Volleyball on TV: Milwaukee vs. Marquette

Time Warner Cable SportsChannel will be airing the Panthers volleyball contest against Marquette (scheduled for Tuesday at 7 p.m.) on a tape-delay basis.

Here is the full schedule:
Wednesday, 11/5 ------ 7:00-9:00 p.m.
Thursday, 11/6 ------- 9:00-11:00 a.m.
Friday, 11/7 --------- 12:00-2:00 a.m.
Friday, 11/7 --------- 12:30-2:30 p.m.
Sunday, 11/9 --------- 4:00-6:00 p.m.

Catching Up With Angela Rodriguez

Seeing former Milwaukee hoops star Angela Rodriguez make the final roster for the Mexico National Team was special for her and for the program. The possibility of seeing a former Panther as a possible Olympian is pretty impressive. Her new team starts a month of training in Atlanta beginning today, before returning to Mexico to begin playing more games versus outside competition.

The UWM Athletic Communications Office has been in touch with Angela and she shared some videos of her team that we wanted to pass along. Most of it is not done in English (outside of the comments from the head coach), but there are certainly highlights featuring Rodriguez and her play.

Information on the "Milwaukee Cup March"

Note: The following event is being held in conjunction with the Milwaukee/Marquette game Wednesday. The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee is not affiliated with the event. The Athletics Communication Office is providing the information due to requests received from fans of the soccer program. The following is from the website: http://www.milsoccerdg.org

The Milwaukee Soccer Development Group is uniting the local soccer community in an event that is being christened the "Milwaukee Cup March" for the Marquette University vs. Milwaukee Men’s NCAA soccer game on Wednesday, September 17th.

MSDG is pleased to announce the hosting of a soccer march at Twisted Fisherman Crab Shack for the UW-Milwaukee (UWM) Vs Marquette University (MU) men’s soccer game. With the game starting at 7 p.m., the tailgate starts at 5 p.m. The Twisted Fisherman Crab Shack is located at 1200 W. Canal Street, just a few blocks away from Valley Fields where the game is being played. The tailgate is a followup to MSDG’s Professional Soccer in Milwaukee symposium held on July 15th at Milwaukee City Hall. The tailgate and march is a challenge to the local soccer community to unite and show its strength of support for professional outdoor soccer in Milwaukee. Each year, the UWM and MU men’s soccer teams battle for the Milwaukee Cup trophy. The match stands as one of the few examples of a true derby in American soccer and their soccer rivalry is also one of the oldest, dating back to 1973.

The Milwaukee Cup March is not only a chance to support local soccer but also demonstrate Milwaukee’s desire for a professional outdoor soccer team, and will also include a Q&A with select members of the local soccer community. After the discussion, soccer fans will march to the Marquette fields west on Canal Street. The Milwaukee Cup is the highest level of outdoor soccer in Milwaukee and the goal will be to sell out this game and in doing so prove that Wisconsin is ready for a professional outdoor team.

The Twisted Fisherman will donate a portion of the proceeds towards MSDG’s goal of raising funds to properly convert a set of unused tennis courts to soccer courts in the Greater Milwaukee Area. Court conversion includes new line painting, goals and signs. MSDG is also hosting a 3v3 tournament on Saturday, October 11th at the Burnham Park Tennis Courts for the same cause.

Anyone interested in media coverage, sponsorship, or further information about MSDG’s Milwaukee Cup March should inquire via email to jmoran@milsoccerdg.org.

Milwaukee Soccer Development Group is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that was founded in 2012. The mission of MSDG is to promote the sport of soccer in the Greater Milwaukee Area by providing opportunities and support for young people at any level to enjoy the game within the community.

Come ready to support your team, wear your soccer shirts, wave your flags, bring your banners, sing your hearts out and become part of this historic local derby between two great Wisconsin D-1 soccer teams.

5:00 pm - 6:00 pm Meet and Greet
6:00 pm - 6:30 pm Speakers
6:30 pm - 6:45 pm March to Valley Fields
7:00 pm - Kick-off
Cost: The ‘Milwaukee Cup March’ is free but there is cost for the tickets to the game.

Kelly Lewers Featured In "IAMUWM" Video

Senior Kelly Lewers of the Milwaukee women's soccer team is the latest student-athlete to be featured in an IAMUWM video spotlight on UW-Milwaukee's homepage.

Kayla Price Featured in "IAMUWM" Video

Junior Kayle Price of the Milwaukee volleyball team is the latest student-athlete to be featured in an IAMUWM video spotlight on UW-Milwaukee's homepage.

Watch it here:

Laurie Bell Featured in "IAMUWM" Video

Senior Laurie Bell of the Milwaukee men's soccer team is the latest student-athlete to be featured in an IAMUWM video spotlight on UW-Milwaukee's homepage.

