North Carolina Central University

ATHLETICS

     HAMPTON, VA - Four North Carolina Central University student-athletes are among the 20 individuals from the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association that have been named to the seventh annual CIAA Commissioner's All-Academic Team, the conference office announced Thursday (May 13). 
     NCCU's two-sport senior standout Adija Beaty earned CIAA Commissioner's All-Academic First Team honors, along with junior golfer Ernie Batchelor. Fellow golfers Morgan Pierce and Steve Wright were named to the Second Team.
     Beaty, a native of Landover, MD, started as a basketball point guard and softball center fielder during her senior campaign and graduated May 1 with a 3.335 grade point average as a Biology major. She was voted All-CIAA Second Team and CIAA All-Tournament Team in softball, while amassing the fourth highest single-season assist total in Lady Eagle basketball history with 106 assists this year.
     Batchelor, a Durham, NC native, was the Eagles' No. 2 golfer this season with a 81.9 scoring average and boasts a 3.963 GPA (the highest among NCCU student-athletes) as a junior Accounting major. He shot season-low rounds of 75 and 76 to lead the team to a second place finish at the CIAA Championship, the team's best finish since resurrecting the program in 2000.
     Pierce, a native of Durham, NC, was the team's No. 3 golfer this season with a scoring average of 87.9. A May 1 graduate and Geography major with a 3.774 GPA, he shot a season-low round of 81 during the CIAA Championship.
     Wright, also a Durham, NC native, was the Eagles' No. 1 golfer and Team Most Valuable Player with a scoring average of 79.0. A sophomore Elementary Education major with a GPA of 3.735, he shot a season-low round of 75.
     "Through hard work and perseverance, these CIAA student-athletes have dedicated themselves to reaching extraordinary heights in athletics and higher education," said CIAA Commissioner Leon G. Kerry. "I am proud of their achievements and support their pursuit of excellence."
     The 2004 CIAA Commissioner's All-Academic Team recognizes 20 student-athletes, 10 on the First Team and 10 on the Second Team, as voted on by the CIAA-Sports Information Directors' Association. The average grade point average of the First Team is a 3.802, and the average for the Second Team is a 3.781 GPA (on a 4.0 scale).
     The 2004 CIAA Commissioner's All-Academic First Team consists of Angela Williams of Fayetteville State; Kareem Nembhard of Livingstone; Ernie Batchelor and Adija Beaty of North Carolina Central; Katrina Johnson and Santisha Martin of Saint Augustine's; and James Coble, Heather Davis, Shannon Davis and Benita Wicker of Winston-Salem State (see attachment).
     The 2004 CIAA Commissioner's All-Academic Second Team includes Courtney Walls of Bowie State; Kristel Hedgepath of Elizabeth City State; Melissa Davis of Fayetteville State; Morgan Pierce and Steve Wright of North Carolina Central; Sophia Minott-Lindsay of Saint Augustine's; Luqman Jaaber of Virginia Union; and Tamika Ferguson, Darnell Gregory and Chad Oakley of Winston-Salem State.
     To be eligible, a student-athlete must have completed one full academic year at a CIAA institution, earned a minimum 3.20 overall grade point average, and played as a starter or important reserve in a CIAA sanctioned sport.

2004 CIAA Commissioner's All-Academic Team

FIRST TEAM
Name ... Sport ... School ... Year ... Hometown ... GPA ... Major
Ernie Batchelor ... Golf ... NCCU ... Junior ... Durham, NC ... 3.963 ... Accounting
Adija Beaty ... Basketball/Softball ... NCCU ... Senior ... Landover, MD ... 3.335 ... Biology
James Coble ... Football ... WSSU ... Soph. ... Climax, NC ... 4.000 ... Chemistry
Heather Davis ... Softball ... WSSU ... Senior ... Detroit, MI ... 3.874 ... Business Administration
Shannon Davis ... Softball/Bowling ... WSSU ... Junior ... Detroit, MI ... 3.655 ... Sport Management
Katrina Johnson #@ ... Volleyball ... SAC ... Senior ... Nassau, Bahamas ... 3.888 ... Accounting
Santisha Martin # ... Cross Country/Track & Field ... SAC ... Senior ... Nassau, Bahamas ... 3.888 ... Accounting
Kareem Nembhard % ... Track ... LC ... Junior ... Elizabeth City, NC ... 3.84 ... Accounting
Benita Wicker ... Volleyball ... WSSU ... Junior ... Durham, NC ... 3.865 ... Clinical Lab. Sciences
Angela Williams ... Softball/Basketball ... FSU ... Senior ... Mobile, AL ... 3.714 ... Phys. Educ./Teaching

