Arizona State's Robles on Sports CenterWrestling--4/1
Arizona State wrestler Anthony Robles was featured on ESPN's Sports Center last week where he talked about finishing fourth in the nation and earning All-American honors. Finishing fourth nationally for anyone is amazing, but Robles bested the competition missing his right leg. The redshirt Sophomore for the Sun Devils was born with out his right leg but went on to overcome obstacles and become an accomplished athlete. Robles won two Arizona state wrestling titles and played football in high school. Robles was just named Pac-10 Wrestler of the Year by the league's coaches.
-M.E. Three Cal Volleyball Players Named Volleyball Magazine Fab 50W. Volleyballl--3/20
Three players from California volleyball's incoming freshman class were named to the Sports Imports/Volleyball Magazine 2009 Girls Fab 50 list this week. Elly Barrett (Westlake HS/Austin, Texas), Tia Gaffen (Wayzata HS, Plymouth, Minn.), and Correy Johnson (Lake Howell HS, Winter Park, Fla.) were each selected to the exclusive list that honors the top high school senior volleyball players in the country. READ MORE at the official website of the Californa Golden Bears
-R.V. Rollin' on DubsWashington--2/13
One of the most exciting moments of my week, aside from my Pac-10 alma mater winning a HUGE b-ball game, was my discovery of Dubs, the new Washington mascot.
I might be the biggest dog fanatic and who could resist the super cute 3 month old Alaskan Malamute? Dubs (as in UW) is the 13th live mascot at Washington. Washington has set up Dubs with his own webpage so you can check out how the pup is doing. He's such a quick learner that he's already figured out how to blog. He'll show you his new favorite toys, he checks out Coach Sarkisian's recruiting efforts in the Seattle PI and he gets groomed for his big day in front of the Washington media. -M.E.
CollegeBaseballInsider.com: 2009 Pac-10 Baseball PreviewBaseball--2/9
CollegeBaseballInsider.com has taken a poll of six of the 10 league coaches and it has been determined that UCLA is the team to beat in the Pac-10 this season. Find out who the coaches picked as the top returning players in the Conference and much more! READ MORE at the official website CollegeBaseballInsider.com
-R.V. California's Bob Milano Selected To The ABCA Hall Of FameBaseball--1/30
MT. PLEASANT, MICH. - Former head coach Bob Milano, who guided the California baseball program from 1978-1999, has been elected for induction in the American Baseball Coaches Association's Hall of Fame and will be honored during the ABCA's January, 2010 convention in Dallas, Texas. One of college baseball's most esteemed coaches, Milano retired in 1999 as the most successful baseball coach at the University of California with 688 career victories. Head coach for 22 years and a veteran of 29 years directly involved in the Cal baseball program, Milano's career not only included three College World Series appearances and a stint in 1997 as the head coach of the United States National Team, but a gold medal as an assistant coach for the USA National Team at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. "I am ecstatic to have been selected to the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame," said Milano. "It is a tremendous honor to be included among a group of coaches like Rod Dedeaux, Ron Polk, Skip Bertman and others who meant a lot to me and kept me going. My goal when I became the coach at Cal was to make it to the College World Series and I was able to accomplish that. And, now to have the opportunity to join two Cal legends, Clint Evans and George Wolfman, in the coaches' hall of fame...I couldn't be happier." READ MORE at the official website of the California Golden Bears
-R.V. Pac-10 Superbowl ShuffleFootball--1/27
With the Super Bowl less than a week away, the pandemonium has started in Tampa in preparation for the big game. The select few are actually traveling to the game to watch the Steelers take on the Cardinals, while the rest of us are preparing our menu and thinking about all the different wings and mini hotdogs we're going to consume. While enjoying the selection of finger food, I'll be keeping tabs on the former Pac-10 athletes now competing on football's biggest stage. The Conference boasts 15 different athletes from seven Pac-10 institutions competing for the World Championship this year.
-M.E. Yes They DidM Basketball--1/26
After an exciting week in which Oregon State men's basketball head coach Craig Robinson saw his brother-in-law Barack Obama inaugurated as the new president of the United States, the excitement continued when Oregon State got its first road sweep since the 1992-93 season, beating both California and Stanford in the Bay Area. Actually, Oregon State has now equalled its win total in the Conference from the last two season...combined. The Beavers three wins in Pac-10 play are in stark contrast to a team that saw itself go winless in the Conference last season. Everyone is showing Oregon State some love this week: It's hard to imagine a coach enjoying a more important week than the one Oregon State first-year head man Craig Robinson just had. Craig Robinson scheduled a home game against Cal State Bakersfield for Monday night because he'd assumed the Beavers would need some confidence going into Saturday's Civil War matchup against Oregon in Corvallis. OREGON STATE junior forward/center Roeland Schaftenaar has been named the U.S. Bank Pac-10 Men's Basketball Player of the Week for Jan. 19 - 25, Commissioner Tom Hansen announced today.
