Colorado Hosts Utah Following Spring Football Matchup

BOULDER, Colo. (04/12/2012) —The University of Colorado Men’s Lacrosse team will take on the University of Utah Pioneers this week after the annual spring football game.

Last weekend, Colorado took down Brigham Young University with an 11-9 victory. This win improved on the Buffs record to 6-5. The Buffs hope to bring that same momentum to the field this weekend as they compete against the Pioneers.

Utah’s last matchup dropped their record on the 2011-12 season to 5-4 with a loss to the Arizona State University.

Colorado’s lacrosse matchup against the Pioneers will begin at 8 p.m. on Saturday at Folsom Field immediately following the spring football game.

Before the lacrosse game make sure to come watch the annual spring football game. Kickoff is at 5 p.m.

Admission to both games is FREE and open to students and the general public.

Continue to follow men’s lacrosse as they battle the Colorado State Rams on Saturday, April 21 at 6 p.m. at Mile High Stadium for the Rocky Mountain Showdown. Tickets to the showdown are $10 and can be purchased online or are the stadium box office.

---CULax.org---

Colorado Lacrosse Prepares To Battle The Rams

BOULDER, Colo. —The University of Colorado Women’s Lacrosse team will take on in-state rival Colorado State University in what is sure to be a battle to the finish.

Last weekend, Colorado took down the University of California-Los Angeles with a 17-11 victory. This win improved the Buffs record on the 2011-12 season to 9-4.

“Colorado's team has truly evolved and matured over the past season. We have gone from being a strong team to one that can adapt, compete and challenge any team absolutely everywhere on the field,” said defenseman Audra Horton. “Our team has a deep bench and a truly competitive spirit, making us stiff competition for CSU on Saturday.”

The Buffs beat CSU in their last meeting of the 2010-11 season with a 12-10 victory. Colorado looks to defeat the Rams for a second consecutive year.

“I expect CSU to come out with a huge force right off the bat,” said attacker Avery Toothman. “We're going to have to be prepared to give our all right out of the starting gate so that we can hopefully gain the lead.”

Colorado’s victory last year has not gotten to their heads. The team is prepared for Colorado State to come full force and is ready for whatever they bring.

“CSU is a very competitive team that is sure to bring their A-game to Boulder on Saturday,” said Horton. “They are a fast team known for their aggressive defense, fast mid-field transitions and strong offense.”

Colorado will go head-to-head with Colorado State at 12 p.m. on Saturday at Kittredge field. Admission to the game is free and is open to students and the general public.

---Coloradoomenslacrosse.com---

CU Upsets BYU 11-9, Seidel Keeping CU In The Lead

BOULDER, Colo. (04/6/2012) – The University of Colorado Men’s Lacrosse team competed against the No. 3 Brigham Young University Cougars on Thursday evening, winning 11-9.

Top scoring player, Riley Seidel pushed CU into the lead scoring six of the 11 goals for Colorado.

"Our team came out tonight ready to play. We knew that we had a let down last weekend against the University of California Santa Barbara and we came out today to make a comeback,” said Seidel. “The seniors weren’t going to lose tonight. Everyone on the team had it in them to win and  it was a total team effort. Every person on the team busted their butts today and it paid off in this victory, which was huge."

Colorado began the game strong with a goal from Greg Kelsic. BYU scored immediately following, tying the score 1-1. CU received the first penalty of the game on Hayden Mcclain, putting the team man down for one-minute. After Colorado’s penalty was released, Matt White hit the back of the net to put CU in the lead. Colorado scored two more goals in the last minutes of the first quarter by Tyler Doughrety and Seidel, improving the Buffs lead to 4-1.

Going into the second quarter, Scott Stiehr picked up the ground ball off of the face off gaining possession for the Buffs. Mcclain received another penalty, putting Colorado man down for one minute. BYU quickly gained possession and hit the back of the net, taking full advantage of the power play opportunity. Ryan Emerson received the next penalty for the Buffs and BYU capitalized on the opportunity, scoring an additional goal. The Cougars picked up the last goal of the half with 6:56 left, tying the game 4-4.

"We played really well today,” said defenseman Steihr. “Our defense came out there tonight and we decided we were going to be a brick wall and stop everything. We knew BYU was going to be pushing us hard from both the midfield and the attack/”

BYU started off the third quarter with two back-to-back goals, putting them in the lead 4-6. Seidel didn’t let that stop him from scoring another goal with 8:37 left on the clock. Creating a ricochet for himself, Seidel gained momentum and scored the next three goals for Colorado putting the Buffs back in the lead, 8-6. CU received a fifth penalty putting Colorado man down for one-minute. BYU took advantage of the penalty and scored a goal with 3:14 remaining in the third. Seidel retaliated, scoring an additional goal for the Buffs, ending the period with a 9-7 lead over the Cougars.

