Canespace

Undefeated

When was the last time you could say that a Hurricane team was undefeated?

Well, UM baseball coach JIm Morris can.  And Morris, who has won two National Championships at UM, is coaching up a storm with his new players and coaches in Coral Gables this season.

Here is coach Morris before the UM game against FAU:

After dispensing of the FAU Owls tonight in summary fashion tonight by the score of 10-5, Morris and his Miami Hurricanes are now headed towards the always tough Atlantic Coast Conference competition and an even more intruiging  match-up with the hated and #1 ranked Florida Gators this weekend at Alex Rodriguez Park at Mark Light Field.

Powered by an eight-run performance over the game’s first two innings, the eighth-ranked Miami Hurricanes moved to a perfect 8-0 on the season with a 10-5 win over visiting Florida Atlantic University.

Shortstop Michael Broad, who was riding a five-game hit streak into Wednesday’s match-up with the Owls, connected on his third career grand slam to put the Canes up 4-0 in the first inning.

Miami tacked on another four runs in the next frame, keyed by left-fielder Rony Rodriguez’s team-leading sixth double of the season. Rodriguez, who knocked in two runs on his double to centerfield, would cross home plate on Michael Broad’s fifth RBI of the night later in the inning.

Junior pitcher Steve Ewing (2-0) earned the victory for the second consecutive start with an impressive showing against a talented FAU offense. The Owls, who scored 23 runs over a three-game sweep of Alabama, struck out eight times and were held to only two runs in the lefty’s seven innings of work.

The Owls threatened late in the game, as Michael Sylvestri connected on a three-run homerun off freshman reliever Andrew Suarez to shrink the Canes’ lead to three runs. The Miami bullpen then managed to hold off the late surge, and the Canes won by a final score of 10-5. 

Jim Morris has proven that he can win ACC titles (2008) and National Championships (1999 and 2001) at UM and as a result has earned UM fans' respect.  Here is coach Morris after the FAU game talking about the team and his players:

And now, obviously energized with new assistant coach Gino DiMare on his staff, Morris knows that the sky is the limit for this 2012 Miami Hurricane baseball team.

DiMare Is A Difference Maker

When it was announced last July that former Miami Hurricane baseball player and coach Gino DiMare was rejoining the UM coaching staff for the 2012 season after a three year hiatus every savvy and knowledgeable 'Canes fans openly rejoiced at the news.

UM fans that follow college baseball knew that the exit of former assistant coaches Joe Mercadante and Roger Tomas and the entrance of DiMare and volunteer assistant coach Lou Palmisano was a clear sign that skipper Jim Morris was not satisfied with last season's results and was not going to settle for the status quo.

DiMare has a long history of success at the University of Miami. He was a standout outfielder for the Canes from 1989-92 and currently ranks among UM's leaders in career games played (243), career stolen bases (93) and total sacrifices (36). In 1991, DiMare led the Hurricanes with a .353 batting average.

Following his career in Coral Gables, he was signed as a free agent by the Boston Red Sox. He played the 1992-93 seasons in the Red Sox minor league system in Winter Haven and Ft. Lauderdale. DiMare returned to UM in 1997 and was a volunteer coach for three seasons, in charge of outfielders and base running.

DiMare became a full-time coach on the UM staff in 2000 and prior to his exit after the 2008 season, he served as the Canes recruiting coordinator and hitting coach over nine seasons. He held the title of assistant head coach during the 2008 season - a year the Canes won the Atlantic Coast Conference championship before advancing to the College World Series.

During his time at UM DiMare helped recruit and coach players such as Yonder Alonso, Ryan Braun, Jon Jay, Gaby Sanchez, Danny Valencia and Jemile Weeks - all of whom have reached the big leagues in recent years. In fact, his accomplishments on the recruiting scene during his nine years in the capacity of recruiting coordinator are as impressive as the Hurricanes' annual postseason results.

While recognized for his recruiting accomplishments DiMare is also highly respected for his coaching abilities. And nowhere was that more evident than during the recent game against Florida Gulf Coast University at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers.

