December 22, 2008

South Dakota State joined the Associated Press women’s basketball poll for the first time entering the rankings at No. 25. UConn was No. 1 for the 113th time in school history, matching Tennessee as the all-time leader of appearances atop the poll.

Maryland defeated Old Dominion 74 - 65.

No. 3 Texas A&M continued its unbeaten streak with a win over TCU 64-50.

No. 24 Florida upset No. 19 Pitt. 90-83.The Gators (11-1) won their 11th consecutive game and snapped Pitt’s nine-game winning streak.

Oklahoma 94 Tulsa 42 The Paris twins and Danielle Robinson contribute double-doubles to OU’s rout of Tulsa.

No. 21 Arizona State tops Xavier 75-57  Briann January scored 16 points to lead Arizona State to the win.

Undefeated UConn over Florida State 83 -71. Will the perfect season continue?

December 20, 2008

Tonight they played for the ultimate goal: a national championship. After a 3-0 sweep over no. 2 Stanford, the Nittany Lions have it. A second consecutive NCAA championship.

Stanford, playing in the title match for a record 14th time, had extra motivation: seniors Foluke Akinradewo, Cynthia Barboza and Erin Waller were playing in their final match, hoping to finally win an NCAA title. For the third year in a row, they went home empty handed. Always a bridesmaid, never a bride.

Megan Hodge, the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player for the second year in a row, pounded nine of her 16 kills in the third set as Penn State finished off its NCAA-record 64th straight match since a September 2007 loss to Stanford.

The Penn State Women’s Volleyball team may be the best team you’ve never heard of - they may also be the best team ever.

December 19, 2008

In the opening match, Stanford became the first team to rally from two sets down to win, defeating Texas in a thriller 3-2.  A year ago, Stanford forced a fifth set in the NCAA title match and nearly pulled off one of the biggest comebacks in Final Four history. Last night at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Neb., the Cardinal actually did it.

Then year-long number one Penn State (37-0) , which hasn’t lost a set since last year’s final, was pushed to the brink by Nebraska in front of a home crowd of 17, 400. The Lions won the first two sets against Nebraska to run their NCAA record to 111 in a row before they lost the third and fourth.

Huskers fans – forming a sea of people dressed in red - hoped their team could do what the Cardinal did but ultimately they left brokenhearted.

So, defending champion Penn State and Stanford set up a rematch in the NCAA women’s volleyball title match with five-set victories.

The final will be played on Saturday evening. Penn State was clearly shaken last night and will surely use the experience as motivation to dominate. But Stanford, who’s made it to the big game three times in a row, sees an opportunity and they’re determined to exploit it.

This should be a really great championship. If you can’t make it to Omaha to see the match in person, be sure to catch it at 7:00 PM CT on ESPN2.

December 18, 2008 -

What: NCAA Division 1 Women’s Volleyball Semifinals
When: Tonight
Who: No. 3 Texas vs. No. 2 Stanford, 7 p.m.; No. 1 Penn State vs. No. 4 Nebraska, 9 p.m.
TV: ESPN2
Where: Qwest Center, Omaha, Neb.
Finals: 8 p.m. Saturday

A capsule look at the teams participating in the semifinals:

Penn State Nittany Lions
Record: 36-0
Head coach: Russ Rose (30th season, 961-159)
Notes: The defending national champions are making their seventh national semifinal appearance, have been in the title match five times and have won the crown twice. (Penn profile)

Nebraska Cornhuskers
Record: 31-2
Head coach: John Cook (eighth season, 442-91)
Notes: The Cornhuskers are making their 11th semifinal appearance, including their third in the last four seasons, and have won three titles, including in 2006 at the Qwest Center. … Nebraska’s Lincoln campus is 60 miles from Omaha.

Texas Longhorns
Record: 29-3
Head coach: Jerritt Elliott (eighth season, 235-73)
Notes: The Longhorns are making their fifth semifinal appearance and their first since 1995. They won the title in 1988. … Texas is riding a 14-match win streak. 

