FORT WORTH, TEXAS (April 19, 2011) The Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl will return to Dallas for the second-straight year as the ninth edition of the nationally televised postseason college football bowl game on ESPN will be played Friday, Dec. 30, at SMU’s Gerald J. Ford Stadium with an 11 a.m. CST kickoff.
“For the fifth year in a row, we are very pleased to have a post-Christmas game date which will be featured on ESPN,” said Brant B. Ringler, executive director of the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl. “We also look forward to continuing our relationship with SMU after staging a highly successful event at Ford Stadium this past December.”
Due to renovations at TCU’s Amon G. Carter Stadium, the 2010 Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl was played at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas where a facility record crowd of 36,742 watched Army post a 16-14 win over SMU. The 2011 Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl currently features a matchup between schools from Conference USA and the Mountain West Conference.
“We are excited to serve as the host of the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl for the second-straight year,” said Steve Orsini, SMU’s director of athletics. “We enjoyed our association with the bowl staff and committee in 2010 and look forward to working with the group again in 2011. As we stated when we signed the initial agreement last August, the patriotism that this game represents is something with which we are proud to be associated. In addition, the hosting of this game in our stadium last December showcased our school and campus before a national television audience, and we look forward to having that opportunity again in 2011.”
The Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl, which is scheduled to return to Amon G. Carter Stadium in 2012, has featured a military theme since 2006. Patriotic overtones recognizing all five branches of the military are prevalent throughout the game. Past Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowls have included fan-fest areas showcasing military hardware; flyovers; demonstrations by several of the military’s top skydiving teams; on-field induction ceremonies; military bands and honor guards; and the awarding of the annual “Great American Patriot Award” (GAPA) presented by Armed Forces Insurance.
TCU announced a $105-million renovation of the west side and north end zone of Amon G. Carter Stadium in August 2010 to upgrade amenities and transform the historic Fort Worth icon into the "Camden Yards" of collegiate football stadiums. Construction began immediately following TCU's final 2010 home game and is slated for completion prior to the Horned Frogs’ 2012 regular season.
“Due to our continued improvements to Amon G. Carter Stadium, we will be unable to host the 2011 Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl,” said Chris Del Conte, TCU’s director of athletics. “Our stadium and city is the true home for this patriotic bowl game and we look forward to showcasing our new football facility upon its return following the 2012 regular season.”
Bell Helicopter, a Textron Inc. company, joined the bowl on August 23, 2006, as the title sponsor of the postseason college football game formerly known as the PlainsCapital Fort Worth Bowl (2003, 2004) and the Fort Worth Bowl (2005). 2006 marked the first year for the adoption of the “Armed Forces Bowl” name, making the official title the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl. Bell Helicopter has twice exercised its option for title sponsorship of the game. The current agreement was signed in Septembe r 2009 to continue the sponsorship for the 2010 and 2011 games with a two-year option for 2012 and 2013.
ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO (April 23, 2009) TCU received five selections on the All-Mountain West Conference Men’s Tennis Team, the league announced at its annual awards banquet Wednesday evening. The five selections were two more than those received by any other conference squad.
In addition to setting a high-water mark for the MWC this season, TCU also
notched a program-best in its four seasons as a member of the league. Frogs
previously earned four All-MWC honors in 2008 and three each in 2007 and 2006.
Three Frogs earned spots on the All-MWC Singles Team: senior Kriegler Brink,
sophomore Emanuel Brighiu and freshman Slah Mbarek. The tandems of Brink and
Mbarek and Brighiu and junior Adrian Simon were named to the All-MWC Doubles
Team.
Brink’s selection in singles marked his second straight appearance on the
All-MWC squad. The Gautang, South Africa, product leads the Frogs this spring
with a 16-3 overall record while playing primarily at the No. 3 singles
position. His 5-1 conference mark tied sophomore Christopher Price for the team
lead.
Brighiu was honored in singles for the second straight season after posting a
4-2 conference record. He is 9-8 overall this spring despite dealing with a
nagging injury that bumped him out of his usual No. 1 singles position for a
nine-match stretch midway through the season. Mbarek went 10-9 overall and 1-4
in MWC matches, and he filled in at the No. 1 position this spring during
Brighiu’s absence.
TCU’s two all-conference doubles tandems have helped give the squad a decided
advantage this season, pushing the team to the doubles point in 13 of 19
opportunities. Brink was named all-conference in doubles for the third straight
season, while the other three Frogs each earned their first such honors.
Brink and Mbarek lead the Frogs with a 13-2 record and are ranked No. 40
nationally, while Brighiu and Simon are the team’s highest-rated pairing at No.
29 with a 10-7 ledger. Both squads went 3-1 in MWC action this spring.