This is the second year in a row I have had the opportunity to attend the game at this spectacular facility, which serves as the Spring training home of the Minnesota Twins, and sit in the first row right behind the UM dugout.

Last year, I saw little if any coaching going on by either of the two assistant coaches. But this year, with Dimare on board it was literally a different ball game. I was totally surprised at the difference between the coaching staffs and absolutely impressed with the actual difference from year to year.

It started during batting practice. UM outfielder Dale Carey was in the cage taking BP and practicing his bunting technique. DiMare, positioned right behind home plate was observing every single repetition and coaching Carey up after every bunt.

Coach DiMare, who serves as Miami's hitting coach, would have Carey alternate between dragging the bunt down the first base and third base line and then work on "deadening" the ball right in front of home plate and rolling it gently towards the pitchers mound.

On one attempt when Carey missed the ball completely, DiMare interjected: "Don't chase after the ball if it is low and outside. That's either going for a strike or a pop-up out. If you develop bad habits during practice they will eventually show up during a game."

Then during the game DiMare was a non-stop bundle of energy and influence as he could literally be seen and heard everywhere on the field at Hammond Stadium.

When the Hurricanes were on defense he was involved in positioning the UM players which he would do on almost every single new batter that came to the plate. He was on the top step of the dugout at the rail and holding a three ring binder with each FGCU players hitting tendencies and abilities and how Miami was going to pitch them.

On several occasions FGCU batters hit the ball solidly and right at a UM infielder or outfielder who had just been repositioned by DiMare. Coincidence? I think not! More often than not Coach DiMare guessed right and had his defenders in position to make the play against both right and left handed batters for FGCU.

DiMare could be heard calling out to the UM outfielders and could be seen gesturing with his hands and fingers (two fingers means to steps to the right or left or back or forth) and at times even waving his arms around to get the UM players positioned at the right depth and alignment.

This experience was in stark contrast to a game just last year that Canespace blogger Six and I attended in Tampa at the Yankees Spring training stadium against USF. With a left handed USF batter up at the dish Six, who knows baseball and noticed the UM right-fielder positioned over towards Center said: "Why are they not playing this guy to pull down the right field line?"

Sure enough on the next pitch the USF batter belted a looping fly ball into right field for a double that should have been an out IF the Canes were positioned correctly. They were not and Miami would go on to lose that game to the Bulls.

Also in the game against FGCU after each inning when UM catcher Peter O'Brien would return to the UM dugout DiMare was there waiting for him to discuss the inning in general and any specific hits that the Eagles had managed during that inning.  They discussed pitch selection, pitch location and the UM defensive alignment to determine the defense in future innings.

During the game in Fort Myers it became clear to me that Hurricane fans can expect a lot better defense by the Hurricanes and more consistent hitting for average and power now that DiMare is back on the UM bench this season along with head coach Jim Morris and pitching coach J.D Arteaga.

It is still early in the season and nobody can predict for sure just how far the 2012 team will go in the ACC or college baseball tournament but one thing that Miami fans can be sure of: Gino DiMare will help ensure that the current UM players will get the coaching they need to bring out the best in them and put them in a position to succeed.

And for long-time, hard-core UM baseball fans that alone is reason to rejoice.

Tapping Into The Pipeline

This feature article was written by blogger Hassan for Canespace...

The term “pipeline school” has a lot of importance when it comes to college football recruiting and the success of any college football program.

When you coach in a recruiting hotbed such as South Florida there are several of these pipeline schools. University of Miami head coach Al Golden has said recently in interviews that the reason why he came to Miami and considers it a “destination job” is because being at UM is just as it is in the real estate market: location, location, location.

Golden knows that winning at Miami has little to do with South Beach and everything to do with the talent that dwells within these pipeline schools.

High school sports are evolving in many different ways. We have multiple teams playing nationally televised games on ESPN. Kids are transferring from one high school to another looking for an opportunity to shine and get a look from big time colleges who flock to these schools. Many of these schools have contracts with Nike and other sponsors and the coaches at these schools often times have college and/or NFL experience on their resumes.

