PINE BLUFF – The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff Director of Athletics Chris Robinson announced today the hiring of Gabrielle Floyd as the eighth head coach in the history of UAPB Volleyball.

Floyd comes to Golden Lions Nation from Texas Southern University, where she spent last year as the head coach.  Prior to her promotion, she spent more than 10 years as the associate head coach/ recruiting coordinator, where they won three SWAC Western Division Championship.

Under her guidance at Texas Southern, Floyd played a significant role in landing two-student athletes on the All-SWAC Team. Danielle Lilley Spring 2021 SWAC Preseason Volleyball Second-Team and Thalia Cordero Moreno named to the 2021 All-SWAC First-Team.

“We are excited to welcome Coach Floyd and her family to UAPB,” Robinson said. “She is a dynamic teacher and recruiter and has a great vision for UAPB Volleyball. She has a true passion for the game and is known for her work ethic, competitive spirit, and commitment to creating a positive student-athlete experience.”

Floyd took over the program in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic in June of 2020 and had to navigate the challenges of managing a program through uncertain times. She was awarded an academic award for maintaining a minimum 3.0 Team GPA by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA). Floyd managed to guide the Lady Tigers through the historic spring season in 2021 as they clinched a SWAC Tournament berth.

A native of Missouri City, Texas, Floyd is a former two-sport athlete at TSU as she played both volleyball and tennis. In 2001, Floyd was an All-SWAC Preseason First Team honoree and co-captain as a senior on the volleyball court. She led the Tigers to a divisional championship and top seed in the SWAC Tournament as she ranked third on the team in kills (213) while finishing tied for third in the SWAC in digs (270). As a result of her play on the court that season, Floyd earned SWAC Player of the Week honors and was named Second Team All-SWAC while earning SWAC All-Tournament honors. In 2000, Floyd finished with 228 digs and was second on the team as a sophomore in 1999 with 222 digs while amassing 135 kills in 97 games and 21 aces. Floyd capped off her storied collegiate volleyball career by earning several All-Tournament awards, including MVP honors.

After graduating in 2002, Floyd spent three seasons as a graduate assistant at Texas Southern and was promoted to assistant coach in 2005. As an assistant coach, Floyd has played a major role in the progression of the volleyball program during her tenure. In 2013, she helped lead TSU to its first winning season since 2001 while also winning three SWAC West Titles and a pair of appearances in the SWAC Tournament Championship match. She has had 15-plus student-athletes earn All-SWAC honors under her watch.

In addition to serving on the coaching staff for the past decade, Floyd served on the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Assistant Coaches Committee (ACC) as the SWAC Representative. She was also a full-time professor in the Department of Health, Kinesiology & Sport Studies and has served on several committees within the department and for the College of Education.

“I would like to thank Chancellor Dr. Alexander, Athletic Director, Chris Robinson, and the Senior Woman Administrator, Betty Anthony for entrusting me with the volleyball program here at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff,” Floyd said. “I am excited to begin this journey as the new head volleyball coach. I want to build a program that the UAPB community would be proud of. We have a great group of student-athletes that are ready to be champions on the court, in the classroom, and in life. I look forward to building relationships with the UAPB community, alumni, faculty, staff, and students to help make our dreams a reality.”

Floyd graduated in 2002 from TSU with a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Affairs and holds a Master of Science degree in Health Education from TSU. She’s a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and volunteers at student leadership and growth events across the Houston area. Coach Floyd and her husband, Quantas, a former student-athlete and alumnus of Texas Southern, have a daughter and future student-athlete, Alexandrea.

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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Southwestern Athletic Conference has named Arkansas-Pine Bluff’s Joshuwan Johnson its SWAC Men’s Basketball Player of the Week for his outstanding performances during games played Dec. 8-14.

Johnson (Phoenix, Arizona) averaged 14.0 points, 3.0 assists, and 2.0 steals in games at Arkansas State and Tulane.

He scored a season-high 16 points, including the game-winning free throw with 0.9 seconds on the clock in the Golden Lions 75-74 win over ASU.

