Please Help! See note below -

I'm writing about your #1 MIZZOU fan, our 7 year old Columbia, MO first grade grandson, Shayden that is going through chemo for ALL leukemia. He is doing well and responding to his treatments. He is being so brave and not fussing about everything that they are doing to him. He has had a Nascar race car designed in his honor and for leukemia awareness. It is done in orange and green (leukemia colors), has the orange ribbon on it, says Race for the Cure, and has his picture on the roof. The final winner will get to go to the Atlanta race and see their design actually race and ride in it. It will be painted as designed for the race. Each car has only 15 days to be voted on. His car has 5 days left counting today. We need 9,000 votes in 5 DAYS! You can only vote 1 time per computer per day. It will take a lot of help to even get to the top 10 cars for the second round of voting. Then the voting starts over on the top 10 vote getters. It is a long shot, but we are trying to get this done for our 7 year old Nascar fan. It brightens his day and brings smiles to his face watching the votes come in for his #11 Hamlin Leukemia Awareness Car. We have attached the link below that will take you to his car to vote. If it doesn't work you can go to toyotaracing.com, click on the sponsafier car box, on the next page click on gallery-then click search and type in SHAYDEN'S RACE CAR, when his car comes up click on it to get the voting page, click to vote. If you can do this we thank you for our Shayden.

Please send this to anyone that you think would help with voting, your facebook friends, e-mail, twitter, etc. Thank you and please keep Shayden in your prayers. Please help us raise awareness for leukemia and help a 7 year old's dream come true!

THANKS AGAIN!

http://www.sponsafier.com/share/195572

Missouri senior All-American Sarah Shire (Columbia, Mo.) moved into the top-spot in the all-around in the latest GymInfo rankings released Sunday evening. After winning the 21st all-around title of her collegiate career with a 39.550 at No. 13 Illinois on March 13, Shire moved up from second to first in the national rankings. This is the first time in program history that a Missouri gymnast has held the No. 1 ranking.

Shire also ranks in the top-20 on all four events. She is tied for 16th on vault, fifth on bars, fourth on beam and 10th on floor. The all-around score of 39.725 that Shire posted in the Feb. 26 meet against Illinois State still stands as the highest all-around mark posted this season. Shire has won eight all-around titles this season along with 29 event titles.

Shire will look to win her ninth all-around title of the season as she and the rest of the 14th ranked Missouri Tigers take on Centenary College of Louisiana on Sunday, March 21 at 2 p.m. in the Hearnes Center. The meet will mark Senior Day for Shire and three other seniors that have made a monumental impact on the Missouri gymnastics program.

University Missouri women's basketball players RaeShara Brown, Kendra Frazier and Jasmyn Otote were among 47 student-athletes named to the 2010 Academic All-Big 12 Women's Basketball Team, the league office announced Thursday.

Brown and Frazier earned spots on the first team, while Otote was a second team honoree. A junior, Brown is now a two-time Academic All-Big 12 first team honoree. Otote, a junior, and Frazier, a sophomore, were honored for the first time in their careers.

In the 12 years under Head Coach Cindy Stein, 42 student-athletes have earned recognition on the Academic All-Big 12 teams.

To be completely honest the reason I began involving myself in community service and volunteering was because of the Tiger Cup. I am a competitive person and I want my team to win, by playing my part and volunteering when I can helps my team out. I began by volunteering an hour or two every other week when opportunities arose as well as volunteering with my team. After a couple of times I volunteered I began taking the initiative and would ask Chrissy if there were any volunteering opportunities available. I would go to the Children’s Hospital, Food, and Humane Society. This spring I began volunteering a lot more and encouraged my teammates to volunteer. The motive behind it was the Phase 1 of our preseason training. During this time were divided into 3 teams each team competing in 4 different sections: Fitness, Soccer, Strength Training, and Community Service. I chose to be in charge of keeping track of community service my team. I would encourage my teammates to volunteer as much as possible to earn points for our team and give back to the community one way or another. I would call the volunteering coordinators of organizations and set up times for them to be able to volunteer. I would ask them where they would like to volunteer because in order for one to not look at it as an obligation it is best to help somewhere of your interest. To volunteer somewhere and give and get the best from it you have to care about what you’re doing and who you’re helping out whether you’re visiting sick children and brightening their day to packaging wieners at the Food Bank. If you’re doing something you think is important you’ll find it worthwhile.

I also volunteer with the minority athlete group C.A.R.E. We’ve helped raise money for Haiti by walking around with bins and collecting loose change anyone here at the facility had. We also had the opportunity to volunteer with the Hip Hop Caucus Clean Energy Tour by handing our weatherization kits and organizing a Salvation Army here in Columbia.

