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Buff skiers extend lead at RMISA Championships
Feb 24th
BOZEMAN, Mont. — The University of Colorado ski team picked up a third regional champion in taking all three top spots in a race for the second straight day in extending its lead as the second day of competition was completed here Saturday in the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association Championships, an event that doubles as the NCAA West Regional.
The Buffaloes finished the day with 711 team points, extending its lead over second-place Utah (625) from 40 to 86 points with two events remaining. Denver moved from fifth into third (616) with host Montana State fourth (550). Heavy snowfall overnight and into the morning made things challenging for all the skiers, especially those competing in the giant slalom.
Eliska Hajkove
Colorado is bidding for its 12th RMISA/West Regional title in the 23 years that Richard Rokos as served as the program’s head coach, as its 23rd overall in the 60-plus year history of the conference.
For the second straight day, Colorado’s women’s Nordic team posted a 1-2-3 sweep, this time in the 15-kilometer freestyle race, duplicating the effort in Friday’s 5k classical event. Prior to Friday, Colorado had not recorded a 1-2-3 sweep in women’s Nordic action since the sport went coed in 1983; with Saturday’s accomplishment, it matched the number of times Buff skiers had done in all other disciplines (two, once in men’s Nordic and in women’s alpine).
Senior Eliska Hajkova won for the first time this year, marking the first time in CU history that three different women’s Nordic skiers have captured races in the same season, joining senior Joanne Reid (eight wins) and freshman Maria Nordstroem (one). Hajkova’s eighth career victory (third in freestyle) also allowed CU skiers to win all 10 RMISA women’s cross country races this winter, another school first.
Hajkova led the pack of 27 skiers in the mass start format in a time of 51:25.7, with Reid next in at 51:40.2 and then Nordstroem in 51:45.9; the first non-Buff was Utah’s Rose Kemp, who crossed the finish line some 37 seconds later. The only “downside” to this was that Hajkova ended her teammate Reid’s string of seven consecutive wins, tied for the second longest in any discipline in Buff history.
“I wanted it so much today,” Hajkova said. “I had prefect skis. I was rested and my skis went so fast. On the last uphill, I just felt like I should try, so I did and it worked. It feels great when you’re at the end of the second lap and it’s just your teammates and friends around you. Sometimes when people get away from the main pack, they slow down and rest, but we worked really hard to make it a bigger gap, and I’m so proud of all of us.”
“I was thinking that we should keep a gap as a team,” Reid said. “I was in the lead on the final lap until the final uphill, which isn’t smart if you want to win a race, but we went 1-2-3, so it was worth it. It’s pretty perfect for us to all get podiums again, and helps our confidence going to NCAA’s.”
“We thought our biggest competition would be from the Alaska Anchorage girl Marine (Dusser),” Nordstroem said. “When she started falling back, I started pulling ahead on the flats. But then I was struggling, so my teammates took over and it was awesome. I’m a little relieved, the more you win in a row the more nervous you get and I’ve always said I want us to go 1-2-3 more than me winning, so I’m so happy right now.”
Arnaud Du Pasquier
And with senior Mary Rose coming in eighth in 52:46.8, it marked the fourth time this winter four CU skiers, and the only four on the roster this year, finished in the top 10. It was Rose’s sixth career top 10 effort, all coming in her last 13 collegiate races, as she is one of the most improved skiers from freshman to senior seasons in school history.
In the men’s 20-kilometer race, Utah won as a team by placing four in the top five, including winner Miles Havlick in a time of 58:35.6. Colorado sophomore Rune Oedegaard took second, less than three seconds back in 58:38.2; the two finished in reverse order from Friday’s classic result.
Sophomore Arnaud Du Pasquier recorded his best collegiate finish, as his 59:28.1 time placed him seventh, also his second top 10 effort. Junior Andreas Hoye was CU’s third scorer, finishing 11th in 1 hour, 26.6 seconds. Rounding out the CU men on Saturday were freshmen Charlie Von Thaden (matching his career best finish,15th, in 1:01:13.8) and Gustav Nordstrom (16th, 1:01:22.0), senior Ian Mallams (17th, 1:02:00.0) and freshman Michael Vigers (20th, 1:02:33.7).
“At the beginning, I started really easy, since I was sixth in our lane, so I knew it wasn’t worth killing myself to have a good start,” Du Pasquier said. “You have to use a lot of energy out front anyway with these conditions. Then I just wanted to keep the pace for every lap. I was able to stay with the lead pack, I had some issues with pacing and I think that hurt me at points, but I was able to fight back and almost caught the lead pack again at the end.”
Hajkova, Reid and Oedegaard continued their climb up CU’s all-time podium (top three) list. The Nordic trio has 67 among them: Hajkova is third with 31; Reid is now tied for 10th with 19, while Oedegard pulled into a tie for 12th.
The meet concludes Sunday with the slalom races; CU will return to Boulder ahead of departing next weekend for the NCAA Championships in Vermont.
