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The UTEP women’s basketball team (1-0) will continue its season-opening five-game homestand when it plays host to CSU Bakersfield (2-0) at 7 p.m. Wednesday.

The Miners won their campaign lidlifter, 77-51, vs. Alcorn State on Nov. 10. The Roadrunners are off to a 2-0 start for the first time since 2014-15, using wins against Wright State (76-74, Nov. 6) and at UC Santa Barbara (56-48, Nov. 9).

Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for kids, and may be purchased by calling (915) 747-5234).

The contest will be broadcast locally on 600 ESPN El Paso with Steve Kaplowitz and Traci Miller on the call. There will also be a live stream on CUSAtv.com (subscription based).

UTEP will lock up with NM State in the FirstLight Federal Credit Union Battle of I-10 at 1 p.m. MT Saturday. Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for kids, and may be purchased by calling (915) 747-5234.

HE SAID IT (COACH BAKER ON csu bakersfield)

“CSU Bakersfield is a very good team. They return a lot of players from last year that contributed in a big way. They’re solid, very, very athletic. They’re 2-0 for a reason. They beat two pretty good teams in UC Santa Barbara and Wright State. It’s going to be a good test for us.”

THE SERIES (UTEP LEADS, 2-0 OVERALL; UTEP LEADS 2-0 IN EL PASO)

UTEP is locking up with CSU Bakersfield for the third straight year. The Miners have won both previous meetings. They cruised to a 74-61 conquest of the Roadrunners on Dec. 28, 2016.

UTEP rallied for a 67-56 win in the 2017-18 season opener for both squads on Nov. 11, 2017.

LAST MEETING WITH csu bakersfield: (at UTEP 67, csub 56, nov. 11, 2017)

UTEP used a huge fourth quarter to rally past CSU Bakersfield, 67-56, in the 2017-18 season opener for both squads at the Don Haskins Center on Nov. 11, 2017. The Roadrunners led by eight (45-37) through three quarters of action, but the Miners opened up the final frame on an 13-1 run to help fuel a dominant 30-11 advantage over the last 10 minutes of action.

Senior Tamara Seda (20 points), junior Jordan Alexander (15 points) and sophomore Faith Cook (14 points) each established career highs to lead the way for the Miners, who were victorious in head coach Kevin Baker’s Division I coaching debut. Junior Najala Howell (10 points) also reached double digits in scoring for UTEP.

The Miners nailed 51.2 percent (21-41) from the floor and 42.9 percent (6-14) from beyond-the-arc.

going back in time (at utep 77, alcorn state 51, 11/10/18)

Zuzanna Puc poured in 18 points to pace a quartet of players in double figures as the UTEP women’s basketball team cruised to a 77-51 season-opening win vs. Alcorn State on Nov. 10. Ariona Gill (15 points), Jordan Jenkins (career-high 11 points, six assists) and Katarina Zec (11 points, personal-best tying nine rebounds) also got after it for the Miners.

UTEP connected on 52.6 percent (30-57) from the floor, tied for the sixth-best rebounding margin (+27, 48-21) in program history and racked up 23 assists on 30 made field goals. They held ASU to 30.2 percent (16-53) shooting and forced 20 turnovers.

Conchi Satorre pitched in five points and a trio of boards in 10 minutes of action to lead the reserves in scoring. The Lady Braves scored the first two points of the contest on a jumper, but UTEP punched back with a 12-0 surge over the next five minutes. The home side never trailed again.

biggest win under coach baker

UTEP’s 26-point romp against Alcorn State served as its largest margin of victory under head coach Kevin Baker. The previous high was a 20-point differential (69-49) vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Nov. 18, 2017.

jenkins has night to remember

Sophomore Jordan Jenkins had a memorable contest against Alcorn State, establishing career highs for points (11), field goals made (four) and field goals attempted (seven). Jenkins also matched her personal bests for free throws made (two) and attempted (two). She dished out a team-leading six assists, but more importantly had only one turnover.

Jenkins also took three charges. It marked her second career double-digit scoring contest, but first in the regular season. She tallied 10 points in the quarterfinals of the 2018 C-USA Championships against UAB (March 8, 2018).

worth the wait

Ariona Gill, who sat out last year as a redshirt, had a quality debut for the Orange and Blue. She tallied 15 points to go along with five rebounds and four assists in 25 minutes of action. The redshirt-junior was 6-9 from the floor, including 2-2 on 3-pointers, while splitting (1-2) her charity stripe tosses.

quick hitters from the opener

UTEP outscored ASU by at least five points in every frame for the first time against a DI opponent since NCAA women’s basketball switched to a four-quarter format for the 2015-16 season … the 26-point margin of victory was the largest in program history when committing at least 27 turnovers in a contest … all 10 Miners who dressed vs. Alcorn State had at least two points and two rebounds while earning at least 10 minutes of playing time.

start it up

UTEP improved to 25-20 all time in season openers, including 21-7 when doing so in El Paso. The Miners are now 2-0 under Kevin Baker in season lidlifters.

45 YEARS AND COUNTING

The 2018-19 season marks the 45th in program history. The 1974-75 squad, the inaugural one at UTEP, will be honored in the Miners’ game against WKU on Feb. 2, 2019. The 1974-75 finished 11-5, including 8-1 in El Paso.

GETTING TO KNOW THE 2018-19 MINERS

UTEP returned four letter winners (Jordan Alexander-8.4 ppg, 6.0 rpg, Jordan Jenkins-2.0 ppg, 1.4 apg, Zuzanna Puc-9.1 ppg, 4.3 rpg and Katarina Zec-9.2 ppg, 3.8 rpg) from last year’s squad (17-14, 7-9 C-USA). Also back are a pair of players (Ariona Gill and Neidy Ocuane) who sat out last year as redshirts.