Watch it here:

Watching our former teammate in the Pros

About a week ago, our women's team took an evening away from the preseason training to head to Chicago and watch our former teammate Sarah Hagen (Apple, to us) and her new team FC Kansas City take on the Chicago Red Stars.

We pulled into the parking lot only to see a host of former Panthers and their parents tailgating and getting ready for the big game. 

Although Apple didn't start as her team already clinched second place in the playoffs, she came in during the second half. It was great to see her on the field again and get to watch some professional soccer. After the game, there was a giant crowd all waiting to see the former Panther. We chatted with her for a little bit before she was off signing autographs and taking pictures with some of her fans.

Here are a few photos from the night. 

8 Things About Sarah Hagen

As former Panther standout Sarah Hagen continued her training with the U.S. Women's National Team last week, the team put together a video to help people get to know the rising star.

While many of her answers will come as no surprise to Panther fans who saw her play, take a look and see what "Apple" had to say.

Litton Heading Overseas With U.S. Futsal National Team

Mark Litton, one of the assistants for the Milwaukee men's soccer team, is also the assistant for the U.S. Futsal National Team. Sounds like soccer, but what exactly is that, you ask?

According to its website, futsal (Five-a-Side Soccer) is "The Way the World Plays Indoor Soccer" and is the international form of indoor soccer approved by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). It is played in all continents of the world by over 100 countries with 12 million players. The term FUTSAL is the international term used for the game. It is derived from the Spanish or Portuguese word for "soccer", FUTbol or FUTebol, and the French or Spanish word for "indoor", SALon or SALa and it was first used by U.S. Futsal in 1987. U.S. Futsal President Alex Para, lobbied to FIFA to have the name Futsal used for the game, until that time FIFA had used the name Indoor Soccer and Five-a-Side Soccer. FIFA took up the name in 1989.

It is, essentially, a modified form of soccer played with five players per side on a smaller, typically indoor, field.

Here is the information on the trip, courtesy of www.wisconsinsoccercentral.com:

The U.S. Futsal national team, led by former Milwaukee Wave coach Keith Tozer, will return to England in June to defend its Four Nations Tournament title.

The Americans will face Qatar on June 5, Cyprus on June 6 and England on June 8 at the tournament in Newcastle. Last year, the U.S. edged England 2-1, routed Malaysia 8-1 and doubled up Poland 4-2 to win the event.

UW-Milwaukee men's goalkeeper coach Mark Litton (Racine St. Catherine's/UW-Parkside) is Tozer's assistant on the U.S. squad. The roster for the tournament hasn't been announced, but likely will include current or former Wave players.

The American team will train in Milwaukee ahead of the tournament, starting May 30, and could be back in town for a match later in June.

In its article earlier this month about Tozer parting ways with the Wave after 22 years, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that plans were being made for the U.S. Futsal team to face France in a match to coincide with the beginning of the World Cup, which starts June 12 in Brazil. The French Football Federation website confirmed that its futsal team will be playing in the U.S. this summer.

Tozer, the winningest coach in professional indoor soccer history with a 528-282 record in 27 seasons, now operates K. Tozer Soccer Academy. He was named the U.S. Futsal national team interim coach in 1996 and was promoted to head coach in 1998.

Former Panther Student-Athlete Hired at Holy Cross

Ricky Babcock, a former baseball player at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, has been hired as the assistant director of athletic facilities at the College of Holy Cross.

Click HERE to read the full release.

Hagen Earns First National Team Cap

Former Milwaukee women's soccer standout Sarah "Apple" Hagen earned her first cap with the U.S. Women's National Team Friday in a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Sweden as part of the Algarve Cup in Portugal.

While the loss is obviously disappointing, the future looks bright for Hagen, who came on in the 81st minute and helped create numerous dangerous chances against a stingy Swedish defense, nearly creating the equalizer.

U.S. Soccer caught up with head coach Tom Sermanni, Hagen and a few other players following Friday's match from Portugal.

Milwaukee Seeding Scenarios

It's actually pretty straightforward for the Panthers as they look toward next week's league tournament. Three of the four possibilities put Milwaukee as the fifth seed, with two scenarios where Detroit is the opponent and two where Youngstown State would come to Milwaukee.

