UNC news and notes

Discussion in 'Women's College' started by Klee, Jul 17, 2002.

  1. Klee

    Klee Member

    Feb 24, 2001
    Chapel Hill, NC
    Playing a hunch

    I just had a hunch. . . The St. Louis Billikens.

    Oh no, they struck out too. OK, let's keep digging!
     
  2. David

    David Member

    Jun 2, 2000
    I think listing weights was odd, unusual, not indicated and I'll bet a mistake by the Sports Information office (e.g, maybe they updated the rosters at the same time as the Men's team?). Of course, the weights aren't accurate (e.g, how could so many have weights that end with a "0" or a "5"), but that won't matter to women (or men) with body image problems. I can guarantee you, just on the prevalence of this alone, that at least a couple of the kids weren't happy about the weights as shown. Anyone care to contact UNC and ask if it might have been an oversight to include them?
     
  3. Klee

    Klee Member

    Feb 24, 2001
    Chapel Hill, NC
    OK, David, I'll do it. Cub reporters always get stuck with the dirty jobs.
     
  4. XYZ

    XYZ New Member

    Apr 16, 2000
    Big Cat Country
    I have some almanacs that say in fine print:
    It's the remnants of chivalry. "Don't talk about a woman's weight, or her age."

    The NCAA does list weights for male athletes. I've seen weights listed for USWNT members many times. And we know all their ages.

    I'm sure the weights are inaccurate and I don't think the heights are always totally accurate, either.
     
  5. kareena

    kareena New Member

    Feb 8, 2002
    Yeah there is NO way Amy Steadman is 5'7" tall!! She's small.
     
  6. USAfanatic9

    USAfanatic9 New Member

    Aug 6, 2001
    NJ

    hmmm... what's up with that??
     
  7. soccerchic

    soccerchic New Member

    Aug 6, 1999
    Georgia
    Re: Listing weights

    i've wanted to point this out for those of you who aren't aware, but not only does anson post those fitness results for the players to see but he has the 2001 teams results over the past 4 years published in his new book.

    i found the results very interesting. it showed results from august and the beginning of spring & end of spring. jena was consistently the fittest overall but i must give mad props to our girl KD. i think it was the spring of her jr yr but she was definitely most improved overall (even though she was already in the top 11 fitness wise). in addition to the fitness results in like 20 different areas being published, the girls' weights at the time of each test are also printed. next to the weight in parentheses it says "higher = better".

    i wont be surprised if the girls' at the bottom of the fitness results published in his book come back in tip top condition this fall in case anson decides to start posting the results on the internet or in the school newspaper or on billboards around town.

    honestly, the girls who improved the greatest impressed me more than the ones who were cosistently at the top.
     
  8. SomebodyOrOther

    SomebodyOrOther BigSoccer Supporter

    Jun 8, 2002
    Over here!
    Anson's book and fitness results

    Soccerchic, thanks for that. Obviously I was enlightened, personally! I haven't seen the book yet. Your information clearly puts a different spin on this discussion.

    I'm not sure what I think of printing fitness results for the world to see in general, but THIS I did like:

    GOOD!
    Anson gets props for that.

    One of the things that bothers me most about women's sports is the perpetuation of the myth of higher weights as being "bad". It's infuriating. We already have a society that pushes the stick-skinny model look (what's remotely attractive about that look anyway?), but when coaches push their athletes to lose weight as a goal, it's even worse. I sat next to an absolute cretin of a soccer coach and his high-school-aged team at a college game last year. At one point some of the girls were saying that they were hungry, and were complaining a little about the lack of variety food at the venue. The coach basically told them to not worry about getting anything to eat then, because if they didn't eat, they'd lose weight, and if they lost weight they'd "be faster". :mad: I nearly jumped out of my seat and throttled him (Well I didn't nearly jump out of my seat--I did jump out of my seat. My friend who was with me literally had to haul me back in my seat and clamp a hand over my mouth. I wasn't REALLY going to throttle the guy though, just rake him over the coals verbally a little bit. :D). The girls he said that to were already very thin, and they wouldn't eat anything the remainder of the game, even when teammates went and got some food and tried to share. I hope they're getting better feedback from their parents and other coaches than from that idiot.
     
