By Cody Lahl on November 5, 2012 9:52 AM
|No TrackBacks
With their 5-0 drubbing of #16 nationally ranked and #1 seed Richmond to earn the Atlantic 10 Tournament Championship on Saturday afternoon, the UMass field hockey team earned the right to host an NCAA Tournament play-in game against Rider University on Tuesday, Nov. 6 at 1 p.m. on Garber Field.
By Cody Lahl on November 1, 2012 8:37 PM
|No TrackBacks
The UMass field hockey team and its home facility - Garber Field - will
serve as the host for the 2012 Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament
beginning Friday, Nov. 2 at 11 a.m. The Minutewomen enter competition as
the No.2-seeded squad and will face No. 3 seed Temple during the
semifinal round of play at 2 p.m. on Friday. Below are a few links
related to the event...
The Atlantic 10 Conference has set up a page on its website with information related to the event for fans.
UMass,
as the host of the event, will also provide coverage of the entire
championship through UMassAthletics.com and a tournament central page, including live statistics and
web streaming.
By Cody Lahl on November 1, 2012 10:31 AM
|No TrackBacks
With the Atlantic 10 Field Hockey Tournament beginning on Friday, Nov. 2, the conference announced its regular season award winners on Thursday. Seven members of the UMass program combined to earn 12 laurels this season - the most of any team in the A-10.
Sophomore Lauren Allymohamed was tabbed the Atlantic 10 Defensive Player of the Year - the fourth consecutive season a UMass student-athlete earned the laurel - while second-year head coach Carla Tagliente was named the Coach of the Year.
Read up more on each of the awards UMass received here or through the official Atlantic 10 release.
By Cody Lahl on October 15, 2012 12:21 PM
|No TrackBacks
After three games in four days, the UMass field hockey team recorded an undefeated week that included a 2-1 come-from-behind win over No. 1 Syracuse and a pair of A-10 Conference victories. The three-game winning streak earned the team and a few of its individual players considerable praise this week...
J. Anthony Roberts provided a photo gallery and Harry Plumer added a short recap for the Springfield Republican following the defeat of No. 1 Syracuse.
Jon Rothstein, who covers the Atlantic 10 for CBS Sports Network, put out a good summertime piece on what to be excited about in the A-10 this season. His first item listed is on UMass junior PG Chaz Williams and the potential his play, along with the rest of the team, can bring the Minutemen.
1. CHAZ, CHAZ, AND MORE
CHAZ
Chaz Williams took the conference by storm in his first season in the Atlantic-10
and only figures to be more of a menace in 2012-13. Potentially the Preseason
Conference Player of the Year, Williams should give UMass coach Derek Kellogg
one of the league's best back courts with he and talented wing Jesse Morgan, a
6-foot-5 wing who seemed to get better every team he took on the floor. If big
man Cady Lalanne can stay healthy and form a potent baseline with Terrell
Vinson and Raphiael Putney, the Minutemen should be in position to compete for
a conference title and a berth to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in a
quite a while.
Ron Chimelis of the Springfield Republican has a piece looking towards the 2012-13 basketball season and how UMass can use its successes this year to springboard ahead.
Matt Vautour of the Daily Hampshire Gazette has a piece on the excitement generated by UMass' NIT Semifinal run and the success in several other sports along with the transition of the football program to the Mid-American Conference.
"When you have the success that basketball has had and you see what the lacrosse programs are doing and some of our other teams combined with the momentum of our football transition, it's very positive," McCutcheon said. "You walk around (Madison Square Garden) and hear the things people are saying and it's gratifying."
The Atlantic 10 Conference SAAC "Anti-Bullying" Video Competition is under way with eleven institutions entering videos in this year's competition. This is the second year that the A-10 SAAC has conducted this "friendly" video competition, where the winner is determined by a combination of an online fan vote, as well as a vote conducted by each institution's campus SAAC organization. This fall, a unanimous vote by the A-10 SAAC led to the "anti-bullying" campaign as the theme of the 2011-12 video competition.
The guidelines for the competition are intentionally broad to provide maximum flexibility in the video submissions. Campus SAAC organizations that entered this year's competition have taken advantage of the incredible opportunity to raise awareness of bullying, through their creative and powerful messages.
