The Rambler (Fort Worth, Tex.), Vol. 85, No. 6, Ed. 1 Wednesday, February 28, 2001 Page: 4 of 6
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v.
4 The Rambler February 28, 2001
Sports
Softball back on track after big wins against Southeastern
Mary Blake
STA FF WR ITER
The Lady Rams softball team played a
doubleheader against Tarleton State on Feb.
18 and 19. These were their first home
games of the season.
They came away with an opening vic-
tory in the first game, but a loss in the
second, leaving the series tied 1-1.
Game one was a battle between the
pitchers, as no runs were scored for the first
seven innings.
Pitching for the Rams was Jennifer
Chavira (0.00), and for Tarleton was Jill
Ralif (1.00). Chavira ended the game with
seven strikeouts.
After the first four innings the Lady
Rams adopted a more aggressive style of
play, But it wasn't until the eighth inning
that they broke through.
Catcher Laura Bristow took to the
plate with center fielder Melanie Williams
and right fielder Tracey Dean on base.
Bristow hit a line drive that went over cen-
ter field, which brought the winning runs
for the Rams.
Tarleton State could only manage one
run and were defeated 2-1.
The Lady Rams started slowly on day
two of the series, allowing Tarleton a 3-0
lead after the forth innings. Wesleyan strug-
gled at the plate but played aggresively to
try and get back into the game, but had left
it too late.
Despite the 3-0 loss, the Lady Rams
outhit Tarleton four hits to two, and really
showed their fighting qualities as a team.
Head Coach Rodney McNeil com-
mented of the series, 'Tarleton is a good
team, and it was a really positive win in the
first game. However, in the second game,
we started off flat in the opening few
innings and let them get ahead. I thought
the team played well, but it was too late."
The Lady Rams continued with games
on the following day, Feb 20. This time it
was another home series against number 10
ranked Southeastern Oklahoma.
Wesleyan was looking to improve their
1-3 record and played extremely well to
defeat Southeastern in both games, 7-5 and
1-0.
Wesleyan took an early lead in game
one and maintained their edge throughout
the seven innings. Pitching for the Rams
were Dean and Chavira.
Game two was again a dual between
the pitchers. This game immediately fol-
lowed game one, and Wesleyan brought in
Amanda Bayless as the opening pitcher to
face Crystal Markwardt from Southeastern.
The game was tied 0-0 throughout the
seven innings. This lead to the introduction
of the international Tiebreaker.'
This means the last person out in each
team starts on second base and then the
team proceeds to bat through a regular
inning.
Southeastern Oklahoma was batting
first and only managed to get a player to
third base but left her stranded. This meant
m
m
$ ■
The Lady Rams only had to score a single
run to win the game and seal the series.
Catcher Rachael Clark started on sec-
ond and made it to third with a bunt from
designated hitter Rikki Greenstreet.
The second batter up was Dean, who
popped her hit up and was caught out.
This left the Rams with two out and a bat-
ter on third.
Up to the plate came third baseman
Crystal Morrison. Morrison had everyone
scared as she opened with two strikes.
She then unleashed a huge swing,
resulting in a safe hit over center field,
bringing Clark home and a victory for the
Lady Rams.
Wesleyan now has a 3-3 record.
McNeil said, "The girls have really
improved over the last four games and we
have a lot of positives to work on."
The Lady Rams' next home games _ !%>«, by Mar.hu Brinker
are at 1 and 3 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 28. at Junior pitcher Jennifer Chavira lets
Sycamore Park. fly against Southeastern on Feb. 20.
The Lady Rams swept the series 2-0.
by tl
replit
Davi
Stadi
.. •- -
Photo by Martha Brinker
Wesleyan junior Ty Lowe pitches another strike against the Tigers on Feb. 18.
He had a total of 10 strikeouts. The Rams won the game 3-1.
Baseball sweeps East Central
Donna Haney
STAFF WRITER
After a string of rained-out baseball games,
the Rams swept the East Central Tigers from
Oklahoma in an unscheduled doubleheader
Sunday, Feb. 18, at Sycamore Park. The Rams
won the games with scores of 3-1 and 7-2.