  9. kareena

    kareena New Member

    Feb 8, 2002
    This is off the topic of the tread but I want to reply. The comments about the coach and his team hit a nerve.
    I knew a player several years ago who starved herself and worked out non stop so she could get faster. She wanted to play on a club team and later a college team that were just a little beyond her reach--at least as a starter. The coaches (maybe inadvertantly) led her on--lose weight, get faster etc etc. When it came time for college, instead of accepting an offer from a school where she would have had a wonderful career and enjoyed herself she walked on at the local Div 1 school. She was basically a squad player and the coach led her to believe the same old line--keep working get faster. But the problem wasn't her speed. She just didn't have the physical attributes or the ability to understand the game that would put her in the starting 11 at that school. No crime--not everyone has the ability. Any little bit of encouragement and she was out killing herself to improve. Literally. She finally decided to transfer but it was too late. She died before the season began. I believe an irregular heart beat was involved, but am not sure they ever really pinpointed the cause. She was on a spartan almost no fat diet and I know that there was some thougth that she had damaged her heart with the dieting and strenuous exercize. Anorexic? I don't know but it was thought she was and the damage to the heart muscle and the electrical impulses from that disorder are well documented. I think I can say that she would still be alive today if she had never played soccer.
    I for one am glad to see that some of these coaches encourage the players to be fit and strong. I like the idea that Anson posts daily results--it many areas. If the player I just wrote about had been able to compare more than her speed and weight she might have seen the light in time to make a change. It might have given her a better perspective on the big picture.
     
  10. David

    David Member

    Jun 2, 2000
    I'm not sure whether I'm agreeing or disagreeing with some of you. The weight, ie the number, is not the issue at all. Meeting the performance goal is the issue, and all of the goals (as posted by Anson) require hard work/hard training/and adding muscle--all good things. Adding muscle should add weight, but you measure the muscle added more by the performance than the body weight. In other words, you can and should emphasize to players/kids/adults that they will need to add muscle to meet goals and if they gain weight through added muscle then that is a good thing. You may even need to reassure (girls/women) of that, and I'll bet UNC and all the top programs with good sports medicine staffs are all doing this. However, posting the weight itself for all to see is not necessary because it is not, in and of itself a performance measure.
    There are things you could do with weight in terms of performance--e.g., share them with a player and tell them if the go BELOW a certain value that they won't play. Or, use them as a sign of volume depletion after tough practices/matches.
    But, no matter how confident you are that "your team" all has healthy body images, rest assured that the prevalence of issues with body image and weight (as a number) absolutely must be there.
     
  11. misoccerfan

    misoccerfan New Member

    Jul 9, 2001
    With the season fast approaching, what is the team's injury status?
     
  12. SomebodyOrOther

    SomebodyOrOther BigSoccer Supporter

    Jun 8, 2002
    Over here!
    Yeah! What he said!

    EXACTLY what David said! Much more organized than I was able to be on the subject. Thank you!
     
  13. Klee

    Klee Member

    Feb 24, 2001
    Chapel Hill, NC
    Injuries?

    I'll try to find that out too. Maybe early next week I'll know something.

    We are all concerned about our beloved Susan Bush and hope her rehab has been completely successful. In the spring games, it seemed that Amy Steadman was free of any problems and running like the wind. Plenty of others, including Annie Felts, Jenni Branam, and Leslie Gaston, were nicked up at the end of last season but hopefully will be back in stride.

    Anybody else have any information on this?
     
  14. Klee

    Klee Member

    Feb 24, 2001
    Chapel Hill, NC
    Why are we listing the players' weights?

    I found out that our SID decided seven years ago that the University would treat information about men's and women's teams the same, just for fairness, and UNC's women's soccer team has had its weights out there for all to see ever since. Regardless of UNC's totally admirable policy, I thought the discussion here of the issues in weight, fitness, and health was interesting and helpful.
     
  15. Klee

    Klee Member

    Feb 24, 2001
    Chapel Hill, NC
    Why is UNC playing Guilford?

    I learned that UNC did have to scramble to get a team to fill in that slot in the Nike Classic, but it wasn't because Richmond "pulled out." There had been a mix-up in the scheduling that was caused by a UNC error and it got straightened out too late to get another Div.I opponent. In fact, Carolina regularly has trouble filling those invitational slots, since it has to find teams that don't mind coming to Chapel Hill and picking up an L and also are within driving distance.
     
  16. Klee

    Klee Member

    Feb 24, 2001
    Chapel Hill, NC
    How about injuries?

    The University doesn't release information about injuries, but in talking to another fan yesterday I was reminded that both Annie Morell and Leslie Gaston were scheduled to have surgery at the end of spring practice to clean up some joint problems. How are they doing? I don't know. I guess I need to start going to practices, which start tomorrow morning. (But I doubt that I'll be doing that -- please don't kick me off the board!)
     
  17. Klee

    Klee Member

    Feb 24, 2001
    Chapel Hill, NC
    Anne Felts Fan Club

    The Anne Felts Fan Club has been rather inactive since last season, but today would be just the day to get it perked up again. It's August 11 and, hey, that's her birthday!!

    happy birthday, annie!
     
  18. SomebodyOrOther

    SomebodyOrOther BigSoccer Supporter

    Jun 8, 2002
    Over here!
    Thanks SDM*

    SDM, thanks for doing the dirty work and investigating, on this and the other subjects (injuries, schedule)! I'm glad to know that my first reaction to UNC listing weights ("They seem to always list weight for guys, so why treat the women any different, maybe?") wasn't so crazy after all!
     
