Crosstown Today

The womens Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout tips off today at 2:00 inside Fifth Third Arena. Earlier in the week the event was nearing a sellout. That would be the third sellout in a row. Last years UC upset the Muskies in the Cintas Center in Coach J. Kelly Hall's first year. Today Xavier comes in ranked #23, but just like we have found out in the men's version over the years....rankings mean nothing.

Today's game is also a celebration of women's athletics in Cincinnati. The gates open at 12:30 with fan giveaways and autograph sessions with current UC and Xavier female student athletes. Halftime will be an Olympic celebration that will include UC gold medalist Mary Wineberg. Tip off for the game is 2:00 This years crosstown shootout will be televised on the Fox Sports Network.

Big Island, Big Win

It didn't look good late in  the third quarter but Brian Kelly and his boys rallied and are bringing home a 29-24 win from Hawaii.   Bearcat Sports Page.com is about information, not commentary.  However, a bit of advise for those that DVR'd the game and are planning on watching it today, turn the sound down and play Christmas music.  The constant theme in the second half was how important this game was for UC, the Big East and the BCS bowl games.  Apparently a loss would have been a huge embarrassment for all parties concerned while providing vindication to the WAC Conference.  Whatever.  Remember the selection party tonight at Fifth Third Arena.  Doors open at 6:30 with the Fox broadcast starting at 8:00.

Great Season Over

The women's volleyball team was eliminated from the NCAA tournament last night in the second round.  After defeating Western Kentucky Friday night they moved on to take on the #9 seeded University of Illinois Fighting Illini.   The Bearcats lost in three close, hard fought sets 24-26, 20-25, and 22-25.

This ends what was a tremendous year for Coach Reed Sunahara and his squad.  The women's volleyball team became only the second team in school history to add a Big East Trophy to the display area in Lindner Hall.  Congratulations on a great year!  Bearcat Sports Page.com would like to thank Coach Sunahara, his team and sports information director John Berry for the cooperation they extended us each week with interviews and access to the team.

#9 Seed Up Next

Tonight at 8:00 the Bearcat volleyball team tries to advance further in the NCAA tournament.  It won't be an easy task, they take on the 9th seeded Illinois Fighting Illini in Campaign, Il.  Back in September UC lost to a Big Ten team when they played Minnesota in a tournament in Hawaii. Head Coach Reed Sunahara thinks his team learned about Big Ten competition on that trip, and they are are also a better team today than they were back in September.

Illinois played the same Minnesota team UC lost tow twice during the regular season and lost both times 2-3.  Game time is 8:00 tonight and it will be on "game tracker" found on the 

UC web Site.  

NCAA Win !!!!!

It was almost de ja vu all over again. Two weeks ago in the opening round of the Big East Tournament UC led Pitt 2 sets to 0 and lost the next three, ending their tournament run on the first day. Earlier this evening UC was up on Western Kentucky 2 sets to 0. Two decisive wins, 25-13 and 25-19. Then the dropped the next two, 21-25 and 18-25 setting up the fifth and final set. This time UC wasn't ready to head home, they won the fifth set 15-10 and will advance to the second round. Stephanie Neimer led UC with 22 kills and Jessie Nevitt had 11 blocks, we think. The NCAA site wasn't really sure who won. On their breakdown of scoring they show UC winning with the scores given earlier. Then on the bracket it shows WKY winning 3-2. The next opponent will be determined in the evening game between #9 Illinois and Milwaukee Wisconsin. That game will be Saturday night at 8:00. Check www.gobearcats.com for a game tracker to follow the action live!

SHOW YOUR STUFF

Wondering where to get Big East Championship gear....the campus bookstore and DuBois Bookstore both have some awesome stuff. Hats, sweatshirts, golf shirts, and t-shirts.

Here is what they have at the campus book store: two different style short sleeve t-shirts, both men's and women's red golf shirts and one style of hat.

Here is a sample of the selection at DuBois Bookstore on Calhoun. They Have a different style t-shirt both in short and long sleeve, they also have a hooded sweatshirt and they have the black Adidas hats like the team was wearing Saturday.

Both have the t-shirts with the logo shown above with the campus bookstore. Only DuBois has sweatshirts, and they are the only ones with the logo above using the "cat eyes". Both have merchandise available to be ordered on line. Each website also gives great pictures of what they have.

UC Bookstore: http://www.bkstr.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/StoreCatalogDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=13705&catalogId=10001

DuBois Book Store: http://www.duboisbookstore.com/ or http://www.bearcatgear.com/

As for Bowl gear....the DuBois boys said they will have stuff hot off the presses some time Monday afternoon. Bearcat Sports Page will let you know when the truck arrives.

Business Trip, With Sun

No that's not Tony Pike catching a wave off of Waikiki Beach, Craig Carey...maybe. The Cats landed in Hawaii yesterday but this is no vacation. It's a business trip in a nice place.

Tuesday's press conference was dominated with talk about stadium expansion and Coach Kelly signing a contract in blood with the media that he would never leave. However, there was some talk about football and here are some segments from that side of Tuesday.

First off Hawaii, last year a BCS Bowl team but this year they have a new coach. The biggest challenge for UC is the travel and the environment.

After a month of "must win games" how does the team get hyped up for a game that on paper means nothing? Don't tell them that, this game has tremendous meaning. Does this team still have goals left on the chalkboard from summer training camp at Camp Higher Ground in Harrison?

Yes, the team wants to win and they are focused. But remember this is Hawaii, how many of us got to see this Pacific Paradise when we were 19 or 20 years old?

Back in 2003 the Bearcat's dream trip to Hawaii turned out to be a nightmare. A 20-19 loss was accompanied by penalty flags and questionable calls that ended in a bench clearing brawl. Enquirer writer Bill Koch captured the memory of that trip well in his article Thursday. Coach Kelly says that was in the past, and it helps that Big East officials will be calling the game. Pay attention to the end of the clip when he jokes about the officials being on the same flight.

We want to thank Coach Kelly and DeAngelo Smith for talking with us Tuesday. Remember the game is late on Saturday, 11:30PM on ESPN2. The team arrives back in town at 2:00 Sunday afternoon then has the Selection Celebration at 8:00. After that they hit the books....finals next week. How many guys took books to Hawaii to get ahead? They are off until Dec 15th when they start practicing for the bowl.