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Herd freshman Briana Daiss (98), shown here in a recent Dot Hicks Field at-bat against Radford, leads Coach Shonda Stanton’s team with
seven homers and 36 RBI. Marshall returns home for a three-game Conference USA series Saturday and Sunday against Charlotte
Photo by Rick Haye
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The Herd in spring
Features
Coach Doc Holliday’s football team is into its 2016 spring practice,
and here’s the Thundering Herd roster, from a quarterback and
safety at No. 1 to a defensive tackle in No. 98
It’s a snap
Braxton Crisp: Redshirt freshman long snapper Zach Wood has a tough
act to follow, but the Herd walk-on has prepared for his role since the
days when none of his young teammates wanted to play center
Sliding right
The biggest move for Marshall football this spring is a short one …
Michael Selby slides one spot from center to right guard, a move the
Herd hopes will bring more power and push to the running game
New names
After tutoring veteran success with names like Hewitt, Hunter, McKelvey and Holmes, Herd linebackers coach Adam Fuller is ready to
teach his inexperienced unit how the former stars did things
Ballpark figures
Woody Woodrum: If and when Huntington gets a baseball park the
Herd can call home, Mayor Steve Williams – still pushing forward on
the project – wants more than just a diamond
Going deep
Steve Cotton: Herd assistant baseball coach Tim Donnelly found
red-haired Tommy Lane at an Oregon junior college, and Lane’s
arrival meant Marshall had a big answer in the power department
Beach boy
Chris Dickerson: When Jared Dombrowski graduated from Marshall
a decade ago, he likely didn’t see his success in soccer taking him
to the U.S. National Team in the beach version of the sport
Point forward
Jack Bogaczyk: That’s not a reference to a basketball position, it’s
what Herd men’s Coach Dan D’Antoni is mostly doing after a successful season that included more than scoring records
Speed kills
Bill Cornwell: With Kaelynn Greene and Elicia D’Orazio going wild on
the basepaths, Marshall softball is running toward another top-10
stolen base season and maybe even a top C-USA seed
A long leap
Karena Fulks’ track and field career started at Northern Kentucky
and is ending at Marshall, and the transfer long jumper needed a
laep of faith that her move to the Herd took her to the right place
Marshall linebackers coach Adam Fuller tutored the last two
Conference USA Defensive Players of the Year, but is working with a
group of LBs that has ‘a lot of development going on’ in 2016 spring
practice (Story, Page 7)
Photo by Braxton Crisp
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4
The Herd Insider Magazine
Marshall Football Spring Roster, 2016
No. Player
Ht
WT
Pos
Cl
Hometown (last school)
1 Chase Litton 6-6
210
QB
SO
Tampa, Fla. (Wharton)
1 C.J. Reavis 6-1
215
S
JR
Chester, Va. (East Mississippi CC)
2 Hyleck Foster 5-11
189
RB
JR
Gaffney, S.C. (Gaffney)
3 Chris Jackson 6-0
169
DB
FR
Tallahassee, Fla. (Florida A&M HS)
4 Deon-Tay McManus 6-1
229
WR
RS JR
Baltimore, Md.
(Atlanta Sports Academy)
5 Donquell Green 5-8
159
WR
RS SO
Waynesboro, Ga.
(Burke County)
6 Doyle Grimes
6-1
228
LB
RS FR
Miami, Fla. (South Dade)
7 Michael Clark
6-7
211
WR
RS SO
St. Petersburg, Fla.
(Lakewood)
7 Antavis Rowe
5-11
164
DB
JR
Atlanta, Ga. (Washington)
9 Justin Hunt
6-3
201
WR
SR
Memphis, Tenn. (Whitehaven)
9 Shawn Petty
6-2
239
LB
RS SR
Greenbelt, Md.
(U. of Maryland)
11 Rodney Allen
5-11
183
DB
RS JR
Dallas, Texas (Lincoln)
11 Michael Birdsong
6-5
243
QB
RS SR
Matoaca, Va.
(James Madison U.)
12 Chris Williams-Hall
6-0
186
S
RS SO
Miami, Fla. (Miami Jackson)
14 Kendall Gant
6-3
199
S
JR
Lakeland, Fla. (Lake Gibson)
15 Raylen Elzy
6-4
202
WR
SO
Lithonia, Ga. (Georgia Sports Prep Academy)
16 Coy Petitt
6-2
187
QB
RS FR
Barboursville, W.Va.
(Cabell Midland)
18 Keion Davis
6-1
210
RB
RS SO
Fairburn, Ga. (Langston Hughes)
20 T.J. Griffin
5-9
181
DB
SO
Virginia Beach, Va. (Ocean Lakes)
21 Emanuel Byrd
6-3
236
TE
SR
Albany, Ga. (Georgia Military College)
21 Tiquan Lang
5-9
179
S
SR
Valdosta, Ga. (Lowndes)
23 Tony Pittman
5-10
215
RB
RS JR
Hampton, Va. (Phoebus)
24 Michael Johnson
5-9
179
DB
RS JR
Miami, Fla. (Booker T. Washington)
25 Kaleb Harris
6-3
220
TE
RS SO
Creston, Ohio (Norwayne)
26 Jeremiah Maddox
6-0
186
S
FR
Hilton Head, S.C. (Hilton Head)
27 Deiondre Coleman
5-10
154
DB
RS FR
Louisville, Ky. (Male)
28 D’Andre Wilson
5-10
173
DB
RS JR
Myrtle Beach, S.C. (Myrtle Beach)
29 Malik Gant
6-2
184
S
RS FR
Washington, D.C. (Woodson)
30 Kaare Vedvik
6-4
203
P/K
RS SO
Stavanger, Norway (McPherson (Kan.))
32 Delvin Weems
5-8
183
RB
RS FR
Tucker, Ga. (Tucker)
33 Marquis Couch
6-1
219
LB
RS FR
Miami, Fla. (Miami Central)
34 Ellis Cain
5-10
204
RB
RS FR
Louisville, Ky. (Male)
35 Frankie Hernandez
6-2
206
LB
RS SO
Largo, Fla. (Largo)
36 Cody Carter
5-10
180
S
RS SR
Barboursville, W.Va. (U. of Charleston)
36 Davon Durant
6-2
229
LB
RS JR
Greenwood, S.C. (Butler CC/Arizona State)
37 Chase Hancock
6-2
214
LB
RS SO
Daniels, W.Va. (Woodrow Wilson)
38 Mason White
6-1
215
RB
RS FR
South Point, Ohio (South Point)
39 Amoreto Curraj
6-3
218
K
RS JR
Tampa, Fla. (Leto)
40 Corey Neely
6-1
180
S
SR
Rock Hill, S.C. (Georgia Military College)
42 Blaine Thompson
5-9
202
LB
RS JR
Mt. Pleasant, S.C. (Wando)
43 Kyle Camacho
6-0
225
TE
RS JR
Greenwich, Ct. (Greenwich)
44 Blake Keller
6-2
231
DL
RS JR
Bradenton, Fla. (U. Central Florida)
45 Raheim Huskey
6-2
221
LB
RS JR
Gaffney, S.C. (Gaffney)
46 Clark Wilson
6-0
198
S
RS FR
Huntington, W.Va. (Huntington)
48 Nick Smith
5-10
171
K
RS JR
Plain City, Ohio (Alder)
49 Wyatt Ford
6-1
180
LB
RS FR
West Union, W.Va. (Doddridge County)
50 Melvin Stubbs
5-11
207
LB
RS SO
Parkersburg, W.Va. (Parkersburg)
51 Devontre’a Tyler
6-1
234
LB
SR
Arcadia, Fla. (Iowa Central CC)
52 Eli Gates
6-4
203
LS
RS SO
Martinsburg, W.Va. (Hedgesville)
54 Nyquan Harris
6-2
309
DL
RS SO
Norfolk, Va. (Lake Taylor)
54 Michael Selby
6-2
289
OL
SR
Sandersville, Ga. (Washington County)
55 Aaron Plantt
6-1
250
TE
RS JR
Hallandale, Fla. (Hallandale)
57 Matt Harless
6-2
268
OL
RS SO
Cyclone, W.Va. (Westside)
57 Zach Higginbotham
5-11
219
LB
RS JR
Cincinnati, Ohio (Univ. of Cincinnati)
58 Jordan Dowrey
6-1
280
OL
RS SO
Winchester, Va. (Handley)
59 Gary Thompson
6-2
257
DL
RS SR
La Mesa, Ca. (Helix)
60 Joey Maddox
6-0
274
OL
SO
Hilton Head, S.C. (Savannah State Univ.)
61 Levi Brown
6-4
272
OL
RS FR
Franklin, Ga. (Heard County)
63 Will Mendoza
6-6
269
OL
RS SO
Las Vegas, Nev. (Bishop Gorman)
65 Cody Collins
6-1
275
OL
RS JR
Trotwood, Ohio (Trotwood-Madison)
67 Sandley Jean-Felix
6-5
319
OL
RS JR
Sunrise, Fla. (Boyd Anderson)
69 Aaron Dopson
6-4
252
DL
RS FR
Hagerstown, Md. (North Hagerstown)
70 Ryan Riedel
6-1
287
OL
RS SR
Huntington, W.Va. (Cabell Midland)
73 Joe Massaquoi
6-5
262
DL
RS SR
Alexandria, Va. (T.C. Williams)
74 AJ Addison
6-6
289
OL
JR
Ruther Glen, Va. (Fork Union Military Academy)
76 Nate Devers
6-3
273 OL
RS SO
Massillon, Ohio (Washington)
77 Alex Locklear
6-5
318
OL
RS FR
Huntington, W.Va. (Spring Valley)
78 Clint Van Horn
6-5
321
OL
RS SR
Beckley, W.Va. (Woodrow Wilson)
79 Fedrice Binot
6-2
291
OL
RS SO
Lakeland, Fla. (Lake Gibson)
81 John Hathaway
6-1
189
WR
RS FR
Winfield, W.Va. (Winfield)
84 Josh Knight
6-1
195
WR
SR
Fort Pierce, Fla. (Fort Pierce Central)
85 Ryan Yurachek
6-3
235
TE
JR
Myrtle Beach, S.C. (Carolina Forest)
87 Nick Mathews
5-10
169
WR
SO
Haymarket, Va. (Patriot)
90 Damien Dozier
6-4
207
DL
RS FR
Raleigh, N.C. (Virginia Episcopal School)
91 Ryan Bee
6-7
262
DL
RS SO
Ashland, Ohio (Hillsdale)
92 Ty Tyler
6-3
240
DL
RS FR
Punta Gorda, Fla. (Charlotte)
94 Eric McKay
6-3
210
DL
RS FR
Uniondale, N.Y. (Uniondale)
95 Tomell One
6-4
290
DL
JR
Palm Bay, Fla. (Bayside)
96 Milan Lanier
6-5
224
DL
RS FR
Cincinnati, Ohio (Mount Healthy)
96 Zach Wood
6-1 212
LS
RS FR
Williamsburg, Ohio (McNicholas)
97 Malik Thompson
6-6
262
DL
RS SO
Winter Garden, Fla. (Fork Union Military Academy)
98 Jason Smith
6-3
291
DL
RS SO
Hackensack, N.J. (East Coast Prep)
5
HerdInsider.com
Rookie snapper Wood prepared for role
HUNTINGTON — One week of 2016 spring drills already is history for
Marshall football, and the quest is on for Coach Doc Holliday and his staff to
get a grasp on who will fill the roles of last year’s graduating class.
