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The UTEP Cross Country team will compete at the Under Armour Pre-National Invitational in Terre Haute Saturday, October 19.

The UTEP men will race in an 8K event (Blue Race), starting at 11:35 a.m. CT, while the women will compete in a 6K (White Race), starting at 11 a.m. CT.

The UTEP men’s squad will be composted of Cory Calvani, Titus Cheruiyot, Cornelius Kapel, Rodgers Korir, Kayn Quinones, Boaz Ronoh, Michael Sims and Kenneth Talavera.

On the women’s side, the competing Miners will be Carolyne Chepkosgei, Linda Cheruiyot, Karoline Daland, Joan Kimaiyo, Winny Koech, Andrea Lucero and Jacquilyn Orozco.

Saturday’s races will feature 57 men’s teams (602 athletes) and 64 women’s teams (659 athletes). Included in those numbers are nationally-ranked BYU (2^nd), Colorado (3^rd), Washington (4^th), Ole Miss (8^th), Oklahoma State (14^th), Indiana (15^th), Iona (21^st), Eastern Kentucky (25^th), Arkansas (27^th), Virginia Tech (29^th) and Florida State (30^th) on the men’s side and BYU (2^nd), Colorado (3^rd), Michigan (7^th), Washington (8^th), Boise State (11^th), Florida State (11^th), Ole Miss (17^th), Illinois (20^th), Boston College (26^th) and Oklahoma State (30^th) on the women’s side.

Results can be viewed via this link.  FloTrack will live at the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course on Saturday and fans can view the stream here.

UTEP will travel across two time zones this weekend as the Miners head to Miami for a matchup against East Division foe FIU on Saturday.

“I have been very pleased with the way the guys are playing and the type of effort they are putting in, how much they care, and I like the mentality of our football team,” head coach Dana Dimel said.

“FIU is a team that has a lot of speed on offense and defense. They are a really athletic team that had a good season last year and started off this year with some struggles early, but now, I think they have caught a little bit of momentum and rhythm to what they are doing. I think they do a nice job of using their talent-set on offense. They are very, very sound defensive football team that lines up and plays fast, aggressive and does some good things on defense. It will be a definite challenge for us.”

The Miners and Panthers last met in 2016 in a game FIU won, 35-21, in El Paso. FIU leads the all-time series, 2-1, over UTEP, with the Panthers winning the only meeting between the two teams in Miami during the 2015 season.

FIU has won the previous two meetings over the Miners in 2015 and 2016.

The game will be streamed on ESPN+ for subscribers with AJ Ricketts (play-by-play) and Kenny Kelly (analysis) calling all the action on Saturday night.

Fans can also tune in to the radio broadcast on ESPN 600 El Paso to hear Jon Teicher (play-by-play), Bernie Ricono (analysis) and Mando Medina (sideline).

Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. MT on Saturday, Oct. 19 at Riccardo Silva Stadium in Miami.

PREGAME NOTES

• UTEP enters the week ranked 17th in the nation after putting up near perfect numbers in the red zone through the first seven weeks of the college football season. The Miners enter Saturday’s road game at FIU 15-for-16 inside the 20-yard line.
• In five games, UTEP has eight touchdowns (7 rushing) and seven field goals for a total of 75 points put on the board in the red zone thus far.
• Offensively, the Miners are led by Treyvon Hughes, who has 64 carries for 314 yards and five rushing touchdowns in as many games, which ranks third in C-USA and 40th nationally. Hughes is averaging 62.8 yards per game and 4.9 yards per carry this season.
• Brandon Jones leads the way in the passing game for UTEP after going 42-of-78 with 594 passing yards and two touchdowns. Tre’Shon Wolf is UTEP’s leading receiver through five games with 16 catches for 218 yards and a pair of touchdown receptions.
• On defense, UTEP’s leading tackler is senior defensive back Michael Lewis, who has 38 total tackles (22 solo) to go along with one forced fumble and a fumble recovery. Justin Rogers leads the Miners with two fumble recoveries on the season, while he is also second on the team with 31 total tackles (16 solo).
• Graduate transfer Ykili Ross enters Saturday’s game with two interceptions on the season, which ranks first on the team.

