As of Thursday, August 31, 2023

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Kimberley Rolle

#By TENAJH SWEETING

#Tribune Sports Reporter

#tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

#THE University of The Bahamas (UB) Mingoes have welcomed 25 freshmen student athletes to join the respective sporting teams. The Mingoes have fielded competitive women and men’s teams in basketball, soccer, track and field, golf, volleyball, softball and cross country over the years. With fresh faces now joining the fold, the UB Athletics Department is ready for the new sporting year.

#Kimberley Rolle, director of the UB Athletics department, talked about the overall goal of the sporting teams this year.

#“UB Athletics is looking forward to a very productive athletic year. As always we expect to compete at a high level in all our sports, making the playoffs is always the goal because we believe once you make the playoffs anything can happen,” Rolle said.

#She added that although the newest additions to the various teams makes them younger, they also believe that some of the freshmen will be impactful first-year players.

#With the Mingoes women’s volleyball team returning home following competition at the Florida National University, Rolle is looking forward to future international competitions.

#She said that she believes the Mingoes will have solid performances in international competition but they are expecting to be competitive in all of the games whether local or international. “Our men’s soccer team has a strong freshman class that will complement some of our top talent from last year and although very young we [also] expect strong performances from our track and field team,” she said.

#The Mingoes’ athletic director was particularly excited about all of the teams this year but is definitely interested in seeing how this year’s soccer team performs, which she believes is one of the more talented teams they have had on paper in years.

#The university hosted open tryouts from August 21-26 across various sporting disciplines which yielded some young talent that are immediately expected to impact the rosters and force competition for starting roles on the various teams.

#For Rolle, the ultimate goal of the department remains unchanged going into this sporting year.

#“UB Athletics continues to push toward our ultimate goal of international intercollegiate affiliation. This is a university effort and we are moving in a deliberate and positive direction toward international accreditation.

#“As we move in this direction, we continue to engage in the best practices, recruit and retain, and enhance our processes and protocols to improve our overall effectiveness and efficiencies,” she said.

#The UB Mingoes are scheduled to be in action at the Thomas A Robinson national stadium for the Cross Country Invitational on September 30.

As of Thursday, August 31, 2023

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#THE Bahamas Football Association has announced a 23-player roster for the upcoming Concacaf Nations League match against Puerto Rico.

#The game is scheduled to be held at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium on September 9.

#Head coach Nesly Jean has called up a blend of youth and experience to begin the Nations League campaign.

#The squad features long-time national team players along with talented young stars looking to make their mark on the international stage. “I’m excited about the balance of this roster,” said Jean. “Our veterans provide the leadership we need, while our emerging talents bring energy and fearlessness.”

#Goalkeeper Antonio Beckford, defenders William Gardiner and Miguel Thompson, and striker Lesly St Fleur are among the key veterans carrying over from Bahamas’ qualifying run. They are joined by young standouts like midfielder Wood Julmis and forward Rashaan Bain who are expected to play increased roles. After facing Puerto Rico at home, The Bahamas will travel to Guyana on September 12 followed by a home game against Antigua & Barbuda on October 14.

#The Nations League provides important competition as the team aims to climb the FIFA rankings and compete for a place in the Gold cup competition.

#“The talent is there, and the team is driven to succeed,” Jean added.

#“We are eager to represent The Bahamas and continue our progress through the Nations League.”

QUENTIN HALL (main photo) and (clockwise from top left): RICARDO SMITH, SHANTELL PENN, LATOYA THOMPSON-BROWN, ASHLEY BETHEL, FRANCIS DELVA and JIMMY MACKEY.

As of Wednesday, August 30, 2023

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#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#From running the floor as one of the top point guards from high school to college to serving as a junior national team coach, Grand Bahamian Quentin ‘Three Ounce’ Hall is hoping that his intensive background will enable him to move up as the new president of the Bahamas Basketball Federation.

