Commodore Nation - January 2010 by Vanderbilt Commodores

January 2010

JERMAINE BEAL IS

MR. CONSISTENCY FOR VANDERBILT

table of contents 10

2 Compliance Corner 4 National Commodore Club 6 In My Words

Jared Hawkins

10 Marsh has Sights on Coaching Merideth Marsh has career mapped out 13 It’s My Turn—Rod Williamson

Mickey Mantle Wasn’t Perfect

14 Cohen Focused on Building Well for Kenyan Village

Swimmer won’t forget trip to Kenya

15 Norman Storms Record Books By the Numbers

16 Carroll Finds Niche in Cycling

Former soccer player making her mark

18 Mr. Consistency

Jermaine Beal

20 Quick Hits A look at Vanderbilt’s sports teams 23 Team’s Trip to Far East is Learning Experience ‘Dores see different style of baseball 24 What to Watch for The month ahead

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Letters Jamie Graham in the Community I had the privilege of listening to Jamie speak to a group within the last year, and it was an absolute pleasure. Jamie has an uncanny ability to relate with youth, and they can hear it in his voice that he really does care about them. Coming from his background and getting to where he is is inspirational to kids who are going through difficult times and have the odds stacked against them. It says a lot about Jamie that he donates his time to help others who he knows are in need of a positive voice in their lives. Karen, Nashville

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The Mystique and Aura of Memorial Gym I’ve been coming to games at Memorial Gym since the early ’70s when I was just a few years old. What I enjoy most about the building is that even though there have been enhancements made over the years, it has never lost the character that has made it such a unique place to watch a game. There are a few stadiums in every sport that you feel you must visit in your lifetime. Among them are Fenway Park, Lambeau Field, Cameron Indoor Stadium and Notre Dame Stadium. Memorial Gym doesn’t have the same national reputation, but I believe it should be added to every sports fan’s bucket list. Jim, Gallatin, Tenn.

Bennett Catching on in Chicago It has been great watching the former Vanderbilt players on Chicago’s roster. Every time I’ve watched them play this season, there has been at least one reference to the Vanderbilt connection. The mention usually comes when Cutler completes a pass to Bennett. It is great publicity on TV for the university, and best of all, it is free. Robert, Lebanon, Tenn. To submit a letter, e-mail CN at: commodorenation@vanderbilt.edu. Letters should include the writer’s name and address and may be edited for clarity and space.

C O M M O D O R E N AT I O N

COMPLIANCE

COR NER Q:

Bounce Pass is a women’s basketball student-athlete. Bounce and her team were required to stay in the locale of the institution over the Christmas holiday as they have scheduled games during that time. During that time, some of the coaches and student-athletes decided to go shopping, and Bounce went with them. Bounce found the perfect gift for her mom, but she did not have enough money because she forgot her checkbook in her dorm room. Bounce’s coach loaned her the money she needed to get the gift, and Bounce paid the coach back the next day. Is this a violation? Yes. NCAA Bylaw 16.11.2.3 states that an institutional employee or representative of the institution’s athletics interests (boosters) may not provide a student-athlete with extra benefits or services, including, but not limited to:

Editorial Publisher: Vanderbilt University

Editor-in-Chief: Ryan Schulz

Director of External Relations: Rod Williamson

Designers: Jeremy Teaford

Ryan Schulz

Digital Image Specialist: Julie Luckett Turner Photographers: Neil Brake

(a) A loan of money

Daniel Dubois

(b) A guarantee of bond

Steve Green

Lyne Lamoureux

(d) Transportation (e.g., a ride home with a coach), except as permitted in 16.9.1, (e) even if the student-athlete reimburses the institution or the staff member for the appropriate amount of the gas or expense; or (f) Signing or cosigning a note with an outside agency to arrange a loan

George Midgett Compliance Coordinator 615/322-2083 george.d.midgett@vanderbilt.edu

Contributors: Maya Benayoun

Andy Boggs John Erck Larry Leathers Thomas Samuel Chris Weinman

Compliance questions? Please contact: Candice Lee Director of Compliance 615/322-7992 candice.lee@vanderbilt.edu

John Russell

John Peach Compliance Coordinator 615/343-1060 john.w.peach@vanderbilt.edu

Travis Young

Administrative

Chancellor: Nicholas S. Zeppos Vice Chancellor for University Affairs: David Williams II Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs: Beth Fortune

Vanderbilt University’s Mission, Goals and Values Vanderbilt University is a center for scholarly research, informed and creative teaching, and service to the community and society at large. Vanderbilt will uphold the highest standards and be a leader in the quest for new knowledge through scholarship, dissemination of knowledge through teaching and outreach, and creative experimentation of ideas and concepts. In pursuit of these goals, Vanderbilt values most highly intellectual freedom that supports open inquiry; and equality, compassion and excellence in all endeavors. Vanderbilt University is an equal opportunity, affirmative action university. ON THE COVER: Senior Jermaine Beal PHOTO: John Russell POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to National Commodore Club, 2601 Jess Neely Drive, Nashville, TN 37212. SUBSCRIPTION: To subscribe to Commodore Nation, please contact the National Commodore Club at 615/322-4114. ADVERTISEMENT: To advertise with Commodore Nation, please contact Vanderbilt ISP Sports. Jeff Miller, General Manager 615/322-4468 jmiller@ispsports.com

Commodore Nation is printed using recycled paper.

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C O M M O D O R E C LU B

COR N E R

PHONE: 615/322-4114 • ONLINE: vanderbilt.edu/ncc KENTUCKY GAME • NOV. 14

A crowd of more than 200 participated in the fourth annual Letterwinners Picnic before the Kentucky game.

NCC member and former swimmer John Stein with his wife, Beth.

