Spring Sports Roundup: Buffs Getting Closer To Conference, NCAA Competitions

BOULDER — Spring has sprung. In Colorado — along with the occasional snowstorm or two — it also means CU coaches are now beginning to look closely at conference meets and NCAA competitions.

There's plenty for CU coaches to keep an eye on. As Colorado's spring sports head down the stretch run, here's a quick roundup of some key Buffs storylines:

LACROSSE — Coach Ann Elliott's team has completed the transition from startup to consistent top-25 program. Now 9-4 overall and tied for first in the Pac-12 with a 6-1 mark, the Buffs are ranked No. 16 in the most-recent coaches poll, with a huge three-game stretch on the immediate horizon.

That stretch begins with perhaps the most-important game of the three, a Friday evening encounter at co-conference leader Stanford (8 p.m., Pac-12 Network live stream). The Buffs handed the Cardinal its only conference loss of the year thus far, an 18-16 win in Boulder in early March. The winner Friday will take control of the league lead.

After that, it's a Sunday afternoon game at Cal (1 p.m.) before the Buffs wrap up the regular season with an April 20 home game against Oregon at Kittredge Field (3 p.m.).

But that won't be the Buffs' final home game. One week later, they will host the first-ever Pac-12 women's lacrosse championships (April 26-27, 29) at Prentup Field, with the winner earning the conference's guaranteed NCAA Tournament berth.

With three Pac-12 teams currently in the nation's top 20 (Stanford No. 12, Colorado No. 16 and USC No. 20) and Oregon receiving votes, it could be the deepest conference tournament the Buffs have played in yet in their five years of existence.

A year ago, Elliott's Buffs made their first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance. This year, they'd like to follow that up with a tourney run that lasts longer than just one game, and an ultra-competitive Pac-12 tournament could prove to be the perfect springboard.

WOMEN'S GOLF — Anne Kelly's team entered the week ranked No. 20 in the nation. The Buffs this week are competing in the Silverado Showdown in California, a meet they co-host with Oregon, and one that features eight top-20 teams, with six of those from the Pac-12.

Senior Brittany Fan and sophomores Kirsty Hodgkins and Robyn Choi have been the Buffs' most consistent players thus far this year. Choi and Fan both have nine top-20 finishes in the fall-spring seasons combined, while Hodgkins has seven. Choi also has five top-five finishes.

The Silverado is Colorado's last tuneup before the Pac-12 championships, which will be contested April 22-24 at the Broadmoor Golf Club in Seattle. After that, it's the May 7-9 NCAA Regionals, followed — hopefully — by a trip to the NCAA Championships.

The Buffs have missed advancing to the NCAA Championships by one stroke in each of the last two years. This, obviously, is the year they would like to end that streak and return to the championships for the first time since 2012.

MEN'S GOLF — Roy Edwards' crew has one more regular-season competition, this weekend's Arizona State Thunderbird Intercollegiate in Tempe.

Ranked 44th in the nation in the most-recent GolfStat rankings, the Buffs have had a consistent year, in particular senior Yannik Paul, who is averaging a steady 70.33 per round this spring, followed by senior Spencer Painton (71.40) and sophomore Daniel O'Loughlin (71.92).

Paul has six tournaments this year under par while O'Loughlin is coming off a 4-under 209 at The Goodwin at Stanford, which put him in a tie for 10th.

After the Thunderbird, the Buffs will head to the Pac-12 championships at Rolling Hills Golf Club in Los Angeles on April 23-25. The NCAA regionals are set for May 14-16 followed by the May 25-30 NCAA Championships at Karsten Creek in Stillwater, Okla., the same site as the women's NCAA Championships..

The Buffs will be aiming for their first championships appearance since 2002.

TRACK AND FIELD — Mark Wetmore's squads are just hitting the meat of their schedule, with key dates still ahead at the Bryan Clay Invitational in Azusa, Calif. (April 18-19), the Cardinal Invite at Stanford (April 20-21), the Oregon State High Performance meet (April 27-28) and the Payton Jordan Invitational at Stanford (May 3).

Then comes the Pac-12 championships at Stanford (May 5-6 for multi-events, May 12-13 for all other events), followed by the NCAA West Preliminaries in Sacramento on May 24-26.

It all then culminates with the NCAA Championships at Oregon's Hayward Field on June 6-9.

As we said, it's early — but the Buffs are already putting their names on the NCAA qualifying charts. Colorado currently has 13 individuals and one relay in the top 50 in the nation, with 48 competitors (24 in each preliminary) earning berths.

That CU list thus far includes two men and two women in the top 10 in the nation in the 1,500 meters, with Zach Perrin seventh and Ben Saarel eighth on the men's side and Makena Morley fourth and Sage Hurta sixth on the women's side.

Morley, by the way, had an outstanding effort in last weekend's Colorado Invitational. The CU sophomore not only shaved three seconds off her personal best, she did it at altitude, which translated into an adjusted time roughly nine seconds better than her previous top time.

Also currently holding a top-10 ranking is Kaitlyn Benner in the 5,000.

There will be plenty more names added to the qualifying list over the next month, and some Buffs with current qualifying marks could also test the waters in other events.

TENNIS — Nicole Kenneally's Buffs, who opened the Pac-12 season with a 4-3 win over Arizona, will wrap up regular season play over the next two weeks. CU travels to Oregon on Friday, then plays host to Denver on April 17 and Utah on April 21 in the regular season finale.

The Buffs will then travel to the Pac-12 championships April 25-28 in Ojai, Calif.

Freshman Linda Huang has been steady for Colorado this year, compiling a 19-12 record, while sophomore Chloe Hule is 14-11, with a pair of wins in Pac-12 play.

Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu