A learning experience
The Idaho women’s golf team traveled to Spokane over the weekend to play in the Gonzaga Match Play tournament, competing against Gonzaga, Brigham Young and Seattle U.
The Vandals finished the day 1-1 defeating Gonzaga before falling to BYU.
In a press release, Idaho head coach Lisa Johnson said she had high praise for the underclassmen after the first day. Freshmen Danika Palm and Clara Moyano, along with sophomore Sophia Hausmann and Michelle Kim contributed to Idaho’s performance as a team.
The Vandals fell 3-2-1 to Seattle U during the final day of the tournament. Moyano finished the tournament undefeated, 3-0.
The men’s golf team finished 12th in the Golfweek Challenge Sunday, led by senior Ryan Porch, who tied for 39th.
Porch finished the weekend with a 9-over-par 225.
Basketball begins
The Idaho women’s basketball team held its first practice Sunday in the Memorial Gym.
“I thought it was great to get out here and not have the time limits with the individual workouts,” Idaho head coach Jon Newlee said in a press release. “We were able to take our time and put our base offense in today which was good for our newcomers. We could go at a slower pace so they could understand things and it is a good refresher for the returners. All in all, I thought it was a positive first practice.”
Redshirt junior Brooke Reilly returns to play after taking a year off due to an injury. Senior Karlee Wilson and junior Geraldine McCorkell are the only returning starters.
Freshmen guards Jenae Lewallen and Cherita Daugherty and freshmen posts Isabelle Hadden and Daylee Hanson join the roster for their first season as Vandals.
“We lost five seniors (from last year),” Wilson said. “Us, two seniors have to step up and be the leaders of the team. We need to show the new freshmen and younger girls how it is done. How we work hard every day at practice. It is a big role but we can do it.”
Idaho plays Multnomah Nov. 5 in an exhibition match at home.
Double fifth
The Idaho cross-country team traveled to Seattle Saturday to compete in the Washington Invitational.
The men and women’s team came in fifth.
Leading the women was junior Sierra Speiker, who placed 23rd with a time of 20:44.80.
Following closely behind was redshirt freshman Kara Story in 26th place. Sophomore Andrea Condie took 31st, senior Halie Raudenbush made 38th and redshirt freshman Krista Story placed 43rd.
Assistant Distance Coach Travis Floeck was pleased with the women’s team outcome.
“We had some people run gigantic (personal records),” he said. “Sierra came back into the lineup and she looked great. Kara continues to have an amazing season and Andie really stepped up today. She ran almost a full minute PR, which is just out of this world.”
Freshman Grayson Ollar led the men’s team for the third meet in a row. He finished in 21st with a time of 24:20.10. Senior Nathan Stark came in 31st followed by sophomore Drew Shultz in 33rd and senior Tim Delcourt in 34th.
Floeck said he’s excited about the men’s team’s drive.
“Grayson is probably running at a higher level than even I expected,” Floeck said. “But the rest of the guys on the team are just excited about it. That’s something that’s special about this team. They truly just want to be the best they can be collectively.”
The Vandals compete at the Inland Empire Classic Oct. 15 in Lewiston.
Coming soon
The Idaho track and field team released its spring schedule Monday. The Vandals start the indoor season at the Vandal Indoor Invitational Jan. 12-13 in Moscow. Later in January, Idaho visits Pullman for the Washington State Indoor Open Jan. 20-21. The team road trips to the UW Invitational Jan. 27-28 and the Husky Classic Feb. 11-12, both in Seattle.
On Feb. 3, the Vandals host the Idaho Duals in Moscow.
The Big Sky Indoor Championships will be held Feb. 23-25 in Pocatello.
The team has a relaxing beginning to the outdoor season with one meet in March, the Sam Adams Invitational March 24 in Spokane.
Idaho is back on the road April 1 for the Stanford Invitational in California and Montana Duals in Missoula. The team competes at the Pelluer Invitational April 7-8 in Cheney and War X April 8 in Spokane.
The next week holds the Mt. Sac Invitational April 11-16 in Cerritos, California. Following, Idaho competes in the Spokane Memorial April 22 in Spokane.
To close the month, the Vandals compete April 28-29 at the OSU High Performance in Corvallis and the Boise Border Clash in Boise. Before the spring championships, Idaho attends the CWU Final Qualifier May 5 in Ellensburg.
The Big Sky Outdoor Championships occur May 11-13 in Sacramento. The first round of the NCAA Championships is May 24-27 in Austin, Texas.