Edith Lopez

MU Athletes teamed up with Missouri teachers every Wednesday to motivate kids to read. Through MU's Starlight Reading Program, athletes can broadcast directly into elementary classrooms through video conferencing.

Click on the picture below to check the article on KOMU.com about the Starlight Reading Program.

Women's soccer player Bree Thornton was one of 39 University of Missouri seniors chosen to the 2010 class of Mizzou' 39. The prestigious award, established by the Mizzou Alumni Association in 2005, selects students who demonstrate the qualities of outstanding service, academic achievement and leadership throughout their time at Missouri.

The recipients, selected by a committee of alumni and faculty, were recognized at halftime of the Missouri men's basketball game Wednesday night and will attend a formal awards banquet on Feb. 26.

Thornton was a four-year letter winner for the Missouri soccer program, starting all 71 games in her career. The Lake View Terrace, Calif., recorded 13 goals and 10 assists for 36 points in over 4,500 minutes of action.

The psychology and Spanish double major was also recognized by ESPN the Magazine in October as an Academic All-District 7 second team honoree and was selected to the Big 12 All-Academic first team for the second consecutive season in 2009. Thornton also helped lead Missouri to the 2009 Big 12 Regular Season title, the first in program history. She earned Big 12 Co-Offensive Player of the Week and a collegesoccer360.com Primetime Performer of the Week in September during the course of her senior season.

Thornton's selection continues the strong showing by Missouri student-athletes in recent years. Alyssa Hollins (women's basketball), Chase Daniel (football), JaNay Woolridge (track and field), Peter Malnati (men's golf) and Alicia Hatcher (gymnastics) each received the honor a year ago. Aricia Jacinto (swimming) and Julie Abaray (gymnastics) were honored in 2008 and Brian Unger (men's golf) and Meggie Malm (soccer) were the first student-athlete inductees in 2007.

The honor will also provide a 300-point boost to her team's cumulative total in the athletic department's Tiger Cup competition, which soccer was a finalist for a year ago.

On Tuesday night, March 2nd Mizzou Athletics hosted an Etiquette Dinner designed to teach student-athletes the proper way to eat during a professional setting. The night featured a four-course meal with instructions for proper etiquette throughout the night.

Mizzou Soccer will host its second annual 5K fundraiser in April. A portion of the money raised will be donated to “The Shelter” here in Columbia to help women who are victims of domestic abuse and/or sexual assault.

Please consider giving or participating!

For the second consecutive season Missouri had a pair of players honored on the Academic All-Big 12 Men's Basketball Team on Wednesday, as senior guard J.T. Tiller and sophomore forward Laurence Bowers were named to the Second Team.

Tiller, who will graduate from Mizzou this spring, has been the Heart & Soul of Missouri Basketball the past three seasons and has made 27 starts for the Tigers in 2009-10, while averaging 8.7 points, 3.1 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.4 steals per game. Tiller is coming off a season-high tying 17 points in Missouri's win at Iowa State on Tuesday and is a front-runner for Big 12 All-Defensive Team honors after sharing the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year award in 2009. Tiller is one of just seven players in school history to record 300 assists and 150 steals in his career and with 13 more thefts will be the only player at Mizzou to rank among the Top 10 in games played, steals and assists for a career.

Bowers is one of Missouri's many exciting young players and has combined his hardwood success with a terrific performance in the classroom. Bowers is third on the squad this season in scoring (10.1), second in rebounding (5.6) and tops in blocked shots (1.3). His defensive presence has helped Missouri inch closer to the school record for blocked shots in a single season and his three double-doubles leads all Tigers in 2009-10.

Members of the Big 12's All-Academic team are nominated by each institution's director of student-athlete support services and media relations offices. First team members have recorded a 3.20 or better GPA, while the second team are those with a 3.00 to 3.19 GPA.

To qualify student-athletes must maintain a 3.00 GPA or higher either cumulative or in the two previous semesters and have participated in 60 percent of his team's scheduled contests. Freshmen and transfers are not eligible in their first year of academic residence. Senior student-athletes who have participated for a minimum of two years and meet all the criteria except percent of participation are also eligible.

In the month of February the Mizzou Volleyball program held its first annual Valentine's Day Charity Benefit Tournament on the Hearnes Center floor and the Tigers succeeded in their goal and presented a check of more than $1,000 to Mike Odneal, executive director of the Mid-Missouri Red Cross, as the program raised funds by selling t-shirts, collecting donations and hosting some of the area's top clubs in the all-day event.