Behind goals from Nicole Pugsley (31′) and Tessa Carlin (46′) and smothering defense, UTEP rolled past LA Tech, 2-0, at University Field Thursday evening.

The Miners (8-4-3, 3-2-1 C-USA) dominated the contest against the nation’s second-leading offense, outshooting the Lady Techsters (11-3-2, 3-3-1 C-USA) by a margin of 28-6. That included a 9-1 advantage for shots on goal.

Vanessa Cabello, Lauren Crenshaw and Pugsley all registered assists for the Orange and Blue.

“I’m super happy for the girls,” UTEP head coach Kathryn Balogun said. “LA Tech gave a different look than we’ve had in the past, and the girls handled it really well. We’ll continue to get better. We had 28 shots, nine on goal, and only finished two so we have got to get better there.”

Emily Parrott was credited with her fifth shutout of the season after making one save while Carlotta Cartelli registered seven stops for LA Tech.

UTEP pressured initially, with a Jojo Ngongo shot (3′) creeping just wide of the frame. She then had another attempt (5′) that went wide right. Carlin’s opportunity (9′) was blocked and Cartelli tracked down the bouncing ball. Lauren Crenshaw tried a long-distance look (17′) that was handled by Cartelli for the first save in the game. Two minutes later it was a cross from Carlin that was headed (19′) wide by Ngongo.

Crenshaw lifted one over the defense that was gobbled up by Cartelli in the 21st minute. UTEP had a wild possession in the 30th minute, recording three shots in a span of 30 seconds. One by Pugsley clanked off the post while two others were blocked.

The Miners’ persistent pressure paid dividends just a minute later, off another corner kick. Cabello served it into the box where Pugsley used her 5-11 frame to elevate and hammer it home with a header.

UTEP nearly made it 2-0 when a rocket (40′) from Moe Sais clanked off the crossbar. The shot (40′) by Kam Fisher on the rebound was denied by Cartelli.

The Miners found that all-too important second goal of the game two minutes into the second half. Pugsley set up Crenshaw, who forced a diving save by Cartelli. Carlin was there to bury the rebound for her second goal of the campaign.

Carlin almost got another one in the 55th minute, with Cartelli looking like a hockey goaltender by making a kick save. Cartelli came up with a diving save to deny Jackie Miller in the 65th minute.

The Lady Techsters had their best opportunity of the contest in the 67th minute with a free kick from just outside the box. The wall did its job, though, blocking the shot before it could reach Parrott.

The freshman delivered a leaping save to rob Jaelyn Peeples in the 74th minute. That was as close as the Lady Techsters would get, with UTEP controlling play down the stretch to close out the contest in style.  ​

The Orange and Blue will look to make it a perfect weekend at home when they play host to Southern Miss at 12 p.m. MT Sunday. Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for kids, and may be purchased by calling (915) 747-5234.

For complete coverage of UTEP soccer, be sure to follow the Miners on social media at @UTEPSoccer (Twitter), @UTEPMinersSoccer (Instagram) and on Facebook or visit the official home of UTEP Athletics at UTEPMiners.com.

The UTEP volleyball team (8-10, 1-4) will hit the road to take on FIU (9-7, 2-3) on Friday at 5 p.m. MT, and Florida Atlantic (9-7, 3-2) on Sunday at 10 a.m. MT.

The Golden Panthers have a 2-3 Conference USA record. Abbie Hughes leads the team with 605 assists on the year and 9.92 assists per set. Fiorella Murillo has notched a team-high 173 kills for FIU. Defensively, Mrythe Maring has 45 blocks and Lina Bernier has locked in 291 digs.

Florida Atlantic is coming into the weekend with a 3-2 record in conference play, and is 7-1 at home this season. It is coming off of a victory over Charlotte (3-0) on Sunday.

Sydney Nemtuda leads the offense for the Owls with 154 kills. Nikki Lakman is the main setter for the offense with 344 assists, and Kori Varney has 174 digs.

Cheyenne Jones and Serena Patterson were nearly unstoppable in the sweep against LA Tech this past Sunday. Jones had 14 kills on a .545 hitting clip, and Patterson posted 13 kills and a .550 hitting percentage. This efficiency helped propel the Miners to a .381 hitting percentage as a team, and their first conference victory of the year.

