NM State Aggies vs WKU Hilltoppers Softball 3-29-26

Mission accomplished! I saw Wave the Wonder Dog and petted same. Today Wave’s birthday was celebrated at the Softball game between the Aggies and Western Kentucky. I was wearing my Wave hat and Wave t-shirt like a true fanboy. There was a Wave statue giveaway up front, but I already had one.  Wave and his agent showed up right after I got there. Petting and praise followed.

Inside the stadium, I ran into Marketing Director Nicole Sack. She was also wearing a Wave shirt. Coach Rodolph came in a bit later. She got a souvenir statue, but didn’t bring her adorable dog. I was looking forward to seeing them meet and become best friends (if not more). The Coach said, Kayleigh doesn’t like the heat. With that dog’s luxurious coat, no doubt. Oddly, this interlude with Wave wasn’t even the most interesting event that happened at the ballpark today.

It was warm with a little wind. It was very nice. A good crowd of 454 showed up and brought a few kids this time, unlike the aborted Autograph day earlier in the month.  During the Anthem, a dad sitting below me grabbed his boy, stood him at attention, and took off the kid’s Spider-Man hat and had him hold it at his heart. There’s a good dad.

These added up fairly well, even with a change of scoring on an error after the first inning. I had some confusion with the lineup with the use of the flex player position for centerfielder Taylor Baca. I wasn’t entirely surprised by this, since Taylor’s glove is more valuable than her bat, as shown by yesterday’s performance.  Essentially, this more gave the Aggies two DH’s (in theory).

I could can hear the WKU dugout singing starting in the top of the first. The Hilltoppers’ batting helmets have cute little googliy eyes on them like their mascot, Big Red. Faith Aragon started for Aggies. Trouble started with a double and an errant throw that advanced the runner to third. (Initially ruled a single and two errors.) A sac fly brought the runner in. Faith finished off the inning with a looking strikeout. 1-0 WKU.

In the bottom of the first, Devin Elam cranked the first pitch out to left field for a home run. A very happy Faith greeted her at home plate, after equalizing that unearned run. Troublingly, the next three batters went down in order. Tied at 1.

According to the PA (a new girl has been doing it the last couple of games), it was 73-degrees and sunny here and 63-degrees and breezy in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Faith got a fly out and a looking strikeout in the top of the second, but then gave up a solo home run to left center by Kennedy Stinson. The balls were flying out today. Stinson’s teammates met her at home plate spraying soap bubbles that filled the air briefly. Faith finished the inning with another looking strikeout was to Maci Masters. Masters battled. Faith and her catcher, Kendal Lunar, thought they’d gotten her with a strikeout earlier in the at bat, but the ump disagreed, so Faith had to do it again. 2-1 WKU.

The Aggies went down in order in the bottom of the second. Hilltopper pitcher, Rylan Smith had two strikeouts. The ump was trying to move the game along. I had to look twice, but Men’s Basketball Coach Hooten came in with his lovely wife and Internet sensation, Clavicular. I thought he got arrested this weekend. Oh, that’s actually Coach Hooten’s son. I’m thinking that this tall, handsome lad does well with the ladies, anyway.

The Coach sat down next to me, as his wife chatted with another fan. I had to make something of this opportunity. I mentioned he was a customer where I work at. He praised one of the ladies working up front for helping him. (She is a sweetheart.) I praised Faith and did some other babbling about the Softball team.

In the top of the third, Wave came up front and the crowd sang Happy Birthday to him. Wave barked along with the singing. On the field, an error let on the first batter and a triple by Jenna Blanton scored another unearned run for the Hilltoppers. Faith came back with a pair of strikeouts to end the inning. On one K, the crowd was unhappy with a swing that may have hit the bat and gone fair that was instead ruled a foul ball. Coach Hooten said it was fair. It ended up being another looking K anyway. “She should have swung at that one. It was too close to take,” he said. 3-1 WKU.

In the bottom of the third, the Aggies went down in order again with a couple of strikeouts. I asked the Coach about Liberty’s collapse during the season. He said they didn’t use their bench enough and rode their starters into the ground. Liberty’s coach was mad at him. “But you beat us twice,” Hooten told him. “Yeah, but you showed the other teams in the conference how we could be beaten.” I congratulated him on putting together a talented team and getting into the tournament. He thought they were talented, but not gritty and defense-minded enough.

Faith finally had a quick inning with two strikeouts in the fourth. In the bottom, after a walk, Skye Johnson smashed a 2-run homer to left center. The Aggie dugout was now singing. Smith may have gotten hurt on a pitch in the inning. She stayed in, but this was her last inning. Stinson made a nice running catch in right field to end the inning. We were tied at 3.

Coach Hooten, Wave, and a bunch of the crowd left at this point. Was it lunch time? That might have been a good thing, because the top of the fifth was brutal. Faith gave up a single, but a passed ball and a groundout advanced the runner to third. An error at short brought in the runner and then another error from third brought in another run. Two walks then loaded the bases. The crowd was getting angry with the ump again. A fan shouted out to the girls, “Don’t beat yourselves!” A bunt back to Faith got an out at the plate. The Hilltoppers had already had two successful bunts in the inning. That was one too many. A looking strikeout finally ended it, but WKU was up, 5-3.

Erica Houge came on in relief in the bottom of the fifth. The Hilltoppers had an error, but no other damage. Faith had her best inning in the top of the sixth, though you wouldn’t have known it the reactions. The crowd heckled the ump with, “Want glasses?” Faith even stared in as she was getting squeezed in the strikezone. That said, she struck out the side. She was grunting and really working out there.