Letterwinners form the tunnel for the football team to run through before the Kentucky football game.

DONOR ADVISED FUNDS/ DECLINING BENEFITS Gifts to the NCC from foundation donor-advised funds REQUIRE the donor to decline benefits due to tax laws that govern use of those funds. Under no circumstances will benefits be given to donors who have made their NCC gift via funds subject to the laws governing those funds.

The NCC’s Lucy Jones recognizes football player and NCC member David Patterson, with his son, David Jr.

Any donor can give to NCC and decline benefits. Vanderbilt will issue a receipt that allows 100% deductibility of the gift. However, if you attempt to secure tickets and parking, the NCC will be unable to fulfill that request. If the need for tickets/ parking persists, you will be required to write a letter indicating the desire to change your intention from decline to accept benefits.

PAVE THE WAY Vanderbilt alumni and friends can become a permanent part of Vanderbilt Stadium with the “Pave the Way” program, which allows fans the opportunity to purchase commemorative bricks that will be the centerpiece of VU’s new walkways outside the stadium. Bricks are available to purchase at a cost of $250. Bricks can be ordered through vucommodores. com or by calling the NCC at 615/322-4114.

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Former track athlete Charles Robinson and his wife, Janice.

Darlene and former football player Whit Taylor.

Former football players Steven Smith, left, and Jim Thomas.

JOIN THE NCC OR RENEW TODAY! You recently should have received your membership renewal for the National Commodore Club. Please mail it in, call 615/3224114, click vucommodores.com or stop by the office in the McGugin Center to make your gift. Every gift is allocated toward the goal of funding student-athlete scholarships. This year’s membership deadline is May 31 (Vanderbilt’s fiscal year ends June 30). Thank you for your continued support of Vanderbilt athletics. Your Membership Matters!

Senior football player Jared Hawkins with his niece, Addison Ryan, on Senior Day.

KEEP YOUR MEMBERSHIP CURRENT To retain parking and ticket benefits, please renew your NCC membership each year by May 31. If you don’t receive parking or ticket benefits, renew by June 30 to continue your support of Vanderbilt’s student-athletes. Call 615/322-4114, click vucommodores.com or come by the office in the McGugin Center to make your gift. Every gift is allocated toward the goal of funding student-athlete scholarships. Thank you for your continued support of Vanderbilt athletics. Your membership matters!

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C O M M O D O R E N AT I O N

In My Words

Jared Hawkins

he 2009 football campaign was supposed to be the signature season for senior running back Jared Hawkins. The team was primed for another

strong season after winning the Music City Bowl. He was set to be the team’s featured running back, and he would be 100 percent healthy after a foot injury he suffered at the end of the 2008 season. Unfortunately for Hawkins and the rest of the Commodores, none of the three transpired. Hawkins would finish his career on the sidelines watching his teammates finish 2-10 as he rehabbed his left foot after re-injuring it during preseason camp. Hawkins would play sparingly in three games, rushing for 135 yards. Although his senior season didn’t end like he would have liked on the field, he never lost sight of his goals off it. In December, Hawkins graduated with a degree in human and organizational development. This spring he will begin work for Fluor, an engineering company.

On how frustrating his senior year was It was real frustrating for me. The (foot) injury happened at the end of my junior season. At that point I wasn’t too worried about it because I’d have a whole offseason to rest my foot, but it just never healed right. I spent a lot of time wearing a boot and not being able to run with my team or work out with them the way I wanted. I got into camp and my foot was feeling great, and we were doing one-on-one drills with the linebackers, and I planted one way and my foot popped. On how tough it was to see the team struggle and not be able to help It was tough because we had a lot of high expectations for our team. The way the year finished out was a way we never would have thought the year would end. We definitely thought we were going to go to another bowl game. It was disheartening seeing the guys go through that, and just knowing that we just missed an opportunity was really frustrating. On the importance of his faith My heart and my life are for Him and that includes football, school, relationships and everything I do. Whenever I came to Vanderbilt, I really wanted to make sure that I was giving everything that God had blessed me with back to somebody else. On his involvement with Fellowship of Christian Athletes I started getting involved with FCA, and over time as you become older you start becoming more of a leader, and I was part of a leadership team. The organization is run by the student-athletes. There is a core group of us that get together and talk about what FCA is going to be about in a given week. My faith and God are definitely No. 1 in my life.

I spoke a few times at FCA, and I spoke at schools around Nashville a few times. I feel that God has called each and every one of us to share our faith and tell about Him, so it is a definite blessing to be able to do that. n

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JOHN RUSSELL

On speaking to schools and groups about his faith

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C O M M O D O R E N AT I O N

