Mark Maloney on Kentucky sports

Saturday’s 11th annual Greater Louisville Classic likely will be the largest collegiate cross country meet contested in the nation this year.

The Louisville Sports Commission will host 115 colleges and universities from 24 states, featuring more than 2,400 athletes. Of those teams, 35 men’s squads and 41 women’s teams are nationally ranked by either the NCAA Division I, II or II, or the NAIA.

Action at E.P. “Tom” Sawyer Park begins with the men’s gold division at 9:30 a.m. Then, it will be women’s gold at 10:15, men’s blue division at 10:45, women’s blue at 11:30, men’s silver division at noon and women’s silver at 12:30. High school and middle school competition will follow, beginning at 1:15 p.m.

Top teams in the men’s gold include sixth-ranked Texas, No. 8 Iona and No. 28 Columbia. Regionally ranked teams include Georgia, Arizona, Penn State and Louisville. Others to watch include Michigan State and Division II powers Grand Valley State and Southern Indiana.

Premier individuals in the 8,000-meter race include Arizona teammates Lawi Lalang and Stephen Sambu. Lawang is the defending NCAA champion, and Sambu was NCAA runner-up in 2010. North Carolina-Greensboro’s Paul Chelimo was the 5,000-meter runner-up at the 2012 NCAA Track and Field Championships.

Louisville, ranked No. 6 in the Southeast Region, is led by Kenyan freshman Ernest Kibet. He won his collegiate debut two weeks ago, leading the Cardinals to a first-place finish in the Winthrop Invitational. Also placing in the top 20 in that meet for U of L were Gordon Dooley, Mattias Wolter, Evan Hibbs and Ryan Eaton.

Kentucky is led by senior Luis Orta, sophomore Mackay Wilson and junior Matt Hillenbrand.

No. 1-ranked Washington leads the women’s Gold teams. The field, competing over a 5,000-meter course, also includes No. 8 Vanderbilt, No. 10 Arkansas, No. 12 Arizona, No. 14 Michigan State, No. 17 Penn State and No. 29 Wisconsin.

Washington is led by Katie Flood, who placed seventh in last year’s NCAA Championships, and Megan Goethals, the 5,000-meter runner-up in track last spring. Arizona boasts Jennifer Bergman, 26th in last year’s NCAA, and Elvin Kibet, seventh in the NCAA track 10,000. Vanderbilt’s contingent includes  Liz Anderson, out of Louisville’s Manual High School.

U of L is paced by sophomore Michelle Molodynia, a Canadian, who placed eighth at Winthrop. Maria Frigo and Leah Kiyohara are the Cards’ next-best threats.

Kentucky features Cally Macumber and the reigning Freshman of the Week in the Southeastern Conference, Mary Kate Ponder. Macumber won the Virginia/Panorama Farms Invitational and Ponder placed 32nd, helping the Wildcats to a second-place team finish. Chelsea Oswald and Allison Peare also placed in the top 10 at Virginia.

Eastern Kentucky men climb in poll

Eastern Kentucky’s men, who climbed one spot to No. 25 in the nation this week, opted to compete Friday in the Notre Dame Invitational.

The Colonels are led by junior Soufiane Bouchikhi, the two-time defending Ohio Valley Conference Runner of the Year. A deep roster includes junior Wade Meddles, sophomore Ben Toroitich, Thijs Nijhuis and Ole Hesselbjerg, and freshman Amos Kosgey.

The EKU women will be competing Saturday at Louisville.

Baseball

                           South Atlantic League

Lexington Legends vs. Augusta GreenJackets

What: Four-game series

When: Wednesday through Saturday (7:05 each night)

Where: Whitaker Bank Ballpark

Tickets: Call (859) 422-7867

Major League affiliates: Houston Astros (Legends), San Francisco Giants

Bushue

Foltynewicz

Cruz

Alaniz

Probable pitchers (Legends listed first): Wednesday, RH Tanner Bushue (6-3, 3.72) vs. RH Taylor Rogers (7-9, 3.27); Thursday, RH Mike Foltynewicz (5-8, 4.28) vs. LH Mike Kickham (3-7, 4.81); Friday, RH Ruben Alaniz (6-9, 4.43) vs. LH Ryan Bradley (1-1, 4.41); Saturday, LH Luis Cruz (3-2, 4.18) vs. LH Gaspar Santiago (3-6, 4.17).

Adam Duvall

GreenJacket to watch: All-star 3B Adam Duvall (6-foot-1, 205 pounds, from Louisville) ranks third in the league in homers (20), RBI (76), total bases (192), slugging (.547) and in homer-to-at-bat ratio (1/17.55). He leads Augusta in OPS (.938), ranks second in runs (59), walks (49) and on-base percentage (.391), and is third in batting average (.291). In eight games against the Legends, Duvall has four homers and six RBI. A Butler High School graduate and a 2010 11th-round draft pick out of the University of Louisville, Duvall began his collegiate career at Western Kentucky and transferred to Chipola Junior College before landing at U of L. He is batting .330 against left-handers, .276 against righties. Duvall broke into pro ball last summer with Salem-Keizer of the Northwest League, batting .245 with four homers, 18 RBI and 30 runs over 54 games.

Mike Foltynewicz (Herald-Leader/Mark Cornelison)

Legend to watch: Thursday starting pitcher Mike Foltynewicz (6-4, 200, from Minooka, Ill.) has knocked nearly 2.5 runs off his ERA since May 11, when he stood at 6.63. Now at 4.28, the right-hander has won five of his last seven decisions. His 22 starts lead the staff and 115.2 innings pitched rank second on the team. He is fourth on the team with 72 strikeouts. In two outings against the GreenJackets, Foltynewicz is 1-1 with a 4.63 ERA over 11.2 innings. Selected by the Astros in the first round (19th overall) of the 2010 draft out of Minooka Community High School, he passed up a scholarship to Texas and signed for a bonus of $1.305 million. He made 12 starts for the Greeneville Astros of the Appalachian League last season, going 0-3 with a 4.03 ERA over 44.2 innings. Coming into this season, Baseball America rated him the fourth-best prospect in the Astros system and wrote that he “has the best raw arm in the system and flashes three plus pitches” — a 96 mph fastball, changeup and a slurvy breaking ball. 

