Well, it's been awhile since the last post, there has been plenty of action on the Lakefront, both on and off the field of play. There's nothing we enjoy more than seeing our student-athletes get recognized for their successes.
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It seemed last week that Jada Frazier was getting a different award or some sort of recognition each day of the week. She very well may have been doing just that as she was named a finalist for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award, placed on the ESPN the Magazine/CoSIDA All-Academic All-District VI team and selected to the WBCA's So You Want to Be a Coach program along with co-captain Ashley Alexander.
Frazier may be in the mix for a few more awards, as she is on the ballot for ESPN the Magazine/CoSIDA All-Academic American squad in addition to being nominated for Sugar Bowl Amateur Athlete of the Month for both December 2008 and January 2009 plus the National Consortium for Academics and Sports Giants Steps Award for a Courageous Student-Athlete.
Back on the floor, Frazier will be in the mix before All-Conference honors in addition to All-Louisiana honors. They just don't stop, do they?
Did you keep up with all of that? Don't forget -- you can vote for Frazier every single day through Mar. 22 at http://www.seniorclassaward.com/vote/womens_basketball_2008_09/ or by texting 'WB1' to 839863.
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Frazier is not the only one doing something this year for the women's basketball team. The unit as a whole is continuing to do things that have not been seen in awhile on the Lakefront. With their win over Louisiana-Monroe on Feb. 7, the team clinched consecutive winning seasons at home. That is something that had not been accomplished since a run of six straight years from 1989-1995.
They are above the .500 mark in SBC play this late in the season for the first time since they finished 9-6 in conference during the 2002-03 season. As we all know, because of this mark, the team is very much in the picture as far as a conference tournament home game goes. Keep track of the league standings as the top three teams receive byes to Hot Springs, Ark. with No. 5-8 all earning home games. At 7-6 entering tonight's contest against North Texas, all indications are that it will take nine wins to sew up such a home game.
The list goes on...the team is just three wins shy with five games remaining of equaling the school-record for conference wins. The most wins to date were 10 in 1991-92 and in 1996-97. The team's best finish since divisional play began was third in 2002-03. There's plenty of other things in reach and I'm sure we'll get all those bases covered at the end of the season when the team has stepped off the court one last time.
And last, but certainly not least on the women's basketball front, another player was honored this week as Brittany Helm received recognition from the Louisiana Sports Writers Association as Co-Player of the Week.
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When was the last time the golf team did not finish first in a tournament? Sept. 16, 2008. The team has since won the Squire Creek Invitational, Sam Hall Intercollegiate and most recently, the UNO Mardi Gras Classic.
Collegiate golf returned to the Crescent City for the first time in several years as head coach Chris McCarter's golf team rallied on the third round of their home tournament. Ken Looper, who won the title at the Sam Hall event in Hattiesburg, Miss. at the end of October, followed it up by winning the individual title at the Mardi Gras Classic.
This team has had several near calls for the Sun Belt championship over the year. In college golf, it is important to get contributions from the top guy in your lineup to the bottom to win a tournament. Thus far, the Privateers have been getting assistance from the top, bottom and all points in between.
McCarter's squad has a month between tournaments. They will kick it into high gear in March when they play three tournaments over the span of about two weeks. First up is the Louisiana Classics in Lafayette, La. before tournaments in Laredo, Texas (Border Olympics) and Greensboro, Ga. (Linger Longer). The SBC title will be determined over three days at the end of April in Houston.
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Baseball season is just over a week away from this posting and if you have swung by Privateer Park, you will notice that there are some lights sitting just outside Maestri Field. Over the last few days, there have been tall cranes looming around the complex as new lights are installed. It will be "night and day" from what we are used to. The first night game is against LSU on Mar. 3.
Season tickets are on sale and fans interested in purchasing their season pass to what will be another exciting year of baseball by calling James Kentfield at (504) 280-GAME. We also season ticket forms available on the web site if you want to pass those around to your colleagues at work.
