Mark Maloney on Kentucky sports

Turns out that the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (KIAC), know for being among the premier conferences in the NAIA, has officials who are as highly regarded as the teams.

Sherianne Shuey

Sherianne Shuey, a KIAC official from Lancaster, has been selected to work the National NAIA Women’s Tournament for the next four seasons, starting next month.

Shuey joins Marla Gearhart, a KIAC official who has worked the last two national tournaments.

The National NAIA Men’s Tournament will include three KIAC officials: John Drake, Gary Durbin and Kevin Clary. Durbin worked the championship game last year.

“We are proud of all the officials on the KIAC staff,” Ron Dixon, who assigns conference officials, said in a press release on the KIAC web site. “Sherianne is just a continuance of what this officiating staff has done over the last four years. Everyone associated with the conference should be proud of these accomplishments, and commitment of all officials on a night-to-night basis for our student-athletes. I think it takes a special person to be an official, and we are excited to have found 115 special people to officiate the games our student-athletes play.”

Gone (ice) fishing

This will be my last blog on Kentucky.com until March. I’ll be vacationing at the Vancouver Winter Olympic Games. I’ll post updates on my personal site: www.monkeyalarm.com

Apologies to Griffin Bailey, who was overlooked in last week’s compilation of Lexingtonians in minor-league baseball.

Griffin Bailey

A right-handed pitcher in the Yankees organization, Bailey still lives in his native Lexington, where he graduated from Lexington Catholic before going on to the University of Louisville.

Last season, he played for Sioux City of the independent American Association. The Yankees purchased his contract in June and assigned him to Staten Island of the New York-Penn League.

Bailey finished second in the league and on his team with 32 appearances, going 3-2 with a 1.49 ERA and a pair of saves. He helped Staten Island to the league championship, posting a 1.42 ERA over three playoff appearances.

Over a stretch of 19 games during July and August, he did not give up an earned run.

He is due to report for spring training at Tampa, Fla., Feb. 20.

Bernard Lagat

Bernard Lagat is USA Track & Field’s Athlete of the Week.

A two-time Olympic medalist and the 2007 double Worlds champion, Lagat won an unprecedented eighth Wannamaker Mile title Friday night in New York’s Madison Square Garden, site of the 103rd Millrose Games.

Lagat, timed in 3:56.34, came into the meet sharing the lead in Wanamaker titles with Irishman Eamonn Coghlin.

Best American marks for the week ending Jan. 31, compiled by USATF.

MEN
60 meters — 6.59   Casey LaCour (unattached), Houston, Jan. 30
200 — 20.69 Curtis Mitchell (Texas A&M), College Station, TX, Jan. 30
400 – 46.48     Calvin Smith (Florida), College Station, Texas, Jan. 30
800 — 1:47.98  Cas Loxsom (Penn State), State College, Pa., Jan. 30
Mile — 3:55.75*o Chris Solinsky (Nike), Seattle, Jan. 30
3,000 — 7:51.48*o Galen Rupp (Nike), Seattle, Jan. 30
5,000 — 13:40.79  David Jankowski (Zap Fitness) Boston, Jan. 30
60 hurdles–7.49 Terrence Trammell (Trackstar Appeal), N.Y., Jan. 29
High jump — 7-7 1/4  Dusty Jonas (Nike), Trinec, Czech Rep., Jan. 26
Pole vault–18-4 1/2 Mark Hollis (ua), Derek Miles (Nike), NY, Jan. 29
Long jump–26-2 3/4 Trevell Quinley (HPC Elite) Albuquerque, Jan. 30
Triple jump–53-2 1/4 Brandon Roulhac (HPC E) Glasgow, Scot., Jan. 30
Shot put — 72-0 1/4  Christian Cantwell (Nike), New York, Jan. 29
Weight throw — 77-4  Jake Freeman (IBAC), New York, Jan. 29
Heptathlon — 6,256  Ashton Eaton (Ore.), College Station, Jan. 30 COLLEGIATE RECORD
*o — denotes oversized track.

WOMEN
60 — 7.19  Carmelita Jeter (Nike), Glasgow, Scotland, Jan. 30
200 — 23.16  Shavon Greaves (Penn St.), State College, Pa., Jan. 30
400 — 52.05  Allyson Felix (adidas), Albuquerque, Jan. 30
500–1:08.70 Shana Cox (adidas), State College, Jan. 30 U.S. RECORD
800 — 2:03.77  Erin Donohue (Nike), Boston, Jan. 30
Mile — 4:31.50  Sara Hall (Asics), New York, Jan. 29
3,000 — 8:58.45*o  Amy Hastings (adidas), Seattle, Jan. 30
5,000 – 15:20.05  Molly Huddle (Saucony), Seattle, Jan. 29
60 hurdles — 7.90  Lolo Jones (Asics), Karlsruhe, Germany, Jan. 31
High jump — 6-4 1/4  Chaunte Howard (Nike), Glasgow, Scot., Jan. 30
Pole vault — 14-9 1/2  Chelsea Johnson (Nike), New York, Jan. 29
Long jump — 21-11  Hyleas Fountain (Nike), State College, Jan. 29
Triple jump – 44-10 3/4  Amanda Smock (unatt.), Mankato, MN, Jan. 30
Shot put — 57-0  Sarah Stevens (unattached), Flagstaff, Ariz., Jan. 30
Weight throw — 79-4 3/4  Amber Campbell (Nike), New York, Jan. 29
Pentathlon — 4,731  Hyleas Fountain (Nike), State College, Jan. 29

For more information on USATF, visit usatf.org

Tracking Team USA at the Winter Olympic Games

Opening ceremonies of the Winter Olympic Games at Vancouver are little more than a week away, Feb. 12.

