Cougars Claim C-USA Championship; Headed to Postseason

Fresh off its first Conference USA Championship title in eight seasons, the University of Houston baseball team will compete as the No. 3 seed at the NCAA College Station Regional at Olsen Field, scheduled to begin this weekend.

The Cougars (39-22, 14-10 C-USA) will meet No. 2 seed Dallas Baptist at 12:30 p.m., Friday in the first game of the Regional. The Cougars join No. 1 seed and host Texas A&M and No. 4 seed Illinois-Chicago at the postseason event.

The winner of the double-elimination Regional will face the winner of the NCAA Houston Super Regional hosted by Rice on June 6-9 at a site to be determined. This marks the 18th time in school history and the second time in the last three seasons that the Cougars have advanced to the NCAA postseason.

The Cougars earned their way into the Regional with a hard-fought run through the 2008 Entergy C-USA Championship, hosted by Tulane at Greer Field at Turchin Stadium last week. After splitting their first two games against East Carolina and UAB, the Cougars fought their way through the loser's bracket, beating UAB twice on Saturday before knocking off Marshall 3-2 on Sunday in the C-USA Championship game.

Avery Selected by St. Louis Rams
in Second Round of NFL Draft

Former University of Houston wide receiver Donnie Avery was recently selected by the St. Louis Rams in the second round of the National Football League Draft. He was the 33rd selection overall and the first wide receiver taken. With Avery's early second-round pick by the Rams, the selection marks the second straight season a Houston player was chosen early in the NFL Draft's second round.

During his senior season at UH, Avery led Conference USA and ranked fourth in the nation with an average of 112 receiving yards per game. He also shattered school and conference records during his final campaign with 346 yards receiving in the Rice contest, becoming the first player in C-USA history to gain over 300 yards receiving in a game. His 427 all-purpose yards in that game set new C-USA and UH records.

Avery started 42 of 50 games at the University of Houston and is the third player in school history to gain over 3,000 yards receiving.

UH Football Launches New 2008 Season Ticket Campaign

With new head coach Kevin Sumlin in place, the Cougars are ready put up big numbers—even when it comes to ticket sales. The University of Houston Athletics Department has launched a new season ticket campaign seeking 2,008 new season ticket holders for the 2008 football season. UH will host six home games at Robertson Stadium this year, and ticket packages are on sale now for as low as $95.

"This season ticket initiative is extremely important,” said UH Athletics Director Dave Maggard. “It is another step we need to take as we continue building the foundation needed for University of Houston Athletics to regain its place as a nationally-recognized program."

The 2008 UH Football season kicks off on August 30, against Southern University. Make plans to join the REDvolution by purchasing your season tickets today. Season ticket purchasers can save almost 20% off single game prices.

"I hope the Cougar faithful, as well as the Houston community, are as excited about the upcoming season as I am,” said head coach Kevin Sumlin. “We appreciate all of the people currently supporting us and we encourage the addition of new supporters. The ‘2,008 in 2008 Campaign’ will expand our fan base and help us achieve even more success in the years to come."

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For the latest UH scores and athletics news, visit www.uh.edu/athletics.