September 20, 2007

Campus briefs

Utah

FOOTBALL: Punter Louie Sakoda has been named to the Ray Guy Award watch list for the top collegiate punter in the country. Sakoda, who was the preseason Mountain West Conference special teams player of the year, earned player of the week honors for his efforts against UCLA. He totaled five punts against the Bruins, four of which were pinned inside the 20-yard line. He had one of those four punts downed on the 3, while his fifth punt went for a touchback.

SOFTBALL: During the 2008 season, Utah will play several teams that ended 2007 in the top 25, head coach Amy Hogue announced Wednesday. The Utes will play six tournaments to start the regular season, starting with the Red Desert Classic in St. George on Feb. 28 against Wisconsin. The Utes will also take on Rhode Island, Southern Utah, Idaho State and Northern Colorado during the tournament. Utah then moves on to the Kajikawa Classic, Feb. 15-17 at Arizona State, a tournament that typically features some of the top teams in the nation. The Utes will face Notre Dame, Texas State, Texas Tech, Western Michigan and No. 15 Oregon State. Utah then travels to Austin, Texas, for the Texas Classic from Feb. 29-March 2. No. 8 Arizona State hosts the Diamond Devil Invitational (March 7-9), where Utah will also play UC Davis, San Diego and Pacific. At the San Diego Classic at San Diego State (March 14-16), No. 7 Texas A&M and No. 16 Cal State Fullerton provide the Utes with two of their biggest challenges during the season.

Utah State

FOOTBALL: Head coach Brent Guy will be in Salt Lake City to meet with Aggie fans today as part of the Big Blue Scholarship Fund luncheon. The luncheon, which is open to all, will take place at Homewood Suites, 423 W. 300 South in Salt Lake City, beginning at noon. Free parking is available in the parking terrace beneath the hotel. Cost of the luncheon is $12 for Big Blue Scholarship Fund members presenting their membership card, and $15 for non-members.

Westminster

SOCCER: Goalkeeper Kelsey Allen has been named the Frontier Conference defender of the week. She helped the Griffins to a 1-1 record this past weekend.

VOLLEYBALL: Bree Riet was named the Frontier Conference libero of the week for her performance last weekend. Riet, a 5-foot-6 senior from Chester, averaged 6.86 digs per game over the weekend.

UVSC

WOMEN'S GOLF: Echo Thatcher shot a 5-over 77 on her way to setting three personal records at the LaQuinta Mountain Shootout in Flagstaff, Ariz. The senior golfer finished a career-best seventh while also shooting her best round (77) and two-round (159) totals.

BYU

WOMEN'S SOCCER: Katie Larkin, a Hermann Trophy candidate, was named to the Soccer Buzz Team of the Week on Tuesday for her efforts against Long Beach State and Wisconsin. Larkin was one of 18 players nationwide to earn the accolade, and the team was chosen from more than 5,000 collegiate players. It was Larkin's second nomination to the team in her career. The forward leads the team in goals (4) and shots (21).

WOMEN'S TENNIS: The BYU Invitational runs today through Saturday and will feature players from Utah, Utah State, Colorado State, Weber State and Boise State. Play starts today at 10 a.m. and will continue throughout the day. Admission to the tournament is free.