Andrea Conte, First Lady of Tennessee, spoke at Belmont University this morning, delivering the keynote address of Belmont’s Women’s History Month activities. Wife of Tennessee governor Phil Bredesen, Conte spoke on her work restoring and preserving the Tennesee Residence.
The Tennessee Residence was built in 1931 and became the third governor’s mansion in 1949. Eight former governors have called the mansion home. Guests to the mansion include Billy Graham, Elvis Presley, Minnie Pearl, Johnny and June Carter Cash and presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton.
The Restoration and Preservation of Tennessee’s Residence project was spearheaded by First Lady Conte in 2003 and is the first restoration project since the home was built more than 70 years ago. It is her goal to restore the Tennessee Residence’s architectural features and provide contemporary updates while preserving the historic integrity of the house and property.
Upcoming events in conjunction with Women’s History Month include:
Patricia Yancey Martin, “Social Justice and Rape Work: Has Feminism Failed Rape Victims?” – Monday, March 6, 10 a.m., Multimedia Hall, Lila D. Bunch Library
Reverend Gloria White-Hammond, National Chair, Million Voices for Darfur – Wednesday, March 28, 10 a.m., Boardroom, Jack C. Massey Business Center
Tennessee First Lady Delivers Women’s History Month Keynote Address
Belmont Upperclassmen Lead Sessions and Present Research at Alpha Chi National Convention in San Antonio
Pictured at right: Stephen Valenta, Catherine Johnson, Michelle Anderson, Mary Hooker and Joshua Ingram at the Alamo in San Antonio
Last weekend six students from Belmont University (Lindsey Winger, Mary Hooker, Stephen Valenta, Joshua Ingram, Michelle Anderson and Catherine Johnson) presented their research at the Alpha Chi National Honor Scholarship Society in San Antonio. Membership in Alpha Chi is the highest academic honor awarded by Belmont University. Its members are invited based on their academic standing in the top 10 percent of the junior and senior classes within any academic major. Belmont has had an active chapter of Alpha Chi for over 25 years. Dr. Bonnie Smith (English) is the current Sponsor, and Dr. Jonathan Thorndike (Honors) is the assistant sponsor and Region III Secretary-Treasurer.
At the conference, Winger moderated a session on performing arts. Winger recently finished a two-year term as Region III student representative. Region III includes Tennessee, North and South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Virginia, Alabama, Mississippi and Washington, D.C. Winger was responsible for presenting awards at the banquet, communicating with other students in the region and attending meetings of the National Council.
Hooker made a musical presentation titled “Life of a Dreamer,” and Stephen Valenta discussed his research in a session titled “International Music Business.” In the Communication Session, Michelle Anderson discussed “Acing the Interview” and Catherine Johnson talked about her graphic design experience in “The Importance of Design in Communication.” In the Performing Arts session, Joshua Ingram made a presentation on the challenges of “Creating Music in Nashville.”
“We felt honored and blessed to be in San Antonio at the Alpha Chi convention representing Belmont University,” Hooker said. “It was so much fun to be surrounded by other students who were so interested in learning. When I attended a workshop regarding academic integrity, I was surprised and delighted to see fellow students so truly adamant about integrity and creating a lively discussion.”
Stephen Valenta added that “attending the convention allowed me to see how students from colleges and universities around the nation were getting involved on campus through Alpha Chi. This convention inspired me to help make Belmont’s chapter more active.”
At the convention, Dr. Thorndike received the Distinguished Service Award based on “outstanding contributions to the goals of Alpha Chi: promoting scholarship and service at the local, regional and national levels” for the past nine years.
Second Fiddle Emerges As ‘Idol’ Contender
The Tennessean reported Tuesday on Melinda Doolittle (’99), an early favorite on the current season of the No. 1 television show, “American Idol”. The Tennessean article states:
Doolittle, who lives in Brentwood, is one of the strongest contestants on this season’s Idol, and many believe she will make the Top 3 along with Lakisha Jones and Jordin Sparks, the Arizona teen who sang with Michael W. Smith on two Christmas tours. She has worked as a background singer in Nashville since graduating from Belmont University in 1999, performing with the likes of Anointed and Martha Munizzi.
After years of being in the background, she appears ready to take center stage.
Click here to read the article in its entirety.
Doolittle will perform with the top 11 finalists tonight at 7 p.m. on FOX (Channel 6 locally). Voting will begin immediately following the show at 9 p.m. tonight. If you would like to vote for Melinda, visit http://alumni.belmont.edu or call (615) 460-6723 for her voting numbers.
Bruins Fall To Georgetown In NCAA Tournament
Belmont Basketball had a Cinderella slipper fit and ready for wear at the ‘Big Dance.’ But after riding a sizzling, three-point bonanza to its second consecutive Atlantic Sun Championship, the Bruins’ clock struck midnight. Icy long range shooting and a talented, disciplined foe spelled an 80-55 defeat at the hands of second-seeded Georgetown in the first round of the 2007 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament.
Belmont got off to an encouraging start, as sophomore point guard Henry Harris (Nashville, Tenn.) flew in for a tip-in basket off a missed three-pointer from sophomore Andy Wicke (Hendersonville, Tenn.) for the game’s first points one minute in.
After two free throws from Georgetown’s 7-2 center Roy Hibbert, the Bruins answered with two free throws from senior Andrew Preston (Winchester, Ky.) and a gorgeous hesitation dribble drive basket in transition from Harris for a 6-2 lead two and a half minutes in.
A backdoor slam from Dajuan Summers cut the lead in half, but a banked three-pointer from sophomore Matthew Dotson (Centerville, Tenn.) extended the Bruin edge to five, 9-4, with 16:26 in the half. Belmont, after playing almost exclusively halfcourt man-to-man defense this season, threw a wrinkle at the Big East Champion Hoyas with a variety of zone defenses.
Georgetown struggled early to find an offensive rhythm against the Bruin defense, and after a bank shot from senior Boomer Herndon (Nashville, Tenn.) dropped, Belmont had an 11-4 lead less than five minutes in. The stout Belmont following, as well as the vast majority of Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum fans were cheering on the Atlantic Sun Champions.
But the Hoya defense stiffened and Georgetown went on a systematic 11-0 run over the next five plus minutes to take the lead. Big East Player of the Year Jeff Green scored eight of the points as Georgetown went ahead 15-11. A free throw from sophomore Will Peeples (Little Rock, Ark.) ended the scoring drought, before Jessie Sapp and reserve Tyler Crawford knocked down two straight three-pointers to give the Hoyas a 21-12 advantage.
Junior Justin Hare (Cleveland, Tenn.) got on the board moments later with a triple off a nice feed from Preston, but three more Georgetown treys – five straight Hoya baskets were from long distance at one juncture late in the half – followed as the lead swelled to 12, 30-18.
Preston’s diligence down low did draw a second foul on Hibbert, who had been controlling the paint. A baseline three-pointer from Harris and consecutive putbacks from Dotson and sophomore Shane Dansby (Pegram, Tenn.) sliced the margin to seven, 32-25, with 3:14 in the half. The Bruins proceeded to have four possessions to cut further into the deficit, but were unable to do so.
Georgetown scored the final six points of the half – a Summers three-point play and a Jonathan Wallace three-pointer – to go to the locker room up 13, 38-25.
Belmont had its chances in the opening 20 minutes – but 4-for-9 free throw shooting and a 21-10 rebounding hole inhibited the cause.
Preston opened the second half in fine fashion with a baseline reverse past Hibbert to cut the margin to 11, 38-27. But the BU center picked up his third foul moments later and was forced to the Belmont bench. Georgetown proceeded to score the next eight points, four each from its two frontcourt stars Hibbert and Green to push the score to 46-27, with 17:30 left.
Preston was reinserted, and he scored again on a nice post move, but another Jessie Sapp three-pointer upped the Hoya lead to 20, 49-29, nearly five minutes into the second half. Sapp – who was 2-for-27 from three-point range in Georgetown’s previous seven games – found his touch, making four of his six long range attempts.
Hibbert, whose immense size kept possessions alive and clogged the Belmont lane, scored twice more in close to make it 53-30 with under 12 minutes to go.
After torching the nets in the Atlantic Sun Championship to the tune of 12 first half three-point field goals, BU was simply unable to order an encore performance. Wicke, in particular, so integral to Belmont’s success and the Atlantic Sun leader in three-point shooting at 46 percent, had an usually rough shooting night. The gutsy sophomore missed his first eight three-point attempts before sinking a long triple in front of the Bruin bench to make the score 64-41 with just over four minutes remaining.
Hare followed with a left wing three-pointer and Preston added a lefty hook to trim the margin to 20, 66-46, with 3:27 remaining. The Bruins fought hard irrespective of the score, getting several second and third shot opportunities. Belmont earned the respect of its opposition and the knowledgeable basketball fans of North Carolina.
But the overall size and versatility of Georgetown was the difference. Bruin fan favorite Andrew House (Nashville, Tenn.) scored in the final minute as every active player on the two teams saw action.
Belmont shot 36 percent from the floor – including 6-for-26 from three-point territory. Preston acquitted himself well in his final collegiate game, scoring a team-high 14 points on 5-for-8 shooting. Hare added 10 points.
The Bruins also outrebounded Georgetown in the second half, 20-18.
Sapp scored a career-high 20 points for the Hoyas. Green scored 15, and Hibbert chipped in 10 points and 13 rebounds.
Belmont finishes the season 23-10.
Pi Day Celebration
The Department of Mathematics and Computer Science celebrated Pi Day (3.14) on March 14 with a potluck assortment of dessert pies, quiches, huge cookies and a large edible MAACM logo, made from two pizzas. MAACM is the combined student organization for mathematics (MAA) and computer science (ACM).
Belmont, Beaman Student Life Center Featured on NIRSA Web Site
The Beaman Student Life Center at Belmont University celebrated National Recreational Sports and Fitness Day on February 21 with a full slate of events throughout the day for students, faculty and staff to promote health and wellness. The event is featured on the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association Web site here.
Belmont Men To Face Georgetown
Belmont Basketball is headed to Tobacco Road. The Atlantic Sun Champion Bruins will face Big East Champion Georgetown in the first round of the 2007 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament.
The game will be played Thursday, March 15 from the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston Salem, North Carolina. Tip-off time has yet to be determined.
Belmont (23-9) received the 15th seed in the East region. BU has won seven consecutive games – each by 15 or more points – including its 94-67 victory at East Tennessee State on March 3 to defend its Atlantic Sun Championship. Junior Justin Hare (Cleveland, Tenn.), who was named Atlantic Sun Tournament MVP for a second straight season, leads Belmont in scoring at 14.4 points per game. Senior Andrew Preston (Winchester, Ky.) and sophomore Andy Wicke (Hendersonville, Tenn.) joined Hare on the All-Tournament Team.
The Bruins led the Atlantic Sun Conference in scoring defense (64.0 ppg), field goal percentage defense (.387), three-point field goal percentage defense (.281), and scoring margin (+9.0).
As for 2nd-seeded Georgetown (26-6), the Hoyas have won 15 of their last 16 games including a resounding 65-42 victory over Pittsburgh Saturday in the Big East Championship. Georgetown is led by Big East Player of the Year and Tournament Most Outstanding Player Jeff Green, a versatile 6-9 junior forward who scored 51 points in the Hoyas’ last two victories.
Georgetown also sports 7-2 junior center Roy Hibbert, who averages 13 points and six rebounds per game.
The two teams did not have a common opponent this season. Belmont is 0-1 lifetime against the Big East Conference losing at Notre Dame to start the 2002-03 season.
Interestingly, Belmont and Georgetown each faced to teams who made it to the National Championship game last year. Belmont was a 15 seed in the 2006 NCAA Tournament, playing eventual National Runner-Up UCLA, while Georgetown was a 7 seed who lost a tight game to National Champion Florida in the Regional Semifinals.
