Weekend Tiger Athletics: ETBU Wins First-Ever Match for Program

TENNIS (M): KERRVILLE, Texas (2/23/13) – History was made on Saturday, February 23rd, as the East Texas Baptist University men’s tennis team won their first-ever program match with a 9-0 win over Sul Ross State. In the first match of the day, ETBU fell to Schreiner, 5-4.

ETBU took a 2-1 lead in doubles over Schreiner as they won the #1 and #2 doubles matches. Tyler Tolopka and Jeremy Rhodes won the #1 doubles, 8-4, and then Terry Affolter and Weston Godsey won 8-6 in #2 doubles.

Tolopka gave ETBU their third point with a 6-4, 6-0 win in #1 singles and then Affolter won #3 singles, 6-1, 6-0. The game changing match was at #5 where Luke Phillips fell 6-4, 7-6 (10-8).

In the win over Sul Ross State, Tolopka, Affolter, Godsey, Phillips, Asante Williams, and Nicholas Larzabal all won their singles matches. Williams and Larazbal picked up wins by default. Tolopka won #1 singles, 6-3, 6-3, and was followed by Affolter’s win, 6-3, 6-1. Godsey won #3 singles, 6-0, 6-1 and then Phillips took #4 singles, 6-0, 6-3.

ETBU travels to Texas Lutheran on Sunday for their third ASC match of the year.

Southwestern Nips ETBU, 7-2

TENNIS (M): GEORGETOWN, Texas (2/22/13) – East Texas Baptist University had five matches that were game changers and was just short of taking them as they fell to Southwestern University, 7-2. ETBU had two extra set points they lost and then three matches that were close coming down to the final set.

ETBU took one of three sets in doubles and was down 2-1 heading into singles play. Tyler Tolopka and Jeremy Rhodes teamed up for a 9-7 win. Weston Godsey and Terry Afffolter then fell in #2 doubles, 8-5, and Asante Williams and Luke Phillips dropped the second close match in doubles, 9-7.

Four of the six singles matches were very close as Southwestern closed them out for the win. Tolopka earned ETBU’s second match point with a 6-0, 6-2 win at #1 singles. ETBU fell in close matches at #3, #4, #5, and #6. Affolter fell in #3, 6-1, 1-6, 4-10 in the extra set and Godsey dropped the #4 match, 6-1, 1-6, 10-12. Phillips then lost the #5 match, 6-4, 7-5, and Williams fell in #6, 7-5, 6-1.

ETBU is now 0-4 and will face Schreiner University and Sul Ross State on Saturday in Kerrville.



ETBU Drops Match to Southwestern on the Road

TENNIS (W): GEORGETOWN, Texas (2/22/13) – In their third match of the season, the East Texas Baptist University women’s tennis team fell to Southwestern University, 9-0. ETBU is now 0-3 on the year and will head to Kerrville, Texas, for two matches on Saturday vs. Schreiner University and Sul Ross State.

Southwestern started the match with a 3-0 lead in doubles. Kallie Kent and Kali Kipp pushed for a point in #2 doubles but fell, 8-4. Karson Kent and Hannah Word fell in #1 doubles, 8-1, and Savannah Higginbotham and Kayla Franklin lost in #3 doubles, 8-1.

Kallie Kent came close to a point in #1 singles dropping the set, 6-4, 6-1. Kimberly Ledbetter fell in #4 singles, 6-1, 6-3, and Kipp fell in #5 singles, 6-3, 6-1. Word dropped the #2 singles, 6-0, 6-1, and Mia Moore lost the #6 singles, 6-0, 6-0.



Schreiner, SRSU Hand ETBU Two ASC Losses

TENNIS (W): KERRVILLE, Texas (2/23/2013) – The East Texas Baptist University women’s tennis team came up short of their first win of the year as they took losses from Schreiner University, 8-1, and Sul Ross State, 5-4. ETZU is now 0-5 on the year.

Kali Kipp and Kallie Kent won the #2 doubles vs. Schreiner for the one point in the match.

In their second match of the day, ETBU fell to Sul Ross State, 5-4. ETBU started the match with a 2-1 lead taking two doubles matches. Kallie Kent and Kali Kipp won the #2 doubles, 8-1, and then Kayla Franklin and Savannah Higginbothom won #3 doubles, 8-3. Kallie Kent also won the #1 singles, 6-3, 6-2, for the third point. Kali Kipp then won the #5 singles, 6-3, 6-3.

ETBU will play at Texas Lutheran on Sunday in another ASC match.

TLU Sweeps ETBU Tennis in Seguin

TENNIS: SEGUIN, Texas (2/24/13) – Playing their fourth match in three days, the East Texas Baptist University men’s and women’s tennis teams fell to Texas Lutheran on Sunday in Seguin, Texas. The women lost, 8-1, while the men were shut out 9-0. The women are now 0-6 on the year and the men are 1-6.



