And yet several weaknesses, such as an inconsistent offensive line and a porous defense, proved to be the Tigers’ downfall late in the season, suffering blowout losses to Georgia Tech, NC State and South Carolina in the regular season while also being embarrassed in the national spotlight by West Virginia’s “Air Raid.”

Despite these losses, the Tigers will enter 2012 with targets on their backs, and if they want to make it back to Charlotte and back to Miami, several things must be done to ensure the Tigers don’t suffer a critical meltdown, as they seem to do whenever the media attention shifts towards them.

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National champions.

The Cougars held on to defeat a resilient Arkansas State team in the USA Rugby Division I men’s rugby national title game at Rio Tinto Stadium Saturday, winning 49-42.

That victory secured BYU’s second national title in four years and an undefeated season in 2012.

“It was a great experience and a great night,” said Cougar head coach David Smyth. “To accomplish what we accomplished this year was nothing short of fantastic. I couldn’t be happier or more proud of these boys.”

For senior prop Mikey Su’a, a fan favorite and the winner of the Most Valuable Player award for the title game, going out on top was everything he could’ve wanted.

“There is no better way to go out than by winning the national championship,” Su’a said. “I don’t know if I deserved the MVP award. I can think of other guys who deserved it but I will accept it on behalf of our senior class. It is great going out with these boys in this way.”

While the Cougars had the edge on the scoreboard for much of the contest, the Red Wolves of Arkansas State proved to be a challenging opponent.

“We knew this was going to be a tough game,” said BYU No. 8 Ryan Roundy. “We played them last year in a tough semifinal and they had a lot of players back. Any team that goes to Army and to St. Mary’s and wins is going to bring it and they did. We’d get a try and go up by three scores, then they would come right back. But we did enough to win.”

Even facing the mostly pro-Cougar crowd, the Red Wolves started strong and build an early 8-0 lead.

BYU stayed calm and rallied with tries by Kumi Tua’one and Tua Laei.

With the score tied at 15 after an Arkansas State try, the Cougars were able to create some separation when senior flyhalf Shaun Davies scored a try, followed by the Red Wolf kickoff going out of the end zone.

On the ensuing scrum at midfield, BYU broke free down the right side with Will Taylor scoring the try after Laei had crashed through the Red Wolf defense.

That 14-point edge would be enough for the Cougars to maintain the edge for the rest of the game.

“We knew we had the firepower,” Roundy explained. ” We just had to start putting points on the board and it worked.”

A try by Paul Lasike extended the lead, then BYU edged out to its biggest lead at 46-23 when Su’a lunged across the line.

“Su’a played a huge game for us,” Smyth said. “We figured that would happen, since he was a senior and we knew he would go out with a bang. His effort on that try at the end really sealed the game for us.”

Arkansas State refused to fold and rallied with three late tries, including the final one as time expired, but the hole proved to be too great.

“They are huge, athletic guys and that’s the type of team you want to play in the national championship,” said Red Wolf head coach Matt Huckaby. “It’s the team you’d rather beat, of course, but they are a great team.”

Arkansas State players were also very complimentary of the play by the Cougars, with Zac Mizell saying trying to run down a BYU break was like “chasing a stampede.”

The Cougars closed out the season by hoisting the national championship trophy high, then honoring the Red Wolves with a Haka dance.

“We knew this was going to be an emotional week,” Davies said. “The seniors knew it would be their last game and so we wanted to give it our all. I think that when you look at the result, you can see that we did that. We weren’t perfect but a win is a win and it gave us the national championship.”

Smyth said that drive to win was what made the difference in the final contest as well as throughout the season.

“In a meeting on Monday, we talked about how losing wasn’t an option,” he explained. “This group throughout the year, whatever the challenge, never accepted that losing would be an option. They always found a way to take care of business and that was the same tonight. When the chips were down, they did what they needed to do.”

Daily Herald sports editor Jared Lloyd can be reached at 801-344-2555 or at jlloyd@heraldextra.com. He can also be followed on Twitter at @JaredrLloyd.

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At first glance, it seems blasphemous to say that any other game could be more important to Michigan fans than “The Game” on November 24th, but when you take a hard look at what has transpired between the Spartans and Wolverines over the past 16 years, it becomes easier to understand. 

Michigan boasted an astounding 10-2 record against the Spartans from 1996-2007. Many of those games were made more memorable for Wolverine fans due to Michigan State’s habit of coughing up late leads and their uncanny ability to seize defeat from the jaws of victory. 

The six consecutive years of bragging rights from 2002-2007 eventually led to Michigan’s fans and players being overconfident, brash and arrogant when it came to talking about the Spartans. 

All of this came to a boiling point at the conclusion of Michigan’s 10-point, fourth-quarter comeback victory over Michigan State in 2007 at Spartan Stadium. 

Once the clock ran out, the Wolverine players gathered around midfield to have a “moment of silence” in order to mock Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio, who jokingly asked if he should have a “moment of silence” after being informed of Michigan’s monumental loss to Appalachian State earlier that season. 

Later on in the postgame press conferences, Michigan running back Mike Hart dubbed the Spartans as the Wolverines’ “Little Brother,” which no one on either side of the rivalry has or ever will forget. 

When Dantonio was asked about all of those events by members of the media following the game, he responded with a frustrated tone, a stern set of words and set the tone for the immediate future of the bitter rivalry. 

“I find a lot of the things they do amusing. They need to check themselves sometimes, but just remember pride comes before the fall,” Dantonio said. ”This game is an important game, so if they want to mock us I’m telling ‘em it’s not over. They can print all that crap all over their locker room. It’s not over and it’ll never be over here. It’s just started. 

“Whether they mock us or not this game will be important to Michigan State. If they want to make a mockery of it so be it. Their time will come.” 

Michigan State went on to win the next four meetings between the two squads after Dantonio’s comments, and it has been because of the level of importance the Spartans’ head man has placed on the rivalry. 

The Wolverines are to the Spartans what Ohio State is to Michigan—their most important rival. As much as Dantonio and Michigan State love to compete for Big Ten Championships, beating Michigan means more to them than any other victory over the course of the season does. 

Michigan seemed to have forgotten to take the rivalry between the two teams seriously at the height of their dominance over the Spartans, because of that—and the abysmal three years Rich Rodriguez spent as head coach of the Wolverines from 2008-2010—Michigan is getting a dose of the medicine they dished out to Michigan State for 10 out of 12 years. 

Now, after four consecutive wins over Michigan, a share of the Big Ten Championship in 2010 and a Legends Division title last season, it’s the Spartan fans who have become brash, arrogant and a bit too cocky for the likings of the Wolverine faithful. 

Even Dantonio has taken a few shots of his own at the Wolverines coaches and program over the past five months. 

Michigan wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator Jeff Hecklinski was asked to speak after Dantonio at the annual Michigan High School Football Coaches Association clinic in January. Hecklinski began to talk about recruiting in the state of Michigan before being rudely cut-off by the Spartans head coach. 

“OK, here’s what we’re going to do,” Dantonio said. “We’re going to get other people up here. We’re going to talk about more than the University of Michigan.” 

In April, a reporter asked Dantonio what he thought of Michigan’s outstanding success on the recruiting trail over the past year. All Dantonio did was smile and deliver an answer along with a question of his own that has tensions between Michigan and Michigan State fans nearing perhaps all-time highs. 

“We’re laying in the weeds,” Dantonio told ESPN.com’s Brian Bennett. “We’ve beat Michigan the last four years. So where’s the threat?” 

Unfortunately, for Wolverine fans, there’s nothing untrue about Dantonio’s response, and even Michigan’s second-year head coach Brady Hoke acknowledged on Friday afternoon they have to do better. 

“They’ve beaten Michigan the last four years and we need to do something about it,” Hoke said on WTKA-AM 1050. “That’s what it’s all about. We’ve got to do our job. We haven’t done our job.” 

Hoke and his staff raised plenty of eyebrows across the country after leading Michigan to an 11-2 record in 2011, but he continues to remind everyone that the Wolverines failed to accomplish their main goal last season by not winning the Big Ten title, which they would have had a chance to play for had it not been for the 28-14 beatdown they took in East Lansing in mid-October. 

The two teams will enter the 2012 season as the favorites to represent the Legends Division in the Big Ten Championship Game and their tilt at the Big House is likely to be a key factor in deciding which one of them it will be. 

Hoke and the Wolverines got a huge monkey off their back last season when they defeated Ohio State for the first time since 2003 and won 11 games for only the fifth time in school history. The loss to Michigan State though is enough to say the Wolverines have not fully returned to vintage form. 

Winning “The Game” against the Buckeyes will be as important as it always is to Michigan, and their heavyweight bout with defending national champion Alabama at Cowboys Stadium on September 1st will give the Wolverines a chance to prove they are ready to contend for national titles. 

Neither of those games would re-establish Michigan as the best team in their own state, put a pacifier in the mouths of Spartan fans until 2013 and end Michigan State’s four-year reign over the Wolverines though.

Zach Dirlam is the Lead Editor of the College Basketball section as well as Big Ten columnist for the FOX Sports/MSN/YardBarker affiliate website Sports at Work. Check out his blog, Dirlam’s Dirty Dugout Sports Blog, which features this story, along with other articles and video reports on major sports.

Follow Zach on Twitter. 

Read more Michigan Wolverines Football news on BleacherReport.com

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A disappointing Michigan baseball season came to an end Saturday, when visiting Nebraska scored a 7-3 win at Ray Fisher Stadium.

Hampered by injuries most of the year, the Wolverines (22-34) finished below .500 for the second straight year after having a winning record during each of coach Rich Maloney’s first eight seasons.

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Steve McCrilis, the third base umpire, swung both arms.

Safe.

And then senior third-baseman Stephanie Kirkpatrick was walked after the call to load the bases. Hutchins took out sophomore right-fielder Lyndsay Doyle for sophomore catcher Caitlin Blanchard, and Blanchard was hit by a pitch and Lane jogged home screaming.

The No. 21 Michigan softball team (41-15) won in dramatic fashion on Saturday, defeating Louisville (50-4), 2-1, in eight innings.

But it wasn’t the walk-off that headlined the game.

Lane began the comeback in the eighth inning with a single up the right field gap for her second hit of the game. After a pop out, junior shortstop Amy Knapp hit a bloop single that fell right in front of Louisville right-fielder Kristin Austin. Austin picked up the ball, looked to first and gunned to third, but it wasn’t enough.

“Safe or out, I thought I was safe,” Lane said. “And you know what? It doesn’t matter.”

“That’s a huge win,” Michigan coach Carol Hutchins said. “We had to hang in there. The problem wasn’t that we gave up the run. The problem was that we didn’t take advantage of our opportunities to get a few more runs early. But we hung in there.”

It was the Wolverines’ second consecutive walk-off win, after Sara Driesenga hit a two-out double in the bottom of the seventh against Kentucky last night.

Michigan held a 1-0 lead up until the seventh inning, but Louisville star Alicja Wolny smacked a double to lead off for the Cardinals. Wolny was taken out for a pinch runner, who advanced to third on a wild pitch by freshman left-hander Haylie Wagner. Louisville then used a sacrifice fly to score the tying run.

Despite giving up the run in the seventh, Wagner allowed just three hits and two walks in a full eight innings of work. After Saturday’s game, Wagner has now pitched 232 innings this season.

This time she finally felt some of the fatigue that comes as a result.

“I’m a little tired, but I feel good,” Wagner said. “I’ll rest up today and do another ice bath, but I’m just going to be ready to go tomorrow. If I’m going to pitch then I’m going to pitch and do whatever it takes to help Michigan win.”

Wagner used a strong defensive showing from Kirkpatrick, who had 10 putouts at third base. It was also Wagner’s 31st win this season, tying former Michigan pitcher Jordan Taylor’s freshman record for wins in a season, which was news to her.

“I didn’t know that, but that’s great,” Wagner said. “I’m just doing what I can out there and if it’s going to break it or whatever it’s going to do then I’m proud of myself.”

Though the Wolverines picked up the win, their offense struggled on Saturday facing a Louisville pitching staff ranked fourth in the nation.

Cardinal starting pitcher Caralisa Connell held the Wolverines to four hits and allowed just four walks in six innings.

“I didn’t think (her pitching) was too overpowering, I think our timing was just a little off,” Lane said. “I think given a second round we can do a lot better.”

Michigan scored its first run in the second inning when Kirkpatrick reached on an error. Doyle followed with a walk before senior center-fielder Bree Evans reached on a fielder’s choice. The ball was hit at Louisville’s second baseman, who could not decide what to do with it, and the bases were loaded. A sacrifice fly by sophomore left-fielder Nicole Sappingfield scored Kirkpatrick to put the Wolverines up, 1-0.

Michigan lost to the Cardinals earlier in the year, 2-1, but they handed Louisville its fourth loss of the season and its first loss at home.

Louisvikle beat Kentucky late Saturday night, 3-2, and will face Michigan tomorrow at 1:00 p.m.

“We love playing ball,” said Louisville coach Sandy Pearsall. “What can be better than playing more games? This team has it in them. I know they can do this.”

Despite reaching the finals Hutchins won’t get too excited about her ballclub’s victories. She still feels that her team is the underdog in this regional.

“(Winning) doesn’t guarantee a thing,” Hutchins said. “There’s a lot of softball left to play.”

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By David Schuh

Entering the final day of the SEC season Saturday, the UK baseball team needed to beat Mississippi St. and get some help from LSU and Florida.

LSU won and Florida lost. The Cats got the outside help they sought. However, they couldn’t take care of their own fate.

Leading 2-0 after three, the Bulldogs got three in the fourth and five in the fifth to run away with the game and the series, 11-2. UK was plagued by three errors which fueled the MSU rallies.

With the loss, UK finished a game behind conference champion, LSU. They received the #4 seed in next week’s SEC tournament.

The Cats opening game of the postseason will begin on Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. against Ole Miss. UK took two of three from the Rebels in Lexington in April.

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May 19, 2012

Recap | 
Box Score | 
Notes | 
Photo Gallery 

Michigan Head Coach Carol Hutchins
On the game … “That is a huge win. I can tell you that the biggest game in the regional is the second game when you are in the winner’s bracket to get into that final. It doesn’t guarantee a thing though. There is a lot of softball left to play and Louisville is a fantastic team. We just really had to hang in there. We didn’t have a lot of offense going. Their pitcher did a great job, but our pitcher did a great job by containing their offense and it got a little hairy there late. The problem wasn’t that we gave up the run; the problem was we didn’t take advantage of the opportunity to get a few more runs early. But we hung in there and got out of the inning, and we had to scrap and scrape. It is easy to get down in a situation like that. Our kids kept fighting and clawing and played one-pitch softball. We were able to come away with the win and we are fortunate and we’ll take it.”

On why this game was so important … “No one likes to come back through the loser’s bracket because it is pretty taxing on your pitching. But it is certainly not impossible. But this is a game that is pretty tight around the edges, and I thought both teams were tight around the edges. It is the perception of that game because nobody wants to get in the loser’s bracket. I can tell you this, tomorrow, that will be the biggest game in the regional.”

On sending Ashley Lane to third in the eighth inning … “It was a gutsy call, but I thought it was the right thing to do. It wasn’t happening on its own and the goal is run harder around that base. I was sending her hard and if she is running hard, she had a good chance to make it. It certainly was a very close play and the call went our way.”

On Caitlin Blanchard’s at-bat … “We told her to take the first strike. I said we didn’t need a sacrifice fly with two outs. We just needed her to hit the ball hard. She stood right in there and took that hit-by-pitch and that is something we haven’t seen much this year. We get out of the way and so she stood right in there and took it.”

