Three Cowboy wrestlers place in Reno

RENO, Nev. – The University of Wyoming wrestling team was led by a trio of redshirt freshmen on Thursday at the Reno Tournament of Champions.

Cowboy Joe LeBlanc confirmed his recent, high national ranking by advancing to the finals of the 184-pound weight class and placing second. Shane Onufer overcame a semifinal loss to win third place at 174 pounds, while Michael Martinez placed fifth at 125 pounds.

The field in Reno included wrestlers from the likes of No. 13 Oklahoma State, No. 14 Boise State, No. 17 Edinboro, Arizona State, Navy, North Carolina, Oregon State and Stanford. As a team the Cowboys placed seventh out of 30 schools.

“This was a good experience that will benefit us down the road, but right now I think the guys are worn out,” said first-year Wyoming head coach Mark Branch. “There were a couple of little things here and there that could have made a big difference. Overall, it was almost a somber mood from the team, not much emotion. We have wrestled more matches so far this season than almost anyone else and I think that has the guys worn down. This break is coming at a good time. We need to get refocused and reenergized.”

LeBlanc, ranked 10th in the country, earned the tournament’s one-seed and enjoyed a first round bye. He faced Ryan Smith from Cal Poly in his initial match and won by major decision 14-3. In the quarterfinals, LeBlanc would get another major decision win, this time 17-3 over Ernesto Ancona from Cal State Bakersfield. He bested Chris McNeil of Oklahoma State by a mark of 6-3 in the semifinals. LeBlanc then lost 4-1 in the finals to the two-seed and No. 9 ranked Chris Honeycutt of Edinboro. His final tournament record was 3-1 and his season mark is now 24-4.

Onufer was seeded third entering the event and ranked No. 18 nationally. He earned a 13-5 major decision over North Carolina’s Ben Fiacco to start things off, then beat Oregon State’s Brandon Perkins 8-2 and had a medical forfeit win over Brendon DeCock of Great Falls. Onufer then narrowly lost by a score of 5-2 to the two-seed from Navy, Luke Rebertus in the semifinals. He would go on to win two more matches, including a 12-10 decision over Jesse Feinsod from New Mexico Highlands in the third place match. Onufer was 5-1 on Thursday and is now 26-5 for the season.

The event’s four-seed, Martinez had two big wins to start the tournament, a 14-4 major decision over Stanford’s Matt Sencenbaugh and an 18-3 technical fall over Logan Creamer of Clackamas CC, before losing to Edinboro’s Kyle Fluke in the quarterfinals. He then advanced through the back-draw with two more wins, one by major decision, until the two seed and No. 12 ranked Marcos Orozco of UC Davis handed him a 6-3 loss. That put Martinez in a match for fifth and sixth place with Jake Gonzales of Oregon State, which Martinez would win in double overtime, 5-4. He finished the tournament 5-2 and now has a season record of 20-6.

Two Cowboy juniors had noteworthy tournaments, but did not place. Cory VomBaur went 4-2 at 133 pounds, while Alex Rieder was 4-2, three wins coming by fall, in the 174 pound weight class. Both of VomBaur’s losses came by the same opponent, North Carolina’s Mike Rappo, once in the opening round and once in the consolation bracket.

UW redshirt freshman Chase Smith (149) was 3-2, as was senior Eric Coxbill (165). Smith’s matches were extreme in both directions, winning by technical fall, pin and major decision, while his losses were by major decision and by fall.

The Cowboys will now take a break from competition until after the first of the year. They will begin the dual meet portion of their schedule on Jan. 4 when they travel to Fullerton, Calif., to face Cal State Fullerton and Columbia.
---
Wyoming Results
125 lbs - Michael Martinez (RFr), 5-2, Fifth place
133 lbs - Cory VomBaur (Jr), 4-2
141 lbs - Cole Dallaserra (So), 1-2
149 lbs - Chase Smith (RFr), 3-2
149 lbs - *Cody Chipperfield (Sr), 0-2
157 lbs - Brock Smith (RFr), 0-2
157 lbs - *Tyler Davis (RFr), 2-2
165 lbs - Eric Coxbill (Sr), 3-2
174 lbs - Shane Onufer (RFr), 5-1, Third place
174 lbs - *Alex Rieder (Jr), 4-2
184 lbs - Joe LeBlanc (RFr), 3-1, Second place
197 lbs - Alfonso Hernandez (Fr), 1-2
Heavyweight - Jacob Scharbrough (Fr), 2-2

* denotes UW wrestler competing unattached

UW swimmers stop Denver

The UW swimming and diving team stayed perfect on the season, as it swept Denver University Saturday afternoon. The Cowboys defeated the Pioneers 178-117, while the Cowgirls beat the DU women 186-112.

The Cowboys improved their record to 9-0 overall , while the Cowgirls are now 8-0 overall.

"I am happy with today’s win over a good team in Denver," said UW head coach Tom Johnson. "Our relay teams swam well and our divers were amazing as usual. Our freshman really stepped up today and helped with this victory."

The UW divers continued to be dominant as Stephanie Ortiz won both the one-meter (276.82 points) and three-meter (284.93) diving events. A pair of sophomores led the way on the diving boards for the Cowboys. Kyle Bogner had a score of 329.10 at one-meter dives, and Mark Murdock won the three-meter event with his score of 318.83.

The Cowgirl swimmers were paced by Aimee Stinson, Kelsey Conci, and Lesley Young who one multiple events. Stinson was victorious in the 1000 freestyle (10 minutes, 36.36 seconds) and the 500 freestyle (5:10.12) while freshman Kelsey Conci won the 100 backstroke (58.31) and 100 freestyle (54.21). Lesley Young continued her dominance in the breaststroke events by winning both the 100 (1:05.29) and 200 (2:25.30) events.

Other Cowgirls winning events were Caroline Wells (200 freestyle in 1:57.14), Cassie Stelow (50 freestyle in 24.41), and Kenzie Hewson (200 backstroke in 2:07.89).The Cowgirl relay teams won both the 200 medley relay and 400 freestyle relay as well.

For the Cowboys, two freshman won multiple individual events. Marshall Dilworth won both the 100 (50.87) and 200 (1:54.47) backstrokes while Brandon Fischer was victorious in the 100 (57.71) and 200 (2:07.51) breaststroke. Matt Urich also won two events by winning the 100 (51.13) and 200 (1:55.25) butterfly. Tommy Gregory (50 freestyle in 21.59), and Eli Bell (100 freestyle in 47.02) also added victories.

"The women’s team is continuing to get better and are becoming a tough team to beat," Johnson continued. "The men swam well today even though some didn’t have as good of times as they are used to. We will get back to work after the break and continue to work hard so we can get better the second half of the season."

The UW swimming team will travel to Irvine, Calif., on Dec. 29 for Christmas training. The divers will also be training over the break in Minneapolis, Minn., starting Dec. 31.

UW soccer earns academic honor

The University of Wyoming Cowgirl soccer team was honored for its academic success by The National Soccer Coaches Association of America for the 2008 season.

Wyoming was one of 363 teams that had at least a team GPA of 3.0 or higher. Along with Wyoming, New Mexico and TCU were the only teams in the Mountain West Conference to be honored by the NSCAA.

"We are very proud of the academic success of our players here at the University of Wyoming," said head coach Danny Sanchez. "Our coaching staff and academic coordinators take great pride in our student-athletes excelling in the classroom."

This is the first time the UW soccer team has been honored for academic success by the NSCAA.

UW's LeBlanc earns WWC honors

University of Wyoming redshirt freshman 184-pounder Joe LeBlanc (Meeker, Colo./Meeker HS) has been named the Western Wrestling Conference's Wrestler of the Week as announced by league officials.

In arguably the top preseason tournament in the country, Wyoming's Joe LeBlanc beat two top-20 wrestlers and placed third at the Las Vegas Invitational with a 6-1 record, two of his wins by major decision.

Unseeded heading into the event at 184 pounds, LeBlanc opened the tournament on Friday by beating the number three-seed and nationally ranked No. 6/7 (W.I.N./InterMat) Vince Jones of Nebraska in overtime. After an apparent 7-6 victory by LeBlanc in regulation time, the two wrestlers were called back to the mat to wrestle an overtime period when a scoring error revealed that the match should have ended in a 7-7 tie. Despite the difficult circumstance, LeBlanc prevailed and took down his favored opponent in overtime to win 9-7. LeBlanc ended his sterling event performance on Saturday night with an 8-7 victory over No. 18 (W.I.N.) Anthony Biondo of Michigan to earn third place honors in a difficult field.

