Diecast Carshow: Jeff Gordon Fanboy

I remember seeing Jeff Gordon for the first time in a commercial with some other sports stars.  I can't find it online.  (I'm sure it's there somewhere.)  He says, "I'll drive," at the end of it.  I had no idea who he was.  He was the most popular/recognizable driver when I started watching NASCAR.  (Perhaps inheriting the mantle because Dale Earnhardt died in the first race I watched.)  In any case, I bandwagon-ed on, but I do still like him.

       

Here's everything.  I've got more of Jeff than anyone.

Here's the 1:24 scale Flames car again.

On the left is his Car of Tomorrow Flames.  That is the only COT I bought and the only one that looks good.  On the right is the older Flames car.  I do have two of these.  The other is from the Hendrick set.  They have different stickers on them.  The decal is probably from a cereal box. 

Here's the display.  I'll talk about where that came from in another post.  Some of the cars came with miniature hoods or stickers, which are displayed with them.

There's the cars outside the display.

This is a Pepsi 400 paint scheme called Fireworks.

Here's his retro Rainbow Warrior scheme.

Here's my favorite of the Jeff Gordon cars.  It's another Pepsi 400 design called Shards.  

NM State Aggies vs OUAZ Spirit Baseball 4-25-23

I admit I was looking for excuses to not go to today’s weekday matinee.  Aggie Baseball did well on their last home stand, but had been crushed by the Lobos and swept on the road against Tarleton.  (And neither of those two teams are good.)  There was also a forecast of high winds.  Ron would be there, but would have to leave, possibly before the end, so I’d be driving myself over.  And, it was Kid’s Day.  There would be a large number school kids at the game.  We’d gone to a Women’s Basketball Kid’s Day once.  It was kind of fun, but I thought it might be a hassle.

 

Well, the weather was great.  I woke up early (thanks to somebody with a leaf blower at 7:00am) and I was ready to go on time.  I was dressed in a work outfit, since I decided I’d go to work early after the game.  I was in a crimson-ish polo shirt.  I called Ron before leaving, just looking for an excuse.  I could hear the kids yelling over the phone.  He told me that the kids were standing in line with posters, getting player autographs, and they were putting eye black stickers on the kids.  Okay, I’ll go.

 

There were a couple of rows of school busses outside the stadium when I arrived.  I could hear kid chants of “Let’s go Aggies!” from the parking lot.  There was still a long line of kids inside getting eye black and Aggie temporary tattoos applied by staff members.  I’d missed out on the roster poster and autographs.  I’d kind of expected that and probably wouldn’t have tried standing in line with a couple of hundred kids anyway. 

 

In the grandstand, the kids had taken over the center section and much of the rest of the stadium.  Fan Michael almost didn’t recognize me when I walked over and said, “Hi.”  He had his usual seat, but was surrounded by kids.  Ron told me he was up by the press box.  I’d never found him otherwise.  We found out later that the section near the Aggie dugout was left for regular fans. 

 

Up near the top of the grandstand, we were getting some hot sun, but were out of the breeze.  (I was doused in sunblock.  I’d wash it off after I got to work.)  We were soon completely surrounded by kids.  They were welcomed by the PA as students of the East Picacho Elementary, 530 strong.  There were a bunch of teachers and chaperones, as well, and some regular fans, too.  Attendance was listed at 1,005, which is overflow capacity. 

 

Ron chatted a couple of times with a kid next to him.  Ron had given me some eye black stickers (he didn’t know what they were) a couple of weeks ago that he’d picked up.  I still had them on their little sheet, so I handed it off to a kid that wasn’t wearing any.  He put them on.  That was the limits of our interactions with the children. 

 

Adam Young was doing radio for this game, though he ended up doing play-by-play of what was going on with kids for most of it.  Most of the kids nearby thought he was the PA.  They were confused that his talking wasn’t corresponding with what was coming from the loudspeakers.              

 

Before the game, the school principal threw out the first pitch.  He did get cheered by the kids.  There was an animated discussion between the coaches and umpires at home plate afterward.  No idea.  During the Aggie player intros, a bunch of the kids held up crayon drawings supporting the team. 

Oh yeah, there was a game, too.  NAIA school (no, I don’t know what that means other than not Division I), OUAZ, was back.  The Aggies had beaten them in March, 22-3, for their first win of the season (after 13 losses).  The Spirit players were dressed in dark grays with red numbers and orange hats.  Bold (and kind of weird).  This was their final regular season game of the season.  They had a kid in their dugout.  I wonder what he thought about all the kids in the stands.  Fans in attendance and the press box for the last meeting thought there was a run rule in effect.  There wasn’t.  This time, we were told up front this would go 9.

