Author: jmcleod

Officials at Eastern Michigan University have announced that four of the school’s varsity sports will cease competition effective at the end of the 2018 spring season. This includes the EMU softball team. Explaining the decision as a cost-cutting move, estimated to save approximately $2.4 million, officials made the decision following a restructuring of the university’s budget. In addition to softball, other sports being discontinued include wrestling; men’s swimming and diving; and women’s tennis. The EMU softball roster is made up of seventeen players, including four seniors; six juniors; three sophomores; and four freshmen. Junior third baseman Amanda Akles leads the team with a…

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Not only did the final two undefeated teams in Division I take their first losses of 2018 this weekend, but quite a few top teams endured surprising, upset losses. Here are our top five that could have a ripple effect both immediately and throughout the year. 5. Cal State Northridge 10, Nebraska 5 Facing a Big Ten race that looks like it could be anyone’s for the taking, the Huskers were looking to end their non-conference season on a high note before beginning conference play next weekend. The Matadors had other plans, however, as the CSUN offense rocked Nebraska pitcher Olivia Ferrell…

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Only two unbeaten teams remain after USC-Upstate lost their first game of the season over the weekend in Tucson, Arizona. Now just two PAC-12 teams, UCLA and Washington, sport goose eggs in the “L” column. The Bruins went 5-0 on the weekend, with four consecutive run-rule wins and tight 6-5 victory over Long Beach State. For their part, the Huskies posted a 4-0 record, with victories over UNLV, DePaul, and New Mexico State twice, including a ten-inning game on Saturday. Florida, LSU, Texas A&M, and Tennessee all earned sweeps in their first SEC conference series’ of the year, over Kentucky; Auburn; Ole…

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Former Missouri head coach Ehren Earleywine has been named the new athletics director for Jefferson City Public Schools. Earleywine was surprisingly fired as the Tigers’ head coach less than two weeks before the 2018 season began, and with little explanation as to the motives for the move or the timing thereof. In his new role, Earleywine’s official title will be Director of Athletics and he will serve the Jefferson City Public Schools. Jefferson City is the capital of Missouri and is roughly forty miles from Columbia. “I am excited for the opportunity to help elevate JCPS toward becoming the premier district…

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Belmont senior Lexi Rouse has been named the JWOS Player of the Week after a record-breaking weekend. Rouse went 6-10 in the Bruins’ quartet of games, posting a .600 batting average on the week. Each of her six hits went over the wall for a home run, vastly multiplying her previous total of one long ball on the year. The Bruins senior had at least one home run in each of her team’s games, and the week was highlighted by a three-home run performance against Kennesaw State on Friday. The trio of longballs came off of two different Owls pitchers…

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The Oregon softball team is raising money for a good cause. Members of the Ducks softball roster have signed up to raise money for the University of Oregon’s St. Baldrick’s charity event, set to take place in April. Several student-athletes at the school are fundraising for the event; at press time, the softball team led the way with more than $6,000 raised as a group. The St. Baldrick’s Foundation is the nation’s leading private funder of childhood cancer research. Operating on a grant program, the organization gives more money specifically to pediatric cancer research than anyone other than the US…

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Alabama head coach Patrick Murphy earned his 1,000th victory as the Crimson Tide head coach in a 5-0 win over Boston College on Friday night. Murphy, who has been the Alabama head coach for a nearly-uninterrupted twenty years, became the first coach to earn 1,000 victories, all at an SEC program. Murphy has spent his entire head coaching career with the Tide, with the exception of a single season in 1995 when he served as interim head coach at Northwest Missouri State. The milestone victory came in impressive fashion as senior pitcher Alexis Osorio threw a no-hitter and accumulated eleven…

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Former Central Washington star Mallory Holtman will be inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame as a member of the induction class of 2018. Holtman, who played for the Wildcats from 2004-08, is one of the most celebrated players in the program’s history. She holds the program record for triples in a single season and ranks second all-time in five different statistical categories, including home runs; doubles; triples; RBIs; and total bases. During her career, Holtman earned first-team all-conference selections in each of her four years as a Wildcat and twice was named to the all-region roster. Perhaps most famously,…

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Illinois-Chicago pitcher Karissa Frazier was honored by the Chicago White Sox during the team’s spring training in Arizona. Frazier was presented with the Roland Hemond Award by the White Sox team, thanks to her outstanding efforts with Gift of Life. Frazier has been involved with the organization since becoming a Campus Ambassador in September 2016. Gift of Life is a public bone marrow and blood stem cell registry, and since joining the organization, Frazier has swabbed more than 1,000 individuals for the registry. In addition to being presented with the award, Frazier was treated to a VIP experience at Camelback…

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Who is she? Jennifer Sansano, a former pitcher for the St. Bonaventure Bonnies and the Niagara Purple Eagles. What is she known for? After spending the first two seasons of her career at St. Bonaventure, Jennifer transferred to Niagara for her junior season in 2013 and made an immediate impact on the Purple Eagles, as she was named the conference Pitcher of the Year for the MAAC in 2013. That season, she posted a 10-11 record, with a 6-3 mark in MAAC play, and sported a 2.13 ERA. Here’s something interesting… In her first season at Niagara in 2013, Jennifer…

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