ESPN’s Andy Katz sat down with UConn Huskies basketball players Kemba Walker and Maya Moore to talk about the Final Four for both teams.
Whale Sign Goaltender Jason Missiaen to ATO
HARTFORD, March 30, 2011: Connecticut Whale general manager Jim Schoenfeld announced today that the team has signed goaltender Jason Missiaen to an Amateur Tryout (ATO) agreement.
Missiaen, who agreed to terms on an NHL contract with the parent New York Rangers March 24, played for the Baie-Comeau Drakkar of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) this season. In 53 games for Baie-Comeau, the 6-8, 220-pound native of Chatham, Ontario was 10-33-8, with a 3.33 goals-against average, an 89.3% save percentage and one shutout. Missiaen finished third among QMJHL goaltenders in saves (1,403) and was fourth in the league in minutes-played (3,026).
Prior to spending this year with the Drakkar, Missiaen, 20, played 131 Ontario Hockey League (OHL) games over four seasons with the Peterborough Petes. He was 48-65-6 in his Petes career, with a 3.77 GAA, a 90.1% save percentage and three shutouts.
Missiaen was a fourth-round selection (116th overall) by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.
The Whale’s next action is this Friday night, April 1, as they travel to Providence to take on the Atlantic Division-rival Bruins at 7:05 PM (WTIC HD-2, www.ctwhale.com, www.wtic.com).
The next XL Center home game is coming up this Sunday, April 3 against Head Coach Kevin Dineen and his Portland Pirates, the Atlantic Division leaders, with faceoff at 3:00 PM. There will be a giveaway of Whale team posters to 3,000 fans that day, courtesy of Supercuts, and it’s a Guida’s Family Value game. Family Value packages start as low as $48 and include three tickets, three hot dogs or pizza slices, three sodas and a Whale souvenir. Guida’s Family Value packs are available at the XL Center ticket office and on-line at www.CTwhale.com. Also, fans are encouraged to bring their skates to Sunday’s game, as there will be a free post-game skate on the XL Center ice, presented by Stone Academy.
Tickets for all 2010-11 Whale home games are available now at the XL Center box office, through Ticketmaster Charge-by-Phone at 1-800-745-3000 and on-line at www.ctwhale.com. Tickets start at $7 each at the XL Center ticket office on game day.
For information on Whale ticket packages, group sales and VIP packages, call (860) 728-3366.
Afternoon Red Sox Delight – 3/30
For the final time this spring, the Boston Red Sox will play an exhibition game, this one against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park in Houston, TX.
The first pitch is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on NESN in the Red Sox television market. If you don’t live in the Red Sox television market, the game is also available nationally on MLB Network. The game will also be shown online for free at MLB.tv.
Here are the lineups for tonight’s game:
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| 1. Jacoby Ellsbury |
CF | 1. Michael Bourn | CF |
| 2. Dustin Pedroia |
2B | 2. Angel Sanchez | 2B |
| 3. Carl Crawford |
LF | 3. Hunter Pence | RF |
| 4. Adrian Gonzalez | 1B | 4. Carlos Lee | LF |
| 5. Kevin Youkilis |
3B | 5. Brett Wallace |
1B |
| 6. David Ortiz | DH | 6. Bill Hall | 2B |
| 7. J.D. Drew | LF | 7. Joe Inglett | DH |
| 8. Jarrod Saltalamacchia |
C | 8. Chris Johnson |
3B |
| 9. Marco Scutaro |
SS | 9. J.R. Towles | C |
| Josh Beckett | SP | Nelson Figueroa | SP |
Also scheduled to pitch for the Red Sox: LHP Dennys Reyes, RHP Bobby Jenks, RHP Daniel Bard, RHP Jonathan Papelbon.
Also scheduled to pitch for the Astros: RHP Brandon Lyon, RHP Wilton Lopez, RHP Enerio Del Rosario, RHP Aneury Rodriguez, RHP Henry Villar, RHP Jose Valdez.
For more slices of Red Sox goodness, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, CSNNE, ESPN Boston, NESN, Providence Journal and WEEI websites.
Paw Prints – The Daily UConn Roundup – 3/30
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 some of the other sports. 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.
Thank you for stopping by and making SOX & Dawgs your home for UConn Huskies news.