The Rams then traveled to Colorado to com-
pete in a four game series against Metro State
which they lost 1-3. The recent games take the
Rams to 3-5 for the season.
Starting pitcher for first game against East
Central was junior Ty Lowe, who threw 10 strike-
outs and pitched a complete game. Playing with a
slight fracture in his left wrist, Lowe was able to
hold the Tigers to just three hits the entire game.
"The team gave me everything we needed to
win. There was several outstanding plays in the
field, and they got me the three runs we needed,"
said Lowe.
Right fielder Jarret Lowery began the Rams'
hitting frenzy in the bottom of the second inning
with a solo home run. This was followed with a
triple by shortstop Mike Hall. Center fielder
James Polk and second baseman Derek Gerald
both hit singles to put the Rams on top 3-0.
Hall teamed up with first baseman A.J.
Ramirez for a double play that ended the game
with the Tigers only scoring one run in reply.
Ramirez said, "We all played hard and we
worked as a team. The team was happy to see
Nathan Robinett [the Rams player who is cur-
rently undergoing treatment for cancer]. We
played the game for him."
Robinett himself acted as announcer for the
day.
In the second game, the Tigers got on the
scoreboard first with two runs scored on a long
two-out single in the top of the second inning.
Michael Bowser pitched a complete game and
didn't allow another run by the Tigers after that
inning.
Ramirez hit a two-run home run in the bot-
tom of the third to tie the game.
In the fourth inning, catcher David Jones
lead the inning with a double, followed by Hall,
who safely reached first on a sacrifice bunt. Polk
hit an RBI single, Gerald successfully dropped a
squeeze bunt to score the runner from third, and
Lowery finished the inning with an RBI single.
Ramirez hit an RBI single in the sixth, and
Hall hit a two-out double to score the final run in
the bottom of the sixth.
Assistant coach Pat Hannon said, "The key
to these wins was our execution. There were
some good bunts and key hits when we needed
them in both games. We also got excellent pitch-
ing from both Lowe and Bowser."
Ramirez said, "I think it's safe to say that
we're on the road to success."
The Rams returned from a four-game series
against the Metro State Roadrunners of Colorado.
Lowe was the winning pitcher of the first game
12-7. The Rams lost the other three games by
deficits of two runs or less.
Bowser pitched the second game with the
final score of 6-4. Derek Gerald pitched the third
game, 8-6, and Matt Tecklenburg pitched the
final game of the series, with the Rams losing 2-
1 in the final inning.
Throughout the series, several Rams' players
hit home runs. Catcher David Jones hit two,
Lowe, Gerald and centerfielder Lance Newton
each hit one.
"We played well and we did some good
things. Teck pitched a great game. We had them
beat that game all the way to the final inning. We
should have won all four," said Newton.
"They were a clutch team. Now we have to
concentrate on pulling it back together before we
face Mesa next week. Those games are really
important because they are in our division. We
need to win all four," he said.
Women's tennis gets confidence boost
David Slater
SPORTS EDITOR
The women's tennis team had a
successful week, finishing with a 2-0
record with wins against Southeastern
Oklahoma University and East Central
Oklahoma University on Feb. 21 and
25, respectively.
The match against Southeastern
was a close affair that went right down
to the last singles match. The final score
was a 5-4 win for the Lady Rams.
The doubles started slowly for
Wesleyan with the number two and
three pairs of Natalie Ilott and Phoebe
Mair along with Jennifer Barnes and
Amber Hoover both succumbing to
their opposite numbers.
Number one pair of Floresita
Lopez and Mary Blake won 8-4, leav-
ing the score 2-1 to Southeastern
entering the singles.
Lopez playing at number one and
Mair at number three both supplied
comfortable wins for Wesleyan. Blake
added another in a close 7-5, 7-5 victo-
ry. The Lady Rams did not have it all
their own way, however, as
Southeastern took the singles at num-
bers one and five, leaving the match at
an overall 4-4 tie.
