Cheseret makes Kenyan return, to run this weekend
The spirits of the No. 12 men’s and unranked women’s Arizona track and field teams will be boosted by the return of senior All-American distance runner Robert Cheseret, who is slated to compete in the Wildcats’ first outdoor home meet this weekend after flying home for personal reasons last week.
Cheseret, who returned to Tucson Wednesday night, missed last weekend’s Mount Pacific Sports Federation Championships after attending his brother-in-law’s funeral in Kenya.
The Wildcat Classic, which will take place all day Saturday at Roy P. Drachman Stadium, will be a low-key meet aimed at getting athletes in shape for a number of different events for the next home meet in two weeks, said Arizona track and field head coach Fred Harvey.
“”It’s one of those meets that will be more of a training type of environment,”” he said. “”Its really more of a confidence builder towards the William Williams Classic.””
And because it’s a home meet, the Wildcats will have an extra advantage against schools like New Mexico, New Mexico State and Pima Community College, Harvey said.
Cheseret, who is ranked No. 1 in the 3,000-meter race, said he is not yet sure in which events he will compete. “”I should be running the 3,000m, but I still have to talk to the coach,”” he said.
Tough weekend ahead for women’s tennis
After losing its first games last week, the Arizona women’s tennis team hopes to bounce back and pull out two upsets this weekend. That challenge won’t come easily, as the Wildcats go up against two top-10 teams in Northern California this weekend.
Arizona (9-2, 0-2 Pacific 10 Conference) faces No. 8 California (8-3, 2-0) at 2:30 p.m. today before taking on No. 1 Stanford (11-0, 2-0) at 1 p.m. tomorrow.
“”We are looking forward to it,”” Arizona assistant coach Brian Ramirez said. “”(The weekend represents) two more chances to compete well, and we feel we can.””
The coaches said they hope the women take advantage of opportunities that are given to them.
“”Last week we took advantage of some, but we need to take advantage of all of them,”” Ramirez said.
By playing such strong teams, the women were able to see where they are in relation to the competition, which will help the team through the increased level of competition it faces this weekend, said junior Juliette Mavroleon.
“”I’m not putting them on a pedestal,”” Mavroleon said about the Cardinal. “”We have nothing to lose this weekend.””
Pac-10 break no break at all for men
A week off from Pacific 10 Conference action doesn’t mean a break for the Arizona men’s tennis team.
The Wildcats hit the road trying to rebound from consecutive losses last weekend.
No. 46 Arizona (6-2, 0-2 Pacific 10 Conference) plays at No. 32 Boise State (5-3) today at 2 p.m. and faces No. 73 William & Mary (7-6) on the road Sunday morning at 10.
“”Every match is of equal importance to accomplish our goals,”” Arizona head coach Tad Berkowitz said. “”We need to beat teams like Boise State to make it to the NCAA tournament.””
The Broncos are backed by their No. 1 player, sophomore Luke Shields, who currently ranks No. 39 in singles. He teams with senior Thomas Schoeck to make up the No. 12 doubles squad.
Laxcats take show on the road
The No. 15 Arizona men’s club lacrosse team hits the road for the first time this year, playing three games in Utah.
The Laxcats (1-0) take on No. 5 Brigham Young (1-3) this evening at 7, Utah Valley State (1-0) tomorrow at 1 p.m. and Utah (1-2) Sunday at 11 a.m.
Arizona head coach Kenny Broschart said this stretch of away games will not be an easy one.
“”In order to play a good game at BYU, we need to control the ball on and be very smart on offense,”” Broschart said. “”They are a strong team and we need to control the flow of the game.””
Although the offense has done a good job so far, senior attackman Steve Luna said he thinks it could use some improvement.
“”We need to definitely improve on good timing on dodging when we are man down,”” Luna said. “”We need to slow it down to give our defense a break and make good decisions.””
The offense has carried the team thus far this season and it is important for them to stay strong, Broschart said. He also said the defense is going to have to step up in order to keep up with these talented teams.
“”We need to stay focused and play hard,”” said senior defensive captain Carson Parmelee. “”It’s going to be a hectic game, and it is important that we stay focused.””
Ruggers fight for playoff lives
In rugby, as in war, every campaign has its turning point.
For the Arizona men’s rugby team (6-4, 2-3 SoCal Conference), that point occurred last weekend, when the Wildcats swept Long Beach State and UCLA, ending their early conference competition bleeding.
“”We’re not the same team,”” Arizona men’s rugby head coach Dave Sitton said. “”We turned the corner when we beat the Los Angeles schools here last weekend.””
Arizona enters the fracas that is a rugby scrum against San Diego State (2-2) and the University of San Diego (0-3) this weekend in San Diego, the start of a three-game road trip and the Wildcats’ last chance for postseason play.
Only by running the table in the last three matches will the dangling Wildcats have a chance to extend their season, according to a press release. A sweep of the San Diego schools and ASU will leave them with the opportunity to face off against the second-place team in the conference, No. 10 UC-Santa Barbara, for the second berth in the National Collegiate Championships.