A Message From the Athletic Director - October 2019
Hurricane Fans,
It’s a busy time of year for Miami Athletics as our fall sports are heading down the homestretch while both of our basketball teams are getting ready to tip off their seasons.
Our football team travels to Pittsburgh this weekend for its first road game in 50 days. Kickoff is at 12 p.m. on ESPN. Manny Diaz’s squad has endured some agonizingly close losses thus far, but the team continues to fight hard and you can see the culture he’s building in the locker room is one that will sustain for seasons to come. Our final home game is Saturday, November 9 against Louisville. It’s Homecoming Weekend and we hope to see all of you at Hard Rock Stadium cheering on the Canes!
Four of our football games this season have been televised exclusively on ACC Network, which is providing us with a tremendous platform to help promote and showcase our teams, our student-athletes and our University to a wide audience. Providers across the country are carrying ACCN, including AT&T U-Verse, DIRECTV, Dish, Spectrum, NCTC, Fios, Google Fiber, Hulu, Sling, Optimum, PlayStation Vue and YouTube TV. The lone major cable provider that isn’t carrying the network is Comcast. I encourage all Canes who have Comcast to call them and demand ACCN! We want everybody to be able to watch every Canes game for every sport this season.
Basketball is nearly upon us and it’s shaping up to be an exciting season at Watsco Center. Jim Larrañaga’s men’s squad tips off the season with a huge home conference game against fifth-ranked Louisville on Tuesday, November 5 at 6:30 p.m. Junior guard Chris Lykes, a preseason second-team All-ACC selection, and senior guard DJ Vasiljevic lead a team that also welcomes a promising group of newcomers, including Oklahoma transfer Kameron McGusty. The Hurricanes’ home slate also includes visits from Duke, Florida State, Syracuse and defending national champion Virginia. Call 1-800-GO-CANES to secure your season tickets for Canes basketball!
Katie Meier’s women’s team was picked fourth in the preseason ACC coaches poll, while senior forward Beatrice Mompremier was named Preseason ACC Player of the Year. Congratulations to Beatrice! The Canes’ first game is Sunday, November 10, against Jackson State at Watsco Center at 3 p.m. The rest of the home slate features ACC foes Duke, Florida State, Louisville and Syracuse in addition to non-conference matchups against Oregon State and Indiana. Call 1-800-GO-CANES to secure your season tickets for Canes basketball!
Our golf team concluded its fall campaign this week in impressive fashion, placing third in the Jim West Challenge in San Marcos, Texas. Patti Rizzo’s squad finished 16-under — extending their streak of par or better rounds to five — and three Canes finished in the top 10, led by Kristyna Frydlova, who was in fifth place at seven-under.
Sarah Barnes’ soccer team won a thrilling, 3-2 overtime match over No. 15 Clemson Thursday night in the first game of a season-ending, three-game ACC homestand. Sophomore Selena Fortich scored the winning goal on a header off a corner kick. The Canes next face No. 14 Louisville Sunday at noon before finishing the season against No. 3 North Carolina on Halloween at 7:30 p.m. Come cheer on the Canes at Cobb Stadium!
Keno Gandara’s volleyball team is 8-8 overall and 4-4 in ACC play and hits the road for two key conference clashes this weekend, first at Clemson tonight at 7 p.m., followed by a visit to Georgia Tech Sunday at noon. We continue our road swing next Wednesday, October 30, at Florida State in a game that will be televised on ACCN at 7 p.m. Tune in to watch the Canes!
Our cross country squad is preparing for next week’s ACC Championships in Blacksburg, Va. In their last outing at the FSU Invitational, Cody Halsey’s distance runners posted seven season-best times. Good luck to the Canes at ACCs!
Our swimming team competed at the Naval Academy this past weekend in a multi-team event. Next up is a dual meet for both swimmers and divers against FIU and Illinois, hosted by the Panthers on November 1. Our rowing team posted a strong showing in its fall opener at the Head of the Indian Creek at Miami Beach as our A boat in the Champ 8+ event took first place.
Our men’s tennis team is competing in the ITA Southeast Regional Championships in Gainesville this weekend. Our women’s tennis team next plays in the Texas Invitational in Austin, Texas, on November 1-3. This week senior Estela Perez-Somarriba, the defending NCAA singles champion, qualified for the main draw of the ITF Tournament in Macon, Ga., again defeating NCAA finalist Katarina Jokic from Georgia in the final qualifying round. Congratulations to Estela!
Earlier today we announced a new fundraising campaign to help renovate facilities inside Alex Rodriguez Park at Mark Light Field.The $7 million campaign will help fund a new scoreboard, as well as renovations to the Hurricanes locker room players lounge and nutrition center. This marks the second phase of renovations, following the building of a state-of-the-art indoor practice facility that will house batting cages, bullpens and a multi-purpose area. For more information on how to make a gift in support of this project, call the Hurricane Club at (305) 284-6699. Gino DiMare’s squad holds its annual fall scrimmage this Saturday against FAU at 1 p.m. Come check out this year’s Canes for the first time at The Light!
I would like to congratulate the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame’s Class of 2020, which was announced on September 30 and recognized during our football game against Virginia Tech five days later. The eight-member Class of 2020 is comprised of Yasmani Grandal (baseball), Johnny Hemsley (men’s basketball), Jay Brophy, Phillip Buchanon and Kevin Williams (football), Brittney Steinbruch (soccer), Mike Ward (track and field) and Laura Vallverdu (women’s tennis). The 52nd Annual UMSHoF Induction Banquet will be held in the Spring of 2020.
The latest phase of construction for the Carol Soffer Indoor Practice Facility — our spectacular new football recruiting area — is nearly complete. I want to again extend my heartfelt thanks to Carol Soffer and her family for the lead gift for this magnificent facility. We have raised more than $37 million of the $40 million we need so we are not done yet — and we still need your support. One exciting way to give is an exclusive opportunity to have your name etched into one of the player chairs in the refurbished Edgerrin James Team Meeting Room. Your donations will continue to ensure that this facility continues to be one of the best in the country. Visit uhurricaneclub.com to pledge your support.
For the latest information on each of our varsity teams, please be sure to visit HurricaneSports.com or follow us on Twitter @MiamiHurricanes. Happy Halloween and I hope you enjoy this month’s magazine!
Go Canes!
Blake James
