Monday, March 11, 2019

#By RENALDO DORSETT

#Tribune Sports Reporter

#rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

#ABOUT a week away from “Selection Sunday”, Bahamians in NCAA Division I basketball concluded their regular seasons and preparare for conference tournament play while others had early exits from their respective tournaments.

#Jaron Cornish and the No.2 ranked Stony Brook Seawolves were upset in the America East Quarter-finals Saturday night in a 78-72 loss to the No.7 Binghamton Bearcats. He finished with 13 points, four rebounds and four assists. The senior point guard finished in double figures for the seventh time in the last nine games.

#He was also involved in a controversial play down the stretch that ultimately decided the game in its final moments.

#Cornish’s layup initially cut a once 18-point deficit with 32.4 seconds left in regulation. However, after a lengthy review, the blocking foul was changed to a charge and a potential three-point play became a turnover. The Bearcats followed with six points down the stretch to put the game out of reach. Charles Bain and the Robert Morris Colonials fell in the semi-finals of the Northeast Conference Tournament to No. 2 seed Fairleigh Dickinson 62-60 at Stratis Arena on Saturday.

#Bain finished with 10 points, three rebounds and a pair of three pointers. It was his fourth consecutive game scoring in double figures, his longest stretch thus far this season.

#Robert Morris led 59-57 with just under four minutes left to play, but the Knights outscored the Colonials 5-1 down the stretch.

#Bain finished with 13 points in the Colonials’ 69-65 overtime win over St Francis-Brooklyn Bulldogs in the quarter-finals last week.

#Shalonda Neely and the Jacksonville Dolphins were eliminated in the A-Sun quarter-finals in a 65-53 loss to the Liberty Flames.She finished with six points, five rebounds and three steals.

#Travis Munnings concluded his regular season by leading his ULM Warhawks to a 79-62 win over the Arkansas-Little Rock Trojans. He finished with 23 points and seven rebounds and made 5-11 from beyond the arc.

#Radshad Davis and the UT-Arlington Mavericks scored an 81-73 win over Texas State on Saturday. Davis scored seven points off the bench. Both the Mavericks and Warhawks now look ahead to the Sun Belt Conference tournament this week. The Mavericks will have the No.2 seed and receive a bye all the way to the semi-finals on Saturday. The Warhawks will face Appalachian State in Tuesday’s opening-round campus games.

#Coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin and the Ole Miss Rebels women’s basketball team will face off against the Florida Gators in the first round of the SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament at 10am Wednesday.

#The Rebels won the previous meeting between the two teams, 76-66 on January 20.

#Nathan Bain and the Stephen F Austin Lumberjacks concluded their season with a 68-57 loss to the Sam Houston State Bearkats.

#The loss ended SFA’s season as the ‘Jacks finished in a tie for ninth place in the final version of the Southland Conference standings. With that, the ‘Jacks missed out on a spot in the Southland Conference Tournament for the first time since the 2004-05 season.

Friday, March 8, 2019

#By RENALDO DORSETT

#Tribune Sports Reporter

#rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

#CHARLES Bain and the Robert Morris Colonials are through to the semi-finals of the Northeastern Conference men’s basketball tournament after a comeback win in the opening round.

#Bain finished with 13 points in the Colonials’ 69-65 overtime win over the St Francis-Brooklyn Bulldogs in the quarter-finals Wednesday night at the North Athletic Complex in Pennsylvania.

#The sophomore forward shot 5-8 from the field, 2-4 from three-point range and added six rebounds in 33 minutes.

#Robert Morris, which is making its 11th appearance in the semi-finals of the NEC Tournament in the last 12 years, travels to New Jersey Saturday, March 9, to take on No. 2 seed Fairleigh Dickinson at Stratis Arena. Tip-off time is noon and the game can be seen live on ESPN3.

#The NEC Tournament champion will receive an automatic bid to the 68-team field NCAA Tournament.

#Trailing 55-45 with 4:08 to play, the Colonials closed regulation on an 11-1 run to force overtime at 56. Robert Morris was 9-12 from the free throw line in overtime to gain control for good.