That includes finding someone to take over for Matt Cincotta.
Who?
Diehard Herd fans know who Cincotta is. Others may not.
He was the Herd’s scholarship four-year starter at long snapper,
delivering the ball back to punters and place-kick holders on the Herd’s
special teams units.
Enter redshirt freshman Zach Wood.
The native of Williamsburg, Ohio, brings a quite a resume to the table.
Wood said he first started rocketing footballs between his legs when he was in
sixth grade, “because no one else wanted to.” At that time, he was the center
on his middle school team’s offensive line.
“My dad was a coach, and everyone wanted to be the quarterback,” Wood
said following Thursday’s practice at Edwards Stadium. “You know, every little
kid wants to be a quarterback, and I said, ‘I’ll just be the center,’ and it just
took off from there.”
Being the center put him in prime position to be delegated as that team’s
long snapper as well, although the art of snapping certainly for a middle
school player what it is in college. But that got the wheels churning on Wood’s
long snapping career.
Wood, 19, said he started attending camps for long snappers in
eighth grade and began to realize that he was better at long snapping
than he initially thought.
“I couldn’t hardly get it 15 yards back then,” Wood said with a chuckle
about the early days of his snapping career. “But I kept working at it, and
freshman and sophomore year (at Archbishop McNicholas High School in
Cincinnati), I started getting
ranked at camps, and that’s
kind of where it took off.”
One of the camps Wood
attended was a Rubio Long
Snapping camp in Illinois last
spring. On chrissailerkicking.
com (a partner website of the
Rubio Long Snapping camp),
one evaluator said of Wood:
“He is built VERY well and is
one of the smoothest Long
Snappers in his class.” The
evaluation later said, “If he could get his legs going with his upper body, he
would put a hole in the punter.”
Upon arrival as a walk-on at Marshall, Wood continued his
development as a snapper by working alongside Cincotta, who never
made a bad snap in 569 career deliveries for Marshall. Wood said his
time learning and growing alongside one of the best long snappers in
Marshall history was valuable.
“He’s a great mentor; I don’t know if you could have any greater of a
mentor,” Wood said. “He snapped for four years here, and not only taught me
a lot about snapping, but how to live your life as a college snapper and be
successful outside of football.”
Besides listening to Cincotta intently because of his accomplishments on the
field, Wood added that being tutored by a magna cum laude MU graduate in
pre-med has its advantages as well.
In practice, Wood has shown flashes of the technique Cincotta honed over
four years on the job, but there’s one thing Wood hasn’t been able to show
the world yet … whether he can have the same downfield success as Cincotta.
Cincotta – a linebacker during his high school days in Charlotte, N.C. –
finished with 12 career tackles and two fumble recoveries, both of which
came last season. Possibly his most memorable tackle came midway through
the second quarter of the Herd’s triple-overtime loss at Virginia Tech in 2013,
when on punt coverage, he met Kyshoen Jarrett at about the same time the
ball did for a thunderous tackle.
It’s most certainly impossible to completely replace Matt Cincotta, and
Wood still has a long way to go in his college career, but the Herd coaching
staff has to feel good about Wood’s chances to keep the long snapping
position solidified for the foreseeable future.
And for the sake of his fellow specialists, let’s hope Wood doesn’t put holes
in punters with his snaps anytime soon.
Braxton Crisp is a senior broadcast journalism major at Marshall, where he
covers Thundering Herd athletics for WMUL-FM. He was awarded the ArnoldTurner Scholarship as The Parthenon Reporter of the Year in 2014.
6
The Herd Insider Magazine
Selby returning to guard to boost Herd run game
By JACK BOGACZYK
Herd Insider Editor
HUNTINGTON — The opening of spring practice last week at Edwards
Stadium rekindled a good memory for Marshall football.
And it’s the biggest move of the spring, too.
The Herd is returning the right side of its offensive line to the 2014
starting tandem of Michael Selby at guard and Clint Van Horn at tackle.
That combination was just one ingredient in Marshall’s Conference USA
title, 13-1 record and final national ranking in 2014.
Selby moved to center for the 2015 season, following four-year
starter Chris Jasperse at the spot. Van Horn, a two-time all-conference
lineman, missed all but 10 quarters last season after twice suffering a
torn right pectoral muscle and after subsequent surgery was granted an
additional year of eligibility as a so-called medical redshirt.
Both are 2016 seniors.
“We’re moving Mike Selby, trying to get our two big road graders at
guard,” said Herd Coach Doc Holliday, who is pointed toward his seventh
MU season. “He’s a really good center, but he may be a better guard.
We’ve got (Jordan) Dowrey in there, too, moving to left guard, and we
feel pretty good going forward at center with (Nate) Devers.
“We feel like right guard is the best position for Selby, the spot where
we can get the most out of him … What we’re asking those guys to do at
the guard position is play like road graders – be strong, tough guys in
there, blocking in the run game. With Selby and Dowrey in there, it will
give us that. And we’ve got good depth at tackle.”
Holliday and Marshall’s fourth-year offensive line coach, Alex Mirabal,
said the Herd will work much of spring without redshirt sophomores
Dowrey and Devers.
Mirabal said Devers is possible for some “individual work late in
spring” after undergoing back surgery. The line coach said Dowrey is
an unlikely participant in the 15 spring practices, following surgery
for multiple hernias.
Dowrey started the final 12 games at right guard in 2015, after
Devers started the opener, then was limited to 143 snaps due
to a high ankle sprain and coping with the death of his father in
early October. Dowrey will move to the left guard spot vacated by
Sebastian “Swede” Johansson, who was an All-C-USA first team
selection as a 2015 senior.
The trio of Selby, Dowrey and Devers, however, would give the Herd a
strong inside trio of “big ‘uns” on what Holliday says “could be our best
offensive line, potentially, since I’ve been here.”
In the summer of 2015, Devers and Selby ranked first and third,
respectively, among Herd players in the bench press in strength
and conditioning testing. Dowrey was a two-time Virginia Group
AAA state wrestling heavyweight champ in his final years at
Handley High in Winchester, Va.
Van Horn’s return goes along with returning starting left tackle
Sandley Jean-Felix, a 2016 redshirt junior. Their backups are redshirt
sophomore Fred Binot (right), who started the Herd’s St. Petersburg
Bowl victory over Connecticut, and junior AJ Addison (left), a sevengame starter in 2015.
The decision by offensive coordinator Bill Legg and Mirabal to revamp
the Herd front is rooted in the 6-foot-2, 290-pound Selby, who has
See SELBY, Page 25
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HerdInsider.com
It’s a new-name game at linebacker for Fuller
By JACK BOGACZYK
Herd Insider Editor
HUNTINGTON — With apologies to Penn State, Marshall kind of felt like it
was Linebacker U. in recent seasons.
For Herd football this spring, however, it’s “Linebacker … Who?”
After coaching multi-year starters like Evan McKelvey, D.J. Hunter,
Neville Hewitt and Jermaine Holmes in his first three seasons as Marshall’s
linebackers coach, Adam Fuller has a depth chart that’s seriously under
construction as spring practice begins.
Rising senior middle linebacker Devontre’a Tyler – you can call him “Tre”
– started the final 12 games as the Herd finished 10-3 with a St. Petersburg
Bowl victory last season. Otherwise, names like Petty, Huskey, Hernandez,
Hancock, Durant and Grimes are filling spots.
“I’ll admit, I thought Tre played really good football last year,” Fuller said of
Tyler, who finished with 42 tackles and played 440 snaps in 2015. “We didn’t
really know what we had with him at first, and we didn’t know what we had
my first year here (2013) with Neville, with Evan, with Jermaine, and then
they emerged really fast.
“So, we’re hoping that happens this year. I think Tre is a rock and this
will be his best year of football. And then everybody else? (Shawn) Petty’s
played a little bit. (Chase) Hancock has played a lot of special teams, Frankie
(Hernandez) a little special teams – and then it’s wide open.
“It’s Day 1 (Tuesday, March 29), and Frankie Hernandez was with us
all last year – and you saw that. Doyle Grimes and Davon Durant – they
were not – and you saw that. So, from Practice 1 to 2, how quickly will
those other ones catch up? I don’t’ know. I do know there’s a lot of
work to do. I’m sure of that … There is a lot of development to go on in
this group right now.”
You could forgive Fuller for thinking “what was,” but he’s not that kind of
guy. He’s coached the last two Conference USA Defensive Players of the Year
in Hewitt (2014) and McKelvey (2015). In three seasons, Herd linebackers
also have two all-C-USA first team honors, a pair of second team selections
and three honorable mentions.
Hunter, Holmes, McKelvey and Hewitt combined for 126 starts and 1,057
tackles in their careers.
Now, Fuller has Petty, a senior who had 37 tackles last season in eight
games after returning from a neck injury suffered in August camp. Junior
Raheim Huskey, backing up Tyler at mike, had 24 stops in seven games
before being suspended for the second half of last season.
Former walk-on Hancock had only 79 defensive snaps as Hunter’s backup at
sam (strongside). Hernandez played only 56 snaps as a redshirt freshman in
2015. Durant is a touted junior transfer from Arizona State who sat out last
season. Grimes is a redshirt freshman.