The online vote will be open and conducted Friday, March 23 through Sunday, April 1. The campus SAAC votes will also be due on the final day of the online voting (Sunday, April 1), with the winner being announced on Tuesday, April 3.
The inaugural competition, which took place during 2010-11 academic year, involved the creation of videos that promoted an NCAA or institutional core value (e.g., sportsmanship, sense of community, commitment to service, academic and athletic excellence), or an ideal that student-athletes are especially proud of or passionate about. There were a total of seven institutional entries for this first-ever competition. The competition generated over 3,100 online votes, with roughly 40 percent of those votes going to the University of Dayton (1,204), which sealed their victory in the first-ever competition and they also finished second in the campus SAAC vote.
Ron Chimelis of the Springfield Republican previews tonight's game against Fordham saying that after the Rams' win over No. 22 Harvard and Georgia Tech, this game will be challenging.
Doug Harris of the Springfield (Ohio) News-Sun takes a look at the non-conference opponent success the Atlantic 10 has had this season with several quotes from UMass head coach Derek Kellogg.
Matt Vautour of the Daily Hampshire Gazette writes in today's edition on Wednesday's announcement by the Atlantic 10 that its men's basketball conference tournament will be played at the brand new Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The five-year deal will begin with the 2013 championship.
"It gives us the opportunity to come into a brand-new facility that has all the amenities that sports fans expect," Commissioner Bernadette McGlade said. "Bringing it into the New York market and into Brooklyn, with the density of population and the density of our Atlantic 10 alumni base, is certainly going to put everything in place to really catapult this championship to the next level."
Ben Lambert of the Daily Collegian has a wrap from the UMass rowing team's performance at last weekend's Knecht Cup. The Varsity 4+ took the gold medal in the Grand Final while the Second Varsity Eight finished third in its Grand Final.
"Some 30, 35 different colleges were entered [in the Varsity Four]," said Head Coach Jim Dietz. "The Second Varsity Eight rowed tremendously, I think that's pretty exciting racing."
The Minutewomen are off to the Atlantic 10 Championships tomorrow, which are scheduled to begin at 8 AM on the Cooper River.
UMass Winter Scholar-Athlete Luncheon - Cerie Mosgrove, Sean Busch. Speeches by Female honoree Cerie Mosgrove (women's basketball), Associate Head Coach Steve Lanpher, Professor Glenn Wong and Track & Field Coach Ken O'Brien. Busch was unable to attend.
Nick Bellofatto of the Daily Collegian has a story on the UMass Swimming & Diving teams' performances at the A-10 Championships this past weekend in Buffalo. The Minutemen claimed their fifth-straight and 13th overall title, while the Minutewomen put in a very strong performance, placing third. It was a tremendously successful meet on both sides as numerous school records fell. In addition, the following individuals were recognized:
Women's Most Outstanding Diver: Molly Elkins Women's Diving Coach of the Year: Mandy Hixon Men's Most Outstanding Rookie: Chris Inglis Men's Most Outstanding Diver: Jason Cook Men's Co-Coach of the Year: Russ Yarworth Men's Diving Coach of the Year: Mandy Hixon
113 UMass student-athletes have been named to the Atlantic 10 Commissioner's Honor Roll for the Fall 2010 semester, as announced by Atlantic 10 Commissioner Bernadette McGlade on Wednesday. A total of 1,296 student-athletes throughout the A-10 were recognized for their excellence in the classroom during the fall semester. To be listed on the Commissioner's Honor Roll, a student-athlete in an Atlantic 10-sponsored sport must have a 3.5 GPA or better (on a 4.0 scale) during the specified semester.
For a complete list of honorees, click here, or to read the complete release from the Atlantic 10, click here
Checkout this notebook blurb about the men's track and field team from over the weekend. Dick Baker from The Springfield Republican highlights the career of Ken O'Brien, and the success of his squad through the 2011 season.
(note: scroll down to middle of the page)
Over the weekend the Minutemen crowned four A-10 Champions.
The Atlantic 10 is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year, and will be highlighted the conference's memorable moments throughout 2011. In Feature #11, the UMass Rowing team is mentioned for it's dominance of the A-10 after capturing their 12th straight conference crown.
