Austin TV Interview with Mark Johnson

Coach Johnson's farewell - Alan Cannon

Growing up, my mom and dad and my grandparents always drove home the point of surrounding yourself with good people.

As it turned out, I was blessed beyond measure when as a young and impressionable college student, I had the good fortune to play baseball for Tom Chandler and then to be the student sports information director for the Aggie baseball team for Coach Chandler when a young assistant coach joined Coach Chandler’s staff in 1983. Mark Johnson came to Aggieland from Mississippi State and had previously worked with the University of Arizona and had won a national championship in 1976.

When Coach Chandler retired after the 1984 season, a new Aggie graduate was again fortunate to remain as an assistant SID to handle baseball as Mark Johnson took over the Aggie head coaching job on the diamond.

From the season opening 10-1 win against Northeast Louisiana with Tom Arrington on the mound (the baseball media guide ink may have been wet, but at least it was out!) to the 1,000^th coaching victory as Sam Houston State defeated UT-San Antonio, 8-6, Mark Johnson has always been among the country’s best baseball coaches.

If influence was judged solely on wins and losses, Coach Johnson would be among the best, but that is just part of the story. Coach Johnson has been such a positive influence on so many baseball players, coaches, media, fans and sports information personnel.

Thanks seems so inadequate when I consider all that Coach Johnson, Linda, Ron and Brian, have done and all that his family has meant to me and my family through the years. My wife, Kaye, and I had a Christian couple in Mark and Linda that modeled how to make a marriage work in collegiate athletics. My oldest daughter Katie still remembers where Linda would sit at Olsen Field so she could go down and get some candy. Kaye was pregnant with our youngest daughter Macie in 1999 as we went to Omaha and the College World Series.

I can still remember driving back from the CoSIDA convention in Nashville, Tennessee, when I got a call from Coach Johnson telling me he was going to become the head coach at Sam Houston State. I was so excited that more young people would have the opportunity to be influenced by his baseball coaching as well as his teaching in the game of life.

You see it is the game of life where Coach Johnson has really excelled and he continues to this day. I have heard people say of Coach Johnson, he is more like a teacher than a coach. But aren’t good teachers just like good coaches? Always there, always caring and someone you can always depend on.

After each baseball season in Aggieland, Coach Johnson would meet with the team. And not just the players, but he would have his SID, trainers, managers and field workers present to say thanks for the hard work and dedication. Regardless if it was a College World Series team, or a team that did not make the playoffs, Coach Johnson would always express his faith and mention hanging around with good folks and good things will happen.

The Good Lord has blessed me so much, but one of the greatest blessings has been to “hang around” one of the all-time greatest coach, husband, father and Christian in Mark Johnson. Other than my parents and grandparents, Coach Mark Johnson is probably the greatest influence on my life and for that I am most grateful.

To Coach Johnson—Go Kats! God Bless and Gig ‘Em

Alan Cannon (aka A.C.)

Bearkats named CBI team of the week

After going 4-0 this past week, including a Southland Conference sweep of first-place Stephen F. Austin, Sam Houston State is the CollegeBaseballInsider.com Team of the Week.

The Bearkats started the week with a 2-0 victory over Texas Southern on Tuesday. SHSU traveled to Southland leader Stephen F. Austin over the weekend. The Bearkats posted a 5-1 win on Friday before taking a 7-3 decision on Saturday. SHSU completed the sweep with a 3-2 victory on Sunday to climb to third in the Southland standings.

Soccer wraps up Spring season

Spring soccer has finished up. The team competed in the Texas A&M and Houston Baptist 7-A-Side Tournaments, The Challenge Presidents Day Invitational, hosted St. Edward's University, and held its first alumni game. Only freshmen and sophomores took the field for the Bearkats this spring. Our seniors do not compete with the team in the spring and Deanna Long was doing rehabilitation from knee surgery. The team progressed throughout the spring and showed improvement in the areas we have been focusing on in training.