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May 19, 2012

Sophomore Jeffrey Kang carded his second consecutive 67 while senior Steve Lim and junior Sam Smith each fired 69s to lead the No. 5 USC men’s golf squad to victory at the 2012 NCAA Ann Arbor (Mich.) Regional on Saturday (May 19) at the Michigan G.C. and earn a spot in the upcoming Trojan-hosted NCAA Championships.

The Trojans began the day with a one stroke lead over Oregon, Kent State and TCU and held them all off to win at 11-under 841 (289-272-280), turning in a 4-under final round. Oregon took second (842), matching USC’s final round, while Kent State was third (844), Virginia fourth (846) and TCU fifth (849).

The top five teams in each of the six NCAA regionals – three with 13 teams and three with 14 teams — and the low individual not on those teams advance to the NCAA Championship final, hosted by USC between May 29-June 3 at The Riviera C.C. in Pacific Palisades.

“It feels great to play well in such a critical week,” said USC sixth-year head coach Chris Zambri, who has now guided the Trojans into the NCAA final in each of his first six seasons. “Everyone contributed and now we need to find ways to improve and be sharp for Rivera.”

USC’s win was its second this season and its eighth top 4 finish.

Kang led four Trojans in the top 20 with a 10th-place finish at 4-under 209 (75-67-67) for his fifth top 10 mark this year and sixth in the top 12. He was 3-under during the front 9 and 1-under on the back, knocking in eight birdies on the day.

Lim (72-70-69) and freshman Anthony Paolucci (67-69-75) tied for 13th at 2-under 211. Lim’s final round included three birdies and an eagle on the par 5 11th hole. Paolucci didn’t have a final-round birdie, but his strong first and second rounds helped him to his fifth top 17 finish this season.

Smith tied for 17th at 1-under 212 (75-68-69) for his fifth top 20 finish this year. He had five birdies Saturday, including three during a 2-under back 9.

Junior Martin Trainer rounded out USC’s efforts, tied for 35th at 5-over 218 (75-68-75). He had three birdies during the round.

All attention turns to the NCAA Championships, where the Trojans will look for their first national crown in program history while hosting the event.

Tickets for the event are available at usctrojans.com. All-session tickets are currently available for $30 on-line. Single-day tickets will be available for $10 at the gate on a daily basis during the competition. Children 12-and-under will be admitted free with a paying adult.

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May 19, 2012

POSTMATCH PRESS CONFERENCE

ATHENS, GA. – The USC women’s tennis team made history today with its first win over Stanford in an NCAA Tournament since 1983. The Women of Troy proved their grit in refusing to back down when the Cardinal took leads on all but one singles court. The Trojans had claimed a dramatic doubles point, but saw Stanford tie it up 2-2 before making a determined stand on courts 2-4. In the end, it was a set of three three-set comeback efforts – all different and yet all impressive – from Gabriella DeSimone, Danielle Lao and Sabrina Santamaria that brought home the 4-2 win. The 24-3 Trojans now turn to face another Pac-12 rival in the coming NCAA Semifinals. No. 5 seed USC will take on No. 1 seed UCLA at 1 p.m. ET on Monday (May 21) for the right to play for the 2012 national championship at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex in Athens, Ga.

This will be USC’s second NCAA Semifinal appearance since 2006, when the Trojans lost to Miami. But history has already been made in today’s upset of Stanford, which had beaten USC all but once (2009) in the past 26 years before today’s 4-2 Trojan win. The Trojans also had fallen to Stanford five times in past NCAA meetings, dating back to a 1983 Trojan semifinal win that USC followed by claiming the 1983 NCAA crown.

USC reined in the doubles point with a dramatic comeback to take an important early edge in the match. USC’s relative veteran combo of senior Alison Ramos and junior Danielle Lao buckled into a tight match on court three and wound up securing one last break to clinch the point for USC. Lao/Ramos’ heroics followed a tough battle on court one, where USC’s #3 Kaitlyn Christian and Sabrina Santamaria held off a late surge by Stanford’s #2Burdette/Gibbs in a rematch of the 2012 Pac-12 Doubles Championship. The reigning champs, Christian/Santamaria put forth a powerful tandem in the final game to hold serve on strong net play by Christian, and USC had the doubles scene even with their 8-6 decision. Stanford had managed the early advantage with a well-timed break late in the matchup on court two, as #24 Cardinal pair Tan/Tsay pulled out of a 5-5 lockup with USC’s #49 Valeria Pulido / Zoe Scandalis to win 8-5 in that one. The Trojans would respond to the challenge, however, as Christian/Santamaria and Lao/Ramos ramped up the USC effort to get the 1-0 lead. Christian/Santamaria’s win marked the pair’s ninth straight win together.

Stanford responded to that Trojan advantage by moving to win the first sets on every court but No. 3. The equalizer came on court one for the Cardinal, where #3 Nicole Gibbs topped USC’s #14 freshman Zoe Scandalis 6-1, 6-4. But there was a tide turning in the Trojans favor on court five, where freshman Gabriella DeSimone finally made herself comfortable in her first NCAA visit. DeSimone erased a 1-6 loss in the first set with near-complete domination in the next two sets. She built a 3-0 lead in the second and forced a third with her 6-2 win. In the third, she cruised ahead 5-0 and then buckled down to put the Trojans up 2-1 with her 1-6, 6-2, 6-2 win over Ellen Tsay. In a rare sag for junior Valeria Pulido, USC saw Stanford even it up again when Pulido’s 16-match singles win streak was snapped by a 6-4, 7-5 Cardinal victory on court six by Veronica Li.

The match hung completely in the balance from there, but there were still three very determined Women of Troy playing side-by-side and feeding off of each other. #19 USC junior Danielle Lao had her hands full with Stanford’s #5 Mallory Burdette on court two. But Lao managed to turn the tables and pull out a strong second set to force a third. There, Lao fell behind 3-4 around the same time that her teammate — #26 freshman Sabrina Santamaria — was trying to dig out of a 2-5 deficit on court three. At the No. 4 spot, sophomore Kaitlyn Christian was making her move to avoid a sweep and force a third. And with that combined effort, the Trojans were able to find a spark. Lao shrugged off that 3-4 hole and held, then broke Burdette in a key game that set up Lao to serve for the win. Santamaria, too, ignored a 2-5 deficit and clawed her way back. She would get broken in her last game as Stanford’s #25 Stacey Tan brought the match into a deciding tiebreaker, but she did not account for Santamaria’s final gutsy push. Lao finished off Burdette first, holding serve to claim a 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 comeback that lifted USC within reach, up 3-2. Santamaria was all business in her tiebreaker, remaining unrattled with Tan fought back to tie it 4-4 and 5-5. Santamaria’s heroics were capped with the last two points, and she won the day for the Trojans on her 7-5, 1-6, 7-6 (5) victory at the No. 3 spot.

The USC-UCLA NCAA Semifinal will mark the fourth time the two crosstown rivals will clash this year. The Bruins beat the Trojans 4-0 in the semifinals of the ITA National Team Indoors in February, and won 4-3 in a nonconference clash in March. In the teams’ 2012 Pac-12 match, USC beat UCLA 6-1 in April. Now, the Trojans and the Bruins collide in the 2012 NCAA Semifinals at 1 p.m. ET on Monday (May 21) at Georgia’s Dan Magill Tennis Complex.

2012 NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS (Dan Magill Tennis Complex – Athens, Ga.)
Quarterfinals – May 19
[5] USC 4, [4] Stanford 2
DOUBLES
(1) #3 Christian/Santamaria (USC) def. #2 Burdette/Gibbs (STAN) – 8-6
(2). #24 Tan/Tsay (STAN) def. #49 Pulido/Scandalis (USC) – 8-5
(3) Lao/Ramos (USC) def. Ahn/Li (STAN) – 8-6
USC wins doubles point.
Order of finish: 2, 1, 3
SINGLES
(1). #3 Nicole Gibbs (STAN) def. #14 Zoe Scandalis (USC) – 6-1, 6-4
(2) #19 Danielle Lao (USC) def. #5 Mallory Burdette (STAN) – 4-6, 6-2, 6-4
(3) #26 Sabrina Santamaria (USC) def. #25 Stacey Tan (STAN) – 7-5, 1-6, 7-6 (5)
(4) #89 Kaitlyn Christian (USC) vs. Kristie Ahn (STAN) – 4-6, 7-5, 2-1 susp.
(5) Gabriella DeSimone (USC) def. #74 Ellen Tsay (STAN) – 1-6, 6-2, 6-2
(6) Veronica Li (STAN) def. Valeria Pulido (USC) – 6-4, 7-5
Order of finish: 1, 5, 6, 2, 3

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OU baseball: Sooners dominate Samford to take final series

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OU won its final game of the regular season and second in a row with a series-clinching 13-3 victory against Samford on Saturday afternoon.

Sophomore pitcher Damien Magnifico toed the rubber in his first start since a 6-1 loss at Oklahoma State on April 24.

Magnifico, who became a household name after shutting out No. 18 Arkansas in just his second start of the season back on April 10, showed no signs of rust — allowing just one hit through the first five frames.

After falling behind early in their previous two games in the series, the Sooners jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first thanks to a pair of RBIs from junior outfielder Max White and senior first baseman Evan Mistich.

Two innings later, Oklahoma scored four more and extended its lead to six.

With two outs and two on, Mistich recorded his second RBI of the day, singling through the middle of the infield, and drove in fellow senior Cody Reine.

In the next at-bat, junior second baseman Jack Mayfield followed suit, singling through the infield to score White and advance Mistich to third.

Mayfield scored the final run of the inning on an error.

The Sooners tacked two more runs on the board in the sixth on a Max White RBI single and an Evan Mistich sacrifice bunt, giving the Sooners a comfortable 8-1 lead heading into the seventh.

Junior Drew Harrison, who’s capable of playing first base in addition to pitching, relieved Magnifico in the top of the seventh after Magnifico allowed back-to-back hits and an unearned run.

Magnifico surrendered a pair of runs on five hits through six innings with five Ks and two walks on his way to picking up his third win of the season.

Harrison retired the side to get the Sooners out the jam, and Oklahoma’s offense scored three more runs in the bottom half of the seventh, two of them coming off of a Hunter Lockwood homer — his team-leading 10th home run of the season.

In the bottom of the eighth, Lockwood was at it again with his second dinger of the day, this time a solo shot that gave the Sooners a 12-3

Harrison finished the game for the Sooners, throwing three innings and giving up one run on two hits with four strikeouts.

Oklahoma will be back in action at the Big 12 Championship in Bricktown next week.

With the win, Oregon improves to 40-14 on the year, recording the club’s second 40-win season since the program was reinstated (2009). The Ducks also clinched their 11th weekend series win of the year.

Oregon and Seattle (22-26) entered the ninth inning knotted at 4-4, and UO reliever Tommy Thorpe (2-0) retired the final two batters he faced in the top of the frame.

In the bottom of the ninth, Payne was plunked by Seattle reliever Eric Yardley (2-2,) and was sitting at first with one out when Jones delivered a full-count blast into left center allowing Payne to score the game-winning run.

For Jones, it was his team-leading 36th RBI of the season and the ninth time this year he has been responsible for driving in the game-winning run. In addition, the last time the Ducks won in walk-off fashion, it was also Jones delivering the hit with a RBI single in UO’s 8-7 victory over Long Beach State on March 4, 2012.

Jones led Oregon with a 2-for-4 effort, while Ryon Healy batted 2-for-3 and recorded his 33rd RBI of the year.

After taking a 1-0 in the first as Healy’s RBI single into center field allowed Payne to score, the Ducks had trouble reading Seattle starter Brandon Kizer and were shut out for the next four innings. Kizer retired 13 consecutive batters from the first until a Connor Hofmann single in the fifth.

Oregon’s lead wouldn’t last long as UO starter Jake Reed got roughed up in the second and third innings. In the second inning, Seattle plated the equalizer as Reed surrendered three consecutive singles. Nate Roberts then drove a sacrifice fly into center field to score the Redhawks’ first run of the game.

Seattle took a 3-1 lead in the top of third as Riley Tompkins’ RBI single slinked through the right side allowing Marcelino Morales to score. The Redhawks then loaded the bases with no outs and scored their second run of the inning as Trent Oleszczuk scored when Jace Sloan hit into a double play.

Oregon closed 3-2 in the bottom of the sixth as Kyle Garlick’s RBI groundout allowed Jones to score after he led off the inning for the Ducks taking a free base when he was plunked by Kizer.

The Ducks evened the game, 3-3, in the bottom of the seventh as Brett Hambright led things off with a bunt single placed down the third base line. He moved to second on a sacrifice before scoring on J.J. Altobelli’s RBI single.

Seattle retook the lead in the top of the eighth as reliever UO Joey Housey got into trouble issuing a two-out walk to Roberts. He moved to third on Eric Koenig’s drive to right field, and scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch.

Once again, Oregon battled back to tie the game at 4-4 in the bottom of the eighth as Kizer issued a leadoff walk to Healy. Kevin Shepherd replaced him on the bases and moved to second on a sacrifice before Yardley was brought out of the bullpen for Seattle. Shepherd moved to third on a deep fly ball, and scored when Ryan Hambright drove a two-out single into left field.

In the loss, Yardley allowed one run on two hits and one walk in one inning of relief. Kizer tossed seven and 1/3 innings in the start, surrendering four runs on six hits and two walk.

Reed allowed three runs on 10 hits while issuing three walks in six and 2/3 innings on the hill.

Seattle totaled 11 hits led by a 3-for-4 effort from Doug Kincaid.

Oregon and Seattle will play the series finale at noon on Sunday at PK Park. Prior to first pitch the Ducks will honor the 2012 senior class. In addition, UO will host State Fair Day. 4H and FFA members can purchase two reserved tickets for the price of one.

Notes: Oregon is now 15-4 in one-run games…the Ducks won their 11th weekend series of the season…Oregon’s 40 wins match team’s best total since reinstatement when Oregon finished the 2010 season 40-24…Oregon has totaled 93 two-out RBIs…Aaron Jones continues to lead the Ducks with 36 RBIs…Aaron Jones drove in the game-winning run for the ninth time this season, and his walk-off hit was Oregon’s first since he also delivered a walk-off hit in UO’s 8-7 win over Long Beach State on March 4.

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So after Game 2 against the Oklahoma City Thunder, when Steve Blake missed a shot near the end of the game, Laker fans’ behavior was alarming. Despite multiple past championships and some of the greatest players in history, fanatical basketball fans fired death threats via social media at Blake’s Twitter. 

Blake’s wife ended up having to block around 500 people. The question is asked: has society gone too far? Do we as fans need to reevaluate the priorities in our life? Has our sports following produced an irrationality that’s detrimental to teams, our society and ourselves?

Buckeye fans may also share in this alarming behavior. In recent Ohio State Football history, two young men, Alex Anzalone and Lewis Neal, experienced similar things as Steve Blake. After their decommitment from Ohio State, fans took out their wrath on these two young men. Unlike Blake, they are not professionals but two people who are trying to figure out where the best place for their education will be. This decision will affect the rest of their lives.

Alex Anzalone talked me over the phone after I requested an interview. I asked him what were some of the things he had to endure after his decommitment. He responded by saying:

1.) OSU fans apparently went on the website ratemydoctor.com and wrote false reviews of Alex’s dad essentially trying to tarnish his reputation as a physician. Dr. Anzalone is a pediatrician.

2.) Anzalone received a number of threatening tweets that were so vulgar that he was not comfortable sharing them.

3.) Fans emailed his dad’s office complaining about his son’s decommitment.

