Former Toledo Rocket Melissa Goodall signs with Italian team

http://www.independentcollegian.com/former-lady-rocket-melissa-goodall-eager-to-begin-her-stint-with-italian-club-cus-cagliari-basket-1.2756881#.UEfvpI2PUSw

Former UT women’s basketball standout Melissa Goodall will continue her European career as she signed with CusCagliari Basket of the Serie A league Tuesday, a team based out of Cagliari, Sardinia.

After she graduated following the 2010-11 season, Goodall spent last year playing professionally in Spain.

“I originally accepted an offer with a team based in Milan, but then that team ended up deciding to pull out of the league this year. Luckily, another team in the Italian League was able to offer me and it was pretty much the same deal I was accepting with the Milan team.”

Goodall said she went about a week and a half between contract offers. Her agency has at least one other player that will be accompanying her to her new squad.

Last season, Goodall played for Uni-Tenerife of the Spanish Second Division Professional Basketball League on a one-year deal. They are based out of Santa Cruz in the Canary Islands.

“It was a lot of fun,” Goodall said. “I really enjoyed my team and the experience that I got from it. To be able to continue to play basketball at a pretty competitive level was a lot of fun and definitely worth my time.”

In addition to being able to play basketball, the former All-Mid-American Conference selection said she enjoyed living in the Canary Islands. Leaving her life in the States behind to start a brand new one in Europe was not as difficult as it might seem.

“Actually, it was a pretty easy decision for me,” Goodall said. “Once my senior year completed itself and saw it end on a pretty good note, at that point, I didn’t want to stop playing.”

Goodall said that head coach Tricia Cullop first presented the idea to her prior to her final season at UT. Cullop and her agents, who have ties to many teams overseas, sat down with Melissa and told him she would likely have an opportunity to play.

“She said that if I continued to have the success that I had the previous years, there would be no problem and I should be able to do it. Once she said that, I was like, ‘alright, why not?’”

The former Rocket is taking her pro basketball career one year at a time and doesn’t want to commit to anything for an extended period of time. She said that after her positive experience in Spain, she knew she wanted to continue to play, regardless of location.

“I considered a couple teams in Germany earlier in the summer,” Goodall said. “They were good offers, but they weren’t exactly what I wanted at the time, so we decided to wait a little bit longer to see what came along.”

Goodall got in touch with a few people from her new Italian team via Facebook and was able to find out some information about the squad. Her agents also had prior relationships with the club.

During her time at Toledo, Goodall finished tied for first in games played (131), fourth in blocks (83) and 16th in scoring (1,131).

In her senior season, she averaged 12.9 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.1 blocks, playing a large part in UT’s WNITchampionship.

Despite relocating, Melissa had maintained relationships with her UT coaches and teammates. She traveled toNaama Shafir’s hometown in Isreal with the team last summer and has played pickup games when she’s been around Toledo.

“I’m still really good friends with almost all the girls on the team,” Goodall said. “Coach Cullop is a stellar coach and her relationship with you doesn’t end when you graduate.

“Would I be willing to come back and play at Toledo again? I totally would. If that was option, I’d be back out there, for sure.”

Mistakes cost Toledo in season opener vs Arizona

http://www.independentcollegian.com/mistakes-cost-ut-in-season-opener-1.2755583?pagereq=1#.UEP9qtaPUSw

The first time the Rockets faced Rich Rodriguez, some bizarre things transpired in the later stages.

History repeated itself Saturday, except this time Rodriguez walked away victorious after a wild 24-17 overtime win.

“I was so proud because our kids played so hard,” said UT head coach Matt Campbell. “Give a lot of credit to Arizona and their kids and their staff. I think it’s just a matter of us cleaning up and Toledo taking care of what Toledo does.”

With the game tied at 17, Arizona (1-0) started a drive at their own 20-yard line with 4:43 remaining in regulation. Senior quarterback Matt Scott moved the ball with ease against a Toledo defense that appeared to be overmatched all night, moving the chains on five consecutive plays at one point.

