February 2011 Archives
By all accounts, it was a great weekend for Jake Locker at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis. He showed off his speed (4.59 officially in the 40 ... and faster than some receivers and tailbacks), but it seems scouts and media members were impressed with his accuracy, which has been dissected, picked apart, etc. Turns out, our quarterback can throw the ball a little bit...
This was echoed by CBSSports.com's Rob Rang, who states that Locker helped himself with his throwing performance in Indy. A good story from the weekend was Danny O'Neil's profile on Locker's Combine experience in the Seattle Times. Here's video from Georgia WR A.J. Green (Locker's workout partner) talking about how well the Washington QB performed in throwing drills.
A bracing wind greeted the Huskies after the team stepped off the airplane at Spokane International Airport. As frosty as the temps were in Seattle when the team took off, the conditions on the eastern side of the state were downright arctic.
 Before making the trek down to Pullman, the Huskies stopped at a downtown Spokane mall to have dinner. As the bus made its exit off the highway, Spokane native Jeneva Anderson pointed out "the most dominant high school basketball program in the state" to her teammates - Lewis & Clark. This drew a lot of boos from her teammates, many of whom went to Seattle schools. After dinner, the team settled into the bus for the 90-minute ride. Along the way, the Huskies watched an extended version of the highlight video that played during their team banquet last week. The elongated clips showed jumbotron snippets that are shown during halftime, video the team doesn't get to see because they're in the locker room. When the team arrived in Pullman, the thermostat did them no favors. The temperature was a brisk -6 degrees, and the UW-issued parkas offered little resistance to the biting winds howling across the Palouse. Thankfully, the hotel offered plenty of heat. The Huskies schedule for Saturday includes scout film on Washington State and then an hour of shootaround at Beasley Coliseum. Tip off tonight is at 5:30 p.m. (PST) and the game can be seen on FSN NW.
Crazy to think that one of the signature University of Washington events is just 2 1/2 months away. While that seems like a long time out, here at UW we're already in the planning stages to make the 25th annual Windermere Cup one of the best ever.
 This week, several of the key players responsible for putting Windermere Cup together met at Conibear Shellhouse to begin the planning stages of the event. This meant coaches and administrators, along with the team from Windermere Real Estate. There's a lot of logistics that go with hosting a rowing event where more than 40,000-people attend, but it's one of the fun aspects of the Windermere Cup. And the student-athletes certainly appreciate all the community support. Windermere Cup will be held on May 7th on the Montlake Cut. The teams competing against the UW are still TBA.
Junior Conlin McCabe has had an impressive career already at Washington, one that was made a little more sterling with his win at C.R.A.S.H.-Bs last weekend.
 Sweeping the medal stand in Boston created a big impact for Washington in the rowing world, particularly in McCabe's hometown of Brockville, Ontario. The 6-8 McCabe was profiled today in the Brockville Recorder, which discusses his win at the prestigious erg competition and his overall development as a rower. This summer/fall, McCabe trained in Victoria, B.C., with the Canadian national team, and he later competed under the Maple Leaf at the World Championships in Lake Karapiro, New Zealand. "He's been training hard with the Canadian national team and I think (Canadian coach Mike) Spracklen got him in tremendous shape," said men's crew coach Mike Callahan. "He's just tough as nails right now and he really wants to prove he deserves a spot on the Canadian team." McCabe noted in the article he's now looking to break the UW 2K erg record after pulling a 5:48 in Boston. Always good to have a shellhouse full of motivated rowers. Mention the name Kristen Linton around the Washington gymnastics team and prepare to hear more raves than at a Pixar media screening.  Photo by Ted Copeland. Head coach Joanne Bowers on her senior gymnast Kristen Linton: "When you look at her on floor, her dance quality and her performance quality -- when she performs, everyone in the entire arena, just stops, and their mouths hang open." Her fellow captain, senior Sam Walior, describes Linton as an "absolutely gorgeous" gymnast with gymnastics that are "beautiful to watch." Her head coach, Joanne Bowers, agrees. "She is so beautiful, artistically, to watch," Bowers said. "When you look at her on floor, her dance quality and her performance quality -- when she performs, everyone in the entire place, no matter what arena, just stops, and their mouths hang open." However, Linton wasn't always the gymnast who stops crowds whenever she puts on a leotard. When Linton graduated from Meadowdale High School in Lynnwood, Wash., she was finished with gymnastics. After two injury-plagued seasons, her junior and senior years of high school, Linton was set to enroll at Western Washington University -- a school without a gymnastics program. Read the full story here: http://dailyuw.com/2011/2/24/walk-stardom/. Newly named men's head soccer coach Jamie Clark conducted his first interview at UW last week. Watch the UW Fast Break feature below.
Check out some gymnastics meet highlights of the most recent meet at ASU.
Check out some pictures from the batting cages on Saturday in San Diego during the rain out.