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Women’s Match

TLU 8, ETBU 1

Kali Kipp picked up ETBU’s only point in singles play as she won the #5 singles match. She defeated Rica Mollering, 6-3, 4-6, 1-0 (10-4). Kipp and Kallie Kent pushed for a point in #2 doubles but fell, 9-7.



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Men’s Match

TLU 9, ETBU 0

TLU took all the matches vs. ETBU in the final match of a four-match weekend. ETBU came close in getting a point at #1 singles as Tyler Tolopka fell to Sanio Dizdarevic, 6-3, 6-7 (7-5), 1-0 (10-8). He then teamed with Jeremy Rhodes in #1 doubles and fell to Dizdarevic/Kyle Thompson, 9-7.



ETBU will host their first match at home on the year on Saturday, March 2nd, at 3:00 p.m. at the Marshall High School tennis courts vs. Millsaps College.



ETBU Earns Two More Wins in Thrilling Series Over Trinity

SOFTBALL: MARSHALL, Texas (2/23/13) – Moving to 4-0 on the year, East Texas Baptist University swept Trinity University in softball. ETBU took game one, 7-0, and then won in extra innings in game two, 4-3. Kelli Jo McLendon won game two for her first collegiate win at ETBU.

Kelsey DeCarolis had four hits for ETBU on the day and Lacy Liles produced a three-run home run in game one. Tawny Hank was the winner in game one going the entire game and McLendon came in and received the win in game two with five strikeouts.

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Game 1

ETBU 7, Trinity 0

After four scoreless innings, ETBU broke open the game in the fifth with seven runs. Lacy Liles went 2-of-3 with three RBI and DeCarolis was 2-of-3. Kayla Garcia had two RBI while Alyssa Romero and Sara Clements each had one RBI.

Hank went the full seven innings giving up only four hits and had four strikeouts.

Romero brought in the first run in the fifth inning on a single to first base as Lya Swaner scored. Clements followed with a single to the short stop for the 2-0 lead. Garcia followed with the third straight hit doubling down the left field line to score two for a four-run lead. Trinity relieved their pitcher and Liles welcomed her to the game with a three-run shot over the left field fence making it 7-0.

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Game 2

ETBU 4, Trinity 3

It took extra innings for the sweep but ETBU took the series as the Trinity pitching walked Maranda Westbrook with the bases loaded and Mallory Westbrook came in as the winning run. ETBU got on the board first in the first inning but Trinity put up three runs in the fourth for the two-run lead. ETBU cut the lead to one in the fourth on one run and then tied the game in the sixth making it 3-3 before the win in the eighth inning.

Shelby Parker started the game and went four innings for the no decision as she had six strikeouts giving up three earned runs on four hits. McLendon went the next four innings and recorded five strikeouts and had only two hits. She pitched out of a bases loaded jam with one out in the top of the eighth inning to get the win.

Decarolis and Swaner were both 2-of-4 in the game as Swaner had one RBI. Hank, Delgado, and Maranda Westbrook also had a RBI.

Hank doubled in the first run of the game in the first inning with a double down the left field line. After Trinity took the 3-1 lead in the fourth, Swaner singled through the right side to cut the lead to one, 3-2. Delgado had the game tying hit in the sixth inning with a single to left field.

With the bases loaded in the eighth and only one out, Maranda Westbrook was walked as her sister Mallory came in for the winning run.

ETBU will play in the ASC Crossover Tournament next weekend at Farmers Branch, Texas.



HSU Takes Series Over ETBU

BASEBALL: ABILENE, Texas (2/23/13) – It was a hard day on the pitching staff in Abilene, Texas, as East Texas Baptist University gave up 24 runs in the double header vs. Hardin-Simmons University. HSU won both games, 11-1 and 13-7 as ETBU fell to 4-5 on the year.

Grant Westmoreland and Luke Pinkard both received the losses for ETBU. Tyler Bates had four hits on the day while Garrett Parsons had three hits. Chris Abascal led ETBU with three RBI on the day.

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Game 1

Hardin-Simmons 11, ETBU 1

ETBU scored their lone run in the first inning when Jeremy Pinder came in on a wild pitch to make it 1-0. ETBU only had five hits in the game and two errors. Hardin-Simmons took a 2-1 lead in the third and then posted five runs in the fourth for a 7-1 lead. They scored runs in the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth innings for the 11-1 lead.

Pinder, Bates, Parsons, Phillip Windham, and Lance Anding all had one hit in the game. Westmoreland went 3.2 innings giving up six runs, five earned with four strikeouts. Matt Lefler followed with one inning of work and had two strikeouts, two earned runs, and four hits. Cody Pruitt and T.J. Barnes finished out the game. Pruitt had 0.1 innings of work and let three earned runs come in and Barnes pitched the final inning and walked one batter.

