Sports

Sports

UNM women's volleyball to begin conference play at CSU

Reyes Gallegos | September 23

The Mountain West women's volleyball conference tournament begins on Sept. 26 starting with a match up between San José State University and San Diego State University and concludes on Nov. 23 with San José facing off against the University of Wyoming. This tournament is comprised of eleven teams in the Mountain West conference. Each of the eleven teams will play a series of games to ultimately determine who will be the Mountain West Champion based on their conference play. The University of New Mexico women's volleyball team will officially begin their Mountain West tournament games against Colorado State University (CSU) this coming Thursday, Sept. 26. The matchup will prove to be a tough task for the Lobo team: Colorado State is the top ranked team in the Mountain West with an overall record of 9-1 and has been on an eight game winning streak, only losing a combined total of five sets in their first ten games.

---

Sports

United's momentum halted in 3-1 loss to Reno 1868

Colin Peña and Dan Goodwin | September 23

In a 3-1 defeat that stayed close for most of the match, New Mexico United lost to Reno 1868 FC at Isotopes Park on Friday, Sept. 20. As a result of the defeat, United dropped to eighth in the USL Championship Western Conference standings, while Reno stayed in second and clinched a playoff berth. Even as the Friday night match attracted only 10,518 supporters — a small crowd for New Mexico in their inaugural season — the stadium began full of excitement. Because the sound system during the singing of the national was unresponsive, rendering the singer inaudible, the home crowd filled in with their own rendition and the game began. The excitement of the game began in the seventh minute as New Mexico forward Santi Moar controlled a pass into the box from UNM alum Devon Sandoval and slotted it into the close corner for a goal.

---

Sports

Women's soccer coach talks success

Angelina Pompeo | September 23

Last week the Daily Lobo interviewed University of New Mexico Coach Heather Dyche. A homegrown Burqueño, she is the head coach for women’s soccer. Dyche grew up playing soccer and had the chance to play in college. After a year at the University of Nebraska, she transferred to Florida State University and was able to play for a total of three years after being redshirted for her first year. “The team at the time was ranked top five in the nation for three of the four years that I was there, so every year we were trying to win a national championship,” Dyche said. During her time at Florida State, Dyche maintained a GPA of above 3.5. Her team this year mimics that average as they all boast an average of 3.77.

---

Sports

UNM football handed heavy loss in South Bend

Robert Maler | September 16

Notre Dame, the No. 7 football team in the country, hung 66 points on the Lobos Saturday afternoon at Notre Dame Stadium. Nevertheless, the final score probably isn’t indicative of how the game unfolded – especially early on. The University of New Mexico football team hung with the Fighting Irish for the better part of a quarter and a half. Saga Tuitele, who filled the role of UNM head coach in Bob Davie’s absence, said turnovers, bad angles on tackles, penalties and other miscues allowed the Fighting Irish to pull away for a lopsided 66-14 victory.

---

Sports

UNM prepares for Notre Dame without Davie

Robert Maler | September 11

University of New Mexico head football coach Bob Davie won’t be making the trip to South Bend, Indiana to see the first-ever meeting between the Lobos and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. However, Davie made himself available to the media during Tuesday’s press conference to voice his confidence in the coaching staff and thank the first responders, nurses and doctors whom he credited for saving his life — something he and his family will always be grateful for. "I think I absolutely saw the very best of UNM," Davie said. "I think we should be so grateful — I know I am — to have a hospital like that and the kind of care I received."

---

Sports

Men's club Soccer win first game

Justin Garcia | September 9

The University of New Mexico Men’s soccer club beat the New Mexico Tech Miners  2-1, sealing their first victory in their first game of the 2019 season.  John Carilli, a graduate student studying computer science and central attacking midfielder, scored both goals for the Lobos. The club team played on the Northeast corner of Johnson Field to a crowd of around 50.   The Lobos scored early in the first 45 minutes and kept the Miners away from their side of Johnson Field throughout that half. Midfielder Joey Jansen, a junior studying business administration, assisted Carillio in scoring the first goal. 

