OCR Text |
Show B2 SPORTS Five grapplers take 1st at Trapper Open Coaches poll has women taking 2nd NAPERVILLE, Ill. -- The +M■ AL . Photo by Mike Fackrel/UVU Review Wolverine grapplers interlock during the team's intrasquad dual held Nov. 2. The team boasted five first-place finishers at the Trapper Open in Wyoming on Nov. 5. POWELL, Wyo. -The Utah Valley University wrestling team started the season with a bang Saturday as five individuals won titles and 10 placed at the Northwest College Open in Powell, Wyo. UVU 141-pounder Avery Garner, 165-pounder Ethan Smith and 174-pounder Monte Schmalhaus all won titles wrestling attached to the Wolverines, while 125-pounder Jade Rauser and 157-pounder Chase Cuthbertsonwon their titles wrestling unattached on the day. All five of the grapplers that won titles went a perfect 4-0 at the open. "I'm very pleased with our performance here," UVU head coach Greg Williamssaid. "That is the best that we've ever done at a pre-season tournament, which says we have a lot of talent on our team. I also noticed that we also have a lot of work to do to get to the next level but there is no question in my mind that we're going to get there." Behind the top finishes 141-pounder Kyle West placed second with a 3-1 record and 125-pounder Colby Christensen, 141-pounder Glenn Terrano, and 197-pounder Brian Chamberlain all went 4-1 to finish third. UVU 197-pounder Adam Fagerfinished placing second while Photo by Spencer Harris/UVU Review Abbie Beutler (#12) and Kim Bell (#20) celebrate on sideline during the team's exhibition game against Western New Mexico on Nov. 2. W. BASKETBALL from B1 Zealand) and true freshman Will Sinclair (Australia) hope to provide consistent post production to a Wolverines team that lost starting power forward Jordan Swarbrick (11.1 points, 5.2 rebounds per game) and sixth man Justin Baker (7 points, 5 rebounds per game). Fannon, a fifth-year senior, will be counted on after being mostly a non-factor last season. "Losing Justin Baker and his versatility, his experience, his poise is a big loss for us," Hunsaker said. "Rory's going to need to be more consistent. We have seen significant improvement, tangible improvement in fall practices with Rory. Better decisions, just more solid play." Where Fannon is the overdue veteran, Sinclair fills the project role, boasting a wealth of what Hunsaker referred to as "unharnessed talent." His thinner frame has forced him to learn both post positions depending on the opposition's size, but Fannon hopes his athleticism will negate any disadvantage in girth. "I'm long and I've been told I'm a little bit of a jet down the floor," Fannon said. "I hope I can fit well into the running game and crash the boards, contribute a little bit of everything." The Tasman Sea rivalry between Fannon and Sinclair's respective nation has reared a friendly head, adding an extra dimension of chemistry to the two backup big men. New Zealand beat Australia in the 2011 Rugby World Cup semifinals last month, giving Fannon temporary bragging rights over his Aussie counterpart. Sinclair needed no time coming up with a ready retort. "We beat them in the Tri Nation [rugby union] the year before, so I'm not too worried about that," Sinclair said. "The World Cup was a bit of a blow, but we're better at every other sport, so that's fine." National pride aside, both players came to appreciate the other quickly in fall practices. Sinclair was quick to credit Fannon for making the transition to the U.S. and Utah Valley an easier process. "He's been like a big broth- competing unattached with a 3-1 record. In the 141-weight bracket the Wolverines finished one, two and three as Garner won, West placed second and Terrano third. Garner and West also met one another in the title bout and a few days removed from West defeating Garner at the intrasquad, this time it was Garner who reigned supreme with a 7-4 decision victory over his teammate West. In all seven Wolverines (three of them competing unattached) made it to their respective finals on the day. In other action UVU wrestlers Napoleon Aniciete (157) and Eric McAllister (Hwt) went 3-2 at the open, while Jarod Maynes (125), Sam Mecham (141) and David Prieto (184) all finished 2-2. Dominic Borelli (184) and Phillip Sorensen (184) also wrestled their way to 1-2 records, while heavyweight Zoe Jensenfinished 0-2. Besides the three unattached grapplers that placed, UVU also had nine other unattached wrestlers in action. To see complete results and how they all did please view the attached results link at the top of this page. At the NWC Open UVU faced competition from Western Wrestling Conference rivals Wyoming and Air Force as well as a number of other regional NAIA and Junior College opponents. The Wolverines will take to the mat again next weekend when they compete at the Wrestle for a Cure Duals in Harrisburg, Pa., on Nov. 12. There UVU will take on No. 8 Illinois, No. 13 Ohio State, Buffalo and Shippensburg. "I'm excited to go back and wrestle two Big Ten teams (Illinois & Ohio State) that have a great wrestling tradition as well as two other good programs in Buffalo and Shippensburg, Williams added. "I want to see how our more experienced kids will fare as well as how our newcomers will do against tough competition wrestling at a high level." BASKETBALL from B1 her players to perform to her expectation offensively. "I think we have worked on a few things that are going to give the kids some more confidence and tools to be affective," Nixon said. "Any of the kids really can put up some numbers." Nixon feels that the team has a willingness to get better and prepare themselves to win conference games and as the team prepares for the season, they never forget to keep their eye on the prize. "It certainly is our goal that once we start the Great West play that we're competing and taking care of business," Nixon said. "Our goal is to contend for the championship and to win the tournament." Kevin Olsen can be reached at kvncups12 @ gmail .com . You can follow him on Twitter @kvnolsen. Coaches poll has UVU no. 1 Sammie Jensen will be expected to