 "Photo: Paul Chouy/The Daily Texan")
 "Photo: Lauren Tucker/The Daily Texan")
Departing for summer break, the last thing many University students want to think about is school. Even if you spent your reprieve debating daiquiris and draft beer or lounging poolside, business as usual continued for hundreds of Longhorn student-athletes. So just in case you missed some of this summer’s excitement while focusing on your beach bod, here’s a rundown of the biggest stories from Texas athletics over the past four months.
May
Men’s tennis crafts its own path to NCAA Final Four.
The tennis team’s journey to the finals was one of only two instances of a Longhorn team vying for a national championship this summer, and it came behind an impressive performance that included 4-0 victories over Sacred Heart and Washington to advance to the Round of 16.
In fifth-seeded Tennessee, the No. 12 Longhorns faced a stiff test. Thanks to solid doubles play, Texas jumped to an early lead that it was able to hold throughout singles. A win by Kellen Damico in singles play clinched a tense 4-3 victory for the team, earning a rematch against No. 4 Georgia, the team to which Texas lost the 2008 title.
Damico and the others weren’t finished. Damico split a singles match with the ITA’s No. 75 player in the world, Jamie Hunt, as junior Olivier Sajous clinched the win for Texas with his triumph over Josh Varela.
A 4-1 loss to eighth-seeded Southern California stopped the Longhorns’ title dreams short, but the program’s third semifinals appearance in four years means good things for future Longhorn tennis players, especially with so many young contributors.
May - June
The Texas baseball team proves it can make it past a super regional with string of thrilling victories.
Things were starting to grow stagnant around UFCU Disch-Falk field. Famed Longhorn coach Augie Garrido hadn’t gotten his guys past the regional round since 2005; success on the 40 Acres is usually gauged by national championships. Fans in burnt orange were growing anxious.
But, for a change, Texas thrived on being cast as the underdog. The Longhorns compiled one of the wildest stories in collegiate baseball by winning the Austin regional behind the longest game in NCAA history and a compelling walk-off grand slam from Preston Clark.
The team of destiny wasn’t finished. Garrido continued to play small ball to great effect in the Super Regional round against Texas Christian, but it was the long ball that earned the Longhorns victories in Games 1 and 3. Texas lost to Louisiana State at the College World Series in three games, but it was a return to form for the men from Austin.
July
Texas swimmers earn recognition at world championships in Rome.
While the 2009 FINA World Aquatics Championships will be remembered as “the rubber games” because of the prevalence of polyurethane bodysuits and new world records, Longhorn fans might also see it as an unveiling of the sport’s future stars.
Seniors Ricky Berens and Dave Walters won gold as half of Team USA’s 800-meter freestyle relay squad while Berens also helped his country with a fourth-place finish in the 400-meter freestyle relay prelims. Walters captured a new American record in the 100-meter freestyle with a fifth-place, 47.33 finish. Walters jumped from seventh to fifth in the back-end of the race, his comeback earning him the new record from previous holder Michael Phelps.
July 31
Destinee Hooker named the Big 12’s top female athlete of last school year.
The Big 12 conference annually selects two students, one male and one female, as their athletes of the year, and Destinee Hooker became just the 11th Longhorn to earn the title when she was picked this summer as a dual-sport threat in both volleyball and track.
The honor cemented Hooker’s legacy in Texas-athletics lore. The University’s athletic department ranks first in the number of Big 12 athletes of the year, with Oklahoma and Nebraska tying for second place with four each.
The volleyball team fell to second-seated Stanford in the NCAA semifinals, but Hooker was named to the all-tournament team with a 23-kill performance back in December. In track and field, Hooker excelled both indoors and out, capturing national titles in the high jump in both track seasons.
“Destinee is a tremendous athlete, and she has put a lot of hard work into what she has accomplished in volleyball and track,” said Texas volleyball head coach Jerritt Elliott.
The last Longhorns to capture the conference’s top honors were softball’s Cat Osterman and football’s Vince Young in 2006.
August
Two Longhorn teams set the stage for an epic fall with both volleyball and football garnering No. 2 preseason rankings.
Neither announcement was a surprise, but when the polls were finally released, the Longhorn nation issued a collective sigh of relief upon finding out that both the football and volleyball teams were ranked second in the nation for their upcoming seasons.
Defending national volleyball and football champions Penn State and Florida, respectively, claimed top ranking in the national polls, but the Longhorns were picked No. 2 in both sports despite neither team reaching the national title game last year.
“It shows respect for our program from coaches around the country,” said head football coach Mack Brown.
Football opens its season in 16 days with a home contest against Louisiana-Monroe.
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