INDIANS WIN, TIE FOR SECOND 
Jennifer Tavlian | Sports Editor 

Midwestern State and West Texas A&M came into Saturday night's game fairly evenly matched.
At the end of the night, the Indians came out on top with an 86-69 win over the Buffaloes.
Marquette Wilkins scored a game-high 24 points and dished out four assists.
“When my teammates start playing better, it frees me up,” Wilkins said. “The other team can concentrate on my teammates, it makes me become a better player.”
Josh Drumgole scored 16 points and a team-high eight rebounds. He also had five steals in the game.
P.J. Randall chipped in 15 points.
The Indians shot 55.7 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from three-point range, even though they went zero-for-two in the second half.
West Texas' Rod Prater led the Buffaloes with 15 points and six assists. Richard Higgenbotham had 12 points and Jason Campbell grabbed a game-high nine boards. Keenan Hooker scored all of his 14 points in the second half.
The Buffaloes shot 36.4 percent from behind the three-point arc, thanks in large part to Hooker's four-of-six performance.
The Indians were ahead by 25 points midway through the second half, but sharp shooting by the Buffaloes decreased MSU's lead to just nine with just under five minutes left.
MSU was able to pull ahead with the help of Randall and Drumgole, who each scored four points in the last five minutes.
“If you're getting ahead by 25, you can expect some runs by the other team,” head coach Jeff Ray said. “The momentum can turn. It's the nature of the game.”
West Texas A&M fell to a 13-8 overall record and 3-3 in the Lone Star Conference South. MSU reigned in a tie for second place in the LSC South with the win and advanced to a 14-7 overall record and 4-2 in conference play.
“This was a really important game and the team realized it,” Wilkins said. “We buckled down and did what we had to do.”
The Indians lost their chance at the top spot Thursday in a 79-76 loss to Eastern New Mexico.
The top-seeded Greyhounds advanced to a 15-6 overall record and 5-1 in the LSC South.
Wilkins had another stellar performance, scoring 22 points. Drumgole and Justin James each scored ten points. James also pulled down a team-high six boards.
The Indians now take to the road for a rematch with ENMU Thursday at 8:30 p.m.



Lady Indians knock off West Texas A&M
Trey Reed | Staff Reporter

With their backs against the wall, the Lady Indians came through with their biggest win of the season. They defeated No. 22-ranked West Texas A&M Lady Buffs 70- 66 in overtime Saturday night at D.L. Ligon Coliseum.
The win came on the heels of one of the most disappointing losses of the year after the Eastern New Mexico Zias came from behind to beat the Lady Indians 76-72 at home.
The Lady Indians are now 15-6 on the season and 4-4 in the Lone Star Conference’s South Division.
They are currently two games out in the loss column of the fourth and final LSC playoff berth.
"It’s going to be very difficult," Lady Indians coach Shannon Burks said of his team’s playoff hopes.
"It’s important that we play well and put ourselves back into contention."
Jel-ani Armstrong and Meosha Walker scored 20 points each to lead the Lady Indians to a big win over West Texas A&M.
"We’ve gone through a stretch where we’ve had a hard time finishing games," Burks said. "It’s nice to see us finish one."
The Lady Indians needed a teameffort to overcome a tough Lady Buff squad.
Armstrong and sophomore guard Sonya Calhoun worked the offensive glass for 16 boards, two shy of the team total.
The Lady Buffs snagged 18 defensive rebounds.
Calhoun‘s defensive play combined with Walker’s eight overtime points helped MSU pull out a tough win.
"We got some good minutes out of Kelly Cleavinger and Sonya played really well," Burks said. "(Kelly) Woodward came off the bench and played very well."
Cleavinger finished the game with eight points while Calhoun had six points and nine rebounds. Woodward added seven points and four boards.
The Lady Indians begin a tough stretch against the top four teams of the division by travelling to Eastern New Mexico (12-9, 6-2) to face the Zias on Thursday .
"They are probably the hottest team in the league right now," Burks said. "It will be very difficult to win on their floor."
MSU will continue the road swing through West Texas A&M (18-3, 6-2) on Saturday.