 Photo Gallery
Ho man, I was really busy last week and I didn't have time to write a blog entry so this one should be a little longer. I'll start from where I left off I suppose...
Two weeks ago I wasn't really sure what to do over the weekend but I heard that some of my friends were going to be going to a nearby mountain, Cotopaxi and I was interested in that. On Friday my friend, Danny, went and checked out some climbing agencies around town and found that for a trip with a guía (guide) it costs $160. We were a little shocked that it cost that much but soon discovered that that was actually a pretty good deal because usually those trips cost from $180-250 and it included almost all the equipment and meals as well. I wasn't planning on spending that much money because all the weekends before that I'd been spending about $100 consistently and needed to cut back. Eventually I decided to do it though because my main man, Alex, who studied abroad in Italy last year told me that some things are spendy but really are worth it in the end. I figured this was one of those things that would cost a lot but I'd be happy I did in the end.
I decided Friday night that I'd do it the next day so Danny gave me the packing list of 2 socks, 2 pants (not jeans), long underwear (which I brought thankfully), short and long sleeve shirt, sweatshirt, sunglasses, sunscreen, stocking cap, gloves, 2 liters of water at least, snacks, 3 triple A batteries, and a backpack. We were told to have a good dinner that night and hydrate a lot and get good rest so I ended up getting to bed at 10 that night to meet at the climbing office (Yanasacha: means Black Mountain/Jungle in the Quichua language which is native to the Andean Region) which was a short walk from my house.
 I took a trip to Berlin this past weekend and it was amazing! I saw the Berlin wall, Brandenburg gates, and i toured Sachsenhausen concentration camp. Berlin was so pretty and it was really interesting to see all of the history. Kellye Joswick
Continue reading Joswick's Pictures From Abroad.
Cool article in the Seattle Times this weekend about Seattle children learning to row. Of course, there's no better resource for teaching rowing than the University of Washington, home to one of the best crew teams in the nation.
The article focuses on three Seattle middle schools learn what is a "classic Seattle sport" at part of Erg Ed, an initiative by Seattle public schools. But local students don't always have the reach to row, so the school district wants to make teaching an education available to the youngsters. As part of the event, students held an erg relay on Concept 2 rowing ergometers. And there are plenty of benefits to rowing, as the Seattle Times points out. On a more short-term scale, rowing is a skill that could carry students through college on a scholarship. Members of the University of Washington crew team joined the group at the middle school Friday to participate in the relay race and show middle-school students what their future could hold. At the forefront of the article is Portia McGee, wife of Husky assistant Luke McGee and a former Olympic rower. McGee now works alumni relations at the Bush School in Madrona/Madison Park.
For the past two months, former Washington Huskies QB Jake Locker has been busy prepping for the NFL Draft. He's shuttled between Seattle and Orange County for high-intensity workouts and performed at the Senior Bowl. The NFL Combine is also on his upcoming calendar.
Gatorade is chronicling the journey in partnership with the NFL. The sports drink company recently spent some time up here in Seattle with Jake to film him working out, and those clips made their way onto the trailer for the web program "Everything to Prove." The show will follow 14 NFL prospects as they go through the gauntlet known as the draft process. Be sure to check out the trailer. Let us know what you think in the comments section. Here's the official boiler plate from Gatorade "Everything to Prove" will leverage the talents and knowledge of NFL Films to document the journeys of 14 top-rated rookies. NFL Films and Gatorade will follow these athletes from the moment their college eligibility ends into the first game of the 2011 season, highlighting the myriad of challenges faced by pro prospects: rooming with fellow rookies at the Senior Bowl, lining up for the 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine, anxiously awaiting their name on Draft Day, moving to a new city, joining their new teammates at training camp, and the countless workouts, hijinx and weight room sessions in between. Featured rookies include:
Sarah Morton is an understandably big focus for the Washington women's basketball program this weekend. The senior will play her final two home games of her career against the Arizona schools, and she's admitted that emotion might get the best of her this weekend.
There have been a couple of noteworthy features on Morton, and we'll start with Gregg Bell's (GoHuskies.com Director of Writing) excellent piece on Morton's decision to stay for Tia Jackson's inaugural season at the UW.  "Once I signed, I was a Husky for life," Morton said. "I always wanted to
come here. I love the school. I liked the girls on the team. It was
close to my family. There were more aspects than just basketball. And
when I met Coach J, I knew I liked her from Day One."
Next up is Jayda Evans' piece in the Seattle Times on Morton and how she headlines the Huskies' brand of basketball - toughness, grit and physical play. "She's the first four-year player that's gone through the system with me and just to see her growth ... she's been tremendous," Jackson said. Scott Johnson of the Everett Herald also chimed in with an excellent article on not only Morton's final home stand but the importance of the WBCA "Pink Zone" game to Coach Jackson, who last year dealt with the death of her mentor to lymphoma. Check out some meet highlights at Utah last weekend.
