2001
) —
MIP
om-
fter.
ses-
ome
s of
olve
sip,”
pre-
out
with
King
real-
irted
get
d on
uch-
their
cts
ense
\ the
i no
our
here
ved.
ition
ition
ctim
she
and
tain-
ages
with
ply-
arti-
iduct
)ipes
ful”
tg at
God
» lis-
the
tims
ors.
their
said
i H.
yers,
fs of
were
died,
rvice
as a
that
ss in
were
orts.
dged
pro-
tims.
ll
xas
I
my
iry.
sive
ing:
ions
/ork
Irug
1 to
:all:
44.
ime.
Visit www.thebatt.com for post
game coverage of the Aggies’ battle
against the Colorado Buffaloes.
THE BATTALION
Page 7
lash in the mountains
25 A&M’s undefeated record on the line against Colorado
By True Brown
THE BATTALION
ear ago, the University of Colorado
It Kyle Field without a win and on the
jlows. The Buffaloes were 0-4 and had
Action of being labeled as one of the
Appointing teams in the Big 12.
Avhile, Texas A&M came into the
■ riding high after three straight home
■ the comfort of knowing the game
F |played in Kyle Field, where the Aggies
l)$t in 22 consecutive games.
Jolorado sneaked away with a win.
el ending the Aggies' chances at captur-
Bu 12 South.
Aason, it is No. 20 Colorado that is rid-
■otional high. The Buffaloes (4-1,2-0 in
■landed Kansas State a 16-6 loss in
, Kan., last week.
No. 25 Aggies, on the other hand, are
Iff a squeamishly close 16-10 win
llor that saw A&M (5-0, 2-0) score
tie touchdown on four trips inside the
relzone.
Jestion, the redzone was frustrating for
ek,” said A&M offensive coordinator
rs. “It's something we are going to put
iphasis on this week."
ilso will put a major emphasis on con-
lorado quarterback Craig Ochs, a dan-
ambler who rushed for 70 yards last
ainst K-State. Ochs has passed for 922
five touchdowns this season.
■uy is a killer scrambler," said A&M
Ibacker Brian Gamble, who leads the
■h40 tackles this season. “That’s dead-
defense. He's got a knack for making
Ms. he runs pretty hard, he breaks tack-
lie knows when to run.”
jrom Ochs, Colorado’s run-oriented
is Jed by tailback Chris Brown.
is the Buffaloes' leading rusher,
■ 4.6 yards per carry and leads the
|oring with seven touchdowns.
|t of Brown, the Colorado offensive
es 304 pounds per player and returns
h from last season.
|e and experience have led the Buffaloes to the
t rushing offense in the Big 12, averaging
und yards per game.
really have to attack their running game,”
aid. “A lot of the things they do involve
■ hey try to pound the ball and run it down
roat. Not only are we going to have to be
sical this week, but everyone is really
ave to step up.”
g up has not been the problem for the A&M
so far this season, as the Aggies rank first in
STUART VILLANUEVA • THE BATTALION
Saturday. The Aggies will battle No. 20 Colorado in Boulder,
Colo., Saturday. Both teams are undefeated in Big 12 play.
the Big 12 and third in the nation in total defense,
allowing a meager 227.2 yards per game.
A&M has not allowed more than one touchdown
A&M defensive lineman Linnis Smith struggles for yardage after
intercepting a pass from Baylor quarterback Greg Cicero last
since allowing two to Wyoming on Sept. 6.
Junior linebacker Jarrod Penright has recorded at
least one sack in every game this season and leads the
Big 12 in sacks with 8.5.
“This is a big game for our team,” said Colorado
football head coach Gary Barnett. “(A&M’s defense]
has a lot of speed, and they seem to improve as the game
goes on. They really pride themselves on their defensive
play, so we’ll have our work cut out for us.”
After beginning the season against a Division I-AA
school and four struggling teams with a combined
record of 7-1 1, Saturday will be the beginning of a bru--
tal stretch of games for the Aggies.
“We’re stepping into the thick of the Big 12 race,”
said A&M football head coach R.C. Slocum. “If we are
going to stay in it, it’s imperative we go up there and
play as an excellent football team.”
Counting Colorado, four of A&M’s six remaining
opponents are ranked in the latest Associated Press poll
and are a combined 13 games over .500.
“We are 5-0 and there aren’t many other college
teams that can say that,” Gamble said. “But we’ll see
what kind of football team we are this weekend.”
Ags set
to defend
titles
By Maya Thomas
THE BATTALION
The Texas A&M cross
country team will host the
14th annual Texas A&M
Invitational, one of the
largest meets in the region,
Saturday at the A&M golf
course.
More than 20 collegiate
teams will compete, most of
which are from Texas
schools, including Baylor,
Prairie View A&M, Rice,
Sam Houston State, Texas
Christian and the University
of Texas-Arlington.
A few schools from out
side Texas also will compete
against the Aggies, including
Oklahoma State and
McNeese State.
The men’s team and the
No. 18 women’s team will
defend their first place fin
ishes of 2000. The Aggie
women have won the title
two years in a row.
At last year’s meet, mem
bers of the women’s team
took four of the top five
places.
Seniors Melissa Gulli
and Andrea Bookout cap
tured the individual gold
and bronze, respectively
and both are on the roster
for this year’s meet.
Approximately 75 high
schools also are slated to race,
including Bryan St. Joseph’s,
McKinney, Rockwall,
Caldwell, Brazos, Heame and
Huffman-Hargrave.
A&M head coach Dave
Hartman will use the meet to
scout potential A&M recruits.
“We will have a couple
thousand high school kids
running,” Hartman said.
“That’s always a big deal.
Having that many potential
recruits on your campus is
always a benefit.”
The meet consists of 10
races starting at 9 a.m. and
ends before noon. The
women race at 10 a.m., and
the men’s race will begin at
10:20 a.m.
ITS IN BRIEF
volleyball to
Nebraska
gating Texas Tech in
on Wednesday, the No.
I&M volleyball team will
|nding national champi-
|ka Sunday.
Sdnesday's match, the
gained undefeated on
posting a 36-38, 39-37,
125 win.
lowing a six-point lead
1st game, A&M came
|ht points back in the
|me to even the match
ime a piece.
[gies jumped out to a
f in the third game and
I late Red Raider rally,
the game on a Texas
jfice error.
Iitside hitter Erin Lechler
|\ggies with 17 kills.
Imiddle blocker Melissa
ontinued her stellar rook-
by adding 13 kills,
outside hitter Michelle
k&M with a match-high
I Senior setter Jenna
: added 52 assists, and
re middle blocker Tara
ed the team in blocks
1 kept the Aggies (12-2,
112) in second place in
irence standings.
;s was the Red Raiders’
ome this season. A&M
llose a road game,
f's match against No. 2
i begins at 2 p.m. at G.
lite Coliseum and will
;ed on FOX Sports Net.
GUY ROGERS • THE BATTALION
Senior forward Nicky Thrasher and the Texas A&M soccer team will take
on Big 12 champion Nebraska Sunday at the Varsity Soccer Complex.
Ags, Huskers to battle
for Big 12 supremacy
Reigning Big 12 champs 9-3 against A&M
By Jeremy Brown
THE BATTALION
No. 10 Texas A&M and No.
6 Nebraska will meet Sunday at
the Aggie Soccer Complex in a
showdown of the only two
teams to win the Big 12 soccer
tournament. The Aggies must
first contend with unranked
Iowa State tonight, but the game
with Nebraska will be what the
Big 12 will watch.
Nebraska has dominated the
Big 12 by winning the regular-
season title three times and the
conference tournament four
times, including the last three
straight. In 1997, A&M won the
regular season and tournament
titles, giving A&M its first Big
12 title in any sport.
The Cornhuskers have had
seven consecutive wins against
the Aggies, but only one of
those games was in College
Station. Last year, Nebraska
beat A&M 2-1 in Lincoln and 4-
1 in the Big 12 tournament in
San Antonio.
A&M soccer coach G.
Guerrieri said this year’s team
has the ability to end that streak.
“We are in as good of a
position to beat them as we
ever have been with the speed
that we have up front now,”
Guerrieri said. “By the time we
played them last year, we had
lost six players to ACL
injuries. We were without all
of our guns.”
While Nebraska holds a 9-3
record against in the series,
A&M is 2-1 against the
Cornhuskers in College Station.
A&M lost its last home match
of the series 1-0 in 1999.
This year, Nebraska is 8-1
and 3-0 in the Big 12. Its only
loss was to No. 7 Notre Dame,
1-0 in South Bend.
The Cornhuskers have given
up only one goal in Big 12 play
this season and are giving up
only an average of one goals per
game this season.
Sophomore goalkeeper Erin
Miller has made 38 saves in her
first season as the starter.
“She has been great in her
last four or five games,” said
Nebraska soccer head coach
John Walker. “She’s really
turning into a very good
goalkeeper.”
A&M has had similar
defensive success, giving up
only 1.4 goals per game this
season.
Guerrieri said both teams
like to attack opponent’s goals
and, therefore, keep the ball
away from their own.
Junior forward Christine
Latham leads the Cornhuskers
attack with seven goals, all of
which were scored in the last
six games. Senior midfielder
Meghan Anderson is just the
29th Division I player in NCAA
history to score 40 career goals
and 40 career assists.
“It usually plays out as a one
goal type of game,” Guerrieri
said. “I imagine every inch of
ground will be a battle.”
In tonight’s game with Iowa
State, A&M will face a young
team with eight freshman on its
19-player roster.
The Cyclones are 3-6 and
have an 0-6-1 record all-time
against the Aggies.
Iowa State is coming off
two straight losses, but
Guerrieri said his team will not
look past them.
“Our biggest problem is
that we haven’t played enough
games and we need to play
games to get our rhythm,”
Guerrieri said. “Coming off
the Baylor game, we need to
keep up our momentum
against a young Iowa State
team. If we don’t beat Iowa
State, the game on Sunday will
not be as important.”
>f{
i
%
m
aS*,';
'