The four possibilities:

Clinches No. 5 seed with YSU win AND Detroit loss
UWM, YSU finish 7-9; teams split regular season, 1-1. UWM owns the best win moving down standings with 1-1 record vs. Green Bay
Milwaukee 5th, Youngstown 6th, Oakland 7th and Detroit 8th

Clinches No. 5 seed with Oakland win AND Detroit win
UWM, OU, DET finish 7-9; UWM is 3-1 vs. OU/DET, OU is 2-2 vs. UWM/DET, DET is 1-3 vs. UWM/OU
Milwaukee 5th, Oakland 6th, Detroit 7th and Youngstown 8th

Clinches No. 5 seed with Oakland win AND Detroit loss
UWM, OU finish 7-9; Milwaukee swept Oakland in regular season
Milwaukee 5th, Oakland 6th, Youngstown 7th and Detroit 8th

Clinches No. 6 seed with YSU win AND Detroit win
UWM, YSU, DET finish 7-9; teams all have 2-2 records vs. each other. UWM, DET both 1-1 vs. GB, 0-2 vs. CSU, 1-1 vs. WSU. DET is 1-1 vs. Valpo, UWM 0-2. YSU eliminated from tie-breaker due to 0-2 record vs. GB
Detroit 5th, Milwaukee 6th, Youngstown 7th and Oakland 8th

Postgame Report: Cleveland State at Milwaukee

Game #26 – Milwaukee 90, Cleveland State 78

Full Recap and Stats

Player Of The Game: Angela Rodriguez was terrific. At the start of the game, when she wasn't scoring, she was continuously finding teammates with great passes for easy baskets. At one point, she had 9 assists and 0 turnovers when the game was still yet to be decided. She finished with 26 points and 10 assists for the fourth points/assists double-double of her career - and third this season.

Rodriguez joined Scott Warras following the contest as his "Star of the Game", hear that interview HERE.

Play of the Game: The game was back-and-forth from the start, with 10 lead changes in the first half alone. In case there was any doubt about the second half and the victory, the Panthers took care of it with - what else - the three-point shot. When CSU seemed to be giving things one final run in the second half, trimming the lead back under 10 for the final time - UWM responded with a triple from Emily Decorah and one from Rodriguez on back-to-back possessions to extend the lead back to 15 and take care of business.

Key Stats: The Panthers shot close to 50 percent and won a few key statistical areas. They tallied a 43-40 advantage in rebounds - the first time they won the rebounding battle in 9 games. They also had just 9 turnovers compared to 21 assists. The turnover story was key. They had just one in the first half and only a handful until the final minutes when the Vikings continued to press with the game out of hand.

News and Notes: Freshman Bre'Zall Warren set a career-high with 17 points - topping the former mark of 13 that she set twice earlier this season. Rodriguez netted 26 points to reach 1,501 in her career - just the 6th UWM player to score 1500-plus in program history.

Up Next: It's off to Ohio for a final matchup against Wright State, a team that just happens to now be part of the three-way tie at the top of the Horizon League standings at 9-3.

Porcaro Featured in "IAMUWM" Video

Junior Mike Porcaro of the Milwaukee baseball team was the latest student-athlete to be featured in an IAMUWM video spotlight on UW-Milwaukee's homepage.

Watch it here:

Former UWM Soccer Player Signs With Wave

Former University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's soccer player Bryce Boyd recently saw one of his dreams come true - to play professional soccer - when he signed with the Milwaukee Wave.

The full article from the Wave website (HERE) is also below:

WAVE SIGNS GOALKEEPER BRYCE BOYD

MILWAUKEE (Jan. 31) — Once a Milwaukee Wave camper and later a staff coach, goalkeeper Bryce Boyd is now a player for the Milwaukee Wave after signing a contract with the team Wednesday.

Boyd, a native of Mequon who played at the University of San Francisco for three years and then at UW-Milwaukee in 2010, joins the roster with veteran Nick Vorberg headed to injured reserve due to a hand injury. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound Boyd made six starts and seven total appearances at UWM with a 1.36 goals-against average.

“I started as a camper back in the day, went to games with my family,” Boyd said. “My first jersey was a Victor Nogueira jersey. To finally become a signed player is a dream come true.”

Boyd has been training with the team for two years and is familiar with the players and Coach Keith Tozer's system.

“We're fortunate to have a player of his ability who's fit, knows the system and can help us while Nick is on IR,” Tozer said.

Vorberg is 3-1 in four appearances this season, but has not played since Dec. 13. Marcel Feenstra is 7-1 in goal for the Wave and is third in the MISL with a 10.52 points allowed average.

The Wave (10-2) visit St. Louis (4-10) at 1:35 p.m. Saturday with hopes of maintaining its slim lead on Baltimore (10-3) in the league standings.

Postgame Report: Valparaiso at Milwaukee

Game #20 – Milwaukee 85, Valparaiso 80

Full Recap and Stats

Player Of The Game: Avyanna Young. Incredible. Ridiculous. Fun to watch. Valpo had no answer for her and she was on fire all day. The 36 point-effort is one of the best I have seen in years.

