Maroon & Gold Weekly Wrap-Up: Bobcat Basketball, Volleyball And Track & Field

Maroon & Gold Weekly Wrap-Up:
Bobcat Basketball, Volleyball And Track & Field

Pearson’s 30-piece and Terry’s 20 lift Bobcats past Bethany College

SAN MARCOS, Texas (AP) – Senior guard Nijal Pearson dropped a season-high 30 points to help lead Texas State (7-5) route Bethany College 117-65 Sunday evening at Strahan Arena. The Bobcats are now 2-0 when scoring at least 100 points and posted a season-high 21 assists on 48 made field goals.

The turning point of the game was a massive 35-7 Texas State run that began at the 5:27 mark of the first half and spilled into the second half. The Bobcats ended the first stanza on a 22-7 run, highlighted by a 12-0 burst, and capped off with a triple from Pearson to give the home team a 55-36 lead at the half. The Maroon and Gold picked up where they left off by opening the second half on a 13-0 run and never looked back.

Senior forward Eric Terry turned in a career-high 20 points while freshman guard Drew Tennial and junior guard Marlin Davis rounded out the Bobcats’ top scorers with 13 and 11 points, respectively.

Sophomore guard Dalton Smyres was the only Swede to score in double figures with 12 points, followed by senior guard Justin Jones and sophomore guard Braylen Young who each had nine points.

TEAM NOTES

• It was the most points the Bobcats have scored in the Danny Kaspar era (117).
• It was the first game that two players scored 20 or more points since Pearson (22) and Tre’Larenz Nottingham (22) did it vs. Howard Payne on Dec. 29, 2018.
• Texas State shot 69.6 percent from the floor (48-of-69) and 47.4 percent from 3-point range (9-of-19). Both are season-highs. It was the first game this season the Bobcats shot better than 50.0 percent from the field.
• Texas State had four or more players score in double figures for the third time this season and are 3-0 in those games.
• The Bobcats had a 38-19 rebounding margin and outscored the Swedes in the paint (52-12), from the bench (41-28), and off of turnovers (25-16).
• Texas State ran away with the game in the second half where they outscored Bethany 62-29.

INDIVIDUAL NOTES

• Pearson scored 21 of his 30 points in the first half. He shot 11-of-15 from the floor, including 4-of-5 from 3-point range. Pearson also finished with six boards, a season-high three steals, two assists, and one block.
• Pearson passes Charles Spurlin to move to No. 13 on the program’s career rebounding list with a total of 624. He is one of 10 NCAA active players across all divisions to have 1,500 career points and 600 career rebounds.
• In addition to his 20 points, Terry had a season-high .900 field goal percentage (9-of-10) to go along with six rebounds, one assist, and one steal.
• Tennial set a new career-high with 13 points (6-of-7) and had a season-best five rebounds. He also matched Pearson with three steals.
• Davis matched his season-high of 11 points for the third time this season and chipped in three assists, three rebounds, and one steal.
• Freshman guard Mason Harrell matched a career-high six assists and finished the game with nine points on 3-of-5 shooting. Sophomore guard Caleb Asberry also had nine points (4-of-7).
• Junior forward Isiah Small led all players with seven rebounds and joined junior guard Shelby Adams by scoring eight points.

UP NEXT

Texas State jumps into league play next weekend starting with a 6 p.m. CT tip on Thursday, Dec. 19 at Georgia Southern in Jonesboro, Ga. They will end the weekend at Georgia State at 1 p.m. CT Saturday, Dec. 21 in Atlanta, Ga.

QUOTABLES

Head coach Danny Kaspar initial thoughts about the game…

“It was good to get this victory after two losses. We needed a win like this. A lot of people got to play today, and I was happy to see the performances of Nijal [Pearson] and Eric [Terry]. We still have to rebound better especially getting into conference play now, but I am glad for the victory.”

On the non-conference schedule and entering into the conference slate…

“I want us to play strong basketball. I want to see us rebound better, defend better and continue to take care of the ball on this trip to open conference. The UTSA game knocked us down a little bit and in that game, we did not defend or rebound. Both the Baylor and Houston games I thought we played very well so I am really just talking about two games in this non-conference schedule that we did not play well and that is at Air Force and vs. UTSA. Other than that, I think our team has performed very well and I hope we continue that especially on the road where we have our first four conference games.”

Senior guard Nijal Pearson on his 30-point game and conference play…

“I was just comfortable tonight. It was long overdue, but at the same time, I do not think I played great. Thirty points is good, and it was good timing for us to get that at this point of the season, but I think I need to play at this level consistently, especially in conference play. Not to say that the other games did not matter, but now it gets real.”

Senior forward Eric Terry on his career-high game…

“I am glad that I was able to put together a good game tonight. I have been in a slump lately and the coaches sat me down and told me that they will need me in conference. Tonight was a good start and good for my confidence so I am hoping that it rolls over into next weekend and beyond.”