---

Sports

Men’s rugby suffer tough loss against Arizona

Angelina Pompeo | September 9

After a late start to the match, the University of Arizona men’s rugby team defeated the University of New Mexico on Saturday afternoon at the University of New Mexico’s Johnson Field during a home game.  Only a couple passes after the opening kick, the Lobos broke away during an open play and ran down the field for their first and only score of the game, including the conversion kick. The beginning of the match seemed to have started on a high note for the Lobos but took a turn as the Wildcats started to rack up their points.  Almost immediately after UNM scored, the Wildcats inched their way closer to the goal line and put points up on the board.  A quarter way into the half, the teams were tied, 7-7. 

---

Sports

Volleyball: Lady Lobo’s Struggle in Borderland Invitational

Reyes Gallegos | September 9

The University of New Mexico’s volleyball team traveled south over the weekend to compete in New Mexico State’s Borderland Tournament. Along with UNM, the tournament also invited Texas A&M - Corpus Christi and the University of the Pacific.  The UNM lost their first game in the Borderland Invitational against A&M in three sets (25-18, 25-18, 25-19). Senior outside hitter Lauren Twitty contributed with 13 kills and 10 digs which was her second straight double-double of the season. In their second match versus U of P, the lady Lobos won in three sets (25-21, 25-20, 26-16) providing UNM their first win against Pacific in program history, after previously going 0-7. UNM outnumbered Pacific in assisted blocks 24-10.

---

Sports

Cross country: Men and Women's team take first at Lobo Invitational

September 3

Saturday morning kicked off the University of New Mexico cross country season as the Lobo’s held the Lobo Invitational at UNM’s North Golf Course. Both of the men and women’s teams came out of the invite victorious taking first in the team races.  For the men, University of Texas, El Paso runners Titus Chruiyot (15:17) and Rodgers Korir (15:18) took first and second, respectively, in the men’s collegiate open. They were followed by UNM runners Reece Donihi (15:33), Jared Garcia (15:44), Nehemiah Cionelo (15:44), coming in third, fourth and fifth.  The UNM men won the team race with a score of 35 points. UTEP, despite securing first and second place in the open, fell to second. They were just nine points behind the Lobos.

---

Sports

Football: Bearkat aerial not enough as Lobos hang on to win opener

Robert Maler | August 31

The University of New Mexico football team withstood a late rally to hold off Sam Houston State in its season opener on Saturday evening — leaving Dreamstyle Stadium with a 39-31 victory. Sam Houston State racked up over 550 yards of total offense — including 443 through the air — but fell short of pulling off an improbable comeback after the defense came up with a stop late in the game. The school traded punts on its opening possessions, but the Lobos got the offense going and made up for lost time — amassing 195 yards on the way to scoring 13 points in the opening quarter. New Mexico scored the first points of the season off the foot of Andrew Shelley when he booted through a 44-yard field goal on the team’s second possession. Lobo running back Ahmari Davis helped set things up after he leaked out of the backfield and caught a pass from starting quarterback Brandt Hughes, weaving his way in and out of traffic for a gain of 51 yards. UNM got into scoring range shortly thereafter when Sam Houston State was flagged for pass interference and Shelley later delivered for an early 3-0 lead.

---

Sports

Lobo soccer overcomes Texas Tech on single penalty kick

Alanie Rael | August 26

Lobo and Red Raider fans alike flocked to the University of New Mexico soccer stadium on Sunday evening to watch University of New Mexico women’s soccer team beat Texas Tech in their first game of the season The win for the Lobos was taken with fierce pride. This was the first win they’ve had against Tech in ten years. “For tonight, I’m damn proud of it,” Lobo head coach, Heather Dyche said. “That team was very, very good and for me. I’m from here, so this place should be great.” Coming into the first half, the competition was stiff. With defensive back and forth on both sides, the half looked to be uneventful up until the final seconds. 

---

Sports

Women's Soccer: Looking ahead to Texas Tech

Alanie Rael | August 22

As the fall season for UNM Athletics approaches, the women’s soccer team is preparing to take on their long-time rivals, the Texas Tech Red Raiders. After losing to Tech nearly a year ago, the team is ready for redemption against the Lubbock team. Saturday kicked off exhibition play for the Lobos as they took on Colorado School of Mines. The match gave the team a chance to get exposure to another team after two weeks of scrimmaging in practice. UNM kept the energy high throughout the match, pushing their defensive limits and keeping the ball away from the goal. Lobo forward Leilani Baker stole the show, assisting in Cami Floth’s first goal and kicking in the last goal of the match.