A couple of tips on where, in addition to kentucky.com, to look for the latest news.

1. Register on Teamusa.org to access late-breaking news and updates involving Team USA, courtesy of the United States Olympic Committee.

2. If you’ve grown accustomed to reading my reports, well … my 11th Olympics will mark my first as a freelance writer. I’ll be taking vacation time from this web site. However, you can still follow me on my newly launched personal web site: www.site.monkeyalarm.com.

Even though Kentucky isn’t often associated with the Winter Olympics, there will be plenty of Bluegrass connections in Vancouver. (More on that topic later.)

Reed writes again: Celebrating Freedom Hall

Billy Reed's latest work.

Former Herald-Leader sports columnist Billy Reed is the author of a new book: Celebrating 54 Years at Freedom Hall.

Published by Butler Books of Louisville, the work retails for $29.95. Reed will be on hand to sign copies of the book at every University of Louisville men’s and women’s basketball game for the rest of the season.

Reed says the book is heavy on basketball, including chapters on U of L, Kentucky, six NCAA Final Fours, the Kentucky Colonels, high school all-star games and the State High School Sweet Sixteen. Other topics include the World Championship Horse Show, National Tractor Pull, boxing (Muhammad Ali’s first fights), concerts, the Mason-Dixon (track and field) Games and family entertainment.

Rondel Sorrillo

Kentucky senior Rondel Sorrillo is Male Runner of the Week in the Southeastern Conference.

A 2008 Olympian from Trinidad and Tobago, won the 200-meter dash at UK’s Rod McCravy Memorial Track and Field Meet. His time of 20.77 seconds makes him an automatic qualifier for the NCAA Championships, ranks first in the SEC this season and second in the nation. Sorrillo also ran a 47.5 split in the 4-by-400 relay.

This week’s other SEC track and field award winners:

Male Field Athlete: Walter Henning — The LSU junior, who placed fourth in the 35-pound weight throw at last year’s NCAAs, shattered personal and school records at the New Mexico Invitational with an NCAA-leading throw of 75 feet, 8 inches. His previous best was 74-5 1/2.

Male Freshman: Jeremy Postin — The Florida weight-thrower placed third at the Texas A&M Challenge, reaching a personal best of 59-6 3/4 in his second collegiate meet. That also ranks fifth on the Gators’ all-time list.

Female Runner: Jackie Areson — The Tennessee senior broke a 19-year-old school record and automatically qualified for the NCAAs by clocking 9:07.27 for 3,000 meters at the Penn State Invitational. Her time leads the SEC, ranks second in the NCAA and clipped 2 1/2 seconds off the Vols record set by Patty Wiegand.

Female Field: Shara Proctor – The Florida senior from Anguilla won the Texas A&M Challenge long jump with a collegiate-leading 21-8, adding four inches to her school record. Her NCAA-automatic mark ties for eighth-best in the world this season.

Stephanie Brown

Female Freshman: Stephanie Brown — Brown clocked a 2:07.62 split on the 800-meter leg to help Arkansas record an NCAA-provisional time of 11:15.70 in the distance medley relay at Texas A&M. That is the second-best mark in the NCAA thus far. Brown also placed second in the mile with a provisional qualifying time of 4:46.40. That ranks 13th in the NCAA this season, No. 2 among freshmen. 

EKU’s Rengifo takes OVC award

Eastern Kentucky senior Chris Rengifo is the Ohio Valley Conference’s Male Track Athlete of the Week.

Competing at the Rod McCravy Memorial meet, Rengifo ran the second-fastest mile (4:16.26) and third-fastest 800 (1:54.01) by an OVC athlete this season.

A native Canadian (Woodbridge, Ontario), Rengifo is a two-time first-team All-OVC cross country performer. He ran on the Colonels’ winning distance medley relay at last year’s OVC Indoor Championships, and also ran on the school-record four-mile relay at the 2008 Penn Relays.

Texas A&M No. 1 in both team rankings

Texas A&M holds the top spot in both the men’s and women’s weekly rankings of NCAA Division I programs, compiled by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.

The A&M men notched three world-leading marks at its Texas A&M Challenge, climbing from fourth in the rankings. The Aggies already topped the women’s rankings.

The Aggies with world-leading marks: Curtis Mitchell, 20.69 for 200 meters; Tabrarie Henry, 45.81 for 400; and a 3:04.86 4-by-400 relay team of Bryan Miller, Tran Howell, Henry and Demetrius Pinder.