I really enjoyed our alumni game. I got to meet quite a few players who had played here during the first few years of the program. It was also great to see the three senior classes that have graduated during my time here at Sam Houston State. We are already planning a bigger and better event for 2012!

Head Strength Coach Kyle Speer took over the training of our team in the weight room. Our young players have gained strength and played with more confidence during this time. On the field we have focused on attacking themes and working with our forwards with finishing around the penalty box. We were pleased to score 13 goals in our 3 games at the HBU tournament. The team was led in scoring by 2010 Southland Freshman of the Year, Tricia Mallory.

Eight new faces will join the up with the team on August 3, when the team reports for pre-season training. One of those new faces is Ashlyn Davis. She helped lead her high school, Cedar Park Vista Ridge, to the Texas State 4A Championship Game where the ended the season with a 2-1 loss. However, Ashlyn was named to the Soccer State Championship All-Tournament Team.

The team will open the 2011 season in Waco, TX on Friday, August 19. The team will face Big 12 team Baylor University on that date with kickoff scheduled for 7:00 PM.

-- Tom Brown
Head Women's Soccer Coach

NCAA Bowling Championships - Day 2

Today's play at the NCAA Bowling Championships will be a double elimination, bracket format.

Once again, today's matches can be view live online on the NCAA website: http://www.ncaa.com/liveschedule

Match 1 SHSU vs. Nebraska
Baker match Best 4 of 7
Game 1 - Kats win 179-169
Game 2 - Nebraska wins 221-195
Game 3 - Nebraska wins 226-206
Game 4 - Nebraska wins 204-188
Game 5 - Nebraska wins 237-211

The seventh-seeded Bearkats fell in the opening match 4-1 to No. 2 Nebraska. The Kats took the opening game by 10-pins, but came up empty in the last four to fall to the losers bracket. SHSU will now face No. 6 Arkansas State in an elimination match.

Match 2 SHSU vs. Arkansas State
Game 1 - Arkansas State wins 183-165
Game 2 - Kats win 246-169 (7 straight strikes to finish)
Game 3 - ASU wins 244-176
Game 4 - ASU wins 255-192
Game 5 - Kats win 192-185
Game 6 - ASU wins 227-176



April 15, 2011 - Bracket Play
Round 1 (Matches 1-4) - 8:50 a.m.
 - Match 1 - #1 Fairleigh Dickinson vs #8 Kutztown
 - Match 2 - #4 Vanderbilt vs #5 Central Missouri
- Match 3 - #2 Nebraska vs #7 Sam Houston State
 - Match 4 - #3 Maryland-Eastern Shore vs #6 Arkansas State

Round 2 (Matches 5-8) - 10:20 a.m.
 - Match 5 - FDU vs. Vanderbilt
 - Match 6 - Nebraska vs Maryland-Eastern Shore
 - Match 7 - Kutztown vs. Central Missouri
 - Match 8 - Sam Houston State vs Arkansas State

Round 3 (Matches 9 & 10) - 2:40 p.m.
 - Match 9 - Loser of Match 6 vs Winner of Match 7
 - Match 10 - Loser of Match 5 vs Winner of Match 8

Round 4 (Matches 11 & 12) - 4:20 p.m.
 - Match 11 - Winner of Match 5 vs Winner of Match 9
 - Match 12 - Winner of Match 6 vs Winner of Match 10

April 16, 2011
Round 5 (Matches 13 & 14) - 9:40 a.m. (if necessary)
 - Match 13 - Winner of Match 11 vs Loser of Match 11
 - Match 14 - Winner of Match 12 vs Loser of Match 12

Round 6 (Championship Final) - 2:40 p.m.
 - Match 15 - Semifinals Winners

NCAA Bowling Championships - Day 1

TAYLOR, Mich -- We are about set and ready to get the first day of the NCAA Bowling Championship in Taylor Michigan, which is a suburb of Detroit. Today's format is a round-robin competition where the Kats will bowl against the seven other schools to determine the seeding for bracket play on Friday.

