Well, it’s certainly no secret to a majority of people on campus that they have a team compiling a rather impressive winning streak, one bigger than what any other program has amassed in the nation at this point.

No, I’m not talking about the football squad’s 26-game win streak, although Larry Coker’s team continues to win over fans across the nation each and every day.

I’m talking about a streak that just a handful of people noticed when it first started, thanks to the storm that is Hurricane Football. A streak in a sport that just saw its resurgence in Coral Gables last season after a 20-year absence at the University of Miami. A sport that’s national coverage consists of the occasional Final Four telecast on ESPN2, probably during hours where curling is the only other option.

The sport I am talking about is women’s volleyball. And the streak I’d be referring to, of course, is the second-year Miami Hurricanes, a team inhabited by one senior, six sophomores and six freshmen, who on Sunday, recorded their 25th straight victory, defeating Big East foe Providence.

Now we all love to jump on the bandwagon of a winning team. Whether we are members of the media, or just casual fans, winning means popularity, and more so-called supporters. Of course, some teams attract more attention and more “fair-weathered fans” than usual. (Just ask all the Yankee fans to name the starting lineup of any Yankee club pre-1995).

The Hurricane volleyball squad is not in that first category, but nevertheless, they have attracted a gradual amount of attention on campus. The Knight Sports Complex is home to a full house on a regular basis this season, and even more importantly, the media now rallies behind the new kids on the block.

However, what the mainstream media doesn’t realize is what I do realize from watching and covering this team over the past two years: It was only a matter of time before Hurricanes volleyball would be something special.

Now, am I surprised by the 25-match win streak? Of course. Just as I am surprised by the 26-game winning streak that the Hurricanes amassed on the football field. But from the moment I first watched this team, at the inaugural Hurricane Classic during September of 2001, the chemistry that the young Miami team exhibited was beyond impressive. At that time, Miami head coach Nicole Lantagne-Welch built her team around her two veterans, Kristi Sprinkel and Marcella Gamarra. The rest of the lineup: freshmen.

Gamarra, coming off two years at powerhouse Miami-Dade, took the initiative of being the squad’s big hitter, coming to the net early and often. Sprinkel offered veteran leadership and great blocking. The Hurricanes had a lot of skill in their youngsters as well: great all-around play from Jamie Grass, string set-up from Mallorey James, the skillful all around play of Sandra Totten, and Gammara’s complement, Valeria Tipiana. Dare we also mention hard hitter Elizabeth Tyson off the Miami bench and into the starting lineup when James went down with an injury.

The streak began Oct. 11, 2001 with a victory against Tulsa. That put Miami’s record at an even 7-7. Six days later, the face of volleyball in Coral Gables took a turn for the better when the Red Storm of St. Johns, 15-2 entering the Knight Sports Complex, were blown away by Hurricane Miami 3-0. I was on the PA that game, and I can say that the Hurricanes were able to organize their team and everyone suddenly had set roles.

The winning continued last season, 11 in a row to be exact, as Miami ended with a stellar 17-7 record. Although Gamarra, as expected, led the team in most major statistical categories, the thing that separated the first-half ‘Canes from the second-half ‘Canes were the set roles. Grass and James could focus primarily on setting the ball, while Totten and Sprinkel came to the net as tremendous blockers.

Although the ‘Canes would lose Sprinkel and Totten this year, a tremendous freshmen class has stepped up to the court, and Miami continues to win. Robin Lewullis fills in for Totten, and so far, she has proven to be as good of an all-around player. Margie Young became the Hurricanes setter while James recovered from injury, and with Tyson as an everyday player, Karla Johnson has been Miami’s spark off the bench. Don’t forget about Carrie Frash, arguably the team’s best setter.

But of course, the Hurricanes have several of last year’s starters intact, and they have been the ones to get the big points. Jamie Grass, now used at the new libero position, continues to improve her all-around defensive skills, and Tyson offers a big third option as far as attacking, after Gamarra and Tipiana. As for the South American duo, they could be the two best players in the Big East.

