MSU Roundup: Soccer, Cross Country, Softball - KAUZ-TV: Newschannel 6 Now | Wichita Falls, TX

Soccer: Men Enter South Central Region Rankings

Midwestern State entered the South Central Region rankings at No. 5 as released Wednesday afternoon by the NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Committee.
 
The Mustangs moved to 8-2-4 after battling Eastern New Mexico to a 1-1 draw on Friday before falling to West Texas A&M 2-1 in two overtimes on Sunday.
 
Regis (Colo.) claimed the top spot with a 13-0-1 mark trailed by Incarnate Word (9-2), West Texas A&M (9-2-2), Colorado Mines (10-3-2) and MSU.
 
The top three teams advance to the NCAA Division II postseason tournament which begins Nov. 8 on campus sites.
 
The top team in the South Central Region receives a bye into the tournament's third round while the Nos. 2 and 3 seeds battle on Nov. 10 or 11 for the opportunity to face that top squad at the site of the top remaining seed from the West Region.
 
Six teams from the West Region battle in to small three-team tournament fields for the remaining two spots of the Third Round from Super Region Four which consists of the South Central and West regions.
 
Simon Fraser (B.C.) (11-1-1) tops the West Region rankings followed by Seattle Pacific (Wash.) (10-1-4), Grand Canyon (Ariz.) (13-2-0), Chico State (Calif.) (9-2-4), Cal State-Los Angeles (10-3-2), Cal State-Dominguez Hills (9-5-1), Notre Dame de Namur (10-3-1) and Cal State-Stanislaus (9-3-2).
 
The final regular season ranking is set for release next Wed., Oct. 31 with the NCAA II Championship Selection Show following on Mon., Nov. 5.
 
Midwestern State hits the road to face Incarnate Word Friday night at Benson Stadium in San Antonio. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

Softball to Swing for the Cure Thursday

The Midwestern State softball team plays its final scrimmage of the fall as it hosts The Ragdolls for Pink Out: Swing for the Cure Thursday afternoon at Mustangs Park.
 
The team will take donations at the gate in lieu of admission with all proceeds going to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.
 
Susan G. Komen for the Cure is the boldest community fueling the best science and making the biggest impact in the fight against breast cancer.
 
To date, the foundation has invested almost $2 billion in research and life-saving community programs. A Komen grant has touched every major breast cancer breakthrough of the past 29 years. Those investments have helped drive down breast cancer mortality rates by 33 percent since 1991. Komen is the only breast cancer organization attacking defense on all fronts: in research, community outreach, education, advocacy and global work.
 
To find out more, please visit www.komen.org.
 
The Ragdolls are a club softball consisting of players from many local high schools.
 
First pitch for the scrimmage is set for 6 p.m.

Cross Country Falls to #16 in Poll

Midwestern State dropped six spots to No. 16 in the latest United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches' Association Top 35 released Wednesday morning.
 
The Mustangs are one of six teams from the South Central Region to receive mention in the poll joining No. 2 Adams State (Colo.), No. 4 Western State (Colo.), No. 15 Colorado-Colorado Springs, No. 19 West Texas A&M and No. 20 Colorado Mines.
 
Interestingly, the Mustangs finished runner-up to the Lady Buffs at last weekend's Lone Star Conference Championships in Lawton, Okla. WT is also ranked ahead of MSU in the South Central Region rankings released by the same organization on Tuesday.
 
Colorado Mines slipped six spots in the national poll and dropped behind LSC third-place finisher Incarnate Word, which received no national recognition.
 
The teams will be able to hash out the differences of opinion at the South Central Region Championship which is set for Nov. 3 in Denver. The top five finishing teams advance to the NCAA Division II Championships Nov. 17 in Joplin, Mo.

Cross Country Places 3 on All-LSC Squad

Midwestern State placed three runners on the All-Lone Star Conference team while junior Abigail Gonzalez earned Newcomer of the Year honors when league officials released annual postseason awards Wednesday afternoon.
 
The Mustangs had their four-year run as LSC champions snapped by West Texas A&M last weekend in Lawton, Okla., but MSU held on for a second-place finish and placed three runners in the Top 15 to earn all-league honors.
 
Junior Janel Campbell earns the honor for the second-straight season after finishing eighth in the event with a 6K time of 22:51 while fellow junior Ashley Flores earned all-league accolades for the third-straight season finishing ninth with a time of 22:56.
 
Sophomore Michelle Krezonoski gained All-LSC acclaim for the second consecutive season after taking 12th with a time of 23:08.
 
Gonzalez, a Graham native and junior transfer from Western Texas College, was the top finishing non-freshman newcomer and narrowly missed out on All-LSC honors by finishing 16th with a time of 23:26.
 
The Mustangs compete in the South Central Region Championship which is set for Nov. 3 in Denver, Colo. The top five finishing teams advance to the NCAA II Championship on Nov. 17 in Joplin, Mo.