Archive | April 2013

A First Time For Everything

Courtesy: Paul Ridings, Jr., SHSU Sports Information

For the first time in Sam Houston’s 97 years of football, the Bearkats will play a 12-game regular season schedule in 2013.

Sam Houston and Houston Baptist have announced that the Bearkats and Huskies will open the 2013 football season with a 6 p.m. contest Saturday August 31 at Elliott T. Bowers Stadium in Huntsville.

The game gives Sam Houston seven home contests at Bowers plus the 88th “Battle of the Piney Woods” rivalry game with Stephen F. Austin at Reliant Stadium in Houston.

The contest will give HBU a seven game schedule for the Huskies’ inaugural season.

“We’re excited to have the opportunity to play our season opener in front of our home fans,” Bearkat head football coach Willie Fritz said. “The support our team receives from our students and the Huntsville community has been a big factor in the program’s success. Houston Baptist will be joining the Southland in football next year and we’re looking forward to getting the rivalry started.”

Season tickets for 2013 Bearkat football home games (including both the seven contests at Bowers and the “Piney Woods” battle at Reliant) have been on sale for a month.

The opener with HBU will be added to the season ticket package as a “bonus game.”

Bleacher reserved packages are available for $110 per season ticket.

Fans interested in getting their names on the waiting list for Bearkat Champion chair back packages ($290 each) should contact the Sam Houston athletic ticket office at (936) 294-1729.

The ticket office is located in the Ron Mafrige Field House in the south end zone of Bowers Stadium.

“With seven Saturdays at Bowers, the SFA battle at Reliant and the Texas A&M game at College Station, nine of our 12 regular season games are right here in the Greater Houston and Huntsville area,” Sam Houston director of athletics Bobby Williams said. “This is a tremendous opportunity for fans to get behind the Bearkats and proudly wear their orange in the stands. We’re thrilled to have such a great schedule this year.”

The two-time Southland Conference champion Bearkats return 40 lettermen including 12 starters from last year’s 11-4 squad that reached the NCAA national championship game in Frisco for the second year in a row.

Sam Houston’s 25-5 record in 2011 and 2012 and consecutive NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision No. 2 final national rankings represent the most successful consecutive seasons in the university’s history.

Houston Baptist is fielding its inaugural football team in 2013.

“We are looking forward to opening our inaugural season against Sam Houston State, a future Southland Conference opponent,” HBU director of athletics Steve Moniaci said. “This is not only an opportunity for our student-athletes and coaches to compete against one of the top FCS programs in the country, but also gives our students, alumni and fans an early glimpse of what we hope will become a tremendous rivalry in the future.”

“This gives our team the chance to compete against one of the very top FCS programs in the country and will be a great event for football in the greater Houston area,” HBU head coach Vic Shealy said. “We appreciate the opportunity to play against a team that is highly-respected nationally, with the success Willie Fritz and his program have had in recent years.”

The complete Sam Houston State 2013 football schedule:

August 31 (Sat.) — 6 p.m. — Houston Baptist
Sept. 7 (Sat.) – TBA – at Texas A&M
Sept. 14 (Sat.) – 6 p.m. – Texas Southern
Sept. 21 (Sat.) – 6 p.m. – Incarnate Word
Sept. 28 (Sat.) – 3 p.m. – Eastern Washington (Parents’ Weekend)
Oct. 12 (Sat.) – 2 p.m. – Lamar (Homecoming)
Oct. 19 (Sat.) – TBA – at McNeese State
Oct. 26 (Sat.) – 2 p.m. – Northwestern State
Nov. 2 (Sat.) – 3 p.m. – Stephen F. Austin at Reliant Stadium
Nov. 9 (Sat.) – 2 p.m. – Nicholls State
Nov. 16 (Sat.) – TBA – at Southeastern Louisiana
Nov. 23 (Sat.) – TBA – at Central Arkansas

Bearkats Run At NCAA’s Elite Eight Came To A Screaching Halt

Courtesy: Paul Ridings, Jr., SHSU Sports Information

CANTON, Mich — After a strong first day at the NCAA Bowling Championship, Sam Houston State couldn’t duplicate the same success on Friday afternoon.

They dropped a pair of matches to Arkansas State and Fairleigh Dickinson, eliminating them from the championship.

“It was a tough day for us,” said head coach Brad Hagen. “I thought we played pretty well, we just couldn’t come up with the big shots when we needed them. We had hoped to improve on our showing two years ago on Friday, but unfortunately it didn’t happen for us.”

The Kats entered the day as the No. 3 qualifier, following a 5-2 day during Thursday’s qualifying round.

Sam Houston defeated five of the eight seeded teams Thursday including wins over Central Missouri, Nebraska, Arkansas State, Vanderbilt and Wisconsin-Whitewater to earn the No. 3 seed in Friday’s best-of-seven baker bracket play.

But the Kats got off to a slow start in the opening match against No. 6 Arkansas State.

Arkansas State came out hot and never slowed down, sweeping the Kats 4-0 in the opening round of the best-of-7 baker matches.

In the opening game, the Red Wolves started with three straight strikes while the Kats left the first two frames open.

A late charge by the Kats was not enough as they fell 210-192.

Game 2 was more of the same in a 210-192 loss for the Kats.