The fact that high schools in South Florida produce a significant amount of major college football talent is indisputable. For example, in 2012 the three counties that comprise Southeast Florida produced an amazing 136 D-1 football players.

Broward County led the way with 56, Dade followed closely behind with 54 and Palm Beach County had 26 players sign National Letters Of Intent with major college football programs across the Country.

Now let’s expand our horizon and take a look at ten of the main schools in Central and South Florida that have put out quality talent year after year and produced an incredible 58 D-1 football players during the 2012 recruiting cycle:

• Armwood: 10
• Plant: 8
• Miramar and Miami Norland: 7
• Miami Central, Palm Beach Dwyer and University School: 6
• St. Thomas Aquinas and Miami Northwestern: 5
• Lakeland: 3

These high schools arguably could be called “pipeline” schools; some have worked well with “The U” and some not so much. Coach Golden is working hard to shore up some strained relationships at a few of these schools that should pay dividends for years to come.

The average college football team takes 18-22 scholarship players each year. When you consider that 58 Major Division 1 prospects came from these ten schools alone then you know as a coach that you have to really do your homework at these schools once you have done the math.

By simply getting the top 25% of the talent from these ten “Pipeline” schools that is 14 players a ear. This is what it meant by “putting a fence around the State of Miami”. If Golden can keep the top players home from I-4 south then he will have it made at Miami.

In fact, these schools have accounted for the majority of high school championships this past decade. The players from these schools tend to be better coached and play top competition in practice and in games.

If your college football team is made up of 70% of the top players of the top high schools in the top football region in the Country then your CFB team will logically be at the top as well.

In 2011 Miami Central had an astounding 17 players sign major college football scholarships. For comparison’s sake this one high school put out more talent than the entire six-state, Northeast region of the United States.

The bottom line is that building and maintaining a good relationship with these big time high school “pipeline” programs can literally make or break any big time college football program. That is why watching Hurricane head coach Al Golden break into the Tampa area and also do well in Palm Beach County during the last recruiting cycle was so important.

Watching the increased attendance and talent at UM’s Junior Days, opening the Spring practices to high school coaches from across Florida and hosting the incredibly popular Al Golden football camps are all really huge steps in broadening the recruiting base and attracting big time talent to Coral Gables.

Clearly, Golden’s strategy is in stark contrast to the previous coaching regime’s method of simply relying on only a few local high schools like Miami Northwestern to supply most of Miami’s players.

Every college coach knows that recruiting is the life-blood of any college football program. Rest assured that UM head coach Al Golden also knows that keeping the pipeline open at the high schools in Central and South Florida where the talent consistently is produced is the key to restoring the Miami Hurricane football program back to national prominence.

War Of The Birds: Ibis Trumps Eagle

The 12th ranked University of Miami Hurricanes made their first road trip of the season on Wednesday as they traveled to Fort Myers to face the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles.  The game was played at beautiful Hammond Stadium which also serves as the Spring Training complex of the MLB's Minnesota Twins.

Junior pitcher Steve Ewing guided the Canes to their fourth win of 2012 by pitching seven full innings and allowing only one hit while striking out seven. Ewing was a model of efficiency on Wednesday night, needing only 86 pitches (great number) to get through his overpowering outing.

Catcher Peter "Bam Bam" O'Brien led the way on offense, finishing the game 4-for-5 with a run scored. The Miami Gardens native has been heating up in his past two games, connecting for hits in eight of his last nine at-bats. The senior captain is now hitting .579 on the season as he tears up the competition.

The Canes opened the game's scoring in the fourth inning, beginning with a scorching opposite field O'Brien double over the head of the Eagles' right-fielder. Fellow senior Rony Rodriguez advanced O'Brien to third on a ground-out, while first baseman Brad Feiger helped plate the run with a groundout of his own.

Fieger, who happens to be Canespace blogger Six's favorite player due to his running style, finished the day 1-for-3 with two runs batted in. It was the fourth career multi-RBI game for the sophomore, who was playing in front of family and friends from nearby Naples, FL.