During Masters’ at bat this inning there was a rather unique occurrence. The bats they’re using in college are not aluminum bats. They are BBCOR bats. What are BBCOR bats? They’re made of alloy and composite materials. (No, I don’t have a better explanation than that.) They are supposed to simulate a wooden bat without being breakable. This inning, Masters’ bat broke clean in half on a foul ball. Faith’s fastball is very hard and Masters is a big girl with a big swing. I also thought I heard her bat crack in the previous inning, but couldn’t believe it. In any case, the crowd was laughing. PA added, “She’s okay; the bat isn’t.”

Couple of young women got up in the stands. They seemed to be sunbathing given how scantily clad they were. No complaints from me. Kendal led off the bottom of the sixth with a fly ball. It kept carrying and went into the scoreboard, just like yesterday. Thankfully, there’s netting in front of the new scoreboard. Skye singled right after, but that was all for the offense. 5-4 WKU.

Faith probably gave it her all in the previous inning. The top of the seventh would have been a good place for a reliever. No relief was coming. Faith was back in. A double, a walk, and a hit batter loaded the bases with one out before Morgan hooked a shot into right field for a 2-run double. A follow up single brought in another run. This was even with the WKU fans getting mad over the count to one of their batters. There was a double steal with runners on the corners. Kendal got the runner at second, but the runner from third scored. Faith finished it off with a strikeout, but after 4 runs had scored to put WKU up, 9-4.

A fan led a herd of three bulldogs out. This place is going to the dogs and I’m totally okay with that. The Aggies went down in order in the bottom of seventh with 3 groundouts. They seemed to be conceding. The Hilltoppers win, 9-4.

This one hurt a bit. Like yesterday, this one was winnable. Aggie hitting unfortunately failed on the same day that their fielding did. The Aggie girls looked so dejected when they lined up for handshakes. Poor things. WKU did their cheer for their fans, but the stands were mostly empty. I don’t know where their fans went. Did they have something better to do? The game clocked in at 2 hours, 13 minutes, so it did run a bit long.

Gameballs. WKU again spread around the offense. I’ll tag Morgan Sharpe for her 2-RBI double in the seventh that broke it open. Erica Houge gets another nod for getting the 3-inning, 1-run save. For the Aggies, Skye Johnson went 2 for 3 with a game-tying 2-run homer. Faith Aragon was 0 for 3 (1 for 7 for the last two games) and gave up 9 runs. However, she was working with 4 errors behind her, which led to 4 unearned runs. Faith had 12 strikeouts and gave up 7 hits in 7 innings. Ask WKU if she pitched well.

Faith’s dad was in the bathroom while I was there. He was talking to someone else and he was hot. He was blaming the Coach for not putting a good-hitting line up out there. He was still going when I left. His daughter is being ridden like a borrowed horse, starting two of the three games in this series and hitting in all of them.

The team is flawed. The rest of the pitching staff isn’t there. There are holes in the lineup and on defense. There isn’t a way to plug all of these gaps. Even 2 DH’s and 2 pinch hitters in the 8 spot didn’t help today’s offense. WKU seemed to be hitting the ball away from Taylor in center and at the weak spots in the Aggie defense. When the Aggies win, it feels like they’re overachieving. When they lose, all these problems come up.

After the game, I called dad and asked if he wanted me to bring over lunch. He agreed to the $10 large Dominos pizza I’d seen advertised. It turned out the deal required that you order it through their app. The person at the counter gave me a bit of a discount, but it was the same overpriced, not-that-great pizza that they usually serve. Another restaurant gets on my crap list, like Jimmie John’s did. I hope I don’t run out of places to eat out at.

Two NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament games on. The first one was a blowout. The second one was looking like a blowout, so we continued watching a Jack Ryan series from a few years ago. It was some outlandish scenario about overthrowing the dictator of Venezuela. How preposterous. (The episode we watched was good. It took six episodes for this to get good, though.)

We still had the game on (muted) and somehow, UConn got back into the game with Duke from the being 19 points down. CBS did Duke no favors by putting up a graphic stating that a #1 seed with a 15-point lead had never lost in the tournament. In the closing seconds, UConn, down by 2, was trying to foul and Duke instead turned it over. In the last second, UConn made a long range 3 that swished in for the win. It was a classic. That made me feel a little bit better about how I spent my day.

NM State Aggies vs Liberty Flames Baseball 4-7-24

 

Liberty, Bibberty.

 

Sorry.  No disrespect intended, but I couldn’t resist.

 

It’s been awhile since my last Aggie Baseball post.  In that time, the Aggies got a road win over Arizona, but were swept over three games by nationally-ranked conference opponent, Dallas Baptist.  (Along with non-conference losses to Nebraska and UNM.)  Friday, in bad weather, the Aggies fell to conference-leading Liberty, 9-3.  It was a close game, until Liberty pulled away late.  (I was told the Student Section was nuts for that game.) 

 

I was woken up Saturday morning to the sound of a 50-mph wind thrashing at my window.  It calmed down a bit in the afternoon, but was still strong and cold.  I decided to sit that game out.  Just as well, Liberty took advantage of that wind blowing out and crushed the Aggies 15-5 in a run rule win. 

 

Aggie Volleyball also played a scrimmage in the morning with Arizona and a couple of other teams.  Unfortunately, they were playing at Las Cruces High School, instead of the Pan-Am.  I have no familiarity with that facility, so I decided not to go, since I didn’t know where to go there.  (It’s a pretty big place.)  It’s a pity, since I enjoyed last year’s a lot.  If only Ron was still available.  I’m sure we could have figured it out.

 

Today was a much better day for a ballgame.  It was a little chilly in the shade, but almost no wind.  Though more pleasant, there was a bit of a light crowd today at 512.  We had radio call with Adam Young and Marcel Renteria.  Marcel’s doing a good job of pointing out the strategy in the game. 