#“We had incredible efforts from a number of guys,” said Colonials head coach Andre Toole.

#“It was really an incredible comeback. Tribute to our defence in the second half, holding them to 19 points. We just didn’t give up. Our guys rallied each other and continued to stay positive, and that’s why I think things turned in our favour.”

#The Colonials have erased a double-digit deficit in eight of their last 10 games dating back to the beginning of February.

#Robert Morris has won a conference-best eight NEC Tournament championships. In the last decade, the Colonials won the NEC title in 2009, 2010 and 2015.

#Bain has increased his productivity of late and has recorded double digit scoring in his last three contests. He finished with 17 points and four rebounds in an 87-63 loss to Sacred Heart on February 28 and followed with 10 points in the regular season finale, a 69-60 win over Wagner on March 2.

Friday, March 6, 2020

Charles Bain

#By RENALDO DORSETT

#Tribune Sports Reporter

#rsorsett@tribunemedia.net

#CHARLES Bain and the Robert Morris Colonials avoided a first-round upset and will advance to the Northeastern Conference tournament semi-finals.

#The top seed in the bracket, the Colonials defeated the No. 8 seed St Francis Brooklyn Terriers, 59-58 on Wednesday night.Bain finished with seven points and four rebounds.

#The Colonials (18-14) will advance to the NEC semi-finals for the fourth consecutive year as well and the 12th time in the last 13 seasons.

#The Colonials will host the LIU Blackbirds at 2pm on Saturday, March 4.

#During their lone regular season meeting, Robert Morris won 71-66 on the road. Bain finished with 10 points and five rebounds in that matchup. “An exciting finish,” said RMU head coach Andrew Toole of the quarter-final win over the Terriers.

#“I’m proud of our guys for coming up with the stops that we needed. The second half offensively didn’t flow as well as we would of liked, but we were able to figure it out. That’s what conference tournament basketball is. It can be crazy, it can be wild but the idea and the objective is to live another day. I was proud of the way guys continued to focus on the things that were important, even as it got a little shaky at the end.”

#Last season, Robert Morris posted a record of 17-16 and finished in a tie for third place in the Northeast Conference. They lost in the tournament semi-finals 62-60 to Fairleigh Dickinson.

#The postseason run ended when they were eliminated in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament. Bain finished with the first double double of his career.

Mako Aquatics Club members celebrate at the Betty Kelly Kenning swimming complex after winning the National Swimming Championships. Photo: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune staff

Monday, June 24, 2019

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#The Mako Aquatics Club completed the 2019 Rev National Swimming Championships with their back-to-back victory at the Betty Kelly Kenning Aquatic Centre last night.

#At the end of the four-day meet, Mako Aquatic collected a total of 1,862.50 points to hold off the YMCA WaveRunners, who came in second with 1,458.50. The Alpha Aquatics got third with 1,159.50.

#“This one feels good. This one feels a lot better,” said Mako’s head coach Travano McPhee. “After the first year, we didn’t know what to expect, but the team really came together.

#“We were pleased that the college swimmers came home and helped with the team. We’re going back to the drawing board and hopefully go for a three-peat next year.”

#The event featured a number of highlights, including FINA World Championships and Pan American Games qualifying performances as well as a number of Bahamas, Open and National records established.

#Rounding out the rest of the teams in the competition were the Barracudas, fourth with 1,144; Lyford Cay, fifth with 365; Freeport Aquatic Club, sixth with 337.50; Blue Waves, seventh with 290; Team Orca, eighth with 182; Dolphins, ninth with 147; Mantas Water Polo, 10th with 141 and the Sea Waves, 11th with 52.

#Grand Bahamian Joanna Evans, home from her preparation for her professional career, surpassed the FINA World Championships’ B cut of two minutes and 02.81 seconds by touching the wall in 2:01.55 in the girls’ 15-and-over 200 metre freestyle.

#Evans, 21, also attained the Pan Am B standard in the girls’ 15-and-over 100m freestyle of 59.95 when she did 57.53, along with Alpha’s Ariel Weech in 59.61. Evans, however, said she intends to bypass the XVIII Pan Am, set for July 26 to August 11 and will be focusing on the World Championship, scheduled for July 12-28 in Gwangju, South Korea in her quest to qualify for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.

#“I just came home for the weekend to have some fun,” said Evans, now training at her alma mater at the University of Texas pro.

#“I’m just getting ready for the World Championships and to have some fun here this weekend.”

#Vereance Burrows, the elder statesman at age 30, is also hoping to make the World Championship team after he too passed up on going to the Pan Am.

#The Grand Bahamian native, now trains out of Miami Beach, Florida where he also manages a hotel/restaurant/night club/bar. “It was better than I expected, but I guess I didn’t come here with any expectation,” Burrows said. “I just have to do some fine tuning and I will be okay.”

#In the 50 free, Burrows had to come from behind for the win in 23.33 ahead of Lamar Taylor.

#The 2008 Olympian, who also competed at the 2009 World Championships, said his dive was too high, so he had to swim down the field of younger competitors, which was quite different from him leading from the front.

#Burrows also had a strong push in the 50m butterfly. While he got away to take the tape in a record breaking performance in 24.73, Davante Carey, the 16-year-old rising star, made his presence felt with his second place finish in 25.03. Meanwhile, Laura Morley, home to compete for Mako, made the A cut for the Pan American Games in the girls’ 15-and-over 200m individual medley in two minutes and 19.0 seconds. The A standard is 2:19.99.

#“I’m really happy with that time. It was a best time for me,” said Morley, who just graduated from Indiana University. “I came into this meet with no expectations because I’m in a really hard training period at school.

#“So just coming here and swimming in front of the home crowd is what really got me through it all. It was just fun to be home.”

#The 22-year-old was followed by sisters Margaret, 19 and Lilly Higgs, 18, who did the Pan Am B standards of 2:28.92 in 2:20.13 and 2:6.39 respectively.

#Margaret Albury got the Pan Am A standard of 2:34.43 as she won the girls 15-and-over 2:34.09 over Lilly Higgs, who trailed in 2:39.99 for the B standard of 2:43.79.

#Izaak Bastian also attained the Pan Am B standard in the boys 15-and-over 200m IM in 2:09.71. The qualifying time was 2:11.90.

#Two competitors also achieved the Pan Am B standard in the boys 15-and-over 100m freestyle of 52.79. Alpha’s Jared Fritzgerald won in 51.29 and Freeport’s Lamar Taylor did 52.58.

#And in the boys 15-and-over 100m butterfly, both Mako’s Davente Carey, in 55.54 and Barracuda’s N’Nhyn Fernander, in 55.85, went under the Pan Am B qualifying time of 53.78.

#One of the top young swimmers to look out for in the future was Nigel Forbes from the YMCA WaveRunners from Grand Bahama.

#“It was good,” said the soft spoken 13-yer-old Forbes, who attends Sunland Baptist School. “I think I performed very well, especially in the 100m butterfly.” Forbes emerged as the high point winner in the boys 13-14 division with 63 points over Mako’s archrival Erald Thompson III with 56.

#Other divisional winners were:

#Girls 8-and-under – Skyler, YMCA WaveRunners, with 48, two more than Alpha Aquatics’ Saleste Gibson with 46.

#Boys 8-and-under – Barracuda’s David Singh with 48, nipping YMCA WaveRunners’ Kaylan Williams with 47.

#Girls 9-10 0 Zoe Williamson of Freeport Aquatic with 58, followed by YMCA WaveRunners’ Daniel Passion with 55.

#Boys 9-10 – YMCA WaveRunners with 63 over Dolphins’ Donald Saunders with 52.

#Girls 11-12 – Leylah Knowles of Alpha Aquatics’ Leylah Knowles with 61, well ahead of runner-up Seannia Norville-Smith of the YMCA WaveRunners with 50.50.

#Girls 13-14 – Delaney Mizell of the Lyford Cay Club with 55, three more than runner-up Zaylie-Elizabeth Thompson of Alpha with 52.

