LSC Roundup 10-22

WR Armstrong making an immediate impact for Javelinas - George Vondracek, Corpus Christi Caller Times
Robert Armstrong didn’t exactly sneak onto the Texas A&M-Kingsville campus, not after earning Class 3A all-state honors at Cuero High School at receiver and cornerback as a senior with the Gobblers.

Now that he is in uniform in his redshirt freshman year, Armstrong is starting to justify those credentials for the seventh-ranked Javelinas.

The 6-foot-2, 190-pound wide receiver is becoming a key component in A&M-Kingsville’s passing game. Armstrong is second in receiving behind senior Ryan Lincoln, who last Saturday became the Javelinas’ all-time leader in receptions. Entering Saturday’s Lone Star Conference South Division ballgame at Tarleton State, Armstrong has 27 receptions for 386 yards and a team-best four touchdown receptions.

“Last year during the spring I got a chance to show what I could do because we had a couple of big-name receivers go down,” Armstrong said. “Ever since then the coaches have been hyping me up coming into the season, not to shorten myself as being anything less than a starter and make plays.”

Wideouts Sherman Batiste, Damian Couthren and Christian Taylor all missed spring drills with injuries, providing Armstrong the opportunity. So far, Armstrong hasn’t disappointed.

“We recruit them in hopes that they’re going to be good additions,” A&M-Kingsville coach Bo Atterberry said. “From watching his high school tape and spring football we had some high expectations for him.”


Oklahoma state college football notes: How will UCO respond after tough loss? - Scott Munn, The Oklahoman
How will UCO respond to loss?
Video shows how many battles were won.
After Central Oklahoma football coach Tracy Holland pressed the "stop” button on the remote, it was back to the drawing board. Time to correct how the overall war was lost and begin game planning for Saturday's 2 p.m. game at Northeastern Oklahoma State.

"We have to keep in mind what kind of team we have. If this was a senior, veteran team, my message to them would be one thing,” Holland said. "With us having so many sophomores and redshirt freshmen playing, the message you give them is a whole lot different. But they have learned a hard, painful lesson.”

No. 20 ACU sweeps Tigers to remain atop LSC volleyball standings - Abilene Reporter News
Lady Buffs win 75th LSC match in a row - Amarillo Globe News
Mustangs snap four-match losing streak - Times Record News
ASU VOLLEYBALL: Pretty good in pink - San Angelo Standard Times

ASU Soccer Capsule, 10/22 - San Angelo Standard Times
WT Soccer Capsules - Amarillo Globe News



LSC Scoop - Women’s Soccer Update
Week Seven

This weeks national poll shows St Edwards still at #8, with Midwestern improving to #18 and ACU receiving votes.

Regional poll (NCAA shown)
1 St Edwards
2 Midwestern
3 Central Missouri
4 ACU
5 Truman
6 Angelo State
7 Southwest Baptist
8 U Incarnate Word
The NSCAA lists Central Mo as #1, and Angelo/UIW tied for sixth, with A&M Commerce#8 and St mary’s as #9.

Players of the Week Awards.
Offensive – Lindsay Pritchard MSU
Defensive- Megan Barnhart MSU
Goalkeeper -Melanie Peterson Angelo State

Midwestern. Still undefeated and front-runner of LSC play. Beat SWOSU and Central Oklahoma by identical 3-0 scores. Two first half goals plus another at the 80th minute mark muzzled the Bulldogs. The Mustangs outshot the ‘dogs 26-8, with an “on goal” differential of 11-1. On Sunday the Bronchos put up good first half results – everywhere but the scoreboard. The Bronchos outshot the Mustang 12-4 and still were down 1-0 at halftime. Lindsay Pritchard took just 14 ticks of the second half to net goal #2 for Midwestern, who added a 73rd minute goal for the 3-0 final score. This weekend marks two important road matches against two of the three teams tied for second place – Friday at Incarnate Word and Sunday at Angelo.

ACU. Added two conference wins to advance to 6-1 in LSC play and are currently in a three way tie with UWI and Angelo for second place. Friday the Bronchos surrendered goals at the 17th and 19th minutes for a Wildcats 2-0 halftime lead. A late goal by ACU made the final 3-0. The Cats held the shot differential 16-8 in a match that only recorded 8 fouls total. Sunday SWOSU gave up only one first half goal via a Julie Coppedge free kick in the 30th minute. Another free kick from Coppedge at very nearly the same spot rattled off the crossbar, and the score held 1-0 at the break. ACU’s three second half goals provided the balance of the 4-0 final while SWOSU’s Katie Mahoney snuffed 3 other close range tries to minimize the damage. This week the Cats face the other two sides tied with them for second place – on the road. Friday a match is Angelo State is followed by a Sunday match with UIW.

