FIU Panthers Prowl

Coley, Garcia honored by Sun Belt

There really isn't much left to say about women's basketball star guard Jerica Coley that hasn't been said. Just watch her keep on keepin' on and pass the hardware.

Tuesday, the Sun Belt did so in naming two-time honorable mention All-America the Sun Belt's 2012-13 Female Student-Athlete of the Year.

Coley led the nation in scoring while also keeping up a 3.34 GPA as a dietetics and nutrition major. And also just being an all-around good person and teammate with one year left at FIU.

BASEBALL

Catcher Aramis Garcia made First Team All-Sun Belt, the only FIU player to make first or second team all-conference.

And, because I'm, technically, on vacation...

 

 

This time, it's personnel

While Western Kentucky's Bobby Petrino all but dropped a blizzard of scholarship offers from a helicopter over Southern Broward, FIU got to work putting in face time and offers around the state.

Tampa Alonso running back Ish Witter, 5-8, 190, has and FIU offer, but 10 others also including Louisville and Missouri.

 

FIU's also sniffing around quarterback Jacob Kaiser out of St. Joseph (Mo.) Central High, a three-star recruit (CORRECTION: Kaiser isn't rated by ESPN or Rivals. I'd had another player slotted in here I'd heard, erroneously, FIU was recruiting and he was a three-star guy.)

http://www.hudl.com/athlete/627664/highlights/25355390

Two-star defensive tackle Keiwan Jones from Dunnellon High got an offer from FIU.

 

BASKETBALL

Men's basketball coach Anthony Evans said "none that I know of" when I asked him Thursday if he saw any more players transferring out of the program. Guard Deric Hill's headed for Barry and Malik Smith's following former coach Richard Pitino to Minnesota.

I asked Evans if there was consideration given to offering Hill, a walk-on who was the Die Hard battery in FIU's defense, a scholarship. Evans said he was going to wait until grades came out at the end of summer school, but Hill asked for his release.

With two scholarships left for next season, Evans remains unsure whether to use them or holster them for 2014. He didn't mention the probable postseason ban, but it's an obvious element. Unless there's a player who gives you the shivers, you want him so badly, why not get past whatever treading water will be done next season before using all the aresenal at your command. 

"If I hold for 2014, I'll have a larger class and I can build a foundation fo what I want this program to be," Evans said.

BASEBALL

Aramis Garcia is one of the 15 semifinalists for the Johnny Bench Award, given to the "most deserving Division I catcher nominated by his school." Finalists will be announced June 4.

 

Welcome to Conference Sun Belt USA; Alexander Belt Pitcher of the Week; Swimming Scholars

Western Kentucky's leaving the Sun Belt for Conference USA in 2014, the school and C-USA officially announced today. So, that means FIU, FAU, North Texas, Middle Tennessee State and Western will make that move between July 2013 and July 2014.

My first thought was, "That's only one year away from Bobby Petrino." Petrino won't head up Western's football program for long, four years at the outside, more likely three. But the man can recruit and coach and his track record says he'll be a problem for the rest of his conference, whatever that conference is. That's the Sun Belt this year and Conference USA with FIU after that.

BASEBALL

Junior Tyler Alexander's four-hit, 10-strikeout 1-0 win against Arkansas State got him named Sun Belt Pitcher of the Week, the conference announced Monday afternoon.

SWIMMING & DIVING

FIU's 3.15 GPA from the fall got them recognized as a College Swimming Coaches Association of America Scholar All-America Team. The honor goes to teams that achieve a 3.0 team GPA for a semester. This is FIU's fifth consecutive semester above that mark.

FIU comes from 4 down to win 8-7

Oscar Aguirre's double down the right field line brought in Nathan Burns in the bottom of the eighth and Mike Gomez sent Manhattan down in the ninth to complete an 8-7 win over Manhattan and the second series sweep of the year.

FIU moves to 6-1. Manhattan is 0-3.

 

Ishmar, Pierre get points in the put; Wright up; baseball tied 7-7

Sophomore Raqurra Ishmar and freshman Miriam Pierre finished third and sixth, respectively, in the Sun Belt Conference Indoor Championships shot put. Ishmar's fifth put went 48 feet and a half inch. Pierre's last put sailed 44-3 1/2 inches.

Former FIU guard DeJuan Wright won the dunk contest at the Dutch League All-Star Game.

