Three get invite to join Canada national team

USF sophomore Gina Pacheco, redshirt freshman Bahar Sansar and freshman Taylor Patterson were named to the Canadian women’s U-20 national team Tuesday.

The team will play the U.S. U-18 team July 12, followed by matches against the U.S. U-20 team July 14 and July 16.

Pacheco, a midfielder from Ottawa, started all but one game for the Bulls last season.

This is the second consecutive year Sansar has made her country’s national team. A defender from Montreal, Sansar missed the 2008 season at USF because of a knee injury sustained while playing for the Canadian team last summer.

Patterson, a midfielder from Edmonton, Alberta, has played for Canada’s U-15 national team.

“This is a great opportunity for them,” said USF coach Denise Schilte-Brown in a statement. “All three have worked very hard and it is paying off. They’ll grow as
players and gain valuable experience they can bring back to our team. I have no doubt they will showcase themselves, Canada and USF.”

Cherry adds to her resume

Former USF track star Damu Cherry won the 100-meter hurdles at Friday’s Bislett Games in Norway, her second consecutive IAAF Golden League title. The victory came
five days after earning a berth in the world finals with a third-place finish in the 100-meter hurdle race at the USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Oregon.

Cherry won in Bislett with a 12.68-second time and finished third in Oregon with a 12.58-second time.

Cherry will compete Aug. 15-23 at the IAAF World Championships in Berlin.


Baseball players recognized academically

The USF baseball team was named the 2008-09 Big East Team Academic Excellence Award winner, the Big East Conference announced Tuesday.

The award is given in each sport, recognizing the teams with the highest cumulative GPA during the 2008-2009 school year. This includes every student-athlete that appears on an institution’s squad list. The baseball team posted a 3.2 GPA in the fall and a 3.21 in the spring.

“Our guys raised the bar in the classroom,” said Bulls coach Lelo Prado in a
statement. “It shows the work they put in and the people in our academic services. The players have to take credit. They stepped up. We put some new policies in and they bought into it.”