As the Wildcats crept closer to the goal line, they started to take as much time as possible off the clock.

On second and goal, Scott took the snap and fell down right in the middle of the hash marks, setting up a 25-yard chip shot for kicker John Bonano.

With no timeouts left, Toledo (0-1) could only watch as Arizona ran the clock down to two seconds before calling their final timeout to set the stage.

The field goal attempt was nothing more than an extra point, but a bad snap and hold caused Bonano to shank it badly to the left, his second miss of the night from inside 30 yards.

The Wildcats possessed the ball first and UT’s defense forced them into a 3rd and goal from the 10 and appeared to have come up with a huge defensive stand.

Senior defensive tackle Danny Farr chased Scott all the way to the right sidelines and had a firm grasp of his jersey. Farr threw back across his body, letting go of the ball milliseconds before being pulled to the ground and found an open Terrence Miller for a touchdown.

The Rockets had a chance to respond, but nothing went according to plan in their overtime series.

On the first play, senior quarterback Austin Dantin found an alley only to trip over his own feet. It wound up as a seven-yard gain, but he may have taken it all the way into the end zone had he remained upright.

An illegal procedure and delay of game penalty forced UT into a 3rd and 20 from the 23. An incompletion brought up a decisive 4th and 20, but all Dantin could do was heave one into the end zone.

None of his receivers appeared to be open and the ball fell to the ground, ending the hopes of knocking off a Pacific-12 Conference team on the road.

“It was just execution,” Campbell said. “A couple little things here and there we just have to clean up offensively. The noise was a little bit of a factor. We have to make sure we do a better job next week.”

Trailing 3-0 in the second quarter, the Rockets took the lead when junior quarterback Terrance Owens threw a pass towideout Alonzo Russell 59 yards down the sidelines for a 7-3 lead.

Owens finished the night 11-of-22, passing for 134 yards and a score. Dantin played the first two possessions, but Owens finished out the first half.

The Wildcats came right back with the help of several big pass plays, something UT struggled with all game.

Scott found senior Dan Buckner for plays of 21 and 22 yards before finding sophomore Austin Hill for a 30-yard touchdown strike.

Hill got behind the entire Toledo secondary and made a tremendous diving catch in the end zone.

Scott put on a clinic, completing 30-of-46 passes for 384 yards and two touchdowns. Hill had a game-high 136 receiving yards on seven catches.

“We knew he could throw and he showed he can definitely do that,” Campbell said.

Arizona had a chance to add on before halftime, but Hill lost the ball as he stumbled after a nice catch-and-run into Toledo territory.

Arizona’s three turnovers — including one in the red zone — and many untimely penalties allowed the Rockets to stay within striking distance all night.

UT struggled to find the right formula offensively in the second half, scoring just three points.

“It’s tough, the first game of the year, you want to go out there and play great,” Dantin said. 

“Arizona played their heart out, as did we, but we came up a few plays too little.”

Campbell stuck with Owens into the third quarter until he lost a fumble at his own 32. Dantin replaced him for the rest of the game after sitting on the bench since the team’s second series.

“I felt good [after sitting so long],” Dantin said. “T.O. did a good job when he was in there. We’ve done it for so long now that it’s really just second nature. We left a couple plays out there that obviously cost us the game.”

Campbell said he wanted more of run presence at quarterback, so he kept Dantin in for the majority of the second half.

“They were blitzing us a lot and giving us a lot of man pressure,” Campbell said. “I thought some quarterback run game might loosen things up for us and get us going.”

Trailing 14-10 in the third, Arizona running back Ka’Deem Carey exploded up the middle with the help of three missed tackles for a 73-yard touchdown to take a 17-14 lead with 10:44 to play in the third.

Arizona held advantages in nearly every category. They piled up 623 yards of total offense, nearly doubling UT’s 347 yards.

Russell led all Toledo receivers with 71 yards on three catches. Bernard Reedy had a career-best nine catches for 55 yards and also returned a kick 60 yards.    

