SPORTS
- Inside the Huddle
- Senior honored for record-breaking performance
- Ospreys win conference series Scott Dye
- Junior leads team with top-5 finish Holli Welch
- Osprey Athletics: A true family tradition Holli Welch
Inside the Huddle
 Ross Brooks Assistant Features Editor |
 Ryan Clarke Freshman, Communications |
 Scott Dye Junior, Communications |
 Maple the Goose Goose |
| Question 1: At what point during the game did you know for sure that Florida would win the Championship? | |||
| After Corey Brewer nailed his third three pointer in the first half. | Last April. | When the game tipped off it was over, Florida clearly had the better overall team. | Honk [G-O G-A-T-O-R-S]. |
| Question 2: Who deserves to win the Masters? | |||
| Phil Mickelson. The former master of the Master's choke has really turned it around since his first win in 2004. | No one "deserves" to win, but it would be nice to see Padraig Harrington get his first Major. | Whoever hits the golf ball the least amount of times during the four-day tournament deserves to win. So Tiger will probably take it. | Honk [Retief Goosen, the golfer from South Africa]. |
| Question 3: What should Major League Baseball do to increase attendance at games? | |||
| Free beer. It's the only way to make the game interesting. | They need to try to make the season shorter. The product grossly outweighs the demand. | MLB should sit back and relax. Last year baseball set a new single season attendance record. | Honk [play ball]. |
| Question 4: Who will win the first UNF Conference title? | |||
| Softball. Sonya Wilmoth just picked up win number 402, and her team is currently outshining the baseball team. | Baseball will win the conference their first year eligible, guaranteed. | Baseball. After 19 seasons with the Ospreys, Coach Rhodes knows what he's doing. | Honk. Honk [the swim team has it going on]. |
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Senior second baseman Gwen Williams led the University of North Florida in Atlantic Sun Conference play against Belmont University March 28-31, collecting 12 hits in 20 plate appearances including a home run. Williams was recognized as the A-Sun Player of the Week April 2, after recording a single-game record with seven RBIs March 28. The senior raised her average 28 points to .361 and moved into the top 10 in batting average in the league. |
Ospreys win conference series
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Senior Brad Johnson on UNF from the mound, pitching 7 1/3 innings against Lipscomb University March 30. The Ospreys won the series. |
The University of North Florida baseball team (13-19, 4-5) claimed its first conference series win of the season and moved up in the Atlantic Sun Conference standings March 30, when they won two of three games against Lipscomb University.
The Ospreys' pitching in the first game led to a 5-2 victory, followed by a 7-2 loss and a 14-4 win.
"Winning our first conference series was big," senior outfielder Jon Dandridge said. "It was important because it was also our first road win of the season."
The team secured the series win in the final game when
the Ospreys recorded a 13-run fourth inning.
The Ospreys sent 17 players to the plate in the inning that included two RBIs from both Thompson and redshirt freshman infielder Mycal Jones, and two hits from both sophomore center fielder Brian Wilson and senior catcher James Belyea.
Freshman starting pitcher John Atteo (3-2) welcomed the offensive support, pitching seven innings to shut down the Bison's offense. The left-hander allowed three runs while striking out five Bison hitters.
"A game like this just proves that we can come together as a team and win," senior first baseman Jimmy Glanville said.
Senior left-hander Brad Johnson (3-4) threw 120 pitches in the series opener as he held the Lipscomb offense in check during his 7 1/3 innings on the mound. After allowing two early runs in the second inning, Johnson shut down the Bison the rest of the game and totaled six strikeouts.
Veterans Glanville and Dandridge led the Osprey offense in the first game.
Glanville scored the first Osprey run with a solo home run leading off the second inning. The home run marked his third of the season. Dandridge, the team's leading hitter, went 2-for-4, driving in a run in the third inning and two in the fifth.
"As seniors, we know this is
our last year," Dandridge said. "We just want to play the right way and give it everything
we've got."
Junior pitcher Travis Martin took the mound in the eighth inning and struck out the remaining five hitters. The save was Martin's first of his collegiate career.
In the 7-2 loss, senior starting pitcher Derek Bell (1-1) pitched 5 2/3 innings without allowing
an earned run or walk. The team, however, committed four fielding errors to give Lipscomb the win.
Freshman infielder TJ Thompson led the team offensively, scoring both UNF runs, with
a two-run triple in the top half
of the third inning. Glanville reached 100 hits for his collegiate career with a 2-for-4 performance.