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Tree removals require lane closures Feb. 25 through March 10
Feb 20th
The City of Boulder Parks and Recreation Department’s Urban Forestry Division will require temporary lane closures around Boulder in the next few weeks to remove a number of large trees. Forestry staff has determined that these trees pose a public safety hazard due to internal decay, structural weakness and/or large dead branches overhanging streets, sidewalks and structures. This is routine work. Dates are tentative and weather-dependent.
On Monday, Feb. 25, there will be intermittent closures of Balsam Avenue between 14th and 15th streets from noon to 3:30 p.m.
On Wednesday, Feb. 27, there will be intermittent closures of Norwood Avenue between 21st Street and Norwood Court from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. Also on Feb. 27, the outside lane of northbound Broadway, north of Norwood Avenue, will be closed from noon to 3:30 p.m.
On Thursday, Feb. 28 and Friday, March 1, the southbound lane of Airport Road will be closed from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Southbound traffic will be directed into a center lane.
On Monday, March 4, the southbound and right turn lane of Spine Road will be closed north of Lookout Road from 8:30 to 11 a.m. All southbound and turning traffic will be directed through the left turn lane. Also on March 4, there will be intermittent closures of Merritt Drive from Ingersoll Place to Holmes Place between noon and 3:30 p.m.
On Tuesday, March 5, there will be intermittent closures of 55th Street between Blackhawk Road and Tenino Avenue from 9 to 11:30 a.m. Also on March 5, the outside westbound lane of South Boulder Road will be closed from noon to 3 p.m. west of Manhattan Drive.
On Sunday, March 10, the westbound lane of Valmont Road between 28th Street and 30th Street will be closed from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
In addition to these tree removals requiring lane closures, contractors working for the Urban Forestry Division will remove two other large trees with significant cavities in their trunks and/or major branches. These include the following:
- A cottonwood tree at the Main Boulder Public Library, 1001 Arapahoe Ave., with a large trunk cavity.
- A silver maple tree at 1743 Mapleton Ave. with large cavities in its major branches
City park and neighborhood street trees are inspected annually for structural integrity and safety by the Urban Forestry Division using industry-set standards and techniques. For more information, contact the Urban Forestry office, 303-441-4406, Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
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CU Men Fall To ASU In OT On Buzzer-Beating Layup
Feb 17th
By B.G. Brooks, CUBuffs.com Contributing Editor
BOULDER – A Saturday night of bumping, grinding, pounding and flailing ended with a soft buzzer-beating layup. And that ended the night badly for the Colorado Buffaloes.
Arizona State’s Evan Gordon split CU’s defense down the right lane, driving for the game-winning basket in overtime as the Sun Devils stunned the Buffs 63-62 at the sold-out, bummed-out Coors Events Center.
“Welcome to college football . . . I thought the season was over in December,” said disgruntled CU coach Tad Boyle. “It was an unbelievable physical game, the most physical game I’ve ever been a part of – college, high school, YMCA.”
Dinwiddie’s 24 points kept the Buffs in the game.
CU freshman Josh Scott took the brunt of the night’s physicality. Matched against Jordan Bachynski, Scott and the 7-2, 250-pound ASU center became entangled and spun to the floor with 16:02 remaining in the second half.
Bachynski got up, Scott didn’t. Motioned to come to the court by CU players, trainer Trey Tashiro rushed to attend to Scott. When Scott was able to sit up and finally stand, Tashiro escorted him to the locker room, where he remained for the rest of the game.
Boyle said Scott, after catching an elbow to the head, “blacked out and got a concussion.” Further tests are scheduled to determine Scott’s status for Thursday’s game against Utah (CEC, 8 p.m., Pac-12 Network).
Boyle credited Arizona State but said the night’s rough-and-tumble play and the scarcity of blown whistles – 35 fouls were called and maybe that many or more uncalled – “affected both teams . . . I thought our guys reacted well and played their hearts out. I had no problem with their effort and energy; they did everything we asked them to do on defense.”
He called Gordon’s drive “a hell of a play . . . a bang-bang play and we weren’t able to stop them.”
On ASU’s winning possession, which started with 8.3 seconds left after Spencer Dinwiddie’s layup gave CU a 62-61 lead, Buffs sophomore Askia Booker he and his teammates were aware of Sun Devils point guard Jahi Carson.
Boyle said the Buffs wanted to “get the ball out of (Carson’s) hands, and Booker added, “I think Jahi is so great with ball and can create his own shot, everybody was looking to him. Gordon had a straight-line drive . . . we just didn’t guard the ball well enough.”
Saturday night’s bitter defeat came two nights after CU had shocked No. 9 Arizona. Losing for the first time in four games, the Buffs fell to 17-8 overall and 7-6 in the Pac-12 Conference. ASU, which defeated CU 65-56 in Tempe last month, improved to 19-7, 8-5. Saturday night marked CU’s sixth sellout at the CEC this season, breaking the school record of five set in 2010-11.
The Buffs rallied to win close games last week at then-No. 19 Oregon and Oregon State, which left Boyle philosophical about Saturday night’s loss. “We stole two games in Oregon,” he said. “I can’t get too down . . . (but) it stinks. It’s college athletics and losing is no fun. The guys in our locker room are hurting, I’m hurting, our staff is hurting and BuffsNation is hurting.”