"This volleyball team for the University has put together a wonderful effort," Odneal said. "All of these young players have shown the spirit that you need, not only for volleyball, but for giving and helping others around the world. This is one way that the folks of the University and the folks of mid-Missouri have continued to give from their hearts to give to the nation of Haiti."

According to Odneal, the funds that were raised will go directly to the nation of Haiti as it looks to rebuild from the tragic earthquake that occurred last month. Specifically, the funds will help in providing food and shelter, clean water and the rebuilding and rescue efforts that are still going on.

Members of the Mizzou Volleyball team were on hand to collect donations, sell t-shirts and help in scoring matches during the tournament. Not only did the all-day event earn proceeds for a worthy cause, but local youngsters got their chance to interact with some of the role models on the Tigers' actual competition floor.

In addition to raising money for the Mid-Missouri Red Cross, the team conducted over 10 hours of free youth clinics for local youth designed to promote healthy lifestyles and increase opportunities amongst the community.

Go Tigers!

Hunter is Mizzou's all-time leader in total assists with 6,907 during her four-year career and she also holds the school's single-season record with 1,690 helpers during the 2002 season; she also holds three of the top four single-season assist marks in program history. Hunter had 21 matches with 60 or more assists during her career - the next closest Tiger finished her career with nine such matches. Hunter was a First Team All-American in 2004, a three-time All-Big 12 First Team honoree and an honorable mention All-Big 12 selection in 2002.

What is even more impressive than her individual accomplishments is what she was able to help the Mizzou volleyball program achieve during her tenure in Black & Gold. She guided the team to four-straight NCAA Tournament appearances, three 20-win seasons, three third-place Big 12 finishes and helped guide the 2005 team within two sets from the program's first-ever Final Four appearance. During her four years at setter, Mizzou compiled a 90-33 overall record. The 90 wins were the second-most in a four-year span at Mizzou, trailing only the 1980-83 program which posted 97 wins. What is impressive about that is that from 1980-83, that team played in 20 more matches than Hunter's squad did from, making her squad's 90-33 clip the best winning percentage over a four-year span in school history.

Brad Smith was the first player in the history of the NCAA to pass for 8,000 yards and run for 4,000 yards in career, second player in NCAA history to pass for 2,000 yards and rush for 1,000 yards in the same season, and finished career at Missouri as the NCAA’s all-time rushing record holder for a quarterback with 4,289 yards.

Along the way he thrived in Pinkel's spread offense, including a 480-yard outburst against Nebraska this season. For some reason Smith's greatest moments seem to come against the famed Blackshirts, of whom this year's edition entered the game ranked No. 1 in the nation defending the run. Smith amassed 246 yards rushing and 234 passing, as well as scoring three touchdowns on the ground and tossing another one to Tommy Saunders.

Smith earned his degree in business administration and is currently playing professional football for the New York Jets. In his time at Mizzou, Brad Smith proved that he's not exactly just like everyone else. The funny thing is, it had nothing to do with football.

Congratulations to Lindsey and Brad!

After one of the most successful freshman seasons in Mizzou cross country history, Kaitie Vanatta (Littleton, Colo.) added another award to her résumé on Tuesday (March 2) as she earned US Track and Field/Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Academic Honors for the first time in her career. She was one of 104 student-athletes, representing 57 colleges and universities, to earn the award this season. Not only was Vanatta one of 104 honorees, but she was one of only nine student-athletes on the list to compile a 4.00 grade-point-average as she is majoring in middle school education in her first year at Mizzou.

The award honors student-athletes who have succeeded both academically and athletically. To be eligible for the award a student-athlete must carry a minimum 3.25 cumulative GPA and must have placed among the top 15 finishers (or top 10-percent) at their respective NCAA Regional Championships. In Vanatta's case, she did just that after earning All-Midwest Regional honors with an eighth-place finish at the Midwest Regional Championships back in November.

The All-Academic honor is just another award for Vanatta who continues to pile them up after her first season donning the black and gold. In the field of competition, Vanatta earned All-Big 12 and All-Midwest Regional honors and was an NCAA National qualifier in 2009. She became the program's second-ever freshman All-Big 12 honoree and the first to do so since 2002 after earning 11th-place overall at the Big 12 Championships. She was also the Tigers' first All-Big 12 honoree on either the men's or women's side since 2006 and was named Big 12 Runner of the Week on Sept. 15, 2009, for the first time in her career.

The award just adds to the list of academic success that the track and field/cross country program has compiled under the direction of head coach Rick McGuire.