Marsh has Sights Set on Career in Coaching

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JOHN RUSSELL

t’s a rare off day in the middle of the season for the women’s basketball team. It’s a day for the players to focus on schoolwork and get away from the game, but Vanderbilt senior guard Merideth Marsh can’t get away from the sport, and she doesn’t want to. Marsh has basketball running through her body, and there’s nowhere the Louisville, Ky., native would rather be than in a gym. Marsh has spent countless hours honing her own jump shot in the gym, but on many of the team’s off days, Marsh is more focused on someone else’s jump shot. Since her sophomore year at Vanderbilt, Marsh has provided instructional coaching to local girls basketball players once or twice a week. The opportunity to work one-on-one with kids feeds Marsh’s passion for coaching. It’s a passion that Marsh hopes to turn into a career after her playing days are over. “People just have things they are good at, and I’m good at basketball and know it like the back of my hand,” Marsh said. “I have a passion for the sport, and it gets me excited to help people understand more about basketball.” Marsh’s interest in coaching is what has taken her back to Louisville every summer since her freshman year to help run a basketball camp at her high school, Christian Academy. “I definitely just want to get my hands in there and get all the coaching experience I can,” Marsh said. Marsh’s interest in coaching is not lost on Vanderbilt’s players and coaches. In a preseason survey for the team’s 2009-10 media guide, all of the team’s returning players besides Marsh herself selected Marsh as the player who would be the best coach. Even Vanderbilt’s freshmen have learned of Marsh’s desire to coach and have seen Marsh go out of her way to assist them. “Merideth has really helped me a lot,” freshman guard Gabby Smith said. “She really helped me understand the game more. I came here thinking I was a smart basketball player, but I quickly learned that there is a lot to learn, and Merideth definitely helped me with understanding concepts and thinking about how to play certain situations.” The understanding Marsh has of the game is something that stands out to Head Coach Melanie Balcomb. “I think she is someone who really studies the game and has a good understanding of the game,” Balcomb said. “She sees things on the floor that a lot of other kids don’t see.” Marsh came to Vanderbilt with a thorough understanding of the game, but the difference between what she knew then and what she knows now is night and day. “When I came out of high school, I thought I knew a lot about basketball, but then you

Senior guard Merideth Marsh hopes to pursue a coaching career once her basketball one is complete.

get here and you learn the ins and outs of the game and whole scheme that is different from high school,” Marsh said. Something that Marsh believes has given her an advantage in learning how to coach has been her experience playing point guard — a position she played in high school and primarily her first few years of college. “I think it helps because as a point guard you have to know every position on the floor, and you have to be able to lead people vocally,” Marsh said. “As a point guard, you have the ball in your hands and you run the show just like if you are a head coach, you run the show.” By taking on more of a viewpoint of a coach, Marsh has a tendency to look at things more closely than needed at times. “I definitely will overanalyze things,” Marsh said. “It is something I’ve gotten a lot better with. My freshman year, I’d ask a ton of questions just because I like to know. Coach (Balcomb) will tell me not to think as much and just play and react, and I think I’ve gotten a lot better at that.”

Marsh has also gotten better as a player on the court. Each year, her scoring output has increased. Last year she earned second team All-SEC honors after averaging 10.7 points per game. Marsh’s growth on the court may end up being the only thing that slows her down from immediately getting into coaching after graduation. Because of her play, she may be afforded an opportunity to play overseas. “I want to try to go play overseas first and then come back and get into coaching college basketball,” Marsh said. “I want to coach Division I, and it’s obviously going to take time for me to get to that level.” In the meantime, Marsh’s coaching opportunities will be limited to her work with area youth, as well as chances to lead Vanderbilt’s young team. “You can see on the court how smart she is,” Smith said. “She knows what she is doing and she is very confident, so you would almost be crazy not to trust her.” n

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It’s My Turn By Rod Williamson

Mickey Mantle Wasn’t Perfect

was 11 when Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris were locked in that historic summer run to break Babe Ruth’s legendary home run record. Like tens of thousands of boys, I was a Mantle fan. I knew almost nothing about Mickey Mantle, although once while visiting mom’s family in Pennsylvania, dad drove us to Washington, D.C., to watch the Yankees play the Senators. We watched my hero from the upper deck, deep down the left field line, while I tried unsuccessfully to recover from a bad case of car sickness on that steamy afternoon. Otherwise, all I knew was that he was a switch hitter, he came from Oklahoma and the flamboyant announcer Dizzy Dean seemed to like him. To an Iowa farm kid, that was enough. Years later, as sports journalism grew fangs, I realized my hero wasn’t perfect. He chased down fly balls by day and skirts by night; he could hit a fast ball and the town with equal enthusiasm. His carousing and bad knees limited his career, and many years later, dying of liver cancer at age 63, my hero stood at a hospital press conference and offered memorable advice to youngsters: “Don’t be like me. I blew it.” Mickey Mantle wasn’t perfect, and to this day I haven’t found anyone who is. Tiger Woods can tame Augusta, but even he joined the endless line of imperfection. That’s the pits because we want and need heroes. It’s why many of us follow sports—we want to identify with the strong, cool customers that deliver in the clutch and imagine ourselves doing the same thing. But some of those prime-time stars are duds when the lights grow dim. We should select our heroes with great care. Conversely, we also seem to need villains. In sports, these rascals are easy to spot. They play and coach for the other team. If you live in Ohio, Buckeyes are good and Wolverines are bad. Some choose between Crimson Tide and Tigers. You can be a Cub or a Cardinal but never both. It becomes very convenient when one of our villains has a public problem. We are driving along after a hard day of counting widgets. The radio says there is an accusation of wrongdoing in the enemy camp. Based on seconds of sketchy information, we imagine all the details from A to Z and pass judgment. Guilty as not-yet-even-charged. Ah, if we could only be so smart in the areas where we actually have the facts! We’ve all done this. Whether it’s jumping to conclusions about Vols or Commodores, George W. Bush or Barack Obama, your great hometown or those knuckleheads 20 miles down the road, we can’t seem to help ourselves. We struggle to realize the other side may have a good point, a noble cause, a brilliant coach or a special player. It’s hard to accept that our heroes are flawed. Shocking as it seems, not all Commodores are Rhodes Scholar candidates and not all State School U. athletes read “Dick and Jane.” Would you like a Danny Wuerffel or Peyton Manning to be among our alumni? We try very hard to follow the letter and the spirit of the rules around here. You and I take great pride in that. Likewise, it would be productive to realize that our rivals also try to get it right. On game day we compete hard; the rest of the time, for the majority of us, we are family even if they might be our crazy uncle. Our institutions have different missions, challenges, constituencies. Vive la difference. n

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Cohen Wants Endeavor to be “Well Worth It”