Live Video is available on the NCAA website of today's matches http://www.ncaa.com/liveschedule

We will be updating this page throughout the day.

The order of play for today's session was announced this morning:

Morning Session (8:50 a.m.to 1 p.m.)
Game 1 - Vanderbilt - Lanes 19-20
Game 2 - University of Maryland Eastern Shore- Lanes 7-8
Game 3 - Kutztown - Lanes 13-14
Game 4 - Arkansas State - Lanes 25-26

Afternoon Session (2:40 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.)
Game 1 - Central Missouri - Lanes 7-8
Game 2 - Fairleigh Dickinson - Lanes 27-28
Game 3 - Nebraska - Lanes 23-24V

Game 1 vs Vanderbilt (Won 958-946)
The Bearkats got their first trip to the NCAA Championship off to a great start, knocking off Vanderbilt 958-946. Dayna Galganski got the first turkey of the day for the Kats with strikes in the 6th, 7th and 8th frames. She made it four straight in the 9th. The Kats trailed most of the match, but rallied late. Shaina Woolbaugh hit on three straight strikes in the 9th and 10th and finished with a 181. Galganski lead the Kats with a 220, 22 pins above her average. Kimi Davidson bowled a 195, Aida Sanchez a 174 and Neishka Cardona finished with a 188.

Game 2 vs. Maryland Eastern Shore (Lost 1240-904)
The Bearkats dropped the second match of the day, falling to Maryland Eastern Shore 1240-904. Galganski led the way for the Kats with a 205, followed closely by Cardona's 204.

Game 3 vs Kutztown (Won 1013-971)
SHSU bounced back to take the third match of the day 1013-971 against Kutztown. The Kats opened strong with Lisa MacAllister opening with four consecutive strikes. Sanchez had a turkey in frames 2-4 to help the Kats to an early 100 pin lead. MacAllister then picked up a split in the 7th and Cardona followed with a split pick up in the 8th as the Kats held off Kutztown. MacAllister bowled a 237 to lead the Kats and Woolbaugh finished with a 205.

Game 4 vs. Arkansas State (Lost 1086-954)
The Bearkats finished the first session 2-2 with a loss to Arkansas State. Galganski led the Kats with a 211 and Cardona closed strong with four strikes in he last six rolls to finish with a 210.

Game 5 vs. Central Missouri (Lost 989-964)
The Kats fell in a hole early, and despite a furious late rally, fell in the fifth match of the day to Central Missouri. SHSU dominated the 10th frame, with Davidson, Sanchez and Galganski rolled a turkey in the 10th frame, with Galganski finishing with four straight. Sanchez had the high score for the Kats with a 223.

Game 6 vs. Fairleigh Dickinson (Lost 1100-900)
The Bearkats had a strong start in the first three frames against Fairleigh Dickinson, but four open frames in the fourth and fifth cost the Kats in the 200-pin loss. Davidson finished with a turkey in the 10th to bowl a 195. Sanchez was the top Kat bowler with a 225 after opening with three straight strikes.

Game 7 vs. Nebraska (Lost 972-939)
The Bearkats fell in the final game of the day, 972-939 to Nebraska to close the day at 2-5 in the preliminary qualifying round. Dayna Galganski and Kimi Davidson led the way for the Kats with a 211 (Galganski) and 209 (Davidson) with Galganski closing with five strikes in her last six rolls.

Baseball numbers down in 2011

When the college baseball season started, there was a lot of talk about the new bats. They are supposed to play more like wood bats and as a result the gaudy offensive numbers were supposed to come down. I talked to a lot of people before the season about it and most agreed.

However, a few said they wanted to see how the numbers played out before making a decision, and said they didn’t think it was going to be a huge difference. Well the NCAA has released its first half numbers, and I think it is very telling about the change in offensive production.

