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14
Fritlay, October 27, 2000
Sports
Page 7
THE BATTALION
Overtime goal downs Longhorns, secures 2nd place finish
Brian Ruff _
The Battalion
.i The Texas Longhorns came into the Ag
gie Soccer Complex on a mission Thursday
chtL night-steal second place in the Big 12 from
h (jo^ the No. 9 Texas Aggie soccer team.
A&M proved its No. 9 ranking by sending
e(] tjie Longhorns home without accomplishing
gjn a if e .their mission, just barely. An overtime goal
is wat, Heather Ragsdale gave A&M a 2-1 win.
n show l The Aggies dominated game offensive-
idy au lH and continued pressure on the Texas de-
rs willjlfpse for most of the first half. In the 33rd
riinute, midfielder Heather Wiebe ventured
re is a; kito the Texas penalty box and was taken out
>us but.from behind, giving the Aggies a penalty
| Bek. Weibe blasted her kick in the upper-
e.s, this fight-hand corner past the extended hand of
er seei Texas goalkeeper Shay Wilkerson.
one. f The rest of the half was scoreless, with
ipth teams battling in the midfield for most
of the half. Despite a strong wind in their
McCor feces, the Aggies were unable to connect on
jiany long passes that were pounced on by
i|e Texas goalkeeper.
At the end of the half, A&M seemed to be
fell in control with a 1 -0 lead. Only 30 sec-
fids into the second half, midfielder Julie
loin pounded a shot from well outside the
penalty box that struck the crossbar.
Throughout the game Wilkerson was
forced to make many saves on high shots, that
resulted in eight A&M corner kicks in the half.
The Aggies continued to control the
game, until the Longhorns were given a cor
ner kick in the 85th minute. Wilkerson, the
Texas goalkeeper, who is also one of the
team’s tallest players at 5’ 10”, snuck her
way into the the Aggie penalty box. Just sec
onds later she got a piece of the corner kick •
from midfielder Kati McBain and headed it
towards the goal. Aggie goalkeeper Esther
Thompson was unable to get a hand on the
header and Texas tied the game to the sur
prise of all 1,779 on hand for the game.
The teams moved into the first overtime,
and A&M showed why it has dominated
most of the Big 12 play this season. A&M
laid on the pressure, coming just inches of a
victory several times in the early minutes of
the contest.
With only 1:35 left in the first overtime,
A&M sensation Kristen Strutz controlled a
ball at midfield and then quickly moved the
ball to a streaking Heather Ragsdale, who
beat the Texas goalkeeper and laid the ball
into the open net for the gamewinner.
“We had several oppurtunities to put the
game out of reach,” Ragsdale said. “We
needed to step it up and play our level of the
game, so we did.”
Ragsdale, the team leader in most offen
sive categories, scored her fourth game-win
ning goal of the season.
“I am really proud of our team,” said
A&M coach G. Guerrieri. “Our players were
real upset that they let something get away
from them, but they went out and rectified it.”
“We knew it was going to be a big game,
because it’s Texas,” Wiebe said. “We really
had to get more mentally prepared than
physically,” added Wiebe
The Aggies outshot the Longhorns, 26-
16, and also had 14 corner kicks in the
contest.
With the win, the Aggies secured second
place in the Big 12. They will hold the sec
ond seed in the Big 12 tournament in San
Antonio next week.
“We created a lot of good chances, but
we’ve got to do better at finishing those
chances,” Guerrieri said. “We have one more
game to work some of those kinks out prior
to the [Big 12] tournament.”
The Aggies (14-5, 8-2) will conclude the
2000 regular season this Sunday at the Ag
gie Soccer Complex. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.
BERNARDO GARZA/Th k Battalion
Heather Wiebe, pictured above, scored the Aggies first goal against Texas. A&M se
cured the second seed for the Big 12 tournament with an overtime goal against the
Longhorns by forward Heather Ragsdale for a 2-1 win.
A&M looks for upset against No. 10 KSU
Top-ranked defenses and high-powered offenses collide at Kyle Field
CODY WAGES/Tiie Battalion
Rushing veteran Ja'Mar Toombs and the Aggie backfield had their
Best game of the year against Iowa State. Saturday, they look to build
ion that against the 1 Oth-ranked Wildcats.
By Blaine Dionne
The Battalion
After a two-year hiatus, the No. 10 Kansas
State Wildcats and the Texas A&M Aggies will re
sume their young but contentious rivalry Saturday
at 2:30 p.m.
The game marks the first time A&M will face
a ranked team this season and the first time the Ag
gies will play at Kyle Field since their home win
ning streak was snapped on Oct. 7 by then-winless
Colorado.
