Wcws

[Bball Girl]

Better bracket from Aggie Athletics
http://www.aggieathletics.com/press/PDF/WSB_2007_05_27_2007%20WCWS%20Bracket.pdf
All on ESPN!

12,2,6, and 8

Right Bracket
DePaul vs Washington - 12 noon
Arizona State vs Northwestern 2pm

Left Bracket
Tennessee vs Texas A&M - 6pm
Arizona vs Baylor - 8pm

[ChipperF1]

Arizona State vs Northwestern - following

Womens Lax won its third straight national championship today!!! Now its softball's turn. GO U Northwestern!!!!!!!!!! :)

[spooky]

THe game times according to the OKC Allsports site are 12,2,6, and 8 CDT for the first round. I believe that's the official WCWS site.

If all goes as planned I should be able to make it for at least the Thursday games, hopefully more. It'll be my first WCWS and I can't wait.

Go Bears!!!

[Noah121]

http://www.ncaasports.com/softball/womens/brackets/viewable/special64/2007/DI_64
All on ESPN!

Right Bracket
DePaul vs Washington - 11am EST
Arizona State vs Northwestern - following

Left Bracket
Tennessee vs Texas A&M - 3pm
Arizona vs Baylor - following

Hmm... Go Huskies! Go Wildcats! Go Aggies! Go Bears!

[Bball Girl]

Well I'm dreaming of an all Arizona final - UofA vs. ASU!

[jcarter]

go Monica Abbott :)

[wildcatfan]

Man, the two Big XII teams got the toughest teams in the tournament. It will be interesting to see how things turn out.

[brolewis]

Man, the two Big XII teams got the toughest teams in the tournament. It will be interesting to see how things turn out.Maybe, but we've already beaten Arizona twice this year so we know what to expect!

[Bball Girl]

Maybe, but we've already beaten Arizona twice this year so we know what to expect!

Ditto!

This time of year, I don't think it matters who beat who...all bets are off. I'm not overly excited about Tennessee. I have NOT see Baylor play this year. I do enjoy the Aggies and am very impressed with DePaul and ASU.

[jcarter]

Monica Abbott Named Usa Softball National Collegiate Player Of The Year :)

[BearLady]

Congrats to Monica. A well deserved honor!

[Dale8R]

http://www.thedailytimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070530/SPORTS/70530010

A worthwhile story on Monica Abbott and "The House That Monica Built."

[jcarter]

thanks for the link :)

[Dale8R]

http://www.ncaasports.com/softball/womens/story/10203649

Deanna Werner, a sports information director for the University of Arkansas, has agreed to file a blog from the site of the 2007 Women's College World Series. Throughout the WCWS, Deanna will cover the event and all the happenings surrounding the tournament. Be sure to check back with ncaasports.com for updates from Deanna as the WCWS progresses!

This looks like it could be of interest during the tournament. Also you can get to the rest of the NCAA site from there. In the so-called "minor" sports as far as coverage is concerned, the NCAA site is easily the best source of news, I think.

I rely on it almost exclusively during volleyball season, less so during basketball.

I've already learned (by looking at the pictures) that Northwestern has twin coaches, Kate and Caryl Drohan. How cool is that? http://media.www.dailynorthwestern.com/media/storage/paper853/news/2005/05/19/MonthsBest/The-Drohan.Twins.Coach.Together.Win.Together-1918671.shtml
This story is a couple of years old, but a good introduction to the twins.

[wildcatfan]

Good luck to the Baylor and A&M tonight! I am anxiously awaiting the games so that I can watch them on HD.

Tomorrow night, I hope I get to see them both in person.

[jcarter]

Tennessee 2 Texas A&M 0 :) :)

[swok34]

What the heck happened to the Aggies? It was 0-0 in the top of the 7th :(

I haven't been watching the Baylor game but flipping over, it's 0-0 as well so far. Kim's enjoying Oklahoma City :D

[jcarter]

they didn't get a hit, and thier pitcher had a very good game but ran of of gas

[Bball Girl]

Way to walk off and win - Kristy Fox!


Nice game by Baylor - now it's Big 12 against Big 12 on Sat and Arizona and Tennessee again on Friday.

GO CATS!

[BearLady]

Does anyone have a link to the full bracket? I'm trying to plan my schedules for the week-end and haven't been able to locate the full schedule, complete with game times, etc. I thought the NCAA site would have it, but, if so, must be overlooking it.

