Times wires
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
OKLAHOMA CITY — Katelyn Boyd and freshman Alix Johnson each drove in three runs, Annie Lockwood homered and Arizona State beat Florida 7-2 Tuesday night to win its second NCAA softball championship in four years.
The top-seeded Sun Devils (60-6) holdovers from their first Women's College World Series title in 2008 and some key freshmen to continue the Pac-10's dominance of the event. The conference has won 23 of the 29 championships, including six in a row. The SEC has never won the title.
"It's so hard to win one. To have the opportunity to win two, that's just plain special," coach Clint Myers said after a two-game sweep of the Gators. "You get into an elite group."
Florida (56-13) switched back from freshman pitcher Hannah Rogers to senior Stephanie Brombacher, and got out to a 1-0 lead when Michelle Moultrie doubled and scored on Brittany Schutte's sacrifice fly in the first.
Arizona State quickly answered in the second.
Brombacher forced in a run by walking Johnson, and Boyd added a two-run single to right field to put the Sun Devils ahead to stay. Johnson blooped in a two-run single to right in the third, and Boyd tacked on an RBI single to right in the fifth.
Vols AD resigns
Tennessee athletic director Mike Hamilton announced he decided to resign so the Volunteers would have a "clean slate" when they go before the NCAA's Committee on Infractions later in the week.
Hamilton, who has been at the helm of Tennessee men's athletics for eight seasons, said it was both a personal decision and one that he hoped would help reunite the Vols fan base.
During a three-year period, Hamilton fired a popular coach, hired a controversial one and now the athletic department faces 12 NCAA infractions against the football and basketball programs.
"The last several years at UT have been marked by turmoil, fractures and the development of camps. This is not healthy, nor is it productive for our university," Hamilton said. "During the last three months in particular, I myself have become a lightning rod for negative attention."
He is receiving a buyout of $1.3 million over three years. Hamilton will join UT-Knoxville chancellor Jimmy Cheek, former Vols and current Southern California football coach Lane Kiffin and former basketball coach Bruce Pearl and other Tennessee representatives to respond to the NCAA's charges Saturday in Indianapolis.
Hamilton first drew criticism from fans in 2008 when he fired Phillip Fulmer, who had led the Vols to a national title a decade earlier, before the football season had ended. He replaced Fulmer with Kiffin, who bolted after one season, leaving the program coping with violations in his wake.
BCS sets bowl dates
The Bowl Championship Series has chosen dates for its five bowl games in an effort to avoid conflicts that could arise because of the NFL lockout, with flexibility to move the title game.
While the BCS title game in New Orleans remains scheduled for Jan. 9, a Monday night, it could be moved to Jan. 7 or 10.
BCS executive director Bill Hancock said the mostly midweek dates were chosen in case the lockout causes the NFL schedule to be pushed back. He said the Rose Bowl, which is not played in an NFL stadium, will be played Jan. 2. The Sugar Bowl will be played Jan. 3, a Tuesday, then the Orange Bowl on Jan. 4 and the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 5.
'Noles to host Aggies
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Krey Bratsen's RBI single broke a scoreless tie in the eighth inning and Texas A&M beat Arizona 3-0 to reach the baseball super region, where it will meet FSU in Tallahassee. Game 1 is at 4:30 Saturday.
A day after rain and lightning caused a postponement, the Aggies (45-19) won the College Station region.
women's basketball: Brooke Wyckoff, a standout forward for FSU from 1997 to 2001, was hired as an assistant coach. She replaces Cori Close, who became UCLA coach in April.