His other wins included a 4-2 decision over Jake Meredith of Arizona State, a 14-2 major decision over Jon Clark of Cal Davis, a 6-5 quarterfinal win over the 11-seed Zac Thomusseit of Pitt and a 10-1 major decision over Tim Hawkins of Cal State Fullerton. LeBlanc's only loss came in the semifinals to eventual tournament champion, No. 4/5 ranked Kirk Smith of Boise State.

Largely due to his success in Las Vegas, LeBlanc entered the USAToday/InterMat/NWCA Individual Rankings this week at No. 11. He is ranked as high as No. 9 in other national rankings. The Cowboy redshirt freshman now has a season record of 21-3. LeBlanc led the Cowboys to a 19th-place team finish, the best of any otherW estern Wrestling Conference teams in attendance: Utah Valley (25th), North Dakota State (31st) and Air Force (37th).

The Western Wrestling Conference is comprised of seven schools includingthe Air Force Academy, North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, Northern Iowa, South Dakota State, Utah Valley and Wyoming.

UW wrestlers place two in Vegas

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Joe LeBlanc and Shane Onufer both came away with top seven places on Saturday at the 27th Annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Collegiate Wrestling Invitational.

One of the shockers of the tournament, LeBlanc advanced to the 184-pound semifinals and placed third overall with a 6-1 event record. Onufer ended the tournament in seventh place with a 5-2 record at 174 pounds. Cory VomBaur made it to the quarterfinals in the 133-pound weight class and was 2-2 in Las Vegas.

As a team, the Cowboys placed 19th of 44 teams, an 18-spot improvement from their 37th place finish at the same event last season. It was the best finish for Wyoming at the Las Vegas Invitational since it placed 16th in 2003. UW also bested the other three Western Wrestling Conference teams in attendance -- Utah Valley (25th), North Dakota State (31st) and Air Force (37th).

“Obviously, we did not have anyone favored to place prior to this tournament, so for us to have two guys place is good,” said first-year Wyoming head coach Mark Branch. “I am pleased with some things that I saw from my team over the last two days, but overall I think we have a lot to work on and I know that the guys feel that they didn’t perform as well as they could have."

LeBlanc ended his sterling event performance on Saturday night with an 8-7 victory over Anthony Biondo of Michigan to earn third place honors in a difficult field. His tournament record was 6-1 with three wins by major decision and an opening round triumph on Friday over the No. 7 wrestler in the country, Vince Jones of Nebraska. LeBlanc’s only loss came in the semifinals to eventual tournament champion, No. 5 ranked Kirk Smith of Boise State. The Cowboy redshirt freshman now has a season record of 21-3.

“I talked to the team last night about why Joe is in the position he has put himself in," Branch said. "He has been adapting his approach and is adding to both his offense and defense. He has been correcting his mistakes, has been open-minded with his workouts and is applying new skills, not just learning them."

Onufer, the tournament’s 12-seed, had three matches on Saturday in the back draw. He defeated Wisconsin’s Travis Rutt by a score of 7-3, then was narrowly defeated by Steve Bosak of Cornell, 5-4 due to a stalling point. That put the second-year Cowboy into a 7/8 matchup with Shane Riccio of Bucknell. Onufer would cruise in the match and pin Riccio at the 6:45 mark to secure seventh place. He now has a season record of 21-4 with 10 pins.

“Shane is disappointed with his performance," Branch said. "This tournament exposed some things he needs to work on, but to his credit, after a tough loss to the Cornell wrestler, Shane came back and dominated to take seventh."

After losing in the quarterfinals late on Friday, VomBaur began Saturday with a consolation bracket match-up against Matt Vacanti of Nebraska. VomBaur went the distance with Vacanti tied at 2-2 and additional time was needed to decide a winner. The match went to double-overtime and Vacanti prevailed 4-2, ending VomBaur’s tournament.

The Cowboy wrestlers will take next week off from competition in order to focus on their fall finals at UW. Wyoming’s next tournament will be the Reno Tournament of Champions in Reno, Nev., on Dec. 18.

“We are going to go back to our wrestling room and emphasize being physical on our feet," Branch said. "This team needs more of a fighter’s mentality and I want to see more fight in the dog in our future workouts and matches.”

UW indoor thinclads open season

The University of Wyoming track and field team opened the indoor season with 13 titles at Wyoming Open Power Meet on Saturday in the War Memorial Fieldhouse.

Senior Jake Shanklin highlighted the very impressive first day, as he picked up just where he left off from a year ago. Shanklin finished the 2007 indoor season at the NCAA Championships, where he earned All-America honors with his 11th-place finish in the 35lb-weight throw. On Saturday, he provisionally qualified for the NCAAs again with his 69-foot 11-inch toss in the weight throw.

His counterpart, sophomore Amanda Aimone, also won the 20lb-weight throw for the Cowgirls and entered the Top 10 all-time in Wyoming history with her throw of 60-1/2.

“This was huge for Jake to get right back on the horse and qualify for the NCAA’s in the first meet of the year,” said head coach Don Yentes. “Overall, I was very happy with the way we competed today, if we can continue to progress with our young talent we will be very good.”

Along with Aimone, leading the talent was Laramie freshman Stephen Michel, who took the title in the triple jump (49-6 1/2 and in the 55-meter dash (6.37 seconds). Michel also finished second in the long jump behind sophomore Jeremiah James, who moved into fifth all-time in UW history with his long jump of 24-7. Michel wrote his name in the record books as well with the 10th best long jump (24-3/4) and his triple jump on Saturday.

For the Cowgirls, junior Johnna Jeffries (high jump), freshman Alisha Reaser (pole vault), junior Jennifer Schmitz (55-meter hurdles), freshman Chantel Bernabo (200-meter) and junior Andrea Frary (400-meter) all walked away with the titles in their respective events.

“This was a great experience for our young kids to see what a college meet is like and learn how to prepare themselves for their events,” said Yentes.

Up next for the Cowboys and Cowgirls will be the Big 12/MWC Challenge in Lincoln, Neb., on Jan. 24.

UW diving wraps up Texas Invite

AUSTIN, Texas -- The University of Wyoming diving team performed well against top caliber opponents at the Texas Invitational, which began on Thursday and concluded on Saturday.

"The weekend as a whole was a great experience for our divers," said UW diving coach Ben Herdt. "It was highly competitive and on the first day we were a little jittery, but once we got our bearings together we performed a lot better."

The highlight on day one for the Cowboys came from sophomore Kyle Bogner, who made the final round on the one-meter board and finished eighth with a total of 310.7 points.

"For Kyle to score 300 in the preliminaries and the finals at a meet like this speaks well for him and his chances to defend his Mountain West championship," Herdt said.

The Cowgirls were up against tough competition on the three-meter board by facing numerous all-Americans and three divers that have won an NCAA championship in their careers. Stephanie Ortiz finished highest for UW in 17th place.

Day two resulted in senior Tyler Miller finishing seventh in men’s three-meter competition (303.9). For the women, Ortiz also finished seventh on the one-meter dives for the Cowgirls. Junior Emily Huth placed 12th out of a total of 31 divers.

Saturday, the Texas Invite ended with platform dives and two personal bests for UW divers. Miller led the way for the Cowboys and placed sixth with a total score of 263.35. Bogner had a personal best with a score of 257.70, while freshman Valentin Schwarz scored 203.05 at his first college platform event.

Huth led the way for the Cowgirls on the platform with a personal best score of 189.85 and finished 11th. Close behind was Ortiz in 12th place (180.70) and freshman Hillary Bohler was 13th (174.80).

"It is always hard for us on platform dives since we don’t have a tower to train from, but I am pleased with how we did today," Herdt said. "Overall It was a highly competitive weekend and it allowed our divers to have great experience to build off of ."

The UW swimming and diving team will be back in action Saturday as they host Denver University in Corbett Pool at 1 p.m.

Three Cowboys still alive at Las Vegas

The University of Wyoming wrestling team asserted themselves on the national scene Friday in Las Vegas and earned some quality wins in what is considered the top pre-season tournament in the country. The event features 10 of the Top 25 teams in the country.

Nine wrestlers began the day representing UW at the 27th Annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Collegiate Wrestling Invitational at the Las Vegas Convention Center. At day’s end, three Cowboys had put themselves in position to continue into the second day, including redshirt freshman Joe LeBlanc, who is in the semifinals at 184 pounds. Fellow second-year ‘Poke Shane Onufer has only lost once and is still wrestling in the consolation bracket at 174 pounds, as is junior Cory VomBaur at 133 pounds.