Kentucky’s men dropped two spots to No. 21, while Louisville’s women maintained the No. 14 spot.

The SEC leads the men’s rankings with seven teams among the top 25. The Big 12 and Pac-10 have six teams each.

The SEC also tops the women’s list with six teams. The Big 12 and Atlantic Coast Conference are next with four teams each.

Men’s rankings

    School (points)                     Previous rank
 1. Texas A&M                                          4
 2. Florida State                                       1
 3. Oregon                                               2
 4. LSU                                                     6
 5. Florida                                                 3
 6. Nebraska                                            5
 7. Arkansas                                             7
 8. Arizona State                                      8
 9. Oklahoma                                           9
10. Stanford                                           17
11. Indiana                                            16
12. Baylor                                              10
13. Minnesota                                        12
14. Penn State                                        –
15. Texas Tech                                       11
16. California                                         22
17. Virginia Tech                                    13
18. South Carolina                                15
19. New Mexico                                     –
20. Auburn                                            18
21. KENTUCKY                                   19
22. Georgia                                          14
23. Arizona                                          20
24. Oklahoma State                             24
25. Washington State                          21

Women’s rankings

 1. Texas A&M                                       1
 2. Oregon                                            2
 3. Brigham Young                                 3
 4. LSU                                                  4
 5. Tennessee                                       8
 6. Florida State                                    5
 7. Clemson                                           7
 8. Penn State                                       6
 9. Florida                                              9
10. South Carolina                               11
11. Arkansas                                        10
12. Villanova                                         –
13. Nebraska                                        12
14. LOUISVILLE                                 14
15. Oklahoma                                      15
16. Arizona                                          17
17. Auburn                                           19
18. Washington                                   13
19. Baylor                                            16
20. Virginia Tech                                  18
21. Indiana State                                22
22. Southern Illinois                            20
23. Connecticut                                   21
24. Texas-El Paso                                25
25. North Carolina                                –

EKU's Derek Hardman in action vs. Kentucky.

Derek Hardman, who started 46 consecutive games on the Eastern Kentucky offensive line, will play Saturday in the Texas vs. The Nation All-Star Football Challenge at El Paso, Texas.

The game will be televised by CBS College Sports at 2 p.m.

Saturday’s game format pits players originally from Texas or who played collegiate football in the state against players from the rest of the nation. Last year, 93 percent of the participants eventually signed NFL contracts.

Antwaun Molden represented EKU in the 2008 game.

Hardman’s coach this weekend is former University of Kentucky player and University of Louisville coach Howard Schnellenberger, now the head coach of Florida Atlantic.

Murray’s Lane rumbles 6 (yards) for 6 (points)

Austen Lane, Murray State’s All-American defensive end, came up big in last weekend’s all-star football highlights.

Lane, from Iola, Wis., returned a fumble for a 6-yard touchdown to help the North to a 31-13 victory over the South in the Senior Bowl at Mobile, Ala. Lane fell on the ball and didn’t run until teammates alerted him that the play was still alive.

“I forgot that it was NFL rules, so thankfully a teammate picked me up and helped me out,” Lane said. “I was in shock when I scored and once again didn’t know how to celebrate. I am going to have to work on my celebrations.”

Lane will continue to train in Florida, preparing for the NFL Combine scheduled Feb. 24-March 2 at Indianapolis.

Kentucky senior Molly Johnson

Kentucky infielder Molly Johnson and a pair of Louisville Cardinals are among 50 players on the Amateur Softball Association of America’s initial “watch list” for the ninth annual USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year Award.

The list, released Wednesday, includes players from 35 schools and 14 NCAA Division I conferences. Of the 50, 27 are seniors, 17 juniors and six sophomores.

The ASA will announce 25 finalists on April 7. A player does not have to be on this initial list of 50 players to be considered. However, once the group is reduced to 25, the winner will come from that list. The list will be trimmed to 10 on May 12 and to three on May 26. The winner will be announced prior to the start of the NCAA Women’s College World Series at Oklahoma City.

Freshmen are eligible for the list once they have competed on the collegiate level.

All three Bluegrass representatives are seniors.

Johnson is primarily a shortstop but has also played third base and catcher while making 164 consecutive starts for UK. Last year, she helped UK to its first NCAA Tournament appearance last season while becoming the Wildcats’ first All-American in softball. She is an alternate on the 2010 USA Softball National Team. She helped the 2009 National Team win the Japan Cup, belting a grand-slam homer in her first at-bat.

Johnson has UK career records in batting (.395) and slugging (.648), and ranks seventh or better in hits, doubles, triples, homers, RBI, total bases, stolen bases and assists.

Melissa Roth

Joining Johnson on the watch list are U of L catcher Melissa Roth and pitcher/infielder Kristen Wadwell.

Kristen Wadwell

Roth, from Long Beach, Calif., also is a National Team alternate and is reigning Big East Conference Player of the Year. She started all 59 games last season, leading the Cardinals with school records in batting (.444), slugging (.870) and runs scored (64). She tied the school record for RBI in a season (53).

