Here's the release from UConn about four UConn Huskies women's basketball players being in the running for the 2013 Naismith Women's College Player of the Year.

ATLANTA – The UConn women’s basketball team has four Huskies in the top 30 list for 2013 Naismith Women’s College Player of the Year as announced by the Atlanta Tipoff Club on Wednesday. Stefanie Dolson, Kelly Faris, Bria Hartley and Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis were selected as top 30 candidates by the Atlanta Tipoff Club’s Board of Selectors, which based its criteria on player performance during this year’s college basketball season. Connecticut’s leads the way with four players, while Baylor, Notre Dame, Duke, Maryland and Penn State each have a pair of players on the list.

In late March, the Naismith Trophy voting academy will narrow down the pack to four finalists. The Naismith Women’s College Player of the Year presented by AT&T will be awarded to one female athlete on April 8, 2013, in New Orleans, La.

Mosqueda-Lewis leads the Huskies with 17.1 points per game and averages 6.4 rebounds per contest, while Dolson is second on the squad in scoring and rebounding with 14.0 points per game and 6.4 boards per contest. Dolson currently leads the nation in field goal percentage shooting 60.0 percent per game, while Mosqueda-Lewis is third in the country from behind the arc with a 50.3 percentage. Faris is having an outstanding senior campaign averaging 10.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game and leads the team in assists (4.1 apg) and steals (2.8 spg). Both Mosqueda-Lewis and Faris scored their 1,000th career point on Saturday against Seton Hall.  Hartley is averaging 9.0 points and 3.1 rebounds per game, while she is second on the team with 3.5 assists per contest.

For a full look at the 30 candidates for  the 2013 Naismith Women’s College Player of the Year, please click on the continue reading button below if you're on the home page.

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The Boston Red Sox make the trip up to Sarasota and Ed Smith Stadium to take on a split-squad from the Baltimore Orioles at 7:05.

Tonight's game will be broadcast on NESN and also will be available on MLB Network (Subject to blackout in local areas). There is no Red Sox radio for the game. But if you have the MLB At-Bat app or MLB.tv GameDay audio, you can listen to the Orioles feed of the game if you can't watch.

1. Jacoby Ellsbury	CF	1. Nolan Reimold	DH
2. Dustin Pedroia	2B	2. Brian Roberts	2B
3. Shane Victorino	RF	3. Nick Markakis	RF
4. Jarrod Saltalamacchia	C	4. Adam Jones	CF
5. Will Middlebrooks	3B	5. Matt Wieters	C
6. Stephen Drew	SS	6. Chris Davis	1B
7. Jonny Gomes	LF	7. J.J. Hardy	SS
8. Daniel Nava	1B	8. Nate McLouth	LF
9. Mark Hamilton	DH	9. Wilson Betemit	3B
Franklin Morales	SP	Chris Tillman	SP

Morales will be followed by LHP Drake Britton, RHP Junichi Tazawa, RHP Joel Hanrahan, RHP Koji Uehara, RHP Andrew Bailey and LHP Andrew Miller.

The Orioles have stated the following pitchers are available for the game: Zach Britton, Pedro Strop, Daniel McCutchen, Troy Patton, Daniel Schlereth, Rob Delaney, Zech Zinicola, Chris Petrini and Jason Gurka.

To see the links from the local media, please click on the continue reading button below if you're on the home page.

Please check back before the game as links will be added and bolded.

To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click

Middlebrooks Diary: No longer a rookie [will middlebrooks – espn boston]

Jackie Bradley Jr. a quick study in major league camp [boston herald]

Kevin Youkilis at peace as Yankee [boston herald]

Pitching with porpoise [boston herald]

Mike Lowell lends a glove to tutor Will Middlebrooks [boston herald]

David Ortiz heads back to D.R. for 'personal issue' [clubhouse insider]

Each spring, it's a brand new ballgame for Ryan Dempster [csn new england]

Notes: Cardinals do most damage after Mortensen exits [csn new england]

Napoli feeling good, scheduled to start Friday [csn new england]