We’re Dancin’ Too! Women’s Basketball Wins Atlantic Sun Championship
The Belmont women’s basketball team’s (25-6, 16-2 A-Sun) motto all season was “One Goal: NCAA.” On Saturday, the Bruins accomplished that goal and knocked off third-seeded ETSU (20-11, 14-4 A-Sun), 69-57, in the finals of the Atlantic Sun Championship to claim their first ever conference title and advance to the NCAA Tournament.
The pace was feverish and aggressive as both teams looked to get on the board first. Freshman Shaunda Strayhorn (Dyersburg, Tenn.) put up Belmont’s first points from the charity stripe and was followed by a jumper from A-Sun All-Freshman Team selection Tereva Moore (Memphis, Tenn.). Atlantic Sun Freshman of the Year Siarre Evans nailed her first three pointer of the game to get the Lady Bucs on the board at the 18:26 mark. A trip to the free-throw line by Atlantic Sun Player of the Year sophomore Alysha Clark (Mt. Juliet, Tenn.) put Belmont up, 7-3. ETSU slipped into a drought that lasted almost five minutes before TaRonda Wiles batted in the paint for a lay-up that moved the team to within two, 9-7.
Back-to-back lay-ups by Latisha Belcher knotted the score at 11 with just over eight and a half minutes remaining before the break. ETSU briefly took the lead with a jumper by Belcher but a bucket from downtown by Strayhorn put BU back on top, 16-14. Kelly Thurman was sent to the line, hitting both, to help the Lady Bucs regain the lead but sophomore Jessica Bobbitt (Trenton, Tenn.) hit a pretty spin around jumper deep in the paint to knot the game at 18 with just under five minutes left in the first half.
The teams continued the back and forth battle until the final minute of the first stanza. Bobbitt knocked down her third and fourth blocks of the half at ETSU’s end before grabbing a rebound and sending the ball down the court to set Belmont up to take the final shot of the game. Strayhorn was fouled with 20 ticks on the clock and drilled both at the line to put the Bruins ahead by three. A final shot by the Lady Bucs was wide and the teams headed into the locker rooms with Belmont up, 24-21.
Belmont finished the first half with eight blocks, just two away from tying the conference record.
Strayhorn drove to the basket with Belmont’s first possession and opened up a 9-2 run that put the Bruins up, 33-26. The Lady Bucs chipped away at the Bruins’ growing lead until they inched within three with a triple by Wiles with 13:48 remaining in the game. A three-point play by Brooke Wilhoit moved ETSU to within one but Moore hit a fall-away jumper to put Belmont back on top by three, 38-35.
Belmont blew its lead up to six, 41-35, with one of Atlantic Sun All-Freshman Team selection Amber Rockwell’s (Tuscaloosa, Ala.) trademark NBA range three pointers at the 10 minute mark. Devin Thompson made it a four point game with a pair of free throws 15 seconds later. Back-to-back jumpers by Thurman knotted the game at 41 before redshirt freshman Kristin Bunch (Fayetteville, Ga.) drilled a trey to put the Bruins back on top by one, 44-43.
With just five minutes left, BU continued to hold off the surging Lady Bucs. Clark was sent to the charity stripe three times in two minutes, hitting five of the six attempts. Clark finally was able to penetrate the paint for a lay-up without being fouled and put the Bruins up, 55-45. Belmont began to play with the clock and step up its defensive effort. With just 90 ticks left in regulation, Strayhorn nailed a monster three pointer near the top of the key to help put the game out of the Lady Bucs’ reach. A heave from deep behind the three-point arc by Wilhoit with 40 seconds left would be ETSU’s last field goal of the game. Belmont would be sent to the line four times in the last 30 seconds and go on to win the game, 69-57.
Bobbitt, Strayhorn and Clark were all named to the All-Tournament team and Clark received Most Valuable Player honors.
Belmont will await the announcement of the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee on Monday night. It will mark the first time since 1999 that the men’s and women’s teams from the same school have advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
Women’s Basketball Advances To Finals in A-Sun Tournament
The Belmont women’s basketball team (24-6, 16-2 A-Sun) moved one step closing to its first ever NCAA Tournament berth on Friday night in Dothan, Ala. The top-seeded Bruins held off fourth-seeded Gardner-Webb (15-16, 10-8 A-Sun), 57-48, and advanced to the finals of the Atlantic Sun Tournament for the first time in program history.
