Hilt sets two program marks as Raptors open indoor track season

STATEN ISLAND

, N.Y

(

Dec. 6

, 2019

) –

Sophomore

Emily Hilt (photo)

had

a record-setting debut as a member of the Rutgers University-Camden women’s indoor track team as the Scarlet Raptor men and women opened their season at the Fastrack Season Opener

Friday at the

Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex

Hilt, a transfer from Rowan College at Gloucester County, broke the Rutgers-Camden

women’s

indoor records in both the

shot put (11.58 meters) and the weight throw (

14.43

meters) to lead a strong opening-day performance. Hilt, an All-American at RCGC who set the Roadrunners’ indoor program record with a shot put of 13.12 meters,

finished fourth out of 29

athletes

in Friday’s shot put competition. She broke the old Scarlet Raptor mark of 11.51 meters, set by Mariah Brown on Feb. 24, 2012 at the New Jersey Athletic Conference Championships.

Hilt finished

third

out of

athletes in the weight throw while

shatter

ing the old Raptor mark of 12.93, set by Brianna Kearse on Jan. 15, 2016 at the Golden Bear Invitational.

Another former RCGC All-American, junior

Jude Misko,

also had a strong start to his season, finishing fourth of 29 in the weight throw. Misko, who set Rutgers-Camden’s indoor weight throw mark of 15.80 last season in his first year at the school, had a throw of 15.08 on Friday.

Freshman

Emmanuel Lewis

finished 11th in the weight throw (12.73 meters) and 20th of 35 in the shot put (11.48 meters) in his Rutgers-Camden debut. On the women’s side, senior captain

Nicole DeMarco

joined Hilt with a stellar performance in the shot put, finishing eighth (9.95).

Sophomore

Kirstin Slater

had a pair of strong finishes, placing 19th of 33 in the mile run (5:52.35) and 10th of 16 in the 1,000-meter event (3:35.05), while sophomore

Kayana Clue

and freshman

Imani Johnson-Young

led the women’s sprinters. Clue finished 31st of 55 in the 200-meter dash (28.23), followed by Johnson-Young in 32nd place (28.49). In the 63-athlete 60-meter dash competition, Johnson-Young was 43rd (8.42) and Clue was 46th (8.46).

On the men’s side, sophomore

Desmond Howell

finished 23rd of 75 in the 200-meter dash (23.03) and 12th of 55 in the 400-meter dash (51.09). Junior

Vinny Maine

finished 21st in the 400-meter event (52.05).

In the 48-man competition of the mile run, freshman

David Morrow

finished 30th in a time of 4:57.96.

Rutgers-Camden returns to the Ocean Breeze facility on Friday, Dec. 13, to compete in the Wagner College Shootout.

Fri.

Fastrack Season Opener

(at

Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex, Staten Island

, NY

)

MEN:

No Team Scoring

WOMEN:

No Team Scoring

Rutgers-Camden School Records:

* Women’s Shot Put, Emily Hilt, 11.58 M (Old: 11.51 M by Mariah Brown, Feb. 24, 2012 at the New Jersey Athletic Conference Championships)

* Women’s Weight Throw, Emily Hilt,

14.43

M (Old: 12.93 M by Brianna Kearse, Jan. 15, 2016

at the Golden Bear Invitational)

Rutgers-Camden Students Engage in Conversation about Diversity/Inclusion

TO THE POINT

CAMDEN – A

Rutgers University‒Camden

speaker series aims to help students feel comfortable while they are learning and developing friendships and support systems on campus.

“Beyond the Mill” provides a welcoming environment for the campus community to join host

Oscar Holmes IV

, an associate professor of management, and other faculty and area business and community leaders to discuss thought-provoking topics involving diversity, equity, and inclusion.

“I get a lot of gratification out of publishing my own diversity, equity, and inclusion research and reading others’ research on the topic, but diversity and inclusion work doesn’t stop or start at publication,” says Holmes. “My goal for ‘Beyond the Mill’ is to provide a healthy place for identity exploration, identity growth, and a catalyst to eliminate systemic oppression.”

