It's early but Atlantic 10 ranks high

It's very early in the 2009-10 men's basketball season, but so far there's good news for the Atlantic 10 Conference.

As of Thursday, the 14-team conference was ranked third in conference RPI by RealTimeRPI.com and collectively the conference's strength of schedule was ranked the 12th best in the country.

The Charlotte 49ers (2-1), who suffered a lopsided loss Tuesday at Duke in the NIT Season Tip-Off tournament currently, have an RPI of 74. The 49ers have two more games in the tournament: vs. Yale on Monday and at Hofstra on Tuesday.

You can check out the rankings here.

More soccer honors for 49ers

<>Charlotte 49ers men’s soccer freshman forward Jennings Rex was named to the second-team TopDrawerSoccer.com All-Rookie team. The All-Rookie team is what TopDrawerSoccer.com calls their freshman All-American teams.

Rex played an integral role on a 49ers team that was nationally-ranked much of the season and earned its first invite to the NCAA Tournament since 1997.

<>Men’s soccer senior midfielder Adam Gross was named first-team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-American. Gross, the 49ers team captain, was also named the Atlantic 10 Conference men's soccer student-athlete of the year.

<>Women’s soccer senior midfielder Hailey Beam was named ESPN The Magazine Academic All-American for the second consecutive year. Last week, Beam was named to the third-team TopDrawerSoccer.com’s National Team of the Season for the second consecutive year.

Charlotte to play Yale, Hofstra next in NIT

The next round of games for the Charlotte 49ers in the DICK'S Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off have been announced:

Monday, Nov. 23 - Charlotte vs. Yale at Hofstra, 4:30 p.m.

Tuesday , Nov. 24 - Charlotte vs. Hofstra at Hofstra, 7:00 p.m.

Former soccer star Heaney returns to Charlotte

Aiden Heaney has an unusual job tonight.

Heaney, one of the players most responsible for sending the Charlotte 49ers men’s soccer team into its first NCAA Tournament in 1991, will do his best to kick the 49ers out of this one.

As a player, Heaney was a two-time most valuable player as goalkeeper and academic all-American and still holds the record for career shutouts and goals against average.

Now as head coach of UNC Wilmington (14-2-4), he must try to defeat Charlotte (11-3-5) in a first round matchup in the NCAA Tournament at 7 p.m. Thursday at the 49ers’ Transamerica Field. The winner will play at 1 p.m. Sunday at No. 3 Wake Forest.

Now in his 10th season at the helm of the Seahawks (104-93-15), Heaney has established the Seahawks as a perennial challenger for the title in the Colonial Athletic Association.

“We’re excited to be in the tournament and eager to get on the field,” said Heaney who had his number retired at Charlotte in 2003. “Charlotte is a quality opponent who has a solid season. They are a dangerous opponent who already have a win at Wake Forest to their credit.”

The 49ers hold a 6-5-2 mark in the all-time series, including a 3-1 win in 2008 at Wilmington in the UNCW/Courtyard by Marriott Classic. Wilmington’s last win in the series came in 1983, a 3-1 victory in Charlotte.

Charlotte went undefeated this season at home (5-0-2) and owns wins over three NCAA Tournament participants - Wake Forest, Winthrop and Saint Louis, which won the Atlantic 10 tournament.

Senior Adam Gross leads the 49ers in goal scoring with eight, Evan James has seven and former Watauga High star Jennings Rex, a freshman, has six.

Observations from Tuesday's 49ers-Duke game

<>In the first half, Boston College transfer Shamari Spears appeared the only 49er not intimidated or in awe of the surroundings. He had experienced the atmosphere before while playing for the Eagles. His last game in Cameron Indoor Stadium with Boston College consisted of 10 points and six rebounds in a 90-80 Duke win in February 2008.

<>Some early-game props for the 49ers: When Charlotte was staying respectably close, one Duke student shouted, “This is a real team dude, not Coastal Carolina.” The Blue Devils had beaten the Chanticleers 74-49 on Monday night.

<>Charlotte may have been over-matched in talent, but the 49ers contributed to their own problems, particularly in the first half, with bad passes, rushed shots and silly mistakes like botching a routine inbounds pass.

<>Former 49ers golf coach Jamie Green, who left last season to become the coach at Duke, watched the game with the 49ers fans.

<>Derrio Green actually ended up with more minutes played (25) than DiJuan Harris (23). Green looks more comfortable spelling Harris at the point but is struggling with his shot right now.

Hailey named A-10 rookie of the week

Charlotte 49ers women's basketball freshman Jennifer Hailey was named the Atlantic 10 Conference's rookie of the week for her play in Charlotte's season opener last Friday.

Hailey, a 6-foot-3 forward who played at Forest Hills High, came off the bench to score a game-high 17 points in 19 minutes of action.

Hailey came one rebound short of a double-double. She also had two seals and was 5-ofor-7 from the free throw line.

Men's soccer is NCAA bound

A tough schedule and some big wins brought the Charlotte 49ers men’s soccer team an end-of-the-season bonus on Monday.

Although the 49ers (11-3-5) were eliminated from the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament last week by host Rhode Island, Charlotte received an at-large invitation to the NCAA Tournament - its first tournament invite since 1997.

Charlotte will host Colonial Athletic Association champion UNC Wilmington (14-2-4) at 7 p.m. Thursday at Transamerica Field.

“This is a true reward for the hard work our players have put in this season,” said 49ers coach Jeremy Gunn. “I think what I’m most proud of is how our players have continued to play fantastic soccer.

“On some days were finished more of our scoring opportunities. On some days we didn’t. But they’ve always played hard.”

Thursday’s winner advances to a matchup at No. 3 seed Wake Forest (14-3-3) at 1 p.m. Sunday. The 49ers defeated the Deacons 3-1 earlier this season.

The Seahawks are coached by former 49ers soccer standout Aidan Heaney, who as goalkeeper led Charlotte to its first NCAA appearance in 1991.