Football and volleyball weren’t the only teams busy this weekend. Here are three other University of Northern Colorado clubs that were competing on the road.
Soccer
UNC coach Tim Barrera’s alma mater, Virginia Tech, defeated his current squad in a road match on Sunday.
UNC (4-2-2) fell to the Hokies (6-1-1), 5-2, in its trip to Blacksburg after playing from behind most of the match. The Bears were far overpowered by the ACC squad, which commanded the pitch for the majority of the contest.
“Today was a tough match with a team that has received votes for the national poll. They’re a very good team, but I’m proud of how we played,” Barrera said in a statement after the game. “We were down 2-0 at the half and still had a chance. Then, we gave up an early goal, but the players kept fighting. We got a couple back and made it 4-2, which gave us a chance. We will certainly learn some things from it and get ready for next weekend.”
The Bears’ defense was able to keep the home team off the board for the first quarter of play, but VT was too much for them to handle.
Junior goalkeeper Kaya Lindberg faced 13 shots in the first half alone and 27 in total. In comparison, UNC took three shots in the first half and six in the second. Additionally, VT finished with 11 shots on goal versus four by the Bears.
Lindberg and her team’s back line, however, gave up two goals in the first half.
Then, the Hokies continued their dominance, scoring in the 50th and 59th minutes.
UNC finally broke the shutout late in the second period. Sophomore forward Lauren Woodhull scored her fifth goal of the season in the 63rd minute. She found the bottom right corner on a penalty kick.
Woodhull took a free kick earlier in the second half but was unable to get past the Hokies goalkeeper.
Graduate defender Kalen Niedling added to the team’s total 58 seconds later with another goal.
The Bears continued to fight against the Power Five opponent, attempting to cut further into the lead, including another shot from Niedling in the final minute.
However, the Hokies scored for a fifth time in the 86th minute and secured the win.
UNC will travel to Washington State and play the Cougars at 8 p.m. Thursday in Pullman. The team will return to Greeley for a match at noon Sunday against Utah State. This will close the squad’s nonconference schedule.
Men’s golf
The Bears golf teams teed off this weekend in their first tournaments of the season, with the men heading to the Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational, hosted by the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.
UNC finished tied for 14th out of 24 teams, shooting a 17-over 881, and climbing as high as ninth on Day 2.
Freshman Yuze Zhang led the team, ending up at T19 after shooting a 1-under 215. He logged 14 birdies in the tournament, as well, which led the team and tied for fifth overall. His best round was the first, going 4-under 68.
Graduate student Jack Castiglia had the best final day of competition and scored a par 72. He ended the tournament T39 with a score of 5-over 221.
Seniors TJ Shehee and Blake Danni led the Bears in the individual tournament. Danni ended T7, logging a 3-under 213. Shehee landed at T11, one stroke behind his teammate.
Northern Colorado will return to the course next week. It will play at the Colorado State Ram Masters Invitational on Monday and Tuesday. Castiglia is the defending champion of the event.
Women’s golf
UNC women’s golf headed to Louisiana for the Tulane Green Wave Classic, where it ended up 13th out of 14.
The Bears finished with a score of 30-over 894. Their top performance came in the third round, shooting 2-over 290.
Three newcomers led the team at the event. Grad student Marija Jucmane landed at T52, logging a 7-over 223. She had a par 72 in the first round and led the group with 37 pars and six birdies.
Freshmen Timbre Shehee, TJ Shehee’s sister, and Carolina Fallotico landed two strokes behind their teammate with a 9-over 225.
Both players ended the tournament with their best performances coming in the last round. Fallotico went 3-under 69 to end the event, while Shehee finished with a 1-over 73.
UNC will head to the University of Alabama-Birmingham Hoover Invite next Monday and Tuesday.
