The Lobos certainly weren’t in midseason conference form, but the squad didn’t have to be. New Mexico came out in a 3-0 sweep over Air Force on Thursday night, while team captain Julia Warren watched from the bench with a big black brace on her right knee.
New Mexico running back Teriyon Gipson can’t outrun a past incident which has been brought to the spotlight, and could continue to have an effect both on and off the field. Multiple reports confirm Gipson was arrested in January while in Dallas on a pair of misdemeanor charges for marijuana possession and unlawful possession of a firearm.
If New Mexico has taken anything away from non-conference play, it’s that the Mountain West title is wide open and up for grabs. Everyone begins conference play with the same 0-0 record, but there have been some changes on how the Mountain West is stacking up this year. For starters, powerhouse Colorado State (6-5) has already lost more games than the squad lost all last season when the Rams were 26-4 and 18-0 in MW play.
It’s a big week for the UNM men’s soccer team. The Lobos, who are now on a riding a 5-game winning streak, are preparing to begin conference play. After last weekend’s 3-1 victory over UC Irvine, the Lobos have more than one reason to start with confidence. Senior forward Niko Hansen was named Player of the Week by College Sports News as a result of the hat trick he recorded against UC Irvine.
The New Mexico women’s tennis team got off to a decent start and performed well, although one of its players had to retire from a match. UNM split in its first action this season at the Midland Racquet Club Invitational.
New Mexico had a long day on Saturday, splitting its final doubleheader of the year while taking both non-conference matches the full five sets. UNM (9-4) couldn’t quite close things out in a 3-2 loss to Samford for the morning contest. After dropping the first set 25-21, the Lobos rebounded to take sets two and three with 25-17 and 25-22 scores, respectively.
New Mexico’s goal for the week was clear — “don’t let New Mexico State beat us twice.” But the Lobos seemed to repeat many of the same mistakes, which contributed to another loss. Costly turnovers on offense and allowing big plays on defense have hurt the Lobos the past two games, but a bigger issue may have affected the outcome Saturday.
A Niko Hansen hat trick made the Lobos’ California dream come to life. New Mexico (5-2) was rewarded with its first road win of the season — and its fifth straight victory overall — in a 3-1 victory over the UC Irvine Anteaters (1-6) on Saturday night.
For the second time in as many weeks, the Lobos lost the lead and control of the game by giving up big plays and making costly turnovers, this time en route to a 37-28 loss at Rutgers on Saturday. UNM Head coach Bob Davie said he felt in control, for the most part, in terms of game plan and strategy. After giving up the lead, the Lobos (1-2) fought back to have chances at the end.
For the first time in the 2016 season, New Mexico was able to play in front of its home crowd in a 2-0 shutout victory over in-state rival New Mexico State on Friday. Head coach Heather Dyche said people jokingly asked if the team would still be able to find the field. Just to be on the safe side, the Navy Leap Frogs parachuted onto the field prior to the match to lead the way.
New Mexico released its new schedule and the team is ready to begin its road-heavy start of the season at the Midland Invitational in Texas. First year head coach Stephanie Wooten-Quijada said everyone has been very welcoming, and she likes what she sees as far as the team dynamic.
After two successful weekends at home, the UNM men’s soccer team is back on the road this week. The Lobos (4-2) will travel to California to play the UC Irvine Anteaters, a team New Mexico hasn’t faced since 2012. The last time UNM played UC Irvine was in Albuquerque in the fall of 2012. The Lobos managed to get a 2-1 victory, but only after a late game-tying goal by the Anteaters forced the match to go into double overtime.
New Mexico (1-1) suffered a heartbreaking loss to New Mexico State on Saturday, but it also lost some key players due to injury that could make things even tougher as the season continues. Head coach Bob Davie said arguably the team’s best defensive and offensive players will not be making the trip to New Jersey to do with battle Rutgers (1-1) on Saturday.
After an extensive road trip, New Mexico gets to come home, but they won't have much time to rest. Following nearly a month of road games all over the nation, the Lobos get to play in front of home fans for the first time in the 2016-2017 season, and will be facing off against a New Mexico State team with plenty of familiar faces.
For 42 years Mike Roberts’ voice rang true to UNM athletics. While the former broadcaster started with New Mexico football, Lobo fans will largely associate his commentary with basketball. On Tuesday afternoon, Roberts passed away at age 83 after a bout with cancer.
Jeff Nelson is not just another coach to seniors Cassie House and Julia Warren. New Mexico’s head coach has had the two under his wing from a young age, even when Nelson was just getting acclimated to the community, and the chile, himself.
Whether it’s at club or international level, Spain is almost inarguably one of the most dominant countries in the world when it comes to soccer. The UNM men’s soccer team now has a little piece of that distinction.
Though he has built a career playing professionally around the globe, former Albuquerque soccer standout Ben Spencer has always had a vision for the place he calls home. Spencer moved away from the Land of Enchantment at the age of 15 to pursue his dream of playing soccer professionally.
Alice Wright, who came to UNM from England, was part of the National Championship cross country team that the Lobos ran last fall. The Daily Lobo caught up with Wright -- this year a redshirt junior runner on the team -- to discuss what it has been like in the 10 months since emerging victorious in the NCAAs, getting used to New Mexico, and her goals for the future.
The touchback on kickoffs was moved from the 20 to the 25-yard line in college football for this season, but something else was recently unveiled between those points on Branch Field at University Stadium. Numbers usually appear in 10-yard increments on a football field, but in its home opener against South Dakota, the Lobos honored one of its fallen teammates by placing the number 22 at the corresponding yard lines. Markel Byrd, former Lobos safety, wore number 22 during his tenure at New Mexico. He had just ended his sophomore season, in which he helped the team earn its first bowl appearance since 2007.
Solutions by The State News