The Miners also added six newcomers (Eliana Cabral, freshman guard, Alexa Hoy, sophomore guard, Sabine Lipe, freshman guard, Jade Rochelle, junior guard/forward, Conchi Satorre, freshman point guard and Ariana Taylor, freshman forward), but Cabral is slated to take a redshirt year in 2018-19. The squad is under the direction of second-year head coach Kevin Baker, who is assisted by Lori Morris, Michael Madrid and Kayla Weaver.

INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR

Half (6-12) of the Miners’ roster in 2018-19 is comprised of international players. It is the largest such ratio (50 percent) in program history Eliana Cabral (Portugal), Sabine Lipe (Latvia), Neidy Ocuane (Mozambique), Zuzanna Puc (Poland), Conchi Satorre (Spain) and Katarina Zec (Serbia) give UTEP a distinct international flavor this season.

TEXAS STRONG

The Miners feature five native Texans (Jordan Alexander, Dallas, Alexa Hoy, Rockwall, Jordan Jenkins, Tennessee Colony, Jade Rochelle, Grandview and Ariana Taylor, Houston) on the roster. The only other American on the team (Ariona Gill) hails from Las Vegas, Nv.

SHARING THE LEADERSHIP

For the third straight season the Miners features a squad with just one senior (Jordan Alexander). She is far from alone in terms of leadership, with five juniors (Ariona Gill, Neidy Ocuane, Zuzanna Puc, Jade Rochelle and Katarina Zec) on the roster. Puc and Zec have earned a pair of letters for the Miners. Gill and Ocuane sat out last season as redshirts, while Rochelle is a transfer from Blinn College.

NOTING THE SCHEDULE

UTEP (1-0) has 29 games on tap in the 2018-19 regular season, including 15 slated to be played at the Don Haskins Center. The Miners will compete in a pair of tournaments (Seventh-Annual UTEP Thanksgiving Classic and Las Vegas Christmas Shootout) during nonconference action.

UTEP will also face both NM State (Nov. 17-home) and New Mexico (Dec. 5-road), in addition to Pacific-12 member Arizona (Dec. 17-road) and former C-USA foe Tulsa (Dec. 29-road). There are 16 C-USA games on the docket. The 2019 C-USA Championships will be held at The Star in Frisco, Texas, for the second straight year, with the winner clinching the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

THE BAKER FILE (OVERALL: 362-145, COLLEGE: 140-44, UTEP: 18-14)

Kevin Baker is in his second year (18-14) at the helm of the UTEP women’s basketball team. He is in his 17th year overall (362-145) as a head coach, including his seventh season (140-44) as a college head coach. He has a unique background which has seen him rise through the coaching ranks from the high school level, to NCAA Division III, then NCAA Division II and now his NCAA Division I position at UTEP.

He has set school records for wins at every previous stop of his career, and has taken every  prior school to the postseason with a total of five district championships. He is an eight-time Coach of the Year. In his most-recent posts prior to UTEP, Baker’s teams captured back-to-back conference championships at UT-Tyler and Angelo State.

Baker led both a Division II (Angelo State) and Division III (UT-Tyler) school to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.

BAKER’S FIRST-YEAR SUCCESS

Kevin Baker set the school record for most wins (17-14) by a first-year Miner head coach in 2017-18, but that doesn’t even begin to tell the whole story. The seven previous first-year head coaches had an average combined record of 8-17. Carol Ammermann (11-5, 1974-75) and Janet Wood (11-16, 1979-80) shared the school mark for wins (11). Baker obliterated that mark while also joining Ammermann as the lone individuals to experience a winning season in year one at UTEP. Furthermore, Baker became the initial first-year Miner head coach to taste victory at the league tournament.

CHANCE AT MORE HISTORY

Kevin Baker has the opportunity to continue his record-setting ways in 2018-19. If the Miners can finish above .500 (currently 1-0), Baker would become the first coach in program history to post winning records in each of their opening two seasons. Carol Ammermann went 11-5 in 1974-75, but slipped to 6-11 the ensuing year.

winning numbers under baker

The Miners are 8-0 under Kevin Baker ( 1-0 this year) when shooting at least 50 percent from the floor. Other notable records in the Baker era include being 14-4 (1-0 in ‘18-19) when tied or leading after three quarters, 9-1 (1-0 this year) when scoring 70+ points and  8-1 (1-0 this season) when drilling better than 40 percent from 3-point range (min. four makes).

In the rankings

Through all games played on Nov. 11, 2018, UTEP paced Conference USA and boasted top-20 NCAA marks in 3-point field-goal percentage (.500; ninth), rebounding margin (+27.0; 12th), field-goal percentage (.526; 17th) and assists per game (23.0; 19th). The Miners are also among the league/national leaders in field-goal percentage defense (.302; third/55th), scoring defense (51.0; third/56th), scoring margin (+26.0; second/61st), 3-point field-goal percentage defense (fourth/61st), rebounds per game (48.0; third/73rd) and scoring offense (77.0; sixth/97th). Jordan Jenkins is ranked in assist-to-turnover ratio (+6.00; first/19th) and assists per game (6.0; second/46th), Ariona Gill is rated in 3-point field-goal percentage (100.0; tied first/tied first) and field-goal percentage (66.7; fourth/77th) and Zuzanna Puc checks in for field-goal percentage (66.7; fourth/77th).

