by Lornna Bates

Managing editor

The Savage Storm women’s basketball team faced up against hosting opponent Harding in Searcy, Ark. on Saturday, Jan. 21. The Savage Storm lost to Harding 56-60, making the team’s record 7-9 for the overall season and 3-3 in Great American Conference play.

Senior guard Nikki Nester (10) led the Storm with 13 points. Senior forward Ashley Hobbs (23) and red-shirt freshman forward Haley Schaefer (50) contributed seven rebounds apiece.

Prior to Saturday’s loss, the Storm visited No. 9 Arkansas Tech on Thursday, Jan. 19 and before that hosted Ouachita Baptist (Ark.) on Saturday, Jan. 14.

On Jan. 19, the Savage Storm lost 56-61 at No. 9 Arkansas Tech in a tight scoring game. Hobbs led the team with 17 points in the matchup. Senior guard Ali Stone (14) and senior guard/forward Whitney Coffey (44) led the team in rebounds with nine each.

On Jan. 14, the women’s Savage Storm hosted Ouachita Baptist of Arkansas, winning the matchup 61-55. Nester led the Storm with 24 points, while Hobbs pulled in 14 rebounds.

The women’s basketball schedule has 10 games remaining, all of which are conference games. Look for the Savage Storm to face off against Southwestern Oklahoma State on the road Thursday, Jan. 26 beginning at 5:30 p.m.

Then, the Savage Storm will host East Central Oklahoma on Saturday, Jan. 28 beginning at 5:30 p.m. in the Bloomer Sullivan Arena. Following this matchup, the Storm will host Southern Arkansas on Thursday, Feb. 2 at 5:30 p.m. followed by Arkansas – Monticello Saturday, Feb. 4 starting at 2 p.m.

Senior guard/forward Whitney Coffey (44) pulls up for a jumper against a Henderson State (Ark.) defender on Thursday, Jan. 12 in the Bloomer Sullivan Arena. The Savage Storm lost to the Reddies 78-64. (Photo courtesy of Dan Hoke)

by Lornna Bates

Managing editor

The Savage Storm men’s basketball team lost to Harding University 53-73 in Searcy, Ark. on Saturday, Jan. 21. The defeat lowers the men’s overall record to 5-13, 1-5 in Great American Conference play.

Junior guard Chris Roussell (14) led the Savage Storm with 13 points, also pulling in eight rebounds to lead the team statistics on the night.

In previous games, the Storm visited Arkansas Tech on Thursday, Jan.19 and before that meeting, the Savage Storm hosted Ouachita Baptist of Arkansas on Saturday, Jan. 14.

Thursday, Jan. 19 the men lost 61-79 on the road at Arkansas Tech. Senior guard Zac Downing (22) led the Storm with 14 points, while junior forward Urald King (20) snagged nine rebounds.

Saturday, Jan. 14 the Savage Storm men hosted Ouachita Baptist of Arkansas, losing 75-78 in a tightly scored game. Roussell had a team-high 18 points while King dominated the boards with 10 rebounds on the night.

The men’s basketball schedule also has 10 games remaining for the season, all of which are Great American Conference games. Expect the Savage Storm men to face off against Southwestern Oklahoma State on the road Thursday, Jan. 26 starting at 7:30 p.m.

Following Southwestern Oklahoma State, the Savage Storm will host East Central Oklahoma on Saturday, Jan. 28 starting at 7:30 p.m., immediately following the women’s basketball game in the Bloomer Sullivan Arena. Thursday, Feb. 2, beginning at 7:30 p.m. the men will host Southern Arkansas, followed by a visit from Arkansas – Monticello on Saturday, Feb. 4 beginning at 4 p.m.

Junior forward Urald King (20) lays up over an Ouachita Baptist (Ark.) player. The Savage Storm lost the matchup 75-78 on Saturday, Jan. 14 against the Tigers. (Photo courtesy of Dan Hoke)

by Andreea Georgescu

Staff writer

The Southeastern men’s and women’s tennis teams are getting closer every day to their first match of the spring semester.

