Colorado University Athletics

Gelso, Marshall, Talley, Dodson Capture Awards At CUSPY'S

Gelso, Marshall, Talley, Dodson Capture Awards At CUSPY'S
BOULDER - A dozen major awards were presented here Tuesday night as the University of Colorado honored its best at the 10th annual CUSPY Awards (CU Sports Performers of the Year).

Over 300 student-athletes, coaches, staff and C-Club members attended the year-end banquet at the Coors Events Center, organized by CU's Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) to honor athletic accomplishments for the 2009-10 athletic year.


Matt Gelso
The Male Athlete of the Year Award was presented to senior Nordic skier Matt Gelso, a two-time, first-team All-America performer in the NCAA Skiing Championships at Steamboat Springs.  On the year, he had eight top three finishes in 12 races, placing in the top seven 11 times and in the top 10 for all.  As the season progressed, he emerged as the No. 1 Nordic skier in the west, a rare achievement for an American male, and at one point strung together five straight wins to tie the school record by an alpine or Nordic male performer.  The last of those five came in the NCAA Championships, when he was crowned the national champion in the 10-kilometer classical race; two days later, he took home the bronze (third) in the 20K freestyle event.  He concluded his career in a fourth-place tie for the most podium finishes (top three) in school history with 22.

Other finalists included Cha'pelle Brown (football) and Cory Higgins (men's basketball).


Emily Talley
Sophomore golfer Emily Talley earned the Female Athlete of the Year Award honor.   Talley capped her season by finishing fifth at the Big 12 Championships, the second-highest finish ever for a CU golfer in the event and her second top five finish of the season.  After taking sixth as a freshman at Big 12's, she now owns two of the six top 10 finishes there in program history.  Her stroke average of 74.94 this season was the second best in school history and just the second time a CU golfer broke the 75 strokes per round barrier. She also finished the season with five straight top 20 finishes, matching the longest streak in CU history.

The committee actually had four finalists for the honor, with Talley edging Emma Coburn (women's track and field), Katie Hartman (skiing) and Brittany Spears (women's basketball).

The selection committee does leave open the possibility that the Athlete-of-the-Year awards could be shared once the spring sport seasons are complete (golf, outdoor track, tennis) in fairness to those sports that still have important portions of their seasons ahead of them.  For example, Coburn currently holds the fastest time in the world in the steeplechase, thus the committee will keep an eye on what she accomplishes at the Big 12's and in the NCAA's.


Jeremy Dodson
The Male Career Athletic Achievement Award had three worthy finalists who all could have won, but the nod went to sprinter Jeremy Dodson.   He owns the CU school records in the indoor and outdoor 200-meter dash as well as the 4x100-meter relay. His outdoor time in the 200 (20.37) broke a 32-year-old record when he placed second at the 2008 Big 12 Championship. Dodson's PR of 10.27, which earned him a third-place finish at the '08 Big 12 meet, ranks fifth all-time. As a member of the 4x100 relay, he has led CU to several top marks. In 2008, the 4x100m relay broke a 37-year-old record twice (39.47, 39.59). The 39.59 mark was third at the '08 Big 12 meet. Dodson had left his mark in the CU indoor record book as he is the only Buff to ever run the 200 in less than 21 seconds, doing so twice. Dodson is tied for fourth at CU in the 60 with a time of 6.72 and ranks third on the performer chart. He is a nine-time All-Big 12 performer and is a two-time All-American.  The other finalists were Gelso and Jeff Smart (football).

Nikki Marshall

Monica Milewski
The Female Career Athletic Achievement Award was the one award the selection committee could not narrow down to one recipient, selecting two honorees: seniors Nikki Marshall (soccer) and Monica Milewski (tennis).

Marshall completed her career as CU's all-time in goals scored (42) as well as points (93), earning first-team All-Region honors her sophomore through senior seasons.  She was second-team as a freshman when she was selected the Big 12 Conference's Newcomer-of-the-Year when she set school records with 17 goals and 37 points, also garnering Freshman All-America honors.  She became just the second player in Big 12 history to be named first-team All-Conference four times, and during her time at CU also played for the United States U-20 and U-21 teams in international competition.  Washington made her the seventh pick overall this past January in the Women's Professional Soccer League draft.

Milewski became only the second woman in school history to win at least 90 career singles matches, standing second on the all-time list.  Milewski holds the career school record for combined singles and doubles victories (167) and shares the school mark in doubles victories (77).  This past season was perhaps her best on the court, achieving a 25-7 singles record, winning 14 matches at the No. 1 position, and engineering an 8-1 mark against the Big 12 Conference at the top singles line.  The three-time All-Big 12 singles and doubles standout won 67 of her 90 matches in straight sets.


