WSU SOCCER
Three put on the Red, White, and Blue
From WSU Sports Info
After
finishing a historic season at Washington State, senior Morgan Weaver, junior
Makamae Gomera-Stevens, and sophomore Mykiaa Minniss will continue to play on
as the trio of Cougars were called into national team duty this week in
Florida.
The
attacking duo of Weaver and Gomera-Stevens will join the senior national team
camp in Bradenton, Fla. while Minniss will pull on the U-20 jersey in Lakewood
Ranch, Fla to play in the 2019 Nike International Friendlies.
For Weaver
and Gomera-Stevens, the duo become the first Cougars to be called into camp
with the top team in the U.S., training alongside of 24 other professionals and
college players in the Identification Camp. The camp includes 14 professional
players from the NWSL and 10 other college players from Stanford, North
Carolina, UCLA, Florida State, and Texas A&M.
The camp
will be guided under the watchful eye of new USWNT Head Coach Vlatko Andonovski
who made initial call ups to the camp last week prior to the NCAA Tournament
Quarterfinals. The identification camp will not include any players from the
2019 World Cup squad. The two Cougs join 10 other players who are earning their
first call-up to the senior National Team.
With her
teammates heading to training camp, Minniss heads back to action on the pitch
as the second-year centerback was called into camp by U-20 Head Coach Mark Carr
to take part in the friendly tournament. The U-20 squad will split up into two
teams for the three-day event with the U.S. teams playing U-20 squads from
Brazil and France at the Premier Sports Campus in Lakewood Ranch, Fla.
The U.S.
teams will play Dec. 11 and Dec. 13. The matches are serving as preparation for
February's Concacaf Women's U-20 Championship to be held in the Dominican
Republic. All five tournament games will be streamed live on ussoccer.com,
Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
Named a
third-team all-american last week, Weaver will put on the senior national team
jersey for the first time after spending the last two years as part of the U-23
system.
Weaver saw
action in the 2018 Thorns Spring Invitational with the U.S., assisting on the
game-tying goal in a 2-2 draw with the host Thorns in the tournament finale. In
her final season at WSU, Weaver led the Cougars to the College Cup for the
first time in program history as she etched her name among the all-time greats
to have played in the Crimson and Gray. In a year with ebbs and flows, Weaver
put together a career year as she ended the season with 15 goals, including 10
in the final eight games of the season.
Her 15
goals ranks as the third-most in program history an the most scored in the last
26 seasons. She would add five assists as well to her scoring as she accounted
for over 44% of WSU's tallies on the year. In the postseason with the lights
the brightest, Weaver notched a team-best four goals including scoring the
first College Cup goal in program history against the eventual national
runner-up, North Carolina, in the semifinals. Her 35 total points on the season
rank as the third-most in single season history. For her career, Weaver
finished with 43 goals and 98 total points, both ranking second all-time in
program history. Making the most of her time in front of goal, Weaver notched
13 game-winners, including two this season, which ranks third in program
history. Her nine multi-goal games ranks second all-time among Coug scorers.
While
Weaver was the star, Gomera-Stevens was the x-factor for the Cougars throughout
the year earning her an invite to the national team camp for the first time in
her career. The junior midfielder was arguably the Cougars' best player in the
postseason as she controlled the middle of the pitch for WSU on both ends of
the field. The native Hawaiian came up biggest in pressure situations scoring
four of her team-best five game-winners against the nation's best.
Her first
game-winner handed the previously unbeaten Beavers of Oregon State their first
loss of the season. She would later go on to nab a golden goal on the road
against No. 20 Cal. In the postseason, Gomera-Stevens took it up another notch
scoring game-winners against No. 14 Memphis in the first round and again
against West Virginia to send the Cougs to the Elite Eight for the first time
in program history. In addition, she would tally an assist on the opening
strike against No. 3 Virginia in arguably the biggest win in program history.
She would finish off her career year with five goals (tied for third-most on
the team) and five assists (tied for second-most on the team).
The
captain of the Cougars' defense, Minniss proved herself among the nation's best
to earn her first call up in the national team system. A team that relied on
winning tight games, Minniss and the Cougars' earned 10 shutouts on the year
while going an impressive 10-5 in one-goal games. In 24 total contests, the
Cougars allowed one goal or fewer in 15 games and were an impressive 3-0-1 in
overtime affairs.
In the
postseason, the Cougs earned three shutouts with none bigger than a 1-0,
overtime, win over No. 5 South Carolina to advance to the College Cup. It was
Minniss that won the game for the Cougars in Columbia as she notched her first
and only goal of the season on a 96th minute corner kick in the first overtime.
BEN LASKEY
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
WSU
football
Brandon
Arconado becomes first Washington State first team Academic All-American since
2010
By Theo
Lawson S-R Spokane 9 Dec 2019
Brandon
Arconado’s standout senior year at Washington State wasn’t limited to huge
catches and key plays on the field for the Cougars.