The men’s tennis team has its first match on Tuesday, Feb. 21 against Austin, Texas.

The event will take place at the SE tennis courts, located across from Paul Laird Field.

The men’s tennis team added two new players this semester, Renato João, a freshman from São Paulo, Brazil, and Laurent Veith, a freshman from Oberhoffen-sur-Moder, France.

João said, “The first reason I chose Southeastern over other schools that I had offers from is because here they gave me a better scholarship. The second reason was that Southeastern has a good business program in which I am interested.”

“I am really excited to start my first season here at Southeastern and I hope I am going to have great matches,” he added.

The women’s tennis team has its first match Friday, Feb. 10 at the Collin County Tournament. The first home match will be on Tuesday, Feb. 21 against Austin, Texas.

“I am so proud of my team so far, and I am looking forward to a great season,” said women’s tennis coach Pat Mauldin.

The women’s tennis team features eight returning players from last semester and didn’t recruit any new players this semester.

“I hope we can do well in our new conference as a team and support each other,” said sophomore Caitlin Bell. “Since we graduated so many players last spring, this season will be a testament to how well we can adapt to changes.”

New to the men’s tennis team, freshman Renato Joao prepares to serve his way to SE greatness during practice on Tuesday, Jan. 24. (Staff photo by Andreea Georgescu)

Fabiola Juarez prepares to volley during Tuesday, Jan. 24’s practice. The women’s tennis team will be competing at the Collin County Tournament Friday-Saturday, Feb. 10-11. (Staff photo by Andreea Georgescu)

Caitlin Bell follows through on a serve during practice on Tuesday, Jan. 24. The men’s and women’s tennis teams will host Austin, Texas on Tuesday, Feb. 21. (Staff photo by Andreea Georgescu)

by Nick Growall

Staff writer

The Southeastern Savage Storm has continued to struggle in its past two weeks, losing on Oct 29 to the University of Arkansas-Monticello 24-20 and to Ouachita Baptist 21-18 on Nov 5 in their final game at home, dropping to 2-7 on the season.

The Storm, despite losing efforts, has had its running game return to form, rushing for 159 yards against UAM and 205 against OBU. This snapped Southeastern’s two-game streak of being held under 100 yards rushing.

Freshman running back CJ Kirk rushed for 122 yards against Ouachita Baptist, while sophomore quarterback Jercolby Bradley, who filled in for injured junior Logan Turner against UAM, lead the team in rushing with 76 yards, throwing for 140 yards.

Turner returned to start against Ouachita Baptist, throwing for 219 yards and two touchdowns, connecting with freshman wide receiver Tiquarrio Combs and junior tight end Ryan Shelley.

“Logan played well,” said head coach Ray Richards. “He came in off an injury and played with great composure.”

In both games, however, Southeastern had to fight back late in the game but were unable to complete the comeback on both occasions. Trailing 17-3 against UAM late in the third quarter, the Storm took advantage of a Boll Weevil fumble on the one-yard line with a touchdown run by senior Don Brown. But after another touchdown by Brown, the Storm was unable to hold the UAM offense, which scored on the ensuing drive.

A similar situation occurred during Southeastern’s home game finale when the Storm trailed 14-3 late in the third quarter. Turner found Combs for a five-yard touchdown pass to make it 14-10, but the Tigers answered with a touchdown pass of their own, making it 21-10.

Southeastern went on to score with a touchdown pass and two-point conversion to Shelley, but were unable to convert on the onside kick, which didn’t cross the 10 yards necessary for Southeastern to have a chance at recovering it.

The Storm then let the Tiger offense run out most of the game clock, giving the Storm offense only five seconds at the end of the game to cover 97 yards down the field.

“We had some passes on defense that we should’ve knocked down, and we weren’t able to hold them on third down,” said Richards, “but it was disappointing that we didn’t allow ourselves a chance to cover the onside kick. That’s was critical.”

The Savage Storm will play their final game of the season at Harding University in Searcy, Ark. on Nov 12 at 2 p.m.

