The Battle Plan
2/27/2015 12:00:00 AM | General
A Robust A-Club Is A Tremendous Asset
Our A-Club Alumni Association is growing and doing some very exciting things. After several years of dormancy, Mal breathed new life into the program by attracting former letter winners into leadership positions. Ken Wilder, Jack Traffanstedt, Cecil Ingram, and now Jerry Duncan have all given tremendous time, effort, and energy as A-Club Presidents and have brought the A-Club back to one of the best letter winner clubs in the country.
We are excited to educate our current student-athletes and our graduates over the past 20 or so years about the purposes of the A-Club.
In general, the A-Club provides a means for former letter winners, both men and women in all sports recognized by the NCAA to gather from time to time for social purposes, to promote the interests and mission of the University of Alabama, and to support the athletic department, athletic programs, and current student-athletes. In a nutshell, we want them to stay engaged with the University, their teammates, their sports teams and to come back often, have fun, and support our programs.
In the last few years the A-Club has given back over $1,000,000 in endowed scholarships in the names of Mal M. Moore, Sarah Patterson, Jay Seawell, Mic Potter and Patrick Murphy. It has also been a generous supporter of the A-Club Educational and Charitable Foundation led by Tommy Brooker, and the Gaylon and Susan McCollough Career Development and Leadership Center led by Jessie Gardner.
We are in the process of starting and developing A-Club Committees for each sport to expand membership, create activities and events, and expand our network. If you are a former letter winner at Alabama and are not a current A-Club member, I encourage you to contact our offices and become active. If you know former letter winners who are not active, I hope you will reach out to them and encourage them to join up and get engaged. Please go to our website at www.alabamaaclub.com and check it out. Anyone can get to the first few pages, but only members can go deeper into the website.
There is no doubt in my mind that, if we can get the majority of our former letter winners engaged in the A-Club and the University, we can create an unbelievable network of contacts that can provide tremendous benefits to the University, the athletics department, and our members. We are having our Annual A-Club functions around A-Day again this year and I'd like to see a record number at our events.
A-Club Events - April 17-18, 2015
Friday, April 17
- Golf at Ol'Colony
- Bowling Blast at Bama Bowl
- A-Club Party at the North Zone
Saturday, April 18
- Annual A-Club Meeting
- A-Club Luncheon
- A-Day Game
An Historic - And Deserved - Milestone for our Men's Basketball Program
For the first time in our history, an Alabama men's basketball player has been named an Academic All-American as senior guard Levi Randolph has been selected to the 2014-15 Capital One Academic All-America Second Team. Levi is the only player from the Southeastern Conference to earn the honor in the sport of men's basketball. This award has been a long time coming for our senior captain, as he is a three-time Capital One Academic All-District 4 First Team honoree - the first Alabama player in program history to earn first team academic all-district first team honors in three consecutive seasons. Levi earned his undergraduate degree in marketing this past August, completing the requirements for graduation in just three years with 3.45 grade-point average. He has been named to the Dean's List in five out of seven semesters (3.1 GPA or better). Levi is currently enrolled in our master's program in marketing, in which he finished his first semester with a 3.75 GPA. Perhaps best of all, Levi is a fine young man. A personable, likeable representative of our team and our school. We are all very proud of him. Congratulations, Levi!
Nationally Ranked Teams This Week
At this writing, eight of our teams are nationally ranked among the top 25 in their respective sports, including four ranked in the top 10, and five are currently ranked in the top 20 nationally. Here's a glance at this week's rankings:
- Baseball - 24th (D1Baseball.com, Feb. 23)
- Men's Golf - 9th (Golfweek, Feb. 20)
- Women's Golf - 24th (Golfweek, Feb. 20)
- Gymnastics - 5th (GymInfo, Feb. 16)
- Softball - 4th (USA Today/NFCA Coaches, Feb. 24)
- Men's Swimming & Diving - 23rd (CSCAA Coaches, Feb. 23)
- Women's Tennis - 9th (ITA, Feb. 24)
- Men's Indoor Track & Field - 11th (USTFCCCA, Feb. 23)
Sports Updates
Our BASEBALL team took one of three games from third-ranked Houston this past weekend in a series in which all three games were very tightly contested. Casey Hughston ended the Houston series as the NCAA leader in batting average while also ranking fifth nationally in doubles and sixth in slugging and on-base percentage. He then proceeded to hit a grand slam in the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader to help the Tide to a 7-2 win over Savannah State. As of this writing, Casey and Kyle Overstreet both own eight-game hitting streaks. Georgie Salem has reached base safely in all eight games thus far and 12 consecutive dating back to last season, two short of tying his career-high of 14 that he accumulated as a freshman in the first 14 games of his career at Alabama. With Casey's grand slam in game one and Chance Vincent's solo homer in game two of the Savannah State doubleheader on Tuesday, the Tide has recorded a home run in each of its last four games after not having one through the first four contests of 2015.