Wadwell, from Sydney, Australia, won a school-record 41 games last season. Another record fell when she struck out 16 in a game against Eastern Michigan. She earned first-team All-Big East honors, as well as being a Big East Academic All-Star.

The watch list, in alphabetical order:

Valerie Arioto (Cal jr., utility); Donna Bourgeois (La.-Lafayette jr., p); Chelsea Bramlett (Miss. State sr., c/if); Stephanie Brombacher (Fla., jr., p); Neena Bryant (Oregon sr., of); Anna Cahn (Cal Poly jr., p/dh); Whitney Canion (Baylor soph., p); Stacie Chambers (Ariz., RS-jr., c); Lauren Delaney (Northwestern sr., p); Krista Donnenwirth (Ariz. State jr., ss/3b); Kelsi Dunne (Ala., jr., p); Francesca Enea (Fla., sr., of); Amber Flores (Okla., sr., if); Alisa Goler (Ga., jr., if); Kelly Grieve (Tenn., jr., of); Alissa Haber (Stanford soph., of); Sarah Hamilton (Fla. State jr., p); Ashley Hansen (Stanford soph., if); Becca Heteniak (DePaul sr., p); Katie Holverson (Nev., sr., p); Tiffany Huff (Tenn., sr., c/1b); MOLLY JOHNSON (KY., SR., IF); Megan Langenfeld (UCLA sr., p/1b); Brittany Lastrapes (Ariz., jr., of); Danielle Lawrie (Wash., sr., p); Sam Marder (Ohio State sr., c); Morgan Melloh (Fresno State jr., p); Rachel Mitchell (LSU sr., of); Adrienne Monka (Northwestern soph., if); Charlotte Morgan (Ala., sr., p/utility); Nikki Nemitz (Mich., sr., p); Carly Normandin (Mass., sr., of); Tara Oltman (Creighton sr., p); Kimi Pohlman (Wash., soph., of); Nikki Prier (Jacksonville State sr., if); Jessica Purcell-Fitu (Brigham Young jr., c); MELISSA ROTH (LOUISVILLE SR., C); Katie Schroeder (UCLA jr., of); Taylor Schlopy (Ga., jr., p/of); Kirsten Shortridge (LSU sr., p/of); Kaila Shull (UCLA sr., c/of); Danielle Spaulding (N.C., sr., 1b/p); Rhea Taylor (Mo., jr., of); Chelsea Thomas (Mo., soph., utility); Brooke Turner (Long Beach State jr., p); Maggie Viefhaus (Mich., sr., if); KRISTEN WADWELL (LOUISVILLE SR., P/IF); Amberley Waits (La. Tech sr., if); Kelsi Weseman (Ga. Tech soph., if); Jen Yee (Ga. Tech sr., 2b).

Baseball America rankings put U of L at No. 13

Baseball America’s pre-season Top 25 poll includes Louisville at No. 13. The Cardinals went 47-18 and made their third consecutive NCAA Regional appearance last season.

Kentucky is not listed, but six Southeastern Conference teams are, half of them in the top 10. Texas is No. 1.

1. Texas
 2. Virginia
 3. LSU
 4. Cal State Fullerton
 5. Rice
 6. Georgia Tech
 7. Florida
 8. Cal Irvine
 9. Florida State
10. South Carolina
11. Texas Christian
12. Coastal Carolina
13. LOUISVILLE
14. Arizona State
15. Clemson
16. Miami (Fla.)
17. Arkansas
18. East Carolina
19. San Diego
20. North Carolina
21. Southern Mississippi
22. Georgia
23. UCLA
24. Mississippi
25. Oregon State

Arkansas athletes took three of the six weekly Southeastern Conference Track and Field awards.

Tina Sutej is the SEC women’s Field Athlete of the Week and Stephanie Brown is women’s Freshman of the Week.

Tina Sutej

The Razorbacks also have the male Freshman of the Week in Drew Butler.

Also taking weekly honors are Tennessee’s Phoebe Wright (Female Runner of the Week) and the Georgia men’s tandem of Torrin Lawrence (Runner) and Tommy Barrineau (Field).

Kentucky, off last weekend, resumes action Friday and Saturday when it hosts the annual Rod McCravy Memorial.

Stephanie Brown

* Sutej, a sophomore from Ljubljana, Slovenia, placed second overall and first among collegians with a personal best of 14 feet, 2 inches in the Razorback Invitational. That is a Slovenian national record, second-best in the NCAA this season and third-best all-time at Arkansas. She has added to the Slovenian record in all three of her competitions this season. Razorbacks placed 2-3-5-7 in the event.

* Brown, from Downs, Ill., won the Razorback Invitational 800 meters. Her time of 2:05.08 is a personal best, an NCAA provisional qualifier, and ranks third in the NCAA, No. 1 among NCAA freshmen.

Drew Butler

* Completing the Arkansas triple is Butler, from The Woodlands, Texas. He led off the Razorbacks’ first-place distance medley relay with a 1,200-meter split of 2:59.91, helping the team to its best time of the season, 9:55.75. That leads the SEC by more than 15 seconds and ranks sixth in the NCAA. In addition, Butler placed second at 800 meters with a personal best and NCAA provisional qualifier of 1:50.15. That ranks fifth in the NCAA and No. 1 among freshmen.

