This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Fall is in the air, and so are footballs, soccer balls and volleyballs. Intermittently, at least.
It is unfortunately the way of things that Utah's football team received most of our attention for beating up on Idaho State while the Ute women's soccer team notched 2-0 and 2-1 victories and Utah's volleyball team opened the season with a three-match sweep on Crimson Court.
We'll get out to some of their action soon.
In the meantime, and throughout the season, swing by sltrib.com on Monday mornings for a recap of what you (and we) may have missed during the previous week.
FOOTBALL • If you don't know, you probably don't care, but Utah were less than gracious hosts to Fiesta Bowl standouts Spencer Toone and Steve Fifita, routing their former team 56-14 at Rice-Eccles Stadium in their season opener. Also this week, NFL teams announced cuts as they pared their rosters down to 53 for the season, and it was a tough week all-around for dream-chasing. Our Brennan Smith compiled a list of Utah players who didn't make it (or at least not yet). It wasn't all bad news, though, and Kyle Goon was able to catch up with Tenny Palepoi after Utah's standout defensive tackle heard he'd made the San Diego Chargers. Other notes from this week: Utah plans to install a $4 million to $5 million scoreboard at Rice-Eccles by the 2015 season, and UCLA transfer defensive end Kylie Fitts will have three years to play two starting next year, unless he obtains a hardship waiver from the NCAA.
Here's our coverage of the first victory:
• Most fans sang "Utah Man," not "Utah Fan," in their first opportunity since an alternate version was created after complaints of sexism.
ON DECK • vs. Fresno State, 1 p.m. Saturday at Rice-Eccles Stadium (Story: Utah opens as a 7.5-point underdog despite Fresno's loss to USC by 39 in the Bulldogs' opener)
WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL • The Utes were picked to finish just 10th in the Pac-12, despite a wealth of experience and an abundance of young talent. Friday at Crimson Court, they began making their case in the rankings that matter. Utah swept Montana State 3-0 behind double-doubles from senior leaders Chelsey Schofield-Olsen (12 kills, 12 digs) and Shelby Dalton (10 kills, 10 digs) and strong contributions from freshmen Eliza Katoa, Adora Anae, Jessie Jorgensen and Carly Trueman. (Click here for video of Beth Launiere, Bailey Bateman and Katoa talking about the win.) In a doubleheader Saturday, Schofield-Olsen and Bateman — named Utah Classic MVP — led Utah to a host sweep with wins against New Mexico State and Missouri State. (Click for photo galleries of Missouri State and Montana State.)
ON DECK • vs. Cal Poly, 11 a.m. Saturday at Moraga, Calif.; at Saint Mary's, 7 p.m. Saturday at Moraga Calif.
WOMEN'S SOCCER • Rich Manning's team is unbeaten through its first four games and now 2-0 at Ute Field after wins this weak over Boise State on Friday and Cal State-Northridge on Sunday. Junior midfielder Kaycee Buckley and senior midfielder Avery Jenkins scored to buck the Broncos 2-1, and junior forward Baylee Nielsen and junior defender Megan Trabert did the goring — er, scoring — in a 2-0 win over the Matadors. Junior keeper Lindsey Luke's clean sheet was her second of the young season. Friday the Utes face a tougher test in BYU, which beat them 4-0 in a spring friendly and has won six of the last seven between the rivals. (Click here for a photo gallery from Friday's victory, and here for Goon's season preview.)
ON DECK • vs. No. 23 BYU, 5 p.m. Friday at Ute Field
WOMEN'S CROSS-COUNTRY • Four Utes finished in the top 10 at the Nature's Bakery Nevada Twilight Classic in Reno, Nev., with senior Nicole Rietz finishing fourth. Head coach Kyle Keplar said in a news release, however, that he was "certainly disappointed" with the team's second-place finish to hosts Nevada. Junior Lauren Mills was fifth, and true freshman Shaylen Crook, from Coos Bay, Ore., was sixth in her debut.
ON DECK • Utah Open, Friday at Murray Park in Salt Lake City
SOFTBALL • The Utes announced their fall schedule Wednesday. Amy Hogue's young team made big strides in its third season in the Pac-12 and they'll get a little more seasoning, starting Sept. 16 against Salt Lake Community College at Utah Softball Stadium. Other home contests include Utah Valley (Sept. 23), College of Southern Idaho (Sept. 25), Snow College (Sept. 30), SLCC (Oct. 2) and Weber State (5 p.m.) The Utes will also travel to face Colorado State on Oct. 12.
ON DECK • vs. SLCC, 4 p.m. Sept. 16 at Utah Softball Stadium
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL • Forward Emily Potter, a 6-foot-5 sophomore who averaged 10.5 points per game for Utah as a true freshman, was named MVP of the 36th annual Jones Cup in Taiwan while leading the Canadian Women's Development Team to five consecutive wins. Canada blew out USA 80-56 in the final as Potter topped her team's scorers with 13 points and four rebounds in just over 18 minutes.
ON DECK • vs. Alaska-Anchorage, Nov. 5 at the Huntsman Center
— Matthew Piper
Twitter: @matthew_piper