Sept. 7, 2009
CROSS COUNTRY
Upcoming: UTEP will host the Lori Fitzgerald Invitational on Thursday in Santa Teresa, N.M. The field includes El Paso Community College, New Mexico Highlands and NM State.
Looking Back: Five Miner women finished in the top 10 of collegiate runners as the UTEP cross country teams opened the 2009 campaign on Saturday morning at the Lobo Invitational in Albuquerque, N.M. Risper Kimaiyo ran away with the women's title, finishing first with a time of 17:21.63. It marks the first time a Miner female has won the Lobo Invitational title in program history. Senior All-American Nicodemus Ng'etich was the top collegiate finisher in the men's race, finishing second overall. Ng'etich clocked in at 24:57.67 in the 8K race, in which a total of 53 runners participated. Kathya Garcia ran the course in 17:41.88 to place a second Miner on the medal stand with a third-place overall and collegiate finish. Newcomers Gladys Chumba and Karina Garcia were the third and fourth finishers for the Miners, posting times of 18:08.95 and 18:13.25 respectively, in the women's 6K race. Chumba was the overall seventh-place finisher, sixth collegiate; Karina Garcia was the overall ninth-place finisher, seventh collegiate. Jepchirchir Kigen rounded out the top five for the women, crossing the finish line in 18:34.73. Other finishers for the women were Kim Martinez (20:18.12) and Kitria Stewart (20:34.09). Newcomer Robert Menjo was the second finisher for the Miners, completing the race in 25:20.33 for a fifth-place overall finish and third among all collegiate runners. Opening his cross country career with a seventh-place overall finish was Justice Chirchir with a time of 25:27.63, placing him fifth among university runners. Aggrey Chirchir completed the course in 18:34:23.80 and Solomon Gaibea recorded a time of 27:03.85. The Miners are looking to add two more runners to the men's team this week.
FOOTBALL
Upcoming: UTEP (0-1) hosts Kansas -- ranked 25th in the preseason Associated Press poll -- on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are available by calling 747-5234. Season tickets are also available at 747-6150. Saturday will be "Orange Out" in the stadium and all Miner fans are asked to wear orange to the game. Fans can win the opportunity to "Experience UTEP Football" and get down on the field for the Kansas game by listening to KLAQ 95.5 FM during the week. The first 12,000 fans on Saturday will receive "Pete's Pennies" coupon books, filled with great deals around town.
Looking Back: Sophomore quarterback Zach Maynard threw for 159 yards in his first career start, leading Buffalo to a 23-17 win over UTEP in the season opener for both schools on Saturday in the Sun Bowl. Maynard's 42-yard pass to Naaman Roosevelt with 12:13 remaining in the third quarter gave the Bulls a 23-7 lead that the Miners couldn't overcome - although they did come close. UTEP chipped away, cutting the deficit to 23-14 on a 17-yard scoring run by James Thomas with 7:37 remaining in the third period, then 23-17 on a 31-yard field goal by Logan Barrett with 5:45 to play. The Miners got the ball back following a defensive stop and drove 60 yards to the Buffalo 20-yard line with under a half-minute remaining. Trevor Vittatoe hooked up with Thomas for the apparent tying score with 14 seconds left, but the play was nullified due to a holding penalty on offensive lineman Rod Huntley. Making matters worse, offensive lineman Lance Evbuomwan was charged with unsportsmanlike conduct for celebrating the touchdown, backing up the Miners to the 42-yard line. Vittatoe's final two pass attempts -- both intended for Kris Adams -- fell incomplete and the Bulls escaped El Paso with a victory. In a twist of fate, UTEP's defense -- much maligned over the last three seasons -- kept the Miners in the game on a night when the offense struggled. The Bulls were held to only 309 yards on 61 plays. But the Miners weren't sharp offensively -- particularly in the first half -- and were whistled for 12 penalties totaling 101 yards. Dropped balls, bad snaps and a botched catch on a kickoff were among the culprits that did in the Miners. The Miners, however, can gain some solace in knowing that despite their sluggish play in the first half, they were in position to beat the defending MAC champion Bulls in the end. Vittatoe completed 27 of 45 passes for 233 yards for the Miners, but did not throw a touchdown pass for just the third time in his college career. Adams fell two yards shy of 100 receiving, and Donald Buckram gained a career-high 108 yards on 14 rushes.
MEN'S GOLF
Upcoming: UTEP's first tournament of the season is the William H. Tucker Invitational on Friday and Saturday in Albuquerque.
2009-10 Preview: The UTEP men's squad is relatively brand-new, with nine freshmen joining two letterwinners in junior David Murray and senior Tanner Taff. The fresh faces include El Paso natives Fili Cruz (Cathedral HS), Johnny Duncan (home schooled), Devin Miertschin (Hanks HS), David Persons (Franklin HS) and Ross Rotwein (Coronado HS). The headliner of the group is Miertschin, a transfer from the University of Texas who won 24 individual tournament titles during his prep career.
UTEP also adds Albuquerque products Chris Ortiz and H.J. Roberts to the mix, as well as Jerry Castrellon (Torréon, Mexico) and Ryan Fioretti (Midland, Texas). Roberts redshirted last season.
Murray has played in four tournaments at the collegiate level. Taff was a regular in the lineup during the 2008-09 campaign and fashioned a 76.8 stroke average in nine tournaments.