With the Canes holding on to a 3-0 lead, head coach Jim Morris turned to closer E.J. Encinosa for the ninth inning.  Encinosa, however, was pulled for health reasons (leg strain or cramp) after allowing a hit and a walk.

A.J. Salcines would enter the stressful situation in relief of Encinosa, earning his first save of the season.  But that was not before he loaded the bases but eventually induced a game-ending double play.

That's Hot!

As we near the end of February and Winter fades in sunny South Florida the warmth of Spring (football!) will quickly give way to the heat of Summer (more football!).

So we thought we would take this opportunity to look at things that are "hot".

Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover model Kate Upton is definitely hot.

New York Knicks basketball player Jeremy Lin is so hot that he now apparently owns ESPN or at least it seems that way.

Kim Kardashian, who is probably going to try to get a date Jeremy Lin because, well because he is hot, is also hot.

Even the movie The Rum Diaries starring Johnny Depp while drinking rum in Puerto Rico is hot.

But to find the hottest team in town you have to look no further than over in Coral Gables where you will find your Miami Hurricane women's basketball team.

And no we do not mean "hot" in a sexist way, but HOT as in winning a lot and performing at a very high level. In fact, they are so hot that this week the Hurricane lady hoopsters found themselves ranked in the top 5 in the AP Top 25 poll for the first time in their 36 year history.

That's hot!

Miami's first-ever win at NC State and third consecutive victory over rival Florida State, coupled with the Blue Devils' 63-61 loss at Maryland resulted in the poll movement. Duke slides down to No. 7 while Maryland - a team that Canes swept in a season series - is the new No. 6 team in the country.

Miami head coach Katie Meier downplayed the expected jump in the polls after yesterday's 67-60 win over the Seminoles, "It really doesn't matter. It's great for building the program and generating interest. But does that make us hit more free throws? It does nothing for us. We love having a very narrow focus, and we have a mission and our next game is Duke."

Even former dual-sport UM basketball and football player Jimmy Graham, who just so happens to be the hottest player in the entire National Football League, recently got into cheering on the UM women's basketball team at the BankUnited Center.

That's hot!

The Canes head to Durham on Friday in a game that will most likely decide the regular season champion and the ACC Tournament's No. 1 seed. Tip-off for the highly anticipated match up will be at 7 p.m. ESPN3 will provide live streaming coverage and as always UM's own WVUM will have the radio call on 90.5 FM and wvum.org.

We have been told by reliable "inside source"s that tickets to that game are really hard to get.

That's hot!

And in closing we would just like to say that Katie Meier, the UM women's basketball coach (and we mean this is the most respectful of ways) is really hot.  Sorry but we couldn't resist!

Swept Away

Your Miami Hurricanes opened the 2012 season with a broom in hand as they swept the three-game series from Rutgers this weekend at Alex Rodriguez Park at Mark Light Field.

Which led us to do some serious thinking about brooms.

So like any good journalist we did some research and here is what we found:

Bundles of sticks formed the earliest and most primitive types of brooms. Tree brush and branches were used in the United States for sweeping the ashes around cooking fires until Massachusetts farmer Levi Dickinson created the first corn broom in 1797. Dickinson's corn brooms were manufactured in 1810 using a foot-treadle broom making machine. After production of the corn broom, the whisk broom and the push brrom became other popular types of manufactured brooms and all three brooms are still used regularly, both commercially and residentially, today.

On Friday Eric "Easy E" Erickson was absolutely dominant in his return to the UM lineup as the Canes beat the Scarlet Knights (what kind of name is that?) by the score of 6-2 in the season opener.

We also found out that there are several kinds of brooms:

• Angled broom—designed to fit in most corners and nooks, the angled broom, with its synthetic bristles, is frequently chosen for the bulk of indoor work not covered by a vacuum cleaner.

• Corn broom—a simple corn broom cut straight across the bottom can handle rough surfaces, but is used by many all over the house.

