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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 20, 2004)
Page 5 • Monday, September 20, 2004 Texas A&M S soccer loses to UCLA By Jonathan Wall THE BATTALION Sunday afternoon’s match ■ against 12th ranked UCLA ■ was one the Aggies would I probably like to have back. In I a game dominated by defense, I ! the Aggies couldn’t match the I lone goal scored by UCLA’s I Iris Mora, falling 1-0. “We had three balls off II the line and missed two open ■ goals,” Guerrieri said. “You ■ don’t deserve to win if you I don’t finish those balls.” The Aggies left a lot of of- I tensive chances on the field in I a game where they outshot the ■ Bruins, 12-8. A&M made an offensive ■ push during the final three ■ minutes of the game, yet ■ the team couldn’t figure out I Bruins goalkeeper Valerie ■ Henderson, who seemed to ■ be in perfect position ev- lery time the ball was in the ■ UCLA zone. The game was played well ■ by both squads, but it left I Guerrieri with mixed feelings I on a game he felt the team had I a chance to win. “We schedule tough ■ games like this because we ■ want to play teams that are ■ going to make us better," J|Guerrieri said. “It’s just hard to lose games we feel we should’ve won.” Sports The Battalion A&M defense returns to form, quiets critics Joshua Hobson • THE BATTALION Sophomore A&M linebacker Justin Warren (left) and senior defensive back Byron Jones sack Clemson quarter back Charlie Whitehurst during the second quarter of Saturday's game. A&M defeated Clemson 27-6. By Kyle Davoust THE BATTALION A buzz started around campus last week. The Aggies had shut out an opponent not named Baylor for the first time since 1998. “This is huge,” cried the most fer vent of fans. “It was only Wyoming,” responded the pessimists the ones who were most re cently fooled by last year’s performance against the lowly Bears. But now, after Saturday’s defensive domination of Clemson, the buzz has reached a feverish pitch. This was not Wy oming. This was not even Baylor or Kan sas. In winning the game 27-6, the Aggie defense had stifled the Clemson Tigers, one of the nation’s top oftenses. “I’m pretty sure Clemson hung 500 yards on the last two teams they played,” said A&M coach Dennis Franchione. “We held them to 250 and got four turnovers. You’ve got to give (the defense) some re spect. They’re playing more like we (as coaches) thought they would play.” The Aggies didn’t just stop a top of fense; they stopped a spread offense. This is significant because the spread offense has killed the Aggies for the last two years. Texas Tech and Oklahoma set all sorts of records on the Aggies last year using this same type of system. Just tw o weeks ago, Utah racked up 41 points by spreading out the Aggies. That’s what makes Saturday’s performance even more remarkable. “(The Utah game) is still in my mind, but we feel like that team was not us, and we came out tonight to show everybody that we are a better team,” said senior cor- nerback Byron Jones. “The team you saw against Utah - that wasn’t us. It was fresh on our mind, but we came out to prove a point that this is a better football team.” The key difference this time was simple: The Aggies pressured the quarterback. Instead of giving Clemson ju nior quarterback Char lie Whitehurst a chance to survey the field, the Aggies mixed blitzes with solid defensive line plays to keep the quarterback on his back. The pressure worked, as Whitehurst threw three interceptions, fumbled in A&M territory and was held to less than 200 yards passing for the first time in eight games. “They delinitelyblitzed us,” a dismayed Whitehu rst said. “I think 1 had four turnovers by myself, and they didn’t have any. That was definitely huge.” The turnover dispar ity was large, as the Ag gies turned Clemson’s four turnovers into 14 points. An opportunis tic defense makes an of fense’s job a lot easier. Perhaps the best sign of what is to come was the play of the Aggie newcomers. For the second week in a row, redshirt freshmen made huge contributions. Freshmen Jason Jack, Chris Har rington and Joseph Bryant were keys in the defensive line rotation that kept con stant pressure on Whitehurst. Harrington displayed the speed of the young group in the third quarter when he rushed around the Clemson line nearly untouched to plow Whitehurst into the turf for his sec ond collegiate sack. However, the newcomer with the big gest impact was freshman comerback Erik Mayes. Getting extended playing time be cause of Clemson’s spread offense, Mayes impressed with 10 tackles and an intercep tion to end the Tiger’s last drive. He even came up big on a blitz, combining with Jack for an all-freshmen sack. The questions of optimism are already starting to pour in from the fans. Are they for real? Do they deserve to be called the Wrecking Crew? “That’s depending on coach,” said se nior cornerback Jonte Buhl. “We’ve been working hard, and we’re really happy with our success today and last week, so hopefully we’ll get the name back.” Announcing the opening of... West Villa Maria Veterinary Clinic A full service small animal care and boarding facility Located at 1531 West Villa Maria Road 979-823-5004 Monday through Friday 7:30 to 5:30 Saturday 8:00 to 12:00 Doctors: John Scott d.v.m. and Cole Dodson d.v.m. Reservoir and Park CA' Gibbons Creek Reservoir and Park offers a varity of outdoor activities. So whether its Boating,Fishing,Skiing,Campin<.;,S\x immin<.;, or just Relaxing in the Sun Your sure to have a great time/ Call 936-873-2424 or visit www.gibbonscreek.com www.travelcuts.com mm 7 — .... ... www.4.OandGo.com Taking any of These: CHEM 101, CHEM 107, MATH 141/166, Well MATH 151, RHYS 218 Pay you $50 cash to LET US HELP YOU!!!! (THERE IS NO CATCHUP On the following days we will be holding sessions for these classes. All you have to do is show up with proof you are enrolled in the class, let us tutor you for 2 or 3 hours and we will pay you $50 CASH!!! (Limited to first 100 people, so arrive early) Chem 101 Chem 107 Math 141/166 Math 151 Phvs 218 Sun. Sept. 19 Sun. Sept. 19 Mon. Sept. 20 9pm-12am 6pm-9pm 5pm-8pm Thur. Sept. 23 Mon. Sept. 20 9pm-11pm 8pm-10pm