Assoc. AD Spease to chair NCAA golf committee

Darin Spease, the senior associate athletic director for the Charlotte 49ers, has been named chair of the 2009 NCAA Division I Men's Golf Committee. Spease has served one year on the committee as a general member and has three years remaining on his appointment.

Spease, a 1989 Charlotte graduate, has worked with the 49ers' athletic department for 10 years. Among his current duties is overseeing the 49ers' nationally-ranked men's golf program.

"The committee is made up of a dedicated group of administrators and coaches that I will lean on in our mutual quest to make the NCAA Golf Championship the very best it can be," Spease said.

Last season, Spease served as chair of the Atlantic 10 Conference men's golf committee.

Showdown with Arizona State in 49ers' path?

ESPN has yet to release the bracket for the 2008 Anaheim Classic, but it appears the Charlotte 49ers will face a first-round matchup on Thanksgiving Day against Arizona State, coached by former N.C. State coach Herb Sendek.

The Sun Devils won 21 games last season - tying for the best turnaround in the country - and return their top seven scorers, including All-Pac-10 players James Harden and Jeff Pendergraph.

- The Charlotte 49ers' women's basketball team has not released its 2008-09 schedule, but early indications are the 49ers will have a home game this season against Notre Dame that is expected to be televised by ESPNU.

- A follow-up MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) showed Charlotte sophomore forward Gaby Ngoundjo suffered a partial tear of the plantar fascia in his left foot. He must wear a hard cast on the foot for about a month. The plantar fascia, or arch ligament, is a band that runs from under the heel to the front of the foot. Ngoundjo sustained the injury in a summer league game earlier this month.

49er basketball exhibitions in Canada

The Charlotte 49ers' men's basketball team will get an early start to the season when it makes a four-day trip to Toronto in late August to play three Canadian teams.

Charlotte will depart on Aug. 29 and then play three teams in three days starting with the University of Toronto on Aug. 30, University of Guelph on Aug. 31 and Sheridan College on Sept. 1. The team will return to Charlotte following its game against Sheridan College.

All players available for the 2008-09 season are allowed to participate. However, newcomers will not receive as much practice time before the trip as returning players. Newcomers - including freshman Shamarr Bowden and junior transfer RaShad Coleman - will not be allowed to participate in practice until the first day of fall semester classes.

The 49ers faced Guelph in a preseason exhibition at Halton Arena in the 2006-07 season and won 100-71.

Charlotte finished 20-14 (9-7 Atlantic 10) last season after being a preseason pick to finish 11th in the 14-team league. The 49ers advanced to the semifinals of the A-10 conference tournament and lost in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament to Nebraska.

Niner wins national title

Charlotte 49ers softball player Sarah Malene, a three-time All-Atlantic 10 selection, recently helped the Virginia Legends win their third consecutive Under-23 ASA national tournament in Auburn, Ala. The Legends went 7-2 in the tournament, coming from the loser's bracket to win the championship.

"It was a great experience playing with and against a bunch of great college players," Malene said. "Playing in this tournament and winning the national title is something that I will remember for the rest of my life."

Malene started all nine games for the Legends at second base, where she plays for the 49ers. She had four hits, two doubles, three RBIs and scored four runs during the tournament.

49er Club sets donations record

Annual donations to the Charlotte 49ers Athletic Foundation surpassed $1 million for the fourth consecutive year, executive director Mike Hummer has reported. The 49er Club raised a record $1.2 million in 2007-08 school year, surpassing last year's total of $1.138 million.

Donations come through four main fundraisers:The Annual Giving Campaign, the Great Gold Rush Auction, the 49er Club Golf Outing and the "Let Me Play" luncheon.

"We have an outstanding core of 49er Club members who help us to grow year in and year out," Hummer said.

Charlotte won six Atlantic 10 championships during 2007-08 and had three teams - golf, women's soccer and baseball -- advance to NCAA Tournament competition. The 49ers also had three student-athletes named ESPN The Magazine Academic all-America and five named A-10 Scholar Athletes of the Year in their respective sports.

Goldwire plays with the Jazz

Recent Charlotte 49ers graduate Leemire Goldwire, who led the team in scoring last season, is playing in the annual Rocky Mountain Revue with the NBA's Utah Jazz this month.

The Revue, hosted by the Jazz, is one of the NBA's summer leagues and started in 1984. This season eight teams are participating - Utah, an NBA D-League Ambassadors team, San Antonio, New Jersey, Golden State, Dallas, Atlanta and the Iranian National Team.

Goldwire is one of eight guards on the team and all but one would be NBA rookies. So far, Utah is 0-3 in the Revue, which concludes on Friday.

Charlotte strength coach featured in Q&A

The Charlotte 49ers's strength and conditioning coach Preston Greene is generally the first person on staff new student athletes get to meet - and sometimes dread - when they arrive on campus.

Greene is a protege of Canadian strength training coach, Charles Poliquin, who has trained many world class athletes including Olympic Gold medal sprinter Donovan Bailey, the NFL's David Boston, and the NHL's Chris Pronger, among others.

An interview with Greene and his use of Poliquin's methods and his work in collegiate athletics is currently featured on Poliquin's Web site, www.charlespoliquin.com. The Q&A with Greene is located at http://www.charlespoliquin.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1096&Itemid=10409.

Poliquin, an Ottawa native, has trained Olympic medalists in 12 sports and holds a bachelor's degree in kinesiology and a master's in exercise physiology. Poliquin has written nine books and more than 600 articles and his work is published extensively in the U.S., Canada, Europe and Asia.