“This is a tough tournament and as a team I would like to have more than three guys still wrestling,” said first-year Wyoming head coach Mark Branch. “Our youth showed through in some spots, however, individually we got some wins that we needed and that will help us down the road. Since we are not in a power conference and with the way the NCAA Tournament qualification system works now, you have to think long-term and have to have some quality wins. That’s what it is about right now and I’m happy that we got some of those quality wins.”

LeBlanc got the ‘Pokes started on the right foot when he beat the number three-seed and nationally ranked No. 7 Vince Jones of Nebraska, 9-7 in overtime in the first round. After an apparent 7-6 victory by LeBlanc in regulation time, the two wrestlers were called back to the mat to wrestle an overtime period when a scoring error revealed that the match should have ended in a 7-7 tie. Despite the dificult circumstance, LeBlanc prevailed and took down his favored opponent in overtime to win 9-7. He then reeled off a 4-2 decision over Jake Meredith of Arizona State, a 14-2 major decision over Jon Clark of Cal Davis and a quarterfinal win over the 11-seed Zac Thomusseit of Pitt.

After a tough second round, 6-3 loss to the five-seed Trevor Perry of Indiana, Onufer bounced back to record three stright wins in the back-draw and gave himself a good chance of placing on Saturday.

VomBaur beat Utah Valley’s Flint Ray by a 7-3 score in the first round and then earned a gritty double-overtime, 5-4 victory over the eight-seed Matt Ortega of Indiana to advance to the quarterfinal round. There he lost to the top-seed from Illinois, Jimmy Kennedy.

Four Cowboys posted 2-2 records on Friday including senior Eric Coxbill at 165 pounds, redshirt freshmen Michael Martinez (125) and Chase Smith (149), as well as true freshman Jacob Scharbrough at heavyweight.

Smith provided one of the tournament highlights for the Cowboys in the first round when he pinned the No. 5 ranked wrestler in the country, David Jauregui of West Virginia, 27 seconds into the third period.

Coxbill lost an overtime heartbreaker in his opening round match, falling 3-1 in overtime to the event’s three-seed and nationally ranked No. 6 Luke Manuel of Purdue. The Cowboy senior then won his next two matches by major decision before losing his third bout in the consolation bracket.

UW sophomore Cole Dallaserra (141) and redshirt freshman Tyler Davis (157) each had 1-2 records.
---
Wyoming Results
125 pounds - Redshirt freshman Michael Martinez, 2-2
133 pounds - Junior Cory VomBaur, 2-1
141 pounds - Sophomore Cole Dallaserra, 1-2
149 pounds - Redshirt freshman Chase Smith, 2-2
157 pounds - Redshirt freshman Tyler Davis, 1-2
165 pounds - Senior Eric Coxbill, 2-2
174 pounds - Redshirt freshman Shane Onufer, 4-1
184 pounds - Redshirt freshman Joe LeBlanc, 4-0
197 pounds - Open
Heavyweight - Freshman Jacob Scharbrough, 2-2

Cowgirls camping for fun and a cause

Richard Anderson photo

Cowgirl volleyball players, from left, Lauren Curtis, Jenna Arneson and JennaRae Jester huddle up with some young players during the Christmas Holiday Volleyball Clinic Thursday night at the UniWyo Sports Complex. At bottom left, Sekota Romero passes the ball during a drill, while at right, Lexi Pulley tries for a kill.

By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org

The season is officially over for the Wyoming volleyball team. The commitment to their young fans and the community, though, is ongoing for the Cowgirls.

The Cowgirls have been hosting about 40 young campers in a three-day Christmas Holiday Volleyball Clinic at the UniWyo Sports Complex that began Wednesday night and will conclude Friday night. The event helps introduce the sport of volleyball to some eager youngsters, as well as continue to teach the game to some more veteran youth players.

Yet, there’s more than just fun and games in the gym. All of the proceeds of the clinic are going to help a needy local family for the holidays.

“The volleyball team wanted to adopt a family for Christmas and they wanted to find a way to pay for it and make a Christmas nice for somebody else,” Wyoming head coach Carrie Yerty said. “It’s a really neat thing. We’ve had a good time running it.”

The clinic is primarily focused on a lot of the younger kids, although they do have a handful of high school players who have come out to improve their game as of well.

Olivia Crum, 14, and a ninth grader at Laramie Junior High School, said the clinic has been a lot of fun.

“It’s been really great to see all of the college girls helping us out,” Crum said.

Yerty, along with assistant coach Jill Stucky and several of the Cowgirls, work with the youngsters in drills before dividing the players up and actually scrimmaging with the team.

“It’s really cool because you really can challenge yourself to be better and work hard when they are serving at you or hitting at you,” Crum said. “You have to work really hard.”

Cowgirl sophomore middle blocker JennaRae Jester said it is important for college athletes to get out in the community, because “nobody is ever too big for everything.”

And not only that, she said the clinic takes her back a few years when she was just learning the game of volleyball.

“We all started at this age, too, and we all looked up to the college athletes. We loved being there and we want to do the same for them,” Jester said. “It’s really fun to play with the younger kids. It’s awesome to be able to teach them the fundamentals of volleyball, but it is also kind of fun right before Christmas getting together. It’s also great to help the family that we have adopted with this volunteer project.”

Community service is nothing new to the Wyoming athletic department and the Cowgirl volleyball program is right up there pitching in.

“Part of my responsibility as a coach is to help provide an avenue for these young ladies to develop for the rest of their life,” Yerty said. “Part of being a good citizen is giving back to the community. We talk to the girls about what kinds of community service projects they were interested in. Believe it or not, they have done so many already. They’ve done highway pickup, they’ve done reading in the classroom and they’re planning on doing a Valentine’s Day thing with an elderly group.”

There’s also the Saddle Championship, which is presented to the UW athletic group that does the most community service. A saddle is presented to the team at either a home football game or men’s basketball contest.

“That is a big deal to them because they are pretty competitive,” Yerty said. “It’s pretty exciting.”

The clinic is not only for girls, as there are three young boys who are enjoying the game of volleyball. One of them is 9-year-old Wes Yerty, the son of the Cowgirl head coach.

“It’s really fun and I like it a lot,” Wes Yerty said. “I like the events, I like doing the drills. Volleyball is really fun for me.”

Young Wes can be seen at all of his mother’s home matches, although much of his time is playing football in the hallway with his brother Jace and their friends.

“I don’t always pay attention, but I like to play instead of watching,” Wes Yerty said.

Of course, participating in this tournament also has a few extra perks -- three boys and about 37 girls.

Wes, however, adamantly says he is not there for the girls.

“No, no, no,” he said with a bit of panic in his eyes.

For the young campers, though, it’s a chance to have fun, learn and become Cowgirl volleyball fans, if they weren’t already.

“It’s really fun to meet them and become friends with them,” Crum said. “I’m a big fan.”

For Carrie Yerty and her Cowgirls, it’s an opportunity to get out in the community, embrace some youngsters and keep building the fan base.

“Hopefully, we’re building to the future and you never know, one of these girls might grow up to be a Cowgirl,” Yerty said. “That’s our hope.”

Cowgirls sign JC setter

University of Wyoming head volleyball coach Carrie Yerty announced on Monday the signing of setter Barbara Lasic to attend UW in the fall of 2009. Lasic, who is from Livno, Bosnia, is transferring in from the New Mexico Military Institute and will have two years of eligibility remaining.

“Barbara will be looked upon to transition immediately from a junior college level into a floor general for the Cowgirls," Yerty said. "She has extensive international experience and excels under pressure.”

Lasic, at 5-foot-9, is a two-time letterwinner at New Mexico Military Institute in Roswell, N.M. This past season, she led her team to a 33-11 record overall, a 4-4 mark in the Western Junior College Athletic Conference, and a second place finish at the Region V Tournament.

Lasic was also named all-conference and all-region, along with being named to several all-tournament teams. She led the conference in assists with 9.6 asps, along with 1.81 digs. During her freshman year, she averaged almost six assists per set, while the team went 31-12 overall and 5-3 in conference play. In 2007, she earned second team all-conference honors. Lasic was coached by Shelby Forchtner. She is the daughter of Zeljko and Vesna Lasic, and has one sibling, Robert.

Lasic is the seventh signee by Yerty during this signing period. She joins Makenzie Bartsch of Casper Natrona, Emily Rochelle of Casper Kelly Walsh, Reese Roehrkasse of Fort Collins, Camille Coffman of Peculiar, Mo., Cali Miller of Bullard, Texas and Jodi Purdy of Winterset, Iowa.

