Mary Roby was the leading force behind the rise of Arizona women's athletics, which rank among the best in the nation. University of Arizona photo

When Dr. Mary Roby was leading the Arizona Wildcats search for a softball coach in the summer of 1985, it was the athletic department’s intent to hire a woman.

But nearly everybody she talked to told her that she should hire Mike Candrea.

Like with most things she did as she oversaw the rise of women’s athletics at Arizona — from a campus rec sport, to the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women, to the NCAA and the Pac-10 — she made the right call.

She interviewed only one person for the job — Candrea — and promptly recommended to athletic director Cedric Dempsey that he be hired. Four years after that, Roby hired swimming coach Frank Busch from Cincinnati.

How’s that for an enduring legacy?

Roby, who retired from the university in 1989, died Monday night in Tucson after a battle with cancer. She was 85.

“She gave me a great opportunity at a time when there were not a lot of male coaches being hired. She had the gumption to give me a chance,” Candrea said Tuesday.

“I look at her, and I look at a pioneer in women’s athletics. She was a very huge part of the growth of college athletics for the female athlete. I think she set the foundation for what we are today. We will dearly miss her.”

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NOTE: Dr. Mary Roby, a pioneer for women’s athletics at Arizona and across the nation, died Monday in Tucson. She was 85, having been retired from Arizona since 1989. Long time Tucson Citizen sports columnist Corky Simpson wrote the following on June 3, 1995:

There’s a “hall of fame” for everything, it seems, and so many of them, I swear, they ought to have a hall of fame hall of fame.

It’s all about recognizing an individual’s achievement, though, and that’s fine.

But superstars such as Mary Roby do a lot more for a hall of fame than vice versa.

Women’s intercollegiate athletics would not be where it is today were it not for Roby.

She spent 40 years – 31 at the University of Arizona – opening doors (and breaking down a few) on behalf of female athletes.

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Devin Fuller played in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl after last season.

New Arizona Wildcats coach Rich Rodriguez missed out on a potential centerpiece to his first recruiting class, as four-star quarterback Devin Fuller chose UCLA over Arizona and others on Sunday, he told 247Sports.

Getting the right quarterbacks in the program has been the most important priority for Rodriguez, especially after Daxx Garman and Tom Savage — who weren’t perfect fits, anyway — transferred after the fall semester.

Based on his recruiting buzz, Fuller, from Old Tappan, N.J., seemed to have a chance to do for Rodriguez at Arizona what Pat White did at West Virginia and what Denard Robinson did at Michigan in the coach’s read-option offense.

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Andy Lopez's team was 39-21 last season.

Suggesting a big spring on the diamond for Arizona, the Wildcats baseball team is ranked No. 5 in the preseason, while the softball team is ranked eighth in the country in polls released Tuesday.

Baseball America tabbed Arizona fifth, behind No. 1 Florida, Stanford, South Carolina and Arkansas. Coach Andy Lopez is hoping to ride a strong pitching staff, led by junior Kurt Heyer (8-5, 2.41 ERA), to a home postseason berth at the team’s new digs, Hi Corbett Field.

Mike Candrea’s softball team is trying to get back to the Women’s College World Series after losing in the Super Regionals last year.

Based on the No. 8 ranking from the ESPN.com/USA Softball preseason poll, the Wildcats will be good enough to get back to Oklahoma City.

Much will depend on junior pitcher Kenzie Fowler, who was 26-8 with a 1.76 ERA last season after leading Arizona to the championship round of the World Series in 2010.

Defending champ Arizona State starts at No. 1 in the poll.

As usual, the Pac-12 is well represented. Cal is third, Stanford 10th, Oregon 11th, UCLA 13th and Washington 14th.

Phil Mickelson tips his cap to the crowd during a first-round win last year. Photo by Allan Henry-US PRESSWIRE

Phil Mickelson won’t play in the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship in Marana next month, saying he will be taking a family vacation instead.

He also skipped the 2010 event, also to be his family on a vacation postponed by cancer treatment for his wife.

The absence of Mickelson, who is ranked No. 15 in the world, opens up a spot in the field, which is available to the top-ranked 64 players. Mickelson is one of the biggest draws, but rarely has had extended success in the match play event, managing to reach the quarterfinals in 2004.

Mickelson was ousted in the second round last year by 22-year old Rickie Fowler in a 6-and-5 match.

Among former Arizona Wildcats, Jim Furyk is ranked 55th in the world and Rory Sabbatini is just inside the cut line for the match play event, ranked 62nd.

The field will be determined by the world rankings following the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, which ends Feb. 12.

The Accenture Match Play Championship will be held at The Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, Dove Mountain, from Feb. 22-26. Luke Donald won the 2011 event. He is ranked No. 1 in the world.

The Arizona athletic department posted a video of UA legend Terry Francona addressing the Wildcats baseball last weekend before he was honored at halftime of a basketball game.

Francona, the 1980 college baseball player of the year and two-time World Series champion as manager of the Boston Red Sox, offered the following advice:

“Show up on time, respect your teammates, respect your coaches, respect the way the game is played, and never, ever back down from a challenge.”