The Miners have posted a .380 hitting % or higher on two different occasions this year. The first was against Montana (.393), and the most recent coming versus LA Tech (.381).

Prior to these two matches, the last time this happened for UTEP was on August 26, 2011 against Southern (.412).

Alex Torres is ninth in Conference USA in digs per set (3.75) and has totaled 259 digs this season. Mallory Yost is also eighth in the league in hitting percentage (.327), with 122 kills on 272 swings.

The Orange and Blue won five matches all of last season. They have already surpassed that mark with eight victories in the first 18 matches this year.

During 2018 the Miners were victorious in only one match in Memorial Gym, and in 2019 they have three.

The matches will be live streamed at CUSA.tv, and live stats will be available as well for the FIU and FAU matches.

The UTEP soccer team (7-4-3, 2-2-1 C-USA) will conclude a three-game homestand by squaring off against LA Tech (11-2-2, 3-2-1 C-USA) at 7 p.m. MT Thursday and Southern Miss (6-7, 1-4 C-USA) at 12 p.m. MT Sunday. 

“With five games left in the season, every game is important and every point is important,” UTEP head coach Kathryn Balogun said. “However we want our girls to take each game as an individual task. We have a big opportunity to walk away with some big home points, but the goal is to remain focused on the next task ahead which is LA Tech. They have had some really good results, and a couple of players have had a great year finding the back of the net.”

UTEP fought hard only to be upended at home, 1-0, by WKU on Oct. 10. The Miners had a 7-6 edge for shots on goal against the Lady Toppers but couldn’t find a way to beat Anne-Marie Ulliac.

Emily Parrott delivered five saves, with her lone blemish coming on a try from Ansley Cate (52′) seven minutes into the second half.

UTEP is in search of its first win against LA Tech, which has a 3-0-1 advantage in the series with the Miners. Thursday’s match-up will mark the first in El Paso between the programs, with three previously in Ruston, La., and another at the C-USA Championships

The Miners have dominated the series with Southern Miss, posting a 10-1-1 mark in 12 prior meetings. That includes a 6-0 advantage when playing in El Paso. Last year the programs battled to a 1-1 draw in Hattiesburg, Miss.

After allowing six goals in the loss at Middle Tennessee on Oct. 6, UTEP regrouped to limit WKU to one tally last time out on Oct. 10. The Miners have posted four shutouts on the season while holding five other opponents to one goal.

With five games remaining in the regular season, the Miners are in a three-way tie for seventh place in the C-USA standings. UTEP is in search of a top-eight showing, which would allow it to qualify for the C-USA Championships for the first time since 2016.

Five league games are left on UTEP’s schedule, but it has matched its win total for both overall (seven) and C-USA contests (two) from a year ago. The Miners are playing consistently well at both home (4-2-1) and on the road (3-2-2). UTEP sports a +2 goal differential (21-19) while also staking advantages for both shots (187-169) and shots on goal (94-66).

Quick Overview On Tech

LA Tech is 11-2-2 overall, including 3-2-1 in C-USA play. The Lady Techsters pace the league and are among the nation’s best for goals (46-second), assists (38-sixth) and points (130-third). They also have the most overall wins (11) in the league. Most recently they rallied from a two-goal deficit to forge a tie against Rice (10/13). Autumn Woodward (15 goals-first C-USA/second NCAA) paces the high-scoring attack, with Amber Posthauer (eight-fourth C-USA/47th NCAA) also having been a playmaker. Carlotta Cartelli has earned the bulk of playing time in net, registering 46 saves.

Quick Overview On Southern Miss

Southern Miss compiled a 5-3 mark in nonconference action, but it has struggled through five games (1-4) in C-USA play. It has taken care of business at home (4-1), but has been challenged on the road (2-6). Hailey Pohevitz is the top goal scorer (seven), but three others have four goals each. Pohevitz also shares the squad lead in assists (two). Kendall Mindnich has garnered most of the playing time in net, racking up 47 saves.

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

LAS CRUCES – The UTEP Men’s Golf squad wrapped up play at the New Mexico State Herb Wimberly Intercollegiate in fifth place on Tuesday at the NM State Golf Course in Las Cruces.

Overall, the Miners ended the two-day event with a three-round total score of 872 (+20), while finishing middle of the pack among the field.