Signing day for MSU sports
Trey Reed | Staff Reporter

The Midwestern State football signed 23 players and added two transfers after the National Signing Day last Wednesday.
The signees join quality midterm transfers in Jerad Estus and Marcus Moore.
Estus, a 6-1, 205 pound running back, returns to Wichita Falls from Oklahoma with two years of eligibility remaining.
Moore, a 6-1 junior, joins an already talented secondary from Mississippi Delta Community College.
The Indians addressed a lack of depth with just one returning, game-tested quarterback in Rahsaan Bell, by signing a trio of quarterbacks.
High school recuits Ryan Roberts of Keller, Texas and local standout and District 7-2A MVP Joe Mike Fouts from Holliday.
Junior college transfer Wayne Desmond from Fresno City College will join the mix. Desmond completed 52 percent of his passes for 1,638 yards and 13 touchdowns last season.
Desmond and Roberts bring their favorite targets with them in receivers Austin Doran, a 5-5A first team selection at Keller, and Marcus Davis, 6-foot-1 junior also from Fresno City College.
The Indians replenished the tight end position by bringing in Driton Krasniqi (Garland Naaman Forest), Nick Lee (Vernon) and Chad Olson (South Grand Prarie).
MSU also adde former Hirschi star Chris Barry returning from Temple where he was a third-team all-state selection.
Scat-back Adrion Butler, a 5- foot-5 recruit out of South Garland, gives the Indians more speed. He has been clocked at 10.3 seconds in the 100 meter dash.
Class 2A all-state selection Kelby Kempner (Coahoma) joins the receiving corps.
Akil Allen (Mansfield Summit), Jake Demke (Haltom), Logan Hostin (Mansfield), Arrin Plowman (Rider) and Jon Ruzicka (The Woodlands) round out the offensive line signees.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Indians were looking to strengthen the their front and did just that with the signing of Class 5A all-state selection Chris Dettor out of Desoto.
District first-teamers Brandon Harper (Richland) and Ramon Jackson (Mesquite Horn) join Justin Ibe (Garland Naaman Forest) and Tommy Taggart (Bedford Trinity) to round out the defensive line.
Linebacker Jamaal Bouyer out of Plano East rounds out the defensive signees. The Indians hope to sign more in the following weeks.
Soccer
The Midwestern State men’s soccer team used the momentum of a 17-5 national quarterfinal season to net three quality high school signees.
Brent Beaven, a forward from Plano West, was a member of the 2000 Under-16 U.S. National team.
Kyle Kmiec, a high school forward out of Brenham, brings athleticism and the ability to play numerous positions.
Local product Sean Gill (Rider) adds depth at goalkeeper.
Defender Sam Leyendcker and midfield/forward Tyler Fagan will join the Indians from Southwestern Oklahoma State.
The women signed two local standouts in Rider’s All-Dstrict midfielder Brittany Burney and former Raider Crystal Sanchez. Burney led the Raiders in scoring last season.
Sanchez was a three-time All- District and All-Region player, then joined Central Oklahoma’s 2002 LSC championship team. Defender Melissa Brown of Mullen High School in Dever, Colorado and Colleyville Heritage’s Lauren Sierra also join the Lady Indians.




All-Star Game a joke full of jokes
Jennifer Tavlian | Sports Editor

Another voting session has come and gone, and I am again left annoyed and wondering about the average fans' competency.
When the starters for the NBA All-Star Game were announced on January 28, I thought about boycotting the event. To not have a Dallas Maverick starting is absurd. I then had to remind myself that this useless game is not a contest of skill.
It's a popularity contest.
The starting lineups are full of more overrated and talentless boobs than this year's Super Bowl halftime show.
I'm glad the coaches had enough sense to make Dirk Nowitzki a reserve, even if the fans didn't have sense enough to vote him in as a starter.
Nowitzki finished fourth in the voting behind starters Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan. Popularity reared its ugly head when rookie Carmelo Anthony finished third.
Dirk averages 21.3 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. Anthony averages 19.2 points and 6.1 rebounds per game.
Someone tried to tell me that the numbers were pretty close.
Close doesn't get you a spot in the game. Just ask Carmelo.
Last year, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban littered billboards around the city of Atlanta , who played host to last year's event. Michael Finley was nowhere to be found in the 2002-2003 All-Star Game, though his teammates Nowitzki and Steve Nash were voted in as reserves. I was hoping the words “Where's Finley?” would light the bulbs over people's heads when voting this year.
Instead, Finley was once again snubbed and so was Nash.
At the very least, Finley be selected over Seattle guard Allen. Allen has played in games this season.
Once again, this year's looks to be a high-scoring with several undeserving the NBA. This must-miss game Sunday at 7:45 p.m.



