Today, the ACC accepted Syracuse and Pittsburgh.  The main impetus of this move is football, the addition of two programs that have won national championships which enhances the stature of that conference in the BCS.  The by products of such a move are the inevitable increase in the strength of the ACC as a basketball conference while also insuring its existence if/when the SEC comes calling for some of the ACC football programs that have been rumored moving.  Football, and the associated dollars from television and bowl games, is THE and ONLY driver in these moves.

So what does this mean for the Big East and the Big 12?  Will there be four, five or six super conferences founded on football?  And what will happen to the rest of the collegiate athletic landscape? 

Certainly the Big East has been weakened.  Look for UConn and Rutgers in particular to attempt to flee that conference.  If the Big East is going to survive, it must look west to the Big 12, which has its own issues in remaining intact.  A year ago, there was a distinct possibility that Kansas would be left in the cold with conference realignment...amazing that one of the hallowed basketball programs could be without a conference home.  Texas A&M, Texas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State are all mulling over the possibilities for their institutions.

A couple of years ago, my good friend Dave O'Brien a former athletics director and now the director of the Drexel University sports management program, suggested the creation of a Catholic basketball conference based upon the WCC model.  Today, maybe more so than ever, this move appears to make great sense.  Imagine an "East Coast Conference" with Georgetown, St. Johns, Villanova, Providence, St. Joseph, Marquette, Creighton, and a handful of other candidates creating a basketball rich environment. 

I am very proud of the WCC, through the leadership of Commissioner Jamie Zaninovich, taking the initiative in seeking out BYU to become a Conference member.  We took decisive action to strengthen the Conference rather than watching curiously the happens around the college athletic scene hoping to be minimally negatively impacted.  Certainly those Catholic schools mentioned above must feel somewhat powerless, but they shouldn't.  They can take their fate in their own hands and create something that matches who they are.

Being proactive is what the non-football power schools should be doing in the Big East and the Atlantic 10 Conference.  Basketball is the game for universities like LMU and basketball players want to go where they are the focus of the university rather than encore acts for football.  Where all of this will end I am uncertain.  But I do know, it isn't over.

LMU lost a great fan in Terry Sullivan.  Terry was a frequent fan and attendee of our athletics contest as well as a great fan of LMU rugby.  Terry was 49 when he passed away and his brother Dan was constantly by his side.  He was also an athlete in his own right, having participated in LMU's Special Games for the past 20 years.  Because of Terry's special needs, he made everyone else he came into contact special.  His sister in-law Rhonda and niece both spoke at the eulogy and told of the lessons that they learned from Terry.  This year, Terry will be in Heaven's front row with Hank and Pete and Bruce and so many others, cheering on the Lions.

 

This weekend the Lions lost in double overtime to Rutgers University on Friday. The girls did not take this loss lightly. The loss lit fire under their belts and the Lions took out their anger on CSU Bakersfield and won 3-0 on Sunday. Sophomore defender Etajha Gilmer scored for the Lions on Friday while Freshman Linda Bakker scored twice for the Lions on Sunday and Junior Cori McGovern had the third goal.

 

This week we looked at Sophomore Forward Tawni Martino's pre-game routine on Sunday vs. CSU Bakersfield. Every athlete has their own superstition and ways to get ready for games. Here is how Tawni Martino gets ready for hers...

Sunday September 4, 2011 LMU vs CSU Bakersfield

8:45 AM: Wake Up
9:00 AM: Team Breakfast in the coaches' offices. Breakfast included bagels, cereal, fruit and yummy chocolate milk.
10:01 AM: Walked to the training room.

10:13-10:59 AM: Had treatment and took an ice bath

11:00 AM: Walked to our brand new awesome locker room.
11:07 AM: Made my Facebook status and tweeted, "GAME DAY! GO LIONS! Rawrrr!"
11:15 AM: Listened to music with all the girls in the locker room
11:25 AM: Started putting on socks, cleats, shin guards, etc.
11:35 AM: Put my own headphones in and listened to music to get in the zone.
11:52 AM: Team ritual "clap"

11:55 AM: Coaches came in for team pre-game talk

12:12 PM: walk out to field for warm up

1:00 PM: GAME TIME!

Gabby: Do you have any superstitions or routines that you do prior to every game?