SECOND TEAM
Melissa Davis ... Bowling ... FSU ... Senior ... Fayetteville, NC ... 3.90 ... Criminal Justice
Tamika Ferguson ... Softball ... WSSU ... Soph. ... Mt. Vernon, NY ... 3.896 ... Molecular Biology
Darnell Gregory ... Basketball ... WSSU ... Soph. ... Fayetteville, NC ... 3.809 ... Molecular Biology
Kristel Hedgepath ... Bowling ... ECSU ... Junior ... Enfield, NC ... 3.70 ... Business Administration
Luqman Jaaber # ... Basketball ... VUU ... Junior ... Richmond, VA ... 3.55 ... Computer Science
Sophia Minott-Lindsay % ... Volleyball ... SAC ... Senior ... Kingston, Jamaica .. 3.79 Computer Information Systems
Chad Oakley ... Football ... WSSU ... Soph. ... Haw River, NC ... 3.704 ... Exercise Science
Morgan Pierce ... Golf ... NCCU ... Senior ... Durham, NC ... 3.774 ... Geography
Courtney Walls % ... Volleyball/Softball ... BSU ... Junior ... Laurel, MD ... 3.96 ... Social Work
Steve Wright ... Golf ... NCCU ... Soph. ... Durham, NC ... 3.735 ... Elementary Education

HONORABLE MENTION
Adrian Findlay (SAC), Jessica Hawkins (SU), Kenny Haywood (FSU), Jennifer Hill (VSU), Tiya Hines (VSU), Larry Marshall (SAC), Jennifer White (SAC).
 

# = 2003 First Team
% = 2003 Second Team
@ = 2002 Second Team

NCCU's 2004 CIAA Commissioner's All-Academic Team Honorees:
 

FIRST TEAM:

ERNIE BATCHELOR     Golf     NCCU     Junior     3.963     Accounting
Team Record: 2nd CIAA Championship . Events Played/Started: 5/5 out of 6 . No. 2 Golfer . Participated in five of six events this spring as the team's No. 2 golfer. In eight rounds of play, averaged a 81.9. Shot season-low rounds of 75 and 76 to top the team at the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association Championships, leading the Eagles to a second place finish. Recipient of the 2003-04 Chancellor's Award for achieving the highest grade point average among all of the school's student-athletes.

ADIJA BEATY     Basketball/Softball     NCCU     Senior     3.335     Biology
Team Record: 14-14 (BB) / 17-20 (SB) . Games Played/Started: 28/28 (BB) / 33/33 (SB) . Point Guard/Centerfield . Softball: As starting center fielder and lead-off batter, voted All-CIAA Second Team and CIAA All-Tournament Team. Second on the team with a .381 batting average. Topped team with 33 runs scored and 23 stolen bases. Led Lady Eagle outfielders with 43 putouts. Toughest on the team to retire, with only six strikeouts in 105 official at-bats.  During third place conference tournament finish, topped team with a .462 batting average (6-for-13), to go along with two runs scored, two runs batted in, two base on balls, four stolen bases and seven outfield putouts. Basketball: Team Captain. Topped team with 106 assists (3.8 avg.), which ranks fourth on the school's single-season list. Also contributed 3.7 points per game and 2.3 rebounds per game. Received 2003-04 Softball Academic Award and the 2002-03 Women's Basketball Academic Award for the highest GPA on the team. Lettered four seasons for the Lady Eagle basketball team, including the last two as the starting point guard. Topped team in assists the last two seasons, including 106 helpers (3.8 avg.) as a senior.
 

SECOND TEAM:

MORGAN PIERCE     Golf     NCCU     Senior     3.774     Geography
Team Record: 2nd CIAA Championship . Events Played/Started: 5/5 out of 6 . No. 3 Golfer . Participated in five of six events this spring as the team's No. 3 golfer. In seven rounds of play, averaged a 87.9. Shot season-low round of 81 during the 2004 CIAA Championship. Team placed second at the 2004 CIAA Men's Golf Championship.

STEVE WRIGHT     Golf     NCCU     Sophomore     3.735     Elementary Education
Team Record: 2nd CIAA Championship . Events Played/Started: 6/6 out of 6 . No. 1 Golfer . Participated in all six events this spring as the team's No. 1 golfer. In 10 rounds of play, averaged a team-best 79.0. Shot season-low round of 75. Team placed second at the 2004 CIAA Men's Golf Championship. Two-time Team Most Valuable Player at NCCU. Voted 2003 CIAA Men's Golf Rookie of the Year.