The Rockets will be on the road again next week as they travel to Wyoming to take on the Cowboys Saturday, Sept. 8 at 4 p.m.

Toledo Rockets eager to begin season, face Arizona Wildcats

http://www.independentcollegian.com/rockets-eager-to-start-regular-season-face-arizona-saturday-1.2754040#.UEP9JtaPUSw

(Originally published 8-29-12)

After winter conditioning, spring ball, fall practice and nearly 250 days, it’s finally time for the Rockets to return to the football field Saturday night when they battle the Arizona Wildcats in the desert.

The last time Toledo stepped onto the gridiron, they emerged victorious in the 2011 Military Bowl with a thrilling 42-41 victory over Air Force in head coach Matt Campbell’s first game at the helm.

UT hopes to begin 2012 the way they finished 2011 – with a big win.

“I think there comes a point in time when the Rockets are sick of playing the Rockets and it seems like we’ve been doing that for the last six or seven months,” Campbell said. “I know our kids are really excited, I’m proud of how hard they’ve worked to get to this point and I think we’re looking forward to finding a little bit more about ourselves as we get into game week.”

Toledo is no stranger to the big stage and their track record shows they know how to handle it.

Since 2003, UT has beaten six schools from BCS conferences, ninth most among all non-BCS teams. Colorado, Kansas, Michigan, Purdue and ninth-ranked Pittsburgh have all fallen victim to the Rockets.

Syracuse and no. 15 Ohio State were very close to being added to that list last season.

“It’s the tradition of Toledo and I think we always embrace what the tradition of this great university is in our program,” Campbell said. “I think the biggest focus for us and our kids is certainly one game at a time. I think that we’ve really tried to embrace that motto of ‘one day at a time’ through camp and spring practice.”

If UT makes Arizona its next victim, it won’t the first time they’ve gotten the best of the Cats’ new head 

coach.

UT’s upset over Michigan at the Big House in 2008 occurred in Rich Rodriguez’s first year in-charge of the Wolverine program. Rodriguez was given the Arizona job last November, 41 days after Mike Stoops was fired six games into the season.

2011 was a very rough year for Arizona, who dropped five of their first six games. They finished the season 4-8 (2-7 PAC-12) and found themselves in a last place tie in the South division.

The Wildcats do return some talented players, however, especially on the offensive side of the ball.

“They’ve got PAC-12 talent, and that’s the first thing I’ll say about their football team,” Campbell said. “When you look at them across the board, they’ve got five of their offensive lineman back from last year that played and started. So they’ve got great experience.”

Fifth year senior Matt Scott has been given the nod at quarterback and fits Rodriguez’s patented Zone-Read Option perfectly. He possesses an adequate arm and can also run effectively.

Scott has played sparingly during his time in Arizona, but has put-up solid numbers in his limited opportunities. From 2008-10, he completed 114 of 177 passes for 1,301 yards and six touchdowns. He added 632 rushing yards and two more scores on the ground.

Scott, who redshirted last year, has giant shoes to fill that Nick Foles left behind. Foles accounted for over 352 total yards per game in 2011, fourth best in the country.

“The quarterback, by all indications, is a man that’s got great athleticism and he can throw the football,” Campbell said. “I think they’ve got to feel really good about who they are offensively.”

Toledo’s spread offense is similar to what Rodriguez will use with the Wildcats, but the quarterback situation is slightly different.

Campbell said he will likely name a “starting” quarterback after Wednesday’s practice, but both will play throughout the season, as was the case last year.

Both junior Terrance Owens and senior Austin Dantin will look to pick apart a defense that ranked second-to-last in college football against the pass last season.

Both signal callers had outstanding seasons in 2011. Owens set an all-time single season Mid-American Conference record by completing 72.2 percent of his passes while Dantin posted the 21st-best QB efficiency rating with a 149.7.

