FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 11-15-99

This Week In Armstrong Atlantic State Athletics

Monday, November 15
No Events Scheduled

Tuesday, November 16
No Events Scheduled

Wednesday, November 17
No Events Scheduled

Thursday, November 18
No Events Scheduled

Friday, November 19
• Women's Basketball hosts Lady Pirate/Chatham Orthopaedic Associates Tip-Off Classic
Presbyterian vs. Saint Leo, 6:00 p.m.
AASU vs. Florida Memorial, 8:00 p.m.
• Men's Basketball vs. Livingstone, 4:00 p.m. (@ Boiling Springs, N.C.)

Saturday, November 20
• Women's Basketball hosts Lady Pirate/Chatham Orthopaedic Associates Tip-Off Classic
Consolation Game, 4:00 p.m.
Championship Game, 6:00 p.m.
• Men's Basketball vs. Gardner-Webb, 4:00 p.m. (@ Boiling Springs, N.C.)

Sunday, November 21
No Events Scheduled

Volleyball (36-5 overall, 11-3 PBAC)

The AASU volleyball team wrapped up its season with a second-place finish at the Peach Belt Athletic Conference tournament over the weekend in Greenwood, S.C.

The Pirates dropped a 3-0 decision at North Florida on Wednesday, before traveling to Lander University for the PBAC Tournament. AASU defeated USC Aiken, 3-0, and Francis Marion, 3-1, to earn a berth in the title match against a familiar foe – North Florida. The Pirates played valiantly but lost in four games to the No. 24-ranked team in the nation. Freshmen Lindsay Ehlers and Erin Melius were named to the PBAC All-Tournament team.

AASU finished the season with a 36-5 record, tying the NCAA Division II mark for the best single-season turnaround, improving 23 1/2 games from last year's 8-24 mark.

The Pirates also did well at the Peach Belt Athletic Conference's annual awards – sweeping the top honors. Sophomore middle blocker Kris Bringewatt was named the PBAC Player of the Year, freshman outside hitter Erin Melius was named the PBAC Freshman of the Year and head coach Alan Segal was named the PBAC's Coach of the Year. Bringewatt and Ehlers were also named to the All-Conference team, joining junior outside hitter Micah Roman and junior rightside hitter/setter Colleen Fitzsimmons on the team.

The Pirates lose just one senior from this year's squad and should be geared up for an even better season in the year 2000.

Men's Basketball

The Pirate men's basketball team tip off the season at the Rotary Dixie Classic in Boiling Springs, N.C., on Friday, Nov. 19 and Saturday, Nov. 20. AASU will face Livingstone on Friday evening and host Gardner-Webb on Saturday evening in tournament action.

AASU returns six letterwinners from last year's squad, including All-PBAC guard Robert Campbell. The junior was the only underclassman to earn All-Conference honors last season. Forwards Tavares Brown and David Koncul also highlight the returnees.

Among head coach Griff Mills' talented crop of newcomers are 6-10 junior Cyrille Mainnemarre and 6-9 sophomore Bart Westgeest, key to anchoring the middle for the Pirates, and a 6-8 junior forward who returns home to Savannah to play for the Pirates – Ronald Thompson, who transfers from Florida State.

The first home game for the Pirates is Tuesday, November 23 at 7:30 p.m.

Women's Basketball

Lynn Jarrett's women's hoops squad takes to the court this weekend as they host the Lady Pirate/Chatham Orthopaedic Associates Tip-Off Classic on Friday, Nov. 19 and Saturday, Nov. 20. The Lady Pirates will face Florida Memorial in the opening round on Friday and will face either Presbyterian or Saint Leo in the consolation or championship games on Saturday.

Jarrett's hoopsters boast just two juniors, five sophomores and five freshmen, led by sophomore guard Lexie Martin and sophomore swingman Melissa Germany. Junior Kim Brooker also returns for the Lady Pirates, while the newcomers are led by freshman point guard Shawnte Craig and junior forward Sonya Mintz, a transfer from Truett-McConnell JC.

Men's & Women's Tennis

The fall ITA rankings are out for men's and women's tennis, and the AASU Pirate teams figure prominently in the rankings.

The women are ranked No. 3 in the nation behind BYU-Hawaii and Lynn. AASU has finished second in the past three years after winning national championships in 1995 and 1996. Junior Maren Mueller is ranked second in singles, while junior Michaela Kratovchilova is ranked No. 28 and senior Petra Schemm is ranked No. 29. Senior Marie-Claude Ostiguy gives the Pirates four players in the top 50, ranking No. 34. The doubles team of Mueller and Kratovchilova are ranked No. 5, while Schemm and Ostiguy are ranked No. 19.

The men's team, fresh off of their final four appearance last season, is ranked No. 4 in the nation, behind Lander, West Florida and Florida Southern. Junior Stefan Wirtz is ranked No. 14 individually in singles, while junior Blaise Tribolet is ranked No. 27 and senior Christopher Petersen is ranked No. 42. The doubles team of Wirtz and Frederic Heitz are ranked No. 13 in the nation, while Petersen and Tribolet are ranked No. 15.

The men's and women's teams return to action in the spring of 2000.

- Pirates -