MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin sophomore guard Boo Wade sustained an injury to his left knee at practice Tuesday and is expected to miss three to four weeks, the UW Sports Medicine staff announced Wednesday. Wade, a 6-foot-3 guard, played in all 32 games for the Badgers last season, averaging 20.2 minutes per game as the team’s sixth man.
Wisconsin, which is down to nine healthy scholarship players, will open its season Saturday in an exhibition matchup with the EA Sports Midwest All-Stars. EA Sports is 0-2 on its current tour, losing to Wyoming, 97-87, Saturday and Kansas, 91-87, Tuesday. The Badgers play their second and final exhibition game Monday, Nov. 17 against the North Charleston Lowgators of the NBDL. The team will begin regular-season play Nov. 21 at Penn.
UW men’s cross-country runners earn conference awards
MADISON, Wis. — The Big Ten announced its postseason honors for cross country Wednesday, and the UW men’s cross-country team swept the awards for athlete of the year, coach of the year and freshman of the year. Sophomore Simon Bairu, who captured the individual title at last Sunday’s Big Ten championship, was named the conference’s athlete of the year. Chris Solinsky finished third at the meet and earned freshman-of-the-year honors while Jerry Schumacher garnered coach-of-the-year honors.
Bairu becomes the second consecutive UW runner to be named Big Ten athlete of the year, and the fifth in the last six years. Current junior Matt Tegenkamp earned the honor last season. A native of Regina, Sasketchewan, Bairu was a second-team All-Big Ten performer last season. His best collegiate finish prior to the Big Ten meet was a third-place showing at the Roy Griak Invitational earlier this season.
Solinsky, a former three-time Wisconsin state cross-country champion, finished third at the Big Ten meet, which was best among the freshmen runners. He is the fifth Badger to earn freshman-of-the-year honors, and the first since Tegenkamp did so in 2001. Solinsky has finished among the top six in all three of his races this season.
Schumacher was named Big Ten coach of the year for the third consecutive season and the fourth time in his six-year career. He led the Badgers, who ran three sophomores and two freshmen among their seven competitors, to their fifth consecutive Big Ten title.
In addition to Bairu and Solinsky, junior Tim Keller (fifth-place) also earned first-team All-Big Ten honors. Schumacher has now coached 17 first-team All-Big Ten honorees in his six seasons at the helm of UW’s cross-country program. Other than Michigan, that is more than any other school has produced in the 20 years that the Big Ten has been awarding all-league honors.
Piper named Big Ten swimmer of the week
MADISON, Wis. — UW junior swimmer Carly Piper has been named the Big Ten women’s swimmer of the week, the conference office announced Wednesday. It is the fourth time Piper has been given the honor in her career.
Despite be hampered with an illness related to food poisoning, she won two individual events while swimming a leg on a first-place relay team in a dual meet at No. 7 Arizona last Friday.
Piper posted an NCAA “B” qualifying time in capturing the 500 freestyle in a time of 4:49.84. She also placed first in the 1000 freestyle in a season-best time of 9:51.27. Piper earned another “B” qualifying time in the 200 freestyle, placing second in 1:49.94.
She wrapped up the meet by joining Sarah Hernandez, Anna Trinidad and Bethany Pendleton on the winning 400 freestyle relay team that finished in a time of 3:24.84.
Piper is the two-time defending Big Ten swimmer of the championships and was also the 2003 Big Ten swimmer of the year.
The 12th-ranked Badgers return to dual-meet action at 4 p.m. Friday when they host Big Ten opponent Indiana at the UW Natatorium.
Four members of UW women’s soccer team earn Big Ten awards
MADISON, Wis. — Four members of the University of Wisconsin women’s soccer team have earned postseason honors from the Big Ten Conference’s head coaches. Senior forward Jenny Kundert, junior defender Molly Meuer and sophomore midfielder Katy Lindenmuth were each named to the All-Big Ten second team, while midfielder Kara Kabellis has been named to the All-Big Ten freshman team.
Kundert, a Madison native and West High graduate, leads the team with seven goals this season and ranked second in the Big Ten with five game-winning goals in all matches this season. She ranks second on the team with 18 points. Kundert was a first-team All-Big Ten selection in 2002. She ranks second on UW’s career-assist list with 24. Her 66 points rank sixth on Wisconsin’s all-time list.
Meuer, a Madison native and Memorial High graduate, earned the selection after ranking in a second-place tie on the team with two goals during Big Ten play. The honor capped a week that also saw Meuer earn Big Ten defensive-player-of-the-week honors while being named to the Soccer America national team of the week. She spearheaded a defensive effort that saw the Badgers allow just five combined shots in two wins over UW-Milwaukee and UW-Green Bay last week.
Lindenmuth, a Geneva, Ill., native and Geneva High graduate, leads the Badgers with 19 points and seven assists this season while ranking second with six goals. Her assist total tied for first in the Big Ten in all matches, while her 11 points in conference play ranked sixth in the league. She has tallied at least one point in six of the last seven matches that the Badgers have scored in.
Kabellis, a Homer Glen, Ill., native and a Providence Catholic High graduate, is tied for second on the team with six goals this season. Her 14 points rank third on the squad. Kabellis has tallied 21 shots on goal and has three game-winning goals. She is one of five Badgers to have started every match this season and is the only freshman of the group.
Wisconsin (10-8-1, 4-6-0 Big Ten) opens postseason play at 7:30 p.m. Thursday as the eighth-seed in the 2003 Big Ten tournament, which it is hosting at the McClimon Complex. The Badgers will take on top-seeded Penn State (16-2-2, 9-1-0) in the opening round.
— compiled from staff reports