FOURTH BEST IN TEXAS SINCE 2006-07

The Miners have the fourth-highest winning percentage and fourth-most victories among all DI programs in the state of Texas since 2006-07. Power conference members Baylor (385-53, 87.0%), Texas A&M (311-108, 74.2%) and  Texas (264-140, 65.3%) lead the way followed by the Miners (247-134, 64.8%). Lamar (235-142, 62.3%), Stephen F. Austin (227-147, 60.7%), TCU (224-164, 57.7%), Prairie View A&M (204-178, 53.4), SMU (198-176, 52.9%), and Texas Tech (187-196, 48.8%-10th) round out the top 10.

SPECIAL RUN

The Miners are 147-80 since the start of the 2011-12 season, with 86 double-digit victories in that time frame. UTEP has played postseason basketball three times during the stretch, making two deep runs in the WNIT (2014 runner-up, 2016 quarterfinals) and earning the C-USA automatic bid to the 2012 NCAA Tournament (lost, first round). The Orange and Blue have enjoyed 15 separate winning streaks of at least three games during that time frame.

HOME SWEET HOME

UTEP has an all-time home record of 361-219, including standing 1-0 in the Don Haskins Center in 2018-19. The Miners have amassed a record of 162-45 at home since 2006-07, including 95-28 since 2011-12. Aiding that 95-28 mark was a school-record (winning percentage) 19-1 home record in 2015-16. UTEP has been particularly strong in nonconference play, standing 81-12 in the Sun City in such contests since 2006-07.

TRAVEL TIME

UTEP is 144-363 all time on the road, including finishing 5-8 in 2017-18. When playing at a neutral site the Miners stand 60-79, including 3-1 last year. Since the start of the 2006-07 season UTEP is 60-68 on the road, including 36-37 since 2011-12.

QUICK YEAR IN REVIEW

The Miners compiled an overall record of 17-14 (7-9 in C-USA play, 9-4 in nonconference action) to surge past the 2016-17 team’s overall victory total (8-23) by nine wins while also exceeding the number of league victories (5-13 C-USA). UTEP also won a game at the C-USA tournament, and it even led top-seed UAB by five points late in the third quarter before ultimately succumbing, 75-66, on March 8, 2018.

GETTING AFTER IT ON THE GLASS

The Miners sported the second-best rebounding margin (+7.9) in program history in 2017-18. UTEP won the boards on average, 39.2-31.3. The effort trailed only the 2011-12 squad, which boasted a +9.5 margin (44.2-34.7)

CALL YOUR SHOT

The Orange and Blue showed off good shot selection in 2017-18, finishing with the second-highest shooting percentage (.435) in a season at UTEP in program history. The Miners drilled 710-1632 from the floor. Only the 1980-81 unit (.450) shot it better.

getting it done at the line

UTEP was locked in at the charity stripe in 2017-18, connecting on the second-highest percentage (.735) from the line in school history. The Miners connected on 435-587 free throws last year, which trailed only the efforts of the 2002-03 unit (.746).

CLOSE CALLS

UTEP finished 7-5 in games decided by five points or less in 2017-18, which set the school standard for the most such victories in a season in program history.

connect on social media

Fans are encouraged to connect with the Miners on Facebook (UTEP Women’s Basketball), Instagram (@utepwbb) and Twitter (@UTEPWBB).

BASIC FACTS ON UTEP

UTEP is 565-662 in its 45th season as a women’s basketball program, including standing 1-0 in 2018-19. The Miners have made four postseason bids (2016,-WNIT quarterfinals; 2014-WNIT runner-up, 2012-NCAA first round and 2008-NCAA second round), sporting a combined record of 9-4 (8-2 WNIT, 1-2 NCAA).

UTEP has claimed four league championships (2016 C-USA regular season, 2012 C-USA regular season and conference tournament and 2008 C-USA regular season). It has a 1-1 record all time in league tournament title games, cutting down the nets in 2012 and falling in 2008. There have been six 20+ win seasons (all since 2006-07), UTEP has cracked the top-25 poll in two seasons (2015-16, 2007-08), including being ranked in the final six weeks in ‘07-08, while receiving votes in seven campaigns total (‘15-16, ‘13-14, ‘12-13, ‘11-12, ‘08-09, ‘07-08 and ‘06-07).

The Miners have been mentioned in the AP Preseason Poll four times (most recent 2016-17). In 2008 UTEP became the first C-USA women’s team to finish undefeated in league play (16-0) while claiming the program’s initial league title. The Miners finished 15-1 in C-USA in 2012 in addition to also winning the program’s first conference tournament championship. UTEP owns the C-USA single-season record for winning streak at 23, which was set in 2007-08.

The young UTEP men’s basketball team will get another huge test as it travels to Tucson to take on national power Arizona on Wednesday, November 14 at the McKale Center.

Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. MT and the game can be seen on the Pac-12 Network.

“These kinds of games are game that help prepare for us for conference play. We’re playing, obviously, a well-respected program in our region and nationally,” first-year UTEP Head Coach Rodney Terry said. “The Arizona program speaks for itself and what they’ve been able to do over the years. I have a lot of respect for their program and it’s a quality opponent that prepares us for conference play. It’s one of the best environments in college basketball. You come to UTEP to play in these kinds of games. We’re excited about the opportunity, it’s a great challenge for us.”

The Miners and Wildcats can also be heard on KOFX 92.3 FM and TuneIn.com with Jon Teicher and Steven Yellen handling the call, while a Spanish broadcast is available on ESPN Deportes 1560 AM with Omar Ropele.

