The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Forty Acres Insider: June 22
06.22.2021 | Forty Acres Insider
Important news happening in and around Texas Athletics compiled by Vice President and Athletics Director Chris Del Conte. [<a href="http://texassports.com/archives.aspx?path=forty_acres_insider">Forty Acres Insider archives</a>]
Longhorn Nation,
Here's hoping everyone had a wonderful Father's Day weekend as we celebrated the amazing patriarchs in our lives. It's truly a special day to honor, appreciate and thank them, and we want to take a moment and send a special shout out to all of our Longhorn dads. It certainly was one filled with Longhorn action as we got to cheer on our Longhorn Baseball team as we began College World Series play in Omaha on Sunday, Ryan Crouser rep'd all the Texas Exes with a World Record performance, and so many of our greats, past and present, continued to chase their Olympic dreams. I'll say it once again, what a great time it is to be a Longhorn!
Game one in Omaha didn't go the way we'd hoped as Coach Pierce and our No. 2 Longhorns rallied late, but came up just short in a 2-1 pitching duel against Mississippi State. As you all know so well, the CWS is a double-elimination tournament so we'll be right back at it today against Tennessee at 1 p.m CT (ESPNU). Longhorn Nation we need you, let's cheer this squad to victory and continue to keep the good times rollin' on an amazing 2021 season.
Speaking of good times, If you haven't seen Ryan Crouser's shot put performance at the U.S. Olympic Trials last week, you've got to check it out because it was a sight to behold. A little background for those of you not in the Track & Field circles, Ryan is our Longhorn great and he's basically a shot put savant who won four NCAA titles here and is the defending Olympic Gold Medalist. Well, last Friday he took his status to legendary by shattering the 31-year old World Record by nearly a foot. He tossed the 16-pound ball 76-feet, 8 ¼ inches. Oh my, to put that in perspective, that's like a bowling ball sailing more than three quarters of a basketball court. Picture that for a second! Our friends at the USATF referred to it as the "shot heard around the world," and that it was indeed. Frankly, it was the toss that nearly cleared the shot sector so Dear Tokyo, extend that dang thing for Ryan later this summer because he's coming for another Gold and there's no limit to how far this Longhorn can throw. We all know, what starts here changes the world, and Ryan Crouser is certainly doing that!
Olympic fever is in the air with two other Texas Exes selected to Team USA squads. Last week we told you about Chiaka Ogbogu in Vollebyall, and on Monday, former Women's Basketball star Ariel Atkins earned a bid on that squad. Ariel is the fourth member of our great program to represent us as a member of Team USA in women's hoops and will be a part of the team that has won the last six Gold Medals!
As we hit the second half of the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials, congratulations are also in order for Teahna Daniels who finished third in the 100 meters to punch her ticket to Tokyo. That comes on the heels of the recently completed Trials for Swimming & Diving where our men's program had former Longhorn Townley Haas qualify in a pair of events (200-meter freestyle, 4x200-meter freestyle relay), and current swimmer Drew Kibler (4x200-meter freestyle relay) and diver Jordan Windle (10-meter platform) all earn spots on Team USA. For the women, it was a former standout diver in Alison Gibson (synchronized 3-meter springboard) and two promising young incoming freshman in Erica Sullivan (1500m free) and Hailey Hernandez (3-meter springboard) earning bids to the Tokyo Games. A huge shout out to all of the Longhorns competing for a spot in the Olympics, it's a dream come true to make the team, but just competing at that level is an unbelievable tribute in and of itself.
And with that said, how about the story of Sarah Lancaster? Talk about the pride and winning tradition of the Texas Longhorns. As a student-athlete here she lettered in Tennis and Basketball, she was in the midst of a highly-successful career as a lawyer in Austin, and she just got that itch to compete at the highest level again. Well, why not running?! She laced up those track shoes, took to the trails and the oval, and her career was off and running. It didn't take long for this determined and dedicated Longhorn to take it to the world class level, she qualified for the Olympic Trials, traveled to Eugene with big dreams in mind, and I'll be darned if she didn't advance to the semifinals … you can read all about her journey right here.
Over the past few weeks we've talked about how fantastic it's been to see Longhorn Nation back together again at our events and how much we're looking forward to our reunion in the fall. Well, that extends beyond sports and into the community, too. After the annual Juneteenth Parade in East Austin was forced to go virtual last year due to the pandemic, it was back in person and better than ever this year! It's such a joyous occasion and there were so many smiles Saturday morning as our student-athletes and staff got to take part face to face with our community to help commemorate the announcement of the end of slavery in Texas on June 19, 1865. It's always one of the highlights of the year, but being back together after the time away made it that much more special. We want to thank our Community Engagement Committee for always organizing our participation!
We've had plenty of great stories to share this spring, and how about Alex Watson?! She overcame so much, has so much grit and determination, and we could not have won a Rowing National Championship without her. A huge Hook 'Em Horns and CONGRATULATIONS to the Big 12 Female Sports Person of the Year. Alex, we are all so super proud that others recognize how truly special you really are! Speaking of recognizition and National Championships, let's give it up for our incredible Women's Tennis staff who deservedly swept the ITA National Coach of the Year awards with Howard Joffe named the Coach of the Year, and Taylor Fogleman the Assistant Coach of the Year! With all the youth on that team and our Men's Final Four squad with Coach Berque, look out! Our tennis programs will be a force to be reckoned with for years to come!