 

On field, the Flames were wearing eye-catching powder blue tops with red numbers.  A new pitch clock timer has been added to the scoreboard.  The bright red numbers were making the dim scoreboard lights look even worse.  (And I’d rather have the radar gun numbers back.)  I was sitting with Fan Michael and we were both surprised that Ken showed up.  He’s a big Iowa fan and their Women’s Basketball team was playing in the NCAA Championship in the afternoon.  He had enough time to see a couple of hours of this game before going back home for that.            

 I guess these are right (sorta).  We’ll go with them.  Hayden Walker started for the Aggies and had a 1-2-3 first.  In the bottom, we started with the fielding weirdness.  Keith Jones grounded out to third on the scorecard, but Flames third baseman, Cam Foster, was actually playing to the left of second.  The NCAA hasn’t banned shifts, like the MLB.  Michael mentioned that Foster had hit two home runs yesterday.  The guy looks huge on field.  After two outs, the Aggies started the scoring with a single by Titus Dumitru, driven in by Damone Hale, who tripled into the right field corner.  1-0 Aggies.

 

Michael also mentioned a kid was hit in head by a foul ball yesterday on a deflection.  It seems so unlikely at Presley Askew Field, but it can happen.  The kid even saw it coming and tried to cover himself.  In the top of the second, Aggie third baseman, Sheehan O’Connor, got the second out of inning . . .  playing to the left of the second base.  A grounder ate him up on the next play and was ruled a hit, but that was the only damage.  The Aggies went down in order in the bottom.

 

My fingers were getting cold and my nose was running a bit.  I was watching the sun line creep too slowly towards me.  Walker got in trouble in the third, giving up three straight singles to start the inning.  Those hits and a sac fly brought in two runs to make it, 2-1 Liberty.  Whatever wind there was seemed to be knocking fly balls down.  Keith would not be denied in the third and jacked one out to left.  Tied at two.  

 

A couple of attractive young women wearing tank tops and shorts came in.  They made sure to sit in the sunlight.  Michael and Ken got an eyeful.  The pretty team photographer wearing her usual yoga pants and tank top went over and chatted with them and got my attention.  Liberty struck back in the top of the fourth.  A single and a hit batter were driven in by a double to make it 4-2 Flames. 

 

Liberty brought out their first reliever in the bottom of the fourth.  With another shift on, Mitch Namie slapped one down the unguarded left field line.  He went for two and was thrown out at second on a good throw by Brayden Horton.  Undaunted, Nick Gore doubled next.  Logan Galina got the start at DH today and made the most of it with a two-run line drive homer to right.  He did not shorten his swing with two strikes.  We were back tied at 4.

 

I was occasionally hearing a guy behind me doing what sounded like a radio call for Liberty.  I didn’t see him.  I was getting dual commentary on the game sometimes.  It was a dog day at the park.  I saw a cute dog coming in, but the owner shook her head about petting him.  (He looked friendly enough.)  Later, a Dalmatian came in.  He took a shine to Ken, but I didn’t get any pets.  After he left, a troop of three little kids kept coming over to play with him.  It was so cute.

 

I was finally in the sun by the top of the fifth and was comfortable for the rest of the game.  Liberty started off with a leadoff walk.  A deep single moved him over to third.  A sac fly by Camden Troyer brought in a run.  Keith made a great throw in to the infield.  In a heady play, Sheehan cut it off and threw to second to get the runner there to end the inning.  5-4 Liberty.  In the bottom, Keith tried to do it all himself.  He worked a walk and stole second.  On a bad pickoff throw, he took third.  On a bad throw to third, he tried to take home and was thrown out by Foster.  Great effort.

 

As I warmed up, I got hungry and wished I’d had a $1 dog here instead of having a bowl of cereal at home.  Michael said he saw a girl drop a whole box of hot dogs, while I was in the bathroom.  Worse news was that I watched new Aggie pitcher, Saul Soto, give up a leadoff home run in the sixth to Brian McClellin.  Saul let on two baserunners, but got out of it with a pair of strikeouts.  6-4 Liberty. 

 

Liberty brought in a new pitcher, Ben Blair, in the bottom after the bases were loaded via two hit batters and a walk.  Blair is one of Liberty’s best relievers and had blanked the Aggies Friday.  He’d only given up one hit.  Kade Benevidez had that hit and came in to pinch hit.  Kade singled and brought in a run.  Romeo Ballesteros brought in another on a fielder’s choice to tie the score again, 6-6.  That play would have probably been an inning-ending double play, but when Blair fielded the ball, there was no one covering second and he had to settle for one. 

 

Saul gave up a triple to Foster in the top of the seventh with one out.  No problem.  Saul came back with a pair of strikeouts to end the threat.  He came off the mound pumped up.  Damone was inspired.  He hammered a homer to right center to give the Aggies a 7-6 lead in the bottom of the seventh. 

 

In the top of the eighth, Saul got helped out with a couple of good defensive plays.  Mitch made a great dive stop on a grounder and Saul lost his hat outrunning the batter to first for the out.  Next, Ty Acton made a jump catch on a liner at second.  The third out was harder to get, after a double and a walk, but Saul got a fly out to end it.

 

Saul needed some insurance for the ninth.  In the bottom of the eighth, Romeo worked a walk and stole second.  Keith drove him in.  The Aggies would load the bases after and force a pitching change, but they’d have to settle for an 8-6 lead for the final frame.

 

The shift worked for the Aggies in the top of the ninth.  Kade, who had taken over third, caught a liner to the left of second to start the inning.  Foster was walked.  After a deep fly out to center, McClellin, who’d homered off Saul earlier, was lifted for a pinch hitter.  I’m not sure about the reasoning, but it ended with a foul out, so I’m okay with it.  Aggies win an epic one, 8-6!   

