Men’s Tennis

After dropping all three doubles matches, the University of Miami men’s tennis team could not bounce back, falling in four of six singles matches in a 5-2 loss to No. 22 Florida State in UM’s regular-season finale Friday evening.

The Hurricanes (11-10, 2-8 ACC) fell early to the Seminoles (16-6, 7-2 ACC), as FSU swept all three doubles matches to clinch the doubles point, taking a 1-0 lead into singles.

In singles, FSU’s Chip Webb downed UM’s Vivek Subramanian, 6-3, 6-3, on the No. 6 court just before the Hurricanes’ Eric Hechtman fell to Ytai Abougzir, 7-5, 6-1, in the No. 2 slot.

With the ‘Noles within one point of the match-clincher, UM’s Josh Cohen -who is ranked 120th nationally in singles-upset 32nd-ranked Mat Cloer, 6-4, 7-5, at the No. 1 spot to give the Hurricanes their first point of the evening.

The Seminoles’ Sam Chang clinched the match on the No. 5 court, downing Ryan Waits, 7-5, 6-3.

The Hurricanes’ Tim Krebs earned Miami’s final point of the match with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, victory over Jonathas Sucupira at No. 3.

The Hurricanes will return to action Thursday when they head to Cary, N.C., to take part in the 2005 ACC Men’s Tennis Championships.

Men’s Basketball

University of Miami basketball Head Coach Frank Haith announced Friday that freshman guard Antoine Mayhand has decided to leave the team and will not rejoin the Hurricanes next season.

Mayhand has been granted his release from the University and is eligible to transfer to another institution.

“Antoine [Mayhand] has decided to transfer from the University of Miami and we have granted him his release,” said Haith. “Although we are disappointed in his decision, we appreciate all his effort this season and wish him the best of luck in the future.”

Mayhand (6-2, 200) played in 20 games this season averaging 0.8 points and 0.5 rebounds in 5.7 minutes per game.

According to The Charlotte Observer, Charlotte women’s basketball Head Coach Katie Meier will interview with the University of Miami for a second time early this week. The Hurricanes are looking for a replacement for Ferne Labati, who was fired after a 13-16 season, the team’s first in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Meier, 37, is considered to be the top candidate for the vacant position.

An announcement of whom Miami chooses to hire is expected to come later this week. The Hurricane will continue to provide updates as they come.

Kyle Wright threw two touchdown passes and passed for 159 yards in a 31-21 Miami victory. Granted, it was the Spring game, and the team was playing against itself, but wasn’t it fun to see Wright play well?

Miami’s football team has many question marks entering next season, and one of the biggest is at quarterback. It is too early to say that Wright answered those questions at the game, but he took a step in the right direction April 9.

Speaking of the right direction, much maligned wide receiver Ryan Moore, who had a disappointing sophomore campaign last season, caught one of Wright’s TD passes, a 23-yarder in the second quarter. That could be a successful combination this season. Also, Wright put up a big zero in one of the most important categories: turnovers.

Kirby Freeman, who is competing with Wright, struggled in the Spring game, completing just seven of 18 passes and throwing two interceptions. Basically, it looks like the job is Wright’s to lose.

However, even if the quarterback position works out, the Hurricanes have several other concerns. The defense underperformed at times last season, and losing standout cornerback Antrel Rolle will not help them any. The secondary, which is usually a Miami stronghold, looked very suspect last season. The linebackers, especially the middle linebackers, struggled tremendously. The saving grace with the defense is that it was young last season and remains fairly intact.

So the question becomes, what can Hurricane fans expect from UM in 2005? The answer, in my opinion, is the same thing as 2004. Miami is a solid team but I do not think it is a championship-caliber team. Unfortunately, at the University of Miami, you have to be a contender every year.

Miami is a regular season favorite, but it is not likely to be playing for a national title in Januaryh 2006. On paper, UM looks pretty similar to the team that it had last season, and that means it will likely be 9-2 or 8-3 again.