UTEP (1-1) has split its first two games of the season, defeating UT Permian Basin, 90-63, on Nov. 6 and falling at rival NM State, 96-69, on Nov. 9. Arizona (2-0) is coming off an 82-61 victory over Cal Poly on Nov. 11 in the McKale Center, while it opened the season with a 90-60 win over Houston Baptist in Tucson.

The Miners are playing at Arizona for the first time since Nov. 15, 2012, while it’s the first meeting between the two teams since Dec. 19, 2014 in El Paso. The Miners came up short against the-then no. 3 Wildcats, 60-55, in front of a sold-out crowd in the Haskins Center.

Evan Gilyard leads the Miners in scoring at 24.5 points per game. The sophomore guard led UTEP with a 24-point performance against UT Permian and put up another 25 points at NM State. He’s the first sophomore in UTEP history to score 49 points in the first two games of the season, while he’s the first Miner since 1994 (Antoine Gillespie) to score 24 points or more in the first two games of the season.

Kobe Magee has been an ironman the first two games into his sophomore season. Magee is the first Miner to play all 40 minutes in the first two games of a campaign. Magee chipped in with 12 points at NM State, while he tied for the team lead with seven rebounds.

Gilyard joined Magee in playing all 40 minutes at NM State.

Efe Odigie has had a solid start statistically to begin his UTEP career. The freshman is second on the team with an 18.0 points per game scoring average, while also collecting 7.0 rebounds per outing. Fellow freshman Jordan Lathon has rebounded well at the guard positon. Lathon leads the Miners at 8.5 rebounds per game after ripping 10 down in the season opener and tallying anther seven at NM State.

The Wildcats are led by 6-foot-6 sophomore guard Brandon Randolph’s 17.5 points per game, while 6-foot-10 redshirt junior forward/center Chase Jeter ranks second on the team in scoring (13.5 ppg). Jeter and 6-foot-5 redshirt junior guard Dylan Smith have each pulled down 16 rebounds (8.0 rpg) in the early going. Freshman guard Brandon Williams (11.0 ppg) has tallied 13 of the team’s 29 assists. Senior forward Ryan Luther (6-foot-9) is averaging 11.5 points per game along with 6.5 rebounds per contest and leads the team with four steals.

The Wildcats are averaging 86.0 points per game (172 points), while yielding 60.5 ppg (121 points). U of A has connected on over 47 percent (60-127) of its field goals, including over 33 percent (15-45) from beyond the arc. Arizona is 37-for-50 (74 percent) from the charity stripe, while it outrebounds opponents 93-72 (45.6 rpg overall).

The Miners will return to the Don Haskins Center for a Nov. 19 contest (7 p.m.) against Eastern New Mexico. UTEP season tickets are on sale by calling (915) 747-6150.

IRVING, Texas – Junior outside hitter Macey Austin was selected to the 2018 InTouch Credit Union C-USA All-Academic Team, the league announced on Tuesday afternoon.

Austin started in all 26 matches and played in all 99 sets for the Miners this season. She set a season career high in kills with 366 (eighth in C-USA) and kills per set with 3.70 (fifth in C-USA).

The junior registered 22 double-digit kill outings, along with eight double-doubles. Her best performance of the season came against Illinois-Chicago (8/31) when she recorded 23 kills and 14 digs in a five-set victory over the Flames.

The Keller, Texas, native boasts a 3.95 GPA majoring in kinesiology. She is a two-time C-USA Commissioner’s Academic Medal recipient (2017 & 2018) and C-USA Commissioner’s Academic Honor Roll honoree (2017 & 2018).

Austin became only the 10th player in program history to reach the 1,000-kill mark, and rates fourth all-time in kills per set (3.25).

She is the first player to lead the Orange and Blue in kills for three-consecutive seasons (2016, 17 and 18) since Amy Sanders (2007, 08 and 09).

On Tuesday, the UTEP volleyball team announced the addition of defensive specialist/libero Sofia Sifuentes on Tuesday afternoon.

Sifuentes, a native of El Paso, Texas, played her high school career at Coronado High School. In her senior year she helped lead the T-Birds to a 36-7 record, earning a district championship and a Regional Semifinal appearance in the state playoffs.

She is a three-year letter winner at Coronado, and during her senior campaign the defensive specialist accumulated 271 digs, 2.4 digs per set and 21 aces. She produced six double-digit dig performances, and registered a career-high 16 digs in a four-set victory over Midland (9/15).

Sifuentes is the granddaughter of legendary volleyball head coach Norman Brandl, who produced the second most wins (355) in UTEP history by any head coach. Her mother, Chris Brandl, played at UTEP from 1988-1991, and recorded the most assists (4,210) and aces (148) by any player in program history.

“I chose UTEP to continue my volleyball career following in my mother’s footsteps. The location of the campus grants me the opportunity to study biology in depth, while remaining minutes away from my family at home.” Sifuentes said

UTEP Director of Athletics Jim Senter announced on Monday that volleyball head coach Holly Watts will not return for the 2019 season.

“While the hard work and dedication is unquestioned, the results on the court did not meet expectations under Holly’s leadership,” Senter said.  “We thank her for her service to UTEP and wish her well in the future.”

Watts finishes her UTEP tenure with a record of 48-127, including a 24-64 mark in Conference USA play.

The Miners last posted double-digit victories (14) in her first season as head coach in 2013.

UTEP qualified for the Conference USA Tournament twice in her six seasons as head coach, in 2013 and 2016.  The Miners finished 5-21 in 2018 with a 2-12 C-USA record.