WOMEN'S GOLF
Upcoming: UTEP will participate in the Ptarmigan/Ram Classic Sept. 14-15 in Fort Collins, Colo.
2009-10 Preview: The Miners return intact from last season and will be looking to build on a fifth-place showing at the league tournament. The Miners have a couple of All-Conference USA selections in Deborah Martinez and Teresa Nogués, who was one of the league's top freshmen last season.
Martinez (77.8) and Nogués (77.7) had nearly identical stroke averages during the 2008-09 campaign, with Martinez recording three top-20 individual showings and Nogues finishing in the top 10 at three events.
Samantha Garza, Rosana Gomez, Stephanie Herrera, Shang-Fan Huang, Ana Pastor and Liz Sobczak all have extensive college playing experience, giving head coach Jere Pelletier as many options as he has had in his 16 years with the Miners.
RIFLE
Upcoming: UTEP continues to host the Great Southwest Invitational through Sept. 27.
2009-10 Preview: After finishing ninth nationally a season ago, the Miners come into the 2009-10 campaign loaded with ammunition. All-American Andrea Palafox and teammate Josie Burzynski look to lead the program to prominence once again after participating in the NCAA Rifle Championships last season. Also returning is UTEP's only senior, Morgan Glenn, and sophomore standout Alix Moncada, who stormed onto the scene at midseason as a freshman and shot an average of 585 in air rifle. Two new faces have been added to the roster -- Hanna Muegge and Xentri Garza.
SOCCER
Upcoming: UTEP (3-2) hosts the Border Shootout this weekend. The Miners will take on Sam Houston State on Friday at 7 p.m., and Weber State on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Looking Back: The Miners split two matches last week, winning one on the road and losing another at home. UTEP topped Eastern Washington, 3-2 in double overtime, on Thursday in Cheney, Wash. Senior Chelsea Winbush scored in the 106th minute to lift the Miners to the victory. The Miners dominated the extra sessions, with Tess Hall almost winning the game in the 94th minute. Her shot hit the cross bar with such force that it went straight down to the ground, up and off the cross bar one more time, before EWU netminder Jamie Walker finally grabbed it. UTEP maintained the aggressive mindset in the second extra session, with freshman Skye Schultz setting up Winbush's winner after a nifty sequence. Were it not for the efforts of another newcomer, though, the Miners would have come up short in their 2009 road opener. UTEP trailed EWU, 2-1, with less than five minutes remaining in regulation but pulled even thanks to freshman Brittany Kindzierski converting on a partial breakaway after an accurate long pass from Melissa Desilets. She chipped the ball over the keeper's head from 15 yards out for her first career goal, giving her squad new life. The Orange and Blue -- which outshot the Eagles 31-9 -- would take advantage en route to moving to 5-1 in road openers under head coach Kevin Cross since 2004. The Miners were saddled with a challenging 1-0 defeat to Utah Valley University on a warm and windy Sunday at University Field. UVU's Nicole Archibald snuck a shot past UTEP GK Sara Kaltwasser 1:34 into the match, and despite the Miners dominating every facet of the game from that point on, the Wolverines would get out of El Paso with the win. UTEP took 12 shots on goal (four by UVU) and earned 10 corner kicks (two by the Wolverines), but could not find a way to punch it in.
TENNIS
Upcoming: UTEP will host the Miner Fall Invite Sept. 18-20 in Las Cruces, N.M.
2009-10 Preview: UTEP's tennis program has made plenty of strides in recent years under the direction of head coach Jamie Campbell. UTEP will feature a young but talented squad in 2009-10, with senior Marina DeLuca stepping to the forefront. She will take aim at concluding her career with a third successive 20-win season in singles, something that has been accomplished by only one other player in program history.
Ximena Fuentes, who has been a steady player in her two years in the Sun City, will assist in the leadership department as the only other returning upperclassman.
Martina Trierweiler and Carolina DeLuca, the younger sister of Marina, both showed signs of greatness during their freshmen seasons. Each finished with winning records despite holding down the No. 2 and No. 3 slots in singles. El Paso product Carla Murguia returns as well. Campbell also inked three quality players to national letters of intent over the summer. Austin Lavallii (Mason HS/Mason, Mich.), and Veronika Makashov (Thornhill HS/Richmond Hill, Ontario,Canada) will enroll as true freshmen, while Alexandra Glebova will have two years of eligibility after starring at Florida Community College in Jacksonville, Fla.
VOLLEYBALL
Upcoming: UTEP (5-1) plays at I-10 rival NM State on Tuesday at 7 p.m. The Miners will also participate in the Bradley Invitational this weekend in Peoria, Ill. UTEP will face host Bradley on Friday at 6 p.m., and Montana State (9:30 a.m.) and Coppin State (3:30 p.m.) on Saturday.
Looking Back: UTEP compiled a 2-1 mark at the Arizona State Tournament over the weekend in Tempe, Ariz., with all three matches decided by 3-0 scores. The Miners beat Idaho State (25-23, 25-22, 25-20) and Charleston Southern (25-15, 25-22, 25-23), while falling to host ASU (25-23, 25-14, 25-10). Catherine Chavez posted the Miners' first double-double of the season versus Charleston Southern with 10 kills and 10 digs. Amy Sanders picked up her second All-Tournament honor of the season after contributing 39 kills over two days. She had 14 kills each in UTEP's two victories in the tournament.
