Two Mercerians Among Seven in 2010 Georgia Sports Hall of Fame Induction Class

Two Mercerians were among the seven individuals announced Thursday as the new inductions into the the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame. The Honors Court met on Thursday and selected Al Ciraldo, Edward Everett, Ernie Johnson, Sam Mitchell, Larry Rakestraw, Ronald Simmons and Suzanne Yoculan as the Hall of Fame Class of 2010. These seven individuals were chosen from an eligible pool of 252 nominees as those men and women who best exemplify the tradition of sports excellence in the State of Georgia.

“Georgia is truly blessed to have such a wide array of talented people in the world of sports,” said GSHF Executive Director Jacquelyn Decell. “It is our privilege each year to be able to give voice to the citizens of our state in congratulating our inductees on a job well done.”

The 2010 Induction Class highlights the broad range of sports in which Georgia’s athletes excel. The class includes two broadcasters, a golfer, a basketball player, a multi-sport athlete, a football player, and a gymnastics coach. The combined careers of those selected span six decades.

Sam Mitchell was a two-year starter on the basketball team at Columbus (Ga.) High School where he earned All-City honors. From there, he went on to lead Mercer University to the TAAC Championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament in 1985, and he remains Mercer’s all-time leading scorer with 1,986 points. Mitchell played professionally in Canada and France before joining the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves in 1989. He is second only to Kevin Garnett in all-time scoring and rebounding in Timberwolves’ franchise history. As head coach of the Toronto Raptors, Mitchell was named NBA Coach of the Year in 2007.

Edward Everett is a native of Macon where he attended both Lanier High School and Mercer University. Everett began winning golf tournaments at the age of 11 in 1955 at the Macon Junior Tournament and continued to win tournaments as an amateur and professional for more than 40 years. Among his many tournament victories are the Rose City Open in 1973, 1975, and 1976; the Perry Classic in 1990; the Georgia Senior Open in 1997 and 2000; and the National PGA Senior Club Professional Championship in 1997.

Al Ciraldo was born in Akron, Ohio but spent 43 years as the play-by-play announcer for Georgia Tech football and basketball games beginning in 1954. Over his career he called 416 football games and 1,030 basketball games for the Yellow Jackets including Georgia Tech’s 1990 Citrus Bowl victory over Nebraska and the basketball team’s Final Four appearance the same year. Ciraldo’s signature kickoff call, “Toe meets leather”, remains famous throughout college football.

Ernie Johnson grew up in Vermont before becoming a pitcher for the Boston Braves, Milwaukee Braves, and Baltimore Orioles. Johnson’s greatest contribution to baseball came as the iconic voice of the Atlanta Braves from 1966–1999. Named Georgia Sportscaster of the Year in 1977, 1983, and 1986, he also won three regional Emmy Awards in 1993, 1995, and 1997. Johnson was elected to the Atlanta Braves Hall of Fame in 2001.

Larry Rakestraw is a native of Atlanta where he attended West Fulton High School. At West Fulton, he was a four year letterman in baseball and football and a three year letterman on the basketball team. In 1959 he was named to the All-State Football Team and was selected as the Back of the Year by the Atlanta Touchdown Club. As a baseball player and football player at the University of Georgia, Rakestraw was named MVP of the baseball team in 1961 and threw for 407 yards against Miami in 1963 to break the NCAA record for passing yards at that time. He went on to play professional football for the Chicago Bears and Atlanta Falcons and has won numerous amateur golf tournaments since his retirement from the NFL.

Ronald Simmons was born in Perry and led Warner Robins High School to the state and national championships in 1976 as a defensive lineman. He played college football at Florida State and has been credited by Bobby Bowden as one of the key players in beginning the long run of success for the Seminoles. Simmons was a Consensus All-American at FSU in 1979 and 1980 and finished his career with 25 sacks and 44 tackles for a loss. Drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the third round of the 1981 NFL draft, he chose to play in the USFL and later became a professional wrestler.

Suzanne Yoculan led the University of Georgia’s Women’s Gymnastics Team to one of the greatest runs of success in any sport in NCAA history. Over her 26 year career, the Gym Dogs won 16 SEC titles and 10 NCAA titles including five consecutive national championships from 2005-2009. Yoculan coached 37 gymnasts that won NCAA individual championships and 58 gymnasts that garnered a total of 306 All-America honors. She was named National Coach of the Year five times and SEC Coach of the Year eight times. Yoculan retired from coaching in 2009 with a career record of 836-117-7.

The 2010 Georgia Sports Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will be held in Macon in February.