A native of Devine, Texas, Watts played at Texas from 1989-93 and was elected the team’s Most Valuable Player in 1993. Watts also played one season for the Texas basketball team (1993-94), averaging 15.4 minutes, 7.5 points, and 5.6 rebounds, with a .593 field goal percentage. Her efforts helped the Longhorns to an SWC title and top-25 ranking.

She began her coaching career at the University of Texas at Arlington (1994-96), while also founding and coaching the Texas Impact Volleyball Club team during that time. Watts moved on to Arkansas in 1996. The next 12 years (1996-2007) saw the Lady Razorbacks fashion a 272-129 mark, including 138-56 in the Southeastern Conference.

A national search will begin immediately to hire her successor.

UTEP cross country’s Linda Cheruiyot and Winny Koech were named to the 2018 U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) NCAA Division I Cross Country All-Region team on Monday.

Cheruiyot will be making her first NCAA Championship appearance after qualifying at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships. The junior finished 10th overall, posting a personal-best time of 20:05.1 in the 6K race.

Cheruiyot also claimed the crown at the Conference USA Championships, helping the women’s team earn its first conference team title.

Koech has punched her ticket to the NCAA Championships for the third straight year. The junior has been a consistent force for the Miners, winning three meets this season.

Koech finished 13th overall at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships, posting a time of 20:10.1. She registered a silver-medal finish at the C-USA Championships, securing first-team honors.

The Miners will take the course on Saturday in Madison, Wi. in the NCAA Championships.

Zuzanna Puc poured in 18 points to pace a quartet of players in double figures as the UTEP women’s basketball team cruised to a 77-51 season-opening win against Alcorn State at the Don Haskins Center Saturday evening.

Redshirt-junior Ariona Gill (15 points), sophomore Jordan Jenkins (career-high 11 points, six assists) and Katarina Zec (11 points, personal-best tying nine rebounds) also got after it for the Miners (1-0). UTEP connected on 52.6 percent (30-57) from the floor, tied for the sixth-best rebounding margin (+27, 48-21) in program history and racked up 23 assists on 30 made field goals.

The Lady Braves (0-2) were held to 30.2 percent (16-53) shooting and committed 20 turnovers. Jada Hargrove finished with 10 points to lead her squad.

Freshman Conchi Satorre pitched in five points and a trio of boards in 10 minutes of action to lead the reserves in scoring.

“We definitely got better today,” UTEP head coach Kevin Baker said. “Our team improved. We were not perfect, it’s your typical first game of the year. Sometimes in your first game of the year you’re going to have 27 turnovers. I’m not proud of that, I’m not excited about that. But there’s way more positives out there that we can build on. We’re looking forward to CSU Bakersfield (on Wednesday).”

The Miners improved to 2-0 in season openers under Baker. They are now 25-20 all time in campaign lidlifters, including 21-8 when doing so in El Paso.

Alcorn State scored the first two points of the contest on a jumper, but UTEP punched back with a 12-0 surge over the next five minutes. Jenkins capped the run with a corner triple. The Lady Braves regrouped with an 8-2 push to get within four (14-10). A free throw from Neidy Ocuane and a triple by Gill sent it back to eight (18-10) before a late score from ASU made it 18-12 through 10 minutes of action.

UTEP started to open things up in the second quarter, ripping off six consecutive points to vault ahead by 14 (30-16) with 3:49 left in the frame. It was back-and-forth the rest of the way, with the Miners settling for a 12-point cushion (37-25) heading to halftime.

UTEP used a big run at the onset of the third quarter, essentially putting the game away in the process. The Miners unleashed a 16-2 surge to extend their advantage to 26 (53-27) with 5:26 left in the frame. ASU finally got on track a bit, allowing it to trim the deficit to 21 (60-39) heading to the fourth quarter.

It was a mere formality in the final frame, with UTEP extending its advantage to as many as 29 (72-43). Aiding in that was a 12-2 run, which was capped by a 3-pointer from Satorre.

UTEP will continue its season-opening five-game homestand when it plays host to CSU Bakersfield at 7 p.m. Wednesday. Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for kids, and may be purchased by calling (915) 747-5234.

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Brent Stockstill threw for 352 yards and four touchdowns, and Conference USA East Division leader Middle Tennessee won for the sixth time in seven games with a 48-32 victory at UTEP on Saturday afternoon.

Ty Lee recorded 10 catches for a career-high 158 yards for Middle Tennessee (7-3, 6-1 C-USA), which jumped out to a 14-0 lead and scored 27 of the game’s first 34 points.

The tone was set early as Middle Tennessee drove 75 yards on nine plays for a touchdown on its opening possession, then capitalized on a UTEP fumble to score again less than three minutes later.

“That was a pretty frenetic game for sure, a lot of stuff going on,” UTEP coach Dana Dimel said. “I obviously wasn’t happy with the way we started the ballgame. On the first drive we got them into a third and long, they converted (it) and got a nice drive going. They got the first score in. But then offensively, we had a turnover right after that and put them in good field position. So I wasn’t happy at all with our early execution. It allowed them to get some momentum on the road. You’ve got to come out and start faster and start a little more precise than we did tonight. And from then, we were just playing behind.”

The game got away from the Miners after they pulled within a touchdown (14-7) on a seven-yard rushing score by Quardraiz Wadley early in the second quarter. Middle Tennessee tacked on a couple more touchdowns in the quarter, and UTEP couldn’t get closer than 16 points in the second half.