So, does Fuller coach differently sans his former stars?
“You still coach to a group, but what I’ve always said is there are steps
to coaching,” the Herd linebackers coach said after Tuesday’s initial spring
workout. “Step 1, footwork, step 2, handwork. There’s tackling. Block
progression. How you fit on the run. How you fit on the pass. And some of
those (former) guys, when they were here, you could just skip to step 6. You
didn’t have to go 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.
“With new guys, you still start at 1, but you watch them and maybe you can
go to 3 right away. I don’t need 2. He’s got it already. I coach step 2 all the
time, but it doesn’t have to be beaten upon with him. You start at Step 1 with
new guys, then it’s about how natural they are at certain things. You don’t
See LINEBACKERS, Page 25
8
The Herd Insider Magazine
Mayor Williams has more than field in his dreams
HUNTINGTON — As former Marshall Coach Jack Cook will be
happy to tell you, Marshall University has been promising to get the
Thundering Herd program into a first-class baseball park since he was
a freshman – in 1949.
Marshall has waited for its “Field of Dreams” for over 65 years.
Over the years, Marshall has played in as many as 12 stadiums in
Huntington, some still around but many long gone as well as playing out of
town and at various high schools through the years.
Herd baseball was played at Marshall Campus Field, Camden Park, Union
Park, Driving Park, the Huntington Fairgrounds, League Field, the Inco Plant
Field, St. Clouds Common, Woody Williams Field at the Veterans Memorial
Field House, University Heights and now at the YMCA Kennedy Center’s
George T. Smailes Stadium for non-conference games, and all those have
hosted Marshall over the years in Huntington.
Throw in a pair of games at WVU Tech’s Epling Field in East Bank
a few years ago and games at seven high schools in three states,
and then add in those C-USA stadiums the Herd uses — Appalachian
Power Park in Charleston and Linda K. Epling Stadium in Beckley —
and nomads in the Sahara Desert have nothing on Marshall baseball
when it comes to wandering.
But Marshall graduate and current Huntington Mayor Steve Williams has a
passion for a baseball field for the city, and remembers the glory days of Herd
baseball when they went to the NCAA Tournament in both 1973 and as the
Southern Conference champs in 1978.
The stadium would be somewhere Marshall could play as well as some level
of minor league professional baseball or college wooden bat baseball (like the
W.Va. Miners in Beckley) for summertime baseball in Huntington — something
not seen here since the 1998 when the independent Heartland League’s
Huntington Rail Kings folded at midseason.
Williams is working on this as he also works on being re-elected this year
after four very positive years as mayor. But for now, he has many answers to
all but one or two questions: Where would you put a stadium in Huntington
and how would it impact the city in a positive manner?
Williams talked about the possibility of a stadium on the March 28 edition
of the First Sentry Bank Sportsline, heard daily at 5 p.m. on ESPN Radio 93.3
and 94.1 FM and AM 930 and 1340.
“I have the same answer,” Williams said, “as it relates to the baseball
park — the only movement is I have been talking with architects and with
contractors about designs for three separate properties. We want to first
make sure that the properties we are looking at for a baseball facility could
actually fit a stadium and parking into each property. We will have to look at
that first if we gain access those properties for a stadium.
“I have, in the last three weeks, had at least four separate meetings
about the stadium and it relates to a lot of other things we are doing.
But the key is to have control of the property to do this. “We are still
talking in the same areas we have talked about (in the past), and the
main thing is talking about something like this is talking about doing
this on someone else’s
property.
“We are still talking about
property in the general area
of the (Marshall) football
stadium, in the empty
properties around and to the
east of the football stadium,
and we have found several
plots that the stadium would
fit in — each having its own
little idiosyncrasies.
“But make no mistake about
it — a baseball stadium is
something this city needs. I have also had talks with the SSAC (the West
Virginia Secondary Schools Athletic Commission) about it, about bringing
more tournaments to Huntington. I told them at the state wrestling
championships in Huntington last month that we would want to bring the
state baseball championships to a new stadium in Huntington.
“The vision is still the same and the aspiration is still the same but we have
to get the property to do it on.”
Williams would like to look at other SSAC championships coming to
Huntington, as well as keeping the wrestling tournament, and possibly
moving baseball from Power Park to a new stadium in town. He would also
like to possibly bring many other events to the city, possibly some Conference
USA championship events to Huntington.
But Job 1 for the Mayor at this time is trying to get a baseball
stadium, a facility that can lead to other recreation possibilities for
the town. When it comes to financing the stadium, what will it take to
build a quality park?
“We are going to go first class or not do it,” Williams said, with
emphasis. “I am not going to build a field with metal bleachers all
around it just to say, ‘We have a ball park in Huntington.’ We have gone
on the cheap far too many times in Huntington, and we deserve more,
the people here deserve more. I do believe we will have tax increment
financing, create a TIF district in the area where we go and that will
help finance some of the public infrastructure that will need to be done
for and around the stadium.
“If we do it properly, we have some commercial building around
it, there is rental, there is a revenue stream that come with the TIF
funding.” Tax increment financing (TIF) is a public financing method
that is used as a subsidy for redevelopment, infrastructure, and other
community-improvement projects.
See WOODRUM, Page 26
9
HerdInsider.com
Lane provides power surge to Herd lineup
HUNTINGTON – A broken collarbone, suffered during a high school
basketball game more than three years ago – some 2,500 miles west of
Huntington – ultimately gave Marshall baseball Coach Jeff Waggoner this
year’s top power hitter and run producer.
There aren’t a lot of similarities between Mount Hood Community College
and Marshall University but for the fact that Tommy Lane has been a fixture
as a middle-of-the-lineup power source for both schools.
Midway through his first year with the Thundering Herd, the 6-foot-7 junior
first baseman has put up a .336 batting average and leads his team with 8
home runs and 22 RBIs (though April 2 games), just as he did during both of
his junior college seasons.
Lane grew up in Pendleton, Ore., a youngster who loved baseball from the
time his parents signed him up for T-ball as a preschooler. He liked other
sports, too – he even spent one year on his high school swim team – but
baseball was always his favorite.
He was pretty good, too, and as one of the bigger kids his age was always
thought of as a power hitter.
That power, and his reputation, then hit a growth spurt.
“I played basketball as a sophomore in high school at about 6-foot-2 and
180 pounds,” Lane said. “Then between the end of that basketball season and
the end of the school year – so basically from March until the summer – I
grew four inches to 6-6.
“My dad is a little over 6 feet tall and my mom is only 5-2, but her side of the
family has several big guys and I guess that’s where it came from,” Lane said. “One
of my cousins (Burke Ellis) was a starting offensive lineman at Oregon State.”
Lane’s power from the left-hand batter’s box grew as well, although he
didn’t realize how much until his Pendleton High School team played against
Roseburg High School and star pitcher Josh Graham. When Graham
pitched, the scouts showed up to watch. He went on to play at the University
of Oregon and his mid-90s fastball made him a fourth-round draft pick of the
Atlanta Braves last June.
“I hit a long home run and that was fun because of how good Graham was,”
Lane said. “But then when we got home there was a message on the answering
machine from a scout who was at the game – at first a scary message.
“‘Hi Tommy. I just wanted to let you know that we’re going to have to
schedule you for a drug test. Kids who are 16 aren’t supposed to hit the ball
that far, so we’re going to check for PEDs,” Lane recalled. “Then he paused
and laughed and said, ‘Just kidding.
That was great. Just keep hitting the
ball hard.’
“So that was the first time I
realized that maybe my power was
unusual since a pro scout took the
time to call about it.”
As a junior, Lane rewrote Pendleton’s
record book by launching 11 home
runs and driving in 52 runs in just a
28-game season. College recruiters
noticed and he decided to play for St.
Mary’s College in California.
The plan took a detour, however,
on the basketball court. Lane’s senior
hoops season was not only cut short
due to a broken collarbone, but a
misdiagnosis meant that the bone
later had to be re-broken and reset,
and it ultimately cost him the entire
baseball season as well.
Tommy Lane (19) already has 8
homeruns for the Herd
Photo by Rick Haye
The injury, in combination with
a coaching change at St. Mary’s,
prompted a switch to the junior
college route and Lane enrolled at
Mount Hood. A healthy 2014 season
saw him lead his team in home
runs and runs batted in and – more
importantly from Marshall’s
standpoint – he received
all-league accolades in the
Northwest Athletic Conference, a
massive 28-team confederation.
“A big thing in NWAC baseball
is that they have a sophomore
showcase,” Lane said. “In the fall
they invite all the players who had
been all-league the year before
and the scouts and recruiters
came to watch them work out.”
One of those recruiters was
Marshall assistant coach Tim
Donnelly, who had been charged by Waggoner to go shopping for some power
to add to the Herd lineup.
“The showcase was at Bellevue College, which has this tall hill beyond the
outfield fence,” Donnelly said. “I’m watching batting practice, and this big lefthanded hitter starts crunching balls not only over the fence but way up the hill.”
Donnelly approached Lane and they quickly found some common ground – former
Marshall star and Major League pitcher Dan Straily had also gone to Pendleton High
School. The recruiting process was under way and Marshall pounced.
“Other places were waiting until the spring signing period to make scholarship
offers, but Marshall offered in the fall,” Lane said. “I made the visit and felt
comfortable here. It felt like I fit in with the team and the school and the coaches
here showed me they wanted me. I went for it and signed early.”
Not only did the Herd sign Lane from the NWAC showcase, but Donnelly
also saw shortstop Leo Valenti (Pierce Junior College) and catcher Sam Finfer
(Bellevue), who likewise became members of the Herd.
Marshall’s decision was affirmed when Lane again led Mount Hood with
seven home runs and 31 RBIs, to go with a solid .316 batting average. His
walk-off RBI single in the 11th inning of a tournament contest gave the Saints
a berth in the league championship game and showed some promise that
Lane could deliver in clutch situations.
Lane’s transition to a new school and new level of competition – 2,500 miles
from home – was a smooth one.
“I’ve never really been a homebody,” Lane explained. “After my junior year
of high school I played on a summer team up in Spokane (Wash.) – about
three hours away from home – and stayed up there.
“My junior college was only about three hours away, too, but I’d just go
home on winter break even there. I’m not a guy to go home every couple of
weeks, so that part of it wasn’t really a big shock for me to come across the
country to play at Marshall.