#Girls 15-and-over – Katelyn Cabral of YMCA WaveRunners with 48 over Margaret Higgs, unattached, with 43.

#Boys 15-and-over – Davante Carey, Mako, with 49, five more than Alpha’s Luke Thompson with 44.

#“It started with the 50 backstroke where I broke my own record in that,” Carey said. “I went on to the 200m butterfly where I beat one of our giants, N’Nhyn Fernander, and got a Pan Am B cut.

#“The second day, I kept the energy going in the 50m butterfly, I almost beat Vereance Burrows, but I got my personal best in that. I got a couple more personal bests and I swum very well with our relay teams. So I can’t be disappointed in my performance.”

#The meet also featured some visiting swimmers from Liberia and Florida, who were entered to secure times to qualify for the World Championships.

Tuesday, June 25, 2019

Izaak Bastian, Jared Fitzgerald, Joanna Evans, Delaney Mizell, Nigel Forbes, Luke-Kennedy Thompson and Davante Carey.

Katelyn Cabral

#THE Mako Aquatics Club completed the 2019 Rev National Swimming Championships with their back-to-back victory at the Betty Kelly Kenning Aquatic Centre on Sunday night.

#At the end of the four-day meet, Mako Aquatic collected a total of 1,862.50 points to hold off the YMCA WaveRunners, who came in second with 1,458.50. The Alpha Aquatics got third with 1,159.50.

#Grand Bahamian Joanna Evans, home from her preparation for her professional career, surpassed the FINA World Championships’ B cut of two minutes and 02.81 seconds by touching the wall in 2:01.55 in the girls’ 15-and-over 200 metre freestyle.

#Evans, 21, also attained the Pan Am B standard in the girls’ 15-and-over 100m freestyle of 59.95 when she did 57.53, along with Alpha’s Ariel Weech in 59.61.

#Evans, however, said she intends to bypass the XVIII Pan Am, set for July 26 to August 11, and will be focusing on the World Championship, scheduled for July 12-28 in Gwangju, South Korea in her quest to qualify for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.

#Davante Carey, the 16-year-old rising star, made his presence felt with his second place finish in 25.03.

#Meanwhile Laura Morley, home to compete for Mako, made the A cut for the Pan American Games in the girls’ 15-and-over 200m individual medley in two minutes and 19.0 seconds. The A standard is 2:19.99.

#Izaak Bastian also attained the Pan Am B standard in the boys’ 15-and-over 200m IM in 2:09.71. The qualifying time was 2:11.90.

#Two competitors also achieved the Pan Am B standard in the boys’ 15-and-over 100m freestyle of 52.79.

#Alpha’s Jared Fritzgerald won in 51.29 and Freeport’s Lamar Taylor did 52.58.

#Other divisional

#winners were:

#Girls 8-and-under – Skyler Smith, YMCA WaveRunners, with 48, two more than Alpha Aquatics’ Saleste Gibson with 46.

#Boys 8-and-under – Barracuda’s David Singh with 48, nipping YMCA WaveRunners’ Kaylan Williams with 47.

#Girls 9-10 – Zoe Williamson of Freeport Aquatic with 58, followed by YMCA WaveRunners’ Daniel Passion with 55.

#Boys 9-10 – YMCA WaveRunners with 63 over Dolphins’ Donald Saunders with 52.

#Girls 11-12 – Leylah Knowles of Alpha Aquatics finished with 61, well ahead of runner-up Seannia Norville-Smith of the YMCA WaveRunners with 50.50.

#Girls 13-14 – Delaney Mizell of the Lyford Cay Club with 55, three more than runner-up Zaylie-Elizabeth Thompson of Alpha with 52.

#Boys 11-12 – Marvin Johnson of the YMCA WaveRunners with 63 over Tristin Ferguson of Mako Aquatics Club with 57.

#Boys 13-14 – Nigel Forbes of the YMCA WaveRunners scored 63 points over Mako’s archrival Erald Thompson III with 56.