 

Aggie staff members began distributing soda and hot dogs to the kids around the crowd.  There was a souvenir foam ball toss to the crowd before the start.  The game began with a continuous roar and chanting and mostly continued throughout, except for a brief point where most of the kids were eating.  Haydon Johns started for the Aggies with a 1-2-3 first.

 

A deafening “Go Aggies” cheer began the bottom of the first.  Fan Tom was here in his usual seat.  We couldn’t hear him at all.  Ron and I agreed this was a good thing.  Evan Massie started for the Spirit.  He towered upon the mound at 6’7”.  The Aggies loaded the bases via a single, a walk, and a hit batter, but came up dry.

 Hayden gave up a double in the top of the second, but his defense behind him was good.  Cal Villareal made a good sliding catch on the first out.  Christian Perez made a good snatch on a liner at third.  Brant Voth made a surprise start at catcher today.  On a high popup behind the plate that was unplayable, he shaded his eyes with his glove and searched the sky for it.  I’m not sure if he really didn’t see it or if he was just goofing (perhaps the later).  Keith Jones II made a great athletic leaping catch in right for the final out.

 

Big containers of popcorn were delivered to the kids in the bottom of the second.  Adam would be giving play-by-play of the kids throwing and teasing each other with it.  There was a hot chick in a tank top, yoga pants, and two sleeves of tattoos working at the game.  I wasn’t sure if she was staff, a chaperone, or a teacher.  She was wearing glasses, sort of like a teacher. 

 

Damone Hale started the frame with a walk.  He was picked off leaning, but the first baseman threw the ball into centerfield trying to get him at second.  Hale made it to third.  Cal cashed him in with grounder.  (Note to the official scorer: that run was unearned.)  Voth walked next and advanced on a wild pitch.  Mitch Namie drove him in with a single.  Kevin Jimenez singled him in.  Nolan Funke then hammered a two-run homer to right.  5-0 Aggies.

 

There was a bag (?) giveaway between innings.  Whatever!  The kids screamed at the top of their lungs.  Hayden started the top of the third with a walk, a single, and another walk.  Cade Swenson came in in relief.  Logan Galina at first made a great play on a grounder to get throw out a runner home.  However, there was no defense against Sergio Alfaro up next.  With an easy swing, he put one out to right for a grand slam.  Suddenly, it’s 5-4 Aggies.

 

In the bottom, the PA called for a dancing contest and the Macarena was played.  Ushers handed out random souvenirs to the kids dancing, including an Aggie lunchbox.  With two outs in the inning, Cal hit a grounder right to short.  The ball hit the fielder on his glove, who dropped it.  Cal made it to first and it was scored as . . . a hit?  (Is Cal’s dad the official scorer?)  That was the only damage in the inning.

 

The good-looking black and white baseball hats were handed out to the crowd in the top of the fourth.  Insanity and pandemonium ensued.  It got worse in the bottom.  I told Ron earlier, I’d leave if they played Baby Shark.  They not only played it, someone wearing a shark costume came down the aisle to lead the singing.  I got up to leave, but was completely hemmed in and couldn’t.  Adam was hanging out of press box making a video of it.  I am betrayed!  He came back on and said he was surprised it took this long to happen.  Credit to whoever was in the costume, they were working it.         

 

The game seemed somewhat irrelevant by comparison to the kids and the entertainment.  Swenson had a quick inning in the fourth.  The Aggies got two on in the bottom.  The kids started stomping on the bleachers for the rally (see, they were watching), but the Aggies weren’t able to convert. 

 

To the top of the fifth and more hats were tossed!  More screaming!  Alan Aguero came in to pitch for the Aggies.  He gave up a single to start.  Logan made a bad decision on a grounder down the first base line by running to the bag, instead of just tagging the runner.  He got the out, though.  (Defensively, even when Logan makes mistakes, he gets outs.)  Next, he made a great play on another grounder for another unassisted out.  Those two outs did advance the runner on first and was driven in on a single.  The final batter was called out for interfering with Voth trying to throw to second on a stolen base attempt. 