The Miners did get the ball back down a couple of scores with 3:25 to go, but Kai Locksley was sacked twice on the series and UTEP was unable to pick up a first down.

“We made some runs in the game,” Dimel said. “We got some deficits there that were larger than what we’ve been in for quite a while, but again our team rebounded in those types of situations and showed a lot of fight and a lot of character. I really liked what they did as far as making plays and battling. Our defense was out there quite a bit, but they battled and they battled and did some really positive things even though to the naked eye it may not appear that way. And then our offense found some rhythm in the second half and responded, had some success.”

A late flurry gave the Miners (1-9, 1-5 C-USA) a season high for points. They have scored 30+ points in consecutive C-USA games for the first time since the 2014 season. UTEP scored 22 points in the fourth quarter.

Wadley had a big day for UTEP, rushing 15 times for 99 yards and two touchdowns while going over 1,000 yards (1,019) for his career.

Stockstill was precision-sharp for Middle Tennessee, completing 31-of-40 passes with no interceptions.

“He played as good of a game as any quarterback I’ve been around for quite a while,” Dimel said. “That kid really, really played a ballgame today. He put some passes in some spots and he had to go to his third, fourth and fifth progressions at times and he does it so quickly and gets out there. You can just tell that he grew up in the game, he’s talented and he’s got some moxie and some savvy to what he does.”

The Blue Raiders gained 491 yards to the Miners’ 333.

Locksley and Brandon Jones both saw action for the Miners at quarterback, combining to complete 18-of-39 passes for 218 yards. The tight ends had a huge afternoon for UTEP, as Josh Weeks (4-71) and David Lucero (4-62) were the top two receivers.

UTEP had a pair of double-figure tacklers in A.J. Hotchkins (14) and Nik Needham (10), while Reed Blankenship led Middle Tennessee with nine tackles and two pass breakups.

The special teams standout for the Miners was Terry Juniel with 95 kickoff return yards and 21 punt return yards. He now ranks ninth in school history with 1,103 kickoff return yards.

“Overall our execution can be better than what it was today, but our effort was tremendous,” Dimel said.

The Miners will play their final road game of 2018 next Saturday (Nov. 17) at WKU. Kickoff is set for 5:30 p.m. MT and the game will be televised on beIN Sports.

Photo gallery courtesy Andres ‘Ace’ Acosta, Chief Photographer, El Paso Herald-Post

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The UTEP rifle team fired a season-high aggregate (4611) in a match at fellow Patriot Rifle Conference member Ohio State (4651) on Saturday.

The Miners shot a season-high tying 2284 in smallbore before also matching their campaign best in air rifle (2329).

“Today was an exciting day,” UTEP head coach Austin Litherland said. “The team showed the hard work they have put into the range the past two weeks. A coach cannot ask any more from their athletes than to put their maximum effort into their sport. The girls also know that we still have two more matches left until the fall semester is up so we will continue to work on improving at the range.”

Freshman Morgahn Warner produced an aggregate of 1160, registering 575 in smallbore and a career-high 585 in air rifle.

Junior Mara Rouse fired a career-high tying aggregate of 1156, relying on a personal-best 577 in smallbore and 579 in air rifle.

Sophomore Jessica Boyce notched an aggregate of 1149, using 563 in smallbore and 586 in air rifle.

Senior Maranda Nelson compiled an aggregate of 1143, recording 568 in smallbore and 575 in air rifle.

Sophomore Samantha Miller checked in with an aggregate of 1141, tallying 564 in smallbore and 577 in air rifle.

Freshman Josephine John shot a career-high aggregate of 1134, using a personal-best 562 in smallbore and 577 in air rifle.

The Miners will look to build on the effort when they return home against Alaska-Fairbanks at 8:30 a.m. MT Thursday at the UTEP rifle range. Admission is free.

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LAS CRUCES, N.M. – Evan Gilyard scored a team-high 23 points and Kobe Magee added 15, but NM State surged out to a four-point lead heading into the locker room after being down most of the first half.

“NM State pulled away and we just kind of stopped guarding them. Our defense kind of let us down towards the end of the first half,” first-year UTEP Head Coach Rodney Terry said. “We got off to a great start from an offensive standpoint, but those guys [NM State] made some big shots to close out the first half the right way. At halftime the challenge was, for our young guys, ‘how are you going to come out and respond?’ We’re going to come back and put it on our defense, really come out and try to get a stop. We had to start the half the right way, set our defense and try to get back after it again.”

The Aggies (2-0) then took care of business during the second half in front of their home crowd to down the Miners (1-1), 96-69, on Friday night in the Pan American Center.

UTEP went up as many as nine points (18-9) to open the contest, while even taking a six-point lead (29-23) at the midway point during the first stanza. But NM State finished out on a 20-10 run to close out the half and take a 43-39 lead.

NM State outscored UTEP, 53-30, during the big second half.

The Miners got within six points (51-45) during the second period, but the Aggies used another run (8-0) to pull away for good.

Freshman Efe Odigie registered another double-digit performance after scoring 12 points, while also pulling down nine rebounds for the second straight game to open his UTEP career. Senior Paul Thomas tallied 10 points, while freshman Jordan Lathon chipped in with six and sophomore transfer Gilles Dekoninck connected on a three-point bucket during the first half.

Gilyard produced his first back-to-back 20-point effort in his career after leading the Miners in scoring with 24 points against UT Permian Basin on Nov. 6. Gilyard also drew a pair of charges during the contest.

“This year’s team will need [Gilyard’s] scoring,” Terry said. “Obviously, he’s an older guy who is able to do that and we’re allowing him to be able to do that for us. Nigel [Hawkins] will bring some scoring as well for us.”

