USC Trojans

Last Chance: Baseball's Mother's Day Brunch

By Jordan Moore on May 7, 2013 2:47 PM | 1 Comment

USC baseball has invited the mothers of Troy and their families to a special brunch at Dedeaux Field before the Sunday, May 12, game against Washington State on Mother's Day. The $50 package includes an 11:30 a.m. pancake brunch for two, two tickets to the game, a WE PLAY t-shirt, a picture frame/clock and a Nike duffle bag.

Click here to RSVP or for more info.

Splash and Grab

By Jordan Moore on May 7, 2013 12:30 PM | No Comments

At the recent USC-UCLA Dual Meet, freshman Jenna Tong embodied the Fight On spirit by recovering from an early spill in the steeplechase to win the event and post the fourth best time in Women of Troy history.

In this photo series by Dan Avila and animated by Lindsay Crouch, check out Tong shaking off her brief swim and powering through to victory.

Kirby and Stevi

By Jordan Moore on May 7, 2013 11:58 AM | No Comments

Coming off a Final Four appearance and the AVCA National Pairs Championship for Kirby Burnham and Stevi Robinson, USC women's sand volleyball celebrated with a team banquet Monday night. To go along with their championship medals and All-American honors, Burnham was given the Coaches' Award, while Robinson was named the Team MVP.

Here is a look at their championship match from a wild and windy Gulf Shores, Alabama:

Golfing in the Palouse

By Jordan Moore on May 7, 2013 10:46 AM | No Comments

No. 12 USC men's golf was selected as the No. 3 seed in the NCAA Championships Pullman Regional, which features a 14-team field vying for five spots in the NCAA Championship final in Atlanta (Georgia Tech). After a seventh place finish at the Pac-12 Championships, the Trojans are looking to bounce back and make the final for the seventh consecutive year.

Click here for the complete story.

The regional will take place May 16-18 at the Palouse Ridge G.C. in Pullman, Wash.

Senior Sam Smith enters postseason play as USC's hottest golfer pacing the team in the last four tournaments.

Welcoming the Best

By Jordan Moore on May 7, 2013 10:24 AM | No Comments

USC will play host to the Pac-12 Track and Field Championships this Saturday and Sunday at the Loker Track Stadium. The Conference of Champions boasts the greatest Olympic heritage, including 89 total individual medals at the London 2012 Games (25 by Trojans alone), and that level of talent will be on display this weekend.

Click here for tickets and information.

We will have blanket coverage all week in anticipation of the big event. As a primer, here are the Pac-12 track and field coaches providing a preview.

Photo Gallery: Rowing Tops UCLA

By Jordan Moore on May 6, 2013 4:17 PM | No Comments

While the Trojans have officially relinquished their five-year stranglehold on the Crosstown Gauntlet, No. 1 USC women's rowing still defeated No. 6 UCLA in all three varsity races in the annual rivalry dual Saturday. The win moves the Women of Troy to a perfect 12-0 all-time against the Bruins.

Click here for the recap.

Here are the John McGillen photos from Ballona Creek:

Four Star Poster

By Jordan Moore on May 6, 2013 3:12 PM | No Comments

The 2013 USC football poster shoot was this morning in the Coliseum locker room. While we will not provide any clues as to the look or theme of this year's poster, you can view the behind-the-scenes photos from the shoot on our Instagram page (@USC_Athletics).

WR Marqise Lee, DL Leonard Williams, DL George Uko and LB Hayes Pullard are the four Trojans that will be featured on the posters, which come out this summer.

Lee getting "sweat" applied by the makeup artist.

Photo Gallery: Baseball vs. TCU

By Jordan Moore on May 6, 2013 2:34 PM | No Comments

USC baseball rallied for an eight-run inning to key its Friday night victory over TCU last weekend. The Trojans dropped two out of three in the series, but the 9-3 win featured multi-hit games from four different players and a pair of RBIs for catcher Garrett Stubbs.

Click here for the recap.

USC hosts Washington State this week Friday (6 p.m.), Saturday (7 p.m.), and Sunday (1 p.m.) with Mother's Day brunch beforehand.

Here are the photos from John McGillen:

Queens of the Beach

By Jordan Moore on May 6, 2013 8:59 AM | No Comments

In just its second season, USC sand volleyball has its first national champions in Kirby Burnham and Stevi Robinson who teamed up to win the AVCA National Pairs Championship Sunday in Alabama.

Click here for the complete recap.

Burnham and Robinson won two close sets in the final over Long Beach State, which knocked the Women of Troy out of the team competition in the Final Four.

Leading Lady

By Jordan Moore on May 3, 2013 2:56 PM | No Comments

Written by Sarah Bergstrom, USC blog contributor

(Photos by Jonathan Moore)

Cox, coxswain, "coach in the boat"... Call it whatever you want, but the most difficult role on a crew team belongs to the small person squeezed into the front section of the boat yelling commands and encouragement to its rowers. Being a coxswain involves a lot more than having a loud voice and a small frame, perfectly coordinating the movement of eight rowers requires years of practice. Sometimes that practice is gained in a unique setting, like the coxswain for the USC women's varsity eight boat who got her experience rowing with boys.

"In high school coxswains can be either gender as long as they hit the weight requirement," explains senior Jennah Blau. "When I transferred schools my sophomore year, the women's team had enough coxswains, so I joined the men's boat. I hated it at first. But now those guys are some of my best friends and I ended up loving it. The coxswain's job is to steer and it's harder to keep it straight the faster you go. Men are obviously faster than women so I was more prepared when I came here for the elite speed of college rowers."

For those who aren't particularly rowing savvy, as the majority of people aren't, here's a description of what a coxswain does. As the only person facing forward in the boat, the coxswain is in control of the direction of the boat. They can control some of the steering themselves but also direct the tempo and power of their rowers. Their responsibility is to make every tactical decision during a race and to encourage their teammates along throughout the course.

"I'm the one who is in control on the boat, I'm the coach on the water. Once the race starts, I'm the one who calls the plays, calls the moves, and determines how fast we should go. We have a race plan but it comes down to so many variables once you're out there," says Blau.

From a distance, rowing may seem like a sport that simply requires large amounts of physical strength and endurance, however, there are several variables that drastically impact the results of a race that the coxswain is responsible for addressing.

"In a race plan we have different moves, different points along the 2000 meters where we are going to make moves. There are different types of strokes you use depending on where you are in the water and where the other boats are in relation to you. These all change depending on wind conditions, currents, and the other boats. Your strategy changes depending on if you're the first off the line or if you are trailing another boat," explains Blau.

With so many things to account for during a race and the long list of responsibilities of which they must keep track, it understandably takes certain characteristics to be a good coxswain. In her own words, Blau says she believes a good coxswain has to be versatile.

"I think a good coxswain has to bring a lot of things to the table. They have to be motivational, they have to be technical, they have to know what they are doing. They also have to be a leader that is respected. You have to find that fine line between being really good friends with everyone and also being able to push them and coach them out on the water. Ultimately, I'm trying to make everyone faster and do what's best for the team."

Continue reading Leading Lady.