 

We were now tied at 5 to an NAIA team.  I noticed AD Mario Moccia in the crowd.  If I could have talked him at the time, I might have said, “If we lose here, can you announce a baseball team scandal and cancel the rest of the season?”  Oh, and here comes the other song I was expecting, Let It Go.  I knew it.  The kids were all singing along.  I’m totally regretting coming.  Also, the kids were starting to be slowly cycled out the park.  They were looking kind of sad to have to leave. 

 

For the Aggie team though, it was time to get down to business.  The Spirit began putting in relievers in the fifth.  Perez greeted the first with a double.  This was followed by a walk and a single to load the bases.  KJII hit a grounder into the infield.  There was a bad throw to the plate and Perez scored.  Mitch walked next to bring in another run. 

 

The Spirit changed pitchers.  KJ came up and answered the bell with his own grand slam home run to right.  The wind was definitely blowing that way.  It looked like he was even choking up on the bat.  After a single, two strikeouts ended the inning.  Logan had one of those.  The kids were chanting “Go #10!”  I wonder if he was signing earlier.  11-5 Aggies. 

 

The PA thanked the kids for coming and made sure to say that the team would be playing this weekend.  (Maybe they should have handed out schedules.)  A teacher sitting by us said, “Thanks for putting up with the kids.”  No problem.  (But no more Baby Shark.)  It was a completely different game at this point.  Ron and I were alone in our section.  We moved over a couple of seats to get in the shade.  The wind would kick up piles of popcorn around the stands.  A couple of kids and teachers went through the rows picking up items left behind. 

 

The wind had picked up on field.   In the sixth, the Aggies put Aaron Treloar in.  The wind took a lead off fly ball and turned it into a double.  On the next batter, a foul popup was carried away from three fielders chasing the ball.  The batter was Takaaki Tsuji.  The umpire called him out on strikes emphatically.  Tsuji continued to stand at the plate.  The ump finally had to tell him he was out before he left. 

 

Aaron gave up two more singles and surrendered a run.  Hayden Walker came in.  Perez caught a liner at third and doubled off the runner at first to end the inning.  11-6 Aggies.  In the bottom, Cal singled, but that was the only offense.  In the top of the seventh, Walker gave up a couple of hits, but struck out three in a row to end the inning.

 

Michael came up to visit with all the kids gone.  I brought up a Chihuahuas kids game I listened to once where the kids had to leave late in a possible no-hitter.  The bottom of the seventh was 1-2-3, but more serious than that.  A ball ricocheted off the catcher’s mitt into KJ’s ribs.  He was stunned for a moment and the staff came out to look at him.  Kevin continued the at bat and swung at the next pitch and immediately took himself out of the game.  He must have been hurt pretty bad.  We’ll see how bad this weekend. 

 

Romeo Ballesteros finished KJ’s AB.  Ron didn’t recognize him at first.  I’m like, “How could you not with that flow he’s got going?  He’s got the long, dark, curly hair.  Hayden Johns is the one with the long, blonde, curly hair.”  I think this point, I realized the crowd mic stuck out of the press box was basically picking up what we were saying.  It had to be very quiet and it was muted, but I could hear it over the radio here and there.  Thankfully, I think that was the most embarrassing thing said.  It could have been worse.   

 

Kade Benevidez pitched the top of the eighth.  After a walk, Voth made a good throw to nab the runner trying to base steal to end the inning.  In the bottom, Perez doubled and advanced on a wild pitch to be brought in by Cal on a sac fly.  12-6 Aggies.  More troubling during the inning again, Hale was popped on the hand hard enough to get a reaction out of everyone left in the crowd.  The ball bounced off him all the way the netting.  Hale shook it off and took first. 

 

Oh, there were several subs on both sides in the last couple of innings.  Will Sierra closed it out in the ninth.  He gave up a walk, but Romeo and his great hair turned a double play to end the game.  Aggies win 12-6!

 

Gameballs!  One to the kids for making this fun.  One to Adam Young for calling the game and the kids’ activities.  That’s professional skill.  As for the OUAZ players, Sergio Alfaro went 3 for 5 with 5 RBI’s and a freaking grand slam.  Look for him to be playing in D1 next year.  Spirit pitcher, Creighton Silvian, who I didn’t mention in the recap, pitched 2 scoreless innings. 