Johnson also contributed three rebounds, three assists, and two steals during UAPB’s road win over the Red Wolves. The following game at Tulane he contributed 12 points with three assists and two steals.

Other Notable Performances:

• Texas Southern’s John Walker III led TSU with a career-high 35 points and seven rebounds as he shot 15-of-18 from the field in the Tigers home win over LeTourneau Friday night.
• Jackson State’s Jayveous McKinnis scored 12 points and tallied 12 rebounds against Ole Miss as he notched his first double-double of the season for the Tigers.
• Mississippi Valley State’s Devin Gordon averaged 11.6 points and 3.6 rebounds in games played last week.

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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Southwestern Athletic Conference has named Alabama A&M’s Dariauna Lewis and Arkansas-Pine Bluff’s Tyler Pyburn its SWAC Women’s Basketball Co-Players of the Week for outstanding performances during the opening week of competition.

Lewis (Omaha, Neb.) delivered an outstanding season opening performance as AAMU upset No. 11 (Mid-Major) Troy 80-69. In 26 minutes of play she scored 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting which was highlighted by a double-double with 10 rebounds. She also went a perfect 5-of-5 from the foul line and added a blocked shot.

Pyburn (Blooming Grove, Texas) was a key contributor for Arkansas-Pine Bluff during the Lady Lions dominating victory over Arkansas State, 85-68. She scored a career-high 23 points in UAPB’s win over the Sun Belt Conference foe, ending a 13-game losing streak against the Red Wolves. Pyburn had career highs in field goals made (nine) and three-pointers (five) while shooting 56.3 percent from the field (9-16) and 50 percent from the three-point line (5-10).

Other Notable Performances:

• Southern’s Genovea Johnson led all scorers while recording a career high 21 points and five rebounds against Kansas State of the Big 12 Conference.
• Alcorn State’s Kirdis Clark produced double-digit scoring efforts in opening games at Southeastern Louisiana and Wichita State. She led the Lady Braves in three statistical categories against the Shockers tallying 11 points, eight rebounds, and four assists. She added 12 points, three assists, and three steals in her senior campaign debut at SLU while averaging 11.5 points and 5.0 rebounds through two games.

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JONESBORO  – Tyler Pyburn scored a career-high 23 points to lead four players in double figures as the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff women’s basketball won at Arkansas State 85-68 Friday at National Bank Arena.

Shicoriya Orr added 19 points, Trasity Totten scored 17, and Joyce Kennerson 16 as women’s basketball ended a 13-game losing streak to Arkansas St.

Leading 40-36 at the half, Arkansas State cut the UAPB lead to one on three different occasions, the last at 49-48 with just under six minutes to play in the third quarter.

The Lady Lions answered with a three-pointer by Totten, and a layup and later a free-throw by Kennerson to withstand the run. UAPB led the game for more than 32 minutes and never trailed after taking the lead with just over nine minutes to play in the first half.

“We talked all week in practice that preparation is your separation,” said second-year UAPB head coach Dawn Brown. “For us, we did a really good job in terms of getting in the gym amd staying focused on the things we needed to do. We knew we would have to be able to hit shots. Having the opportunity to rep those things and looking at the shots we knew we were going to get in our offense, we practiced on all week. I have to give these young women credit for coming out and working so hard.”

The lead see-sawed in the first quarter, with UAPB trailing 20-19 after one. The Golden Lions took a big-second quarter lead on a 16-3 run to begin the period to take a 35-23 lead on a Pyburn three-pointer. Arkansas State made a late run to cut the UAPB lead to four at the half, setting the stage for the key third-quarter stretch.

In the fourth quarter, a Pyburn three with just under four minutes to play gave the Lady Lions a double-digit lead they would not relinquish.

UAPB will host Central Arkansas Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the H.O. Clemmons Arena.

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PINE BLUFF – Chelsey Lucas has been named Arkansas-Pine Bluff’s head volleyball coach, UAPB Athletic Director Melvin Hines announced today.