• Whisk broom—made by wrapping the end of the bristles or adding a small handle, a whisk broom is usually a small, somewhat triangular corn broom with two rows of stitching across it, made to whisk dirt off of upholstery, carpets, and floors. Very small models made for transporting (in a car for example), may have a case that doubles as a dustpan.

• Push broom—if you have large areas to sweep indoors, you may want an indoor push broom, geared for the particular surface in that area.

On Saturday our very favorite pitcher for the Hurricanes (simply because we met his mother in Tallahassee and Gainesville last year) Eric "Bob Marley And The" Whaley took it to the Knights.

The Game would to extra innings before Rony "Not Seikaly" Rodriguez would blast a walk-off home run with two men on base to end the game in the 12th inning by the score of 4-1.

And we then realized that the fun was just beginning.  No seriously.

We learned that Seikaly was born in Beirut, Lebanon and at the age of 9, he moved from Beirut to Greece, where he spent the rest of his youth. Prior to playing basketball, he was a soccer player and accomplished track athlete. He was unable to attain Greek citizenship due to bureaucratic problems, but he later became a naturalized American citizen after attending college in the U.S. and playing in the NBA.

And like all of the players of his era, he also apparently wore uncomfortably short shorts while doing so.

And oh yeah, by the way, brooms by the way have a long history and even an evolutionary agenda:

A broom is a cleaning tool consisting of stiff fibers attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. It is thus a variety of brush with a long handle. It is commonly used in combination with a dustpan. An old form of broom was the besom, which was made simply of twigs tied to a handle, and was relatively inefficient as a cleaning implement. Flat brooms, made of broom corn were invented by Shakers in the 19th century. Today, they are also commonly made with synthetic bristles. Another common type is the push broom, consisting of a wide brush with short bristles, to which a broomstick is attached at an angle.

On Sunday it was another slug fest as Miami 's starting pitcher, some guy who is commonly known as "B-Rad" around campus struggled but eventually kept the game close enough for the Canes to win 9-7 and send the Scarlet Knights home win-less and without their shields or swords (which we have no idea how they made it through the NSA security anyway).

But it was newcomer, BCC transfer and starting catcher Peter O'Brien that was the star of the day as he belted not one but two home runs and was just a triple shy of hitting for the cycle.

So what we now know is this:

• There are several types of brooms.
• Rony Seikaly was born in Beirut, lived in Greece and played for the Heat.
• Miami swept Rutgers this weekend.
• Peter O'Brien is good, really good.
• The Hurricanes are now 3-0 on the season.

Hurricanes Completely Destroy The Forest

Remember all of those years when Wake Forest had some really good basketball teams and seemed to compete for ACC titles almost regularly?

Well unfortunately for the Demon Deacons, this is not one of those years.

Instead it is the consistently improving Miami Hurricane team that is having quite an impressive year under the expert guidance of first year head coach Jim Larranaga.

Miami's record now stands at solid 16-9 with four games remaining on the season which includes an impressive 7-5 Atlantic Coast Conference tally to match.

Today it was F Kenny Kadji and Durand Scott who stepped up as each dropped in 18 points to lead the Hurricanes to a convincing 74-56 victory over the Demon Deacons Saturday afternoon at the BankUnited Center in Coral Gables.

Miami put the game away when they scored 13 unanswered points during a 4:29 span early in the second half. Shane "Not Barry" Larkin nailed a 3-pointer with 11:44 left that ended the run and gave Miami a 56-42 advantage they would not relinquish.

Miami outscored Wake Forest 10-4 in the next 3:31 behind consecutive 3-pointers from Kadji and Garrius Adams for a 64-48 lead. Adams was seeing his first action since coming back from knee surgery on January 19th. 

Reggie Johnson hit an easy layup with 5:42 remaining to give the Hurricanes an insurmountable 20-point lead at 70-50 and The Fat Lady could be heard humming loudly as she warmed up right behind the Wake Forest bench.

Next up for the Hurricanes are games at struggling Maryland this Tuesday and then a huge game at home against their rival and rising Florida State on Sunday, February 26.

