Cross Country's Ritzenhein Named CU Athlete of the Week
November 19, 2003 | Cross Country, General
BOULDER-- Redshirt sophomore Dathan Ritzenhein earned Athlete of the Week honors for the second time this season, after his individual win at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships Saturday, November 15 in Utah.
He won his first 10k race of the year in 30:22:25, while claiming his fourth victory of the season to remain undefeated heading into next week's NCAA Championships. The Rockford, Michigan native will be the third CU runner since 2000 to enter a national championship with an unblemished record. In his last showing at the NCAA Championships in 2001, Ritzenhein proved to be the best freshman in the nation as he finished fourth overall.
In the Mountain Region Championships, Ritzenhein claimed the 10th straight individual win for the Buffs and led the men's cross country team to their 10th victory in the championships since the 1992 season. The men's first place finish and the women's second place finish earned them automatic bids to the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships, taking place November 24 in Waterloo, Iowa.
Other's nominated for this week's award were Brian Calhoun (football), Monique Gerlach (volleyball) and Tera Bjorklund (women's basketball).
FOOTBALL: Brian Calhoun, Sophomore, Oak Creek, Wis.
Rushed 16 times for 73 yards and 2 TDs; caught two passes for 58 yards in CU's 44-10 win at Iowa State. The two touchdowns marked the first multiple touchdown game for the sophomore, who went over the 1,000-yard rushing mark for his career with 1,059.
VOLLEYBALL: Monique Gerlach, Senior, Monarch Beach, Calif.
Monique Gerlach had 16 kills, eight digs and three blocks in CU's upset win over No. 18 Texas A&M. In the match she passed former Buffalo Tina Murray for fourth place on CU's all-time kills list and now has 1,369 for her career. Murray had 1,358 for the Buffs from 1987-90.
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: Tera Bjorklund, Senior, St. Peter, Minn.
Senior center Tera Bjorklund led the Buffaloes to a pair of wins this weekend in the second annual WBCA Classic. The Preseason All-American scored 21 points and grabbed eight boards in a career high 44 minutes of play in Colorado's overtime upset win over No. 15 Notre Dame. A day earlier she had 16 points on a sprained ankle to help CU to a win over Old Dominion. She moved into 11th place all time at CU in scoring with 1,353 points and became the first Buff in history to hit over 300 free throws in less than 100 games.