#Girls 15-and-over – Katelyn Cabral of YMCA WaveRunners with 48 over Margaret Higgs, unattached, with 43.

#Boys 15-and-over – Davante Carey, Mako, with 49, five more than Alpha’s Luke Thompson with 44.

Monday, February 24, 2020

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#THE Alpha Aquatics Swim Club won their annual invitational swim meet held at the Betty Kelly Kenning swim complex over the weekend.

#At the end of the two-day meet held on Friday and Saturday, Alpha posted the highest scores of 513 points in the women’s division and 511 in the men’s division They were followed by the Mako Aquatics Club and the Barracuda Swim Club. (See final team scores)

#The meet, which attracted a 10-member team from the Turks & Caicos Islands, also served as a qualifier for the 2020 CARIFTA Swimming Championships in Barbados over the Easter holiday weekend. Head coach David del Cueto said the meet lived up to its billing.

#“We are now getting the team ready for CARIFTA, so this is good to get this meet in,” said Cueto, who made the switch over from the Dolphins swim club last year. “The swimmers came here and swum good. It was a very good meet.”

#As for the competition, Cueto said the weather was a little cooler than usual and although they had some rain, but they got in all of the events.

#Among the multiple winners was Saleste Gibson of the Alpha Swim Club in the girls’ 9-10 division.

#She won the 200m individual medley in 3;19.2850m butterfly in 49.96; 200m freestyle in 2:50.78 and the 50mfreestyle in 34.25.

#Mia Sastre of MAKO touched the wall in 33.63 in the 50m backstroke in the girls’ 13-14 division, 1:03.13 in the 100m freestyle and the 100m butterfly in 1:11.03.

#Mark-Anthony Thompson of Alpha captured the boys 15-and-over 100m breaststroke in 1:09.34; the 200m breaststroke in 2:37.40 and the 50m freestyle in 26.42. Thompson was also runner-up twice to Mako’s Joshua Murray.

#In the 200m freestyle, Thompson clocked 2:06.26 to Murray’s 2:04.67 and 100m freestyle, Murray did 55.83, followed by Thompson in 56.15. The meet also attracted teams from Grand Bahama and coach Kenneth Williams brought a 10-member team from the Turks & Caicos Islands to participate.

#The International School of Turks & Caicos were led by Lenin Hamilton, who won the boys’ 9-10 freestyle in 2:55.14, was runner-up in the 50m backstroke in 41.32 behind MAKO’s Maxwell Daniels (39.73) and the 200m IM in 3:17.44 behind Barracuda’s Will Ferguson (3:02.87).

#“I think the preparation of our kids for this meet was very good,” Williams said. “Most of the kids were timid and afraid, but I think most of them were able to compose themselves and they were able to compete very well here.”

#Williams said he thoroughly enjoyed the competition, the first time they’ve been to a meet like this. “Everything went very well. They started on time, which was very encouraging and everything worked out very well,” he said. “I think we enjoyed ourselves and we hope that we can come back and compete in the meet next year.”

#• Here’s the final team scores:

#Women’s

#Division

#Alpha Aquatics 513

#YMCA Waverunners 281

#Mako Aquatics 281

#Barracuda Swim Club 190

#Mantas Swim & Water Polo 111

#Sea Waves Aquatic Team 78

#Team Orca 53

#Turks & Caicos Aquatics 35

#Blue Waves 3Swim Club 0

#Dolphins swim Club 26

#Turks & Caicos International 2

#Men’s

#Division

#Alpha Aquatics 511

#Mako Aquatics 450.50

#Barracuda Swim Club 160

#Mantas Swim & Water Polo 106

#Dolphins Swim Club 98

#Turks & Caicos Aquatics 87.50

#Freeport Aquatic Club 78

#YMCA Waverunners 73

#Team Orca 62

#Turks & Caicos International 40

#Unatt – Alpha International 10

#Blue Waves Swim Club 5

#Sea Waves Aquatic Team 4

Monday, February 17, 2020

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#THE Mako Aquatics Club hosted its Open Water Swim Meet on Saturday to give swimmers an opportunity to qualify for the team that will be a part of the Bahamas Swimming Federation’s team heading to the CARIFTA Swimming Championships in Wildey, Barbados, over the Easter holiday weekend.

