The post Stillman’s rally falls short at Mobile appeared first on Alabama Sports.

EUGENE, Ore. – Defending Olympic gold medalist Jeff Henderson opened the evening Sunday in second place with an 8.08-meter jump in the men’s long jump at the USA Track & Field Team Trials at Hayward Field. However, four other men went on to pass Henderson through the next five jumps as the 2013 Stillman College alum finished sixth. He needed another seven inches to advance to the Tokyo Olympics.

Henderson, a native of McAlmont, Arkansas, was looking for his second-straight Olympic bid and was the No. 2 favorite entering competition. His 8.08m (26 feet, 6.25 inches) jump was his best of the week, jumping 8.02m during qualifying. In Sunday’s finals, he jumped 8.01m, 7.86m, 7.77m, 7.74m and 7.73m in his final five attempts. Coached by 1984 Olympian Al Joyner, Henderson represented Team Adidas at the trials.

LSU’s JuVaughn Harrison won the long jump with a personal best and world-leading jump of 8.47m in his third attempt. Having won the high jump earlier in the day, he is the first Team USA member to qualify in both the high jump and long jump since Jim Thorpe in 1912.

Florida alumnus Marquis Dendy took silver in the Trials at 8.38m on his second jump, a season-best, while Steffin McCarter (University of Texas) claimed the final Olympic spot with a third-place and person-best jump of 8.26m (27 feet, 1.25 inches). All three qualifiers will be first-time Olympians in the event.

Henderson and 2016 Olympic teammate Jarrion Lawson, who had the best qualifying jump Friday, both missed their return bid to the Olympic Games. Lawson passed on his three finals attempts Sunday, likely due to injury.

During his career at Stillman College, Henderson won two national titles for Stillman College at the 2013 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field championships: the 100-meter dash (10.18) and long jump (7.81m). He was also runner-up in the 2013 championships in the 200-meter (20.65) to earn 28 points as High Point Athlete of the Meet and help Stillman to a program-best ninth-place team finish. Henderson earned his bachelor’s in business administration in 2013. After Stillman, Henderson won gold at the 2015 Pan American Games, gold at the 2016 Olympics in Rio and was the silver medalist at the 2019 IAAF World  Championships Silver medal distance in Doha, Qatar. His season-best in 2021 came in May with an 8.39 meter jump to win the USATF Chula Vista Field Festival in California.

Henderson was the only men’s long jumper in the trials who completed his collegiate career at the NCAA Division II level and the only graduate of a historical black college or university (HBCU). Stillman competed in NCAA Division II through the 2015-2016 year before transitioning to the NAIA in Fall 2016.

FINALS RESULTS
1. JuVaughn Harrison (LSU), 8.47m
2. Marquis Dendy (Unattached), 8.38m
3. Steffin McCarter (Texas), 8.26m
4. Damarcus Simpson (Unattached), 8.19m
5. Isaac Grimes (Florida State), 8.09m
6. Jeff Henderson (Team Adidas), 8.08m
7. Cameron Crump (Mississippi State), 7.91m
8. Corey Crawford (Unattached), 7.90m
9. Allen Gordon (Mississippi), 7.86m
10. Rayvon Allen (Oklahoma), 7.71m
11. Trumaine Jefferson (Unattached), 7.66m
DNP, Jarrion Lawson (Unattached)

The post Henderson finishes sixth at Olympic Trials appeared first on Alabama Sports.

EUGENE, Ore. – Stillman College alum Jeff Henderson has advanced to the men’s long jump finals at the U.S. Track and Field Olympic Trials, which will be Sunday, June 27 at 3:45 p.m. Pacific Time (5:45 p.m. CT). Henderson finished Friday’s qualifying round in seventh place with an 8.02-meter jump.

The post Stillman alum Jeff Henderson advances to Olympic Trial finals appeared first on Alabama Sports.

EUGENE, Ore. – Reigning Olympic gold medalist and Stillman College track and field alum Jeff Henderson is looking to qualify for his second Olympic Games. Henderson will compete in the USA Track & Field Olympic Trials this week at Hayward Field to determin Team USA members for the Tokyo Games.

Henderson, who won gold in the long jump at the 2016 Olympics in Rio, will compete in the long jump Friday, June 25 with qualifying beginning at 1:30 p.m. The finals are Sunday, June 27 at 4 p.m. Pacific. NBCOlympics.com and the NBC Sports app will live stream the events. Click her to track live results.

