College basketball brackets revealed

The NCAA men’s basketball championship brackets were revealed on Sunday afternoon and that means the beginning of  March Madness. Millions of people in the US will now start to take part in bracket pools in the hopes of proving they have top knowledge of the sport.

It’s been a busy day in women’s college basketball as well as conferences finished up post season tournaments and more teams learned that their season is not over. Here’s a list of who earned automatic bids to the to the 2010 NCAA women’s college basketball tournament:

TEAM -CONFERENCE -DATE -LAST BID
—- ———- —- ——–
East Tennessee State (23-8) Atlantic Sun 3/6 2009
Austin Peay (15-17) Ohio Valley 3/6 2009
Princeton (26-2) Ivy League 3/6 none
Marist (26-7) Metro Atlantic Athletic 3/7 2009
Duke (27-5) Atlantic Coast 3/7 2009
Ohio State (30-4) Big Ten 3/7 2009
Tennessee (30-2) Southeastern 3/7 2009
Gonzaga (27-4) West Coast 3/8 2009
Chattanooga (24-8) Southern 3/8 2008
Xavier (27-3) Atlantic 10 3/8 2009
Middle Tennessee (25-5) Sun Belt 3/9 2009
South Dakota State (22-10) Summit League 3/9 2009
Connecticut (33-0) Big East 3/9 2009
Tulane (26-6) Conference USA 3/12 2002
Lamar (26-7) Southland 3/12 1991
Bowling Green (27-6) Mid-American 3/13 2007
UC Riverside (17-15) Big West 3/13 2007
Louisiana Tech (23-8) Western Athletic 3/13 2006
San Diego State (21-10) Mountain West 3/13 2009
Hampton (20-11) Mid-Eastern Athletic 3/13 2004
Portland State (18-14) Big Sky 3/13 none
Lehigh (29-3) Patriot League 3/13 2009
Southern (23-8) Southwestern Athletic 3/13 2006
Vermont (26-6) America East 3/13 2009
James Madison (26-6) Colonial Athletic 3/14 2007
Cleveland State (19-13) Horizon League 3/14 2008
Texas A&M (25-7) Big 12 3/14 2009
Liberty (27-5) Big South 3/14 2009
St. Francis, Pa. (17-14) Northeast 3/14 2005
Northern Iowa (17-15) Missouri Valley 3/14 none
Stanford (31-1) Pacific-10 3/14 2009

Seven UNC soccer players turning pro

If you want to play women’s professional soccer,  there is one collegiate programs that seems to do a particularly good job prepping players for the big show.  In the recent 2010 Women’s Pro Soccer Draft,  seven Tar Heels were selected, including four of the first eight picks.

Tobin Heath was drafted first overall by the Atlanta Beat. Defender Whitney Engen was selected fourth by the Chicago Red Stars.

Two teammates will stick together. Midfielder Nikki Washington will once again set goals up for forward Casey Nogueria. The two were drafted by my local team – the Los Angeles Sol.

Forward Jessica McDonald was chosen in the second round. She’ll join Engen with the Chicago Red Stars. Goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris was also taken in the second round by the St. Louis team, Athletica.

On top of that, defender Kristi Eveland was taken in the fourth round by the DC Freedom.

Led by legendary coach Anson Dorrance this graduating Tar Heel class won three national championships in four years. Dorrance has been the head coach of the North Carolina women’s soccer program since its inception in 1979 and has won 20 NCAA titles.

Following North Carolina, Santa Clara had the next largest group of players picked in the recent draft with five players selected.

Defender Jordan Angeli was picked by Boston in the second round. In the third round, forward Kiki Bosio was picked by the LA Sol and midfielder Amanda Poach went to the St.  Louis Athletica.

Defender Katherine Reynolds will join Santa Clara teammate Angeli in Boston and forward Meagan Snell is heading to Sky Blue FC.