How long will the streak continue? Nicole Lantagne-Welch and her players will tell you the team is taking things one game at a time, which is the right mentality to take. Penn State holds the record with 44 straight victories, and the Hurricanes would need to put together another 19 victories to tie that mark. Regardless, this is a special team, and now you have your oppurtunity to see a great bunch of athletes participating in the exciting sport of volleyball. And whether the ‘Canes threaten Penn State’s record or lose their next five matches, the publicity is there, and Hurricane volleyball will continue to get plenty of coverage, at least from this publication.

You can reach Jeremy Marks-Peltz at jmp310@hotmail.com.

The University of Miami men’s cross country team finished 21st in the university race at the Great American Cross Country Festival in Charlotte, NC. The Hurricanes collectively scored 503 points and finished with a team time of 2:25:00.11 – an average of 29:00.2 over the eight-kilometer course.

This was Miami’s second race of the year after winning the UCF Invitational to start the season in early September.

“It was a whole different level of competition,” said UM runner Dan Boniface. “These teams were unreal. We wanted to place a little but higher up, but we did ok considering it was an extremely difficult course.”

The event, which was held at the Ballantyne Resort, saw 25 schools compete with a record 168 runners in this year’s University run. The Great American Cross Country Festival, an event that features 35 different cross-country races is also billed as one of Nike’s Great Races of America. The overall event projects 5000 runners from 40 states, Canada, Great Britain and Mexico.

Winning the 2002 University Team title was Northern Arizona with a low of 26 points. The team points is the total finish time of the school’s top five finishers. NAU finished with a total of 2:13.07.30, an average of 26:37.46 each.

The Hurricanes highest finishes came from their two only upperclassmen No. 56 junior Matt Mulvaney and No. 72 senior Dan Boniface. Mulvaney finished the course with a time of 27:47.6, Boniface finished in 28:02.5. NAU’s Henrik Ahnstrom, who won the event, finished with a time of 26:23.1.

“I definitely wanted to finish higher up, but I just never found my rhythm,” Boniface said. “The course was really muddy – I felt kind of lost out there.”

“Matt ran a great race through horrible conditions…He is tough as nails.”

Rounding out the rest of UM’s top five finishers was No. 99 freshman Alex Brutvan (28:39.1), No. 129 freshman James Mullaly (29:15.6) and No. 157 sophomore Matt Maloney (31:15.3). Sophomore Billy Bludgus (31:41.6), who finished sixth for UM came in 160th place.

The Hurricanes will next travel to the Gator Invitational in Gainesville on Oct. 5.

“This meet really showed us where we are,” Boniface said. “We are now really hungry and much better prepared for this weekend’s race in Gainesville.”

Article provided by the UM Sports Information Department.

When tragedy occurs, things in your life are really put into the proper perspective. When Walter Payton passed away, his son, Jarrett, became that much more motivated to succeed.

Jarrett Payton, a running back on the Hurricanes football team, and son of the legendary Walter Payton, got off to a rough start this season when he missed the first game due to injury. Yet, with Willis McGahee dealing with the wear and tear of being an every down tailback, Payton may start to get more opportunities.

“Life is all about obstacles and getting back into things. My dad always told me nothing comes easy, and my mom told me that my time is going to come and I just have to be ready,” said Payton.

Jarrett Payton is a very gifted running back, and is just waiting for his opportunity at Miami. However, perhaps the best thing about Jarrett is the kind of person that he is off the field.

“If you work hard and are nice to people, people will respect you. That’s why I get along with everyone so well,” said Payton.

Jarrett Payton just has this likable quality about him. He works hard at everything he does, and he has goals for himself. He wants to work at the Walter Payton cancer foundation, and open a music-recording studio.

“Music is my love besides football. If football was taken away, I would get into that,” said Payton.

The influence that Walter Payton had on the football world as a whole was tremendous. “Sweetness” has also influenced his son to always work hard, both on and off the field.