North Florida will face conference rival Belmont University
April 6 in a home series. The Bruins sit two games ahead of the Ospreys in the conference stand
ings, making the series an important part of the season, Dandridge said.
"This will be a huge series for
us," Dandridge said. "We need to win at least two out of three games."
Contact Scott Dye at uspinnak@unf.edu -- PERMALINK -- TOP OF PAGE
Junior leads team with top-5 finish
The University of North Florida track and field team finished with top performances at the Florida State University Invite March 31.
Junior Amy Stroder soared, finishing second in the high jump with a personal best of 1.70 meters.
Stroder also beat the university's previous record of 1.68 meters, which she set earlier in the season.
Stroder, along with freshmen Andrea Hall, Karissa Sullivan and Charisma Anderson, finished third in the 4x100-meter relay with a time of 48.04 seconds.
In the 4x400-meter relay, Stroder, senior Golden Creavy, and juniors Emily Kohler and Lindsay Taf, finished in fourth with a time of 3:58.19.
Freshman Sammy Palmer led the men with a first-place finish in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 15:45.08.
Junior Dane Simmons followed in the 800-meter run, finishing in 11th place with a time of 1:59.70.
In the 1500-meter run, freshman Chris Fulcher earned
a 12th-place finish with a time of 4:11.43.
The Ospreys head back to the track April 7, to compete at the University of Florida Relays.
Contact Holli Welch at sports@unfspinnaker.com -- PERMALINK -- TOP OF PAGE
Osprey Athletics: A true family tradition
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After spending seasons together in the locker room, on the field and traveling on the bus, many team members consider each other part of their families. But some athletes at the University of North Florida have taken it to a new level.
Freshman outfielder Kara Rutenbar joined her sister, senior catcher Kelli Rutenbar, on the UNF softball team this season, and freshman Anne Delbovo joined her sister, sophomore Lauren Delbovo, on the
track team.
Both the Rutenbar and Delbovo sisters competed together in high school and brought their family success to the Osprey teams.
Lauren and Anne won the state championship together on the 4x400-meter relay team in high school.
This season, Anne recorded her first collegiate conference win in the long jump at the Atlantic Sun Conference Indoor Track Championships. The win was part of her goal to reach the bar her sister set last season, she said.
"It's hard coming on to a team where everyone has seen what your sister can do," Anne said. "The team expects a lot from me, and I want to live up
their expectations."
The Rutenbar sisters also recorded top rankings in high school, both honored with All-American and All-State selections in softball.
Three years apart in age, Kelli and Kara just had one year together in high school. This season is their second chance, Kelli said.
"I encouraged Kara to come play at UNF," Kelli said. "It is a comfortable environment, and I wanted to play with her again."
Together, the softball sisters marked the success of the team's most recent tournament in Nashville, Tenn., both collecting a pair of hits in the 5-1 victory over Belmont University.
The two enjoy wins without comparing scores between each other, Kelli said.
"There is isn't much competition between the two of us on the field," she said. "We play at different positions, so it is easy not to fight with each other."
Though not competitive, the Delbovos are in a different situation. Both run the 400-meter hurdles and often times compete against each other, a first for
the sisters.
"It is distracting racing against Anne," Lauren said. "We help each other out in practice but we can't in meets. It's definitely different."
Because they aren't competitive with each other, the sisters have taken to being one another's
No. 1 fan.
"She [Anne] is my support system," Lauren said. "We build each other up, and she is the first one there if something goes wrong."
Kelli agreed.
"I can't always count on my friends if I need something, but I can always count on my sister," she said.
The Rutenbar and Delbovo sisters aren't the only siblings playing together at UNF. Junior right-handed pitcher Ty Pryor joined his brother, redshirted freshman right-hand pitcher Tucker Pryor, and the Osprey baseball family. Ty transferred from the University of South Florida in 2006.
For the Pryor brothers, UNF baseball is more than just their thing - the entire Pryor family
is involved.
"My parents and my sister [freshman Tobi Pryor] have been to most of our games since high school," Tucker said. "They are very supportive."
Kelli and Kara agreed when it came to their
family.
Their father, Glenn Rutenbar, the head softball coach at Bartow High school, scheduled his entire season around the UNF schedule so he could make each game, Kelli said.
Contact Holli Welch at sports@unfspinnaker.com -- PERMALINK -- TOP OF PAGE