“Offensively, we’ve got to do a great job of taking care of the football and when we have an opportunity to score points, we have to score points,” Campbell said.

As if Toledo needed any more reason to be excited to take the field again, their first game of the year will be in front of a crowd of 51,811 people and nationally televised on ESPNU at 10:30 p.m. EST.

“I think any time you get a chance to go into a great environment and you have a chance to play in front of a great crowd and a great, historic football program, then I think your kids get excited about those opportunities,” Campbell said. “I know we’re excited, but I think more than anything, we’re excited just to kickoff 2012 and find out a little more about us.”

NCAA, coaches should hold trouble-makers more accountable

http://www.independentcollegian.com/ncaa-head-coaches-should-hold-trouble-makers-more-accountable-1.2751168

College football has a major problem on its hands, and it’s no longer free tattoos or even the lack of a playoff system.

It’s the alarming rate at which football players have found themselves sporting handcuffs and lounging in the back of police cars these days.

Between DUI’s, assaults and other crimes ranging in severity, many players from programs all over country have spent more time filling up their rap sheet than their stat sheet.

It’s disturbing that so many student-athletes put themselves in positions to make mistakes. What’s even more disturbing is the severe lack of accountability on kids and their programs when they do.

New Ohio State coach Urban Meyer had 31 arrests by 25 different players occur under his watch at Florida from 2005-10, 10 of which were felony, nine were eventually reduced to misdemeanors.

Unfortunately for him, his new players picked up right where his old ones left off.

Senior wide receiver Jake Stoneburner and junior offensive tackle Jack Mewhort were caught urinating on a building by police in June just outside of Muirfield Village Golf Course. The Memorial, a PGA Tour event, was being held in nearby Dublin.

The two starters ran and hid when they were spotted and were taken to jail.

They were suspended indefinitely and had their scholarships taken away for the summer. Meyer allowed them to return to practice Aug. 8 and will reinstate their full-rides in the fall, meaning the only thing they missed out on was a few team activities.

A month later, linebacker Storm Klein was arrested on charges of assault and domestic violence. Unlike the slap on the wrist Stoneburner and Mewhort received, Klein was dismissed from the team the next day.
The string of summer off-field incidents didn’t stop there.

Freshman running back and five-star recruit Bri’onte Dunn was cited for possessing a small amount of marijuana and a pipe during a routine traffic stop. Reports since the late-July incident suggest that no disciplinary action will be taken by the team.

The Buckeyes certainly weren’t the only ones who had a lot to deal with this summer.
Michigan had four players arrested and coach Brady Hoke, like Meyer, hasn’t exactly taken a “zero-tolerance approach” either.

Since April, defensive tackle William Campbell was arrested on a felony charge of malicious destruction of property, receiver Darryl Stonum picked up his second DUI — and was eventually dismissed — starting running back Fitzgerald Toussaint picked up his first and defensive end Frank Clark was charged with home invasion, a second-degree felony.

Police said Campbell was intoxicated when he decided to slide across the hood of a car, severely damaging it in the process. Clark is accused of breaking into a dorm room and stealing a MacBook.

No punishment was handed down to Campbell, while Hoke played the “suspended indefinitely” card with Clark and Toussaint July 23. The Wolverines, picked to win the Big Ten’s Legends Division, opened up fall practice Aug. 6 and the two players were not present.

However, both of them were allowed to practice with the team a week later, despite being suspended.
Hoke and his staff are preparing them to play the first game of the season, which just so happens to be against the defending National Champion and second-ranked Alabama at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas.

Pardon me for asking, but isn’t spending time away from the team a requirement during a suspension? The only thing Toussaint and Clark missed was the first week of practice.

You know, that grueling first week of practice when players run around in t-shirts and shorts that nobody wants to attend anyway?

Hoke recently stated, “Believe me, they have paid a heavy price and will continue to pay a price for actions unbecoming of a Michigan football player.”