Other college programs that are sending multiple players to the WPS include UCLA (Lauren Cheney, Kristina Larsen, Lauren Wilmoth), Wake Forest (Kaley Fountain, Jill Hutchinson, Caitlin Farrell) and Boston College, Boston University, LSU, Ohio State, Penn State, Portland, Rutgers, Stanford,  Washington State and West Florida.

Playing in college isn’t a prerequisite for a WPS career, but it certainly provides a great opportunity to develop as a player and be seen by the pro coaches and managers.  If your goal is playing professionally, be sure to check out the colleges mentioned here to see if any are a good athletic and academic match.

Stanford’s Kelley O’Hara wins Hermann Trophy

Senior forward Kelley O’Hara became the first Stanford player in history to the win the MAC Hermann Trophy, college soccer’s highest honor.

O’Hara was one of three finalists – North Carolina midfielder Tobin Heath and UCLA forward Lauren Cheney were the others — invited to Friday’s ceremony, with the award decided by a vote of coaches. O’Hara received the women’s honor and Akron’s Teal Bunbury received the men’s.

“It’s a great way to end the college season,” O’Hara said. “I’m so thankful, and blessed. But the reason I was able to get the award was because of my teammates. I couldn’t have done it without them.”

O’Hara, who hails from Fayetteville, Ga., shattered Stanford season records for goals (26) and points (65) this season while leading the nation in both categories. She also dished out 13 assists in 2009, the third-best mark in school history. The senior captain led Stanford to its first NCAA championship final and its’ best-ever record (25-1).

O’Hara earned Pac-10 Conference Player of the Year and NSCAA first-team All-America honors. She also excelled in the classroom, earning Academic All-America honors.

O’Hara completed her collegiate career with 57 goals and 156 points, No. 2 in Cardinal history in both categories. O’Hara is the first player in Stanford history to claim the MAC Hermann Trophy. Last month, she was one of 24 players named to a December training camp for the full U.S. national team. O’Hara has played internationally from the under-17 to the under-23 age groups.

O’Hara had been nominated three times for the award, but had never been a finalist until this year, joining Julie Foudy (1991 and ‘92) as the only finalists in Stanford history.

Stanford and O’Hara had a fairy-tale season that included a Pac-10 title and a perfect record heading into the College Cup final, which ended with a disappointing 1-0 loss to North Carolina and a (questionable?)  red card for O’Hara in her final collegiate match.

“This is a great honor,” O’Hara said. “But I would give it up to win a national championship. That’s not to downplay the trophy. To be honored like this is incredible. I’m so excited.”

A 2009 NSCAA first-team All-America, O’Hara was the Pacific-10 Conference’s Player of the Year and an ESPN The Magazine first-team Academic All-American.

The Hermann Trophy has been awarded since 1967 to men, and since 1988 to women. Michelle Akers was the first women’s winner, and Mia Hamm won it twice. O’Hara becomes just the third winner from a Bay Area school: Mani Hernandez of San Jose State won the men’s award in 1968 and Santa Clara’s Aly Wagner won the women’s in 2002.

Click here to read the Missouri Athletic Club press release.

NCAA Volleyball Tournament Final Four tonight

Where the elite meet: Be sure to catch tonight’s national volleyball semifinals when they take place in Tampa, Florida.

Thursday’s semifinals: Minnesota (28-8) vs. Texas (28-1), 6 p.m. • Penn State (36-0) vs. Hawaii (32-2), 8 p.m. • St. Pete Times Forum (Tampa, Fla.) • TV: ESPN2

Championship: Saturday, 7 p.m. • TV: All matches on ESPN2.

Gophers at a glance: Captain Lauren Gibbemeyer is 11th in the nation in hitting percentage (.393) and blocks (1.45 per set). … Freshman Tabitha Love, a 6-6 outside hitter, was named the Most Outstanding Player in the Minneapolis Region after collecting 22 kills in the semifinals and 21 in the final. … Senior setter Taylor Carico played in the Final Four on Southern Cal’s team two years ago. … Libero Christine Tan is returning home; her family lives in Safety Harbor, Fla.

