A season-high for DU Gymnastics, a photo finish for 10k freestyle skiing, a split weekend for Women’s basketball against a North Dakotan slate: here is what happened last week in DU athletics.
Skiing
It was a busy week for skiing as they competed in the Denver Invitational and the Colorado Invitational at Eldora, and Loveland Ski Area. At the Denver Invitational, the team placed 2nd in the 5K Freestyle and senior Bernhard Flaschberger (St. Veit, Pongua, Austria) placed first in the men’s side. The team placed 3rd in the 10k freestyle and 2nd on both Saturday and Sunday’s action slalom. Sophomore Andres Kirkeng (Lier, Norway) finished 1st in the 10k freestyle on the men’s side by less than a second. At the Colorado Invitational, the team concluded the competition with a third-place finish on giant slalom. Overall, the team placed 2nd in the Denver Invitational and 3rd in the Colorado Invitational. The team will travel to Anchorage, Alaska next week to compete in the Alaska Anchorage Invitational.
Men’s Tennis
After the home match against Montana State was canceled on Feb. 5, men’s tennis traveled to Kansas to take on Wichita State on Feb. 12. Sophomore Daniel Sancho Arbizu (Zaragoza, Spain) and junior Charlie Miller (Glasgow, Scotland) won their singles matches in three sets, while junior Nicolas Herrero Cuesta (Segovia, Spain) won his singles match in straight sets. The team ultimately lost their match 3-4, and now stands at a 2-4 record for the year. They will look to get back into the win column with a match vs Metro State University of Denver at home on Feb 17.
Women’s Tennis
After going to Iowa City, Iowa and getting a win against Kansas State, the team traveled west to the University of Utah. Fifth-year student Taylor Melville (Duluth, Ga.) won her singles match in straight sets while senior Britt Pursell (Oceanside, Calif.) won her match in three sets. The team ultimately lost the match 2-5 and now has a 3-2 record on the season. DU will host their next match at home on Sunday against Brown.
Women’s Gymnastics
After a season-high performance on Feb. 5, the No. 8 gymnastics squad outdid themselves when they hosted Big 12 opponent West Virginia at home on Feb. 12. The team recorded a season-high 197.125 points, and Rylie Mundell (Parker, Colo.) had a stellar all-around performance. Mundell posted an all-around-winning 39.500 points and posted an impressive 9.950 on vault. Graduate student Lynzee Brown (Raytown, Mo.) posted a team season-high on bars, beating her own mark with a 9.950 and was not far behind Mundell with a 39.450 all-around score. The team will look to continue its recent success with a competition at Air Force on Feb. 17.
Men’s Basketball
The men’s basketball team headed north last week to take on two Summit League opponents: North Dakota and North Dakota State. The team lost 63-86 to the Fighting Hawks, Thursday night. Sophomore guard Tevin Smith (Danville, Ill.) dropped 17 points in the loss. The team then traveled an hour south to North Dakota State and put up a closer game in Fargo. The team was up at halftime but fell 70-78. The team will look to regain some ground with two home games Thursday and Saturday against South Dakota State and South Dakota.
Women’s Basketball
The women’s basketball team split their two games last week, losing their Thursday matchup against North Dakota and winning their Saturday matchup against North Dakota State. Junior guard/forward Emily Counsel (Perth, Australia) dropped a season-high 15 points in the 67-82 loss Thursday night. Saturday was much better for the team as they held North Dakota State to 37.1% from the field and freshman guard Emma Smith (Vestavia Hills, Ala.) dropped a career-high 27 points. The team will hit the road to South Dakota to take on South Dakota State Thursday night and South Dakota Saturday afternoon.
Men’s Lacrosse
After winning their season opener against Utah, the No. 18/17 ranked men’s lacrosse team trekked an hour south to Air Force on Saturday. The team played a close match against the Falcons and senior attack JJ Sillstrop (Encinitas, Calif.) picked up the first hat trick of the season for the squad. The team outscored the Falcons in the second half but ultimately fell short 10-12. They will travel east to North Carolina in their next match to take on Duke on Friday.
Women’s Lacrosse
The No. 9 ranked women’s lacrosse team is off to a solid start this season, winning their first two games on the road. The first was against Louisville on Friday and were down 4-0 at one point in the first half. The defense stepped up for the team and they scored five unanswered goals to complete the comeback and win 5-4. They then traveled to Vanderbilt and dominated the Commodores. Junior midfielder Sophia LaBanca (Kinnelon, N.J) and freshman attack Ryan Dineen (Huntingtown, Md.) gathered two goals and two assists each to lead the team to an 11-6 victory. The team will stick to the road for the next game but will not have to go too far as they take on No. 25 Colorado.
Men’s Hockey
The No. 4 ranked men’s hockey team continues to be a force in NCHC play and swept rival North Dakota in their weekend series. The difference between the two games in the series was the execution during power plays, as Friday night the team went 0 for 5 while on Saturday the team went 3 for 8. Sophomore forward Massimo Rizzo (Burnaby, B.C) and sophomore defenseman Sean Behrens (Barrington, Ili.) had four points each on the weekend, and freshman forward Aidan Thompson (Fort Collins, Colo.) recorded two goals to keep his four-game point-streak going. The team improves to 23-7 on the year and will take on Minnesota Duluth next weekend at Magness Arena.
Swim and Dive
The swim and dive team’s season is coming to a close and the team hosted the First Chance Invitational Friday and Saturday against Colorado State, Wyoming and Air Force. Senior swimmer Gaby Antonini (Key Biscanye, Fla.) had the race of the weekend, where she got an NCAA B standard cut in backstroke with a 53.93. The team will travel north to Minneapolis to compete in the Summit League Championships on Feb. 22 through Feb. 25.