-M.E.
Stanford's Akinradewo Named Volleyball MagazineCo-National Player of the YearVolleyball--1/25
Stanford senior middle blocker Foluke Akinradewo was tabbed one of the 2008 Under Armour/Volleyball Magazine Women's College Co-Players of the Year, as announced by Volleyball Magazine in its February issue. Akinradewo, who was selected as the national player of the year by the American Volleyball Coaches Association last season, becomes the fourth player in school history to earn a national player of the year award in two different years. She shared the nation's top honor with Penn State's Nicole Fawcett this season. Akinradewo finished third nationally in hitting percentage (.457) and fourth nationally in blocking (1.47 bps) in 2008, both marks which paced the Pac-10. The senior finished her career with the best hitting percentage ever recorded by an NCAA Division I player (.446), breaking the previous record (.423) set by Virag Domokos of George Mason in 1996 by more than 20 points. She also posted the second-best single-season hitting percentage in Pac-10 and school history, coming in only behind the record of .499 she set in 2007. In helping Stanford to its third consecutive Pac-10 title and a third straight run to the national title match, Akinradewo led the team with 4.17 points per set and was third on the team with 3.19 kills per set. Akinradewo is the fourth player in school history to be honored with a national player of the year award in two different seasons. Kim Oden (AVCA 1985/VB Magazine 1984, 1985), Cary Wendell (AVCA 1995/VB Magazine 1994) and Logan Tom (AVCA 2001, 2002/VB Magazine 2001) were the only other Cardinal players to be honored in two different years.
-R.V.
Three Pac-10 Men's Soccer Players Taken In 2009 MLS Super DraftM Soccer--1/19
Three former Pac-10 men's soccer players were taken in the 2009 Major League Soccer Super Draft on Dec. 15. California's Stefan Frei, the MLS combine MVP, was selected 13th overall by the Toronto FC. Washington's George John was picked 14th by FC Dallas, while Husky teammate Raphael Cox was taken in the fourth round (54th overall) by Real Salt Lake.
-R.V. West Coast Bias?M Basketball--1/16
 1st Team |
Darren Collison, UCLA: Quite simply, Collison has been the best and most efficient point guard in the nation through the first half of the season. Collison is averaging 15.2 points, 2.2 rebounds, 5.5 assists (second in the Pac-10) and 1.8 steals. He has a 2.5 to 1 assist-to-turnover ratio, and he is shooting 58 percent from the floor, 50 percent from 3-point range and a remarkable 94 percent from the free-throw line. There is not a more efficient point guard in the nation, and Collison is one of the best on-ball defenders in the country. He plays at the highest level on both ends of the floor. |
 1st Team |
James Harden, Arizona State: Just a sophomore, Harden is the best all-around player in the country. The lefty swingman leads the Pac-10 in scoring, and is in the top 12 in the Pac-10 in rebounds, assists, steals and assist-turnover ratio. Harden is averaging 23.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 2.1 steals, while shooting 60 percent from the floor, 42 percent from 3-point range and 76 percent from the line. Harden relishes contact and has lived at the free-throw line. |
 3rd Team |
Jordan Hill, Arizona: Hill has played for three coaches in three seasons but is having his best year. He has not been playing basketball for as long as most players his age, but Hill has been the best big man in the Pac-10. Hill is leading the Pac-10 in rebounding and is third in the league in scoring, averaging 17.8 points, 12 rebounds and 2.3 blocks while shooting 55 percent from the floor and 63 percent from the free-throw line. Hill has had his potential touted throughout his career but has earned his way onto the third team with his current productivity and his play. |
-M.E. California's Stefan Frei Invited to MLS CombineM Soccer--1/13