Lucas, a former SWAC Defensive Player of the Year and first-team all-conference performer in volleyball, comes to UAPB after three seasons as head coach at conference member Alcorn State, helping the program advance to the SWAC Tournament in her final season for the first time since 2015.

Lucas will be introduced during the football signing day event Wednesday at 6 p.m. at the 410 Lounge (formerly the Social Lounge).

“We are elated to hire a person of Chelsey’s pedigree,” Hines said. “She was a student-athlete in this conference, a Player of the Year in our league, and a SWAC Champion.  Chelsey knows what it takes to compete and win in the conference, and we look forward to her having great success at Arkansas-Pine Bluff.”

In 2018, the Lady Braves’ six conference wins were the most in the program since the 2003 season. Alcorn ranked second in the nation in aces per set at 1.98. Individually, sophomore Fiapaipai Iosia ranked third in the nation with in aces per set at 0.66.

“I’m thankful to Mr. Hines for this opportunity to lead the Lady Lions volleyball program,” Lucas said. “I competed in the SWAC Western Division has a player, and coached against the division in the last three years, as well as the entire conference and have seen the quality of play continue to get better yearly. I’m excited to build the UAPB program, and we will work hard to build the Lady Lions into a consistent championship contender.”

Lucas first entered coaching in 2007 as an assistant coach at Terrebonne High School in her hometown of Houma, La. and as head coach of the Bayou Bandits club team. She was then hired as Houma Junior High School’s head volleyball coach in 2009 before taking the same job at Riverside Academy (Reserve, La.) in 2011.

Also in 2011, Lucas was named club director of the Louisiana Southern Swing Volleyball Club in the midst of immediate success at Riverside. She led the Rebels to back-to-back LHSAA Division IV semifinal appearances in 2012 and 2013.

Prior to Alcorn, Lucas also spent three seasons as head volleyball and track and field coach at East St. John High School (Reserve, La.).

As a player, Lucas was named SWAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2006, anchoring the backline for Grambling State during its run to the SWAC Regular Season title. A 2006 All-SWAC first team selection as a senior, Lucas led the conference with 396 digs, highlighted by a SWAC season’s best 43-dig performance at Texas Southern.

Lucas earned her Bachelor’s degree from Grambling in 2007, and her Masters from the University of Phoenix in 2011.

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HOUSTON – For the fourth time in five years, Texas Southern rules the roost in the Southwestern Athletic Conference as the Tigers pulled away down the stretch for an 84-69 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff, claiming the 2018 Toyota SWAC Men’s Basketball Tournament championship in the process.

Tournament Most Valuable Player Trae Jefferson led the way for the Tigers, who had four players in double figures. Jefferson scored 15 points, seven rebounds and six assists.  Donte Clark added 14 points, Derrick Bruce scored 13 points. Trayvon Reed scored a team-best 17 points to go with 10 boards and four rejections.

Texas Southern (15-19), which used a blistering second-half of offense to pull away from Prairie View A&M during the semifinals, delivered more of the same to open the game against Arkansas-Pine Bluff. After Trent Steen connected on a jumper to pull the Golden Lions to within one, Donte Clark scored eight points as he powered a 13-1 run to put the Tigers ahead by double-digits near the midpoint of the first half.

Martaveous McKnight brought Arkansas-Pine Bluff (14-20) within striking distance as the Golden Lions cut it to within five. However, the Tigers continued their hot shooting, connecting on 60 percent of its tries – including a 7-for-15 clip from deep – to take a 45-36 lead into the locker rooms.

Christian Robertson found some success against Texas Southern to open the second half, scoring six early points. However, the Golden Lions couldn’t do enough to close the gap on TSU during the early goings of the second half. After Trayvon Reed converted a three-point play to put the Tigers up 11, the Golden Lions came alive.

Terrance Baynard responded in kind on the other end, and McKnight connected on a teardrop on the following possession. Harper then cashed-in on an acrobatic finish at the rim and Robertson sank one of two at the line to close the deficit to 55-52 with 12:40 left.