Phoebe Wright

* Tennessee’s Wright, a senior from Signal Mountain, Tenn., won the 800-meter run at the (Virginia Tech) Hokie Invitational. Her time of 2:04.00 is an NCAA automatic qualifier and is the national leader this season.  Wright already had the national lead in the mile. Teammate Channelle Price also hit the automatic qualifying standard, clocking 2:04.72, and was the only finisher within four seconds of defending SEC champion and NCAA runner-up Wright. … Wright also helped the Lady Vols to a two-second improvement on its best 4-by-400 relay of the young season, the unit placing fourth in 3:42.80.

Torrin Lawrence

Thomas Barrineau

* Georgia’s Lawrence, a sophomore from Jacksonville, Fla., won the Hokie Invitational 300-meter run in a collegiate-record 32.32. The old record of 32.67, set by Mississippi State’s Lorenzo Daniel, had stood since 1987. Lawrence’s time is No. 5 all-time in the world. He also ran on the winning 4-by-400 relay, which finished in 3:11.01.

* Barrineau, a junior from Burke, Va., won his first collegiate heptathlon, scoring an NCAA provisional qualifier of 5,608 points at the Razorback Invitational. That leads the season list and adds 277 points to his school record. Barrineau set indoor personal bests in four of the seven disciplines: 8.45 in the 60-meter hurdles, 6-6 1/4 in the high jump, 15-11 in the pole vault and 22-2 1/4 in the long jump.

Kentucky’s men are No. 19 and Louisville’s women are 14th in the first regular-season U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association rankings of NCAA Division I teams.

The Florida State men and Texas A&M women retained the No. 1 spots awarded in the pre-season. Oregon is No. 2 in both men’s and women’s rankings.

The UK men dropped two spots from the pre-season. The Wildcats are last among seven Southeastern Conference teams ranked among the top 20.

The top 25 men’s teams include seven each from the SEC, Pac-10 and Big 12, plus two each from the ACC and Big Ten.

Louisville’s women climbed four spots from the pre-season. The Cardinals are the first of three Big East teams among the top 25.

The SEC leads the women’s poll with six teams among the top 25. The Big 12 has four teams, followed by the Big East, Pac-10 and ACC with three each.

Both Louisville and Kentucky will be in action this weekend at UK’s Rod McCravy Memorial Meet.

Friday’s schedule is limited to four field events — men’s high jump, women’s pole vault and weight throws for men and women.

Saturday’s card begins at 10:30 a.m. with the women’s high jump and long jump. The first track event, semifinals of the women’s 60-meter hurdles, is set for 12:30 p.m.

MEN                                                                                   WOMEN
Rank (previous rank) School (points)                     Rank (previous) School (points)

 1. (1) Florida State (135.17)                                        1. (1) Texas A&M (189.67)
 2. (3) Oregon (124.74)                                                 2. (2) Oregon (120.25)
 3. (2) Florida (120.22)                                                  3. (5) Brigham Young (117.86)
 4. (8) Texas A&M (118.10)                                           4. (3) LSU (105.16)
 5. (4) Nebraska (107.17)                                             5. (4) Florida State (103.16)
 6. (9) LSU (106.59)                                                       6. (10) Penn State (91.38)
 7. (5) Arkansas (94.10)                                                7. (9) Clemson (85.29)
 8. (7) Arizona State (89.48)                                          8. (12) Tennessee (82.15)
 9. (6) Oklahoma (88.97)                                               9. (6) Florida (79.60)
10. (11) Baylor (67.78)                                                 10. (17) Arkansas (75.59)
11. (14) Texas Tech (65.59)                                       11. (7) South Carolina (74.18)
12. (10) Minnesota (62.80)                                         12. (11) Nebraska (66.28)
13. (13) Virginia Tech (61.23)                                     13. (8) Washington (65.98)
14. (19) Georgia (57.62)                                              14. (18) LOUISVILLE (63.40)
15. (12) South Carolina (57.45)                                 15. (21) Oklahoma (61.68)
16. (38) Indiana (53.65)                                              16. (16) Baylor (61.40)
17. (16) Stanford (48.07)                                             17. (26) Arizona (58.12)
18. (15) Auburn (47.67)                                               18. (13) Virginia Tech (56.30)
19. (17) KENTUCKY (47.42)                                        19. (27) Auburn (53.31)
20. (101) Arizona (41.20)                                             20. (23) Southern Illinois (53.29)
21. (18) Washington State (40.92)                            21. (14) Connecticut (47.74)
22. (20) California (40.72)                                           22. (20) Indiana State (46.28)
23. (22) Kansas State (40.59)                                    23. (22) West Virginia (44.97)
24. (21) Oklahoma State (39.64)                               24. (19) Illinois (44.91)
25. (36) Washington (37.87)                                      25. (25) Texas-El Paso (44.56)

Cardinals 21st, Wildcats 26th in softball pre-season poll

Louisville is No. 21 and Kentucky is one spot shy of making the ESPN.com/USA Softball Pre-Season Collegiate Top 25 poll released Tuesday.