Lowell finds the Will to return to Red Sox [csn new england]

Doubront continues to make progress [csn new england]

Takeaways: Cards 15, Sox 4; It wasn't pretty [espn boston]

Ryan Dempster aces first test in spring debut for Boston Red Sox [espn boston]

Morning report: Seeing stars tonight [espn boston]

Another parting shot from Bobby V [espn boston]

Napoli set for Friday, anxious to prove himself [espn boston]

Morales set to make first spring start for Sox [espn boston]

David Ortiz heads home for personal matter [espn boston]

Aceves on track for WBC (we think) [espn boston]

Predicting the Red Sox roster, version 1 [extra bases]

A comedic moment for Ryan Dempster in Boston [extra bases]

Ask Nick: Are Red Sox angling for trades? [extra bases]

Mike Napoli ready for first game with Red Sox [extra bases]

David Ortiz excused from Red Sox camp for a couple of days [extra bases]

Ryan Dempster, Allen Webster on the trade that wasn’t [full count]

Adrian Gonzalez on Boston: ‘When you’re traded like we were, they spin it to make you sound like a bad guy’ [full count]

Mike Napoli ‘good to go’ for games after running bases [full count]

Mike Napoli Feels ‘Good to Go,’ Scheduled to Make Spring Training Debut on Friday Against Pirates [nesn.com]

Doubront starts Monday, Ortiz on personal leave [mike petraglia – weei.com]

Top Red Sox pitching prospect Matt Barnes readying himself for second pro season [projo sox blog]

Red Sox catcher Ross on home-plate collisions: "I have no problem with it" [projo sox blog]

Napoli has his feet under him, is ready to go [projo sox blog]

Ortiz away from team on personal matter [projo sox blog]

Red Sox-Orioles: Things to which One Could Pay Attention [projo sox blog]

Dempster gives Sox innings, professionalism [redsox.com]

How close is Jackie Bradley Jr. to big leagues? History offers a guide [alex speier – weei.com]

For more slices of Red Sox goodness, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, CSN New England,  ESPN Boston, NESN, Providence Journal, RedSox.com and WEEI websites.

Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.

I missed this press release from UConn yesterday but I figured I'd still pass it along.

ST. LOUIS – UConn women’s basketball standouts Stefanie Dolson, Kelly Faris and Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis were selected to the U.S. Basketball Writers Association’s 2013 Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Midseason Watch List as announced by the USBWA on Tuesday afternoon. Members of the association's board of directors chose the players to be included on the list as contenders for the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award.

The award is to be presented to the women's national player of the year by its namesake at the USBWA women's awards press conference on April 7 in the interview room of the New Orleans Arena, 3:30 p.m. local time prior to the start of the NCAA Women's Final Four semifinals, which is a change from the morning breakfast in past seasons.

Connecticut has the highest number of student-athletes on the list with three and the BIG EAST leads all conferences with five as Syracuse’s Kayla Alexander and Notre Dame’s Skylar Diggins join the three Huskies.

Mosqueda-Lewis leads the Huskies with 17.0 points per game and averages 6.2 rebounds per contest, while Dolson is second on the squad in scoring and rebounding with 14.0 points per game and 6.4 boards per contest. Dolson currently leads the nation in field goal percentage shooting 60.9 percent per game, while Mosqueda-Lewis is third in the country from behind the arc with a 49.0 percentage. Faris is having an outstanding senior campaign averaging 10.7 points and 5.1 rebounds per game and leads the team in assists (4.1 apg) and steals (2.7 spg). Both Mosqueda-Lewis and Faris scored their 1,000th career point on Saturday against Seton Hall.  

Five Ann Meyers Drysdale National Players of the Week from this season are featured: Stanford's Oguwmike, Connecticut's Dolson, Texas A&M's Bone, Penn State's Lucas, and Baylor's Griner. One Canadian native was chosen in Syracuse's Alexander.

While these standout players are the leading contenders to be named to the USBWA's women's All-America team and as finalists for the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award, all Division I women's players remain eligible for postseason honors from the USBWA. Voting for both the women's All-America team and Ann Meyers Drysdale Award are done directly by the membership with the All-America team is to be announced in late March.