Data from the NCAA statistics staff reveal that in Division I games through April 3 (essentially the midpoint of the season), scoring is down by more than a run per game per team compared with the same time last season (from 6.98 per team in 2010 to 5.63 in 2011), and home runs have dropped from .85 a game per team in 2010 to .47 this year.

Batting average has also declined sharply, from .301 per team at midseason last year to .279 so far in 2011. Conversely, earned-run average has improved, from 5.83 in 2010 to 4.62 this year. In addition, more shutouts have been thrown this year (444) compared with this time last season (277).

I wanted to do the same for the Bearkats this season and see how their numbers stack up against the rest of the country.

The trends for the Kats are similar in some areas. Home runs this year are down for SHSU as well. Last season, the Kats averaged .74 homers per game and this year, they are hitting them at a .38 per game clip. Runs are also down for the Bearkats, although, not by nearly the same margin. In 2010, the Kats averaged 5.94 runs per game. This season they are averaging 5.61 per game.

The batting average is one area, the Kats have not seen a decline. Last year they had a team average of .302 and this year, it is down just a point at .301.

The pitching numbers for the Kats a skewed a bit, because the team overall was down last year, but there is still a huge disparity between the two seasons. Last year, the Bearkats has a staff ERA of 6.38. It is down more than three runs this year at 3.22. Also, the opponents’ batting average is down from .313 last year to .244 through 31 games this season.

The new bat standards that went into effect this season feature a stricter “Ball-Bat Coefficient of Restitution” standard (BBCOR) that reduces a batted ball’s exit speed.

The new BBCOR formula provides a better measure of a bat’s performance and allows the Baseball Rules Committee and bat-testing laboratories to better predict field performance based on lab tests. The goal is for non-wood bats that meet this new standard to perform similarly to wood bats.

The NCAA Baseball Research Panel, a group charged with maintaining the protocol for testing bats in the college game, recommended the new standards after reviewing Division I statistics from previous years that revealed sharp increases in offensive performance, particularly in home runs and runs scored, that was attributable mostly to the kind of bats in use at the time.

In 2007, the per-game average of home runs hit was .68 per team. That increased to .84 in 2008 and to .96 in 2009. It was .94 last year.

Runs scored per game experienced a similar trajectory. The 6.1 average per team in 2007 ballooned to 6.57 in 2008, 6.88 in 2009 and 6.98 in 2010.

“These new bat standards have brought the game back to its original style of play,” said Tim Weiser, deputy commissioner at the Big 12 Conference and chair of the Division I Baseball Committee. “It has put a premium back on strategy, pitching and defense, and not on the No. 9 hitter being able to hit the ball 400 feet just like the No. 4 hitter can. That’s what a lot of the positive feedback I’m hearing is centered on.”

-- Jason Barfield

Spring volleyball going well

I feel that Sam Houston volleyball is progressing very well as the spring moves along. We came together quite well in our tournament we had a couple of weekends ago, which I feel boosted our confidence. Not only did it strengthen us as a team, but it also showed us the areas in which we need to improve. I really appreciate all the feedback we get from the coaches to help us see what areas we need to focus on and get better at.

Team bonding has been a great experience. I like all the different activities we are doing because they do help us become closer to one another on a personal level and they give each and every one of us a different look at one another. My team bonding activity was a little different from the ones we have had in the past because I wanted to incorporate a little competition into mine, but in a fun way. That’s why I thought that playing knock-out at the halftime of one of the basketball games would be a fun experience! Of course, I won on my side…(I had to, it was my team bonding), and Carli won on her side. But overall it was fun and everyone enjoyed it!

Also, spring is about competition, so I figured it would help to do something like when we have Wild Wednesday practices for points in the spring. Although we have only had a couple, I think those days are fun and helps put a little more competitiveness in us, which is beneficial because you want that type of person on your team in order to be successful on the court. Overall I think we are becoming a better team in all areas and I believe by the end of spring we will become a very well rounded team that will be hard to defeat!!!