 

Plenty of Gameballs to hand out.  For the Flames, Kane Kepley went 2 for 4 with 3 RBI’s and Brian McClellin was 2 for 4 with a homer.  For the Aggies, Saul Soto got the win with four innings of work and only giving up 1 run.  Keith Jones went 2 for 3 with 2 RBI’s and a homer.  Logan Galina went 1 for 4, but his two-run homer kept the team in it.  Damone Hale went 2 for 5 with 2 RBI’s.  His home run was the game winner.          

 

I was pleased to see both teams line up and shake hands after the game.  I appreciate good sportsmanship.  That was a pretty entertaining three hours.  I think I walked past Keith’s dad on the way out.  Many parents in attendance wear shirts with their kid’s name on them.  I went over to Dominos to take care of my hunger with a Chicken Bacon Ranch sandwich.  I ate it while watching the fourth quarter of the Women’s NCAA Championship.  I didn’t get the result I wanted, but you can’t win them all.  (Hopefully, Ken will get over it quickly.) 

NM State Aggies vs Sam Houston State Bearkats Baseball 3-16-24

I was glad to be at a ballgame today.  Last Sunday, I went to the game and I was sort of sick.  I got over it by Tuesday, but was overwhelmed with work from being out on last Friday.  The weather forecast for today was about a 50% chance of rain.  Thankfully, it was only partly cloudy and otherwise nice this afternoon.  I felt good and was happy to not be at work.  Let’s play ball!

 

Before that, I’ll cover a little Basketball.  The Aggie Women won a game in the C-USA Tournament, but fell in the next game.  The Aggie Men took an early exit in their first game.  I happened to catch the UTEP Miners’ on the radio Friday morning.  (No, I don’t know why they were playing Men’s tournament games in the morning.)  The Miners won it in a thriller and moved on to the championship game, but lost there Saturday night.  When I got home from baseball today, I also caught the New Mexico Lobos winning the Mountain West conference.  So, I still have some regional interest in the NCCAA Tournament.

 

Though it was fairly nice, I think crowd was a bit light, but okay.  I caught up with fan Michael at the ballpark.  He’d been there on Friday.  The wind had been blowing hard and cold for the night game.  Michael had some colorful words to describe the Aggies losing to Sam Houston 10-0 in a run rule.  He also reported that the hot tub in the Student Section was gone.  It was just there as a promotion for a local company.       

 

There was no radio this weekend, so I’d be on my own with the scorecards.  A handsome, well-dressed young man joined Adam Young in the booth today for TV.  Michael identified him as former Aggie pitcher, Marcel Renteria.  “Shouldn’t he be pitching somewhere?” I asked.  He’s on rehab right now. 

 

Yeah, these are in pen again.  Even without the help of the radio and even with some extreme weirdness in the game, it all added up with the scoreboard totals.  As you can tell by the score though, that was a hollow victory. 

 

Josh Sharman started for the Aggies and tossed a two strikeout, 1-2-3 first.  The Aggie dugout was vigorous in cheering throughout these opening innings.  They were determined to avenge yesterday’s humiliating defeat.  The Aggie offense picked it up in the bottom.  Damone Hale singled and Titus Dumitru doubled him in to give the Aggies a 1-0 lead.  It might have been more of a rally, but Titus had a moment of indecision about taking third on a wild pitch and was thrown trying to do it.

 

Mitch Namie at first speared a liner to start the top of the second.  Sharman ran down the line to take the feed from him for the first out.  Josh quickly finished the rest of the inning with a couple of groundouts.  The Aggies also went down in order in the bottom.

 

Michael flagged down the pretty souvenir girl and got an Aggie New Mexico flag for his sister, who wasn’t in attendance.  “She’s going to be so happy.”  The team photographer girl stood in front of us for part of the inning.  She was in her usual tank top, yoga pants, pretty hair, and bright smile.  It was a distraction.  Fan Ken, who was sitting by us, didn’t see any play on the field while she was there. 

 

Sharman cruised through another inning facing the minimum.  I was feeling some optimism or, at least, that game would be quick.  The Aggies tacked on another run in the bottom.  Sheehan O’Connor singled and Hale drove him in.  Unfortunately, the Aggies did leave the bases loaded with two outs.  Caleb Cotton in left field made a great leaping catch on a deep liner by Namie to end the inning.  2-0 Aggies.

 

The second time through the order, the Bearkat batters started figuring Sharman out.  After a strikeout, Walker Janek blasted a solo shot to center.  After a single, there was a popup on the infield that elicited the use of the Infield Fly rule.  Hunter Autrey, with the coolest name in the SHS lineup, then came up and hit a two-run homer to the scoreboard.  Romeo Ballesteros made an errant throw to first on an infield hit, but after a walk, Sharman got the final out.  3-2 SHS.  The ump seemed to be squeezing the strikezone a bit this inning. 

 

The Aggies struck back in the bottom of the fourth.  Preston Godfrey led off with a home run to center on a line drive.  The wind was also blowing out a bit more with some clouds moving in.  The batters were taking advantage of it.  Edwin Martinez-Pagani singled next and Keith Jones would hit a ground rule double over the wall to bring him in later.  4-3 Aggies.  In the inning, O’Connor fouled a ball towards the Press Box.  With the window open, Adam was ready to make a play with his arm out, but it just missed going in.

 

Sharman gave up a double and a single to start the fifth and was lifted.  The Coach was probably trying to get him through five for the win.  Cho Tofte relieved him.  A sac fly brought in the tying run. 