Stanford Cardinal
Record: 30-3
Head coach: John Dunning (eighth season, 675-138)
Notes: The Cardinal has been in the Final Four more than any other program (18), been in the finals more (13) and won more titles (6) than any other school. … Stanford lost to Penn State in last year’s title match and was the last to beat the Nittany Lions, 3-2 in September 2007.

December 16, 2008

Over at the University of Arizona, LPGA Tour and World Golf Halls of Fame member and U of A alumna Annika Sorenstam will serve as guest speaker at Dec. 20th winter commencement ceremony. As a member of the Wildcat’s women’s golf team from 1990-92, Sorenstam won seven NCAA titles, and was the first freshman to win the individual NCAA Championship.  (via LPGA.com)

It was just a year ago that Venus Williams walked across the commencement stage at the Art Institute in Fort Lauderdale to earn her associate degree in fashion design.

Although graduation may be a life-altering transition and a memorable time for student-athletes, the toss of the tassel to the other side of the cap means more than just a testament of hard work and dedication. For many, it also shows the ability to be a team player as well as the tenacity to succeed in competition amongst the best in the nation.

Congrats to all the winter graduates!

December 16, 2008

Nogueira was also one of 11 players nationwide nation to the Soccer America MVP (All-America) first team while junior midfielder Tobin Heath and senior midfielder Yael Averbuch were both named Soccer America second-team MVPs. While NCAA runnerup Notre Dame and NCAA semifinalist UCLA both had two first-team choices, UNC led all schools with total selections to the first and second teams with three.

Nogueira, who wanted so badly to play for North Carolina that she moved from her home in Cedarburg, Wis., to Raleigh to be near the Tar Heels in high school, has backed up her commitment with superb performances in two Women’s College Cup finals in three years at UNC. (via press release)

Last week, Nogueira was named one of three finalists for the Hermann Trophy. Christina DiMartino from UCLA and Kerri Hanks of Notre Dame are also in the running for the the highest individual honor in intercollegiate soccer. The Hermann will be awarded at a banquet in January.

Casey Nogueira
Position: Forward
Class: Junior
Age: 19
Hometown: Raleigh, N.C.
High School: Needham Broughton
Youth Club: CASL Spartan Elite
International: U.S. national team (1 cap)
Major: Interpersonal Communications

It won’t be long before Nogueria is drafted by the WPS who today announced the home openers for the inaugural Season. Headlining the list of games is the “WPS Inaugural Match” featuring the Los Angeles Sol against the Washington Freedom at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. on Sunday, March 29, 2009.

December 14, 2008

This event honors the memory of Maggie Dixon, the former Head Coach of the Army Women’s Basketball team, who passed away of a congenital heart ailment at the age of 28, just weeks after leading Army to their first ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament.

I’d heard of Maggie Dixon before, but was surprised to learn she grew up a couple miles from where I live in Los Angeles and attended Notre Dame, the nearby Catholic high school. Once I started mentioning her name, I ran into all sorts of people who remembered watching her play in the 90’s.

The local connection piqued my interest in the tournament and I was pleased to find out that Madison Square Garden and C.A.R.E. teamed up to offer FREE HEART SCREENINGS to all fans.  Also, a portion of the proceeds from the event benefit C.A.R.E. - an organization that works to fund research and raise awareness of sudden cardiac death due to acquired heart disease and inherited rhythm disorders.

So what about the basketball? Well in the opener, No. 14 Rutgers beat Army 59 - 38. Growing up in New York, Rutgers’ Epiphanny Prince has always been comfortable playing in the Garden.  The Brooklyn native was instrumental in leading her high school to four consecutive public school championships playing at there. Today, Prince scored 25 points and Kia Vaughn added a season-high 12 to help Rutgers beat in the first game of the Maggie Dixon Classic.

In the second game of the doubleheader, Tina Charles had 29 points and 18 rebounds to help top-ranked Connecticut beat Penn State 77-63. Connecticut, who had been on an 11-day break for exams,  struggled to put away Penn State.  The rust showed as Connecticut was sloppy in the early going but Charles took over and her double double made the big difference in the game.