The Bruins opened the game with a quick 5-0 with a jumper from sophomore Jessica Bobbitt (Trenton, Tenn.) and a three pointer by junior Brittany Myers (Madison, Ind.). A triple from redshirt freshman Kristin Bunch (Fayetteville, Ga.) saw Belmont go up, 8-4. Gardner-Webb began to surge with back-to-back trips to the free-throw line but the Bruins kept up their rhythm. Three consecutive blocks in the paint by Bobbitt led to redshirt freshman Amber Rockwell (Tuscaloosa, Ala.) drilling a triple to put BU up by 10, 18-8, by the 9:43 mark. A frustrated GWU bench called a timeout, attempting to put together a plan to handle the hot hands of the Bruins.
The Bulldogs moved to within five behind a three by Jenny Sprouse and a shot from Candyse Kelly with less than seven minutes left before the break. Belmont continued to pile on the points, taking advantage of a Gardner-Webb drought that lasted over three and a half minutes, until it regained its 10 point lead, 27-17, with 3:46 left on the clock. The Bulldogs’ drought was finally halted with a pair of free throws by Kelly and Brittany Boyce netted a three pointer that moved GWU to within seven, 29-22, with 68 ticks on the clock. With 35.2 seconds left, Kelly found the bottom of the net in traffic again to inch Gardner-Webb to within five, 29-24, as the teams headed to the locker rooms.
Belmont dominated in rebounds in the first stanza, 27-12, and Bobbitt racked up four blocks.
Freshman Shaunda Strayhorn (Dyersburg, Tenn.) netted the Bruins’ first five points of the second half, including a trey from the left corner, to put Belmont back on top by 10, 34-24, and a strong defensive effort from her teammates kept the Bulldogs off the scoreboard for more than six minutes. Finally, a jumper by Kelly halted the stalemate and gave GWU its first points of the half.
The Bulldogs attempted to rally behind the foul shooting of Shameka Smith, who hit four of six at the line, but Belmont continued its defensive onslaught with blocks and steals. By the nine minute mark, the Bruins had blown their lead up to 16 points, 49-33. Gardner-Webb attempted to chip away at Belmont’s lead from behind the arc, draining two triples to compliment floor shots from Smith and Sprouse. A three pointer by Boyce with only 1:32 left in regulation moved the Bulldogs to within nine, 57-48. However, the Bruins were able to use the clock to their advantage and hold on for the win with the same score.
Gardner-Webb shot a chilly 28.3 percent (15-53) from the floor, 50 percent (6-12) from three-point range and 66.7 percent (12-18) from the free-throw line. The Bulldogs also held the slim advantage in steals, 5-4.
The Bulldogs only had one player reach double figures – Boyce, who scored 11 points. Smith recorded nine points and nine rebounds.
Belmont shot 33.9 percent (19-56) from the floor, 40 percent (8-20) from beyond the three-point arc, and 78.6 percent (11-14) from the charity stripe. The Bruins dominated in boards, 48-32, blocks, 8-2, and assists, 13-8.
Strayhorn led the Bruins in scoring with a game-high 13 points. Sophomore Alysha Clark (Mt. Juliet, Tenn.) picked up her 18th double-double of the season with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Bobbitt pulled down 10 rebounds in the effort. She also broke the A-Sun Tournament record for blocks in a single game with a total of eight and matched her career-high.
Belmont returns to action on Saturday afternoon in the finals of the Atlantic Sun Tournament against the winner of the two-seeded Jacksonville and three-seeded ETSU game. Tip off is slated for 1 p.m. and the game will be broadcast live on CSS.
Belmont Alumna Advances to Top 12 on American Idol
Melinda Doolittle, a 1999 Belmont School of Music graduate who wowed the “American Idol” judges during her audition in Memphis, advanced to the top 12 of the hit television series. Click here for Doolittle’s official “American Idol” Web page.
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“Former Boiler Room Theatre singer is ‘Idol’ ready” – The Tennessean, Friday, Feb. 17, 2007