The
redshirt senior wide receiver was named Monday to the Academic All-America
First Team by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA)
Monday, a distinction given to only 25 football players across all three NCAA
divisions. Twenty-five more players are named to the Second Team.
Arconado
has a 3.65 GPA and already owns a bachelor’s degree in management information
systems. A fifth-year senior, he’s currently working toward his master’s degree
in business administration. This is the first All-American honor for Arconado,
but he’s twice been named to the Pac-12’s All-Academic teams, earninig second
team recognition last season and honorable mention in 2017.
“Brandon
is awesome, exactly the kind of student-athlete you root for,” saud WSU Faculty
Athletic Representative Nancy Swanger, who also serves as associate dean and
director, WSU College Carson of Business. “He strives for excellence in all
that he does and is a great ambassador for Washington State University. Brandon
should take pride in this tremendous accomplishment.”
It’s been
nine years since WSU last had a football Academic All-American selection. Chima
Nwachukwu earned first team honors in 2010, becoming the first WSU player to do
so since Jason Hanson in 1991.
Arconado
is also one of only two Pac-12 football players to make the first team, joining
Oregon quarterback Justin Herbert. Ducks offensive tackle Calvin Throckmorton
was the only Pac-12 player on the second team.
Arconado,
a Chino Hills, California, native, broke out on the field for WSU this year,
earning a starting role at “Y” receiver and leading the Pac-12 with six
100-yard receiving games, which was also second-most in school single-season
history.
Even
though he missed two full games and parts of three others due to injury, the
slot receiver managed to finish seventh in the conference with 67 catches and
fourth with 947 receiving yards – also a team-high. Arconado also leads the
team with 14.5 yards-per-catch and has caught six touchdown passes.
::::
Football
Cougs paired with Air Force in Cheez-It Bowl
Starkly
contrasting offenses will be featured in Dec. 27 game at Phoenix
By Dale
Grummert, Trib of Lewiston 9 Dec 2019
Washington
State bowl games are often studies in contrast, and that will be especially
true this year.
The
extremely pass-mindedCougars have been paired against the extremely run-minded
Air Force Falcons for the Cheez-It Bowl at Phoenix, it was announced Sunday.
Kickoff
will be 7:15 p.m. PST on Dec. 27 at Chase Field, home of the Arizona
Diamondbacks, and TV coverage will be by ESPN.
While the
Cougars (6-6) and their Air Raid offense lead the nation in passing by an
average of almost 60 yards a game, No. 24 Air Force (10-2) ranks third in rushing
and employs a triple-option derived from the wishbone.
To WSU
coach Mike Leach, the concepts behind these modes of offense are more similar
than the resultant run-pass ratios.
“If I
didn’t throw the ball, I’d run the option,” he said in a bowl teleconference
Sunday. “I always felt like our brand of football really started with the
wishbone, because what the wishbone always did such a good job of is
distribution — all the skill positions touch the ball.
“They’re
great at stretching the field side to side, and better at stretching it upfield
than they’ve ever gotten credit for, because some of those pitches take place
after theyv’e begun to get upfield. So I felt like a lot of our space concepts
came from the wishbone.”
Yet both
defenses will be facing unfamiliar offensive schemes. Air Force Troy Calhoun
pointed out the challenges of preparing against Leach’s Raid.
“The
production, the quality of their execution, and really the difficulty of trying
to simulate what they do, is going to be a gigantic challenge,” he said. “Our
guys embrace challenges. This is going to be unlike any we’ve ever encountered,
I think, to be real.”
The
Falcons, based in Colorado Springs, Colo., won their final seven games of the
regular season to finish 7-1 in the Mountain West Conference, placing second in
the Mountain Division and launching a successful push to cop a conditional
Cheez-It berth. That bowl’s primary affiliations are with the Big 12 and the
Pac-12.
The
Cougars finished 3-6 in the Pac-12, tying for last place in the six-team North.
In the league’s bowl pecking order, they claimed the last of seven bids.
They’re
making their fifth straight bowl appearance, all under Leach, and their 16th
overall.
The
Cheez-It is the latest incarnation of a bowl that began as the Copper Bowl in
1989, based in Tucson, Ariz., and whose fourth edition saw WSU defeat Utah
31-28 in 1992.
“Cougar
fans remember the last bowl game we played in Arizona, when Drew Bledsoe led us
to a thrilling win,” WSU athletic director Pat Chun said in a statement. “Our
fans will take advantage of a great week in Phoenix and a wonderful bowl game.”
During a
stretch when the bowl was called the Insight Bowl, a Texas Tech team coached by
Leach pulled off the biggest comeback in bowl history, erasing a 38-7 deficit
to edge Minnesota 44-41 in overtime in 2006.