Quevedo

Quevedo honored: Legends RH Carlos Quevedo is the SAL Pitcher of the Week for Aug. 1-7. Quevedo made one start, throwing seven scoreless innings in a 5-1 victory over the Kannapolis Intimidators. He struck out seven and did not walk a batter while earning his team-leading seventh victory. Quevedo (7-4) has walked only 12 batters all season, spanning 124.2 innings. Said Andy Shea, general manager of the Legends: “Carlos has been consistently strong this season and his control has been excellent. It’s great to see him receive this league-wide recognition.”

Radio: WLXG AM-1300

The women’s and men’s watch committees for The Bowerman have named the 10 semifinalists for collegiate track and field’s biggest award. The Bowerman, track and field’s version of what college football has in the Heisman Trophy, is presented in conjunction with the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.

A 10-person Bowerman Advisory Board will trim the list to three finalists, to be named July 13 (men) and 14 (women).

Women’s semifinalists

Name, year, school, events, hometown
Nia Ali, sr., Southern Cal, hurdles/jumps, Philadelphia
Brigetta Barrett, so., Arizona, jumps, Duncanville, Texas
Jessica Beard, sr., Texas A&M, sprints, Euclid, Ohio
Emma Coburn, jr., Colorado, distance, Crested Butte, Colo.
Kimberlyn Duncan, so., LSU, sprints, Katy, Texas
Jordan Hasay, so., Oregon, distance, Arroyo Grande, Calif.
Sheila Reid, jr., Villanova, distance, Newmarket, Ontario, Canada
Tina Sutej, jr., Arkansas, pole vault, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Jeneba Tarmoh, jr., Texas A&M, sprints, San Jose, Calif.
Brianne Theisen, sr., Oregon, combined events, Humboldt, Saskatchewan, Canada

Nia Ali

Nia Ali – Winner of the NCAA outdoor 100-meter hurdles with a wind-aided 12.63. Ali clocked a personal-best time of 12.77 to win Pac-10 title and is ranked seventh in the world in 2011. Finished sixth at the NCAA outdoor meet in the high jump; had a season best of 6-1¼ to finish second in the Pac-10 to Arizona’s Brigetta Barrett. Ali was also an NCAA qualifier indoors in the 60-meter hurdles.

Brigetta Barrett – Claimed NCAA high jump titles in both the indoor and outdoor seasons to join six others that have accomplished the feat (most recently, Texas’ Destinee Hooker in 2009). Barrett cleared six feet or more in each of her 11 competitions and notched an all-around personal best of 6-4 to win the Pac-10 title. Barrett won 10 of 11 meet crowns in the high jump during both indoor and outdoor seasons.

Jessica Beard

Jessica Beard – Became the third female in NCAA Division I history, and first since 1999, to win both 400 national titles in the same year and run on both winning 4-by-400 relays at the NCAA Indoor and NCAA Outdoor Championships. Beard, four-time Big 12 indoor 400-meter champ, recorded the world’s fastest 400 time indoors with a 50.79 clocking to win the national crown. Outdoors, Beard clocked 51.10 for the NCAA win and split 49.13 for the Aggies as anchor of the winning 4-by-400 relay.

Emma Coburn – Won the NCAA 3,000-meter steeplechase title in a wire-to-wire 9:41.14 and bettered the field by more than six seconds. Coburn was undefeated in the steeplechase during the season and clocked a 9:40.51 personal best to win the Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational -– a mark that ranks sixth among collegians all-time. Coburn also finished eighth at the NCAA Indoor Championships in the mile.

Kimberlyn Duncan

Kimberlyn Duncan — Swept the NCAA 200-meter titles and, in both seasons, notched world-leading times. Duncan became the sixth woman in NCAA Division I history and the first since Auburn’s Kerron Stewart in 2007 to sweep 200-meter titles in the same season. Indoors, Duncan won the SEC title in 22.78 for the world’s best time of the season. Outdoors, Duncan was undefeated in the 200 and clocked a low-altitude collegiate record (and the third-best overall) with a 22.24 run. Duncan was also the NCAA 100-meter runner-up and anchored the Lady Tigers to an NCAA title in the 4-by-100 (42.64).

Jordan Hasay – Won NCAA indoor titles in the mile and 3,000 meters, becoming the fifth overall and the first since Northern Arizona’s Johanna Nilsson (2006) to claim such a double. Hasay also led the Ducks to a runner-up finish in the distance medley relay at the national indoor meet. Outdoors, Hasay finished fourth nationally in the 5,000 meters and eighth in the 1,500.

Sheila Reid

Sheila Reid – Tallied three NCAA crowns and five Big East titles during the 2011 seasons. Outdoors, Reid became the first woman in Division I history to win the NCAA 1,500 and 5,000 in the same championship. Indoors, Reid anchored the Wildcats to the NCAA crown in the distance medley relay and was second nationally in the 3,000 meters. In the Big East, Reid won the 1,500-5,000 double outdoors and was a three-time titlist indoors with wins in the 1,000 meters, 4-by-800 and DMR.

Tina Sutej

Tina Sutej – Set collegiate records indoors and outdoors. Indoors, Sutej vaulted a best of 14-10¾ to set the all-time collegiate best in winning the SEC crown and went on to win the NCAA title. Outdoors, Sutej again won the SEC league title with a collegiate-record vault – a clearance of 15-1½. Overall, Sutej collected 13 straight meet victories before finishing runner-up at the NCAA outdoor meet, but tied the championship-meet record with Oregon’s Melissa Gergel, who took the crown on virtue of misses.