Tawni: I have a couple superstitions and routines that I do before every game. I always wear the same sliders for every game and I have this yellow sweatband that I always wear on my left arm. I also make sure to listen to my own music to "get in the zone" and once we step on the field, I do a special handshake with Tata (Etajha Gilmer).

Gabby: What is your favorite part about game day?

Tawni: I think my favorite part about game day is just the environment and enthusiasm from all of my teammates and the fans. I love stepping on the field ready to play some soccer.

Gabby: What time of music do you listen to before the game to get ready?

Tawni: Most of the time I listen to hip-hop, rap, and electronica music but sometimes I also listen to pop. Anything that can get me amped up or if it's popular right now I'll listen to it.

 

Thank you Tawni for letting us see your game day routine! The Lions will head to Fullerton at 7pm on Friday and will be home again Sunday vs SMU at 1pm. See you there!

GO LIONS!

 

The Lions beat Long Island University on Friday 3-0 with goals from Tawni Martino, Erin Rementer and Britney Sanford. On Sunday the Lions played 110 minutes, including two over times, and walked away with a 0-0 tie against Fresno State University. The defense was nothing but strong this weekend as they continue to shut out their opponents for the third game in a row. This weekend was the first weekend at home and they did not disappoint!

 

This week I chatted with Senior Forward Erin Rementer. She shared with me 20 things that you might not know about her...

 

20 things about me, Erin Rementer:

 

1.     I played for Leahi premiere Ho'okalakupua club in Hawaii.

2.     I have about 20 ducks in my backyard as pets.

3.     I hate Mayonnaise and I tell people that I am allergic to it.

4.     I love the Lakers.

5.     I am obsessed with Kobe Bryant.

6.     I am not a typical Asian driver. I am actually a very good driver.

7.     I want Strawberry shortcake to be my wedding cake.

8.     My favorite ice cream in mint chocolate chip.

9.     My favorite movie is Pride and Prejudice.

10. Traffic makes me grouchy.

11. My favorite soccer player is David Beckham.

12. I wish that Hawaii had In N Out Burger.

13. I love my 6-year-old nephew more than anything.

14. Benihanna is my favorite restaurant.

15. I have met Mia Hamm twice at an airport.

16. N*sync was my first concert.

17. I played basketball when I was eight years old...it didn't work out.

18.  Pineapple is my favorite fruit.

19. I won an art contest in 3^rd grade and every elementary school on my island was entered in the contest.

20. My role model is my Aunt Noreen because she recently had a stroke that paralyzed her, but she has one of the most positive outlooks on life and her recovery. It is truly inspirational.

I find it hard to believe that Erin is a good driver! This weekend Erin the

Lions are home again vs. Rutgers University (Friday at 4pm) and Cal State

Bakersfield (Sunday at 1pm). We would love to see you out there! The

energy in the stands is contagious!

GO LIONS!

Gabby Parisella class of 2011

As LMU celebrates its Centennial, a big part of LMU's history within Athletics are athletes going to have success within International experience. Reid Priddy experienced Olympic Gold in 2008 with U.S. Men's Volleyball team. He wasn't the first to do so.

Paul Sunderland helped Team USA earn gold in men's volleyball in the 1984 Olympics right here in Los Angeles.

In 1964, Hugh Foley won gold for Team USA Rowing. He was a member of the Rowing Eight with Coxswain team that claimed the top prize.

The first part of this month saw SEVEN Lions competing at the 2011 World University Games.

Women's water polo incoming senior Kimberly Benedetti was the lone current student-athlete to play in the games, winning a Silver Medal for the U.S. Women's Water Polo Team.

In the women's beach volleyball competition, former LMU teammates Heather Hughes (2004-07) and Emily Day (2005-08) joined forces to capture a silver medal in Shenzhen, China.  The silver is the first beach volleyball medal ever for the United States at the World University Games.

Also participating in the games were Andy Stevens (2008-11) for the U.S. Men's Water Polo Team and Diana Romero (2008-11), Daisy Carrillo (2009-11) and Mary Ann Campos (2008-11) for the Mexican Women's Water Polo Team.

GO LIONS!