I know what you are thinking. Why am I being so negative? However, I don’t see it that way. On the contrary, I think 9-2 or 8-3 is a very good season. I am in the minority of people who understand it is unrealistic to be a contender every year, and that you are going to have some retooling or off years. I’ll take 9-2 or 8-3 next year, and if Miami gets in the BCS, everyone should be happy.

The unrealistic expectations of this team will make everyone think the season is a failure if Miami doesn’t contend for a national title. However, look at the roster, and the roster of the teams who get to play for the title, and you may realize something: Miami did not underachieve last year and they won’t underachieve in 2005 either. The Hurricanes were simply not capable of living up to expectations set way too high.

Darren Grossman can be contacted at d.grossman@umiami.edu.

The Atlantic Coast Conference Championships will not only prove to be a battleground for the men and women of Miami tennis, but a chance for redemption. As each approaches the end of its seasons, the tournament will be the final opportunity for dominance for the women and respect for the men.

The women outplayed each ACC stronghold except for the last match of their season when they fell to Georgia Tech 4-3, the team’s first loss in conference play, dropping its overall record to 18-3 and 9-1 in the ACC. After their loss the ‘Canes have a definite chance to upset teams as they have done before. Leading the women are seniors Megan Bradley and Staci Stevens, who will be integral in the success of the team.

“I believe we’ve had the most success this season than any other time in my four years here, so I think we have a good chance of winning the ACC Championship,” Stevens said.

Bradley, ranked No.1 in the ITA rankings, gives the Hurricanes a major edge over other teams in the ACC.

“We are very excited to go to the ACC Championships. Our goal is to win it,” said Head Coach Paige Yaroshuk. “It’s going to be a tough tournament there is a lot of competition in the ACC. There’s possibly three teams that can bring home the title, but we just have to be better than them.”

For the men, the ACC Championships is not just another competition but an opportunity to take back what they gave up during the season, a couple of close 4-3 matches that didn’t go in their favor. Looking forward to their upcoming play, the men need more than desire to win; they must have a real competitive drive.

“We are looking forward to play in the ACC Championships,” said Head Coach Mario Rincon. “This season we had a lot of games that could have gone either way but we lost it. We need to capitalize on our opponents because we have nothing to lose and they do.”

Among these upsetting defeats were the losses to Virginia Tech, North Carolina, Duke and Virginia. Though most of these matches were close, the lack of the follow through in the singles matches and the need to clinch the doubles point decided the outcomes.

Improvement in these aspects will lead the men to better play.

“I really think we have a good chance to come back on the teams that beat us. The ACC Championships gives us this chance and we are going to take it,” sophomore Josh Cohen said.

The ACC Championships for both the men and women will be held in Cary, N.C., beginning Thursday.

“The most important part of our season is just ahead of us,” said junior Eric Hechtman. “It’s going to be three days of tough play, and we are going to have to play even better tennis.”

Antoinette Cordova can be contacted at a.cordova1@umiami.edu.

The University of Miami has grown accustomed to seeing multiple Hurricanes taken in the first round of the NFL Draft. This year’s draft, which begins on Saturday, could be uncharted waters for UM followers, as Antrel Rolle is the only ‘Cane expected to be chosen in the first 32 picks.

Rolle was projected to be a Top 10 pick before last season even started, and the cornerback did little to hurt his chances in 2004, being named a finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award, given to the nation’s top corner. Some have argued that Rolle underachieved last season because he did not rack up as many interceptions and tackles as other top defensive backs, but that can be attributed to teams shying away from his side of the field.

Rolle is in a neck-and-neck battle with West Virginia’s Adam “Pac-Man” Jones to be the first cornerback taken in the draft. Jones is a smaller DB than Rolle, at slightly over 5’9″, but his 4.43 40-meter dash time and superb kick return skills are attractive to many teams. What gives Rolle the edge over Jones is his size (6’0″, 201 lbs.) and ability to crush wide outs with vicious hits.

