The weather is starting to cool down, finals week is right around the corner and the fall sports season is coming to a close. Here is a look at just a few of the highlights from the 2016 fall season for Newman Jets Athletic teams.
Women’s Soccer:
After hours of practice spent on Wilkins Soccer Field, the Lady Jets racked up some memorable moments — starting with their very first game. Newman played against Northwestern Oklahoma on Sept. 1, finishing with a win of 2-0. This was the first time Newman won their season opener since 2013, though they are undefeated (3-0-2) in debuts over the past five years.
The Women’s Soccer Team had its first winning season since 2010 and four Jets were named to the All-Heartland Conference team: Senior Morgan Foster and sophomore Quincy Plank earned spots on the second team, while senior Cydney Padilla and junior Rosa Urista-Chico garnered third-team awards.
Men’s Soccer:
The Newman Men’s Soccer Team got their chance to play Southern Nazarene at Maize High School, winning a decisive 4-1 match to get its first victory of the season. After four toughly contested matches in conference play that resulted in either a loss or a tie, the Newman team found themselves back in the win column after beating Rogers State 1-0 on Oct. 15.
Back in the Heartland Conference semifinals, the Newman men’s team played even for long stretches with top seed and host Midwestern State, but its season came to an end with a 2-0 loss. This season is the third straight with a trip to the conference semifinals for the Jets, as well as the third consecutive 10-win season.
Men’s and Women’s Cross Country:
In September, the first race of the season kicked things off, as the Men’s and Women’s Cross Country teams each finished first in the team standings at the JK Gold Invitational at the RAFT Golf Course. The Jets easily topped the team leader board in the non-Division I division, taking six of the top nine individual spots in the men’s race. The women did the same, going 1-2 individually.
On Nov. 5, the men and women’s teams competed against the toughest region in the country, each finishing in tight groups in the middle of the pack at the NCAA Division II South Central Region Championships.
Volleyball:
The Newman Volleyball Team squared off with Northwestern Oklahoma State on Sept. 6, for the season home opener inside Fugate Gymnasium, with the Jets coming away with a 3-1 victory over the Rangers.
On Sept. 9, the Lady Jets played at the New Victorian Inn and Suites/Runza Fall Classic against Black Hills State in Kearney, Neb. The team set a NCAA Division II record for the most points scored in a set.
The team played its final regular-season road conference match Oct. 29, winning 3-1 over St. Edward’s and splitting the two matches they played this season. After closing out the regular season with a thrilling five-set match against conference champion Arkansas-Fort Smith, juniors Emily Harvey and Brooke Conley picked up Heartland Conference Player of the Week awards.
Women’s Golf:
The Newman Women’s Golf Team saw its first action of the fall season at the 18th Annual NSU Golf Classic on Sept. 12, and after the first day of competition, NU sits in ninth place out of the 18 team tournament.
Men’s Golf:
After finishing off Day 1 in 10th place at the Ryan Palmer Foundation Invitational, the Newman men finished the tournament in 13th place as a team overall on Sept. 13.
On Oct. 31, after getting all of its players within five shots of each other in the first round, the team was in ninth place after the first day of action at The Classic at The Tribute. Their season ended on Nov. 1, remaining in ninth place, and the Jets now take a three-month hiatus before resuming in the spring, starting Feb. 20-21 at the St. Mary’s Invitational.
Men’s and Women’s Tennis:
Charging headfirst into the beginning of the fall season, the Newman Men’s and Women’s Tennis teams hit the road and played in a pair of tournaments over the first two weekends of September, finding plenty of success along the way. They closed out their fall season at another tough tournament, and both the men’s and women’s teams saw nearly every competitor earn a victory and one win an individual title the second weekend of September at the Collin County CC Invitational.
Triathlon Team:
This year, Newman introduced its first-ever triathlon team. Coach Jeff Lovgren and Coach Heidi Coble are leading the first institution-sponsored college triathlon program in Kansas.
After taking on its second event of the season and final Olympic-distance race until April’s national championships, the Newman team put up solid times Oct. 16 at the U.S. Open Triathlon. On Nov. 19, the team will participate in the Wichita Turkey Trot at Century II.
