News and Events

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) - Shuttle Atlantis astronaut Randy Bresnik can be forgiven if he's having a tough time focusing on work -- his wife is due to give birth on Friday to a baby girl.  "He'd certainly like to be there for the birth of his daughter, but timing is what timing is," shuttle pilot Barry Wilmore said during an in-flight interview on Friday. "He's here and his wife, Rebecca, is there and he's going to make the best of it."

It may be the mother lode of all bad timing: Atlantis shuttle astronaut Randy Bresnik is stuck at the International Space Station, hundreds of miles from his pregnant wife Rebecca, who is expected to give birth to a baby girl as early as today.
Bresnik and his crewmates will spend their Friday hauling cargo between Atlantis and the space station, but NASA has set aside some time for the 42-year-old astronaut to call his wife for updates of his second child's arrival, mission managers said.

Last season, a November holiday in Cancun, Mexico, helped The Citadel basketball team bond, learn to win on the road and meld a big man into the offense.  Bulldogs coach Ed Conroy is hoping a four-game road trip, starting with three games this weekend at the Hispanic College Fund Classic in Springfield, Mo., will pay similar dividends for this year's team.

It was so important for North Charleston leaders to get behind the success of the Cougars that they put aside city business Thursday night and cooked steaks for the players at City Hall.   Yet the football team is 11-1 (up from 8-4 last year) and off to its best showing in the decade that head coach and former Citadel player Jimmy Brown has been a part of North Charleston athletics.

"Big Red," a historic South Carolina flag, will fly again.  The flag -- colored red and with the crescent moon facing inward, signifying secession -- flew over the 40 to 50 Citadel cadets who fired 17 cannon rounds at the Union cargo ship Star of the West. The ship was attempting to resupply Union troops at Fort Sumter on Jan. 9, 1861. The cadets hit the ship with three rounds and it turned around.

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel men's cross country team improved from last season, placing ninth at the 2009 Southern Conference Championships on Oct. 31., while the women's team finished 12th to conclude the 2009 season. In 2008, the Bulldog men and the women had an overall 10th place finish.

Springfield, MO. - The Citadel Basketball team begins the Hispanic College Fund Challenge on Friday afternoon against Eastern Michigan. The first meeting between the two schools is set to tip-off at 6:30 p.m. at Missouri State University.

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel Football will travel to Statesboro, Ga. this weekend to take on the Georgia Southern Eagles in Southern Conference action on Saturday, Nov. 21 at Paulson Stadium. The game will kick off at 2 p.m. and can be listened to live on Bulldog Insider at www.CitadelSports.com or on ESPN Radio 910 The Team with the Voice of the Bulldogs Darren Goldwater and color analyst Walt Nadzak.

Coastal Carolina University students attended the Fall 2009 session of the S.C. Student Legislature and won Best Large Delegation, beating out delegations from the University of South Carolina, Clemson, College of Charleston, Converse College, the Citadel and North Greenville University.

When the Space Shuttle Atlantis docks at the International Space Station Wednesday morning, the crew will be bringing with it an indelible symbol of South Carolina’s military school.  That’s because U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. Randy Bresnik, who is one of six members of the STS-129 mission, is carrying a replica of The Citadel’s “Big Red” spirit flag.  Bresnik graduated from The Citadel in 1989 and said his time at the school helped prepare him for a mission to outer space.

In January, The Citadel will begin accepting registration for the fall 2010 launch of its Master of Science in project management degree program.  The program, the only one of its kind in South Carolina, will offer an advanced learning opportunity for students through coursework in leadership, project management and professional skills.  The 30-credit-hour course will meet weekly in the evenings.

Last Friday, Summerville High School rolled out the red carpet for Rear Adm. Joseph Kilkenny, commander of the Naval Education and Training Command.  During his more than two hours at the school, Kilkenny – a recipient of the Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit and Distinguished Flying Cross among other awards – addressed the cadets, learned about the NJROTC program at Summerville High and even displayed his marksmanship skills alongside the air rifle team.  Kilkenny, a 1977 graduate of The Citadel...

The S.C. Corps of Cadets will present its Christmas Candlelight Service for the Lowcountry at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 4-6 in Summerall Chapel on The Citadel campus.  Cadets from the Protestant, Catholic and gospel choirs, the chorale, the women's ensemble and members of The Citadel Regimental Band will take part in the annual celebration, observing the events of Advent, the Annunciation, the birth of the king, and Epiphany through Scripture lessons and carols. Traditional and international favorites are sung, and special highlights include the Procession of Lights.

Citadel football coach Kevin Higgins still remembers Andre Roberts' first practice as a Bulldog, more than four years ago. 
"He just looked different, even from the upper-class guys who had been in the program several years," Higgins recalled this week. "His hands were so natural, his feet were quicker than anybody else's. You could tell he had a different gear than anybody else."  With one game left in his Citadel career, Roberts has fulfilled every bit of that potential, becoming one of the best receivers ever in the Southern Conference and one of the most decorated players in Bulldogs history.

WHY: The death of a child is every parent's nightmare, the one occurrence we pray will never happen. Simpsonville resident Stephanie Benbenek will sign copies of her newly published a memoir "Keeping Clarke", about the untimely death of her son and only child who was killed suddenly in an automobile accident on September 10, 2005. Clarke was a 2004 graduate of Mauldin High school and a sophomore at The Citadel.