These
days, the Cheez-It’s official home is Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Ariz. But
because of renovations to that venue, the game is being played at the
Diamondbacks’ Chase Field, converted to a football venue following the
major-league baseball season.
This is
the first meeting between WSU and Air Force. The Falcons have been installed as
2½-point favorites.
Tickets
can be ordered through wsucougars.com or by calling 1-800-462-6847.
::::::::::::::::
WSU's
Cheez-It Bowl swag includes GoPro camera
From
COUGFAN.com
COUGAR
PLAYERS AND COACHES, and also likely several Washington State VIPs, will take
home some very nice gifts from the Cheez-It Bowl -- including the ability to
shoot some insanely smooth video.
Sports
Business Journal is out with its annual bowl game gifts list. The Cheez-It Bowl this year is gifting:
GoPro Hero
7 with accessories and carrying case
Fossil
watch
Oakley
sunglasses
Ogio
Shuttle Pack backpack
“History
of The Bowls: Celebrating the Good of The Game” book
Ice Shaker
insulated bottle
Branded
Bills cap and travel case
SBJ
reports because of college football’s 150th anniversary, any bowl providing a
commemorative coin or the “History of The Bowls: Celebrating The Good of The
Game” book, were given a one-time waiver by the NCAA, so the gift did not count
toward the $550 limit from the NCAA.
Many bowl
games offer gift suites, generally set up as private events where up to 125
game participants per school are allowed to select a gift/gifts up to a set
value by each bowl and not to exceed the NCAA limit.
Here are
the other Pac-12 bowl swag, courtesy of SBJ:
Las Vegas:
Gift suite; socks; beanie; portable charger.
Sun: Gift
suite; Timely Watch Co. Silvertone watch; Majestic Pro-Base fleece pullover;
Ogio Excelsior backpack; New Era cap; coin
Redbox:
Nintendo Switch Lite; Nixon watch; Turtle Beach gaming headphones; Herschel
Supply Co. backpack; Goodr sunglasses
Holiday:
Gift suite; Fossil watch; wireless speaker
Alamo:
Apple AirPods Pro; $115 Amazon gift card; Michael Kors watch; helmet; team
panoramic photo
Rose: Gift
suite; Fossil watch; Ogio backpack; New Era 9Fifty snapback adjustable hat
#
:::
WSU
football
Brandon
Arconado becomes first Washington State first team Academic All-American since
2010
By Theo Lawson S-R Spokane 9 Dec 2019
Brandon
Arconado’s standout senior year at Washington State wasn’t limited to huge
catches and key plays on the field for the Cougars.
The
redshirt senior wide receiver was named Monday to the Academic All-America
First Team by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA)
Monday, a distinction given to only 25 football players across all three NCAA
divisions. Twenty-five more players are named to the Second Team.
Arconado
has a 3.65 GPA and already owns a bachelor’s degree in management information
systems. A fifth-year senior, he’s currently working toward his master’s degree
in business administration. This is the first All-American honor for Arconado,
but he’s twice been named to the Pac-12’s All-Academic teams, earninig second
team recognition last season and honorable mention in 2017.
“Brandon
is awesome, exactly the kind of student-athlete you root for,” saud WSU Faculty
Athletic Representative Nancy Swanger, who also serves as associate dean and
director, WSU College Carson of Business. “He strives for excellence in all
that he does and is a great ambassador for Washington State University. Brandon
should take pride in this tremendous accomplishment.”
It’s been
nine years since WSU last had a football Academic All-American selection. Chima
Nwachukwu earned first team honors in 2010, becoming the first WSU player to do
so since Jason Hanson in 1991.
Arconado
is also one of only two Pac-12 football players to make the first team, joining
Oregon quarterback Justin Herbert. Ducks offensive tackle Calvin Throckmorton
was the only Pac-12 player on the second team.
Arconado,
a Chino Hills, California, native, broke out on the field for WSU this year, earning
a starting role at “Y” receiver and leading the Pac-12 with six 100-yard
receiving games, which was also second-most in school single-season history.
Even
though he missed two full games and parts of three others due to injury, the
slot receiver managed to finish seventh in the conference with 67 catches and
fourth with 947 receiving yards – also a team-high. Arconado also leads the
team with 14.5 yards-per-catch and has caught six touchdown passes.
::::
Football
Cougs paired with Air Force in Cheez-It Bowl
Starkly
contrasting offenses will be featured in Dec. 27 game at Phoenix
By Dale
Grummert, Trib of Lewiston 9 Dec 2019
Washington
State bowl games are often studies in contrast, and that will be especially
true this year.
The
extremely pass-mindedCougars have been paired against the extremely run-minded
Air Force Falcons for the Cheez-It Bowl at Phoenix, it was announced Sunday.