In short, expect Rolle to be a Top 10 lock. Tennessee is taking a long look at Rolle with the sixth pick, and there is even talk of him moving into the Top Five if the top three running backs slip.

Besides Rolle, the Hurricanes are not garnering much attention this year. Several former UM players are projected to be gone by the conclusion of the middle rounds, including running back Frank Gore, wide receiver Roscoe Parrish, tight end Kevin Everett and defensive tackle Santonio Thomas.

Gore might be hurt by the depth of this year’s running backs and his injury problems at UM. Despite tearing both of his ACLs, Gore decided to forgo his senior year to help support his mother, who needs a kidney transplant, and his son. Scouts do like his strength, blocking ability and field vision, but do not expect a team to take a chance on Gore until the third or fourth round.

Parrish surprised some people when he entered the draft, but NFL teams see plenty of potential in the diminutive receiver. Scouts are enamored with his speed, ability to change direction and return skills, but his size and durability concerns will keep him out of the first and maybe the second rounds.

Everett and Thomas are not getting much exposure in draft guides and websites, but both should be able to rest easily knowing that they will be taken on Day One. Thomas is one of the fastest rising prospects and could entice a team to risk drafting him in the third round.

Quarterback Brock Berlin and offensive lineman Chris Myers will be sweating out Day Two of the draft because neither is guaranteed to be taken at all. Not being drafted would not mean the end of their careers, however, because each would be quickly signed as a free agent after the draft.

Although UM will not be sending five or more players to the first round this year, there are still plenty of reasons Hurricane fans should tune in to this year’s draft.

Eric Kalis can be contacted at e.kalis@umiami.edu.

With critics and fans questioning how good the baseball team truly is, No. 6 Miami came out inspired last weekend and took a critical series from No. 7 North Carolina at Boshamer Stadium.

The Hurricanes began the series with an offensive explosion Friday afternoon, out slugging the Tar Heels 17-7. Freshman Alex Garabedian paced Miami by driving in a career-high five runs and leadoff hitter Danny Figueroa went 3-for-5.

The game was expected to be a classic showdown between two of the best pitchers in the country, UM’s Cesar Carrillo and UNC’s Andrew Miller, but it became a batting clinic plagued by defensive consistency. Both teams combined to produce 19 hits, 16 walks and seven errors.

Carrillo lasted six innings, relinquishing seven hits, five runs (four earned) and three walks and striking out one. He improved to 9-0 on the season and 21-0 in his Miami career, putting him in a tie for sixth on the all-time consecutive decisions won list. Freshman Manny Miguelez earned his first career save in three innings of relief.

North Carolina point guard Raymond Felton threw out the first pitch, but his appearance did not inspire Miller, who fell to 7-1 with the loss, giving up nine runs (seven earned), three hits and eight walks in only 2.1innings. Miami’s 17 runs were the most scored against UNC since Georgia Tech put up 19 in May 2001.

The onslaught continued Saturday as the Hurricanes scored nine unanswered runs to pull away to a comfortable 18-9 victory. Ryan Braun broke open a tie game in the seventh inning with a two-run home run. His homer tied him with Charles Johnson for eighth on UM’s career list.

Relievers Andrew Lane and Chris Perez combined for 4.2 scoreless innings as Lane improved to 2-0 with the win in a career-high three innings of work, striking out three. Starter Brandon Camardese struggled, lasting merely 1.2 innings, allowing four earned runs, five hits and three walks. UNC hurler Daniel Bard also went 1.2 innings, giving up six runs (five earned) on four hits and three walks.

Jon Jay had a solid night, going 3-for-6 with five RBI. He was responsible for the Hurricanes’ first run, as his first-inning single drove in Figueroa.

Saturday’s game was shown nationally on ESPN 2.

The baseball team returns to action Friday when the Hurricanes take on Florida State at Mark Light Field in a three-game series. Each game can be heard on WVUM 90.5 FM.

Eric Kalis can be contacted at e.kalis@umiami.edu.