XC to race in NCAA pre-nationals

The UA men’s and women’s cross country teams will compete in the NCAA Pre-Nationals in Terre Haut, Ind., on Saturday.

After not-so-satisfying results at the Notre Dame Invitational on Oct. 3, in which the men took 14th place and the women finished in 15th, the cross country team looks to bounce back this weekend with a much-needed strong performance.

“”Making the NCAA championships is definitely a realistic goal for us,”” said senior Shelly Splittberger. “”Everyone needs to run great. This meet will be huge.””

Splittberger will be running at the pre-nationals course for the third time in her college career and said she is very positive about the course, which is wide with rolling hills.

“”I think that if we can run well, we’ll be good going into the Pac-10 Championships (on Nov. 1) and have more confidence,”” said freshman Hanna Henson.

Hannah Moen is another freshman who has been running very well for UA this season. She was the second Wildcat to cross the finish line in the Notre Dame Invitational two weeks ago with a time of 17:37.

“”We’ve been doing a lot of speed work during the break and also trying to get enough sleep,”” she said. “”I’m also just trying to keep up on my homework so I’m not too stressed during the race.””

The Wildcats’ performance this weekend could help or hurt its chances of qualifying for the NCAA Championships in late November.

“”Everyone has room for improvement,”” Splittberger said. “”We need to close our gaps and be strong. Once you get down you must find a way to get back up.””

– David Blattman

Walshe going pro

Former UA women’s golfer Alison Walshe announced Thursday she will move on to the professional ranks after she signed a contract with Gaylord Sports Management.

Walshe – arguably the best UA women’s golfer since Lorena Ochoa and Annika Sorenstam, -ÿgraduated from the UA in May with an interdisciplinary studies major concentrated on marketing and sociology. She tied for 12th place at the California LPGA Sectional Qualifier last month and advanced to the finals in December.

“”Alison is the poster child for the amateur player who has done things the right way and is ready to turn pro,”” UA head coach Shelly Haywood said in a press release. “”She has succeeded at every step of her playing career up to this point and is definitely ready to join the professional ranks.””

– Arizona Daily Wildcat

Women’s golf looks to rebound

The No. 31 Arizona women’s golf team will travel to the Stanford Golf Course in Palo Alto, Calif., this weekend to compete in the Pepsi Intercollegiate tournament, in which the team will try to rebound itself after a not-so-stellar fourth-place finish its last time out.

“”I hate to say it, but I was disappointed with the way things turned out,”” UA head coach Shelly Haywood said of the Wildcats’ finish in the Northwestern Invitational, held Oct. 6-7. “”We went into the tournament with the goal of winning and we didn’t get it done.””

The Wildcats began their last tournament with a first-place start through the first round, shooting a 13 over par as a team. Their second round was a different story, as the team struggled with a team score of 22-over-par 306, dropping them down to fourth place.

“”We continue to have trouble with our focus in the second round, and we talked a lot about that in practice this week,”” Haywood said.

Of the Wildcats’ starting five, senior Amanda Wilson, junior Brittany Benvenuto and sophomore Alejandra Llaneza have all played the course before – an advantage that could give the team an edge.

Freshmen Margarita Ramos and Isabelle Boineau will participate in the tournament for the first time.

“”This is not an overly tough course, so our freshmen shouldn’t have too much trouble, and it’s nice having players who have played here before,”” Haywood said.

– Nick Sturiale