Jones, Kiernan And Reistad Named UCHealth CU Athletes Of The Week

Darby Kiernan and Dani Jones were named the UCHealth Athletes of the Week for women after their performances in lacrosse and track and field while Petter Reistad took home the honor for the men after his outstanding performance at the NCAA Skiing Championships.

Senior attacker Darby Kiernan recorded 15 points in two games as the Buffs started the Pac-12 slate with a pair of victories over No. 18 Stanford and California. Kiernan helped to spark the Buffs 18-16 comeback win against Stanford on Friday with eight points. She scored five goals for the third time this season and added three assists. In the 15-5 win over Cal, Kiernan tallied a career-best six goals, the second most in CU history. In addition, she added one assist for her third straight game with seven or more points. Against Cal, she also became CU's career points leader as she is currently at 223, surpassing the previous best of 218 held by former Buff Johnna Fusco. In addition to her 15 points in two games, she recorded 16 draw control wins, four ground balls and had one caused turnover. The Buffs have now won four straight games after starting the season 1-2. They have also won 15 straight games at home, tied for ninth in the NCAA record book.

Junior distance runner Dani Jones finished second in the women's mile while competing in the 2018 NCAA indoor Championships at Gilliam Indoor Track Stadium. Jones surpassed her previous best indoor mile time of 4:38:68 with a time of 4:31:82. She came up just short of winning the race, placing just .06 seconds behind Elinor Purrier of New Hampshire. Jones earned first-team All-America honors for her strong performance during the championships. As the indoor season has come to a close, her and her teammates will now look forward to the outdoor season as they host the Jerry Quiller Classic beginning March 16 at Potts Field.

Junior Nordic skier Petter Reistad earned two All-America honors at last week's NCAA Championships that Colorado hosted in Steamboat Springs. He finished in second place in the men's 10K classic race, double-poling the whole way to earn his first podium finish ever in what was his third and final NCAA Championship. Then in the men's 20K freestyle skate, he placed ninth to earn second-team All-America honors. Reistad finishes his Colorado career having earned six All-America honors (three first-team, three second-team), which ties for the eighth-most earned in CU history. He also will leave CU with 14 career podium finishes.

Also nominated this week: Chloe Hule (Women's Tennis), Anne Siri Lervik (Women's Nordic), McKinley Wright IV (Men's Basketball)

Sophomore Chloe Hule went undefeated in her matches over the weekend, helping Colorado earn its first win in a conference-opener since the 2008-09 season after defeating Arizona, 4-3. In the match, Hule and partner Brigitte Beck clinched the doubles point with a win over UA's Mary Lewis and Marie Van Aelst, 6-4, on court No. 1. Hule clinched the match with a win over the Wildcats' Camila Wesbrooks, 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 in the No. 2 singles match. On Sunday, the Buffs fell short in upsetting No. 34-ranked Arizona State, 3-4, but Hule was dominant again as she and Beck clinched the doubles point as they breezed to a 6-1 win in the No. 1 doubles match. In singles play, Hule took down the Sun Devils' Ilze Hattingh, 6-3, 6-1, on court No. 2. The doubles pairing of Hule and Beck remain undefeated this season at 9-0. In singles, Hule is now 8-3.

Sophomore Anne Siri Lervik was the only woman to earn first-team All-America honors at the 2018 NCAA Skiing Championship, as she earned the award with her second place finish in the women's 5K classical race last Thursday. With that result, she became the 21st Buff in program history (sixth women's Nordic skier) to hit the podium in her first NCAA race. In her second race of the weekend, she finished in 11^th place in the women's 15K freestyle skate. She ended the season with ten top five finishes (most on the team) in 14 races and five podium finishes (tied for the team lead).

Freshman McKinley Wright IV averaged 14.0 points, 8.0 assists and 6.0 rebounds as Colorado went 1-1 at the Pac-12 Tournament. Wright hit 58 percent from the field and 50 percent from the 3-point line. He had 20 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds in the first round win over Arizona State. He recorded his fourth double-double and third of the points-assists variety, tying a school record for most points-assists double-doubles in one season. His 11 assists matched a career high and are the most by a Buffalo in a postseason conference tournament and ties for the most in a postseason overall. Wright had eight points, five assists and four rebounds in the quarterfinals against Arizona, before suffering an ankle injury mid-way through the second half.

Jones, Kiernan And Reistad Named UCHealth CU Athletes Of The Week

Players Mentioned

Johnna Fusco

Dani Jones

Darby Kiernan

Anne Siri Lervik

Petter Reistad

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