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Sports

Saunders Doing Big Things At Virginia School

Rahneeka Saunders, a junior guard, has put up big numbers; Douglass boys lose guard Calhoun to injury on Friday.

There's always room for improvement and Rahneeka Saunders has proven that this college basketball season.

A former standout at Riverdale Baptist School in Upper Marlboro, Saunders is a 5-foot-7 junior guard for Division I George Mason University of the Colonial Athletic Association.

She nearly had a triple-double Nov. 26 against UNC Asheville, grabbing 11 rebounds, dishing nine assists and scoring seven points as Mason improved to 4-1 overall with an 88-59 win.

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She started the first nine games this year and averaged 8.6 points (fourth on the team), 6.9 rebounds (first) and had a team-high 42 assists and 16 steals, which was second on the club.

Last year, Saunders averaged just 4.8 points and 2.0 rebounds per game for Mason, which was 13-17 overall. The Patriots are 6-3 overall following a 78-50 loss Dec. 11 to nationally-ranked Maryland.

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Saunders told Patch that her high school teammates at Riverdale Baptist included Maryland standout Tianna Hawkins and Ataira Franklin, who plays at the University of Virginia. Against Maryland, Saunders had eight points, three rebounds, three assists and four steals.

The daughter of Lanita Saunders, the Mason junior also considered Towson, VCU, Richmond, George Washington, James Madison and Florida State before heading to Mason.

The Patriots return to action when they host GW 3 p.m. Thursday in Fairfax, VA.

Calhoun is injured for Douglass

The boys basketball team at Frederick Douglass lost junior point guard Jeffrey Calhoun to an injury on Friday in an 81-66 loss to Gwynn Park, head coach Tyrone Massenburg told Patch on Monday.

"He broke his hand. We don't know how it happened," Massenburg said. "He should be out four to six weeks. He is our floor leader."

Douglass then lost on Saturday to Bowie and fell to 1-4 overall. The Eagles were 16-9 last season but lost standout Timmone Whatley to the college ranks.

"We have played some real good teams and that will make us better," Massenburg said. "I am pleased with the effort. We are moving in the right direction."

The Dr. Henry A. Wise, Jr. High boys basketball team lost, 54-47, on Friday to Eleanor Roosevelt.  Wise entered the game ranked No. 13 in The Washington Post while Roosevelt was No. 10.

"In the first half we couldn't make anything but our defense kept us in the game," Roosevelt head coach Brendan O'Connell told The Post.

In other Friday games, Riverdale Baptist beat Washington Christian, 74-52, and Largo beat Crossland, 77-68, according to The Post. Derrick Colter had 21 points for Largo.

In girls basketball, Largo beat Crossland, 75-35, and Douglass lost to Gwynn Park, 65-38. Derica Souder had 24 points for Largo.

Drummond has big game

Justin Drummond, a former standout at Riverdale Baptist, had a career-high 26 points on Sunday for the Loyola men's basketball team but it was not enough as the team lost, 76-66, at St. Bonaventure in New York.

The Greyhounds had won eight games in a row before the loss to the Atlantic 10 Conference team.

"I wish we had played with them in the first eight minutes," Loyola head coach Jimmy Patsos, a former Maryland assistant under Gary Williams, said on the Loyola athletic website. "We just did not play with them, but I would like to see what happened if we did. They were so much better than us for those first eight minutes."

Drummond, a sophomore from Bowie, is averaging 11.7 points per contest. That is fourth on the team.

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