 

For the Aggies, Kevin Jimenez went 3 for 5 with 5 RBI’s and a freaking grand slam.  Wait, what?  Apparently, there was a competition going on.  Get well soon, Kev.  (And ice that hand, Damone Hale.)  Cal Villareal went 3 for 4 (maybe?), but he definitely drove in 2 runs.  Hopefully, this gets him going offensively.  Lastly, I thought Hayden Walker did well in relief, though the other Hayden has him beat in hair quality.

 

A Dominos delivery driver pulled up as we were walking out.  Somebody ordered lunch.  Speaking of that, while Ron left for his appointment, I took off for Whataburger to use a game coupon.  Frankly, it wasn’t the greatest burger (stale buns) and the music there was strangely mostly terrible, but I was plenty hungry enough to enjoy it.  From there, it was straight to work.  This was a fun diversion during the week.  I can’t believe I didn’t want to go.

Diecast Carshow: General Mills/Richard Petty Fleet

If you're a NASCAR diecast collector, or just a childish adult, what a great pairing General Mills cereal and Richard Petty made in the 2000's.  This collection of cars all came from cereal boxes.  I ate a lot of cereal in the process.  The cars were in little bags, which were placed, not in the cereal, but between the box and the cereal bag.     

Here's all the ones I have.

54 Plymouth Belvedere.  This was part of a set of cars showcasing Richard Petty's career.  

67 Pontiac GTO.  This is an intimidating-looking car.  I wouldn't want this coming up behind at Daytona.  I also don't know why a racecar would need a trunk that big.

67 Pontiac GTO.  A #43 not in Petty Blue seems wrong.

71 Plymouth Superbird.  I don't think it was a particularly successful car, but what a look!  Unfortunately, the diecast styling doesn't work well either and it doesn't roll well. 

74 Dodge Charger.  Here's an iconic car.  This was the one wanted in the set.

84 Pontiac Grand Prix.  Some of those 80's cars were not so pretty.  

2001 Dodge Intrepid.  This is a good-looking car from about when I started watching NASCAR.  I'm not sure how many cars were in this set, but I'm good with what I got.

2008 Cheerios.  These next two came from a different set.  I think mom gave me these from her cereal.  I can't identify the make and model.  I think they're just meant to generically look like a NASCAR. 

2008 Fruity Cheerios.  I don't think they make Fruity Cheerios anymore.  Sounds like an abomination.  

Chex Party Mix.  I think this was actually my first Petty car from a cereal box.  Again, I can't identify the make and model.  It's one of my favorites, probably because it's a little smaller than the others and seems cuter.  

NM State Aggies vs UTA Mavericks Softball 4-22-23

Using Friday's Promo image because it looks cool.

After a fun morning at Aggie Volleyball and a great lunch at Chik-fil-a, Ron and I made it over to Softball for the Aggies' final game of the weekend against UT-Arlington.  I'd nearly forgot all about their double header last night.  I tuned into Game 2 in the seventh as the Mavericks tied it and went on to win it 6-7 in extras.  They'd also had a late comeback win in Game 1, 3-5.  UTA only had two pitchers and only used one for the two games on Friday.  Jessica Adams threw over 240 pitches for the Mavericks that night.

 

Ron had been there for it.  The only highlight of the game was when Marketing Director Nicole Sacks tossed an Albuquerque TV news crew out of the stadium.  Ron had found her before the game today and asked her what happened.  She said they were bothering fans there asking them about the latest university sport scandal.  She told them to ask fans outside the stadium and to not bother the ones inside watching the game. 

 

I don't feel like going over the latest developments with Men's Basketball today.  The “scandal” that ESPN dug up about Women's Basketball was just piling on.  I chose to ask Nicole about her t-shirt.  It was an Aggie Empire Star Wars-themed black shirt that had “Pew Pew” inside the logo.  Unfortunately, she said it was an old one from years ago.  I was hoping it was for sale somewhere.

 

Kayleigh Thomas was there from Volleyball.  I think she was working there.  I was still too shy to say anything, though she was around for most of the game.  There was a good crowd for the game, 575 officially, but seemed like more.  Oddly, I noticed a couple of fans wearing Vegas Knights hockey hats.  No, they weren’t together either.    

 

UTA brought some fans.  Meagan Smith's dad was wearing a jersey with a picture of his daughter on it.  There was a loud lady behind us for the game, but that's okay.  Their team was in eye-catching bright blue uniforms with orange socks and belts.  The PA apparently didn't have the phonetic spellings of their names and stumbled all over them during the player introductions. 