4.) Even a Pennsylvania newspaper, the Reading Eagle, misquoted Dr. Sal Anzalone printing: “Something’s just not right at Ohio State,” Sal Anzalone said. “It’s not for him.” The paper later ran a story retracting his statements as a misunderstanding and misquote. All this because a 17-year-old boy who is not legally an adult decided he needed more time before deciding which college he would attend. 

Alex Anzalone told me that the stories that were coming out about his decommitment on the Internet were not all true, but fans really felt they knew the whole story. In his opinion, they did not. Anzalone knew of Charles Waugh’s enormous amounts of texting but was already having issues before the picture with Waugh came out. 

He was not ready to get into specifics, as he is still in the stage of deciding which school he will attend. When I asked him if he had crossed Ohio State off of his list, his reply was no and that he’s still considering Ohio State but is in the evaluation phase of making his college choice.

Lewis Neal decommitted a few days before Alex Anzalone. He communicated to me that everything was fine, but when he decommitted, OSU fans berated him by emailing, tweeting, etc. comments like: “We did not want you anyway.” “We are happy you are not coming to OSU.”

He was also called “an idiot,” scolded like a little child: “You made a mistake and are not being an adult. If my child were in your situation______.”

Neal is also only 17 years old.

I think it is time we all, myself included, take a deep look inside and realize that our “fanaticism” has gone a little too far; actually, a lot too far.  When fans are threatening families’ lives after a missed shot, when 17-year-old boys incur the wrath of a university fanbase to the point where their daily living is influenced, things have gotten out of hand.

It was overzealous fans that got OSU in trouble in the first place. Overzealous fans paid money for players’ paraphernalia, paid too much money for jobs and sent emails to coaches. Ohio State has a three-year probation and has already taken great pains to ensure that no further damage will take place to the football program. Let us, the fans, not make it any harder.

But fans have their responsibility and need to realize that passionate support of football can lead to consequences that sour a state.  Ask people like Rife, DiGeronimo and Cicero.

If we the fans are not careful, our emotional zeal can lead to damaging irrational behavior that can cause harm beyond our imagination. With Ohio State being on probation, the program cannot afford it.

Read more Ohio State Football news on BleacherReport.com

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LSU (36-22) scored both of its runs in the first inning and received a few spectacular defensive plays from A.J. Andrews and Ashley Langoni from their right and left field posts, respectively. Offensively, Allison Falcon led the way with a 2-for-3 performance and a RBI.

The Tigers will await to see who emerges from the loser’s bracket. Sunday’s regional championship game is slated for 1 p.m. which will be carried live on ESPN3.com with Cara Capuano and Cheri Kempf serving as the announcing team.

“I’m so proud of our players for executing the game plan and following up on their momentum from yesterday’s win,” head coach Beth Torina said. “We came out attacking, we came out aggressive. I loved the way our offense swung the bats today. A lot of our players had quality at-bats throughout, and I think the credit goes to them for being that aggressive.”

A.J. Andrews, Simone Heyward and Juliana Santos set the table for LSU in the first inning. Andrews slapped a single down the left field line, while Heyward and Santos reached on a walk and hit batter to fill the bases.

Allison Falcon followed up with a timely RBI single to left field on a 0-1 pitch to plate Andrews. A throwing error by Texas A&M left fielder Emily Albus allowed Heyward to cross the plate and push the LSU advantage to 2-0.

“We definitely carried over the momentum from the seventh inning against Texas State,” Falcon said. “The transition was pretty smooth. Coach Torina told us to stick within our plans, to be confident and not be afraid. We had nothing to lose really.”

Fico stranded a trio of Texas A&M runners in scoring position during the first three innings. The Aggies were unable to put a runner past first base the rest of the way as the junior right-hander completed her 13th shutout of the season.

Fico worked around a career-high six walks, but also added six pivotal strikeouts to improve to 18-11 on the season. It marked only the fourth time on the season that A&M (40-17) failed to score.     

With a runner on first base and two outs during the fifth inning, Texas A&M’s All-America catcher Meagan May lifted a shallow fly ball to left field. Langoni sprinted in and made a fully extended, diving snag to end the frame. 

Fico navigated past leadoff walks in the sixth and seventh inning with six fly ball outs highlighted by a running catch by Andrews on the right field warning track during the sixth to wrap up the 2-0 triumph. 

“We had a good mix of pitches today,” Fico said. “We were working all four quadrants of the strike zone. I walked too many batters, but we were able to work around it. My defense came up big making plays when we needed to. Other than that, we had better break points on the ball today. That is what made us really effective.”

Texas A&M’s All-America hurler Mel Dumezich was tagged with the loss and dropped to 28-12 for the season. She surrendered two runs on five hits and tallied six strikeouts versus three walks.

Every LSU postseason game will have live audio and live stats available inside the Geaux Zone on LSUsports.net. The games also will be carried live on Country Legends 104.9 FM in the Baton Rouge area with Patrick Wright and Matt Dunaway set to call the action.

Fans can follow every pitch of LSU softball this season via live in-game updates on LSU softball’s social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/lsusoftball and @lsu_softball on Twitter.

NCAA College Station Regional – All Games Live on ESPN3.com

Friday, May 18
Game 1: LSU def. Texas State, 1-0
Game 2: No. 8 Texas A&M def. Bethune-Cookman, 11-0 (5)

Saturday, May 19
Game 3: LSU def. Texas A&M, 2-0
Game 4: Texas State def. Bethune-Cookman, 5-3
Bethune-Cookman eliminated
Game 5: Texas A&M vs. Texas State, 7 p.m.

Sunday, May 20 – Gates open at 12 p.m.
Game 6: LSU vs. Game 5 winner, 1 p.m.
Game 7: Rematch if necessary, 4 p.m.

Softball Postgame Quotes – May 19, 2012
LSU vs. Texas A&M – NCAA College Station Regional

Head Coach Beth Torina

Opening Statement …
“I was excited about the way our team came out today. We carried some of the momentum from the seventh inning of the Texas State game into today. We did exactly what we planned. We attacked early in the count and pitched the way we had talked about. We handled their offense exactly the way we talked about. They have only been shut out three times going into today’s game so a lot of credit goes to Rachele Fico. She did a great job, and I was really proud of our offense.”

On her gameplan moving forward…
“We are in a really good spot. We are getting out of the heat and are able to rest. We will have a good meal tonight and be ready tomorrow. I like our options with our pitching staff. We have two solid pitchers that I’m confident in. Without question that helps us down the road in this tournament. Knowing that whoever we face are going to have to beat two very different, very tough pitchers. That definitely works in our favor.”

On not building on their lead…
“There were a couple innings where we didn’t have quality at-bats. For the most part, I thought we kept attacking and [Mel Dumezich] made some good adjustments on the mound to keep us off balance. She is talented, and she gets credit for making those adjustments. We continued to stay aggressive; we had runners on the bases all day. If we can continue to do that, we will be successful. I feel confident when we give this pitching staff a lead to work with.”

On Brittany Mack being ready to pitch…
“Both pitchers are always warm. Whichever one is on the mound, the other is in relief. They are always ready for anything. I think [Brittany] was even ready in the first inning. Usually they are ready just in case something happens. I haven’t had to make many tough decisions on pulling pitchers this year. They have really spoiled me because they are so talented. Whoever we give the ball to, I am really confident in.”

Junior Pitcher Rachele Fico

On her performance …
“We had a good mix of pitches today. We were working all four quadrants of the strike zone. I walked too many batters, but we were able to work around it. My defense came up big making plays when we needed to. Other than that, we had better break points on the ball today. That is what made us really effective.”

On her gameplan for facing A&M’s lineup
“My plan is always to stay within myself and work with my strengths. I just take it one pitch at a time and try to make my next pitch my best pitch.”

Sophomore Second Baseman Allison Falcon

On scoring in the first inning…
“We definitely carried over the momentum from the seventh inning against Texas State. The transition was pretty smooth. Coach Torina told us to stick within our plans, to be confident and not be afraid. We had nothing to lose really.”

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EUGENE – The #11-seeded University of Oregon softball team (42-15) won its third straight NCAA Regional with a 4-1 win over Western Athletic Conference Tourney Champion BYU (45-15) Saturday afternoon at Howe Field.

(*A more detailed recap will be posted shortly.)

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OU softball: Sooners pound Tulsa to advance to final round of regional

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OU softball advanced to the championship round of the NCAA Norman Regional after coming back to beat Tulsa, 7-1, on Saturday.

The Golden Hurricane opened up scoring in the game with a run in the second inning before the Sooners scored six runs in the sixth.

Oklahoma will face the winner of Saturday’s final match for the regional victory and the opportunity to advance to face the winner of the Tucson Regional.

The championship round begins at 1 p.m. Sunday.

May 19, 2012

Recap | 
Box Score | 
Quotes | 
Photo Gallery 

• Michigan improves to 16-2 all-time against Louisville. The Cardinals knocked off Michigan, 2-1, earlier this season on March 10.

• No. 9 Louisville is the highest ranked opponent Michigan has defeated this season. U-M is now 5-4 against ranked opponents this year. 

• Michigan is now 68-41 all-time in NCAA action.

• Haylie Wagner moved to 31-5 on the season, tying her with Jordan Taylor(2008) for the most wins by a Wolverine freshman in program history.

• The win is Michigan’s second consecutive walk-off win and seventh of the season. It is the second time that the Wolverines walked off on a bases-loaded HBP. The first came against Temple on March 4.

• Amy Knapprecorded her second consecutive multi-hit game of the NCAA Regional. It is her ninth multi-hit game of the season.

• U-M is now 29-0 when leading after the sixth inning.

• The win is Michigan’s third extra-inning victory of the season. The Wolverines are now 3-1 in extra-inning contests.

• The loss is Louisville’s first home loss of the season. The Cardinals were 26-0 at Ulmer Stadium prior to the game.

• Bree Evanssingled to lead off the game, keeping her hitting streak alive. Her streak is currently at 12 games.

• Sara Driesengadrew a walk in the first inning, her 30th consecutive game of reaching base.

• In two of her last three appearances as a pinch hitter, Caitlin Blanchard has provided the winning RBI. She also hit the game-winning sacrifice fly against Purdue on May 11.

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May 19, 2012

•
Box Score | Quotes | Notes | Photo Gallery 
• Highlights | Coach Hutchins Postgame | Haylie Wagner Postgame

Site: Louisville, Ky. (Ulmer Stadium)
Event: NCAA Regional
Score: #21 Michigan 2, #9 Louisville 1 (8 innings)
Records: U-M (41-15), UL (54-4)
Next U-M Event: Sunday, May 20 — vs. Opponent TBD – NCAA Regional Final (Louisville, Ky.), 1 p.m. (TV: ESPN2)

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Sophomore catcher Caitlin Blanchard (Petersburg, Mich./Summerfield) was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to push the winning run across as the No. 21-ranked University of Michigan softball team defeated No. 9-ranked Louisville, 2-1 in eight innings, in the NCAA Regional on Saturday afternoon (May 19) at Ulmer Stadium. It is Michigan’s second walk-off win of the regional.

Freshman LHP Haylie Wagner (Orange, Calif./El Modena) picked up the complete-game victory in the circle, giving up one run on three hits with a strikeout. The win is her 31st of the season, tying the mark for the most by a Wolverine freshman. The Michigan offense totaled seven hits on the day, powered by two-hit games from junior shortstop Amy Knapp (St. Joseph, Mich./Lakeshore) and junior second baseman Ashley Lane (Escondido, Calif./Escondido).

Lane singled through the right side with one out in the eighth to give Michigan a base runner. After Wagner fouled out to the catcher trying to bunt, Knapp singled to right field and Lane beat the tag at third as the Wolverines put runners on the corners with two outs. Senior third baseman Stephanie Kirkpatrick (Plainfield, Ill./Central) drew a walk to load the bases for the Maize and Blue during the ensuing at-bat. With sophomore outfielder Lyndsay Doyle (Channahon, Ill./Minooka Community) due up, head coach Carol Hutchins made the move to pinch hit with Blanchard, who was hit on the arm on the first pitch of the at-bat, walking in the winning run.

The Cardinals tied the contest with a run in the seventh, turning a leadoff double into a run. Alicja Wolny doubled to the wall in left and was lifted for Kirsten Straley on the bases. Straley advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored with one out on a sacrifice fly to center field, knotting the game at 1-1.

Michigan struck first, loading the bases in the second inning on an error, a walk and a fielder’s choice. Sophomore outfielder Nicole Sappingfield (Norco, Calif./Norco) lifted a fly ball into right field, deep enough to score Kirkpatrick from third to give the Wolverines the early 1-0 advantage.

Michigan will play in the regional final tomorrow (Sunday, May 19) at 1 p.m. The game will appear live on ESPN2. The NCAA Regional is a double-elimination event.

Contact: Sarah VanMetre (734) 763-4423

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Baseball: Luck Announces Staff Change

By Bryan Messerly for MSNsportsNET.com

May 19, 2012 05:15 PM

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia University Director of Athletics Oliver Luck announced this evening that Greg Van Zant’s contract as head baseball coach will not be renewed for next season.

“Greg has spent a total of 26 years with the Mountaineer baseball program, including the last 18 as head coach, and we appreciate his many years of service to West Virginia University,” Luck said. “During his time here, he has contributed to our baseball program as a student-athlete, assistant and head coach, and we wish him the best.”

Van Zant has spent the last 18 seasons as head coach at West Virginia, guiding the Mountaineers to a 528-451-1 career record. This season, the Mountaineers posted a 23-32 record, including a 9-18 mark in the BIG EAST.

A national search for a new baseball coach at WVU will begin immediately.

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Box Score

LOS ANGELES – On the day USC celebrated the 40th anniversary of their 1972 National Championship by honoring the team on the field, the Trojans rewarded them with a victory as well defeating No. 14 Arizona 8-4 at Dedeaux Field. USC snapped a nine-game losing streak and improve to 23-26 (8-18 Pac-12) while Arizona drops to 35-16 (17-9 Pac-12).

USC loaded the bases in the third inning after two walks and a hit batter. James Roberts stepped to the plate and was hit in the forearm to force in the Trojans first run. Alex Sherrod followed with a sac-fly to center that scored Andres Rodriguez from third.

Arizona answered back in the fourth with an RBI single from Trent Gilbert and a two-run triple to the right field corner by Joseph Maggi to take a 3-2 lead.
Arizona starter Konner Wade held the Trojans hitless until the sixth inning when Roberts singled to end the no hitter. Matt Foat followed with an RBI double to left to score Roberts and tie the game at 3-3. Brandon Garcia kept the inning rolling with a single to left to score Foat and stretch the lead to 4-2. With the bases loaded Garret Houts would plate Dante Flores on a single through the right side to chase Wade (L 7-2) from the game. Tyler Crawford would come on in relief to face Rodriguez with the bases full. Rodriguez would draw a walk to force in another run as the Trojans went up 6-3. Kevin Roundtree then dropped a single into shallow left field to score Kevin Swick and Houts to lead 8-3.

With a comfortable lead Triggs returned to the mound to retire the side in order in the seventh. Triggs (5-6) picked up the win allowing three runs on nine hits while striking out 3 on the day.

Reliever Brad Douthit came on in the eighth for USC, striking out two-of-three batters faced before the game was handed off to Martin Virimontes. He struck out Brandon Dixon to end the inning as the side went down on strikes.

The Wildcats would score once in the ninth on a sac-fly from Seth Mejias-Brean but Virimontes closed out thinning to secure the victory for USC.

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This story will be updated.

On Friday, Sara Driesenga was the Michigan softball team’s hero by hitting a two-run, game-winning double in the bottom of the seventh inning against Kentucky.

On Saturday, Caitlin Blanchard was the Wolverines’ hero in a 2-1, extra-inning win over Louisville by simply getting hit.

Blanchard, pinch-hitting for No. 9 hitter Lyndsay Doyle with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth inning, stood still in the batter’s box and watched Chelsea Leonard’s first pitch hit her in the elbow.

Caitlin Blanchard

The hit-by-pitch forced in Ashley Lane with the winning run in the winner’s bracket game of the NCAA regional tournament at Ulmer Stadium in Louisville, Ky. Television replays showed Lane appeared to be out two batters earlier, when she tried to go from first to third on an Amy Knapp single to right.

Michigan pitcher Haylie Wagner allowed three Louisville hits in the complete-game victory.

The Cardinals tied the game 1-1 in the top of the seventh inning. Alicja Wolny, who beat Valparaiso with a three-run home run in the bottom of the seventh inning on Friday, led off with a double and pinch runner Kirsten Straley advanced to third base on a wild pitch.

One out later, Straley scored on a sacrifice fly by Jordan Trimble, beating a throw to the plate from Michigan centerfielder Bree Evans.

The Wolverines, who left five runners on base in the first two innings, scored their first run on a Nicole Sappingfield sacrifice fly in the second inning.

Louisville (54-4), which entered the tournament with the best record in the nation, will play in an elimination game against Kentucky or Valparaiso on Saturday night (8 p.m., ESPN).

Michigan (41-15) advances to the finals of the double-elimination tournament on Sunday, where it will face the winner of the elimination game at 1 p.m. Sunday (ESPN2). An ‘if necessary’ game is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. and would also be televised by ESPN2.

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Not any more though.

Sad to say, Tiger’s edge is all but gone. And it doesn’t look as if it is coming back anytime soon, not on the evidence of four days touring the Stadium course at TPC Sawgrass in a decidedly mediocre one under par. Even if, as ever, he protested that all is well.

“I didn’t really hit any bad shots,” he said of an outward 40 on the final day.

“I played well today,” was his comment on a third-round 72.

“Just one of those days,” was as close as he came to embracing reality after an opening 74.

But the evidence — both empirical and anecdotal — is heavily weighted against such claims. Woods lies a lowly T-117 in the “approach shots from 75-100 yards” category, one of the highest priority “scoring” areas on any course. And he sits T-76 in “distance from edge of fairway” off the tee. In other words, his driving, a perennial problem under swing coaches Butch Harmon, Hank Haney and now Sean Foley, is a clear factor in a shockingly feeble three-tournament run that has produced a T-40, a missed cut and another T-40 since the apparently false dawn that was his seventh win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

An era of parity is upon us, the proof again in the numbers. In 2011 no one won more than twice on the PGA Tour. And this year the 21 events played have been won by 20 different players. Woods was one of those victors, of course, which only adds to the argument that the 14-time major champion is now no more than just another good player trying to execute pretty much the same game plan as everyone else on tour.

One of the keys to Woods’ past successes was the wide range of shots — combined with an almost uncanny distance control — in his repertoire. With high and low, draw and fade, in the bag, he was blessed with a clear statistical advantage to any pin position. Only very rarely did the now 36-year-old Californian miss his target in a place that all but precluded the recovery of par.

Not any more though.

Indeed, Tiger’s miss has become a mystery. Long, short, left and right are all possibilities as he settles into what even the most inexperienced golf-watcher will surely recognize as an awkward and uncomfortable-looking address position. Over the course of his 15th Players Championship, no easily repeatable formula for consistent success was readily apparent in almost any aspect of Woods’ game. Only in his playing of the shortest shots, those more about touch, feel and imagination than pure technique, did the striping Tiger of old appear. Forced to live on his wits rather than feed off the words of another bouncing around in his brain, he generally prospered.

That is scant consolation, however. All the way through his 14-club set, Woods’ waywardness is an issue. Throw in the fidgeting indecision so often in evidence at Sawgrass and what Haney euphemistically — and lucratively — labeled the “big miss” becomes exponentially more likely.

It might be a wildly inaccurate drive that bequeaths him no chance of reaching the green in regulation. It could be a short-sided approach that precludes almost all possibility of saving par, even with his still reasonably sharp short game as backup. “Blowing” balls as much as 15 yards over greens from even the cleanest of fairway lies is currently another distinct possibility.

Whatever, the so-called big miss invariably and inevitably leads to a dropped shot or shots, depending on the severity of the situation or, as was the case so often at Sawgrass, the close proximity of the cup to the edge of the putting surface. When that is the case, the safest strategy is to start the ball at the middle of the green and work it back to the pin. Such a tactic reduces the chances of “short-siding” and, in turn, increases the number of subsequent birdie opportunities. Once upon a time not so very long ago, that was the way Tiger Woods played golf.

Not any more though.

Wild Thing: Woods’ problems with the driver make following his Bay Hill victory a challenge.

Add up all of the above, and Tiger’s edge is no more.

• No longer is he longer off the tee than everyone else.
• He doesn’t have as many shots to work with, so short-siding himself is more of an issue.
• His wayward driving — on the few occasions when he does pull the longest club from his bag — is another pressing matter rooted more in mental anxiety than poor technique. But, whatever the base cause, Woods is missing fairways in unpredictable spots and wasting multiple shots.
• His distance control is erratic at best.

And, here’s the worst part: His putting, compared with its pomp back around the turn of the century, has fallen off. Take the important range of putts from four to eight feet: In his last season before the scandal, 2009, Woods led the PGA Tour in that category by making 78.61 percent of his attempts. From 2010 onward, however, he is holing only 69.6 percent from that distance.

Even the spectators — those who have remained loyal through his personal and professional decline over the last two-and-a-half years — are becoming less respectful. On day three at Sawgrass, two holes after playing companion Keegan Bradley was greeted by a yell of, “You’re so sexy, Keegan,” Woods’ drive was followed by “Don’t worry about your [receding] hair Tiger.”

Still, some perspective is required. Such unremitting negativity does not mean we are talking about a man struggling to retain his card, never mind win on tour. This is a game deteriorating from an Everest-like peak. So, although the previous near-perfection has been lost, perhaps forever, utter futility is a ways off.

Woods remains a golfer capable of winning any tournament and maybe even adding to that long-static 14-major tally. But his biological clock is ticking ever louder, especially on the greens. Not many players in their late 30s find themselves improving with a putter in their hands. And this is a man who, lest we forget, has won only one “real” tournament in the last two years. At best, the Foley experiment remains a work in progress; at worst, it is merely the latest stage in the inexorable decline of the greatest golfer the world has yet seen.

Let’s all root for the former.

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In addition to the course, time has claimed the scorecard and the trophy and attached an asterisk to the achievement. Blancas knows what some people contend–that the events of Aug. 19, 1962, unfolded in a county fair of a tournament on a cupcake of a course–and it bothers him not at all.

For years Blancas’ feat was listed in the Guinness Book of Records, but it was purged when the recordkeepers limited their low golf scores to those shot on courses of at least 6,561 yards in length, and at 5,002 yards, the funky, claustrophobic par-70 Premier GC–on which two slightly different sets of tees formulated 18 holes fraught with out of bounds and creeks–didn’t qualify. But if you’re the man who had the 55, the lowest competitive score any golfer has ever shot, there is nothing but beauty in the details.

How many golfers ever made Ripley’s Believe It Or Not? How many other players have made 13 birdies and an eagle, totaled 27 for one nine and 28 for the other, hit 17 greens in regulation and required only 20 putts? “And the thing is,” says Blancas, “I shot 62 in the morning. That might be the most amazing thing.”

He was 24 and competing in the Premier Invitational, part of a cluster of amateur tournaments that from the 1940s into the 1960s thrived in towns such as Longview, Center and Kilgore. The events, also known as the “East Texas Tour” or the “Barbeque Circuit,” were a breeding ground for a couple of generations of Texas golfers, from Jackie Burke to Marty Fleckman. Longview was home to the eight Cupit brothers. Jacky Cupit, the youngest, who would lose the 1963 U.S. Open in a playoff, finally did something his brothers couldn’t do when he won the Premier in 1959 and ’60. “It was a real short course, but there were no bailouts,” says Cupit. “You had to be as straight as an arrow.” Until Blancas, Cupit held the course record, 60.

The course was built in 1938 by Sylvester Dayson, a native of France who had been a World War I aviator before getting into the oil business and immigrating to the U.S. in the 1920s. By the mid-’30s, he had started the Premier Oil Company. “He was a fanatic about golf, but he had a skeet-shooting course first,” says Dayson’s daughter, Suzette Shelmire. Dayson held a skeet shoot to raise money for a local hospital, but with World War II came an ammunition shortage, so golf took its place.

Competition was keen, scores were low and interest–spiked by calcutta betting pools that could bulge with more than $50,000, a “monster calcutta,” according to former Texas A&M golfer Jim Fetters–was high. “The world was a different place back then,” says Fred Marti, Blancas’ teammate at the University of Houston and a central character in his epic day. “Those tournaments were big deals in those towns. There weren’t a lot of entertainment options.”

On the eve of the final day at Premier, in fact, Marti, Blancas and a couple of others drove over the border to Bossier City, La., to sample a night that wasn’t so still. Driving back Sunday near dawn, they missed a turn. “We skidded through a gas station, but missed the pumps,” says Blancas. “We were lucky we didn’t get killed.” Blancas napped briefly before trying to make up a seven-shot deficit to Marti with 36 holes left. “I was a little groggy,” he says. “Maybe my instincts just took over.”

The son of a Mexican immigrant who was a greenkeeper at Houston’s exclusive River Oaks CC, Blancas grew up in modest quarters on the grounds and began caddieing when he was 8 years old. Not big enough to tote larger bags, Blancas looped for younger golfers with small bags and good games. Conditioned to believe everybody played well, Blancas wore out his hand-me down clubs practicing to become like those players. “I would absorb their talent,” Blancas says. “All I saw were good swings, guys shooting in the 70s. And all I wanted to do was hit golf shots. I’d play three holes or five holes at dusk. The first or second time I played 18 holes, when I was about 10, I shot an 89.”

He turned into a birdie machine, firing at flagsticks regardless of their position or his. “Homer never saw anything but the flag,” says Frank Beard, who became one of Blancas’ best friends on the PGA Tour. “When he was off, he never knew how to play to the safe side. But when he was on, he went low.”

As far back as his high school days, Blancas always had good luck against Marti, but with 18 holes left at Premier he still trailed him by five strokes–which was quite a working margin at Premier. “Some of the greens were so tiny you could hop across ‘em,” says Marti, “and you could hardly get around without penalty strokes.” Roy Pace, a Longview golfer who played at Louisiana Tech and who was the defending champion, stood between them, four shots off the lead. “The greens were built up, like big anthills,” says Pace. “It was tricky.”

Blancas’ final-round heroics were an intersection of crisp shots and good bounces. He began with a birdie at No. 1. At the par-5 second, he skulled a chip but the ball clanged off the flagstick and dropped for an eagle. After two more birdies, he missed a three-foot birdie attempt at No. 5, then came back with two straight birdies. Another birdie at No. 9 put him eight under for the day. “I really was thinking one shot at a time,” Blancas says. “It was, ‘Got to put it in the fairway, got to hit it close, got to make a putt, got to catch Fred.’ “

The back nine was a blur of birdies and hooting from a growing gallery that found out what was going on. Blancas was an implacable force in the middle of it all. “He just looked so loose,” recalls T.C. Hamilton, who witnessed the round. “No jumping around, just a lot of smiles.” But by the 17th hole, 13 under for the day and having overtaken Marti, Blancas got nervous. He hit a 45-foot birdie putt much too hard but it banged the hole, popped six inches into the air and fell in. At No. 18, a 500-yard par 5, he pushed his drive, but it hit a tree and bounced safely back into play. After pitching his third shot to four feet, Blancas managed to sneak in his final birdie. “I was feeling it the last two holes,” he says. “I hit that sucker as hard as I could, and it barely rolled in.”

Dan Jenkins chronicled the round two weeks later in Sports Illustrated, bringing Blancas national attention and giving him a bigger sense of achievement. After a couple of years in the Army, Blancas started a good-but-not-great pro career: four PGA Tour victories, one Senior PGA Tour win, $1.9 million in career earnings. He was partial to his kids and a good time more than he was to Hoganesque practice sessions. “Homero didn’t log a lot of time on the practice tee, but I didn’t, either,” says Jacky Cupit, 63. “We weren’t lazy, but we just didn’t have that desire.”

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Just five minutes from his home lives Notre Dame linebacker Prince Shembo. And ever since Shembo returned to Charlotte, N.C., the two former Ardrey Kell High School standouts have been working out together.

Shembo is still rehabbing from surgery he underwent in April for turf toe, but the rising junior has been guiding the incoming freshman.

“He’s teaching me the way to lift and do the lifts properly,” Shembo said. “He’s a big help for me.”

The two have known each other since Shembo’s high school days when he played with Okwara’s older brother. The relationship between the two will be beneficial as Okwara transitions to life at Notre Dame. He’s guaranteed to know at least one person when he makes the 500-mile move to South Bend.

“We’ve been around each other all the time hanging out,” Okwara said. “It’s good to have that relationship with him.”

While Shembo is still in a walking boot and going through rehab on his foot he can fill the role of an instructor of the Notre Dame offseason workouts.

“He’s always there when I need help with anything,” Okwara said. “He’s told me a lot about Notre Dame and he’s going to help me when I get there.”

Okwara has been soaking up any advice that Shembo’s been willing to give. Shembo’s best advice: “Come into the summer in as good of shape as I can because it’s going to be very competitive,” Okwara said.

At 6-foot-5 and 240 pounds, Okwara’s put on 10 pounds of muscle since the end of his senior season. He said the workouts are going well and he wouldn’t consider them tough because he likes being in the gym.

He recently found out he’ll be rooming with incoming freshman defensive end Jarron Jones when he heads to South Bend on June 15. Okwara said he’s anxious to get to know the rest of his teammates when he gets on campus.

“I’ve met a lot of them and they seem like really good guys,” Okwara said. “I’m just really looking forward to building that relationship with them.”

Okwara will enter the 2012 season as an outside linebacker with the goal of fitting in while trying to make an impact.

“I’m just trying to go in with the right mind and be ready to compete with all the college athletes that are there,” he said.

Andrew Redington/Getty Images

Sergio Garcia missed a short putt to lose to Graeme McDowell.

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Baseball: WVU Completes Season

By Grant Dovey for MSNsportsNET.com

May 19, 2012 04:58 PM




MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Despite sophomore right-handed closer Ryan Tezak pitching eight innings of relief, the West Virginia University baseball team fell 5-4 in 12 innings to USF on Saturday afternoon at Hawley Field.

The loss eliminated WVU from any postseason play after the Mountaineers made a late rally by winning the first two games against the Bulls in the BIG EAST series finale.

West Virginia finished the season with a 23-32 record and finished 9-18 in BIG EAST play. USF improved to 34-20 overall with a 17-10 mark in the conference. WVU scored four runs on eight hits with one error, while USF scored five runs on 13 hits with no errors.

USF broke the tie game in the top of the 12th as Jimmy Falla walked to lead off the inning, stole second and then advanced to third on an infield single by Kyle Teaf. Pinch hitter Buddy Putnam did his job successfully and grounded out to second base, allowing Falla to score the eventual winning run from third base.

The loss went to Tezak (3-3) who entered the game in the fourth inning and pitched eight innings, allowing one run on seven hits with seven strikeouts. Starting left-hander Marshall Thompson went 3.2 innings, allowing two earned runs on six hits with three strikeouts.

