From the Desk of Ross Bjork
Mar 12, 2021 | General
Howdy!
Today, March 12, marks one year since we completely paused college athletics due to COVID-19. I can vividly remember being in Nashville, Tennessee, at the men's basketball tournament to support our team and attend the SEC Athletic Directors meeting. The SEC decided to host fans and continue the first night of the tournament on Wednesday, March 11th. It was that evening that news broke around the country of sports teams and leagues pausing competition due to the unknowns of the virus. The next day, March 12th, the SEC gathered all University Presidents and Athletic Directors and we collectively cancelled the tournament and suspended play for all sports. From that moment, everything changed.
Since then we have moved from zero activity, on-line classes, virtual tutoring, limited workouts and now we are back to full competition with countless protocols in place to protect our student-athletes. This journey has been long and demanding, but I am so proud of the work and support provided by the SEC, University Leadership, Athletics Staff, 12th Man Foundation, Texas A&M Ventures, students, donors, former students, corporate partners and fans. It truly took everyone to get us to this point.
Though it has been a tough year and everyone has been pushed beyond the limits, our student-athletes have yet again shown how resilient and incredible they truly are. They faced unprecedented circumstances with understanding and flexibility. From conference championships, to All-America honors, to tremendous successes in the classroom and in giving back to the community--through adversity they have excelled tremendously. Here are just some of the accomplishments they've made...it's a remarkable list!
I continue to be amazed by our student-athletes and sport programs. These accomplishments are outstanding and directly reflect the excellence that each of these individuals compete with. It is an exciting time for Texas A&M Athletics and the best is yet to come!
This time of the year marks one of the busiest times in Aggieland with our winter sports in postseason competition and our spring sports now in full swing. Our student-athletes can be seen out on the pitch, courts, fields and pools! I hope to run into you at several of these sporting events as our programs work to add even more accomplishments as Aggies.
Gig 'Em!
Ross
Sport Updates
Football is excited to host the 2021 Maroon & White Game sponsored by St. Joseph Health on Saturday, April 24 at 1 p.m. at Kyle Field. Additional information about the spring game, which was originally scheduled for April 17, will be made soon. Admission to the game is free. The team has been participating in "Fourth Quarter drills" and will begin spring practices in earnest March 29.
Coach Gary Blair's women's basketball team is ranked No. 4 in the country and is a projected No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Aggies boast All-SEC first teamer N'dea Jones, All-SEC Second Team selection Aaliyah Wilson, SEC 6th Woman of the Year Destiny Pitts and the SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year Ciera Johnson. Coach Blair is also a semifinalist for the Naismith Coach of the Year. The team learns the NCAA Tournament seeding on Monday at 6 p.m.
Coach Buzz Williams and the men's basketball team finished the season on Wednesday with an 8-10 record. Emanuel Miller, who was the reigning SEC Player of the Week, finished the season with three-straight 20-point games offensively and recorded two double-doubles in the final three games. It wasn't the season anyone envisioned, but I'm super proud of the young men, coaches and staff for their perseverance in the unprecedented environment. They battled, always wanted to compete and stayed together. We will be back stronger and better.
The women's track & field team is ranked No. 2 in the nation, while the men remain in the top 25 at No. 22. The Aggies are currently competing at the NCAA Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Arkansas, where Texas A&M totaled 16 entries. Tyra Gittens kicked off the event in style as she set the collegiate record in the pentathlon with a score of 4,674 points. It was her first career national title and the first by a female Aggie since 2014. At the SEC Indoor Championships, Brandon Miller, Athing Mu and Gittens each won their respective events while Gittens was named the Cliff Harper award recipient for scoring 23 points, the most points by a female athlete at the championship meet since 2008. Gittens and Mu were named the USTFCCCA South Central Regional Athletes of the Year. Gittens was the Field Athlete of the Year, and Mu was the Runner of the Year. On Wednesday, Gittens was named the SEC Field Athlete of the year, while Mu was named the SEC Runner of the Year and Freshman of the Year.