[Dale8R]

Yes, it's there. You'll find it at
http://www.ncaasports.com/softball/womens/brackets/mod12softball_d1/2007/DI_wcws

Also I'm reposting the link to the blog since it has slipped back a page. It's a good way to keep up with what is going on.
http://www.ncaasports.com/softball/womens/story/10203649

[BearLady]

Thanks, Dale! I appreciate your sharing. :)

[spooky]

I had a great time in OKC on Thursday. Four great games (unless you only like offense,) good weather, a mostly packed house, and a very well run event. The only negatives were Kristie Fox not getting the memo that only pitchers were allowed to show up, and the game pushing midnight, meaning I got home just a few minutes before 5AM :(

I wish I could have made it back today, but it was great to see my Bears win their first WCWS game ever. It's a shame it had to be against the other Big 12 team. College Station girl Courtney Oberg hit the big shot, and hopefully it didn't cause any problems for her parents, who I believe work for A&M in some form or another :) . Next up is Northwestern, another matchup I wish were different 'cause if Baylor can't win it, I'd love for Northwestern or DePaul to go all the way.

[Bball Girl]

Great season for Baylor...I enjoyed watching this team.

But I do like Northwestern too - especially Williams.

I was disappointed in the Cats offense against UT last night...7 on base against Abbott should result in at least one run.

But I thought they were terrific against DePaul tonite, we'll see what they can do against UW tomorrow. UofA won 2 out of 3 against UW this season, but the Huskies have played very well during the series.

[Waylontheman]

Go Northwestern! Sorry but I can't stand watching Monica Abbott........maybe its that stupid Rocky Top thing.............

[jcarter]

Go Northwestern! Sorry but I can't stand watching Monica Abbott........maybe its that stupid Rocky Top thing.............

:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

[Scamp]

Big 12 hoops coach watch: Baylor's Kim Mulkey is in Oklahoma City for the WCWS. See the Waco Trib's slideshow, photo #103. :cool: http://www.wacotrib.com/photos/content/sports/slideshows/05312007_wcws/

[wildcatfan]

Well, I am bummed that the Lady Bears are done. I really liked watching that team.

[ChipperF1]

Lost 3-0 to Tennessee, but its been a great year anyway...GO U NU! Nice season, Wildcats!

Alma mater praise by thine. My thy name forever shine.
Hail to purple, hail to white.
Hail to thee NORTHWESTERN!

[Bball Girl]

Bear Down Arizona
Bear Down Red and Blue
Go! Go! Wildcats go!
Arizona Bear Down



For spirit wins the game!

[jcarter]

we need a championship in softball to go with our basketball championship :)

[swok34]

Ok, I'm officially in the "don't want either team to win" category......

Not Arizona because of how the Pac 10 has ruled the softball world over the years and not Tennessee because they already have a NC this year.

[wildcatfan]

I am the opposite, I like both of these teams. We know the player with the Washington Glory that Monica will be rooming with as soon as the season is over. So, Monica has become a favorite of my daughter's. I also like Arizona because that is the state in which I was born. It should be a very entertaining final series.

We were there for the games on Friday night. Washington vs Northwestern and Arizona vs. Tennessee. I hadn't been to the WCWS in a few years and boy was it different this time. The last time we went, we had great seats, it wasn't too crowded. This time, we had to scrounge for tickets to even get in. It was standing room only for a while until people started to leave when it started to get late. Times sure are changing.

[spooky]

I'm gonna have to go along with Swok on this one. I'm generally always gonna root against the dynasty programs, and Arizona definitely fits into this category. I have a great amount of respect for Candrea's abilities as a coach, but Arizona gets alot of fringe benefits from his capacity as national team coach and generally all-around powerful and intimidating guy, so i can't in good conscience hope for them to add to their power base any more by winning another title.

Tennessee might not be a traditional power in softball, but they're close enough, and their success in basketball, and accompanying tendency towards arrogance for a good chunk of their fanbase, makes it tough to want to give them anything else to crow about..

In the end I guess I have to pull for Tennessee, mainly because of the "anybody but the Pac10" rule, but also because I think Arizona has a much better chance of winning it next year, and a threepeat would be very hard to take. Whatever happens, they are two really great teams, both are completely deserving of all they've achieved, and I'm glad to say I got to see them play in OKC.