UTEP finished the first day of the event in fourth place at 16-over-par with a two-round total of 584, including shooting 4-over as a team in the second round on Monday afternoon.

Cole Donielson competed as an individual at this week’s Herb Wimberly Intercollegiate and led the Miners after shooting 211 (-2) over three rounds to place third overall. Donielson shot 3-under-par 68 in the opening round before finishing the event with scores of 73 (+2) and 70 (-1).

As part of UTEP’s five-man lineup, Oskar Ambrosius also posted a top-5 finish after shooting 1-under-par 212 (70-71-71) in the event. Eduardo Gonzalez tied Donielson for the best third round with his score of 70 on Tuesday, while he finished tied for 16^th overall with a three-round total of 217 (+4).

Freshman Jacob Presutti (75-72-73=220) ended the third and final round tied for 25^th at 7-over for the tournament, while Greg Yellin totaled a score of 225 (75-74-76; +12) to close out the event.

UTEP’s Santiago Castilla and Jeffery Lebeau both ended the tournament with a three-round total of 226 (+13), while Jaden Chavez, who competed as an individual for the Miners, shot 233 (75-76-82=233) over the course of three rounds this week in Las Cruces.

The Herb Wimberly Intercollegiate marks the conclusion of the fall season for UTEP’s men. The Miners return to action Jan. 27-28 as the team travels to Tucson, Arizona, to compete at the Arizona Intercollegiate.

For complete coverage of UTEP Men’s Golf, be sure to follow the Miners on social media at @UTEPminergolf (Twitter) and @UTEPMensGolf (Instagram) or visit the official home of UTEP Athletics at UTEPMiners.com.

The Department of Physics at The University of Texas at El Paso was recently awarded a $1.5 million grant to research kinesins as potential targets for cancer drug development.

Lin Li, Ph.D., assistant professor of computational biophysics, is the sole principal investigator of the four-year study, which will investigate important mechanisms for kinesins, a type of biological motor protein.

Li said learning more about the way kinesins move could help with the design of anti-mitotic drugs, which are meant to inhibit cancer cell division.

“Traditional anti-mitotic drugs face two significant issues: serious side effects and strong drug resistance for some types of cancers,” Li said. “Due to the unique features, Human kinesin-5s (Eg5) become promising alternative anti-mitotic drug targets.”

Li’s work adds to a growing body of cancer-focused research at UTEP anchored by a $19.2 million grant awarded to the University’s Border Biomedical Research Center (BBRC) by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

The five-year grant will allow the BBRC to continue its quest to understand and identify the reasons for Hispanic cancer health disparities and their ultimate impact on the people of the Paso del Norte region.

The BBRC grant will provide significant research funding for UTEP cancer scientists to better understand the molecular mechanisms, and possibly environmental and lifestyle factors, that contribute to this multifaceted disease.

Funding will also be utilized to expand UTEP’s cancer tissue “bank” to study and identify possible new drugs that might prove useful in cancer treatment strategies in our primarily Mexican-American population.

While Li’s $1.5 million grant will support a four-year study, he said gaining a complete understanding of the mechanisms of all kinesin groupings will be a lengthy process.

Li will receive contributions to the project from Weihong Qiu, Ph.D., associate professor of physics and an expert on kinesins from Oregon State University.

At UTEP, three postdoctoral researchers as well as several graduate and undergraduate students will be involved.

The Texas Historical Records Advisory Board recently announced that it would present its 2019 Archival Award of Excellence to The University of Texas at El Paso’s C.L. Sonnichsen Special Collections Department for its Casasola Studio Photo Identification Project done in collaboration with the El Paso Times.

The award recognizes significant achievements in the preservation and improvement of access to historical records in any format by a Texas archival institution and individual.

“The Casasola Project has allowed us to hear so many stories from people in El Paso who don’t usually make it into archives – much less into history books – that I feel that the effort has really been worthwhile,” said Claudia Rivers, head of special collections in her department office on the library’s sixth floor. “We are especially pleased to get this statewide recognition of the continuing collaboration with the El Paso Times.”

The Casasola Project involves the submission of an unidentified photo from the archive of an individual, couple or group to the newspaper, which prints the snapshot in its Sunday paper along with a request for the public’s help to identify the person or people in the photo.