Branch inks four wrestlers for 2009-10 season

University of Wyoming head wrestling coach Mark Branch announced on Thursday that four student-athletes have signed national letters of intent to wrestle for the Cowboys beginning in the 2009-10 season. Jimmy Belleville of Tumwater, Wash., Tyler Cox from Gillette, Jake Eitzen of Estes Park, Colo., and Patrick Martinez from Hemet, Calif., will join the UW squad next fall.

“These guys believe in what we are doing here and are committed to the direction of this program,” said Branch as he described his first recruiting class. “They all had other offers, but chose to attend Wyoming based on what was in their best interest and what was in the best interest of the program. All four of these guys are excited to come here and are fired up to be on board. That is the type of wrestler we try to recruit. Their credentials speak for themselves, but their commitment is what has me excited about this class.

“I know first-hand how difficult five years of college wrestling can be, so it is very important that they are excited to be at Wyoming. The buzz about Wyoming Wrestling caught their attention and they want to be a part of it.”

Belleville comes to Wyoming from Black Hills High School in Tumwater, where he is a three-time state champion. He enters his final high school season with a record of 126-6. As a freshman his state title was at 103 pounds, 125 as a sophomore and his junior year he won at 145 pounds. Belleville was the Freestyle Junior National runner-up earlier this year. He could factor into the Cowboy lineup at 149 or 157 pounds.

Cox is a three-time Wyoming state champion and is expected to wrestle at 125 pounds for the Cowboys. Entering his senior year at Campbell County High School, he has a career high school record of 117-1, with his only loss coming during his freshman season. Cox won the 4A state title at 112 pounds the past two years and earned the top spot at 103 pounds as a freshman. He is a two-time FILA World Team member and wrestled in the Junior World Championships in Beijing in 2007. Cox won the 110-pound division at the High School National Wrestling Championships this past March.

Eitzen is a Colorado state champion from Estes Park High School. Including his state title as a junior, he has placed three times at the state tournament, runner-up as a freshman and sixth as a sophomore. Eitzen was the 2008 Colorado State Freestyle and Greco-Roman champion. He hopes to wrestle at the 133 pound level collegiately. A good student, he was named Academic All-State as a junior, as well as an NHSGA Academic All-American. Eitzen was also a three-year letterwinner on the football team for Estes Park H.S.

Martinez is is a two-time Freestyle and Greco Roman State Champion, as well as a place-winner at the Reno Tournament of Champions. Martinez is a California State Tournament place-winner in arguably one of the most difficult state high school events in the nation. His high school team, Temecula Valley, won the CIF championship three straight years and the Southern Section Masters championship those same years. Martinez was a California Triple Crown winner in 2007 and the California FILA Greco Roman state champion. He is projected to compete at 165 or 174 pounds for the Cowboys.

UW hockey goes 1-2

The University of Wyoming hockey club finished 1-2 at the Clash in the Corn tournament last week in Sioux Center, Iowa.

The Cowboys opened the four-team, round-robin event with a 6-5 victory Thursday over University of Wisconsin-Platteville but lost their final two games, 9-1 Friday against Dordt College and 6-3 Saturday against Calvin College.

Heading into a six-week holiday break, UW is 10-6 and ranked fourth in the American Collegiate Hockey Association's (ACHA) Division III Pacific Region.

"It's a long break this year and we're going to have to try to stay in shape without practice and ice time," UW Coach Shawn Rockey says. "I am having Kerry Brown (a personal trainer at the UW Wellness Center) draw up a special program for the break to keep the guys at their best possible performance levels.

"We plan to come back strong, even though we are losing four guys at the semester break. We are going to try to pick up a few new guys, but if that doesn't work out, we'll just have to bear down and learn to become a stronger team without them."

When the Cowboys return to the ice Jan. 16 at Kansas, they will be minus forwards Tad Bernet (Katy, Texas) and David Wells (Rock Springs), both of whom graduate at the semester break, and defensemen Evan Reed and Grayson Walsh (both of Fort Collins, Colo.), both of whom are being deployed to Iraq.

UW will especially feel the loss of Bernet, who anchors the club's second line and fronts the team with 24 points on 11 goals and 13 assists. His linemate, Wells, has accounted for five goals and seven assists.

At the Clash in the Corn, Michael Leriger (Houston, Texas) netted a pair of goals in the opening seven minutes to spark a five-goal outburst in the first period of the Cowboys' tourney debut against the previously undefeated Pioneers.

Erik Blomberg (Parker, Colo.) added two goals, his team-leading 14th and 15th of the season, and Wells and Ryan Allred (Laramie) also scored for UW.

Bernet and Rick Comer (Gillette) each had two assists for the Cowboys. Wells, Willie Forbes (Casper), Nate Olsen (Pinedale) and Ryan Tufte (Jackson) also recorded assists.
In goal, Drew Luplow (Sheridan) made 11 saves to earn the victory.After beating UW-Platteville, the Cowboys were overwhelmed by two of the ACHA's best teams.

Dordt College, which eliminated UW from last year's Pacific Regional Tournament, scored six unanswered goals in the first two periods en route to its second win over the Cowboys this month.

The Blades (13-2), ranked No. 2 in the region behind Northern Arizona University (14-0), have outscored their opponents by a 118-50 count this season, including 19-2 against UW.

Lucas Wescoat (Idaho Falls, Idaho) scored the Cowboys' lone goal, assisted by Bernet and Graham Barrett (Colorado Springs, Colo.).

In its tourney finale, UW fell to Calvin College, the No. 3 team in the ACHA's North Regional. The Knights (10-4) won each of their three games at the Clash in the Corn, including a 5-2 triumph over Dordt College.

Olsen, Tufte and Cody Leeper (Jackson) scored the Cowboys' goals in a losing cause. Allred, Barrett and Leriger had assists for UW.

Injury hampers Korir at NCAA Championships

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. -- The combination of cold weather and rolling hills were too much for Mark Korir to overcome and become the first three-time All-American in University of Wyoming cross country history Monday at the NCAA Championships.

Battling back problems, Korir finished 71st in a time of 30 minutes, 38 seconds.

At the second mile of the 6.2 mile (10k) course, Korir was cruising along with the lead group. When they entered a decline at the Indiana State University course Korir’s back started to tighten up on him. That’s when the lead pack began to pull away from not only Korir but the rest of the field.

It was a two-man race from the get-go with sophomore Samuel Chelanga from Liberty and senior Galen Rupp from the University of Oregon. Chelanga sprinted out from the start and Rupp had to play catch up, he caught him about half way through the race and ran with him the rest of the way. Neither of them made their move to pull away until the last 400 meters. They came down the home stretch and that’s when Rupp led for the first time in the 10k race. He crossed the line with a time of 29:03, five seconds in front of Chelanga.

“Mark has had an incredible career here at UW and he will be sorely missed on the cross country course,” said head coach Randy Cole. “It just wasn’t his day with his back locking up on him, but he still gave everything he had and I am very proud of him for that.

“There are some great runners here and unfortunately Mark was unable to keep up with them. He will have some time to recover before the start of the indoor track and field season and I expect him to be full strength and continue to reek havoc on the conference soon.

Korir to run at NCAAs on Monday

UW photo
Wyoming senior Mark Korir will compete in the NCAA Championships Monday in Terre Haute, Ind.

Mark Korir will run his last cross country race of his illustrious career for the University of Wyoming Monday in Terre Haute, Ind., at the 2008 NCAA Cross Country Championships.

“Mark has been an incredible runner and leader for this University for the past three years and has a chance to become the first three-time All-American in Wyoming history on Monday,” said UW head coach Randy Cole. “He has put the Brown and Gold on the map in the cross country world and you won’t be able to miss him on Monday in the lead pack with his gameday gold jersey.”

The championships will be televised on CBS College Sports beginning at 10 a.m. (MST) and will run till 11:30 a.m., there will also be a live webcast on NCAA.com.

During the 2007 NCAA Championships, Korir finished in 19th place with a time of 30 minutes, 13 seconds and in 2006 in 22nd-place with a time of 31.24.

“Mark is a great competitor and he heads into this Championship with the goal of improving on his place and time from the last two years and who knows what can happen,” said Cole.

The ‘Pokes ran in Terre Haute, Ind., earlier in the year at the Pre-Nationals Invite where Korir placed seventh overall in the 8k race. On Monday, they will be running on the same course but be running a 10-kilometer race.

This year the NCAA changed the rule to the top 40 individuals in both races will be named All-American regardless of nationality.

