Phillips named C-USA’s co-hitter of the week

University of Memphis junior Jessica Phillips, a first baseman from Chattanooga, Tenn., was named C-USA co-hitter of the week for the second time this season, sharing the award with Houston's Melissa Gregson.  Phillips also won the award to open the 2011 season.  This week's award marks the fourth time this season that a Tiger has taken home league honors.

Phillips made league history by connecting on a trio of home runs in the Tigers' finale against UTEP, the most homeruns in a C-USA game by a single player. She finished the week with nine RBI to help The U of M sweep the Miners on the road for the first time in school history.  Phillips leads the team with nine home runs and 25 RBI this year. She is batting a team-best .297 and has scored 15 runs. She is currently fourth all-time in school history for most home runs in a season with nine, three away from matching the school record.


The Tigers (21-7, 6-3 C-USA) will play their next five games at home, where they will host a three-game league series with Tulsa this weekend and a doubleheader with Alabama State on Wednesday, April 6.

 

The Daily Helmsman - East Carolina Pirates burgle weekend series from Tigers

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East Carolina Pirates burgle weekend series from Tigers

By Adam Douglas

By Adam Douglas-->

Sports Reporter

Published: Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Updated: Tuesday, March 29, 2011 01:03

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First came the rain. Then came East Carolina, who dampened the Conference USA opening weekend for The University of Memphis. The Pirates defeated the Tigers in the C-USA opener and took the weekend series from the Tigers, two games to one.

Rain in the area forced both clubs to alter the times of the first pitch in two of the three games. Both squads agreed to play on Friday as planned, and then a double-header on Saturday starting with the first pitch beginning at 9 a.m. to avoid the inclement weather.

A lack of hitting plagued the Tigers in the series, largely due to East Carolina boasting one of the best pitching staffs in C-USA. The Tigers dropped the first game of the series, 3-2, despite sophomore Dan Langfield's 6.1 innings with four strikeouts. ECU held the Tigers to just five hits in the game, with two hits each coming from Robby Graham and the conference's leading hitter, Chad Zurcher.

The first game of the double-header on Saturday proved to be best for the Tigers in a 3-2 victory.  Seven Tigers had hits in the game as they snapped a 12-game losing streak in C-USA road openers. Ben Paullus (1-0) pitched 3.2 innings to earn the victory on the mound in relief of Memphis starter Ryan Holland.

Paullus allowed no hits on the day and struck out five batters while walking one. Holland pitched 5.1 innings and allowed two runs on eight hits. He struck out two and walked two. East Carolina reliever Brad Mincey (4-1) took the loss after allowing one run in the seventh.

T.J. Rich sparked the Tigers to their first run in the game. Rich advanced to second on a balk by ECU starting pitcher Mike Wright and Robby Graham hit an RBI-double to bat in Rich, giving The U of M a 1-0 lead. The Tigers then used a lead-off walk to Graham in the fourth to increase the lead to 2-0. The Pirates would rally in the bottom of the fifth to tie the score at 2, but the Tigers held on to win the game by scoring another run in the seventh.

The last game of the series went to the Pirates, who won, 5-3. Clayton Gant started for The U of M and pitch 6.2 innings and allowed two runs, one earned, on 10 hits. He struck out one and walked three.

The Tigers open a 10-game home-stand on Wednesday with a doubleheader against Mississippi Valley State. The U of M plays 18 of its next 23 games in the Bluff City with one game at AutoZone Park.

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The Daily Helmsman - Williams’ release leaves questions about Tigers’ QB situation

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Williams’ release leaves questions about Tigers’ QB situation

By Adam Douglas

By Adam Douglas-->

Sports Reporter

Published: Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Updated: Tuesday, March 22, 2011 01:03

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Ryan Williams, who started 10 games at quarterback for The University of Memphis last season, has been released from his scholarship, coach Larry Porter announced last week.

Williams finished the season with 2,075 yards and 13 touchdowns. Last weekend, his father, Rich, asked Porter for a release due to the switch from a pro-style offense to a spread. At 6'5" and 220 pounds, Williams doesn't have the speed that the spread offense requires.