Young joined Scott Warras following the contest as his "Star of the Game", hear that interview HERE.

Play of the Game: The Panthers seemed to have the game in control all day, but could never pull away from the Crusaders even after building the lead to as many as 11. Valpo actually rallied in the second half and tied the game on 3 occasions - at 56, 58 and 60. Emily Decorah's swished 3 from the corner on the next possession turned the tide and started UWM on its winning run that put the game away for good.

Key Stats: The Panthers shot over 50 percent for the game for the first time this season. They made 29-of-53, 54.7 percent. Milwaukee only had 8 turnovers in the game, second-fewest in school history.

News and Notes: Sophomore Jordyn Swan earned the first start of her UWM career today. She started impressively, collecting 2 points, 2 rebounds and an assist before the first media timeout. Angela Rodriguez made 8 more free throws today and has now made 39 in a row. She has not missed since before Christmas (for real!).

Up Next: It's off to Michigan for a two-game road swing to Oakland and Detroit.

Next Episode of "The Kyle Rechlicz Show" on TWC SportsChannel

The next edition of the "Kyle Rechlicz Show" is finished and will be airing this week on Time Warner Cable SportsChannel.

Time Warner Cable SportsChannel will also be airing the Panthers contest against UIC Wednesday evening and the first airing of Kyle's show takes place right before the broadcast.

Here is the full schedule:
Wednesday, Jan. 29 at 6:30 p.m. (followed by LIVE game telecast)
Thursday, Jan. 30 at 10 a.m. (followed by replayed game telecast)
Friday, Jan. 31 at 12:30 p.m. (followed by replayed game telecast)
Saturday, Feb. 1 at 1 a.m. (followed by replayed game telecast)

**Reminder all coach shows and game telecasts are available anytime via TWC OnDemand Channel 411

Postgame Report: Detroit at Milwaukee

Game #18 – Milwaukee 81, Detroit 69

Full Recap and Stats

Player Of The Game: The team had quite the balanced scoring attack, with 10 of the 11 players finding their way to the scoring column, four in double-figures and seven with 7-plus points. Kimee Chandler made the most of her 13 minutes of playing time, tying her career-high with 10 points in an efficient 4-of-5 shooting - which included 2-of-3 from distance. She also added a rebound and an assist.

Chandler was the pick on the radio and joined Scott Warras following the contest as his "Star of the Game", hear that interview HERE.

Play of the Game: Not necessarily a single play, but hands-down, it was the 20-2 run. The Panthers led all game and, all of a sudden, a few minutes into the second half, Detroit rips off a 16-6 run and UWM found itself down 2. Such a great, composed response.

Key Stats: The Panthers played great defense and limited the Titans to 33.3 percent shooting in the game, including just 15 percent (2-of-14) from long-distance against a good-shooting 3-point team. They also held Senee Shearer, one of the most prolific 3-point shooters in league history - to a 1-for-9 showing from long range.

News and Notes: In addition to Chandler tying her career-high, Bre'Zall Warren also tied her career-best with 13 points. Not known for its shot-blocking capabilities, the Panthers had 6 today, which was a season-high (previous best was 4).

Up Next: It's back at the Klotshce Center Wednesday, welcoming the Flames for a 7 p.m. tip.

Next Episode of "The Kyle Rechlicz Show" on TWC SportsChannel

The next edition of the "Kyle Rechlicz Show" is finished and will be airing this week on Time Warner Cable SportsChannel.

Time Warner Cable SportsChannel will also be airing the Panthers contest against Wright State Thursday evening and the first airing of Kyle's show takes place right before the broadcast.

Here is the full schedule:
Thursday, Jan. 23 at 6:30 p.m. (followed by LIVE game telecast)
Friday, Jan. 24 at 12:00 noon (followed by replayed game telecast)
Sunday, Jan. 26 at 12:00 midnight (followed by replayed game telecast)
Sunday, Jan. 26 at 3:30 p.m. (followed by replayed game telecast)

**Reminder all coach shows and game telecasts are available anytime via TWC OnDemand Channel 411

Women's Basketball Radio Conflicts on the Big 920

We wanted to take a minute to give you a heads-up on some upcoming Milwaukee women's basketball broadcasts ...

The Panthers games, called by Scott Warras, are broadcast on the radio and online on the Big 920. However, due to a few upcoming conflicts, there is a pair of games that will be available on a tape-delayed basis.

Saturday 1/18 @ Youngstown State (replayed approx 7:30-7:45)
Wednesday 1/29 vs. UIC (replayed approx 10:30-10:45)

**Despite the radio broadcast/audio stream being delayed, fans can access the games LIVE online via the usual Horizon League Network feed**

Horizon League: 10 Questions With Kyle Rechlicz

The Horizon League office has been running a series of Q&A's with athletes and coaches this season. Today, Milwaukee women's basketball head coach Kyle Rechlicz was featured.

