UA men’s basketball team gets another big man for 2009
The Arizona men’s basketball team received another verbal commitment for the 2009 class on Tuesday.
Mike Moser, a forward from Portland, Ore., told the UA coaches he’d be a Wildcat, making him the second player in Arizona’s class of ’09 after center Greg Smith committed June 16.
Point guard Abdul Gaddy retracted his verbal commitment from Arizona on May 26.
Moser – a 6-foot-8, 200-pounder – is ranked No. 17 among small forwards and No. 85 overall in his class by recruiting service Rivals.com. He averaged 15 points and 11 rebounds in his junior season at Grant High School.
Moser pulled down 37 boards over four games at the Arizona Cactus Classic in May.
The University of Portland and Washington also offered Moser a scholarship.
Arizona swimmers have ups and downs at U.S. Olympic trials
Through the first three days of the U.S. Olympic swim team trials in Omaha, Neb., Arizona’s hopes of qualifying a swimmer still remain intact despite a few early waves.
During the first two days, former and current Wildcat swimmers Whitney Myers and Adam Ritter both fell short of qualifying in their first events ð- the 100-meter butterfly and the 200m freestyle, respectively.
On Tuesday, Arizona junior Annie Chandler joined former Wildcat Amanda Beard in the finals of the 100m breaststroke with a second-place semifinal finish.
As both swimmers finished outside of the top three in the finals, neither is likely to qualify for the U.S. team in the event.
Both Myers and Ritter will have more chances at qualifying as the trials continue throughout the week.
Myers finished with the top time in her heat for the 200m Individual Medley on Tuesday night, an event in which the former Arizona All-American came in ranked No. 3 on the psych sheets.
For Ritter, the 100m free and 200m IM both lie ahead, with the first races for each being held Wednesday morning and Thursday.
UA track and field athletes disappointed at Olympic trials
Two weeks ago, the Arizona track and field team saw five of its athletes get named All-Americans and one crowned a national champion.
This week, at the track and field Olympic trials in Eugene, Ore., the team’s luck has been drastically different.
With nine representatives from the Wildcats’ 2008 team competing during the opening weekend of the trials, none have punched tickets to Beijing thus far, while only one participant remains.
Arizona’s lone national champion, Liz Patterson, is the final Wildcat standing as the trials head into its final off-day Wednesday before resuming Thursday.
The high-jump champ was one of six athletes to clear her first two jumps, earning herself a spot in Friday’s final.
Thrower Zack Lloyd came into the trials as Arizona’s most likely candidate to represent the United States in the summer games. But after butchering his first two of three throws in the opening round, the junior All-American failed to fall within the required top 12 to move on to the next round.
The closest the Wildcats came to qualifying an athlete was former Arizona athlete Jake Arnold. One year removed from Arizona, Arnold finished fourth in the decathlon, just missing a qualifying spot on the U.S. team.
Former UA golfer Walshe makes cut at US Open, finishes 5 over
Former Arizona golf standout Alison Walshe got an early taste of the pro tour this past weekend as she competed in the 2008 Women’s U.S. Open, which took place at the Interlachen Country Club in Edina, Minn.
The amateur finished 1-over par through the first two days to make the 74-player cut.
After shooting an even par on both Thursday and Saturday, however, the recent UA graduate struggled on the tournament’s final day, finishing 4 over to give herself a 5-over par finish for the tournament. Despite hitting a tournament-high nine fairways on Sunday, Walshe’s disappointing final round tied her for 31st overall.
Other former Wildcats Lorena Ochoa and Annika Sorenstam also played in the tournament, both finishing outside of the top 20 shooting three over and five over, respectively.
– Arizona Summer Wildcat
