Lehigh men’s soccer tops Colgate in overtime

The men’s soccer team defeated the Colgate University Raiders 2-1 on Saturday night in overtime, after playing 90 minutes in the pouring rain at Ulrich Sports Center. After defeating the two-time league champions, Lehigh improved its record to 4-2-1 for the season.

The winning goal was an accident on account of Colgate’s defense. In an effort to pass back to the goalie, a Colgate defender chipped the ball over his reach and into the Raiders’ own net.

Senior midfielder Adam Gazda said the team was happy to come away with a win.

“I was surprised when it happened, but definitely excited that we won,” Gazda said. “We would have rather scored ourselves, but we had put so much pressure on them for so much of the game that we deserved the win.”

Despite adverse weather conditions, both teams maintained a high level of play. Head Coach Dean Koski said the rain was not much of an issue in the game.

“I don’t think the rain had much of an effect on the game because the field held up really well and both teams had to deal with the elements,” Koski said. “We did a good job of keeping pressure on Colgate in the second half and neutralizing some of their better attacking players.”

Freshman forward Austin Decker scored the first goal of the game for Lehigh in the 14th minute. Colgate responded with a quick goal only one minute later, which took the wind out of the Mountain Hawks’ sails. Lehigh struggled toward the end of the second half but managed to keep the score tied. Colgate had six shots on net while Lehigh had three.

Koski said the Hawks came out of halftime re-energized and ready to win.

“We regrouped at halftime and reminded the team that they were doing fine and to just keep playing and attacking, which they did quite well in the second half,” Koski said.

Lehigh spent the majority of the second half on Colgate’s end of the field, with the Hawks producing many offensive opportunities. They had 10 shots on goal while the Raiders only had three.

Senior midfielder Jesse Schram said he was pleased with the team’s second half performance.

“In the second half, we raised our level and just came out with a better attitude and better focus,” Schram said. After a half of consistent pressure, Lehigh secured the win only one minute into overtime.

The Hawks used their confidence and energy from the second half and carried it through to the period.

Lehigh anticipated a tough game from Colgate, who has won the Patriot League Championship two years in a row. Gazda said he expected Colgate to be very effective offensively as a team.

Despite a few unexpected injuries for the Raiders, they still managed to put the Hawks to the test. Lehigh outplayed Colgate in the end, and sent them home with a 4-4 record.

Koski said there was no most valuable player in the game and that every player contributed to the effort.

“I think we competed well as a team and that most every guy who stepped on the field did a good job of fulfilling their role, which helped immensely,” Koski said.

Lehigh’s next game is at Lafayette College, where the Hawks will take on the rival Leopards Saturday at 7 p.m.

BRYANT’S JERELL SMITH NAMED NEC CO-PLAYER OF THE YEAR IN FOOTBALL

SMITHFIELD, R.I. — Two days after rushing for a season-high 178 yards on 31 carries against Wagner, Bryant University senior running back Jerell Smith was named the Northeast Conference Co-Offensive Player of the Week on Monday, sharing the award with Albany’s David McCarty. The award marks the first football honor since becoming eligible for weekly awards this season.

Smith, a native of Brooklyn, N.Y., had a huge day for the Bulldogs in the 6-2 win on Homecoming & Reunion Weekend. Despite a steady rain throughout the game, Smith had 99 yards in the first half alone and helped put the game away with the decisive touchdown in the fourth quarter.

After Wagner went up 2-0 thanks to a high snap on a punt that was scored a safety, Smith broke through for a 17-yard touchdown run to put the Bulldogs ahead for good with 10:29 remaining.

Smith enters this Saturday’s game at Fordham (6 p.m. / WOON 1240 AM) third all-time in school history with 2,220 career rushing yards in three seasons at Bryant. A transfer from Howard University as a sophomore, Smith currently stands sixth all-time with 12 career rushing touchdowns and has gone over the 100 yard mark nine times in his career.

Last year, Smith rushed for a career-high 221 yards against Southern Connecticut.

He is currently second in the NEC this season in rushing with 114.5 yards per game.

How Turfer Can Help

How can Turfer help a school/team brand itself and at the same time help generate revenue from their brand?

First, CUSTOMIZE! Each school has a branded investment in maintaining its school colors—yet very few apparel companies provide just that. With the potential of over 1000 different color combinations offered by Turfer, you will be sure to stand out among other schools and create added value for your program.

Second, Turfer Athletic is a Direct “Lean” Manufacturer—with cost savings of more than 50 percent from what many collegiate programs are currently paying, combined with the fact that Turfer never drops a style for easy fill-ins. Turfer has proven to be able to reduce the overall budget of many collegiate athletic programs by tens of thousands of dollars. In one case, Turfer was able to save one Ivy League school over $12,000 on just one order.

Third, Turfer provides a Return on Your Investment for your Brand and can actually generate real dollars in revenue directly back to your program through a multitude of fundraising programs, including WearYourColors.com—a web-retail store that is a solely owned subsidiary of Turfer Athletic.