Zach Pendleton took possession of the ball for the Buffs at the start of the fourth period. BYU stole the ball back and scored the first goal of the period keeping Colorado on their toes. Stiehr received the next penalty for the Buffs putting them man down. Taking advantage of the power play opportunity, BYU tied up the game 9-9. Motivated to take the lead Doughrety scored his second goal of the game. Seidel scored an impressive final goal with 4:10 remaining in the contest. Keeping possession of the ball the Buffs tried to make the scoring gap larger, but BYU stole the ball back and made an unfinished shot at the last second of the game. Colorado ended the contest with an 11-9 victory over Brigham Young.

“It was a fun game for the team. We kind of hit a lull in the second quarter, which was frustrating, but we came out in the second half and made a comeback,” said Doughrety. “It’s a great feeling to see our offense running the way it’s supposed to. Seidel played his butt off and that was amazing. It was fantastic to see him running around, scoring all of those goals."

Scoring Summary

First Period

10:56 CU – Greg Kelsic, unassisted

            10:13 BYU – Corey Gunderson, assisted by Patrick Matheson

5:27 CU – Matt White, unassisted

2:32 CU – Tyler Doughrety, assisted by Greg Kelsic

0:40 CU – Riley Seidel, unassisted

Second Period

            13:04 BYU – Jared Houghton, assisted by Andrew Harding

            10:56 BYU – Drew Shumway, unassisted

            6:56 BYU – Corey Gunderson, assisted by Andrew Harding

Third Period

14:43 BYU – Tyler Sabey, assisted by Ted Ferrin

13:28 BYU – Ted Ferrin, unassisted

8:37 CU – Riley Seidel, assisted by Greg Kelsic

8:15 CU – Riley Seidel, unassisted

6:19 CU – Riley Seidel, unassisted

4:54 CU – Riley Seidel, unassisted

            3:14 BYU – Corey Gunderson, assisted by Ted Ferrin

2:22 CU – Tyler Doughrety, assisted by Greg Kelsic

Fourth Period

9:39 BYU – Riley Hales, assisted by Patrick Matheson

            9:10 BYU – Ted Ferrin, assisted by Andrew Harding

5:59 CU – Tyler Doughrety, assisted by Greg Kelsic

4:10 CU – Riley Seidel, unassisted

Shots

CU – 27

BYU – 34

---CULax.org---

Colorado Freeride Hosts King of Campus Rail Jam

BOULDER, Colo. (04/6/12) —The University of Colorado Boulder Freeride and Snowboard team hosts the annual Rail Jam at the Coors Event Center on Friday, April 6 from 6-9:30 p.m.

“I want to see our athletes have fun in front of their classmates,” said Head Coach Pat Abramson. “They will have fun till it gets down to the finals and then get serious about being crowned the best rider on campus.”

This year the competition will only be open to CU students. Riders are expected to wear a helmet and sign a waiver before competing.

“We are hoping this event will increase not only on campus organization involvement, but also increase interest among the student body,” said snowboarder Kelly Macfarlane. “We’re hoping to get a pretty big turnout and are excited to compete.”

The snow will be provided by Winter Park, along with the rails that the athletes will be competing on. Program Council will provide music for the event.

“All the riders who come out should have experience in rail style competition,” said Eric Vlosky, manager of the snowboarding team. “This year we are going to have a lot of talent out there so riders should expect some tough competition.”

Wright Group Event Services has provided the scaffolding and staging and is acting as the main sponsor. Other sponsors include RockStar Energy Drinks, Zeal Optics and First Drop Outerwear.

The event will take place at the South West Entrance of the event center. The competition is FREE to attend and open to the public.

“The location is going to be the best I’ve seen in years,” said Abramson. “It’s on a natural hill, which requires less set up. It’s going to be great.”

Colorado Cycling Races to the Finish

BOULDER (03/13/12)– The University of Colorado Cycling team comes out on top this past weekend, winning four out of five collegiate categories.

Colorado excelled at the competition, taking the first place title in the Men’s A and B and the Women’s A and B collegiate races. The Buffs also took second place in the Men’s C collegiate race.

“The team was on fire and we all worked well together to get the wins,” said President Danny Hiller. “The team came out not only to race, but also to volunteer and help make sure everything went smoothly. It could not have gone better.”

Nearly 200 collegiate racers showed up to the competition and Colorado beat out all the competitors, giving them a huge lead in the Rocky Mountain Collegiate Cycling Conference.

The Citizens Race drew in a large crowd this year, with two races that consisted of over 100 people. Overall, 500 racers came out to compete and to support CU Cycling.

“It took a lot of hard work to put this race on, but it was worth it in the end,” said Hiller. “We made a great profit and the community loved the event.”