Chisum retires after legendary career with Texas State volleyball

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Head coach Karen Chisum announced that she will be retiring after 40 years coaching Texas State volleyball on Monday afternoon. The legendary coach has a 919-559-3 career record as the head coach of the Maroon and Gold, making her the third NCAA Division I coach to reach 900 wins, and the fourth all-time to do it at one program.

“It has been an absolute honor to work alongside Coach Chisum,” said Executive Senior Associate Director of Athletics Tracy Shoemake. “She is a Texas State treasure and we are blessed to have her as a lifelong Bobcat.”

“Coach Chisum has built the model at Texas State,” said Director of Athletics Dr. Larry Teis. “She is truly a Bobcat legend. She has represented not only the athletic department, but the entire university with great pride.”

Chisum is just the fifth coach in the program’s history which started competing in 1967. In her years as the head coach, she has garnered eight Coach of the Year honors with seven of them coming from conference offices (Gulf Star, Southland, and Sun Belt) and the other being the 2018 AVCA South-Central Regional Coach of the Year. In her tenure, Chisum has led the Bobcats to nine conference regular-season titles and 11 conference tournament championships. She is also responsible for the Bobcats’ only NCAA Tournament victory to date when they topped Rice 3-1 in the first-round in 2018.

Under Chisum’s guidance, TXST has reached the 20-win plateau 26 times, including six times since joining the Sun Belt in 2013. She has also accomplished that feat in four consecutive seasons. Chisum credits most of that success to her two Associate Head Coaches in Sean Huiet and Tracy Smith who makes up America’s longest tenured coaching staff with a combined 72 years of coaching together at Texas State.

Chisum hangs it up after winning back-to-back Sun Belt Conference regular-season and tournament championships that sent the Bobcats to the NCAA Tournament in consecutive years for the first time since 2004-05.

Chisum, a Texas State Distinguished Alumni honoree, became the first female to be accepted for membership in the “T” Association’s Hall of Honor. During her intercollegiate days at Texas State, Chisum played on the softball and tennis teams. Chisum’s coaching career with the Bobcats began as an assistant coach in 1978 before being named head coach in 1980.

Shoemake will be heading up the search for her replacement immediately. Chisum will be available for individual interviews. Contact Keonte’ Herrera at kkh41@txstate.edu for scheduling.

A letter from Coach Chisum

Huiet promoted as Texas State volleyball head coach

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Executive Senior Associate Athletics Director Tracy Shoemake announced that Sean Huiet will become the sixth head coach for the Texas State volleyball program on Wednesday afternoon.

“We are thrilled to have Sean [Huiet] as our next head volleyball coach,” said Shoemake. “It was clear from the beginning that he was endorsed by everyone associated with Texas State volleyball. He has been a big part of the program’s success and we share the same vision for the next chapter of the program.”

“Sean [Huiet] has been here 14 years and I have had a chance to watch him grow as a person and coach,” said Director of Athletics Larry Teis. “His time has come to lead a program on his own and he has tremendous support from Coach Chisum, current players, former players, fans and donors. He has big shoes to fill and we will support him 100 percent.”

Huiet, who was promoted to Associate Head Coach prior to the 2019 season, has been with the program since 2006.  During that time, he has helped the Bobcats claim four regular-season conference championships (two Southland, two Sun Belt) and six conference tournament championships (three Southland, three Sun Belt).

He has assisted in the Bobcats’ 303-168 (.643) overall record, which includes a 182-55 (.768) mark in conference matches since his arrival to San Marcos. The team has put together a total of 12 winning seasons with 10 of them registering 20 or more wins and have made six NCAA Tournament appearances. He is responsible for grooming two Sun Belt Conference Setter of the Year winners in Erin Hoppe (2017) and Emily DeWalt (2018-19).

“I am ecstatic that administration had the foresight to hire Sean as their next volleyball coach,” said Assistant Athletic Director Karen Chisum. “For 14 years he has been a dedicated coach for the Bobcats and has helped me grow this program. He is 100 percent ready and I know this program will flourish under his leadership.”

Huiet’s primary responsibilities as an assistant coach/associate head coach has been coaching the setters, defensive specialists and outside hitters, scouting opponents, making travel arrangements and the Maroon and Gold Digger Club.

“First, I would like to thank Dr. Trauth, Dr. Teis, and Ms. Shoemake for this amazing opportunity to be the next leader of Texas State Volleyball,” said Huiet. “Thanks to Coach Chisum for taking a chance on a young assistant 14 years ago and then helping prepare me to be ready for this next step. To Tracy Smith who has been a great mentor and friend to me and been a sounding board not only about volleyball but life. The three of us have been together for 14 years and have had something that is very rare in our profession. I am forever grateful for the memories and championships we have won together. I have had some amazing mentors in my coaching career and I am thankful for everyone who has helped shape me and lead me to this day. To my family; all your support, love and guidance has meant the world to me. Through the wins, losses, and crazy schedules of a coach, you have been my biggest fans and biggest supporters.  To all the alumni and boosters who have reached out and shown their support over the past week, I can’t say thank you enough. To my team; I am so thankful for each and every one of you.  Seeing you all come together and be some of my biggest supporters to be your next head coach has meant the world to me. I love being a Bobcat and I am glad that my journey here is continuing. There are amazing things happening here at this great University and I am excited to be a part of it. The foundation is set, there is no doubt about that, but I will tell you we are going to be on a new mission to achieve even more. I am so blessed and honored to be the next head coach at Texas State University.  ‘Eat ‘em up Cats!”