Missing the first week of fall camp is hardly “paying a heavy price.” Nobody has ever signed on with a program because of their storied and prestigious blocking-sled or pass skeleton history. The only appropriate price for them, or any other NCAA football player that gets arrested, is to miss games.

The National Football League hands out suspensions left and right for violations to its Personal Conduct Policy. Players who engage in “conduct detrimental to the integrity of and public confidence in the NFL” are subject to punishment.

It’s time the NCAA adopts something similar. Coaches, as well as the NCAA, are sending the message that winning football games is more important than being a responsible and civilized member of society, which is wrong.

The NCAA seems more concerned about the number of text messages exchanged between a coach and a recruit than disciplining players who are already part of their association.

Dez Bryant got suspended for his entire senior season at Oklahoma State for jogging on a treadmill with Deion Sanders, yet players can drive drunk, smoke weed or commit a felony, maintain their eligibility and not face any sort of mandatory punishment. That’s a joke.

Ohio State and Michigan provide many examples, but they’re not the only ones with issues. Notre Dame, Clemson, South Carolina, Mississippi and Purdue had players make an appearance at the local jail this summer, and that’s not even half of them.

Since the beginning of the month, four more D-I schools have had an arrest.

In fact, during the time it took to write this column, a player from Tulane was arrested for armed robbery.
These stories are seen with far too much regularity. Until the NCAA and its head coaches decide to act, don’t expect that to change anytime soon.

Jay Skebba is a senior majoring in Communication and has contributed to ESPNWisconsin.com

Toledo's Gaitan reflects on her Olympic experience

http://www.independentcollegian.com/toledo-s-gaitan-reflects-on-her-experience-at-olympics-1.2751171

UT women’s soccer standout Natalia Gaitan has garnered several accolades in her collegiate career, winning multiple Mid-American Conference regular season and tournament championships and being named an All-MAC first team selection.

At just 21 years old, she can now add “Summer Olympian” to her ever-improving resume.

“It was a lot of pride and a lot of emotions,” Gaitan said. “It’s unbelievable to represent your country, be a captain and play with a great team.”

The senior defender captained her native Colombia in the nation’s first trip to the Summer Games.

“You can tell how proud she was to be doing that,” said UT head coach Brad Evans, who accompanied her to the United Kingdom. “You could tell in her preparation last spring before she left and certainly when we caught up with her at the different venues, she was taking the role seriously. She was proud.”

 Colombia, whose roster featured eight other college players, was grouped with North Korea, France and the eventual champion United States. They entered the games ranked 28th in the world.
Gaitan started each game on defense and was never afraid to put her body on the line, one of many things teammates and fans have come to admire her for.

The team’s first match in pool play provided one of the most notorious and bizarre events of the Olympics when the North Korean team left the field, creating an hour-long delay. During pregame introductions, the South Korean flag was inadvertently shown on the scoreboard next to the names and pictures of the North Korean players.

“At first, we didn’t know what was going on,” Evans said. “We knew the game had been delayed and then we saw the North Koreans clearing their bench. UT photographer Dan Miller actually caught a shot of one
of their officials angrily pointing at the scoreboard and we quickly figured out what had happened.”

Tension has existed between the two nations for decades and the Korean War began in 1950.

A parade of apologies began the next day, including one from British Prime Minister David Cameron.

“There was a lot of impatience going on,” Gaitan said. “We didn’t know in the beginning. It was kind of like, ‘let’s get this started, we want to play now.’”

The unfortunate incident quickly overshadowed the match, which North Korea won 2-0.

Next up for Gaitan and Colombia in Glasgow, Scotland was a game with the high-powered Americans. The U.S. went on to shutout Colombia 3-0, but Gaitan said the game was much more competitive than the score indicated.

"We played them last year, it was a tough game, as it was this year,” Gaitan said. “I think we played better, we could find good moments for our team to get some chances in goal. But they’re a good team.”

All four countries in the group stayed in the same hotel in Glasgow, where a strong security presence was on display.

No cars were allowed to drive up to the property, which felt more like an airport than a hotel.

