Women's basketball
As expected, Mack Rhoades introduced Jodi Kest today as the next women's basketball coach.
Kest, who attended Mayfield High School, has agreed in principle to a five-year deal.
Click here to read the GoZips.com article, which includes Kest's bio.
Click here to read Texas A&M Corpus Christi's press release about Kest leaving their job.
Women's basketball
In two hours, the athletic department will name Jodi Kest as its new women's basketball coach, a source told me this morning.
If true, Akron will get one of the nation's elite defensive coaches. In two years at Texas A&M Corpus Christi, Kest has a record of 57-28.
Maybe the reason Kest comes to Akron is her local ties. She coached at Gannon University in Erie, Pa. and played at Slippery Rock University, which also is in Pennsylvania.
UPDATE: The Plain Dealer's Elton Alexander also is hearing Kest is the choice.
Softball
A surprising season ended in a surprising way for Akron.
Holding a 2-0 lead entering the last inning, the Zips gave up three runs to Northern Illinois, eliminating Akron from its first MAC Tournament in four years.
After throwing six scoreless innings, senior Megan MacKenzie gave up back-to-back solo home runs in the seventh. Freshman Julie Boyes came in relief. She gave up a walk and a sacrifice bunt before a Jamie Stanclift error ended the game in the bottom of the seventh.
The Zips, however, wouldn't have made it that far without the freshman Stanclift, whose two-run sixth-inning single accounted for Akron's only runs.
The Zips finished the season at 26-25, but that really doesn't tell the story.
It was supposed to be a rebuilding year, but freshmen like Stanclift and Boyes preferred it to be a reloading year. While the youth carried much of the team, the core of seniors like MacKenzie and Sara Zilles provided solid leadership to make the inaugural season of Lee Jackson Field one to remember.
Coach Julie Wright also is showing to be one of the unappreciated gems of Mike Thomas' coaching choices. Next year will bring higher expectations. But for now, I applaud how well Akron competed in 2006.
Women's basketball
The athletic department will announce its coaching selection tomorrow at noon.
The Buchtelite's inside sources are saying a number of very qualified candidates are possibilities. You can read about them a few posts below this one.
Track
With four events completed in the women's MAC Championships, two Zips are already conference champions.
Ashley Kaufman (javelin) and Stevi Large (hammer throw) won their events and brought in a majority of the points that put the Zips into first place for the women.
The men are in fifth place out of seven MAC teams with three events complete. Dan Digman (fourth) and Auston Papay (sixth) placed in the javelin event. Randall Hafner took seventh in the hammer throw.
Softball
It now appears Akron will wait until 5 p.m. to play Northern Illinois in the Zips second game of the MAC Tournament.
Rain pushed back yesterday's games, which is causing delays.
Track
In case you haven't seen it yet, here is a good feature by David Lee Morgan on Akron's track team.
The story is centered around Beata Rudzinska, who might be the most impressive pure, all-around athlete on campus.
I will update you on how today's MAC Championship events went as soon as I can.
Softball
A previous report saying the Zips/Northern Illinois game is at 11 a.m. was incorrect.
The game will start at 2 p.m.
Women's basketball
Dan Kadar, who will be the Buchtelite's sports editor in the fall, did some snooping on Mack Rhoades' candidates for the women's coaching job.
Here are the candidates he is hearing…
Conspicuously absent is Michigan State assistant Semeka Randall. Her exclusion apparently has upset some Cleveland-area prep coaches. Kadar's source says Randall's college coach, Tennessee's Pat Summit, has endorsed Randall for the job.
Despite that, this list looks very strong. Normally athletic directors give the politically correct answer about "having great candidates" even if they don't. If these names are true, Rhoades certainly has a good crop of selections, but a tough choice to make.
Track
The Zips are no longer ranked in Trackwire.com's top-25 women's track teams.
Individually, only Ashley Kaufman is ranked. She is No. 5 in the javelin, down from No. 1 two weeks ago.
To the best of my knowledge, the men's team hasn't been ranked all season. However, two individuals are…
For some reason, the URL for all Trackwire sites is the same. So if you want to look at the rankings, you will have to navigate the page to find the "Dandy Dozen."
Coach Dennis Mitchell explained to me how the Trackwire rankings work:
"Trackwire does it by ranking each event and then adding up the points they think each team will earn. With NCAA Championship rankings you could have a very good team that could beat teams in head to head meets, but not do well at nationals. Just a few good athletes could help you place high at nationals while you need a full strong team to win head to head. We have a great full team, but it may not be until regionals that we are able to show how we have the individuals to do well at nationals."
The MAC Outdoor Track Championships begin tomorrow. If the women win, it will be the first time a women's team has won the MAC's Triple Crown (cross country, indoor track and outdoor track). Here is GoZips.com's preview.
The event will be held in Toledo. The weather for Northwest Ohio looks really crummy. It is supposed to rain all weekend. That doesn't bode well for any runner hoping to qualify for the NCAA regionals.
Softball
The Zips' first game in the MAC Tournament in four years was not a good one.
Bowling Green held Akron to just two base hits, winning 4-0.
Bowling Green's star pitcher Liz Vrabel came ready to play. She threw a complete game, two-hitter, striking out six and walking two.
Megan MacKenzie took the loss for Akron. She is now 14-16.
Akron falls to the losers' bracket and will face Northern Illinois tomorrow at 11 a.m. The Huskies lost to Kent State today, 2-1.
As a consolation prize today, four Zips won conference awards…
Baseball
Although it has no bearing on Akron's chances for a bid in the MAC Tournament, the Zips beat Pittsburgh with a Kurt Davidson grand slam.
This next series, however, is different. Akron (14-31, 7-14 MAC) will play three games against Kent State, the MAC leader with a 16-5 conference record.
Akron stands 4.5 games behind Western Michigan, who currently holds the last spot in the MAC Tournament.
Softball
The softball team doesn't have to worry about making the tournament.
They locked up a position weeks ago. However, the 6-seed Zips do have to deal with 3-seed Bowling Green Falcons, who enter the MAC Tournament having won five of their last six games.
The Falcons have one of the conference's elite hitters in third baseman Gina Rango, who is batting .390 with 10 home runs and 32 RBIs. Bowling Green also has one of the best pitchers in Liz Vrabel, who is 16-10 with a 1.61 ERA.
The eight-team tournament is double-elimination.
Miscellaneous
Tomorrow I will accept an internship to do some sports reporting for the Indianapolis Star.
Although it will last two months this summer, I should be able to continue blogging.
In case you guys wonder what national media knows about Akron, Indy's sports editor first mentioned Gerry Faust, who was Notre Dame's head coach before coming to Akron.
Women's basketball
I just got off the phone with athletics director Mack Rhoades.
He expects the search for Kelly Kennedy's replacement to conclude by the end of this week or the start of next.
Although he declined to say who the possibilities were, Rhoades said he has spoken with about 10 of them.
Miscellaneous
The athletics department has not yet announced a replacement for Mike Waddell, the senior associate athletics director of external relations.
A report on ZipsNation.org says Hunter Yurachek has been hired. Yurachek graduated from Guilford College, which is the same school as Waddell. Most recently, Yurachek was associate athletics director for marketing and promotions at Virginia, the same school as where former AD Mike Thomas came from.
I asked Rhoades about it. He said the university will make an announcement in the next couple days on who will fill the position.
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