Longhorns at a glance: 6-4 Destinee Hooker was the Big 12 Player of the Year (4.95 kills and 2.31 digs per set). … The Longhorns’ only loss was at Iowa State 3-2 on Nov. 4. … Jerritt Elliott, 41, has a 213-63 record in nine seasons at Texas.

Nittany Lions at a glance: Penn State, which has won 100 matches in a row, has a chance at an unprecedented threepeat. The No. 1 seed, Penn State has lost only five sets this season. … Russ Rose, in his 31st season, has 999 career victories. … Megan Hodge, the Big Ten Player of the Year and a two-time Final Four MVP, is averaging 4.75 kills per set and hitting .399. Setter Alisha Glass is averaging 12.02 assists per set.

Rainbow Wahine at a glance: Kanani Danielson of No. 12 seed Hawaii is averaging 4.25 kills per set and Aneli Cubi-Otineru 3.08. … David Shoji is in his 34th season and has 1,016 career victories, second among active D-I coaches (behind UCLA’s Andy Banachowski). … The Rainbow Wahine has won 28 consecutive matches.

( b/g via StarTribune)

UCLA Stanford; UNC Notre Dame today

The College Cup is on.

The Pac-10 squads #1 Stanford vs. #3 UCLA face off in the NCAA semifinals today on national television at 2:30 p.m. PT/5:30 p.m. ET.

Following the UCLA Stanford game, #2 North Carolina takes on #4 Notre Dame. Atlantic Coast Conference champion Tar Heels and Fighting Irish will square off at 5:00 p.m. PT/8:00 p.m. ET.

The winners move on to the championship on Sunday. If you’re not in College Station, Texas to watch the games live, be sure to catch both matches on ESPN2.

The championship game will take place Sunday at 10:00 a.m.

Yesterday was Media Day and last night, all the players attended a banquet at A&M. For a peek at the UCLA women all dressed up for the big event – go to the NCAA College Cup Banquet Gallery

NCAA Website: Women’s College Cup Central
UCLA Website: Bruins Women’s Soccer
Stanford Website: Cardinal Women’s Soccer
UNC Website: Tar Heel Women’s Soccer
Notre Dame Website: Irish Women’s Soccer

Podcast: Pretty Tough Peak Performance Episode 08

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 5:12 — 4.8MB)

Pretty Tough is proud to present the eighth in our series of weekly podcasts focusing on Peak Performance.

The PT Peak Performance series features leading experts from the fields of sports nutrition, diet, sports psychology and core and fitness training, as well as athletes, trainers and coaches. Each program is 6 – 8 minutes in length and provides cutting edge information and actionable advice to help athletes of all ages perform at their peak with a special focus on the female athlete.

Episode 008: Rebecca Scritchfield discusses the ins and outs of sports drinks.  Listen as Rebecca provides essential details about nutrition, hydration and maintaining optimum health.

About Rebecca Scritchfield: Rebecca Scritchfield is a Washington, D.C. based registered dietitian in private practice. Members of Congress, corporate executives, and professional and recreational athletes seek Rebecca’s  expertise to help them reach their performance goals. She received a master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University and was recognized by American Dietetic Association in 2009 as “Young Dietitian of the Year”.

On to the College Cup

While many sports fans in Los Angeles were at the Coliseum Saturday night for the UCLA – USC football game, it was a great night at Drake Stadium where the UCLA women  came back from an early Portland goal to win the NCAA quarterfinal soccer  game 2-1.

With the win last night, the Bruins advanced to their seventh consecutive NCAA Women’s College Cup. And, for the first time since 1986, the previous year’s field returns intact. The only difference this weekend, 12 months after North Carolina beat Stanford and Notre Dame beat UCLA in the 2008 semifinals, is the draw: Stanford and UCLA meet in a Pac-10 rematch and North Carolina and Notre Dame meet in a rematch of both last season’s championship game and a 6-0 win for the Tar Heels in South Bend three months ago.