Banyard knocked down a jumper at the line to pull UAPB within one possession, and after a Reed dunk, McKnight finished underneath the rim to make it 59-57 with 10:20 left. From there, the Tigers pulled away on a 14-4 run that coincided with a Texas Southern’s Robert Lewis then nailed a corner trey to push TSU back ahead by five, and Jefferson swished home a floater in the lane, making it 64-57.

Texas Southern then pulled away with a 14-4 run over a seven-minute stretch during which UAPB made just one of their 11 field-goal tries. For the game, TSU shot 59.1 percent from the floor (26-of-44) including a 10-of-21 line from deep.

Harper led all players with 21 points and seven rebounds. McKnight netted 17, and Robertson 11.

The All-Tournament Team is listed below:

All-Tournament Team: Trae Jefferson, Texas Southern (SWAC Men’s Tournament Most Valuable Player) Donte Clark, Texas Southern Travon Harper, Arkansas-Pine Bluff Martaveous McKnight, Arkansas-Pine Bluff Gary Blackston, Prairie View A&M

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HOUSTON – Behind Player of the Year Martaveous McKnight, Arkansas-Pine Bluff eased past Southern 71-65, punching its ticket to the 2018 Toyota Southwestern Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament final.

A nip-and-tuck contest initially, Arkansas-Pine Bluff (14-19) managed to distance itself thanks to McKnight, who scored nine points in the first 13 minutes and knocked down a three-pointer to push the Golden Lions ahead 19-11 with 7:18 left in the half.

Southern responded with a 11-2 run to take a 22-21 lead with four minutes left in the half, and Eddie Reese later keyed an 8-0 run – coupled with an UAPB scoring drought that lasted more than three minutes – to take a 30-23 advantage in the waning seconds of the half. However, Charles Jackson drew a foul on a three-point try with 0.7 seconds left, later converting all three from the stripe to cut Southern’s lead to 30-27 at the break.

Jared Sam asserted himself following intermission, as he accounted for five early points as the Jaguars pushed their lead to seven. After that, however, the Jaguars struggled to find the bottom of the net, slogging through a 3:03 drought without a field goal. Meanwhile, the Golden Lions responded through their big man Trent Steen, as he nailed consecutive jumpers to bring UAPB within one.

Travon Harper later split a pair of free throws to tie the game at 38 with 14:47 left. Seconds later, a McKnight bucket pushed the Golden Lions ahead 40-39, but Chris Thomas dropped in a floater to put Southern back in front.

Arkansas-Pine Bluff remained in striking distance throughout the second half, and Harper later scored on a put-back of a McKnight miss to tie it at 55 with 5:42 left, and McKnight later swiped an errant pass, going coast-to-coast for a lay-up that gave UAPB a 57-55 lead with just under five minutes left.

From there, McKnight assumed the role of closer, scoring UAPB’s last nine points as the Golden Lions pulled away from the Jaguars late.

McKnight scored a game-high 28 points on 10-of-15 shooting, grabbing eight rebounds. Harper added 23 points. Reese led the Jaguars (15-18) with 17 points, four assists and four rebounds. Sam added 13 points, and Emanuel Sheperd scored 11 points.

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BATON ROUGE, La. – Behind 28 points and 10 rebounds from Briana Green, top-seeded Southern fended off a feisty Arkansas-Pine Bluff squad, advancing to the semifinals of the Southwestern Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Tournament with a 70-60 win Tuesday night at the F.G. Clark Activity Center.

Green, the 2017-18 SWAC Defensive Player of the Year, also accounted for five steals and a block. Samantha Duncan added 10 points and five rebounds.

Southern (16-12) flew out of the gate with an 11-2 run, limiting Arkansas-Pine Bluff (8-21) early on and taking a 16-7 lead into the second quarter. However, the Jaguars were unable to create much distance from the Lady Lions as the game progressed. The Lady Lions managed to cut the defict down to as little as three, but Southern used a 7-2 run to push ahead by nine going into the break.

The Lady Lions, plagued by foul trouble all night, turned matters around in the third, outpointing the Jaguars 15-7 over the first five minutes of the quarter — a run capped by a Destiny Brewton lay-up — to take a 34-33 lead with 4:12 left in the stanza. The sides traded buckets until Green powered a 6-0 close to the quarter for Southern.

