LeTourneau University – Sports

 

LeTourneau Volleyball Falls At #23 Texas-Tyler

TYLER, Texas – Squaring off against their first ranked opponent of the year, the LeTourneau University volleyball team would go toe-to-toe with number 23 Texas-Tyler before dropping a three-set match to the Patriots by a score of 25-23, 25-18, 25-18 at the Herrington Patriot Center in Tyler, Texas on Tuesday, September 11.

The defeat leaves LETU with a 3-5 overall record while the Patriots improved to 7-1 overall on the season with their only defeat coming against defending National Champions Claremont Mudd-Scripps in five sets.

“This group has proven that nothing will stop them from going after what they want,” said head coach Ashley Tiernan in a post-match interview. “We played hard tonight and fought for every point.” “We are battling some injuries and sickness and are having players being forced to step into other positions.” “The whole team has rallied around each other, and their tenacity to work as a family has been a huge factor in our progress moving forward.”

How It Happened:

A statement would be made early by the YellowJackets as freshman Kianna Crow would break open a 4-3 LETU lead with back-to-back kills as part of a 4-1 run for YellowJackets to force a Patriot timeout at 8-4.

The match would become tied at 11-11 in the first set as UTT battled their way back into the game to reclaim the lead, but saw LETU match them point-for-point with six straight ties to put things at 16 all.

Three of the next four points would go in favor of Texas-Tyler and allow the Patriots to take a 19-17 lead before a comeback for LETU saw the YellowJackets reclaim the lead at 23-22.

Despite the effort, UTT would manage to take advantage of a LeTourneau service error as the final three points of the set would be won by the Patriots to make the first set 25-23.

Taking momentum from the end of the first set, Texas-Tyler managed to open up an early 8-4 lead on the YellowJackets and never look back in game two as LETU never could overcome a slow start offensively.

LETU would get no closer than three points at 15-12 as runs by the Patriots allowed UTT to claim a 25-18 set victory and go up two sets to zero in the match.

The third set would once again find the YellowJackets and Patriots locked into a tight battle as neither team would be able to secure a lead of more than two points throughout the first 22 points of the set.

With the score tied at 10-10, Texas-Tyler managed a 5-1 run to open up a 15-11 lead and continue to build on their lead which would force a LeTourneau timeout at 18-13 as the YellowJackets needed to find a spark to get back in the match.

A comeback would not be in store for LETU despite their efforts as the Patriots found a way to pull away for a 25-18 victory and claim the match.
Key Stats:

Service aces would prove to be a spark for Texas-Tyler throughout the night as the Patriots would hold a 10-4 advantage at the service line. Two of the service aces would come in the first set to help UTT overcome a .136 attack percentage in the game.

Both the Patriots and YellowJackets would use a balanced effort from their squad throughout, with 15 total players recording at least one kill in the match. Freshman Natalie Connelly would lead all players in the game with 11 kills on 18 attempts, and also add one block on the night.

Other key contributors for the LETU in the loss were Crow with ten kills and Cam Taylor with a team-high 15 assists while Audrey Galindo added two service aces.

What’s Next?

American Southwest Conference action officially gets underway for LeTourneau on Friday evening as the YellowJackets will travel to Pineville, Louisiana to take on Louisiana College at 7:00 pm. The match will be the third-ever meeting between the Wildcats and YellowJackets as LETU took both events last year in LC’s first season of competition.

 

 

LeTourneau Men’s Golf Takes Sixth At John Bohmann Memorial Invitational

SEGUIN, Texas – Paced by top-20 finishes from Cory Gillespie and Wes Nolan, the LeTourneau University men’s golf team finished sixth at the John Bohmann Memorial Invitational at Starcke Park Municipal Course in Seguin, Texas on Tuesday, September 11.

As a team, LeTourneau posted a final-round score of 298 on the 6,676-yard, Par 71 course to finish with a 54-hole team total of 902, 11 shots back of fifth place Trinity University who carded a final round 286. Southwestern University managed to be the only team under par for the Tournament, winning with a score of 850 and was followed by Texas Lutheran (857) and Concordia University Texas (858).

Entering the day within one stroke of each other, Nolan would shoot a team-best one-over 72 on the day while Gillespie finished with a two-over 73 as both players would finish the tournament with a total of 220 to finish in a tie for 20th. Keaton Williams turned in a final-round 77 to finish tied for 35th with a total of 231 alongside Alex Koll (final round 76) while Buster Byrnes finished 42nd with a score of 237 (80-79-78).

The fall 2018 season will continue for LETU on Monday, September 17 when the YellowJackets travel to Alexandria, Louisiana to take part in the Louisiana College Fall Invitational.

 

 

LeTourneau Women’s Golf Finishes Seventh In Seguin

SEGUIN, Texas – Making a 10-stroke improvement, the LeTourneau University women’s golf team shot a final round 347 to finish seventh at the Texas Lutheran University Lady Bulldog Fall Classic at Starcke Park Municipal Course on Tuesday, September 11.

LETU’s final round score gives them a two-day total of 704, just behind California Santa Cruz who shot a 36-hole score of 703. Trinity University won the team title with a 634 followed by Mary Hardin-Baylor coming in second with a 650 and McMurry University and Concordia University Texas tying for third with a 670.

In the individual race, YellowJacket freshman Baylee Van Houten finished 20th to pace LeTourneau after shooting a final round 82 to finish with a total of 171. Sophomore Rachael Green carded a final round 90 to finish tied for 24th alongside teammate Brittany Taylor (87) with a 177 total while Shelby Allen rounded out the team score after finishing tied for 28th with a score of 179 (91-88).

Following a week off, LETU will take the short trip over to Tyler, Texas to compete in the University of Texas-Tyler Fall Invitational which begins on Monday, September 24.

 

 

LeTourneau Men’s Golf Fifth Following Day One of the John Bohmann Memorial Invitational

SEGUIN, Texas – Despite a lengthy delay to the start of the second round, the LeTourneau University men’s golf team managed to hold their position and sit in fifth place following day one of the John Bohmann Memorial Invitational hosted by Texas Lutheran University at Starcke Park Municipal Course in Seguin, Texas on Monday, September 10.

As a team, LETU followed up a first-round total of 300 with a second round 304 to shoot a day-one total of 604 (+36) and trail leader Southwestern University who managed to pull one-under par as a team for a 36-hole total of 567. Concordia University Texas and host Texas Lutheran are tied for second with team scores of 577 while the University of Dallas is in fourth with a total of 590.

LeTourneau’s team score was paced by junior Cory Gillespie who fired a 75-72 for a 147 day one total on the 6,676 yard Par 71 course to sit in a tie for 15th while Wes Nolan is tied for 20th after a 73-75 for a total of 148. Sophomore Keaton Williams would finish the day with a 75-79 for a total of 154 to sit in 34th place overall heading into day two while Alex Koll (T35th, 77-78 155 total) and Buster Byrnes (43rd, 80-79 159 total) also posted scores for the YellowJackets.

LETU will finish out the John Bohmann Memorial Invitational on Tuesday with 18 holes of golf scheduled to get underway just after 8 a.m. tomorrow morning as the YellowJackets will look to make a move up the team leaderboard and close out their opening meet of the 2018-19 season on a high note.

Matt Kinney
Sports Information Director
Office: 903-233-3735