CALLUM BEALE Tennis Beale was named Big 12 Player of the Week in March when he posted a 2-0 record at the No. 1 singles position in matches with No. 2 Virginia and No. 5 Duke. A native of Adelaide, Australia, Beale is in his first season at UT after two years at the University of South Australia. He was a state champion in South Australia and played in the 2002 Australian Open Junior Championship. His father, Ross, played Australian Rules Football for Melbourne.
PETRA DIZDAR Tennis By the end of March Dizdar had already twice been named Big 12 Women's Player of the Week. A sophomore from Split, Croatia, Dizdar is in her second year playing at the No. 1 singles position for the No. 9-ranked Longhorns. Last year she was named Big 12 Freshman of the Year and earned First-Team All-Confrerence honors. Before coming to UT, she reached No. 72 in singles and No. 43 in doubles in the ITF World Junior Rankings.
RAINER KENDRICK Swimming Kendrick ended his UT career by finishing second at the NCAA Championship in the 200-yard butterfly, an event he won in 2004. He concluded his career as a 10-time All-American. Kendrick won eight Big 12 Conference titles and in 2002 was named Big 12 Newcomer of the Year. At Homewood High School in Birmingham, Ala., Kendrick was student body president and a two-time scholastic All-American. At UT he also has earned Academic All-Big 12 honors.
KYLE McCULLOCH Baseball A sophomore from Houston, McCulloch was named Phillips 66 Big 12 Pitcher of the Week March 15 after contributing to a pair of Longhorn shutouts. At mid-season he was leading the Horns in several pitching categories. Last season he was named a Freshman All-American, was honorable mention All-Big 12, and was named to the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll. His father, Mike, played on the Longhorns football team in 1970-72.
LEONEL MANZANO Track & Field Manzano was named Big 12 Indoor Track and Field Freshman Performer of the Year as he set a UT record in winning the mile run in a time of 3:59.86. He joins Reed Fischer (3:59.90 in 1974) as the only Longohrns to break four minutes in the indoor mile. At Marble Falls (Texas) High School, Manzano won nine individual Class 4A state titles. He was born in Guanajuato, Mexico and wants to study international business.
NINA NORMAN Basketball Despite playing with a broken bone in her left hand, Norman recorded a season high 20 points to lead Texas to a 64-47 win over Oral Roberts in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in March. A two-year starter at guard, Norman led the team in assists this season with 98 while averaging 7.8 points and 3.1 rebounds. At Jersey Village (Texas) High School, Norman was a consensus All-American and was rated as one of the top 10 players in the nation.
RAMONCE TAYLOR Football Taylor had a sensational spring and should be a front runner to replace Cedric Benson as the Longhorns starting running back. As a freshman last fall he appeared in 10 games and averaged 10.1 yards on 28 carries. At Belton (Texas) High School, Taylor was first-team Class 5A all-state as a senior. In his final two seasons he rushed for 3,899 yards and 52 touchdowns. He also was all-district in basketball and was state champion in the long jump as a junior.
MELAINE WALKER Track & Field A junior from Kingston, Jamaica., Walker had a great showing at the Big 12 Indoor Championship where she was second in the 60 meters, third in the 60-meter hurdles and ran on the winning 1,6000-meter relay team. Walker came to UT after two seasons at Essex County College in New Jersey where she was a five-time junior college national champion. As a high schooler in Jamaica, she set a national junior record in the 400-meter hurdles.
SARAH WANEZEK Swimming A senior from Brookfield, Wis., Wanezek garnered seven All-America awards at this year's NCAA Championship, closing her college career with a total of 16. She was twice named Big 12 Conference Swimmer of the Year and was a 12-time conference champion. In 2003 she won a national title in the 100-meter freestyle at the ConocoPhillips National Championships. She was All-America in high school and was twice named Wisconsin State Swimmer of the Year.
DESIREE WILLIAMS Softball At the start of Big 12 Conference play, Williams was leading the Longhorns in home runs (4) and runs batted in (14) and was second in hitting (.321). A freshman utility player from Tucson, Ariz., Williams was a member of the 2003 U. S. Junior National Team that won the silver medal at the Junior World Championships in China. She was a two-time all-state selection in high school who was named Arizona State Gatorade Softball Player of the Year in 2004.