To see the full 2013 Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Midseason Watch List, please click on the continue reading button below if you're on the home page.

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Paw Prints is our daily look at the happenings for the UConn Huskies football, men's basketball and women's basketball teams as well as the other sports the student-athletes engage in. We will do our best to bring you the links from all of the media that covers the Huskies on a daily basis. As always, links can be found by clicking on the read more button below if you're on the home page.

Thank you for stopping by and making SOX & Dawgs your home for UConn Huskies news.

It's game day for the UConn Huskies men's basketball team as they'll host the Georgetown Hoyas at Gampel Pavilion. Tip is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be broadcast nationally on ESPN2. You can also watch the game online at WatchESPN. You can also listen on the IMG/UConn Radio Network.

To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click

UConn Men's Basketball links

Huskies Look To Enjoy The Full Home Court Advantage; Notes, Quotes from Practice [dom amore – hartford courant]

UConn up for Big Challenge from Georgetown, Otto Porter [david borges – new haven register]

Kentan Facey, Terrence Samuel Finalists for Mr. New York Basketball [david borges – new haven register]

Notes/Quotes from Feb. 26: “They’re the most disciplined team we’ll play” [kevin duffy – ct post]

Updates from Storrs, preparing for the red-hot Hoyas [gavin keefe – the day]

Giffey’s time to shine [john silver – snyuconn.com]

No. 7 Georgetown visits UConn [john silver – snyuconn.com]

Huskies Take On Hoyas In Gampel On Wednesday [uconnhuskies.com]

Georgetown, Porter next up for UConn [ct post]

Hoyas' Otto Porter Presents Big Problem For Huskies [hartford courant]

Clearing Out Tuesday's Open Practice Notebook [hartford courant]

Huskies brace for Georgetown, Otto Porter [new haven register]

Georgetown will provide UConn with a tough test [the day]

UConn Women's Basketball links 

Mosqueda-Lewis, UConn avoid Pitt stop [carl adamec- snyuconn.com]

Notebook: No bench marks for KML [carl adamec – snyuconn.com]

Correction: Tangled up in tiebreakers [carl adamec – snyuconn.com]

Swin Cash To Sign Book At Big East Tournament [john altavilla – hartford courant]

Kelly Faris Five Rebounds From Elite Company [john altavilla – hartford courant]

Stewart Seemingly Back In Step [john altavilla – hartford courant]

Pittsburgh Isn’t Doing Women’s Basketball Any Favors [john altavilla – hartford courant]

Mosqueda-Lewis Goes The Distance For First Time; Stokes DNP [rich elliott – ct post]

Tuck vs. Tuck NCAA showdown a possibility [jim fuller – new haven register]

Stewart's defense sets the tone [jim fuller – new haven register]

UConn signee Saniya Chong a finalist for N.Y. Miss Basketball [jim fuller – new haven register]

UConn women rout Pitt [ct post]

Stewart beginning to turn her game around [ct post]

Nutshell: UConn women 76, Pittsburgh 36 [ct post]

UConn Women Beat Pitt, 76-36 [hartford courant]

Notebook: Banks To Have Knee Surgery On March 14 [hartford courant]

Huskies notch 29th straight win over last-place Pitt [new haven register]

Geno’s Legacy: UConn’s history [snyuconn.com]

UConn Football links

UConn Huskies Shine At NFL Combine… [desmond conner – hartford courant]

UConn RB Martin Hyppolite, Hip Injured In Weekend Car Accident, Expected Back On Campus And In Class Thursday [desmond conner – hartford courant]

Dez also answered a few questions in his mailbag [desmond conner – hartford courant]

Big East spring preview capsules: Part I [matt fortuna – espn.com]

UConn CBs Gratz, Wreh-Wilson shine at NFL combine [jim fuller – new haven register]

Some love for Trevardo Williams following combine [jim fuller – new haven register]

Wrapping up the combine: Gratz an eye opener [john silver – snyuconn.com]

Stocks Rise for Huskies at NFL Combine [uconnhuskies.com]

Four Huskies shine at NFL combine [new haven register]

Other UConn related links

Baseball. Pitcher Profile: Ryan Moore [uconnhuskies.com]

M. Swimming. Men's Swimming And Diving Ready For BIG EAST Championship [uconnhuskies.com]

Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.