Freshman Nigel Hawkins missed his second straight contest with hopes of making his UTEP debut soon.

Up Next
UTEP will play at Pac-12 power Arizona on Wednesday, November 14. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. MT at the McKale Memorial Center.

The Miners will play in Tucson for the first time since the 2012-13 season, while facing the Wildcats for the first time since the 2014-15 campaign when the two tangled in the Don Haskins Center.

Provo, Utah – Juniors Linda Cheruiyot and Winny Koech earned a spot at the NCAA Championships on Friday after finishing in the top 15 at the 2018 NCAA Cross Country Mountain Region Championships.

“I am very proud of both the men and women’s teams for competing at the regional championships,” head coach Paul Ereng said. “The women’s team again performed very well, managing to advance Cheruiyot and Koech, who will represent our institution at the national championships.”

Cheruiyot clocked in a personal best of 20:05.1 in the 6K, finishing 10th in the competitive field. This marks the first time that the distance runner has advanced to the NCAA Championships.

Koech punched her ticket to the national meet for the third straight year. The last Miner to make three appearances at the national meet was Risper Kimaiyo (2009-2012). Koech finished 13th out of 136 runners with a time of 20:10.1.

Carolyne Chepkosgei was the third Miner to cross the finish line, taking 33rd place with a time of 20:57.0.

Rounding out the women’s team were sophomore’s Andrea Lucero and Destiny White.

The young men’s team finished three runners in the top 70 out of 120 competitors.

Sophomore Cornelius Kapel was the Miners’ top runner, posting a personal-best time of 30:55.0 in the 10K.

Freshmen Boaz Ronoh (30:57.4) and Rodgers Korir (31:10.8) followed, finishing 59th and 67th overall, respectively.

Also taking the course was senior Antony Kosgei (32:32.6), freshman Isaiah Page (34:28.8), freshman Michael Sims (35:50.1) and freshman Daniel Maes (37:03.7).

Both teams finished 13th overall at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships.

Cheruiyot and Koech will close out the cross country season at the national meet in Madison, Wisconsin, on November 17.

The UTEP rifle team will compete at fellow Patriot Rifle Conference member Ohio State in a match beginning at 11:30 a.m. MT (1 p.m. ET) Saturday.

The Miners are coming off a season-high aggregate (4602) in a two-day match at Nevada (Oct. 27-28). UTEP registered 2273 in smallbore before firing a campaign-best 2329 in air rifle.

“We are excited to compete against Ohio State,” UTEP head coach Austin Litherland said. “The team had a weekend off from competing to make improvements to their shot process and positions. Our focus has been staying in the zone and one 10 at a time.”

Sophomore Jessica Boyce has paced the team in the fall, producing the top average on the squad for smallbore (569), air rifle (583) and aggregate (1152). Junior Mara Rouse follows in aggregate (1144), but freshman Morgahn Warner has come on strong of late to lift her aggregate average to 1142.

Warner has established career highs in each of the past two matches, with the most-recent performance (1165) serving as the top aggregate on the season for any Miner.

Senior Maranda Nelson checks in with an average aggregate of 1138, including a season and career-best 1161. That was achieved on Oct. 13, in a tri-angular meet with Air Force and Nevada.

Sophomore Samantha Miller has posted back-to-back career efforts, including an 1152 at Nevada (Oct. 27-28). The push has propelled her aggregate average to 1134. Freshman Josephine John has an aggregate average of 1122, aided by a career-high tying 1128 at Nevada (Oct. 27-28).

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UTEP Head Coach Rodney Terry, along with his revamped roster will experience their first Battle of I-10 on Friday (Nov. 9) as UTEP will face NM State for the first time this season.

Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. in the Pan American Center.

“It’s obviously a great rivalry, one that we have tremendous respect for and respect for their program and what they’ve been able to do,” Terry said. “There’s obvious respect for coach (Chris) Jans and how he gets his guys prepared to compete at a very high level. I think it’s great for both of us to compete at a high level and continue to get better.”

The Miners and Aggies will face each other for the 216th time on Friday night, while the two will square off for a second time this season on Wednesday, November 28 in the Don Haskins Center.

The November 9 date is the earliest that the two programs will meet in the history of the rivalry, while it’s the second time since the 2014-15 season that UTEP will take on NM State in its second game of the season.

The Miners (1-0) are coming off a 90-63 victory over UT Permian Basin on Nov. 6, while Terry chalked up his first win as UTEP’s head coach. Terry started two freshmen in Efe Odigie and Jordan Lathon, while Kaosi Ezeagu played significant minutes off the bench. The trio combined for 39 points, the second-most combined points ever by UTEP freshmen in a season opener.

Odigie impressed in his UTEP debut, scoring 23 points and pulling down nine rebounds in 19 minutes of action. Odigie’s tied the most points ever by a UTEP freshman in a season opener. Terry’s other big man, Ezeagu, made a positive impression, scoring 10 points, tallying nine rebounds and blocking a pair of shots. Lathon led the Miners with 10 rebounds, dished out four assists, blocked two shots and chipped in with six points. Lathon was the first UTEP freshman with 10-plus boards in a season opener since 1978.

As far as UTEP’s returning letterwinners, Paul Thomas energized the Miner faithful and his teammates with a thunderous dunk over a UT Permian Basin defender during the second half. The senior scored 10 points, blocked a shot, tallied a pair of dimes and three rebounds.

