""Bat Cats" success can't be measured in dollars

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Posted 9:48 PM 6/26/2012 : "Bat Cats" success can't be measured in dollars

TUCSON - It was an amazing end to an incredible season, the Arizona Wildcats blazed through post season play, hosting a regional and super regional before slicing throught the best of the best at the College World Series. But despite bringing home an eighteenth national championship to the U of A it did not bring in the dollars.

According to Arizona Athletic Director Greg Byrne the first regional actually made nearly 40-thousand dollars but that was quickly swallowed up with costs for the Super Regional at Hi Corbett field. That regional ended up losing money.

Many believe that schools are paid revenue money when its teams appear on nationally televised events but the only sports that do receive that kind of income are football and mens basketball. Byrne say the benefits of national coverage cannot be measured in dollars, "you can't buy that type of exposure, if you tried to buy that kind of advertising it would cost you millions and millions of dollars"

Last year the arizona baseball team cost the university 816-thousand dollars. this year it will cost an estimated 640-thousand, a price that included a 330-thousand dollar lease for hi corbett. greg byrne says it was money well spent, "Our net loss is down substantially, but even more importantly it put us in a position to host a regional, host a super regional, get us to Omaha, get hot at the right time and win a national championship"

Of the 19 sports played at the U of A, 17 lose money. Greg Byrne says that if they could get the baseball team to a net loss of 500-thousand dollars that would be a big step forward for the athletic department.

Posted 6:45 PM 6/26/2012 : Championship T-shirts are a big hit on campus

TUCSON - The McKale Center wasn't the only place celebrating the big Wildcat win today. The University bookstore received their first batch of championship T-shirts, and they were flying off the shelves.

Jon Arrowood stopped by the store before the shirts were even on display. He said he was happy to wait all day.

Rick Felix, another shopper, didn't stop at just one.

"I was getting one for my God daughter and my sister called and said get one for her husband and I'm getting one for myself too."

Beth Vlahos, the University's Bookstore buyer, says she thought she was prepared for the mad rush.

" I have 21 hundred but that number seems to be going up by the hour."

Tomorrow, four more styles will be delivered, including the popular on by Nike that reads "Wildcats own Omaha."

The shirts are also being sold at the McKale Short Stop store, The University stores at Tucson and Park Place Mall, and the Wildcat Threads store in the recreation center.