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Mercer Athletics to Add Lacrosse to its Division I Program

Mercer University will add men’s NCAA Division I lacrosse to its intercollegiate athletic program during the 2010-2011 academic year and will add a Division I women’s team in 2011-2012, Athletic Director Bobby Pope announced today. Mercer is the first NCAA Division I institution in the state to announce the addition of lacrosse to its athletic program.

The sport, which originated among Native American tribes in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic before the United States was colonized, has long been popular in those regions and is now the fastest-growing high school sport in Georgia and one of the fastest growing in the country. According to the latest participation survey by U.S. Lacrosse, the sport’s governing body, lacrosse is the fastest-growing high school sport for girls over the last 10 years and the second-fastest growing sport among boys. At the collegiate level, men’s lacrosse has been the fastest-growing sport over the past decade, while women’s has been the second-fastest-growing sport.

“Lacrosse is becoming a very popular sport in the Southeast,” Pope said. “We will be the first NCAA Division I program in Georgia, so this will be a great opportunity for Mercer to set the bar high for this sport in our state.”

The University added men’s lacrosse as a club sport in 2007-2008 and plans to add women’s club lacrosse for 2010-2011. The teams will then make the transition to Division I status in 2010-2011 and 2011-2012, respectively. The men’s club lacrosse team has participated as a probationary member of the Southeastern Lacrosse Conference, a club league. The team has played games against the University of Alabama, Southern Virginia University, Emory University, Palm Beach Atlantic and Kennesaw State University.

Mercer will also be one of the few programs in the Southeast, joining Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and newly established programs at Presbyterian College and fellow Atlantic Sun Conference member Jacksonville University. Currently, there are 64 NCAA Division I men’s lacrosse programs and 89 Division I women’s programs in the nation.

Pope said that the University plans to hire its first full-time lacrosse coach later this year to begin recruiting student-athletes for the teams.

Mercer is the only private NCAA Division I institution in Georgia and currently fields 14 intercollegiate teams, including men’s baseball, basketball, cross-country, golf, soccer and tennis, and women’s basketball, cross-country, golf, soccer, tennis, volleyball and softball. The University also fields a co-ed rifle team.

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Mercer Men's Basketball Ranked No. 1 Nationally in RPI

After downing Southeastern Conference opponents Alabama and Auburn in a four-day span and starting the 2008-09 campaign with an unblemished 3-0 record for the first time since 1984, the Mercer men’s basketball team has been rewarded with the top spot in CollegeRPI.com’s rankings.

The College RPI takes into account a team's winning percentage (25%), its opponents' winning percentage (50%), and the winning percentage of those opponents' opponents (25%) when ranking every team in the nation. The Bears check in ahead of every traditional Division I roundball powerhouse in the country for the first time since the inception of the Ratings Percentage Index in 1981.

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BEARS DO IT AGAIN! Upset Auburn on the Road to Go 3-0

Behind another huge effort on the boards and clutch free throw shooting, the Mercer men’s basketball team won its third straight game with a 78-74 victory over Auburn in the first round of the Chicago Invitational Challenge Wednesday night at Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum.

Mercer senior Calvin Henry drained two free throws with 2.4 seconds on the clock to give Mercer a 78-74 lead and the Bears improved to 3-0 to open the season for the first time since the 1984-85 campaign that saw the Bears advance to the NCAA Tournament.

The last time Mercer defeated two SEC teams in the same season was 1952-53, when the Bears knocked off Georgia, 68-63, and Mississippi, 78-40.

Auburn was the second straight member of the Southeastern Conference to fall to the Bears – Mercer upset West Division favorite Alabama, 72-69, just two days ago in Tuscaloosa.

With a sizable contingent of Mercer students roaring in the end zone, the Bears hit 7-of-9 free throws inside the final five minutes to hold off the Tigers and avenge last season’s 68-59 loss to Auburn

Mercer sophomore forward Brian Mills drained two free throws to break a 67-67 tie with 4:50 showing and Florence drained a 3-pointer from deep in the left corner as Mercer went on to build a 73-68 advantage with 2:29 on the clock. Still leading by five, AU’s Quantez Robertson hit an inside basket and following a timeout by Auburn head coach Jeff Lebo, the Bears’ James Florence ran the clock down but turned the ball over with less than 27 seconds on the clock - and two seconds on the shot clock.