Cowgirl junior Emily Higgins was unable to run along with Korir as she was short by only two-seconds and was left on the outside looking in.

Results will be posted at www.wyomingathletics.com immediately following the race.

Cowgirl vb falls to Utes

SALT LAKE CITY -- This time around, it was a different story in the Mountain West Conference volleyball match-up between the Wyoming Cowgirls and the No. 22 ranked Utah Utes.

Utah defeated Wyoming in three straight sets on Thursday night in Salt Lake City, in stark contrast to the last game between the two squads, when the Cowgirls beat the Utes 3-0 in Laramie on Sept. 20.

UW (5-19, 4-11 MWC) held their own against UU (21-5, 13-2 MWC) in the early going of all three sets, but the Utes would slowly edge ahead at key moments and win 25-16, 25-20 and 25-17. Blocks played a major role in the match outcome as Utah out-played Wyoming at the net 23-12. The Utes also held a large advantage in hitting percentage, 31 percent compared to 10 percent for the Cowgirls.

Sophomore Lauren Whitney led the Cowgirls with nine kills and five digs, while senior setter Tasha Weishahn had 24 assists.

Lori Baird had nine kills to lead Utah and Emillie Toone had a team-high six blocks.

The Cowgirls will conclude their 2008 regular season against the BYU Cougars on Saturday at 7 p.m. in Provo, Utah.

Cowgirls close in Utah

By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org

One final weekend, one last time to cause a little damage for the young Cowgirl volleyball team.

The Cowgirls will make their annual Utah trip to close the season, taking on No. 22 Utah on Thursday in Salt Lake City before facing BYU Saturday in Provo. Both matches begin at 7 p.m.

Wyoming’s biggest win of the season came early on when the Cowgirls shocked Utah in three games in Laramie. The Utes head into the final season tied for first place in the Mountain West Conference with Colorado State.

First year Wyoming head coach Carrie Yerty said she has a hunch they will be playing with big targets on their backs against the Utes.

“They are going to be ready for us after the whooping they took here,“ Yerty said. “They are going to be energetic and ready to play us. It won’t be their senior night, but it will be their senior weekend. They will definitely be ready. Our loss may be the one that costs them the conference championship. My guess is they are going to come at it 100 miles an hour."

Utah is currently 20-5 overall, 12-2 in the conference. The Utes are led by Lori Baird who is averaging a team leading 3.10 kills along with 1.38 blocks per set, while Kathryn Haynie is adding 2.86 kills and 2.27 digs per set.

“Utah is a phenomenal team,” Yerty said. “I would expect them to get a NCAA tournament bid and represents our conference, hopefully past the first round.”

BYU is 12-12 overall, 5-9 in MWC play and will take on Colorado State before facing the Cowgirls. They are led by Kayla Walker, who is averaging 3.01 kills and 2.08 digs per set, while Bryn Porter is adding 2.93 kills and 2.10 digs per set. The Cougars downed the Cowgirls in three close games earlier in Laramie.

For Yerty, this will be a bittersweet weekend.

“It’s hard for me because our senior class has done such an awesome job for us,” she said. “We know what our record (4-10, 5-18) is, but it certainly doesn’t entail what they have done for this program. I’m excited for this year to wrap up so we can look forward to the new year, but I’m also dad to see the end of the season because it is really been such a great year in terms of people and getting better and playing hard and commitment. All of the tangibles you want tin a program, this program has had. That’s why I truly believe our future is going to be so bright.”

Seniors Tasha Weishahan, Carissa Lee and Samantha Eley will be playing their final matches for Wyoming.

Yerty will lose those three seniors, but will welcome at least six talented newcomers to the program. She said this current Wyoming team had a lot to do in bringing in these players.

“It is important that the team understands what a valuable asset to us in the recruiting process," Yerty said. “These kids have worked their tails off, not just in the gym, but outside the gym to help us bring in the caliber athletes we need to bring in to improve to another level. Not just senior class but the corps returning next year is dedicated to see this program go back into a position where they can compete against anybody all of the time.”

UW women's golf signs another Zamprelli

University of Wyoming women’s head golf coach Josey Stender announced the signing of Dana Zamprelli to a national letter of intent to hit the links for the Cowgirls in the upcoming 2009-10 season.

Zamprelli is the little sister of current Cowgirl Jenna Zamprelli, who is currently a sophomore on the squad. She comes to Wyoming from Castle Rock, Colo., and Douglas County High School, where she is a four-sport athlete. Zamprelli lettered twice in volleyball, basketball, once in swimming and all four years in golf.

“We can’t be more excited about getting Dana to come and play here next season. She has the whole package,” said Stender. “Dana has quite the resume that follows her to UW along with holding many of the records in the weight room. She is the type of player that has her best golf ahead of her.”

During her golf career, she has led her team to the league championships twice, in 2006 and ‘07, as well as the regional championship in ‘07. The same year they were the state runner-up for the 5A division. Zamprelli has been selected to the first team all-conference team once while being named to the second team in ‘06 and ‘07. This past season, she was also named to the Colorado Junior Golf Association Academic All-Star team.

“Dana will add more depth to our roster and give us another option when it comes to players next season,” said Stender. “We try to add quality student-athletes each year and it has shown with our recent success. Dana will fit in perfectly here as she is very coachable and extremely team oriented.”

The Cowgirls will resume action Feb. 15 at the SDSU Lady Aztec Spring Classic in Chula Vista, Calif.

Onufer named WWC Wrestler of the Week

Shane Onufer

University of Wyoming 174-pounder Shane Onufer has been named the Western Wrestling Conference's Wrestler of the Week as announced by league officials.

Onufer, a redshirt freshman from Auburn, Wash., was 5-0 this past weekend, leading UW to a 34-10 dual win over Stanford and earning the 174-pound title at the Cowboy Open. In his five matches, Onufer did not give up a single point to his opponents.

On Friday night he won by fall at 1:54 over Stanford’s Victor Haug, giving Wyoming a large cushion on the way to UW’s first dual win of the season.

Onufer then bullied his way to the 174-pound crown on Saturday in the Elite Division at the 36th annual Cowboy Open. He posted a 4-0 record and was named the tournament’s Outstanding Wrestler. He won his first two matches by fall, his third round bout by major decision, 15-0 over Brett Hunter of Chadron State, and then out-muscled Nebraska-Kearney’s Kamarudeen Usman, the No.2 ranked DII wrestler in the country, by a score of 7-0 in the finals.

As evidence of the competition level at 174 pounds, included in Onufer’s bracket at the Cowboy Open was the No. 8 ranked wrestler in the country, Nate Lee of Boise State. Lee lost to Usman in the semifinals.

Onufer’s season record is now 13-0, with nine pins.

The Western Wrestling Conference is comprised of seven schools including the Air Force Academy, North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, Northern Iowa, South Dakota State, Utah Valley and Wyoming.

Border War T-shirt designer

UW Photo
Cody Connor of Newcastle, a University of Wyoming junior in business administration, won the Border War T-Shirt design contest sponsored by the UW Bookstore. He won four tickets to this Saturday's UW vs. CSU football game, two nights at a Laramie motel and a gift card. The T-shirts are being sold at the UW Bookstore.

Six sign with Cowgirl volleyball

UW head coach Carrie Yerty

University of Wyoming head volleyball coach Carrie Yerty announced her first recruiting class to attend the University of Wyoming, with six new signees.

“Overall, I’m really excited about our first recruiting class at the University of Wyoming,” Yerty said. “I feel fortunate to be able to bring in the caliber of athletes to this class. I give a lot of credit to our current Cowgirl team, who has actively assisted the staff in rebuilding this program.”

Among the new signees are two Casper athletes and a former Laramie resident. The new recruits include Makenzie Bartsch of Casper Natrona, Emily Rochelle of Casper Kelly Walsh, Reese Roehrkasse of Fort Collins (formerly of Laramie), Camille Coffman of Peculiar, Mo., Cali Miller of Bullard, Texas and Jodi Purdy of Winterset, Iowa.

Bartsch, a 6-foot middle blocker, is a two-time all-conference and all-state selection, while attending Natrona County High School. As a junior, she led her team to 30-5 overall record and the 4A State Championship. This season, they went undefeated on their way to a 4A West Conference and Regional Championship. They finished 28-5 overall and in the runner-up spot at the state tournament. Coached by Sally Nichols, a four-year letterwinner in volleyball, she also earned letters in basketball. She is a three-time all-conference selection while earning all-state honors last season.