This project involves the community members, who have shared their personal histories to expand the context and research value of the photo collection.

The state board also recognized Brenda Lincke Fisseler for her extensive efforts to rescue and preserve historical records for Lavaca County in East Texas.

“This year’s recipients serve as stellar examples of how dedication and ingenuity can help ensure that archival records are not only preserved, but made even more useful for future generations,” said Jelain Chubb, state archivist and the board’s coordinator.

The board, which recognized UTEP’s Special Collections in the institutional category, will present the award at 3 p.m. Friday, Oct. 25, 2019, in the McNeely Room on the sixth floor of the University Library.

The UTEP Volleyball team (8-10, 1-4) swept LA Tech (11-8, 1-4) in three sets (25-16, 25-18, 25-20), 3-0, on Sunday afternoon at Memorial Gym.

The Miners were a force on the offensive end, hitting a red-hot .381 hitting percentage as a team.  UTEP out dug the Lady Techsters 45-33, and posted five more blocks than LA Tech.

The Orange and Blue saw incredibly efficient days from Cheyenne Jones, Serena Patterson and Anamarija Mikovic. Jones led the way with 14 kills on a .545 hitting clip. Patterson wasn’t far behind with 13 kills and a .550 hitting percentage. Mikovic came in with 11 kills, and hit .320.

Syenna Masaki produced a career-high 30 assists to help set up the offensive performance of the Miners. Kenidy Howard was a force at the net with a team-high six blocks, and Alex Torres locked in 14 digs as the libero.

UTEP cruised to victory in the first two sets, and in the first frame LA Tech only held the lead for two points. In the second game, UTEP produced a wire-to-wire victory.

The third set was in jeopardy for the Orange and Blue, with the Lady Techsters jumping out to a 15-9 lead. However, UTEP would string together eight straight points, regaining the lead and the momentum. The Miner would outscore LA Tech 16-5 to close out the match.

Coach Wallis’s Thoughts

“First and foremost Jessica Landeros, a freshman from El Paso, who hasn’t played in a match this year helped stabilize us. You can’t really tell in the box score, but she was solid. She gave us another pin player that does the right thing, slows the ball down and gave us another opportunity to side out in different ways. We passed it well and were really efficient offensively. It was nice to see us get back to aggressively attacking it. We have been working on something new with our middles, and we aren’t very good at it yet, but we are trying to grow and be different. Sometimes when you experiment with lineups and change the pieces a lot you can look like a hot mess like we did on Friday. Eventually at some point they start to understand we can be a chameleon, and we can do different things. Our lefts were very efficient today, Ana (Mikovic) and S.P. (Serena Patterson), but really everybody was efficient. It was nice to see Cheyenne (Jones) get back up there and just start being aggressive and attacking it. We were much better defensively than we have been. We also got behind the service line and served it the way we are capable of, which is tough and efficient and attacking. All five phases we played very well today. I am very proud of them, coming off of a heartbreaking loss on Friday where we didn’t play well at all.”

Next up, the Miners will play at FIU on Friday, October 18 at 5 p.m. MT.

Gallery by Andres ‘Ace’ Acosta – Chief Photographer – El Paso Herald Post

A pair of UTEP transfers made immediate impacts as graduate student Daryl Edwards hit 6-of-8 from downtown, leading the way with 24 points and junior Bryson Williams electrified the Miner faithful with thunderous dunks and scoring 19 points as UTEP defeated Texas Tech, 70-60, Saturday night in front of a loud and energetic crowd in the Haskins Center.

“It’s a tragic situation that occurred in our community,” UTEP Head Coach Rodney Terry said. “We have one of the best communities in country in terms of people, and we respect one another and treat one another. I haven’t been in a nicer community. When something like that happens, great cities rally so strong together and we look out for one another. Tonight was just a small token we can try to give back to the victims that suffered losses in that tragic situation. Hopefully we gave some relief back to them. It will take years for our community to really get over of what occurred. We can just be a small part of that in terms of doing anything to give back. Even for one night to get their minds off of it. We’ll try to do that, not only tonight, but the rest of this year.

All proceeds from the contest were donated to the GECU Foundation in support of the Aug. 3 tragedy. Over 4,000 fans cheered on the Miners as they rallied from an eight-point deficit (33-25) early in the second half.