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Game 2

Hardin-Simmons 13, ETBU 7

Once again, ETBU scored in the first inning taking a 2-0 lead only to see the Hardin-Simmons tie the game at two in the bottom of the first. In the nine inning game, Hardin-Simmons scored two in the third and one in the fourth for a 5-2 lead. ETBU cut the lead to one, 5-4, with a two-run fifth but Hardin-Simmons added two in the sixth and six in the seventh for a 13-4 lead. ETBU added three runs in the eight making it 13-7. ETBU matched Hardin-Simmons in hits with 13 each.

Pinkard received the loss going five innings coming in with two outs in the first inning. He gave up five runs, three earned and had three strikeouts. Jordan Gibbs started the game and went 0.2 innings giving up two earned runs on two hits. Ernest Perez was the third pitcher going 2.1 innings and had one strikeout and gave up six earned runs.

Abascal was 2-of-2 with three RBI to lead ETBU. Bates had a 3-of-5 performance with one RBI and two runs scored. Windham also recorded a RBI while Matty Sullivan had one hit for a RBI.



Comeback Falls Short in Abilene vs. HSU

BASEBALL: ABILENE, Texas (2/22/13) – Hardin-Simmons University took the first of the three-game series, 6-4, on Friday night over East Texas Baptist University in an American Southwest Conference crossover series. ETBU took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning but Hardin-Simmons put up five runs over the next four innings for a four-run advantage en route to the two-run win.

Zach Tampke went 3.2 innings receiving the loss (1-2) but recorded six strikeouts. He gave up five earned runs on six hits and walked four batters. Tanner Matthews went the next 3.2 innings and had four strikeouts only allowed one earned run on four hits. Josh Stoffregen finished the final 0.2 innings and had just one hit.

Tyler Bates led the team going 3-of-5 with two runs scored. Garrett Parsons had one hit for two RBI and Jeremy Pinder recorded two hits with one RBI. Phillip Windham also had two hits for one RBI. HSU’s Bell had three hits for the Cowboys and Dotson got the win going 5.2 innings.

Windham hit his first of two doubles in the first inning for the 1-0 lead as Bates came in. Hardin-Simmons tied the game in the bottom of the first and then took the lead in the second inning on one run. They added three in the fourth inning for a 5-1 lead.

In the sixth inning ETBU cut the lead to one, 5-4, scoring three runs. Pinder picked up a RBI for the second run of the game with a hit to right field as Nick Grizzell scored. Two batters later, Parsons singled to the outfield as both Bates and Pinder came in. HSU then added an insurance run in the eighth inning to put the score at 6-4.

ETBU finished with 10 hits and left 11 runners on base as they had situations to take the lead but did not get the hit.

The series will continue on Saturday with a seven inning and nine inning game starting at 1:00 p.m.



Slaughter Scores 1,000th Point as ETBU Season Ends in ASC Tournament

BASKETBALL (W): BROWNWOOD, Texas (2/22/13) – Mary Slaughter went over 1,000 career points at East Texas Baptist University ending her career with 33 points in the first round of the American Southwest Conference tournament falling to Howard Payne University, 88-72. ETBU finishes the season at 16-10 under first-year head coach Dustin Howard which is 10 more wins than the 2011-12 season.

Slaughter went off for 33 points in her final game to finish her career at ETBU with 1,025 points which is in the all-time top 10. She also grabbed seven rebounds to finish third all-time in rebounding. She shot 14-of-23 from the floor and was 5-of-6 from the free throw line. April Leonard finished with 16 points making three free throws. Tresta Donahoo led Howard Payne with 19 points.

ETBU had a 21-20 lead with 7:03 to go in the first half when Howard Payne went on a 20-9 run to finish the half for a 10-point lead at the half, 40-30. ETBU did not make any three-pointers in the first half on six attempts and just made two in the second half. There were four times and eight lead changes in the first 14 minutes of the game before Howard Payne made their run to take the lead at the half.

In the first five minutes of the second half, ETBU had a 12-9 run to start pulling within seven, 49-42. That is as close as ETBU came to HPU the rest of the game as the Yellowjackets advanced in the championship tournament, 88-72.

ETBU shot 39 percent in the game from the floor, 15 percent from the arc, and 69 percent (16-of-23) from the stripe. Howard Payne shot 39 percent overall, 26 percent from the three-point line, and 77 percent (28-of-36) from the line. They also out rebounded ETBU, 52-40. Both teams only had 11 turnovers.

ETBU ends the season with 16 wins finishing the regular season winning five of their last six games to make the tournament including upsetting #18 Louisiana College on the road. The 16 wins are the most since 2006-07 when ETBU won the ASC East Division Championship and had 22 wins.