---

Sports

Soccer: United falls 3-2 on road to Portland

Alanie Rael | August 13

Albuquerque’s home soccer team, New Mexico United, competed against the Portland Timbers 2 on Sunday evening in Oregon, unable to prevail and ultimately losing their three-game winning streak. Portland kicked off the night with a goal in the third minute of the game from a forward for the Timbers, Foster Langsdorf.

---

Sports

Track & Field: 'Remarkable' is the expectation at UNM

Robert Maler | August 11

As students and faculty prepare for the fall semester to begin, a lot of people might be unaware of the heights the University of New Mexico track and field team climbed to during the break. A group of women — Adva Cohen, Weini Kelati, Ednah Kurgat and Charlotte Prouse combined forces at the 2019 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships to tally a school-record 27 points. The performances were enough to notch a top-10 finish overall.

---

News

UNM Athletics: No media deal sealed, yet

Justin Garcia | August 6

The University of New Mexico is one step closer to replacing its $4.4 million media-rights contract to broadcast games and images. However, the contracts value and when it can be signed remain unclear.  On Tuesday, the Board of Regents Finances and Facilities Committee approved an agreement between the University and Outfront Media Sports, Inc to hold the Athletics Department’s media rights . However, F&F committee chair Sandra Begay said the contract may have to be voted on by the full Board next month.  According to UNM Athletics Director Eddie Nuñez, the details of the contract are still being drafted. If the contract was not written up before the August 13 meeting, Begay and Nuñez said it would likely be voted on during the September 17 meeting. Nuñez said that UNM may end up using a temporary “bridge” contract while the Outfront deal is finalized and approved, but he declined to give specific details about what that might look like. 

---

Sports

Meow Wolf Night at Isotpoes Park

Luisa Pennington | July 29

New Mexico United and Meow Wolf are taking their relationship to another level. The first-year soccer club will host "Meow Wolf Night" in collaboration with the Santa Fe-based art collective on August 3 at Isotopes Park. The event, a fusion of sport and art declared as unprecedented by club president and CEO Peter Trevisani, will kick off at 7:30 p.m. “We knew from the beginning that bringing together art and soccer specific stadium sport in this way was uncharted territory, but now we are putting it into practice and laying a roadmap for other teams to follow,”  Trevisani said in a press release. “Fans will have so much to take in on this night, it will be a truly unique experience.”

---

Sports

Soccer: Saving soccer no longer his fight, Fishbein thankful and ready to move on

Robert Maler | July 15

Husband. Father. Coach. Jeremy Fishbein has worn a lot of hats in lifetime. And while he will likely continue doing so, the cherry Lobo lid that he wore so prominently on game day and media day as the University of New Mexico men's soccer coach probably won't be one of them. His tenure came to an end without much fanfare. No apparent press release from the university or its athletic department thanking him or recognizing the program for its accomplishments on the way out.

---

Sports

Soccer: NMU standings fall after loss

Robert Maler | July 8

New Mexico United continued to struggle in regular season play as the team dropped another tight contest on Saturday evening. United is now winless in its last five matches when it hasn't competed in the 2019 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup — the most recent defeat, a 1-0 loss to Real Monarchs. Saturday's match saw both squads encounter early scoring chances in the first half, though neither were able to convert. New Mexico missed a good opportunity in the opening minutes, but goalkeeper Cody Mizell was able to patrol the net and keep things scoreless after 45 minutes of play.

---

Sports

MMA: Holm goes down; Jones retains title at UFC 239

Robert Maler | July 8

Two fighters with New Mexico ties entered the octagon at UFC 239 with aspirations of emerging with a championship belt around their waist. Jon "Bones" Jones successfully defended his Light Heavyweight Championship by earning a split decision over Thiago Santos, but Holly Holm fell short and was knocked out by defending champ Amanda Nunes in the Women's Bantamweight Championship bout. The main card was an historic one.

---

Sports

Sports cuts a done deal

Robert Maler | June 30

The proposed cuts that were voted on by the University of New Mexico Board of Regents last year may have been the biggest sports story of the year in Albuquerque in 2018. Some members of the community were outraged by the decision to eliminate the four sports, questioning the fairness involved in forcing current student-athletes to make a sacrifice for problems they played no part in creating.