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Show orts The College Times MONDAY, DECEMBERS 2007 Fairbanks and Marvin leading the way to hot start firing on all cylinders this season. Assistant Sports editor In spite1 of the empty gym and the lack of fan supWhile Utah Valley port Utah Valley's efforts students were enjoying haven't gone unnoticed. Thanksgiving break in variIn the AP top 25 poll last ous ways, the Wolverines' week Utah Valley received a were busy making noise on vote for the first time ever. the hardwood. To an established DiviWhether it was the thrill- sion I program, this wouldn't ing overtime win over Big be a big deal; but to a proEast opponent Seton Hall gram trying to achieve noor hitting the road to win tice, it's great recognition. a tough game against Utah See WOMEN'S BASKETBALL • B7 State, Utah Valley has been Matt Beaudin Kenneth Dolezwr Hockey team playing for coach now : • Title town MattBeaudin Assistant Sports editor Sports are a safety net: a metaphor for life that can mean everything and noth, ing-*at the same time. People invest their hearts into sports with minimal real life consequence. ; For Utah Valley's hockiey team, that safety net was duttwo weeks ago when betoVed assistant coach Ken £)6lezsar was killed outside a Sandy restaurant. The thin lme between fact and fiction was blurred for players and coaches alike. .Nevertheless, life goes on and hockey season continues for the players that decided to play last Friday night in Dolezsar's memory. "We had a choice," said coach Matt Beaudry. "And the guys chose to play for Ken." See DOLEZSAR • 87 Athletics passed with flying colors Ben Webster , - Sports editor A few weeks ago, the athletics department was working hard getting ready for the NCAA to come in and see where . the department was at on the path to becoming full Division I athletics. , • The NCAA gives -,"-Jbut three grades for the Evaluations: fail, pass or ,-pass with exceptions. j Valley passed and y said this was the best school they've seen,*' said Jared Sumsion, £*iScutive Director of the 'Wolverine Club. -J' Passing with exceptions is the most likely scenario for schools making the transition to D-I athletics, Usually from Division II or III; but Utah Valley, jumping fittfn junior college to D-I, ;' '['- See ATHLETICS- B7 Early lead erased on the road, men lose -The College Times \ After a strong start, Utah Valley built an early lead, the University of San Francisco used a big run at the end of the first half and the start of the second half to take a 69-64 win over the Wolverines. Jabir Jinna who scored a-career-high 19 points on -7-of~8 shooting, led Utah Vally (3-3). Jordan Brady scored 12 and pulled down nJne rebounds. USF (3-3) was led by Manny Quezada who scored 26. "We fought and we battled but it wasn't enough," Utah Valley coach Dick Hunsaker said. "San FranSee MEN'S BASKETBALL • B7 File Photos / College Times tbut sports go on Ben Webster Sports editor What makes most people happy at this time of the year is spending time with family or something. But what is going to make the men and women's basketball teams happy is a heavy dose of winning. A couple of losses won't completely ruin their holidays, but winning can only make this time of the year that much sweeter. With the women off to their hottest start in their short NCAA history, the schedule becomes much tougher with a couple of road games this month. After receiving a vote in the Associated Press Top 25 for the first time ever, Robyn Fairbanks and company are on top of the world. The tough schedule starts this week with a game against cross-town foe BYU on Saturday. The women won't play at home until a Dec. 15 game against Portland but then comes one of the most interesting games on the schedule, a game in North Carolina against No. 10 Duke. Connecticut, ranked No. 2, destroyed Duke 74-48 over the weekend for the Blue Devils only loss this season. A Utah Valley upset would be the biggest win ever for any team at the school and almost guarantee a national ranking. Utah Valley also hosts Gonzaga and Nevada before school is back in session for the spring semester. By the time everyone is back in school, the women's team will either continue its great season or have another letdown. As for the men's team, they will be on the road most of the break but they will play at home against Boise State Dec. 13. It will give the Wolverines a chance to avenge its seasonopening loss in overtime against the Broncos. After facing one WAC team, Utah Valley will travel to play against two in-state teams. Southern Utah in Cedar City and Utah State in Logan in the Gossner Foods Classic. After all the travel during most of the holidays, the men will return home for two games against Cal State Northridge and the second game of the season against San Francisco before ringing in the new year. And although most students won't be around campus during the break, it's the best part of the schedule for both teams. Check out wolverinegreen.blogspot.com for updates and more all during the break. Key games during winter break Women's basketball Men's basketball Dec. 8 Against BYU, 4:30 p.m. Dec. 13 Against Boise State, 7:05 p.m. Dec. 18 At Duke, 5 p.m Dec. 20 At Utah State, 8:05 p.m. Mike Warner / College Times Camie Manwill and the rest of the Wolverine volleyball team had a lot to scream about this season, winning the Independent Championship. Volleyball completes fall team's championship haul Jason Adkins Sports editor The women's volleyball team finished its season with a bang as they won the Division I Independent championship. After finishing second last year, coach Sam Atoa said last year's finish left a bitter taste in the mouth of the returning players. "This time last year, we tasted defeat. That was very hard for us," Atoa said. "Those that were here remember that and worked really hard to get back what we thought was ours." Taking Atoa's lead, the team's aggressiveness on every point kept any team from getting within six points the entire weekend. The final, on Nov. 17 against Cal State-Bakersfield, the Wolverines won easily (30-21, 30-22, 3021). "They wanted this for so long and it's been such an incredible year to have the most wins ever (21) and to have it [the title] on our home court," Atoa said. Unlike the first two matches of the tournament in which strong hitting led to wins, Cal State-Bakersfield hurt themselves with 31 errors compared to the Wolverines's eight miscues. While Utah Valley's team hitting was .307, Jessica Endres was once again the leader on the court by hitting .500 and totaling 10 kills. Camie Manwill was busy in defense with 14 digs, but she still was able to get eight kills in the match. Utah Valley swept Texas-Pan American (30-17, 30-24, 30-22) and Providence (30-18, 30-21, 3016) on Nov. 16 to set up its third straight appearance in the Independent tournament championship match. Weber State transfer Kristi Lindley is the main part in giving her teammates good swings at the ball, leading the way with 79 assists over two matches. "We've done a good job meshing as a team and that's made a big difference," Lindley said. Endres -led the way by hitting over .500 in both of those matches, including .611 against Providence, She also added 12 kills against Providence, with Kristin Anderson hitting .438 and nailing 10 kills. "For sure it helps to be home, but also we lost in the finals last year," Endres said. "We have some motivation from that." With the win, the Wolverines finished with a 2110 record ~ setting a teamrecord for most victories at the DI level. "I think it's great [to reach the mark]," Atoa said. "Especially when we are getting better and improving. Whether it's 20 or 19 [wins], we have a few more wins than we did last year and we are doing some good things." |