Greyhounds Shut Out Angelo State for 31-0 Homecoming Win
Hinson Runs for 135 yards (1 TD), Throws for 142 (2 TDs)

PORTALES, NM - Junior quarterback Steven Hinson (Olney, TX/Olney HS) carried the ball 18 times for 135 yards and a touchdown, while completing 8 of 14 passes for 142 yards and two touchdowns, leading Eastern New Mexico University to a 31-0 win over Angelo State University in the Homecoming game, Oct. 11 at Greyhound Stadium. ENMU, ranked #23 in NCAA Division II, improved to 5-1 overall, 1-1 in the LSC South. Angelo State fell to 2-4 on the season, 1-1 in the LSC South.

The win was Eastern's first shutout since Sept. 18, 1999, when the Greyhounds blanked Ouachita Baptist University, 23-0. ENMU then went 44 consecutive games without a shutout. The Greyhounds came close two weeks ago on Sept. 27, when Eastern defeated East Central University, 32-2. ECU's only score was a safety on a fumbled a pitch near the ENMU goal line.

ENMU ended a string of four consecutive losses in Homecoming games. Eastern defeated Southwestern Oklahoma, 30-13, on Sept. 26, 1998, then lost Homecoming contests to Abilene Christian in 1999 (31-28) and 2000 (23-21), Angelo State in 2001 (28-0), and Midwestern State in 2002 (28-14). Eastern's win also ended a streak of six games in which the visiting team was victorious in series between ENMU and ASU.

Hinson gained 277 yards of total offense during the game. He now has 1,074 total yards this season, an average of 179.0 yards per game. He has rushed for 428 yards and seven scores, and has thrown for 646 yards and six touchdowns.

Both of Hinson's touchdown passes against ASU went to tight end Artemus Tennison (So., Lubbock, TX/Monterey HS). The first covered 6 yards to conclude an 80-yard drive, as ENMU took a 7-0 lead with 5:43 left in the first quarter. His second touchdown pass was a 22-yarder to Tennison that ended the scoring at the 8:36 mark of the fourth quarter. It was Hinson's final play of the game, as he gave way to back-ups Jon Bell (Jr., Pittsburg, LA/Los Medanos College) and Russell Park (So., Paradise, TX/Paradise HS).

Hinson provided two big plays to set-up Tennison's touchdowns. He started the first drive with a 49-yard run on a quarterback keeper. On the second drive, he completed a 47-yard pass to Hunter, moving the ball from the ENMU 14 to the ASU 39. Tennison scored five plays later.

ASU drove down the field to open the game, but failed to score. The Rams covered 64 yards on 12 plays, mostly running out of a quad receiver set with two receivers barely in bounds near each sideline. The drive stalled at the ENMU 8-yard line and ended when Ryan Hunt missed wide right on a 25-yard field goal. ENMU answered with a 6-play drive for the opening touchdown.

Eastern adjusted to the ASU formation, and the Rams quickly switched to other offensive sets. The Greyhounds limited Angelo State to just 104 total yards on 54 offensive plays. The Rams ran the ball 29 times for 1 yard, and four ASU quarterbacks combined to go 10 of 25 passing for 103 yards. ENMU recorded five quarterback sacks for 32 yards in losses.

The Hounds extended their 7-0 lead to 14-0 on a 1-yard touchdown run by Dwayne Davis (So., RB, Lubbock, TX/Monterey HS) with 11:47 left in the first half. The touchdown ended a 10-play, 84-yard drive for ENMU. Key plays on the drive were a 26-yard run by Jason Tezeno (So., RB, Levelland, TX/Levelland HS) and a 23-yard pass from Hinson to wide receiver Derrick Hunter (So., Lamesa, TX/Lamesa HS).

Hinson scored on a 25-yard run early in the second half, boosting Eastern's lead to 21-0 with 10:24 left in the third quarter. Place-kicker Lee Price (Fr., Holliday, TX/Holliday HS) added a 32-yard field goal with one second left in the period, giving ENMU a 24-0 advantage.

ENMU piled up 445 yards of total offense. Hinson's 135 rushing yards led all players, while Eastern gained 303 rushing yards on 59 carries overall. Tezeno contributed 66 yards on 10 carries, while Davis rushed for 45 yards on 13 carries. Four different players caught two passes each: Hunter (70 yards), Tennison (28 yards), Tezeno (25 yards) and Davis (19 yards).

Sol Southall was 5 of 14 passing for 39 yards for ASU. Kyle Hardin completed 3 of 4 passes for 49 yards and Trey Weishuhn added a 2 of 4 performance for 15 yards. Running back Frenchey McCrea carried the ball 10 times for 10 yards. Luke Harrison caught four passes for 29 yards, Marcus Hoffman added three for 23 yards and Travis House grabbed one for 38 yards.

The ENMU defense was led by junior linebacker Jeff Howard (Portales, NM/Portales HS), with 11 total tackles, including two tackles for loses and one quarterback sack. Jonathon Solis (Sr., FS, Roswell, NM/N.M. Military Institute) registered eight tackles and intercepted a pass near the ASU sideline. The interception occurred with 12:26 left in the game, just one play after ENMU fumbled a punt which the Rams recovered at the ENMU 36-yard line.

Angelo State received 12 tackles (9 solo) from linebacker Brad Legan. Jason Brittain, also a linebacker, added 11 tackles, while safety Jamin Phipps provided nine tackles.

ENMU returns to action on Saturday, Oct. 18, at Midwestern State University. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. (MDT). Midwestern State upped its record to 4-2, 1-1 in the LSC South with a 48-13 win at West Texas A&M University on Oct. 11.