Click HERE for the link to the page.

Fun In The Sun: Part VII

With the UWM swimming team down in Florida on their annual training trip, we thought it would be fun to have a member of the team share their thoughts each day on the UWM Blog.

The Panthers are in sunny Fort Lauderdale, training at Pine Crest Academy, both short and long course.They will be on the trip through the 16th of January before resuming the regular season schedule second semester against IUPUI on Jan. 17.

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Tuesday's entry comes from freshman Nick Menninga:

A beautiful sunny morning accompanied the team today as we started off this morning with the annual biathlon; a mile swim followed by a three mile run. After an average of about 45 minutes straight racing, all of us were exhausted. Back at the hotel it was time for the beach, as it was the last day to soak up the rays. After a couple of hours on the beach, most of us were tired and went back to our rooms to watch TV and take some well deserved naps. 
    After dinner we were back to the pool for the "senior practice." Instead of having to listen to our normal coaches, we got to do a practice run by the seniors. Starting with a snake warmup, which took us through all the lanes doing a variety of things from corkscrew stroke to front flips to sliding down a pad on our stomachs into the pool. We were then split up into lanes and we did trivia about the seniors. If your lane got it right you had an easy drill or fun swim, while it was a tough one if you were incorrect. After the trivia we went on to split up into classes; freshman, sophomores, and juniors. We had a short time to make a water ballet routine which the seniors judged, giving the juniors the victory, meaning they were done with practice. The freshman and sophomores then moved onto round two which was to create a new cheer relating to the team. The seniors discussed who the victor was for a while as it was a close battle, which the sophomores lost out, and were required to get back into the pool for another 500 yards. 
    This concluded our last practice in the pool for the trip and some went out to eat afterwards, while others went to the hotel to pack and get ready for the day of travel tomorrow.

Fun In The Sun: Part VI

With the UWM swimming team down in Florida on their annual training trip, we thought it would be fun to have a member of the team share their thoughts each day on the UWM Blog.

The Panthers are in sunny Fort Lauderdale, training at Pine Crest Academy, both short and long course.They will be on the trip through the 16th of January before resuming the regular season schedule second semester against IUPUI on Jan. 17.

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Monday's entry comes from freshman Emily Roche:

Monday January 13th:
Another sunny day in Florida for the Panthers as we hit the pool for a two hour morning swim practice after our day off! While all the Panthers enjoyed a relaxing day off from practice and the pool, the coaches are ready to get back to work. Dave was all business giving the sprinters their final push pace set of the trip, while Kyle had an aerobic set waiting for the others. After practice a majority of the Panthers chose to take advantage of the beautiful sunny day and crowd around the beach and pool until the sun went down. Luckily it was a sting free day from the jellies and the Panthers enjoyed playing in the waves, tanning, climbing trees for coconuts, and playing frisbee in the ocean. The day passed by quickly and the Panthers were soon back at the pool with a split practice. An hour in the weight room with Heidi helping the Panthers get "swoll" and then an hour of a circuit swim from Kyle the Panthers found themselves tired out and ready for much needed big night sleep before they conquered the dreaded biathlon the next morning. 

Fun In The Sun: Part V

With the UWM swimming team down in Florida on their annual training trip, we thought it would be fun to have a member of the team share their thoughts each day on the UWM Blog.

The Panthers are in sunny Fort Lauderdale, training at Pine Crest Academy, both short and long course.They will be on the trip through the 16th of January before resuming the regular season schedule second semester against IUPUI on Jan. 17.

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Sunday's entry comes from freshman swimmer Kiersten Seidel:

FINALLY! Today is the day that all of the Panthers have been looking forward too. It's Sunday, our first and only full day off from swimming on training trip. While some of the Panthers woke up early to go out onto the ocean to catch some fish, others, including myself and my roommates (Nicole Hutchins, Hannah Lucas and Kaela Ropson) used the morning to catch up on our sleep. Once we finally woke up, we changed into our swimsuits and hurried down to the beach. Most of the team was already there or arrived shortly after. The UWM Panthers spent the day outside soaking up the beautiful Florida sun. The girls laid out while the boys played football in the sand. Whenever it got too hot, we would all go into the ocean to cool off and play in the waves. Some Panthers enjoyed the food at the Tiki Bar, which of course included freshman Noah Dalluge, who has eaten every single meal at the Tiki Bar. His excuse: "I'm on vacation, why not enjoy it?" Once the sun went down for the day, all the Panthers went back to their rooms to get ready for our annual training trip dinner. The dress code for the women's team was dresses and skirts, however the dress code for the men's team was "anything but dryland clothes." I guess that's the difference between girls and boys. The women's team went to Aruba for their dinner while the men's team went to Ernie's Bar-B-Q. Kyle, Heidi, and Molly joined the girls team at dinner and Dave, Kelly and Kira went with the boys team. Both the teams had good food and good laughs. After we got back from dinner, my roommates and myself played Cards Against Humanity with freshmen Kristin Zablocki and Sarah Grieve. It was 11 o'clock at night by this time and we all decided we should call it a night to prepare ourselves for what Kyle has in mind for us in the morning…