A member of Team Adidas, Henderson qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials with an 8.39 meter jump to win the USATF Chula Vista Field Festival in May. The jump matched his 2019 IAAF World  Championships Silver medal distance in Doha, Qatar. Henderson jumped 8.38m to win gold at the 2016 Olympics and also won gold at the 2015 Pan American Games.

LSU’s JuVaughn Harrison holds the best qualifying mark for the U.S. Olympic Trials at 8.45 meters.

A native of McAlmont, Arkansas, Henderson won two national titles for Stillman College at the 2013 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field championships: the 100-meter dash (10.18) and long jump (7.81m). He was also runner-up in the 2013 championships in the 200-meter (20.65) to earn 28 points as High Point Athlete of the Meet and help Stillman to a program-best ninth-place team finish. Henderson earned his bachelor’s in business administration in 2013.

The post Stillman’s Jeff Henderson to compete in U.S. Olympic Trials appeared first on Alabama Sports.

HATTIESBURG, Miss. – A nine day layoff did not slow the Tigers down. No. 23 Stillman College raced out to a 10-point lead in the first five minutes and never trailed en route to an 86-71 win at William Carey University on Feb. 5. The victory extended Stillman’s lead in the Southern States Athletic Conference West Division standings to 2.5 games over Loyola University.

Stillman shot 58.3% in the game, led in scoring by Trey Petty’s 27 points and 26 by Devin Merriweather.

After the initial double-digit lead, William Carey got no closer than seven points, 17-10, seven minutes into the game. Stillman stretched its lead to 21 points at halftime, 44-23. The largest lead was 24 points early in the second half.

Petty made 6-of-13 3-pointers and was 3-of-6 inside the arc.

All nine Tigers scored in the game. Virgil Field and Ladarius Carter dished out five and four assists, respectively. Roger Davis led all players with eight rebounds. Marcus Bates blocked three shots and Davis had two blocks.

William Carey was led by Sayveon Bumpers’ 15 points, six rebounds and three assists. Zarkeichious Martin and William Gaines each scored a dozen points, while Jvari Thigpen added 10 points.

Stillman (9-1, 8-1 SSAC West) will meet William Carey (11-8, 4-5 SSAC West) once again Saturday, Feb. 6 at 5 p.m. for the final of four meetings this season against the Crusaders.

The post Stillman beats Wiliam Carey, extends SSAC lead to 2.5 games appeared first on Alabama Sports.

TUSCALOOSA – Originally scheduled for Feb. 3, Stillman College softball will begin the 2021 season one day later with a trip to cross-state HBCU rival Talladega College on Feb. 4, before hosting the Tornadoes Feb. 6 at noon.

The 2021 season will begin five weeks shy of one year since Stillman’s last game, March 11, 2020 before the COVID-19 shutdown. At the time, Stillman was riding a three-game win streak after a sweep of Culver-Stockton College and ending the season with an 8-6 non-conference final record.

Stillman’s roster includes nine returners and 10 new additions for the 2021 season.

Candace Hampton is the only senior from 2020 taking advantage of the extra year granted by the NAIA. Hampton was one of three players to start all 14 games in, led the nation in outfield fielding percentage (1.000). Hampton hit .340 with a team-best 17 hits and 50 at bats. Her eight runs and five RBIs also leads the returners. Her 3.57 at bats per game ranked 49th in the NAIA. Since her freshman year during Stillman’s final NCAA DII season in 2016, Hampton has appeared in 129 games during her career, hitting .332 (119-328) with 71 runs scored, 42 RBIs, 10 doubles, two triples and a home run. She has 21 stolen bases.

Kerstie Reynolds returns for her fourth season as Stillman’s shortstop and has also pitched. She hit .318 in 2020 with nine singles and a double. Reynolds, a .319 career hitter, is 14 hits shy of 100 as a Tiger. She was 11-10 as a pitcher her first two seasons, but did not appear in the circle in 2020.

Tay’la Stowes and Savannah Mayes are the other two Tigers to start all 14 games in 2020. Stowes hit .250 with six runs scored and five RBI. Mayes hit .178, but drove in five and also scored six times. She struck out only three times in 45 at bats.

Cynthia White is the Tigers’ leading returning hitter from 2020, batting .368 through 12 games and seven starts in 2020. She led Stillman with three doubles.

Offensively, Stillman will see the addition of freshman Taylor Roland as a true utility player, rotating from third base, catcher and the outfield. Roland, a native of Millbrook, Alabama, hit .367 with 37 RBI and 32 runs scored her last full season at Autauga Academy in 2019.

