The Skyline Newspaper

Photo: Jennifer Harder and Bianca Espinoza prepare to play offense. Photo by Adam Dreyfus.

Lady Lobos Drop Home volleyball Tilts to Schreiner, Texas Lutheran

Sul Ross State University seeks its first American Southwest Conference volleyball win this weekend, traveling to Austin and Brownwood to meet Concordia University and Howard Payne University, respectively.

The Lady Lobos dropped successive 3-0 matches to Schreiner University and Texas Lutheran University Friday and Saturday, Sept. 14-15, in the Gallego Center. Now 1-6 overall, 0-3 in the ASC West Division, coach Rick Garcia's team is on the road through the rest of the month.

Sul Ross played the University of Texas Permian Basin in a non-conference match Tuesday, Sept. 18, in Odessa; will meet Concordia Friday, Sept. 21, 6 p.m.; Howard Payne Saturday, Sept. 22, noon; and will be at McMurry University Wednesday, Sept. 26, 7 p.m. September play ends with the first ASC Crossover Tournament in Richardson Sept. 28-29.

Schreiner, 4-4, 1-1, rallied to score a pair of 32-30 wins around a 30-25 verdict in Friday's closely-played encounter. The visiting Lady Mountaineers twice rallied from 30-29 deficits to close the games.

Melanie Valenciana, Odessa, led the Lady Lobs with 10 kills and two solo blocks, adding two service aces.

Jennifer Harder, El Paso, had 14 digs and Lyndi Cypher, Monahans, had 13; Carin Stocks, Stockdale, slammed five kills and Stacy Macias, Fabens, had four. Blanca Espinoza, San Antonio, had 21 set assists.

Texas Lutheran, 5-2, 2-0, won 30-24, 30-21, 30-17 in Saturday's action. Macias and Valenciana led the Lady Lobo attackers with seven and six kills, respectively, while Espinoza had 18 set assists and eight digs. Harder and Cypher recorded 14 and 11 digs, respectively.

UMHB Powers Past Lobos 55-14; East Texas Baptist here Sept. 22

The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor wasted no time in showing why its special teams are special.

Quincy Daniels returned the opening kickoff 88 yards for a touchdown and the Cru' rolled up 42 first-half points en route to a 55-14 win over visiting Sul Ross State University Saturday, Sept. 15.

UMHB, ranked in the top five nationally, improved to 2-0, 1-0 in American Southwest Conference play. The Lobos fell to 2-1, 0-1, but look forward to their first home game of the season, a 3:30 p.m. match-up with East Texas Baptist University Saturday, Sept. 22, at Jackson Field. The Tigers, 1-2, 1-0, edged Howard Payne University 20-18 on Kyle Pope's field goal with two seconds left.

Sul Ross won last year's meeting 17-16 at Marshall, but ETBU holds a 5-2 advantage in the series, which started in 2000.

"As the bus let us out in the parking lot (at Alpine), one of our senior leaders was bent over beside the bus," said Lobo coach Steve Wright. "I thought he had more cramps and/or nausea, but it turned out the rascal was actually kissing the tarmac. What a good deal it will be to be home this week.

"UMHB is even better than we thought. We did get dusted in the first half and it was not a pretty picture," he said. "But, we are pretty tickled with the second-half improvement and effort. It was impressive to see the effort and competitiveness the Lobos showed in the second half."

Sul Ross scored on a 10-yard pass from Austin Davidson, Hallsville, to Joc Quise Brown, Temple, with two seconds left in the first half. TJ Barber, Midland High, bolted 68 yards for a second score with 10:42 left in the game.

The six-pointer set a new career touchdown record for the senior. Barber's 34th career touchdown passed the mark first established by Maurice Stephens (1980-82, 1984). Barber rushed for 96 yards in 18 carries, stretching his career mark to 3,241.

"TJ made as fine a run as this league has probably seen in the second half," Wright said of Barber's burst.

"Carlo Dominguez (Ramondville) did an outstanding job punting the ball away from their return game. Nate Graham (Odessa Permian) and Jamal Johnson (Odessa Permian) played big boy defense."

UMHB quickly added to their early 7-0 edge, as Josh Welsh passed 79 yards to Patrick Oliver and 17 to Cole Smith for a 21-0 edge 3:17 into the game. Jarvis Thrasher added a six-yard run before the quarter ended, then Daniels ran 14 yards and Thrasher plunged two for second-quarter scores. Joel Munoz kicked all six extra points.