 

It was bright, sunny, and warm out.  This was regretting wearing double socks with my slightly too-big boots.  Ron just about boiled.  A little delivery robot brought out the first pitch ball.  Ron laughed at it, but ushers tossed out souvenirs from its sponsor and he got a little football.  For the Anthem, Jordin King and Kaylin Jackson took a knee.  The Mavericks had several black players on their team.  None of them a took a knee. 

 

The new Men's Basketball coach, Jason Hooten, threw out the first pitch.  His daughters play softball, which explains why he how he did such a good job of it.  He'd also come up into the stands for a t-shirt toss in the first inning.  

Aydenne Brown started for the Aggies.  There was a breeze blowing out to left field during the game.  Gabby Aragon made a nice running catch into the wall on the first batter.  Marley Neises came up next and homered to left near the pole.  Aydenne seemed to be laboring with her pitches.  She gave up a single, but escaped without further damage.  1-0 UTA.

UTA’s other pitcher, Gracie Bumpurs, started.  Jessica Carreon has apparently taken over at second and been moved up in the order to lead off.  She laid down a bunt where the ball stopped within a foot of the opposite batter's box, and she beat it out for a single.  Jillian Taylor singled right after.  Jess tripped rounding second, but still made it to third under the tag.  No problem.  She was able to walk home after Kayla Bowen hit a line drive homer to left center. 

 

During Gabby’s AB, Coach Rodolph made a loud comment from the dugout questioning the strikezone.  The ump stopped the game and issued a warning to her.  Reagan Hukill made a couple of nice plays in left to end the inning.  3-1 Aggies.  After the inning, the coach went over to talk to the ump.  Hopefully, it was for an apology. 

 

In the top of the second, Gabby threw out a runner trying to stretch a single to a double with a good tag by Jess.  Aydenne was looking better and her offspeed was working.  She finished off the inning with a strikeout.  The Aggies went down in order in the bottom.

 

Coach Hertel from Volleyball came in with a student between innings.  I think it was a recruiting visit.  They left after an inning.  Keep in mind, the coach was working all morning with the tournament.  He’s a busy guy.  Aydenne was having more control issues in the top of the third with a couple of walks in the inning.  There were also two stolen bases (and one in the first).  Jayleen Burton at short saved an extra base on a wild throw from Kendal Lunar on one attempt.  Still, no runs scored.  The Aggies went down in order again in the bottom.

 

I noticed some interesting fans in the stands that weren’t usually around.  It turned out that there was a $2.5k scholarship drawing for grad students.  A guy won and I think his friends with him were more excited.  The grad students left after the drawing.  Presumably, they’re busy.  Aydenne worked a 1-2-3 fourth. 

 

In the bottom, Hannah Lindsay singled and Savannah Bejarano pinch ran and stole second.  Gabby bunted for a single.  Bumpurs threw the ball wide of first.  Gabby took second and Savannah came home for an unearned run.  Next, Neises in center caught a Paige Knight fly ball.  Gabby tried to take third on it, but was out on a good throw.  The Aggies were now up 4-1.

 

Aydenne gave up a single, a walk, and threw a ball to the next batter in the fifth.  She came out for Felicia de la Torre.  Felicia finished the at bat with a walk and was immediately taken out.  Laurali Pantane came in with the bases loaded and nobody out. 

 

The UTA fan lady behind us was irritated the subs and shouted out, “Let them play!”  Neises bunted next.  Laurali had no play after fielding the ball and a run scored.  A sac fly brought in another run.  Jillian made a great throw to the plate, but it was dropped.  Laurali finished the inning still having the lead, 4-3.

 

Bumpurs made a great catch on a comeback liner for the second out of the bottom of the fifth.  Jill singled and Kayla came up to bat.  You could sense it coming before it happened.  Whammo!  She crushed one out to the club house beyond the left field fence.  Hukill admired it from left field as it went out over her.  Some loud rock music was playing outside the stadium just to add some drama to the moment.  Savannah made the last out of the inning in Hannah’s spot.  Given Hannah had walked and singled earlier as the DP, I wonder if she was hurt.  6-3 Aggies.

 

It was a bit of a bad sign in the top of the sixth when a Maverick batter smacked a hard liner into the Aggie dugout.  One of the assistant coaches may have been hit, but he was okay.  Lindsey Franklin came up next and homered.  6-4 Aggies. 