-- Kaylee Hawkins, #12, SO, Utility

With two months left in season, Andreas already has two grand slams

Chris Andreas has elevated himself to rare company in the SHSU baseball record book. On Wednesday night against Prairie View A&M, Andreas blasted his second grand slam of the season. It is a feat that has been done just once in school history.

Tyler Knight was the first Bearkat to ever hit two grand slams in a season with bombs over University of Houston and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi back in 2009. But Andreas, who leads the Kats batting at .373, has a pair of grand slams with 34 more games to play this season. The last Bearkat grand slam was Knight's against Corpus, which was the next to last game of the regular season.

Kelly Eddlemon is the only other Bearkat with two slams in a career, having done it in 1997 and 1998.

Andreas isn't new to the record books. Last season he went on a 26 game hitting streak, the third longest in school history.

Still, Andreas doesn't step to the plate with the bases loaded, thinking about going deep. He's waiting comfortably for the right pitch.

"I come up there just trying to get a base-hit, you know at least get two guys in," Andreas said. "Luckily I got my pitch and hit it out of the yard."

He did admit that hitting a grand slam, of course, is in the back of his mind a little bit, but he focuses on staying comfortable and not overduing it.

The last time the Kats had two grand slams in a season (which was 2009), they actually had three slams. Then sophomore Ryan Mooney blasted a slam that season as well.

In 2008, SHSU recorded four grand slams - three in a one month's time.

Could we possibly see the first ever Bearkat to hit three slams in a season? How about a school record as a team? There's certainly enough time to break 08 team record. Sam Houston has four players batting over .300, with Braeden Riley right behind them batting .283 and only six hits away from passing Eddlemon as second all-time in total hits.

Today the Kats begin a three-game conference series against UTSA, a team with the third highest ERA in the SLC (4.77).

Coach Mark Johnson knows pitching will be critical this season. But expect a lot of record-breaking hitting anyway.

-- Brandon Scott
GoBearkats.com

A great week in Hawaii

Kaneohe Klipper Golf Course

The Lady Bearkats had a strong outing in Hawaii finishing 7^th out of 19 teams last week. Five of the six teams to beat us were ranked in the top 50 in the country, so I was very happy with our performance.

I think it was difficult to stay focused on golf with two holes running along the ocean at Kaneohe Klipper Golf Course which is located on  the U.S. Marine Base on the island of Oahu. Of course, the whales spouting and splashing didn’t help their concentration either, LOL.

Congratulations to Meghann Stevens who had a top 20 finish individually.

All and all we had a great time in Hawaii and played some good golf as well.

-- Tommy Chain

Women’s golf coach  

Crazy Spring so far

This Spring Semester has been a crazy one! It has been hard to capture a gym; we have to go between the coliseum and the REC center. I think as a whole the team has enjoyed the time we have had off because mid-terms and test have been cluttering our schedules. One good thing about us though, is when we do get a chance to hit the gym we are always going hard. Practices are upbeat and we get a lot of 6 on 6 play! MY FAVORITE!

We play this Friday and everyone is super excited! We want to be able to put it all back together again on the court, although now we are a little bit lighter, with the loss of a few players. They will be missed, but time goes on and we have to keep our goals in mind… WIN! WIN a CHAMPIONSHIP!

Being a senior is amazing! I wouldn’t give anything to be a freshman again, and I really enjoy that feeling. Feeling of accomplishment, no need for “should of” or “would of” just straight sailing through the pages in my book. Spring classes and the demands of volleyball have been rough but nothing new to an ‘oldie’ like me. I have my priorities in order and can’t wait to be able to hit the gym tomorrow. Oh and you can’t forget about those 5 o’clock weights with my favorite lifting coach ever, SPEER! He keeps us lean, mean fighting machines!

-- Jamie Kaleh #7 

Junior OH/DS

Preparing for the fall

When one thinks of Spring, thoughts tend to sway to nice afternoons in the sunshine by the pool, or pretty flowers. Well, we Sam Houston volleyballers have one thing in mind in the Spring, and that's Fall.

