The 2006-07 season of Miami University athletics yielded many memorable moments: the hockey team's first-round upset of New Hampshire, the synchronized skating team's history-making performance at the world championships and of course, Doug Penno's unforgettable buzzer-beating bank shot.
But most importantly, the year of Miami athletics was underscored by ambitious construction projects. Miami unveiled two new state-of-the-art stadiums this school year and continued to give other facilities face-lifts.
Yet, while Miami continues to pump copious amounts of cash into new sports facilities, Miami athletics are still plagued by poor attendance and less-than-stellar performance. This year, only two teams, excluding individual sports, posted winning records: hockey and men's basketball.
But in every sport, there are signs of progress. The women's basketball, volleyball and field hockey teams are young and laden with talent; the football team boasts the best 2007 recruiting class in the MAC; and the new softball and hockey facilities will, in all likelihood, usher in golden eras for those two programs.
The following is my top eight list of the most memorable sports moments of the 2006-07 school year:
No. 8: Beat Big Ten week - In an attempt to galvanize support for Miami athletics, Miami dubbed the week before first semester final exams, Beat Big Ten Week, which featured the men's and women's basketball teams hosting Michigan and the hockey team hosting Ohio State and also included bonfires, tailgating and free T-shirts. Miami went 1-1-1 (the women won 80-70, the men lost 62-56, and the hockey team tied 2-2); and the games - women's basketball game aside - were well-attended, with 6,112 fans at the men's basketball game and 3,642 fans at the hockey game.
No. 7: Women's track and field sending two athletes to the NCAA indoor championships - Junior high jumper Kristina Bolterstein and junior pole vaulter Sarah Landau each placed 17th at the NCAA indoor championships. Bolterstein, the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Great Lakes Region Women's Indoor Field Athlete of the Year, captured her second consecutive Mid-American Conference indoor high jump crown. Landau holds the school record in the pole vault, and is a three-time national qualifier in the event (twice outdoors and once indoors).
No. 6: Softball dedication game - March 23, prior to its game against Purdue, the Miami softball team trumpeted the official unveiling of its new $4.5 million softball stadium - perched atop a hill tucked behind Yager stadium's upper decks - with a stately dedication ceremony punctuated by Miami President David Hodge throwing out the first pitch. Nearly four hours later, after two torrential storms rolled in and drove out most of the 500 plus fans in attendance, the game ended with the anticlimactic result of a 3-3 tie.
No. 5: Hockey dedication game - After rising to the top of the rankings in the 2005-06 season, the unveiling of the $34.8 million brick-laden Goggin Ice Center was a projection of the teams new found prominence, a bold declaration to the college hockey world that Miami had legitimately arrived as an elite program.
With the college hockey spotlight shining bright over Steve Cady Arena, Miami wanted to win in resounding fashion over an elite program in Denver. And that's what they got, winning 5-2. Ultimately though, Miami's 4-0 season-ending defeat to Boston College was a sobering reminder of the gap that still remains between Miami and the nation's elite.
No. 4: Ryne Robinson breaks receiving record - After spending three hours battling double teams and absorbing the lion's share of hits for his team, Robinson sat slumped in the press room looking distressed and beat up as hell. Robinson had just broken Miami's single-season reception record; but his team had suffered its 10th loss of the season, falling to Ohio 34-24. Having just ended his career in such dreary anticlimax, he was in no mood to fete his recent achievement.
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In three years, as Miami plummeted from top 10 to ESPN.com's Bottom-10, Robinson continued to improve and break all sorts of records. But his poster-child persona faded, and by his senior year, he had become the oft-forgotten face of a befuddled football program. He now sets his sights on the upcoming NFL Draft, where he is projected as a late-round selection.
No. 3: Miami hockey upsets New Hampshire in round of 16 - Miami's upset victory over No. 1-seeded New Hampshire serves as further proof of just how much parity exists, and how inequitable a single-elimination tournament can be in college hockey. Nevertheless, the win for Miami breathed life into a season that was marked by unmet expectations and thought to be over after the disappointing series loss to Lake Superior in the CCHA tournament.
No. 2: Synchronized skating team makes U.S. history - Miami's senior synchronized skating team finished second out of 21 teams at the 2007 International Skating Union World Synchronized Skating Championships in London, Ontario, posting the highest-ever finish ever for an American skating team.
No. 1: Doug Penno's buzzer-beating bank shot - Penno's fade-away prayer in the Mid-American Conference championship game was the ultimate microcosm of Miami's season. The ball veered off course from the outset, as did Miami's season. But for Miami, the MAC tournament was the proverbial backboard, the great deodorant that masked the dullness of another respectable yet middling season. Now, while the bank of fortune was open that night, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that Miami had to win back-to-back games against two of the MAC's best teams - Ohio and Toledo - just to advance to the finals.
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