From left to right, junior Travis Kincheloe (65), senior Ryan Sullivan (62) and junior Matt Unger (75) led the way for freshman runningback CJ Kirk (2) against Ouachita Baptist on Saturday, Nov. 5. (Staff photo by Nick Growall)

SE suffered a 21-10 loss to Ouachita Baptist at the last home game of the season on Saturday, Nov. 5. (Staff photo by Samantha Perera)

The Spirit of SE Marching Band performed the SE fight song as the football team approached the field. (Staff photo by Samantha Perera)

Southeastern’s losing streak continued Saturday after the Savage Storm fell to Henderson State 30-14 during Homecoming, putting Southeastern at 2-4 on the season and 1-3 in their conference.

The Savage Storm was unable to get their offensive game going, gaining only 52 yards on the ground and 193 through the air.

Sophomore running back Brandon Bryant had both of Southeastern’s touchdowns, coming in the second quarter off of two defensive turnovers.

“We were disappointed,” said head coach Ray Richards. “We fought back into the game and were tied up with them at the half, but they came out in the second half and just outplayed us.”

The Southeastern defense collected five turnovers throughout the game but were only able to capitalize on sophomore linebacker Logan Russell’s fumble recovery and one of sophomore corner Greg Jackson’s two interceptions in the second quarter, tying up the game 14-14.

However, the Savage Storm allowed 525 yards total, mostly from the ground, in which the Reddies rushed for 319 yards, pulling away in the second half of the game.

Junior quarterback Logan Turner finished the game going 20-for-38, despite being pressured throughout the game and being sacked three times.

Junior receiver Quentin Morris had the most receiving yards on the day, with three catches for 50 yards. Junior tight end Ryan Shelley put up 44 yards on four catches, while senior receiver Sam Roberson also had four catches for 23 yards.

“We’ve just got to preserve and put it behind us,” said Richards. “Whether you win four in a row or lose four in a row, you’ve got to go out and play the next week. “

The Storm will be on the road this week to face Arkansas Tech. The Wonder Boys are struggling with a 1-6 record and are looking for a win at their Homecoming this weekend. “They’re a young team, but it’s their Homecoming, so that will give them some extra motivation against us. I figure they’ll try to run the ball against us after what happened last week, so we’ve got to go and take care of business.”

The game will start at 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22.

Senior runningback Jamaal Evans (5) lines up next to junior quarterback Logan Turner (11) as he prepares to take the snap in their game against UCO on Saturday, Sept. 10. The final score was 30-23, the Storm victorious.

Staff photo by Nick Growall

A sideline official watches as the Storm and Central Oklahoma match up Saturday, Sept. 10.

Photo by Kacy Hammock

Senior safety major Tyler McMinn and sophomore biology major Rhyder Nelson team roping at the Equestrian Center.

Photo by Stephiane Stovall

by Nick Growall

Staff writer

After falling behind early on the road, Southeastern was unable to make another late-game comeback Saturday, losing their first game of the season to the rival East Central Tigers, 37-27. The Storm falls to 2-1 on the season, and 1-1 in the Great American Conference.

Southeastern managed to make the game competitive near the end, but mistakes early in the game and a questionable call on a late-game onside kick sealed the Storm’s fate.

“I feel that we did have that onside kick, and if we’d of been able to get that, we could’ve gone down and scored and had ourselves a ballgame,” said head coach Ray Richards. “But we had two really costly fumbles on offense, and our defense gave up three passes over 30 yards for touchdowns. You just can’t have those kinds of miscues and expect to win. But I’m proud our team played hard, and played up to the end.”

The Storm fell behind early, when ECU scored three touchdown passes to go up 21-0. But the Southeastern offense finally found the end zone when junior quarterback Logan Turner connected with junior tight end Ryan Shelly.

Shelly, who was selected as the GAC Co-Offensive Player of the Week, finished the game with 14 catches and two touchdowns. His 225 receiving yards are the second-most yards by a Southeastern receiver behind Romar Crenshaw, who had a 251-yard game against Central Oklahoma back in 2001.