“It didn’t hurt that the other guys were coming to Marshall, too. I played
against Leo both my freshman and sophomore year. I didn’t play against Sam in
college, but we were at some of the same tournaments in high school. I played
against (Marshall senior) D.J. Gee my freshman season in junior college.
“It didn’t hurt, but it wasn’t a big part of my decision, either. I did notice,
though, that D.J. had success here at Marshall, so that gave me confidence
that if I came here and worked at it I could be successful at this level, too.”
Lane’s goal for this season doesn’t involve home run or RBI numbers – it’s
to get the Thundering Herd back into the Conference USA Tournament for the
first time since 2010. That’s no small task given that the league RPI has been
riding at No. 4 in the nation, trailing only the SEC, ACC and Pac-12.
“Conference USA teams had a good year in the non-conference part of the
schedule and the league has proven itself to be one of the best leagues in
America,” Lane said. “But if we do what we can to improve, Marshall can be
up there in this conference.
“We knew coming in that we were going to have great starting pitching.
Coach Waggoner challenged us as hitters to play our parts and do the job to
give them some run support and we can make a run at this thing.”
Veteran play-by-play broadcaster Steve Cotton – a record 10-time West
Virginia Sportscaster of the Year — is in his 23rd season on the Thundering
Herd/IMG Sports Network.
10
The Herd Insider Magazine
Dombrowski heads to beach with National Team
HUNTINGTON — The first thing that pops into your head is, “What exactly is
beach soccer?”
Yes, it’s just what you are thinking. It’s soccer on sand instead of grass.
But why?
And, more to the point, how?
“Well, it’s pretty much soccer,” says Jared Dombrowski, a former Marshall men’s
player who now is a member of the U.S. National Beach Soccer Team. “Think of the
differences between volleyball and beach volleyball … same concept.”
Dombrowski, who just returned from El Salvador – where he played in the Copa
Pilsener for Team USA – said the dimensions of a beach soccer pitch are smaller
than those for a grass pitch. And there are fewer players on the pitch.
“The field is 40 yards long and 30 yards wide,” said Dombrowski, who teaches
middle school just outside of Columbus, Ohio. “There are four players plus a
goalkeeper on the field for each team.”
Beach soccer is sanctioned by FIFA, the same international group that oversees
most major soccer tournaments such as the World Cup. And while the goal still is
to put the ball in the goal, he said a beach soccer game is quite different from one
played on grass.
He describes it as “aerial.”
“It requires a lot more skill,” said Dombrowski, who also coaches Pre-Academy
teams for the Columbus Crew Soccer Club. “The tactics are similar to indoor soccer
because of the number of players and the dimensions.
“Shots are taken, I’d say, about every 30 seconds or so. We play three 12-minute
periods, so it’s very fast paced. But there are stoppages. It’s very taxing on the body
because you’re running on sand.
“And, of course, it’s harder to dribble. If you play a hard pass on sand, it’s
going to hit a mound or a peak and pop up on somebody. So, a lot of the passes
are in the air. The game is very
aerial. You do a lot of passing to
the chest or thigh. There are a
lot more acrobatics.”
One way to illustrate that, he
said, is the use of bicycle kicks.
“In regular soccer, a bicycle
kick likely will end up being a
foul on me because it likely is a
dangerous play,” Dombrowski
said. “But in beach soccer, they
actually cater to people doing
bicycle kicks. They want it. If
anything, there is usually a foul on
the defense for getting in the way of a bicycle kick.”
Another difference, he said, is that a player who is fouled is the one who has to
take the penalty shot. That isn’t the case in regular soccer.
“Plus, because the size of the field, just about everything is a shot on goal,” said
Dombrowski, adding a typical score for a beach soccer game is something like 7-5.
“It’s just a very exciting, very fun game to play.”
During his career with the Thundering Herd, Dombrowski played in 73 matches
from 2001-05, scoring six goals and eight assists with the Herd as a defender. He is
listed as a midfielder for the U.S. Beach National Team. “It’s very exciting news to hear that Jared was able to make the national beach
soccer team,” Marshall Coach Bob Gray said. “It’s obviously a great honor for him to
represent his country and it bodes well for Marshall to have a former athlete on the
See DICKERSON, Page 27
11
HerdInsider.com
A reflective D’Antoni looks ahead, too
HUNTINGTON — When 2015-16 Marshall men’s basketball is considered
in years down the road, the reference point is likely to be a Conference USA
Tournament semifinal spot or 12 regular-season league wins for the first time
since 2000-01 back in the Mid-American Conference days.
at Ohio State, Cincinnati,
Chattanooga and Akron
and maybe another power
conference team, too.
But there was much more to Marshall’s 17-16 finish in Coach Dan D’Antoni’s
second sideline season at his alma mater than 14 C-USA, school and
Henderson Center records broken or tied.
And he understands – but
refuses to accept – the Herd
fan base’s hand-wringing over
the loss of Kelly, who had one
of the best individual seasons in
Herd history in his different sort
of “one-and-done” appearance.
James Kelly paved his way to the first 600/300 Herd season (points/
rebounds) since Russell Lee over four decades earlier … and also landed one
of the 64 coveted senior spots in the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, a
tradition-rich launching pad for so many NBA careers in the past.
Guards Jon Elmore, Stevie Browning and CJ Burks and forward Terrence
Thompson burst onto the Herd scene, and junior Ryan Taylor heads toward
his senior season with more than 1,300 points and 700 rebounds – a numbers
combo previously reached by only Herd players named Greer, Slack, Stone,
Lee and VanHoose.
As for their coach?
“What pleased me the most is that they adapted,” D’Antoni said earlier this
week. “They started the season 0-6. Did they fall apart? Turn on one another?
No, they buckled down harder, said they’d get better and they did. And did we
have a disappointment at the Conference USA Tournament? Yes. Did we have
a disappointment when Louisiana Tech) hit a 45-foot shot to win? Yes. That’s
all part of it. Was I disappointed they didn’t call that Ryan was fouled (at the
end of a tough home loss to UAB)? Yes.
“Am I going to sit there and let it ruin my life? Hell, no. I’m going onto the
next game. You have to. Let’s go play. I think our kids adopted that attitude
and they stuck together and that was great. To me, that’s an admirable trait.”
Against a schedule that ranked in the top 100 of the RPI – and a nonconference schedule in the top 30 entering the NCAA Tournament – the
Herd made significant improvement. One example came in one of D’Antoni’s
favorite measurables – effective field goal percentage.
In that measurement, a 3-point goal counts as 1.5 made field goals. In
D’Antoni’s first season, the effective field goal percentage was .462 as the
Herd finished 11-21. This season, the EFG number climbed to .542 … and that
hike of .080 topped the nation’s 351 Division I teams.
There’s more.
In 2014-15, the Herd had the pace it wanted – ranking No. 7 (among
351 Division I teams by analytics guru Ken Pomeroy) in adjusted tempo (or
possessions). But Marshall was only No. 311 in adjusted offense – efficiency.
This season, the Herd was No. 3 in tempo, and the adjusted offense ranking
soared to No. 54.
D’Antoni also had a goal for his team to average one point per possession or
better. The Herd accomplished that (1.077 points, ranking No. 51 in Division).
That was after a ranking of 323rd at .905 points per possession.
OK, that was then. Going forward, D’Antoni said the Herd is still recruiting
for 2016-17, when the strength of schedule will remain solid with games
He also said he isn’t worried
about another whisper making
the rounds – that Taylor will
graduate this summer and then take a final season of eligibility as a graduate
transfer closer to his Indianapolis home.
“I just talked to Ryan again (last week,” D’Antoni said. “Ryan is
very happy here and he’s looking forward to being the centerpiece
of our ballclub that will have an opportunity to get into the NCAA
Tournament next season.
“We’re going to be good, and he’s going to be a cornerstone here – not just
a piece — for a team that can contend in the conference and have a chance
for an NCAA bid. I have Ryan’s word. That’s all I have to go by, and it’s good
enough for me.”
Replacing Kelly is another story, but D’Antoni said he is ready to move forward
with a team that loses only one of its top seven players from 2015-16.
“James had a special season, and yes, there are points and rebounds to
replace,” the Herd coach said. “I look at it like this … I think we’re going to
have development in our bigs. As for points, they’re a funny thing. They shift
around. Let’s put it this way: I don’t think scoring points will be a hang up.
We’ll score points.
“What James did for us was he gave us exciting plays that turned
momentum and he gave us some tough rebounds. We’ll have to replace that.
Anytime you lose a really good player, one selected to the coaches’ (NABC)
all-district teams and invited to Portsmouth, it’s a big deal.
“But you replace players like that. That’s what all programs do, and
I think we’ve gotten into the deal where we don’t get someone of big
prospect status, then the sky is falling. What I’m trying to say is one
of my strengths – and a strength of our coaching staff — is developing
players. Look at Terrence Thompson; he came a long way; I think
he’ll come even further. Milan (Mijovic) and Ajdin (Penava) are close and
they’ll help. We have players here whose games will step up into that
type of status with the opportunity.
“We have kids who will work hard between now and next year and with
See BOGACZYK, Page 27
12
The Herd Insider Magazine
Herd softball relying on fleet feet for success
HUNTINGTON — Fans of late 1960s television might remember the show
“It Takes a Thief,” starring Robert Wagner as a spy and thief working for the
United States Government.
Marshall University’s softball team could have its own show on thievery this
season, but the Herd features more than one base-stealing “thief.”
Marshall has two base-stealing threats that are causing havoc on the bases,
leading to runs and wins in Kaelynn Greene and Elicia D’Orazio.
Greene is a senior outfielder from Eastvale, Calif., while D’Orazio is a
sophomore infielder from Clermont, Fla.
Going into last weekend’s Conference USA road series at UAB, Greene and
D’Orazio were leading the league in stolen bases with Greene recording 37
steals and D’Orazio following with 23.
Their efforts have helped Marshall hang with nationally ranked Florida
Atlantic atop of the league’s East Division.
If you look at conference statistics, Marshall is the clear leader in stolen
bases with a 45-steal advantage over FAU. The Herd is also leading the
nation in stolen bases per game and Greene is second in the nation in the
steals per game category.
Greene said that she and D’Orazio showed their base-swiping early in
their athletic careers.
“We both ran track in high school too, so running has been our thing for a
long time,” Greene said.