 

In the bottom, Bumpurs got the first out, but Paige singled.  Kendal came up.  The coach called time during the AB for a chat.  Paige came over from first and gave her a pep talk, too.  Kendal then singled to right.  Paige made a pirouette to dodge the grounder.    

 

The iron-woman, Jessica Adams, came in to pitch.  She gave up a single to load the bases, but two fielder’s choices, including a play at the plate, ended the inning.  Oh, Jackson pinch hit during one of those.  She fouled a couple of balls off her shin and came out of the game limping.  I hope this doesn’t impair her ability to kneel for the Anthem. 

 

To the top of the seventh and the Mavericks began with a single and stolen base (their fourth of the game).  Ron was having a flashback of yesterday’s games.  It certainly seemed like it.  After a groundout, Morgan Westbrook singled to drive in Hukill.  Laurali buckled down and induced two groundouts to end the game.  Aggies win 6-5.  Resume breathing. 

 

It was two hours and 22 minutes of tight, nervous softball.  Thankfully, the Aggies salvaged one game, but they probably should have swept.  UTA isn’t a great team and they were down on arms.  For Gameballs, I’ll give Jessica Adams on UTA one for her lockdown relief effort.  I hope she has a rubber arm.  She passed by me on the way to the bus outside.  I wanted to tell her I was impressed with her performance, but she didn’t look like she was in the mood.  The face paint she was wearing might have been a little intimidating, as well.   

 

For the Aggies, Kayla Bowen obviously gets one for going 2 for 3 with 5 RBI’s and 2 home runs.  Aydenne Brown didn’t seem to have her best stuff, but kept the team in it and got the win.  Laurali Patane was a bit shaky in relief, but came through.  After the game, Coach Rodolph was happy with her performance.  Yesterday, Laurali had told the coach that she didn’t have it, and Coach Rodolph appreciated her honesty.  

         

There was another autograph session after the game.  Ron was a little shocked that I wasn’t interested.  Part of me was, but the previous session had just left me cold.  I didn’t think it’d go any better this time and it would have felt weird going for autographs again.  (What would I do with it?  I’ve already got the card on display at home.  I don’t have anywhere to put one at work anymore.)  Ron had to split right after, so no ice cream run.  (That’s okay.  I had a bunch of leftover cake from work at home.)  We were both pretty content with today’s Volleyball exhibition and the Softball win.    

Aggie Volleyball Spring Tournament 2023

Okay, I did ask Ryleigh Whitekettle (pictured above) if there were going to be any spring games this year when I met her at Softball.  (Yes, I’m obsessing over this.  It’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me at Aggie Sports.  Don’t take this away from me.)  She wasn’t sure, but this year I remembered to keep checking their Twitter for announcements.  Eventually, the above image came up, so I had plenty of warning.

Unfortunately, the start time for the tournament was 9:00 on Saturday.  For normal people, not a big deal, but I work at night.  I thought I was going to have an issue getting up early.  Ron was strangely ambivalent about going, since we were already planning on going to Softball in the afternoon.  Surely, he wanted to see his favorite on the team, Morgan Stewart.  I think he was concerned about starving to death if he had to wait for lunch. 

 

I did get up on time (applause) and was ready to go before 9:00, but had to cool my heels for 15 minutes waiting for Ron.  Disaster almost struck immediately struck when we arrived at the Pan-Am Center.  A couple in front of us found the doors locked.  Oh, no!  I could even hear them playing inside.  Thankfully, an usher let us all in.  Somehow, they’d misplaced the doorstop.  

Inside, they’d laid out the new crimson mat on the floor.  This’ll make matches look more like they do at bigger schools.  For today however, there were two matches going on simultaneously.  The two courts were perpendicular to the mat and side-by-side.  The Aggies were playing the University of Juarez (UACJ), and UTEP was playing the New Mexico Military Institute (NMMI).  

 

There was a small crowd of regulars and boosters present.  Some Football players were there watching.  Our lovely graduated redheaded player, Kayleigh Thomas, was up in the crowd.  I was rooting for her and have written about her, but I don’t think I ever really met her.  I was too shy to do so here.  A booster did go over and chat with her.  She later went down to hang out with the team staff. 

 

Our officials for the games were none other than our own Graduate Assistants Cat Kelly and Molly Johnson.  Both were up on the ladders at the net and had electronic whistles.  Cat looked serious calling the game and seriously uncomfortable standing up on the platform.  (I like Cat a lot.  I’m glad I got to see her again.  I don’t know if she’ll be back for the fall.)  Molly looked so cute, all 6’4” of her.  She has bangs now and was wearing an oversized shirt.  She looked slightly embarrassed as she tentatively motioned to indicate point winners. 

