Athletic Report
November 16, 1998

MEN’S BASKETBALL (1-0)
First-year ENMU head coach Terry Tyler experienced success in his debut, as the Greyhounds claimed a 101-66 rout of Southwestern Assemblies of God University in the season opener. The win at Greyhound Arena gave Tyler a chance to play his entire squad, as ENMU won its season opener for the fifth straight year.

Senior forward Deron Rippey (Brooklyn, NY/East Carolina) led the Greyhounds with 22 points on 7 of 10 shooting and 8 of 11 at the line. Junior forward Matt Vail (Grants, N.M./Grants H.S.) added 20 points for ENMU. He was 7 of 12 from the field (5 of 9 on 3-pointers). He also had 5 assists and 3 steals. Last year, Vail was Eastern’s leading scorer with 502 points in 26 games (19.3 points per game).

Two other players reached double figures for ENMU. Center Craig Ferris (Sr., Ethete, WY/Casper C.C.) provided 13 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. He converted 6 of 8 field goals. Center Byrone Williams (Chicago, IL/Alaska-Anchorage) contributed 10 points and 9 rebounds.

Ryan Cavozos and Ronnie Tiemann led Southwestern Assemblies of God with 12 points each. Cavozos also grabbed 6 rebounds and had 2 steals. Matthew Collver also reached double figures for the Lions, as he finished the game with 10 points to go with 6 rebounds.

Eastern zoomed out to a large early lead. The Greyhounds scored the first 11 points of the game, and led 27-6 with 11:54 remaining in the first half. Eastern held a 60-35 halftime advantage. In the second half, Eastern New Mexico gradually increased its lead to the final 35-point margin.

ENMU shot 48.7% for the game, including 23 of 42 (54.8%) in the first half. The Greyhounds were 6 of 16 on 3-pointers, and connected on 21 of 33 free throws. Eastern limited SAGU to 30.6% shooting for the game (22 of 72). The Greyhounds also achieved a 55-44 advantage in rebounds.

VAIL CONTINUES TO SCORE FOR ENMU
Junior guard Matt Vail (Grants, NM/Grants H.S.) picked up where he left off a year ago as a key scorer for the Greyhounds in their season opener against Southwestern Assemblies of God. Vail scored 20 points against the Lions on 7 of 12 shooting (5 of 9 three-pointers). He also had 5 assists and 3 steals. Senior forward Deron Rippey led the Greyhounds with 22 points.

UP NEXT FOR THE GREYHOUNDS
The Greyhounds play their next five games on the road before returning to Greyhound Arena to take on New Mexico Highlands on Dec. 1 at 7:00 p.m. (MST). The road trip includes games at Central Oklahoma (Nov. 19, 7:00 p.m. MST). Northeastern State (Nov. 21, 7:00 p.m. MST), New Mexico Highlands (Nov. 25, 7:00 p.m. MST), and the UC-Colo. Springs Classic (Nov. 27-28). Eastern returns home on Dec. 1 for a 7:00 p.m. (MST) game against New Mexico Highlands at Greyhound Arena.