The pair has been highly decorated in their Marshall careers.
Greene was All-C-USA first team and on the league’s all-freshman team in
2013 as well as on the 2014 conference all-tournament team. She came into
2016 with 90 stolen bases, the fifth highest total in school history. Greene
went into the UAB just three steals away from equaling Sierra Davenport’s
Herd career steals record of 130.
D’Orazio was the 2015
Conference USA Freshman
of the Year and an allconference first team
performer as she finished
her first Marshall season with
a .354 average, 57 hits, 34
runs and 24 stolen bases.
D’Orazio said that she and
Greene have one goal when
they get on base … creating
havoc for the opposition.
“We get on, we move
ourselves around and it gets
everyone excited,” D’Orazio said. “If we can get on and steal bases, its
setting us up to win.”
“It’s fun because coaches get mad and pitchers get mad because catchers
can’t throw us out.”
Greene agreed.
“People really get frazzled when we’re on base,” Greene said.
“Sometimes, they forget about the hitter, make a bad pitch and we get a
gap hit and score.”
A play from a recent 9-2 win over St. Francis (Pa.) shows how the pair can
cause trouble for opposing teams.
Greene led off the game with a hit and then stole second with D’Orazio at
the plate. D’Orazio then legged out an infield single to put runners at the
See CORNWELL, Page 28
13
HerdInsider.com
Fulks’ finish at Marshall no long jump for her
By JACK BOGACZYK
Herd Insider Editor
HUNTINGTON — Karena Fulks’ personal record in the long jump is 18
feet, 5¾ inches. Her goal is to eclipse that – “over 19 feet,” she said – in
Marshall’s outdoor season.
However, you might say Fulks already has made a much longer leap in her
college life and track and field career.
After three years on full scholarship at Northern Kentucky, Fulks
decided she wanted to finish her college – and track – days at Marshall
… without a scholarship.
It was a gamble that paid off for Fulks, of Jackson, Ohio, after she wanted
to attend Marshall when she started college back in the fall of 2012. MU may
have been her father’s and sister’s alma mater, but it didn’t have a track
grant-in-aid. NKU did.
She even gambled that Northern would give her a release from its program,
and that Coach Jeff Small’s Herd program would welcome her.
“My dad (former Jackson High basketball coach Daniel Fulks) is originally
from South Point and my family has always gone here; we’ve always been a
big Herd family,” said Fulks, who won the long jump in a 39-competitor field
on March 19 at the Wake Forest Open – the Herd’s outdoor season opener. “I looked here my senior year, loved it, instantly knew this is where I wanted
to go, but scholarship opportunities took me to Northern Kentucky.
“I spent three years at Northern; it was never home and I really was never
happy. I was coming home to see family all of the time. I really never connected
with my teammates. I had great coaches; they really helped me out, but I never
felt like myself; never felt like that was where I was meant to be.”
So, on Easter Sunday a year ago, Fulks applied to Marshall.
“I didn’t tell my parents,” she said, “and then I realized I put my home
address on the application, so I’d better tell them before I get the acceptance
letter. I hadn’t even asked for my release from the team at Northern yet. I
just took a chance. I understood I’d be losing a full scholarship to come to
Marshall, but I know going to Marshall benefits my happiness – that’s where I
was meant to be – and that would be greater than the financial loss.”
The 5-foot-3 Fulks was the 2012 Ohio Division II high school champion in
the long jump, with a leap of 18-5 that topped all of the competitors in the
higher and lower divisions, too. She was hoping for more NCAA Division I
scholarship interest, and she said Cincinnati talked to her … but she had given
a commitment to Northern Kentucky, “and in our family, your word is good.”
Fulks, 22, praised her NKU jumps coach, Paul Longano, and said he
eventually talked to the Herd staff about her. Convincing her parents it was
the right move had a different degree of difficulty. Then she landed a paid
internship with IMG, the multimedia marketing partner of Marshall Athletics.
“That does help,” said Fulks, who is on schedule to graduate with a
marketing degree in December 2016. “I’ve been lucky. I kind of knew if I
got onto the track team that my parents would be more understanding,
because at first, they were like, ‘No, you’re not doing that, not giving up your
scholarship.’ But I knew if I got onto the team, I’d be happy here and I knew
that’s what they would want.
“People were like, ‘Wow, you’re crazy giving up a full scholarship,’ but my
own happiness was worth it. If I had to take out student loans, it was worth it
to me to have to work a little harder to find my happiness. And everyone here
has been so welcoming.
“I love my IMG family. I always joke, ‘Hey, I’m graduating in December;
you’re going to have to fire somebody.’ I’m a property assistant, and help put
on the promotions with other assistants. We set up gameday activities, do the
hospitality tent at football games. It’s a long day but it’s fun and worth it.
“And with my internship, I’m so excited about my major. I didn’t know what
I wanted to do at first. I think I changed my (desired) major six times my
senior year in high school. I wanted to be a nurse. I wanted to be a dental
hygienist. I wanted to be a lawyer.
“And then I just kind of went into marketing without really knowing what it
was. I just knew it was about sales, so I’d like to stay with it, get into sports,
account managing. I’d like to work with a professional team, the Cincinnati
Reds, or go to Cleveland with the Cavaliers … something like that.”
At Northern, Fulks didn’t reach her personal best until hitting 18-5¾ (5.63
meters) last April 17 in a meet at Centre (Ky.) College. She set her indoor PR
in mid-February in the Chipotle Marshall Invitational on the Jeff Small Track,
finishing in second place at 18-3 (5.56m).
At NKU, she also had run the 55 and 60 sprints indoors, the 100 outdoors
and was part of the 4x100 and 4x400 relays – and set a few school records.
“If they needed me somewhere, I ran it; I never trained for it,” she said.
“I only trained for the long jump. Once I got here, in indoor, I PR’d for
first time in three years (18-3). Before that, I’d only really jumped 17-11
indoors. In three years at Northern I didn’t really improve until finally last
semester last year.
“The weight room made a big difference here … I flatlined for three years
and really lost my love for the sport and when I left NKU that last meet I
remember walking out of (the Kentucky Relays in early May) thinking, ‘This is
the last time I’ll walk away from my sport.’ And as an athlete that’s like’ Ugh.’
“But I was OK with it. I’d lost all of my love for the sport. I had no idea I
was going to be on the track team here at that point. It was still a guessing
game by me. I did know I was coming here. As for the team, I didn’t know.
But I had already decided I was going to do this. I was ready to take the
chance. I feel like I’m the risk-taker in my family, and I thought, ‘I just need
my family to see I can do this.”
Fulks said NKU gave her a release, but not for Cincinnati-area colleges. “I
was OK with that; I’m going to Huntington,” she said. “I was willing to take
the risk on getting on the team. When I found out, Coach (Don) Yentes (the
Herd sprints and jumps coach) called me in July said they knew I’d been
released and I was eligible to talk to them. He said, ‘We want you on the
See FULKS, Page 28
14
The Herd Insider Magazine
HerdInsider.com
15
Herd tight ends coach Todd Goebbel, who also works with special teams, gets things lined up on coverage during the first week of spring drills
Photo by Braxton Crisp
16
The Herd Insider Magazine
It’s b
to rec
17
HerdInsider.com
better
ceive …
It’s an important spring practice for the Herd receiving corps, and fourth-year receivers coach and
former NFL veteran Mike Furrey has plenty of teaching to do following the loss of the top two pass
catchers from 2015 – wideout Davonte Allen and slot receiver Deandre Reaves. With candidates
like Josh Knight, Michael Clark, Raylen Elzy and Nick Mathews joining top returnees Justin Hunt and
Deon-Tay McManus, Furrey has plenty of youth in his unit
Photo by Braxton Crisp
18
The Herd Insider Magazine
Newcomer Chris Jackson (3), of Tallahassee, Fla., is getting plenty of
reps in spring practice as the Herd has a major need at cornerback
after losing Corey Tindal and Keith Baxter
Photo by Braxton Crisp
Former Ohio State rushing star Pepe Pearson, the new Marshall running
backs coach, is learning about his charges this spring
Photo by Braxton Crisp
HerdInsider.com
19
Sophomore running back Keion Davis (18) takes a handoff from quarterback
Chase Litton (1) in spring practice last Thursday at Edwards Stadium
Photo by Braxton Crisp
One of the Herd’s new faces is true freshman safety Jeremiah
Maddox (26), from Hilton Head Island, S.C. Maddox’s brother, Joey,
is a sophomore offensive lineman for the Herd after transferring
from Savannah State
Photo by Braxton Crisp
20
The Herd Insider Magazine
Davon Durant (36), formerly a highly touted prospect from Greenwood, S.C., and then Butler Community College, is back on the field at
linebacker after sitting out last season following his transfer from Arizona State
Photo by Braxton Crisp
HerdInsider.com
21
Heston Van Fleet (12), a senior from Kingsville, Texas, leads Marshall
baseball with 16 appearances out of the bullpen this season and has a
1-1 record
Photo by Rick Haye
Second baseman DJ Gee (3) has started every Herd game this
season and went 5-for-5 in a Conference USA win at Florida
International on March 25
Photo by Rick Haye
22
The Herd Insider Magazine
Herd third baseman Katalin Lucas (92) catches a pop fly in a March 23
twinbill split with Radford at Dot Hicks Field
Photo by Rick Haye
Marshall’s diving Kaelynn Greene (21) makes another steal (story, Page
12). Last weekend, Greene set the Herd softball record for career hits
Photo by Rick Haye
HerdInsider.com
Ali Burdette is the Herd’s No. 2 pitcher this season and owns a 4-3
record and 3.68 ERA in 14 apperances with six starts. Burdette has
struck out 22 in 53 innings
Photo by Rick Haye
23
24
The Herd Insider Magazine
Herd shortstop Elicia D’Orazio awaits the throw and prepares to make an out tag on Radford’s Marissa Gagliano (5) in Marshall’s March 23 doubleheader
split with the Highlanders at Dot Hicks Field
Photo by Rick Haye
25
HerdInsider.com
SELBY
From Page 6
made 27 career starts.
“It’s the fact that we want to do a better job
bullying the A gaps (center-guard gaps) in the run game,” Mirabal
said. “We needed to move Michael to center last year to close the gap
between Jasperse and whoever took his place. In the process of doing
that, we never really closed the gap at the right guard spot.
