2008 Woodie Awards
Throughout most of the 2006 softball season, Stacy Cullington would walk out of the UMass Softball Complex feeling frustrated and disappointed. Frustrated with how she played that day, and disappointed in herself. Cullington's sophomore season with the Massachusetts softball team was not going how she, or anyone else, expected.
The stage didn't change for the Massachusetts softball team, and neither did the results. The top-seeded Minutewomen defeated Temple, 8-0, in five innings, on their home turf in the second round of the Atlantic 10 Tournament. UMass faces second-seeded Fordham today at 2 p.
There are only two things that could happen to the Massachusetts baseball team in its final seven games of the season, four of which are at home. It could show up for the final six Atlantic 10 games of the year against Saint Louis and Xavier and move into that sixth and final playoff spot, or it could waste a perfect opportunity to knock off its last two conference opponents and miss out on the postseason once again.
Atlantic 10 Player of the Year Adrienne Repscher of Temple swung and missed at a 1-2 offering from Massachusetts sophomore ace Brandice Balschmiter. The strikeout ended the top of the first inning. As the nine Minutewomen sprinted off the field and congregated outside their dugout, a palpable energy shot through the UMass Softball Complex when the perennially defending A-10 Champions broke huddle.
Game 5 of the 2007 Atlantic 10 Softball Championship ended in the fifth inning on a run rule yesterday, as Fordham defeated Saint Louis, 10-2. Starting pitcher Nicole Ayres (17-14) recorded the win. The freshman combined with senior Sara Kinney (14-10) for all five innings pitched, as well as three hits and six strikeouts.
This time around for Temple, there were no heroics off the bat of Shannon James and no complete game shutout against Charlotte in the right arm of Brianna Dairy. This time around, it was the Kristi and Christy show for the 49ers in their 8-2 win over the Owls yesterday at the UMass Softball Complex.
The finish line is in sight for the Massachusetts men's and women's outdoor track teams. The Maroon and White are headed to Dartmouth for the New England Outdoor Track Championship, for their final meet of the season. Every athlete competing had to meet certain qualifications in his or her event in order to be eligible to appear in the New England Championships.
The Massachusetts rowing team caps off their season this weekend at the Dad Vail Regatta in Philadelphia on the Schuylkill River. UMass will be facing over 30 crews from all around the country this weekend. Last year at the Dad Vail Regatta the field included teams such as San Diego, Purdue, Colgate and Villanova.