 

There was a printed roster available.  The stack of paper was a bit hidden in a hallway.  A couple of new recruits were with the team, Starr Williams and Aleka Darko.  I assume there will be some more in the fall. 

 

Unfortunately, there were a bunch of important subtractions.  Lia Mosher (playing professionally in Europe) and Katie Birtcil (I don't know where she is) have graduated, along with Molly.  Ryleigh mentioned that setter, Rylee Fay, had left, but they've recruited a new one.  (I guess she'll arrive later.)  Jayde Shelton and Mia Peterson have left, probably trying to find more playing time.  (My co-worker, Taylor, who met Mia and wanted date her, is going to be crushed.)  I'm way more upset that Taylor Snow isn't with the team.  She was a blocking machine.  With Lia, Molly, and Taylor gone, Coach Jordan must be scrambling to replace his front line.

 

We settled in to watch the Aggies play UACJ.  After looking it up, they are the Indias. OMG!  #so-canceled.  This team must change their name this instant to the Lady Guardians or Twitter will explode on them.  The Indias were the only team wearing their playing uniforms.  The other teams were in team t-shirts.  The Juarez girls were a bit undersized, but were energetic.  They were also the happiest team to be there and were all smiles playing. 

 

The Aggies won 2-0 (best of three sets).  Afterward, the Indias had the Aggies gather together with them for a team picture.  (I got the impression at least some of their girls spoke English.)  I was impressed with setter, Bianca Perez.  She was vocally taking charge and looked recovered from her injury.  Starr looked impressive.  Ashley Herman, the team's cheerleader last year, got a lot of playing time.  Hopefully, she'll be playing in the fall.

 

Between games, Coach Hertel came up to us to reset the iPad that was recording the Aggie matches.  Ron and I and a couple of other fans got to have a nice chat with him.  He didn't know much about the team from Juarez.  I mentioned I had once seen a Men's Volleyball match on Mexican TV between a couple of university teams.  He seemed really interested, but I didn't have much in the way of details.  The guys seemed to completely fill up the entire court and they hit too hard.  It wasn't fun to watch.     

 

UTEP and NMMI finished their match.  I'm guessing UTEP won, because the NMNI coach chewed her team out afterward.  The Miners were obviously shorthanded.  They had what I'm guessing was one of their male assistant coaches playing for them.  Some music was turned on during the break.  Ashley was dancing.  Even after playing, she still has extra energy.  Morgan and Rilen Garcia engaged in a little playful roughhousing.       

 

The Aggies played NMMI next.  They are the Lady Colts.  (I had to look that up, too.)  They were again another shorter team, but they were mostly stocky.  (The Indias were pretty slim.)  There was a quick game of Rock, Paper, Scissors at the net to decide who would serve first.  That got a little chuckle from both teams. 

 

NMMI brought their full team and they were spirited.  The girls were singing and making noise for the match like a Softball team.  I liked their t-shirts.  It was a black shirt with an American flag and a Zia on it.  One of their girls were hit on the nose while playing at the net.  She came out with a bloody nose and was treated by the Aggie trainer, Marcella.  The girl was worked on for a couple of minutes, before returning to the sidelines.  She was laughing about it with the coach afterward and cycled back in to play.

 

Rilen was doing most of the setting for the Aggies in this match.  Coach Jordan wants her ready to play.  Morgan had a good serve working.  I got a different view of her serve from behind.  It was just skimming over the net.  She also made a good pancake dig.  Mari Sharp was hitting well and had a great solo block.  It wasn't all sunshine.  Darian Markham made a couple of net serves.

 

I wasn't seeing the score at the time, though Ron was.  More on that later.  The Aggies took the first set.  Before the second set, the starters huddled up tight.  They started giggling about something.  I admit I'm curious what they talking about, but I probably don't want to know.

 

Alex Connatser started, another one of Ron's favorites.  Good to see her on court.  She got a kill late and showed some emotion.  Kaylee Peterson came in to serve and put in an ace.  Rilen was going all out.  She was racing from one side of the court to the other for digs.  Anji Vishwanathan was playing.  Her mom was here watching.  The fans below us chatted with her. 