To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click
UConn Women’s Basketball links
Mosqueda-Lewis wins 3-point shooting contest [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]
Maya Moore joins select company [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]
UConn roll past Duke [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]
Notes From NCAA Win Over Duke [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]
Miss Maya’s Knee Boo-Boo [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]
Tuesday spring practice notes [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]
Hansmeyer Steps Down At Oklahoma [Rich Elliott – CT Post]
Moore Named ECAC Player Of The Year [Rich Elliott – CT Post]
Huskies Hammer Duke, Headed Back To The Final Four [Rich Elliott – CT Post]
Travel Packages Available For Women’s Final Four [UConnHuskies.com]
Moore leads UConn women into Final Four [CT Post]
Magical Maya gives us more special memories [CT Post]
NCAA Philadelphia all-regional team [CT Post]
UConn Rolls Past Duke, Into Final Four [Hartford Courant]
Moore Unanimous First-Team All-American [Hartford Courant]
Maya Has 3,000 And One Big Miss [Hartford Courant]
Notes And Stats From UConn’s Victory Over Duke [Hartford Courant]
UConn Women’s Return To Final Four Was Far From Certain [Hartford Courant]
Maya Moore scores 3,000th point as Huskies crush Duke, advance to Final Four [New Haven Register]
Freshman guards play key roles for Huskies, Duke [New Haven Register]
Moore scores 28 as Huskies blitz Duke to reach 12th Final Four [The Day]
A day full of accomplishment for Maya Moore [The Day]
UConn, and that’s Final [The Day]
UConn Men’s Basketball links
Huskies Meet the Media … Again [David Borges – New Haven Register]
Preparing for takeoff to the Final Four [Gavin Keefe – The Day]
UConn-Kentucky Two Different Teams Four Months Later [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]
Jim Calhoun Warning To Young Coaches: The Shine Will Wear Off [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]
Jim Calhoun On Kemba Walker [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]
This Lamb, That Lamb, Napier And Knight [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]
Kemba Walker ECAC Division I Player Of The Year [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]
Kemba Walker Couldn’t Wait To Turn The Page [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]
Huskies getting set to take off for Houston [Neill Ostrout – CT Post]
UConn Hosts Pre-Final Four Media Day At Gampel Pavilion [UConnHuskies.com]
UConn men pause, relax before hitting the road again [CT Post]
Beyond The Kemba Show: UConn’s Supporting Cast Gets Its Due [Hartford Courant]
Shabazz Napier has pointed Kemba Walker in right direction [New Haven Register]
Optimism abounds on Storrs campus [Norwich Bulletin]
Calhoun feels Final Four is lacking a great team [The Day]
Sleepless in Storrs: Thoughts of national title keeping Huskies wired [The Day]
Patrick Sellers cheers from China [Dana O’Neil – ESPN.com]
Walker will carry UConn to the top [The Daily Utah Chronicle]
Young Huskies most beloved team in program history [Greenwich Time]
With Kemba at the controls, UConn ready for a run at title [USA Today]
Breakdown, analysis of Kentucky-Connecticut semifinal [USA Today]
UConn’s Jeremy Lamb lifts a generation hex on Calhoun [Gloucester Times]
Jim Calhoun, young Huskies give each other what they need [Washington Post]
Walker sees freshmen as key to UConn’s run [SI.com]
UConn Football links
Back to spring football [Chip Malafronte – New Haven Register]
Practice 7 Notes, Isiah Moore Suspended (Team Policy Violation) [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]
UConn Receiver Isiah Moore Suspended [Hartford Courant]
Quarterback spot wide open for Huskies [New Haven Register]
Other UConn related links
Baseball. Huskies Shutout Hartford 11-0 [UConnHuskies.com]
Video: Highlights of UConn Women’s 75-40 Win Over Duke
Here are the highlights of the UConn Huskies women’s basketball team’s 75-40 win over the Duke Blue Devils in the Elite Eight at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, PA on Tuesday night.
With the win, the Huskies advance to the NCAA Women’s Final Four in Indianapolis where they’ll play the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Sunday for the right to play in the NCAA Championship game. The game is scheduled to begin at approximately 9:30 p.m. and will be televised nationally on ESPN.
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Video: UConn postgame press conference [NCAA.com]
Video: Duke postgame press conference [NCAA.com]
New Red Sox Spring Training Stadium To Be Named JetBlue Park
Courtesy of Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe and JetBlue, here’s a picture of what the new Boston Red Sox spring training stadium, JetBlue Park, will look like from the front.
Click to enlarge.
Red Sox Acquire McKenry From Rockies
Here’s the press release from the Boston Red Sox involving a trade they made on Tuesday.
BOSTON — The Red Sox acquired catcher Michael McKenry from the Rockies on Tuesday in exchange for right-handed pitcher Daniel Turpen. To make room on the 40-man roster, the club designated catcher Mark Wagner for assignment.
The announcements were made by executive vice president/general manager Theo Epstein.