A Zach Sweety home run after Oscar Aguirre's single tied Sunday's game 7-7 in the seventh, FIU making the comeback from down 7-3 in the fourth.

Ghent, Smith get first points at track; baseball getting Rock-ed

Freshman Marcus Ghent flew 23 feet 2 3/4 inches on his second jump of the day, eventually good enough for fifth in the long jump at the Sun Belt Indoor Track Conference Championship. Senior Aubrey Smith finished third with a 23-5 1/2 jump.

Meanwhile, the baseball team's down 7-4 after five innings. Mike Franco went 46 pitches. After giving up a leadoff homer, Franco walked three in the first and saw three more runs cross when he walked in a run and a grounder off two gloves brought in two others. His off speed pitches kept missing, which put him in trouble. Homers by Kyle Murphy, Gulliver graduate Christian Santisteban and Joe Rock homered off Alex Seibold for Manhattan. T.J. Shantz homered for FIU.

Rippin' and runnin'

After losing five of their first six, the softball team's run off nine in a row after going two for two Saturday in dumping Mercer and Hartford (not the Whalers).

They could make it 10 in a row by the end of this afternoon when they get another chance to whack Mercer, 7-0 victims of pitchers Corinne Jenkins and Shelby Graves Saturday, at 1:30 Sunday in the championship game of the FIU Classic. Sophomore Krystal Garcia continued her five-game hitting streak Saturday, matching senior Brie Rojas for longest streak of the season. Senior Jessy Alfonso has gone eight of 26 with eight runs scores and four RBI over the nine games.

 

BASEBALL

Sunday's baseball series closer against Manhattan inspires two questions:

1. How will Mike Franco pitch in his second start? Franco, 10 months off Tommy John surgery on his pitching elbow, showed a fastball with some turbo in his 45 pitches last Sunday against Stony Brook. Franco got through two and two-thirds innings and was one strike from working a full three when he got called off the mound.

Expect his pitch count to be around 50 this time.

2. Will Manhattan keep the Panthers out of double-digits? And, if not, will FIU score soon enough for the mercy rule to come into effect?

Considering what FIU's done to Manhattan's first two starters -- seven runs in 24 batters Friday, six runs in 10 batters Saturday -- Sunday's game could be longer than some of those Sunday baptist services I sat through in my youth. You never know, but I'm packing Pop Tarts. After scarfing my usual 14-16 pieces of bacon, four links of sausage and two biscuits from the David-prepared Sunday brunch.

The mercy rule usually gets employed only on Sundays, when a team's got to get out of town. Is somebody up by 10 after seven innings? Stop the fight. Friday still would've been a full game. Saturday would've been a TKO.

The baseball team's 5-1 start includes this funky fact -- the only starter to give up an earned run is Michael Ellis, theoretically the known quantity ace of the lineup. And Ellis got touched for four runs in each start.

There are two ways to look at this. If you're a sunny side up person, you say, "Once Ellis gets his stuff together, man, facing FIU's going to be like dealing with the 1970 Orioles because nobody's going to give up diddlysquat and the bats will just need to fart out a few runs each night."

If you're an Apocalyptic Baseball Annie, you say, "Uh, oh. These new guys might be dealing now, but how long can that hold up? And if the ace doesn't get it together..."

"Mike Ellis is our Friday night guy, but Mike is better than what he showed tonight," FIU coach Turtle Thomas said after Friday's 14-4 win against Manhattan."His velocity is good, everything was good, but when five out of six guys leading off innings get on base and he's behind too many hitters, threw too many pitches on the belt, those are fundamentals of the game that you've got to be able to do a good job on. Now, he competed his rear end off. Mike Ellis will always compete, give you his best effort. Mike's got to pitch more effectively to beat a lot of the teams we play during the year."

TRACK & FIELD

The Sun Belt Indoor Track & Field Championships starts Sunday. I'll try to keep you updated here.

 

FIU finishes rolling Stony

Of course Sunday ended with the starter and game-winner dragging the infield.

"That's my field duty," junior Mike Franco said after FIU's 1-0 win. "No matter even if I throw a complete game shutout, I have to do it."

Franco, who popped a 94 mph fastball Sunday, said he definitely felt he could've gone beyond his 45-pitch limit, but didn't argue with sticking to the plan to complete his recovery from last April's Tommy John surgery. He also used the word "Omaha" when talking about FIU.