Sophomore Emanuel Rodriguez says that by addressing issues about identity, orientation, relationships, and finding community, the “Beyond the Mill” program helps to make the campus an inclusive space for everyone.

The accounting and finance major from Camden believes that the program prepares students to handle issues that they will encounter in the workplace. “Whether you are a black male entering a workforce full of white males, a homosexual trying to fit in with society, or a woman trying to break the glass ceiling, you might face some difficult challenges. Open conversation helps prepare us for those challenges.”

Launched in the fall of 2018 in collaboration with the

Rutgers‒Camden Office of Diversity and Inclusion

, the program has featured topics such as race in college admissions, LGBTQIA+ identities within the university setting, and the #MeToo movement and eradicating sexual harassment and assault.

“I really feel that the program is the best way to get many different people together in the same room to learn about these topics,” says Holmes.

The program’s executive producer, TiAira Neal of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, works with Holmes to publicize the “Beyond the Mill” series to the campus community.

On Oct. 2, “Beyond the Mill” kicked off its second season with a program in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, featuring attorney Jason Hernandez of the Rutgers Immigrant Community Assistance Project and Trisha Trinidad, a Rutgers–Camden undergraduate student and president of the Latin American Student Organization.

A discussion on how to have conversations about race was held on Nov. 6, featuring Patricia Kline, a lecturer in the Rutgers School of Business–Camden, and David Cheatham, the president of Transform Communications.

On Dec. 4, the program features Mary Beth Daisey, Rutgers‒Camden vice chancellor for student affairs, and Patrick Wallace, associate director of the Campus Center, for a discussion on being an effective ally to anyone who feels marginalized. The program is open to the entire campus community.

The programs are taped and available for viewing any time on the

Office of Diversity and Inclusion

website. “Life is hectic and people have many demands on their time,” says Holmes. “So I tried to make it as accessible to as many people as possible.”

Diggs, Brown earn recognition on USC All-South Atlantic teams

CAMDEN, N.J. (Dec. 2, 2019) – Junior forward

Skyler Diggs (Delran, NJ/Delran)

and senior back

Darnell Brown (Cinnaminson, NJ/Cinnaminson)

continued to pile up honors a month after the Rutgers University-Camden men’s soccer team ended its season.

Darnell Brown

Diggs and Brown, who sparked the Scarlet Raptors to a 13-5-3 season and the third seed in the New Jersey Athletic Conference playoffs, have been named to the United Soccer Coaches Men’s Division III All-South Atlantic Region Teams, released today. Diggs captured South Atlantic Region Second Team honors, while Brown was honored on the South Atlantic Region Third Team.

Skylar Diggs

The honors were the latest in a successful season for both players. Brown was named to the NJAC First Team and was recognized as the NJAC Co-Defender of the Year. Diggs, meanwhile, earned NJAC Second Team honors.

Diggs led the Scarlet Raptors in scoring with 12 goals and one assist for 25 points this season. His six game-winning goals tied for third place for the most single-season game winners in program history, while his 12 goals tied for 12th place on the season charts.

Diggs has been the Raptors’ most dangerous forward throughout his three-year career. As a freshman, he tied for the team lead in goals (7) and finished second in points (15). He led the Raptors in scoring as a sophomore with nine goals and three assists for 21 points.

Diggs has earned NJAC Second Team honors in each of the last two seasons. As a freshman, he earned the NJAC Rookie of the Week on Sept. 4, and captured his first career hat trick, while adding an assist, at Lancaster Bible College on Oct. 19.

Diggs added his second career hat trick this season, scoring all of the Scarlet Raptors’ goals in a 3-2 victory over Penn State-Abington on Oct. 23. He also had both goals in a 2-0 win over Staten Island (Sept. 7), helping him earn honors as the Offensive MVP of the Cialella Soccer Classic (Sept. 7-8). His other game-winning goals this season came in a 1-0 victory over Alvernia University (Sept. 4), a 2-0 win over Immaculata University (Sept. 18), a 2-0 win over No. 19 Montclair State University (Sept. 21) and a 2-0 win over New Jersey City University (Oct. 5). He earned Rutgers-Camden Raptor of the Week honors twice this fall, on Sept. 9 and Oct. 28.

