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WILDCATS CONTINUE TO SHINE IN CLASSROOM

Coming off a record-breaking spring, our student-athletes have finished another tremendous semester in the classroom. Arizona student-athletes posted the highest overall semester grade point average in Arizona Athletics history with a 3.057 this fall. Our athletics department had 294 student-athletes with a 3.0 GPA or higher, 179 with a 3.5 GPA or above and 70 with an impressive 4.0 GPA. Fall 2018 marks a third consecutive semester with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or greater.
 
We saw 15 of our programs with a team GPA of 3.0 or higher, including new single-semester records by Men's Swimming and Diving, Men's Tennis, Men's Cross Country, Women's Basketball, Gymnastics, Softball, Women's Swimming and Diving, Women's Tennis and Beach Volleyball. Our top programs were Women's Tennis with an impressive 3.628 GPA and Men's Cross Country with a tremendous 3.660 GPA.
 
Education is at the core of everything we do at Arizona Athletics, and our student-athletes continue to excel academically at a championship level. I want to congratulate our student-athletes on all of their hard work done in the classroom as well as our excellent C.A.T.S. Academics staff for helping our athletics department achieve greatness.
 
BEAR DOWN AND RED OUT MCKALE

Coach Miller and the Wildcats are off to a perfect 4-0 start in Pac-12 play after sweeping California and Stanford on the road last weekend. We are excited to welcome the team back to McKale Center for a pair of big games against the Oregon schools.
 
Thursday's match-up with Oregon is a red out. We will have red rally towels from our friends at Cumming's Plumbing Heating and Cooling for the first 7,500 fans in attendance. The home environment in McKale Center is the best in college basketball, and I can't wait to see a sea of red on Thursday night at 7 p.m.  If you don't have your tickets already, you can buy them here.
 
You can also get all your Arizona Basketball news, tickets, updates and information from the program's new Facebook page at www.facebook.com/APlayersProgram.


 
TRACK AND FIELD STARTING 2019 STRONG

Congratulations to Coach Harvey and our Track and Field programs for starting the new year off on a strong note at the NAU Friday Night Duals in Flagstaff. Sophomore Jordan Geist continued his dominance as one of the elite throwers in the nation, posting the best shot put mark in the NCAA this year and third best in the world.
 
Junior Justice Summerset won the high jump while Lillian Lowe won the event on the women's side. On the track, the Wildcats picked up wins from David Egbo in the men's 300 meters, Tatum Waggoner in the women's 400 meters, Umajesty Williams in the men's 400 meters and Andy Buchanan in the men's 600 meters.
 
Coach Harvey and the Wildcats are back in action this weekend at the Larry Wieczorek Invitational hosted by the University of Iowa.

GYMCATS IN ACTION

Arizona Basketball isn't the only team competing in McKale Center this week as Arizona Gymnastics hosts Washington at 7 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 18. The Wildcats are coming off a strong showing in their first home meet of 2019 against No. 10 Arkansas. We will see you in McKale on Friday evening for some great gymnastics action. Click here to get your tickets now.


 
STAFF SPOTLIGHT           

The people in Arizona Athletics play a large part in making our athletics department special. We are fortunate enough to have many talented and dedicated professionals making an impact on the lives of our student-athletes. Men's Basketball trainer Justin Kokoskie is one of our outstanding staff members, and his work for nearly two decades in our department was recently highlighted by ArizonaWildcats.com.
 
GETTING READY FOR SOFTBALL SEASON

Official practice is underway for Coach Candrea and Arizona Softball and the excitement around the start of the season continues to build. With opening day just a month away, the transformation of legendary Hillenbrand Stadium continues. The renovations to this historic facility will honor the great legacy and tradition of our Softball program while adding to the enthusiasm of another great season of softball at the University of Arizona. You can watch the official practice report from the opening week of practice here. Make your plans for another season of Arizona Softball now!


 
ARIZONA WILDCATS ON YOUR PHONE

Did you know Arizona Athletics has a new official app for your smart phone? Redeveloped for the enhanced fan experience, the Arizona Wildcats app is the perfect tool for tickets, parking, fan experience, scores and news on all of our programs.  Follow our programs closer than ever before by downloading the app for your iPhone or Android today!
 

UPCOMING SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
 
To view the list of upcoming events, broadcast information, start times and stat links, click HERE. (Note: All times are listed as Mountain Standard Time, i.e. Tucson time.)
 
To access live stats from your desktop or mobile device, visit ArizonaLiveStats.com.
 
WEAR THE COLORS – SHARE THE PHOTOS
 
Thank you for wearing the colors and sharing your Arizona pride! If your photo submission did not make this week's edition of the Wildcat Wednesday, please check our "Wear the Colors" album at facebook.com/ArizonaAthletics on Fridays.
 
NOTE: Please submit photos for Wildcat Wednesday with an original email to uofaad@arizona.edu using the subject line 'Wildcat Wednesday photo.' Also, please ensure all submissions are clear and properly lit. We also ask that you identify everyone in the photo so we can highlight them accordingly.
 
 
 
 
 
Continue to do what you can to help Arizona Athletics and: 

1. Bear Down with us today! Join the Wildcat Club to make an impact on our student-athletes' experience.
2. Buy Season Tickets
3. Wear the Colors (Especially on Friday)
4. Encourage Others to Do the Same

 
Bear Down with Pride,

Dave Heeke
Director of Athletics
University of Arizona
uofaad@arizona.edu