Jeneba Tarmoh

Jeneba Tarmoh – Was twice the NCAA’s runner-up in the 200 meters, matching performances both indoors and outdoors. Tarmoh won NCAA titles indoors and outdoors on the Aggie 4-by-400-meter relays and collected another silver as a member of the 4-by-100 squad. Tarmoh recorded top-five world times both indoors and outdoors in the 200, running 22.34 in the national finals to move into the collegiate all-time top 10 in the event. Tarmoh swept Big 12 outdoor 100- and 200-meter sprint titles and was on Texas A&M’s winning 4-by-100 relay.

Brianne Theisen – Twice set the collegiate record in the pentathlon during the indoor season and won her second straight NCAA crown in the event. Her score of 4,540 bettered her previous all-time collegiate best mark of 4,507, set in January at the UW (Washington) Invitational and ranked among the world’s top five in the event for the season. Theisen also scored at the NCAA indoor meet for the second straight year as a member of Oregon’s 4-by-400 relay team. Outdoors, Theisen did not compete as a result of injury.

Men’s semifinalists

Name, year, school, events, hometown
Jeshua Anderson, sr., Washington State, hurdles, Woodland Hills, Calif.
Robby Andrews, so., Virginia, distance, Englishtown, N.J.
Sam Chelanga, sr., Liberty, distance, Nairobi, Kenya
Will Claye, jr., Florida, jumps, Phoenix
Kirani James, so., Alabama, sprints, Gouyave, Grenada
Leonard Korir, jr., Iona, distance, Iten, Kenya
Ngoni Makusha, jr., Florida State, jumps/sprints, Zimbabwe
Maurice Mitchell, jr., Florida State, sprints, Kansas City, Mo.
Scott Roth, sr., Washington, pole vault, Granite Bay, Calif.
Christian Taylor, jr., Florida, jumps, Fayetteville, Ga.

Jeshua Anderson

Jeshua Anderson – Joined Brigham Young’s (and former University of Kentucky faculty member) Ralph Mann (1969-70-71) and Iowa State’s Danny Harris (1984-85-86) as the only three to win a third NCAA-championship title in the 400-meter hurdles. Won the title in 48.56, over a half-second ahead of the rest of the field. Earned the season’s collegiate best, and current American-leading, 400-hurdle time of 48.13 in winning a fourth-straight Pac-10 crown. Clocking also ranks second in the world so far in 2011 and ranks among the collegiate all-time top five.

Robby Andrews

Robby Andrews – Won his first NCAA outdoor 800-meter title with a memorable, come-from-behind 200-meter sprint to the finish. Sitting in last place at the 600-meter mark, Andrews used a 26.44-second final 200 to pass the field and grab the win from UC Irvine’s Charles Jock by only four hundredths of a second. Final time at the NCAA meet of 1:44.71 equaled the best collegiate and current best American mark of the year (Cory Primm, UCLA). 

Sam Chelanga

Sam Chelanga – NCAA champion outdoors in the 5,000 meters and national runner-up indoors in the 5K and outdoors in the 10K. His title  in the 5K was won in a season’s best time of 13:29.30 which included a 58.15 final-lap split. Recorded the collegiate-season’s best 7:48.24 indoors in the 3,000 meters at the professional-laden New Balance Games in Boston in February.

Will Claye

Will Claye – Claimed the NCAA indoor national championship in the triple jump and was the nation’s runner-up indoors in the long jump and outdoors in the triple. Also finished third outdoors in the long jump. Outdoors, notched SEC victories in both horizontal jumps, the first to do so since 2004. Wind-legal performances during the outdoor season of 27-2½ and 56-11¼ are among the world’s top five in 2011. Wind-aided triple jump of 57-9¾ at the NCAA outdoor meet is the third-best all-conditions collegiate mark of all time.

Kirani James

Kirani James – Claimed NCAA outdoor title in the 400 meters for the second straight year, becoming the first back-to-back titlist in the event since Auburn’s Avard Moncur in 2000 and 2001. Swept SEC crowns in the 400 with indoor and outdoor wins and recorded an all-time world junior indoor best with a 44.80 clocking in taking the league’s indoor crown in February. Clocked 44.6 split as the second leg of Grenada’s 4-by-400-relay team that finished third in the USA vs. The World race at the Penn Relays.

Leonard Korir –Indoor 5,000-meter and outdoor 10,000-meter NCAA champion. Split a 56.18 final lap to claim the outdoor national title. Also finished third outdoors nationally in the 5,000 and sixth indoors at 3,000. In clocking 27:29.40 in the 10K at Stanford’s Payton Jordan Invitational in May, he moved to second all-time in collegiate history in the event (Sam Chelanga, 27:08.39, 2010).

Ngoni Makusha

Ngoni Makusha — Won NCAA outdoor titles in the 100 meters and long jump, joining Carl Lewis, Jesse Owens, and Michigan’s DeHart Hubbard as the fourth man in NCAA Division I history to claim such a double at a single championship. Also claimed NCAA long jump title during the indoor season, becoming the first since 2006 to sweep the event’s two titles (Arturs Abolins, Nebraska, 2006). Notched a third NCAA title as second leg of 4-by-100-meter relay. Run of 9.89 in the NCAA 100-meter final broke the 1996 collegiate- and championship-meet record of 9.92 set in 1996 by UCLA’s Ato Bolden. Clocked 9.97 to win ACC crown and swept league titles in the long jump. Season’s best in the long jump and 100 meters rank amongst the world’s top five this year.