Tigers’ senior Korvotney Barber scored inside, trimming the MU advantage to just 75-74 with 21.6 ticks showing. After a Mercer timeout, Michael Ellis found guard E.J. Kusnyer open on the Bears’ end of the court, but Kusnyer elected to pull the ball out instead of laying it up and was fouled before he could dish the ball off. He hit one-of-two from the line with 9.4 seconds remaining and the Tigers hurried the ball downcourt, but Robertson was called for charging as he went inside trying to tie the game for the 11th time. Calvin Henry was fouled and sealed the game with his two from the charity stripe.

Both teams opened up patient on offense, with Mercer using a 10-0 run from the 17:40 mark to the 15-minute mark to gain a 13-4 advantage. Auburn’s Frankie Sullivan hit a 3-pointer to momentarily stop the Bears’ surge, but moments later Emerson collected one of the Orange and Black’s seven offensive rebounds in the opening half, was fouled and hit two from the line to spark another 7-2 run, giving the Bears a 22-12 lead with 11:29 remaining in the first half.

Following Emerson’s two from the line, sophomore Brian Mills scored five straight for the Bears, dropping in a basket then recording a traditional three-point play for the 10-point advantage.

Auburn (1-1) then got untracked offensively on their home court, answering with an 11-0 run of their own, fueled by junior guard Tay Waller. In the midst of the spurt, Mercer head coach Bob Hoffman was whistled for a technical foul for leaving the coaches’ box to protest an apparent travel by an Auburn player who stole an errant Mercer pass, drove the court and laid the ball off the bottom of the rim and came down with it in his hands.

Neither team was able to build more than a four-point advantage in the last six-plus minutes of the opening frame - that being Mercer’s 44-40 lead at intermission.

There were three ties inside the final five minutes, with Mercer’s James Florence scoring 12 of his 16 first half points in the final four minutes prior to intermission.

As they did in the win over the Crimson Tide, the Bears held a commanding 22-9 first-half rebounding advantage over Auburn.

In a second half that featured seven ties and eight lead changes Mercer held the lead that counted.

Henry opened the second half with an acrobatic move inside to score the basket and hit the ensuing free throw, boosting Mercer’s 44-40 halftime lead to seven but the Tigers answered with 8-0 run to grab a short-lived 48-47 lead. Mercer’s BeJay Corley came alive, battling for a basket inside, then less than a minute later he followed with another strong bucket, pushing MU’s to 51-48 with under 16 minutes remaining in the contest.

With Auburn clinging to a 59-58 lead, both teams suffered through a scoring drought og nearly three minutes before Korvotney Barber scored for the Tigers. AU edged out to a 63-60 lead with under nine minutes on the clock, but Emerson drained a high-arching 3-pointer from the top of the circle at the 8:17 mark, tying the score for the fifth time of the half.

Unlike last season’s matchup in Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum when Auburn claimed a double-digit second half lead en route to defeating the Bears, tonight’s game went to the wire.

Florence led all scorers with 25 points, while Daniel Emerson added another double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Mills netted 12 points and Henry finished with 11 points and six boards.

Tay Waller posted a team-high 22 points for Auburn.

Mercer plays host to Georgia Tech in a homecoming matchup on Saturday, Nov. 22, with tip-off slated for 1 p.m. at the University Center. The game will be televised live on Fox Sports Net.

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Mercer Bears Upset Alabama in Tuscaloosa

Alabama’s football team is No.1 in the country and plays a tough brand of football, but the Mercer men’s basketball came into Coleman Coliseum and used a huge 56-38 rebounding advantage to shock the Crimson Tide, 72-69 in non-conference men’s basketball action Sunday night.

Junior guard James Florence found Calvin Henry underneath the basket for a contested reverse layup that proved to be the winning basket with 13.8 seconds on the clock and Florence hit two free throws to give the Bears a three-point advantage. Alabama’s Ronald Steele missed a potential game-tying trey and Florence collected the rebound at the buzzer.

Florence scored a team-high 23 points, while Daniel Emerson added 18 points. Brian Mills netted 10 points and collected eight boards with Henry just missed a double-double, scoring nine points and recording a game-high 13 rebounds.

Last year Mercer (2-0) upset Southern Cal in November and the Bears are 2-0 to start a season for the first time since the 1997-98 campaign and snapped Alabama’s four-game home win streak.

Unlike last season when Alabama held off a second-half rally to edge the Bears, 90-83, at the University Center, ‘Bama never gained more than a six-point lead.

Both teams struggled in the first couple of possessions, but junior forward Daniel Emerson, who scored the Orange and Black’s first five points, gave the Bears an early 5-3 advantage on his traditional three-point play inside the first two minutes of the contest. Unfortunately the Mercer big man picked up his second foul at the 17:03 mark, with sophomore Brian Mills taking his spot on the court.