From there, Southern pulled away, pushing its lead to as many as 14.

The Jaguars shot just 30.6 percent from the floor (19-of-62), but forced 24 UAPB turnovers and outrebounding the Lady Lions 43-37, including an 18-9 advantage on the offensive glass.

Brewton led UAPB with 22 points. Faith Ohanta added 10 points and four rebounds.

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WOMEN

Southern 59, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 46
BATON ROUGE, La. – A quick start propelled Southern (11-10, 10-2 SWAC) to a 59-46 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff (5-17, 3-9) Saturday afternoon at the F.G. Clark Activity Center during Southwestern Athletic Conference action.

Alyric Scott led the Jaguars with 16 points and five rebounds. Skylar O’Bear, Samantha Duncan and Jaden Towner each scored eight points for Southern.

Faith Ohanta dealt a double-double for UAPB with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Ohanta was 13-of-22 from the foul line, outshooting the Jaguars from the stripe on her own. Malaik Muhammad scored seven points, and Destiny Brewton and Noe’ll Taylor added six points apiece.

After shaking off a slow start to put together a 12-2 run to end the first quarter with a 17-6 lead, the Jaguars pushed ahead thanks to the long ball and extended their lead to 25-8 after taking advantage of a UAPB cold snap where the Lady Lions did not make a field goal for five-plus minutes. Southern led by as many as 21 before UAPB closed the half on a 7-0 run, leaving Southern’s lead at 33-19.

Southern remained in control from there, leading by as many as 23 in the fourth. Arkansas-Pine Bluff made a run late, closing the game on a 17-7 run and capitalizing on careless play from the Jaguars, but Southern’s lead proved insurmountable.

With the win, Southern remains atop league standings and is the first team to reach the 10-win mark in conference play this season.

MEN

Southern 70, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 62
BATON ROUGE, La. – The host Jaguars received a big boost from Eddie Reese (19 points, six assists) and Emanuel Shepard (15 points, nine rebounds) down the stretch and Jared Sam produced his conference-leading 11th double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds at the F.G. Clark Activity Center.

Southern (11-14, 7-5 SWAC) got hot after halftime by making 50 percent of their shots in the second half (15-of-30) and controlled the boards with a 43-27 rebounding advantage.

Martaveous McKnight led the Golden Lions (9-16, 9-3 SWAC) with 23 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals.  Travon Harper shot 8-of-9 including 3-of-4 from 3-point range to total 19 points before fouling out late in the game.

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ITTA BENA, Miss. – Behind a 19-point, 10-rebound effort by Faith Ohanta, Arkansas-Pine Bluff (3-8, 1-0 SWAC) fended off a Mississippi Valley State (0-14, 0-1) comeback attempt to win a 64-59 contest at R.W. Harrison HPER Arena Monday evening.

Malaik Muhammad added 17 points and five rebounds to aid the Lady Lions’ cause. Shawntayla Harris swatted four shots.

UAPB went on an 8-0 run to open the first period, and Mississippi Valley’s first points came at the hands of Makalya Bonner at 6:46. After being out paced in the opening minutes, the Devilettes unleashed an eight-point run of their own to tie the contest at 8-8 with 4:35 remaining in the quarter. The remaining time was spent with both teams attempting to outmaneuver the other and ending with a 17-17 score.

During the second and third quarters the momentum swung in favor of the Lady Lions as they were able to outscore the Devilettes 18-10 and 14-8 in the second and third quarters, respectively.

Down 14 entering the fourth, the Devilettes pushed forward, twice getting within four of the Lady Lions. However, the Lady Lions iced matters from the charity stripe. Arkansas-Pine Bluff’s bench scored 38 points, while the MVSU bench tallied 17. Mississippi Valley scored 21 points off turnovers.

LaKendra Bassett led the Devilettes with 18 points, four rebounds, four assists and four steals. Kristy Parker tallied 14 points, five rebounds and one assist. Bonner had eight-points and eight rebounds.

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