Colorado University Athletics
Lee, Liufau Named CU Athletes of the Week
September 21, 2016 | Football, Women's Golf
BOULDER – Esther Lee (women's golf) and Sefo Liufau (football) were named CU Athletes of the Week for their performances from the week of Sept. 12-18, 2016.
Lee won medalist honors at the Branch Law Firm/New Mexico Invitational on the strength of a first-round, 11-under par 61, setting a new NCAA record for most strokes under par in a round and tying the record of 61 set by Stanford's Maria Stackhouse.
Lee, a winner for a program-best third time in her career, claimed the title by five strokes on the par 72, 6,317-yard New Mexico Championship Golf Course. Her win is tied for the second largest margin of victory in CU history. A day after her 61, she continued her dominance, shooting 4-under par in the final round to secure the victory. In the third round, she made five birdies and 12 pars against only one bogey. In total, the Los Alamitos, Calif. native recorded 30 pars, 21 birdies and just three bogeys at the event. Her 21 birdies marks a program record in a single tournament, topping the previous record of 18 set by Emily Childs (2008). Lee also became the first Buff to notch three rounds in the 60s at an event and sets the program record for the most consecutive rounds in the 60s with her 61-69-68 scorecard.
Lee tallied a program record 11 total birdies during her record round of 61 along with seven pars against zero bogeys. She shot 4-under on the front side and posted a school record 7-under par, 29 on the back nine holes. The third-year Buff's 61 in the first round tied Stanford alumna Mariah Stackhouse's 2013 NCAA scoring record and her 11-under par performance set an NCAA record in relation to par. Stackhouse went 10-under with her 61 on a par 71.
In an impressive outing against No. 4 Michigan, Liufau completed 16-of-25 passing attempts to go along with three touchdowns. Already CU's career leader, Liufau surpassed the 8,000-yard mark in passing yards (8,165 yards) and has now thrown 89 straight passes without an interception (76 this season). Liufau has now caught at least one pass in every year of his career (5-82, 16.4 per, 1 TD). He left the game early in the third quarter with an ankle sprain.
Also nominated for this week's honor: Alexa Smith (volleyball) and Jalen Tompkins (soccer)
Smith was named the Omni Invitational MVP after leading the Buffs to a 3-0 weekend and the tournament championship. She recorded 10 kills and hit .474 in just two sets against Chicago State (CU won 3-0). In the match against New Orleans, another 3-0 win for the Buffs, Smith tallied six kills. The big match was a four-set win over instate rival Colorado State, the first win for the Buffs against the Rams since 2002 and snapped a seven-match losing streak. Smith recorded 21 kills and hit .391. She added a double-double with 10 digs and posted two blocks. She averaged 4.11 kills, 1.33 digs, 0.44 blocks and 4.78 points per set while hitting .378.
Tompkins, a freshman from Phoenix, recorded her second shutout of the season in a 1-0 win over rival Denver to help the Buffs secure the Colorado Cup for the fifth time in the last six years. She made six saves in the win, here second-highest total of the season, and lowered her goal against average to just .68 and her save percentage to .861.
Lee won medalist honors at the Branch Law Firm/New Mexico Invitational on the strength of a first-round, 11-under par 61, setting a new NCAA record for most strokes under par in a round and tying the record of 61 set by Stanford's Maria Stackhouse.
Lee, a winner for a program-best third time in her career, claimed the title by five strokes on the par 72, 6,317-yard New Mexico Championship Golf Course. Her win is tied for the second largest margin of victory in CU history. A day after her 61, she continued her dominance, shooting 4-under par in the final round to secure the victory. In the third round, she made five birdies and 12 pars against only one bogey. In total, the Los Alamitos, Calif. native recorded 30 pars, 21 birdies and just three bogeys at the event. Her 21 birdies marks a program record in a single tournament, topping the previous record of 18 set by Emily Childs (2008). Lee also became the first Buff to notch three rounds in the 60s at an event and sets the program record for the most consecutive rounds in the 60s with her 61-69-68 scorecard.
Lee tallied a program record 11 total birdies during her record round of 61 along with seven pars against zero bogeys. She shot 4-under on the front side and posted a school record 7-under par, 29 on the back nine holes. The third-year Buff's 61 in the first round tied Stanford alumna Mariah Stackhouse's 2013 NCAA scoring record and her 11-under par performance set an NCAA record in relation to par. Stackhouse went 10-under with her 61 on a par 71.
In an impressive outing against No. 4 Michigan, Liufau completed 16-of-25 passing attempts to go along with three touchdowns. Already CU's career leader, Liufau surpassed the 8,000-yard mark in passing yards (8,165 yards) and has now thrown 89 straight passes without an interception (76 this season). Liufau has now caught at least one pass in every year of his career (5-82, 16.4 per, 1 TD). He left the game early in the third quarter with an ankle sprain.
Also nominated for this week's honor: Alexa Smith (volleyball) and Jalen Tompkins (soccer)
Smith was named the Omni Invitational MVP after leading the Buffs to a 3-0 weekend and the tournament championship. She recorded 10 kills and hit .474 in just two sets against Chicago State (CU won 3-0). In the match against New Orleans, another 3-0 win for the Buffs, Smith tallied six kills. The big match was a four-set win over instate rival Colorado State, the first win for the Buffs against the Rams since 2002 and snapped a seven-match losing streak. Smith recorded 21 kills and hit .391. She added a double-double with 10 digs and posted two blocks. She averaged 4.11 kills, 1.33 digs, 0.44 blocks and 4.78 points per set while hitting .378.
Tompkins, a freshman from Phoenix, recorded her second shutout of the season in a 1-0 win over rival Denver to help the Buffs secure the Colorado Cup for the fifth time in the last six years. She made six saves in the win, here second-highest total of the season, and lowered her goal against average to just .68 and her save percentage to .861.
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Golf
QB
/ FootballMonday, June 22
Saturday, April 11
Saturday, April 11
Saturday, April 11