No. 25 SMU Mustangs defeat Incarnate Word, 196-104

Photo courtesy of 
SMU Public Relations

DALLAS, TEXAS (January 9, 2021) The No. 25  SMU men's swimming and diving team went on the road Saturday and picked up a 196-104 win at UIW.

Connor Dalbo (shown right) led the Mustangs with three wins, as SMU came home with victories in 12 of 16 events. Petar Bozhilov and Daniel Forndal each added a pair of wins.

Dalbo's first win of the afternoon came in the 100-yard breaststroke, where he and Caleb Rhodenbaugh posted a 1-2 finish for the Mustangs. Dalbo finished in 55.10 with Rhodenbaugh coming in at 56.30. Dalbo completed the breaststroke sweep, posting a 2:01.29 in the 200 for the win. Brayden Rudd was third with a time of 2:06.06.

Dalbo also won the 200-yard individual medley, registering a time of 1:50.39. He was just ahead of Colin Feehery, who finished second at 1:51.58.

Bozhilov won the 1,000-yard freestyle and became the eighth fastest performer all-time at SMU with his time of 9:12.77. He finished nearly 10 seconds ahead of the field with Jack Callan turning in runner-up honors in a time of 9:22.25.

Bozhilov also won the 500 free, touching in 4:31.67, and Callan was third (4:35.04).

Forndal won the 100- and 200-yard freestyles, leading a sweep of the top four in the 200. He covered the distance in the 200 in 1:39.53 and led Tyler Mansheim (1:41.31) and Wyatt Cronk (1:41.59) in the top three. Forndal clocked a 44.87 in the 100, and was joined by Charlie Kaye (3rd, 45.90) in the top three.

In the 50-yard freestyle, Lance Butler (20.87) came away with the win, while Kaye (21.16) was third.

In diving action, the Mustangs swept the boards, getting wins from Parker Hardigree (1 meter) and Dominic Hoefer (3 meter).

Hardigree's win on 1 meter featured an NCAA Zone qualifying and season-best score of 336.45, while Hoefer (2nd, 317.55) and Peter Smithson (3rd, 317.10) rounded out the sweep with Zone scores.

SMU took the top five spots on 3 meter, led by Hoefer's 359.48 NCAA score. Smithson (354.68) was second with a Zone score of his own, and Hardigree, Tyler Coffey and Dominic Carollo finished in order.

The Mustangs swept relays, winning the opening 200-yard medley relay in a time of 1:31.53. Riley Hill, Rhodenbaugh, Jack Easton and Forndal teamed up for the victory. The 400-yard freestyle relay saw Butler, Forndal, Kaye and Feehery win in a time of 3:02.24.

The Mustangs are back in action Friday when they host No. 4 Texas A&M for Senior Day. The meet is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN+.

Houston falls to No. 19 SMU in close-fought match

Photo by Darla Tamulitis
La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2017
All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2017 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (February 18, 2017) After leading the SMU Mustangs by 13 points at the 10:23 mark in the first half, the Houston Cougars fell behind in second half scoring and dropped a 76-66 decision to their American Athletic Conference rival at Hofheinz Pavilion on Saturday February 18, 2017. The 8,479 fans in attendance saw the No. 19 Mustangs outscore the Cougars 50-36 in the second half to secure the win and remain atop the conference standings.

Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson talked about the game in the post-game presser.

“A big part of that game is when Rob Gray picked up his fourth foul with 12:40 to go, and obviously he was cooking. We do not have that type of team. They have other weapons. We have Damyean Dotson and Rob Gray. We cannot play without them for an extended stretch. We played great defense for large portions of the shot clock and the next thing you know, it’s a one-and-one. Sometimes that’s frustrating. That was a frustrating game. I am not disappointed in my guys’ effort. I am certainly disappointed that we lost. We were ready to play and well prepared mentally. Those guys did a good job of getting themselves ready to play. You have to make your one-and-ones, free throws and open shots. After all that, the Murphy’s Law that seemed to be working against us, with 5:14 to go we were tied. Rob sat over there for five minutes, and the problem was how well he was playing. He was starting to get it going. When we have Rob and Dotson going at the same time, we are good. Give SMU credit. That is a good team. They are ranked 19th, but they are better than that which tells you how good we are too. Let’s not act like this was not a game that could have went either way for a long time. Sometimes you have to get some breaks and sometimes you have to make your breaks. When the opportunity is there, you have to take advantage of it. We got beat by a good team. I would have liked to see some things a little bit different.”