 

Next was the strangest play of the game.  Malachi Lott hit a line drive to the right field wall.  Titus leapt for it as it was going over and fell to the ground.  Where the ball ended up was uncertain for a few moments.  The first base ump eventually signaled home run, however on delay, Lott passed the first base runner.  The call on field would be solo home run and an out (credit 3 unassisted).  Needless to say, everyone was in the dark, but eventually a fan came by with the play call.  5-4 SHS.

 

The Aggies were not about to quit at this point.  After two singles in the bottom of the fifth off a new pitcher, Godfrey doubled them in.  EMP doubled him in.  Romeo came up and took a bad hack at the first pitch.  Hitting coach, David Bellamy, called for time and had a chat with him.  Romeo then smacked a run-scoring double.  Good talk.  The Bearkats brought in another pitcher to finish the inning.  8-5 Aggies.

 

Tyler Hoeft came in for the top of the sixth.  Michael called him a “hard luck case” with his injury history.  The bad luck continued.  Romeo knocked down liner from the first batter, but had no play.  This was followed by another infield hit.  After a walk which loaded the bases, Titus knocked down liner to right and held the batter to a single to just bring in one run.  The next play was a hard grounder to first.  Namie whiffed on it and two more runs scored.                 

 

Hoeft was pulled with two on and without having gotten an out.  Aaron Treloar came in and got a grounder to third.  O’Connor threw home and prevented the run, but wasn’t able to start a run down to get an out.  Treloar struck two with the bases loaded, but then gave up a two-run scoring single.  SHS batted around and tied the score at 8.

 

Hale singled to start the bottom of the sixth.  The Aggies loaded the bases, but would not score, even given an extra out.  The shortstop forgot the number of outs and started to run off the field on a sure double play ball that would have ended the inning.  I think I heard the SHS coach cursing from the dugout.  Ominous clouds were gathering overhead, but we’d stay dry for the game.   

 

Well, the top of the seventh was a complete unraveling.  Hale misplayed a liner to center that went to the wall for a leadoff triple.  Treloar got a comebacker next and underhand tossed it into the opposing dugout.  (I wonder if he’s got one of those yip things about throwing to first, because that’s what it looked like.)  A run scored.  This was followed by five more runs and a pitching change in the middle of it.  The Bearkats ran wild with three stolen bases in the inning.  You know you’re not having a good day defensively when you get a get grounder into a drawn-in infield and still don’t get an out at home.  16-8 SHS.  The Bearkats even left the bases loaded. 

 

New Bearkat pitcher, Wyatt Tucker, struck out the side in the bottom of the seventh.  Okay, now it looked like the Aggies were giving up.  Freshman Ty Acton did come in and get his first career college hit.  The Aggies brought in a new pitcher for the eighth, but the Bearkats were smelling run rule.  Autrey jacked a three-run homer, which would seal it, as the Aggies went down in order in the bottom.  19-8 Sam Houston wins the truncated game.

 

Well, it was a good game until the dynamite went off.  Surprisingly, the game was just under three hours.  More surprising, during those Bearkat rallies, they weren’t getting all that excited.  Usually, there’s a lot a dugout noise in those kind of situations.  It’s like SHS expected to win.  With some costly errors, the Aggies sure helped them out.

 

Here’s some Gameballs.  For the Bearkats, Malchi Lott went 3 for 6 (in an eight-inning game) with two RBI’s and a homer.  Hunter Autrey, get this, 3 for 5, including two homers, for 8 RBI’s!  Wyatt Tucker also pitched effectively for the win in scoreless relief.  For the Aggies, Damone Hale went 3 for 5 with an RBI, Titus Dumitru went 3 for 4 with an RBI, and Preston Godfrey went 2 for 4 with a homer and 3 RBI’s.  The defense was shaky, though there was some good efforts.  Outside of Josh Sharman’s first three innings, the pitching was not asset today.

 

I walked by the umps on the way out.   I thought about saying, “Good game,” but to be honest, I questioned the strikezone.  I did tip my hat to them.  I debated going straight home for dinner out of a can or going to Burger King.  I made the wrong choice and the Whopper was decidedly subpar.  I can see why they’re handing out half-price coupons.  Let’s try this again tomorrow for the finale.     

Trading Cards: Basketball

I'm not posting all of my sports cards or any baseball cards (to this point), but I'll post these because they're interesting.  

Somewhere in the 70's when I was a kid, someone bought a random pack of basketball cards for me.  I'd never seen the sport at the time.  Looking back, it's hard to believe who I got in one pack.  There's Rick Barry, Robert Parish, Pete Maravich, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.  That's a bunch of Hall of Famers there.  When I showed my card collection to a store owner in the 90's, these were the only cards he thought were valuable.   

I have Dream Team cards.  The 1992 Olympics were the first time they allowed pro players to play (at least for the US).  I think the first two cards were giveaways (McDonalds?).  I bought the others in packs of Olympic cards.  I was trying to get a couple of specific female athletes (and I don't even remember who now).  I bought packs and packs and never got them.  Gosh darn, it!  Another Michael Jordan!   

At the bottom is the only other Olympic card I kept, Oscar de la Hoya.  I thought he was cool.  The other two basketball cards are prospect cards.  I had recently lived in El Paso at the time, so I was happy to keep a card with a UTEP player.  Then there's Latrell Sprewell.  This is the guy I usually blame for why I no longer watch the NBA.  (No, this was long before Lebron James and BLM.)  I do not have the time or inclination to go over that story right now.   