Fun In The Sun: Part IV

With the UWM swimming team down in Florida on their annual training trip, we thought it would be fun to have a member of the team share their thoughts each day on the UWM Blog.

The Panthers are in sunny Fort Lauderdale, training at Pine Crest Academy, both short and long course.They will be on the trip through the 16th of January before resuming the regular season schedule second semester against IUPUI on Jan. 17.

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Saturday's entry comes from sophomore swimmer Nic Halverson:

Saturday, January 11^th

Today we started out the day by practice, of course. It was an hour in the weight room then an hour in the pool for the guys. For the girls it was an hour in the pool then and hour lift. In the weight room we did a circuit two times though that worked all of our muscles. In the pool we did and hour of aerobic recovery. It was the first day that was super nice outside. The sun was out and there were no clouds. Once we got back to the hotel, many people went straight to the beach. It was nice to get in the ocean to cool off from the sun. Once the sun faded behind the tall buildings, many people went inside - most people had sunburn after the long day of sun. We then went to our second practice which was pain train. It was good to do that set at night so the sun wasn’t beating down on us. Everybody successfully made it through the pain train. After that many people had plans to do something that night since we didn’t have practice the next day.

Fun In The Sun: Part III - Women's Team

With the UWM swimming team down in Florida on their annual training trip, we thought it would be fun to have a member of the team share their thoughts each day on the UWM Blog.

The Panthers are in sunny Fort Lauderdale, training at Pine Crest Academy, both short and long course.They will be on the trip through the 16th of January before resuming the regular season schedule second semester against IUPUI on Jan. 17.

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The third women's entry comes from senior Chloe Lewis:

The morning of January 10th began with the pleasant surprise that instead of the previously forecasted rain, it was going to be a beautiful sunny day.  The panthers proceeded to practice excited that the sun was finally shining.  The lady panthers started out with dryland while the manthers warmed up the pool for us.  In Kyle’s classic dryland we did a combination of sprints, push-ups, leg lifts, burpees and the dreaded four corners running set.  With the sun beating down on us for the first time since we arrived, the lady panthers sweated through dryland and were looking forward to hopping in the pool.  With the manthers completing their set, the lady panthers swooped in to start their practice of one of our timeless kick sets - animal kicks.  With our legs and hip flexors burning from dryland, we pushed through the animal kicks encouraging each other along the way.  We concluded practice tired, but excited to finally be able to enjoy the sunshine state!
        After being dropped back off at the hotel, a large group went over to dunkin donuts where breakfast sandwiches, coffee and of course donuts were enjoyed.  Immediately after finishing breakfast I went and changed into my swim suit ready to finally lay in the sun.  Arriving down by the pool, many panthers had already set themselves up next to the pool and on the beach enjoying the sunshine. It was a little overcast at first, but every once and a while the sun peaked through.  Avoiding jellyfish, Collin and I ventured down the beach picking up seashells and the biggest piece of coral I have ever found before.  Unfortunately some swimmers were not so lucky at avoiding the jellyfish when they were in the water.  
        Exhausted from laying and playing in the sun, I later went inside to rest up and work on my winterim class, Child Psychology.  In my classtoday I worked on raising my virtual child, Olivia and found out that I would be having another child to raise.  Some other swimmers who have already taken the class informed me later that in the virtual child program I would also end of getting divorced and have to raise my children, so I have my work cut out for me. After spending a good amount of time on homework I went back upstairs to join my roommates in more nap time, before getting ready for night practice.  
        Night practice was set up to be a dual meet, Coach Kyle versus Coach Dave.  All of the panthers were split up into teams by Kyle and Dave and we competed against each other in an all relays meet.  Kyle put a lot of time into writing his lineup and putting people in events, whereas Dave was thrown for a loop at the last second and had to rearrange his lineup completely.  In Dave’s new lineup some people were not in their normals events which was interesting and different to race.  Battling neck and neck Kyle’s boys team came out victorious while there was a tie on the womens side.  It all came down to a 4X100 IM relay.  Both teams put up their strongest relay, but Dave’s girl’s team brought home the gold.  Overall the day was eventful and it was nice to finally spend some much needed time in the sun.  
        