“My father has influenced me as a person, not only in sports, but just being able to work hard, has helped me in school and in sports,” said Payton.

Walter Payton was a businessman as well as a great football player. When he died, the Payton family had to deal with that shock to their life. However, just like Walter always rose to the challenge, the Paytons have actually become stronger as a result of Walter’s untimely passing.

“I think we have become a lot stronger as a family. We were close, but when you have a father who plays football and is a businessman who is gone all the time, it’s hard to get close as a family. It’s too bad it took him passing away for us to get a lot closer,” said Jarrett.

Now the family is left with all women and Jarrett. As the only man of the house, Jarrett is dealing with new challenges, and he is even more motivated to succeed for his mom and his sister.

“Being the only man of the house is motivation because I want to play well for them. I don’t play football for myself, I do it for my mom and my sister – those are the two who love what I am doing. I love the game, I do it for me too, but those are the two people I strive to work hard for,” said Payton.

Emmitt Smith is approaching Walter Payton’s all-time career rushing yards record and has already passed Payton’s all-time career rushing attempts record. He is closing in on Payton’s record, but Jarrett has no bad feelings towards his father’s record falling.

“I love Emmitt, he reminds me a lot of my father. I’ve always felt that records are meant to be broken, and if he does it, he does it. I never thought it would happen though,” said Payton.

Through personal hardships, tragedy, and injuries on the field, Jarrett Payton has remained confident, and his positive attitude and hard work is what makes him so great, both on and off the field.

You can reach Darren Grossman a drg215@aol.com

Syracuse, NY- The University of Miami women’s soccer team remained undefeated in Big East play as it finished locked in a 2-2 two-overtime tie with Syracuse on Sunday afternoon in Syracuse, New York.
The Hurricanes remain at 7-3-1 overall and 3-0-1 in Big East play, while the Orangemen maintain a 2-5-2 overall record and 0-2-1 in the Big East.
Miami fell early in the match, 1-0, as midfielder Anne-Marie Lapalme blasted one far post on a pass from Natalie Galas in the 12th minute of play.
The Hurricanes found the equalizer three minutes later (15th minute) on an unassisted goal by forward Britney Butcher, who won a 50/50 ball and beat the Orangemen defense for her team-leading 10th goal of the season.
Forward Allison McWhinney gave the Hurricanes a 2-1 lead in the 29th minute as she gathered a rebound off a Vonda Matthews shot and knocked in her fifth goal of the season past goalkeeper Emily Kowalczyk.
However, Galas would send the match into overtime, scoring in the 64th minute of play on a pass from defender Erica Mastrogiacomo.
After two ten-minute overtime periods, the match remained scoreless ending in a 2-2 tie.
The Hurricanes out-shot the Orangemen 22 to 18. Additionally, Miami goalkeeper Rachel Elsby had an impressive performance registering 10 saves on the afternoon.
The Hurricanes return to Coral Gables as they host Connecticut on Friday, Oct. 4 at 7 p.m. and St. John’s on Sunday, Oct. 6. at 1 p.m.
Article provided by the UM Sports Information Department.

(U-WIRE) LOUISVILLE, Ky. – They wanted to save at least one goal post, but after Louisville’s historic 26-20 win over Florida State Thursday night in Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium, both yellow H’s were torn down and hauled off. Unlike the eerily similar game against Kentucky two years earlier, the win likely signifies the greatest moment in Cardinal Football history.

“Was that deja vu or what?” exclaimed a beaming John L. Smith in the post-game press conference. “It was just like the Kentucky game. I was just standing their in disbelief.”

After knocking off the vaunted Seminoles in a torrential downpour in front of 38,109 delirious U of L fans, much of the players thoughts turned to their belief in themselves before the game.

“I talked to the offense, and I looked around at those 25 guys, and I said outside of this room, no one believes in us,” said quarterback Dave Ragone. “I just said ‘believe,’ and everyone just started chanting it. These guys are unbelievable.”