“Empty your pockets, metal scanners, pat-down, and that was just to get into the hotel,” Evans said.
He also said games involving the United States called for armed security both inside the stadium, above the stadium and on the rooftops of the buildings surrounding it.

Colombia’s final contest of the 2012 Olympics resulted in a 1-0 defeat to France in Newcastle, England. Despite coming up short in each of their three matches, Gaitan and her teammates left many people impressed.

“She left it all on the field, that’s for sure,” Evans said. “She was impressive to watch. The way she represented herself, her family, and ultimately her country and to a degree our program, I think she did it wonderfully well.”

Colombia’s first visit to the Olympics didn’t produce as much success as they would have liked, but there were still several positives that Gaitan and her teammates took away from the United Kingdom.

“Not all athletes can get to the Olympics,” Gaitan said.”We’re fortunate, we’re blessed to say that we went and we represented our country. We did our best and hopefully we get to go again in four years in Rio”.
Gaitan is no stranger to the big stage. She was co-captain for last year’s National Team that competed in the FIFA World Cup in Germany.

Not many NCAA athletes can bring the wealth of knowledge and experiences to their team that Gaitan is able to.

“First and foremost, it brings perspective,” Evans said. “She’s got a view on pressure situations and the talent on the opposition that we’re just not going to encounter at this level. She’s far more even-keel because of these experiences.

“She’s very level-headed, unflappable, and I think that plays out certainly as an advantage for our team.”

Gaitan hopes that her country’s first Olympic appearance will help to boost support for the soccer program. As is the case with many international sports, the best countries are the ones with the most funding.
The financial backing from the country is slowly improving, but they’re not yet at a level that’s comparable to the world’s best soccer nations.

“It has been increasing over the past couple years, but we’re far away from where we want to be,” Gaitan said. “We need more support from the federation, from the sponsors. It’s getting better, but we need to be even better.”

Campbell and staff find success on recruiting trail

http://www.independentcollegian.com/campbell-and-staff-find-success-on-the-football-recruiting-trail-1.2749834#.UCxWDT2PUSw

Character, passion and commitment – those are the three qualities that head coach Matt Campbell stresses to recruits when he sits down in living rooms across the country.

We’ve reached the halfway point in the race for the best high school players the 2013 class has to offer and Campbell likes where he stands.

“I’m really proud of how this staff has recruited,” Campbell said. “I think we’ve done a great job and I think we’ve worked really hard to find young people that fit into the core values of our program.”

The Rockets have received verbal commitments from 11 high school seniors-to-be. There’s a long way to go until National Signing Day in February, but Rivals currently ranks UT’s 2013 class as the best in the Mid-American Conference.

Toledo’s 2012 class was also considered to be number one in the league.

“I think our program’s in a situation right now where we have to bring in people that represent what the kids we have in our program right now represent, and that’s great character young men,” Campbell said. “Division I football is really hard, it’s a 365-day-a-year commitment to being the best you can be and I think that’s really important when you evaluate a young man.”

Campbell, about to begin his first full season at the helm, knows the importance of landing players inside “Rocket Nation,” a term his predecessor Tim Beckman coined as anywhere within a four-hour radius from Toledo.

Of the 11 commits in the class of 2013, eight of them are within that range.

One of the headliners of the 2013 group is Nate Jeppesen, a three-star offensive lineman from Portage, Mich.

The 6-4, 270-pounder gave Toledo his oral commitment June 26th. Jeppesen can play either side of the ball, but likely projects as an offensive guard with excellent run-blocking skills. He can also move well for a player his size.

Another key player in this class from Rocket Nation that should have a big role down the road with the Rockets is Lake Catholic (Mentor, OH) defensive end John Stepec.

Stepec recorded 80 tackles as a junior in 2011, 21 of them for a loss, and 12 sacks.

Weighing-in at 245 pounds, he’ll have some bulking-up to do, but shouldn’t have any problem filling out his 6-3 frame.