Coach Huiet will be available for interviews on Sunday, Dec. 15 at 3:30 p.m. prior to the men’s basketball game at 5 p.m. More details forthcoming.

DeWalt honored to AVCA Southwest All-Region team

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Sophomore setter Emily DeWalt has been selected to the 2019 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division I Southwest All-Region team announced Tuesday morning. DeWalt becomes a two-time all-region honoree after being tabbed to last year’s team.

The Helotes, Texas native was named the Sun Belt Conference Setter of the Year for the second consecutive year after turning 1,196 total assists and 10.22 assists per set in 2019. DeWalt also averaged 0.32 aces per set (38 total aces) to go along with 2.28 digs per set, 77 kills, and 51 blocks (three solos).

DeWalt tallied three conference Player of the Week awards this season and registered 11 double-doubles to increase her total to 32 career double-doubles. In 2019, DeWalt logged new career-highs with 25 digs (Sept. 27) and nine total blocks (Nov. 23).

Texas State won the Sun Belt Conference regular-season and tournament championship titles for the second straight year in order to secure back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2004-05. The Bobcats’ season ended with a 24-9 record and 14-2 mark in conference play after a 3-1 loss to UC Santa Barbara in the first-round of the national tournament.

Bobcats register 13 top-three finishes at the Navy Invitational

ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Texas State track and field team turned in a solid performance in its season-opening meet as they collected 13 top-three finishes, including four total wins at the Navy Invitational.

In the Bobcats’ ice breaker meet for the season, the women tallied six top three finishes and three wins, while the men turned in seven top-three finishes with one win.

Sophomore Sadi Giles won the women’s 60-meter dash with a 7.55-second time, while sophomore Tina Douglas cleared 1.65 meters (5-5) in the women’s high jump to win the event. Freshman Alexa Valenzuela jumped 5.95 meters (19-6.25) in the long jump to log the final women’s win of the weekend. Valenzuela’s mark in the long jump is tied at No. 7 in the school’s record book.

Other top-three finishes for the Bobcat women consist of freshman Amaya Brown’s 5.86-meter leap (19-2.75) in the long jump that placed second, followed by senior Naomi Ferdinand’s 5.85-meter mark (19-2.5) in the same event for third place. Lastly, junior Lauren Purdom tied for second place in the high jump with a 1.60-meter (5-3) clearance.

On the men’s side, junior Ronnie Briscoe Jr. registered the only Bobcat win with a 7.20-meter leap (23-7.5) in the men’s long jump. Graduate student Julien Olivas placed second in the men’s pole vault as he cleared 5.00 meters (16-4.75), and junior Myles Anders finished second in the men’s 60-meter dash with a 6.91-second time.

Senior Michale Reyes cross the finish line with a 1:05.21 time in the 500-meter dash for second-place, and freshman Treyvon Mays (8.24s) and sophomore Ian Carter (8.29s) finished second and third, respectively, in the 60-meter hurdles to complete the top three finishes on the track. Senior Jaylon Jorge placed third with an 18.34-meter throw (conversion) in the weight throw.

Below is a full list of the Bobcats’ top-three finishes:

Men

• Long Jump
  Ronnie Briscoe Jr., 7.20m; 23-7.5 (1st place)
  

• 60-meter Dash
  Myles Anders, 6.91s (2nd place)
  

• 60-meter Hurdles
  Treyvon Mays, 8.24s (2nd place)
  Ian Carter, 8.29s (3rd place)
  

• 500-meter Dash
  Michale Reyes, 1:05.21 (2nd place)
  

• Pole Vault
  Julien Olivas, 5.00m; 16-4.75 (2nd place)
  

• Weight Throw
  Jaylon Jorge, 18.34m; 60-2 (3rd place)

Women

• 60-meter Dash
  Sadi Giles, 7.55s (1st place)
  

• High Jump
  Tina Douglas, 1.65m; 5-5 (1st place)
  Lauren Purdom, 1.60m; 5-3 (T-2nd place)
  

• Long Jump
  Alexa Valenzuela, 5.95m; 19-6.25 (1st place)
  Amaya Brown, 5.86m; 19-2.75 (2nd place)
  Naomi Ferdinand, 5.85m; 19-2.5 (3rd place)

The Bobcats will return to the track in 2020 when they compete in the Vulcan Invitational on Saturday, Jan. 11 hosted by UAB at the Birmingham Crossplex in Birmingham, Ala.