“In order for our offense to function the way we want, our run game
has to be dominating in between the A gaps. So, that was the major
reason why Coach Legg and I thought it best to get that back … owning
the A gaps, bullying the A gaps.”
The Herd front will be blocking in the run game for a trio of backs
– Hyleck Foster, Keion Davis and Tony Pittman – that took the ball
once 2015 senior star Devon Johnson went out with a back injury at
midseason. The three combined for 981 yards.
In spring practice – the Herd will work out Tuesdays, Thursdays and
Saturdays through April 30 – the recovery periods for Dowrey and Devers will
allow Mirabal to get more reps for some younger players, too.
Redshirt freshman Levi Brown is starting with the “ones” at
center, backed up by redshirt junior Cody Collins, who also is the
“one” this spring at left guard. Matt Harless is No. 2 at left guard
in spring drills.
Backing up Selby is former Spring Valley High star Alex Locklear, a
6-5, 315-pounder who Mirabal said “can play tackle, but I think he can
be a bully inside at guard.”
Mirabal said also in the mix with the “twos” is sophomore transfer
Joey Maddox, who started at guard as a true freshman at FCS member
Savannah State last season.
Maddox, a center for the Herd, has joined his brother at Marshall.
Jeremiah Maddox, a midyear enrollee at Marshall, is a true freshman
safety from Hilton Head Island, S.C.
Mirabal said the Herd front has the most depth he’s seen in his four
years in the program, and added there’s another plus to reuniting Selby
and Van Horn on the right side of the Herd offensive line.
“It’s tremendous, because those guys truly communicate without
saying a word,” the Marshall offensive line coach said. “They’re both
ecstatic about the move because they know the comfort they have with
each other; that they can adjust to anything.
“There’s only so much you can practice in terms of, ‘OK, this is where
the X is going to be.’ Those Xs move on game day. And when you have
those guys together there, with their experience, they’ll be able to block
things they’ve even never seen in practice. It’s invaluable.
“Bottom line though, those A gaps are kind of where our run game
begins and ends, you know? That played a major part in the reasoning
for the move. It’s about getting the run game stuff back. We felt looking
back to 2014 that Mike Selby, at guard, was a much more critical piece
to that than even we gave him credit for.”
LINEBACKERS
From Page 7
spend a lot of time on stuff on which they’re natural.
“Yeah, I coach some through every step all of
the time, but those guys are just role players and maybe it will click at
some point. You don’t coach them any different, but the process could be
accelerated with the older guys that we had.”
Fuller also is trying to figure out who’s going to be where. A pre-camp
depth chart had Petty and Durant at will (weakside), with Tyler and Huskey in
the middle and Hancock and Hernandez at Hunter’s former sam berth.
However, in the first spring practice, Petty worked some at mike, and
Hernandez was at will with Durant. And in the Herd’s defensive scheme, the
two inside linebackers (mike and will) are often interchangeable because
they’re taught that way.
“Hancock is at sam,” Fuller explained. “Frankie has some natural fit
instincts, so we’ve actually got him in the box (at will) right now, so we
rotated some other younger guys out at sam. It’s really fluid right now.
“In the past, Jermaine was really the only guy we’ve ever had who played
one position (middle). Neville played both (mike and will). Evan played both.
D.J. – against Purdue last season he played all three positions. So, it’s about
teaching them the concepts.
“For the most part, Tre’s going to play mike, but when we go nickel, Chase
Hancock is going to go into the box (at will, in a two-linebacker set). So, it’s
hard to give a depth chart right now.”
Whether there’s another Hewitt, McKelvey, Hunter or Holmes in the bench,
it’s way too soon to tell. But the growth in this group is crucial for the Herd.
Coordinator Chuck Heater said prior to camp that “our big challenge (on
defense) will be in replacing linebackers and corners.”
By creating some flexibility among the candidates at the three spots, Fuller
also enhances the depth of his group.
“I think it’s important to force them to be versatile,” Fuller said. “I think it
just helps me coach a concept if you don’t pigeon-hole a position. It forces
you to be a better teacher. It forces you to be a better student when I can
teach the concept and not just cookie-cut it to that position. If you do that, I
think you handicap ‘em.
“Next thing you know, you’re at Practice 5 and he doesn’t know that
much because he hasn’t listened that much. So, I think it’s important to
teach the entire concept to them and it’s my job to simplify it so they can
line up and play fast.”
And that’s the bottom line. That’s what made those guys with 126 career
starts so good.
It’s early, so does Fuller worry about most of those in his group thinking
instead of playing?
“Yeah, that’s my job,” he said, smiling. “That’s it. I told them, ‘We’ve
got three things we really need from you. Run to the football. Never
(allow a) finish block. Take coaching.’ That’s your job. Everything else is
mine. You do those things; I’ll do my job. You just do those things and
we’ll be all right.”
Fuller approaches it like this: Where there’s a will linebacker, there’s a way.
26
WOODRUM
From Page 8
TIF funding was how West Virginia University built a
new stadium in Morgantown, then attracted a minor
league club of the Pittsburgh Pirates from the New
York-Penn League, a rookie level just above the Class A team in Charleston,
the West Virginia Power, also with the Pirates.
There are also Appalachian League teams in both Princeton and Bluefield in
the southern part of the state, another short-season (mid-June to late August)
rookie league that Huntington was a member of with the Huntington Cubs in
1990-94 and River City Rumblers in 1995.
“I am not worried about the financing of the project, what must happen first
is to get the property,” Williams said, coming back to a point also made in the
past by Marshall Athletic Director Mike Hamrick — a teammate of Williams on
the Marshall football teams from 1976-78.
“We are positioning ourselves with various property owners, and I am
not going to name anyone, but the funny thing is three years ago, when
Jack (Bogaczyk, Editor of Herd Insider) scooped everyone on the story of
a possible new stadium, what was hilarious about a week later I got a call
from a company in New York City that said, ‘Mayor, I see you are making
great plans … for our property.’
“All I could do was laugh. I had a great conversation with them about our
plans and eventually they came in from New York to take a closer look at what
we were talking about doing.”
Are those companies worried about the city using Eminent Domain
to take those properties? Eminent Domain is the power of a state or
a national government to take private property for public use. The
property may be taken either for government use or by delegation to
third parties, who will devote it to public or civic use or, in Williams’
case, to economic development.
“The way the conversations have gone since have been are if you have a
plan for a plot of land, or interest in a tract of land really, make a proposal,”
Williams said. “So we are now down to looking at three different tracts of land
that would be the best for the way we are going with a stadium.
“I am kind of talking between the lines here (about the actual tracts
of property), and anyone who has followed what we are talking will
understand what I am saying or can read between the lines, but there
are several ways we can go to get the property. We have had a lot of
federal grants coming in to help us, to access the property, what can be
done on the property, and with all of those different things it is one of
these things we have to keep the pressure on and when it happens, it
will happen quickly.
“We want to try to be shovel ready, so we are talking with
contractors, talking with architects, and eventually we will have to
make a proposal, to make a bid something we can acquire, so we want
to be ready at that point to go, to build the kind of stadium we want
on one of those three different tracts.”
Most would guess Williams is talking about the current ACF building,
which has been shuttered for years on Third Avenue, and the parking lot
opposite it on the south side of the avenue. There also is empty property
behind MU softball’s Dot Hicks Field — property that fronts the Ohio
River. Wherever the stadium might be located, how long does Williams
The Herd Insider Magazine
think the actual construction would take?
“I think the actual building would be less than a year, depending on when we
got started. I know this name is a dirty word around here, but Frank Giardina
got me an interview my first year as mayor with Ollie Luck – Oliver Luck, then
the Director of Athletics at West Virginia – and we sat down for 2½-3 hours to
talk about how WVU was building their new stadium with TIF funding, and he
gave me some real insight into this.
“I think we could be, say we started in the spring we should be in the
stadium the next spring. I don’t know how long it took Charleston, but
look at the advantages they have with that park. They use it for so many
other things besides baseball. It is a community gathering place for so
many other things.
“Also what is ideal, is the new ballpark would be there right among all of the
other Marshall facilities — the football stadium, the new soccer stadium, the
softball field, the new indoor facility and the Cam Henderson Center, you have
everything right there.
“What I’m trying to create is pedestrian flow, going east into the Highlawn
area and going west from Highlawn to Marshall and on to downtown.
What kind of things would you like to have in addition to the ballpark?
“Actually, I was talking to the contractors about this the other day,”
Williams said with a smile. “You can put additional restaurants into the
area, that’s one thing that is so nice about the football stadium, you have
all this places to eat around the area. Folks can come to that area, eat
and then come straight to the ballpark. I also think a new hotel would fit
wonderfully into that area. Sports bars, and such as that … everything that
increases pedestrian traffic.
“You want to build more than a stadium and a parking lot, that’s not enough.
You want to increase traffic flow and cash flow. I am kind of tired of talking
about it. We need to quit talking and start doing.
“There is nothing on this property but former heavy industry development,
and it has been heavy industry for over 143 years. Third Avenue has nothing
on it, it is just a street. The way you want to cash flow it, we need green
space, trees and shrubs to make it pedestrian friendly, and businesses that
will increase traffic and pedestrian flow. In ten years people would not even
recognize it, it would no longer be the same area.
“It hit me when I was in a meeting in Tampa about one year ago. We were
looking at a Google Earth, Google Maps, and we noticed from 24th Street up
towards downtown, there are no trees. Go look at it — no trees from 24th
Street to up past the engineering building at Marshall.
“There are so many things we can do with commercial investment, making
it pedestrian friendly with restaurants, hotels, sports bars, all businesses
that will all draw people to the area. Then we will have additional commercial
property coming into the mix.
“Then you have created a mixed use area. It will start with recreation,
but that recreation will help us to build up the other areas there, causing
other things to occur.”
A field of dreams?
No, Williams has much bigger dreams for Marshall and Huntington.
HerdInsider.com
DICKERSON
From Page 10
national team for such a prestigious tournament.” Still, the question remains … How does a former
Marshall soccer player who teaches eighth-grade social
studies in Ohio end up on the U.S.
National Beach Soccer team?
“They actually used to show it on
TV quite a bit when I was younger,”
said Dombrowski, who is married with
one son. “I always thought it was
cool. After I graduated from Marshall,
I saw something about it in a soccer
magazine. There is a league around
the Great Lakes.
