How sweep it is again for Wolverine women: UVSC claims pair of weekly hoops honors

OREM — In the Division I Independent Awards for women's basketball announced Tuesday, two Utah Valley State players swept the honors for the second week in a row.

A week after earning recognition as Newcomer of the Week, freshman center Robyn Fairbanks got promoted to Player of the Week following three games in which she averaged 24.7 points and 12.7 rebounds.

"This really says something about her level of consistency," UVSC coach Cathy Nixon said. "People are keying on her defensively and she still finds a way to get it done. It really says a lot about her composure and poise."

Freshman point guard Hollie Beaman was named Newcomer of the Week after averaging 14 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 4.3 assists in three contests between January 1 and 8.

Senior forward Miriam Palkki was tabbed as last week's Player of the Week.

The week that was

MEN'S BASKETBALL: Lost two in a row on the road to drop to 6-10 for the season. The Wolverines fell Thursday 61-52 to North Dakota State, followed by a 66-56 defeat Saturday at the hands of South Dakota State.

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: Split two home games, defeating Idaho State 83-74 on Tuesday before falling Saturday to Weber State 65-57. Tuesday's victory gave the women more wins so far this season than they had all of last year — their record currently stands at 5-10.

WOMENS GOLF: Coach Denise Larson, looking to add to her roster of six golfers, announced that she will hold walk-on tryouts Jan. 30-31 for students interested in joining the team for spring semester.

"Although we have a solid team core now, I am still going to offer a tryout to anyone that can meet our criteria to join the team," Larson said.

All aspiring golfers must currently be enrolled as full-time students at UVSC; more details are available on the athletic department's web site. This is the women's golf team's first year of existence and competition at the Division I level.

WRESTLING: the Wolverines didn't fare as well as they would've liked Saturday at the Lone Star Duals in Arlington, Texas. Utah Valley lost to Harvard (40-9), Navy (39-7), Oklahoma (47-4), and Central Oklahoma (35-6). Granted, the competition was tough, as two of UVSC's opponents — the Midshipmen and Sooners — are ranked in the top 25, with Central Oklahoma a top-five Division II program.