An excellent student, she is a member of the National Honor Society and involved with student council. She is the daughter of Lisa and Richard Bratton and she has our siblings.

“Makenzie is going to provide size and depth to the middle hitter position,” Yerty said. “She is a fiery competitor who has a great deal of untapped potential.”

Roehrkasse, a 6-2 middle blocker, is an all-conference selection while attending Ridgeview High School. She played volleyball at Fort Collins High School. During her senior year, she led her team to a Front Range Conference championship with a 13-1 conference mark, while finishing 19-7 overall. Roehrkasse was coached in high school by Lindsey Kerr. An excellent student, she has been a member of the honor roll throughout high school. She played club volleyball for the Norco Volleyball club. In 2007, the team qualified for the Junior Nationals and placed 13th. Her 17 black team placed third at the Rocky Mountain Region, while she was named to the All-Start Team at the RMR Junior National Qualifier in 2008. The daughter of Bruce and Jan Roehrkasse, she has four siblings.

“Reese is a blue collar worker, and always striving better herself and those around her,” Yerty said. “She is a total team player and has outstanding blocking ability.”

Rochelle, a 6-1 middle blocker/outside hitter, is a two-time all-State and 4A Player of the Year selection while attending Kelly Walsh High School. She is also earned all-conference honors three straight years, along with being selected to the Wyoming Gatorade Volleyball Player of the Year in 2007. Rochelle was a two-time team captain and named to the McDonald’s Tournament Team. This season, Kelly Walsh went 30-4 overall on the way to a State 4A championship, while the past two seasons they were in the runner-up spot. Her team also won the 4A West Conference and regional championships in both 2006 and 2007. A three-year letterwinner in volleyball, she also earned letters in both basketball and track and field. She was a two-time team captain, while earning all-state and all-conference honors. In track, she qualified for the state meet three straight years in the triple, high and long jump. An excellent student, she is a member of the National Honor Society, the honor roll, while being involved with several other scholastic activities. The daughter of Joe and DeAnn Rochelle, she has three siblings.

“Emily is a great athlete and student, while being a tremendous competitor,” Yerty said. “She will be an impact player in the future for the Cowgirl volleyball program.”

Coffman, a 6-3, middle blocker/rightside hitter, is an all-conference selection while attending Ray-Pec High School. During her senior year, she also earned second team all-conference and all-district honors, while being selected to play in the Missouri-Kansas All-Star Game. A captain her senior year, she was coached in high school by Cara Hornbeck. Coffman played for the Invasion Swat Volleyball Club, as they finished first at the 18 open Northern Lights tournament, second at the Crossroads tournament and fifth at nationals. She is the daughter of Paul and Amy Coffman and has three siblings.

“Camille comes from an extremely athletic background,“ Yerty said. “Her size and mobility make her a versatile player with an intimidating net presence.”

Miller, 6-1, outside hitter, is two-time All-East Texas selection and team captain, while attending Bullard High School. She was named the District MVP, while helping her team to a District and Area Championship in 2006. As a junior, she earned the District Outstanding Hitter Award, while her team won the Bi-District Championship and the runner-up spot in the District Championship. She was coached by Kalya Hanningham. A four-time letterwinner in volleyball, she has also earned letters in basketball and was selected first team all-district and All-East Texas in 2007, and second team all-district in 2006. An excellent student, she is a member of the National Honor Society and honor roll. Miller is the daughter of Kevin and Linda Miller and has two siblings.

“Callie has the versatility to play any position on the court and will eventually challenge as a sixth rotation player,” Yerty said. “She is a very spirited and will bring focus and intensity to the court.”

Purdy, a 5-11 outside hitter, is a three-time unanimous all-conference selection while attending Winterset High School. This past season she helped her team to a 40-4 overall record and a conference championship, along with being selected to the senior all-star team. During her junior season, she earned first team all-state and all-regional team honors. She has also earned second team all-state and special mention all-state honors, while earning all-tournament honors several times during her career. She was coached by BJ Eldridge. Besides volleyball, she has lettered in basketball and track and field. In basketball, she is a two-time all-conference and all-regional selection. She is also a three-time state qualifier in the 200-meters. Her IPVA club team has qualified for the Junior Olympic National Tournament three straight years, while she was named to the 2008 All-Tournament Team for the American Division at the this year’s tournament. An excellent student, she is a member of the National Honor Society, on the honor roll, along with being involved with the student-council. The daughter of Jeff and Annette Purdy, she has two siblings.

“One of the most competitive athletes, who has the experience and ability to challenge for playing time immediately,” Yerty said. “She is a natural leader, and will be a player to watch in the future.”

UW hockey sweeps Metro State

The University of Wyoming club hockey team completed a three-city, nine-game homestand last weekend with a pair of victories over Metro State College.

The Cowboys romped to a 5-0 win over the Roadrunners Friday night at the Laramie Community Ice Arena and rallied for a 7-6 triumph Saturday night at the Taco John's Events Center in Cheyenne.

UW (9-4), ranked No. 4 in the Pacific Region of the American Collegiate Hockey Association Division III, embarks on an eight-game road trip this week that includes a Saturday matchup against No. 2 Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa, and a pair of games against No. 3 University of Colorado Jan. 23-24 in Boulder.

In the Cowboys' opener against Metro State last weekend, Erik Blomberg (Parker, Colo.) and Willy Miller (Arvada, Colo.) each had a goal and an assist to back goaltender Robert Kola (Colorado Springs, Colo.). Kola stopped 33 shots to record his second shutout of the season.

Graham Barrett (Colorado Springs, Colo.), Craig Luplow (Sheridan) and Lucas Wescoat (Idaho Falls, Idaho) also scored goals for UW. David Wells (Rock Springs) added two assists, and Cody Leeper (Jackson), Michael Leriger (Houston, Texas), Nate Olsen (Pinedale) and Ryan Tufte (Jackson) had single assists.

In Saturday's series finale, Rick Comer (Gillette) capped a four-goal rally in the third period with a power-play goal in the final two minutes to lift the Cowboys over the Roadrunners.
Barrett, Blomberg, Tufte, Wells, Tad Bernet (Katy, Texas) and Zach Jacobson (Parker, Colo.) also netted goals for UW. Bernet, Leriger and Evan Reed (Fort Collins, Colo.) recorded assists.

The Cowboys open their longest road trip of the 2008-09 season Thursday in Sioux Center against the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. Following Friday's faceoff against Dordt, UW wraps up its weekend Saturday against Calvin College.

Cowboys have two champs in own tournament

Shane Onufer and Lee Helbig

Ten University of Wyoming wrestlers placed in the top three of their brackets on Saturday at the 36th annual Cowboy Open tournament. The ‘Pokes enjoyed the home-mat advantage of War Memorial Fieldhouse, as they tallied two weight class titles, three runner-up finishes and had five student-athletes place third.

Wyoming redshirt freshman Shane Onufer captured the 174-pound crown in the Elite Division. Onufer had a 4-0 record, did not give up a point to an opponent and was named the tournament’s Outstanding Wrestler. He won his first two matches by fall, his third round bout by major decision, 15-0 over Brett Hunter of Chadron State, and then out-muscled Nebraska-Kearney’s Kamarudeen Usman, the No.2 ranked DII wrestler in the country, by a score of 7-0 in the finals. Onufer’s season record is now 12-0, with eight pins.

UW’s other division champion was true freshman Lee Helbig, who dominated the Amateur Division at 184 pounds. On his way to 4-0, Helbig had three pins and a 13-2 finals win over Karl Oeser of Air Force.

“I thought that this was a good tournament and for the most part we competed hard,” said Wyoming head coach Mark Branch. “There were some talented wrestlers here today and a higher level of competition than we had seen so far this year. It was good to see how our guys stacked up against this talent level and how they did in tough situations, because we will be in those tough situations later in the season.

“Shane Onufer wrestled with attitude and that is the reason he won. He came into this tournament believing he would win. The hardest job I have as head coach right now is getting this team to do just that, believe they can win. I have seen glimpses of that so far this season and hopefully more guys will start to wrestle that way as we progress.”

Including Onufer and Helbig, Wyoming had five total individuals wrestle in the finals. All three second-place UW finishers lost to nationally ranked opponents in the Elite Division.

Cowboy redshirt freshman Michael Martinez had two wins by fall on his way to a 3-1 record at 125 pounds. He suffered a gritty 5-3 overtime finals loss to No. 15 ranked Tony Mustari of Northern Colorado.

At the 141 pound level, UW sophomore Cole Dallaserra won four matches, two by major decision, before losing in his finals match-up with No. 11 ranked Cory Fish of Boise State.

