Hunt, Millet receive honor
Idaho swimmer Rachel Millet and diver Paige Hunt were named the WAC Women’s Swimmer and Diver of the Week, respectively, for the week of Oct. 14. During that span, the Vandals beat Northern Colorado 204.5-95.5 on Oct. 18, and fell to Washington State 152-142 on Saturday.
Millet, a junior from Spokane, Wash., won six individual events and was a part of a winning relay team over the two meets for the Vandals. Her victories included two wins in the 200-yard freestyle, two wins in the 200-yard backstroke, two wins in the 200-yard individual medley and a contribution to a relay win in the 400-yard medley relay. Millet’s individual wins hold the best times in the WAC, so far this season.
Hunt, a senior from Mesa, Ariz., won the 3-meter dive in both meets and placed second in the 1-meter dive in both meets for Idaho.
The honor is the second of the year for Millet and first for Hunt.
WAC honors Helbling, Kiser
Vandal cross country runners Cody Helbling and Hannah Kiser were named the WAC men’s and women’s Cross Country Athletes of the Week for Oct. 14-20.
Helbling, a junior from Coeur d’Alene and a BYU transfer, was the first Vandal to cross the finish line in 17th overall Saturday at the Bronco Invitational in Sunnyvale, Calif. His time of 24:18.0 in the men’s 8-kilometer race led Idaho to a ninth-place finish out of 18 teams with a score of 254. He has been the top Vandal finisher in each of the four meets he’s competed in this season.
Kiser, a senior form Wenatchee, Wash., finished second overall out of a 204 runners at the Bronco Invitational. She finished the women’s 6-kilometer race in 20:19.7 to help lead Idaho to a fourth-place finish with 113 points. Despite only racing for the second time this season, Kiser’s time leads the WAC by 26 seconds and iss the fastest 6-kilometer time at Idaho.
Barone and Tatum sign contracts in Europe
Former Vandal Kyle Barone is officially a professional basketball player after signing a contract with PGE Turow Zgorzelec in Poland.
“What a great accomplishment for Kyle,” Idaho coach Don Verlin said. “To sign with a major team over in Europe, what a great chance to start building your professional resume. I truly believe one day we will see Kyle in the NBA. He’s just that type of player once he grows up and gets bigger and stronger and learns to play at that level.”
Barone was the 2013 WAC Player of the Year during his senior season at Idaho after averaging 17.1 points, 9.7 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game in 2012-13. His 126 college games played are an Idaho record.
In addition to Barone, 2012 Idaho graduate Landon Tatum has signed a professional contract with Gotha II in Germany. Tatum averaged 7.4 points and 4.7 assists per game for Idaho in 2011-12 as the starting point guard.