The Miners, behind the booming support of the fans, went on a 21-12 run and took a 46-45 lead after sophomore Jordan Lathon connected on a trio of free throws. Lathon finished with 15 points and pulled down eight rebounds in 34 minutes.

Edwards, who finished 8-of-10 from the field, nailed a three-point bucket at the 7:11 mark to put his new squad up six points. The Miners took control of the contest and never relinquished the lead.

Williams led UTEP with nine rebounds in 35 minutes of action, while another transfer sophomore Souley Boum got off to a slow start, but dished out a team-leading four assists. The fourth dime came on an ally-oop to Williams, who slammed it down. The Miners took a 12-point lead (70-58) by that point of the contest.

The 2019-20 regular season will open on Nov. 5 against New Mexico Highlands in the Haskins Center.

Gallery by  Andres ‘Ace’ Acosta – Chief Photographer – El Paso Herald Post

Brad Smith, president and chief legal officer of Microsoft, and Carol Ann Browne, Microsoft’s senior director of communications and external relations, will present a free public lecture at 4 p.m. Monday, Oct. 14, 2019, as part of The University of Texas at El Paso’s Centennial Lecture Series.

Smith and Browne are authors of a new book, “Tools and Weapons: The Promise and Peril of the Digital Age.”

As Microsoft’s president, Smith leads a team of more than 1,400 business, legal and corporate affairs professionals working in 56 countries. He plays a key role in spearheading the company’s work on critical issues involving the intersection of technology and society, including cybersecurity, privacy, artificial intelligence, human rights, immigration, philanthropy and environmental sustainability.

“Tools and Weapons: The Promise and Peril of the Digital Age” showcases Smith’s deep thinking on these issues and how technology serves humanity rather than being weaponized to inflict harm.

The Australian Financial Review has described Smith as “one of the technology industry’s most respected figures,” and The New York Times has called him “a de facto ambassador for the technology industry at large.”

Carol Ann Browne, a native El Pasoan, joined Microsoft in 2010 and is an experienced communicator with a broad background in writing, video, multimedia and social media work. Browne and Smith have collaborated on a wide variety of content, including their “Today in Technology” blog series.

The Centennial Lecture Series invites noteworthy speakers to the UTEP campus to share their perspectives on a broad range of contemporary issues that are likely to impact our society, culture and lives in the years ahead.

A reception will follow the lecture Monday.

The UTEP Volleyball team (7-10, 0-4) fell to UAB (10-7, 2-2) in three sets (22-25, 18-25, 21-25), 3-0, on Friday evening at Memorial Gym.

“We just got out played. We are trying to manufacture ways with our injuries to keep ourselves in matches. But we errored our way out of this match. We had 11 hitting errors in the third set alone,” Head coach Ben Wallis said.  “You can’t beat anyone in college volleyball when you error yourself out of matches. There is no excuse for continuing to go up and hit the ball out of bounds, touch the net or serve it in the bottom of the net.”

Cheyenne Jones posted a team-high 10 kills. Serena Patterson locked in nine kills with a solo block. Kristen Fritsche notched 13 assists and a squad-high 10 digs. Mallory Yost and Anamarija Mikovic anchored the defense with two blocks each.

“We find ways to make it 12 all or 14 all, but we struggle to get ahead because we aren’t giving ourselves opportunities to score points in long runs. I have to make sure that we get back in the gym and find ways to get these guys to play better volleyball. We have a tough one again on Sunday, and we will have to find a way to score points when the match gets close,” Wallis added

The first set was a close contest, as the Miners were down one, 21-20, late in the frame. However, UAB would out score UTEP 4-1 to take the first game.

The Blazers opened up the second frame with a 10-5 lead and never looked back. UAB took the set 25-18, and held a two-game advantage.

The Orange and Blue were in the game, as the third set was tied 13-13. Although, the Blazers would go on a 7-1 run, regaining the momentum. UAB would end up taking the frame, 25-21, after a late push by UTEP.

Next up, the Miners will take on the Lady Techsters on Sunday, Oct. 13 at 12 p.m. MT.

Thanks to their performance on and off the diamond, the UTEP Softball team has earned a roster full of honors.

