Colorado University Athletics
Benner And Paul Grab Athlete Of The Week
February 13, 2015 | Cross Country, General, Men's Golf
BOULDER-- Cross country's Kaitlyn Benner and men's golfer Yannik Paul were awarded CU Athlete of the Week honors for the week of February 2-8.
Benner won the USA Junior Women's Cross Country Championship on Saturday at Flatirons Golf Course in Boulder, earning herself a spot on the U.S. team that will compete at the IAAF World Championships in China next month. Benner pulled away from the field with her teammate, Val Constien, at the halfway point of the 6-kilometer race. Benner and Constien were running shoulder to shoulder until Benner made her move with about half a mile remaining and finished six seconds ahead of her teammate in 21:48. This was the freshman runner's first athlete of the week honor.
Paul led CU to a 12th place finish in the Amer Ari Invitational. He tied for 18th with a 73-67-68 scorecard, good for an 8-under 208 total on the 7,074-yard, par-72 on the Waikoloa King's Course layout. He recorded a team-leading sixth and seventh rounds in the 60s this year and racked up 15 birdies, 32 pars and just seven bogeys in the tournament. It was the fourth time in his career that he finished a 54-hole tournament at six-under or better and his second best effort of the season in relation to par. He also played the par-4s at 5-under par, tied for seventh in the 112-man field.
Also nominated this week were basketball players junior Jamee Swan and junior Josh Scott as well as senior tennis player Julyette Steur.
Swan registered her team-best sixth double-double of the season, and the eighth of her career, with 14 points and 10 rebounds against USC. She dished out three assists and also hit all six free throw attempts. She became the 22nd player to reach 500 career rebounds, now with 507.
Steur won two singles and two doubles matches leading Colorado to a 1-1 week in non-conference play. Steur remained unbeaten this dual season at 6-0 as she defeated Rebecca Pedrazzi 6-2, 2-6, 7-6(2) from Wichita State, and Maddie Schulte, 6-2, 6-1 from UMKC, both at the No. 2 singles slot. The Buffaloes (5-1) lost at No. 43 Wichita State, 5-2, then rallied 24 hours later on a neutral court blanking UMKC, 7-0.
Scott made his long awaited return to the court against Utah coming off the bench to score 10 points with a team-high seven rebounds in Colorado's lone game of the week, a 79-51 home loss to No. 13/11 ranked Utah. Scott played 23 minutes in his return and shot 4-of-9 from the field with one assist. The junior score 10 points giving him 1,000 points becoming the 32nd player in school history to reach the 1,000-point plateau.
