(CU Independent illustration/Kelly Kaoudis)
Colorado’s tennis team was handed their fourth straight loss of the season after the No. 18 Sooners (9-2, Big 12 1-0) swept the Buffs (3-7, Big 12 0-1) 7-0 at the South Campus Courts in Boulder, Colo., on Sunday.
In the first Big 12 Conference match of the season for both squads, the Cowgirls took an early 1-0 lead after taking all three doubles matches.
The advantage for the Sooners began by dropping No. 1 doubles partners, seniors Abbie Probert and Michala Hedelund Jensen, 8-6.
Junior Ania Anuszkiewicz and freshman Kristina Schleich were next, tying their doubles match before falling 8-6 in the No. 2 doubles match, while freshman Winde Janssens and Carla Manzi Tenorio lost 8-4 in No. 3 doubles match against Oklahoma’s with Maria Kalashnikova and Tara Eckel.
Colorado Head Coach Nicole Kenneally said Oklahoma’s squad is one of their best teams in the last decade.
“We knew it was going to be a tough battle, but I think with matches like that you can learn a lot as well,” Kenneally said. “I think all of our players, but especially a couple of our freshman got a lot out of that match. I think that will help them to continue to catapult forward.”
In the singles matches, Colorado fared equally as miserable, as the Buffs were unable to capture a single point.
Up next for the Buffs are the Texas A & M Aggies on Friday at 5 p.m. in College Station, Texas.
Golfers finish fifth in Oregon
Battling strong winds, the men’s golf team finished fifth after posting a score of 893 in the Bandon Dunes Championship in Bandon, Ore., on Saturday.
Washington won the event with a score of 871 points. The event was an “Under Four Sanctioned” tournament, which meant methods were applied to play a round of golf in less than four hours unlike the usual five or more hours for a collegiate round.
The elements struck in the form of 30 to 48 mph wind, 40-degree temperatures and heavy rain that ended up delaying the tournament for about three hours.
“Definitely some of the worst conditions you can ever have to play, extremely windy on a tough golf course,” CU Head Coach Roy Edwards said. “It could have been worse, it could have rained a lot harder.”
But the weather didn’t stop junior Sebastian Heisele from his best performance of the season, shooting 2-over 74 with a 219 score, 3-over par on the 6,798-yard, par-72. His score was good enough to tie for a sixth place finish.
Sophomore Jason Burstyn matched Heisele’s 2-over 74 round and tied for 13th overall with a 5-over 221 score. The finish was Burstyn’s career top 20 finish in college.
Action will resume for the Buffs on Monday, March 21, at the Oregon Duck Invitational in Eugene, Ore.
“It was great to see Sebastian and Jason play as well as they did this week, and their rounds today were really exceptional,” said Edwards. “Overall, the guys really wanted to come out play solid this week and build into the coming weeks. That’s exactly what they did and I’m proud of them for that.”
Five CU student-athletes get Dr. Gerald Lage Award
As 93 Big 12 Conference student-athletes were named to the inaugural Dr. Gerald Lage award on Thursday, five Buffs found themselves among those receiving the league’s highest academic honor.
Senior Ashley Babcock, junior Jamie Befort, senior Emily Hanenburg, senior Levi Knutson and Kelly Menachof were the Colorado recipients. The honor is bestowed on students who letter at least one season and pass 100 hours of credits with a 3.80 or better cumulative grade-point average.
Babcock is a skier, a member of the National Championship team, and is studying geography and environmental studies. She was a three-time Division I All-Academic Ski Team.
Befort is a junior golfer, and she is a native of Westminster, Colo. She is double majoring in integrative physiology and business.
A distance runner from Colorado Springs, Hannenburg is studying studio arts. She is also a member of the Dean’s List and was named to the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll.
Basketball star Knutson is well-known for his performance outside the court as he is for his hardwood action. In addition to being named to the 2011 Capital One Academic All-American Men’s Basketball Second Team, he was named the 2011 co-Big 12 Sixth Man of the Year.
Menachof is another Colorado native, hailing from Castle Rock. She completed a two-year career with CU’s women’s soccer team while completing a degree in integrative physiology and was a member of the 2009 Academic All-Big 12 team.
Contact CU Independent Sports Editor Esteban L. Hernandez at Esteban.hernandez@colorado.edu.