Freshman Ayslan Blake from Hillcrest High School will see everyday duties behind the plate.

Stillman’s only starting pitcher returning from 2020 is Kaitlyn Childress of Billingsley, Alabama. She led the Tigers with 30 strikeouts through six starts in her debut Stillman season. Her 6.389 innings pitched per game ranked 20th in the NAIA with 38.1 total innings of work.

Chidress will be joined by her former Shelton State Community College teammate Katie Clifton, who will pitch and play first base for the Tigers. Clifton comes to Stillman from D3 Huntingdon College in Montgomery, where she had a 2.41 ERA through 31.2 innings last season. At Shelton State from 2017-2019, she hit .350 with 10 home runs.

Freshmen pitchers Brooklyn Pennington, an All-State selection from Lamar County, and Presley Graham from Hueytown High School will also work their way into the rotation.

“This year’s team is the most talented team by far,” said Joel Penfield, entering his fourth season as Stillman’s head coach. “We are two and three deep in every position which only makes us better. I see everyone being able to step on the field at anytime and give us a chance to win.”

The Feb. 4 doubleheader at Talladega and Feb. 6 doubleheader in Tuscaloosa are the beginning of a 42-game schedule for Stillman, including 12 home dates.

“This year’s schedule I think is tough, but I expect us to complete in every game. In conference play, I expect us to be right up there with everyone. We are excited and looking forward to a great season,” Penfield said.

Stillman will then have a two-week break before playing Louisiana College at the Hoover Met and hosting Point University on Feb. 23. February’s schedule closes Feb. 27 at MUW.

Stillman has a full March with five-straight home doubleheaders in the first 16 days. Southern States Athletic Conference action will begin when Faulkner University comes to town March 9, the first of 12 conference doubleheaders on docket, including seven at home. Following a weekend swing to Georgia to meet Middle Georgia on March 19 and Brewton-Parker on March 20.

Stillman will close out the month with three home dates. Six of the eight scheduled dates in April will be on the road, except for the final home games April 15 and 16 against Brewton-Parker and Middle Georgia. The regular season finale is scheduled for April 24 at No. 7 University of Mobile.

Only players’ parents will be allowed at Stillman College home games due to COVID-19 precautions.

The post Stillman softball to open season this weekend at Talladega appeared first on Alabama Sports.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Stillman College men’s basketball enters the NAIA Men’s Basketball Coaches’ Top 25 Poll this week at No. 23, the national office announced Wednesday.

Stillman (8-1, 7-1 SSAC West) is the third among Southern States Athletic Conference teams behind No. 7 Faulkner University and No. 12 Loyola University (La.). Faulkner (16-1, 7-0) leads the SSAC East by three games. Stillman leads Loyola (10-2, 5-2) in the SSAC West standings by 1.5 games.

“We’re happy to be back in the Top 25. Anytime you can get recognized it is good for the team,” said John Teasley, Stillman head coach. “It’s been one of the craziest years. We’ve been fortunate to stay healthy so far, with us sitting out in the fall.  We knew we had to do a lot of work in a little bit of time. The guys are playing well together. The season is still early though, and we still have a lot of work to do.”

Due to COVID-19 precautions, Stillman did not practice until Dec. 28 and opened the 2020-21 season Jan. 5 with a road win at Rust College. The Tigers went on to sweep William Carey University and record a road win at the University of Mobile and a road sweep of Blue Mountain College before splitting at then-No. 5 Loyola in New Orleans, Jan. 22-23. Stillman moved to 8-1, 7-1 in the SSAC West on Jan. 26 with a home victory over Mobile. The Tigers will be off this weekend, Jan. 29-30, and will return to action Feb. 2 at Mobile.

Indiana Wesleyan (21-1) leads the national rankings with 14 first-place votes. LSU Shreveport is second with seven first-place votes. William Penn and Lewis-Clark State hold their spots at No. 3 and No. 4, while No. 5 Arizona Christian and No. 6 Shawnee State University each climbed one spot in the last two weeks. Following No. 7 Faulkner is No. 8 Science & Arts (Okla.), No. 9 Morningside (Iowa) and No. 10 Providence (Mont.), who each jumped multiple spots.

Stillman is one of three HBCUs in the Top 25. Talladega sits at No. 14 and Dillard is No. 24.