McKenry, 26, spent the 2010 season with Colorado’s Triple-A Colorado Springs club before making his Major League debut in September, appearing in six games overall with the Rockies and making one start at catcher. With Colorado Springs, he hit .265 (92-for-347) with 23 doubles, one triple, 10 home runs and 49 RBI in 99 games. McKenry’s 94 games behind the plate tied for the most in the Pacific Coast League and he led league backstops with 691 total chances, 624 putouts and 60 assists. He threw out 23 of 80 attempted base stealers (29 percent), fifth among PCL leaders. Selected by the Rockies in the seventh round of the 2006 First-Year Player Draft, McKenry owns a .265 average (465-for-1758) with 127 doubles, 66 home runs, 287 RBI, 262 runs and 229 walks in 491 career minor league games. He hit two home runs and collected four RBI in 11 Spring Training games with the Rockies this year.
Turpen, 24, was returned to the Red Sox from the Yankees on March 13 per Rule 5 draft rules. He split the 2010 season between the Boston and San Francisco organizations, combining to go 7-6 with four saves and a 4.30 ERA (33 ER/69.0 IP) in 49 relief appearances between Double-A Richmond and Double-A Portland, including a 2-1 mark with three saves and a 4.91 ERA (10 ER/18.1 IP) in 12 outings with Portland after he was traded to the Red Sox on July 31 for right-hander Ramon Ramirez. Selected by San Francisco in the eighth round of the 2007 First-Year Player Draft, Turpen is 16-12 with a 2.86 ERA (76 ER/239.0 IP) and 198 strikeouts compared to 81 walks in 156 career minor league relief appearances in the Giants and Red Sox systems.
Wagner, 26, was limited to 36 games with Triple-A Pawtucket in 2010 due to two trips to the disabled list, hitting .205 (26-for-127) with five doubles, three home runs, 16 RBI and 12 runs scored for the PawSox. Selected by Boston in the ninth round of the 2005 First-Year Player Draft, he has a career .264 average (433-for-1640) with 41 home runs and 245 RBI in 451 minor league games in the Red Sox system.
2010-11 Women’s Basketball AP All-America Teams
In the history of the Women’s Basketball AP All-America Team, there has only been one four-time All-American in Oklahoma’s Courtney Paris. Well now she’ll have to make a little room on that elite mantle.
UConn Huskies senior Maya Moore was a unanimous choice for the 2010-11 AP All-America First Team making her the second women’s basketball player to be named four times. It’s the third straight year that Moore has been an unanimous selection.
Moore is joined on the First Team by Baylor’s Brittney Griner, Stanford’s Jeanette Pohlen, Texas A&M’s Danielle Adams and Ohio State’s Jantel Lavender.
Moore’s teammate, Tiffany Hayes, was named an Honorable Mention All-America.
For a full look at the 2010-11 Women’s Basketball AP All-America Teams, click on the read more button below.
2010-11 Women’s Basketball AP All-America Team
First Team
- Maya Moore, Connecticut
- Brittney Griner, Baylor
- Jantel Lavender, The Ohio State
- Danielle Adams, Texas A&M
- Jeanette Pohlen, Stanford
Second Team
- Danielle Robinson, Oklahoma
- Amber Harris, Xavier
- Courtney Vandersloot
- Nnemka Ogwumike
- Jasmine Thomas, Duke
Third Team
- Shekinna Strickland, Tennessee
- Shenise Johnson, Miami (FL)
- Victoria Dunlap, Kentucky
- Ta’Shia Phillips, Xavier
- Skylar Diggins, Notre Dame
Honorable Mention
Kachine Alexander, Iowa; Angie Bjorklund, Tennessee; Kelsey Bolte, Iowa State; Jessica Breland, North Carolina; Cierra Brevard, Florida State; Kourtney Brown, Buffalo; Sydney Colson, Texas A&M; Jasmine Dixon, UCLA; Elena Delle Donne, Delaware; Dawn Evans, James Madison; Shante Evans, Hofstra; Briana Gilbreth, Southern Cal.
Keisha Hampton, DePaul; Tiffany Hayes, Connecticut; Courtney Hurt; Virginia Commonwealth; Ify Ibukwe, Arizona; Amy Jaeschke, Northwestern; Jessica Jenkins, Hampton; Adrienne Johnson, Louisiana Tech; Melissa Jones, Baylor; Kalisha Keane, Michigan State; Kevi Luper, Oral Roberts.