"Obviously, the timing of Ryan leaving is not good," Porter said. "But I'd rather just talk about the players that are still wearing the Memphis helmet."

Williams' departure leaves just two quarterbacks on the depth chart for the Tigers, sophomore Andy Summerlin, who sat out last season due to a shoulder injury, and redshirt sophomore Will Gilchrist.  Both QBs have no playing experience at the FBS level, and Cannon Smith, who started twice last season, was converted to a defensive back.

Summerlin came to Memphis from Coffeyville Community College in Kansas where he set the school passing record, throwing 2,302 yards in his only season.

"We really believe Andy is on course to return back to the form he was before the injury," Porter said.  "He was a bit rusty after the layoff but he did some things very well."

Summerlin acknowledged that he'll need to fine-tune his throwing mechanics in order to return to his normal playing condition.

"I'll have to get some things back," he said, "but there's nothing like putting on a helmet and going out there and making a pass when people are around. I understand there'll be some ups and downs, but I'm excited about the opportunity to do it again."

Summerlin will compete for the starting job with Gilchrist, who has spent the better portion of the last two seasons as the scout team and emergency quarterback. While Gilchrist is a long shot to get the starting nod, he may be better equipped to run the spread offense due to his speed and athleticism. He's also familiar with the new offense, as he ran the spread in high school.

Gilchrist, a Savanna, Tenn., native, was a 3-star prospect out of Hardin County (Tenn.) according to Rivals.com.

Rivals.com and Tennessee Football Magazine rated him as the No. 1 quarterback from Tennessee. Gilchrist led his team to state playoff appearances all four years, rushed for 835 yards and seven touchdowns on 124 carries as a senior, and holds the school record in single season all-purpose yards (2,966) along with rushing and passing touchdowns (36).

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Williams’ release leaves questions about Tigers’ QB situation - The Daily Helmsman - Sports

Williams’ release leaves questions about Tigers’ QB situation - The Daily Helmsman - Sports

The Daily Helmsman - Keys to the Tigers’ bout with Arizona on Friday

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Keys to the Tigers’ bout with Arizona on Friday

By Adam Douglas

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Published: Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Updated: Tuesday, March 15, 2011 01:03

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The University of Memphis men's basketball team still has an opportunity to keep Will Barton's bold preseason prediction alive — to win the National Championship.

The Tigers earned an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament by defeating the UTEP Miners, 67-66, in the Conference USA tournament championship.

To get to a championship, however, they still need to work on some key areas that have been plaguing them during the entire season. Their first test off the bat, the Arizona Wildcats, is a familiar foe.

Not only do both teams have a history, but they also have lots of things in common.  They had a budding rivalry that wasn't renewed after the 2007-‘08 season. The Tigers won their last meeting at FedExForum, 76-63.

The Wildcats' best player, sophomore Derrick Williams, averages 19.1 points and 8.1 rebounds per game and was recruited by head coach Josh Pastner. He even had his screen saver on his cell phone set to The U of M logo before transferring to Arizona from USC.

Pastner was an assistant on the Arizona staff from 2001-‘08 after four years as a walk-on for Arizona. He and the Wildcats won a national championship in 1997. To top that, the Tigers are seeded 12th in this year's tournament. Pastner's jersey number while at Arizona? 12.

There are many story lines that we can turn to for this particular matchup, but I'm just going to stick to what it will take for the Tigers to pull an upset over the 5-seeded Wildcats on Friday afternoon.

First, the Tigers have to play unselfish basketball. We all saw in the C-USA tournament what it can do for this team.  If they share the ball and pass it to one another in transition then they have a chance to beat anyone in the country.  

Next, they need to utilize the full-court press. Doing this will speed up the tempo and cause the opponent to be uncomfortable on offense.  The youthfulness of the team — which critics harped on all season — will be a blessing in disguise because of the Tigers' young legs.