In Game 3 SHSU started strong, but an open frame in the fourth for the Kats, followed by four straight strikes by ASU lifted the Red Wolves to a 215-193 victory.

In the final game of the match, open frames once again cost the Bearkats, failing to pick up the spare in three of the first five frames and they couldn’t recover in a 193-172 loss.

“It is really difficult to try and come out of the losers bracket to get to the finals,” Hagen said. “We knew the importance of the first match, but just never could get anything going for us.”

In the final match of the day, the Kats fell 4-2 to Fairleigh Dickinson.

FDU built an early lead taking the first two games.

The Knights were hot in Game 1, hitting strikes in seven of the first nine frames, cruising to a 227-166 win.

In game 2 the Kats couldn’t hit consecutive strikes and FDU closed with six straight for a 205-178 win.

Sam Houston bounced back for a win in game 3, winning 201-195.

FDU left the sixth frame open and the Kats answered with three straight from the 5th-7th.

Erin Brown hit a strike in the 9th to lift the Kats.

In game four, the SHSU didn’t roll a strike until the ninth frame.

Michelle Secours closed with three strikes in the 10th, but it wasn’t enough in a 214-193 loss.

The Kats stayed in the match in the fifth, escaping with a 181-179 win.

They left the 10th frame open, but FDU came right back and did the same thing to give the Bearkats the win.

Needing a win to force a seventh game, the Kats had no answer for and FDU team that rolled their best game of the match.

The Knights closed with six consecutive strikes to win the game 247-197 and close out the match.

“They gave us an opportunity there in the fifth to get back in the match, but we couldn’t take advantage,” Hagen said. “Give credit to FDU, they finished strong.”

Davis Earns Highest Award Two Years In A Row

Morgan Davis of Sam Houston State was voted as 2013 Southland Conference women’s indoor track and field “Student-Athlete of the Year.”

Davis is receiving the honor for the second consecutive year.

Since 2007, 13 Bearkats have earned “Student-Athlete of the Year” recognition in their sport a total of 16 times.

Davis is the second Bearkat to earn “Student-Athlete of the Year” honors in back-to-back seasons.

Ryan Bright was voted the basketball honor in both 2007 and 2008.

A senior from Waller, Texas, Davis won the pentathlon at the Southland Conference Indoor Championships for the second consecutive year in a row.

She dominated the women’s multi event competition, winning the high jump (5 feet, 1.75 inches), finishing second in the shot put (17-4.75) and claiming third in the three other events.

With a master of arts degree in health, a bachelor’s degree in biology and a minor in chemistry, Davis has accumulated a 3.63 grade-point average during her undergraduate career and a perfect 4.0 in graduate school.

The Southland Conference awards committee, which consists of one administrator from each of the 10 member universities, votes for the student-athletes of the year.

The student-athlete of the year award is presented to one student-athlete who achieves excellence in both academics and athletics.

All nominees shall have earned at least a 3.2 GPA on a 4.0 scale, and demonstrated athletics achievement for a least two years at the nominating institution.

Past Southland Conference “Student-Athlete of the Year” winners from Sam Houston include Lata Assudani (tennis 2007), Luke Prihoda (baseball 2007), Jennie Sewell (outdoor track and field 2007), Ryan Bright (men’s basketball 2007, 2008), Jennifer Heinz (women’s golf 2008), Barkley Falkner (men’s basketball 2009), Irina Sotnikova (women’s tennis 2009), Brittany Brooks (women’s basketball 2010), Chris Cralle (indoor and outdoor track and field 2011), Travis Watson (football 2011), James Glenn (men’s golf 2012), Jake Arrington (baseball 2012) and Davis (women’s indoor track 2012, 2013).

Thomas And Martin Earns “Rare” Three Peat

Courtesy: Paul Ridings, Jr., SHSU Sports Information

Sam Houston’s Britni Martin and Sequeena Thomas has become the first three-time Academic All-Southland Conference women’s basketball selections in the Bearkats’ 26 years in the league.

Martin and Thomas, who led the Kat women to the their first Southland Conference championship and a WNIT post-season appearance in 2013, are first team selections on the academic all-league honor squad announced Wednesday.

Martin is a graduate student with a 3.62 grade point average in education.

The Conroe product is a three-time first team All-Southland performer and was the team’s leading scorer this year with a 15.9 average.

Martin ended her career as the university’s all-time leader in free throw percentage (.797) and three point field goals (311) and stands No. 2 all-time in Kat scoring (1,834) and assists (122).

She is both a Dean’s List and President’s List student who earned her Bachelor’s degree and is completing work on her Master’s.

Thomas is a mass communication major with a 3.14 GPA.

The senior from Allentown, Penn., was named the conference’s defender of the year.

She earned first team All-Southland and all-tournament honors at the league’s post-season event in Katy.

A member of the All-Southland defensive team, Thomas ranked No. 1 in the league and No. 6 in NCAA Division I women’s basketball in rebounding.

She is the only Sam Houston player to total both more than 1,000 points and rebounds.

The Academic All-Southland team is selected annually by a vote of the league’s head coaches, sports information contacts and academic advisors.

Student-athletes must possess a 3.0 cumulative GPA, have completed one full academic year at the nominating institution and participated in at least 50 percent of the team’s competition to qualify for the all-academic squad.