Topping the list is defending NCAA champion Washington (51-12 last season), taking 17 of 20 first-place votes.

U of L (48-11) is one of two Big East teams ranked, one spot behind DePaul. The Cardinals open their season Feb. 12 in the Marriott Tournament at Houston. In order, U of L will face Kansas, No. 15 Baylor (twice), Houston and No. 16 Ohio State.

UK (34-23) had the most votes of “others receiving votes” – 26th overall. The Wildcats begin play Feb. 11 in the Kajikawa Classic where they will face, in order, host and No. 7-ranked Arizona State, San Diego State, Cal State Fullerton, Western Michigan and No. 11 California.

Five Southeastern Conference teams are ranked ahead of UK: No. 2 Alabama, No. 5 Florida, No. 8 Georgia, No. 13 LSU and No. 18 Tennessee.

Rank, Team (first-place votes), 2009 record, points

 1. Washington (17)         51-12   479
 2. Alabama (1)                 54-11   457
 3. Michigan                       47-12   430
 4. Arizona (1)                    46-17   424
 5. Florida                           63-5     407
 6. UCLA (1)                       45-11   396
 7. Arizona State                47-19   387
 8. Georgia                         47-12   363
 9. Missouri                        50-12   337
10. Oklahoma                    41-16   306
11. California                     38-20   282
12. Stanford                       48-11    256
13. LSU                           34-18-1    234
14. Georgia Tech               46-15   215
15. Baylor                            40-22   214
16. Ohio State                     47-11   187
17. Northwestern               31-15   167
18. Tennessee               40-18-1   163
19. Florida State                 44-16   128
20. DePaul                          39-14   107
21. LOUISVILLE                  48-11    93
22. North Carolina              47-13    91
23. La.-Lafayette                 45-13    84
24. Fresno State                 28-20    70
25. UMass                           41-10     55
Others receiving votes: KENTUCKY (26), Jacksonville State (17), Auburn (14), North Dakota State (14), Nevada (12), Oregon (11), Oklahoma State (10), Texas (8), Cal Poly (7), Notre Dame (7), Nebraska (6), Texas A&M 5, Ball State (4), Brigham Young (4), San Diego State (4), Long Beach State (3), Purdue (2), New Mexico State (1), Virginia Tech (1), Western Michigan (1).

SCORE one for the ol’ coach

Jeff Bennett

Former UK baseball coach Keith Madison, now national baseball director of SCORE International, is helping raise funds for the non-profit organization through an online sale of baseball memorabilia. The pair of items come courtesy of Jeff Bennett, relief pitcher for the Tampa Bay Rays and an annual supporter of SCORE. The sale on eBay runs through January.

Descriptions follow.

1. 2009 official MLB Rawlings baseball, with 22 autographs from the World Series champion New York Yankees. Signatures include Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, CC Sabathia, Mariano Rivera, Johnny Damon, Mark Teixeira, Jorge Posada, (World Series MVP) Hideki Matsui, Andy Pettitte, AJ Burnett, Robinson Cano, Melky Cabrera, Nick Swisher, Joba Chamberlain and Manager Joe Girardi.  Online, see: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&Item=220543520321&Category=73418&_trkparms=algo%3DLVI%26its%3DI%26otn%3D1

2. 2009 official Mark Teixeira-autographed baseball bat. The bat was donated from Teixeira’s personal game collection, straight from the Yankees clubhouse, and is signed in permanent silver ink. Online, see: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=220546270071

Players from Morehead State, Louisville, Eastern Kentucky, Western Kentucky and Kentucky have been selected as pre-season All-Americans. 

And we haven’t even gotten to the Lexington Legends yet. But read on.

The Redlegs are coming! The Redlegs are coming!

The Reds Winter Caravan is scheduled for 14 stops in four states over four days, Jan. 28-31. Three separate caravans will tour simultaneously. Stops open to the public are free, and at each stop two tickets for the Reds 2010 opener (April 5 vs. St. Louis) will be raffled.

Two of the caravans will visit Kentucky. The Southern tour includes Lexington and the Western stops begin with Louisville.

Caravan representatives will take questions from fans and, as long as time permits, sign autographs. A member of the 1990 World Series championship team will be at each stop.

Lineups for the three caravans follow. 

Adam Rosales

NORTHERN — 2008 Gold Glove winner Brandon Phillips; 2009 Southern League all-star and Reds Minor League Player of the Month for June, shortstop Zack Cozart; Hall of Fame broadcaster Marty Brennaman; broadcaster and former Reds pitcher Chris Welsh; Vice President and Assistant General Manager Bob Miller; former Reds outfielder Glenn Braggs; and mascot Gapper.

Scheduled caravan stops (Jan. 28-31):

SOUTHERN — Thursday, 2:30-4:30 p.m., Charleston (W.Va.) Towne Center, and 5:30-8:30 p.m., Huntington (W.Va.) Mall. Saturday, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., Great American Ball Park (Cincinnati); Sunday, 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Fayette Mall (Lexington).