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STEVE GREEN

aking a shower, getting a drink of water from the faucet or washing your dishes with running water at your home. All three are common occurrences that many Americans take for granted. Vanderbilt senior swimmer Jessica Cohen has seen first-hand that having easy access to clean water is not something to take for granted. Two summers ago, Cohen traveled to Emori Joi, Kenya for a month with an organization called Free the Children, which focuses on improving the lives of children in impoverished areas across the country. While in Emori Joi, Cohen learned very quickly that the everyday things she may take for granted back home, such as running water, aren’t available to the people of Emori Joi. “One of the reasons the kids stop going to school is because four times a day they have to carry these huge barrels of water from the river, which is a kilometer away,” Cohen said. “I did it once, and these 11 year olds do it four times a day. I thought I wasn’t going to be able to carry it once.” It’s been a year and a half since her trip to Africa, but she hasn’t forgotten that experience. “The river is the same river that the animals go in, that all their waste goes in and that they wash their clothes in,” the Charlotte, N.C., native said. “When there is no rainy season that comes, it is dry.” The other way the village gets water is by capturing it when it rains. Buildings are equipped with large gutters that collect the water when it rains. The daily struggle just to get water got Cohen and the group of volunteers thinking of ways to improve how the village receives its water. “Right before we left, we got together and thought of something we could do to continue our work (in Emori Joi),” Cohen said. “We decided we were going to start this program called Well Worth It because originally our idea was to build a well in the community that we worked in.” Members of the group went their separate ways when they returned from Kenya. Despite being spread across North America, the group has continued to work toward building a well. After taking care of many of the administrative tasks last year, Cohen and the others are focused on fundraising for the project. “We found out through our research that it would be roughly $70,000 to build one (well), so our goal right now is to raise $70,000,” Cohen said. “We want to have half of that by May 26, 2010, which is the day we left for Kenya two summers ago. That is our immediate goal.” If Cohen and the others are successful at raising the funds, they plan on returning

to the village for the groundbreaking ceremony. “I think that Jess embodies what being a student at Vanderbilt is all about,” Vanderbilt swimming Coach Jeremy Organ said. “She balances her athletic and academic responsibilities very well, and her ‘spare’ time is spent doing what she can do to make this a better world. People with that kind of passion and dedication are rare, and we are lucky to have her as a role model on the swim team.” Building a well in Emori Joi is Cohen’s top priority, and if she is able to accomplish her goal, she hopes that the well will be the first of many that Well Worth It will build in Kenya. “Our initiative is to raise enough money and awareness, and hopefully continue to grow because in Kenya, Free the Children has nine communities that they work in. Ide-

ally, we would be able to get a well in each of those communities.” Working in the community is nothing new to Cohen, who had wanted to lend a helping hand in Africa since she was in high school. “My mom always said I really enjoyed helping other people,” Cohen said. “Ever since high school, I really wanted to go to Africa and was really interested in Africa. I wanted to go because I was planning on setting my life goals to work in the communities in Africa and I had never been, so I didn’t want to do all sorts of studies if it wasn’t something I wanted to do, so I went over there and had a great time.” The leadership initiative Cohen has taken in the Well Worth It program is no different than what she has done as a student-athlete at Vanderbilt. After serving on the StudentAthlete Advisory Committee as a junior,

By The

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of Vanderbilt’s 16 teams earned perfect Academic Progress Rate scores of 1,000 this year.

Vanderbilt senior swimmer Jessica Cohen helped start a program called Well Worth It, which is in the process of raising funds to build a well in Emori Joi, Kenya. The main way people in the village get water is by hauling buckets (above) of it from the river a kilometer away.

Cohen was selected as the committee’s president this year. Cohen’s leadership in the community and among student-athletes on campus is something Organ believes plays an important role in the growth of the program. “I think it is very important for our development as a team to have someone like Jess,” Organ said. “Jess is paving the way for future teammates by showing that being involved in grou ps such as SAAC is an important responsibility as a student-athlete at Vanderbilt.”

Cohen will graduate in May with a degree in human and organizational development. Even though she will be leaving Vanderbilt, she has no plan on leaving her work in the community behind. Instead, she hopes to make a career out of lending her hand to others by landing a job that works with developing international communities. “My ideal path would be to spend a year or two internationally in Africa and then come back and lead trips or work on community development from the U.S.,” Cohen said. n

Norman Storms the Record Books

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“Both of them show that if you have talent, you need to put them in the game,” Coach Bobby Johnson said. “They can get it done, and they aren’t afraid to go out and compete. Kwane had that confidence that I think Zac (Stacy) and Warren have. They are all really similar.” Norman earned a good deal of his all-purpose yards as a running back, but the majority of his yards came in the return game, where he set the school record in kick return average and total yardage. He also concluded the year with three kick returns for touchdowns, becoming the second player in SEC history to do so. “I would be lying if I said that, yes (he would have this kind of success),” Johnson said. “We were just trying him out early in the year for kickoff returns, but we knew that Warren was a very good athlete and good runner with the football under his arms.” n JOHN RUSSELL

t can be difficult for fans of any team to point out bright spots immediately after a season ends with disappointment, but for the Vanderbilt faithful, identifying the brightest of those bright spots after a 2-10 season has never been so easy after the play of freshman running back/kick returner Warren Norman. A native of Stone Mountain, Ga., Norman earned SEC Freshman of the Year honors after storming into the record books during the season. Norman broke Herschel Walker’s SEC’s freshman record for most all-purpose yards in a season, as well as VU’s single-season record, with 1,941 yards. As a running back, Norman finished eighth in the SEC in rushing with 783 yards, which led all freshmen. His total also fell just 15 yards short of the late Kwane Doster’s Vanderbilt freshman rushing record of 798 set in 2002. Norman’s play evoked memories of Doster’s freshman campaign.