#Hall and his slate of officers will be running against incumbent Eugene Horton and his slate as they contest the federation’s election of officers on Saturday in the Ministry of Education’s Conference Room.

#The elections will be held during the annual general meeting that starts at 10am.

#“I’ve been around the Bahamas Basketball Federation since 1995,” Hall said. “Not only have I been there as a player, but I represented the Bahamas on the national team as a player for at least 16-17 years.

#“Just recently, I was invited to serve as a coach on the junior national team. I think I have been so involved that I understand the logistics and I understand the grinding that it takes to make progress.

#“So for me, I’ve seen where the kids are just going out there and playing, but there’s not a whole lot of coaching going on.”

#As he ventures into the front office, Hall said he would like to implement programmes that will enable coaches to do a lot more coaching to better prepare the players for international competition, not just in New Providence and Grand Bahama, but throughout the Commonwealth of the Bahamas.

#“That’s one of the key elements that need to be addressed,” he said.

#“I feel like I’m more of a worker, who can get out there and be more involved in getting this done and not just sitting on the sidelines watching.

#“I’ve been in the grind and so I feel that’s an asset to our country. I’m one to get involved and be prepared to push these programmes forward with

#tournaments for juniors and getting the boys and girls to play a lot more and develop their skills in the process.”

#Hall will be running with a slate of officers that includes Jimmy Mackey as first vice president, Francis Delva as second vice president, newly elected New Providence Basketball Association president Ricardo Smith as third vice president, Ashley Bethel as secretary general with Shantell Penn as her assistant and Latoya Thompson-Brown as treasurer. Hall noted that he has developed a personal relationship with all of the candidates running on his slate and with the knowledge that they all bring to the table, he feels will make the difference to help further develop basketball in the country. “I know the people that I have assembled. I have great trust in them and they believe in the vision that we are putting forward for basketball,” Hall said. “It’s a chemistry within each of us. We are going to be sacrificing a whole lot to make basketball bigger and better in this country.

#“So I’m looking forward to working with this group of individuals once we are elected on Saturday. I think I have a really good team. I am so confident in all of them and I hope we can get the opportunity to build something special together.”

#Hall, the founder of 3Oz Athletics in Grand Bahama, was a former player who starred in Grand Bahama and the prestigious Hugh Campbell Basketball Classic up to 1995 before he went on to play for Gonzaga University, leading them to the Elite Eight in the NCAA Basketball Championships in his senior year in 1999.

#Following college, Hall attempted to make it in the NBA, but that didn’t work out. He returned home and while playing for the senior men’s national basketball team, he also moved into coaching at the high school and the junior national team programme in 2007.

#Hall and his wife Vanessa have three sons, all of whom Quentin hopes one day will be able to follow in his footsteps as basketball players. For now, Hall just wants to continue to make his contribution to the development of the sport as the new president of the federation, the governing body in the country.

#If elected, Hall and his officers intend to implement the following seven-point plan of action:

#1 We will seek to raise funds for youth programmes (i.e., boys & girls) to ensure programmes are built on outer islands. a. Create local sports clubs with leagues for play. (This would enable persons outside of school systems with set of skills to be able to give back.) b. Have national round robin youth tournaments.

#2 To reaffirm the national junior programme to compete on an international level.

#3 Create a sustainable elite basketball programme in which athletes who are interested in national team may participate. a. Allow for stipends to cover time of training for Senior Men’s and Women’s National Teams etc.

#4 Leadership will seek to implement a proper budget for the annual cost of operations and raise the necessary funds to ensure agenda can be established. a.

#Establish a relationship with corporate Bahamas to raise funds.

#5 Re-establish women’s national programme to become a regional powerhouse.

#6 Develop coaches who are involved with youth with necessary skills to be certified coaches by FIBA (i.e., level 1 or 2 certification etc.). a. This will eventually allow Bahamians to be head coaches for our national teams.

#7 Increase marketing (social media ads etc.) to the public for events hosted by the BBF.