Dustdevils Set For Showdown With Eighth-Ranked West Texas A&M

Texas A&M International University plays one of its biggest home games ever this Friday night when the Dustdevils open the 2009 season against eighth-ranked West Texas A&M. Kickoff is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 4 at 7 p.m. at Dustdevil Field on campus.

Friday’s game will be the fourth all-time contest between the Dustdevils and Buffaloes. WT holds a 2-1 lead in the series, winning twice in 2007 before TAMIU’s 2-1 neutral site win last season.

West Texas A&M (2-0) is a perennial power from the Lone Star Conference that has moved into the national top-10 after opening the season with wins over St. Edward’s and UT-Permian Basin. The Buffaloes have outscored those two Heartland Conference opponents by a combined score of 5-0.

WT head coach Butch Lauffer has coached the Buffaloes to 16 straight winning seasons and four NCAA Tournament appearances. The last NCAA appearance was 2007, when the team advanced to the South Central Region finals.

TAMIU head coach Claudio Arias expects a tough match-up but feels the Dustdevils are up to the challenge.

“Facing an opponent like West Texas is an excellent opportunity to show how far this program has come,” said Arias.

“We beat them last year and hope to do the same on Friday. We will be ready.”

Admission for TAMIU soccer is $5 for adults and $3 for students (K-12). Anyone with a TAMIU student, faculty or staff ID is granted free admission.

UPDATED WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 2, 2009

Journalists who need additional information or help with media requests and interviews should contact the Office of Public Relations, Marketing and Information Services at prmis@tamiu.edu