Evan Gilyard led the Miners with 24 points on 6-of-9 shooting from beyond the arc. The sophomore sensation scored 16 of his points during the second half, while connecting on 5-of-7 three-point buckets. Gilyard tied for the team lead with fellow sophomore Kobe Magee as each dished out five assists. Magee was the first Miner to play the full 40 minutes in season opener since Nov. 21, 2000.

After heading to the locker room up four points (38-34), Terry’s squad came out with more intensity during the second half and outscored the Falcons, 52-29, after hitting on more than 65 percent of their field goals. Overall, UTEP connected on over 52 percent of its field goals, while going 11-for-23 from three-point range. The Miners also dished out 19 assists, combined for six blocks and outrebounded their opponent, 42-40. UTEP’s 42 free throw attempts were its third-most in a season opener.

The Aggies (1-0) also won on opening night, defeating North Dakota State, 73-56. Redshirt senior JoJo Zamora led the team with 16 points in 19 minutes, while junior Terrell Brown scored 13 points off the bench. Junior Clayton Henry led NM State with seven rebounds and chipped in with eight points. The Aggies recorded eight assists and outrebounded NDSU 47-31.

UTEP and NM State is the longest-running series in school history, as the Aggies lead the series 112-103.

Last season during the first meeting on Nov. 25 in Las Cruces, Thomas (30 minutes) and Gilyard (33 minutes) tied for the team lead with 14 points each and registered five rebounds apiece.

During the second meeting in El Paso, Thomas recorded nine points and three rebounds, while Magee, after only playing one minute in the first meeting, upped his minutes to eight in the second game.

The UTEP volleyball team (5-20, 2-11 C-USA) fell at North Texas (14-15, 10-3 C-USA) in four sets (16-25, 25-20, 9-25, 17-25), on Thursday evening.

Macey Austin was a standout in Thursday night’s match with 18 kills, hitting at a .325 clip and adding six digs. Austin produced a remarkable second set, tallying 10 kills to boost the Miners to the set victory.

Kristen Fritsche notched 32 assists and eight digs, while Briana Bustillos paced UTEP with 15 digs. Martine Kragholm helped the Orange and Blue out block the Mean Green with six total blocks on the night.

The Miners and Mean Green had back and forth action to begin the first set. With the score tied at 8-8, North Texas would string together a 7-1 run that gave it a 15-9 advantage on its home court. The run gave the Mean Green all of the cushion they needed to secure the set, 25-16.

Austin asserted her dominance in the second set with 10 kills, as her teammates could sense she was in the zone. Her effort helped the Miners claim the set, 25-20.

North Texas in the third set built up a large run that allowed it to control the entirety of the game, 25-9.

The Mean Green picked up where they left off in the third set, taking control early and throughout the fourth set. The Miners fought hard behind stellar and strong play from Austin, but ultimately fell,

Net Notes

• Macey Austin recorded her 994th kill of her career, only needing six to reach the 1,000 kill plateau
• The Miners will hit the road for the final match of the season against UTSA (18-7, 10-3 C-USA) on Saturday at 11 a.m. MT.

The UTEP cross country team is heading to Provo, Utah, to compete at the NCAA Mountain Region Championships at the East Bay Golf Course on Friday.

The women’s team will take the course first in the 6K run at 11 a.m. MT, followed by the men’s 10K race set for 12 p.m.

Five of the 20 women’s Mountain Region teams head into this week’s meet nationally ranked (No. 1 New Mexico, No. 4 Colorado, No. 9 BYU, No. 22 Southern Utah and No. 28 Northern Arizona).

The women are coming off a stellar showing at the 2018 Conference USA Championships. The Miners claimed their first conference title in program history with four of the top-six spots on the leaderboard.

Leading the way for UTEP was junior Linda Cheruiyot, who took the conference crown with a time of 16:56.12 in the 5K. She was the first Miner to win the C-USA individual title since 2012.

Teammate Winny Koech was closely behind Cheruiyot, notching a second-place finish at the conference championships. The junior won the Santa Clara Bronco Invitational with a time of 20:00.9 in the 6K.

Carolyne Chepkosgei and Lilian Koech have been consistent runners for the Miners. Chepkosgei earned C-USA first-team honors and registered a fifth-place finish of 20:19.5 at the Santa Clara Bronco Invitational in the 6K. Koech garnered conference first-team recognition with a time of 17:15.86.

Six of the 17 men’s Mountain Region teams will enter the meet nationally ranked (No. 1 Northern Arizona, No. 2 BYU, No. 8 Colorado, No. 13 Air Force, No. 14 Colorado State and No. 18 Wyoming.)

Leading the way for the men is freshman Boaz Ronoh, who finished second overall at the C-USA Championships with a time of 24:11.38 in the 8K.

Also highlighting the men’s squad is Rodgers Korir. The freshman clocked in a personal best of 24:12.9 at the Santa Clara Bronco Invitational in the 8K. He also received C-USA first-team honors after posting a fifth-place finish at the conference meet.

Teams that finish first and second in each region automatically qualify for the NCAA Championships while the remaining teams await the decision concerning 13 national at-large bids. The at-large selection is determined through a review of regular-season competition and finish at regional championships.

After teams have been determined, 38 additional individuals per gender are selected to compete at the NCAA Championships. Among individuals not selected as members of qualifying teams in the above process, the top four finishers at each regional meet are automatically selected (each must have finished within the top 25 of the region).

At-large selection: Two additional athletes will be selected from the remainder of the national pool (and must have finished in the regional top 25) as at-large individuals.

The race will be streamed online at FloTrack.org. Live stats, the course map and other general information can be found on  byucougars.com