Outside linebacker Jason Glenn said the Aggies
are keeping the Colorado loss in perspective, par
ticularly considering who they are facing this
weekend.
“We’re not worried about that (Colorado) loss
anymore,” Glenn said. “We could dwell on that
and say, ‘OK, we’re at home, so we could lose
again.’
“But that’s not in our mind right now. We’re
at home, but we’ve got the Twelfth Man and
we’re going to make it hard for the Kansas State
offense.”
That Kansas State offense has been one of the
most productive in the country so far this season.
The Wildcats boast the 15th best team offense,
racking up 434.1 yards per game, and the third-
highest scoring numbers in the country, averaging
45.9 points per game.
Kansas State quarterback Jonathan Beasley is
scoring the fourth most individual points per game
with 11.5 a contest, and his favorite target, wide
receiver Quincy Morgan, is second only to the Ag
gies’ Robert Ferguson in total receiving yards.
A&M safety Michael Jameson said the Kansas
State offense poses the biggest test the Aggies have
seen so far this season.
“From what I’ve seen, Beasley can hurt you at
any time,” Jameson said. “As a DB, you really
have to play your responsibility. When he scram
bles, you have to stay in your coverage or mistakes
will be made.
“Their record speaks for itself, though. They’re
a Top 10 team. I think, offensively and defensive
ly, they are the most talented team we’ve faced to
this point.”
On the defensive side of the ball, the Wildcats
have just as many outstanding athletes as on the
offensive side.
They are fifth in the country against the run and
the sixth best in team defense under the tutelage of
former A&M football player and coach Phil Ben
nett, a personal friend of A&M coach R.C. Slocum.
“They probably are (the best defense we’ve
played all year),” Slocum said. “They’ve got great
speed on their defense. They’re big up front and
they’re physical up front. They’ve got linebackers
that are big but can run, and they’ve got a good
secondary. They’re a well-coached and talented
defense.”
This game also marks the first time the two
teams will meet since the 1998 Big 12 Champi
onship game. The underdog Aggies pulled off per
haps the biggest upset in school history by knock
ing off then-No.2 Kansas State, 36-33 in double
overtime, making the game an instant-classic.
The victory sent Kansas State out of the Fies
ta Bowl; site of the national championship that
year, and into the Alamo Bowl, where a sluggish
Wildcat team was pasted by Purdue.
For the Aggie players who were there, it is a
win that they still relish. Fullback Ja’Mar Toombs,
who was a freshman at the time, said the come
back win is something the Aggies, who are under
dogs again this week, can use.
“The way we came back and ended up win
ning, that was just the epitome of the Aggie spir
it and what we can accomplish if we just keep
Ags look to restore Cross country teams prepped for postseason run
Kyle Field mystique
Slocum hopes to begin a new win streak
ollege
football -
where sta-
iums, fans and
ascots take on a
ingle personal i-
y that mysteri-
usly turns the
able in favor of
he home team.
Two schools that know as
aiuch about home-field advantage
any in the nation, Kansas State
I Hpnd Texas A&M, will collide this
Saturday.
The Wildcats ride in on a No.
10 national ranking and one of the
lighest scoring offenses in Divi-
I sion I. The Aggies, despite being
anranked, have Kyle Field in their
favor.
A&M watched its 22-game
iome winning streak, the nation’s
Jtird longest, come to an end on
|0ct. 7 with a loss in Kyle Field to
Ihen-winless Colorado.
— In 1996 it was also Colorado that
tided another of coach R.C.
[Slocum’s long wining streaks. The
' ggies ended up going .500 in
yle Field that season with three
Wins and three losses.
! Saturday the Aggies will face
that possibility once again as they
look first to the 1 Oth-ranked Wild
cats and then to the third-ranked
Oklahoma Sooners two weeks later.
A&M already has its three wins this
season. Now it wants to restore the
Mystique to Kyle Field to start the
next streak with wins over Top 10
Opponents.
Kansas State is no stranger to
|)ome-field advantage, currently hold
ing the nation's second longest home
Winning streak, in Manhattan, Kan.
Add to its ranking, a 60-game
31
iy
ty
€
wining streak over unranked oppo
nents and the bitter memory of
their upset loss to the Aggies in the
1998 Big 12 Championship that
kept the Wildcats out of the nation
al championship game, and KSU
appears to be in perfect position
for the win.
That is where Kyle Field enters
the equation. Saturday should fea
ture the largest crowd of Aggies
ever to be on hand for an A&M
football game. The A&M athletic
ticket office is expecting a turnout
of more than 85,000 to watch the
first rematch of the teams since the
Big 12 Championship in December
1998.