Another magnificent performance from Ragone was coupled with a rare occurrence this season: equally impressive performances from his much-maligned offensive counterparts. Joshua Tinch hauled in four catches for 93 yards and a touchdown. Damien Dorsey pulled in three catches, a touchdown, and had 49 punt return yards. Broderick Clark racked up 117 return yards on four kick-returns. And Henry Miller, a third-string runner a year ago, pulled off the improbable: a 25-yard dash into the end zone on the second play of overtime, sealing the win and his place in Cardinals’ lore.

“I just said to myself that no man was gonna bring me down,” said Miller. “The play was between the tackles, and that’s how I run. No man was going to bring me down.”

The overtime period was set up by a tremendous second half in which the Cardinals outscored the Seminoles 17-10, and kept Florida State out of the end zone for the entire fourth quarter and overtime.

The defense, which has had to compensate for the inexperience of the young offense for much of the season, were able to control their side of the field much the way they did during last season’s conference-winning run.

“It’s the first time we, as a defense, came out and played a complete game,” said senior safety Anthony Floyd, “from beginning to end.” Louisville’s Devon Thomas took down Florida State’s Chris Nix.

Dave Ragone’s words probably mirrored what much of the team and the city felt. “It was surreal,” said Ragone. “I mean it’s just unbelievable.”

The statistics certainly show that unlike the Cards’ showing two years ago in Tallahassee, this Cardinal squad could compete against a Top 5 Florida State program. Ragone threw for 182 yards on 15-of-27 passing, two touchdowns, and also rushed an astounding 21 times, for 43 yards. The Cards as a team rushed for 121 total yards, controlled time of possession 31:04 to 28:36, and controlled all aspects of special teams, in return yards, punts inside the 20, and one blocked punt.

“This is huge for the program. We should be thankful that they (Florida State) even gave us the courtesy to come here and play us, which not many other teams are willing to do,” said Smith. “This is probably the biggest one win we’ve had.”

The Hurricane women’s tennis team has received a generous gift. The decision made by Megan Bradley to transfer from UCLA to Miami has earned immediate national attention for the team and puts them near the top of a short list of contenders for the NCAA tournament title.

After a successful freshman campaign at UCLA, boasting a singles record of 30-9 and a national ranking of five, Bradley decided that she wanted to head to a more familiar environment where she played in high school.

“I have experience playing around here, which influenced my decision,” Bradley said. “I have nothing negative to say about UCLA, I just wanted to play in familiar surroundings.”

Another key factor in Bradley’s decision was her relationship with Coach Paige Yaroshuk, whom Bradley has known for a long time. Yaroshuk could have a tremendous influence in improving her game.

“I have known coach [Yaroshuk] for a long time now,” Bradley said. “I felt she could help me develop to the highest level possible and build on my strengths while eliminating weaknesses.”

There aren’t many noticeable weaknesses in Bradley’s game. She owns one of the best serves in the country and a viscous forehand, two of the factors involved in her preseason ranking of No. 2 in the country (according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association).

“I like to use my size and strength to overpower opponents,” Bradley said. “I consider myself a very aggressive player, not shying away from a point.”

Bradley has been racking up victories on the court for a long time. She has had previous success on the junior circuit and was involved in the qualifying for this year’s U.S. Open, in singles, doubles, and mixed doubles. Last year, while at UCLA, Bradley advanced to the finals of the nationals in doubles.

One question that Bradley has been asked regularly is how the level of play of the Big East compares to that of the Pac-10. She feels that while the Pac-10 is one of the top conferences in the country, the Big East is not too far behind.

“In the Pac-10 you have three of the top ten teams in the country [Stanford,

California-Berkley, and UCLA],” Bradley said. “The Big East may not have those bragging rights, but it is still a very competitive conference and a good arena for me to improve in.”

As far as which matches are the most important on the schedule, Bradley was unable to pinpoint just one.