Fourth, Turfer provides Empowerment back to your athletic program by ensuring that it carries all of your correct logos and licenses necessary to help control the image of the school.

Bombers split games at Turfer Classic

The men’s soccer team split two games over the weekend while competing in the Roger Williams University Turfer Classic in Bristol, R.I.

In the first game of the tournament, the Bombers outshot the Plymouth State University 16–8 but were unable to capitalize on their opportunities losing 1–0. The South Hill squad could not find the back of the net for the second straight game of the season.

The Panthers lone goal came in the 28th minute on a free kick. Junior midfielder Jeff Geyer and senior back Michael Jordhamo single-handedly outshot Plymouth State, taking five and four shots respectively. Junior goalkeeper Justin Parlapiano made two saves, but conceded his first goal of the season.

The Bombers rebounded in their consolation match shutting out Fitchburg State College 2–0. Ithaca outshot Fitchburg State a lopsided 26–8 and maintained possession for the majority of the game.

Senior forward Fernando Casanova scored the Bombers first goal of the match off of a cross through the box by freshman back Ryan Norland. The Blue and Gold put the game away in the 82nd minute when Geyer drilled a direct kick into the back of the net.

Parlapiano made two saves and recorded his second shutout of the season. The Bombers are now 1–1–1 on the season.

The Bombers make their home debut when they take on Hamilton College at 3 p.m. Saturday at Carp Wood Field.

College roundup: PSU men captures Turfer Classic

Tuesday, September 8, 2009
BRISTOL, R.I. — Senior Semir Mehmedovic, a former standout at Franklin High School, scored the game- and tournament-winning goal three minutes into overtime Sunday afternoon as Plymouth State University’s men’s soccer team defeated Roger Williams University, 1-0, to capture the fifth annual Roger Williams Turfer Classic.

Mehmedovic beat two defenders to a ball off a long pass from freshman Matt Anderson, and chipped the ball over the keeper and into the goal at the 93:28 mark for the tournament-winner. Mehmedovic, who also scored the only goal of the game in Saturday’s 1-0 opening round victory over Ithaca College, was named the Offensive MVP and was also a member of the All-Tournament team.

Two other Panthers joined Mehmedovic on the AllTournament Team — freshman defender freshman Joakim Martinsson and freshman midfielder Parker Spear.

Unlike Saturday’s first Plymouth State game, the statistical totals in Sunday’s game were fairly even. PSU had a 17-15 advantage in shots and Roger Williams had more corker kicks by a 6-4 count. The Panthers were out-shot Saturday by Ithaca 16-8, and trailed in corner kicks, 7-2.

PSU freshman goalkeeper Bjorn Ohlsson posted his second straight shutout victory, stopping seven shots by the Hawks.

Plymouth State, 2-0-0, is back on the pitch Wednesday with a 6 p.m. non-conference match-up at Salem State College. Roger Williams, 2-1-0, will take on Johnson & Wales University Wednesday at 4 p.m.

Highsmith likely to be backup

CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Miami backup quarterbacks Taylor Cook and Cannon Smith both announced plans to transfer Tuesday, a surprising pair of moves that suddenly leaves the Hurricanes lacking depth at the marquee position.

Miami will list freshman A.J. Highsmith as the backup to starter Jacory Harris for the Sept. 7 season-opener at Florida State. Besides Harris, the only other player on Miami’s roster with any college quarterback experience is holder Matt Perrelli, who saw time in one game during the 2006 season.

Miami coach Randy Shannon said he was surprised by both decisions.

“It was kind of strange, to me,” Shannon said. “Both guys came in and they felt like, given the situation and what we had, it was better for them to go pursue other options.”

Fall semester classes start Wednesday at Miami. By leaving Tuesday, Cook and Smith likely will not lose a year of NCAA eligibility. Both will try to enroll elsewhere closer to their homes — Cook is from Texas, Smith from Tennessee.

Each approached Shannon separately with transfer requests. Miami gave both players their release, and Shannon indicated that both were frustrated with the prospects of spending possibly three more seasons behind Harris on the depth chart.

“They need to go do what’s best for them,” Shannon said.

Shannon said months ago that Cook held the No. 2 spot on the depth chart after spring practice behind Harris, who played in all 13 games last year but started only two, splitting time with Robert Marve — who left last December, saying he couldn’t continue in the two-quarterback system. Marve transferred to Purdue.

But on Monday, Shannon revealed competition for the backup spot was again open. One day later, Cook and Smith were both gone.

“It was a hard decision for me to leave the program,” Cook said in a statement released through the school. “I enjoyed my time at Miami and I’m going to miss it. I feel bad leaving my teammates, but it’s a move I had to make. I have the utmost respect for Coach Shannon and [offensive coordinator Mark] Whipple and I wish them the best of the luck.”

Smith completed his only pass last season, for 2 yards. Cook didn’t have any passing stats in his lone Miami season.

“Everything here was handled with a lot of class,” Smith said. “I got to compete and that’s what I wanted. … After evaluating everything, I felt I had to do what was in my best interest.”