Steve Leasure (1-0) took the win for USF, scattering one hit in two innings. Starter Matt Reed earned the no-decision in seven innings. Reed allowed four runs on seven hits.

Down 4-0 through the top of the fourth, the Mountaineers battled back and cut the USF lead to 4-1 in the bottom of the fourth as junior right fielder Brady Wilson hit a solo home run to left center field to lead off the frame. The homer was Wilson’s fourth of the season.

WVU tied the game at 4-4 in the sixth with three runs on three hits that was highlighted by an RBI single to center field by freshman center fielder Bobby Boyd, an RBI walk to freshman second baseman Billy Fleming and a sacrifice fly by sophomore left fielder Matt Frazer.

Wilson and Boyd finished the game with two hits, one run and one RBI apiece to lead the Mountaineers. Six WVU batters recorded at least one hit in the losing effort.

USF was paced offensively by Blake Sydeski, who went 3-for-6 with one RBI. Anthony Diaz had one hit and two RBIs, while Alex Mendez, Luis Llerena and James Ramsey all recorded two hits apiece.

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The Tigers, who had already clinched the SEC Western Division, await the result of Kentucky at Mississippi State to determine if they will share the SEC title or hold it outright. Regardless, LSU will have a bye in Tuesday’s opening round of the SEC Tournament. The Tigers will play in either the second or fourth game on Wednesday in Hoover.

LSU (42-14, 19-11 SEC) scored a run in the first inning before the Gamecocks knotted the score at 1-1 in the bottom of the third inning.

Tigers lefthander Chris Cotton (6-0) earned the win by tossing three scoreless innings in relief of Ryan Eades.

LSU took the lead in the top half of the inning when pinch hitter Jackson Slaid hit an RBI single to right that scored Jordy Snikeris from second base. An RBI single by Mason Katz gave LSU what proved to be the winning run.

Nick Goody earned his 10th save despite giving up a run in the bottom of the 10th.

Check back for highlights, stats and the complete recap.

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May 19, 2012

•
Box Score

Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Wilpon Complex)
Score: Nebraska 7, Michigan 3
Records: U-M (22-34, 8-16 Big Ten), NU (34-21, 14-10 Big Ten)
Next U-M Event: Season Complete

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The University of Michigan baseball team fell, 7-3, to Nebraska in its 2012 season finale Saturday afternoon (May 19) at the Wilpon Complex, home of Ray Fisher Stadium.

Nebraska got on the board first with a run in the top of the second as Richard Stock belted his fourth home run off the scoreboard in right field. The Huskers added a run in the third as Michael Pritchard drove in a run on a bunt single.

The score stayed at 2-0 until the bottom of the seventh when the Maize and Blue used some two-out magic. Freshman Dylan Delaney (Woodland Hills, Calif./Chaminade) struck out with two outs, but reached base on a wild pitch. Junior Patrick Biondi (Woodhaven, Mich./Divine Child) followed that with a single and senior John Lorenz (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way East) brought both runners home with a triple to the gap in left field. Sophomore Michael O’Neill (Powell, Ohio/Olentangy Liberty) then doubled down the left-field line, scoring Lorenz and giving Michigan a 3-2 lead.

However, Nebraska scored the game-winning runs in the eighth. Pritchard opened the inning with a double and moved to third on a sacrifice bunt. Stock’s sacrifice fly tied the game at three. A walk and single put runners on the corners and Kash Kalkowski’s single brought in the game-winning tally. Rich Sanguinetti made it 5-3 on a throwing error. The Huskers added insurance in the ninth with a pair of runs on a Stock RBI single and a throwing error.

Lorenz had two hits and drove in a pair of runs in his last game in a Michigan uniform. For Nebraska, Stock had two hits and three RBI.

Senior/junior Bobby Brosnahan (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer) took the loss for Michigan, allowing an earned run a third of an inning. Junior Ben Ballantine (Napa, Calif./Napa) started for the Wolverines, allowing two runs and five hits with a strikeout in 6.2 innings. Tom Lemke picked up the win in relief, striking out three in 2.1 innings. Dexter Spitsnogle struck out six and gave up three runs and six hits in 6.2 innings for the Huskers in a start.

Before the game, Michigan honored its six seniors, Lorenz, Brandon Sinnery (Worcester, Mass./Worcester Academy), Coley Crank (Pinole, Calif./Pinole Valley), Kevin Vangheluwe (St. Clair Shores, Mich./Lakeshore), Travis Smith (Austin, Texas/Stephen F. Austin) and Kolby Wood (Buchanan, Mich./Berrien Springs).

Contact: Kent Reichert (734) 763-4423

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Nebraska 7 (34-21,14-10)

Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
Kelly, Pat 2b............  5  0  1  0   0  2  1  3   2
Pritchard, Michael dh....  4  2  2  1   1  0  0  0   1
Christensen, Chad ss.....  4  1  1  0   0  1  3  5   0
Stock, Richard c/1b......  4  1  2  3   0  0  7  1   2
Scheffert, Josh 3b.......  4  1  0  0   1  0  0  4   0
Sanguinetti, Rich cf.....  4  1  2  0   1  0  2  0   0
Kalkowski, Kash 1b.......  4  0  1  1   0  0 11  0   0
 Kildow, T. pr...........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 Burleson, Cory c........  0  0  0  0   0  0  3  0   0
Darby, Austin rf.........  3  0  1  0   1  0  0  0   0
Kiser, Kale lf...........  1  1  0  0   2  0  0  0   2
Spitsnogle, Dexter p.....  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 Lemke, Tom p............  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
Totals................... 33  7 10  5   6  3 27 13   8

Michigan 3 (22-34,8-16)

Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
Biondi, Patrick cf.......  5  1  1  0   0  1  5  0   0
Lorenz, John 3b..........  5  1  2  2   0  0  0  1   1
O'Neill, Michael rf......  4  0  1  1   0  1  1  0   1
Crank, Coley dh..........  4  0  1  0   0  1  0  0   1
Winger, Brett 1b.........  4  0  1  0   0  1  8  1   0
White, Kevin c...........  3  0  1  0   1  1  2  1   0
 Martin, Cole c..........  0  0  0  0   0  0  2  1   0
Zott, Zach lf............  3  0  0  0   1  1  3  0   1
Jacobson, Eric 2b........  1  0  0  0   0  0  4  2   0
 DiLaura, John ph/2b.....  3  0  0  0   0  1  0  0   4
Delaney, Dylan ss........  4  1  1  0   0  2  1  5   0
Ballantine, Ben p........  0  0  0  0   0  0  1  1   0
 Lakatos, Alex p.........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 Brosnahan, Bobby p......  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 Szkutnik, Trent p.......  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 Perry, Jay p............  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
Totals................... 36  3  8  3   2  9 27 12   8
 
Score by Innings                    R  H  E
-------------------------------------------
Nebraska............ 011 000 032 -  7 10  0
Michigan............ 000 000 300 -  3  8  2
-------------------------------------------
 
E - White(1); DiLaura(13). DP - Michigan 1. LOB - Nebraska 8; Michigan 8. 2B
- Pritchard, M(10); O'Neill(12); Winger(10). 3B - Lorenz(3). HR - Stock,
R.(4). SH - Christens, C(6); Kiser, K.(5). SF - Stock, R.(2). CS - Stock,
R.(1); Sanguinetti(5).
 
Nebraska               IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF  NP
--------------------------------------------------
Spitsnogle, Dexter..  6.2  6  3  3  2  6 27 29 105
Lemke, Tom..........  2.1  2  0  0  0  3  9  9  35
 
Michigan               IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF  NP
--------------------------------------------------
Ballantine, Ben.....  6.2  5  2  2  3  1 23 27  91
Lakatos, Alex.......  0.2  1  1  1  0  1  2  3   8
Brosnahan, Bobby....  0.1  2  2  1  1  0  2  4  13
Szkutnik, Trent.....  0.0  0  0  0  1  0  0  1   5
Perry, Jay..........  1.1  2  2  1  1  1  6  7  21
 
Win - Lemke, T. (4-4).  Loss - Brosnahan (3-4).  Save - None.
WP - Spitsnogle(1). PB - White(2). Inherited runners/scored: Lemke, T. 1/1;
Lakatos 2/0; Brosnahan 1/1; Szkutnik 2/1; Perry 2/0. Pitches/strikes: Spitsnogle
105/66; Lemke, T. 35/25; Ballantine 91/59; Lakatos 8/6; Brosnahan 13/7; Szkutnik
5/1; Perry 21/14.
Umpires - HP: Michael Conlin  1B: Perry Costello  3B: Bruce Doane
Start: 1:08 p.m   Time: 2:45   Attendance: 1,221
Weather: Sunny, lower 80s
Szkutnik faced 1 batter in the 8th.

Play-by-Play

Nebraska 1st - No play. Kelly, P. fouled out to rf (0-1). Pritchard, M
grounded out to ss (2-0). Christens, C struck out looking (2-2). 0 runs, 0
hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Michigan 1st – Biondi struck out swinging, out at first c to 1b (1-2).
Lorenz grounded out to 2b (1-2). O’Neill grounded out to 3b (1-0). 0 runs, 0
hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Nebraska 2nd – Stock, R. homered to right field, RBI (1-0). Scheffert, J
out at first 1b to p (0-0). Sanguinetti flied out to lf (2-1). Kalkowski, K
grounded out to 2b (1-0). 1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Michigan 2nd – Crank singled to left field (1-1). Winger struck out
looking (0-2). White flied out to cf (0-1). Zott popped up to ss (2-1). 0
runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

Nebraska 3rd – Darby, A. popped up to 2b (0-0). Kiser, K. walked (3-2).
Kiser, K. advanced to second on a passed ball. Kelly, P. singled to shortstop
(0-1); Kiser, K. advanced to third. Pritchard, M singled to pitcher, bunt, RBI
(0-0); Kelly, P. advanced to second; Kiser, K. scored. Christens, C reached on
a fielder’s choice (1-1); Pritchard, M advanced to second; Kelly, P. advanced
to third. Stock, R. grounded into double play ss to 2b to 1b (0-1); Christens,
C out on the play. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.

Michigan 3rd – Jacobson grounded out to ss (1-0). Delaney singled to
third base, bunt (0-0). Biondi grounded out to 2b (0-0); Delaney advanced to
second. Lorenz grounded out to ss (1-0). 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

Nebraska 4th – Scheffert, J flied out to cf (1-2). Sanguinetti walked
(3-2). Sanguinetti out at second c to 2b, caught stealing. Kalkowski, K popped
up to 2b (0-1). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Michigan 4th – O’Neill grounded out to ss (3-1). Crank grounded out to
3b (1-2). Winger doubled to right center (0-0). White walked (3-0). Zott walked
(3-2); White advanced to second; Winger advanced to third. DiLaura pinch hit
for Jacobson. DiLaura grounded out to 2b (2-2). 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 3
LOB.

Nebraska 5th – DiLaura to 2b. Darby, A. singled through the right side
(0-2). Kiser, K. grounded out to p, SAC, bunt (0-1); Darby, A. advanced to
second. Kelly, P. flied out to cf to right center (1-1); Darby, A. advanced to
third. Pritchard, M grounded out to ss (2-2). 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1
LOB.

Michigan 5th – Delaney popped up to 2b (0-0). Biondi flied out to cf
(2-2). Lorenz singled up the middle (1-2). O’Neill struck out looking (2-2).
0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

Nebraska 6th – Christens, C flied out to cf (0-0). Stock, R. flied out
to lf (2-2). Scheffert, J lined out to cf (3-2). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0
LOB.

Michigan 6th - Crank struck out swinging (1-2). Winger lined out to ss
(1-2). White struck out swinging (2-2). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Nebraska 7th - Sanguinetti singled to center field (1-2). Kalkowski, K
grounded out to 1b unassisted (0-1); Sanguinetti advanced to second. Darby, A.
popped up to ss (1-1). Kiser, K. walked (3-2). Lakatos to p for Ballantine.
Kelly, P. struck out swinging (0-2). 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB.

Michigan 7th – Zott lined out to 1b (3-2). DiLaura lined out to ss
(1-0). Delaney struck out swinging, reached first on a wild pitch (2-2). Biondi
singled to center field (0-0); Delaney advanced to second. Lorenz tripled to
left center, 2 RBI (2-1); Biondi scored; Delaney scored. Lemke, T. to p for
Spitsnogle. O’Neill doubled down the lf line, RBI (0-2); Lorenz scored. Crank
grounded out to 3b (1-1). 3 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

Nebraska 8th – Pritchard, M doubled to left center (2-1). Christens, C
grounded out to 3b, SAC, bunt (0-0); Pritchard, M advanced to third. Brosnahan
to p for Lakatos. Stock, R. flied out to cf, SF, RBI (0-0); Pritchard, M
scored. Scheffert, J walked (3-0). Sanguinetti singled to center field (0-1);
Scheffert, J advanced to third. Kalkowski, K singled through the right side,
RBI (2-2); Sanguinetti advanced to third; Scheffert, J scored. Szkutnik to p
for Brosnahan. Sanguinetti scored on a throwing error by c, unearned. Darby, A.
walked (3-1); Kalkowski, K advanced to second. Perry to p for Szkutnik. Kildow,
T. pinch ran for Kalkowski, K. Kiser, K. flied out to lf (1-0). 3 runs, 3
hits, 1 error, 2 LOB.

Michigan 8th – Stock, R. to 1b. Burleson, C. to c for Kildow, T.. Winger
grounded out to ss (0-1). White singled through the left side (1-0). Zott
struck out swinging (0-2). DiLaura struck out looking (2-2). 0 runs, 1 hit,
0 errors, 1 LOB.

Nebraska 9th – Martin to c for White. Kelly, P. struck out swinging
(0-2). Pritchard, M walked (3-2). Christens, C singled through the right side
(0-0); Pritchard, M advanced to third. Stock, R. singled through the right
side, RBI (0-1); Christens, C advanced to second; Pritchard, M scored.
Scheffert, J grounded out to ss (1-0); Stock, R. advanced to second; Christens,
C advanced to third. Sanguinetti reached on a throwing error by 2b (1-0);
Stock, R. advanced to third; Christens, C scored, unearned. Sanguinetti
advanced to second; Stock, R. out at home c to ss to c, caught stealing. 2
runs, 2 hits, 1 error, 1 LOB.

Michigan 9th – Delaney struck out swinging (3-2). Biondi grounded out to
ss (2-2). Lorenz grounded out to 3b (1-2). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0
LOB.

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May 19, 2012

• Complete Results | Tournament Central |
Photo Gallery 

Site: Ann Arbor, Mich.
Course: U-M Golf Course (par 71, 6,723 yards)
Tournament: NCAA Central Regional
U-M Team Standing: No Team Score
Top U-M Individual: Matt Thompson, tie-19th (71-69-73/213, E)
U-M Next Event: Season Complete

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — University of Michigan men’s golf senior Matt Thompson (Battle Creek, Mich./Lakeview HS) posted a final-round one-over 73 today (Saturday, May 19) to close his NCAA Central Regional with an even-par 213 total to tie for 19th, closing his season and U-M career at the U-M Golf Course.

After opening Thursday’s (May 17) first round with an even-par 71, Thompson quickly found himself about the top 15 individually. With four birdies to begin his second round, he moved into the top 12 after Friday’s (May 18) round following a second-round two-under 69.

Coming into the final round with just four players ahead of him for the lone individual spot for the NCAA Finals, Thompson began his final round at the U-M Golf Course off the back nine. After a bogey on the par-5 11th hole, he churned out seven straight pars to make the turn one over. Another bogey on the par-5 first hole put him two over. As he settled into the front side, back-to-back birdies on Nos. 6 and 7 drew him even with just two to play. Tough pins on the closing two holes gave him closing bogeys as he finished his Michigan career with a 73 to give him an even-par 213 total and his eighth top-20 performance of the season.