Batter Up!

Tonight your Miami Hurricanes begin the 2012 college baseball season with high hopes and high rankings in the national polls.  The new season offers yet another opportunity for another ACC Title (2008) and another trip to Omaha for the College World Series for the four-time National Champions (1982, 1985, 1999, 2001).

Apparently, several people who should know college baseball agree as the University of Miami landed in the top 20 in several pre-season polls. The Hurricanes were ranked at #13 in the USA Today/ESPN coaches poll, at the No. 14 spot on the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper poll and at #18 in the Baseball America poll.

The Hurricanes return 18 players from a season ago in which the Hurricanes finished 38-23 overall (19-10 ACC). Miami advanced to their NCAA-record 39th consecutive NCAA Regional as they traveled to the Gainesville Regional before bowing out to the dreaded Florida Gators.

Among the returning players for the Hurricanes is the entire starting pitching staff that includes Bryan "B-Rad" Radziewski, Eric "Bob Marley and The" Whaley and Steven "Dallas" Ewing. Former starting pitcher E.J. Echinosa will move to the bullpen as the closer.

Head coach Jim Morris will begin his 19th year as head coach at UM as the Hurricanes open the season at Mark Light Field at Alex Rodriguez Park (ARP) against Rutgers for a three-game series beginning tonight.

Gino DiMare rejoins the University of Miami baseball team after three years away from the program. He will serve as an assistant coach in charge of hitting, as well as assisting with recruiting. Overall, this will be the 13th year for DiMare as a member of the Hurricanes baseball staff.

Prior to his exit in 2008, DiMare served as the Canes recruiting coordinator and hitting coach over his final nine seasons. He held the title of assistant head coach during the 2008 season - a year the Canes won the Atlantic Coast Conference championship before advancing to the College World Series.

DiMare will serve as the assistant coach in charge of hitters and share responsibilities with pitching coach J.D. Arteaga in recruiting efforts.

Previously, DiMare helped recruit and coach players such as Yonder Alonso, Ryan Braun, Jon Jay, Gaby Sanchez (seen below at C), Danny Valencia and Jemile Weeks - all of whom have reached the big leagues in recent years.

The Canes will host 16 of their first 18 games inside ARP to open the year, including a series with the preseason top-ranked Florida Gators beginning Friday, March 2.

Miami will play a total of 54 games in 2012, including 41 of those contests in the Sunshine State.

This year's squad will be bolstered by the arrival of catcher Peter O'Brien. O'Brien is a 6-5 and 225 pound senior who transferred from Bethune Cookman to Miami and needed the approval of the NCAA to be able to finish out his career with the 'Canes without having to sit out the customary season.

O'Brien is a big-time Major League prospect. His numbers last season at Bethune: .304 batting average with 14 home runs and 69 RBI. He was named Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Player of the Year in 2010, and was a freshman All-American from Louisville Slugger in 2009.

Canespace will be at ARP for several games this season in addition to games at Florida Gulf Coast (Fort Myers) on 2/22, in Miami on 3/6 at Miami Marlins Ball Park (exhibition game), on 3/14 at UCF (Orlando) and on 4/22 at FSU in Tallahassee.

We hope U are able to join us for some Hurricane hardball this season.

GO CANES!

It Is All The Rage These Days

In case you were recently distracted by the college football recruiting process and the annual ritual known as "National Signing Day" or if you simply haven't been paying attention lately then you may have missed out on the fact that the University of Miami men's and women's basketball teams are having excellent seasons so far this year.

That's right I am talking about University of Miami B A S K E T B A L L.

So please put away your extreme obsession with the ball that has the pointed ends just for a while and try to start getting into some serious round-ball as NCAA tournament time draws near.

Q: Spell the last names of the UM men's and women's basketball coaches?

A: If you answered (Jim) Larranaga and (Katie) Meier then you would be correct! 

Both coaches have done an outstanding job getting their teams prepared for the always tough ACC schedule.  Meier has been getting it done in Coral Gables for the last several years while Larranaga has done so in his first year and in spite of several major injuries.