Sports Journal January 5-10, 2019

1-5-19

I thought I’d get the weekend off from sports writing.  The UTEP Women’s Basketball game was preempted for the FCS Football Championship game on the radio.  Unexpectedly later in the afternoon, another Women’s Basketball game came on Stadium.  It was the New Mexico Lobos versus the Nevada Wolfpack.  I’d seen the Lobos in person this season (12-15-18) and I’d also seen the Wolfpack on TV (11-25-18).  This was their first meeting in Mountain West conference for the year. 

The Lobos were on a ten-game winning streak, mostly winning by 20 or more each game.  They are number one in the nation in blocked shots and attendance.  (I’m not surprised at all about leading in attendance they way they travel.)  Out on court, size-wise, the Lobos seemed to have a definite advantage over the Wolfpack. 

However, Nevada does have an advantage in coaching.  Coach Amanda Levens, who I’d noticed last time, is a real cutie.  Certainly she looks very serious and intense out there, but she is cute.  She’s a highlight blonde and today Amanda was in a pair of blue jeans and a light blouse.  (Here I am doing a coach’s wardrobe segment for another team.)  There was another attractive referee on court too with pretty long, dark hair. 

First Quarter

The Wolfpack starters were introduced coming out through a curtain.  Kinda classy.  Both teams came out playing nervous with several turnovers.  At 6-2 Lobos, nearly five minutes in, Nevada scored their first points.  The Wolfpack Cheerleaders were finally able to leave the stands and come back down to the court.  (Aggie Cheerleaders are there until the opposing team scores.  Everybody has different traditions.) 

9-8 Nevada took the lead off of some continuing sloppy play by the Lobos.  You could hear their Coach Mike Bradbury screaming on court over the announcer’s microphones.  The team kept dribbling off their feet for some reason on the way to ten turnovers in the quarter.  It was 11-9 Nevada after ten minutes.

Second Quarter

Lobo #23 Jaedyn de la Cerda hit three early.  I remembered her from the Aggie game.  She’s kinda cute and absolutely torched the Aggies.  The game was getting rough with girls hitting the floor.  It was 17-17 after the Lobos took an ill-advised shot.  “Coach Bradbury isn’t going to have a voice by the end of this,” said the play-by-play guy listening to the coach’s reaction. 

That got the team’s attention and they went on a 10-0 run.  24-19 Lobos on a steal and a layup.  One Lobo got hit in face under the basket and went down.  The coach went over to check on her, but she stayed in.  30-22 NM at the half.

Third Quarter

Early, there was another Lobo steal and an attempted layup.  It was three-on-one and the one defender had three fouls.  The Lobos passed the ball twice and ended up coming away with nothing.  The only stat the Wolfpack were leading in for the first half was rebounding, and they were doing it well in the second half too.  It was keeping them in it.

Nevada was also doing it down under the basket offensively.  A Wolfpack player under the rim made a fake and got a Lobo player to jump on her back.  The girl hung there for a moment before they both collapsed.  They both came up smiling.  A little later, it was about the same play, but two Lobo defenders were standing over the Nevada player.  She pump faked and hesitated twice, got the basket, and the foul.  The Lobos finished with the lead, 48-44.

Fourth Quarter  

The Wolfpack had gotten within two late in the third, but the Lobos went on an 11-0 run.  It was 55-44 early and NM’s biggest lead.  A loose ball was caught by a fan by the side of the court.  The announcer identified him, by name, as a Nevada professor, who’s a big fan of the university’s basketball programs. 

60-57 Lobos, Nevada’s Terae Briggs suddenly couldn’t miss and got the Wolfpack right back in it.  Timeout Lobos.  More rough play, a Nevada girl went down hard after making a block.  After a review, a Lobo player got an “Unsportsman-like conduct” foul.  From what I saw, it looked like she kicked the other girl on the way down.  Needless to say, the Lobo girl got booed every time she touched the ball thereafter.

64-62 Lobos, an NM player fouled out on the next play.  She was one of their main defensive players.  It was tied at 64 with about 90 seconds left.  The Lobos got a steal and layup again to take the lead.  Nevada had the ball with six seconds left, but missed a last second three to win it.  66-64 Lobos win.  Now it’s an 11-game winning streak.  Hey, that was a great game.  I’m glad Stadium showed this instead of what was scheduled and that I was able to watch.

1-10-19

Two Aggie Basketball games were on tap tonight.  I had a bunch of work and some distractions later that kept me from really watching and taking notes, so this is going to be a bit spotty.  First up, the Aggie Women were in Phoenix to play GCU.  They didn’t have a good game there last year and got drummed.  (Checking back, apparently I didn’t cover that game.)  I had the GCU video feed up while I was working.  They have two professional announcers working for them.  They were good and fair in calling the game (unlike their student broadcasters).   

I did find myself looking at the Lopes’ Coach Nicole Powell.  I’d noticed her when she brought her team here.  She’s a very athletic and attractive woman.  I didn’t note Coach Atkinson’s wardrobe again.  I’m failing in fashion reporting.  Also, I’m still fascinated with the Mills sisters’ hair color choices.  Dominique was still red, but  Monique seemed to be going with a golden hue. 

And now, how to write a recap without any notes.  Brooke Salas had no field goals in the first quarter.  She wasn’t cold; seemingly the whole GCU team was keyed on collapsing on her whenever she had the ball.  Still, the Aggies stayed close, trailing 12-16 after ten minutes.  Brooke got her first basket in the second.  She’d already accumulated nine rebounds to that point, so she was playing hard.  The Aggies went down by as many as seven, but got within one on an Aaliyah Prince layup and free throw.  The Aggies were still down 24-28 at the half.

I missed the third quarter.  Brooke was finally able to get going on offense.  The announcers were impressed with her.  In the fourth, the Aggies got within two in final seconds.  Brooke got a steal, but then turned it right over.  The Aggie pressure defense got a turnover and time for a final shot.  Kalei Atkinson was fouled and missed both free throws (the second may or may not have been on purpose).  On the last Aggie play, needing a three, the inbounds went off Brooke’s fingers and out-of-bounds. 

