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Show Wednesday, September 10, 2008 THE SIGNPOST r SPORTS f?o//er coaster watching Standing Out By Jon McBride sports editor The Signpost Saturday night's football game ' between Weber State University and the University of Hawaii was ( a roller coaster to watch. If you're ' like me, those kinds of games take a lot out of you, but when you look back at them, they're a whole lot of fun to watch. As 1 watched the game in , the Shepherd Union Building Wildcat Theater with about 50 i P M O K ) ir< H U G H E. l . t N I R V , I ' l l V v ' . i >< ! \ ! f i ) C W University of Hawaii fans get geared up for Saturday's football game against Weber State University at Aloha Stadium. After a first half that saw the underdog Wildcats take a 1710 lead, fans had a lot more to cheer about in the second half, Hawaii scoring 26 unanswered points to finish off Ron McBride's (below) Wildcats. Roadtrip to remember Experience at Hawaii well worth the trip, despite loss By Gentry Reinhart assi. sports editor I 7/ie Signpost OAHU, Hawaii - The Weber State University Football Team traveled to the island of Oahu in Hawaii last weekend to play their first road game of the season against the University of Hawaii Warriors. And while the 'Cats ended up on the losing end of a hardfought battle, the trip was well worth it according to the team. "I love the people of this state," said WSU Head Coach Ron McBride. "It was great to be able to come here and play, and well worth the effort." The team stayed at the Turtle Bay Resort in Oahu's North Shore area, but even with plenty of activities to keep them busy, they still scheduled ample time for practice and preparation for Saturday's game. Friday's walk-though was done island-style with many of the players leaving their shoes and shirts on "I love the people of this state. It was great to be able to come here and play, and well worth the effort/' - Ron McBride, WSU head coach the sidelines. Not only was the trip a great experience for players and coaches but also for several families of the athletes that made the 3,000mile trip. "It's been unbelievable," said Eddy Lewis, father of WSU comerback Thyrell Lewis. "We came out Wednesday morning and saw a lot of Honolulu and Pearl Harbor; we've been over almost the entire island." Several boosters and members of the WSU athletic department also made the trip to Hawaii and not only got to watch the game, but also sat in on Friday's walkthrough at Turtle Bay. The game with the Warriors was not only important for the team, but also did a lot to promote Ogden, Utah, and WSU as a whole. "It's been a wonderful trip for us," said WSU Athletic Director Jerry Graybeal. "Coach Mac lias been recruiting this area since the '60s. lie has a great reputation over here, and it's been a great way to showcase Weber State to prospective student athletes that we may want to try and recruit in the future." The admiration for McBride was definitely evident after the game as the Weber State head coach was swarmed See Football page 7 Soccer team faces tough end to road trip Wildcats lose 4-0 at both Arizona, Arizona State, back home Friday Flt.f T H O U ) HY M A T 7 O l A S S | ttll </( , . \ T f >>. / WSU goalkeeper Rebecca Ritchie faced 37 shots over two games last weekend against the University of Arizona and Arizona State University. The Wildcats were outshot 37-15 in the games, allowing eight goals and scoring none. The Weber State University Women's Soccer Team ended a tough three-game road trip by losing back-to-back games to the University of Arizona and Arizona State University last weekend. The Wildcats faced Arizona Friday and were shut out 4-0. The goose egg was the first of the season for WSU. Arizona scored in the 24th minute to open the scoring. WSU battled for the equalizer for the next 50 minutes of the game. Arizona finished off WSU with a barrage of goals in the 74th, 81st and 87th minutes. Arizona's Chelsea Mclntyrc made five saves in the game for her first shutout of the season. WSU is 0-3 all time against Arizona and have never scored a goal in any of the matchups. In a similar game Sunday. WSU lost 4-0 again, this time to Arizona State. The Wildcats were sound in the first 45 minutes of the game, keeping the Sun Devils off the Scoreboard. In the second half, ASU's Sierra Cook scored in the 51st and 62nd minutes to give the Sun Devils a quick two-goal lead. ASU capped off the victory with goals in the 71st and 78th minutes. ASU's Briana Silvestri only had to make two saves to record the shutout. ASU outshot WSU 22-7. WSU's ilayley McCoy's five shots over the weekend gave her 204 in her career, passing Rochelle I loover as WSU's all-time leader. The Wildcats are now 1-3-1 this season. They're back at WSU for a home game Friday at 3 p.m. against the University of Texas at El Paso at the PE Playfield before heading back on the road for their next four games. members of the Purple Pak, I , took notes like I do for any other WSU game I'm writing about. . My notes tend to tell the backand-forth story fairly well. The roller coaster ride started . right from the first possession., After Bryant Eteuati returned the opening kickoff 30 yards, the Wildcats had a decent first series. Trevyn Smith broke a, few tackles for a solid first rush. . Cameron Higgins connected on ' a short slant route. Then there _ was some miscommunication, on a third and short, which led to ^ an incomplete pass. It's OK. Baby steps. Punt it off and play some ; defense. That's when the roller coaster took one of those major dives . and makes your stomach go • all crazy. The long snap on the ; punt was high. After hobbling; the snap, WSU punter Mike Snoy I couldn't get a punt oft"in time and .• scrambled away from a flurry of * Hawaii players. Snoy flung what; appeared to be some kind of ^ pass attempt, which never really » came close to any WSU player,; and a Hawaii player jumped on ; the loose ball, giving the Warriors Z some very good field position on £ the WSU 28. "Uh-oh," my notes said. The Warriors took control of the ball and three plays later were in the endzone, up 7-0 just t* like that. At this point, it looked r like the Wildcats were in somej; very major trouble. "WSU just looks way out of its league," my notes said. This would have been an opportune time for the purple and white to feel bad about themselves and just try and survive the rest of the game without injury. Instead, the Wildcats showed some-; impressive resolve. i On WSU's second possession £ they marched down the field" behind the charging momentum of Smith and Higgins, who led a 10-play, 50-yard drive. Jon Williams capped the drive with a 21-yard field goal to at least put WSU on the Scoreboard, down 7-3. Well, at least this wasn't going to be a shutout. "Trevyn Smith is looking really good out there," my notes said. "The UH defense looks g surprisingly scattered." t Even after the impressive S drive, it still seemed like WSU£ was just going to kick off back to • Hawaii and they were going to" run the ball down the Wildcats' ' throats again. They started their next drive that way. Hawaii quarterback Inoke Funoki completed 33-yard, and 8-yard passes on the first two plays of the series. At that point Funoki • looked unstoppable, having completed all three of his first; passes for 70 yards. ', "Funoki looking very good is * a very bad sign for the Wildcats," • my notes said. ; At this point, the Wildcat: defense stepped up and the UH* offense started to sputter. Afterthree incomplete passes in a; row and a missed field goal, the J Warriors left the Wildcats withJ decent field position and the' knowledge that this UH offense; isn't unstoppable. The Wildcats couldn't« do anything on their next S possession. The Warriors couldn't: do anything on their next, possesson. With 14:52 left in the second quarter, the Wildcats started a 12-play, 80-yard drive that would put them in the lead. Higgins connected with receivers on * slant route after slant route. Tim' Comment on this story ,it wsusignpost. com See Standing Out page 7J |