SAVANNAH, Ga. - Armstrong Atlantic State
University will host the 2009 Hampton Inn & Suites Fall Finals
Classic on Friday, December 18 and Saturday, December 19, featuring
four games each day - two women’s contests and two
men’s contests.
The men’s field features the Pirates (3-3) and CIAA foe St.
Augustine's (6-1) facing off against Mount Olive College (4-2) and
perennial participant Lenoir-Rhyne (2-5).
Lenoir-Rhyne and St. Augustine's will meet on Friday afternoon at
3:00 p.m., while the Pirates will face the Trojans of Mount Olive
for the first time in school history at 8:00 p.m. Saturday, Mount
Olive will play St. Augustine's at 3:00 p.m., while the Pirates
will take on the Bears at 8:00 p.m. AASU and Lenoir-Rhyne have met
in the Classic each year since 1998 and the Pirates own an 9-2
record over the Bears in those contests, including a 65-61 win last
year.
The Pirates are coming off of a 79-62 win over Allen on Tuesday and
will look to make it two in a row against the Trojans on
Friday. Senior Patrick Shokpeka leads the Pirate offense,
averaging 17.3 points per game, while sophomore Chris Vanlandingham
is averaging 14.2 points per game. Mount Olive, who is receiving
votes in the latest NABC/Division II Top 25 Coaches' Poll, dropped
a tough 90-85 decision at Wingate on Wednesday evening. St.
Augustine's has reeled off six straight wins after suffering a
77-75 overtime loss to AASU in its season opener on Nov. 17 - the
Falcons defeated Eckerd, 76-69, on Tuesday evening for its sixth
straight victory. Lenoir-Rhyne is 2-5 overall, but 1-0 in the South
Atlantic Conference after a 95-77 win over Catawba. The Bears' last
outing came on Dec. 8, an 87-83 loss at Barton.
The women’s side of the tournament features the Lady Pirates
(2-4) and fellow Peach Belt Conference school Columbus State (4-3)
taking on a pair of teams from Florida in NAIA foe Edward Waters
(4-6) and nationally-ranked and undefeated University of Tampa
(9-0). Columbus State takes on Tampa at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, while
host AASU will face Edward Waters at 6:00 p.m. Saturday, the action
flips with Edward Waters taking on Columbus State at 1:00 p.m.,
then the Lady Pirates facing Tampa at 6:00 p.m.
The Lady Pirates have won two straight since starting off the
season 0-4. Senior Lauren Hall, the PBC's Player of the Week on
Nov. 30, leads the AASU offense, averaging 17 points per game and
hitting 50% of her three-pointers (20-of-40). Columbus State
features preseason All-America Phebe Smith (20.9 ppg, 12.4 rpg) and
the Cougars have won three straight, including a 57-54 overtime win
at Valdosta State on Dec. 8. This is Edward Waters' second trip to
Savannah this season, after suffering a close 48-42 loss at
Division I Savannah State back on Nov. 16, while the Spartans check
in at No. 12 in the latest WBCA Division II Top 25 poll - the only
Sunshine State Conference team to appear in the current Top 25
rankings.
Fans can follow along with all the action this weekend with live
statistics of all the games and webcasts of the AASU contests at
the official website of the 2009 Hampton Inn & Suites Fall
Finals Classic at http://aasupirates.com/sports/mbkb/2009-10/bk2009classic.