Overall, USC used an 11-under 841 total to take the regional title and Oregon closed as the runner-up at 842. Kent State (844), Virginia (846) and TCU (849) rounded out the top five advancing to the NCAA Finals at the Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles, Calif., Tuesday through Sunday (May 29-June 3).

Final Team Standings

 1. USC              289-272-280 = 841 (-11)
 2. Oregon           288-274-280 = 842
 3. Kent State       286-276-282 = 844
 4. Virginia         287-281-278 = 846
 5. TCU              278-284-287 = 849
 6. Notre Dame       291-278-290 = 859
    N.C. State       290-282-287 = 859
 8. Oklahoma State   290-283-290 = 863
 9. Kennesaw State   287-290-291 = 868
10. Purdue           291-293-291 = 875
11. Baylor           296-297-289 = 882
12. Ohio State       305-297-293 = 895
13. Navy             322-306-303 = 931

Top Individuals

 1. Albin Choi, N.C. State            69-66-68 = 203 (-10)
 2. Ben Kohles, Virginia              71-65-70 = 206
    Sebastian MacLean, Xavier         68-70-68 = 206*
    Daniel Miernicki, Oregon          71-65-70 = 206
 5. Julien Brun, TCU                  67-68-72 = 207
    Peter Williamson, Dartmouth       72-68-67 = 207*
 7. Max Scodro, Notre Dame            70-69-69 = 208
    Patrick Winther, Oklahoma State   70-66-72 = 208
    Jonathan Woo, Oregon              72-66-70 = 208
10. Jeffrey Kang, USC                 75-67-67 = 209

Michigan Individual

T19. Matt Thompson   71-69-73 = 213

• Previous Results: Day 2 | Day 1

N O T E S

• Matt Thompson closed his career playing in 49 career events, with 46 starts — including a consecutive start streak of 43 events. He closes his career with 27 top-20 finishes, 13 top-10 and seven top-five, including one win at the 2011 Windon Memorial Classic.

• With his 72.06 season average, Matt Thompson posted the second-best single-season average for a Wolverine in the stroke-play era. He already holds the top spot after his 72.00 average in 2009-10. Overall, Thompson finished his career as U-M’s all-time leader in scoring average with a 72.79 per-round mark.

• Matt Thompson played in the NCAA postseason all four years at Michigan after three team appearances in 2009, 2010 and 2011 and his individual appearance this year. He helped the Wolverines to the NCAA Finals and a semifinal finish in 2009, and to the 2011 NCAA Central Regional team title.

• In the 54-hole regional, Matt Thompson posted 38 pars, eight birdies and eight bogeys.

Q U O T E S

Michigan Head Coach Chris Whitten
On Matt Thompson and the NCAA Central Regional … “It’s special for us to get to host and showcase Michigan and for Matt to get to play in front of his friends and family is a pretty special way for him to finish up. I was happy that they got to see him since we really don’t play at home that often. It turned it well for everybody.”

On what Matt Thompson’s has meant to Michigan … “Matt is a tremendous person and has meant way more to this program than his good scores, even though statistically he might be the best player since Michigan golf started stroke play. But more than that, he did it the right way and really set a good example for the other guys with how to prepare and how to lead, so we’re going to miss him for a lot of reasons.”

U-M Senior Matt Thompson
On the NCAA Central Regional … “For the most part I felt like I played pretty well. I got off to a good start the first two rounds and I gave myself a chance. I didn’t start out so well today. I would have liked to get out on a run early or at the end, but the regional was great. It was a great to play in. At least I got to finish at my home course where everyone has been around and it was nice having everyone out here. The course was great. Everything was perfect. I would have liked to play a little better, but it was still a good finish.”

On his legacy at Michigan … “It’s just an honor to even be talked about that way. For me to be up with Lion (Kim) and the many, many of others who have come before me and made a name for themselves is just an honor. Honestly, I haven’t quite put it into perspective. I’m sure a few weeks from now it will all start to sink in.”

On his future plans … “I am going to most likely be turning pro for the Michigan Open. That will be my first tournament. That’s the plan. Then, kind of play here and there throughout the summer, then start full time next year, maybe down in North Carolina.”

Contact: Tom Wywrot (734) 763-4423

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ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Led by senior Daniel Miernicki‘s runner-up finish, the No. 7 University of Oregon men’s golf team placed second in the Ann Arbor NCAA Regional Saturday to stake its fourth top-two regional effort under head coach Casey Martin.

By virtue of their top-five regional placing, UO now looks ahead to its 25th NCAA Championships appearance two weeks from now (and fourth in Martin’s six-year tenure).

The Ducks (second, 288-274-280-842) matched their pre-round placing, thanks to a four-under 280 final round on the par-71, 6,723-yard course.

The regional’s top seed, No. 6 USC (289-272-280-841), shot the same score as UO Saturday, and ended one stroke ahead to take the regional title.

Also earning NCAA team bids were No. 18 Kent State (third, 286-276-282-844), No. 19 Virginia (fourth, 287-281-278-846) and No. 43 TCU (278-284-287-849).

Other team placings in the 13-team field follow: Notre Dame (sixth-tie, 291-278-290-859), N.C. State (sixth-tie, 290-282-287-859), No. 31 Oklahoma State (eighth, 290-283-290-863), No. 42 Kennesaw State (ninth, 287-290-291-868), Purdue (10th, 291-293-291-875), No. 29 Baylor (11th, 296-297-289-862), Ohio State (12th, 305-297-293-895) and Navy (13th, 322-306-303-931).

Individually for Oregon, Miernicki (second-tie, 71-65-70-206) led the squad in a tourney’s final standings for the fourth time time this season (and all three were top-three showings among the team’s last five events).

His one-under final round was his 24th par or better round of the season and school-record 89th career-wise.

Looking back to prior regional efforts, the Santee, Calif., native
also posted a runner-up regional effort in 2010 and seventh-place finish as a freshman in ’09.

The All-Pac-12 pick logged four birdies Saturday on holes #3, 6, 11 and 14; added 11 par scores, and three bogeys.

Freshman Jonathan Woo (seventh-tie, 72-66-70-208) enjoyed his sixth round of par or better this spring with his one-under score Saturday (and fourth in the last five rounds). The Singapore native shot three birdies (holes #1, 2, 11), 13 par scores and two bogeys.

Senior Eugene Wong (19th-tie, 72-69-72-213) staked his 10th top-20 finish on the season and second among his four regional trips (after he took fifth as a freshman). The Pac-12 Player of the Year shot four birdies Saturday (holes #8, 13, 14, 15), nine par scores and five bogeys.

Senior Andrew Vijarro (28th-tie, 73-74-68-215) led UO in a round for the sixth time this season, while his three-under score was one off his season best (-4), and two off his career-best (-5).

Making his second regional appearance, redshirt junior Robbie Ziegler (45th-tie, 73-76-73-222) rounded out the Ducks’ entries.

Overall on the individual leaderboard, N.C. State’s Albin Choi won by three strokes over Miernicki, Ben Kohles of Virginia (second-tie, 71-65-70-206) and Xavier’s Sebastian macLean (second-tie, 68-70-68-206).

Team-wise, the Ducks claimed their eighth top-two finish among 12 stroke play events this year (including six wins).

In prior regional trips under Martin, the Ducks have savored one regional title (2010), and took second in 2009 and 10th in 2011 in the current 13-team regional format. In the previous 27-team regional format in his first two years at the helm, UO took second in ’08 and 19th in ’07.

Looking ahead, the collegiate finale will be hosted by the Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles, Tuesday-Sunday, May 29-June 3. After three rounds of stroke play the first three days, the top eight teams then advance to a match play round on day four, followed by semifinal and final match play rounds the final two days.

Oregon has made three of their 24 NCAA appearances under Martin. In that span, the team’s third-place tie in 2010 was its best-ever in program history, and one place better than its showing in 1959. His other youth-laden squads in ’09 and ’08 placed 22nd and 27th, respectively.

More NCAA Championships information is available at the www.NCAAsports.com website.

- www.GoDucks.com -

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OU softball: Sooner blow out Lehigh, 19-3, in NCAA regional opener

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The Oklahoma softball team wasted no time capturing the team’s first win of the 2012 postseason with a 19-3 run-rule, victory over Lehigh on Friday in the Norman Regional.

The Sooner offense took the Big 12′s single-season home-run record after blasting four bombs during the game to bring the team’s total to 89 combined homers.

Junior ace Keilani Ricketts led the Sooners on both sides of the ball, collecting her 29th win of the season while going 2-of-3 with a grand slam and six RBIs during the game. Ricketts gave up no hits during her three innings on the mound.

OU will face Tulsa in the winner’s bracket game at 1 p.m. Saturday at Marita Hynes Field.

The rich get richer.

The Big Ten is expected to dole out a record $24.6 million to each of its member schools, according to a report by the St. Louis Post-Dispatach. The report cites figures provided by the Illinois athletic department.

Michigan football coach Brady Hoke is interviewed by ESPN after a 31-14 win at Illinois last season. Television contracts with the Big Ten Network, ESPN/ABC and CBS contributed more than $17 million to each Big Ten member school.

Melanie Maxwell I AnnArbor.com

Nebraska, which is closing its first academic year in the Big Ten, will not receive a full share.

The estimated payout is expected to include $7.2 million from the Big Ten Network, a dip from last year’s $7.9 million. However, TV deals with ESPN/ABC and CBS will result in $10 million per school, a 22 percent increase from last year, according to the report.

The Big Ten paid its 11 members almost $22.8 million last year, making it the richest conference in the country. By comparison, the SEC paid an average of $19.5 million in 2011.

Check out the full story on stltoday.com.

Kyle Meinke covers Michigan football for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at 734-623-2588, by email at kylemeinke@annarbor.com and followed on Twitter @kmeinke.

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Backup quarterback Devin Gardner could see an expanded role next season for the Michigan football team, offensive coordinator Al Borges says.

Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com

Offensive coordinator Al Borges continues to maintain backup quarterback Devin Gardner will play an even greater role in the Michigan football team’s offense next season.

Gardner, a junior from Inkster High School, is a physical specimen at 6-foot-4 and 205 pounds. He was the No. 1 dual-threat quarterback in the nation coming out of high school, according to Scout.

But he also happens to play the same position as record-setting senior Denard Robinson, who returns for his third tour of starting duty.

Borges wants Gardner on the field anyway, and doesn’t mind getting creative to do it.

Borges confirmed Friday at the WTKA-AM studios he expects to expand the “deuce formation” package that got Gardner on the field at quarterback last year, with Robinson lined up in the backfield or at wideout.

The coordinator likes what he saw from Gardner in the spring and wants him in the fold.

Michigan offensive coordinator Al Borges talks during the WTKA Mott Takeover Friday.

Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com

“He had a really good spring,” Borges said. “From the first day to the 15th day, we showed incredible progress with both (Gardner and third-stringer Russell Bellomy).

“It’s always a work in progress, if you haven’t played every snap at quarterback — and even when you have — but the snafus or the mistakes tend to minimize themselves as you gain more experience.”

Borges said Gardner’s struggles in the spring game — when he went just 2-of-7 passing for 36 yards and one interception — weren’t indicative of the junior’s overall performance this spring.

He isn’t worried about the poor performance, calling it a normal speed bump in his development.

“I think you have to struggle before you do well,” Borges said. “If he just jumped in there and romped and stomped, I don’t know if that’s the real world. The real world of quarterback is usually you have to go through some bumps in the road, and it’s better he does it in the spring than when everyone’s watching.”

Gardner also practiced at wideout this spring, including running some reps with the first unit. At 6-foot-4, he would add some much-needed size to the position after the departure of top receiver Junior Hemingway.

Borges maintains Gardner is the backup quarterback, first and foremost, and is trying to balance the dual roles.

“It’s tough,” he said. “That’s a heckuva question, because it’s tough. You gotta figure out how much of it you’re going to do. So, that’s tough.”

Borges didn’t let on much, though, when asked about Gardner’s abilities at wideout.

“He’s got two hands — I seen them the last time I saw him,” he said.

Kyle Meinke covers Michigan football for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at 734-623-2588, by email at kylemeinke@annarbor.com and followed on Twitter @kmeinke.

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Former Michigan and NFL lineman Steve Everitt talks during the WTKA Mott Takeover fundraising event. Everitt said bounties were not “prevalent” during his time in the NFL, but did surface in key moments.

Angela J. Cesere | AnnArbor.com

Former Michigan center Steve Everitt spent the better part of the 1990s in the NFL, and he’ll admit it: Bounties were part of the game.

Everitt was a top-15 pick of the Cleveland Browns in 1993, and played the next seven seasons in the league. He said bounties were not “prevalent” during his era, but did surface in key moments.

“Without getting specific, there were definitely times (it happened) when you had a big game coming up, whether it was a big division rival or something,” Everitt said Friday during WTKA’s benefit for C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital.

“In the heat of the moment … somebody would get fired up and get tired of watching someone make plays from the last time he played a team and someone would jump (in a team meeting) and be like, ‘If so-and-so doesn’t get any tackles, I got however much money.’ That did happen.”

Bounties have become a national talking point in recent weeks, after the NFL accused the New Orleans Saints of putting up thousands of dollars for hits that took out opposing teams’ star players from 2009-11.

That includes $10,000 prizes for injuring Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner and Vikings quarterback Brett Favre during the 2010 playoffs.

The NFL suspended coach Sean Payton and linebacker Jonathan Vilma for the season. Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, the purported architect of the bounty system, is suspended indefinitely.

Three other players — defensive end Will Smith, defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove and linebacker Scott Fujita — received shorter suspensions. They’ve each appealed their punishments, as has Vilma.

“For us down there, we’re just moving like nothing happened,” said former Michigan receiver Adrian Arrington, who has played for the Saints since declaring for the NFL in 2008. “In our facility, it doesn’t really get talked about. It hasn’t really affected any of us at all.”

Arrington said he never knew of the Saints’ bounty program because the offense and defense operate independently.

According to Everitt, the Saints aren’t the only team that installed a pay-for-pain system. They’ve apparently been a part of the fabric of the game for years.

“I don’t want to pass judgment on these guys from the Saints,” he said. “I want to wait because who knows what actual specific information they have on these guys?”

Former Michigan cornerback Charles Woodson, above, participates in the WTKA Mott Takeover.

Angela J. Cesere | AnnArbor.com

Heisman Trophy-winning cornerback Charles Woodson said the punishment for Vilma is stiff, but appropriate if the NFL wants to stem the creation of bounty programs.

He didn’t always have that opinion, though.

“At first, I of course thought, ‘Man, that’s a pretty stiff penalty, to take away his whole season,’” Woodson said. “But the more you look at it, if you try to stop something, you try to send a message.

“I’m not going to say whether or not the commissioner (Roger Goodell) was right or wrong, but I think he’s trying to figure out what works, and if that is something that’s going on in the NFL, I can guarantee you guys are going to think twice about ever trying to put money on a guy’s head.”

Woodson, a 14-year NFL veteran who has played for the Oakland Raiders and Green Bay Packers, said he’s never heard talk of bounty systems in his locker rooms. He added he doesn’t think they’re needed, anyway, because the game is violent enough without them.

But they’ve clearly occurred, and the former Michigan players want them gutted from the NFL.

“I think you have to stomp out the fire before it gets too big,” said Steve Hutchinson, a former Michigan All-American and seven-time Pro Bowl offensive lineman. “You know it went on.

“It’s just like the elusive UFO everybody keeps talking about. You never see one, but you hear of it.”