That crowd will be almost all
maroon. Kansas State was provided
with only 4,000 tickets.
“It’s going to be a great atmos
phere. ... ” Slocum said. “If you
can’t get excited about this one,
you’re in the wrong business. This
should be the largest crowd of
A&M supporters to ever see a
game. The fans will definitely be
revved up.”
A lot of emotion will highlight
Saturday’s game.
On Kansas State’s part it will be
the memory of the last time the
teams met while trying to protect
their Top 10 ranking and BCS bowl
chances.
On A&M’s part it will be trying
to reenter the Top 25 and reestab
lish Kyle Field as one of the true X-
factors in college football.
Jason Lincoln is a junior
journalism major.
See related column on page 10.
Kansas State Collegian sports editor
shares weekend game opinion.
BERNARDO GARZA/The Battalion
The No. 21 Texas A&M women's cross country team, pic
tured above, and the unranked men's team will compete in
the Big 12 Championships Saturday.
By Diane Xavier
The Battalion
After sweeping the
Texas A&M invitational on
Oct. 14, the Aggie men’s
and women ? s cross country
teams return to action Sat
urday, as they compete in
the Big 12 Championship
at the Buffalo Ranch in
Boulder, Colo.
The men’s 8-kilometer
race starts-at 10 a.m. fol
lowed by the women’s 6k
at 11 a.m Mountain time.
The 21 st-ranked Aggie
women will encounter
their toughest competition
as they face fifth-ranked
Colorado and ninth-placed
Kansas State.
“Our goal is to finish
third,” said coach Dave
Hartman. “We do have to
encounter some stiff com
petition, but with the depth
we have, we should finish
high on the list as well.”
Hartman said the men’s
team has a chance to crack
the top six.
“The men’s situation is
kind of blurred because
there are so many teams
that are ranked and have
great depth,” he said. “If
the guys race with guts,
they have a chance to finish
well.”
Hartman said the high
altitude of Colorado should
not affect the squads.
“We’ve never raced in
high altitude but it is some
thing every team deals
with,” he said. “If we keep
our mental focus, we
should be fine even though
it is on [Colorado’s] home
turf.
“We’re not going to let
it get to us.”
Hartman said this race
will show him where his
teams will be for the re
gional meet, which quali
fies teams for nationals.
“Hopefully, we will be
able to peak at the right time
during this race,” he said.
Jennifer Whatley is con
fident the women will su
percede their national rank
ings with their postseason
performance.
“We have a lot of depth
and we expect to go to na
tionals,” she said. “I think
we are better than our 21st
ranking, and we hope to
show that at the Big 12
championship.”
Volleyball attempts to continue streak against Sooners
By Bree Holz
The Battalion
After sweeping the University of
Kansas Wednesday, 15-10,15-13,15-
12, the Texas A&M volleyball team
will be back in action at G. Rollie
White Coliseum tonight when it hosts
the University of Oklahoma at 6.
With the win, A&M broke the
three-way tie for second place in the
Big 12 and now sits alone. Kansas
State and Missouri, who were also tied
for second place, were both defeated
Wednesday.
The Aggies have won six of their
last seven matches and hold a 14-5
overall record and a 9-3 conference
mark. A&M will attempt to extend its
27-match home winning streak, a
record that began in 1998.
The Sooners have lost their last sev
en matches and sit in 10th place in the
Big 12 with a 6-13 overall record and
a 1-10 league record. The Sooners’
only conference win this season came
against the 0-11 Iowa State Cyclones.
The Aggies hold a commanding
18-1 all-time series record over the
Sooners. Oklahoma’s only win against
A&M took place on Sept. 15, 1979.
Earlier this season, the Aggies swept
the Sooners in Norman, Okla.
The Aggies have eight conference
matches remaining in the season with
five of those matches taking place at
G. Rollie White.
“I’m happy with the way our
schedule worked out, and I think it
works out great for this team,” said
A&M coach Laurie Corbelli. “The lat
er it gets in the season, the nicer it is to
be able to play at home.”
The Aggies still have to face No. 1
Nebraska and Kansas State in College
Middle blocker Heather Marshall (left) and the No. 21 A&M volleyball
team return to G. Rollie White against Oklahoma on Friday at 6 p.m.
Station. Both teams beat them earlier
this season.
“We’ve been to those places, and
those are tough places to play at,” Cor
belli said. “But we’ve also got some
other contending schools that still have
to play at G. Rollie and it’s not going
to be easy for any of them.”