Pittsburgh Panthers head coach Agnus Berenato gave UConn Huskies assistant women's basketball coach Shea Ralph her start in college coaching. I'm sure Berenato wishes she never left.

It's been a long while since the Panthers have won a Big East game. And on Tuesday night, the UConn women extended that Big East losing streak to 34 games with a 76-36 win in front of 9,428 in the XL Center regular season finale in Hartford, CT.

The Huskies improve to 26-2 (13-1 Big East) while the Panthers fall to 9-18 (0-14).

Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis once again the led way for the Huskies with a double-double of 19 points and 13 rebounds to go along with five assists. Breanna Stewart's improvement from her slump continued as she had 15 points, nine rebounds, four assists, four blocked shots and three steals.

Stefanie Dolson added 14 points and seven rebounds while Kelly Faris had 11 points and fell one rebound short of a double-double with nine. Bria Hartley led the Huskies with six assists.

Despite shooting 4-of-22, Brianna Kiesel led the Panthers with 11 points and six rebounds. Asia Logan was the only other member of Pitt to hit double-digits with 10 points.

This was a sloppy game at the start as both teams had trouble holding on to the ball.

Pitt kept it close early on as they held an 8-7 lead before nine straight points by the Huskies allowed them to take control. With a 24-11 lead later in the half, they closed out the half on a 13-2 run.

It was more of the same in the second half.

Honestly, despite the 40 point difference in the score, this wasn't UConn's best game.

As I had said both teams were sloppy and normally while UConn does commit turnovers, they usually take care better of the ball. Maybe it was playing down to their opponent. You could see the frustration on Geno Auriemma's face.

But as things settled down, UConn got into a nice rhythm. Stewart continued to play more aggressively. You can really tell she's been working her tail off in practice. She's used to being the dominant player but this is a whole nother level of basketball.

This could be the last time these two teams meet with Pitt leaving for the ACC along with Syracuse next year. I'm pretty sure Pitt is just happy with that not having to face UConn anymore.

The Huskies finish out their season with two road games.

The first one comes on Saturday at high noon when they travel to Tampa, FL for a matchup with the South Florida Bulls.

To continue reading, please click on the continue reading button below if you're on the home page.

Pittsburgh Panthers @ UConn Huskies 2.26.13 box score

Here are the postgame quotes from UConn head coach Geno Auriemma.

Here are UConn's postgame notes.

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photo credit: john woike – hartford courant (no. 6 in gallery)

It's hard for bloggers of the Boston Red Sox to give their own assessment of the team so far in during spring training because we aren't there. We have to rely on what the media tells us.

That is unless NESN has coverage of the game or we are fortunate enough to be able to go to some games at Fenway South. At that point, we will be able to see how pitchers and players are doing. Sure we can read the box scores and read the reports, but how does one make an honest judgment about a player unless you've seen them.

Fortunately for everyone, the Red Sox will be on NESN on Wednesday night against the Baltimore Orioles. And while we don't know what's going with the starting nine, we will get a look at the following pitchers:

Franklin Morales (1 inning) followed by Drake Britton (3 innings), Koji Uehara, Chris Carpenter, Daniel Bard, Anthony Carter and Pedro Beato.

Of that group, I think Morales and Uehara are the only ones guaranteed to make the team. Bard will have to show that he has regained his form of old. I do think Carpenter and Beato will figure into the bullpen plans at some point in the season if someone gets injured.

Of course, that's just my opinion. And that's based off the fact that you aren't sending down Uehara and Morales is a valuable lefty option out of the pen.

Whether you knew this or not, I was around the game of baseball for almost 10 years spending time working in the minor leagues. So I've seen players develop and some who haven't. So I do know what I'm looking at when evaluating.