Maurice Mitchell – NCAA outdoor 200-meter champion in a wind-aided 19.99 and third leg of Florida State’s national champion 4-by-100-meter relay team. Was national runner-up indoors in the 200 and was only bested by Oklahoma’s Mookie Salaam who took the title by two thousandths of a second in a different section. Placed third at the NCAA meet indoors in the 60 and outdoors in the 100 meters. Did not lose a 200-meter race in 13 tries during the indoor and outdoor seasons.

Scott Roth – Claimed a sweep of NCAA pole vault crowns during the year, becoming the fourth to do so since 2000. Marked indoor personal best of 18-1 during the indoor season and an overall personal best of 18-9¼ to take victory at the Mt. SAC Relays. At the end of the collegiate season, season’s best mark ranked among the world’s top five.

Christian Taylor

Christian Taylor – Winner of the NCAA outdoor triple jump title with an all-time, all-conditions collegiate best mark of 58-4¾. The wind-aided title clincher came on the final attempt of a back-and-forth battle with teammate Will Claye. Marked wind-legal 57-1 in the competition’s fourth round to claim the season’s collegiate best mark and current American-leading mark. Finished second nationally indoors to Claye in the triple jump and qualified for both meets in the long jump. With Florida’s 4-by-100- and 4-by-400-meter relay teams, qualified for the national finals in both events outdoors. At Penn Relays, 4-by-100 squad finished second in the Championship of America race.

Former University of Kentucky softall All-American Molly Johnson was named Friday to the United States National Team.

Molly Johnson (Staff file photo, 2009)

Johnson, a shortstop, became UK’s first softball All-American in 2009, when she broke three school records (81 hits, 53 runs, .498 on-base percentage) and set career highs in nine offensive categories. She completed her UK eligibility in 2010 and served as an assistant coach for the Wildcats this year.

This will be her third consecutive season representing Team USA. She also played for the USA Futures squad last year.

The 2011 National Team has an 18-player roster and one alternate.

The team will open play against the USA Softball Junior National Team on Saturday, June 25, with a doubleheader exhibition series at Plant City, Fla. Exhibition doubleheaders against the Junior Nationals also are set June 29 at Salem, Va., and July 1 at Bowie, Md.

Then, it will be on to international play.

Team USA will go to Surrey, British Columbia, for the Canadian Open Fast Pitch International Championship, July 9-17. That will be followed by the World Cup of Softball VI, July 21-25, at Oklahoma City.

The Americans will be after their ninth Pan American Games gold, Oct. 17-23, at Guadalajara, Mexico.

South Florida’s Ken Eriksen will coach the National Team, assisted by Olympic gold-medalists Tairia Flowers and Stacey Nuveman. Flowers is head coach at Cal State Northridge, while Nuveman is an assistant at San Diego State. Completing the coaching staff is Oregon head coach Mike White.

The National Team roster (with school attended): Valerie Arioto (California); Whitney Canion (Baylor); Kaitlin Cochran (Arizona State); Lauren Gibson (Tennessee); Kelly Grieve (Tennessee); Taylor Hoagland (Texas); Ashley Holcombe (Alabama); Molly Johnson (Kentucky); Stacy Johnson (Iowa); Megan Langenfeld (UCLA); Jenae Leles (Arizona); Michelle Moultrie (Florida); Christine Orgeron (Louisiana Lafayette); Keilani Ricketts (Oklahoma); Brittany Schutte (Florida); Jordan Taylor (Michigan); Rhea Taylor (Missouri), and Chelsea Thomas (Missouri). Alternate: Jessica Shults (Oklahoma).

The women’s watch list for The Bowerman, released Thursday, saw the addition of Colorado’s Emma Coburn, Southern Cal’s Nia Ali, Arizona’s Brigetta Barrett, LSU’s Semoy Hackett and Texas A&M’s Jeneba Tarmoh to the top 10.

The Bowerman is collegiate track and field’s top award, first presented in 2009 by the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. Ten semifinalists will be named June 21 and three finalists will be listed July 14.

The women’s watch list, in alphabetical order, includes the athlete, class, school and events.

Nia Ali, sr., Southern Cal, hurdles/jumps
Brigetta Barrett, soph., Arizona, jumps
Jessica Beard, sr., Texas A&M, sprints
Emma Coburn, jr., Colorado, distance
Kimberlyn Duncan, soph, LSU, sprints
Semoy Hackett, jr., LSU, sprints
Jordan Hasay, soph., Oregon, distance
Tina Sutej, jr., Arkansas, pole vault
Jeneba Tarmoh, jr., Texas A&M sprints
Kim Williams, sr., Florida State, jumps

Also receiving mention

Jackie Areson (sr., Tennessee) distance; Marie Louise Asselin (sr., West Virginia) distance); Joanna Atkins (sr., Auburn) sprints); Gwen Berry (sr., Southern Ill.) throws; LaKya Brookins (sr., South Carolina) sprints; Ti’erra Brown (sr., Miami, Fla.) hurdles; Dominique Duncan (jr., Texas A&M) sprints; Colleen Felix (jr., Georgia) jumps; Sheniqua Ferguson (sr., Auburn) sprints; Melissa Gergel (sr., Oregon) pole vault; Anna Jelmini (rs-frosh, Ariz. State) throws; Amber Kaufman (sr., Hawaii) jumps; Liz Lawton (sr., Chicago) distance; Lindsay Lettow (jr., Central Missouri) combined events; Chantel Malone (sr., Texas) jumps/sprints; Gabby Mayo (jr., Texas A&M) sprints/hurdles; Chantae McMillan (sr., Nebraska) combined events; Lauryn Newson (jr., Oregon) jumps; Holly Ozanich (sr., Wisconsin-Oshkosh) throws; Ashton Purvis (frosh, Miami, Fla.) sprints; Sheila Reid (jr., Villanova) distance; Brianna Rollins (soph-i, frosh-o, Clemson) hurdles; Faith Sherrill (sr., Indiana) throws; Karen Shump (soph., Oklahoma) throws; Neely Spence (jr., Shippensburg) distance; Brianne Theisen (sr., Oregon) combined events; Kate Van Buskirk (sr., Duke, mid-distance); Lucy Van Dalen (sr., Stony Brook) distance; Lea Wallace (sr., Sacramento State) mid-distance.