UIW. Two wins advanced the Cardinals to 6-1 in LSC play. Friday against the Zia’s three first half goals put the game out of reach, before each side added a goal in the second half. UIW outshot the overmatched Zia’s 19-6 for the match. Sunday against WTA&M proved more of a match for the home side. The Cardinals Lauren Evans drew first blood at the 12th minute before the Buffs equalized in the 35th for a 1-1 halftime result. The second half proved scoreless to end regulation tied 1-1. The OT winner from Kelsie Ashel came in the 95th minute for the Cardinals. The weekend UIW welcomes the 18th ranked Mustangs and (RV) ACU to their home field for matches.

Angelo State. Two weekend wins improved the Rambelles to 6-1 as well for the above-mentioned tie. A Friday match at home against WT featured 79 minutes of scoreless soccer before a set piece goal provided a 1-0 lead. A 90th minute goal moved the score to 2-0. On Sunday Angelo played ENMU at Portales and emerged a 2-0 winner. The first half was scoreless, with Angelo scoring in the 61st and 80th minute. This week a home stand against ACU & Midwestern will likely break the logjam at second place in the conference.

Central Oklahoma. Dropped games to ACU and Midwestern over the weekend to fall to 3-4 conference mark. The young Bronchos (no seniors on the roster) struggled against ACU’s offense and surrendered one first half and two second half goals in the loss. Despite outshooting (then) #19 Midwestern 12-4 in the first half, the Mustangs netted a 20th minute goal for the 0-1 halftime deficit for the Bronchos. Two second half goals sealed the Bronchos fate 0-3. This week a road game at Commerce and a home match vs TWU will give UCO a chance to increase their conference standing.

WT A&M. Faced a tough weekend on the road and fell to 2-4-1 in conference play. Friday in San Angelo by allowing two late goals the Buffs dropped a 0-2 match to Angelo State. The match was billed as a defensive struggle as the first half ended 0-0. Sunday in San Antonio the Cardinals of UIW netted an 11th minute goal before Kelly Wright corralled a loose ball in the penalty area and slid it into the net for a 1-1 halftime draw. Regulation play ended 1-1 before the Cardinals scored the winner in the 95th minute of play. This weekend the Buffs are at home against NSU and ECU hoping to increase their record.

TWU. Suffered a disappointing weekend with a tie and a loss dropping them to a 2-3-2 conference mark. Friday a road match against NSU stretched into 110 minutes of scoreless soccer for the 0-0 2OT draw. Sunday the Pioneers could not solve ECU’s offside trap and were whistled 7 times for that infraction. An 85th minute goal by the home Tigers stood for the 0-1 shutout loss. This week a home match vs SWOSU and a road trip to Edmond to face Central Oklahoma await the TWU side.

A&M Commerce. Improved to 3-3-1 for the season. Thursday against ECU four first half goals and one in the second period yielded a 5-0 shutout win. Although whistled 10 times for offside in the match, the Lions had no trouble solving the Tigers trap. A surprising lack of offensive output left Commerce with a 0-0 2OT draw against NSU on Sunday. The Lions begin a four game home stand beginning this weekend with matches against Central Oklahoma and SWOSU.

SWOSU. Surrendered seven goals and lost both matches to fall to a 2-5 LSC record. Friday two early goals allowed against the Mustangs led to a 0-2 halftime deficit. Midwestern added a late goal to finish with a 3-0 score. Sunday the Wildcats only led 1-0 at half before netting three second half scores to end at 4-0. This weekend the Bulldogs hit the road to face TWU and A&M Commerce.

NSU. Managed two draws for the weekend to end at 0-4-3. 110 minutes of scoreless play left the Riverhawks and Pioneers deadlocked 0-0 after two extra periods. Sunday a repeat of the above with A&M Commerce gave both teams a point. The match featured a combined 34 fouls. On the road the Riverhawks will face WT A&M and ENMU.

ECU. Split for the weekend – finding their first LSC win – to land at 1-5-1. A 0-5 pounding at the hands of the Lions on Thursday evening was the Tigers fifth straight loss. Sunday the Tigers rebounded for the first W over TWU via a corner kick in the 84th minute. Join travel partner NSU for matches with ENMU and WT.

ENMU. Remains the cellar-dweller after a pair of losses. Dropped a 1-4 match to UIW and a 0-2 match against Angelo State. This weekend presents the best opportunity for the Zia’s to notch that first win as ECU and NSU visit Portales.

State of the Race. #18 Midwestern is currently in the drivers seat, with ACU, UIW and Angelo all knocking at the door. This week finds ACU and Midwestern visiting Angelo and UIW on the road so (baring multiple ties) some pecking order will be established by Sunday night. Midwestern and ACU also finish on the road against Commerce and TWU. Commerce is currently 5th and has matches with Central OK, SWOSU, ACU and Midwestern – but all are at home. Central OK is 6th and has WT, ENMU, TWU and Commerce left. If TWU, WT and SWOSU (all with two wins) all run the table they could be in the competition for a tourney berth. ECU, NSU and ENMU are eliminated at this point, but could still play the spoiler role.