  19. David

    David Member

    Jun 2, 2000
    Re: Why are we listing the players' weights?

    Well, I admire the "cub reporters" guts in asking the question.

    I thought Anson has correctly taught all of us guys that in sports (and business, etc) you shouldn't treat women as if they were men?

    On the UNC Website I see:

    Mens basketball has body weights
    Women's basketball no body weights

    Men's lacrosse has body weights
    Women's lacrosse has no weights

    Men's swimming/diving has body weights
    Women's swimming/diving has no weights

    Men's tennis has body weights
    Women's tennis has no weights

    Honestly, I'm flabbergasted on those last two. What possible role could reporting the body weights of men have for performance in swimming/diving or tennis? (Oh my gosh, it's the same for UNC Golf. The guys get their weights and the women are weightless).

    I think the SIDs answer was disingenuous (at best) and took advantage of our Cub Reporter!
     
  20. Klee

    Klee Member

    Feb 24, 2001
    Chapel Hill, NC
    Ouch!

    There goes my Pulitzer!

    The info I got was not directly from the SID (and at UNC, there's an SID for the so-called Olympic sports, that is, the smaller fry) but from someone who deals with him from the soccer program. Obviously this is more complicated than what was told to me. Maybe the policy that I reported was announced but then people fell back into their old habits as the years have gone by. Whatever, as they say, I've decided not to explore this any further. At least we know the position of UNC's women's soccer.

    PS Congratulations to David on his 100th post.
     
  21. GoCourage

    GoCourage Member

    May 27, 2001
    Durham, NC
    Re: Why are we listing the players' weights?

    Pointing to the list of sports that David posted perhaps the quote should have read "...information about men's and women's soccer teams the same?"

    Seems to be some disparity between the quote and the facts, but oh well... At least there was an explanation offered. Thanks for doing some investigative reporting SDM*! I'll stand by my intuition that there is some psychology going on.

    Do the Heels have any pre-season matches that aren't listed on the schedule? Is there any inside information now that Budman doesn't have his mole on the inside? :)
     
  22. MoHeelfan

    MoHeelfan Member

    Apr 17, 2002
    Ozarks
    RE: Preseason matches

    The Annual Blue-White game is Tuesday at 6:15 at Finley. They will be minus the 4 freshmen now in Vancouver for the U19 World cup. They apparently have a new recruit from Kansas who was admitted to the university (no small task for an out-of-state student) who has decided to walk-on. I know nothing about her.
     
  23. David

    David Member

    Jun 2, 2000
    Some of the freshmen will start (likely on defense). After the lineup is settled by 2nd-3rd week in September, I have a hard time figuring out a) how a team is going to get the ball through the UNC midfield, and then b) score during the run of play on the back line. Best chance of scoring on UNC will be a set play, less likely playing direct, and third a fortunate counterattack when the backs are pushing forward. I think playing direct will be tough given the speed of UNC's backs.
    Last year, Santa Clara had enough quality National Teamers to compete with UNC. And, UNC's seniors were not the answer in the finals. I don't see any team this year with enough quality (on paper) to beat UNC. UCLA and Virginia have the potential. There will be a few games with narrow margins on the scoreboard (more likely due to poor finishing), but that's it. I am NOT a UNC "shill," but that's just the way I see it.
     
  24. Klee

    Klee Member

    Feb 24, 2001
    Chapel Hill, NC
    Another honor for Dorrance

    Another honor for Anson Dorrance was released today, but not one you would expect. He was named one of the fifty outstanding men's soccer players in ACC history. The ACC is celebrating its 50th anniversary and part of the celebration is naming the top fifty players in different sports. They've been releasing the teams one at a time. Here's the link to the UNC release, in which it is made clear that he was quite a player too. There's even a picture of him from his days on the pitch.

    Link
     
  25. Klee

    Klee Member

    Feb 24, 2001
    Chapel Hill, NC
    Blue-White scrimmage

    It was so great to see our players out on the field again after so long. And they were looking so good too.

    It was just one half of soccer and it was played on the practice field in 90-95 degree heat. A few players were limping a little bit, like Annie Morrell, and a few were held out of the action, like Jenni Branam and Laura Winslow, but mostly all the players I was worrying about were playing very well. If I had to name some names, I would say that Susan Bush and Leslie Gaston were outstanding, and I would also praise the hustling play of Anne Felts, Elizabeth Ball, Leigh Blomgren, and freshman Kacey White. But everyone was playing well. This looks like a very good team.

    As of this afternoon, only the second day of practice, the first team was Winget, Watley, Reddick, Gaston, Tomecka, Randolph, Felts, Walker, Bush, Ramsey, and Morrell. The first players to switch up from the second team to the first were Mary McDowell and Elizabeth Ball. Lest we forget, there are four freshmen playing with U-19 NT who will show up in a few weeks eager to get in on the action, players named Steadman, Tarpley, Chalupny, and Fletcher, all four of whom are already well known in American soccer.
     

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