Gardner-Webb (Big South Tournament) – 9 a.m.
May 14 – 15 – Softball vs. Big South Tournament
May 14 – 15 – Track and Field @ Georgia Tech Invitational
May 14 – 16 – Baseball @ UNC Asheville – 1 p.m., 1 p.m., 1 p.m.

Don't forget the following links:
Twitter
Facebook
YouTube
Video Streaming
Live Stats
Purchase pictures of your favorite Bucs
And CSUsports.com for all the latest CSU news and information

Weekly Recap - April 26 - May 2

Even though it was finals week and there were no competitions going on, there is still plenty going on at CSU. Early in the week the women’s golf team found out their destination for the NCAA Division I Women’s Golf Regional, and they will be staying as close to home as possible, competing in the East Region, hosted by East Carolina. We all wish them luck and hope they can continue their hot play against some very good competition. You can follow their progress on www.CSUsports.com, where Coach Kory Thompson and senior Katrin Rumpf will be blogging about their adventure.

Even with no competition this week, Tyrese Harris earned CSU Athlete of the Week honors after being the star of last week’s Spring Awards Banquet. Harris was named the football team’s sportsmanship award winner as well as one of four team captains. Harris also earned the SAAC Distinguished Service Award, and was the 2009-10 winner of the Michael Frost Christian Athlete Award.

We also considered Levi Brooks (Senior Male Athlete of the Year, M. Track), Olivia Jordan-Higgins (Senior Female Athlete of the Year, W. Golf), Sam Sasan (R.L. Win Christian Leadership Award, VB), and Andrew McKain (Hunter Cup, FB)

Other news out of CSU this week;
FB Wide Receiver Kwame Krakue and WBB player Tina DeCarvalho were named to the NSCA All-America Team.
Krakue Story
DeCarvalho Story

Former CSU golfer Jim Gardas was named to the Big South Hall of Fame
Gardas Story

The women’s soccer team released its 2010 schedule
W. Soccer Schedule

And the sports information department wrote a couple of great feature stories about our athletes still in competition.

Jana Matthews (SB) Makes the Most of her Freshman Campaign
Matthews Story

Jordan-Higgins caps historic career at East Regional
Jordan-Higgins Story

Kelvin Day Waits, Hopes for Regional Opportunity

Day Story

What’s Coming Up?
May 6-8 – NCAA Division I Women’s Golf Regionals
May 6 – Softball vs. Howard (DH) – 2 / 4 p.m.
May 7-9 – Baseball vs. Liberty - 2 / 3 / 2 p.m.
May 7 – 8 – Track and Field @ Clemson Orange and Purple Classic

Don't forget the following links:
Twitter
Facebook
YouTube
Video Streaming
Live Stats
Purchase pictures of your favorite Bucs
And CSUsports.com for all the latest CSU news and information