By Darren Wilcox
What a semester it has been for women's athletics at BYU.
I have news for all you BYU fans who are sitting around moaning and groaning because BYU's football team was not invited to a bowl game. Football is not the only sport at BYU. Surprised?
Sure, football is the main money-maker, I have no argument there. What other BYU sport draws an average of more than 65,000 fans per contest? What other BYU team is on national television more than twice a year? However, these issues aside, it's time to quit moping about a disappointing effort from the football team and concentrate on the positive aspects of the fall season.
This is where the women take over. It has been a breakout semester for women's athletics at BYU, and nowhere was that more evident than the women's cross-country team.
The Cougars had come close before, finishing third last season and fourth the season before. This season BYU entered the preseason ranked No. 2, behind defending national champion Stanford. In the end, BYU's depth was what won them the national title, defeating the Cardinal by a scant two-point margin.
Head coach Patrick Shane is a genius, but couldn't quite get the Cougars to the next level. This year, Shane combined excellent recruiting and savvy training to put together the deepest team in the NCAA. The Cougars placed only two runners in the top 20, but their top five runners finished higher than the top five from Stanford. The scary thing is that all eight runners who traveled to the NCAA championships return next season. The future is bright for Shane and the gang.
The fact that escaped most sports fans is the national championship was the first for a women's team at BYU. Let me run that by you again. No women's team had ever won an NCAA national championship until the cross-country team did it this season.
Because of the cross-country team, BYU is tied for third in the Sears Director's Cup. The Sears Cup is an annual award given to the university that has the highest average finish in several men's and women's sports. BYU has never finished higher than 16, but has a great shot at a top-10 finish.
So, while most BYU fans were in mourning over the football team's embarrassing loss to Utah, the cross-country women were busy making history and doing their school proud. Do the fans care? Has anyone written a letter-to-the-editor congratulating the team on its performance?
No. Instead we continue to read the same kind of drivel either complaining that the football team let us down or the sports pages are full of errors. I could insert some comments here, but these letters don't deserve the time. But I digress.
Instead of complaining about the teams that underachieved this season, as BYU fans we should be applauding and supporting the teams that made history. But, as human nature shows, it is easier to be critical than positive.
The women's soccer team also made history this year, qualifying to compete in the NCAA soccer tournament for the first time in history. The women lost in the first round to a tough Santa Clara team, which went all the way to the Final Four before losing to eventual champion North Carolina, the Tar Heels.
The loss was nothing to be ashamed of. Santa Clara is a quality program and almost unbeatable at home. BYU played a tough game, only giving up one goal to the high-power Bronco offense. The loss should give the Cougars incentive for next season, when BYU returns several starters from this year's team.
One of the returning starters is Shauna Rohbock, who was named a second-team All-American for the second straight year. Rohbock, a forward who led the NCAA in goals last season, is one of four or five on the women's soccer team who switch over and compete with the women's track and field team in the winter.
As for the women's track and field team, their season gets underway in January, and head coach R. Craig Poole has his team positioned to compete for the national title. BYU finished eighth at the NCAA outdoor championships in June and returns a host of redshirts and other peak performers. This could easily be the most talented overall team Poole has ever coached.
Then there is the women's volleyball team, which competes this week in the third round of the NCAA tournament. When the Cougars beat Texas A&M Friday, and they will beat the Aggies, it will set up a tough battle with Penn State. BYU lost to Penn State in its first match of the season, but has shown marked improvement since then.
The women spikers have been amazing the past few years, making it to the Final Four in 1993 before falling to Penn State.
So, next time you start to complain about what a bad year it has been for BYU sports, remember there is more to BYU athletics than football. Women's athletics are often more enjoyable than men's and as of late have been more competitive too. It's time to give them the respect they deserve.