UMBC Retrievers

Mascot

The retriever mascot is a Chesapeake Bay Retriever, the state dog of Maryland. There is a statue of a retriever known as True Grit that stands in front of the Retriever Activities Center (RAC). UMBC's costumed mascot has been known both as True Grit and Fever. UMBC also once had a live mascot named Campus Sam. Today, there is a live mascot named Gritty. In 2007, True revealed he had a sister, Trudy Grit, at the volleyball pep rally. She was used as a mascot as well.

To commemorate the 40th anniversary of UMBC in 2006, the University held the "March of the Retrievers," a procession of 40 Chesapeake Bay Retrievers from the True Grit statue to the University Commons and then on to the UMBC Soccer Stadium, site of the Homecoming soccer match.

Varsity teams

A member of the America East Conference, UMBC sponsors teams in nine men's and ten women's NCAA sanctioned sports:

Baseball

UMBC Retrievers baseball competes at the Division I level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The team is led by Bob Mumma, and plays its home games at The Baseball Factory Field at UMBC on campus in Baltimore. The Retrievers are members of the America East Conference.

Basketball

The Retrievers won their first regular season American East Men's Basketball title in 2007-08, and also qualified for their first NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament. They had previously competed in the Division II men's basketball tournament.

Retrievers Basketball games are broadcast by Paul Mittermeier and Gary Stein as well as Troy Greene and Dan Levin.

Soccer

The Retrievers Men's Soccer Team won the America East Conference in 2010, receiving an automatic bid to the NCAA Division I men's soccer tournament. The Retrievers won their first round game against Princeton but lost in the second round in a shootout to a ranked William and Mary team. Star striker, Levi Houapeu, from that 2010 team was drafted as a 5th pick in the 3rd round of the 2011 MLS Superdraft by the Philadelphia Union. He is the first UMBC player to be drafted into the MLS. Levi is now a member of the Baltimore Blast of the Major Indoor Soccer League. The men also won the conference again in 2012, and advanced to the NCAA tournament once again. They won their first round game against Old Dominion, but lost in penalty kicks in the second round to defending champion, UNC Chapel Hill. In 2013 the Retrievers led the country in overall record (16-1-3) and became the first team since 1997 to repeat as America East Conference Champions. They would earn a #16 seed and a first round bye as well as host UMBC's first ever NCAA Tournament match in any sport. The Retrievers would fall in a penalty shootout for the third time in four years in the second round of the tournament to UConn. In 2014, the Retrievers won their third straight America East Conference Championship and advanced the furthest of any UMBC NCAA Division I team by beating the #12-ranked Creighton 4-3 on PKs, as the Retrievers reached the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship semifinals. UMBC is the first team in tournament history to win four consecutive road games and to post shutouts in four consecutive games behind GK Billy Heavner and the back four of Jordan Becker, Oumar Ballo, Marquez Fernandez, and Spencer Williams (against Wake Forest, #4-ranked Maryland, #13-ranked Louisville and #12-ranked Creighton) to reach the College Cup.

The Retriever women's soccer team won their first American East Conference title and made their first NCAA tournament appearance in 2013, where they lost to #1-ranked VA Tech 2-0 in the first round. This was an amazing accomplishment considering the team had a cumulative record of 3-39-9 in their previous three years.

Table

In Spring of 2014, UMBC announced that a brand new, $85 million stadium and events center is to be built and opened sometime during the 2017-2018 school year. The new stadium will host Retriever basketball and volleyball games, as well as host convocations, speaker events, and other community events.

The UMBC Dance Team, cheerleading squad, mascot, and the "Down and Dirty Dawg" Pep Band also are supported through UMBC Athletics.

Athletic Alumni

True Grit

True Grit is the name of the mascot at UMBC. True Grit appears in two forms: Both as a statue in front of the Retriever Activities Center of a Chesapeake Bay retriever and as a costumed mascot, an anthropomorphized Chesapeake Bay retriever. The latter can typically be seen in attire of whatever sport he is currently attending; this is most often basketball or lacrosse.

History

The Chesapeake Bay retriever is the state dog of Maryland and has been the mascot of UMBC since weeks after its founding in 1966. The costumed mascot was alternately known as "Fever the Retriever" in the late 1990s. The University also once had a live mascot, upon whom the True Grit statue is based, named Campus Sam. At the beginning of the 2008 fall semester, a Chesapeake Bay retriever puppy was chosen as a new mascot. He attends many athletic events and an online poll was held on the Retriever Activities Center website to choose his name, which was ultimately decided as "Gritty".

The costumed mascot has been fairly consistent throughout the years, with one notable exception. At convocation at the beginning of the 2002-2003 academic year, a new mascot costume was unveiled that was quite different from the previous costume. This mascot was active throughout the rest of the school year, but following that year a familiar-looking mascot returned--the new costume was similar to the first edition with a slightly darker brown coat.

UMBC Riser

The UMBC Riser is the official fight song of the UMBC Retrievers, and was written by Dr. George LaNoue, a professor of policy sciences

Stand up and cheer, UMBC
Forward we go, to another victory.
Retrievers, be bold,
We back you as we stand,
Black and gold, the best in Maryland.
Rise up and sing!
Stand up and roar!
Make echoes ring from the mountains to the shore.
Baltimore's pride, our alma mater grand,
UMBC, the best in any land!

Alma mater

UMBC's alma mater debuted in 2006 in conjunction with the 40th anniversary festivities. The tune is American Hymn by Matthias Keller, and the lyrics and arrangement are by Jari Villanueva, former director of UMBC's pep band.