2006-07 LaDy EaGLEs
Season Accomplishments:
outlook CoaCheS 2006-07 Lady Eagles - CIAA Champions & NCAA South Atlantic Regional Semifinalist Standing (L-R): Manager Edwina Lloyd, Tonia Roundtree, Kelly Thomas, Keyonta Thacker, Jori Nwachukwu, Latoya Bennett, LaQuanda Williams, McKenna Bellamy-Mersier. Sitting (L-R): Casey Daniel, Jasmine Newkirk, Brittany McGhee, Cassie King, Jennifer Hukill, LaVonna Hailey, Teketia May. (Photo by Robert Lawson)
NCCU SNAPS 23-YEAR SKID WITH CIAA TOURNAMENT TITLE When the Lady Eagles defeated Elizabeth City State on Saturday, March 3, 2007, they did something that no other Lady Eagles squad has done in 23 years ... win the CIAA Tournament title. It was even more special for this group considering it was their last chance to accomplish the feat, since NCCU will be competing as a Division I program during the 2007-08 season.
2009-10 Lady Eagles Basketball
Staff/Media
NCCU’S ROBINSON VOTED AS THE CIAA COACH OF THE YEAR NCCU head coach Joli Robinson was voted as the 2007 CIAA Women’s Basketball Coach of the Year. Robinson, in her 11th season as the leader of the Lady Eagles, guided NCCU to a 26-6 overall record, the CIAA Tournament Championship crown, a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Regional playoffs, and the program’s highest-ever national ranking at No. 19 in the USA Today ESPN Division II Top 25 Coaches’ Poll. During her 11year tenure at NCCU, Robinson has become the winningest head coach in Lady Eagle history with 181 victories. Her teams have accounted for all five 20-win campaigns in the 32-year history of women’s basketball at NCCU and have made four trips to the NCAA playoffs. This is Robinson’s third CIAA Coach of the Year honor, after earning the award in 1999 and 2001. She has also been selected as the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Division II District 3 Coach of the Year twice (2006, 2001).
hiStory
NCCU’S HISTORIC SCORING PROFICIENCY For the first time in NCCU women’s basketball history, four Lady Eagles scored more than 300 points in a single season.
NCCU’S NWACHUKWU NAMED CIAA ROOKIE OF THE YEAR NCCU freshmen Jori Nwachukwu and Jasmine Newkirk were voted to the CIAA All-Rookie Team, as voted on by the CIAA-Sports Information Directors’ Association. Nwachukwu was voted as the conference’s top rookie, earning the CIAA Rookie of the Year award. She was a five-time CIAA Rookie of the Week honoree (Dec. 4, Dec. 11, Dec. 30, Feb. 5, Feb. 12).
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FOUR LADY EAGLES NAMED TO CIAA ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM NCCU placed four student-athletes on the 2007 CIAA AllTournament Team, as freshman center Jori Nwachukwu, freshman guard Jasmine Newkirk, sophomore forward LaQuanda Williams and senior forward Cassie King all earned honors. King, who made the All-Tournament Team in each of her four years, was also selected as the 2007 CIAA Tournament Most Valuable Player, and received her award from actress Vivica Fox.
THREE LADY EAGLES EARN ALL-CIAA HONORS NCCU senior forward Cassie King, freshman forward Jori Nwachukwu and freshman guard Jasmine Newkirk were selected to the All-CIAA women’s basketball team. King, a 6-0 native of Wendell, N.C., earned her third consecutive selection to the All-CIAA Team.
oPPonentS
LADY EAGLES FINISH ATOP FINAL BCSP BASKETBALL POLL NCCU finished tied with Coppin State University, atop the final Black College Sports Page (BCSP) rankings, to earn a share of the 2007 BCSP Women’s Basketball Black College National Championship. Head coach Joli Robinson, the CIAA Coach of the Year, guided NCCU to its first CIAA Tournament Championship in 23 years and school records in wins (26) and consecutive victories (19). The 2006-2007 squad was the fifth in school history to record 20 wins. For the second straight season, NCCU reached the regional semifinals of the NCAA Division II Tournament, with a 73-66 win over Newberry College. Just one week prior to the NCAA tournament win, the Lady Eagles, led by senior standout Cassie King, claimed the schools second CIAA Championship with a sound 89-72 victory over conference foe Elizabeth City State University.
The only other team to have four Lady Eagles score 250 points or more was during NCCU’s 2000-01 campaign, when the Lady Eagles posted a record of 25-6.
PlayerS
• Won the 2007 CIAA Championship, the program's second tournament title in school history and the first in 23 years. • Earned a repeat trip to the NCAA Division II South Atlantic Regional playoffs, advancing to the regional semifinals for the second consecutive year. • Broke the school single-season record with 26 victories. • Set the school record by posting a 19-game winning streak. • Ranked as high as No. 19 in the USA Today ESPN Division II Top 25 Coaches’ Poll (March 6, 2007).
General info.
Lady Eagles Capture CIAA Title, Advance to NCAA Regional Semifinals NCCU Earns Share of Black College National Championship