Sports - The Daily Lobo

Image of Tevaka Tuioti courtesy of his twitter @TevakaTuioti.

Sports

Football: How a new offense helped the Lobos against UIW

Cameron Goeldner | September 2

In their season opener, the Lobos new offense put on a show against FCS opponent the University of the Incarnate Word in a 62-30 victory. Tevaka Tuioti looked the part of a starting quarterback, finishing with 327 yards, four passing touchdowns and one rushing touchdown. It was the highest point total for the Lobos since a 66-0 victory of Mississippi Valley State in 2015.

Sports

Football: Head coach feels no pressure stemming from sports cuts, rather an urgency to reclaim lost momentum

Robert Maler | September 1

“We had great momentum as I stood here a year ago — well, we lost that momentum — and we have to go get it back.” Losing has a tendency to make fans and critics alike forget things, but University of New Mexico head football coach Bob Davie’s statement above is accurate — as good times weren’t all that long ago. It was August 27, 2017 and Davie stood in front of the media talking about the upcoming season.The program wasn’t just riding high, it was an all-time high. New Mexico had just put together the best two-year stretch in program history.

Sports

Volleyball: UNM set to host Lobo Classic in home opener

Alanie Rael | August 29

The University of New Mexico volleyball team will be looking to carry some momentum from its last match back to Albuquerque as the team hosts the annual Lobo Classic Tournament, where it will face three opponents — culminating in a matchup with the in-state rival Aggies. New Mexico (1-2) had a rough start on the road, dropping its first two matches of the season at the Idaho Volleyball Classic — but grinded out a five-set victory over host school Idaho to salvage the weekend. UNM assistant head coach Pauline Manser said the team has a very different look this year and there were a lot of adjustments made over what was a very competitive weekend.

Sports

Men's Soccer: First game as a Lobo yields Player of the Week honors for Matt Puig

Robert Maler | August 29

Sometimes people just need a change of scenery. can be a good thing. The University of New Mexico men's soccer team picked up a big win in its season opener, taking down No. 22 Seattle by a count of 4-2 at the UNM Soccer Complex. Sophomore New Mexico forward Matt Puig, a sophomore transfer, was named the Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week after . But receiving individual accolades Sophomore transfer Matt Puig tallied five points on a pair of goals and an assist in his first outing as a Lobo.

Sports

Football: Davie says season opener will hold the answers to many questions

Matthew Narvaiz and Cameron Goeldner | August 29

Many of the questions that Bob Davie has about his University of New Mexico football team will be answered Saturday night at Dreamstyle Stadium as the Lobos kick off their season against the University of the Incarnate Word. “Most of all, I’m just excited,” Davie said. “(I) don’t take this opportunity for granted. I feel very fortunate to be here having the opportunity to do this.” The Lobos, who went 3-9 last season — including losing seven straight to finish the year — will bring a revamped offense to the table under new offensive coordinator Calvin Magee and an excitement level that Davie said is as high as it has been during his tenure. Magee was a part of Rich Rodriguez’ coaching staff at Arizona before being let go along with Rodriguez. At Arizona, he directed a spread option style offense, which he has blended in with the triple option that the Lobos have been known for during the first six years of Davie’s tenure.

Sports

Women's Soccer: Newcomer Alesia Garcia gets Player of the Week nod

Robert Maler | August 29

The University of New Mexico women's soccer team has a lot of new faces on the squad. Several of them have made significant contributions already, but the Mountain West took notice of one young Lobo when doling out selections to honor the conference's top players. UNM freshman forward Alesia Garcia was named the Mountain West Offensive Player of the Week for matches played through Aug. 26, a release said. Garcia played a big role in helping New Mexico bounce back after losing its season opener to notch a pair of home wins over the weekend. She netted a score in both games as she and her teammates punished opposing goalkeepers for a combined nine goals.

Sports

Men’s Soccer: Lobos shut out by No. 24 Washington Huskies

Alanie Rael | August 28

The University of New Mexico’s men’s soccer team was held scoreless on Monday night in its match against No. 24 Washington as the Lobos fell to the Huskies 2-0. New Mexico (1-1) seemed to come out with less energy than it had in Friday's season opener, in which the team dispatched of No. 22 Seattle by a score of 4-2. As the Lobos and Huskies felt each other out, both appeared to be defensive minded.