Then we have defense. The mantra "defense wins championships" still applies to every sport.  If the Tigers can play tough half-court defense like they showed during the C-USA tournament, then Arizona or anyone else should not be competition.

The Tigers just have to make shots. As long as the guards are on target from long range, then they can make a deep run in the tourney.

Lastly, they need to listen to the head coach.  This may be the biggest one because all of the things I've said before will not be possible if they tune out the 33-year-old Pastner.  Too many times this season they have been criticized for not listening and being very immature.

If they can pay attention to the coaching staff, and the staff in turn doesn't put them in bad situations, then we could be looking forward to a magical season that didn't look very promising a month ago.

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Keys to the Tigers’ bout with Arizona on Friday - The Daily Helmsman - Sports

Keys to the Tigers’ bout with Arizona on Friday - The Daily Helmsman - Sports

UM pitcher earns C-USA honor

U of M media relations
U of M pitcher Dan Langfield earned Conference USA pitcher of the week honors for his 16 strikeouts in a 5-4 win against Kennesaw State in the series opener. He’s the first Tiger to receive the award since 2004.

After his nearly record-breaking 16-strikeout performance Friday night, University of Memphis sophomore pitcher Dan Langfield was awarded Conference USA pitcher of the week, the league announced Monday. 

Langfield struck out 16 batters in the Tigers' 5-4 series opening victory over Kennesaw State. His 16 strikeouts were the second-most in C-USA and U of M history. Former Tiger pitchers Chad Harville (vs. Cincinnati, 1997) and Derek Hankins (vs. Murray State, 2004) struck out 17 batters and hold the single-game record at The U of M.

It is Langfield's first pitcher of the week award, and he's the 18th Tiger to receive it. Memphis has collected six C-USA Pitcher of the Week awards since the 2009 season. 

The Tigers return to action on Friday at 4:30 p.m. against Oral Roberts in The University of Memphis Baseball Classic. The U of M also welcomes Eastern Kentucky and Southern Illinois to the Bluff City for the weekend tournament.

 

U of M softball off to best start in program’s history

Last weekend, The University of Memphis softball team traveled to Palo Alto, Calif., for the Stanford Nike Invitational and defeated the hosting No. 16/17 Stanford in their second win over a ranked opponent this season.  Prior to the season, the Tigers had never beaten a ranked team. Now, they're off to their best start in school history.  The Tigers took 3 of 4 in the invitational and defeated Colorado State 4-3 in comeback fashion in the final game of the tournament.

"It was a rough first six innings," senior infielder Maddie McKinley said. "But we just kept with it, and (plugged) away until we were able to get people around and to score and we just did our job."

Colorado State (3-11) took a 2-0 lead on two solo home runs by catcher Emily Pohl in the third and fifth innings. CSU freshman pitcher Alexa Cash (0-4) held the Tigers at bay through six innings until the Tigers rallied in the seventh, using four straight hits to ignite a two-run sequence that sent the game to extra innings.  The Tigers added two more runs in the top of the eighth to seal the victory.

"It was a really frustrating game at first," head coach Windy Thees said. "We gave up a couple of solo homeruns in the beginning, and with this team, they like to wait to the last minute to respond to pressure when it's on them.  As a coach I don't like that, and maybe we can get them to respond a little earlier in the game — I know our pitchers would like that also."

Sophomore ace Carly Hummer (8-0) pitched the final two innings in relief and struck out the side in the eighth to pick up her eighth straight victory. Memphis improves to 12-3 on the season and finished the tournament 3-1. The Tigers have won their last 10 of 11.

"We had a good first quarter of the season, but obviously I will think about the one that got away," Thees said.  "If you break the season down like that, our season has been pretty successful.  But starting this weekend we will be back at 0-0, and we have to move on from there to see where we're at for the next 15 games."

Memphis will next play in the Bulldog Classic hosted by Mississippi State in Starkville, Miss., on March 4-6. The Tigers will face the Bulldogs twice as well as No. 21/24 Texas A&M and Mississippi Valley State.