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Show /port/ MONDAY • JANUARY 22 • 2007 D3 Track and field shines in first meet runner-up place in the 60-meter and 310-meter Sports Writer events and thrower Gavin Shaw finishing second in Two first place finishes the men's weight throw. and several other good Also helping out the team performances helped the with a top-three finish was UVSC track and field Matt Echols with a long team get a start on their jump of 5.93 meters. season in the team's On the women's opening meet at the BYU side for UVSC, several Invitational held on Jan. runners faired well with 12 and 13. sprinter Manama Saiifu Track and field Head placing third in both the Coach Scott Houle was 60-meter and 310-meter pleased with his team's sprints. The women did performance in the not do as well in the meet. "It was a really field events; however, good meet for the first with Tiera Zaugg placing meet of the year," Houle fourth in the long jump said. "Our new athletes for the best Wolverine had opportunities to performance. compete." Not all of the team Freshman Zach Cook ran in the meet, though, won the long jump with as most of the women's a 6.88 meter jump and distance runners, sophomore Karinne including highly touted Bentley won the mile- recruit Mary Nothum, run with a winning time were kept out of the day's of 5:12. Cook also took competition to focus on fourth place in the 60- the next meet. meter hurdles event. "She was held off until "It was fun to go out Boise to prepare more," and start competing for Houle said of Nothum's the first time," Cook said. absence. "I was a happy with my The Wolverines will performance." next be back in action The second- at the Bronco Indoor place finishes for the Invitational at Nampa, Wolverines included Idaho on Jan. 26 and 27. Chris Fogt snagging the Jason Adkins Ghristl HIcken/NetXNews Sarah McOmber, a freshman, competes in the hammer throw during the Cougar Collegiate Indoor Invitational. Women's basketball schedule JANUARY Jan. 25 South Dakota State 7:05 p.m. Jan. 27 North Dakota State 3:05 p.m. Activity Center FEBRUARY Feb. 1 at New Jersey Tech 5:00 p.m. Feb.3atlPFW11:00a.m. Feb. 10 Texas Pan American 7:05 p.m. Activity Center Consistently inconsistent Hot start but trying to avoid cold finish James Warnick Sports Writer The UVSC women's basketball team started on fire out of the gate with a 9-1 record, the best start in school history, but the have lost seven out of their last eight games and struggling to stay. The season began with seven straight home games for the lady Wolverines, and they took full advantage of them by losing only once to the University of Utah in double overtime. UVSC even won their first two road contests of the season, beating Idaho State in OT up in Pocatello, and they also defeated Weber State in Ogden. It looked as though the Wolverines really had something special brewing this season as their costars—Robyn Fairbanks and Sandy Marvin—were leading them to victory game after game. Momentum favored the Wolverines as they pulled out some last second victories and continually found a way to win. Every pan of UVSCs game looked good until they hosted Brigham Young at the McKay Events Center Dec. 16. BYU exposed UVSCs weaknesses that day and showed the Wolverines that they weren't unbeatable. UVSC showed a lot of heart against BYU, but their inexperience and youth caught up with them as the more experienced Cougars took an early lead and never looked back in the contest. The Wolverines'roster is made up of 10 sophomores and freshman this season that are definitely on the rise in their collegiate careers. But with only two juniors and a senior, they are missing that crucial experience and leadership that they must attain before the season's end. On the flip side of the coin, this means that UVSC will be getting better and better for the next couple of seasons as the team gains more experience and develops a better game together as a unit. The Wolverines need more depth and consistency on both ends of the court to pull away with some more wins. Coach Cathy Nixon said, "We are a young te;im who has a long way to go and obviously needs some improvement. I want to see effort; I want to see us fight. We focus on playing smart, playing hard; and if we do that then things will go our way." UVSC has the star power to be great with sophomore center Fairbanks leading the charge as the second leading scorer in the nation with 24.8 points per game. Fairbanks has won the Division-I Independent Player of the Week four times this season and six times in her short career at UVSC. She has broken the school record for points in a game with 43 against Montana State in the only Wolverine victory last month. She also holds the school record for rebounds in a game with 20 against Boise State and has already become the school's NCAA all-time leading scorer with 921 in just a season and a half of play. Fairbanks is well on her way to passing 1,000 career points and in her 46 career games played she is averaging of 20.5 points per game. Fairbanks is also leading all Independents in scoring and field-goal percentage with 55.2 percent per game, and is second in rebounding with 9.1 boards per contest. UVSC begins their play against fellow Independent Conference opponents Jan. 25 at the McKay Events Center against South Dakota State. They follow up with another home game Jan. 27 against North Dakota State in the Shurinn Family Activity Center. i X *'*V"*.vvi""XiO.,% .'• cover. i 2 Passes • 2 Drinks • 2 Cheeseburgers • $ 1 4 0 Grab a buddy and head to The Canyons Resort ^fday lift tickets, 2 cheeseburgers, and 2 draft g^beers or soft drinks for only $140. Just go to fp^icpass.com and download a voucher to present 11jfj'at the ticket window and yauTrBe'well on yodr Ufway to more of Utah's biggest resort for less. !&&vS?;.V pairpass.com -it! 4 3 5.B 15.34 1 'Offer valid unDl 2 / 1 5 / 0 7 and may not be combined with any other offer or discount. You must present a copy of the voucher to receive this offer, jkmarestnetions may apply. • ^ |