The number of games Vanderbilt’s men’s basketball team won through its first seven games when trailing at the half—one more than the entire 2008-09 season.

Consecutive doubledoubles posted by Jeffery Taylor (against Arizona and Missouri) — the first player to accomplish the feat since Matt Freije in 2004.

The number of Vanderbilt football players that started all 12 games in 2009.

1,941

All-purpose yards gained by Warren Norman in 2009—surpassing Herschel Walker’s SEC freshman record of 1,805 yards.

Norman’s rank in Vanderbilt history for the most all-purpose yards in a season—topping Corey Harris’ record of 1,827.

Players in school history have been selected SEC Player of the Year by the league’s media members and head coaches— Norman and Kwane Doster.

C O M M O D O R E N AT I O N

LYNE LAMOUREUX

Former Soccer Player Finds Niche in Cycling

Former Vanderbilt soccer player Katharine Carroll has found success as a professional cyclist.

or the majority of student-athletes, the end of their athletic career is marked by the sound of the final horn or whistle during their senior season. While most will be “going pro in something other than sports,” there will be a select few who actually will have the opportunity to compete in their sport professionally. Former Vanderbilt soccer player Katharine Carroll falls into neither of the two categories. Instead Carroll has continued her athletic career professionally in the sport of cycling. Competing professionally in a sport other than the one played in college is a route so untraveled that it is hard for most to draw comparisons to Carroll’s career path. Maybe the most famous athlete to compete professionally in another sport after college was former Olympic track star Bob “Bullet” Hayes, who went on to play wide receiver in the NFL in the mid-1960s. A native of Brentwood, Tenn., Carroll was a four-year letterwinner for the Commodores from 1999 to 2002. During her time at Vanderbilt, the closest she ever got to cycling was riding her mountain bike around campus. “I never knew that this (cycling) subculture existed,” said Carroll. “I had a mountain bike on campus and I would ride around, but I had no interest in going out in spandex and riding around for three hours.” That all changed upon graduation when Carroll’s mother married Lynn Greer, who owns a bike shop called Gran Fondo Cycles in Nashville. “I graduated and I needed a job, so I started working at the bike shop,” Carroll said. “I didn’t think that I’d compete in cycling at the time, but I’ve clearly gotten pretty into it.” Carroll worked in the bike shop after college before moving to California in 2006 to focus full-time on racing and training year round in better weather. Her cycling career has taken her across the world and across the country. She currently competes on the USA Cycling National Racing Calendar and internationally with the U.S. National Team in UCI sanctioned races. The NRC tour runs from February to the end of September, and cyclists compare it to NASCAR in the way riders accumulate points over the season. Carroll has not only made it professionally, she has also experienced success. In 2009, Carroll finished ninth in the final NRC standings, while her team, Team Tibco, captured the team title. Carroll credits some of her success in cycling to her soccer career. “Soccer has definitely helped me in cycling,” Carroll said. “One of the things about soccer that is similar to cycling is the rhythm of the

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game. In soccer it was kind of constant where you might be jogging and then be forced to sprint and you have to respond. A lot of cycling is very similar. In a road race, you might be riding along at a medium pace, and then if someone attacks you have to respond. There is varying intensity, and I think on a physical side that translated well.” Another aspect of her soccer career that has helped Carroll in cycling has been the experience she received playing on a team. Cycling may be thought of as an individual sport, but it is in fact a team sport. “Cycling is very much a team sport even though there is only one individual winner,” Carroll said. “I think coming from a team sport background, I’ve been able to buy into that concept a lot more than someone who comes from an individual sport.” Carroll focuses on cycling year round, but it hasn’t prevented her from also entering the business world. Last March, Carroll helped get the Web site www.kitorder.com off the ground. The site enables athletic teams to purchase equipment through a Web-based application. Carroll is dedicated to her business venture, but her top priority remains her cycling career, which she hopes to take to the next level. For Carroll, the next level is competing for the U.S. National Team at the UCI Road World Championships, which are held each year and are in Australia in 2010. “The ultimate goal for all women’s cyclists is the Olympics because of recognition,” Carroll said. “Personally for me, the World Championships are a bigger goal than the Olympics. If you put yourself in position to be world champion, you are going to be good enough for the Olympic team.” n

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C O M M O D O R E N AT I O N

Jermaine Beal is Vanderbilt’s Mr. Consistency

JOHN RUSSELL

Take Vanderbilt’s early-season win against Arizona at the Maui Invitational, for example. The Commodores won the game 84-72. Grabbing the headlines were the reemergence of A.J. Ogilvy (game-high 20 points) and the double-double by Jeffery Taylor. For Beal it was just another day at the office: 18 points, five assists, one turnover and two steals. The stat line was typical Beal. All players have their highs and lows during a season, but the difference with Beal is that lows happen fewer than they do for most. In Beal’s 66 starts entering the 2009-10 season, he had only committed more turnovers than assists in nine games. “Jermaine is a very steady guy, and he’s been steady throughout the course of his career in terms of taking care of the ball,” Head Coach Kevin Stallings said. “It is good to have a point guard that you know is good at taking care of it. He’s a steadying influence for our team. He’s become a terrific outside shooter, and there is not a lot that he’s not good at on the basketball court.” Beal’s consistency also has been vital to the Commodores’ success. During his sophomore and junior seasons when Beal became entrenched in the starting lineup, the Commodores lost 22 games. In 17 of the 22 losses, Beal failed to reach double figures in scoring. Last year, Beal failed to reach double figures in scoring 10 times and the Commodores won just three of those games. The saying is that the numbers don’t lie. Given the aforementioned numbers, it has boded well for the Commodores that Beal has taken on more of a scoring role as a junior and senior. During the 2008-09 season Beal scored 20 or more points four times, including a career-best 27 against player. South Carolina. “I knew that in order for our team to win, I had to step it up in scoring,” Beal said. “For me it was a challenge, so in the summer I would come in and try to improve my shooting.” In addition to consistency, Beal’s other constant quality is that he is a winner. He won a state title at DeSoto High School in Texas, and he has continued his winning ways in college. If the Commodores win 21 games this season, Beal will become the winningest player in school history. Entering this season, he has been a part of 67 wins. The most wins over a four-year span are 87 by the 1964-65, 1965-66, 1966-67 and 1967-68 teams.

