Colorado University Athletics
Hughes and O'Neill Claim Athlete Of The Week Honors
October 26, 2011 | Football, General, Soccer
BOULDER - Football's Darragh O'Neill (freshman) and soccer's Hayley Hughes (sophomore) both receive the honor of being named CU Athlete of the Week for their accomplishments the week of October 17-23.
O'Neill, originally from Louisville, Colo. (Fairview High School in Boulder), punted 12 times for an average of 43.2 yards during Saturday's game against the Oregon Ducks. He set a school record with six punts inside-the-20 and four inside-the-10. Two of his punts landed inside the 5-yard line. Despite O'Neill's effort, the Buffs fell to Oregon 45-2.
The 6-foot-2 freshman joined the team as a walk-on in spring practices. Born in Ireland, this is O'Neill's first season playing organized football at any level.
Hughes, originally from Highlands Ranch, Colo. (Mountain Vista High School), scored the game-winning goal in Colorado's 1-0 victory against No. 15 California this past weekend. Giving the team their first head-to-head victory against a Pac-12 Conference opponent (women's golf won a tournament in Washington against a mostly Pac-12 playing field), Hughes played a total of 163 minutes over the weekend (at Cal and at No. 1 Stanford). The Buffs were defeated by No. 1 Stanford 1-4.
The 5-foot-4 defender has had three goals this season, tying her goal total from the 2010 season. In 2010, Hughes also led the team in points scored by a freshman.
Also nominated for this w eek's award: Kerra Schroeder (volleyball), Emily Talley (women's golf), Kevin Kring (men's golf).
Volleyball: Kerra Schroeder, Jr., San Diego, Calif.
Junior Kerra Schroeder led Cu to its first set victory in Pac-12 play as the Buffs went 0-2 against No. 6 UCLA and No. 3 USC. Schroeder recorded 16 kills in the four set loss to UCLA and came close to a double-double with nine digs. She also added two block assists in the match. Schroeder had 10 kills and four digs in the three set loss to USC. She added three aces and three block assists. For the weekend, Schroeder averaged 3.71 kills, 1.86 digs, 0.43 service aces and 0.71 blocks per set.
Women's Golf: Emily Talley, Sr., Napa, Calif.
Senior Emily Talley led the Buffs at the SEC/Pac-12 Challenge over the weekend where the Buffs finished in 14th place in the toughest field in school history, including eight top-10 teams. Talley shot a 6-over par 222 over the 54-hole event and finished tied for 34th at the Holston Hils Country Club in Knoxville, Tenn. Shooting a 4-over par 76 on the first day, she was tied for 55th place, before shooting an even par in the second round and 2-over par 74 in the third round. Her even par round is the ninth of her career and she now has 27 career rounds at or under par, a school record.
Men's Golf: Kevin Kring, Sr., Springfield, Mo.
Senior Kevin Kring recorded CU's top performance at the Alister Mackenzie Invitational with his 73-70-72--215 scorecard, tying him for 44th overall. Kring had 40 pars, six birdies and eight bogeys over the three rounds.