California former goalkeeper Stefan Frei has been invited to the 2009 adidas MLS Player Combine as a member of the 2009 class of Generation adidas, the professional league announced today. This marks the fifth consecutive year that that a Golden Bear has participated in the MLS Combine and Frei marks the first Cal player to be a member of a Generation adidas class. The players who join MLS as part of the Generation adidas program receive unprecedented opportunities to develop their game and hone their skills at the professional level in Major League Soccer. "This is a very special day for Stefan and the Cal men's soccer program," said Cal head coach Kevin Grimes. "Although he has one remaining year of eligibility, it is best for him to start his professional career now. Clearly, Stefan has been the best goalkeeper in the United States these past two years. There are a number of MLS teams with goalkeeping deficiencies, so the timing is perfect for him. We are very proud of him and look forward to having another Cal soccer alumni in the professional ranks." Frei made the All-Pac-10 first team, the NSCAA Far West All-Region team and also named to Top Drawer Soccer's Team of the Season. At the beginning of the season, he was named to the MAC Hermann Trophy Award Watch List. Frei tied current Cal goalkeeper coach Henry Foulk for fourth on the school's all-time list in career shutouts in Cal's 3-0 victory over San Francisco in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. He followed that performance with a season-best 11 saves against UCSB in the second round. Frei's goals-against average of 0.68 at the end of the regular season was a conference best and ranked him 22nd in the nation. He also led the Pac-10 in shutouts with eight and in save percentage (.829). Frei will be the 15th current and active professional soccer player from Cal and the 10th player in MLS from Cal. The annual MLS Combine will take place from Jan. 9-13 at Lockhart Stadium in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
-R.V. Pac-10/Stanford Honored by Soccer AmericaW Soccer--12/17
Soccer America also named its Women's MVPs, the web-magazine's version of All-Americans. Pac-10 first team-ers include: Pac-10 Player of the Year, UCLA MF Christina DiMartino, Stanford D Marisa Abegg, and UCLA F Lauren Cheney.
-M.E.
Pac-10 Q&A with WSU's Butch T. CougarWashington State--12/5
What does the T stand for in Butch T. Cougar? "The" : )
What's your favorite pre-game meal? I usually prefer something light before the games, like a sandwich washed down with a couple Gatorades, and then eat a lot of junk food after the game!
Your tail drags on the ground behind you on the ground during games, how do you make sure you don't get it caught anywhere? Oh, people are always pulling on my tail, trying to make me mad! But it's not a big deal. A lot of times when I'm climbing over railings or walking in dense crowds I pick it up and carry it.
What's your favorite Washington State sports memory? I loved going to the Rose Bowl with the football team in 2003, but this last Apple Cup was pretty special as well!
Is your den decorated in Cougar colors? Definitely. It's Crimson and Gray everywhere. I also have signed copies of the Crimson Girls Dance Team poster and the Sea Gals poster! Those ladies love me.
In what ways do you inspire cougar cubs out there everywhere? I like to show the cubs that life is about having fun and there's no shame in "getting into the game." It's about showing them how to be a Cougar for life!
What is your signature move out there on the field or court? I think it would have to be leading "Goooooo Couuuuugs" from the 50-yard-line.
How do you like to get under the skin of your opponents, like the Husky? Oh, Harry and I go way back. We have a general respect and a general dislike for each other. I usually taunt opposing mascots from a distance, because nobody likes it when I'm too much in their face.
Is there a lady cougar in your life? No way. I'm single for life!
Get any cat calls from any of the female fans in the stands? For sure! A girl in the student section kissed my cheek and I couldn't get the lipstick off my face for weeks!
Any superstitions you have before games? I'm definitely thrown off if I don't get to ride my 4-wheeler out onto the football field. That's one of my favorite parts of gameday. What's your favorite sporting event to cheer at? Football has always been my favorite, but Men's Basketball has been awesome the last few years, going to the Sweet Sixteen and being so successful.
What's your favorite song right now? I like Live Your Life by T.I. and Rhianna -M.E.
Arizona State's Missy Farr-Kaye's Spirit to LiveWomen's Golf--12/3Joe Pequeno of NBC 12 in Phoenix did this profile of Arizona State's No. 2 ranked golf team and associate head coach Missy Farr-Kaye's battle with breast cancer. Farr-Kaye was an accomplished golfer for the ASU women's golf team, an excellent addition to the women's golf staff and just an all-around amazing person.
-M.E. UCLA's Marco Anzures Provides Recap of XC RegionalsCross Country--11/24
Last weekend (11/15) we traveled up to Palo Alto to compete in the Western Regional meet hosted by Stanford University. In our last contest, the Pac-10 Championships in Oregon, we came up just short of our team goal of third place. There was some disappointment but we knew that the real measuring stick of our season was going to be at the Regional meet in Palo Alto. We had put together a solid season, running some of our best team races to date, but it would all be for naught if we failed to qualify for the National meet. The Washington and California teams proved at Pac-10s that they weren't going to just concede races to us. Going into Saturday's race we had just completed a solid two weeks of training, spirits were high, and the guys were loose and relaxed. I was as confident as ever after Pac-10s and was very excited to finally race 10,000 meters in cross country. I had no idea what the extra 2,000 meters was going to feel like to my body but I had to trust in my fitness. Saturday morning I got up early to go for a short shake out jog before grabbing my typical pre-race oatmeal breakfast. I could tell this was going to be another great day for me. I wasn't nervous and my legs had felt especially spry and fresh on my jog; check, check. It was a warm day for a race, closing in on eighty degrees, but nothing a bunch of L.A. boys couldn't handle. The race got under way at noon and once again we ran a solid - not great - but solid race. I began to get nervous part way through after I settled in as our number three runner. I had never finished in that position before and thought maybe we weren't running well enough to qualify. The last part of the race was rough mentally. I was surrounded by guys from all the teams we knew were going to be tough to beat--a few guys from Washington, a Cal runner, and man from the University of Portland--and it was my job to beat them. I made a strong move to pass all of them with about 600 meters to go but it proved premature because their little group ate me up soon after, and since I was already spent from my previous push I was forced to watch them pull away from me. I finished 31st, and third on team, which was a first for me. I'm glad I ran well but would have traded a higher team finish for my performance. We finished sixth as a team and, needless to say, were extremely disappointed. Not only did we lose again to both Cal and Washington and fail to gain ground on Stanford or Portland, but we also risked being left out of the National meet again! We qualified, but not after holding our collective breaths for over 24 hours for the official announcement the next day. What made this race so special in comparison to others was that we had a HUGE fan presence on the course. Teammates caravanned from LA and team family members from the area all came out to cheer us on. It was an amazing feeling to turn every corner and have someone cheering for you. I don't think I went more than a minute without hearing my name or "Go Bruins!" shouted out. It really pumped me up and helped me through tough moments in the race. It felt great to have our Bruin family out to support us, and I wish we could take them to every race! We race in the National meetin Terre Haute, Ind., today. We have completed the first part of our goal: qualifying. Now it's time for part two: having our best race on the biggest stage. We are quietly confident and I think that bodes well for us. If there are any Bruin fans out there: mark your calendars for Monday the 24th, wish us luck, and Go Bruins! -N.G. Pac-10 IllustratedPac-10--11/21Arizona State basketball players James Harden and Briann January grace the cover of this weeks Sport Illustrated for its College Basketball Double Team issue. The covers, published regionally (the ASU cover available out west), also feature North Carolina, Notre Dame,Pitt, UConn and Oklahoma. The cover athletes from Arizona State are just the latest in the history of Pac-10 sports and Sports Illustrated. Check out some other cool Pac-10 covers: (Photos Courtesy of Sports Illustrated)
- M.E.
Best Beaver All Time?Oregon State--11/20Browsing the Internet today I came across this nifty ESPN the Magazine Power Rankings of Oregon State Athletes. It got me thinking...T.J. Houshmandsadeh, Gary Payton, Ocho Cinco? Where does your favorite Beaver rank?
-M.E.