This is Stillman’s first national ranking since being ranked No. 17 on Dec. 11, 2019. The Tigers were ranked in the Top 20 for 10-straight polls from Dec. 4, 2018 until Dec. 11, 2019. The Tigers closed the 2019-2020 season receiving votes in the poll to earn an at-large bid to the NAIA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship prior to its cancelation. While it did not receive a vote in the 2020-2021 preseason, Stillman had three points in the Jan. 13, 2021 rankings.

Statistically, Stillman ranks Top 20 in five categories: assist/turnover ratio (2nd, 1.59), 3-point defense (11th, .277), offensive rebounds per game (13th, 14.0), assists per game (15th, 17.667) and 3-point field goal percentage (19th, .390).

The next NAIA Coaches’ Top 25 poll is scheduled for Feb. 10 with the final regular season poll scheduled Feb. 24.

The post Stillman enters NAIA Men’s Basketball Coaches’ Poll at No. 23 appeared first on Alabama Sports.

TUSCALOOSA –   It took only 10 seconds for Trey Petty to put Stillman College on the scoreboard, and the Tigers did not look back en route to a 76-65 win over the University of Mobile in Birthright Alumni Hall. The win maintains Stillman’s lead in the Southern States Athletic Conference West Division by 1.5 games over Loyola University.

Stillman spread the ball around with eight players scoring, including four in double figures. Roger Davis ended up leading Stillman with 15 points off the bench, including 13 in the second half. Devin Merriweather finished with 13 points, Trey Petty had 12 and Ladarius Carter scored 11.

The Tigers out-rebounded Mobile, 52-38, led by Virgil Fields’ 12 boards and nine by Petty. Stillman continued its trend of protecting the basketball with an even 11 assists and 11 turnovers.

Stillman led by nine at the half, 39-30, before opening the second half on a 20-9 run to go up by 20 points, 59-39, in the first eight minutes. Petty grabbed an offensive rebound and put back for the first 20-point margin. Moments later, Tomias Brand slammed down a fastbreak dunk off a Petty steal to make it 20 once more, and then a Roger Davis basket later pushed it to 21 points, 65-44.

Mobile led only once, 10-8, after an Alan Lang basket eight minutes into the game.

RJ Kelly led Mobile with 15 points, 11 rebounds and two blocked shots while playing in foul trouble. Lang finished with 12 and Maurice Anderson scored 10. Logan Foutz, Darvin JOnes and Trenton Short each scored eight.

Both teams were held around 20% from 3-point range, playing the night inside the arch.

Stillman is scheduled to have the weekend off before returning to the University of Mobile next Tuesday, Feb. 2 for game three of a four-game series. Mobile (8-8, 3-4 SSAC) will play a two-game set at Loyola in New Orleans over the weekend first.

The post Stillman runs past Mobile for home win appeared first on Alabama Sports.

The post Petty, Merriweather lead the way for unbeaten Tigers appeared first on Alabama Sports.

BLUE MOUNTAIN, Miss. – Stillman College improved to 2-2 on the road Saturday with a 53-47 win at Blue Mountain College. With the win, Stillman improves to 2-4 in Southern States Athletic Conference West action.

De’Asia Marsh picked up where she left off Friday, coming up with a steal and basket in the first minute to give Stillman the first points of Saturday’s game. Stillman opened the game with a 6-0 run. Blue Mountain managed to tie the game at the end of the quarter, 12-12.

Blue Mountain took a brief lead with 4:30 left in the first half, but Marsh scored four points in the final 75 seconds to tie the game, 23-23 at halftime. Marsh finished with 14 points on 6-of-12 shooting to lead Stillman for the second-straight night.

Zikira Williams, who scored 11 points, gave Stillman a 25-23 lead to open the third quarter and the Tigers maintained its lead the rest of the way. Stillman held Blue Mountain to 26.9% shooting in the second half and 29% in the game.

The Toppers’ closest margin in the second half was, 28-27, following a Kandice Ricks free throw. Zaria Jenkins helped stretch Stillman’s lead to seven points, 39-32, at the end of the third quarter. Stillman’s largest lead of the game, 41-32, came on a Devyn Lockhart basket to open the fourth quarter.

Jenkins was third in scoring for Stillman with seven points, while Brittany Washington and Imani Wimbish-Gay each scored six. Jenkins led the Tigers with six rebounds.

Ricks finished with 17 points and eight rebounds to lead BMC, followed by Jada Taylor’s eight points and seven by Mallory Russell.

Stillman (2-4, 2-3 SSAC West) is next scheduled to travel to New Orleans, Jan. 22-23, for a two-game set against No. 25 Loyola University.

The post Stillman women sweep weekend at Blue Mountain appeared first on Alabama Sports.