BALTIMORE – Members of the Coppin State Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) played dodgeball, bounced on trampolines, sipped smoothies, laughed, snapped selfies and more importantly bonded with each other during the group's 2015-16 kickoff activity at SkyZone in Timonium Saturday evening.
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PHOTO GALLERYIt wasn't all fun and games for the 22-member organization. Following the fun where the student-athletes acted like toddlers who just swallowed a bag of sugar, they enjoyed a productive meeting as well as ate plenty of pizza, buffalo wings and celery sticks.
"Tonight was an opportunity for everybody to loosen up and become more comfortable with each other," women's track and field athlete and SAAC vice president
Alethia Edwards said. "Even though we're all from different teams, we still represent Coppin State. Dodgeball was really fun and crazy. I had never done anything like that before."
Overall, it was a memorable evening for Coppin State's SAAC.
While many impactful ideas were discussed, it's clear the student-athletes enjoyed the time away from campus where they could have fun. There was SAAC and MEAC president
Javron Keene somersaulting into a pile of foam blocks and men's basketball player
Lucian Brownlee giving dunking pointers to a group of awe-struck youngsters.
Wearing pink breast cancer month awareness socks, Brownlee also gave some tips to women's basketball player
Candice Beverly, who executed a perfect dunk in which she grabbed the rim before throwing the ball down like Lisa Leslie. Volleyball player
Bailee Jackson shined at dodgeball leading her team to a perfect 3-0 record.
Student-athletes worked up a serious sweat and burned plenty of calories during the beautiful bonding experience in which players from opposing teams got an opportunity to know each other outside of their respective sports. While the athletes had a blast; dodgeball also brought out everybody's competitive juices as they took the game seriously as if a conference championship was on the line.
"I just feel that being a Division I athlete no matter what sport you play, you have to have that competitive edge whether its dodgeball or badminton," softball player
Shelby Mendoza said. "I thought it was cool that even though I didn't know some of the athletes we came together quickly like we had been together for years."
Coppin State's SAAC is comprised of 20 student-athletes from its 14 intercollegiate athletic programs. In addition to Keene, Coppin State's officers are Edwards of women's track and field (vice president) and
Ashley Milo of women's tennis (secretary).
Making important contributions to Coppin State's SAAC this year will be
Candice Beverly (women's basketball),
Vanessa Neal (women's basketball),
Lawrence Fejokwu (men's basketball), Lucian Harris (men's basketball),
Izais Hicks (men's basketball),
Gavin Lewis (men's tennis), Precious Udofe (women's tennis),
Shelby Mendoza (softball and bowling),
Jacquez Hunn (baseball),
Myles Taylor (baseball),
Jasmine Newman (bowling),
Bailee Jackson (volleyball), Glory Rosado (volleyball),
Delroy Davis (men's track and field),
Steven Thomas (men's track and field),
Alexis Marsh (women's track and field) and
Kiersten Bond (women's track and field).
Look for more terrific activities and community service projects throughout the year from Coppin State's SAAC.