Beal has a chance to leave Vanderbilt as the program’s winningest

e will finish his career as just the fifth player in school history to score 1,000 points and rank in the top 10 in assists and steals. He has an opportunity to be the winningest player in school history. He has led the SEC in assist-to-turnover ratio the past two seasons. Yet he has never earned all-SEC recognition. Can you name this Commodore? Chances are you didn’t guess senior point guard Jermaine Beal. If you did, you guessed correctly. Despite statistically ranking as one of the top players in school history, Beal has managed to put together one of the finest careers in Vanderbilt history with very little fanfare. Just how has he managed to do what he has done so quietly? Is it because he doesn’t make highlight reels with acrobatic dunks, no-look passes or scoring binges? Is it because he has been overshadowed by more proficient scorers such as Derrick Byars, Shan Foster, A.J. Ogilvy and now Jeffery Taylor? Whatever the reason, it hasn’t affected Beal’s game. Instead he has been a model of consistency for the Commodores, which is exactly what he wants. “Whenever you work out, you try to be consistent,” said Beal, who is the only senior on Vanderbilt’s roster. “So whenever it’s game time, it is second nature to me to be consistent. Whenever it is game time, the nerves aren’t there because I’m prepared.”

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“Whenever you work out, you try to be consistent, so whenever it’s game time, it is second nature to me to be consistent.”

His winning mentality also has played a role in why he has been on the end of many memorable plays for the Commodores, including game-winning baskets over Toledo in 2006 and at South Carolina in 2008. Having won those games has provided Beal with the confidence needed to win a game at the end of regulation. “I want the ball at the end of the game, and I feel like I’ve earned

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STEVE GREEN

it,” Beal said. “I have the confidence to shoot it and the confidence to make it.” The combination of Beal’s consistent play and winning ways has provided Stallings with the perfect player for a team that is heavy on underclassmen. “If you are only going to have one senior, it might as well be your point guard,” Stallings said. “We are fortunate in that respect that he has all the games behind him, and he’s got all the experience behind him, and he is good. He’s not just experienced, he’s also good. He’s going to need to be good all season long for us.” As the team’s lone senior, Beal would seem to be a natural fit to step into the role of being the team’s vocal leader, but since he’s soft spoken, he would rather lead by example than with words. “Being a leader is a challenge, but I remember watching leaders like Shan (Foster), Red (Gordon) and Derrick Byars, so I’ve had other leaders ahead of me to learn from,” Beal said. “Whenever I was young, I tried to do everything that they did during practice and in preparation.” One player in particular Beal has helped mentor is sophomore Brad Tinsley, who backs up Beal at point guard and starts at shooting guard. “He’s been a great influence on me both on and off the court,” Tinsley said. “It speaks volumes just to have an older player at your position. If something is going wrong, he is usually there to step in and say, ‘This is what you should do or this is what you did wrong.’ He is a great guy and a great player to try to emulate your game after.” When Beal concludes his senior season, he will leave as one of the most successful players to ever don the Black and Gold. “It’s my last go around, so obviously I want to go out and leave some kind of legacy,” Beal said. No matter what he does, he may have already left a legacy of being one of the most underappreciated players to ever play at Vanderbilt or in the SEC. n

VU lost 7 of 10 games last year when Beal scored fewer than 10 points.

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Quick Hits

• Vanderbilt’s baseball team concluded

its trip to Japan and Hong Kong with a 1-1-2 record.

• J unior center A.J. Ogilvy earned the

JOHN RUSSELL

first SEC Player of the Week honor of his career on Dec. 7 after averaging 22 points and six rebounds in victories against Missouri and DePaul. • Vanderbilt finished fifth at the Maui Invitational with victories over Chaminade and Arizona.

on Dec. 10. Selected to the team were running back/kick returner Warren Norman, offensive lineman Ryan Seymour and kicker Ryan Fowler. • Norman was named SEC Freshman of the Week on Nov. 23 after his all-around performance in the team’s season finale at Tennessee. • Vanderbilt recognized its top performers from the 2009 season at its annual postseason awards banquet on Dec. 13. • Chris Reinert received the Dedication Award from Head Coach Bobby Johnson for his return after suffering a serious leg injury during the 2008 season. • Linebacker Chris Marve received the Captain’s Award and Linebacker Award and safety Sean Richardson earned the Vanderbilt Hustle Award. Also earning multiple awards was Warren Norman (Offensive Back Award & Co-Specialist of the Year Award). • Also honored were long snapper David Giller (Dr. Henry Tyler Academic Achievement Award), John Cole (Receiver Award), Bradley Vierling (Offensive Lineman Award), T.J. Greenstone (Defensive Lineman Award), Casey Hayward (Defensive Back Award) and Brett Upson (Co-Specialist of the Year).

A.J. Ogilvy earned the first SEC Player of the Week honor of his career following the team’s victories over Missouri and DePaul.

Vanderbilt Thanksgiving Tournament championship.

• Vanderbilt ended its fall season by win-

ning its fourth consecutive Hawk Classic Championship on Nov. 22. • The Commodores finished the tournament with an 11-1 record in head-tohead play and defeated Fairleigh Dickinson, 4-3, in the finals. Brittni Hamilton made the all-tournament team by finishing fourth individually.