#The open water swim was held on Saturday and now its up to the federation to ratify the team.

#While Joshua Murray was the overall finisher in the five-kilometre open category race in one hour and eight minutes, he won’t be eligible to make the team. Nonetheless, he said he was pleased with his performance.

#“It’s going pretty good so far, but I hope to go further in the sport,” said Murray, who started swimming at the age of 10, following in the footsteps of his father, Olympian Allan Murray.

#“I was happy with today’s results. I expected it.”

#Murray, 18, competed in the open water swim before at CARIFTA. He hopes to encourage and help the others to get ready for the games.

#Among those eligible for the team after completing their 5K races are Tristin Ferguson and Mark-Anthony Thompson in the boys’ 13-14 and 15-17 age groups respectively; Mia Sastre and Grace Farrington in the girls 13-14 and Salene Gibson and Kaliyah Albury in the girls 15-17 division.

#Sastre, a 14-year-old member of Mako Swim Club, won the girls 13-14 division in 1:12.99, followed by Farrington of Alpha Aquatic in 1:14.03 and Seannia Norville-Smith of the YMCA in third in 1:14.05.

#“It was a little bit rough, but it was a little different from the pool. I wouldn’t say I train for it every day, but I like it because it’s something different,” said Sastre, who was fourth at last year’s Carifta. “If I go back this year, I would like to try and come out with the victory, the gold. I just need to work on the turns at the buoys.”

#Gibson, 16, was the winner of the girls’ 15-17 division in 1:10.44 over Mako’s Kaliyah Albury (1:10.97) and Barracuda’s Gigi Eneas (1:13.00).

#“I’m really happy with it. The race and the course was very good. The water was clam, perfect conditions today,” said Gibson, who attends Saint Andrew’s School in Boca Raton, Florida. “I’m looking forward to placing and getting on the medal stand. I just want to have a good race and represent Team Bahamas.”

#If there’s anything she need to work on, Gibson, a member of the Alpha Aquatic Club, said it would be her endurance so that she can come home strong.

#Albury, a 17-year-old 12th grader at St Augustine’ College, said she enjoy swimming the 5K race.

#“I feel like I enjoy swimming in the ocean and I’m more relaxed than when I’m in the pool where it’s just sprint, sprint and more sprint,” she said. “In the ocean, you can just swim and swim. It was good today. I enjoyed it.”

#If she’s selected to the tram, Albury said her goal is to improve on her personal best time of 1:10 that she did in 2018 in Jamaica. She noted that she have to concentrate a little more going around the buoy and staying on track.

#Thompson, a 17-year-old student of St Andrew’s International School and a member of the Alpha Aquatic Club, said he prefer to swim in the open water event after doing it for the first time about two years ago. He easily won the boys 15-17 category in 1:11.01, well ahead of Mako’s Hugh Bartlett, who trailed in 1:17.32.

#“This is my first time swimming it since last year’s Carifta in April, so it was more like getting back into the groove of it,” Thompson said. “It was a lot of seaweeds we had to deal with, but I adjusted to it and got through it.”

#Having place fourth last year, Thompson said his goal is to win a medal, if he is selected to the team.

#Ferguson, 14, represents the Mako Aquatic Club, was just quite contended with his victory in 1:11.02 over Hodari Prince of the Barracuda Swim Club (1:12.19) and his Mako team-mate William Feaste (1:20.18).

#“I did exceptionally well because I really don’t train for the 5K. This is actually my third time swimming it, but it was pretty good,” he said. “If I make the team, my goal is to medal in all of my events like the 50 free and the 100m free and to prove that I can do anything that I put my mind too.”