Oklahoma’s Mookie Salaam has rejoined the men’s watch list for collegiate track and field’s biggest award, The Bowerman.

The sixth update of the year was released Wednesday by the men’s watch committee in conjunction with the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

Mookie Salaam

Salaam, who won the 60- and 200-meter sprints at the Big 12 Indoor Championships, swept the 100 and 200 at last weekend’s Big 12 Outdoor Championships. Salaam’s time of 20.05 in the 200 set a meet record and is the second-fastest in the world this year. He won the NCAA title at that distance indoors.

The Bowerman, named for legendary Oregon coach Bill Bowerman, debuted in 2009 and is presented annually to the top male and female collegiate track and field athletes in the nation. Oregon’s Ashton Eaton and Virginia Tech’s Queen Harrison won last year.

The 10 semifinalists for this year’s award will be named June 20. Three finalists will be named July 13.

The men’s watch list, in alphabetical order, with class, school and events:

Jeshua Anderson, sr., Washington State, hurdles
Miles Batty, jr, Brigham Young, distance
Sam Chelanga, red-shirt sr., Liberty, distance
Will Claye, jr., Florida, jumps
Jeff Demps, soph.(i)/jr.(o), Florida, sprints
Kirani James, soph., Alabama, sprints
Ngonidzashe Makusha, jr., Florida State, jumps/sprints
Omo Osaghae, sr., Texas Tech, hurdles
Mookie Salaam, jr., Oklahoma, sprints
Christian Taylor, jr., Florida, jumps

Also receiving mention

Robbie Andrews (soph., Virginia) distance; Andy Bayer (rs-soph., Indiana) distance; Charles Clark (sr., Fla. State) sprints; Derek Drouin (jr., Indiana) jumps; German Fernandez (so., Okla. State) distance; Mason Finley (soph., Kansas) throws; Eric Flores (sr., Cal Lutheran) throws; Marquise Goodwin (soph., Texas) jumps/sprints; Leford Green (jr., Johnson C. Smith) sprints; Walter Henning (sr., LSU) throws; Tabarie Henry (sr. Texas A&M) sprints; Leonard Korir (jr., Iona) distance; Erik Kynard (soph., Kansas State) jumps; Torrin Lawrence (jr., Georgia) sprints; Marcel Lomnicky (jr. Va. Tech) throws; Maurice Mitchell (jr., Fla. State) sprints; Demetrius Pinder (sr., Texas A&M) sprints; Dorian Ulrey (sr., Arkansas) distance; Craig Van Leeuwen (jr., Ramapo) pole vault.

Neely Spence (Photo by Mark Maloney)

South Carolina’s LaKya Brookins, Shippensburg’s Neely Spence and Arkansas’ Tina Sutej have been added to the women’s watch list for The Bowerman, while Marquise Goodwin of Texas and Florida junior Will Claye have joined the men’s watch list.

The Bowerman is presented annually to the top male and female athlete in collegiate track and field.

All the watch-list additions are collegiate leaders in their events this season.

Brookins has the leading collegiate time for 60 meters (7.18); Spence is the world leader at 5,000 meters (16:01.09); and Sutej is the collegiate leader in the pole vault (14-7 1/4).

Goodwin is the collegiate leader in the long jump, Claye in the triple jump.

The women’s watch list, with name, yr. (school) events and hometown:

LaKya Brookins, sr. (South Carolina) sprints; Seneca, S.C.
Jessica Beard, sr. (Texas A&M) sprints; Euclid, Ohio
Ti’erra Brown, sr. (Miami, Fla.) hurdles; Hampton, Va.
Semoy Hackett, jr. (LSU) sprints; Scarborough, Trinidad & Tobago
Neely Spence, jr. (Shippensburg) distance; Shippensburg, Pa.
Tina Sutej, jr. (Arkansas) pole vault; Ljubljana, Slovenia
Sheila Reid, jr. (Villanova) distance; Newmarket, Ontario, Canada
Jeneba Tarmoh, jr. (Texas A&M) sprints; San Jose, Calif.
Brianne Theisen, sr. (Oregon) combined events; Humboldt, Saskatchewan, Canada
Kim Williams, sr. (Florida State) jumps; Kingston, Jamaica

The men’s watch list:

Jeshua Anderson, sr. (Washington State) hurdles; Woodland Hills, Calif.
Robby Andrews, soph. (Virginia) distance; Englishtown, N.J.
Sam Chelanga, sr. (Liberty) distance; Nairobi, Kenya
Will Claye, jr. (Florida) jumps; Phoenix, Ariz.
Jeff Demps, soph./jr. (Florida) sprints, Winter Garden, Fla.
Mason Finley, soph. (Kansas) throws; Salida, Colo.
Marquise Goodwin, soph. (Texas) sprints/jumps; Garland, Texas
Walter Henning, sr. (LSU) throws; Kings Park, N.Y.
Kirani James, soph. (Alabama) sprints; Gouyave, Grenada
Christian Taylor, jr. (Florida) jumps; Fayetteville, Ga.

Wesley Korir runs the straight path

Former University of Louisville standout Wesley Korir will try for his third consecutive Los Angeles Marathon title next month (March 20).

About a year ago, Korir married Tarah McKay, former captain of the U of L women’s track and cross country teams. The couple, living in McKay’s Canadian hometown of St. Clements, Ontario, have since had a daughter, named McKayLA in recognition of the McKay family and the “LA” Marathon.