Photo by Darla Tamulitis
La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2017
All Rights Reserved

Houston had three players in double figures. Rob Gray led the way with 23 points, followed by Damyean Dotson with 19 and Galen Robinson, Jr. with 11. Gray also tallied six rebounds. The Mustangs were led by Semi Ojeleye with 22 points along with Ben Moore with 18 points and 13 rebounds. With the win, the Mustangs stay atop the conference standings with a 14-1 record. They are followed by Cincinnati in second place (13-1) and Houston (9-5). The Cougars will face fourth place Connecticut (8-5) on Wednesday, February 22 at home with an 8 p.m. tip off.

Houston falls to SMU 66-45 in women's college basketball action

Photo by Robert H Kelly

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2017 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (January 21, 2017) The Houston Cougars could not contain the offensive punch for the SMU Mustangs and as a result, dropped a 66-45 decision at Hofheinz Pavilion on Saturday, January 21, 2017. Freshman Jasmyne Harris came off the bench to score 16 points, with Jacqueline Blake adding 11 points to lead the Cougars. The Cougars were down by one at halftime, but a sluggish second half, where the Mustangs outscored Houston 38-18 sealed the Cougars’ fate. The Mustangs’ starting forward Alicia Froling tallied her 13^th double-double of the season, scoring 20 points and pulling down 13 rebounds. Starting guard McKenzie Adams added 17 points for the Mustangs.

Houston fell to 1-5 in conference play while SMU raised their record to 2-4. Next up for the Cougars is a January 25 matchup against Memphis on the road.

Houston hands SMU their 11th loss of season; down Mustangs 35-9

 

 

 

Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography

By Robert H Kelly

Copyright 2014 TexSport Publications

UNIVERSITY PARK, TEXAS (November 28, 2014) Capitalizing on three rushing touchdowns by quarterback Greg Ward Jr., the Houston Cougars rallied in the second half and downed the winless SMU Mustangs by the score of 35-9 at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas, Texas on Saturday, November 28, 2014. With the win, the Cougars raised their season record to 7-4 going into their final regular season game against Cincinnati. They also raised their conference record to 5-2, which solidified their fourth place standing in the American Athletic Conference.

After a quick three-and-out by SMU to stat the game, the Cougars received the ball at the 13:30 mark in the first quarter. On the first play from scrimmage for Houston, Ward, Jr. kept the ball, running it up the left side of the field. He rambled 38 yards, untouched, for the touchdown. Kyle Bullard added he obligatory extra point, to give Houston a quick 7-0 lead.

On their second possession, the Cougars drove the ball down the field, but when the drive stalled, had to settle for a 36-yard field goal attempt. Bullard booted the ball wide and SMU took over on their own 20 yard line.

After some back and forth ball in the latter part of the first quarter and the early part of the second quarter, neither team could seem to get an offensive advantage on the field. Both SMU and Houston missed field goals; the Cougars from 36 yards and the Mustangs from 38 yards and both teams’ defenses were keeping the opposing offense in check.

Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography

The Mustangs finally got the scoreboard when Houston was backed up against their own end zone. Ward was scrambling to find a receiver and was called for intentional grounding, giving the Mustangs two points for a safety.

Houston kicked off and gave SMU the ball on their 22-yard line. After two plays, Matt Davis unleashed a 67-yard pass to wide receiver Jeremiah Gaines. Gaines caught the ball, and with two Cougar defender in pursuit, rambled down the left side of the field for the touchdown. Cody Rademacher split the uprights to give the Mustangs a 9-7 lead heading into the locker room at halftime.

The Cougars received the ball to start the second half and quickly put the offense in motion. Driving 64 yards in eight plays, Houston gave the ball to running back Kenneth Farrow. He carried the ball the final 11 yards for their Cougars’ second touchdown on the day. Bullard made another extra point, and the Cougars took back the lead, with a score of 14-9, with 11:34 left in the third quarter.

Ward, Jr. scored his second touchdown of the day when is carried the ball the final four yards of a 99 yard drive. The touchdown, along with Bullard’s conversion took the score to 21-9 at the third quarter’s 3:10 mark.

After the Houston kickoff and a fumble for the Mustangs, the Cougars got the ball back in Mustang territory and began another scoring drive. Three plays later, Farrow carried the ball the final 14 yards into the end zone for the score. The drive lasted 1:04, travelled 23 yards, and gave the Cougars another seven points close out the third quarter with Houston leading SMU 28-9.

