Oct. 11, 2006

CANYON, Texas - Interstate 40 is the way of travel this weekend for the West Texas A&M men's and women's soccer teams. The Buffaloes will get back into Southwest Soccer Conference action at Missouri Southern on Friday and Northeastern State on Sunday. The Lady Buffs will be in action Friday, at No. 21 Central Oklahoma and Sunday WTAMU visit's Southwestern Oklahoma for Lone Star Conference battles.

The Lady Buffs look to continue their momentum from the longest home stand of season, in which they went 3-0. During the home stretch WTAMU beat East Central 5-0, Northeastern State 4-1 last weekend, and Dixie State 4-2 on Sept. 30. Senior Sarit Shenar (Rehovot, Israel) scored three goals in the wins against ECU and NSU, while freshman Kendal Kitchens (Lubbock, Texas) scored a pair of goals and had an assist. Kitchens also had the game-winner in the 81st minute against Northeastern State.

The winner of the match between WTAMU and UCO could determine who holds the top spot in the LSC at the end of the season. The Bronchos lead the conference with a 5-0 mark, while the Lady Buffs are 3-1-1, putting WTAMU a game and a half back in second.

Sunday will also be a tough battle for the Lady Buffs, as they travel to Weatherford, Okla., for a match with Southwestern Oklahoma. The Bulldogs are tied for fourth in the LSC and just a half game behind the Lady Buffs.

Against UCO in recent years, the series has been tight as the two teams are 1-1-1 their past three meetings. The Lady Buffs last win came on Halloween in 2003, by a margin of 2-0. In contrast the scores with SWOSU, WTAMU has been one sided, as the Lady Buffs have outscored the Bulldogs 18-2, with three shutouts for WTAMU coming from 2000-2002.

On the men's side of the action, the Buffaloes snapped a four match winless streak on Sunday with a 1-0 win over Regis. On Friday, WTAMU was on the short end of the 2-0 loss to St. Mary's, with the Rattlers scoring both goals in the second half.

The lone goal in the match for the Buffs on Sunday was scored in the sixth minute of action when freshman Daniel Bulley (Exeter, England) found the back of the net. The goal was Bulley's seventh of the year, which ranks him third in the SSC, but he is first among freshman in the conference.

Earlier this season at home, WTAMU defeated Friday's foe Missouri Southern 2-0, while tying Northeastern State 2-2. The Buffs scored two late goals against the Redmen to force overtime, while scoring both goals against MSSU in the first half.

The Buffs hold the advantage over both schools, posting a 6-3 record against Missouri Southern and 7-6-1 mark with Northeastern State. Last season, WTAMU was defeated by Northeastern State and Missouri Southern on the road.

The next home action for the women will be Oct. 20 against Texas A&M-Commerce, while the men will be back at Kimbrough Memorial Stadium on Oct. 22, to square off with Incarnate Word at 3 p.m. on what will be Senior Day for the men's and women's programs, as the Lady Buffs host Texas Woman's at 1 p.m.