Our MEN'S BASKETBALL team continues to battle through the SEC schedule. On Tuesday, the Tide overcame a seven-point first half deficit and several injuries to key players to make a second-half comeback and defeat South Carolina in Coleman Coliseum, 59-51. Our team is now 17-11 this season (7-8 in the SEC) heading intohttp://www.rolltide.com/sports/m-baskbl/recaps/022415aaa.html this Saturday's game against Vanderbilt in Nashville, which will be televised by Fox Sports Net starting at 3 p.m. CT. Injuries continue to hamper this team. Michael Kessens missed Tuesday's game with a bone bruise to his left knee and Ricky Tarrant missed his eighth consecutive game due to a lower right leg injury and will miss the rest of the season. One of our starting forwards, Shannon Hale, was unable to return in the second half against the Gamecocks after suffering a foot injury late in first half, yet the Tide still pulled away in the second half to win. Shannon is also doubtful for the rest of the season. That victory came on the heels of a tough overtime loss to Georgia last Saturday night at home, the seventh time this season that the Tide has played a game that was decided by one possession. Unfortunately, we have lost five of those games, including losses at No. 13 Wichita State and No. 16 Arkansas, falling by a total of eight points in those five defeats. In fact, five of our 11 losses have been decided by a single possession. For the season, the Tide is 2-5 on the year in games decided by a basket. We enter the Vandy game having won back-to-back road SEC games (won 55-51 at Mississippi State on Feb. 10 and 79-68 at Auburn on Feb. 10) for the first time since 2010-11 season. A win at Vanderbilt would mark the first time since the 2004-05 season that we have won three straight SEC road games in the same season. I hope all our fans will turn out to support our seniors and our team at next Tuesday's game against Ole Miss.
One of the great challenges and experiences that any coach or athlete can experience is building a losing team into a winner. What makes the experience so special is not just the sense of accomplishment when you complete the journey, but the unity and fortitude a team develops as it struggles through the tough times. Our WOMEN'S BASKETBALL team is going through that now, but I cannot say enough good things about this team. They have had a tough season, but they continue to fight to the end of every game. The Tide had two tough, close losses at home this week. First, on Sunday against 14th-ranked Mississippi State, then another close one to Florida in Foster Auditorium on Thursday night. Sophomore Ashley Williams has really been stepping up and played with heart against State, scoring 21 points with a career-high five steals. The Mississippi State game was our Power of Pink/Play 4Kay game, and we had a tremendous Foster Auditorium record crowd of 3,133 on hand. We recognized our seniors on Thursday following the game against Florida as Briana Hutchen, Sharin Rivers and manager Anna Locklier had their final game at home against the Gators. Next, the Tide heads to the SEC Tournament next week in Little Rock, Ark.
Our MEN'S GOLF team opened the 2015 spring season last Sunday through Tuesday at the Puerto Rico Classic with nine of the tournament's 15 teams ranked in Golfweek's top 50 in the nation. Sophomore Dru Love earned co-medalist honors as he finished the three-day, 54-hole event with a score of 7-under par 209 (71-69-69), marking the first time in his career that Dru has recorded back-to-back sub-70 rounds, while his total of 209 marked the second-lowest 54-hole score of his career (shot a 207 last fall at the Jerry Pate Intercollegiate). He earned his first collegiate tournament victory on the same day that his father, Davis Love III, was named the United States Ryder Cup captain. As a team, the Tide finished in third overall with a team score of 1-over par 865 (285-297-284). Sophomore Robby Shelton finished the tournament at 5-under 211 (69-71-71) which tied for fourth overall. It was Robby's 12th top-five finish in 17 career tournaments played and his fourth top-five result in five tournaments during the 2014-15 season. Junior Tom Lovelady had a strong finish, as he recorded a final round score of 4-under par 68 on Tuesday - the team's lowest 18-hole score of the tournament, as he finished 19th overall. The Tide gets right back into action this weekend at the John Hayt Intercollegiate today through Sunday in Jacksonville, Fla.
