Gridiron Greyhounds Close Season With 35-10 Win at Tarleton State

STEPHENVILLE, TEXAS— Senior running back Tony Valenzuela (Seagraves, Texas/Seagraves HS) scored three touchdowns, while Tavius Bigelow (Sr., CB, Burlington, N.C./Williams HS/Louisburg JC) grabbed three interceptions, powering the Eastern New Mexico University football team (5-6) to a 35-10 victory over Tarleton State (3-8), in Lone Star Conference Crossover play, Saturday afternoon at Memorial Stadium. The win marked the Greyhounds seventh consecutive season-ending win, dating back to the 2004 season.

The win also snapped a six-game road-losing streak and a 19-game skid against LSC South competition. It also marked the first time Eastern won a game played in the state of Texas, since a 33-30 decision at Abilene Christian, on September 24, 2005.

Tarleton took a 3-0 lead on the first possession of the game, when Blake Wiest connected with a 26-yard field goal, but the Hounds took the lead for good, when they responded with a Valenzuela 11-yard touchdown run on third and nine.  The touchdown was part of a 28-0 outburst from the Greyhounds, which included three touchdown runs from Valenzuela and a 78-yard interception return by Devin Sweet (Sr., OLB, Clovis, N.M./Clovis HS), which was lateralled to Bigelow for the final 20-yards of the touchdown return.

Early in the fourth quarter, the Texans found the end zone on a two-yard run from Jerome Regal, pulling to within 28-10, but quarterback Wesley Wood (So., Muleshoe, Texas/Muleshoe HS) found Jessie Poku (Sr., WR, Murphy, Texas/Richardson HS) from four yards out to give ENMU the 35-10 lead.

The Texans committed 13 penalties for a season-high 142 yards and turned the ball over four times. Eastern pounded out 122 yards on the grounds, closing the season with six straight games with at least 100 rushing yards. The Greyhound defense allowed just four third-down conversions, while recording two sacks and intercepting quarterback Nick Stephens, a transfer from University of Tennessee, four times.

Valenzuela rushed for 92 yards, while Poku hauled in eight passes for 65 yards. Curtis Jackson (Jr., CB, College Station, Texas/A&M Consolidated HS) and Nathan Uland (Sr., LB, Denton, Texas/Ryan HS) each had nine tackles, while Jackson also had an interception. LSC North Defensive Player of the Week, Perron Sellers (Jr., LB, La Marque, Texas/La Marque HS/Fullerton JC) made seven tackles and had a sack. Matt Kalisch (Harker Heights, Texas/Harker Heights HS/NMMI) also had a sack, giving him 9.5 for the season. Wood completed 23 of his 41 pass attempts for 220 yards and a touchdown. Stephens hit 15 of his 34 attempts for TSU, for 169 yards.

 With the victory, the Eastern New Mexico University football team has concluded its 2010 season.