We have our minds locked and committed, thanks to the community book we are all reading called "It's a Mental Thing," to reaching our one goal in the fall, sliding that beautiful piece of hardware on our pretty fingers. We hit the gym hard last week, taking advantage of being in good ole Johnson Coliseum, with a solid team practice and a ton of core strengthening. Thanks to our grad assistant Ellen we will all have six packs, and they won't be hiding in the ice chest.

It was a long week in the classroom for the Kats. With a week full of tests, this awful anatomy class that's sent a plague though half our team, and all night study session, I had the girls over for some homemade salsa, which is so delicious, and some Sex and The City 2 to relax. Of course nothing ever quite goes off without a hitch and Kim Black sets the fire alarm off!

It seems like I was the only one with nothing to really worry about this week since I chopped my stress snake's head off last Saturday after I finished the LSAT. Yes, the LSAT, why there has to be these petrifying standardized tests is beyond me. But I took the athlete approach and practiced, practiced, practiced. Talk about ‘it’s a mental thing.’ Man four hours of logical and analytical reasoning, and I was fried. So I went to the Sam Houston volleyball restaurant of choice, Panera Bread, and had some nice black bean soup and proceeded to rub it in teammate, Jamie Kaleh's face.

Well with our first competition day in two weeks at SFA, a lot is uncertain. But one thing is for sure, this group of girls has a lot of unfinished business to settle with the conference, and we won't be letting anyone have any mercy. Heck, we proved it Wednesday at "Wacky Wednesday" workout when half the team showed no mercy to the other half! I say it’s great progression! Watch out Fall, we're coming for you!

Eat 'em up!

-- Courtney Laskowski,
Senior S/DS/RS, #11

Excited to be back in the gym

We are a few weeks into our spring season and we are looking great!  We are mostly working on individual things now, but we are gradually having more and more team practices.  I am so excited to be back in the gym again, even though it is not for that much time.  Honestly, each day we all come in wanting to get better, and that is what this team needs.  

Our goal this spring season is to not only get better as individuals and as a team, but to become more of a team; and we find ourselves obtaining that goal a little more each week.  Thanks for reading, see you on the court soon!

Make sure you come check out our home spring scrimmage on Friday, March 11th in Johnson Coliseum – we are excited to get to play some other teams, it should be a lot of fun, and good competition for us.


-- Kim Black - No. 5
Junior volleyball player

Good to see the girls bounce back

The ladies started their season in Victoria at the Claude Jacobs Challenge on Feb. 13^th and 14^th, taking fifth place in a field of 17 teams. A couple of teams were ranked in the top 50 in the nation.

We got off to a rocky start firing 319 in the first round and 314 in the second and closed with a 306. As we improved each round we moved from 8^th to 5^th by tournament’s end.

I was proud of the team for not giving up, which resulted in a strong finish. Jessica Borth had a good tournament, finishing in the top 25 individually in a field of 90 players. Shelby Hardy continues where she left off in the fall with another top 10 finish. Her consistency is making her one of the top players in the Southland Conference.

Our next tournament is the conference preview in Corpus Christi and now that the weather is better we will be working hard to prepare for it.

-- Tommy Chain

SHSU women’s golf coach

Four Texas Cities Bid for Future Southland Basketball Tournaments

As the Sam Houston State men's and women's basketball teams begin the push for another trip to Katy for the Southland Conference basketball tournament, the conference office has revealed the plans for future potential tournament destinations. 

The Southland Conference has received financial bids and supporting documentation from four Texas cities interested in serving as host for the league’s conference men’s and women’s basketball tournaments in 2012, 2013 and 2014. 

The four cities are Arlington, Beaumont, Frisco and current host Katy, where the 2011 event will take place March 8-12 at the Leonard E. Merrell Center. The tournament has been played at a neutral facility since 2007, and Katy, a west Houston suburb, has hosted the event since 2008.