[jcarter]

I have to pull for my Lady Vols:)

[Bball Girl]

I wasn't suprised by the Lady Vols victory tonite...I only got to see the last inning. But I figured if UT found a way to hit Ironwoman Mowat, that UT might be very difficult to beat.

Abbott has found her groove and it's great to see her find the mental strength to go with her amazing talent. I remember watching her crumble last year. She's in the zone and having a great time.

These have been the BEST TWO TEAMS all year in my opinion. I don't give a flip about the rankings and a few bobbles here and there. I'm glad they're both here

As far as Arizona getting fringe benefits..

In the end, the fringes don't matter... it comes down to what happens ON the field and who can pitch and hit and catch. ARIZONA is playing in the National Championship AGAIN - because they are very, very good and work very, very hard...fringes don't buy you runs or strikes. You won't find harder workers than Fox and Lowe and Mowat and Balko and Candrea.

I want the game to go to three games...I'll be disappointed if the Cats don't win. But Tennessee and Abbott are equally deserving of the title. They've worked hard, coped with their share of injuries (Chiles is amazing) and I like Monica Abbott a lot and the Tennessee coaches. They are very, very good and if they win it, I'll be proud for them and also very proud of my Arizona Wildcats.

[spooky]

I agree totally about the Arizona players. It's quite obvious they work their butts off to get where they are, and I enjoy watching them play. The program as a whole, however, fairly obviously benefits from the publicity and power that Candrea has, in terms of recruiting access, media coverage, and (I swear i'm not a conspiracy kind of guy :) ) deferential treatment by umpires. There were a couple of decisions/reversals in the series down here that I've never seen before in college softball, and I seriously doubt would have been done for any other coach. All of these factors, especially ease of access to the top recruits, do end up affecting what happens on the field in some form or another.

Again, i'm not saying that there's anything wrong in the least in how he runs his program, and obviously he's used his influence to make his it the top one in the country. But I'm not trying to make ethical judgements on Candrea or the Arizona program, just making a personal decision on who to root for. And generally I'll almost always choose to root for hard-working kids on teams who don't have the built-in advantages over hard-working kids on those who do.

[jcarter]

1 more win for a national championship :) :) :)

[Noah121]

It's kind of interesting how there have been dynasty teams in many sports recently (i.e. Tennessee in women's basketball and softball, Pac-10 in softball and volleyball (but I'm glad the Huskers took down the Cardinal), and Florida in many men's sports, etc.)

Has there ever been a school that has won multiple national championships in the major women's sports (softball, volleyball, basketball) in the same season?

[jcarter]

UCONN won mens and womens basketball championships in the same year

[swok34]

Has there ever been a school that has won multiple national championships in the major women's sports (softball, volleyball, basketball) in the same season?

Stanford is the one school that I would look at. They are a formidable foe in all three sports. Has UCLA ever won a NC in basketball? I would think if it's happened, it would have been a Pac 10 school. What kind of volleyball team does Texas have/had in year's past.

[jcarter]

UCLA mens team has 10 national titles
the women have never played for one
oh in 1998 Tennessee won national titles in football and Lady Vols basketball
Texas won a football and baseball championship in the same year

[Bball Girl]

Bear Down Arizona
Bear Down Red and Blue
Go! Go! Wildcats go!
Arizona Bear Down



For spirit wins the game!

Win or Lose tomorrow night...I love this team, their grit, their fight and their pitcher who doesn't get enough credit for her toughness... I do believe T-Mo had more strikeouts than Abbott tonite. Correction: they both had 11
Someone asked me why I cheer for Arizona. That's where I got my master's degree so I cheer for my alma mater!

Wonderful pitching duel by two terrific pitchers and teams and coaches.

BEAR DOWN CATS!!!!

[spooky]

It was an awesome game. Tennessee let alot of opportunities slip through their fingers. Arizona didn't have as many shots but got it done. I love seeing one of the unsung players score the winning run with a great slide.

You're definitely right about Mowatt. Going into the year I didn't think she could live up to Hollowell's legacy. After seeing her pitch three games in person in March I didn't get the feeling she was that dominant a pitcher. After the 1st inning against Fullerton in the Supers I definitely felt she was hittable. After the first four Baylor hitters in the WCWS hit the ball hard, I thought she was done for. And now all she's done is pitch 6 great games in 6 days, and been tough as nails in every one, always knowing that she's pretty much the only pitcher they've got and it's all on her shoulders. Toughness is definitely the right word.

