A note from the desk of Coach Cooper

I am very pleased with the effort our team has shown through our first several practices. We hosted our annual Coaching Clinic on October 17th, and once again it was very successful! There were over 100 high school coaches in attendance to listen to our speakers and watch us and the Lady Buffs practice. I felt that all of the speakers did a great job! One of the speakers was a former player and assistant coach of mine, Tim Thomas.

Yesterday we had our first scrimmage. I was very proud of their effort, but we have a lot of things to improve on. We use our scrimmages as a teaching opportunity. This gives us a chance to sit our players down and point out certain aspects of the game we feel they can improve on, and also aspects that they were very successful on. We use film for not just a teaching tool, but also for our game preparation. Our staff does a tremendous job of using film to improve our team.

We have two more scrimmages before our first game against Emporia. We are working to continue to eliminate errors, and improve our intensity as a basketball team. If this team continues to put in the effort that they have up to this point, I will be very happy as a basketball coach.

Another big weekend ahead of us

Another weekend here in Canyon is upon us. And surprise, surprise... It's another big one.

The WT Lady Buff volleyball team will kick things off tonight with an LSC match against Incarnate Word at 7 p.m. at The Box. The Lady Buffs remain tied with ACU having posted an 8-0 mark in conference matches.

Not only would a win tonight keep the Lady Buffs undefeated in conference play, it would extend their consecutive winning streak over an LSC opponent to 75 straight matches. WT is currently at 74 consecutive wins going into tonight's match which is tied for the second longest streak in NCAA Division II history, seventh longest streak among both DI and DII schools. Hawai'i owns the NCAA's all-time record with 134 consecutive matches won against Western Athletic Conference (WAC) opponents.

WT owns the all-time mark in DII history with a run of 77 straight wins from Sept. 18, 1999-Oct. 10, 2003. A victory tonight would give WT sole possession the top two streaks.

Saturday will be "Senior Saturday" for the Lady Buffs as they will host the Javelinas for the team's final regular-season home match. Lauren Thedford, Teresa Dunn and student assistant coach Amanda Stucky will each be honored for their dedication towards the Lady Buff volleyball program. Check out the article on Thedford and Dunn about all their accomplishments as Lady Buffs.

Football dropped a tough one on Saturday and the Buffaloes will be looking to get back on track when Midwestern State comes into Kimbrough Memorial on Saturday at 6 p.m. The loss dropped WT to No. 17 in this week's AFCA DII Poll, so this weekend's game pits two top 20 teams against each other as MSU comes in at No. 13.

Many, many, many implications in this weekend's game... First off, WT needs a win just to keep pace in a very crowded LSC South. MSU and WT are each 2-1 in south division play and a loss this weekend for either team most likely diminishes all hopes of winning the division.

Both men's and women's soccer will play at "The Pitch" this weekend as well. Both teams will host Northeastern State on Friday, then the Lady Buffs will host East Central on Sunday in their final home contest of the regular-season as well. Seniors Nadia James, Samantha Garland, Kendal Kitchens, Taylor Cromeens and Kelly Skehan will all be honored before the game as they get set to play in their final home game as a Lady Buff.

Let's get out there and support all of our Buffs and Lady Buffs teams this weekend. Their success begins with you.

Go Buffs!

A note from the desk of Coach Cooper

The 2010-2011 Buff Basketball team officially begins practice tomorrow. We had our last day of individuals yesterday, and we feel that our team is just as excited to start as we are. I am extremely proud of our team for the effort that they put in the preseason this fall. It takes really mature teams to understand that working hard this time of the year leads to championships in March.

As a staff we have been working hard to figure out what we want to do offensively and defensively this year to help this team achieve its maximum potential. We feel like this could be one of the most athletic teams we have had at West Texas A&M in a very long time. We will have a few scrimmages as we prepare for our opening game, but have less than a month until we play Emporia & Newman in Bartlesville. We hope to efficiently use the time we have from now until then to improve as a basketball team. Our focus as a team is to improve each day!

I have had tremendous support from our entire coaching staff. Vinay Patel is going on his 6 ^th year with me on the coaching staff. He truly believes in what we do as a program and has a strong loyalty to me and this University. K.C. Beard is in his 2^nd year as a graduate assistant. He will complete his MBA in May here at West Texas A&M University. K.C. is beyond his years as a coach, and has a bright future ahead of him! Chris Tucker is in his first year on our bench as a coach! He is making the difficult transition from being a player to a coach. Wayne Parker and Austin Dunham are also in their second year as student assistants. They are a vital asset to the success of our program! I would like to personally thank all of my staff for the hard work and time they have put into this program. I have always said, “a coach is only as good as the people he puts around him,” and I feel like we have one of the top staffs in the country.

The Buff Facts - Lady Buff Report (Volleyball, 3.0)

In this week's edition of The Lady Buff Report, we sat down with Lady Buff Volleyball Players Kelsey Mangum, Halie Harton and Stormi Lancaster for an exclusive Q&A session.

Kelsey Mangum
Sophomore, biology/pre-med major
Defensive Specialist
San Antonio, Texas

Halie Harton
Freshman, undecided on major
Outside Hitter
Roswell, N.M.

Stormi Lancaster
Sophomore, sports and exercise science major
Outside Hitter
Mobeetie, Texas

What is your favorite kind of pizza?
KM - Supreme
HH - Thin Crust Supreme
SL - Italian Sausage

What is your favorite drink?
KM - Diet Dr. Pepper
HH - Gatorade
SL - Blue Powerade

What is the last movie you saw in the theater?
KM - "Devil"
HH - "Inception"
SL - "Inception"

Do you have a TV show that you like to watch, but hate to admit?
KM - "Make It, Or Break It" on ABC Family
HH - "I will admit to all of the TV shows I watch"
SL - UFC Fights

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
KM - Australia
HH - Jerusalem
SL - Bahamas

Do have a favorite sports moment?
KM - Last year in the regional final against UCM, I caught a dig that [Lauren] Thedford eventually scored a point on.
HH - Winning a state championship in high school.
SL - Being named the state MVP

Do you have a favorite place to visit?
KM - The Beach
HH - Colorado
SL - My grandparents house

Do you have any nicknames on the team?
KM - Not that I know of
HH - Harton
SL - Sprinkles, Lightening

Do you have any pet peeves?
KM - I don't like it when people bite their nails.
HH - Not that I can think of.
SL - I don't like it when people smack their gum.

Is there something about you that a lot of people do not know?
KM - Probably...
HH - That I have diabetes
SL - I'm sure there is and it will stay that way

Rock, Rap, Country, Something Else?
KM - Rock
HH - Alternative
SL - Alternative

In ten years, I will be...?
KM - Hopefully a doctor
HH - A missionary somewhere
SL - Coaching and teaching