The Rockets beat out several BCS schools for Stepec’s services, including Minnesota, Syracuse and Boston College.

“I’m a northeast Ohio guy, my dad was a head high school football coach, so I know the pride and tradition not only in this state, but in the four-hour radius around this state,” Campbell said.

UT has also had success finding and utilizing local products from the northwest Ohio area.

Perrysburg’s T.J. Fatinikun is easily one of the most talented defensive assets on the squad. The senior was leading the team in tackles for loss (7.5) and sacks (2.5) before an injury Oct 8 caused him to miss the rest of the 2011 season.

Holland’s Eric Page was an All-American for Toledo in 2010 and caught 306 passes during his three-year career. Had he stayed for his senior season, he would have needed just 43 catches to become the all-time NCAA leader.

“Not only does it say there’s great talent here, but it also says a lot about the high school coaches,” Campbell said. “One of the great things that maybe people sometimes don’t realize is you look around the city and you see some of the best high school coaches in the state of Ohio.”

The 32-year-old Campbell and his staff will look to area products Marquise Moore and Austin Niswander to continue to ride the wave of success with local talent.

Moore, a three-star defensive tackle from Whitmer High School, also gave UT a commitment this summer. He stands 6-1, 297 pounds and anchors a defensive line that made the state final four last year.

Niswander has played just about every position for Findlay High School, but will likely translate to safety or outside linebacker at the next level.

The three-star athlete recorded 64 tackles and a forced fumble on defense in 2011.

“(Area coaches) are committed to building programs, they’ve been there, they’ve built great programs,” Campbell said. “When we have an opportunity to recruit a young man from one of those high schools, we know we’re going to get a first-class person.”

There’s still six months until any of these kids can officially sign on the dotted line, a reality that makes any mid-major program uneasy.

Many players commit to a program like Toledo early in the process and use that as a safety net in case bigger programs don’t offer during their senior seasons.

Three highly-touted recruits have decommitted from UT this summer after bigger programs in BCS conferences offered a scholarship.

“Sometimes you win that battle, sometimes you don’t, that’s recruiting” Campbell said. “One of the things I’ve always said is we’re going to recruit the best of the best throughout the country and I’m not afraid to do that. Our staff’s not afraid to do that and we’re not afraid to go toe-to-toe with those people.”

Women's soccer coach to be a Rocket through 2016

http://www.independentcollegian.com/evans-to-be-a-rocket-through-2016-1.2749295#.UCKUIU2PXTA

Women’s soccer coach Brad Evans agreed to a contract extension Tuesday that will keep him in Toledo through the 2016 season, Athletic Director Mike O’Brien announced.

Evans, about to begin his 12th season at the helm, has led the Rockets to 118-82-24 overall record.

“Brad has rebuilt a national-caliber program while being the head coach at the University of Toledo,” O’Brien said. “We’re pleased about this commitment to Brad and look forward to him being with us for many years to come.”

Evans has brought home three Mid-American Conference championships (2008, ’10, ’11) and a league record four conference tournament titles (2006, ‘06, ‘08, ’11).  He was named the MAC Coach of the Year in 2011 for the second straight season.

 “My wife [Kristen] and I would like to thank Mike and Dr. Jacobs for this contract extension and for their truly remarkable support of the Toledo Women’s Soccer program,” Evans said. “I’m grateful for the tremendous faith they have shown in me over the years and I’m thrilled with what we have accomplished in developing a first-class soccer program both on and off the field.”

Evans led Toledo to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time, also a conference record last season. He coached three MAC Players of the Year and 14 All-Conference selections.

His 41-10-4 MAC record over the last five years is the best mark in the league.

“This type of long-term success does not happen without great support,” Evans said. “For over a decade, my family has been enthusiastic and proud residents of the Toledo area, and we will be for years to come.”

Evans and his players have also seen great success off the field and in the classroom. Their 3.61 GPA for the 2010-11 school year was fifth best in the country.

Toledo had a top-10 team GPA in each of the last six years.