Diggs has appeared in 63 games at Rutgers-Camden, starting 42 and producing 61 points to rank 10th on the program’s career scoring list. He is eighth in career goals (28) and fourth in game-winning goals (11), while adding five career assists.

An All-South Jersey Soccer Coaches Association Third Team member as a senior at Delran High School, Diggs earned five scholastic varsity letters for the Bears, playing both soccer and basketball.

Brown was a defensive standout at Rutgers-Camden throughout his four-year collegiate career. A NJAC First Team performer and the Raptors’ Most Valuable Player as a junior in 2017, he missed the entire 2018 season before returning to NJAC First Team honors as a senior this year. He helped lead a Scarlet Raptor defense that posted a 1.05 goals-against average and nine shutouts, despite numerous injuries and lineup changes in the back. He also added three goals and one assist for seven points, including a pair of goals (one the game winner) in a 3-2 victory over 21st-ranked Haverford College on Sept. 25. He added a goal in a 3-2 win at Rutgers-Newark (Sept. 28) and assisted on Diggs’ winning goal against Staten Island (Sept. 7).

As a freshman, Brown helped the team win its fourth NJAC title in five seasons. He captured NJAC Honorable Mention during his sophomore season in 2016.

During his Rutgers-Camden career, Brown played in 73 games, starting 53. He collected 11 goals and three assists for 25 points, with a pair of game-winning goals. He also contributed to 19 Raptor shutouts.

During his stellar scholastic career at Cinnaminson High School, Brown captured All-State Second Team and Soccer Coaches Association of New Jersey First Team South Sectional All-State recognition for the Pirates. As a senior, he earned All-South Jersey First Team honors from both the

Philadelphia Inquirer

and

Courier-Post

newspapers.

Rutgers-Camden leads wire to wire to beat Gallaudet women, 67-57

WASHINGTON, D.C. (Dec. 1, 2019) – The Rutgers University-Camden women’s basketball team scored the first nine points of the game and never trailed as it defeated Gallaudet University, 67-57, in a non-conference game here Sunday afternoon.

The Scarlet Raptors improve to 5-1, while the Bison fall to 1-3.

Rutgers-Camden took the lead for good, at 2-0, on a layup by freshman center

Kayla Newton

1:05 into the contest. The Scarlet Raptors built their lead to 9-0, aided by four points from senior guard

Fatimah Williams,

a layup by junior guard

Shane Holmes

and a foul shot by Newton, before the Bison scored its first points 3:42 into the first quarter.

Gallaudet fought back to cut its deficit to two points at both 16-14 and 21-19, but never were able to tie the game or take the lead. In the third quarter, Rutgers-Camden opened up leads as big as 19 points (52-33).

Williams paced the Raptor attack with 24 points, while a pair of guard/forwards, freshman

Jalissa Pitts

and sophomore

Tamara Johnson,

both added 12. Freshman guard

Taylor Martin

notched eight points, one game after scoring a career-high 20.

Pitts and Newton each hauled down nine rebounds to help the Scarlet Raptors hold a 41-36 advantage off the boards. Williams added a game-high five steals, while tying for the team lead at four assists with Tamara Johnson. Martin collected two blocked shots to tie for game-high honors with Gallaudet’s Cassidy Perry.

Perry, a freshman guard/forward, led the Bison with 17 points and added nine rebounds, while senior guard Kendall Hudson had 15 points and completed a double-double with a game-high 11 rebounds. Junior guard Jakkisha Smith added 12 points for Gallaudet. Another junior guard, Emelia Beldon, had a game-high nine assists and a team-high three steals.

The Raptors shot 23-for-60 (38.3 percent) from the floor, while the Bison shot 21-for-54 (38.9). Gallaudet made 19 turnovers, while Rutgers-Camden had 17.

The Scarlet Raptors return to action Wednesday when they host Stockton University in a 6 p.m. New Jersey Athletic Conference game.