Coach Dana Duckworth's GYMNASTICS team won its fifth meet in a row last Friday with its highest road score of the season while beating Georgia in Athens. The Tide is now 6-1-0 overall and 3-1-0 in SEC competition. Alabama's score of 197.675 at Georgia was the highest road score by any team in the nation this season, and the third-highest by any team in any competition in 2015. The win over the Bulldogs marked our 13th victory in the last 14 meetings over the Bulldogs dating back to 2009. The Crimson Tide won four of five individual events at Georgia as senior Kaitlyn Clark won the all-around and balance beam while sharing the floor exercise title with junior Lauren Beers, who won the uneven bars. With her two wins at Georgia, Lauren leads the Crimson Tide with 13 individual event wins this season, while Kaitlyn's three titles against the Bulldogs puts her second with eight individual wins.
Coach Patrick Murphy's SOFTBALL team battled the elements and a very good Michigan team last weekend at the Easton Bama Bash in Tuscaloosa. The Wolverines got the best of our ladies, but both teams showed they belong in the national top 5 with Michigan winning two games from the Tide. Over the course of the weekend, Alabama rebounded with wins over James Madison and Lipscomb, giving the Tide four wins so far this season over teams that made the 2014 NCAA Tournament. For their play over the weekend, sophomore Chandler Dare and senior Danielle Richard were named to the Easton Bama Bash All-Tournament Team. Chandler led the team with seven hits in 11 at-bats, good for a .636 average. She knocked in a pair of runs, including a solo home run against James Madison on Saturday, the first of her career. She was also 2-2 in stolen bases. Danielle was 3-for-9 (.333) overall on the weekend but saved her best performance for last as she celebrated her Senior Day on Sunday against Lipscomb, producing a career-high four RBI. The Tide is ranked fourth in the USA Today/NFCA poll, fifth in the ESPN.com/USA Softball rankings this week. We host sixth-ranked Louisiana this weekend for three games Friday through Sunday at Rhoads Stadium for the annual Easton Crimson Classic.
Coach Dennis Pursley's SWIMMING & DIVING team had an outstanding meet at the SEC Championships in Auburn last week. Crimson Tide swimmers won seven individual events (five men, two women), the most by an Alabama team since 1991. The men's team won their first SEC relay title since 1994, winning both the 200 free relay and the 400 medley relay (they set an SEC record in the 400 medley). Overall, 18 school records fell over the course of the meet. Kaylin Burchell won the women's 100 and 200 breaststroke titles, becoming the first member of the women's team since 2004 to win two league titles in the same SEC meet. Kaylin was named the SEC Female Swimmer of the Meet, a first for an Alabama women's swimmer. For the men, Kristian Gkolomeev won the 50 and 100 freestyle in school record time on his way to becoming Alabama's first SEC Male Swimmer of the Meet since 1982. His times in the 50 and 100 are the fastest in the nation this season. Of the 44 events in the Crimson Tide record book, Coach Pursley's teams have broken the school record in 26 over the past three years, including all 10 relay marks. Connor Oslin joined Kristian and Kaylin as SEC champions, winning the 100 backstroke title. Now the team recuperates with the NCAA meet ahead in a couple of weeks. Congratulations to Coach Pursley, his staff and our tremendous student-athletes!
Our MEN'S TENNIS team begins SEC play today at home at 5 p.m. CT inside the Roberta Alison Baumgardner Tennis Facility against Mississippi State. The Tide played the Bulldogs in Montgomery at the Blue Gray National Tennis Classic last weekend, losing a close one, 4-3. The Tide is coming off a tough weekend in which it went 0-2 at the Blue Gray National Tennis Classic, falling to Clemson, 4-1, as well as Mississippi State, 4-3. The Tide staged a furious comeback against the Bulldogs, winning three of the first five matches in singles after going down 2-0. Our doubles team of Becker O'Shaughnessey and Korey Lovett is ranked 26th nationally. The Tide will host a doubleheader on Sunday against Jackson State and Jacksonville State at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.