#In the other categories, which all did one-mile, Will Farrington took the victory in the boys 12-and-under in 25.42 over Mako’s Maxwell Daniels (28.24) and Barracuda’s Keron Burrows (28.39).; Caden Wells won the boys 11-12 title in 23.38, followed by tram-mates Zion Gibson (23.52) and Ayton Moncur (24.08) and Alpha Aquatic’s Daniel Ferguson emerged as the boys 13-and-over champion in 23.39 over Lyford Cay Swim Club’s Peter Tynes (42.53).

#And Dndn McKenzie of Mako won the girls 10-and-under division in 31.13; Giada Bertoldo of Mako took the girls 11-12 title in 25.04 over team-mates Erin Pritchard (26.30) and Elle Theberge (26.57) and Maria Fox of Alpha Aquatic won the girls 13-and-over in 24.46 with team-mate Sienna Culmer-Mackey second in 25.00 and Mako’s Katie Roach third in 31.35.

Tuesday, March 3, 2020

#THE Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association’s “Play Tennis” developmental programme started indoors with drills and fitness conducted by coaches Marion Bain and Corey Francis, and players Donte Armbrister and Sydney Clarke.

#Later in the day the session progressed outdoors as the weather improved.

#The kids had the opportunity to perform basic tactics and techniques as demonstrated and instructed by the coaches.

#Coaches Francis and Clarke were able to benefit from the coaches course recently organised by The Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association.

#This Play Tennis course focused on introducing beginners to the sport. “It is good when the training gained by coaches can be called upon in these complimentary sessions offered to the children of the nation. We welcome other coaches to offer their service to this developmental programme,” said a press release.

#“The programme continues to see novice players who are open and eager to the skills presented. Making tennis accessible to all aids in the development of tennis, removing the barrier of cost and allowing the children ages 5 -17 to come into contact each Saturday with trained coaches and their assistants in a fun-filled environment is proving to be successful.

#“The goal is to grow the pool of available players across the country and to foster new tennis seeds, forming the foundation of growth and development. Today a tennis seed, tomorrow a fruitful tennis plant.”

f Tuesday, March 3, 2020

#By RENALDO DORSETT

#Tribune Sports Reporter

#rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

#MAJOR League Baseball Pipeline began its annual practice of revealing its top 30 prospects for each franchise and Bahamians have been featured as the division-by-division analysis made its 2020 debut.

#Among the list of three American League divisions, familiar names like Lucius Fox (Tampa Bay Rays), D’Shawn Knowles and Trent Deveaux (Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim) remained on their teams’ Top 30 prospects list while Keithron Moss (Texas Rangers) was named to the list for the first time.

#Knowles was named the Angels’ No.9 prospect and is currently with the club in Spring Training.

#“As a 17-year-old making his pro debut in the United States in 2018, Knowles set the expectations bar very high by putting up ridiculous numbers in two levels of rookie ball,” his analysis said.

#“Still one of the youngest players at his level, he did improve his approach beyond those numbers, cutting his strikeout rate and showing progress with his overall plate discipline. As the switch-hitter continues to refine that, he has the chance to be a solid hitter and there’s power to come, with most of it showing up now from the left side of the plate.”

#Knowles returned to the Orem Owlz for his first full season with the club in the Pioneer League. After 30 games in the Arizona League in 2018, Knowles was promoted to the Owlz.

#“A plus runner, Knowles is still learning how to steal a base. That speed helps him in the outfield and he’ll continue to get reps in all three spots, though he has the skills to play centre full-time if needed,” his analysis said.

#“The Angels love his work ethic and his baseball IQ, providing confidence his performance will catch up to his tools as he plays all of 2020 at age 19.”

#Deveaux is listed as the Angels’ No. 15 prospect.

#He advanced to the Pioneer League for the first time after 52 games in the Arizona Rookie League. He hit.241 with 53 hits, 23 RBI, 15 doubles, four triples, six home runs, 14 stolen bases, a .332 OBP and a .994 OPS. He improved on his 2018 AZL tenure when appeared in 44 games and hit .199 with a .309 OBP, .556 OPS with 11 RBI, 20 runs scored, seven stolen bases and one home run.