Sad that the event even had to take place but some great basketball nonetheless.

December 13, 2008

Students eligible to apply to become a Scholar were and still are supposed to show success in sports, a strong moral character, devotion to duty, interest in one’s fellow citizens and a desire to lead.

The four specific criteria Rhodes listed for his scholarships include:

1. Literary and scholastic attainments.

2. Energy to use one’s talents to the full, as exemplified by fondness for and success in sports.

3. Truth, courage, devotion to duty, sympathy for and protection of the weak, kindness, unselfishness and fellowship.

4. Moral force of character and instincts to lead, and to take an interest in one’s fellow beings

These critera prove that it’s possible to be a scholar, athlete, and humanitarian at the highest levels.

Of the 32 Rhodes Scholars recently selected throughout the United States, five are women who excel in sports. These extraordinary women were varsity athletes while maintaining a serious academic schedule along with giving of their time to others. They are really the embodiment of the athlete as scholar.

The most recent group includes Noelle Lopez, captain of the Santa Clara cross-country  and track teams, Caitlin E. Mullarkey, captain of the Swarthmore soccer team, Ashley L. Nord, a Minnesota pole vaulter, Julia Parker Goyer, a varsity tennis player from Duke and Lindsay M. Whorton, captain of the Drake women’s basketball team.

(more…)

December 11, 2008

In college sports, the greatest team you’ve never heard of may be Penn State’s women’s volleyball team.  On a football-crazed campus,  not even JoePa’s 11-1 team can stack up with what undefeated Penn State has accomplished on the volleyball court.

The unbeaten Nittany Lions (34-0) are on an unprecedented run of success as they seek a second consecutive national title, and the school’s third overall.

Penn State, already the first team in NCAA history to complete a regular season without losing a single game, now stands three games from breaking the consecutive game winning streak of 105, set by Florida in 2003. The Nittany Lions can set that mark with a sweep against Western Michigan in an NCAA regional semifinal Friday night (a team must win three games to win a match).

The Nittany Lions also have won 60 consecutive matches, another NCAA record.

The top-ranked and defending NCAA champion Penn State is not only setting records on the court with their successful season, but also in awards recognition.

The team had a school-record six players named to the First Team All-Mideast Region, while head coach Russ Rose collected his sixth AVCA Mideast Region Coach of the Year award after leading the 2008 squad to become the first collegiate women’s volleyball team to finish the regular season undefeated in individual games.

For all their dominance, Penn State volleyball plays in the massive shadow cast by the Rose Bowl-bound football team.

A win tonight night however sends Penn State to the regional final Saturday against either Illinois or California. The regional winner advances to the national semifinals in Omaha, Neb., next week.

Four matches from back-to-back national championships, this team from Pennsylvania may go down as one of the most dominant collegiate teams in history. Tell that to the guys heading to the Rose Bowl.

2008 NCAA Women’s Volleyball Championship Bracket

Tennis:
Serena Williams withdraws from Australia’s Hopman Cup with hamstring injury

Soccer:
UNC soccer team wins Women’s College Cup adding to dynasty

The U.S. Under-20 Women’s National Team captured the 2008 FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup with a 2-1 victory against Korea DPR.

Golf:
Michelle Wie earns LPGA card as Lewis wins Q-School

Hoops:
Connecticut remains atop AP poll. North Carolina is second followed by Stanford, Texas A&M, OU and Texas.

TCU shocks California and ends school-record winning streak

No. 8 Notre Dame stays perfect, knocks off No. 20 Purdue 62-51

No. 9 Texas knocks Ole Miss from unbeaten ranks

The #1 girls high school team in the country is upset

Volleyball:
Penn State sweeps Yale, advances to regional semis

Swimming:
Dagny Knutson breaks American Record at 2008 USA Swimming Short Course Nats
Mary DeScenza wins twice at USA Swimming Short Course Nationals

Worth reading:
Michael Wilbon on the end of the Houston Comets