Our WOMEN'S TENNIS team had an exceptional weekend at the Blue Gray Tournament in Montgomery last week. In addition to winning the tournament title, head coach Jenny Mainz was inducted into the Alabama Tennis Foundation Hall of Fame. The tournament title, Alabama's second consecutive Blue Gray championship with wins over Boise State, DePaul and Texas Tech. The Crimson Tide is the first women's program in the history of the Blue Gray tournament to win the championship in consecutive years. Junior Maya Jansen was named the Blue Gray Classic MVP after going 3-0 in doubles play and earning a pair of victories in singles. The Tide won the doubles point in all three matches at the Blue Gray, and has now claimed the opening point in eight of nine matches on the season. Ranked as the No. 9 pairing in the nation, Erin Routliffe and Maya Jansen continue to lead our strong doubles team. The defending NCAA doubles champions, Erin & Maya have gone a perfect 9-0 on the season and own a 17-2 all-time record. The Crimson Tide will begin its defense of the SEC title when we open the conference season today at Florida.
Our TRACK & FIELD team competes at the SEC Indoor Championships this weekend at Kentucky. Most of the team took last weekend off to rest in preparation for that important meet, but one group competed and did something remarkable. The men's distance medley relay broke the school record at the Alex Wilson Invitational at Notre Dame. The foursome of Robbie Farnham-Rose, Steven Gayle, Jacopo Lahbi and Matt Airola set a Crimson Tide record of 9 minutes, 29.93 seconds while finishing third in the race. The time broke a 15-year-old school record set in 2000 and is the sixth-fastest by a collegiate team in 2015. Other than the relay quartet competing at Notre Dame, the team took the weekend off in preparation for the SEC Indoor Championships.
Upcoming Action
Here's a summary of athletic events over the next several days (times listed are for the location of the event: CT is Central Time):
Saturday, Feb. 28
| Time | Sport | Opponent/Event | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 p.m. CT | Softball | Louisiana (DH) | Rhoads Stadium |
| 2 p.m. CT | Baseball | Louisiana | Hoover |
| 3 p.m. CT | Men's Basketball | at Vanderbilt | Nashville, Tenn. |
| All Day | Swimming & Diving | at Bulldog Last Chance | Athens, Ga. |
| All Day | Track & Field | at SEC Indoor Championships | Lexington, Ky. |
| All Day | Men's Golf | at John Hayt Collegiate | Jacksonville, Fla. |
Sunday, March 1
| Time | Sport | Opponent/Event | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 a.m. ET | Women's Tennis | at South Carolina | Columbia, S.C. |
| 1 p.m. CT | Baseball | Louisiana | Hoover |
| 1 p.m. CT | Men's Tennis | Jackson State | UA Tennis Complex |
| 1 p.m. CT | Softball | Louisiana | Rhoads Stadium |
| 2 p.m. CT | Women's Basketball | at Auburn | Auburn |
| 5 p.m. CT | Men's Tennis | Jacksonville State | UA Tennis Complex |
| All Day | Swimming & Diving | at Bulldog Last Chance | Athens, Ga. |
| All Day | Men's Golf | at John Hayt Collegiate | Jacksonville, Fla. |
Tuesday, March 3
| Time | Sport | Opponent/Event | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 p.m. CT | Men's Basketball | Ole Miss | Coleman Coliseum |
| 6:30 p.m. CT | Baseball | vs. Auburn | Montgomery |
Wednesday, March 4
| Time | Sport | Opponent/Event | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| TBD | Women's Basketball | at SEC Tournament | Little Rock, Ark. |
Thursday, March 5
| Time | Sport | Opponent/Event | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 p.m. CT | Men's Tennis | at Arkansas | Fayetteville, Ark. |
| TBD | Women's Basketball | at SEC Tournament | Little Rock, Ark. |
Friday, March 6
| Time | Sport | Opponent/Event | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 p.m. CT | Women's Tennis | Georgia | UA Tennis Complex |
| 6:30 p.m. CT | Softball | Ole Miss | Rhoads Stadium |
| 6:30 p.m. CT | Gymnastics | at Missouri | Columbia, Mo. |
| TBD | Baseball | Lipscomb | Mobile |
| TBD | Women's Basketball | at SEC Tournament | Little Rock, Ark. |
| All Day | Women's Golf | at Darius Rucker Intercollegiate | Hilton Head Island, S.C. |
(DH) - Doubleheader
Remember! The SEC Network Is Available Anywhere Via DIRECTV
DIRECTV has launched WatchESPN for DIRECTV customers. That means that fans with DIRECTV service will now have access to SEC Network television content on computers, smartphones and tablets anytime, anywhere. In addition, fans will have access to the hundreds of digitally exclusive SEC Network + productions.
