092716lady Saints

TUESDAY
Sportszone
HIGH PLAINS
S E P T. 2 7 , 2 0 1 6
10
Sewards Kaysie Paxton, left, celebrates a point in the fifth set against Hutchinson Monday in the Greenhouse.The Lady Saints took the set to win the battle for sole possession first place in the Jayhawk West. L&T photo/Earl Watt
BIG TIME
WIN
Lady Saints gut out 5-set
win over Hutchinson
By EARL WATT
Leader &Times
Sewards Kimberly Diaz sets the ball during the fifth set against Hutchinson Monday in the
Greenhouse. Seward went on to win the final set to knock off the Lady Blue Dragons and take
sole possession of first place in the Jayhawk West. L&T photo/Earl Watt
While presidential candidates Hillary

Clinton and Donald Trump were going
toe-to-toe in a debate Monday night,
there was also a question that had to be
answered in the Greenhouse who
should be in first place in the Jayhawk
West?
Instead of votes, points were counted,
and when they were all added up, the
Lady Saints settled the debate with a fiveset win to move into sole possession of
first place, ending a streak of 10 straight
wins by the Lady Blue Dragons over the
Lady Saints.
And they had to earn every point.
After dropping the first set 25-22,
Seward rallied to win the second set 2522.
Te Lady Saints had a 15-12 advantage
in the third set, but Hutch rallied and
took advantage of late service errors to
earn a 25-22 lead.
With their backs against the wall,
another back-and-forth sets stayed close
until the polls broke late for the Lady

Saints, ending on a three-point run to
take a25-20 win.
The fifth and deciding set started with
a strong Seward flurry, but the Lady Blue
Dragons battled back to tie the set 6-6.
The Lady Saints simply extended the
net with their arms and made two
highlight-reel digs to keep the ball alive
and earn two straight points at the
change-over to take an 8-6 lead.
From there, the Lady Saints
dominated, jumping out to a 13-8 lead,
and with the student section chanting,
the Lady Saints put the final point away
to earn a 15-11 win.
An emotional coach Thais Baziquetto Allen joined in the celebration with her
team, but the emotion of the moment
caught up with her.
Last year we were in the same
situation, she said. We won the first two
and take them to five and lose. We
prepared. The sophomores had that loss
in the back of their minds. Finishing this
game was something we looked forward
to.
The Lady Saints had watched film on

the Lady Blue Dragons, but there were
times that they didnt react to what they
learned.
Our servicing was bad, BaziquettoAllen said. But we had back to back
aces. That was a momentum changer for
us. We battled back and forth and we get
two aces. We made a lot of mistakes in
service in the beginning. You cant have
runs if you miss every other serve.
Despite some poor serves, the Lady
Saints overcame with a tenacious defense
that kep the ball in the air until the front
line had a chance to drive the ball down,
and that coupled with some improved
serving when it mattered most shifted the
outcome.
We prepare a lot for every conference
game, Baziquetto-Allen said. We know
what they were going to do, but we were
not finishing. We knew they would cross
court, we knew No. 11 would go line. We
know they will sore. But we said, Hey, we
know what we need to do, we know that
they do, lets do this.
Kansas State defense among best in major college football

By DAVE SKRETTA
AP SportsWriter
MANHATTAN (AP) Throughout the 1990s and
early 2000s, an era Kansas State fans reverentially refer
to as their "decade of dominance," the Wildcats
routinely competed for Big 12 titles thanks to their
defense.
They were tough. They were talented. They were
stingy.
They were a lot like this year's bunch.
Through the first three weeks of the season, the
Wildcats (2-1) rank at or near the top of just about
every defensive statistical category in major college
football. They have allowed just seven points to their
last two opponents though in fairness, Saturday
night's game against Missouri State was called at
halftime due to lightning and have held all three
opponents to 300 yards or less.
In the points-a-plenty Big 12, the Wildcats are a
rarity.
"A lot of guys are hungry," explained Kansas State
linebacker Elijah Lee, one of the veteran leaders of the
defense. "We're trying to race each other to the tackle
and see who can get there. Just playing with that chip
on us makes us a lot faster."
It's hardly a surprise the Wildcats have a chip on
their shoulder.
Just last year, they allowed more than 30 points a
game, tied with Texas for 90th in the Football Bowl
Subdivision. They gave up 159.4 yards on the ground
and 283.1 through the air.
Injuries did not help: Top safety Dante Barnett
missed almost the entire year , and several other key
contributors were forced to watch big chunks of the
season from the sideline.
They're almost all back, and youngsters pressed into
service have a year of experience now. And the results
were better from the start, when Kansas State held
high-powered Stanford in check in a Week 1 road
game against Heisman Trophy candidate Christian
McCaffery and Co.
In this Saturday, Sept. 17, 2016, file photo, Florida Atlantic running back Gregory Howell Jr. (9) is tackled by
Kansas State linebacker Charmeachealle Moore (52) and defensive tackle Will Geary (60) during the first half of
an NCAA college football game in Manhattan, Kan. Kansas State has yet to allow more than 300 yards to any
opponent.Things get a bit tougher for the Wildcats on Saturday, though.They begin Big 12 play with a trip to
West Virginia. AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File
McCaffery managed 126 yards rushing, but he had
to work for it. And the unbeaten Cardinal only had 167
yards passing and mustered nine points in the second
half of their 26-13 victory.
Florida Atlantic gained 216 yards against Kansas

State two weeks ago, turning the ball over four times
and converting 1 of 13 third downs in a 63-7 romp.
And in the half played against Missouri State on
Saturday night, the Bears completed three passes and

gained 54 yards.
"I do not look at the statistics, only when the season
is over," Kansas State coach Bill Snyder said recently,
"but just based on the assessment and evaluation of
where we are right now, I would say yes, we are an
improved defensive football team from last year."
Well, here are the statistics: Kansas State has allowed
537 yards through three games, best in major college
football. They are first in yards passing at 106.7 per
game, fourth in points allowed with 33, and tied for
sixth with Boise State in yards rushing at 72.3 per
game.
But leave it to Snyder to put even the most glowing
of marks in perspective.
"That would speak very negatively of us as coaches if
we were not (better)," he said, "considering the fact we
have a good deal of experience coming back as well.
I've said so many times, experience is a major factor,
whether it is good experience or not, and some of it last
year was not."
Remember, that was a team that allowed at least 33
points four consecutive weeks, beginning with a tripleovertime win over Louisiana Tech. It's also a team that
lost 55-0 to Oklahoma at home and surrendered a
dizzying amount of offense in a 59-44 loss at Texas
Tech.
"We have been doing a pretty good job at this point,"
Kansas State defensive end Jordan Willis said, "but it's
a matter of my teammates and I keeping it up going
forward. Once our attitude is set and we get ready to
go, it will be tough to play against us."
The Wildcats get their first real test since Stanford on
Saturday, when they open Big 12 play at West Virginia.
Mountaineers quarterback Skylar Howard has thrown
for nearly 1,000 yards and six touchdowns while
helping his team to a 3-0 start.
Then again, perhaps the Wildcats will be the first real
test of the season for him.
"We still have little things to iron out before we get in
to league play," Lee said, "and that is something we are
going to take day-by-day this week."

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TUESDAY

While presidential candidates Hillary

until the polls broke late for the Lady

The Lady Saints had watched film on

Kansas State defense among best in major college football

Florida Atlantic gained 216 yards against Kansas

Saturday night, the Bears completed three passes and

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