'fovemb Mi iday, November 27, 2000 Sports THE BATTALION sitkl it a butfti ^ewJervl n India ti small col. Texas Stampede BRADLEY ATCHISON/Tiu; Battalion Texas running back Hodges Mitchell rushed for in Austin. A&M defensive tackle Ronald Fle- 95 yards in the Longhorns' 43-1 7 victory Friday mons pursues the Texas tailback on this play. Third quarter results in Aggies’Austin nightmare By Blaine Dionne The Battalion AUSTIN —- The latest edition of the Texas A&M/Texas rivalry was a classic — for the first half. At the end of the half, the Aggies (7- 4, 5-3) were within three points of the Longhorns (9-2, 7-1). A&M trailed its archrivals due only to a first-play inter ception returned for a touchdown to put the’Horns ahead, 7-0, after just two min utes and 14 seconds of play. A&M coach R.C. Slocum said after the game that the early score was an aus picious beginning for UT. “No question, an easy touchdown is not the way you want to start the ball- game,” Slocum said. After that touchdown, the Aggies and Longhorns settled into a defensive battle that showed no signs of a blowout. On its fourth possession of the day, the Aggie offense woke up to the tune of a 49-yard, 12-play, 5-minute and 47-sec- ond drive, resulting in a nifty 15-yard Richard Whitaker counter draw play to tie the score. The ’Horns took the ball right back down the field, driving 40 yards in seven plays for a 34-yard Kris Stockton field goal to regain the lead, 10-7. A&M then marched 73 yards, on its way to another touchdown and its first lead of the game. But normally mistake-free A&M quar terback Mark Farris made his second faux pas of the day by fumbling on a naked left option, giving UT possession of the ball for the rest of the half. “At the half, I felt we were very much still in it,” Slocum said. “But they camfe out in the second half and made big plays.’’ Those big plays came early and oftefi in the second halt, starting with the Long horns’ first drive. After starting on their own 29, the ’Horns were facing first-and-10 on their See Aggies on Page 6. Simms and Co. too much for Ags AUSTIN — Pick an excuse, any excuse. There are plenty to go around, and they all ex plain a small part of the dismantling UT handed A&M Friday in Austin. The game started out a great matchup. The banged-up Ags were holding up nicely with UT ahead, courtesy of a fluke interception off the usually reliable Mark Farris on A&M’s first play from scrimmage. Instead of being a fluke, the interception was a sign of things to come on a day that saw everything go wrong for the Aggies. The next sign of trouble came when A&M was facing second-and-goal on the Texas 9-yard line. Farris fumbled on an option right, surrendering the ball and, es sentially, the momentum to Texas for the rest of the day. Embattled Texas quarterback Chris Simms waited until the third quarter to have his career day by distributing the ball to his talented trio of receivers to score at will. UT’s phenomenal receiver, Roy Williams, finished the day with four catches for 85 yards and two touchdowns, the first on a reverse that broke open the game for the ’Horns. Simms had the most successful day of his young career against the Aggies, tally ing 383 yards on 16 of 24 passing with three touchdowns through the air. Simms, who has been battling with Major Applewhite all season for the start ing job, seemed to finally put himself See Injuries on Page 6. BRADLEY ATCHISON/The Battalion Texas quarterback Chris Simms passed a perfect eight-for-eight for 234 yards and a trio of touch downs in the third quarter alone. Volleyball two- NCAA awards squad with second straight regional By Jason Lincoln The Battalion * For the eighth straight time, Texas A&M, volley ball is headed for the postseason. The NCAA tournament selection committee awarded the 25th-ranked Aggies a place at-large in the 64-team field Sunday evening. “We just can take a deep breath that this is the end of our regular season and now we can start a new thing,” said A&M coach Laurie Corbelli. A&M will not enjoy the home-court advantage See Postseason on Page 6. step finishes Big 12 campaign, clinches NCAA berth A&M sweeps Longhorns, Wildcats to take second place in Big 12 JASON LINCOLN/Thi: Battalion The Aggies' second straight sweep of Texas earned them second place in the Big 1 2. By Jason Lincoln The Battalion Texas A&M volleyball could not ask for a better finale to the season: Two of the biggest matches of the season at home against two of the biggest opponents — Kansas State and Texas. The Aggies opened their fi nal home stand Wednesday night against Kansas State, in a must-win situation if they hoped to tie for second place in the Big 12. The Aggies made quick work of the Wildcats, sweeping them, 16-14, 15-7, 15-9. On Saturday, in the final match of the regular-season, the Aggies swept the Long horns, 15-7, 15-7, 15-8. The win marked the first time A&M has won both reg ular-season meetings against the ’Horns since 1979. “It’s a great way to finish up,” said A&M coach Laurie Corbelli. “I knew it was going to be real important that we were sharp and that we peak and doing things the way we needed to do them.” Corbelli honored the se niors in the traditional pre game ceremony before the fi nal match. The seniors then returned the favor by leading A&M to the win over Texas in a dra matic exit to their final match at G. Rollie Coliseum. Senior middle blocker Heather Marshall, who started every match and played in every game this season, posted 10 kills and 10 digs. Senior defensive specialist Christy Clark led the Aggies with 13 digs. Back-up setter senior Claire Harvey played all three games, posting 41 assists and seven kills. With the pair of wins and the help of Nebraska’s defeat of the Wildcats in a five-game match on Saturday, the Aggies finished tied for second with K- State and Missouri. ^^1 Join the EJSTGR Programs! Engineering In France 2001 Engineering In Germany 2001 Architecture students are invited to join the Engineering Study Abroad Programs for SSII 2001! Interested in a super program? Con tact:: Or. Mardelle Sheplcy, 845-7877. mardelleCcDtas’-.. tamu.edu HURRY! Only 1 O spots available! AGGfES WTTH KfD: THIS SATURDAY! DECEMBER 2 REED ARENA Tickets at Reed Arena Box Office, Tickets also at ticket master outlets Charge-By-Phone: 979-268-0414 WH»«country.