Pac-10 Women's Soccer NCAA ActionW Soccer--11/18The Pac-10 can boast that it's one of the best women's soccer conference in the nation. UCLA and Stanford both earned No. 1 seeds and six teams from the Conference made the "big dance", the most since 2000. Since Stanford and UCLA were named No. 1 seeds, they are hosting round-three games this weekend at home. Stanford will face Rutgers on Friday night and UCLA faces Conference and inner-city rival USC. If you are a soccer enthusiast or interested in attending the games this weekend, click the links below to check out content from each of the schools:
-M.E. UCLA's Marco Anzures Blogs from the Pac-10 XC ChampionshipsCross Country--11/11
The most exciting and rewarding part of the cross-country season is finally upon us! The regular season of racing is over and the drive for Nationals is heating up. Last weekend, our team headed up to Eugene, Oregon to take on the best the Pac-10 had to offer, including the No. 1 and No. 2 ranked squads in the nation, Oregon and Stanford. I think I speak on behalf of the team when I say it was a relief to head up north and get some cooler weather. Los Angeles has been so hot lately with the Santa Ana conditions - intense heat and the constant fire threats those bring. You can only take so many 90 degree days before you're crying for the cool autumn breezes. The plane ride up to Eugene was uneventful. I was able to catch a few z's on our two flights before touching down in wonderfully green Eugene. What was markedly different this time around for us was that we flew up a day before the race because it had been moved from Saturday to Friday (Halloween day actually) to accommodate the Oregon high school cross country state meet that weekend. We arrived late in the afternoon on Thursday and quickly stopped by our hotel to change before heading over to the course. It was already pretty dark by the time we got there and both men's and women's teams jogged the course in the pitch black! A bit of an unorthodox pre-meet warm-up but it was fun nonetheless. After heading back to our hotel and eating dinner we all settled in for the night to get some rest and prepare for our races the next day. In the morning I got up early for a light jog to wake up my muscles. About eight minutes did the trick. It was cool and cloudy outside and the ground was wet, indicating it had rained during the night. On my shake-out run a light drizzle began to fall and I prayed that the course would stay at least semi-dry for the races. We had a few hours before the bus arrived so after my traditional
race day oatmeal breakfast I returned to my room to hang out. On television, since it was Halloween and the election was next Tuesday, I had a choice between horror films and shows or constant election coverage. I eventually settled on Goosebumps reruns before heading out with some of the guys to get lunch. I'm not big on eating before races but for the sake of avoiding starvation on the starting line I managed to eat half a chicken sandwich from Subway. The bus was scheduled to pick us up at 12:30 to head to the course. Usually at this point in the day I'm very anxious and constantly having those annoying nervous yawns that make you feel like your tired. This year though, I've been pretty calm before races and not to nervous or anxious. I've come a long way from freshman year where eight thousand meters of running was just a long arduous battle from start to finish. Don't get me wrong, it's still hard now, but I'm enjoying the pain and discomfort more than I did then. It sounds crazy to describe it that way but that's just the way I feel. I was excited to get to the course early because my Mom had flown up from San Diego to come and watch. I hadn't seen her since school had begun and it was nice to hang out with her before the race. It's always great to have your biggest fan at the meet cheering for you. The women's race got underway a little past two and the team from Washington put on an unprecedented display of dominance, taking the first six spots in the race and sweeping the second ranked Oregon Ducks! On their home course no less! Putting up a perfect score in high school is pretty darn hard, but to do it in college, against the number two team in the nation, is unheard of. Our women's team had a tough day, and had to absorb some off racing. But they're young and will take a lot away from this experience. It was finally our turn to toe the line. Coming into the race we had built up a lot of momentum with some great racing but we weren't going to rest on our laurels. Our previous two weeks of training indicated we were ready to go. Actually, I can't say I was as confident as the rest of our team. I had come down with a cold two weeks prior and suffered some less than quality training as a result. In fact, I had only just begun feeling like my old self the day before. I knew from experience though, that I had to trust all those miles I had put in to prepare for this, and compete without any hesitancy or caution. I ended up feeling fine and competed well. I finish 29th overall and was our team's fourth man, which marked a first for me in that position, so I had nothing to lament about given the way I had felt earlier in the week. Our team finished below its expectations though. We were picked to finish third if not higher but one of our top men battled a cramp and another fought through an illness and slipped back a bit. We ended up fifth, just three points from third place! It wasn't all bad news though, because Drew (Shackleton) ended up running his way into the top ten, taking ninth-place. We were all pretty upset because the last three years we had improved our finishing place and this year thought we had a definite shot at cementing our role as strong team. Although the race didn't turn out the way we had envisioned it has served to energize us even more for Regionals in two weeks. The final marks on our season will be drastically defined by how well we do at Regionals. Anything less than a birth to Nationals will be considered a loss because we are a talented team poised to finish within the top fifteen teams in the nation. We are not discrediting any of the teams going into Regionals and are ready and willing to compete however hard is needed to secure that coveted ride to Terre Haute! -N.G. Cal Athletics Provides Video Clips on You Tube
Check out California's You Tube site, where they host almost 100 videos of Golden Bear athletics. Check out this video of the then fifth-ranked Cal Bears upsetting No. 4 Stanford in a highly anticipated conference matchup!
-M.E.
|
Soccer America, one of the premier soccer publications, honored Stanford head coach Paul Ratcliffe by naming him the 