With the Mountain West Conference regular season championship already in hand,
TCU looks to complete a sweep of the league’s 2009 titles this weekend at the
MWC Championship in Albuquerque. The Frogs begin play as the tournament’s No. 1
seed in the semifinals Friday against the winner of Thursday’s BYU/San Diego
State quarterfinal match. The Frogs’ semifinals match begins at 11 a.m. CT.
FORT WORTH, TEXAS (May 26, 2008) The TCU women’s tennis team earned a final ranking of No. 26 for the 2008 season on Friday by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA). The Horned Frogs posted an overall record of 20-6 this spring.
With the ranking, the Frogs have spent the final 10 weeks ranked inside the top 30. TCU reached as high as No. 15 this season after garnering a preseason ranking of No. 38.
The Frogs won 13 consecutive contests down the stretch to earn their fifth consecutive NCAA appearance. TCU posted a perfect 8-0 record to earn the Mountain West Conference regular season title outright. Jefferson Hammond was named the MWC Coach of the Year, while four players earned all-conference singles accolades and two doubles teams received recognition.
By Robert H. KellyCopyright 2008 TexSport PublicationsTEXAS CITY, TEXAS (May 24, 2008) The Bay Area Toros remain undefeated in the 2008 season, defeating the Corpus Christi BeachDawgs 4-3 to close out their two game opening weekend series.
Pitcher Kevin Cooper had a good outing for his first start of the season. He pitched eight innings with eight strikeouts while giving up only two hits and walking two. He was replaced in the ninth inning by closer Drew Swanson who gave up two earned runs to give the BeachDawgs the lead.
Alex Hernandez then replaced Swanson and quickly got the remaining two out by strikeouts.
The Toros went into the bottom of the ninth a run down. BeachDawg pitcher Toro Trevino quickly walked two Toros batters and with center fielder Kyle Wade's successful bunt, loaded the bases.
Toros catcher Kyle Wells reached base on a BeachDawgs error, allowing shortstop Jose Suncar to score and tie the score and outfielder Greg Plecki to score the winning run.
The Bay Area Toros finished the night 2-0 for the season while the BeachDawgs dropped to 0-2. Both teams travel to Corpus Christi to conclude the Memorial Day Weekend with a two games series at Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairgrounds Stadium in Corpus Christi. Both Sunday and Monday's games are set for a 7:00pm start.
Other action around the CBL: The Texarkana Gunslingers and the McKinney Blue Thunder battled to a 3-3 tie in fourteen innings on Friday evening in McKinney. The game was to be completed prior to the start of the regularly-scheduled game on today (Saturday).
FORT WORTH, TEXAS (April 26, 2008) The TCU men’s tennis team rallied to defeat New Mexico by a score of 4-3 on Saturday to capture the Mountain West Conference Championship at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center. The Horned Frogs notched their 20th win of the year, doubling their win total from last season.
“We had a great effort from the kids today,” said TCU head coach Dave Borelli. “New Mexico played really well and we were fortunate to get the win. This past week we talked about how to deal with the highs and lows and keeping their focus, and they were able to do that today.”
The Frogs kicked off the match with two dominating doubles victories to jump out to the 1-0 lead. The TCU duo of Zach Nichols and Jack Seider led off with an 8-3 win over Graeme Kassautzki and Joe Wood at the No. 3 position, while Cosmin Cotet and Adrian Simon clinched the point with an 8-2 defeat of Chris and Johnny Parkes at the No. 2 slot.
TCU had a shaky start in singles, dropping matches at the No. 2, 4 and 5
positions to trail 3-1, while also dropping first sets in two other contests.
Miles Bugby put the Lobos on the board with a 6-0, 7-5 win over Zach Nichols, while Chris Parkes followed with a 6-4, 6-1 defeat of Simon at the No. 5 position. Johnny Parkes put Mexico up 3-1 over the Frogs after defeating Emanu Brighiu by a score of 7-6(6), 6-4 at the No. 2 slot.
Casey Powers, one of TCU’s four freshmen in the lineup, began the rally with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Kamil Pajkowksi at the No. 6 position.
Cotet, ranked No. 36 nationally, defeated his 11th ranked opponent of the 2007-08 season with a 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 victory over No. 69 Jones at the top spot to even the match at 3-3. Cotet improved to 21-6 at the top position this spring with the win.
With the league title on the line, TCU’s Brink delivered with a 5-7, 7-5, 6-4 victory over Kassautzki to seal the match. Brink, a junior from Gauteng, South Africa, improved to 23-2 in dual matches this season.
The Frogs (20-7) earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament with Saturday’s victory. TCU claimed its second MWC tournament title in the last three years.