Clearly, Franco felt good about himself and his team after FIU went three for three against Stony Brook Saturday and Sunday. Hey, everybody feels good when they haven't been scored on in 23 innings. FIU coach Turtle Thomas complimented the Panthers pitching, but also allowed that a northern team like Stony Brook's still thawing out their game this early in the season.

Though coming out of real winter (snow, ice), the Stony Brook fans looked just as uncomfortable in Florida winter (Sunday) as the FIU fans did. Everybody in each team's colors seemed to have a hoodie on or hunching their shoulders in a vain attempt to turn their collar into a hoodie. This wasn't Soldier Field, where Wisconsin and Minnesota ("Gophers!") played hockey Sunday, but the weather wasn't conducive to hitting, either.

Also not conducive to offense: Edwin Rios' glove. In Saturday's 10-4 win, Rios stopped a sizzling line drive down the line with the bases loaded that should've been a run-scoring double (at least). Instead, he took care of the inning's third out.

Sunday, with Stony's Austin Shives on third and one out, Rios snagged a hard grounder from Cole Peragine, fastened the runner to third with a staple gun stare, then stepped on first for the force out. A ground out to second later, FIU was out of the seventh inning.

"He's kind of our jack of all trades -- he can play second, short, first, third," Turtle Thomas said. "I told him one practice day, take ground balls at third and short. Next practice day, take 'em at second and first."

Meanwhile, umpire Damien Beal seemed to be giving pitchers half the outside batters box. Some called strikes looked closer to home plate of the nearest Tamiami Park diamond. But, credit to Beal, he maintained consistency. Neither team really adjusted to his strike zone. FIU's Zach Sweety struck out looking three times and six of FIU's eight strikeouts were with bat on the shoulder. When FIU's Mike Gomez got Shives looking in the ninth, Shives had the nerve to look at Beal with shock and dismay. The plate ump's been giving pitchers both dugouts all day, you're down 1-0 and you're taking a close two-strike pitch with a man on first in the last inning? Shives needed to save that look for the mirror.

Or Stony's third base coach. This really should've been a tie game going into the bottom of the ninth. With Peragine on first in the fourth, Steven Goldstein whistled a double down the first base line that bounced into the right field corner. Easy score for anyone faster than Fat Albert. Instead, Peragine got the hold up.

You haven't scored on a team in two days, your lineup's leadoff hitter is on first, you get a shot down the line that's at least a double, Keith Moreland and Cesar Geronimo are nowhere to be found in right field and you hold the runner? I thought the third base coach should be jumping up and down, windmilling the arms, yelling "Run, Sweetback! Run!"

Clearly, Goldstein expected Peragine to receive encouragement similar to that. He rounded second without a thought of braking until he saw Peragine reversing to third. This, of course, resulted in a rundown, Josh Anderson tagging out Peragine and FIU preserving its lead.

Sophomore shortstop Julius Gaines went three for four Sunday, seven for 10 in the series, and scored Sunday's only run.

"He's been swinging well in the three weeks we've been practicing and continued right on into the season," Thomas said. "He's gotten some added strength this year."

 

Related articles

More (mostly baseball) stuff from A Great Day at Camp Mitch

More (mostly baseball) stuff from A Great Day at Camp Mitch

 While Friday’s rain made for some long Saturdays for FIU athletes, coaches and staff, it did set up a pretty impressive Don Larsen Day for FIU: 6-0 across four teams playing at Camp Mitch Saturday, 2-0 at each venue.

Softball reversed its fortunes after a tough start last weekend with wins over UConn (3-2) and Binghamton (4-3) in the Blue/Gold Felsberg Memorial. Inside The Branch, a lot of defense and Jerica gave the women’s basketball team a 72-53 blowout of Western Kentucky. And the men’s basketball team finished the double spanking of the Hilltoppers with an 87-82 win.

Baseball took out Stony Brook 10-4 in the postponed season opener and 3-0, a game that started late but FIU pitching further delayed Stony Brook’s bats from making an appearance.

Most of this blog focuses on baseball, as that’s where I spent an hour Friday (after spending an hour and a half getting there in Friday traffic) and all day Saturday.

The baseball field’s left field lights held a lights out strike early in Game 2. Turtle Thomas, Stony Brook coach Matt Senk and the umpires got together before the third inning to discuss the matter. FIU had just cranked two deep flyouts to that increasingly dark part of the park. The lights to the adjoining soccer field got turned on as a help, an amusing idea considering the limited effect the soccer field’s lights have on darkness taking over the soccer field.