WESTERN — Thursday, 5:30-8 p.m., Louisville Slugger Museum (Louisville). Friday, 1:30-3 p.m., College Mall (Bloomington, Ind.), and 5:30-7:30 p.m., Castleton Square Mall (Indianapolis). Saturday, 10:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Stoops Automotive (Muncie, Ind.), and 3-5:30 p.m., National Museum of the United States Air Force (Dayton, Ohio). Sunday, 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Millett Hall (Oxford, Ohio).

NORTHERN — Thursday, 5:30-8 p.m., Grand Central Mall (Marietta, Ohio/Parkersburg, W.Va.). Friday, 6:30-8:30 p.m., The Market on State (Athens, Ohio); Saturday, 5-7:30 p.m., Lima (Ohio) Mall; Sunday, 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Polaris Fashion Place (Columbus, Ohio).

Guys who go Ping! at the plate

Ping!Baseball.com has tabbed Morehead State SS Drew Lee  and Louisvillle DH (and 3B) Phil Wunderlich as pre-season second-team All-Americans. Eastern Kentucky 3B Jayson Langfels, Kentucky 2B Chris Bisson and Western Kentucky C Matt Rice are on the third team.

Lee, a senior out of Montgomery County, set the Morehead record for hits (86), batting .413, with 17 homers and 67 RBI last season. He led the Ohio Valley Conference with 159 total bases. Lee is a third-team pick on the Pre-season Louisville Slugger team.

The Eagles open their season Feb. 19 with a four-game series at Mercer.

Wunderlich, a junior from Downers Grove, Ill., led U of L with a .367 batting average last season. He hit 18 doubles, 18 homers and 78 RBI for the Big East champions. He also is a third-team pre-season pick by Louisville Slugger and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA).

The Cardinals open their season Feb. 19, the start of a three-game home series against Bowling Green.

Langfels won the OVC batting title last season with a .441 average. The Lafayette High School grad also led the country in run production, averaging 1.67 RBI per game, and was one of two sophomores named first-team all-OVC. The Lexington native’s 72 RBI for the season ranks third all-time at EKU. He hit six triples, giving him a two-year total of 14, already an EKU career record. He led EKU in homers last season with 12, including a pair of walk-off blasts.

The Colonels open play Feb. 26 with a three-game series at Western Carolina.

Bisson, a junior from Canada (Orleans, Ontario), led UK last season in batting (.360), runs (49), hits (80), triples (3), RBI (52), total bases (101), walks (20) and assists (133). He also was 13-for-15 in stolen-base attempts, with a .414 on-base percentage and .455 slugging percentage. Last summer, he led the Cape Cod League in stolen bases with 36 over 42 games.

Bisson also is an All-Canadian pre-season pick by the Canadian Baseball Network.

The Wildcats begin play Feb. 19 in the Caravelle Resort Invitational at Myrtle Beach, S.C. First up will be Virginia Tech, followed by games against West Virginia and Coastal Carolina.

Rice, a junior from Johnson City, Tenn., helped Western Kentucky to the Sun Belt Conference regular-season title in 2009, hitting .390 with 10 homers and 72 RBI. He had a 31-game hitting streak.

Rice also is an NCBWA pre-season first-team pick.

The Hilltoppers open play Feb. 19 with a three-game home series against Kent State.

Answering a call to the bullpen

In case you missed it, the Lexington Legends will have a new pitching coach in 2010.

Travis Driskill, who filled the role last season, had been ticketed to return. The Houston Astros promoted Driskill to Class AA Corpus Christi after Stan Boroski, who had been with the Hooks, was hired last month by the Tampa Bay Rays for their major league staff.

The new man for the Legends is not new to the game.

 

Rick Aponte (uh-PAHN-tay) is a veteran of more than 30 years in the Astros organization and served as bullpen coach for the Washington Nationals during the 2007 and ’08 seasons.

Last year, he returned to the Houston organization as pitching coach of the Gulf Coast League Astros.

A native of the Dominican Republic, Aponte was a pitcher in the Astros organization, debuting in 1976. He reached the AAA level with Charleston (W.Va.) in 1977 and with Tucson in 1980 and ’81.

Aponte began coaching in the Astros system later in 1981. He managed Houston’s team in the Dominican Summer League from 1993 through 1999.

 

*Speaking of Legends, Astros RHP Chris Sampson who avoided salary arbitration by agreeing to a deal worth $815,000 plus bonuses. Sampson, 31, was 4-2 in 49 relief appearances in 2009 with a 5.02 ERA (31ER/55.1IP) with three saves, 21 walks and 33 strikeouts. … OF Jordan Parraz came to terms with the Kansas City Royals on a one-year deal. … Former Legends C Lou Santangelo has been invited to Houston’s big-league spring training camp as a non-roster player. Astros pitchers and catchers begin workouts at Kissimmee, Fla., on Feb. 20. Position players join workouts Feb. 24. … The Astros begin play in the Grapefruit League on March 4, facing the Nationals.