[wildcatfan]

Man, every time a Tennessee player would freeze looking at Taryne's change-up, I just couldn't help but smile. I have never seen a pitcher throw that many change ups. U of A played great defense tonight.

Watching the Tennessee coach was cute. When they were up to bat and he couldn't watch and kept closing his eyes. It makes me want him to win it tomorrow night.

May the best team win!

[MsProudSooner]

I didn't expect AZ to win last night. Kudos to their pitcher. She got them out of some big jams. Did they say tonight would be her 7th game in 8 days?

The pictures of the Tennessee coach when he couldn't watch were funny. These are two terrific teams. Tonight will be a great game.

[Bball Girl]

Mowat's not a typical pitcher and doesn't have the power and intimidation that Abbott and Hollowell have.

That pitch with two on base, full count in the ninth inning to strike out Callahan was vintage Mowatt!

There were a lot of unsung players involved in that run
Sam Banister came through with that great hit, Akamine's bunt moved Rodriguez to 2nd and Acton's hit allowed Rodriguez to score (it was a nice slide)

"Right when I got to third base, coach (Mike Candrea) told me, 'If it is on the ground, you are going, and you need to get the best jump of your life,'" Rodriguez said. "I knew that all game Adrienne was hitting the ball on the ground, so I was expecting her to do it again. I just tried to run as fast as I could."

Mowatt threw all 10 innings and has thrown seven games in the previous six days, totaling 888 pitches.

"My arm is feeling better than ever," Mowatt said. "I have hit a bumpy streak in the middle games, but it is feeling really good. I am just happy the championship game is (today)."

This was a very exciting game to say the least," said Arizona head coach Mike Candrea. "I cannot say enough about the performance of Taryne throughout this tournament. She is feeling great, and the 'Cats are still alive."


Best stat: Mowatt set a WCWS record for most complete games pitched (seven). … Mowatt has set a WCWS record for most walks, 25, but only two of the baserunners have made it home to score.


On another note: Kenzie Fowler, a future UA pitcher who verbally committed to Arizona as a freshman had 7 hours of surgery Monday night to remove blod clots in her pitching arm. Her father is quoted as saying "The nurse told me that her first words when she woke up in recovery weren't, 'Where am I?' or anything like that," said Lance Fowler, Kenzie's dad. "She asked, 'What's the score?' "

http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/sports/53796.php

[Bball Girl]

2007 National Champions

ARIZONA WILDCATS


"I never saw doubt in my kids' eyes," Candrea said. "Just the grit, the focus, the relaxation, the fire, T-Mo on the mound, our seniors stepping up when it mattered . . . it all culminated in one of our best games in the year at the right time. That's kind of a perfect season."

[Bball Girl]

Mowatt's 42-12 mark, by comparison, stands above all in UA history, eclipsing the 41-4 mark posted by volunteer student assistant Alicia Hollowell during her NCAA championship/Series MVP season a year ago as the UA senior ace. Mowatt also set a school record with 522 strikeouts, passing Hollowell's 508 in 2004. She did strike out 76 batters in WCWS play to break Abbott's new mark of 75, also this year.

Moreover, she pitched every inning of UA's 13 postseason games and in the last six days tossed eight complete games, 60 innings and more than 1,000 pitches. The performance, and what it meant for UA's storied softball program, puts her name among all the pitching greats who've earned honors or led their teams to the NCAA title.

When even the talking was almost over, after the news conference at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium, Mowatt admitted she had taken to saying to her right arm, "One more game, one more game."
Mowatt rubbed her bicep and smiled.
"She's been good to me," Mowatt said. :)

The Volunteers spent extra time before Wednesday's game working on hitting Mowatt's changeup. It did not matter. With calls from pitching coach Nancy Evans, Mowatt sprinkled changeups liberally — and in every conceivable situation.
"I've not seen anything like that, that style of pitching," Tennessee co-head coach Ralph Weekly said. "She never showed us a pattern the whole time."

http://admin.xosn.com//pics29/400/UM/UMTYQKKNQPJRFTB.20070607032935.jpg

[wildcatfan]

I have to say that I am a little bummed for Tennessee. I was hoping that they would win it with it being Monica's last year and I just like their coaches.

That being said, Taryne is awesome. They played a great game.