News and Notes from East Carolina, Conference USA and Beyond

PREVIOUS NUGGETS

04.20.06: Deacs to install FieldTurf at Groves Stadium ... Zags' Morrison headed to NBA ... Walberg to guide Pepperdine hoops program

04.19.06: Krog leads Pirates to C-USA women's golf title ... UConn sophomore opts for NBA ... Another UConn cager eyes different pro route

04.18.06: Two Duke lacrosse players reportedly indicted ... ECU leads C-USA women's golf ... Tar Heels ranked No. 1 by Collegiate Baseball

04.17.06: Pirate track team has success in Knoxville ... ECU's Salisbury wins women's javelin ... FSU's Johnson will examine NBA option

04.16.06: Houston Bowl payouts not yet fulfilled ... Simmons looking at NBA draft status ... More apparent rejections for Wolfpack

04.15.06: Calipari signs new contract with Tigers ... UAB's Davis selects staff ... NBA D- League lowers minimum age

04.14.06: Dooley withdraws from consideration at UNCW ... Redick wins Sullivan Award ... Young's death now believed accidental

04.13.06: Sooners name Capel cage coach ... Bradshaw gives back to alma mater ... Little Leaguers to have their day at ECU ... New Buckeyes threads fuel backlash

04.12.06: Calipari reportedly remaining at Memphis ... U of M grants raise, contract extension to West ... 'Bama booster killed, son in custody

04.11.06: ECU's Smith is Johnny Bench Award candidate ... Calipari visits Wolfpack ... Barnes stays but Texas star headed to NBA ... Temple names in-town successor to Chaney

04.10.06: Memphis AD focusing on keeping Calipari ... Frasure leads Pirates at Clemson ... Hodge recovering from gunshot wounds

04.09.06: Holtz laments spring game deficiencies ... Camels announce return to the gridiron ... Gonzalez to lead Pirates basketball ... The Citadel selects Conroy

04.08.06: Purple-Gold stage is set ... Davis returns to native state as UAB coach ... Army women's basketball coach dies at age 28

04.07.06: 1070 airing Purple-Gold Game programming ... SMU dismisses Tubbs ... Tulane hoops star invited to Portsmouth event ... Colorado College becomes C-USA women's soccer affiliate

04.06.06: Pirates hold final session before Purple-Gold ... Pressler resigns as Duke lacrosse coach ... Division I athletes face summer drug tests

04.05.06: Thirteen C-USA alums in big leagues ... UAB interviews Davis ... Rondo departs Kentucky

04.04.06: ECU hurler Taylor earns league's weekly honor ... Pirates prepare for Purple- Gold Game ... Wooden watches final from hospital

04.03.06: Bruins go for record 12th NCAA hoops title ... Throng watches Texas spring game ... Pirates make strong showing in Florida

04.02.06: Sendek may become a Sun Devil ... Brownell departs UNCW for Wright State ... San Diego State star opts for NBA

04.01.06: J.P., ECU air game in high gear ... Jury awards no dough in suit against Petrino ... Redick reaps AP player of the year honor ... Lightning strikes Tigers twice

UNC-Wilmington's search for a basketball coach is over, according to a Wilmington Star-News report.

Charlotte assistant Benny Moss, the last of five candidates to interview for the job, was named the coach in a Thursday afternoon news conference at Trask Coliseum.

UNCW had been in talks with North Dakota State coach Tim Miles. After considering the job Wednesday, Miles notified UNCW on Thursday morning that he was staying in Fargo, ND.

Moss, 36, has worked the past six seasons on coach Bobby Lutz's staff at Charlotte.
Moss said he was offered the job Thursday morning. And how long did it take him to accept? "About two seconds," he quipped.

The job came open March 31, when Brad Brownell resigned to take the job at Wright State. Brownell had a record of 83-40 in four seasons at UNCW.

East Carolina advanced to its second consecutive quarterfinal appearance in the Conference USA women's tennis championships with a quick 4-0 win over Memphis in the opening round Thursday afternoon at the Garland (TX) Tennis Center.

The sixth-seeded Lady Pirates (19-8) will move on to face No. 3 Houston, which earned a first-round bye with 19 regular season wins, in a match scheduled for 3 p.m. (EDT) today. Eleventh-seed Memphis fell to 3-16 with the loss.

Sophomore Luiza Borges sparked the Lady Pirates' rout with a 6-0, 6-0 victory over the Tigers' Alex Tjioe at the No. 5 position. Senior Gillie Bailey and sophomore Mireia Gol followed by posting a pair of wins at the Nos. 2 and 3 spots, respectively. Bailey handed Andrea Feichtinger a 6-0, 6-2 setback while Gol cruised past Kirstin Noble 6-3, 6-0 to stake ECU to a 3-0 lead.

Senior Kirstin Buchanan secured the triumph and increased the Lady Pirates' school-record win total by defeating Ekin Zafir (6-1, 6-2) in a No. 4 matchup.

The tournament format dictates the stoppage of play once a team clinches its fourth point.

A report by Steve Richardson published in USA Today indicates that the NCAA is preparing to seek out and shut down high schools and prep schools which it says operate to make athletes eligible to play on the college level with little regard to academics.

The stories and warning signs attached to these schools already have been collected by the NCAA Initial Eligibility Trends Working Group, which is proposing legislation to stop such fraudulent practices.

"We have had in our radar screen for about a year and a half concerns with certain high schools, certain prep schools," said Kevin Lennon, NCAA vice president for member services. "Then the catalyst was The New York Times' exposé that sort of brought it to a head."

A Times story last year about University High, portrayed as a grade factory for football players in Miami, helped focus interest. A story this year in The Washington Post depicted a similar situation with basketball players at Lutheran Christian Academy in Philadelphia.

News Nuggets are compiled periodically based on material supplied by staff members; data published by ECU, Conference USA and its member schools; and reports from other sources. Copyright 2006 Bonesville.net and other publishers. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.