Former Western State athletic director, legendary ski coach and school Hall of Fame member Ken MacLennan died over the weekend, the school said. He was 75.
A graduate of the Gunnison school who later coached the Mountaineers’ ski team over 18 seasons to four NCSA national championships, MacLennan’s teams included four athletes named NCAA All-Americans and 16 tabbed as NCSA All-Americans.
MacLennan, also a teacher at Western State, was the athletic director from 1985-89.
As a student-athlete, MacLennan helped lead Western State to the NCAA ski cross country title in 1954. He qualified for the first U.S. biathlon team at the 1960 Olympic Games at Squaw Valley as a member of the Army.
Big 12 honor for Burks.
Alec Burks triggered Colorado’s upset of then-No. 9 Missouri on Saturday, and the Big 12 took notice.
The sophomore guard was named the conference’s player of the week Monday after averaging 28.0 points in CU’s wins over Western New Mexico and Missouri. His 36 points against Missouri were a career high.
“Anybody that saw that game on Saturday knows that Alec Burks is a special, special player,” CU coach Tad Boyle said Monday.
Burks, a native of Grandview, Mo., leads CU with a 20.1 points-per-game average. The weekly award is the first such honor of his career.
“(The award) means a lot,” Boyle said. “It’s great recognition for him and for our basketball program. It’s a well-deserved honor. He took his offensive game to another level against Missouri. He was feeling it.”
Tom Kensler, The Denver Post
Hot-shooting Murdoch honored.
The Sun Belt Conference tabbed Denver junior Kaetlyn Murdoch its women’s basketball player of the week after she shot 72.7 percent from the field in two road games last week. She scored 22 points in a victory over Western Kentucky and 13 points in a win over Louisiana-Monroe.
• Wyoming senior forward Hillary Carlson was named Mountain West co-player of the week after leading the Cowgirls to two victories last week, including an 83-43 win over Colorado State in Laramie. She scored 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in that game.