Miners Pamala Baber, Pate Cathey, Kacey Duffield, Mariah Ellis, Sky Estrada, Linda Garcia, Allie Johnson, Bryana Munoz, Nadya Orozco and Jordyn Quevedo were all recipients of the Easton/National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-American Scholar-Athlete award for the 2018-19 academic year.

Officials share that this is the most Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar athletes in program history.

Seniors Baber and Johnson, as well as Miner-Alumna Ellis are recipients of their third NFCA honor.

This is the second NFCA recognition for senior Duffield, while Cathey, Estrada, Garcia, Munoz, Orozco and Quevedo are first-time honorees.

This is the first time in history that the NFCA has honored over 8,000 student-athletes (8,161), with 1,769 being Division I athletes.

Established in 1983, the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) is the professional growth organization for fastpitch softball coaches from all competitive levels of play.

Although collegiate coaches comprised the majority of the organization’s membership in the early days, today they are joined by high school, travel ball, professional and international coaches, along with umpires, clubs, businesses and fans of fastpitch softball.

The UTEP soccer team fought hard only to be upended at home, 1-0, by WKU Thursday evening.

The Miners (7-4-3, 2-2-1 C-USA) had a 7-6 edge for shots on goal against the Lady Toppers (7-4-1, 3-2-2 C-USA) but couldn’t find a way to beat Anne-Marie Ulliac. Emily Parrott delivered five saves, with her lone blemish coming on a try from Ansley Cate (52′) seven minutes into the second half.

UTEP controlled the opening 45 minutes, holding advantages in both shots (10-5) and shots on goal (6-1). The visitors survived the onslaught and snuck away with the win after Cate’s second-half tally.

“I thought the girls came out really strong,” UTEP head coach Kathryn Balogun said. “Unfortunately we didn’t come out as strong in the second half and we keep giving up set-piece goals. It didn’t happen tonight. We’re going to keep pushing and keep working because this is a good team.”

WKU generated a pair of shots in the first six minutes, both of which were blocked. The Miners then went searching for a goal with Lauren Crenshaw’s shot being saved by Ulliac in the ninth minute. Jackie Miller also let loose from distance, forcing Ulliac into a save in the 18th minute.

Danielle Carreon took a shot from inside the box that appeared destined for the back of the net but Ulliac came flying over for a diving save in the 20th minute. The GK also fought off a header from Emerson Kidd on the ensuing corner kick. Three minutes later it was a half-volley by Adrianna Jimmerson that was stopped. In the 29th minute Crenshaw unleashed a blast that required a diving stop by Ulliac.

WKU’s Aleksandra Kozovic rifled a shot that scooted along the ground, but Parrott tracked it well to make the save in the 33rd minute.  The Miners had a chance wiped out due to an offside call in the 40th minute and Kam Fisher’s shot was blocked by the defense in the 43rd minute.

The visitors got on the board in the second half off a scramble from a free kick. The ball was in the box where it was headed to Cate, who bested Parrott with a sneaky shot in the 52nd minute. Four minutes later UTEP was vying for the equalizer, but Tessa Carlin was turned away by Ulliac.

There was a wild sequence in the 60th minute, with WKU taking three shots in 20 seconds. Two of them clanked off the crossbar while another was blocked by the Miners’ defense. Carlin had a good look in the 69th minute, but it whistled high.

Parrott kept the Orange and Blue in striking distance by making two fantastic saves in the final 10 minutes of the match. She delivered a leaping stop to punch a shot by Ambere Barnett over the bar in the 82nd minute. She then made a diving stop on a try by Sydney Ernst in the 83rd minute.

UTEP tried to work the ball up the pitch in the waning minutes to secure the equalizer, but it didn’t come to fruition. The best chance came off a corner kick, with a Carreon shot ending up wide in the final minute of action.

The Miners will play host to LA Tech (7 p.m., Oct. 17) in the second of three straight home contests. The homestand will conclude against Southern Miss (12 p.m., Oct. 20).

For complete coverage of UTEP soccer, be sure to follow the Miners on social media at @UTEPSoccer (Twitter), @UTEPMinersSoccer (Instagram) and on Facebook or visit the official home of UTEP Athletics at UTEPMiners.com.