continually achieve double-double's. Last year she averaged a double-double per game with 14 points and 10.7 rebounds. Her performance has hedged an expectation from her coach and team for the rest of her NCAA career. "It's just something I've always expected out of myself growing up," Jensen said. "But knowing that a coach expects that out of you does help." Erika Newbold will start again this year after averaging 7.7 points and 6.2 rebounds per game last season. Nixon said having Newbold in the paint helps the team score points stemmed from the talent and respect that the center demands on the court. Still, Nixon has confidence in all of er," Sinclair said. "He welcomed me into the program, showed me around Utah and everything. Fannon was loathe to take on too much credit, saying Sinclair is "probably 10 times better" than he was as a freshman. It's that talent, however, that Fannon is excited to play with on the court along with that of Aird. "I definitely see it as a tagteam situation," Fannon said. "We work well on the court together, Ben and Will work well. Our big men just work very well together seeing the high-low and seeing each other in the post." Bumps and bruises Starting shooting guard and returning All-American Isiah Williams is still battling a sore back that plagued him for much of last season. He sat out the team's public intrasquad scrimmage Nov. 2, but there had been no indication he would not play when the regular season began Friday night against Simpson University. Hunsaker took an optimistic approach last week, alluding to what Williams did while Photo courtesy UVU Athletics Freshman center Will Sinclair, from Australia, hopes his athleticism will make an impact this seaosn. hurt last season and what he could do if/when healthy this year. "He played the last two thirds of last season at 75 percent," Hunsaker said. "If Williams is 100 percent, he'll be my most improved player. Anytime your best player can be your most improved player, that's a pretty good position to be in." Meanwhile, starting point guard Holton Hunsaker is dealing with soreness in his knees. The 6-1 guard was second on the team last year in 3-pointers made (50) and had showed a deft touch from the outside in the Nov. 2 scrimmage. NAPERVILLE, Ill. -- De- fending Great West Conference champion Utah Valley has been selected by the coaches to win the men's basketball title again in 2011-12. The Wolverines, who won the championship last season with an 11-1 conference record (19-11 overall), received five of six first-place votes and 34 total points in the balloting. "With four returning starters we certainly anticipate high expectations," said UVU head coach Dick Hunsaker. "We appreciate the compliment of being picked in what I think is going to be the strongest Great West Conference yet." Hunsaker, who enters his 10th season at UVU, returns one of the league's most experienced teams including 2010-11 GWC Player and Newcomer of the Year Isiah Williams The Wolverines also return second-team all-GWC honoree Ben Aird and honorable mention selections Holton Hunsaker and Geddes Robinson. 2011 GWC Tournament champion North Dakota received the other firstplace vote and tallied 28 points for second place, followed closely by last year's preseason favorite NJIT with 27 points. Texas-Pan American (15 points) was picked fourth with Chicago State and Houston Baptist tied for fifth with 11 points. Great West Conference women's basketball coaches have selected Utah Valley to finish second in the annual preseason poll for the 2011-12 season. North Dakota was projected to win the GWC with 36 total votes, while UVU finished second in the poll with 26. The Fighting Sioux won the inaugural GWC Regular-Season Title in 200910, while the Wolverines won the tournament crown that same season. Last year Chicago State won both the regular-season and tournament championships and this year the Cougars were projected to finish third with 23 votes. Texas-Pan American, Houston Baptist and NJIT rounded out the preseason coaches' poll with 22, 11 and eight votes respectively. The Wolverines finished the regular season strong last year, winning five of their last seven games and finishing with a 5-7 GWC record (8-21 overall). Coach Cathy Nixon, who led her team to the inaugural GWC Tournament title in 2010, returns two second-team all-conference performers in Sammie Jensen and Jenna Johnson. Jensen, last season's GWC Newcomer of the Year, averaged a double-double last year with 14 points and 10.7 rebounds per game, while Johnson was second on the team averaging 13.5 points per game. After sitting out last season with a broken foot, Erika Newbold returns for the Wolverines. Newbold was an honorable mention all-conference selection in 200910, averaging 7.7 points and 6.2 rebounds per game during the GWC's inaugural season. SOCCER from B1 lucky than good, but either way Clifford's 40-yard shot on goal found it's way to the back of the net, sneaking just under the bar and over the goalkeeper. The win added to an already successful season, giving UVU conference titles for both the regular season as well as for the tournament. Clifford snatched the tournament MVP from the rest of the field with her amazing bomb that ended all of the action, but she was not alone. The Wolverines littered the field of All-Tournament players with Clifford, Ashley Burdett, Jaime Lyons and Kelsey Kimball Cook all being included. Clifford's seventh goal of the year would prove to be the deciding and final goal in all of Great West action for the 2011 season. Next year looks to be promising as most of the team will return, varying wildly from the start of this season. Anderson relied heavily on a talented, but inexperienced crop of players. Next season will be a challenge to see what the next step will be for a talented as well as experienced team. Coach Anderson has always scheduled tough opponents prior to conference play beginning, and next season may be the year that the Lady Wolverines can combine a solid run for championships in conference as well as a push for post-season play beyond the conference. |