It all came down to the match
involving Barnes. If there was any pres-
sure, she did not show any sign of
nerves as she cruised to victory.
Coach Jason Hayes was pleased
with the win.
"This match was a complete team
effort. I was proud of the way that the
girls fought and came up with a very big
victory," he said.
Against East Central on Feb. 25 the
Lady Rams found themselves under far
less pressure, cruising to a 9-0 victory.
Barnes and Hoover earned an 8-0
victory at number three doubles while
the combinations of Lopez and Blake
along with Ilott and Mair both won 8-2.
With a 3-0 lead heading into the six
singles matches, a comfortable victory
looked to be on the cards.
Ilott, again playing at number one
in the absence of Tatiana Bakhantsova,
won an important match for Wesleyan
6-3, 6-3 in what was a confident display
from the young Australian.
Both Lopez and Blake looked
impressive at numbers two and four,
dropping only two games between
them. Mair and Hoover at three and five
also won comfortably, and it was again
left to Barnes to round the day off, this
time with a 6-0, 6-0 drubbing of her
opponent.
The impressive 9-0 win took the
Lady Rams to 3-2 for the season after a
slow start.
Hayes explained the impact of the
win against East Central. "It was anoth-
er good match for us, and it definitely
came along at the right time. It was a
big win and should give us a lot of con-
fidence going into the conference
season," he said.
The Lady Rams travel to
Oklahoma this weekend to compete
against Oklahoma Christian University
and Oklahoma City University on
March 2 and 3, respectively.
Women's basketball crushes St. Mary's
David Slater
SPORTS EDITOR
Texas Wesleyan's women's basket-
ball moved ever closer to a place in the
National Championships with a do-or-
die win against St. Mary's University,
which was ranked fourth in the region.
In their last home match on Feb. 22
the Lady Rams ran out winners by a
score of 66-53.
The game started well for
Wesleyan, with the home side taking
full advantage of St. Mary's early
nerves.
St. Mary's appeared to panic,
allowing the Lady Rams to build a large
lead heading towards halftime. At the
halftime buzzer Wesleyan was leading
by 32-22.
The second half was much closer.
Wesleyan turned the ball over an
increasing number of times and found
itself on the back foot. Thanks to some
outstanding defense, however, the Lady
Ram's lead was preserved.
With the game clock eventually
running down, St. Mary's was forced to
foul in an attempt to test the nerves of
Wesleyan's free throw shooters.
There was little St. Mary's could do
as Wesleyan made its shots from the
line and ran down the clock to seal a
crucial win that will have great signif-
cance on the final regional rankings of
the season.
Catherine Weir again led the Lady
Rams in scoring with 15 points and
playing in her last home game for
Wesleyan, Lashanda Boyd led the
rebounds with 13.
Boyd commented on her last home
match for the Lady Rams. "It was emo-
tional but I was happy at the end of the
game as it was such a big win.
Hopefully, our last regular season game
on Thursday won't be my last for the
team," she said.
Coach Robin Potera was extremely
pleased with the win. "We were thrilled
with the game. We worked so hard for
our lead and continued to play at such a
high level throughout," she said.
"St. Mary's seemed to be nervous
from the start and I think we went out
there and won the battle of the minds.
Our defense was strong and the contri-
bution of Kathedral Mitchell was very
important," she said.
Wesleyan followed up the win
against St. Mary's with a comfortable
win on the road against Incarnate Word
on Feb. 24.
There was no letting up as the Lady
Rams won by 67-44, extending their
record to 20-6, a milestone in their sea-
son.
Both Martha Brinker and Liz
Landry had high scoring games for the
Lady Rams, with 22 and 17 points
respectively.
Potera was optimistic at the Lady
Ranis' chance of qualifying for the
National Championships.
"We have the chance to win 21
games this season, which only a small
number of schools can claim to do. If
we win on Thursday it will be up to the
ranking comittee. We shall see," she
said.