Sports

Football: Lobos name Tuioti as starting quarterback

Cameron Goeldner | August 27

The New Mexico Lobos have their new starting quarterback. Bob Davie announced on Monday that redshirt sophomore Tevaka Tuioti will be the starting quarterback on Saturday, Sep. 1 at 6 p.m. against Incarnate Word. The decision was between redshirt senior Coltin Gerhart and Tuitoti after a hamstring injury to junior college transfer Sheriron Jones took him out of the running for week one.

Madi Hirschman shoots during the second half of Sunday's game at the UNM Soccer Complex. The Lobos won 5-0.

Sports

Women's Soccer: Lobos crush Idaho State 5-0

Matthew Narvaiz | August 27

The day was hot, but not excessively so. The ever-so-slight breeze was an added perk. And both of those made for a perfect day of soccer for the UNM women’s soccer team. Attacking early and often, New Mexico (2-1-0) found itself dominating in a one-sided affair on Sunday afternoon, defeating the visiting Idaho State Bengals (0-2-0), 5-0 in front of a welcoming crowd of UNM fans.

Sports

Volleyball: Lobos open season 1-2 after defeating host school in Idaho Volleyball Classic

Alanie Rael | August 27

The University of New Mexico volleyball team dropped its opening match on Friday, but regrouped to earn a split in a double header on Saturday at the Idaho Volleyball Classic. New Mexico (1-2) opened the tournament against Grand Canyon (2-1) on Friday and the schools needed all five sets to determine a winner. The Lobos took the first set 25-17, but couldn't keep the momentum going and dropped the next two sets. UNM fought off defeat by taking the fourth set in convincing fashion, winning 25-11. But the ‘Lopes took the decisive fifth set, 15-13, to snag the 3-2 victory.

Omar Grey (center) is surrounded by his teammates while celebrating his first goal at UNM against Seattle University on Aug. 24, 2018. Grey, who is originally from Seattle, decided between the two schools in the recruiting process.

Sports

Men's Soccer: UNM defeats Seattle 4-2 in season opener

Cameron Goeldner | August 26

On an emotional night, in front of a combined crowd of 2,314, the University of New Mexico men’s soccer team opened the season with a 4-2 victory over No. 22 Seattle University. “Lots of emotions today,” head coach Jeremy Fishbein said. “It was a hard one to get going but we’ve got a confident group, I couldn’t be prouder of our guys.”

Sports

Women's Soccer: Lobos cruise in home opener with win over Pacific

Robert Maler | August 24

The University of New Mexico women's soccer team attacked early and often in front of a seemingly ever-growing crowd as it played the first leg of a UNM double-header against the Pacific Tigers on Friday night. New Mexico created a lot of great opportunities in the opening minutes. UNM forward Leilani Baker shook her defender, dribbling the ball and dropping off a pass in the box, but the Lobos were unable to convert. Several minutes later another scoring chance sailed wide right of the post. Baker said the Lobos are an attacking team and knew she wanted to set the bar for play with a lot of intensity to start the match.

Sports

Volleyball: Lobos set to begin season in Idaho

Robert Maler and Alanie Rael | August 24

The University of New Mexico volleyball team will begin its season on the road, playing three matches over two days in the Idaho Volleyball Classic. New Mexico is no stranger to opening up on the road, having done so in three of the past four seasons. And the Lobos have fared well — winning two of three at the Cyclone Invitational in Iowa last season and doing the same in Indiana to start the 2015 campaign. Another common factor will include the host school for this year’s tournament — Idaho.

Sports

Men's Soccer: Lobos ready to start final season against Seattle

Cameron Goeldner | August 24

After a long offseason fighting to save the program from being cut, the University of New Mexico men’s soccer team is finally ready to take the field for what will be the program’s final season. The Lobos open the season this Friday at home against No. 22 Seattle University at 7 p.m. as part of a double header with the women’s soccer team. The last meeting between Seattle and UNM was last season in Seattle, resulting in a 1-0 win for the Redhawks.

Quarterback Trae Hall hands the ball off to running back Tyrone Owens as offensive coordinator Calive Magee looks on during drills on August 21, 2018.