I do also want to take a moment to give a shoutout to our Assistant AD and Chief Financial Officer Rob Novak, who was recently named the newest member of the CABMA (Collegiate Athletic Business Management Association) Executive Committee. Rob does an exceptional job keeping us on track financially, preparing us for every obstacle and just was amazing during this extraordinary challenging time. He will serve as the CABMA third Vice President in 2021-22, will be a tremendous representative of our department, and as importantly, an impactful voice in the room as that organization collaborates and discusses ways to continue to get better across all of our campuses.
Oh, and we head into the summer months, let's not forget what's coming in the fall. Keep those Football Season Ticket deposits coming. We can't wait to have 100,000-plus at DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium on September 4 for the biggest Longhorn Family Reunion ever! If you've ever wanted to become a season ticket holder, this is the time to do it as all annual seat-related gifts will be locked for years to come. Fans waiting until 2022 to purchase season tickets will be subject to periodic increases in their seat-related gift. Be a part of it all by placing your season ticket deposit today for only $199 per seat. It's just a click (online at TexasSports.com/Renewals) or phone call (512-471-3333) away to secure your spot to celebrate alongside us and cheer on the Horns!
I want to close with my personal message as I look back on another Father's Day without my dad. For me, it's a time of reflection and remembrance, as I lost my father some years back. In today's climate, I sure do miss his counsel and wisdom. However, I am grateful for the lessons of empathy, compassion, and most of all, love that he taught me and our family. He had a powerful message that he proudly displayed behind his desk, which I do the same to this day, and I thought I'd share that with you in his honor for Father's Day. Happy Father's Day to my Pops!
"People are often unreasonable, illogical and self-centered: forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives: be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you'll win some false friends and some true enemies: succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you: be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight: build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous: be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow: do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough: give the world the best you've got anyway.
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God: it was never between you and them anyway."
Stay safe, be healthy and Hook 'Em Horns,
Chris Del Conte
Chris Del Conte
P.S. — Trey, as the kids say – same! Ryan Crouser, just wow, WOW!!
P.S. II – Coach Becton is gettin' our guys ready!
P.S. III – I see ya Coach Scoggin! Will be great having you in Tokyo helping Team USA!
HEADLINES
Daniels claims U.S. Olympic Team spot in the 100m
Teahna Daniels placed third in Saturday's 100m final to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics, while Chanel Brissett advanced to the semifinals of the 100m hurdles.
Sullivan claims U.S. Olympic Team spot in 1500 free
Incoming freshman Erica Sullivan placed second in Wednesday's final to punch her ticket to Tokyo.
Haas, Kibler claim U.S. Olympic Team spots
Former Longhorn Townley Haas and junior Drew Kibler go 2-3 in Tuesday's 200 free final to punch their tickets to Tokyo.
Women's Basketball announces April Phillips as assistant coach
Phillips spent the past two seasons at Cal-Berkeley as an assistant coach & recruiting coordinator
25 Track & Field standouts tabbed 2021 USTFCCCA All-America
Led by National Long Jump Champion Tara Davis, 17 of the All-Americans were first-team selections.
Davis named semifinalist for The Bowerman
Texas' record-breaking long jumper, Tara Davis, becomes just the third woman in program history to be named a semifinalist for the prestigious honor.
Baseball's Madden named to pair of All-America teams
The Longhorns' ace has been named to both the Baseball America and NCBWA All-America teams.
Baseball's Madden named First Team All-American
The Longhorns' ace landed on the Perfect Game All-America first team.
Baseball's Nixon and Witt named Freshman All-Americans
Longhorn duo honored by Perfect Game for stellar debut seasons.
Baseball rally comes up short in CWS opener
The Longhorns scored a run in the ninth and had the tying run at third but fell just short, 2-1, to Mississippi State.
Feature Story on Men's Basketball's Chris Beard (via cbssports.com)
Chris Beard's track record Shows he may make his mark on the Longhorns quickly
Baseball lands three on ABCA/Rawlings All-Region teams
Ty Madden, Pete Hansen and Ivan Melendez were named to the American Baseball Coaches Association All-Region teams.
Men's Basketball signs Tre Mitchell
Mitchell averaged 18.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game while earning Atlantic 10 All-Conference first-team honors as a sophomore in 2020-21 at UMass.
Baseball preview: NCAA College World Series
The Longhorns make their NCAA-record 37th appearance at the College World Series.
Twenty-five Texas Track & Field standouts set to compete at upcoming U.S. Olympic Trials
Competition begins Friday with 25 Longhorns past and present in 29 events to be among those vying for a spot in the Tokyo Summer Olympic Games.
Soccer announces its 2021 fall schedule
Longhorns to face six opponents that participated in the 48-team 2021 NCAA Women's Soccer Championship.