All agreed to play on. Thomas said if Senk had wanted the game halted, FIU would’ve stopped.

“Because they’re our guests.” Thomas said.

Four new pitchers did a masterful job for FIU Saturday. Stony Brook roughed up Game 1 starter Mike Ellis a bit with only four hits, but four runs, all earned, in four innings.  Junior college transfer Ty Sullivan tamed the rowdy Stony Brook bats for four innings before freshman Dillion Maya finished the show. In Game 2, FIU brooked no rowdiness from The Brook as Tyler Alexander gave up four hits in six innings and Mitchell Davis allowed two baserunners while striking out three in two innings. Senior Mike Gomez put the bow on the game, easily.

Here’s three of the new guys on their night.

Alexander:  “I do the chart (for the first game’s pitchers), so I was ready for whatever. I knew that if I came hard and live off my change up a little bit, then I could come back in with the hard stuff. It seemed to work.

“I feel like they struggled with the fastball. They were sitting on speed. They waited on the first pitch strike. They made you throw that first strike.”

Sullivan:  “All through those four innings, I noticed they were an aggressive team, but at the same time, they were patient. They were picking and choosing pitches. I could see why they were a College World Series team. They didn’t lay off anything that was off the plate. When I went out there, my goal was just pound it, pound it. Especially with guys on base in big situations, throw that off speed stuff for strikes. “

“They were really patient hitters, but when they got their pitch, they were really aggressive on it. So if it was in the strike zone, they were attacking it. In first two or three innings for me, they were looking for that fastball up, but I threw a couple of changeups and sliders that would break late. They swing over the top of a lot of those, so that started to work well.”

Mitchell Davis: “I had a live fastball today. A lot of off speed, my slider, my go-to pitch was on. Can’t complain on that. Changeup was a little off. Figured it out. Got that working and once I had all three working, it was no shot for the other team.”

If Davis sounds confident, well, yeah. Facing his first batter with the game scoreless, he fielded a grounder, then launch a shoulder missile wide and far of first. The runner got sacrificed to third.

“I knew I could get out of that and keep us tied up so we could get the lead next inning,” Davis said.

He got Anthony Italiano to fly out to second, walked leadoff hitter Cole Peragine, then struck out Steven Goldstein. The next inning, FIU took a 1-0 lead.

Davis, who went to Grayson County College, then Northeast Texas Junior College before coming to FIU, made the National Honor Society in high school.

(Hearing “National Honor Society” always reminds me of this piece of Dolphins trivia: the Dolphins only playoff team of the last decade, 2008, had a Rhodes Scholar candidate at quarterback, Chad Pennington, and three former National Honor Society members. Two you could predict: son of an Stanford professor Greg Camarillo and Donald Thomas, a UConn graduate raised in the shadow of Yale. The third? Channing Crowder.)

Anyway, someone with the intellect and/or work ethic to be a National Honor Society member going to a junior college is akin to someone with four-star recruit physical ability playing Division II.

“It was a pretty difficult decision,” Davis said. “I decided it was a good opportunity. I got injured my senior year. So, juco was my route because I didn’t get offered to big time D-1s like I wanted to. I knew I needed to get my name out there.”

Davis said the academic scholarships he could get didn’t cover as much as the academic-athletic or the athletics-only scholarships baseball might bring.

“(He and his family) just get by so I needed as much help as I could get,” the Fort Worth native said.

Another new pitcher from Texas, Corpus Christi’s Mike Franco, got penciled in as the Sunday starter earlier this week. When Franco whistled a 95 to 96 mph fastball in preseason training, it rated not on the Wow Factor scale, but on the Say What? Factor scale.

“It was one of those days,” Franco said. “There’s adrenaline going, first time being out of the mound in a couple of months, coming back from my injury and I just felt good.”

Franco’s coming off Tommy John surgery last April after tearing ligaments in his elbow. That he’s pitching at all speaks to persistence.

“Truthfully, a lot of people were (wondering) if I would even come back by this season,” Franco said. “Coach Thomas didn’t think I was going to come back for this season. I was determined to throw this year. I couldn’t sit out another year.”

Even should Franco start later today, he’ll be on a pitch count that increases by five each weekend. Still, that kind of fastball injects some anticipation into Sunday afternoon’s series closer.

 

FIU wins season opener 10-4, second game 3-0

Nathan Burns single to right field scored Julius Gaines and Oscar Aguirre to break a 4-4 tie in the sixth, and RBI singles by Aguirre, Burns and Tyler Hibbert in the seventh sent the Panthers to a 10-4 win against Stony Brook in their season opener.