Wyoming also got three wins from redshirt freshman Joe LeBlanc at 184 pounds, including one pin. LeBlanc fell to Boise State’s No. 5 ranked Kirk Smith in the finals.

The ‘Pokes five third place finishers included three in the Elite Division; redshirt freshman Chase Smith at 149 (4-1), senior Eric Coxbill at 165 (3-1) and junior Alex Rieder at 174 (5-1). In the Amateur Division , UW freshman Kasey Garnhart (5-1) was in the three spot at 133 pounds, while redshirt freshman Tyler Davis (7-1) won the back draw of a very large bracket and placed third at 157 pounds.

The next competition for the Cowboys will be the Omaha Open, Nov. 22 in Omaha, Neb.

UW swimmer and divers beat TCU; Ortiz sets another school mark

Stephanie Ortiz

In an impressive performance that included first place finishes in 22 of 32 events, the University of Wyoming swimming and diving team swept TCU in Mountain West Conference dual action Saturday afternoon in Corbett Pool. The Cowgirls beat TCU 168-131 while the Cowboys cruised to a 191.5-106.5 victory.

With the wins, the Cowboys improve to 5-0 overall and 1-0 in the MWC, while the Cowgirls improve to 7-0 overall and 2-0 in the MWC. TCU falls to 4-1 overall and 2-2 in the MWC on the women’s side and 1-3 overall and 0-3 in the MWC for the men.

"Its a great conference win for the team today. We did well in the events we are good at like the breaststrokes, butterfly's, and backstroke," said UW head coach Tom Johnson. "The divers were dominant as usual and it was nice to have a home pool advantage today."

The UW divers took three out of four events, including two by Stephanie Ortiz who broke the school record in the three-meter diving with 313.73 points. Last week, Ortiz set the one-meter school record with her six dive total of 300.22 against New Mexico.

"It’s a great accomplishment for Stephanie to own both records. With her great training efforts she was been putting what she has learned into competition," said diving coach Ben Herdt.

On the diving boards for the men, Kyle Bogner won the one-meter diving with his six dive total of 325.50, a personal best. Mark Murdock had the highest score for the Cowboys on the three-meter board and finished second with a total of 321.15.

"Overall, we had a good day and helped the team earn a victory. We also had a few NCAA zone qualifying scores," Herdt said.

For the Cowgirl swimmers, Lesley Young led the way with two victories in the 200 IM (2 minutes, 12.40 seconds) and 200 breaststroke (2:24.20). She was also on the 200 medley relay team that possed a time of 1:46.14, a new Corbett Pool Record. Other Cowgirls on that team were Kelsey Conci, Shelby Bull, and Cassie Stelow. Other event winners for the Cowgirls were Aimee Stinson (1000 freestyle, 10:31.07), Kelsey Conci (100 backstroke, 58.13), Stephanie Vint (200 butterfly, 2:07.58), and Cassie Stelow (50 freestyle, 24.18).

Individually, the Pokes had three multi-event winners. Eli Bell won the 200 (1:42.71) and 100 freestyle (46.72). Alex Larkin won the 100 (57.33) and 200 breaststroke (2:05.67) while Matt Urich won the 200 (1:55.64) and 100 butterfly (50.72). The Cowboy relay team also won the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:33.19.

The UW diving team will travel to Tucson, Ariz., to take part in the Wildcat Invite Friday through Sunday. The swimmers will have a break until taking on Denver on Dec. 13 in Corbett Pool at 1 p.m.

Korir qualifies for NCAA meet

Mark Korir

FORT COLLINS, Colo. -- For the third time in as many years, senior Mark Korir will have a shot at being an All-American, as he automatically qualified for the NCAA Cross Country Championships by placing third Saturday at the NCAA Mountain Region championship.

Wyoming junior Emily Higgins will now play the waiting game with her 13th-plae finish in the women’s field.

“Mark will have an opportunity to three-peat as an All-American, while Emily will wait and see how many teams from the Mountain Region get selected as at-large teams,” said UW head coach Randy Cole. “This was one of the best team efforts on both sides this season for the Brown and Gold.”

Korir finished the 10k race in 29 minutes, 33 seconds, 15 seconds behind the winner, David McNeill of Northern Arizona. He led the ‘Pokes to a sixth-place finish out of 15-teams and a total of 182 points.

Fellow senior, Michael Huntington broke the 31-minute barrier with his 39th-place finish and time of 30:54. Freshmen Greg Miller, Eliud Chirchir and sophomore Seth Grossman all ran great races with their 49th, 52nd and 54th-place finishes respectively.

Senior Brett Schuler ran a 31:57 and finished his last Mountain Regional Meet in 61st-place. While freshman Ryan Griesbach, Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year, concluded the running for the Cowboys in 82nd-place.

“The men had a nice pack early and actually through 8-kilometers had run times faster than most of the season,” said Cole. “They really hung tough and finished strong. With six guys breaking the 32-minute mark, this is what we expect out of them throughout the track and field season.”

For the Cowgirls, they earned two All-Mountain Region honors in Higgins and sophomore Alysha Davis ,who finished the 6k race in 23rd-place in a time of 21:17. Following Davis was junior Erin Heffron and sophomore Emily Byra in 50th and 54th-place respectively. Rounding out the field for the Cowgirls were sophomore Irene Masai in 96th-place and senior Nikki Peterson in 109th-place, who has been plagued by injury much of this season.

“It was a great race for the Cowgirls as they all set their own personal bests in the 6k race,” said Cole.

The Cowgirls as a team finished in ninth place with a team total of 234 points out of the 18-team field. Higgins should find out either Sunday or Monday if she will be joining Korir at the Championships on Nov. 24 in Terre Haute, Ind.

Cowgirls stop Aztecs in four

Richard Anderson photo
The Cowgirls celebrate a big defensive play Saturday in the win over San Diego State

By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org

This time the Cowgirls finished the job.

Wyoming closed strong in three of the four games and downed San Diego State to send the three Cowgirl seniors out a winner in their final home matches of their careers. The Cowgirls (4-10 in the MWC, 5-18 overall) prevailed 26-24, 25-21, 20-25 and 25-19.

After out-playing the Aztecs (5-10, 8-17) in the end of the first two sets, the Cowgirls stumbled out of the block before making it close at the end in the third game. Not wanting to chance another five-set match, Wyoming came out and took control in the fourth game and never really let up.

The Cowgirls are 0-7 this season in five-set matches, including Thursday in a disappointing loss to UNLV.

Saturday, the Cowgirls had something to hang their hats on.

“It’s a great win for our seniors, it’s a great win for our program. Any win is a great win,” Wyoming coach Carrie Yerty said. “It’s nice to see at the end of the season, when you’re going five with teams, to be able to get a team in four.”

Saturday’s match was the final home contest for setter Tasha Weishahn, libero Carissa Lee and outside hitter Samantha Eley. Wyoming honored the three seniors before the match with flowers and a yellow flag with Steamboat on it in which they draped over their backs after they were introduced. At the end of the match, Cowgirl fans were invited down to the court where a slide show was presented with pictures of all three seniors throughout their careers.

“These seniors have been the foundation builders for the future of our program. For the first year as the Cowgirl coach, I couldn’t ask for better people to be on my team leading them,” Yerty said.

While the night belonged to the three seniors, four sophomores led the way offensively in the win. Outside hitter Lauren Whitney had a match-high 18 kills, followed by outside hitters Jenna Arneson and Dani Bedore with 14 and 13 kills respectively and middle blocker JennaRae Jester with 11 kills.

Weishahn had 50 assists in the match and is currently third all-time in assists with 4,138, with Lee adding to her UW-leading digs mark with 17 on Saturday. She now has 1,127 digs in her career. Eley is now ninth all time in digs with 888.

“I’m really proud of this team. We have another weekend and we’re excited to take on Utah and BYU,” Yerty said.

San Diego State was paced by Kyley Sexton with 12 kills.

Wyoming will face Utah Thursday in Salt Lake City before taking on BYU Saturday in Provo. Wyoming split with the two teams in Laramie, shocking the No. 23 Utes in three games. While UW traditionally hasn’t fared well on this trip, Yerty said they are not going to back down.

“We’re going to go after a win, like we do every time,” Yerty said.

Cowboys roll past Cardinal

Richard Anderson photo
Wyoming redshirt freshman Shane Onufer looks to take control against Stanford's Victor Haug Friday at the UniWyo Sports Complex. Onufer won by a fall.