The 21 points scored by the Cougars in the third quarter was most points scored in the third quarter by Houston all season. With the third quarter rushing touchdown by Farrow, he moved into a tie for ninth place in Houston single season history with 11 rushing touchdowns. The current record is 15, established by Jackie Battle in 2006.

With 4:46 remaining in the game, Ward Jr. carried the ball the final five yards for third rushing touchdown of the game to give the Cougars, along with Bullard’s conversion, a 35-9 lead. The drive covered 52 yards in five plays and lasted 2:40.

Ward, Jr., who is having a phenomenal rookie season at Houston, rushed for 93 yards on 14 carries and three touchdowns. He also completed 17-of-28 passes for 144 yards and one aerial touchdown. Farrow carried the ball 18 times for 110 yards and two touchdowns.

Defensively, Steven Taylor accounted for five solo tackles, while Efrem Loiphant tallied fourth unassisted takedowns.

Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography

SMU’s Davis carried the ball 20 times for 70 yards, while completing 13-of-27 passes for 145 yards.

The Cougars, who were tied for fourth place with East Carolina in the conference standings with a 4-2 record prior to the game. The Pirates (7-3, 4-2 The American) take on Tulsa (2-9, 2-5 The American) in a Saturday evening game in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

With the loss, the Mustangs fall to 0-7 in conference, 0-11 for the season and 0-14 in their last 13 games. They close out their season on Saturday, December 6 on the road versus Connecticut.

Houston Cougars shutout SMU, 34-0; await bowl invitation

Greg Ward Jr. (1) catches a 19-yard touchdown pass from
John O'Korn at the 13:05 mark in the second quarter.
Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2013 All Right Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2013 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 29, 2013) When the Houston Cougars took to the field on Saturday, November 30, 2013 at Reliant Stadium to face their long-time rival, the SMU Mustangs, they were looking to come back from a three-game losing streak that stretched back to November 9.

Not only did their get out of the losing streak, they set themselves up for an invitation from three possible bowl game.

The Cougars wasted no time dispatching the Mustangs back to Dallas in a 34-0 shutout, their first of the season and their first ever over SMU.

On their first play from scrimmage, freshman quarterback John O’Korn unleashed a 67-yard touchdown to Daniel Spencer to get on the board at the 13:32 mark in the first quarter.

The Cougars came back for their second score of the game when Adrian McDonald intercepted a Neil Burcham pass at the SMU 29 yard line.

After failing to get the ball into the end zone, Kyle Bullard booted a 27-yard field goal to put the Cougars up 10-0 with 5:23 remaining in the first quarter.

They added a second touchdown in the second quarter when O’Korn connected with quarterback playing receiver Greg Ward Jr. on a 19-yard pass route to take the score to 17-0.

Kent Brooks capped off the first half scoring with a one-yard plunge with 34 second left in the half.

The Cougars got the ball with SMU fumbled on a team rush, which allowed Eric Eliand to scoop it up and run 62 yards down the field to the SMU to set up the score

Bullard connected on all three extra point attempts to close out the scoring in the first half.

They continued their scoring juggernaut with a 37-yard rushing touchdown by Ryan Jackson at the 8:07 mark in the third quarter.

That touchdown was the results of a six-play, 59 yards drive that lasted 2:26.

Bullard added a 27-yard field goal at the 2:45 mark in the quarter to give Houston a 34 point lead.

O’Korn passed for 245 yards, while completing 25-of-41 passes and two touchdowns.

The Houston Cougars should know their bowl
destination by Saturday, December 7, 2013
Photo by Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2013 All Rights Reserved

Spencer caught seven passes for 100 yards while Jackson carried the ball seven times for 63 yards.

The contest saw SMU flagged 10 times for penalties, costing the 90 yards while coughing up the ball once and being picked off three times.

Burcham generated little offensive punch, completing 27-of53 passes and the three interceptions, and could not find a way to get the ball into the end zone past the Cougar defense.

The linebacker duo of Efrem Oliphant and Derrick Matthews each had four unassisted tackles and had a hand in a total of 15 more.

Adrian McDonald had 13 total tackles, with three of them being solos.

Now the Cougars will have to sit back and wait to see which bowl game comes a-knocking with an invitation.

The top prospects look to be the Pinstripe Bowl in New York City, the Belk Bowl in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the Liberty Bowl in Memphis. Tennessee.

The Belk Bowl and the Pinstripe Bowl will both be played on December 28, 2013 at Bank of America Stadium and Yankee Stadium, respectively.

The Liberty Bowl will be played on New Year’s Eve (Dec. 31) at the Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium.

Bowl invitations and opponents should be known around December 7.