One of the constants for the Bruins over the last four years has been the stellar play of forward Lauren Cheney. Cheney and sophomore forward Sydney Leroux are part of a potent offense that is averaging 2.91 goals per game (10th in nation). Both players have scored over 40 points this season, becoming the first UCLA tandem to accomplish the feat. They have combined for 85 of 195 of the team’s points, or 43.5 percent of UCLA’s scoring.

The finals will be played next weekend in College Station, Texas.

Check out this video recap of the UCLA-Portland game with former Bruin all-star Jill Oakes.  Note we missed the early Portland goal – which happened about 2 minutes into the game (sorry, we were still setting up) but you’ll see lots of great action by two of the top collegiate teams.

Podcast: Pretty Tough Peak Performance Episode 007 Pt. 2

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 5:10 — 4.7MB)

Pretty Tough is proud to present Part 2 of our seventh podcast in our weekly series focusing on Peak Performance.

The PT Peak Performance series features leading experts from the fields of sports nutrition, diet, sports psychology and core and fitness training, as well as athletes, trainers and coaches. Each program is 6 – 8 minutes in length and provides cutting edge information and actionable advice to help athletes of all ages perform at their peak with a special focus on the female athlete.

Episode 007 Part 2: Rebecca Scritchfield discusses the ins and outs of energy drinks in our second of a two part  podcast. Listen as Rebecca provides more essential details about energy drinks, nutrition and maintaining optimum health and fitness.

About Rebecca Scritchfield: Rebecca Scritchfield is a Washington, D.C. based registered dietitian in private practice. Members of Congress, corporate executives, and professional and recreational athletes seek Rebecca’s  expertise to help them reach their performance goals. She received a master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University and was recognized by American Dietetic Association in 2009 as “Young Dietitian of the Year”.

http://www.rebeccascritchfield.com

Female athletes outperform their male counterparts in college

College athletes are still setting records and dispelling myths — in the classroom.

The NCAA’s latest graduation numbers show nearly four out of five student-athletes earn their diplomas on time, an all-time high, and federal statistics show athletes are still more likely to graduate on time than other students.

“The misconception is that NCAA student-athletes are not good students,” interim NCAA President Jim Isch said in a conference call Wednesday. “The truth, as [late NCAA President] Myles reminded people, is that they could perform in the classroom and they outperformed the general student body in almost every measure.”

NCAA officials believe the improving numbers can be attributed to stronger eligibility standards for incoming freshmen and a greater emphasis on academics during Brand’s tenure as president.

No surprise to us that female athletes outperformed their male counterparts, 88 percent to 72 percent.  The only women’s sport to score lower than 79 percent was bowling at 74 percent (better hit those books bowlers). Women’s basketball came in at 83 percent under NCAA guidelines.

The three biggest men’s sports — football, basketball and baseball — all failed to top 70 percent in the NCAA report (those players better hit the books as well).

Walter Harrison, chairman of the committee on academic performance, believes next year’s rate will show even more progress and he offers congratulations to all student-athletes for proving the critics wrong.

Podcast: Pretty Tough Peak Performance Episode 007 Pt.1

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 6:27 — 5.9MB)

Pretty Tough is proud to present the seventh episode in our series of weekly podcasts focusing on Peak Performance.

The PT Peak Performance series features leading experts from the fields of sports nutrition, diet, sports psychology and core and fitness training, as well as athletes, trainers and coaches. Each program is 6 – 8 minutes in length and provides cutting edge information and actionable advice to help athletes of all ages perform at their peak with a special focus on the female athlete.

Episode 007 Part 1: Rebecca Scritchfield discusses the ins and outs of energy drinks in our first of a two-part podcast. Listen as Rebecca provides essential details about energy drinks, nutrition, and maintaining optimum health and fitness.

About Rebecca Scritchfield: Rebecca Scritchfield is a Washington, D.C. based registered dietitian in private practice. Members of Congress, corporate executives, and professional and recreational athletes seek Rebecca’s expertise to help them reach their performance goals. She received a master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University and was recognized by American Dietetic Association in 2009 as “Young Dietitian of the Year”.

http://www.rebeccascritchfield.com

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