SAINT PAUL, Minn. – The Yellowjackets earned a sweep of the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) athlete of the week awards in tennis, along with a men's track citation for the week of Feb. 3-9, the league announced Tuesday.
Freshman
Jesse Ortiz (Medford, Minn./Medford) from the Yellowjacket men's track and field team earned the honor, while junior
Igor Guetten Chaves (Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil/Colégio Adventista) and sophomore
Claudia Curtis (Lake Mills, Wis./Lake Mills) swept the north division's weekly plaudits.
Ortiz garnered a 7.05 second preliminary round 60-meter dash time at the UWRF Winter Classic Saturday before running a 7.03 second race time to place second overall. Later he broke a school record in the 200-meter dash, winning the race in 23.57 seconds. Ortiz's mark in the 200-meters further solidifies his UMAC-leading time while still ranking 16th in the 60-meter dash across NCAA Division III.
Guetten Chaves emerged victorious in both his singles and doubles matches Sunday against St. Norbert College. Alongside
Vitor Sakakibara (São Paulo, Brazil/Colégio Saber), the tandem defeated their counterparts at No. 2 doubles 6-2. Guetten Chaves, slotted at the top spot for singles play, defeated Brett Daniels in straight-set scores of 6-3, 6-3.
Curtis enjoyed a fine weekend at the Green Bay Tennis Center. On Saturday her and
Brooke Wilfong (St. Cloud, Minn./St. Cloud Tech) won 6-4 at No. 2 doubles before winning her singles match at the third spot 7-6 (7-2), 6-0 against the Vikings of Augustana College. Sunday's action saw her team up with
Giulia Araujo De Barros (Curitiba, Brazil/Colegio Sabre) and take down St. Norbert College 6-3 before garnering another win at No. 3 singles 6-1, 6-2. Curtis's efforts helped Superior extend their winning streak to six matches, which dates back to Oct. 19.
The Yellowjacket men's track and field team returns to action Saturday, as they host the annual Maday Classic. Events are scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. inside the Dr. Lydia C. Thering Fieldhouse.
The Yellowjacket tennis teams are set to take on St. Olaf Sunday. Action at the Duluth Indoor Sports Center (DISC) will see the men begin at 12:30 p.m. before the women's first serve at 3:30 p.m.
