| Photo courtsesy of McNeese Athletics |
| Cowboy Football |
| By Mason Griffin The Poke Press McNeese football fell to Tarleton State 27-24 Sept. 12, at Navarre Stadium in Lake Charles. McNeese opened the scoring with a 13-yard rushing touchdown from Running Back Omiri Wiggins, capping a 12-play, 97-yard drive. Tarleton State responded with touchdowns from Quarterback Kaden Anderson and Running Back Tylan Hines to take a 14-7 lead into halftime. The Cowboys came out strong in the third quarter. Quarterback Devin Lippold connected with Wide Receiver Curtis Deville Jr. on two touchdown passes, while Kicker Deaglan Camron added a 37-yard field goal. McNeese entered the fourth quarter with a 24-21 advantage. Tarleton State tied the game with a 24-yard field goal with 12:10 remaining. After a long final drive, Kicker Alejandro De La Poza connected on another 24-yard field goal as time expired to give the Texans the 27-24 win. “Really tough game to lose. There’s some things in the game I thought we really did well,” McNeese Head Coach Matt Viator said. “There’s some things I like that we did offensively, I thought we did some good stuff, in my mind, the game really came down to our last drive,” Viator stated. Lippold completed 27 of 45 passes for 286 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. He also rushed for 65 yards. Elisha Edwards led McNeese receivers with eight catches for 111 yards, while Deville Jr. recorded five receptions for 87 yards and two touchdowns. Wiggins finished with 81 rushing yards and a touchdown on 15 carries. McNeese totaled 500 yards of offense, including 214 rushing yards and 286 passing yards. The Cowboys drop to 1-2 on the season and will travel to take on the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley at 7 p.m. Saturday. Cowgirl Volleyball By Wyatt Junkmann The Poke Press Recognized pregame for her first career win as a Cowgirl over Grambling on Sept. 11, Head Coach Tayler Gray and the Cowgirls swept the series, taking the victory in the home opener in a 3-0 set match. It was a strong night for the Cowgirls, racking up 55 points, 44 kills and eight aces, along with a solid 63 digs to protect the home court. McNeese held Grambling to 45 points, 35 kills and six aces. The Cowgirl’s rattled off their third straight victory and second win over Grambling last week to move McNeese to 3-7. Southland Conference play starts Sept. 23 after one more non-conference game against Oral Roberts. The focus now turns to proving themselves in the Conference competition. Gray was asked about the first portion of the schedule and how facing tough opponents helped her evaluate the Cowgirls’ roster. “…I wanted the stay relatively close, but I don’t think that there’s anything hard in playing hard competition, you just have to have the right mentality about it. I think our athletes have understood that we’re all about the process not the outcome, and if we stick to the process regardless of the outcome, the outcome will switch in our direction.” The Cowgirl’s face Oral Roberts at 1 p.m. Saturday before opening Southland Conference play against UT Rio Grande Valley at 6 p.m. Wednesday. All games are streamed live on ESPN+. Cowgirl Soccer By Wyatt Junkmann The Poke Press Cowgirl soccer began Southland Conference play with a 2-1 loss to Southeastern in Hammond this past week. The young core of the Cowgirl Soccer continues to impress, as Sophomore Rhiannon Maynes-Tourond scored the Cowgirl’s lone goal in the 54th minute, but continued on with seven total shots, three of which were on goal. Freshman Isabella Baltov kept pace with Maynes-Tourond, finishing with four shots, two of which were on goal. Last week, Head Coach Alexis Cable told The Poke Press that this young team had been “hungry and ready to battle,” and although the game did not end in a Cowgirl’s win, it showed this group could still be a contender for the conference championship. In total, the Cowgirls out shot the Lions 17-15, with five shots on goal for McNeese. It was also a cleaner game compared to games past, with only seven fouls drawn for the Cowgirls compared to the Lions 11. Dropping to 5-5 on the season, the Cowgirls head back home to face off against Stephen F Austin Thursday at 7 p.m. All games are steamed live on ESPN+. |