#“The Angels are thrilled with the progress Deveaux made in 2019, especially late in the year. The right-handed hitter started to get more rhythm in his swing, getting comfortable with his timing at the plate and his swing path. That resulted in him driving the ball better than he ever has in his brief career, with an ISO approaching .200 in the AZL to show for it. He’s still very raw and needs to cut down on his strikeouts to show more consistent impact with the bat, but there were enough glimpses to know it’s in there,” his analysis said. “An elite-level athlete with top-of-the-scale speed, Deveaux will continue to get better on the bases as he learns more about the craft. The same can be said for his outfield defence, which is plus at times but inconsistent.”

#Moss was listed as the No.30 prospect in the Rangers’ organisation.

#In 34 AZL games, he hit .308 with a .425 OBP, .442 slugging percentage, and an .866 OPS. He totaled 37 hits, including four doubles, three triples and two home runs with 14 RBI, 27 runs scored and eight stolen bases.

#“He scuffled in his 2018 pro debut but starred as a 17-year-old in the Rookie-level Arizona League last summer, hitting .429 in the playoffs to lead his club to the championship,” his analysis said.

#“Moss exhibits an innate feel for hitting from both sides of the plate, showing a quick swing, advanced understanding of the strike zone and a willingness to use the entire field. As he gets stronger, he should hit the ball with more authority and get to most of his average raw power. He possesses solid to plus speed and will bunt for hits and steal bases.”

#Fox is currently in Spring Training with the Rays and has seen time at centrefield for the first time in his career.

#“He’s maintained strong on-base skills as he’s climbed the ladder thanks to a penchant for walking and knows how to use his plus speed on the bases. After recording at least 25 steals in each of his first three seasons, Fox swiped a career-high 39 bags in 2019,” his analysis said.

#“One of the better athletes in Tampa Bay’s system, Fox is a rangy, above-average defensive shortstop with good hands and an above-average arm. That the Rays began to increase his versatility with reps at both second (13 games) and third base (nine) in 2019 suggests a potential bench role for Fox.”

#Fox received league wide recognition and was awarded “Best Hustler” for his baserunning ability when the league announced its Postseason Awards.

#He spent 15 games last season in Triple-A with the Durham Bulls, but has spent the bulk of the year with the Montgomery Biscuits in the Double A Southern League.

#He went on to lead the Southern League with 39 stolen bases.

#In 112 games this season across both leagues (104 with the Biscuits) Fox hit .221 with a .331 OBP and a .657 OPS. He totalled 90 hits including 16 doubles, nine triples, three home runs, 34 RBIs and scored 66 runs.

NFL Super Bowl champion Rashad Fenton (second left) poses with Cory, Chester and Jory Fox during a visit to Nassau on a cruise ship.

Tuesday, March 3, 2020

NFL Super Bowl champion Rashad Fenton with his aunt Diedre Fox on his visit to Nassau on a cruise ship on Sunday.

#RASHAD Fenton, of Bahamian descent, who helped the Kansas City Chiefs to win Super Bowl LIV on February 2 in Miami, Florida, came to Nassau on Sunday on a cruise ship to spend some time with his local family.

#Fenton won a Super Bowl ring at Hard Rock Stadium — the same stadium where he used to serve food and drinks. The Chiefs defensive back used to walk four blocks from his house to serve food and drinks at the stadium when he was in high school. He is the son of Bahamian Laurie Fenton, who moved to Miami to attend college.

#The Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers 31-20 to earn the franchise whose founding owner had named the game its second Lombardi Trophy and first since 1969.

#The old Kansas City teams were known for their ability to back an outward cool with dominant play on the field – Hank Stram dialing up unthinkable plays to the cigarette-smoking Len Dawson. This time they did it with a wise-cracking, Hawaiian shirt-wearing, cheeseburger-eating mad scientist as a coach and his quarterback creation conjured from every defensive coordinator’s worst nightmares.

#During his visit to the Bahamas, Fenton spent time with some of his family members, including his uncle and aunt Chester and Diedre Fox from Long Island and their twin sons Cory and Jory. They spent time reflecting on the Chiefs’ victory over dinner.