 

Florida’s Mariam Kevkhishvili and Auburn’s Sheniqua Ferguson have won weekly Southeastern Conference track and field awards, based on their performances Satuday in the University of Kentucky Invitational.

Mariam Kevkhishvili

Kevkhishvili, from Tibilisi, Georgia, is Female Field Athlete of the Week for her personal-best 60-foot-7 1/4 shot-put victory at UK. Her mark set school, fieldhouse and national records, and also surpassed the automatic qualifying standard for the NCAA Championships. She is a three-time NCAA champion and two-time Olympian.

Sheniqua Ferguson

Ferguson, a junior from Nassau, Bahamas, is co-Female Runner of the Week. Her 60-meter dash victory, in 7.28 seconds, is an NCAA provisional qualifier, ranks fifth all-time at Auburn and equals the fastest time in the NCAA this season.

Sharing honors with Ferguson is South Carolina junior LaKya Brookins. The defending NCAA champion opened her season by winning the Virginia Tech Invitational 60 in the same time as Ferguson, 7.28.

Female Freshman of the Week is Regina George of Arkansas. The newcomer from Chicago won the 800 (2:09.42) and anchored the winning 4-by-400 relay (3:36.43, NCAA provisional qualifier). George’s time ranks second in the SEC this season, ninth in the NCAA and third by an NCAA freshman. The relay time leads the NCAA.

Weekly honors for SEC men go to Georgia’s John Freeman (Field), plus the Arkansas duo of Scott McPherson (Runner) and Cobi Hamilton (Freshman).

Freeman, a junior from Plano, Texas, set a personal best of 66-10 in the 35-pound weight throw at UK. He was the top collegiate finisher in the events, second overall, and the first Bulldog of the season to post an NCAA provisional qualifier.

McPherson, a senior and also from Plano, Texas, led a 1-2-3 Razorbacks sweep at 3,000 meters in the Arkansas-Texas dual. His time of 8:10.66 leads the SEC and ranks second in the NCAA.

Hamilton, from Texarkana, Texas, made his collegiate debut with a 21.25 victory at 200 meters. That is a personal best and ranks third in the SEC this season, fifth in the NCAA and first among NCAA freshmen. Arkansas placed 1-4-5 in the event. Hamilton’s race came 13 days after playing in the Liberty Bowl. He played in 13 football games for the Razorbacks, catching 19 passes for 347 yards and three touchdowns.

Eastern’s Forbes takes OVC award

Bianca Forbes

Eastern Kentucky freshman Bianca Forbes is Female Track Athlete of the Week in the Ohio Valley Conference.

Forbes won her heat at UK, placing 18th overall in a meet that was laden with Big Ten, Southeastern, Atlantic Coast, Sun Belt and Big East conference teams.

The Bowerman ‘watch lists’ are here

Kevkhishvili is among 10 athletes on The Bowerman women’s watch. Another 10 athletes are on The Bowerman men’s watch.

The Bowerman, presented by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), is the sport’s version of the Heisman Trophy.

The women’s watch list, which will be updated Feb. 9, includes 2009 finalist Porscha Lucas of Texas A&M.

The full list, in alphabetical order: Joanna Atkins (jr., Auburn), sprints; Jessica Beard (jr., Texas A&M), sprints; Angela Bizzari (sr., Illinois), distances; Lacey Cramer (soph., Brigham Young), middle-distance; Semoy Hackett (soph., Lincoln (Mo.)), sprints; Kylie Hutson (sr. Indiana State), pole vault; Mariam Kevkhishvili (sr., Florida), throws; Porscha Lucas (sr., Texas A&M), sprints; Brianne Theisen (jr., Oregon), combined events; Kim Williams (jr., Florida State), jumps.

Others receiving mention: Marie Borner (sr., Bethel (Minn.)), distances; Kristi Castlin (sr., Virginia Tech), hurdles); Brenda Martinez (sr., Cal Riverside), middle-distance; Francena McCorory (jr., Hampton), sprints; Liz Patterson (sr., Arizona), high jump.

Ashton Eaton

The men’s list includes 2009 finalists Ashton Eaton of Oregon and German Fernandez of Oklahoma State.

The men’s watch list: Jeshua Anderson (Jr., Washington State), hurdles; Ronnie Ash (jr., Oklahoma), hurdles; Sam Chelanga (jr., Liberty), distances; Will Claye (soph., Oklahoma), jumps; Jason Colwick (sr., Rice), pole vault; Ashton Eaton (sr., Oregon), combined events; German Fernandez (soph., Oklahoma State (distances); Trindon Holliday (sr., LSU), sprints; Andrew Wheating (sr., Oregon), distances; Ryan Whiting (sr., Arizona State), throws.

Also mentioned: Charles Clark (sr., Florida State), sprints; Ramon Gittens (jr., St. Augustine’s), sprints; Ricky Flynn (sr., Lynchburg), distances; Tabarie Henry (jr., Texas A&M), sprints; Ngonidzashe Makusha (jr., Florida State), jumps.