Ty Sullivan, who pitched four innings in relief of starter Michael Ellis, got the win. Half of Sullivan's six strikeouts came in the top of the seventh, when he sent Stony Brook side down on 10 pitches. Zach Sweety went two for three as did Gaines. Burns knocked in four runs.

In Game 2, a T.J. Shantz sacrifice fly drove in the first run of the game in the bottom of the 7th, then an eighth inning Burns single and Josh Anderson triple gave Mike Gomez a buffer zone for the ninth inning. After walking leadoff hitter Brett Tenuto, Gomez sent down the next three batters to preserve Mitchell Davis' win in the junior college tranfer's first FIU appearance.

The left field lights remained off the entire second game, but didn't become an issue.

The final game of the series starts at 1 p.m. Sunday.

Baseball season opener postponed until Saturday

Baseball season opener, 7:30. It's been postponed until Saturday, 2 p.m. with the second game Saturday 45 minutes after the finish of the first game.

Just out of view: the four fans not taking shelter in the concession stand area. Of course, three of the four were from the swim team.

Also at the rainout were Max Diaz (FIU '04) and Miri Diaz (FIU '11), husband and wife on the ninth anniversariy of their first date, which was an FIU baseball game.

Supposedly, they're hoping for an 8 p.m. start (Sheldon laugh).

 

CRISTOBAL TO 'BAMA?

http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/02/15/3237215/cristobal-interviewsfor-job-at.html

Baseball picked 2nd in Sun Belt; Sand Volleyball schedule

The Sun Belt's baseball coaches think the Florida Sun Belt Farewell Tour brings the best baseball in the conference, voting FIU second behind FAU in the preseason poll.

While the first place votes got spread around -- FAU with five, one each for FIU, Arkansas State, Middle Tennessee State, Louisiana-Lafayette, Louisiana-Monroe -- the total points put the South Florida schools in a two-team slipstream. A second-to-third gap of 18 points followed FAU's 89 voting points and FIU's 85.

Catcher Aramis Garcia and pitcher Michael Ellis got voted to the preseason all-conference team.

FIU opens this weekend with a series at home against Stonybrook.

SAND VOLLEYBALL

The inaugural sand volleyball season opens Mar. 8 in California against Grand Canyon University. But the most awaited program opening match aside from the first football game is Mar. 23 against Webber International, at 9 a.m. on the sand courts across the street from The Branch, adjacent to the parking garage.

FIU's Surf and Turf Tournament Mar. 29-31 brings in last year's American Volleyball Coaches' Association Collegiate Sand Volleyball National Champion Pepperdine, Tulane, FAU and Georgia State. There's a home match against Florida Gulf Coast on April 6, too.

Diamond Din-Din & balls so soft

Some of feel stuck for a Valentine's Day present. Some of you know you don't have a good track record of buying presents (giving her a case of Budweiser so she doesn't have to buy it and carry it when she does the weekly Big Shop at Publix? Not getting it done.). Some of you haven't been together long enough or are smart enough to declare "This is just one more thing for us to stress over so no more Valentine's Day presents unless it's something for both of us/the house."

With that in mind -- oh, you who forget flowers, leave this blog and order them right now -- here's a list of what's available at auction, live or silent, during Saturday night's Diamond Dinner fundraiser for FIU baseball and softball.

Download 2013SilentAuctionWEBSITE

Milwaukee Brewers manager Ron Roenicke will be the guest speaker. Call the Panther Club if this entices you to jump on the few remaining tickets. 305-348-4697.

Speaking of softball, a team with three preseason All-Sun Belt players among six returning starters gets going this afternoon in FIU's Panther Invitational against Kansas.

In addition to Jessy Alfonso, Brie Rojas and Kayla Burri, transfer Amber Curry made All-Big East while at St. John's. All should help replace the program's all-time best player, FIU graduate Ashley McClain, who led FIU last year in hitting (.356), home runs (eight), on-base percentage (.458), slugging percentage (.594), was the only player to start all 55 games (only Rojas also played in 55, started 54) and didn't commit an error (the two other players with a 1.000 fielding percentage played 54 games combined).

 

HolyColey.com; on recruiting rankings; Diamond Dinner

FIU's promotion of Jerica Coley, the nation's leading scorer, went online with the launch of http://www.holycoley.com. If you come across the ever-modest Coley and want to watch her blush, mention the website.