The Bench Mob
Jennifer Tavilian | Sports Editor

An emphatic chant of "Defense" escapes an anxious crowd at D.L. Ligon Coliseum.
Cracks of maroon paint now replace what was once a smooth coat on the hard-core fans’ rockhard stomachs.
Fans keep a watchful eye on the boys on the court, hands clasped together nervously.
But the crowd has no reason to fear.
The Bench Mob is waiting in the wings.
Junior guard Shelton Hawkins is the creator of the nickname used for the Indians bench players. The name came to him after remembering a rock group named Lynch Mob.
Hawkins transferred to MSU from Weatherford College and has come off the bench 17 times. He averages just over five points per game in 13.4 minutes.
"I try to get my teammates pumped up," Hawkins said. "The bench really likes playing together and we have chemistry."
Steven Murdock averages 4.6 points and 2.3 rebounds in coming off the bench in 14 games this season. A transfer from Southern Louisiana-Shreveport, Murdock averages 11.6 minutes a game.
"We give the team a good spark," he said of The Mob. "I think it makes you a better player if you come off the bench because you get a better opportunity."
Lechon Trammer has started in eight games, but the rest of his oncourt action has come from bench play. He averages almost nine points and 3.4 rebounds in 17.6 minutes.
Derrick Hill likes to sit on the bench to watch what goes on, but also wants to see action as soon as possible.
"When I’m in the game, I feel like I’m supposed to stop anything that comes my way," he said.
And he does.
In 18 games off the bench, Hill averages 1.6 blocks a game and just over four rebounds. He totalled an amazing six blocks against Abilene Christian late in January.
Hawkins and Murdock agree that Justin James is the "Sixth Man".
James smiles and humbly declines comment, directing attention towards teammate and starter Leonard Pralour.
"My vote is definitely for Justin," Pralour said. "He’s very consistent when he comes off the bench."
James, a 6-foot-6 junior forward, has established himself as a bench player. He has started twice this season and played 19 more games coming off the bench.
"We pick up where the starters left off and that’s pretty much our role as bench players," James said. "Our team philosophy is to play nine or ten deep and not lose anything when the bench comes in.

"It’s a pretty big responsibility."
James has shouldered the brunt of that responsibility and responded well this season.
He averages 9.2 points and 6.8 rebounds per game as a reserve. He also averages 23 minutes per game.
"My role is to come out, play with energy and do some of the dirty work," James said. "I try to play hard for the time I’m in there and everything else will take care of itself."
And the term "riding the pine" is not necessarily a bad thing.
"They’re good," head coach Jeff Ray said. "They’re not coming off the bench because they can’t play.
"Could they start? Yes, but they compliment the guys that are starting and play hard the entire time."
So far this season, the Indians bench has outscored their opponent’s bench 661-429.
They average 31.5 points per game compared to the other team’s average of 20.4.
"We have to consistently come out and play hard," James said. "If each guy comes out and plays their role, we have a good chance of going into the playoffs and going.




Softball team undefeated early
Jason Palmer | Staff Reporter

The Lady Indians softball team boasts a perfect all-time record after returning from Kingsville last weekend.
They may have only played four games in their brief history, but have won all four.
Head coach Brady Tigert played down their initial success.
“We didn’t beat ourselves,” he said. “Games are not won but they are not lost and we didn’t lose.”

MSU 4, Emporia State 1
Lady Indians pitcher Brittany Willson shook off the rust and jitters and held Emporia State to one run on seven hits while her team erupted for their four runs in the bottom of the third inning.
“(Willson) was nervous, I think,” Tigert said. “She got more comfortable as the game went on and kept them off-balance.”
Senior Brandi Tynes smacked a clutch bases-loaded triple to center field to give a 3-0 lead to her team. Courtney Veal sent Tynes home on a sacrifice fly later in the inning and increased the lead to 4-0.
Willson scattered Emporia State’s seven hits and finished the game with six strikeouts and three walks in her seven innings.
MSU 5, TX A&M Kingsville 2
It would take an extra inning to determine the outcome of coach Tigert’s first game against his former team, but the Lady Indians would score three in the top of the eighth and hold on for their second win.
“I wasn’t nervous or anything,” Tigert said. “I was more focused on how to make us better as a team.”
Kingsville jumped on the board in the bottom of the second inning with a sacrifice fly and held the Lady Indians scoreless until the fourth inning.
Tynes was thrown out at home in the third inning while trying to score on a Veal fly ball.
“We responded very well after three bad calls during the game,” he said. “Those calls could have changed the outcome of the game, but we just fought through it.”
The Lady Indians scored twice in the fourth inning and held the lead late into the game.
Kingsville mounted a comeback in the bottom of the seventh inning and tied the game at two against starting pitcher Jenna Deweber.
In the extra frame Amiee Duke would walk and score along with Veal on consecutive errors from the Kingsville squad on a pickoff play and take the lead 4-2.
They would tack on another run after Valerie McLean tripled and came home after a wild pitch.
Willson came on in relief of Deweber, who gave up six hits and two earned runs, and earned the save after loading the bases with a one-out walk and coaxed the batter into a 4-3 double-play to end the game.
MSU 2, Washburn 0
One run would have been good enough for Willson and the Lady Indians as she found a groove and won 2-0.
It was a pitchers’ duel,” Tigert said. “Our lack of maturity made us chase a lot of pitches when we got behind in the count.”
Willson gave up only three hits, walked none and struck out five to earn her first shutout of the season while Allison Tidwell scored both runs for the Lady Indians.
Willson kept the Washburn batters baffled most of the game with her fastball/changeup combination.
Tidwell would score again in the top of the sixth inning after she lined a single to center field and took second base on a wild pitch.
Veal would pick up her second RBI after singling Tidwell home.
MSU 8, North Dakota 0
The Lady Indians were firing on all cylinders in the weekend finale, scoring in four innings and stifling North Dakota with a three-hit shutout.
Freshman Lyndsey Russell pitched the complete game, striking out four in her college debut and scattered three hits along with two walks.
North Dakota committed more errors (5) than hits (3) as the Lady Indians offensive prowess kept them off-balance.
The MSU bats exploded during the fourth inning for five hits and four runs against a “drop-ball pitcher that the girls picked up on real fast,” Tigert said.
Tidwell picked up two RBIs with the bases loaded after she reached second base on two errors in one play.
Michelle Brooks singled and grabbed an RBI as Tynes scored.
A pitching change in the fourth quieted the Lady Indians’ bats down as a new left-handed pitcher prevented them from digging in at the plate.
“We had no idea where the ball was going,” Tigert said.
The Lady Indians would score again in the sixth and seventh innings to round out their eight run, 10 hit performance.
“We have a lot of talent on this team,” Tigert said. “but we have got to mature and that will happen on its own as the season goes by.
“It’s a long season, but I told the girls that by the end of the season, we will be pretty dad’gum good,”
MSU travels to Irving for the Lone Star Conference First Pitch Tournament where they will face conference foes Eastern New Mexico, Tarleton State, St. Edwards and Abilene Christian this weekend.

