University of Central Arkansas Defeats Bearkats In Straight Sets
Sam Houston State Bearkat volleyball team lost to the University of Central Arkansas Bears in straight sets 25-23, 25-22, 25-12.
The Bears are now 1-1 in the Southland Conference (12-1 overall).
Though the Bearkats (1-1 SLC, 5-8 overall) fought tooth and nail with a total of 10 ties and three lead changes, the Bears maintained their composure and won the first two sets to take a 2-0 lead.
They scored three straight points to open up the third set and did not look back as they easily took the third set to win the match.
Devene Wells-Gibson led the Bearkats with 11 kills, 7 digs and two blocks while Kaylee Hawkins contributed with 6 kills and 4 digs.
Jessica Hays led the Bears with 19 kills, 7 digs and an ace.
The Bearkats next opponent will be against their archrival Stephen F. Austin in Nacagdoches on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.
Preview of Bearkats-Bears Football Game
by Cheval John
The day is almost here when Sam Houston State Bearkats plays against the Baylor Bears tomorrow night at 6 p.m on Fox College Sports.
The Bears have an all-time record of 3-0 against the Bearkats.
The last time they met was two years ago when Willie Fritz began his tenure as head football coach for the Bearkats.
They lost to the Bears 34-3 with Robert Griffith III (RG3) at the helm.
The game also featured an unknown running back at the time in Tim Flanders.
Flanders made a 31 yard run on his first carry in the final minutes of the game and eventually went on to great heights at SHSU. (More on him later.)
The Bears are looking to get back in the Associated Press national polls this season while the Bearkats are aiming for their second consecutive win against an Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) team.
They defeated New Mexico 48-45 in overtime.
Here is a scouting report on both teams.
Baylor:
They are entering the game with a 1-0 record after demolishing Southern Methodist University (SMU) 59-24 at Floyd Casey Stadium.
In that game, they accumulated 613 yards in total offense in 20 minutes of possession.
The team is led by senior quarterback Nick Florence.
Though he is no RG3, he a very efficient quarterback that have plenty of experience in the collegiate game.
He completed 21 of 30 passes for 341 yards, 4 touchdowns and 0 interceptions.
He has improved from his freshman year, when he started seven games for an injured Griffith III and second stringer Blake Szymanski and thrown for 1,786 yards, with six touchdowns and nine interceptions.
One of his favorite targets is senior wide receiver Terrance Williams.
Williams had 7 receptions for 138 yards in the game.
This offense is highly explosive and will need to produce as many points as possible if they are going to beat SHSU because the defense gave up a total of 507 yards against SMU’s offense.
Sam Houston State:
The Bearkats are coming off a 54-7 win over future Southland Conference member, Incarnate Word.
Junior running back Tim Flanders rushed for 117 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries.
He became the all-time leading rusher in SHSU history with 2,709 yards.
The engine for this offense is quarterback Brian Bell
The junior from China Springs went 12 of 19 for 157 yards and two touchdowns.
He is not as flashy as other quarterbacks with the big stats, but his biggest strength is managing the game.
On the other side of the ball, the Bearkat defense is a force to be reckon with.
They held the Cardinals to 88 total yards and are ranked No. 2 in the country.
Senior linebacker Darius Taylor led the defense with 9 total tackles in the massacre.
Look for them to rush the pass at every given opportunity.
The Prediction?
Normally, you would see a prediction after the breakdown of each team.
I am not going to do that.
Instead, I am going to pose this question.
What if SHSU beat Baylor on Saturday, would they get credit for the win or will the focus be on what Baylor did wrong and how could they have lost to an Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) school?
I’ve seen the majority of people in the media picking Baylor because they are a well-known university and they play football in the FBS while SHSU plays in the FCS.
All I can say is that it will be an exciting game and will go down to the wire.
Bearkats Welcomes Oral Roberts With A Win
by Cheval John
Oral Roberts Eagles volleyball team didn’t know what to expect when they played Sam Houston State Bearkats on Thursday night.
During their 15 year history in the Summit League, the Eagles posted a 155-31 record, winning seven regular season titles, seven post-season tournament title, and made seven NCAA tournament appearances.
ORU joined the Southland Conference on July 1 and were looking to make a statement in their first game as a member.
Though they got off to a great start in the first set by scoring the first five out of eight points, the Bearkats settled down and dismantled the Eagles in straight sets 25-17, 25-21, 25-18.
Senior outside hitter Kendall Cleveland led the Kats with 16 kills, 5 blocks and three digs.
She produced 11 out of the teams 25 points in the third set alone with her dominant play and overwhelmed ORU.
“I just said to her (Cleveland), ‘My wish for us this weekend is for you to have a great match tonight’ and she did,” head coach Brenda Gray said.
“We wanted to show them that just because you are new. … Doesn’t mean that you will walk all over us,” Cleveland said.
“I think we got out there and proved that tonight.”