Alabama guard Ronald Steele gave the Crimson Tide a brief two-point lead, but basket interference was whistled on Calvin Henry’s shot on MU’s next trip downcourt and the score was knotted for the second time of the night.

After trading turnovers, the Bears went on a 6-0 run ignited by Florence’s acrobatic fastbreak layup. Mills’ putback gave Mercer a four-point advantage and 20 seconds later guard Mark Hall found Michael Ellis open for the Bears’ sixth straight point.

Moments later, the Tide matched Mercer’s run with six consecutive points of their own, only to have the Bears bolt back out by five, as Florence dropped in a basket and Emerson drained a 3-pointer from the top of the circle with just under eight minutes on the clock.

With the Bears offsetting ‘Bama’s size with effort and quickness, the Orange and Black held an impressive 24-11 advantage on the boards with seven minutes remaining in the first half.

The Crimson Tide then went on a 14-5 run over the next five minutes to gain a 31-26 lead, but Mills found the range from downtown, as the Douglasville, Ga., native nailed a trey from deep in the right corner then found the distance from the opposite side of the court on the next possession, pulling the Bears to within two points with less than two minutes on the clock.

The two teams traded baskets, then Florence tied the score for the fourth time of the opening frame while drawing the foul. He misfired on the ensuing free throw attempt but the Bears had an opportunity to go into intermission with the lead after collecting the rebound, but Florence was whistled for a five-second count with just under 11 seconds on the clock. Alabama’s Steele then attempted an off-balance trey at the buzzer that was off the mark and the two teams went into the break tied at 33-33.

A cold front pushed through Tuscaloosa on Saturday while the Bears were practicing at Coleman Coliseum and it apparently carried over to the hardwood, as neither team was able to shoot better than 39 percent in the opening frame.

Junior E.J. Kusnyer opened the second-half scoring with a trey from the left corner – his first of the night – and Emerson muscled up an inside bucket and Mercer again held a five point lead.

Alabama chipped away and tied the contest at 40-apiece on a wild tip-in credited to Demetrius Jemison after the bated ball bounced high off the backboard with 15:40 on the clock.

Alabama’s Mikhail Torrance broke free for a lay-up and hit the ensuing free throw after drawing the foul, giving “Bama a short-lived four-point lead. But Mercer roared back with a 12-0 run from the 12-minute mark to the 7:31 point, forcing Crimson Tide coach Mark Gottfried to call a timeout. Bama’s Steele hit a 3-pointer out of the timeout to snap the MU run and the Bears held a 56-51 advantage at the media timeout.

With the student section staring him in the face, Florence nailed two from the charity stripe at the 7:08 mark. Following a missed free throw by the Crimson Tide, Henry swooped in to collect a Florence miss and slammed it home for a nine-point Mercer lead.

A 7-0 run by Alabama trimmed the Bears’ to a deuce, but Florence stopped the run with a traditional three-point play, but JaMychal Green answered with his own three-point play.

Mercer was outscored 16-6, surrendering the lead before Emerson hit a layup, then Alabama’ Alonzo Gee hit just his second basket of the night, a jumper from the left side to regain the lead and could have been a back-breaker, at 69-68, with just 27.5 ticks on the clock. Mercer coach Bob Hoffman called a timeout to set up the final frantic seconds and Florence and Henry combined to make it successful. Florence drove the lane, went airborne and found Henry underneath.

Florence scored a team-high 23 points, while Daniel Emerson added 18 points. Brian Mills netted 10 points and collected eight boards with Henry just missed a double-double, scoring nine points and recording a game-high 13 rebounds.

Steele led all scorers with 25 points, while Green added 17 points for the Crimson Tide.

The Bears have another quick turnaround, visiting Auburn for the second consecutive season on Wednesday, Nov. 19. Tip-off is slated for 8.p.m. (eastern) at Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum.

• With his five blocked shots on the night, Henry now ranks third all-time at Mercer.

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Women's Soccer and Serafy Etch Names in Athletic History With Win Over Campbell

A second-half, two-goal salvo earned the Bears a piece of Mercer women’s soccer history, as their 2-0 win over Campbell gives the team its first-ever Atlantic Sun regular season championship. Olivia Tucker once again proved the hero for the Bears, heading in the decisive goal from a Meghan Castlado corner in the 56th minute: her second straight game-winner and third goal in as many matches.

Castaldo would then seal the points with an unstoppable blast in the 66th minute as Mercer stretched its lead in the A-Sun standings to an insurmountable five-point advantage over second-placed Kennesaw State.