“I know that the Illinois match is important because it is the opening match and that Notre Dame is always a battle,” Bradley said. “We’re just going to try to improve every time out there and treat every match as the biggest of the season.”

Bradley will team in doubles with a freshman, Melissa Applebaum, who also has had some success in the junior circuit. The two hope to be one of the top tandems in the conference

“I have never played with Melissa before and I am looking forward to teaming with her,” Bradley said. “I know she has a good history in juniors and we should be pretty successful together.”

With Bradley on the roster, the Hurricane tennis team now has a chance to do some serious damage on the national level. Given Bradley’s track record and preseason ranking, there is no reason to believe that these high expectations and goals are unreachable.

You can reach Eric Kalis at elk777bc@hotmail.com.

The University of Miami volleyball team (14-0 overall, 2-0 BIG EAST Conference) thrived in its second Big East Conference challenge of the season Sunday, defeating Providence (2-15, 0-2) 3-0 at Mullaney Gymnasium, one day after winning their first league game of the season against Boston College.

With the victory, the Hurricanes improved their nation-leading win streak to 25 matches and remained undefeated on the season.

The Hurricanes were virtually unstoppable in the match, denying the hosts even a single block and relegating the Friars to a .010 hitting percentage. Coach Nicole Lantagne Welch said that she was pleased with the workmanlike manner in which her team dispatched Providence.

“It’s good to see us going in and taking immediate control,” the coach said.

The Hurricanes scored by committee, but freshman middle blocker Karla Johnson led the way with 13 kills and an outstanding .650 hitting percentage.

Freshman setter Margie Young chipped in a match high 36 assists. Senior outside hitter Marcela Gamarra led with a match high eight digs.

“We played well and we got great play out of our freshmen,” Lantagne Welch said. “It was a total team effort and we played at the best of our ability.”

On the heels of an 11 total blocks performance against Boston College, Robin Lewullis led at the net with nine total blocks.

The Friars were led by Ayana Cadres, who had 13 kills.

On Saturday, facing a gritty effort by Boston College, the Miami volleyball team emerged with its first Big East Conference victory of the season at Power Gymnasium in Chestnut Hill, Mass.

Welch was very pleased with her team’s performance and its ability to face the rigors of road play, an unfamiliar element for the second-year program.

The first two matches went into extra points, with the Hurricanes taking the first 37-35 and BC the second 31-29.

“The match started out very close, they came ready to play and we were a little bit down in the first two games,” Lantagne Welch said.

Miami overwhelmed the hosts in the third game 30-21 and in the fourth lowered the boom for a 30-14 decision.

The key for the Hurricanes, according to Lantagne Welch, was their superb blocking. “This was by far our best blocking match of the season,” the second-year coach said.

Lewullis led the ‘Canes with a career-high combined 11 blocks (two solo, nine assists). “This was her best blocking match so far,” Lantagne Welch said. The 11-block performance was the best by a Hurricane in the two years since the program’s restoration in 2001.

Gamarra led the offense with a match-high 23 kills. Her hitting percentage also topped all competitors at .346 and she was third among Hurricane players with 17 digs.

“Marcela was really steady for us throughout the match, her play was tremendous,” Lantagne Welch said.

Sophomore outside hitter Biz Tyson was second in kills for Miami with 16.

Sophomore setter Mallorey James engineered much of UM’s offense with a match-high 63 assists.

James recently returned to the court following an injury.

“(James) had a nice match and she played better as the match went on,” Lantagne Welch said, adding that it was good to see her making strides toward returning to form.

On defense, sophomore outside hitter Valeria Tipiana had a match high 22 digs, while sophomore libero player Jamie Grass chipped in with 18.

Sophomore outside hitter Katie Andersen led the Eagles with 18 kills and 21 digs.

Miami’s next contest is Oct. 5 at Villanova followed by another match on the road at Georgetown. The team’s next home match is Friday, Oct. 11 when it will host Rutgers at 7 p.m. in the Knight Sports Complex.

Article provided by the UM Sports Information Department.