• S ophomore Jordan White was named

the team’s MVP at the program’s annual banquet, which was held on Dec. 9. • S ophomore Louise Hannallah won the Most Improved Award, while freshman Allie Scalf received the Newcomer Award.

• Assistant Susan Ellis was named the

2008-09 assistant coach of the year by the IWLCA.

• Molly Kinsella and Megan Forester were

named to the NSCAA All-South team. • Vanderbilt was honored with the National • S ophomore Jenner Kizer was named

• Warren Norman was named SEC Fresh-

man of the Year by the league’s writers and head coaches. Norman became the second Commodore to earn unanimous SEC Freshman of the Year honors, joining Kwane Doster (2002). • Earning second team All-SEC honors from the league’s head coaches were kick returner Warren Norman, linebacker Chris Marve, cornerback Myron Lewis and punter Brett Upson. • The four Commodore selections to the coaches’ All-SEC teams tied for the second-most since the conference went to divisional play in 1992. • Vanderbilt had three players selected to the SEC coaches’ All-Freshman team Men’s Sports Women’s Sports

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JOHN RUSSELL

the team’s MVP at the program’s annual banquet on Dec. 9. • Freshman Chris Baker won the Most Improved Award and freshman Billy Malmed was the recipient of the Newcomer Award. Chris Marve was one of four Commodores to earn second team All-SEC honors.

• Tiffany Clarke has been named SEC

Freshman of the Week on Dec. 14 after scoring 14 points, collecting nine rebounds and blocking two shots in VU’s win over Quinnipiac and scoring 12 points, grabbing six rebounds and blocking two shots in VU’s win over Western Kentucky. • Vanderbilt won its annual Thanksgiving Tournament with victories over Austin Peay and N.C. State. • Making the all-tournament team were Merideth Marsh, Jence Rhoads and Hannah Tuomi. • Merideth Marsh was named SEC Player of the Week on Nov. 30 after leading Vanderbilt to a 3-0 record and 2009

Soccer Coaches Association of America Team Academic Award for the 2008-09 academic year. • It is the seventh straight year Vanderbilt has received the award. Vanderbilt had the highest GPA in the league at 3.32.

• Head Coach Jeremy Organ announced

the signing of three student-athletes to National Letters of Intent on Dec. 12. • Inking with the Commodores were Margaux Georgiadis (Pittsburgh, Pa.), Michele Williamson (Cypress, Texas) and Rebecca Young (Montgomery, Ala.). • Vanderbilt set 14 season-high marks to finish second at the Hilltopper Invitational on Nov. 21. • Erika Deardorf shattered the school record in the 1650-yard freestyle by almost 17 seconds. Her time of 17:02.98 topped the previous record of 17:19.37 set by Catherine Pringle in 1989. • Amy Salce and Erika Deardorf finished first and second in the 500-yard freestyle with times of 5:02.06 and 5:03.71, respectively. • Vanderbilt’s 800-yard freestyle relay team of Erika Deardorf, Jess Eccher, Amy Salce and Rose Cornelson topped 10 teams to win the event.

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C O M M O D O R E N AT I O N

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Trip to Far East is Learning Experience for Team

hen Vanderbilt’s baseball team traveled to the Far East during Thanksgiving week, those on the trip got more than just a new cultural experience, they also had a baseball experience unlike anything most had ever witnessed. The mound was 60'6" from home plate, the bases were 90' apart — just as they are in the U.S. — and the objective was to score more runs than the opponent, but the similarities between what Vanderbilt’s team is used to seeing in the U.S. and what it saw in its four games in Japan just about end there. There were teams that had rosters of more than 100 players. They played on a field that was made of all dirt. But what stood out most to the Commodores was the difference in how the game is played in Japan — from the style of play to the focus and discipline of the Japanese players. “The difference in the style of their play was very noticeable,” senior infielder Brian Harris said. “It was especially noticeable with their hitting approach. They are not big guys, with the exception of a few of them, so instead of hitting a lot of fly balls, they will hit it on the ground and try to run it out because they are all fast. They choke up with two strikes. They will make the pitcher throw a lot of pitches and try to get him out of the game as quick as they can.” Sophomore pitcher Sonny Gray was a part of Team USA this summer when it traveled to Japan. When on the mound, the biggest challenge the Japanese hitters present to him is how they battle at the plate. “They go deep into the count and you might strike them out, but if you get up two strikes, you aren’t going to strike them out on the next pitch,” Gray said. “They will battle three or four pitches and just keep fouling them off, which will run your pitch count up.” The differences don’t end on offense. The Japanese teams play with wooden bats, which presented a new challenge to the Commodores. Making the adjustment to wood even more difficult was the pitching style and defensive ability of the Japanese teams. “The U.S. pitchers will throw a lot of fastballs, but (the Japanese) as a whole don’t have a lot of power arms, so they will try to fool you and mix pitches, throw off-speed pitches in fastball counts,” said Harris who was making his first trip to a foreign country. For Vanderbilt Head Coach Tim Corbin it was his third time facing teams from Japan after coaching against them in 2000 and 2006 with Team USA. Each time he has faced them he has left even more impressed with how the teams execute and how fundamentally sound the players are. “The teams are very skilled defensively, fundamentally sound and don’t make mistakes,” Corbin said. “Bunting and speed is a premium, and pitching execution is phenomenal. They just don’t misfire with their pitches. … A fastball count is a breaking ball.