No. 1 TCU (20-7) def. No. 2 New Mexico (20-8), 4-3
SINGLES
1. No. 36 Cosmin Cotet (TCU) def. No. 69 Max Jones (UNM) 4-6, 6-1, 6-2
2. Johnny Parkes (UNM) def. Emanu Brighiu (TCU) 7-6(6), 6-4
3. Kriegler Brink (TCU) def. Graeme Kassautzki (UNM) 5-7, 7-5, 6-4
4. Miles Bugby (UNM) def. Zach Nichols (TCU) 6-0, 7-5
5. Chris Parkes (UNM) def. Adrian Simon (TCU) 6-4, 6-1
6. Casey Powers (TCU) def. Kamil Pajkowski (UNM) 6-4, 6-4
Order of Finish: 4, 5, 2, 6, 1, 3*
DOUBLES
1. Brink/Brigiu (TCU) vs. Jones/Pajkowski (UNM) 6-5, unf.
2. Cotet/Simon (TCU) def. Parkes/Parkes (UNM) 8-2
3. Nichols/Seider (TCU) def. Kassautzki/Wood (UNM) 8-3
Order of Finish: 3, 2*
*Clinching point
FORT WORTH, TEXAS (April 9, 2008) The No. 34 TCU men’s tennis team will travel to Provo, Utah, this weekend to wrap up the Mountain West Conference regular season against Utah, No. 54 San Diego State and No. 51 New Mexico. The Horned Frogs will have a shot at capturing their first MWC regular season title.
TCU is currently 16-5 overall this season and 3-0 in MWC play. Senior Cosmin Cotet, who has posted a 16-5 singles mark at the top position, leads the Frogs with a No. 35 national ranking. Junior Kriegler Brink holds a stellar 19-1 mark, while freshman Zach Nichols has gone 18-3 this season in singles play.
The Frogs will meet Utah on Thursday at 2:30 CDT in Provo. Utah is currently 10-9 overall and 2-2 in MWC action this season. Utah is coming off of two wins over Air Force and No. 54 San Diego State. The Utes’ doubles duo of Zach Ganger and John Taylor is ranked No. 57.
TCU has won all four contests in the all-time series with Utah that dates back to 1996. The Frogs defeated the Utes by a score of 5-2 last season in San Diego.
On Saturday, TCU will face the Aztecs of San Diego State, who are 12-8 overall and 1-2 in MWC play this season. San Diego State has dropped its last two matches to Utah and No. 51 New Mexico.
TCU holds the slight 3-2 advantage over San Diego State in the overall series between the two schools. The Aztecs edged the Frogs by a score of 4-3 during the
regular season last year in San Diego.
The Frogs will wrap up the MWC regular season with a Saturday showdown against No. 51 New Mexico. The Lobos are currently 16-6 this season and 4-0 in MWC action. New Mexico has won nine consecutive matches, including wins over Utah, Air Force and No. 54 San Diego State. The Lobos are led by senior Max Jones, who holds a No. 41 national singles ranking.
TCU holds a commanding 13-1 advantage over New Mexico in the series that dates back to 1977. Last season, TCU defeated New Mexico in Fort Worth by a score of 4-2 to secure the No. 2 seed in the MWC Championships.
LAS VEGAS, NEVEDA (April, 5, 2008) The No. 24 TCU women’s tennis team defeated San Diego State by a score of 5-2 on Saturday at the Fertitta Tennis Complex for their eighth consecutive victory. The Horned Frogs improved to 15-4 overall and 5-0 in Mountain West Conference action, while San Diego State fell to 7-11 on the season and 0-4 in league play.
“I’m happy we were able to get two good Mountain West road wins this week,” said TCU head coach Jefferson Hammond. “The doubles was tight today so it was great to win the point because it helped us relax as we moved into singles play. I’m extremely pleased with how the team is conducting themselves on and off the court, and we need to keep this momentum going forward as we get set to play BYU on Friday.”
TCU’s Macall Harkins and Kewa Nichols began doubles play with an 8-6 victory over Milana Yusupov and Esther Cadua at the No. 3 position, while Katariina Tuohimaa and Nina Munch-Soegaard clinched the point with an 8-6 win over Kathryn Kitts and Eliska Krausova at the top spot. The Frog duo of Maria Babanova and Anna Sydorska would complete the sweep with an 8-7(2) over Holly Bagshaw and Sisse Nielsen.
The Frogs posted three dominating straight-sets wins to quickly jump out to the 4-0 lead to clinch the match.
Harkins led off singles play with a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Julia Trunk at the No. 2 position. With the win, Harkins has now won nine of her last 10 singles contests.
Munch-Soegaard, ranked No. 63 nationally, routed Bagshaw at the top spot by a score of 6-0, 6-1, while Babanova followed with a 6-0, 6-2 victory over Nielsen at the No. 6 position to seal the match for TCU.
Sydorska put the Frogs up 5-0 in the match as the Lviv, Ukraine, native defeated
Krausova at the No. 3 slot by a score of 6-3, 1-6, 6-1. Sydorska, ranked No. 86 in singles play, posted her fifth consecutive win on Saturday to improve to 12-5 this season.