“We are very pleased to receive four quality bid packages from these great locations,” Southland Commissioner Tom Burnett said. “It speaks very highly to how much the tournament has grown since our league went to the neutral site format in 2007. These bids ensure that we can continue to improve the event, and provide a traditional and outstanding Division I postseason basketball experience for our student-athletes, coaches, and those who follow our teams.”

Katy bid on all three years for the event to continue at the Merrell Center. Arlington bid on all three years for the tournament at the new College Park Center, scheduled to open in the 2011-12 season on the UT Arlington campus. Beaumont bid on all three years played at the Ford Park Arena, and Frisco bid on the 2013 and 2014 events at Dr Pepper Arena.

The conference’s athletic directors shall serve as the bid review committee, and it’s expected the group will make recommendations to the league’s Board of Directors for final approval in the coming months.

Weather woes

The biggest force in Southland Conference basketball, both men and women, isn't the division leader or the team on the hottest winning streak. As great of a season Bearkats like Britni Martin and Gilberto Clavell are having, it's mother nature who is making headlines.

Last Saturday, UT-Arlington and Central Arkansas postponed and rescheduled games due to the icy weather restrictions. The Bearkats were set to face Southeastern Louisiana on the same day at 3pm, traveling under the same sort of conditions.

Teams typically take buses on the afternoon or evening before game day, which means under normal circumstances - and under the premise in which the Bearkats prepared - the ladies would have left on Friday evening. But as SHSU athletic director Bobby Williams explains, safety is the number one concern in these types of situations. The bus wasn't released on Friday - the same day the university cancelled classes - because of safety reasons.

Still, another priority is making sure games are played as close to as scheduled as possible, in order to avoid awkward gamesmanship and put teams at competitive disadvantages.

This is the dilemma our women's basketball team was faced with. Williams and the opposing A.D. had to plan for when the ladies could get there, with reasonable time to spare before tip-off.

To everyone's credit, this was handled well by entities that compete against each other. The first provision was that if SHSU could leave Huntsville at 8 a.m., gametime would be pushed back to 4 p.m.

But as Williams says, "It was a moving target. It all depended on when our team could get there. We were using that hour and a half, two-hour window for once they got there, give them time to get ready."

Of course no one wants to hop off a seven-hour bus ride and practically step on the court to a team that's in its comfort zone. Yet, rarely do players know how complicated it gets for the talking heads (such as athletic directors and commisioners).

Somehow, the SHSU players got the impression that they were being slighted. This, however, was far from the truth. They didn't leave on Friday because it would have been nearly impossible to do that safely. Tip-off was pushed back to 7:30, after much discussion, with the intention of giving them some sort fairness in a delicate situation.

Whatever got the Kats fired up worked, evidently. Against Southeastern Louisiana, they ended a three-game losing streak and recorded their fifth double digit conference victory of the season. The Kats are back in the driver's seat, after being held from competition all of four hours.

And here we are just a few days later seeing the same types of things happen around the conference, even as SHSU was set to host UTA on Wednesday. The Mavs couldn't get out of Arlington because of the weather, of course. The game had to be moved to Thursday afternoon with a hopeful start time of 4 p.m. But as we have already seen, only time will tell.

So at least the women's basketball team knows they aren't the only ones going through changes. And more importantly, they proved to themselves last Saturday that they could respond to change if necessary.

-- Brandon Scott
Gobearkats.com 

Busy week for Bearkat soccer

Last week was a very busy week for the Bearkat soccer team. We return 18 players for this spring. Deanna Long is out right now awaiting knee surgery. I hope to have her back before the end of our training. Unfortunately for us, the week was full of wet and cold weather and we had to change our training plans throughout the week.

We trained outside on Monday but had to train in the racquetball courts for the next three days. Sunday we played at the Texas A&M seven-a-side tournament. With four games in five hours, our players were tired by the end. For the staff, the games are not about the results.