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A 3-2 pitch is a breaking ball, and you don’t see that in the States.” Vanderbilt finished the trip 1-1-2 against four Japanese universities. All four of the games were played Sunday, Monday and Tuesday before the team finished up its trip by spending time in Hong Kong. “We faced four really good teams,” Corbin said. “The last day we faced Waseda University, and they threw three first-round pitchers at us. From the standpoint of facing SEC pitching, we definitely did that.” Because the team experienced so many differences in how the game is played by the Japanese, Corbin made a point to gather his team shortly after returning home to discuss what they learned about the style of play they saw. “After the trip was over, we brought the team together and talked about what they did well and asked them, ‘If you needed to give a scouting report to someone in the United States, what points would you bring out?’ They brought out a ton of points about their style of play.” For Corbin, having the players see the different way the game is played was a valuable part of the trip, which was generously financed by Vanderbilt alumnus Bill Kaye. “I think we could incorporate some of what we saw in certain areas into our play, and I think that was what was part of our premise of going over there,” Corbin said. “It was kind of two-fold in that it was a great cultural experience and valuable from a baseball standpoint.” In his two trips to the Far East, Gray has seen things that the Japanese teams do very well that he would like to emulate. One of areas in particular is the mental approach to the game. “You’ll hear people talking about others taking pitches off, but they never take pitches off,” Gray said. “You have to stay focused the whole game, and I feel like that is the main thing I learned. I’ve gotten to sometimes where I’ll lose focus for a second. They never lose focus, so you have to make sure you maintain a high level of concentration.” Like Gray, Harris believes the team learned a lot of things during the trip that they can work on improving. “I think as a whole, we can just look at their culture and their discipline,” Harris said. “Things that we as Americans may see as maybe menial and not important, they see as very important. They take discipline to a whole new level, and it shows. They kind of showed us that size and strength don’t really matter. You just need to have a good head on your shoulders and just be as disciplined as you possibly can.” The trip to the Far East also gave the Commodores the unique opportunity to play games against outside competition between fall practice and the regular season. “In terms of getting over there and playing outside competition, it felt like we were

Top: Mt. Fuji; middle: Aaron Westlake with members of Hosei University baseball team; bottom: Japanese scorecard from a game.

already in midseason because when you are scrimmaging against each other in the fall, it is one thing, but when you start playing live competition against outside competition, you are already thrust into that game mode,” Corbin said. “It was like we got into that game mode two months before it really happened.” The Commodores learned a lot about how baseball is played internationally, but most importantly they left the trip with experiences that many will never have again and memories that will last a lifetime. “You just can’t describe that trip,” Corbin said. “I think it is something the kids five or 10 years from now will be thinking about. I think it came and went so fast that it was a hiccup of an experience for them. When they were in the middle of it, they were absorbed by it, but when they left it, it just became a memory, and I want them to hold on to the memory as long as they can.” n

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The Month Ahead

What to Watch For

Men’s Sports Basketball 1/2 1/4 1/9 1/13 1/16 1/23 1/27 1/30

Southern Mississippi Middle Tennessee State Florida at Alabama at South Carolina Auburn at Tennessee at Kentucky

Tennis

1/16 1/16 1/22 1/23 1/29-31

2 p.m. 8 p.m. 11 a.m. 8 p.m. 5 p.m. 12:30 p.m. 6 p.m. 3 p.m.

Belmont Chattanooga at North Carolina State vs. Michigan (Raleigh, N.C.) at ITA National Indoor Championships

9 a.m. 2:30 p.m. 3 p.m. Noon TBA

1/3 1/7 1/10 1/14 1/17 1/21 1/24 1/28 1/31

Bowling 1/29-31

Swimming 1/23 1/29 1/30

Tennis

1/15-17 1/23 1/24 1/29-30

Ole Miss at Mississippi State at Kentucky Georgia at Tennessee at Auburn Mississippi State Alabama at Arkansas

2 p.m. 8 p.m. Noon 7 p.m. 5 p.m. 8 p.m. 2 p.m. 7 p.m. 3 p.m.

at Kutztown Invitational

All Day

vs. S. Carolina/UNC-Wilm. (Columbia, S.C.) at Marshall vs. Kentucky/Cincinnati (Lexington, Ky.)

1 p.m. TBA Noon

at Northwestern Invitational at Colorado at Denver at ITA Kick-Off Weekend

Track & Field

1/15-16 1/22-23 1/29-30

at Kentucky Invitational at Razorback Invitational at Rod McCravey Memorial

With high expectations for another strong SEC run, Vanderbilt’s women’s team will open its 2010 SEC schedule at home against Ole Miss at 2 p.m. on Jan. 3. January 4 • Baseball Tickets on Sale Season tickets for Vanderbilt’s 2010 baseball season will go on sale Jan. 4. Vanderbilt will host nine teams that played in the 2009 NCAA Tournament, including College World Series participant Arkansas. Jan. 9-10 • NFL Playoffs

Women’s Sports Basketball

January 3 • WBB Opens SEC Play

All Day 11 a.m. TBA TBA

Former Commodores in the NFL will be hoping their teams will still be alive come the weekend of Jan. 9-10 when the NFL playoffs begin. January 13 • Spring Semester Begins Vanderbilt students will return from winter break and begin the spring semester Jan. 13. Residence halls open on Jan. 9. January 27 & 30 • MBB Games at UK, UT Vanderbilt’s men’s basketball team was picked to finish third in the SEC East this year. The Commodores will get their crack at the two teams picked ahead of them when they play at Tennessee on Jan. 27 and at Kentucky Jan. 30. Flip the order of opponents and VU had the same grueling road trip during the 2007-08 season. VU entered that stretch undefeated and lost both.

Commo dore Snapshots

All Day All Day All Day

Britnee Brandon’s first-grade class at Lakeview Elementary school in Roy, Utah, adopted Vanderbilt University as its university to promote the importance of attending college. Vanderbilt’s student athletics department and others across campus sent Vanderbilt items to the class.

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