 

The Aggies took it in two sets.  The sets were really quick without a lot of breaks in the action.  The girls were probably enjoying the continuous play.  We sure were.  I don't know what the scores were, but they were hard-fought.  The NMMI girls were scrappy.  Coach Hertel came back up and mentioned they were in the national top 10 Division II team.  (Or something like that.)  I asked if Molly had any more eligibility left.  Another fan agreed that she was the best thing about last season.  The coach said she was done playing.  Molly has some nagging injuries.  She just plays a little during practice for instruction. 

 

I hadn't seen Coach Wallis for UTEP on the court and I asked where he was.  Wallis was coaching the new UTEP Beach Volleyball team at the conference tournament.  I looked them up after I got home.  UTEP’s inaugural season of beach volleyball has been brutal, but I have to admit, at least the team is rather attractive.  There were a couple of players listed on both teams, which might be why they were shorthanded.

 

The last match for the Aggies was against the Miners.  On the other court, UACJ and NMMI would square off.  I admit I really would have liked to have seen both matches individually.  The Aggies and Miners are, of course, rivals.  The other two were more evenly matched against each other than they were against the two DI schools and they're feisty. 

 

There were scoreboards at both ends of the court for at least the final matches.  One scoreboard was temporarily set up inside the north end suites.  I don't know if these working for the whole event, but this is when I noticed them.  (Genius observational skills on my part.) 

 

Before the match, the UTEP coach that was playing said across the net, “Be nice to us.”  He said something else and had the Aggie girls laughing.  I suspect there was a comment about men playing Women's sports.  (If not, he missed an obvious joke.)  The coach was in good shape and obviously a former player, but he was probably a few years from playing competitively.  I think he was also not hitting as hard as he could have.  In any case, he was having a good time.  He got the first kill of the match, but mostly just worked in a supporting role.

 

Here things get confusing, as I found myself drifting between both matches going.  Aleka jammed one to help the Aggies go up 5-1.  Starr then served an ace off the tape.  The new girls were impressing.  UTEP took a timeout.  Ryleigh made a great kill down the line at 8-2.  At 17-7, UTEP took another timeout.  The other match was running close.  Grrr.  I wanted to watch both. 

 

The Miners mounted a run and drove it to 17-12.  The Aggies took a timeout.  Coach Whitis was the one who talked to the team during the breaks.  Ryleigh came back with a kill to break the run.  She's gonna be big next season.  Bianca aced off the tape and the Aggies were first to 20 at 20-12.  They'd take Set 1, 25-16.  On the other court, there was a super long rally at 24-25 with UACJ up.  NMMI came back and won in extra points, 27-25.

 

Ron and I went to the bathroom together between sets.  It was weird.  We're going separately from now on, like usual.  When we came back, a couple of Football guys were eating Raising Canes.  We could smell the fries.  Now, we were both hungry. 

 

NMMI got off to a 5-0 start in their match.  The Aggies started 4-1.  Near catastrophe on one point, Bianca and Sidney McIntosh almost dove headfirst into each other going after a ball.  The Miners tied it at 10, as the Aggies started getting a bit sloppy.  12-12 Anji made a solo block.  13-12 Rilen made an “excuse me” bump set kill.  Anji made it 13-13 on a quick set kill. 

 

The Aggies started a run.  Ashley dunked one to make it 17-15.  18-15 Ashley and Alex combined on a block.  At 20-15, UTEP took a timeout.  UACJ had made a comeback and it was tied at 21 in the other game.  UTEP came back with a run, and the Aggies took a timeout at 20-19.  This may have been an exhibition, but the two teams were taking it seriously.

 

NMMI won Set 2, 25-23, and took their match.  Both teams huddled together for a picture.  UACJ may have gone winless today, but judging by the smiles on the girls' faces, they had a good time.  Back to the other game, UTEP took a brief lead at 21-22.  Kacia Brown made a big kill to tie it.  The Aggies came back and won it 25-23 and the match 2-0.  The Aggies went undefeated for the day.

 

That was fun.  Let's play all volleyball matches with these pace-of-play rules and side-by-side action.  We didn't hang around.  Ron wanted to get lunch before this afternoon's Softball game.  It was also cold inside the Pan Am.  While it would be pretty hot at Softball, I wanted to get warm.  Driving down the street, we suddenly remembered Chik-fil-a and had a great meal there.  It'd been too long.  Speaking of remembering, I'm going to have to make sure I keep up with Aggie Volleyball every spring to see when they’re playing more exhibitions.