To view the citizens results visit http://www.coloradocycling.org/results/road#year=2012&eventId=1059&resultsetId=sum

To view the collegiate results visit http://www.usacycling.org/results/index.php?year=2012&id=757&info_id=45466

Colorado Freestyle Ski Brings Home National Collegiate Championship

SUNDAY RIVER, Maine (03/13/12)– The University of Colorado Freestyle Ski team brings home the 2012 Collegiate National Championship after a week of tough competition.

“I'm very proud, and excited for everyone,” said Head Coach Palmer Hoyt. “Each of us shares in this great accomplishment, but we have a huge thanks and congratulations to give to our fearless athletes and coaches who fought to bring home the title.”

During the 2010-11 season Colorado placed second at the USCSA National Championship behind the University of Southern California.

Scott Szawlowski, Ian Simpson, Ben Hitchcock, Nick Pease, David Lilja, Lauren Ladley, William Baum and Jeremy Brown all fought for the 2012 title. The team of coaches that led the athletes to their victory is Mike Suleiman and Jon Peot.

Brown won the slopestyle competition and was announced the first team all-American individual champion.

“It was great seeing all of the different schools out there throwing down their best for the title,” said Pease. “There is always a heightened intensity when it comes to competing because you need to make sure you land a good enough run to qualify for finals, but at the same time it has to be a run you are comfortable enough with so you won't fall.”

Skiercross was the first event that Colorado competed in where the team went head-to-head with other freestyle athletes. Brown took the lead in this race, qualifying to continue on to time trials.

Colorado continued on to the slopestyle competition where they competed against Liberty University, University of Southern California, Western State and Sierra Nevada College. Brown cleaned up this event, coming in first place. Simpson trailed behind, picking up fifth and placing CU first on the point boards.

The last event of the week was the halfpipe. Each of the players excelled in this event, all qualifying for a second running, avoiding elimination. Brown placed number two in this event with Hitchcock coming in close behind at number three.

The Buffaloes picked up the most points of the week, finishing in first place winning the title of the 2012 USCA Freestyle Skiing National Champions.

“It was an amazing weekend and we finished with the title we were all hoping for,” said Lilja. “It was the best way I could think of to finish my senior season.”

CU Men’s Lacrosse Gains Confidence Against Chapman University

ORANGE, Calif. (03/11/12) – The University of Colorado’s Men’s Lacrosse team played against the Chapman University Panthers on March 9 for their season opener. The young team had a rough preseason, but went into the game with a lot of confidence and heart, despite the 9-6 loss.

In the first quarter, the Buffs were slow to score with Chapman scoring three goals. Ending the period with a score of 3-0, the slow start to the game didn’t stop Colorado from showing off their skills.

“In the beginning we didn’t quite come out altogether. It kicked in second quarter, everyone was playing together and offense gained some confidence, made a few goals and tied up the game,” said sophomore midfielder Hayden McClain. “We played hard all the way through, but couldn’t quite finish with a win.”

The second period started off with another goal from Chapman. The freshmen took the initiative and helped CU to make an impressive comeback. With 9:35 remaining, freshman Harrison Mallon hit the back of the net, scoring a point for Colorado. The goal created momentum, with Rowen Sloss adding to the scoreboard with 6:19 left in the stanza. Chapman was able to pick up another goal in the last 4:32 of the quarter. CU then ended the second period with three more goals. The first two were from freshmen Riley Kulm and Jace Gan, with the last by junior Matt White. Those goals tied up the game bringing the score to 5-5 at the end of the first half.

The game against Chapman allowed for Kulm to show the Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association the potential of the younger Buff players.

“I think we proved a lot, not only to ourselves, but also to the rest of MCLA. With a rough preseason, a lot of people thought we were going to get killed by Chapman, but we gave them a really good game. It was 5-5 at half time and we showed a lot of heart out on the field so I was happy with that,” said Kulm. “I’m looking for us to get our first win for the season against Loyola Marymount on Sunday. We need to learn how to win and get in the habit of winning by scoring more goals and the offense gaining more possession.”

Chapman scored two goals in the beginning of the third quarter and CU answered back with another goal by Kulm, assisted by Alex Puldy. Chapman had another goal with 38 seconds remaining, ending the period 8-6.

The Buffs kept up the fight in the fourth quarter with two unfinished shots by White. Chapman ended the game with a goal in the final minute ending the contest 9-6.

Despite the loss, one of the team captains Ryan Emerson, was impressed from the turnout of the game.

“I thought we looked really good in the second quarter. It was definitely a big change from last weekend, which was exciting to see where we can be at. It slowed down in the second half because of penalties. If we could have eliminated penalties, I feel the game would have had a different result,” said Emerson. “This game just showed us we have confidence and that we can play at this level without a problem. When it comes down to it we’ll be able to beat teams later in the game as long as we can stay away from the little things.”

For more about the CU men’s lacrosse team and the coaches, please visit www.culax.org or www.redhotbuffs.com.