Korir, who won $160,000 in cash and a Honda Accord EX-L for his first Los Angeles win alone, is using some of his earnings to help the needy in his homeland. Included is a project to fund a mission hospital. Korir notes that when he was young, a brother was killed by a snakebite because proper medical care wasn’t readily available. (For details about the project, see:

http://thestepsfoundation.org/26-2-challenge/

A Fresh Air approach

The Fresh Air Fund, an independent non-profit agency that provides free summer vacations to New York City children from low-income communities, is seeking runners and sponsors for its team in the NYC Half-Marathon on March 20.

The Fresh Air Fund also is in need of host families for summer vacationers next summer.

For more information, see:

Louisville and Kentucky both have squads among the top 25 in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) pre-season rankings for the Division I outdoor track season.

The Florida men and Texas A&M women have the No. 1 spots. Florida won last month’s NCAA Indoor Championships. A&M’s women are defending NCAA outdoor champs.

U of L came in at 14th in the men’s poll and 20th on the women’s side.

UK’s men are unranked, but the women are No. 21.

The Southeastern Conference leads the men’s rankings with eight teams ranked: 1. Florida; 7. Auburn; 8. LSU; 11. South Carolina; 12. Mississippi State; 15. Arkansas; 21. Tennessee; and 23. Mississippi. The Pac-10 is next with six, followed by the Big 12 with five.

The SEC also tops the women’s rankings with six teams: 3. LSU; 4. Florida; 13. Auburn; 21. UK; 22. South Carolina; and 23. Tennessee. The Pac-10 and Big 12 have five each.

For more on the rankings and links to guidelines and rationale, visit

http://www.ustfccca.org/rankings/division-i-rankings

Men’s rankings

(School, points, 2009 final ranking)

1. Florida, 371.37 (2); 2. Texas A&M, 347.88 (1); 3. Oregon, 258.41 (2); 4. Florida State, 226.14 (2); 5. Texas Tech, 219.96, — (unranked).

6. Southern California, 186.25 (10); 7. Auburn, 173.46 (12); 8. LSU, 171.22 (5); 9. Arizona State, 153.53 (8); 10. Nebraska, 149.76 (17).

11. South Carolina, 149.65 (6); 12. Mississippi State, 149.35 (17); 13. Oklahoma, 134.71 (25); 14. LOUISVILLE, 127.17, –; 15. Arkansas, 125.37 (9).

16. UCLA, 114.84, –; 17. Virginia Tech, 110.86 (16); 18. California, 105.42 (25); 19. Baylor, 104.89 (20); 20. Minnesota, 104.02, –.

21. Tennessee, 91.26, –; 22. Washington State, 88.01 (17); 23. Mississippi, 85.03, –; 24. Brigham Young, 84.99 (13); 25. Wisconsin, 83.10, –.

Women’s rankings

(School, points, 2009 final ranking)

1. Texas A&M, 347.28 (1); 2. Oregon, 274.57 (2); 3. LSU, 266.69 (6); 4. Florida, 186.92 (9); 5. Florida State, 186.57 (4).

6. Baylor, 177.14 (10); 7. Southern California, 176.22 (8); 8. Oklahoma, 170.55 (23); 9. Virginia Tech, 154.08 (12); 10. Brigham Young, 144.51 (15).

11. Texas-El Paso, 140.48 (25); 12. Washington, 133.80 (19); 13. Auburn, 122.01 (25); 14. Penn State, 121.97 (14); 15. Miami (Fla.), 116.87 (16).

16. Nebraska, 116.34, –; 17. Texas, 102.76 (5); 18. UCLA, 97.46 (16); 19. Stanford, 95.99, –; 20. LOUISVILLE, 88.22, –.

21. KENTUCKY, 86.23, –; 22. South Carolina, 85.29, –; 23. Tennessee, 84.00 (10); 24. North Carolina, 82.61, –; 25. Illinois, 82.05 (12).

Former University of Louisville star Angel McCoughtry is among 12 players added Wednesday to the 2010-12 USA Basketball Women’s National Team roster.

The 12 additions brings to 20 the player pool from which this year’s World Championships team and 2012 Summer Olympics teams will be chosen. Team USA first must qualify for the latter tournament.

McCoughtry, reigning Rookie of the Year in the WNBA, plays for the Atlanta Dream. She also was part of Team USA’s gold-medal squad at the 2007 Pan American Games.

Others added to the roster by the five-member Player Selection Committee are: Alana Beard (Washington Mystics), Swin Cash (Seattle Storm), Tina Charles (University of Connecticut), Shameka Christon (New York Liberty), Candice Dupree (Chicago Sky), Lindsey Harding (Washington Mystics), Asjha Jones (Connecticut Sun), Renee Montgomery (Connecticut Sun), Maya Moore (University of Connecticut), Lindsay Whalen (Minnesota Lynx) and Candice Wiggins (Minnesota Lynx).

UConn’s Geno Auriemma is head coach.

Players previously named the team are: Seimone Augustus (Minnesota Lynx), Sue Bird (Seattle Storm), Tamika Catchings (Indiana Fever), Sylvia Fowles (Chicago Sky), Kara Lawson (Connecticut Sun), Candace Parker (Los Angeles Sparks), Cappie Pondexter (Phoenix Mercury) and Diana Taurasi (Phoenix Mercury).

Monkey business

By the way, you may have noticed that I’m baaaccckk.

Back from the Vancouver Winter Olympic Games, a working vacation. For details, see my personal blog:
www.monkeyalarm.com

SEC has most track teams nationally ranked

The Southeastern Conference dominates the latest Indoor Track & Field national rankings of NCAA Division I teams, compiled by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.

The SEC has seven men’s teams among the top 25 and six women’s teams. The Big 12 is second in both categories with six men’s teams and five women’s squads.

Louisville is the lone in-state representative, with the 13th-ranked women’s program.

The top seven men’s rankings in the Southeast Region, in order: Virginia Tech, North Carolina, Louisville, South Carolina, Clemson, Kentucky and Virginia.