Where to Find Alabama Sports on the Crimson Tide Sports Network
Those of you in Alabama and the greater Tuscaloosa area can follow Crimson Tide teams via radio this weekend via the following outlets:
- Friday, 2:55 p.m. - Baseball vs. Louisiana - Tide 99.1 FM
- Saturday, 12:50 p.m. - Softball vs. Louisiana - 790AM WTSK
- Saturday, 3:00 p.m. - Softball vs. Louisiana - 790AM WTSK
- Saturday, 1:55 p.m. - Baseball vs. Louisiana - Tide 99.1 FM
- Saturday, 2 p.m. - Men's Basketball at Vanderbilt - 95.3 FM The Bear
- Sunday, 12:50 p.m. - Softball vs. Louisiana - 95.3 FM The Bear & 953thebear.com
- Sunday, 12:55 p.m. - Baseball vs. Louisiana - 790AM WTSK
- Sunday, 1:55 p.m. - Women's Basketball at Auburn - Tide 99.1 FM
Catch Alabama Athletics on the SEC Network
Here's a summary of our athletic events to be televised over the next week on The SEC Network and its platforms. Read this schedule closely as some events can be seen via SEC Network +, which is available online via ESPN3 here. If you can't make it to our games in person, catch us on radio or TV.
(All times listed are Central Time)
Saturday, February 28
| Time | Event | Network |
|---|---|---|
| 9 a.m. | REPLAY: Gymnastics vs. LSU | SEC Network |
| 12:50 p.m. | Track & Field at SEC Indoor Championships | SEC Network + |
| 2 p.m. | Baseball vs. Louisiana | SEC Network + |
| 2:30 p.m. | Softball vs. Louisiana | SEC Network + |
Sunday, March 1
| Time | Event | Network |
|---|---|---|
| 1 p.m. | Baseball vs. Louisiana | SEC Network + |
| 1 p.m. | Softball vs. Louisiana | SEC Network + |
| 2 p.m. | Women's Basketball at Auburn | SEC Network + |
| 7 p.m. | SEC Rewind: 2011 Men's Basketball vs. Auburn | SEC Network |
Monday, March 2
| Time | Event | Network |
|---|---|---|
| 4 a.m. | REPLAY: Gymnastics vs. LSU | SEC Network |
| 7 a.m. | SEC Rewind: 2011 Men's Basketball vs. Auburn | SEC Network |
| 12:30 p.m. | REPLAY: Gymnastics vs. LSU | SEC Network |
| 8 p.m. | REPLAY: Gymnastics vs. LSU | SEC Network |
Tuesday, March 3
| Time | Event | Network |
|---|---|---|
| 2 a.m. | SEC Rewind: 2011 Men's Basketball vs. Auburn | SEC Network |
| 7 a.m. | REPLAY: Gymnastics vs. LSU | SEC Network |
| 11 a.m. | REPLAY: SEC Men's Swimming & Diving Championships | SEC Network |
| 12:30 p.m. | REPLAY: SEC Women's Swimming & Diving Championships | SEC Network |
| 6 p.m. | Men's Basketball vs. Ole Miss | SEC Network |
Wednesday, March 4
| Time | Event | Network |
|---|---|---|
| 4 a.m. | REPLAY: Men's Basketball vs. Ole Miss | SEC Network |
| 11 a.m. | REPLAY: Men's Basketball vs. Ole Miss | SEC Network |
Friday, March 6
| Time | Event | Network |
|---|---|---|
| 6:30 p.m. | Softball vs. Ole Miss | SEC Network + |
| 6:30 p.m. | Gymnastics at Missouri | SEC Network + |
Our teams need your support, so please plan to attend to do your part! A rising tide lifts all boats and it's up to all of us to Keep the Tide Rising!
Roll Tide!