The baseball team is on a seven-game win streak following Wednesday's victory. The Maroon & White own a nation-leading four shutouts on the season. Last Friday, Coach Rob Childress earned win No. 600, becoming the second-fastest active SEC coach to rack up 600 Division I wins and the eighth-fastest overall active coach to reach the mark. Bryce Miller picked up national weekly honors from USA Baseball/Golden Spikes Award and Collegiate Baseball following last Saturday's 15-strikeout performance against New Mexico State.
Softball is currently sitting with a 13-3 record after one month into play. The Aggies are led offensively by Haley Lee and Shaylee Ackerman, who post batting averages of .467 and .395, respectively. Lee tops the team with nine home runs and 18 RBI. The junior has hit three home runs in two games on the season, with the latest being highlighted on SportsCenter's Top 10. In the circle, the Aggies are led by seasoned veterans Makinzy Herzog and Kayla Poynter. Herzog has tallied five wins and a save, while Poynter has recorded three wins. Rookie Grace Uribe garners 33.1 innings of work and 30 strikeouts. Graduate transfer Kelsey Broadus recorded her first career no-hitter against Campbell on March 6, in the Reveille Classic.
Brian Kortan's men's golf team opened the spring with a sweep of the team and individual championships at the Border Olympics in Laredo, Texas. The Aggies posted an eight-stroke win over the field that included old Big 12 foes Texas and Texas Tech. "Super senior" Dan Erickson won medalist honors in dramatic fashion after carding an eagle on the final hole to force a playoff and winning with a par on the second playoff hole. For his efforts, Erickson was named SEC Golfer of the Week.
A week later, junior Sam Bennett earned a PGA Tour exemption to the Valero Texas Open by winning medalist honors at the Cabo Collegiate, which was played at TPC San Antonio. Bennett closed with a 5-under 67 in the final round to win by one stroke. He will compete in the VTO at TPC San Antonio March 29-April 4. The team placed third at the Cabo Collegiate, posting head-to-head victories over nine teams ranked in the Golfstat.com top 20, including No. 1 Arizona, No. 8 Oklahoma State and No. 10 Texas.
The No. 16 women's swimming & diving team has been preparing for NCAA Championships as nine swimmers and at least two divers will represent the Maroon & White in Greensboro, North Carolina March 17-20. In NCAA Diving Zones competition this week, senior Charlye Campbell and junior Aimee Wilson have already punched their ticket to the championship meet, following up an impressive showing at SEC Championships where Campbell became A&M's first SEC female springboard champion and Wilson earned a pair of silver medals. Senior Taylor Pike and freshman Chloe Stepanek also made their marks at SEC Championships as Pike brought home a silver medal in the 100 fly and a bronze in the 200 fly, while Stepanek earned silver in the 200 free in her collegiate postseason debut.
The No. 7 men's swimming & diving team is coming off an impressive showing at the American Short Course Championships, where 17 Aggies set season- or career-best times. Junior Shaine Casas added an eighth individual school record to his resume with a time of 41.68 in the 100 free, while also lowering his own 200 fly record. Despite only being able to compete in three events at NCAA Championships, Casas has posted an automatic qualifying time for the postseason meet in seven different events this season. After posting top times in both breaststroke events at the American Short Course meet, freshman Alex Sanchez clinched his spot at NCAA Championships to make it six individual Aggies and an additional four relay-only competitors that will travel to Greensboro, North Carolina March 24-27.
Fresh off last fall's SEC regular-season title campaign, soccer is ramping up its spring slate to make a run to its 26th consecutive NCAA Tournament. The Maroon & White open with a match at Rice Monday at 7 p.m. The Aggies feature the SEC Co-Coach of the Year G Guerrieri, SEC Co-Defender of the Year Karlina Sample and SEC Freshman of the Year Barbara Olivieri.
The No. 12 men's tennis team picked up their 10th win of the season in impressive fashion last night at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center as they knocked off No. 2 Baylor. The men now have seven wins over ranked opponents and are looking to carry momentum from yesterday's win through the rest of conference play. Coach Steve Denton's team is back in action Sunday at Arkansas.
Our women's tennis team is on an unfortunate break due to COVID, but I look forward to seeing Coach Weaver's squad back out on the courts soon. Our young team continues to impress and move up the rankings after going 10-3 to start the season including wins over South Carolina and Mississippi State in conference play.