The Southeast Region top seven women’s teams: Clemson, South Carolina, Louisville, Virginia Tech, North Carolina, Duke and Virginia.

Men’s rankings
Rank  Team (Points)                 Previous rank
 1. Texas A&M (141.69)                           1
 2. Florida (136.89)                                   4
 3. Oregon (134.27)                                  2
 4. LSU (109.18)                                        3
 5. Arizona State (107.75)                        5
 6. Arkansas (91.80)                                 6
 7. Texas Tech (91.19)                             9
 8. Virginia Tech (80.81)                        15
 9. Oklahoma (75.10)                             12
10. Indiana (71.67)                                   7
11. Nebraska (69.31)                              8
12. Minnesota (65.06)                            17
13. Penn State (64.53)                           11
14. Florida State (63.65)                        13
15. Stanford (62.08)                                14
16. California (55.78)                              24
17. Northern Arizona (53.64)                 19
18. Auburn (50.94)                                  16
19. Baylor (50.91)                                    10
20. South Carolina (46.02)                     –
21. Arizona (45.76)                                  18
22. New Mexico (44.69)                          22
23. Mississippi (44.02)                            –
24. Georgia (44.00)                                 25
25. Texas (43.78)                                      –

Women’s rankings
Rank  Team (Points)                 Previous rank
 1. Oregon (185.55)                                 1
 2. Texas A&M (158.94)                           2
 3. Florida (113.51)                                  3
 4. Clemson (108.53)                              7
 5. Tennessee (108.03)                          4
 6. LSU (102.35)                                       5
 7. Penn State (99.38)                           10
 8. Arkansas (97.84)                                6
 9. Villanova (79.07)                                 8
10. Texas-El Paso (78.12)                   17
11. Auburn (72.23)                                   9
12. Southern Illinois (59.52)                12
13. Louisville (59.11)                            13
14. Arizona (58.62)                                16
15. Brigham Young (58.15)                 11
16. Indiana State (57.93)                      18
17. Florida State (56.64)                       20
18. Nebraska (56.02)                            14
19. Oklahoma (53.27)                           15
20. Indiana (49.90)                                19
21. Iowa State (49.57)                            –
22. Virginia Tech (49.04)                      21
23. South Carolina (46.35)                    –
24. Texas Tech (42.52)                          –
25. Miami (Fla.) (38.98)                          –

Louisville 1-2 in women’s weight throw

D'Ana McCarty

Highlighting individual rankings is the women’s weight throw, where Louisville’s D’Ana McCarty (74-0 1/4) and Jere’ Summers (73-4) are 1-2 and UK’s Kristin Smith (67-6) is No. 8.

Event-by-event leaders, plus in-state representatives among the top 25, follow.

Men
60 meters — Jeff Demps (Fla.) 6.59; tie 2. Rondel Sorrillo (Ky.) 6.60; tie 20. Justin Austin (Ky.) 6.69.
200 — (tie) Calvin Smith (Fla.) and Charles Clark (Fla. St.) 20.67; 5. Rondel Sorrillo (Ky.) 20.77.
400 — Torrin Lawrence (Ga.) 45.03.
800 — Andrew Wheating (Ore.) 1:46.3.
Mile — Lee Emanuel (N.M.) 3:57.62.
3,000 — David McNeill (Northern Ariz.) 7:47.52.
5,000 — David McNeill (Northern Ariz.) 13:39.32.
60 hurdles — Ronnie Ash (Okla.) 7.59.
4×400 relay — Texas A&M 3:04.86.
Distance medley relay — Oregon 9:29.82.
High jump — (tie) Paul Hamilton (Neb.) and Derek Drouin (Ind.) 7-5; tie 12. Tone Belt (U of L) 7-2 1/4.
Pole vault — Scott Roth (Wash.) 18-9 1/4.
Long jump — Alain Bailey (Ark.) 26-9 3/4; tie 7. Rudon Bastion (U of L) 25-10; tie 13. Tone Belt (U of L) 25-6 1/4; 16. Wesley Smith (U of L) 25-4 1/2.
Triple jump — Christian Taylor (Fla.) 55-2 3/4; 14. Andre Black (U of L) 52-7 1/4.
Shot put — Ryan Whiting (Ariz. St.) 70-7 1/4.
Weight throw — Walter Henning (LSU) 78-1.
Heptathlon — Ashton Eaton (Ore.) 6,256.

Women
60 — (tie) Blessing Okagbare (Texas-El Paso) and Layka Brookins (S.C.) 7.18.
200 — Shavon Greaves (Penn St.) 22.98.
400 — Jessica Beard (Texas A&M) 51.15; 25. Jenna Martin (Ky.) 53.76.
800 — Phoebe Wright (Tenn.) 2:01.47.
Mile — Charlotte Browning (Fla.) 4:31.24; 17. Janet Jesang (Western Ky.) 4:41.57.
3,000 — Lisa Koll (Iowa St.) 8:56.09; 8. Janet Jesang (Western Ky.) 9:11.09.
5,000 — Lisa Koll (Iowa St.) 15:29.65; 13. Janet Jesang (Western Ky.) 16:04.48.
60 hurdles — Queen Quedith (Va. Tech) 7.94.
4×400 relay — Arkansas 3:32.87; 15. Kentucky 3:37.90.
Distance medley relay — Oregon 10:59.64.
High jump — (tie) Elizabeth Patterson (Ariz. St.) and Amber Kaufman (Hawaii) 6-3 1/2; tie 25. Rachel Gehret (U of L) 5-10 3/4.
Pole vault — Kylie Hutson (Ind. St.) 14-8 1/4.
Long jump — Blessing Okagbare (Texas-El Paso) 21-11 3/4.
Triple jump — Kimberly Williams (Fla. St.) 46-8 1/4.
Shot put — Mariam Kevkhishvilli (Fla.) 60-10 3/4; 6. Jere’ Summers (U of L) 55-9 1/4; tie 14. Ashley Muffet (Ky.) 53-9 1/4; 21. Chinwe Okoro (U of L) 52-7 1/4.
Weight throw — D’Ana McCarty (U of L) 74-0 1/4; 2. Jere’ Summers (U of L) 73-4; 8. Kristin Smith (Ky.) 67-6.
Pentathlon — Liane Weber (Clemson) 4,262; 16. Precious Nwokey (Ky.) 3,967.