Davidson and Barber led the Lobos on a seven-play, 83-yard scoring march resulting in the Davidson-to-Brown touchdown pass two seconds before the half. Jamal Groover, Cleburne, gained 14 yards, Barber reeled off 21 yards in two carries and Davidson passed 37 yards to Jarrett Dickerson, Willis, to move the ball the Crusader nine.

After Groover was stuffed for a yard loss, Davidson found Brown in the end zone for the score. Michael Van Wagner, Bandera, kicked the extra point."

UMHB scored twice in the third quarter, on Welch's 11-yard run and Tommy Vadell's two-yarder, and Barber answered with a 68-yard dash with 10:42 to play.

Barber finished with 96 yards on the ground, while Davidson completed nine of 27 passes for 122 yards, a touchdown and three interceptions. He was sacked three times. Brown caught four passes for 27 yards and has 20 catches for the season. Dickerson caught two for 52 yards and Homer Saenz, Mission Sharyland, and Jacob Warden, Bandera, caught one each for 22 and 21 yards, respectively.

Dominguez averaged over 40 yards on eight punts, including a 55-yarder. UMHB was limited to 28 return yards on four boots. Chris Redin, Killeen Ellison, led the defense with seven tackles, while Jarrett Ballew, Andrews, and Cole Tarlton, Round Rock Stony Point, had six stops each. Milo Garza, Pharr North, was in on five tackles, Kyle Braddick, Burleson, recovered two fumbles and Aubrey Lightheard, Flatonia, recorded a sack.

"We are going to have to get better, to get more physical play out of our outside linebackers and wide receivers," Wright said. He praised the road support through the first three contests.

"The support has been outstanding, and it would be so cool to have a packed house to encourage this team on," he said.

"They are really a fun team to watch."

Lobo Tracks...Davidson and Brown have connected for five scoring passes thus far. Davidson has 45 career touchdown strikes, seven behind Larry Hill's record of 52. Davidson has 6,142 career passing yards, in reach of Scott Kello's (2000-03) 7,400. Barber has gained 280 yards rushing in the first three contests and Dominguez is averaging 41.2 yards on 13 punts....Garza and Fernie Acosta, El Paso Americas, lead the defense with 16 tackles each, followed by Graham and Ballew with 15 apiece....Brown has 408 receiving yards, 20.4 per catch.

Tennis Team Travels to ASC Fall Championships

The Lobo tennis team played in the American Southwest Conference Tennis Fall Championships Sept. 13-15 in Abilene.

In men's doubles flight two, Sully's Nolan Pritchard and John Langerock defeated Brandon Carlson and Michael Laws of University of the Ozarks by scores of 9-8 and 7-5. In flight three doubles, James Aldridge and JT Taylor fell to Schreiner's Adam Dobbins and Daniel Oakland, 8-1.

Women's doubles, flight two saw the Sul Ross duet of Christie Gallardo and Laura Sotelo defeat Megan Mannel and Jenna Sweet of Texas Lutheran, 8-1. In round two Gallardo/Sotelo fell to UT Tyler's Ashlee Chablee and Brittany Ude, 8-1. Fernanda Busch and Judy Sarinana then defeated Sananya Guru and Natalie Gutierrez of UT Dallas, 8-6 in flight three doubles.

On Friday, Sul Ross women's and men's tennis teams shouldered an uphill battle in day two of the ASC Fall Championship.

In flight two, men's singles, Sully's Nolan Pritchard dropped a 6-1 and 6-2 decision to Howard Payne's Ross Sidman. J.T. Taylor then fell to Texas Lutheran's Jonathan Hartwell by scores of 6-1, 6-1 in flight four. James Aldridge was then defeated by LeTourneau's Paul Haney 6-0 and 6-3 before dropping a 6-0, 6-0 match to Trey Chavez of Hardin-Simmons in the fifth flight. Feliz Zapien then fell to Mary Hardin-Baylor's Mitch Hallum 6-0 and 6-0.

In women's play, Christy Gallardo dropped a 6-1, 1-6 and 13-11 decision to UT Tyler's Britney Cleveland in flight one singles. Laura Sotelo picked up a 6-1, 7-5 win over Concordia's Antoinette Strong before falling 6-0, 6-0 to Howard Payne's Laci Fitzgerald in flight four. In the fifth and sixth flights, Fernanda Busch dropped a 6-0 and 6-1 match to Howard Payne's Amy Baetzck before Judy Sarinana fell 6-2 and 6-1 to Mississippi College's Liz Hawkins.

In women's doubles Busch/Sarinana fell 8-2 to Tyler's Lainie Arellano and Lauren Giovanni in flight three.