The University of Miami's men's team recently ran off five consecutive ACC wins before dropping a tough game to the 15th ranked Seminoles in Tallahassee last Saturday. Although Miami struggled against FSU in the second half they managed to cut the lead to just three points late in the game but could not get over the hump and wound up losing to the Seminoles by five.

Still the Hurricanes are poised in the top half of the ACC and set for another conference battle royale against the always formidable North Carolina Tar Heels tonight withing the friendly confines of the BankUnited Center in Coral Gables. Here are some details you may be interested in:

The Game
Miami faces No. 8/7 North Carolina for the second time this season when the Tar Heels come to the BankUnited Center on Feb. 15 for an 8 p.m. tipoff in Coral Gables, Fla. The Canes look to avenge the 73-56 loss to then-No. 3 UNC from Jan. 10.

The Series
Miami is 2-17 against North Carolina, last beating the Tar Heels 81-70 on Jan. 14, 2006 in Chapel Hill. The first victory was a 64-61 overtime win on Jan. 4, 2003 in Coral Gables.

The Broadcasts
Catch the game on ESPN and ESPN3 with Mark Jones and Len Elmore making the call. The game will also be carried live by 560 WQAM Radio with Joe Zagacki (play-by-play) and Josh Darrow (analyst), 90.5 WVUM, 106.3 CIMA FM and Sirius 92.

Meanwhile, the UM women's team has been busy all season proving the old adage: "Whatever a man can do, a woman can do better." The Hurricane lady hoopsters are currently ranked #6 in the Country and are expecting to be given the second seed in the NCAA tourney.

The lady Canes (22-3, 11-1 ACC) have ripped of 11 straight wins against quality competition including a huge 76-74 win over the eighth-ranked Maryland Terrapins last week on the road in College Park.

Tomorrow night the Hurricanes face off against North Carolina State in Raleigh before returning home to face the Seminoles on Sunday 2/19.

Their last two games of the season are @ Duke on 2/24 and at home versus Boston College on 2/26.

Hurricanes Launch 2012 Baseball Season

The University of Miami baseball team hosted its 2012 Fan Fest and Alumni Game on Saturday night at Mark Light Field at Alex Rodriguez Park.

World Series champion outfielder Jon Jay, Minnesota Twins third baseman Danny Valencia, Oakland Athletics infielder Jemile Weeks and Cleveland Indians closer Chris Perez were among the star-studded ProCanes alumni group in attendance.

After season ticket holders took turns taking batting practice, the warm-up began for the most anticipated event of the day: The Home Run Derby.

Current seniors Peter O’Brien and Rony Rodriguez took on Valencia and Weeks, with O'Brien and Valencia advancing to the finals after a tight first-round battle. Valencia, who hit 15 homeruns for the Minnesota Twins in 2011, earned the title with five homeruns. O'Brien, one of the most powerful
bats in the Canes lineup, fell just short with four of his own.

"It's awesome," Valencia said during the derby. "What I remember from playing here are some of the best times of my life. It's a joy to be able to take part in this."

In all over 60 former UM baseball players and Alumni were introduced to the crowd of hard core baseball maniacs all dressed up in orange and green.

The day's main attraction, the battle between the Canes and Miami alumni, ended in a lopsided 10-1 affair in favor of the current squad.

Though the 2012 UM team entered the game as heavy favorites over the Alumni team, Arteaga showed fans the alumni haven't lost their touch quite yet. The Canes' pitching coach dazzled the fans with an impressive repertoire early on as the alumni starter.

Returning starters Eric Erickson and Eric Whaley took the mound for three innings each and both pitched well for the 2012 team holding the Alumni to just one run.

The Canes would strike first, however, scoring runs in three straight innings beginning with two runs in the bottom of the second. The current Miami team added three more runs over the third and fourth to increase their lead to 5-0 on their way to the final 10-1 victory over the Alumni.

The Hurricanes officially open the 2012 season this Friday at ARP at 7 PM against Rutgers.