Volleyball is 8-4 overall and are currently riding a four-match winning streak with wins over South Carolina and Alabama. Setter Camille Conner was recently named one of 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award. She posted back-to-back double-doubles in the Aggies' series sweep of Alabama. Sophomores Morgan Christon and Lauren Davis lead the team in kills, while Morgan Davis and Mallory Talbert lead the team in blocks. Sophomore libero Sabrina Sustala is averaging 2.33 digs per set.
Ciera Hecht set a personal best, while matching a program-record of eight services aces in a match. She bested Hollann Hans' program record of five aces in a four-set match in the 25-point rally scoring era. Hecht tied Hans' single-match record of eight set in a five-set win at Georgia on Sept. 23, 2018.
Equestrian finished the regular season with a 3-4 (2-4 SEC) record, and are currently ranked No. 6 in the rankings. Coach McKay's squad heads to Georgia for the SEC Championship, which runs from March 26-27.
Women's golf has bounced back from a bout with COVID-19 and the after effects of the winter storm. They will be back on the course March 19-21 at the Liz Murphey Spring Collegiate. The Aggies are led by graduate Courtney Dow, who has 12 top-10 finishes in her career.
Heritage Committee Updates
As we wrapped up Black History Month programming, our Aggie Commitment initiative debuted "Unified Voices". Unified Voices is a platform designed to provide our student-athletes, coaches, and staff an uncensored space to share their own unique experiences and journeys.
I invite you to take the time to watch a few of our student-athletes, football's Dan Moore Jr. and women's basketball's Jordan Nixon, join staffers Molly Tye and Jordan Adams in sharing their personal stories. We will be featuring more "Unified Voices" throughout the year, so please stay tuned.
In celebration of Women's History Month, we'll honor throughout March our incredible female student-athletes and women's teams who have done so much for our university.
Women's Basketball Watch Party
Women's basketball is set to host a watch party for the NCAA Tournament Selection Show on Monday, March 15, on ESPN at 6 p.m. CT on the main court of Reed Arena.
Fans may enter the arena at 5 p.m. at the Main and East entrances. Concessions will be open and serving a menu of various snacks, drinks and beer. Attendance is free of charge.
The Aggies are a projected No. 1 seed in Charlie Creme's latest ESPN Bracketology. If A&M is selected as a No. 1 seed, it will be the first time in program history.
The NCAA Tournament's first two rounds will be held in the San Antonio, San Marcos and Austin areas. Attendance for the first two rounds will be limited to teams and team guests. For ticket information regarding the Sweet Sixteen and on, please click here.
Special Events at Reed Arena
We are excited to have three special events at Reed Arena:
Professional Bull Riders make their first ever appearance at Reed Arena on April 9 and 10 with the PBR Aggieland Classic. Tickets are on sale now starting at $19. Please visit PBR.com for more information.
In partnership with KSBJ Radio 89.3 FM, Casting Crowns will host a unique Drive-In Concert at the Fan Field Parking Lot, adjacent to the George Bush Presidential Library, on April 16. Gates open at 5:30 p.m. and the show begins at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available now. For more information on the show, click here.
David Feherty - Live Off Tour comes to Reed Arena on April 17th at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are currently on sale, and start at $50. As golf’s best-known commentator, David’s cutting-edge style of humor is full of great stories. A show any golf fan must see! For more information on David Feherty - Live Off Tour, visit here.
For more information on all three events, visit ReedArena.com.
Sustainability
Have you ever wondered what those numbers on the bottom of plastic products mean? Well, those resin identification codes tell recycling collectors what kind of plastic it is.
# 1: This is PET and is one of the easiest to recycle.
# 2: HDPE is a stiffer plastic used for milk jugs and detergents which can also be recycled.
# 3: PVC is found as clear food wrap, toys, and piping and is difficult to recycle.
# 4: LDPE is found as grocery bags and bin liners and some stores collect these for recycling.
# 5: PP is found as bottle tops and cereal box liners but is only recycled by certain programs.
# 6: PS (Styrofoam) and recycling is not widely available.
# 7: Is all other plastics and is not often recyclable.
Remember to check those numbers and check with your recycling company to see which ones they collect. It is normally just #1 and #2.
#AskRoss
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