Josh Scott left the game after getting an elbo to the head from Arizona State’s 7-2, 250 pound center Jordan Bachynski
A foul-line jumper by Andre Roberson gave CU a 60-59 lead with 1:46 remaining in overtime, but Carson banked in a runner from the right side to push the Sun Devils ahead 61-60.
Boyle called a timeout but the Buffs went empty on that possession. At the other end, Carrick Felix missed two free throws with 24 seconds to play, giving the Buffs a chance.
Dinwiddie took it, making a layup to put CU up 62-61 with 8.3 seconds left. But the Buffs couldn’t cut off Gordon’s drive to the basket, and his layup trickled in as time expired, sucking the life out of the CEC.
Dinwiddie led CU with 24 points, with Booker adding 17 and Xavier Johnson 10. Carson’s 18 topped ASU, with Gordon scoring 14 and Bachynski 12.
Behind 15 rebounds by Roberson and 14 by Johnson, the Buffs won the board battle 41-26. Roberson collected 14 of his rebounds in the second half. The Sun Devils shot 46 percent from the field, the Buffs 35.1 percent. ASU’s biggest statistical edge was in the paint – 30-20.
CU trailed for the final 6:38 of regulation and had only one field goal from the 5:33 mark until a pair in the final 46.6 seconds by Booker and Johnson. It was Johnson’s dunk on a dish from Dinwiddie that tied the score at 54-54 and sent the game into overtime.
While the Buffs were struggling to hit a shot in the final 5 minutes, Dinwiddie hit 10 of 10 free throws before the baskets by Booker and Johnson. Dinwiddie finished 14-of-14 from the line.
The Buffs ran hot and cold in the first half, encountering a pair of scoring droughts and winding up three points behind (27-24) at halftime. That’s not to say Arizona didn’t have its first-half offensive troubles; the Sun Devils went 7:18 without a point and the Buffs took advantage, rolling to a 22-15 advantage behind the three-point shooting of Dinwiddie and Xavier Talton.
But as quickly as that seven-point lead appeared, it evaporated in the half’s final 4:10 as Arizona closed with a 12-2 run. In home games this season in which they trailed at halftime, the Buffs had been 1-1 (beating Texas Southern, losing to UCLA). Now they’re 1-2.
In most areas, CU clearly needed a quick reversal to open the second half. Less than two minutes in, Booker tied the score at 27-27 with a three-pointer from the left wing. But a rough patch – literally – was coming for the Buffs.
Inside play had been physical from the opening tip, with Bachynski trying to overpower Scott from the outset. Their duel intensified in the second half’s first 4 minutes, resulting in the entanglement that took Scott out of the game.
In Scott’s absence, the Buffs used 6-11 Shane Harris-Tunks and the 6-7 Roberson on Bachynski. By this time, the sold-out CEC was doing its part, but both teams were still having difficulty on the offensive end – mainly because anything seemed to be allowed on the defensive end.
With 7:11 to play, the score was tied at 38-38, and if the Buffs were going to win this one it wouldn’t be done softly.
A trey by Jonathan Gilling gave ASU a 41-38 advantage, then he added a pair of free throws to put the Sun Devils up by five (45-40) – their largest lead of the night – with 5:01 to play.
After Arizona went ahead 47-42, Dinwiddie hit four consecutive free throws to pull CU to within 47-46 with 3:56 to play. Just over a minute later, Gordon’s three-pointer from the right wing gave the Sun Devils a 50-46 advantage, but once again Dinwiddie cut CU’s deficit to 50-48 with a pair of free throws. Bachynski, who had missed a pair of foul shots at the 3:36 mark, hit a pair with 1:50 showing – and down 52-48, the Buffs were in trouble. It deepened when Carson sank another pair with 1:19 left, putting CU six points (54-48) down.
All that was keeping the Buffs afloat were Dinwiddie’s free throws – he got two more at 1:15 – until Booker hit a runner in the lane to bring the Buffs to within 54-52. It was CU’s first field goal since 5:33, that coming on another Booker basket.
ASU called timeout with 34.7 on the game clock and 24 seconds on the shot clock. The Sun Devils took the shot clock to zero, leaving the Buffs with 10.6 seconds to tie or win.
Dinwiddie fought his way through a double team to get the inbounds pass, raced up court and after going airborne, dished to Xavier Johnson for a stuff. It was 54-54 with 2.5 seconds to play.
ASU’s Carrick Felix got off a shot at the buzzer, but it bounded off the back iron. OT, along with heartache for the Buffs, were on the way.
Booker said the Buffs missed Scott “without a doubt. He’s our low-post presence . . . Coach told us it would be a physical game and that (Bachynski) would be one of the best players we’d face. We did pretty well with him.”
After scoring 16 points, grabbing seven rebounds and blocking nine shots in the first meeting, Bachynski line read 12, 3 and 3 in those categories Saturday night.
Boyle told his team that “every game from here on out is going to be like this . . . we’re 0-2 against Arizona State, but guess what? We’ve still got a conference tournament.”
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