Kickoff
will be 7:15 p.m. PST on Dec. 27 at Chase Field, home of the Arizona
Diamondbacks, and TV coverage will be by ESPN.
While the
Cougars (6-6) and their Air Raid offense lead the nation in passing by an
average of almost 60 yards a game, No. 24 Air Force (10-2) ranks third in
rushing and employs a triple-option derived from the wishbone.
To WSU
coach Mike Leach, the concepts behind these modes of offense are more similar
than the resultant run-pass ratios.
“If I
didn’t throw the ball, I’d run the option,” he said in a bowl teleconference
Sunday. “I always felt like our brand of football really started with the
wishbone, because what the wishbone always did such a good job of is
distribution — all the skill positions touch the ball.
“They’re
great at stretching the field side to side, and better at stretching it upfield
than they’ve ever gotten credit for, because some of those pitches take place
after theyv’e begun to get upfield. So I felt like a lot of our space concepts
came from the wishbone.”
Yet both
defenses will be facing unfamiliar offensive schemes. Air Force Troy Calhoun
pointed out the challenges of preparing against Leach’s Raid.
“The
production, the quality of their execution, and really the difficulty of trying
to simulate what they do, is going to be a gigantic challenge,” he said. “Our
guys embrace challenges. This is going to be unlike any we’ve ever encountered,
I think, to be real.”
The
Falcons, based in Colorado Springs, Colo., won their final seven games of the
regular season to finish 7-1 in the Mountain West Conference, placing second in
the Mountain Division and launching a successful push to cop a conditional
Cheez-It berth. That bowl’s primary affiliations are with the Big 12 and the
Pac-12.
The
Cougars finished 3-6 in the Pac-12, tying for last place in the six-team North.
In the league’s bowl pecking order, they claimed the last of seven bids.
They’re
making their fifth straight bowl appearance, all under Leach, and their 16th
overall.
The
Cheez-It is the latest incarnation of a bowl that began as the Copper Bowl in
1989, based in Tucson, Ariz., and whose fourth edition saw WSU defeat Utah
31-28 in 1992.
“Cougar
fans remember the last bowl game we played in Arizona, when Drew Bledsoe led us
to a thrilling win,” WSU athletic director Pat Chun said in a statement. “Our
fans will take advantage of a great week in Phoenix and a wonderful bowl game.”
During a
stretch when the bowl was called the Insight Bowl, a Texas Tech team coached by
Leach pulled off the biggest comeback in bowl history, erasing a 38-7 deficit
to edge Minnesota 44-41 in overtime in 2006.
These
days, the Cheez-It’s official home is Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Ariz. But
because of renovations to that venue, the game is being played at the
Diamondbacks’ Chase Field, converted to a football venue following the
major-league baseball season.
This is
the first meeting between WSU and Air Force. The Falcons have been installed as
2½-point favorites.
Tickets
can be ordered through wsucougars.com or by calling 1-800-462-6847.
::::::::::::::::
WSU's
Cheez-It Bowl swag includes GoPro camera
From
COUGFAN.com
COUGAR
PLAYERS AND COACHES, and also likely several Washington State VIPs, will take
home some very nice gifts from the Cheez-It Bowl -- including the ability to
shoot some insanely smooth video.
Sports
Business Journal is out with its annual bowl game gifts list. The Cheez-It Bowl this year is gifting:
GoPro Hero
7 with accessories and carrying case
Fossil
watch
Oakley
sunglasses
Ogio
Shuttle Pack backpack
“History
of The Bowls: Celebrating the Good of The Game” book
Ice Shaker
insulated bottle
Branded
Bills cap and travel case
SBJ
reports because of college football’s 150th anniversary, any bowl providing a
commemorative coin or the “History of The Bowls: Celebrating The Good of The
Game” book, were given a one-time waiver by the NCAA, so the gift did not count
toward the $550 limit from the NCAA.
Many bowl
games offer gift suites, generally set up as private events where up to 125
game participants per school are allowed to select a gift/gifts up to a set
value by each bowl and not to exceed the NCAA limit.
Here are
the other Pac-12 bowl swag, courtesy of SBJ:
Las Vegas:
Gift suite; socks; beanie; portable charger.
Sun: Gift
suite; Timely Watch Co. Silvertone watch; Majestic Pro-Base fleece pullover;
Ogio Excelsior backpack; New Era cap; coin
Redbox:
Nintendo Switch Lite; Nixon watch; Turtle Beach gaming headphones; Herschel
Supply Co. backpack; Goodr sunglasses
Holiday:
Gift suite; Fossil watch; wireless speaker
Alamo:
Apple AirPods Pro; $115 Amazon gift card; Michael Kors watch; helmet; team
panoramic photo
Rose: Gift
suite; Fossil watch; Ogio backpack; New Era 9Fifty snapback adjustable hat
#
