October 1, 2009
Dear Bearcats,
In the last couple weeks the students have returned and classes have started and there is a little chill in the air. With fall finally upon us, our sports teams are all shifting their focus to BIG EAST Conference play after successful non-conference performances.
This fall has been an historic one for our football team as it has leapt up the national polls in the first month of the season to its highest rankings (No. 10 Associated Press/No. 11 Coaches Poll) in program history. The fast 4-0 start, which includes impressive wins over Rutgers, Oregon State, and Fresno State, has generated a buzz around campus and the nation and this week the team was featured in Sports Illustrated in a feature called "Cincinnati Shuffle."
We hope you can come be a part of this great experience on Oct. 24 when we host Louisville for Homecoming. Please note that due to BIG EAST television selections, the game time will not be known until 10-12 days before the game.
In addition to football, other programs have experienced success as well. Our men's soccer program is 7-3 overall and has been riding high over the last week after knocking off No. 21 Notre Dame in South Bend and then beating crosstown rival Xavier, 2-1, in a thrilling overtime victory.
The women's soccer team, under the helm of second-year coach Michelle Salmon, has started off strong at 6-5 thanks to a four-match winning streak, which included wins over rivals Xavier and Louisville, and a pair of BIG EAST Players of the Week distinctions.
The defending BIG EAST champion volleyball team starts league play at home Oct. 3-4 with matches vs. Pittsburgh and West Virginia. The 10-7 to start the year includes contests against four nationally-ranked opponents and a 3-0 win vs. No. 16 Saint Louis.
Even though it is early in the season, the cross country teams both look strong after second place finishes at the Queen City Invitational, where UC's Eric Finan and Jocelyn McCauley won the individual titles, and top 10 team finishes at the Iona College Meet of Champions.
The golf teams have used the fall season to hone their games as the men's team has posted a pair of Top 3 finishes, while the women's team came from behind on the final day of the UC Fall Classic to post their first win of the year.
For our student-athletes to continue to have this kind of success and to compete for BIG EAST titles, they need to have the best coaches, the best equipment, and the best training facilities. In the last year, we have been focusing on bringing a new facility online that will provide all 18 of our teams with more practice and training space. Tentatively called the Jefferson Avenue Sports Complex, the facility will provide more space (two practice fields), and the ability to erect an air-supported "bubble" over the 100-yard field that will give us an indoor practice area during the winter months as our football team prepares for postseason bowls and the outdoor sports continue to train for their respective seasons.
As we move closer to the deadline to begin construction of the complex, local entrepreneur and UC athletics benefactor Larry Sheakley, CEO of The Sheakley Group, has issued a $1 million challenge to help in the final fundraising stretch.
Sheakley will match all contributions made to the Jefferson Avenue Sports Complex up to a personal commitment of $1 million.
The University and the City of Cincinnati are blessed to have such selfless benefactors like Larry Sheakley and numerous others who have stepped up recently or do so annually with gifts to UCATS. It is you who help us reach our goals and realize our CATAPULT ideals of Championships, Academics and Together.
If you would like to contribute to the project or just learn more about it, I encouraged you to log on to www.UCATS.net and click on the main page icon that features a comprehensive presentation of information regarding the Jefferson Avenue Sports Complex. If you would like to speak to a member of the UCATS staff directly please call 513-556-4884.
Have another great month and we look forward to seeing you on campus.
Go Bearcats ,
Mike Thomas
Director of Athletics