The site, designed by FIU media relations Maegan Azpiazu, is one-stop shopping for all things Jerica Coley as FIU tries to get her All-America recognition.

RANKINGS

Recruiting sites and a couple of local recruiting hawks make their living analyzing players they've seen by spending Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights at high school football games, talking to coaches and poring over film. No. 1, I haven't spent my Thursday-Saturday nights that way since several current high school coaches were high school players. No. 2, I see highlight films, where everyone looks like the next Jerry Rice or Joe Greene.

I will tell you how these sites have these kids rated or ranked. I'll post their highlight video. If they're from an area known for exceptional talent, I'll note that. But that's it. I'm not giving my own analysis of how good a player is or will be because I don't know the young man as a person and don't know him well enough as a player. Players have gone from walk-on to All-American. Some five-star recruits have never played a down.

And, as I've often said, if the sites that specialize in recruiting analysis were that accurate, Texas and Notre Dame would have more than two national titles in the last 30 years.

BASEBALL & SOFTBALL

FIU baseball and softball's main fundraiser, the Feb. 9 Diamond Dinner at the Graham Center Ballroom, still has tickets available.

Cocktails at 6 p.m. There will be silent and live auctions. This year's special guest speaker will be Milwaukee Brewers manager Ron Roenicke. Cocktails at 6 p.m. For tickets contact the Panther Club at 305-348-4697.

Baseball schedule released; FIU fishing

At least FIU will start the baseball season playing against a College World Series team.

Stony Brook, which made last years CWS despite a name that looks lifted from The Flintstones, comes to town for a season-opening three-game series, Feb. 15-17. That starts a run of 16 of the first 17 at home, including three games Mar. 8-10 against perennial power and future intraconference foe Rice.

After those 17 come three road games Mar. 15-17 all the way up at FAU, then back home for three series, ending with a pair of games against Florida A&M April 2-3. The return series with FAU, May 16-18, closes the regular season before the Sun Belt tournament May 21-26 at Louisiana-Lafayette.  

BASKETBALL RECRUITING

FIU made an offer to Virginia Beach (Va.) Cape Hendry Collegiate shooting guard Ayron Hutton, a class of 2014 player.

The last signing class of 2012

Kendall Rogers of Perfect Game USA began giving thumbs up to FIU's recruiting class long ago. So, for what it's worth (stop, hey, what's that sound...), here's the 2013 baseball recruiting class as announced Thursdcay.

Juan Escarra, 6-3, 205, infielder, Mater Academy. 2012 5A-8A Herald All-Dade Honorable Mention.

Brandon Diaz, 5-11, 180, outfielder, Plantation American Heritage. 2012 ESPNHA All-State

Joe Jimenez, 6-3, 220, righthanded pitcher, Puerto Rico Baseball Academy and High School. Perfect Game ranks him as the No. 1 righty out of Puerto Rico in this year's class.

Cody Crouse, 6-6, 165, righthanded pitcher, Valrico Bloomingdale.

Gunnar McNeill, 6-3, 205, righthanded pitcher and first baseman, Winter Garden West Orange High.

Derek Deler, 5-10, 165, infielder, Maitland Orangewood Christian. 2012 WWBA All-Tournament Team Hitter.

 

Michael Perez, 6-0, 170, infielder/pitcher, Killian High.

 

Christopher Mourelle, 6-2, 175, righthanded pitcher, Southwest High. Herald Third Team 5A-8A All-Dade.

 

Nestor Cortes, 5-11, 192, lefthanded pitcher, Hialeah High. Class 5A-8A Herald First Team All-Dade, 8-0, 69 strikeouts, 1.51 ERA; 2012 WWBA World All-Tournament Team.

Alex Pinero, 6-1, 195, infielder, Coral Gables High. Class 5A-8A Herald First Team All-Dade, .432 batting average.

Robby Kalaf, 6-0, 200, righthanded pitcher, State College of Florida.

Savage Sun Belt Defensive POW; FIU vs. BC on ESPN3 (hee-hee!); Diamond Dinner speaker

Senior goalkeeper Kaitlyn Savage won Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week after getting her fourth shutout of the season at South Alabama, then making three saves in FIU's 2-1 overtime win at Troy.

MEN'S BASKETBALL

FIU men's basketball's Sunday, Nov. 11 season opener at Boston College will be get the ESPN3 treatment, at 2 p.m.