Alec Burks
The Male Freshman Athlete of the Year Award was given to Alec Burks, who had an outstanding debut season on the men's basketball team.  He became the first Colorado freshman to surpass 500 points in a single-season (512) and became only the second CU freshman to lead his team in rebounding (5.0). Burks ranked fourth nationally for all freshmen in points per game (17.1) and field goal percentage (53.8). He was named Big 12 Conference Freshman of the Year and to the Big 12 All-Rookie Team, as well as to a number of postseason award teams, including the Sporting News All-Freshman Second Team. He led all Big 12 freshmen in scoring, was second in rebounding, and fourth in steals. Burks shot a team-high 52.4 field goal percentage against Big 12 opponents and netted eight, 20-plus scoring games.

The two other finalists were Joe Bosshard (cross country) and Derek Fribbs (golf).
Cross Country performer Allie McLaughlin captured the Female Freshman Athlete of the Year Award, as she had one of the finest seasons by a freshman in school history.  She was the second best harrier in the first four varsity meets and led the Buffs at the NCAA Championship. McLaughlin started off the season by finishing second at the Rocky Mountain Shootout and ran the eighth best time in course history at 20 minutes, 22 seconds to become the second fastest freshman to finish the very challenging course. McLaughlin was named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year at the conference meet after finishing second, and followed that performance up with a third-place finish at the regional championship. Just 10 days later, McLaughlin led the Buffs with a fifth-place finish at nationals, the highest finish ever for a CU freshman. She ran one race during the indoor season, a 3k, and recorded the second fastest time ever by a freshman at 9:23.31.

McLaughlin bested Chucky Jeffrey (women's basketball) and Joanne Reid (skiing) in claiming the honor.

SAAC members selected several award winners, as insurance coordinator Mary Ellen "Clyde" O'Malley was recognized as the staff member of the year.  In citing her for the award, the selection committee noted that she is, "Always super helpful, always cheerful and very flexible and accommodating when it comes to paperwork.  She knows everyone by name and overall is a fun presence in the Dal Ward Athletic Center."

The Student Athlete Support Award was given to Sports Medicine for the department's medical and health services it provides the students, as well as the dedication exhibited each and every day in all facets of the operation.  Coordinating doctor's appointments, rehabilitation schedules and treatment, all often on short notice, earned Dr. Eric McCarty and head trainer Miguel Rueda's area the award as selected by the students.

The prestigious Buffalo Award of Distinction, given to student-athletes of each gender for outstanding contributions to his or her team, their peers and the athletic department overall, were presented to Marshall and senior basketball player Dwight Thorne II.  Marshall was a three-year member of SAAC, serving as communications officer for a year, and was a role model for her teammates and was an exceptional student who combined turning pro with still finishing her requirements to graduate this May.  Thorne was a consistent performer on and off the court in basketball, a solid student who is graduating next month who also set an example for his teammates.  Both participated in several CU community outreach projects, including Buffalo Hugs, Read With The Buffs and the Holiday Angel Tree.

The SAAC Distinguished Service Award, presented to senior members who contributed significantly to the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, was given to 10 seniors: Matt DiLallo (football), Justin Drescher (football), Gelso, Kaity Kark (track), Jordan Kyle (cross country & track), Mychelle Lechman (track), Kara Linder (soccer), Marshall, Kathleen Majewski (track) and Dominique Pytlewski (golf).

The Athlete's Choice Award, for the student who demonstrated outstanding spirit, enthusiasm and leadership while overcoming adversity, was awarded to Brian Owens (track & field).  While having to deal with a tragic loss of a family member, he took time off from school to work and help support his family before returning to CU, where he soon would be injured and had to endure surgery.

The Speed, Strength & Conditioning Awards for the "lifters of the year" were awarded to McLaughlin and Stefan Hughes (skiing).

Originally created in 2001, the annual event is one of the most popular among the athletes, as they have tailored the function to be the final social gathering solely amongst themselves for the last time before finals and summer vacation, if not for a longer period of time for those graduating.  It is believed to be one of the only events in the country almost entirely organized by the student-athletes, and certainly was among, if not, the first.

CU's SAAC would like to recognize and sincerely thank the food and beverage sponsors for the 10th Annual CUSPY's; all items were donated:

Bank of the West
Chipotle Mexican Grill
CU Conference Services
Hapa Sushi
Inko's
K-M Concessions
Noodles & Company
Old Chicago
Pasta Jay's
Pepsi
White Wave Foods