Fun In The Sun: Part II - Men's Team

With the UWM swimming team down in Florida on their annual training trip, we thought it would be fun to have a member of the team share their thoughts each day on the UWM Blog.

The Panthers are in sunny Fort Lauderdale, training at Pine Crest Academy, both short and long course.They will be on the trip through the 16th of January before resuming the regular season schedule second semester against IUPUI on Jan. 17.

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The men's second entry comes from sophomore Joe Chokran:

1/9/2014

Today the Panther swim team started out the day with a practice that included small groups at stations with different intense workouts at each one. The weather still wasn't cooperating with us, but we made the most of it after practice. A large group of us went out into the ocean around noon even in the extreme wind and raininess. The waves had to be 10-15 feet and more than half the team was out there playing in them and body surfing for the entire afternoon. By the time we were done with the waves, we were all too exhausted to do anything before our second practice so we relaxed until then. At night practice we did a standard Panther swimming test set; goal 50s. It's a set that challenges you to beat your average time from the last time you did it on every single 50 that you swim. Needless to say, it was easy to fall asleep at the end of the day.

Postgame Report: Milwaukee at Green Bay

Game #14 – Milwaukee 75, Green Bay 64

Full Recap and Stats

Player Of The Game: Angela Rodriguez was everywhere for the Panthers Saturday. The steady senior scored a team-high 23 points and seemed to come up with the big shot or big pass (8 assists) when needed. Most importantly, she had just three turnovers on the day - NONE in the second half.

Rodriguez was the pick on the radio and joined Scott Warras following the contest as his "Star of the Game", hear that interview HERE.

Kyle Rechlicz also joined Warras on the postgame show. What did she have to say after Milwaukee finally broke that 17-game streak against the Phoenix? You'll have to listen HERE.

Play of the Game: Two things stand out dramatically for me. The first was the 11-0 run to start the second half. Here was a team that was down 9, playing in Green Bay and could have folded up shop. No chance. They blitzed back into the lead and did it in less then 3 minutes. You could sense right then and there that the game was UWM's.

The other was Emily Decorah. Green Bay's defensive plan really took her out of the contest. In fact, she did not even have a field goal attempt in the game until there were less than 7 minutes to play. But, with about 2:30 to go, just when Green Bay had cut the deficit back under 10, just when it was time to sink or swim, Decorah nailed a big 3 from the corner and the game was OVER.

Key Stats: The Panthers have now won 3 of their last 4 and have done it with defense that was not part of the game earlier this season. Today they held GB to 27 second-half points and 38.3 percent shooting. More importantly, the Phoenix went just 4-for-32 on three-pointers.

News and Notes: The win was the first for Milwaukee in the series since February of 2006, a span of 17 games. If you look at the most recent matchups, not many of them have even been that close on the final scores. Green Bay had won (in reverse order), by margins of victory for the Phoenix have been 24, 25, 46, 35, 18, 48, 24, 11, 21, 24, 10 and 11 before finally playing a close one in 2008 - a 66-65 loss. For perspective, the seniors on the UWM roster currently did not even have their drivers licenses the last time UWM beat Green Bay.

Up Next: It's off to Ohio to continue the hot streak, starting with Cleveland State Thursday.

Fun In The Sun: Part II - Women's Team

With the UWM swimming team down in Florida on their annual training trip, we thought it would be fun to have a member of the team share their thoughts each day on the UWM Blog.

The Panthers are in sunny Fort Lauderdale, training at Pine Crest Academy, both short and long course.They will be on the trip through the 16th of January before resuming the regular season schedule second semester against IUPUI on Jan. 17.

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This entry comes from senior Diana Diel:

January 8,

Finally, everyone has arrived and we’re already to tackle our first day of TT(training trip) as a whole team. With our AM practice, Coach Kyle decided to do something a little different with our workout. But oops, it didn’t go over too well, it was a little chaotic and everyone was on a different page. So you can imagine Kyle was frustrated. He made it clear, “no more of this frilly, cutesie crap tonight”. So there we had it, “don’t eat any more donuts” according to Coach Dave and take care of your body.

So with the 8-hour day that was a head of us, there were plenty of clouds to go around and lots of rain. But that didn’t stop our little Panthers. They headed to the beach to take on the waves and fight the rip tides. Sophomore JJ got stung by a jellyfish, and didn’t even skip a beat to fling it off him and continue riding the waves. With that we headed back to the pool for PM practice. We knew it was going be a hard one with Coach Kyle’s reaction from morning practice, but these are the workouts that make us better. The Mid Distance group had some guest appearances from some of our sprinters and everyone had a awesome practice that went down with some great memories.

Fun In The Sun: Part I - Men's Team

With the UWM swimming team down in Florida on their annual training trip, we thought it would be fun to have a member of the team share their thoughts each day on the UWM Blog.

The Panthers are in sunny Fort Lauderdale, training at Pine Crest Academy, both short and long course.They will be on the trip through the 16th of January before resuming the regular season schedule second semester against IUPUI on Jan. 17.

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The men's first entry comes from senior Jeff Maxwell:

Day one in Florida started out with a beach dryland session. After the late flight the night/morning before, morning practice was not an option. In general, you could see the team was excited to be in Florida and on the beach, while also coming to the realization that the coaching staff was not fooling around and this trip was business. After dryland, the team headed to the grocery store to stock up for the week. Many team members also took a nap, but for some, the ocean was on their mind. After the team reached its full numbers with the arrival of the women's team, we began our swimming part of the trip with Kyle’s spin on a well known test set - 5 threes, 3 ones. After long travel days and minimal sleep it was off to bed for most of the team shortly upon arrival back to the hotel.

Fun In The Sun: Part I - Women's Team

With the UWM swimming team down in Florida on their annual training trip, we thought it would be fun to have a member of the team share their thoughts each day on the UWM Blog.

The Panthers are in sunny Fort Lauderdale, training at Pine Crest Academy, both short and long course.They will be on the trip through the 16th of January before resuming the regular season schedule second semester against IUPUI on Jan. 17.

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The first two entries come from junior Anna Yontz:

Monday January 7th

Our Journey Begins
The Lady Panthers began their long journey to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida by heading to the Milwaukee General Airport in the late afternoon. After what seemed like several hours of checking in and security, the girls, headed by Coach Dave Joyce, finally found their seats amongst the many passengers to Georgia. Rumor had it, via SnapChat, that the men’s team was still stuck in their airplane with maintenance problems, just a few gates away. Once both teams hit the air in a race to GA, some Panthers caught up on some sleep and some pretzels, of course. Freshman Kristin Zablocki ate more homemade cookies than I could hand her. In Atlanta, we said a quick goodbye to the men’s team as they waited for their delayed flight to Florida. Envious while standing in the 11 degree weather, we grabbed some shuttles and headed to our luxurious hotel to order pizza and eat ice cream for the night. Loud noises were heard from the freshman room as they anxiously awaited their order of two large pizzas. Some would say they heard cries of pain. Then the Lady Panthers fell quickly asleep.


Tuesday January 8th

Almost There
After a good night’s slumber, a great breakfast in the hotel and some complimentary Starbucks coffee enjoyed by seniors Chloe, Brianna, and Mary, the Lady Panthers grabbed a few shuttles to head back to the Atlanta Airport. Since no bags had to be checked, we had too much time on our hands before the flight. Many Panthers headed to the gate to relax (sophomores Nicole, Kaela, and Hannah), while others had some fun riding the trains between concourses, obviously Hilary, Emily and me. An extra half hour delay at the gate caused a hair braiding session and a snack binge right before our final descent. After a rough plane ride with crying babies, claims Natalie, we finally touched down in Ft. Lauderdale. Upon the sight of our bags to our eager arms, we headed to wait for our vehicles. Finally! Coach Clements appears in our sight. Relieved and excited, we headed to the hotel to prepare for the night. At 8pm, filling 5 vans of swimmers, we headed to Pine Crest on the short but dreaded journey of our first training trip practice…

What A Bounceback

You had to figure the Panthers were due to bounce back when they took the court Wednesday night at Oakland. But the long list of ways in which they flipped the stat sheet in just one game is impressive.

- After letting Cleveland State shoot 58 percent Saturday night, the Panthers allowed Oakland to shoot just 32.4 percent. That's the third time this season a Milwaukee opponent has shot less than 33 percent.

- Cleveland State made 8-of-15 from three-point range Saturday but Oakland made just 3-of-25 from beyond the arc Wednesday. The Golden Grizzlies entered the game ranked sixth in the nation in three-pointers.

- Offensively, Milwaukee shot an even 50 percent after shooting less than 28 percent Saturday. It's the third time UWM has shot 50 percent or better from the field.

- The Panthers had just two assists in Saturday's loss but had 22 in the win Wednesday.

- Milwaukee failed to make a three-pointer Saturday but knocked down nine Wednesday. The Panthers have made eight or more three-pointers in a game eight times this season.

- UWM was outrebounded by 11 on Saturday but claimed a +8 rebounding edge Wednesday. The Panthers have outrebounded their opponent in three of the last four games after doing it just five times in their first 13 games of the year.