There is also good stuff from Francona about managing Michael Jordan in Double-A Birmingham. The message: Even a superstar like Jordan was “respectful of the game,” as well as coachable and hard-working.

The university honored Francona last Saturday for last year’s induction into the College Baseball Hall of Fame.

Francona, speaking in a renovated Hi Corbett Field clubhouse, told the Wildcats, “There’s no reason why you can’t have a chance to win a national championship here.” Check out the video for more.

Francona will be working for ESPN as an analyst on Sunday Night Baseball this season, so he will remain one of the most visible Arizona alums in athletics. I’d put him in the mix with Steve Kerr, Tedy Bruschi and Jennie Finch.

Solomon Hill takes a shot in the first half; he was tossed from the game early in the second half. Photo by Douglas C. Pizac-US PRESSWIRE

Coach Sean Miller said in his postgame radio interview with Brian Jeffries that he didn’t see the play in which Solomon Hill was ejected. Miller declined comment until he could see a replay.

“I just know Solomon is a great kid,” Miller said. “Sometimes things happen in the heat of the battle. We’ll watch the film and talk to him.”

Hill had five points and four rebounds.

“Solomon wasn’t playing well. It wasn’t as if we lost him on a real good night,” Miller said. “He wasn’t having a good night, but we are clearly a better team with him. In that brief moment when he left, we answered like you’d want a team to answer.”

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Arizona takes care of business with a 77-51 win at Utah, outscoring the Utes by 21 points after Solomon Hill’s ejection with 18:14 to go. The Cats made 12 of 24 3-point shots.

Utah is a bad team, made worse by the dismissal of point guard Josh Watkins, so the margin of victory is nothing to get excited about. Things will be tougher Saturday at Colorado, which is 10-1 at home.

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Just running out the clock now. Am eager to hear what Sean Miller says about Solomon Hill after the game. Only nine turnovers with about three minutes to go; that should make Miller relatively pleased.

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Arizona leads 60-45 with 7:58 to go and just needs to bring this one in for a landing against a really bad Pac-12 team.

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This is about how Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez would feel if Davonte' Neal signs with the Wildcats. Photo by Pat Shanahan, The Arizona Republic

The recruitment of Scottsdale Chaparral athlete Davonte’ Neal apparently will go past the Feb. 1 signing day … and the Arizona Wildcats have a chance.

Dick Obert of the Arizona Republic — our Gannett partner in Phoenix — reported Wednesday afternoon that Neal agreed to take an official visit to Arizona on Feb. 11. Neal and his family met with new head coach Rich Rodriguez and two assistants on Wednesday.

Neal is rated the nation’s 53rd-best prospect by 247sports.com, is 74th by Scout.com and 107th by Rivals.com. He was selected a Parade All-American.

As of mid-December, Neal had ruled out Arizona and Arizona State, saying he would go out-of-state for college, but Rodriguez and his staff managed to get their foot in the door.

Neal has taken visits to Ohio State and Notre Dame. Trips to Arkansas and North Carolina are pending.

Here is the full story from the Republic:

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Jarrett Lee nearly got his comeback.

The LSU quarterback, who never got off the bench in the national championship game as the Tigers were shutout by Alabama, directed his team on a late touchdown drive at the Casino Del Sol All-Star Game at Kino Stadium on Monday night.

He was then upstaged by San Jose State quarterback Matt Faulkner and a Division II wide receiver who once led Kansas State in rushing.

Lee’s 16-yard touchdown pass to Rich Rossi of Sacred Heart University with 3:36 left gave the Stars (East) team a 21-17 lead. The Stripes (West) came back with a 17-play drive.

On fourth-and-10, Faulkner hit LaMark Brown for a 13-yard touchdown pass with 22 seconds left. That gave the West a 24-21 victory in the first Casino Del Sol All-Star game.

The Stripes celebrated as a team would any big victory. Former Arizona teammates Robert Golden and Paul Vassallo grabbed the cooler of ice water and dumped it on unsuspecting head coach Pat Hill as the clock ticked off its final seconds.

“I thought the kids played their hearts out,” Hill said. “I’m glad we put the two-minute offense in on Saturday. Matt handled it very well.”

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Michael Shaw runs through Minnesota last season. Photo by Rick Osentoski-US PRESSWIRE

Former Michigan running back Michael Shaw rolled his eyes.

He’s been in Tucson this week, preparing for the Casino Del Sol College All-Star Game, so he’s been hearing the same question wherever he goes: “What do you think of Rich Rodriguez?”

The Arizona Wildcats’ new head coach was with the Wolverines from 2008-2010, a time of transition for Michigan that, as well-chronicled, didn’t go smoothly. Rodriguez went 15-22. Shaw was part of his first recruiting class.

“He’s a fiery guy,” Shaw said after Friday’s practice.

“He believes in his system, and his system works. (At Michigan), I think a lot of the guys had trouble buying in the first couple of years, but the guys out here in Arizona, they will buy in.

“They will compete with Oregon and USC as the top program out here because he’s a great coach, his staff is great, and they will get the guys ready.”

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