Sportswoman of the Week Ending 3/26/2023

March Madness hits a crescendo in the Sweet Sixteen to Final Four round as the field in the tournament is winnowed from teams kind of in the Top 25 to the best teams in the land.  And stars emerge on the big stage.  There may not be a bigger star in the sport than Iowa guard Caitlin Clark.  Clark averaged 36 points and 10 assists in two critical wins in the Regional Semifinals and Finals to lift the Hawkeyes to the Final Four.  The two-time Big Ten Player of the Year shot over 50% from the field and beyond the arc in the big victories over Colorado and Louisville to net Iowa its first Final Four since 1993 and second in program history.  The six-foot Junior Clark is the player to watch in the Final Four and our Sportswoman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/19/2023

What a week for baseball in a week of the year not usually know for high intensity baseball.  The World Baseball Classic entered it's final stages with the end of pool play, Quarterfinals, and Semifinals to set the stage for an epic championship between the United States and Japan, two of the renown superpowers of the sport.  Team USA had been uneven to date. losing a game to neighboring Mexico and struggling through other pool play matchups.  But they caught their stride in the knock out round.  The number nine hitter in the United States lineup carried the team, that being Trea Turner.  Turner slugged the Americans past Canada, Colombia, Venezuela, then Cuba in epic fashion.  He went 6/15, with 5 runs, and 10 RBI on 4 HR.  He hit a critical Grand Slam to save battling team against Venezuela, his second HR of the game.  Another HR against Cuba to set the tone in the semifinals.  Turner led the American team all the way to the World Baseball Classic Finals and is the Longhorndave Sportsman of the Week!

Sportswoman of the Week Ending 3/12/2023

There's a new women's ski champion of all time and her name is Mikaela Shiffrin.  The American greatest skier of all time notched her 87th career World Cup victory on Saturday to eclipse Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark for the most all time.  Ingemar competed in the 70s and 80s in which the sport was still a bit more limited in it's competitors all the more impressive.  Shiffrin's diverse skills contribute to her ability to dominate the sport at a level never seen before.  The two-time Gold Medalist and five-time World Cup champion (and now repeat Sportswoman of the Week) has won 73 of her 87 in either Slalom (53) or Grand Slalom (20).  To go with 5 Super-G's, 3 Downhills, 1 combined, 3 parallel city events, and 2 parallel slaloms.  The 28-year-old from Vail, CO, is an American legend and a repeat Sportswoman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/5/2023

The NBA is surging toward the Playoffs and there is no doubt, it's not who was good in January.  It's who is good in March and April.  And right now that is the New York Knicks.  The Knicks have won nine straight games and are approaching a month since their last loss.  This week, they demolished four key opponents, including the defending Eastern Conference Champion Boston Celtics.  Twice (one in double overtime on the road, that's clutch).  Include the Miami Heat and Brooklyn Nets and the Knickerbockers are pointed the right direction. Nobody has stepped up more than forward Julius Randle.  For the week, Randle averaged 29.5 Points Per Game, then throw in 8.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists.  No, not averaging a Triple Double but real stats contributing to major wins.  The key to the Knicks is balance, but every team needs a leader and Randle fits the bill.  For a potential title and definitely for the Longhorndave Sportsman of the Week!