Graham Hays, a writer for espn.com covers college softball and yesterday posted his top five questions entering the season. He listed Jenn Salling as one of the top players to watch: Jenn Salling, SS, Washington: Things won't look the same in Seattle without Danielle Lawrie casting contemptuous glances from the circle at overmatched hitters, but don't be too quick to label this a rebuilding effort. The Huskies still have one Canadian Olympic veteran in Salling, and coach Heather Tarr singled out her All-American as someone who returned this season with a newfound focus. If she can galvanize a young team as well as she hits and fields, look out. View his complete article here: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/columns/story?columnist=hays_graham&id=6101499. Hays also listed Salling as a pre-season Second-Team All-American. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/columns/story?columnist=hays_graham&id=6105332. Former women's soccer player Vanessa Pierce started a non-profit organization, She Jumps! Check out her blog and website here: http://www.shejumps.org/.
Men's soccer player Brent Richards continues to blog while he is studying abroad in Ecuador. Check out his latest post here: http://brecuador2011.blogspot.com/.
The gymnastics team played some basketball before practice on Monday as a part of "Monday Fun Day" for not counting a fall at the last meet at SPU.
Thanks to a delay, the Huskies arrived in Northern California a few extra hours than they anticipated. But given how just about every team member is now armed with the complete Apple arsenal of toys (iPod, iPad, iPhone, etc.), the two-hour wait went about as smooth as possible.
Prior to leaving for the airport, the Huskies watched about 30 minutes of film, going over the scout for their upcoming game against the Golden Bears. Then it was time to grab a snack and head onto the bus. With the clear weather in Seattle, the Huskies had pristine views of Mt. Rainier, the Space Needle and Lake Union on their drive to SeaTac.  Once the team arrived in Oakland, it was time to board the charter bus and scoot over to Berkeley. Kristen Fyffe, the team's director of basketball operations, gathered the cell phones and delivered instructions for the next day, such as time for breakfast, shootaround, etc. Meanwhile, Coach J and one of our managers tickled the ivory on the lobby piano.  The Huskies and Cal play an important game tomorrow at 7 p.m. (PST). The Golden Bears are 9-2 at Haas Pavilion, but the Dawgs do have some bragging rights after the initial meeting earlier this year. GoHuskies.com will have a live chat available so fans can follow along during the game. Check out some practice videos from head coach Lesle Gallimore that were taken at recent Winter training practices on the East Field. http://sharing.theflip.com/session/b365e69da6b58b52eba108043cae65fa/video/58802291 http://sharing.theflip.com/session/1e7529f4dd6c10c4cd4aeb117da3083f/video/58842081 Check out the first feature on newly named men's soccer coach Jamie Clark by Dave Clark. http://www.sounderatheart.com/2011/2/4/1976101/husky-soccer-planning-for-greatness. The University of Washtington just hired a new Head Coach. It is a coach with connections to the Seattle Sounders, and one that seems to want those connections to be as strong as they possibly can be. As in the other football, he clearly sees his number one goal to put up a fence around the state and keep every great player at here, while picking up good players from around the country, as well. His goal is simple: just be one of the greatest college soccer programs in the country. Coach Jamie Clark (no relation) and I talked about why he took the position here after a year at Creighton and a few years at Harvard, the potentials for relationships with the Sounders and the passion for soccer at all levels in the greater Puget Sound. It should be noted that the University of Washington is one of many schools that I have attended.
Check out video highlights from the big win at SPU. The Huskies scored a season-best 195.800. Women's soccer senior Kellye Joswick is studying abroad in Greece with McKenna Waitley and she sent some photos of a recent trip to Egypt.
In the last seven days, the Washington crew program has experienced a pair of unfortunate passings. On Feb. 3, W. Hart Perry - step-father of women's crew assistant Colin Sykes - died at the age of 77. Perry had a distinguished career coaching rowing in the Northeast and was an instrumental figure in helping the Huskies' gain entry to the Henley Royal Regatta. Perry was also the executive director of the National Rowing Foundation. He lived his life to serve the sport he loved.
Last week, the Huskies also mourned the loss of Virginia Varnell Dunn. Her name is associated with the annual Class Day Regatta trophy, and last year she presented her father's trophy (George M. Varnell) to the winner of the men's class race on the Montlake Cut. Mr. Varnell was at one point in his career the sports editor of the Seattle Times. The following Pac-10 softball games will be televised this spring as part of the Conference's agreement with Fox Sports Net: Date of game Friday, April 1 Oregon at Washington, 6:00 p.m. PT Friday, May 6 Arizona at UCLA, 7:00 p.m. PT Thursday, May 12 Stanford at Arizona State, 7:00 pm PT The April 1 game for UW will be the 2011 Pac-10 opener and the first of three games on the weekend vs. the Ducks. Distribution Fox Sports Net; a two hour tape-delayed show will be distributed on the day following the game.
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