The Frogs will face a tough test on Friday against No. 39 BYU, who is also undefeated in MWC play.
No. 24 TCU (15-4, 5-0) def. San Diego State (7-11, 0-4), 5-2
SINGLES
1. No. 63 Nina Munch-Soegaard (TCU) def. Holly Bagshaw (SDSU) 6-0, 6-1
2. Macall Harkins (TCU) def. Julia Trunk (SDSU) 6-1, 6-0
3. No. 86 Anna Sydorska (TCU) def. Eliska Krausova (SDSU) 6-3, 1-6, 6-1
4. Esther Cadua (SDSU) def. Katariina Tuohimaa (TCU) 3-6, 7-6(3), 10-7
5. Milana Yusupov (SDSU) def. Kewa Nichols (TCU) 6-4, 6-4
6. Maria Babanova (TCU) def. Sisse Nielsen (SDSU) 6-0, 6-2
Order of Finish: 2, 1, 6*, 3, 5, 4
DOUBLES
1. Munch-Soegaard/Tuohimaa (TCU) def. Kitts/Krausova (SDSU) 8-6
2. Babanova/Sydorska (TCU) def. Bagshaw/Nielsen (SDSU) 8-7(2)
3. Harkins/Nichols (TCU) def. Cadua/Yusupov (SDSU) 8-6
Order of Finish: 3, 1*, 2
*Clinching point
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO (March 13, 2008) TCU junior Kriegler Brink was named the Mountain West Conference Men’s Tennis Player of the Week, while junior Macall Harkins was named the MWC Women’s Tennis Player of the Week, the league office announced on Thursday.
Brink, a native of Gauteng, South Africa, went a combined 4-0 last week as No. 29 TCU split contests with two ranked Big 12 opponents. Brink won both singles contests to remain undefeated.
Against No. 35 Oklahoma, Brink and partner Cosmin Cotet routed the No. 28 duo of
Andrei Daescu and Federico Chavarria by a score of 8-4 at the top position to clinch the doubles point in what would be the deciding factor in the match. In singles play, Brink cruised past Alexander Joitoiu by a score of 6-1, 6-3.
Brink and Cotet led off doubles play against No. 19 Texas A&M with an 8-3 victory over Austin Krajicek and Wil Spencer as the Horned Frogs would eventually clinch the doubles point. In singles action, Brink outlasted Chris Chirico by a score of 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to push the match score back to 3-3, before the Frogs would eventually drop the last contest.
The award was the first for Brink in his TCU career and the fourth award in the last five selections for the men’s team, as Cotet and Emanu Brighiu have also garnered the honors.
Harkins, a native of Palos Verdes, Calif., went a combined 4-0 last week to lead No. 22 TCU to two wins on the road over nationally ranked opponents.
Against No. 37 Wake Forest, Harkins defeated Christian Tara at the No. 3 position by a score of 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 to knot the match back up at 2-2. In doubles play, Harkins and partner Anna Sydorska routed the No. 27 duo of Alex Hirsch and Sasha Kulikova by a score of 8-3 to clinch the crucial doubles point in a match where all six singles contests went to three sets.
Harkins led off singles play against No. 28 VCU with a dominating 6-2, 6-0 victory over No. 121 Kateryna Yergina at the No. 3 spot. Harkins and Sydorska also led off doubles action with an 8-6 win over VCU’s Uvarova and Konstantinova at the top position.
The award was the second for Harkins this season and the third consecutive and fourth overall this season for the women’s team.
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO (January 30, 2008) TCU freshman Maria Alvarez was named the Mountain West Conference Women’s Swimmer of the Week, the league office announced on Wednesday. Alvarez won two events to help lead the Horned Frogs past New Mexico last Saturday.
Alvarez, a native of Cali, Colombia, posted a win in the 200-freestyle in a
season-best time of 1:55.00, which was over two seconds faster than the next
competitor, and over three seconds better than the closest Lobo swimmer.
With the Lobos inching closer in the second half of the meet, Alvarez recorded a
dominant performance in the 500-freestyle, winning the event with another season-best time of 5:06.01, which was over seven seconds ahead of the next competitor.
Alvarez joined the Frogs before the start of the spring season and is already
tied for the team lead in wins, with six in the last five meets. The weekly
honor is the first for the women’s program this season, and the 11th overall for
the swimming and diving squads.
The women’s team will compete in the their final regular-season meet before the
MWC Championships on February 6, as they will play host to North Texas at the
University Recreation Center at 6 p.m.
FORT WORTH, TEXAS (April 19, 2011) The Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl will return to Dallas for the second-straight year as the ninth edition of the nationally televised postseason college football bowl game on ESPN will be played Friday, Dec. 30, at SMU’s Gerald J. Ford Stadium with an 11 a.m. CST kickoff.