I want to see players weaknesses exposed so we can plan a spring season to fix those problems and be improved for the fall season. With a smaller field and less players, each of our players is put under more pressure. It is a great training environment. We will now breakdown the video and share that with our players in a Wednesday meeting.

Last Wednesday, five players signed National Letters of Intent for the 2011 season. This recruiting class is balanced from front to back but mainly includes players who will play in wide positions for our team. It is also a very athletic group. I think these players will complement our returning squad very well.

On Saturday, February 19, the team will head down to Burroughs Park in Houston to play Houston Baptist at 11 a.m. and Baylor at 5 p.m.  These will be two more good tests for our young team.

Keep following the Bearkats and come out and support our basketball teams as they are getting primed for playoff time!

Go Bearkats!

-- Tom Brown
Head Women's Soccer Coach

Kolbe: Ready to start playing again

Spring season is always a work in progress. A time to get better and a time to re-evaluate. We have a couple girls taking care of shoulder problems, but other than that we are ready and very excited to get back into the gym.

For me, at least, it has been a long few months off and I’m ready to start. I cannot believe this is my last spring and I have only one season left. It is very overwhelming, but I could not be more excited about the future of this team. 

We start individuals here this next week, and once we get those under our belt we can begin building this team up day by day.

GO BEARKAT VOLLEYBALL!!

-- Carli Kolbe #6

SHSU senior

Danny Dougherty Fan Poll Results

Here are the results for the most recent Danny Dougherty Fan Poll.

The Bearkat women's basketball team stormed out to a 5-0 start to the season. They have had several players contributing to the effort this season. The question was, "Who has been the MVP so far for the women's basketball team?"

Khamra Echols led everyone with 37 percent of the votes. A close second was Britni Martin with 34 percent. Of everyone who voted, 17 percent said it was a great team effort, while 10 percent felt Sequeena Thomas and two percent tabbed Chanice Smith.

The Bearkat women will be at home on Wednesday as they take on Texas Arlington.

2011 Signing Day

It is Signing Day for football, soccer and track and field, and as the names come across the fax machine we'll be posting them here.

Updated 12:29 p.m.


Football
Junior College
Si'Darius Blackshire, QB, Trinity Valley Community College (Carthage HS)

High School
Keshawn Hill, RB, 5-10, 185, Klein HS
Collin Callahan, LB, 6-1, 225, Houston (Cy-Ridge)
Stephen Williams, WR, 5-9, 178, Round Rock (Stony Point)
Beau Smith, TE, 6-6, 218, Cedar Park HS
Chris Grett, QB, 6-1, 200, Conroe (Oak Ridge)
Dylan Johnson, OL, 6-4, 250, Houston (Cy-Creek)
Tristan Eche, S, 5-10, 200, Waco HS
Emmanuel Omoegbele, DL, 6-1, 235, Houston (Alief Taylor)
Ishmael Thorns, DL, 6-3, 245, Dallas (Woodrow Wilson)
Joey White, OL, 6-5, 295, Wimberly
Andre Mosley, DB, 5-10, 180, Wylie
Greg Johnson, WR, 5-10, 170, Del City, Okla.
Drew Smith, CB, 6-3, 180, Del City, Okla.
Gavareon Marshall, DL,.6-3, 245, Freeport (Brazosport)
Antonio Chimney, OL, 6-3, 290, Crockett
Brandon Wilkerson, WR, 6-1, 185, LaGrange
Desmond Fite, DB, 6-0, 182, Tatum
Casey DeVries, DE, 6-4, 240, Dalhart

Track and Field
Sarah Pena, Distance and Cross Country, Cypress (Cy Fair)

Soccer
Becca Cheiffetz, Defender, Spring (Klein Oak)
Ashley Fluty, Defender, Roanoke, (Northwest)
Madison Bible, Forward/Midfielder, San Angelo (Central)
Ashlyn Davis, Forward/Defender, Round Rock, (Vista Ridge)
Jessica Toms, Forward, Gun Barrel, (Mabank)