“This is really the culmination of a lot of hard work and dedication by our players,” Mercer head coach Grant Serafy said. “It really means a lot to this team, not only to this current group of players, but also all our former players, parents, and everyone associated with the program. I couldn’t be prouder.”

The victory was also highly significant for Serafy himself, who becomes the all-time winningest coach in program history with his 39th career win, springing him past Ian Hayley in the school’s record books.

Despite his achievement, Serafy was quick to put the focus back on his team. “It’s nice to accomplish this, but for me, it’s about winning a championship,” he said.

Knowing what was on the line, Mercer announced their attacking intentions early, as senior Erin Theobald found space for herself on the left side of the box, though her cracking shot found the netting on the wrong side of the post.

Tucker would then call Campbell keeper Jamie Panfil into action; the holding midfielder eventually getting on the end of a Heather Manting free kick bouncing around in the box. Her sliding shot, however, was straight at Panfil from a tough angle on the left.

A clever flicked header from Meek then put Johnson clean through on goal, only for the Saint Peters, Mo. native to be thwarted by a late offsides flag.

Soon after, the flag stayed down on Johnson, who got in behind the Camels defense again. Running down the left, the sophomore forward attempted to pick out the far post with an outside-of-the-foot flick, but was denied by the fingertips of an advancing Panfil, who did well to collect the rebound as well.

It was backs to the wall stuff for the Camels, as Mercer sent in wave after wave of attack, and the Bears nearly broke through as Raschelle Riley went on a trademark rampaging run up of the left wing. The fullback’s cross found Tucker in the box, who spun past her marker with a deft first touch, only to be closed down by a vital last second tackle.

Mercer’s defense would need to be sharp soon after, however, as the Camels finally got their first shot on target midway through the first half. After some good work at the endline down the right, Olga Ekblom teed the ball up for Jenna Sullivan. Reigning A-Sun Defender of the Week Lizzy Shaughnessy, however, did well to block the shot down without testing Jean Worts.

The half finished with both teams even in possession. Vanessa Breslin and Katheryn Hurst linked up well in the Camels’ box to set up a scoring chance for Sara Elliot, whose left-footed shot was claimed by Panfil at her left-hand post. Worts then had to be alert to tip over a Hanna Salmen corner kick drifting back toward the net, as the first half ended scoreless.

Just after the restart, Castaldo came within inches of duplicating her heroics against Belmont, as she caught Panfil off her line with a well-weighted lob, only to see her shot land harmlessly on the roof of the net.

The breakthrough was coming, though, and it was no surprise who it came from. Tucker, who has scored big goals for the team all season, won a corner after being double-teamed down on the Camels’ endline. Meghan Castaldo whipped in a majestic inswinger from the resulting set piece, and when Pansil couldn’t get a touch as she came out to claim, Tucker was on hand to head home from close range.

It was a clinical finish from the freshman, and the team-best eighth goal in a sparkling first campaign with the Bears, one that surely now must result in first-team all-conference honors for the Peachtree City native.

“Olivia seems to play well when the team really needs it the most,” Serafy said afterwards, “and that’s the mark of a great player.”

Johnson nearly doubled the advantage immediately after, but saw her shot whistle just outside the near post after a mazy run up the left.

The Bears had their hosts on the ropes, however, and just 10 minutes later, Castaldo would seal the deal with a stunner. Latching onto a loose ball on the right hand side of the Camel box, the senior controlled with her first touch before sending a rocket up into the upper–left corner of the net, giving the Campbell keeper no chance.

Kacie Hudson would nearly add a third for the Orange and Black late on, though Panfil saved easily after the center back was unable to get enough power on shot from six yards out.

The only bit of drama remaining would be to see if the Bears would extend their shutout streak to five straight matches, which they did when Worts was on hand to save Caity Brown’s point blank header off a free kick. And as the clock struck zero, the team sprinted out to celebrate its first-ever A-Sun regular season title.

While acknowledging what the team has accomplished thus far, Serafy and the Bears still recognize that there is plenty more silverware to be handed out in 2008. “We probably won’t reflect on this too much,” Serafy said. “We still have a goal in mind, and that is taking the next step with this team and winning the A-Sun tournament.”

The Bears wrap up their 2008 regular season on the road against Kennesaw State on Wednesday. Mercer will then have next weekend off before heading back to Kennesaw for the Atlantic Sun championship, which will be held Nov. 5-8. Having sewn up the top spot, Mercer will get a first round bye, joining the tournament in the semifinal stage.

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