This past weekend the Lions hooked the Longhorns and won their first game 3-1 at the University of Texas! They continued to shine on Sunday when they beat Texas State 1-0. The goal scorers of the weekend were Tawni Martino, Brittney Sanford, Darien Pyka and freshman Brianne Medved. Even though these girls put the goals away it was an entire team effort. I talked to the three Lion captains: Jaide Garcia, Brittney Sanford and Rachel Fell to see what they had to say about the winning weekend!

Gabby: How was starting off the season beating a top ranked opponent? (Texas was ranked #18 going into the game on Friday).

Jaide:  Starting off with a big win is exactly what our team needed to get our season going. We have worked really hard this month and the two wins solidified our confidence for the games ahead. We really proved our potential this weekend so now we just have to focus on capitalizing on it. We are determined to make the NCAA tournament this year and we are off to the best possible start!

Gabby: How is the team chemistry after the road trip to Texas?

Jaide: The team chemistry has been great this season and this trip made it better. We are missing  Whitney but she has kept in great touch with us via texting. The games brought the team together because all 23 players were needed to keep the energy up to get our wins. We learned how to rely on each other this weekend and were able to show the 8 new members what being a lion is all about!

Gabby: How important was not only beating the Longhorns, but beating Texas State for the weekend sweep on the road?

Rachel: Bringing home two wins this weekend is massive for us. With no pre season games to prepare us we went into this weekend inexperienced compared to both teams. We have very few away games so to capitalize on these is a great way for us to get ahead.

Gabby: What was your favorite part of the trip?

Rachel: My favorite part of the trip was the experience we had at the University of Texas. We were lucky enough to have been given a tour of their football stadium and behind their facilities. For me, who has never seen the football side of college athletics, it was a great experience.,,one that many do not get to see. From the huge stadium to the marble flooring and Heisman Trophy collection, it didn't take long to feel the high end of college football. Then later that day we played a hard fought game that all 23 players came together for a historic win. It was a great day in all.

Gabby: Brittney, What were your feelings going into the penalty kick knowing that if you scored, your team would take the lead against the University of Texas? Did you have a specific approach?

Brittney: My feelings stepping into take the PK was a mixture of nervousness as well as confidence. I believe that PKs are just as much mental as they are skillful. I couldn't think about the repercussions of this penalty kick if I missed. Instead, I went into the PK knowing that I was going to make it. I stared at the keepers eyes while running toward the goal and I struck the ball as hard as I could to the left side of the net. I will never forget it.

Gabby:  Do you have any funny stories from the trip?

Brittney: A few of our teammates thought it would be funny to steal Ojo, Whitney Sharpe's stuffed bear. Whitney was unable to attend the trip because of transfer rules with the NCAA. We were going to miss Whitney and we needed someone to take her place. We ended up treating Ojo like a part of the team. We documented his trip with us. He did things like eat pizza, pick up baggage, hydrate etc. We ended up taking several comedic pictures which gave us all a good laugh...except for whit of course! Sorry we aren't sorry whit! (pictures of Ojo below)

Sounds like an amazing weekend filled with great team chemistry, great soccer and a 2-0-0 record! I don't know if you are as superstitious as I am, but it seems to me that Ojo needs to make an appearance at every home game, get his own plane ticket and own seat on the bus for every road trip!

Hopefully we will see YOU and Ojo at the Lions first home game this Friday at 4pm vs. Long Island University!

GO LIONS!

Gabby Parisella Class of 2011

The WCC announced the 2011-12 women's basketball schedule and the Lions will host 16 games at home. Add to that the games in the Thanksgiving Classic and the 21 games on the men's side, that is 37 games from Nov. 13 through Feb. 25! It will be a busy Centennial Season at LMU. Here is a look at the complete WCC schedule:

Editor's Note: This is a blog from LMU Athletics Director Dr. William Husak, who will be blogging throughout the 2011-12 season. Here are his first thoughts of the season.

The West Coast Conference announced the 2011-12 schedule, and with the addition of BYU to the league, its a schedule the league has never seen before. The Lions will play five of first seven on the road.  They will have a Monday conference game, a Wednesday conference game and the traditional travel partner set-up is the thing of the past, as evident by the Lions opening stretch. The Lions are one of just two teams (USF is the other) that has to play Gonzaga-BYU in back-to-back games. Here is the whole schedule:

Women's soccer was previewed in the South Bay Daily Breeze. Check out the story at:Daily Breeze Sports