And that's all I'm going to say about that for a while.

DIAMOND DINNER

The big fundraiser for baseball and softball snagged Milwaukee Brewers manager Ron Roenicke to be guest speaker at the Feb. 9 event.

If you want to get a table, get a ticket, get something to do with the Diamond Dinner, call the Panther Club's Antoni Fernandez, 305-348-4697. 

"Oh, y'all doin' well..."

With a nod to my brother Ron Neal Jr., applying that line to...

Jovon Durante: The Krop sophomore wide receiver/defensive back, who already verbally committed to FIU for 2015, rolled up 201 receiving yards on Flanagan High Thursday night. Check out the video highlights:

http://sfhighschoolsports.com/videos/all/krop-vs-flanagan

Jabari Henry: The former FIU outfielder has been hurting the ball in August with Pulaski of the Rookie Appalachian League, hitting .412 with 10 of his 14 hits being for extra bases.

Nick England: The unusual football maturity and polish of the freshman wide receiver could get him some unusual playing time.  

Check out the previous post for words on men's soccer opening its season tonight at home and volleyball starting its season against No. 18 Florida in Gainesville.

And to whoever chose the dance club jazz playlist for the GC today: keep it up.

 

 

Friday in the wet...

As the rain fell on Camp Mitch, the women's soccer team handled it like Michael Schumacher, drenching Stetson 4-0 while dominating possession for at least 75 of the 90 minutes.

Meanwhile, the crew keeping statistics and running the game clock from a deck that stood where a condemned press box once stood tried to keep the electronics dry.

It got worse later when the canopy sprung a leak.

FOOTBALL

Meanwhile, over at FIU Stadium, Friday's scrimmage started on time. FIU coach Mario Cristobal, after watching film until half past midnight, passed along these tidbits:

Nobody got hurt. The defense definitely had the better of it over the 120 plays, as expected. "It wasn't until late that the offense got going," Cristobal said. He was once again especially laudatory toward defensive end Giovani Francois ("playing at an uncommonly high level" and has been "explosive) and also complimented Tourek Williams, Greg Hickman, Winston Fraser and Jordan Hunt. Defensive tackle Isame Faciane, apparently, has satisfied the coaches lately. 

Also getting head coach props were linebacker Kenneth Dillard and Mitch Wozniak, who switched from wide receiver to defense this week and had an interception.

On offense, wide receiver Willis Wright "had his best day" and caught a long touchdown in the overtime drill from Jake Medlock as Medlock escaped the pocket. The offense did convert in some short yardage situations and was good on second down. Both sides of the ball showed good awareness in third down situations of the yardage necessary. In the two-minute drill, the offense hustled well and did the little things that give you extra seconds that can add up to another play or two.

Next scrimmage Tuesday. Saturday, the team took a recess field trip -- South Beach for sand, bowling and barbeque.

BASKETBALL

Sorry I didn't include this yesterday, but FIU officially announced the transfers of Louisville's Rakeem Buckles, FAU's Dennis Mavin and the Owls' Raymond Taylor. Mavin and Buckles had been noted here previously. All will have to sit out this season before being eligible in 2013-14. Both Taylor and Buckles came out of Monsignor Edward Pace High, where FIU assistant coach Mark Lieberman coached for 13 years.

Committment...Or, "new players;" Hobbs preseason All-Conference USA soccer

The football team's got the day off. FIU got a verbal commitment for 2013 from Miami Columbus High linebacker Jordan Guest, who attended Monday's practice. Guest, unrated by Rivals, Scout or ESPN, is 6-3 or 6-4 and looks like he'll be 200 to 210 easily.

Check out today's story on Sam Miller and Richard Leonard at http://www.miamiherald.com/sports

BASEBALL

State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota pitcher Robby Kalaf has joined former Valrico Bloomingdale High teammate and pitcher Cody Crouse as a verbal commitment to FIU. Crouse, a a 6-6 right handed senior at Valrico this season, committed in July for 2013.

 Kalaf, a righty, went 2-4 with a 3.92 ERA and 22 strikeouts in 11 innings for State last season.

VCLLEYBALL AND MEN'S SOCCER

Wednesday was the first day of official practice for two fall programs with new head coaches, former volleyball assistant Trevor Theroulde and Kenny Arena assuming the positions.

Conference USA coaches voted senior defender Anthony Hobbs to the preseason all-conference team.