"The Massachusetts women's rowing program has also grabbed the attention of many in the A-10. The Minutewomen, under the tutelage of legendary coach Jim Dietz, won its 12th straight Atlantic 10 Championship in 2007 -- the most consecutive A-10 crowns won by any team, in any sport. Dietz, who is in his 17th season at the helm, has guided his teams to 54 Atlantic 10 gold medals in 14 league championship events. He has been honored as the A-10 Coach of the Year seven times."
In recognition of its 35th-year anniversary, the Atlantic 10 Conference is unveiling 35 Years of A-10 History. Major accomplishments and features were collected from each year, and in the conference's No. 4 Highlight, the impact of the 1972 enactment of Title IX and the contributions of women's athletics to the Atlantic 10 is the focus.
Featured in the No. 4 Highlight is the incredible success experienced by the UMass softball program over the last 31 years under the guidance of head coach Elaine Sortino.
"Under Sortino's direction, UMass has accumulated 22 Atlantic 10 Conference titles and has never suffered a losing season. Sortino has proven her ability to produce exceptional talent during her 31-years at the helm, coaching 27 All-Americans, 13 A-10 Players of the Year, 16 A-10 Pitcher of the Year picks, eight A-10 Rookie of the Year honorees and 116 all-conference selections."
The Massachusetts field hockey team knows the position of the underdog tournament host. It was in that position just last season when it hosted No. 1 seed Richmond. Read the full preview in the Daily Coellgian.
Here are various stories on the UMass basketball team and Atlantic 10 Basketball Media Day held at Chelsea Piers and CBS College Sports studios in New York City.
2010-11 Atlantic 10 Preseason Accolades
First Team Lavoy Allen, Temple
Kevin Anderson, Richmond
Andrew Nicholson, St. Bonaventure
Damian Saunders, Duquesne
Chris Wright, Dayton
Second Team Juan Fernandez, Temple
Chris Gaston, Fordham
Tu Holloway, Xavier
Delroy James, Rhode Island
Shamari Spears, Charlotte
Third Team Chris Braswell, Charlotte
Cody Ellis, Saint Louis
Chris Johnson, Dayton
Lasan Kromah, George Washington
Aaric Murray, La Salle
All-Defensive Team Lavoy Allen, Temple
Kevin Anderson, Richmond
Dante Jackson, Xavier
Andrew Nicholson, St. Bonaventure
Damian Saunders, Duquesne
All-Rookie Team C.J. Aiken, Saint Joseph's
Langston Galloway, Saint Joseph's
Jordan Latham, Xavier
Rob Loe, Saint Louis
Juwan Staten, Dayton
Preseason Poll (# first place votes), Total Points 1 - Temple (19), 350
2 - Xavier (3), 325
3 - Richmond (3), 311
4 - Dayton (1), 310
5 - Rhode Island, 233
6 - Saint Louis, 223
7 - Charlotte, 218
8 - Duquesne, 172
9 - La Salle, 133
10 - George Washington, 130
11 - Massachusetts, 126
12 - Saint Joseph's, 91
13 - St. Bonaventure, 80
14 - Fordham, 28
The Daily Collegian's Steve Levine recapped the Atlantic 10 opener for the UMass Men's Soccer team last weekend. The Minutemen shutout Xavier 2-0, which saw Morgan Brandso net his first collegiate goal last Friday before battling to a 1-1 draw with Dayton on Sunday.
Herb Scribner has a sidebar in Tuesday's Collegian regarding corner kicks last weekend. "Thus far in the 2010 campaign, the Minutemen have given up 59 corner kicks, with 15 of them coming in the first two A-10 matches alone."
Stephen Hewitt of the Daily Collegian covered UMass Rowing's season opener at the Head of the Housatonic last weekend in Shelton, Conn. "The 16th annual event, which covers a 2.7 mile strip as the course, attracted rowers of all ages, from novice high school students to veteran masters, in one of the biggest races in New England has to offer"
The Minutewomen will host the Pumpkin Head Regatta this Saturday at 8 AM on the Connecticut River.
The Massachusetts women's soccer team begins Atlantic 10 play this
weekend, opening up at home with Charlotte on Friday and Saint Louis on Sunday at Rudd Field.
While the A-10 achieved great athletic success in 2009-10, the
conference flourished academically as well. Josh Katzowitz takes an
in-depth look at the accomplishments on the court and in the classroom
in the first of four A-10 Summer Spotlight articles. Read The Story.