“So, me and some other guys from
the Columbus area got together and
took a group up to Cleveland to play.
And, it just gradually grew. That was
back in 2009 or so when I started.”
He said the core of that team has
stayed together and plays about
four tournaments a year, from the
Great Lakes to Virginia Beach to
Clearwater Beach, Fla. They’ve played
in tournaments with the Costa Rican
national team, and faced teams from
Barcelona, Miami and Oregon.
And now, the 2006 Marshall graduate
is on the U.S. National Team.
“It’s one of these growing sports,”
Dombrowski said. “It’s growing more
around the world than it is here, but
it is growing here. One of the goals
is to get the sport into the Olympics.
But, if you ask me, for it to be an
Olympic sport you need to have women’s teams, too. And, it hasn’t really
caught on with women yet.
Jared Dombrowski (2) with the U.S.
National Team
Courtesy Photo
“But as it continues to grow and catch on with women, I think you’ll see it in the
Olympics one day.”
Other than Dombrowski and one player from Milwaukee, all of the other members
of the U.S. National Team are from California, Miami and Hawaii.
“I just got back from playing in the Copa Pilsener,” he said. ‘We lost all three
games, but in the context of everything, it was good results for us.
“Portugal won the Beach Soccer World Cup last year. They beat us last weekend,
4-1, but it was 1-1 entering the final period. In 2014, they beat the U.S. team 14-1.
We lost to El Salvador 4-2, and we lost to Argentina in a shootout. We lost all three,
but it was good in terms of our development.”
Chris Dickerson, a Marshall graduate and former sportswriter and city editor at two
West Virginia daily newspapers, is editor of the West Virginia Record and an adjunct
journalism professor at MU.
BOGACZYK
From Page 11
27
experience and the work of our staff, we’ll replace
James – maybe not in the same ways James gave
us, but in other ways so we can be successful. We
recruited two bigs on the inside, Phil Bledsoe from Wheeling, another 6-foot6 Ryan-like player we think will develop quickly, then Jannson Williams from
Georgia, who’s 6-9, plays out on the floor. We don’t play with a true center.
So, we’re looking for basketball players who will scramble and play hard.
We’re not looking for the typical true center.
“The way I see it, it’s always going to be like that. To always think you have
to go get a name player, it’s just not going to happen. What we’re trying to do
is develop a program, get good players who we build into great players, who
will step up and fill every year.
“Shoot, a year from now you have to replace Ryan Taylor. Three years
from now we’ll have to replace Jon (Elmore). Nobody knew much about
Jon – and then all of a sudden Jon is a player. I feel confident that you
don’t always have to have the scout’s pick on what is a great player or
not. There are a lot of players out there who can play at this level, if
you develop them, season them – which we can. And we can do that
into an NCAA team.”
If D’Antoni were impressed by his team’s resilience and improved offensive
efficiency, was there anything that surprised him about the ’15-16 Herd that
finished in a third-place C-USA tie after being picked ninth in the preseason
by league coaches?
“Yeah, the quality of some of the plays,” D’Antoni said, smiling. “The pass
Jon made to Stevie on that out-of-bounds play (a 35-foot alley-oop lob
from the sideline hashmark Jan. 28 against Middle Tennessee). A play like
that, you don’t see. I tell you what … you go through all the NCAA games
this year and I bet you don’t see one made like that. Really, we may have
seen a one-and-only.
“And some of James’ plays, the left-handed catch off the lob and dunk, you
don’t see that. Those are high-quality plays that the NBA … you’d have to
watch a lot of games to find something like that.
“I also think you saw a team that lost together – like you’re supposed
to – and when they won together, they all rushed the court and were
all genuinely happy. You saw a bench that came out supportive, even
though they had to swallow pride to not be on the floor – but they were
there for the team. (Graduating senior) Justin Edmonds was the leader
of that group. That’s a warrior who wants to be on the damn floor. I
know he does. And he handled a real tough situation as well as I’ve ever
seen it handled.
“These are things I think should make it well worth the support of our fans.
Win and lose with us, but we’ll give them the type of team you can win and
lose with, but is the type of team they’ll be proud of – Marshall is out there
making them proud.”
D’Antoni said the Herd still needs two games to finish the 2016-17 nonconference schedule, and one of those is to replace the lost Capital Classic
series with West Virginia. He said he expects some movement on the schedule
soon, and replacing the six-figure revenue lost with the WVU date is a factor.
D’Antoni said Marshall may add another power conference “buy” game to
the Buckeyes and Bearcats, or possibly go for a one-season, home-and-home
series with another mid-major program.
To date, the Herd has home games with North Carolina Central, Morehead
State, Western Carolina, Jackson State, Ohio and Toledo, and road games
at OSU, Eastern Kentucky, Chattanooga, Cincinnati and Akron. Two home
exhibitions are against West Virginia State and the University of Charleston.
“We’re always going to play a good schedule,” D’Antoni said. “We want to
put 8,000 in the (Henderson Center), and we’re going to have a competitive
program and support is very important. We showed this season the kind of
fun we can provide.
“We’re going to score points. We’re going to play hard; we’re going to play
fast. We’re going to do things the right way and act the right way off the floor.
I think we’ve got a chance to win it and when we do, great.
“What I’m trying to do is build a competitive basketball team at
Marshall, a program that represents the university and the state with
the quality type of people that we have, people who become good
alumni, young men who will compete every year in Conference USA at a
high level, and can punch out into the NCAA once in a while. And all of
us will be able to enjoy that ride.”
28
CORNWELL
From Page 12
corners. D’Orazio then took off for second and as
she was engaged in a rundown with the Red Flash
infielders, Greene stole home to record Marshall’s
first run as D’Orazio ended up safe on the play as she outran the St. Francis
second baseman to the bag.
Offense that puts pressure on the opposing defense has been a trademark
of Coach Shonda Stanton’s teams during her 17 seasons in Huntington.
During Stanton’s Herd career, the Herd has swiped more than 1,700 bases
and has been ranked in the top 10 nationally in steals nine times since 2000,
leading twice in steals-per-game (2011 and 2015).
Marshall has been in the top 10 in steals every year since 2009.
With such prolific base-stealers as Greene and D’Orazio, does Stanton ever
give the pair the “stop sign” on the bases?
“We don’t get a stop sign. It’s more of a yield sign,” D’Orazio said. “It’s OK
as long as we’re safe.”
Even though the Herd is a conference and national leader, Marshall’s
steal numbers would be even more impressive if they were being
aided by junior Morgan Zerkle, who suffered ligament damage to her
right ankle during a home plate slide in the Herd’s first conference
series against UTEP.
Her return to the lineup this season is uncertain. Prior to the injury, Zerkle
had swiped 20 bases and despite not playing for the last three weeks, she is
still third in steals in Conference USA.
Zerkle was last year’s national leader in stolen bases with 47 as she
earned All-C-USA first team honors and was presented the Golden Shoe
Award by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association as the top base
thief in Division I.
She entered this season as a member of the USA Softball National Elite Team.
Greene said that Zerkle’s injury was a major blow to the team, but it has
also been motivation for she and D’Orazio.
“Our steal numbers would be ridiculously high if she were healthy,” Greene
said. “We’re handling her absence, but we definitely miss her.”
After last weekend’s games at UAB, the Herd has five more league
series and Greene sayid that as steal numbers, hits and batting average
numbers keep growing for Marshall, the ballclub will be set to make
some noise at the eight-team C-USA Tournament, scheduled May 11-14
at North Texas.
“We haven’t shown yet what we’re made of and we haven’t hit our peak,
but we’re getting there and we’re going to bust it open soon,” Greene said.
“We hope we’re a first or second seed in the tournament and that we get a
(double) bye so that we can stay fresh and take it all.”
Herd Insider columnist and longtime Tri-State Area radio voice Bill Cornwell,
of Kenova, does the public address announcing for Marshall football and other
Herd sports and is part of the broadcast team on “Julie Reeves Live” weekday
mornings on 93.7 FM The Dawg.
The Herd Insider Magazine
FULKS
From Page 13
team,’ and it went from there.”
Small said Fulks has contributed to the Herd in
solid fashion in her last track and field season.
“Karena is a great girl and has been a good addition to our team,” the
veteran Marshall coach said. “She’s a hard worker and has a very pleasant
personality and gets along with everybody. She’s got the talent where if she
really hits it on the right day, she could do really well in the conference meet.
“It was terrible conditions the other
day at Wake Forest – cold, rainy, wet
and jumping into a wind – and she
won it. She needs to improve a little
bit to place at the conference, but
she can do that.”
Fulks said she’s discovered plenty in
recent months through experiences
like her victory at Wake, where she
managed only 5.34m (17-6¼) in “a
jumper’s nightmare.”
“Goals, yes,” she said. “I haven’t hit
my (Jackson High) senior PR. I’ve hit
it, matched it, haven’t topped it. My
goal is to jump over 19 feet. That’s
the number in my head, know I can
do it. The matter is: When can I do
it? I’m a better jumper outdoor than
indoor. I did a PR indoors, so does
that translate into outdoor?
Herd senior Karena Fulks
“I’ve learned a lot about me as an
Photo by Brianna Jarvis
athlete and learned a lot about my
sport from Coach Yentes … The biggest
thing is my runway. Long jump is so
technical. In high school, I just went off my speed. Three years, I’d gone
off my speed. And when I came in here, I was nervous. I don’t know how
to jump. I learned watching YouTube videos in high school. I didn’t get a
jumping coach until my senior year in high school.
“The biggest thing Don has taught me is on the runway. We’re constantly
working on it. One thing that has dramatically changed is my landing. I
wasn’t landing the proper way, and the difference can be 8-plus inches of
jump if you land the right way. My last four steps are probably the biggest
thing holding me back from a PR right now. I just have to have a little more
confidence in myself.”
Fulks is happy with her decision to finish at Marshall.
“Now I look back, and I was ready to walk away and be done with it,” the
Herd senior said. “But Day 1 of practice here, I knew it. It was ‘No, I still
want to do this.’ I have goals, things I still want to accomplish … the weather
the other day at Wake Forest. On Friday, it’s 70 and sunny. You walk out
Saturday and it’s 46 – cold, rain, windy.
“Sometimes, you have to learn to adapt. That’s just part of all of it, learning
what you want to do and then coping with it.”