“He had a great day. It was good to see him go out and produce and be a playmaker for us,” said Richards.

Turner also had a record day, throwing for 383 yards, placing him fifth all time in passing yards at Southeastern. But despite the big numbers through the air, Southeastern was unable to make a comeback, due to the high-scoring of the East Central offense, led by senior Tyler Vanderzee. Vanderzee threw five touchdowns for 239 yards, with three of his scores going to senior Chris Espinoza, who finished the game with four catches for 90 yards.

Southeastern’s struggles early on were linked to the running game, which ran for only 79 yards on 24 carries. Southeastern came into the game averaging 204 yards per game through the running tandem of sophomore Brandon Bryant and freshman CJ Kirk, after losing senior Jamaal Evans in the season-opener against Central Oklahoma.

“They’re a very talented defense. They did an excellent job shutting down running game and making us one-dimensional,” said Richards.

The defense, despite ECU’s high scoring, held the Tigers to just 346 total yards, with two interceptions by sophomores Izzy Eziakor and Eric Walker. Sophomore linebacker Houston Slemp also had a big day, leading the defense for the third-straight week with 13 tackles.

The Storm returns to Paul Laird Field to face Southwestern Oklahoma State on Saturday, Oct. 1 at 6 p.m.

“They’re not the same team as in the past,” said Richards. “They’re a much improved team that’s been rebuilding over the past couple of years. It will definitely be a challenge for us.”

In closing, Richards brought up some keys for his team’s success. “Our offense needs to focus on limiting turnovers, and our defense cannot allow the big plays downfield. We’ve had several plays go for touchdowns against us that were 30 yards or more.”

by Nick Growall

Staff writer

In their first road game of the season, Southeastern made its debut in the Great American Conference last Saturday, Sept. 10 with a 24-21 comeback win against Southern Arkansas, overcoming an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter.

Junior quarterback Logan Turner showed poise in the fourth quarter, leading the Storm offense on two 90-yard drives in the fourth quarter, capping them off with a touchdown pass to junior tight end Ryan Shelly and a one-yard run by junior fullback Don Brown with 16 seconds left in the game. Turner went 22-for-37 in the pocket with 226 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

“Our players are extremely resilient,” said head coach Ray Richards. “Even when the momentum shifted in the other team’s favor, I didn’t see any quit in their eyes. I’m just proud of the way our team finished the game.”

On the end of Turner’s other touchdown pass was senior wide receiver Sam Roberson, who scored on a 6-yard pass in the second quarter, finishing with seven catches for 54 yards. Also going for seven catches was freshman Anthony Foster, finishing with a team-high 111 receiving yards.

Brown was assisted in the running game by sophomore running back Brandon Bryant and freshman CJ Kirk. The two underclassmen combined for 177 yards on the ground, with Bryant going for 96 and Kirk with 81.

Speaking of underclassmen, Richards says he is very pleased with his younger players stepping up on both sides of the ball.

“I don’t really look at them by classification really, but our future does look bright. Sometimes young players don’t perform well. I’m glad they’re doing well, and they’ll only get better,” said Richards.

Southeastern’s defense played a vital role in the Storm victory, holding the Muleriders to 358 total yards and making huge stops in the fourth quarter. Sophmore safeties Houston Slemp and Izzy Eziakor lead the team with seven tackles apiece, while junior linebacker Russell Hurst came up with a fumble and freshman cornerback Jacoby Sanders had the game’s only interception to end the game.

The Storm will head up to Ada this weekend in a matchup against rival East Central University. The Tigers are 2-1 on the season, having pulled out an overtime win against the Northeastern State Riverhawks, 45-38.

“They’re probably the best ECU team I’ve seen in a long time,” said Richards. “They throw the ball well, and they have talented kids on defense. Definitely the best team we’ve faced so far this year. “

Despite his respect for the rival Tigers, Richards expects this one to be another close, competitive game. “It’s gonna be a war.”