Sports

Davie apprehensive ahead of new football season

Cameron Goeldner | August 23

With less than two weeks to go before the beginning of the 2018 football season, head coach Bob Davie said it’s time for some urgency from his team. “Today we didn’t have great energy or great execution,” Davie said following Tuesday’s practice. “It’s not time to panic right now, but it is time for urgency right now because there’s a lot of things we might have a misconception that we think we can do, but I’m not sure right now that I saw anything out here this morning that I think we definitely can do.” Luckily for Davie and his staff, there’s still time to fix that, which is something that he says begins with the players and the team’s leadership to pull themselves out of a nose dive. He added that he was not disappointed, but simply concerned.

Sports

Women's Soccer: Lobos look to rebound against Pacific

Matthew Narvaiz | August 22

By no means is the UNM women’s soccer team hosting a powerhouse say, like, Texas Tech, who Lobos head coach Heather Dyche said “will be a top 25 team this year,” and who they lost to in the team’s season opener 2-0 on the road last Friday. But for a UNM team that Dyche calls young and “lacks experience” playing at such a high level on a consistent basis, she did see some very fixable errors in her team’s philosophy. “I think this weekend (against Pacific) we have to raise our level of grittiness,” she said.

Isotopes pitcher Jeff Hoffman delivers a pitch during Sunday night's game at Isotopes Park. Hoffman pitched a career high eight innings and the Isotopes won 7-1.

Sports

Isotopes: Another large crowd on hand to witness Mariachi finale

Cameron Goeldner | August 21

An impressive outing on the mound from starter Jeff Hoffman highlighted a strong all around outing for the Albuquerque Isotopes in the team’s final game as the Mariachis de Nuevo Mexico. Hoffman pitched a career high eight innings, allowing seven hits, one run, walking two and striking out five in a 7-1 win over the Sacramento River Cats, who suited up as the Dorados de Sacramento in front of a crowd of 13,553. “All year the curveball has been kind of a weak spot for me, which is new,” Hoffman said. “That’s always kind of been my pitch my whole life. Tonight I just said this is my best pitch, this is the one I’ve been throwing my whole life, this is what got me here, I’m just going to trust it.” He said that it was a breath of fresh air for him to have good results tonight following an outing where he felt like he had a good game plan and executed well, but didn’t see the same sort of success.

UNM head hockey coach Grant Harvey embraces goalie James Bostian after the overtime win against Colorado Mesa University, 5-4.

Sports

Hockey: Lobo coach names team captains, invites students to help fill roster

Robert Maler | August 19

The University of New Mexico hockey club enjoyed plenty of success last season, advancing to the ACHA National Championships for the first time in program history. And just five short months later, the squad is ready to get back to work and pick up where they left off. Head coach Grant Harvey, fresh off a fundraising endeavor, seemed excited about getting a chance to celebrate last season's accomplishment and try to garner support for the upcoming campaign. He said it made it a lot easier to ask for money from private donors when they are able to see the return on their investment. Harvey said was thankful for the support because he doesn't have anything to offer in return. UNM hockey is a club sport as opposed to being a part of the UNM Athletic Department and they rely heavily on fundraising to make playing the game possible.

Sports

Women’s Soccer: UNM falls 2-0 to Texas Tech in season opener

Matthew Narvaiz | August 18

It wasn’t the end result the UNM women’s soccer team was looking for, but after an hour long lightning delay the start time for the match, Texas Tech wasted no time proving its dominance on its home turf in Lubbock, Texas. The Red Raiders defeated the Lobos, 2-0, in what was the season opener for both teams Prior to the matchup, the Lobos played an exhibition against CSU Pueblo on Aug. 14, in which they ran away with a 7-0 victory over their opposition. But Texas Tech, a team that features a plethora of talent, utilized it to its full potential. The first shot on goal for the Red Raiders came early on with sophomore wing Kirsten Davis firing off an attempt just 2:40 into the match. She got two more looks at the goal within the first eight minutes of the match.

Sports

Football: UNM adds 3 games to TV schedule for 2018 season

Matthew Narvaiz | August 17

The UNM Lobos football team added another three games to its TV schedule this season, putting a total of 10 of its 12 games on either a “major national or regional networks,” the Mountain West and UNM announced on Tuesday. The latest addition of televised games for the Lobos comes in the form of the televised AT&T SportsNet, with the earliest game on the network coming on Oct. 6 when the team faces UNLV on the road in Las Vegas. The Saturday after, on Oct. 13, the Lobos will also be featured on the very same network, however against Colorado State in Fort Collins.