51-54 Lopes win.  They led all the way.  The Aggies at least did better than last year, when they only scored like 39 and lost by about 20.  Brooke Salas had 16 points and 16 rebounds.  Gia Pack was next with 10 points.  Your stat of the match was zero, the number Aggie three-pointers made.

The Men’s Basketball game against GCU here in Las Cruces started at about halftime of the Women’s game.  I started off listening on the radio, as I was away from my desk.  Even on a rainy night without any special promotion, there was nearly a full house at the Pan-Am Center for this conference rivalry matchup.  They were into it too.  Watch out though, three bus loads of GCU fans and students also came to game.  They’d be cheering too. 

When I got back to my desk, I found the game on Twitch again and started watching near the end of the half.  There wasn’t a lot of chat going on with the game and it was only GCU fans talking.  The halftime score was 38-41 Lopes in a very tight game.  (Like I said, I was busy.)

By the time the Women’s game came to its disappointing end, the Men’s second half started.  Here, however, was my distraction.  I was watching DizzyKitten, also on Twitch, interacting with her chatroom.  She’d made an offhanded comment that she had a printer in the bathroom and Chat started teasing her.  It was her mom’s master bathroom and printer.  Finally, Dizzy left her room for a moment to ask, “Mom, Chat wants to know why there’s a printer in the bathroom.”  Also, there was a coffee maker and gun supplies in the bathroom.  It’s a large bathroom.  Obviously, I couldn’t tune away from this exchange.

On some level, I missed most of a super-intense second half.  I definitely missed a couple of great Johnny McCants’ jams.  On the other, the score remained close and nothing really changed.  The Aggies may have gotten the biggest lead of the game, up five, with under two minutes.  The Lopes came right back with a three. 

With under 30 seconds left, disaster struck.  Up by three, all the Aggies had to do was dribble out as much as possible.  Excellent ball-handler, AJ Harris, suddenly got his pocket picked for a layup.  Moments later, AJ turned it over again on the inbounds for another easy layup for GCU.  With 13 seconds left, the Aggies were suddenly losing by one.

Terrell Brown was fouled shooting when the Aggies got the ball back.  He’s the team’s best free throw shooter at 80%.  He missed both.  On the rebound, the Aggies intentionally fouled immediately with only a couple of seconds left on the clock.  The GCU player missed the front end of the one-and-one. 

And then a legend was made.  Local boy Johnny McCants got the rebound and dribbled to halfcourt.  Johnny is not known for his long distance shooting, in fact people were questioning why he was in this late in the game, since he doesn’t even shoot free throws well.  Well behind the halfcourt line, he calmly heaved the ball as only tenths of a second remained.  The ball went right through the net, barely touching the rim.   

76-75 Aggies win!  Johnny was instantly mobbed and dogpiled on court by the team.  My dad reported that Jack Nixon on the radio was out of breath for the rest of the broadcast.  Adam Young, doing the video, was in a bit of shock.  He’d seen endings like this on replay, but never live, much less calling the game. 

As the team partied in the student section, Coach Chris Jans admitted in the postgame interview he was already walking over to congratulate GCU Coach Dan Majerle before Johnny shot the ball.  He’d said he was actually not mad about the impending loss, since the team had played hard and well.  In any case, Coach Jans was euphoric, along with the rest of the Aggie fans.  Did we just steal one?  Maybe. 

The star of the game was Ivan Aurrecoechea with 20 points and 11 rebounds, a tremendous comeback from being blanked against CBU last week (1-3-19).  Terrell Brown had 15, Johnny McCants had 17 (a definite breakout game for him offensively), and Keyon Jones had 12.  It’s still hard to get a read on this team.  Hopefully, this last second win turns the corner for them on losing close games.  We’ll see who steps up for the next game on Saturday.

Sports Journal December 8-9, 2018

12-8-18

Babylon 5 was way too interesting, so I missed the first half of the Wyoming Cowgirls versus the Idaho Vandals in Women’s College Basketball on Stadium.  I was interested in seeing the game there in Laramie, since the Aggie girls had played there at the end of last season (3-15-18).  Wyoming plays in the so-called “Dome of Doom.”  From an outside shot, it is an impressive facility.  Inside, the seats on the sidelines were set at an odd fanning arc.  The arena is probably also used for rodeos. 

There was a pretty good crowd there and they saw a good game.  Wyoming would win 64-61.  Idaho missed a last second three to tie it.  The Vandals have a couple of girls known for their three-point shooting, nicknamed “The Splash Sisters.”  One WY girl scored her 1,000-th point.  Play was stopped after that score, but only to bandage up her hand, as she was injured on the play.  I didn’t like their band when I heard them last year.  Here, I only heard them once, but they were pretty good.  Practice makes perfect.  And we have a controversy.  I noticed Wyoming’s costumed cartoon cowboy mascot on the sidelines.  Their announcer identified him as “Pistol Pete.”

Gasp.  How dare they!  Pete is ours, you miserable piles of cow-crap!  Well, I never.  

I didn’t compose myself until hours later (after a few martinis and a long bubble bath).  This was just in time to hear the Aggie Men take on the, #2 in the nation, Kansas Jayhawks.  Tellingly, Coach Jans didn’t want to talk about this game right after his victory over the Lobos earlier this week (12-4-18).  He wanted to enjoy that moment.  The Aggies were already winners just by showing up, to the tune of $90,000.  AD Mario Moccia does not like scheduling these guarantee games, but they keep the athletics department floating.