Three new names on The Bowerman watch list’s top 10

The men’s ”watch list” for the USTFCCA’s Bowerman Award has three new names among the top 10 this week: LSU’s Walter Henning, Georgia’s Torrin Lawrence and Northern Arizona’s David McNeill. The Bowerman is college track and field’s version of the Heisman Trophy in football. For more information, see www.TheBowerman.org

The Bowerman Watch List top 10 through March 3, in alphabetical order:

Name (school, class) event, hometown
Jeshua Anderson (Wash. St., jr.) hurdles, Woodland Hills, Calif.
Ronnie Ash (Okla., jr.) hurdles, Raleigh, N.C.
Sam Chelanga (Liberty, jr.) distances, Nairobi, Kenya
Ashton Eaton (Ore., sr.) combined events, Bend, Ore.
German Fernandez (Okla. St., so.) distances, Riverbank, Calif.
Walter Henning (LSU, jr.) throws, Kings Park, N.Y.
Torrin Lawrence (Ga., so.) sprints, Jacksonville, Fla.
David McNeill (Northern Ariz., sr.) distances, Melbourne, Australia
Andrew Wheating (Ore., sr.) distances, Norwich, Vt.
Ryan Whiting (Ariz. St., sr.) throws, Harrisburg, Pa.

Also receiving mention — Aaron Braun (Adams St.); Charles Clark (Fla. St.); Will Claye (Okla.); Jason Colwick (Rice); Lee Emanuel (N.M.); Ricky Flynn (Lynchburg); Ryan Foster (Penn St.); Ramon Gittens (St. Augustine’s); Tabarie Henry (Texas A&M); Trindon Holliday (LSU); Bryce Lamb (Texas Tech); Ngonidzashe Makusha (Fla. St.); Scott Roth (Wash.); Ramon Sparks (Abilene Christian).

Campbell is Athlete of the Week

Amber Campbell is USA Track & Field’s Athlete of the Week, having won the women’s weight throw with a season world-leading and a meet-record mark of 81 feet, one-half inch at the USA Indoor Track and Field Championships at Albuquerque, N.M.

Campbell, a 2008 Olympian, won here fourth consecutive national title with the third-best throw ever. She earned 1,213 points to earn the title of Visa Champion by one point over sprinter Carmelita Jeter, worth $30,000.

The best performances by American in the week ending Feb. 28 follow. AL = American leader; OT = oversized track; WL = world leader.

MEN
60 — Ivory Williams (Nike) at Albuquerque, 6.49 WL; 200 — Charles Clark (Fla. St.), Blacksburg, Va., and Calvin Smith (Fla.), Fayetteville, Ark., 20.67 WL; 400 — Torrin Lawrence (Ga.), Fayetteville, 45.10; 800 — Nick Symmonds (Nike/Ore. TC Elite), Albuquerque, 1:47.59; Mile — Andrew Wheating (Ore.), Seattle, 3:58.20 OT; 3,000 — Mark Matusak (Calif.), Seattle, 7:59.67 OT; 5,000 — Elliott Heath (Stanford), Seattle, 13:47; 5K walk — Tim Seaman (NYAC), Albuquerque, 20:57.47; 60 hurdles — Terrence Trammell (Trackstar Appeal), Albuquerque, 7.41 WL; High jump — Jesse Williams (Nike), Albuquerque, 7-8; Pole vault — Scott Roth (Wash.), Seattle, 18-9 1/4; Long jump — Bryce Lamb (Texas Tech), Ames, Iowa, 26-8 1/2); Triple jump — Lawrence Willis (unattached), Albuquerque, 55-3 3/4; Shot put — Christian Cantwell (Nike), Albuquerque, 69-4; Weight throw — A.G. Kruger (Nike), Albuquerque, 82-0 WL; Heptathlon — Nick Adcock (Mo.), Ames, Iowa, 5,938.

WOMEN
60 — Carmelita Jeter (Nike), Albuquerque, 7.02 AL; 200 — Shavon Greaves (Penn St.), State College, Pa., 22.98 WL; 400 — Debbie Dunn (unatt.), Albuquerque, 50.86 WL; 800 — Anna Pierce (Nike), Albuquerque, 2:00.84 AL; 1,500 — Morgan Uceny (Reebok), Albuquerque, 4:19.46; Mile — Jordan Hasay (Ore.), Seattle, 4:35.01 OT; 3,000 — Lisa Koll (Iowa St.), Ames, Iowa, 8:56.09 OT; 5,000 — Lisa Koll (Iowa St.), Ames, Iowa, 15:41.57 OT; 3K walk — Maria Michta (Walk USA), Albuquerque, 13:51.33; 60 hurdles — Ginnie Powell (Nike), Albuquerque, 7.87; High jump — Chaunte Lowe (Nike) Albuquerque, 6-6 AL; Pole vault — Lacy Janson (unatt.), Albuquerque, 15-3; Long jump — Brittney Reese (Nike) Albuquerque, 22-7 1/4 WL; Triple jump – Erica McLain (Nike) Albuquerque, 46-1 1/2 AL; Shot put — Jill Camarena (Nike/NYAC), Albuquerque, 61-1 1/2; Weight throw — Amber Campbell (Nike), Albuquerque, 81-0 1/2 WL; Pentathlon — Chantae McMillan (Neb.), Ames, Iowa, 4,151. 

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