After being down 8-6, theBearkats scored the next six out of eleven points to take a 14-11 on a pair of kills by sophomore Devene Wells-Gibson, Kaylee Hawkins, and blocks by Cleveland and fifth-year senior Kim Black.
They went on to win the first set 25-17.
The Bearkats started the second set by scoring the first six out of nine points to make it 6-3.
The Eagles fought back as they went on a 11-8 run to tie the set at 14.
The Bearkats scored the next three points to take a 17-14 lead on a error by ORU, a kill by Cleveland and a block by Hawkins.
They finished them off in the second set 25-21 and went on to win the game to secure a 1-0 record in league play.
Wells-Gibson concluded the match with 11 kills and 10 digs while Black had 7 kills, 7 blocks, 6 digs and an ace.
Tatum Fredeen led the Eagles with 9 kills and Joana Gruber contributed with six.
They are now 0-1 in league play (4-8) overall.
The Bearkats host Central Arkansas on Saturday at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum at 2 p.m.
Bearkat Volleyball Team Set For Oral Roberts
by Cheval John
There are always a first time for everything.
Your first day of school. Your first day of work.
For the Sam Houston State Bearkat volleyball team, it will be their first meeting against Oral Roberts University at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum on Thursday at 7 p.m.
ORU joined the Southland Conference this past July and the Bearkats are looking forward to the matchup.
“Obviously, Oral Roberts is new to the conference,” assistant coach Ellen Andrews said. “It’s interesting to open the conference season with them.”
The Bearkats (4-7) finished their two week road trip at the Sugar Bowl Classic in New Orleans with a 1-2 record.
That win came against host Tulane in the last game of the classic.
Oral Roberts also have a record of 4-7 and are on a five-game losing streak.
Three of their players have a total of 100 kills or more.
“We’re really optimistic about the conference season because we knew that we scheduled a really tough ‘pre-season,’ Andrews said.
“We are pretty battle tested at this point.”
Over the last 11 games, the Bearkats has totaled 526 kills.
Sophomore outside hitter Devene Wells-Gibson leads the team with 155 kills, which is No.3 in the conference.
“Devene is a very good volleyball player,” Andrews said.
“She has a good knowledge of the game. … She’s very calm on the court.”
Contributing to the offense is defensive specialist Tayler Gray.
The junior from Huntsville ranks No.4 in the conference with 424 assists.
Libero Jamie Haas leads the defense with 163 digs.
Though she is not in the spotlight, the senior from Deer Park produced spectacular defensive plays that creates an opportunity for the Bearkats to score.
“Sometimes they are not given enough credit for what they do because they are not the flashy players,” Andrews said.
“Jamie is setting up a lot of points for us. … She knows what she is doing out there.”
The Bearkats believe that their preparation will serve them well when they play host to ORU.
“We watch some film on them,” Andrews said.
“We have a good game plan on what we need to do to take care of them.”
Bearkats Opens 2012 Season With Win Over Cardinals
by Cheval John
In front of a crowd of 11,061 at Elliot T. Bowers Stadium, the Sam Houston State Bearkat football team dismantled the University of the Incarnate Word Cardinals 54-7.
The win gives them a 1-0 record for the season and increase their win streak to 10 games at Bowers stadium.
Running back Tim Flanders carried the ball 15 times for 117 yards and two touchdowns.
In the process, he became SHSU’s All-Time leader in career rushing yards (2,709), breaking the career mark held by Charles Harris (2,688).
The Bearkats started the route in the first quarter when Flanders broke a few tackles and went 41 yards for the touchdown that made it 6-0.
The Cardinals made things interesting early on when corner back Chavis Barron intercepted a pass from ‘utility’ player Richard Sincere and returned it 20 yards to the Bearkat 36.
Three plays later, quarterback Zach Rhodes connected with running back Trent Rios for an 18 yard score that tied it at 6.
The extra point gave them a 7-6 lead.
The Bearkats regrouped as Flanders rushed 8 yards for the score to regain the lead 13-7.
They added another score when wide reciever Trey Diller took a shovel pass from quarterback Brian Bell and went 21 yards for a touchdown to increase the lead to 20-7 by halftime.
The Bearkats picked up from where they left off when running back Keshawn Hill rushed 11 yards for the score that made it 27-7.
Their defense played their part as they held the Cardinals offense to 88 total yards for the night.
One of their playmakers, Robert Shaw intercepted a pass from Rhodes on the Bearkat 47 and took it 19 yards all the way to the Cardinal 19.
Several plays later, Bell threw a 3 yard strike to tight end J.D. Stanley to increase the lead and put the game out of reach for the Bearkats.
Linebacker Darius Taylor led the Bearkat defense with 9 tackles while defensive lineman J.T. Cleveland and line backer Jesse Beauchamp each had five tackles.
The Bearkats face their first test of the season when they play Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) member, Baylor Bears on Saturday in Waco, Texas at 6 p.m.
The game will be televised on Fox College Sports.