By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org

It’s not like Mark Branch looks for perfection, he just looks at the negatives first in order to turn them into positives later on.

Even with a 34-10 win over Stanford to open the home wrestling season, Branch found several things to critique with his new-look Cowboys.

“Tonight was a small glimpse into the future of this program...a small glimpse,” said Branch after coaching his first dual with Wyoming. “It was nice to meet the Wyoming crowd. We had some good spots and the level of competition level was higher than we have seen so far this year, but we have a long way to go.

“Of course, the level of competition went up, but I saw us going back to things that we’ve been trying to get away from, some bad habits. Of course, in most of these situations, I’m probably looking for the negative and looking for where we can improve.”

Wyoming got pins from redshirt freshmen Brock Smith (157 pounds) and Shane Onufer (174)and a major decision victory by sophomore 141-pounder Cole Dallaserra and won five of the eight matches wrestled (along with two forfeit wins).

It just could have been better in Branch’s eyes.

“It’s just elementary stuff,” Branch said, ‘Like coming off bottom. We’re doing baby stand-ups and we haven’t done that all year. A couple of them looked shell-shocked on their feet. Their standing flat-footed, not being aggressive. We’re moving side-to-side, we’re not moving forward to our opponent. I know we have room to improve, but those things I’m not real happy about right now.”

Branch, however, was pleased with the efforts of some of his younger wrestlers, especially that of Onufer and Smith, who each gave the Cowboys six points with aggressive pins.

Smith scored an exciting win by fall at 157-pounds over 2008 NCAA participant Lucas Espericueta. Smith caught his opponent off-guard with a rush, put him on his back and did not let up until both of Espericueta’s shoulders were on the mat two minutes into the match.

“It was my first match in front of the home crowd, so I was a little excited, pretty nervous,” Smith said. “I just tell myself to put my heart into every match and win or lose, I am going to put everything I have on it. That’s what I did.”

Smith is now 9-1 on the young season.

“Brock Smith is a raw talent who has been a surprise for us from day one,” Branch said. “Tonight, he beat a good wrestler and I’m excited about that.”

Fellow redshirt Onufer simply over-powered and pinned his opponent at 1:54 in the first period. Onufer said that if he gets his opponent in a pinning situation, he’s going to stick him.

“I just went out there and kind of felt it out there a little bit and hit a high crotch and took him down and worked it over,” Onufer said. “That’s my bread and butter, the power-half. I just wanted the match over with and win this dual. It was a big step for us as a team.”

The win keeps Onufer unbeaten on the season at 9-0.

“Shane (Onufer) did what he was supposed to do and wrestled aggressively,” Branch said.

While newbies on the college varsity level, both Smith and Onufer are buying into Branch’s aggressiveness and like what they see form the program.

“We’ve been training really hard for almost three months now," Onufer said. “We’re just ready to go and we’re all really excited to get on the mat and show everybody what we are all about. We’re a new Wyoming; this is a new team. This is a new everything for us.”

“Coach Branch has been pushing us,” added Smith.” We’re working a lot of technique and just improving everything we possibly can and just taking one step at a time."

The Cowboys also got a solid 10-3 win from redshirt freshman Michael Martinez to begin the evening at 125 pounds. Dallaserra then earned four team points with his impressive 10-1 major decision victory at 141, followed by a grinding 4-0 win at 149 pounds by senior Cody Chipperfield.

The Cowboys will get right back at it Saturday morning with the 36th annual Cowboy Open. Action begins at 9 a.m. in the War Memorial Fieldhouse.

“In a tournament setting, I hope maybe we come out and open it up a little bit more, and we’re a little more aggressive,” Branch said. “The level of competition is no doubt a lot better than we’ve faced, so we’re going to see All-Americans and nationally ranked guys."
---
COWBOYS 34, CARDINAL 10
125 -- Michael Martinez (WYO) dec. Matt Sencenbaugh 10-3
133 -- Porfirio Madrigal (STAN) dec. Cory VomBaur 7-3
141 -- Cole Dallaserra (WYO) major dec. Timmy Boone 10-1
149 -- Cody Chipperfield (WYO) dec. Max Rosefigura 4-0
157 -- Brock Smith (WYO) pinned Lucas Espericueta 2;04
165 -- Nick Amuchastegui (STAN) dec. Eric Coxbill 9-7
174 -- Shane Onufer (WYO) pinned Victor Haug 1:54
184 -- Joe LeBlanc (WYO) wins by forfeit
197 -- Jake Johnson (STAN) major dec. Alfonso Hernandez 11-1
Hwt. -- Jacob Scharbrough (WYO) wins by forfeit

Cowgirl seniors leave with fond memories

Cowgirl seniors, from left, Carissa Lee, Samantha Eley and Tasha Weishahn

By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org

At first glance, one would think that the three Wyoming volleyball seniors couldn’t wait to get the season over with.

After all, the Cowgirls have won just four games this season (4-18, 3-10 in MWC).

At second glance, though, you see three seniors who having the time of their life despite some ups and downs in threw won-loss column.

Setter Tasha Weishahn, libero Carissa Lee and outside hitter Samantha Eley will be playing their final home games of their careers Saturday when the Cowgirls host San Diego State at 7 p.m. in the UniWyo Sports Complex.

Why the fun? All three said it is because of new head coach Carrie Yerty.

“It’s been a great season. Our record doesn’t show it, but it has been a lot of fun," Weishahn said. Carrie has been a blessing to work with and it has been an honor to play for her.”

“In the past our record has been better, but it was more of a drag,” Weishahn said. “”This year, even though our record doesn’t show it, we’ve had so much fun; we’ve worked so hard. We’ve competed with every team we have played. It’s just been a matter of getting over that hump. This is a young team and a new program, so in a few years it will get over that hump.”

Lee added: “I think it has been a good season. I love Carrie, I love the team. I like how she has come in here and changed our program. It’s been a great experience this last year.”

Yerty has emphasized to her three seniors that although they will play for her for just one season, they are a big part of the rebuilding process.

“Carrie makes sure that we feel like we are a part of it (rebuilding the program), that we are an important part,” Eley said. “She really emphasized this season that we’re going to building the foundation and we’re going to be setting the goals for the team next year. I’m excited to see how it goes.”

“I firmly believe that we are building the foundation,” Lee added. “All three of us seniors, we play on the court , we’ve had the most experienced. We’ve all learned to work together. I think hat if the younger girls see that, we only have one year with Carrie and we’re giving our best that we can in her system, I think it would be great for them.”

While the Cowgirls have struggled with wins and losses in their tenure, all three have put together impressive runs as players.

On Thursday, Lee became the all-time Wyoming leader in digs with 1,110, moving past UW Hall of Famer Ronda Munger.

It’s been a ton of great experiences; make memories with all of the girls on the team. Playing a sport is just a great experience,” Lee said.

Weishahn has the most experience as a four-year starter. She is currently third all-time for assists at Wyoming with 4,088.

“It was awesome to come in as a freshman and start and play, so I have had a lot of experience here,” Weishahn said. “I just love Wyoming, I love the town, I love the girls. It’s been a great experience. It will be nice to move back to Nebraska, too.”

Eley spent most of her career as a libero, before moving to the net this season after an injury to sophomore Chantilly Watson.

“I remember coming in as a freshman and being scared and wide eyed,” Eley said. “It was a good experience. I wouldn’t take it back for anything; I would do it all again for sure. I do wish that I could have had Carrie for all four years. She’s just going to make these girls amazing and she’s a great person and now she expects good things.”

The future looks bright for the three long-time volleyball players as well.

An elementary education major, Weishahn said she will be doing her student teaching in her native Nebraska next semester and then after getting married, looking to be a teacher and coach.

Eley will also be getting married in the near future and will graduate with a degree in communications in the fall of 2009. She looks to get an internship with the UW athletic department as well.

Lee will graduate in the spring of 2009 and looks to go to graduate school studying speech language pathology.

While all three are ready to move on in another chapter in their lives, they said it has been a positive experience, topped off by an enjoyable season.

“It‘s nuts, it is insane to be here at this point. It‘s crazy to think that we have been playing together for almost four years here,” Weishahn said.

Eley said earlier this week that she keeps forgetting that they are at their final home games of their careers.

When we talk about senior stuff, I’m like, ‘Oh, yeah, I’m a senior,’” Eley said. “It is weird, but it is bittersweet. I’m excited for the next chapter in my life, but I’m still sad to be leaving.”

Added Lee: “We grew these four years together. It is going to be exciting, we’re going to move on. We have a ton of great memories from our four years here.”