That'll also make you understand why the Red Sox have brought former players like Jason Varitek, Pedro Martinez, Tim Wakefield and now Mike Lowell back to camp. I'm no expert like them. But having them teach the younger players will only make this team better down the line.

And that's all we want here in Red Sox Nation. Another winning team. It's been since 2009 when the Red Sox last went to the playoffs and that year they were swept out by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

So if it takes bringing former players back to help, by all means do it. I'd like to see that drought end this year. And from the looks of it (or what we've read), the Red Sox could just do that this year.

For more slices of Red Sox goodness, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, CSN New England,  ESPN Boston, NESN, Providence Journal, RedSox.com and WEEI websites.

Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.

photo credit: ap photo

Paw Prints is our daily look at the happenings for the UConn Huskies football, men's basketball and women's basketball teams as well as the other sports the student-athletes engage in. We will do our best to bring you the links from all of the media that covers the Huskies on a daily basis. As always, links can be found by clicking on the read more button below if you're on the home page.

Thank you for stopping by and making SOX & Dawgs your home for UConn Huskies news.

It's game day for the UConn Huskies women's basketball team as they'll host the Pittsburgh Panthers in their XL Center regular season finale. Tip is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game will be broadcast locally in Connecticut on SNY. You can watch the game online at uconnhuskies.tv. for a small fee. You can also listen on the IMG/UConn Radio Network.

To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click

UConn Women's Basketball links

Banks’ ACL surgery set for March 14 [carl adamec – snyuconn.com]

Ralph has soft spot for Pittsburgh, Berenato [carl adamec – snyuconn.com]

“Chalk Talk” Returns To Big East Tournament [john altavilla – hartford courant]

UConn Community Is Supporting Banks [john altavilla – hartford courant]

Why UConn Vs. Cal-Davis? Here’s Your Answer [john altavilla – hartford courant]

Another “Coach’s Kid” On Their Way To UConn [john altavilla – hartford courant]

Geno To Get His Olympic Ring; That’s All He Wants (Seriously) [john altavilla – hartford courant]

Ekmark Named WBCA National High School Coach Of The Year [rich elliott – ct post]

Banks To Undergo Surgery On Right Knee March 14 [rich elliott – ct post]

Olympic ring ceremony tomorrow [jim fuller – new haven register]

Brianna Banks talks about season-ending injury [jim fuller – new haven register]

Faris continues to move up the charts [jim fuller – new haven register]

Preview: Huskies host woeful Pitt [lee lewis -republican-american]

No. 3 Huskies Host Pitt in Regular Season Home Finale [uconnhuskies.com]

 Banks stays upbeat despite torn ACL [ct post]

Teammates Work To Get UConn's Stewart Back On Track [hartford courant]

Frustration of being sidelined setting in for Brianna Banks [new haven register]

Next milestone on the list for UConn? Win the Big East [the day]

UConn Men's Basketball links

Shabazz Napier Makes Big East Honor Roll Again [dom amore – hartford courant]

Dom answered a question in his mailbag [dom amore – hartford courant]

Paschal Chukwu Advances, Amida Brimah's Season is Over [david borges – new haven register]

A look at Otto Porter Jr… [kevin duffy – ct post]

UConn Football links

Video: UConn's Trevardo Williams Runs Fastest 40 For DL [sox & dawgs]

Top 25 countdown: Who just missed the cut? [matt fortuna – espn.com]

Sio Moore continues to help his draft stock [jim fuller – new haven register]

Interview with Blidi Wreh-Wilson [john silver – snyuconn.com]

Combine wrap: Big day for Sio Moore and Trevardo Williams [john silver – snyuconn.com]

Other UConn related links

W. Tennis. Huskies Fall at Army, 5-2; Nutting Wins Again at No. 3 Singles [uconnhuskies.com]

Baseball. Catching Up With UConn Baseball [uconnhuskies.com]

M. Ice Hockey. Men's Hockey Senior Day Friday at 7:05 p.m. vs. Sacred Heart [uconnhuskies.com]

Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.