Kyle Meinke covers Michigan football for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at 734-623-2588, by email at kylemeinke@annarbor.com and followed on Twitter @kmeinke.

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May 19, 2012

Saturday May 19, the 1972 USC National Championship Team will be honored before the Trojans game against Arizona at Dedeaux Field. The ceremony will begin at 1:30 p.m. The game will follow at 2 p.m.as senior Andrew Triggs takes on the Wildcats starter Konor Wade.

Former USC head coach and college baseball legend, Rod Dedeaux led the 1972 team to The CWS title, the first school to win three straight baseball titles – despite hitting just .198 for the series. It was USC’s eighth of their nation leading 12 national titles.

USC’s Russ McQueen the tournament MVP, pitched 14 innings without giving up a run and earned three wins and a save in the CWS. Prior to the CWS, the Trojans defeated Washington State twice for the Pac-8 title, then beat UC Santa Barbara in the twice in the district-8 playoffs.

Sunday, USC will honor its senior graduates with a pregame ceremony beginning at 1:30 p.m.

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In the last 35 years, only 12 NBA championships have been won by teams that didn’t have a former Tar Heel on the squad. UNC also produced eight players who are in the 2012 NBA Playoffs—two are still alive in the second round.

That’s pretty impressive.

Through the entire history of the NBA, a total of 29 titles have been won by 14 former Tar Heels. According to Fox Sports Florida, that is the most by any college—above UCLA (26), Ohio State (25), San Francisco (25), Minnesota (18) and Kentucky (17).

Where is Duke on that list?

Despite Mike Krzyzewski producing the second-most NBA players in league history, former Duke players have only won two NBA championships—Danny Ferry in 2003 and Jeff Mullins in 1975 (before Coach K). That is every bit as shocking to me as the astounding number Carolina has won.

Even more impressive is that UNC products continue to produce NBA championships beyond their playing years. Including general managers and coaches, UNC has produced a total of 42 titles.

Who are the players that won NBA titles?

That’s what we are about to uncover. Then I’ll finish it up with the former Tar Heels who made it to the 2012 NBA Playoffs.  

You can find the full list of UNC’s NBA champions on Hoopedia.

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103. Tyler Russell, No. 17, Mississippi State, Quarterback

2011 Stats: 69-for-129, 1,034 yards, eight touchdowns, four interceptions

Strengths

He was, arguably, the top recruit to commit to play for Dan Mullen’s Mississippi State Bulldogs. Russell came out of Meridian (Miss.) High School ranked as the No. 13 quarterback in the country in 2009, and was named the 2008 Mississippi high school player of the year. At 6’4″, 220 pounds, Russell has the size and arm strength to be a star at this level and the next.

Weaknesses

Russell injured his MCL this winter, which forced him to sit out the Music City Bowl against Wake Forest. He is fully recovered now, but practice is different than real games, so it’s at least a small concern. What’s a bigger concern for him is whether or not Mullen will adjust his play-calling and revolving door of quarterbacks enough to allow Russell—who’s more of a pocket passer—to thrive.

2012 Prediction

Expect big things. Mississippi State has three solid receivers in Chad Bumphis, Arceto Clark and Joe Morrow, so Russell will have plenty of weapons to throw to. Russell won’t be in the top tier of SEC passers with Tyler Russell and Aaron Murray, but don’t be surprised if he is in the conversation for the tier right below them.

Follow @BarrettSallee

Read more Mississippi State Football news on BleacherReport.com

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Freshman left-hander Haylie Wagner got the victory after giving up six hits and two runs while striking out four as the No. 21-ranked Wolverines (40-15) beat the team that knocked them out of last year’s tournament. The Wildcats (29-29) had scored two runs in the top of the seventh to take a 2-1 lead.

Junior shortstop Amy Knapp had a pair of doubles for Michigan, which plays at 3 p.m. today against the winner between Louisville and Valparaiso.

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Roundtree, a fifth-year senior, has worn No. 12 during his career, but will wear the No. 21 that former receiver and Heisman Trophy winner Desmond Howard made famous. Last season, the number was designated the first “legend” number at Michigan, as opposed to retiring it.

The special jersey is designated with a patch honoring Howard on the upper left chest.

Michigan announced Roundtree’s jersey change on Friday during the Mott Hospital radiothon on WTKA.

“Coach (Brady) Hoke and I discussed it and one day I came into the locker room and went to the No. 12 locker and didn’t see my name anymore,” Roundtree said in a release. “I laughed, looked around and there I was at No. 21.

“I know what it takes to wear the winged helmet, and I know what it takes to be a Michigan football player. I won’t disappoint wearing this jersey. It’s an honor to be associated with Desmond Howard. I will live with it for the rest of my life. It’s a blessing.”

Roundtree is taking graduate classes.

He has Howard’s endorsement.

“I am very pleased that Roy will be wearing the No. 21 this year,” Howard said in a statement. “He is the type of kid who is always positive, upbeat and wearing a smile on his face. Roy embraces the concept of ‘team’ that was instilled in us by coach (Bo) Schembechler so many years ago.”

Roundtree has moved to the flanker spot that Hemingway occupied last season with the hope of returning to his production level of 2010. That season, Roundtree had 72 catches for 935 yards and seven touchdowns. Last year, however, his numbers dropped to 19 catches for 355 yards.

Michigan offensive coordinator Al Borges said Friday he thinks the position change will be significant for Roundtree.

“Based on what I saw in the spring, that could be a difference, a big difference,” Borges said. “He can do some of the things Junior did, but he’s faster. He may lose a jump ball Junior might have won, but he may run by a guy Junior didn’t. He gives us the best chance to supplement what we might have lost with Junior. Add to that Jerald Robinson, who has a very similar profile to Junior. Jerald is more of the type of receiver we’re looking for. He fits the profile of the position we’re looking for.”

About those Buckeyes

While former Wolverines Charles Woodson and Steve Hutchinson , who along with Brian Griese are hosting this weekend’s fundraiser for Mott Hospital, were diplomatic when asked about Ohio State, former center Steve Everitt stirred things up.

Everitt, wearing a maize “Worst State Ever” T-shirt referencing Ohio, compared Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller to Tim Tebow , who played for OSU coach Urban Meyer when he was at Florida.

“I’m not trying to give them bulletin board information, (but) they’re stuck with that quarterback (Miller) for the next two or three years — kid throws worse than Tebow,” Everitt said.

Take care of business

Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio recently told ESPN.com he’s not worried about Michigan’s recruiting successes.

“We’re laying in the weeds,” Dantonio told the website. “We’ve beat Michigan the last four years. So where’s the threat?”

Hoke was asked about that Friday during the radiothon.

“They’ve beaten us the last four years, we need to do something about that,” Hoke said.

Tide bring the speed

Michigan offensive coordinator Al Borges said he watched a lot of Alabama film last week in preparation for the opener Sept. 1 at Cowboys Stadium.

What jumps out when watching the defending national champions on defense?

“Speed,” Borges said without hesitation. “They’re fast guys. It’s their starting point for everything they do.”

Michigan will receive $4.7 million for playing the game, and while it has the feel of a bowl, Borges said it’s the opener — nothing more, nothing less.

“We’re not treating it like it’s a bowl,” he said. “We’re going down there like we’re playing in the Big House, first game of the season.

“Business as usual.”

angelique.chengelis@detnews.com

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Jones, of course, is partial to Hoke, who was on Michigan’s defensive staff when Jones was with the Wolverines.

“I’m excited about what Brady brings to the table,” the former linebacker said Friday during the Mott Hospital radiothon on WTKA. “There’s no coach out there right now in college football that’s better than him.”

Jones was then asked about Meyer, who has won two national titles with Florida, potentially among the best coaches.

“Tell Urban Meyer to call me,” Jones said, laughing. “You’ve got a problem, Urban, you know where to find me.”

Jackson still has NFL dreams

Former Michigan defensive back Marlin Jackson, a first-round pick in 2005, has endured three straight seasons of injuries, but still wants to play.

Jackson, who played for the Colts and Eagles, said he worked out for the Jets last month and is expected to work out for another team soon.

“I’m still trying to play, I still love it,” Jackson said. “I know that I’ve worked continuously throughout the whole process and will be ready. If the opportunity does come, I’ll be ready for it.”

Meanwhile, he and former Michigan teammate and roommate Tim Massaquoi have started “Prepare to Succeed” to help college football players make the transition to professional football.

Open to change

Most of the former players who attended the radiothon said they like the occasional changes to the Michigan uniform and the addition of night games.

Michigan Stadium hosted its first night game last season, and Michigan wore special uniforms that game, at Michigan State and for the Sugar Bowl.

“When I played here, one year we put a block M on the yellow pants and there were a lot of alumnus who were very upset,” former linebacker Jarrett Irons said. “I think it’s a different age now because of recruiting, these kids are on Twitter, YouTube, you have to change (the uniforms) to a certain extent and keep tradition and you’ve got to stay current.

“It’s hard to do with a traditional program like we have, but at the end of the day, we can do what we want to do because we’re the winningest program in college football.”

angelique.chengelis@detnews.com

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The Mountaineers (17-27, 5-13 Big East) finally broke the Pirates sophomore pitcher in the top of the sixth when junior shortstop John Polonius doubled into the corner in left field, starting a rally of four runs in the inning.

Gilbert finished the day with seven strikeouts, four earned runs and six hits in seven innings of work.

“Their starting pitcher was really good,” said West Virginia head coach Greg Van Zant. “He threw a perfect game through five innings. He hit 95 miles per hour on the radar gun early in the game. He was pretty consistent, 90 to 92 (mph) and was throwing a real sharp slider. He was just really good.”

Seton Hall (26-18, 11-7 Big East) posted the opposite of WVU in the scoring department.

The Pirates scored at least one run in four straight innings, including six in the third.

Three Pirates’ players had at two RBIs, while three others had one a piece.

Second baseman Mike Genovese went 2-for-5 with one run scored and two RBIs. Designated hitter Sal Annunziata went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and first baseman Michael Betz went 1-for-3

with two RBIs and one run scored.

Seton Hall gathered their nine runs on 12 hits, nine RBIs to go against just three strikeouts on the day.

The Mountaineers struggled on the mound for games one and three on the weekend.

Friday, WVU redshirt sophomore starter Zach Bergeron earned a no decision, throwing just 3.1 innings before getting relieved by sophomore right-hander

Josh Harlow, who took the loss.

Bergeron gave up seven runs on seven hits, with five walks and only one strikeout. Harlow allowed two runs on eight hits, striking out three and walking two Pirates batters.

“Our guys tried,” Van Zant said. “We didn’t get good enough pitching in any of the games except in game two, Corey Walter pitched well enough for us to win, but that game we weren’t able to score any runs. We got beat 3-1.

“Seton Hall really did a good job of situational hitting. They got runners on, and they moved them around. They had key base hits when they needed them. You have to give them a lot of credit; they played really well.”

Walter gave WVU a chance in game two, but the Mountaineer hitters could not find a way to score runs when they needed to – something that has been a problem all year long.

“Obviously, very disappointing to lose all three, but our guys tried. They’re trying their best,” Van Zant said.

West Virginia will take today and Tuesday off to prepare for final exams, then get back to work Wednesday to prepare for a three-game series with Louisville, which is currently second in the Big East.

The Cardinals have 31 wins on the season. 

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“It was a great way to end the spring,” said head coach Nikki Izzo-Brown. “In the locker room, we just talked a little bit about how they wanted to end their spring, so the girls really spoke to some things, and I thought they executed it well … It’s a great way to finish.”

The first of three first half Mountaineers goals came off the foot of Big East Rookie of the Year Kate Schwindel. After sophomore forward Frances Silva was taken down, the Mountaineers were granted a free kick just outside the box. Schwindel blasted the ball over the defensive wall to the upper right-hand corner of the goal.

Minutes after the first goal, freshman midfielder Whitney Cavender added another. Cavender capitalized on the ball trickling through the keeper’s hands on a Schwindel cross from the right. Cavender tapped the ball into an empty net for the score.

The Mountaineers chalked up one more goal with less than a minute left in the first half. With time winding down, West Virginia made its final offensive push, with senior Drea Barklage putting the ball in the back of the net.

Barklage, who graduates in May, is playing this spring because of the numerous injuries the Mountaineers have suffered. While only dressing 13 players for the final match of the spring season, Izzo-Brown was glad to get out of the Alderson-Broaddus match without injury.

“The only thing I ask for in the spring is that we want to get a little bit better, but most importantly, no injuries,” Izzo-Brown said. “It was good that Drea (Barklage) came to give us a little rest.”

Up 3-0, the Mountaineers maintained their attack for the remainder of the match, but did not put another ball in the net. The Mountaineers’ defense, particularly the back line, crippled the Alderson-Broaddus attack all game, eliminating any offensive threat.

Leading the back line this spring has been junior Bry McCarthy, the only returning member from the fall team, and junior Mallory Smith. Smith moved her way up to starting defensive midfield last year, and Izzo-Brown has been pleased with Smith’s transition to the back line.

“I think there are a lot of similarities, but a lot of differences (between midfielder and back line),” Izzo-Brown said. “We’ve played her a lot in the spring, so I think she really understands it and has that confidence.

“It’s more of a confidence thing and mental skills, and she’s really focused on that this spring.”

With the shutout victory against Alderson-Broaddus College, the Mountaineers finished the spring with a 3-1-2 record.

The first match of the fall season is a home match against LaSalle on August 17.

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In the final events before the Big East Conference Outdoor Championships, the West Virginia track and field team hoped for strong marks in the 3,000-meter run and throwing event….

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WVU was missing a total of eight players, including senior midfielder Shadow Sebele, sophomore forward Andy Bevin and junior forward Jay Williams.

The Mountaineers got off to a strong start with an early goal. The goals continued throughout the afternoon, with two goals by Frank Tayou.

At the half, West Virginia was ahead 1-0 with three shots on goal and one corner kick. The game was physical throughout going into the half.

Tayou was strong in the second half, scoring two goals, one off a corner kick.

WVU also had a goal from senior defender Eric Schoenle. The Mountaineers were able to continue the pressure on their way to a 5-0 rout. WVU had 10 shots on goal to WVU Tech’s one. The lengthy battle also had West Virginia win the advantage in corner kicks – six to three.

Despite the win, head coach Marlon LeBlanc was not satisfied with the performance.

“I think we looked like a pretty average team for most of the game,” LeBlanc said. “The results are not what I’m interested in. We didn’t have all the elements for the spring to be productive. Today we had 11 players that were healthy enough to play. A couple of guys are struggling for fitness.

“It wasn’t as productive as it could be. At the end of the day, the hopes are to look sharper on how we want to implement our system for the fall. However, come fall time, I think we will be a different personnel.”

Senior Travis Pittman took a hard fall on his ankle in the game. He would have been able to continue, but the health of the Mountaineers is crucial at this time.

“His ankle got stomped on,” LeBlanc said. “He’s been battling a hip injury and the flu. For WVU Tech, it was more about proving what it can do. From our perspective, we wanted to get out of the game without any more injuries. Everyone who was available played 90 full minutes.”

For WVU, getting goals was important as well. In the previous four spring contests, the Mountaineers weren’t unable to score a goal. However, against WVU Tech, the Mountaineers were able to find the net.

When the fall season approaches, this Mountaineer squad can make an immediate impact throughout the nation. With a full, healthy lineup, West Virginia will show glimpses of a dynamic program.

The Alumni Game followed Sunday with former Mountaineers having an exciting exhibition. It was full of past Mountaineer greats putting on a show for the crowd.

As the spring season comes to a close, the Mountaineers have battled through injury after injury, but still should be ready come fall. With added expectations going into the Mid-American Conference, the Mountaineers depth should bring results.

