Men’s Basketball: Commodores Down Under
Commodore basketball players got a personal look at the home turf of Vanderbilt center A.J. Ogilvy during a 10-day, five-game tour of Australia in August. Vanderbilt played professional teams in Melbourne, Canberra, Townsville, and Ogilvy’s hometown of Sydney, finishing with a 3–2 record. Assistant Men’s Basketball Coach Brad Frederick submitted blog reports during the trip. “Our entire program feels extremely grateful for the opportunity Coach Stallings has provided us,” he wrote of Head Men’s Basketball Coach Kevin Stallings, who funded the trip himself. To read Frederick’s blog entries, go to http://snipurl.com/vuaustralia.
Baseball: Thanksgiving in Asia
The Vanderbilt baseball team is playing four exhibition games against Japanese universities in November while touring parts of Japan and Hong Kong. Making the whole experience possible is Bill Kaye, BA’75, ’78 (Law), who last spring made a significant gift that not only funds the trip but also supports the baseball-facility renovation project. “This was an occasion to make a powerful statement that Vanderbilt is moving ahead and that the program is continuing to develop and continuing to offer expanded opportunities,” Kaye says. The team plays Hosei University, Aoyama Gakuin University, Meiji University and Waseda University before returning home Nov. 29. They are spending their off days touring historic and popular areas in Japan, ending the trip in Hong Kong. “The ability to tour and play in the Orient with our kids will be a lifetime experience they won’t forget,” says Head Baseball Coach Tim Corbin.
Men’s Tennis: Summer Wins Bode Well
Members of the tennis team competing in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s Summer Circuit earned titles and runner-up finishes. Senior Vijay Paul won the singles title for the central region at Washington University in St. Louis. Junior Bryant Salcedo won the east regional title at Penn State. Sophomore Alex DiValerio and junior Andy Pulido teamed up to win the doubles championship at the Midwest regional at Notre Dame. Freshman Ryan Lipman had a strong summer showing and finished runner-up in the USTA Boys 18 National Championship.
Lacrosse: Duo Named to Academic Team
Seniors Megan Gibson and Laura Keenan have been named to the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association 2009 Academic Squad. Both started all 17 games for the Commodores last season. The student athletes are nominated by their institutions, must be at least juniors in academic standing, and must have a GPA of at least 3.5 or be in the top 10 percent of their team academically.