Miami’s next move is to give Highsmith more of a crash course in running the offense. The son of former Miami standout Alonzo Highsmith — a member of the Hurricanes’ 1983 national championship team — threw for 2,192 yards, 28 touchdowns and only four interceptions last year while leading Fort Bend Hightower to the Texas Class 5A championship game.

“You’ve got to improvise and overcome,” Shannon said. “He’s been learning and doing well. He can execute a lot of our offense right now. He’s a very smart young man and comes from a football family.”

Boston College to meet Boston U. in hockey at Fenway

BOSTON (AP) — NCAA hockey champion Boston University will face Boston College in the men’s game of a Hockey East doubleheader at Fenway Park on Jan. 8, one week after the NHL’s annual Winter Classic at the ballpark.
In the opener, the women’s teams of Northeastern and New Hampshire will play. Hockey East announced the games on Thursday.

Fenway Park, the home of baseball’s Red Sox, will be set up for the New Year’s Day game between the Boston Bruins and Philadelphia Flyers.

In the previous two Winter Classics, the Pittsburgh Penguins played the Buffalo Sabres at Ralph Wilson Stadium in 2008 and the Detroit Red Wings played the Chicago Blackhawks at Wrigley Field this year.

Boston University leads Boston College, the 2008 NCAA champion, 123-106-17 in the storied series.

How Important is a School’s Brand?

By Glenn Cook, President, Turfer Athletic

It’s the School Brand that differentiates an athletic program apart from other institutions. For example, imagine the New York Yankees without its “NY” symbol, the L.A. Lakers without its “Purple & Gold” colors or the Dallas Cowboys without its “Texas Star.” Each of these teams has an image that makes people respond. Yet for most school sport programs, their image is driven by the footwear manufacturer’s logo and the colors that they happen to have in stock that drives their brand.

Why is branding such a hot topic on campus today?

1. More than ever, athletic programs are all aiming to set themselves apart from the pack, to be distinct, and—most of all—to be loved and desired by their student body, their alumni. The drive for the corporate sponsorship and fundraising dollar is critical as athletic programs are required to raise so much money to supplement their budgets.

 2. We have found that many athletic programs are following the same pattern of using an abundance of non-school colors in their footwear and, as a result, these programs can’t break away from the pack.

3. The most valuable assets a college or high school athletic program have are no longer physical assets, such as coaches or stadiums. The most important asset, an intangible one, is the brand of the school or athletic program.

 4. There is and will continue to be increasing pressure on colleges and high schools to behave more responsibly. Athletic programs are more transparent than ever. Protecting and promoting the brand of the school/athletic program is critical to the future of their programs.

So what does Branding really mean?

Branding is about taking something common and improving upon it in ways that make it more valuable and meaningful. A branding program should be designed to communicate the school’s unique image and colors while at the same time differentiating their athletic program from all other athletic programs in their conference, league, etc.

Venus Williams is looking good

Venus Williams is looking good wearing a Turfer Jacket: Fast forward 15 seconds in: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdfV7OGpkJk

Tennessee giving athletic director Hamilton a raise in pay

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee men’s athletic director Mike Hamilton is getting a 27% pay raise and will make $350,000 for the 2009-2010 athletic seasons under a new five-year contract signed by the university on Friday.

“He has had to make tough decisions in the last few years, and he has proven over and over the ability to meet or exceed expectations,” Interim UT President Jan Simek said in a statement. “This new agreement is a sign of our confidence in him.”

It’s a $75,425 raise from his previous salary of $274,575. Hamilton agreed to a two-year contract extension in January, but because the salary agreement was not reached until six months later, he will receive $125,000 lump sum payment as retroactive payment for 2009.

Hamilton’s salary is paid for by the self-funding athletic department and without taxpayer money.

He will receive $400,000 in the 2010-2011 season. His salary is subject to review in the following seasons but will be no less than $400,000.

Hamilton will receive a $300,000 retention bonus if he remains athletic director through the end of his contract on June 30, 2014.

Under the contract, the UT president may award Hamilton bonuses each year based on factors like team performances, student-athletes’ academic performances and community service involvement, fan support and improvements made to athletic facilities. Those bonuses can total as much as $250,000 a year.

He also receives perks such as season football tickets, a university car and a $35,000 expense account.

“I want to express thanks to Dr. Simek for his expressed confidence in the job we’re doing in athletics,” Hamilton said. “Our success is a team effort, made possible by tremendous university support as well as the tireless work done by our staff, coaches and student-athletes. I look forward to the many successes that lie ahead.”

During Hamilton’s six-year tenure, donations to athletics have risen $19.5 million in 2003 to $42 million in 2008. A comprehensive upgrade to athletic facilities is underway, including $200 million in renovations to Neyland Stadium.

The athletic department also recently announced it would give an average of about $3 million annually over 10 years back to the university for academics and other programs. The department also pays $1.4 million a year for scholarships to non-athletes and $1.1 million annually for parking garage debt service.