29
HerdInsider.com
2015-16 Marshall Athletics team schedules
BASEBALL
DateOpponentSiteTime/Score
Feb. 19
at Florida A&M
Tallahassee, Fla.
L, 9-4
Feb. 20
at Florida A&M
Tallahassee, Fla.
L, 20-4
Feb. 21
at Florida A&M
Tallahassee, Fla.
W, 11-9 (12 inn.)
Feb. 26
Liberty
Myrtle Beach, S.C.
L, 9-8
Feb. 26
at Coastal Carolina
Myrtle Beach, S.C.
L, 9-3
Feb. 27
Liberty
Myrtle Beach, S.C.
L, 7-3
March 5
Lehigh
Kennedy Center
W, 4-2
March 6
Lehigh (DH)
Kennedy Center
W, 12-6, 6-4
March 9
Ohio
Kennedy Center
L, 4-1
March 11
Brown
Kennedy Center
W, 3-2 (17 inn.)
March 12
Brown (DH)
Kennedy Center
W, 7-2, 2-0
March 13
Brown
Kennedy Center
W, 14-0
March 15
Morehead State
Kennedy Center
W, 6-5 (12 inn.)
March 18
Southern Miss (DH) App Power Park
S, 4-14, 10-8
March 19
Southern Miss
App Power Park
L, 3-2
March 22
Eastern Kentucky
Kennedy Center
W, 5-4
March 24
at FIU
Miami
L, 10-5
March 25
at FIU
Miami
W, 6-5
March 26
at FIU
Miami
W, 13-0
March 30
at Morehead State
Morehead, Ky.
L, 13-0
April 1
Louisiana Tech
App Power Park
W, 7-4
April 2
Louisiana Tech
App Power Park
L, 10-6
April 3
Louisiana Tech
App Power Park
1 p.m.
April 5
West Virginia
App Power Park
6 p.m.
April 8
at UTSA
San Antonio
7 p.m.
April 9
at UTSA
San Antonio
3 p.m.
April 10
at UTSA
San Antonio
10 a.m.
April 15
Florida Atlantic
Epling Stadium
6 p.m.
April 16
Florida Atlantic
Epling Stadium
4 p.m.
April 17
Florida Atlantic
Epling Stadium
1 p.m.
April 19
Eastern Kentucky
Kennedy Center
3 p.m.
April 22
at Charlotte
Charlotte, N.C.
6 p.m.
April 23
at Charlotte
Charlotte, N.C.
2 p.m.
April 24
at Charlotte
Charlotte, N.C.
1 p.m.
April 26
at West Virginia
Morgantown, W.Va.
6 p.m.
April 29
at Middle Tennessee
Murfreesboro, Tenn.
7 p.m.
April 30
at Middle Tennessee
Murfreesboro, Tenn.
5 p.m.
May 1
at Middle Tennessee
Murfreesboro, Tenn.
2 p.m.
May 6
UAB
App Power Park
6 p.m.
May 7
UAB
App Power Park
2 p.m.
May 8
UAB
App Power Park
10 a.m.
May 10
at Ohio
Athens, Ohio
6 p.m.
May 13
at Western Kentucky Bowling Green, Ky.
7 p.m.
May 14
at Western Kentucky Bowling Green, Ky.
4 p.m.
May 15
May 17
May 19
May 20
May 21
May 25-29
at Western Kentucky
Wake Forest
Old Dominion
Old Dominion
Old Dominion
C-USA Tournament
Bowling Green, Ky.
Epling Stadium
App Power Park
App Power Park
App Power Park
Hattiesburg, Miss.
1 p.m.
6 p.m.
2 p.m.
2 p.m.
2 p.m.
—
MEN’S GOLF
DateTournamentSite/Finish
Feb. 29-March 1 Davidson Invitational
5th of 7 teams
March 11-13 Pinehurst Intercollegiate
3rd of 11 teams
March 25-27 Furman Intercollegiate
T-11 of 19 teams
April 11-12 Greenbrier Invitational
Old White TPC
April 24-17 Conference USA Championship
Texarkana, Ark.
WOMEN’S GOLF
DateTournamentSite/Finish
Feb. 28-March 1 Kiawah Island Classic
18th of 41 teams
March 20-22 MSU Spring Citrus Classic
17th of 20 teams
March 25-27 Bearcats Spring Classic
8th of 17 teams
April 4-5
Hoya Invitational
Beallsville, Md.
April 18-20 Conference USA Championship
Fort Myers, Fla.
SOFTBALL
DateOpponent/Tourney
SiteTime/Score
Trojan Invitational
Feb. 14
Alabama State
Troy, Ala.
W, 4-2 (8 inn.)
Feb. 14
at Troy
Troy, Ala.
W, 7-5 (8 inn.)
—
FGCU Invitational
Feb. 19
Long Island
Fort Myers, Fla.
W, 10-2 (6 inn.)
Feb. 19
Southern Illinois
Fort Myers, Fla.
L, 8-6
Feb. 20
Hofstra
Fort Myers, Fla.
W, 9-1 (6 inn.)
Feb. 20
Long Island
Fort Myers, Fla.
W, 4-2
Feb. 21
Saint Louis
Fort Myers, Fla.
W, 6-1
—
Easton Bama Bash
Feb. 26
Arizona
Tuscaloosa, Ala.
L, 7-6
Feb. 26
Tennessee
Tuscaloosa, Ala.
L, 5-1
Feb. 27
at Alabama
Tuscaloosa, Ala.
L, 4-2
Feb. 27
Tennessee
Tuscaloosa, Ala.
L, 18-0 (5 inn.)
Feb. 28
Arizona
Tuscaloosa, Ala.
L, 6-3
—
See SCHEDULES, Page 30
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SCHEDULES
From Page 29
Camel Stampede
March 4
Appalachian State
Buies Creek, N.C.
March 4
Md. Eastern Shore
Buies Creek, N.C.
March 5
Loyola (Chicago)
Buies Creek, N.C.
March 5
Md. Eastern Shore
Buies Creek, N.C.
March 6
at Campbell
Buies Creek, N.C.
—
March 12
UTEP (DH)
Dot Hicks Field
March 13
UTEP
Dot Hicks Field
March 15
Toledo (DH)
Dot Hicks Field
March 16
Kentucky
Dot Hicks Field
March 19
at North Texas (DH)
Denton, Texas
March 20
at North Texas
Denton, Texas
March 22
Ohio (DH)
Dot Hicks Field
March 23
Radford (DH)
Dot Hicks Field
March 29
St. Francis (Pa.) (DH)Dot Hicks Field
April 2
at UAB (DH)
Birmingham, Ala.
April 3
at UAB
Birmingham, Ala.
April 6
at Wright State (DH) Dayton, Ohio
April 9
Charlotte (DH)
Dot Hicks Field
April 10
Charlotte Dot Hicks Field
April 12 at Liberty (DH)
Lynchburg, Va.
April 16
at Florida Atlantic (DH)Boca Raton, Fla.
April 17
at Florida Atlantic
Boca Raton, Fla.
April 23
Middle Tennessee (DH) Dot Hicks Field
April 24
Middle Tennessee
Dot Hicks Field
April 30
FIU (DH)
Dot Hicks Field
May 1
FIU
Dot Hicks Field
May 7
at Western Kentucky (DH) Bowling Green, Ky.
May 8
at Western Kentucky Bowling Green, Ky.
May 12-14 C-USA Tournament
Denton, Texas
L, 4-3
W, 11-0 (5 inn.)
W, 2-1
W, 11-4
L, 4-3
W, 10-1, 5-1
W, 8-3
W, 5-3, 8-3
L, 1-0
S, 4-1, 1-7
W, 9-5
S, 8-0 (6), 0-7
S, 0-5, 8-3
S, 9-2, 0-4
S, 1-3, 4-3 (9)
1 p.m.
4 p.m.
1 p.m.
Noon
3 p.m.
1 p.m.
Noon
1 p.m.
Noon
1 p.m.
Noon
2 p.m.
1 p.m.
—
TENNIS
DateEvent/OpponentSiteTime
Jan. 15-17 Nishan Vardebedian Invite
Pittsburgh
—
Jan. 22
Tulsa, at National Team Indoors Chapel Hill, N.C.
L, 4-0
Jan. 23
Yale (NTI)
Chapel Hill, N.C.
W, 4-3
Jan. 31
South Carolina
Charlottesville, Va.
L, 4-0
Feb. 5
Morehead State
Huntington TC
W, 7-0
Feb. 5RadfordHuntington TCW, 6-1
Feb. 12
at Louisville
Louisville, Ky.
W, 4-3
Feb. 14
at Miami (Ohio)
Oxford, Ohio
L, 4-3
Feb. 19
Virginia Tech
Huntington TC
L, 5-2
Feb. 21
RiceHuntington TCL, 4-3
Feb. 28
at Penn State
State College, Pa.
L, 6-1
March 4
FIU
Huntington TC
L, 4-3
March 6
Virginia Commonwealth
Huntington TC
L, 4-3
March 11
West Virginia
Brian David Fox TC W, 4-3
March 20
March 24
March 25
April 3
April 8
April 10
April 16
April 21-24
at William & Mary
at College of Charleston
Charlotte
at Winthrop
Cincinnati
Xavier
Old Dominion
Conference USA Tournament
Williamsburg, Va.
Charleston, S.C.
Charleston, S.C.
Rock Hill, S.C.
Brian David Fox TC
Brian David Fox TC
Brian David Fox TC
Murfreesboro, Tenn.
W, forfeit
W, 4-3
W, 5-2
10 a.m.
1 p.m.
1 p.m.
11 a.m.
—
TRACK & FIELD
DateMeetSite
Outdoor season
March 18-19 Wake Forest Open
No team scores
March 25-26 UNF Invitational
No team scores
April 1-2
Pepsi Florida Relays
No team scores
April 2
Cherry Blossom Invitational
No team scores
April 9
Hilltopper Relays
Bowling Green, Ky.
April 15-16 Beynon Catamount Classic
Cullowhee, N.C.
April 22-23 UVa Challenge
Charlottesville, Va.
April 28-30 Penn Relays
Philadelphia
May 6-7
Kentucky Relays
Lexington, Ky.
May 12-15 Conference USA Championships Murfreesboro, Tenn.
May 28-30 NCAA East Preliminaries
Jacksonville, Fla.
June 8-11
NCAA Championships
Eugene, Ore.
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