Deirdre Naughton, DePaul; Yinka Olorunnife, Idaho; Kayla Pedersen, Stanford; Jaime Printy, Iowa; Jence Rhoads, Vanderbilt; Sugar Rodgers, Georgetown; Odyssey Sims, Baylor; Meighan Simmons, Tennessee; Carolyn Swords, Boston College; Riquna Williams, Miami.
Rangers Agree To Terms With Free Agent Forward Tommy Grant
New York, March 29, 2011 – New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather announced today that the club has agreed to terms with free agent forward Tommy Grant.
Grant, 24, tallied two assists in his professional debut with the Connecticut Whale of the American Hockey League (AHL) on Sunday at Providence. Prior to joining Connecticut, Grant appeared in 37 games with the University of Alaska Anchorage Seawolves of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) this season, registering 16 goals and 16 assists for 32 points, along with 57 penalty minutes. He led the team with career-highs in goals, points, game-winning goals (five) and shots on goal (114), and ranked second on the Seawolves in assists and penalty minutes. The fourth-year player also tied for the team lead with four power play goals. Grant helped lead Alaska Anchorage to a WCHA First Round upset of the 17th-ranked University of Minnesota Gophers, tallying two points (one goal, one assist) in the two game series on March 11 and March 12. He also recorded two points (one goal, one assist), including one power play goal, in the Alaska Airlines Governor’s Cup two game series on February 25-26.
The 6-2, 195-pounder appeared in 134 career WCHA games in four seasons with the University of Alaska Anchorage Seawolves, registering 45 goals and 45 assists for 90 points, along with 179 penalty minutes. Grant led the Seawolves with a career-high, 17 assists, and ranked second on the team with 26 points in 2009-10. In his second season with the team, Grant led Alaska Anchorage with 15 goals and ranked third with 25 points. Prior to joining the Seawolves, Grant skated in 157 career British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) contests with the Victoria Salsa and the Westside Warriors, registering 53 goals and 57 assists for 110 points, along with 230 penalty minutes. In 2006-07 with Westside, he led the team and established BCHL career-highs in goals (36), assists (39) and points (75).
Red Sox News From the Fort – 3/29
It’s a sad day for some in Ft. Myers, FL as the Boston Red Sox will break camp after today’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays. They’ll head to Houston, TX for an exhibition game with the Houston Astros tomorrow night before going over to Arlington, TX to get ready for Friday’s 2011 Opening Day game against the Texas Rangers.
This will also be the final game for the Red Sox at City of Palms Park as their new spring training stadium and complex are scheduled to be opened next year.
The Red Sox announced their 25-man roster on Monday and there really were no surprises, especially given the contract situations of certain players. Honestly, you can take those moves with a grain of salt as you can bet the Red Sox will probably make a few roster moves during the month of April.
If Matt Albers or Dennys Reyes gets off to a bad start, you’ll probably see Hideki Okajima or Alfredo Aceves back in the big leagues, Okajima especially if Reyes falters.
As far as the position players go, no surprises there at all.
Mike Cameron is the fourth outfielder and Darnell McDonald is the fifth outfielder. Jason Varitek is your “backup” catcher and Jed Lowrie is the extra infielder. Skipper Terry Francona only went with one extra infielder in Lowrie because he can play all four positions across the diamond.
I know we’re all looking forward to Friday’s game but we still have to go through the monotony of the final two games of spring training. After that, everything counts!!!
Also be sure to head over to our Bloguin brother, The Bottom Line, to make predictions on the Red Sox players to win prizes. The links are located in the left sidebar there.
Here are today’s lineups:
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| 1. John Jaso |
C | 1. Jacoby Ellsbury | CF |
| 2. Sam Fuld | CF | 2. Dustin Pedroia | 2B |
| 3. Sean Rodriguez |
3B | 3. Carl Crawford |
LF |
| 4. Dan Johnson |
DH | 4. Adrian Gonzalez | 1B |
| 5. Elliot Johnson | 1B | 5. Kevin Youkilis |
3B |
| 6. Matthew Joyce | RF | 6. David Ortiz | DH |
| 7. Reid Brignac | SS | 7. J.D. Drew | RF |
| 8. J.J. Furmaniak | 2B | 8. Jason Varitek | C |
| 9. Ty Morrison | LF | 9. Marco Scutaro | 2B |
| Wade Davis | SP | Clay Buchholz | SP |
Also scheduled to pitch for the Red Sox: RHP Tim Wakefield.
Also scheduled to pitch for the Rays: LHP Cesar Ramos, RHP Juan Cruz, RHP Joel Peralta.
For more slices of Red Sox goodness, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, CSNNE, ESPN Boston, NESN, Providence Journal and WEEI websites.