The team was picked fourth in the SBC preseason coaches poll and there is plenty of other reading on your favorite collegiate baseball sites about head coach Tom Walter's squad. The first series is a four-game set against Towson starting on Feb. 20. For those unable to watch the games, make sure to sign-up for UNO Vision now as we'll have a full slate of baseball action available this season on your exclusive online home.
Baseball's Media Day is right around the corner and that will be a nice wave of publicity for Walter's squad as every television station in town will be present. We'll also post the video up on our web site after the event so our fans can hear what Walter had to say. The Times Picayune was also out recently to shoot a video with the Privateer skipper in addition to talk with Nick Schwaner and Ryan Eden. Look for all of that to come out around the first weekend of the season.
And the media guides are in and look very sharp! They will be on sale at the novelty stand for those who are interested in purchasing their own.
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The swimming and diving team is getting set to take part in the conference championships that run Feb. 18-21 in Nashville, Tenn. and head coach Randy Horner's team is primed to put an assault on the school record books.
Now that we have reached the end of the "regular season", we can now look back on the 10 conference swimmer and diver of the week honors for the program. Prior to this year's record haul, the team had only picked up two honors - both coming during the 2005-06 season. Times have changed and our program is quickly making progress in the pool under the current coaching staff.
What may have got missed is that our all freshman men's program was recognized for their work in the classroom. Ranked eighth in Division I for team grade point average, the squad received national recognition by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA). Their GPA is higher than some Ivy League schools and other prestigious academic institutions.
Look for the high GPAs to continue in addition to student-athletes who can also contribute as finding individuals who can succeed in the classroom, a large part of the coaching staff's mission.
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Our UNO men's and women's tennis teams are on a roll. The Privateer men, ranked No. 75 in the country won six straight matches to begin their return to the Lakefront before dropping a match to No. 46 SMU in Dallas.
This team has tremendous potential with the top two players in the lineup only in their freshman year of athletic eligibility. Having some of the veterans in the lineup has really helped the overall development of this team into one that could potentially contend for the conference championship. It is still early in the season with plenty of tennis left to play, but based on current rankings, the two teams ahead of our squad in the conference are Denver and South Alabama. We will not see DU until the conference tournament and have already beat USA. The men will host Louisiana-Lafayette on Saturday at the University Tennis Center. Nationally ranked LSU is right around the corner.
Their female counterparts started the season with three straight losses and have since bounced back with four wins. Unlike the men, the majority of this lineup are underclassmen with even those with experience, having a very limited amount. Having been to a few matches, I have seen how this team has developed in just a short time. While they have a ways to go before being at the top of the podium in the conference, there is no question that this team is heading in a positive direction. That much is certain after they beat our SBC rivals from ULL 6-1 earlier this season and later beat a Northwestern State team that was coming off a victory over Tulane. The next match is Feb. 25 against Southeastern Louisiana at 12 p.m. This match will be a tough one as the Lions are the three-time defending Southland Conference champions.
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The latest edition of UNO Magazine is out and it contains a men's basketball preview as well as a feature story regarding the Privateer volleyball program and the success they have had under Jozsef Forman.
Speaking of volleyball, spring volleyball is right around the corner. The team will go through their spring practice schedule and play in a few tournaments as they keep in playing shape ahead of next year. Forman and assistant coach Tieming "James" Li are putting on a number of camps. For more information, click on the camps tab on the volleyball page as the information is constantly updated. They are doing a camp during the Mardi Gras holiday with several clinics on Sundays throughout the spring.
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That wraps up this addition of the blog. The next few weeks will be busy here on the Lakefront and if you've been keeping tabs on UNOPrivateers.com, you'll note that Rob and I have had plenty of news to share. You just never know what will come out, as outside of the game advances and recaps, there have been plenty of other surprises. Stay tuned!
Inside the Athletic Department Index