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel wrestling team will travel to Raleigh, N.C. on Saturday to compete in the North Carolina State Open.  Last weekend, the Bulldogs took part in a freshman and sophomore tournament as well as the Michigan State Open in East Lansing, Mich. The Citadel featured six placers, including one champion.

CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Jamarco Warren scored with 1.2 seconds left in the game to lift Charleston Southern to a 61-60 victory over The Citadel on Tuesday night.  Warren drove the lane to score and finished with 13 points, going 6-for-9 from the field. The Bulldogs called a time out but couldn't get a final shot.  There were eight ties and 10 lead changes.

Space Shuttle Atlantis Commander Charlie Hobaugh and mission specialist Randy Bresnik work on the aft flight deck of the orbiter

Carolina will also play 10 additional in-state contests this year with Charleston Southern, College of Charleston, Furman, Presbyterian, The Citadel, USC Upstate, Winthrop and Wofford.

Kelvin Martin rode past a tank and an airplane Tuesday night on his way through The Citadel campus.  Kelvin Martin, a sophomore forward with Charleston Southern, scored 15 points against the Citadel on Tuesday at McAlister Field House.
Symbols at The Military College of South Carolina were nothing new for a Charleston Southern basketball player born in Germany, raised in an Army family and taught to prepare for almost anything.

The excitement among the crowd surrounding the countdown clock was palpable in the last ten minutes before liftoff. Two unconcerned seagulls circled the spectators, and the American flag danced around as if anticipating the liftoff of the 4.5 million pound space shuttle. Atlantis blasted off among great billowing clouds of smoke, leaving a trail of exhaust clouds serpentining in its wake...

Charleston, S.C. - Junior guard Cameron Wells led The Citadel with 23 points, however it was not enough to deter a Charleston Southern victory at McAlister Field House on Tuesday evening, as the Buccaneers escaped with a 61-60 victory. Wells converted 10-of-16 shots in the contest, including one three pointer, in 32 minutes of action.

CHARLESTON -- The Shuttle Atlantis lifted off Monday from Kennedy Space Center, carrying Citadel graduate Randy Bresnik on a journey that will include a pair of spacewalks designed to help extend the life of the orbiting International Space Station. 
Bresnik, a member of the Class of 1989 and the school's first astronaut alumnus, is part of a six-man crew that's delivering spare parts to the space lab. Three spacewalks are planned during the 11-day mission, which is one of the last six shuttle missions before NASA ends the program.

The Shuttle Atlantis lifted off Monday from Kennedy Space Center, carrying Citadel graduate Randy Bresnik on a journey that will include a pair of spacewalks designed to help extend the life of the orbiting International Space Station.  Randy Bresnik graduated from The Citadel in 1989 and is the school's first astronaut alumnus. Bresnik, a member of the Class of 1989 and the school's first astronaut alumnus, is part of a six-man crew that's delivering spare parts to the space lab.

Charleston Southern at The Citadel - HEAD COACH: Ed Conroy (34-60 in 4th season at The Citadel); PLAYERS TO WATCH: G Cameron Wells, 6-1, jr. (11 ppg, 9 rpg); C Joe Wolfinger, 7-0, sr. (20 ppg, 12 rpg); G Zach Urbanus, 6-2, jr. (8 ppg, 4 rpg).

NOTES: The Bulldogs opened with a 64-45 win over D-III Kenyon College on Friday ... A win tonight would make The Citadel 2-0 for the first time in Conroy's tenure ... The Citadel will hang its first banner in McAlister Field House tonight, a banner marking the Bulldogs' appearance in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament last year, the first postseason tournament in school history.

The Citadel concluded weekend action at the Michigan State Open in East Lansing, Mich., by placing six wrestlers, including a champion. Bulldogs wrestlers competed in both the freshman/sophomore tournament and the MSU Open.The Bulldogs' Turtogtokh Luvsandorj won the 157-pound class in freshman/sophomore.

The Citadel's merry-go-round at quarterback will take one final spin this season.  Bulldogs coach Kevin Higgins said Monday that he's not ready to name a starter for Saturday's season finale at Georgia Southern, despite a solid performance from freshman Tommy Edwards in last week's 31-28 loss at Chattanooga.

East Lansing, Mich. - The Citadel wrestling team concluded weekend action at the Michigan State Open by placing six wrestlers, including a champion. Bulldog wrestlers competed in both the freshman/sophomore tournament as well as the MSU Open on Sunday.

Charleston, S.C. - Head Coach Rob Hjerling and The Citadel announced today the addition of Plamen Paskalev to the coaching staff of the wrestling team. Also, long-time Head Assistant Coach Jeff Ragan has been promoted to Associate Head Coach.

Charleston, S.C. - The Citadel Basketball team returns to action on Tuesday evening, hosting cross-town rival Charleston Southern to McAlister Field House slated to start at 7:05 p.m. The Bulldogs are coming off a 64-45 win in the season opener against Kenyon College, and will attempt to become 2-0 for the first time in Ed Conroy's Citadel tenure.