 
MSU tennis teams find trouble on the road in Arkansas
Jason Palmer | Staff Reporter

The men’s and women’s tennis teams did not fare well in their season- opening weekend on the road in Arkansas.
Delta State beat the Indians 5-4 last Friday in Arkadelphia. Junior Rohan Williams, from Australia, defeated Nicolau Alexandra 6-3, 7-5, and senior Victor Vidal handed Julien Noureux a 6-3, 6-3 defeat for the Indians two wins on the singles side of the match.
Vidal had compiled a 51-10 record in his first three seasons at MSU.
The combo of Williams and Vidal went on to win their doubles match against Noureux and Thomas Pasquet 8-6.
Freshman David Barrett and sophomore Jared King beat Arnold van Dyk and Benjamin Sharp 8-3. But the singles match that broke the tie went to an extra game between van Dyk and MSU newcomer Michael Richards.
Richards, a freshman from Australia armed with a big serve, but was unable to put all the gears in motion.
Van Dyk dominated the first set, winning 6-0, then lost 4-6 before picking up the deciding set 6-4.
The Lady Indians, with only two returning starters and a decidedly international flavor on their squad, dropped their contest against Delta State 6-3.
Junior Columbus State transfer Frida Arlegard, from Sweden, beat Natalie Dean with an extra set 6-3, 0-6, 6-4.
Celia Mueller, a freshman from South Africa, shook off a difficult first frame against Wendy Owen to win 2-6, 6-2, 6-0.
The lone women’s doubles winner from MSU was Mueller and junior Lacey Wuthrich as they beat Owen and Lacy Johnson 9-7.
The Lady Indians matched the same score last Saturday against Ouachita Baptist, losing their second contest 6-3.
Junior Ri’chaele Affannato, from Wichita Falls, handed OBU’s Jenny Kelly a 6-1, 6-2 beating during the singles game and freshman Catherine van Reenen spanked Casey Danner 6-0, 6-2 for the only two singles wins on the day.
Doubles partners Michelle Beukes, a sophomore from South Africa, and van Reenen dominated the Ouachita Baptist duo of Kelly/Danner 8-1.
The men’s team did not match the women’s modest success against Ouachita Baptist losing 8-1 against the 15th ranked squad.
The lone match winner for MSU was Rohan Williams over Pierre Perez.
Williams battled an extra game winning 6-3, 2-6, 10-8.
Jared King put up a fight against Chris Jones, but could not get over the hump and dropped his match 7- 5, 6-4.
Head coach Larry Wiggins said King was the “most improved player” from last season according to the MSU media guide for the tennis squads.
The closest any doubles team came to winning was the King/David Barrett combo, losing 8-5 against Jones/Perez.
Despite the early season setbacks, the men’s and women’s teams have season goals of advancing through the Lone Star Conference and on to the NCAA Division II National Championship tournament.
Both squads head to Kerrville for the Schreiner College Invitational Tournament on Friday and Saturday.
The MSU tennis teams will return home on Tuesday to face East Central from Oklahoma at the MSU Tennis Courts.