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Multiple injuries to members of the West Virginia women’s soccer team have forced the Mountaineers to play many inexperienced players this spring season.

But the absence of impact players such as Caroline Szwed, Bri Rodriguez and Katie Lenz may have been exactly what the Mountaineers needed to prepare for next season.

With the departure of six seniors, including go-to scorer Blake Miller, it was essential for head coach Nikki Izzo-Brown to find her new offensive sparks before the fall.

And Izzo-Brown has done just that.

Freshman Kate Schwindel and sophomore Frances Silva emerged as leaders this spring.

“Both of them have really enjoyed working off each other and understanding the movement,” Izzo-Brown said. “I thought both of them have gotten so much better and are on the same page. It’s been really fun to watch what they’re doing on and off the ball.”

Silva was second on the team in points last year with 20 and Schwindel, the defending Big East Conference Rookie of the Year, was third with 19.

Both were behind the graduating Miller.

But their progression this spring was more about becoming leaders than scoring goals.

“Obviously, Frances knows her role and how that has to change. She’s ready for that going into being a junior,” Izzo-Brown said. “I told them (Kate and Frances) the things that both of them can do together. It’s kind of a really exciting opportunity for them to focus on that. I definitely think Frances wants to step up into that role and understands that.”

Senior Blake Miller finished her career fifth all time in both goals and points in program history. Replacing her is a tall task.

“When you lose Blake (Miller), other people have to step up,” Silva said. We (Schwindel and I) played with each other a year. We knew we needed to step up. We worked on it all spring and definitely started to get it toward the end of spring.”

Izzo-Brown believes there are a lot of similarities between the freshman Schwindel and the senior Miller. In fact, the veteran head coach feels Schwindel is a little better now than Miller was after her first season as a Mountaineer.

The biggest difference?

Speed.

“Blake was an extremely technical player, so fast with the ball at the feet,” Izzo-Brown said. “But, Schwindel is so fast when she doesn’t have the ball, too, and that’s the difference. Blake didn’t have that type of speed.”

Schwindel was fortunate enough to learn from the talented Miller last season.

“She (Miller) was definitely a great role model. I learned a lot from her last year,” Schwindel said. “I’ve got to score some goals like she did for us.” 

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Sam Webb of GoBlueWolverine.com and The Detroit News caught up with Treadwell this month for an interview and reported on Thursday the 4-star wideout will likely end the recruitment process during his senior season of high school football. 

I think a decision is going to come faster now,” Treadwell said. “I’m anxious to make a decision. I’ve been going through it for the longest. It’s probably going to happen sooner than later. Like once football gets kicked off, I’ll see where things are going and everything. 

Treadwell’s mother has very much been a part of his recruitment and the two-sport star—Treadwell plays on Crete’s varsity basketball team—has his mother’s approval and support to attend whichever university his heart desires. 

“I’ve been in this recruiting process for a long time and my mom said she thinks she’s seen enough schools to be comfortable with making a decision,” Treadwell told Josh Helmholdt of Rivals.com last Tuesday.  

“It will probably be late summer or during the season. It depends how I am feeling at the time – if I feel the right school.” 

Even though the 6’3″, 185-pound wideout has decided to end his recruitment sooner that does not mean he is signed, sealed and delivered to the Wolverines. Treadwell still plans on visiting Michigan again along with potential stops at Oklahoma and Oklahoma State among others before making a final decision. 

The Michigan coaching staff has already told Treadwell he has a spot in their 2013 class no matter what happens between now and whenever he decides to end his recruitment. 

(Michigan) said there’s one spot left and they’re going to wait on me to see what decision I’m going to make,” the Rivals.com’s No. 5 receiver and No. 31 overall prospect told Webb. “They”ll hold the spot. I haven’t really told the coaches I was coming up (for a return visit). 

I’ve just been talking to Shane (Morris) and all those guys (about coming up) and just trying to get up to hang with them. Khalid (Hill) is talking about playing basketball with some of the other recruits…just getting used to hanging around them and everything. 

At this point, it is hard to say Michigan is not leading for Treadwell and even though the Wolverines have come up short in their recent pursuits of highly coveted prospects E.J. Levenberry Jr. (Woodbridge, VA) and Ty Isaac (Joliet, IL), this has an altogether different feel to it.  

With Levenberry Jr., the Wolverines were already set at linebacker with a sophomore locked in at one outside linebacker spot going into 2012, true freshman Joe Bolden primed to lock down the middle linebacking job and five other highly touted linebacker commits in the 2012 and 2013 recruiting classes. 

Michigan did not need another linebacker but decided a talent like Levenberry Jr. would be too good to pass up if he wanted to commit. So, the staff saved him a spot if he wished to become a Wolverine. 

In a not-so-surprising move, Levenberry Jr. chose Florida State where he could get on the field much earlier than he would have at Michigan, and also, where they had his desired major, computer forensics. 

In Isaac’s case, the Wolverines were in dire need of a speedy running back with enough size to withstand the punishment of being an every-down back in the Big Ten conference. However, the depth chart likely betrayed Michigan again. 

Redshirt junior running back Fitzgerald Toussaint will be leading Michigan’s stable of running backs until the end of the 2013 campaign and will likely turn the reigns over to the up-and-coming sophomore tailback Thomas Rawls, in addition to a host of change-of-pace backs like incoming freshmen Dennis Norfleet and Drake Johnson along with redshirt freshman Justice Hayes.  

On the other hand, USC’s starting tailback Curtis McNeal is out of eligibility at the end of the upcoming season. Former highly ranked prospects Dillon Baxter and Amir Carlisle both transferred out of the program and sophomore George Farmer is moving back to wide receiver. Javorious Allen and D.J. Morgan both have a lot to prove, and the Trojans did not sign a running back in the 2012 class. 

At the time of his commitment, Isaac was the only running back committed to USC in the class of 2013. Since then, the Trojans received a verbal commitment from 4-star running back Justin Davis (Stockton, CA). 

To make a long story short, the stable of running backs Isaac will have to compete with as a true freshman at USC is not nearly as deep as what he would face at Michigan.  

Where the depth chart has been a disadvantage for Michigan in their past two national battles, it is very much in their favor in Treadwell’s case, if they are up against Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. 

Oklahoma signed arguably the best group of wide receivers in the country in 2012 headlined by 5-star recruit Trey Metoyer (Chatham, VA) and supported by four, 4-star wideouts. 

Since Sooners head coach Bob Stoops suspended three of his top wide receivers indefinitely on May 10, these highly touted incoming freshmen receivers will likely be called upon to play early and often for however long the starters remain on the sidelines.

Meanwhile, the Sooners’ in-state rival Oklahoma State signed four wide receivers in both their 2011 and 2012 classes and have two 4-star receivers committed in their 2013 class. 

Although none of the wideouts in the previous two classes were as highly sought after or coveted by other schools like Treadwell, but remember how many schools were after Oklahoma State’s latest NFL first-round draft pick wide receiver Justin Blackmon in high school? Not many. 

In fact, outside of Oklahoma State, the only other offers the 3-star prospect had were from Missouri, Colorado and Northern Iowa. Not exactly a group of heavyweights. 

The Cowboys two-deep will be loaded with several of these recruits and a couple of other members of the 2010 class when Treadwell would arrive on campus. 

Compare that against the Michigan Wolverines, who are recruiting taller wide receivers for their transition from the spread to a pro-style offense, where the players he will have to compete against are 2012 signees Amara Darboh and Jehu Chesson.

In addition to the two receivers, Michigan has verbals from the 2013 class C’Sonte York (Harper Woods, MI) and Jaron Dukes (Columbus, OH). 

If Ohio State and Illinois were to enter the mix for Treadwell, the teams would be about even in terms of depth, but Michigan appears to be well out in front of those two programs at this point. 

College football recruiting is one of the toughest things to predict due to how quickly things can change.

There is still plenty of time for new wrinkles in Treadwell’s recruitment to come about, however, the Wolverines appear to be in the best shape to receive a verbal pledge from the Rivals100 recruit.

Zach Dirlam is the Lead Editor of the College Basketball section as well as Big Ten columnist for the FOX Sports/MSN/YardBarker affiliate website Sports at Work. Check out his blog, Dirlam’s Dirty Dugout Sports Blog, which features this story, along with other articles and video reports on major sports.

Follow Zach on Twitter. 

Read more Michigan Wolverines Football news on BleacherReport.com

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But the Wolverines didn’t want to watch a live replay.

With two outs in the bottom of the seventh, freshman designated player Sara Driesenga slapped a double down the third base line, scoring senior center-fielder Bree Evans from second base and sophomore right-fielder Nicole Sappingfield all the way from first.

Michigan (40-15) stopped holding their collective breath and jumped out of their dugout. The monkey was off their back.

“Our motto is ‘it takes everybody’ and it took everybody,” said Michigan coach Carol Hutchins. “I thought we stayed cool and calm, even in the seventh when I thought we gave it up. It’s easy to get down and fold.”

The Wolverines faced Kentucky ace Chanda Bell, but used an strong showing from their top pitcher to counter. Freshman left-hander Haylie Wagner held the Wildcats (29-29) scoreless through six innings while allowing just six hits and one earned run.

Despite pitching 217 innings in 45 appearances this season, Wagner appeared fresh. She struck out four without allowing a single walk in a complete game, but for a moment she almost gave up everything she worked for.

Kentucky began the seventh inning with a leadoff single and used a sacrifice bunt to move the runner to second. After a strikeout, Wagner forced Kentucky batter Emily Joyce to stay alive by fouling the ball off with two strikes. Joyce got a hold of a pitch finally and hit it right at junior shortstop Amy Knapp. Knapp checked third base, turned to second to record the final out, but was late. One run had scored to tie the game.

Hutchins came to the circle to calm her pitcher, but Wildcat star hitter Brittany Cervantes came up to bat next and hit another ball off of Wagner. Once again the ball was hit to Knapp, but this time she mishandled the sharply hit ball and Kentucky’s second batter came home from second.

Wagner downplayed the inning though, showing no fatigue in her arm.

“(The arm) felt fine,” Wagner said. “It was just something that happened and something I had to bounce back from. I had to overcome that.”

Michigan began their comeback when Evans advanced to first on a fielder’s choice. Sappingfield followed with a walk — putting the winning run on base. After senior first-baseman Amanda Chidester struck out, Driesenga hit her walk-off double.

“I told (Driesenga) to attack it,” Hutchins said. “When you get after it and attack it you’ll have a tremendous at-bat. And she did.”

Previously, Michigan had taken the lead in the fourth inning after Wagner was hit by a pitch. She was replaced by pinch-runner Jaclyn Crummey, who stole second and used a single from senior third-baseman Stephanie Kirkpatrick to score.

Combined, the Wolverines mustered just five hits through six innings and struggled to hit off of Bell, who overpowered Michigan with her speed.

“She was just working up in the zone,” Driesenga said. “We were just swinging at them and we shouldn’t have been.”

With a 2-1 loss to Kentucky in last year’s Regional final, this year’s victory felt even sweeter.

But Hutchins doesn’t think reminiscing is necessary with two more games left this weekend.

“The most important thing I told my kids was ‘enjoy their victory and get back to the hotel,’ ” Hutchins said. “We don’t want to get too high, we have a game tomorrow. Regardless of who we play we need to focus on Michigan softball.”

Michigan will face Louisville on Saturday at 3:00 p.m, after the Cardinals also won in walk-off fashion. Louisville used a three-run home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to knock off Valparaiso.

The Wolverines, who dropped a 2-1 decision to the Cardinals in the Red and Black Tournament on March 10, will look to slow down Louisville’s offense.

“We need to have fun. We need to have faith in each other, faith in ourselves and just need to come out aggressive tomorrow to have a good time,” said Louisville coach Sandy Pearsall. “This is like a conference weekend. You don’t get a whole lot of rest in conference weekends. We need to come out with some attitude, confidence, have fun and that’s when we’re at our best.”

Michigan doesn’t want more rest going into next season. But they’d love to let someone else take a break.

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The Cougars dropped into the elimination bracket at the NCAA Regional after falling 6-4 to host Oregon earlier in the day.

Almond threw the complete game shutout by allowing only two hits and two walks with seven strikeouts. Almond is 20-3 now this year, becoming the fifth Cougar pitcher to win 20 games in a season and joining Hannah Howell as the first BYU pitching tandem to both win 20 games in the same season.

Jessica Dugas went 2-for-3 with a double, a run and an RBI for the Cougars. Stacie Toney had a hit and brought in BYU’s other run.

With runners on second and third, Toney hit a grounder past the pitcher Anna Bertrand into no-man’s land, bringing in the first run of the game in the bottom of the first.

BYU added an insurance run in the fifth when Dugas laced a hit past the Viking third baseman who couldn’t her glove down fast enough to stop the grounder. Carly Duckworth scored on the play.

BYU will play in the final day of a Regional for the third straight season. The Cougars won out in 2010 to move on to the Super Regional but lost to Washington last season in the Saturday matchup.

In the earlier game, already leading 1-0, the No. 11 Oregon Ducks went up 5-0 in the third inning on a grand slam by Christie Nieto.

BYU rallied, despite the big deficit and losing WAC Player of the Year Delaney Willard to a hand injury suffered against Mississippi State on Thursday.

With runners on second and third in the top of the next inning, senior Stacie Toney hit an RBI single that resulted in two runs when the throw to the first baseman went wide, enabling both Tiffany Messerschmidt and Katie Manuma to score.

After Oregon scratched a single run across to go up 6-2, BYU came out and loaded the bases with no outs in the fifth with a leadoff walk by Ashlee Brawley and singles from Shelbi Everett and Dugas. Messerschmidt and Manuma both drew bases-loaded walks to score two, but BYU couldn’t get a hit when it needed to, coming out of the inning with just the two runs scored.

• Baseball: At Provo, Marc Oslund became BYU’s first pitcher with two league wins from a 7-3 victories over Santa Clara at the Larry H. Miller Field.

Oslund (5-1) started the contest rocky, working himself out of a bases-loaded and one-out jam in the first inning. Oslund dished out nine strikeouts through five innings before Tyler Westensee relieved him on the mound. Prior to Oslund’s win, he was one of eight different Cougar pitchers to have recorded one league victory.

“Tyler (Westensee) came in and pitched three great innings for us,” BYU head coach Vance Law said. “He really kept us in it.”

The Cougars moved to 21-24 on the season and 9-11 in West Coast Conference play. Santa Clara brought its season record to 24-25, 3-17.

Jaycob Brugman had the game-winning RBI in the fourth, pounding a two-run home run over the right field fence to give BYU a 5-2 lead. The home run was Brugman’s second in the series, after hitting a walk-off grand slam Thursday night.

Kelton Caldwell hit a second BYU homer, a solo over the center-field fence to pad the Cougars’ lead, 6-3, in the sixth frame. After hitting four home runs on the season, the Cougars have hit four home runs in this series.

The three-game series concludes today at 1 p.m

• Men’s golf: At Palo Alto, Calif., BYUZac Blairis just a stroke off the lead after the second round of the NCAA Regionals.

“It was a great day for golf and there were a lot of good scores,” BYU coachBruce Brockbanksaid. “Both our guys played solid rounds.”

Blair matched his first-round score with a second-round 4-under 66, but still slipped into second place, one stroke off the lead.

“Zac left a few out there coming in, but still another quality round,” Brockbank said. “At the beginning of the year everyone wants to play in the national championships and he has a chance. It’s exciting and maybe another good round will get him there.”

Cougar sophomore Justin Keiley shot a 2-under 68, moving from 40th to 24th and is just one stroke outside of the top 20.

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