The Lady Rams play their last reg-
ular season game against St. Edward's
University in Austin on Thursday Mar.
Mi
Edi
Men's tennis stuns UT - Pan American and East Central
Mary Blake
STAFF WRITER
The Rams men's tennis team
had a successful week of tennis last
week, winning three games out of
four and improving their record to
5-2.
The winning began on Feb. 21,
when the Rams played Southeastern
Oklahoma State at home. The Rams
got off to a good start winning all
three of the doubles matches.
Number one doubles pair Juan
Barrio and Vincent Houlier, as well
as number two Alan Biel and David
Slater, won 8-2. The number three
pair of Michael Arnaudon and Matt
Graham also won their doubles by
the same margin.
The singles proved no problem,
as each player won their matches.
Number one Barrio won 6-1,6-
3 and number two Houlier won 6-4,
6-0. Arnaudon was playing at three,
and had a slow start, losing the first
set 6-1. But, he came back to win
the remaining two sets easily 6-1,6-
3.
Slater, Graham and Biel played
at four, five and six, respectively
and had no competition. All won
effortlessly.
These results gave Wesleyan a
9-0 victory.
The Rams were brought back to
earth with a tough match the follow-
ing day against Collin County
Community College.
Collin has always had strong
tennis program, with a strong lineup
of international players.
Wesleyan started well, winning
two out of three doubles. Number
one doubles pair Barrio and Houlier
won 8-5 and number three pair.
Graham and Arnaudon won 8-6.
Slater and Biel played a close
match, only losing by one break of
serve, 8-6.
While the Rams had a slight
advantage going into the singles
Collin County proved too strong.
Barrio won 6-1, 6-1, and num-
ber two Graham won 6-2, 6-4.
Numbers three to six, however,
did nor fair so well. Houlier, Slater,
Arnaudon and Biel, respectively, all
lost their singles. The match was
decided by Biel's singles when the
overall match was tied 4-4. Biel's
loss gave Collin the victory 5-4.
Wesleyan was scheduled to
play against Division One school
Texas Pan American in Arlington on
Feb. 24. However, Saturday brought
rain, and consequently the match
was moved to the indoor facility at
Ennis High School.
The game was scheduled for
9:00 a.m. and eventually got under-
way at 1:00 p.m.
As a result of the delayed start
the teams agreed to play their sin-
gles first. This meant that if there
was a winner after six matches the
doubles could be disgarded.
Numbers one and two Barrio
and Houlier gave the Rams the start
they needed, winning 6-1, 6-1, and
7-5, 6-2, respectively. Slater and
Graham, playing four and five, also
won their matches, Slater won 6-2,
6-4, and Graham sealed victory for
the Rams with a 7-5, 2-6, 7-6 (10-8)
win.
The following day, the Rams
were on the road. Both the men's
and women's teams traveled to Ada,
Oklahoma to play East Central
Oklahoma.
All three doubles pairs won
decisively, which foreshadowed a
similar result in the singles.
Number one and two singles,
Barrio and Houlier, had the tough-
est matches of the day, but
triumphed, defeating their oppo-
nents 6-1, 6-4, and 6-1, 7-5,
respectively.
Slater, Graham, Arnaudon and
Biel, playing four through to six
singles, all cruised to victory, con-
ceding only five games between
them.
Coach Jason Hayes comment-
ed on the matches, "I am really
proud of the way the guys played,
and they are really coming together
as a team," he said.
The Rams travel to Oklahoma
this weekend to compete against
Oklahoma Christian University and
Oklahoma City University.
Photo by Alan Ruiz
Freshman Matt Graham gets
ready to fire another return
in his win against Collin
County on Feb. 22.
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Wright, Shelly. The Rambler (Fort Worth, Tex.), Vol. 85, No. 6, Ed. 1 Wednesday, February 28, 2001, newspaper, February 28, 2001; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth253250/m1/4/: accessed May 6, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas Wesleyan University.