First Half

The Aggies came out a bit nervous.  KU took an early lead, but the Aggies started catching up to 14-10 at the first timeout thanks to a Jojo Zamora three.  Jojo hit another three to get it to 21-20.  Timeout KU.  The Aggies then took the lead on an Ivan Aurrecoechea layup.  Later, there would be a shot clock violation on the Aggies, as they inbounded the ball with two seconds on the shot clock and didn’t get a shot off.  Jack Nixon said he could hear Coach Jans through his headphones.  “What were you doing!”  Johnny McCants got it going late in the half.  He tied it at 24 on a jumper.  He tied it again on a one-handed jam at 26.  Even the large Jayhawks crowd there had a reaction.  McCants then had another jam to finish the half and give the Aggies the lead, 28-26. 

Second Half

Dad called me during halftime.  I think we were all pretty excited at this point.  The Aggies came out hot for the second half.  Jojo had another three.  AJ Harris added one of his own for a 40-33 lead and a KU timeout.  It was nearly a full house for the game (about 18,000), but they didn’t start getting loud until the Jayhawks closed it to 41-37.  Shunn Buchanan hit a three to quiet them temporarily, but a steal and a jam got the fans right back into it at 46-42.    

Jojo added another three to make it 51-44 with about ten minutes left in the game.  The Jayhawks mounted a comeback to 51-49.  Timeout Aggies as the crowd was going wild.   KU tied it at 53 with five minutes left.  Aggies went down three with just under a minute left.  It was 62-60 after a free throw, but with seconds left, the Aggies had to begin intentionally fouling.  The Jayhawks converted on one free throw, but that was enough.  63-60 KU was the final.  Much like the earlier Women’s game, the Aggies missed two three’s before the buzzer.  I guess I got some foreshadowing there. 

Apart from points off turnovers and perhaps an overreliance on three’s, free throws were another downfall.  Both teams were atrocious, but the Aggies missed too many that could have kept them in the lead.  Jojo Zamora and Ivan Aurrecoechea were the Aggies’ top scorers.  Johnny McCants had 12 points as a career best.  Afterward, the coach was filled with disappointed mixed feelings, much like the team and Aggie fans.  He was proud of their effort against a very good team, but coming this close to winning a game of this magnitude was an opportunity that won’t come again this season, unless they make it to the NCAA Tournament.  It’s good to know that this team can maybe compete with anybody, but a win would have made that feeling more certain.

12-9-18

There were two Women’s College Basketball games on today.  Unfortunately, they were both on at the same time.  First up on Stadium was a matchup between the Colorado State Rams versus the Arizona State Sun Devils.  (It was first, because I forgot about the other game.)  The game was in Fort Collins.  The on-court graphics were really good-looking with a pair of large ram horns on each side.  It sounded like a good crowd there, who were pretty vocal. 

ASU came into town shorthanded with only eight players.  That didn’t hamper them at all as they shot the lights out.  They basically doubled up the CSU score after every quarter.  I noticed the ASU players were cycled in four at a time, I guess to keep them fresh as a group.  On the bench, when their team had a free throw, the girls would cross their legs and then cross them the other way on the next throw in unison.  It was funny to watch on TV. 

The final was 70-39 ASU.  The game took a tidy hour-and-a-half.  The CSU announcer took it in stride and said the Sun Devils out-played the Rams in every aspect of the game.  He also said that this was probably the hardest game on the Ram’s schedule.  I think they’re pretty good in the Mountain West, so they weren’t concerned about dropping this out-of-conference game.  A couple of the Rams girls were tall and cute, but I wasn’t listening enough to identify them, because . . .

About halfway through the first quarter, I remembered that the UTEP Miner ladies were playing the Portland State Vikings.  I turned down the TV sound and turned on the radio.  It was already 30-19 Vikings at that point.  It didn’t get any better for Miners as the game went on.  UTEP star, Zuzanna Puc, came out of the game in the third quarter for unspecified reasons.  My girl Katerina Zec had a couple of highlights in the game, but that was about it.  89-61 Vikings was the final. 

After the game, Coach Baker apologized to the fans there and said they should get a refund.  The team is now 2-7.  There was no update on Zuzy from him.  He either didn’t know or didn’t want to say.  There was a very nice interlude at halftime when young singer, Isis Gonzalez, sang a cappella to the crowd.  It was lovely.  Brandon Cohn stopped his halftime show a couple of times to let everyone hear her.

Flipping around on TV afterward, I stopped cold on CBS.  It was a Gamers’ Choice Awards show for video games.  There was that Ninja guy and some other gamers that I’m now somehow recognizing.  Pokimane won some award.  I’ve watched her a couple of times.  It was set in a large lounge with a DJ.  There were a couple of professional hosts for it, who were fairly funny. 

Now what’s odd is that this is the second video games award show I’ve seen this week.  Thursday on Twitch, they hosted an awards show in a facility that would rival the Oscars.  My girl Dizzykitten (I apparently have a lot of “my girls”) simulcasted the event, while doing commentary.  The amphitheater was huge and full.  There was an orchestra and a chorus.  The main difference was that nobody there was wearing a suit or a dress.  Indeed, the gamer-of-the-year was some kid who was a furry . . . in costume at the awards show . . . and he made some jerkoff political comment during his speech.  It was not Twitch’s finest moment.  (“Furry,” the geek “F” word.  It’s just embarrassing for everyone involved.) 

Meanwhile, I noticed there was a Stadium2 stream by the Stadium network.  They were showing a couple of guys running a video game stream and e-sports commentary.  I even noticed Cheddar Sports, who I thought was a sports betting operation, has a stream that’s doing a nightly e-sports news and analysis show.  It’s taking over.