Freshman forward, Christopher Washburn, 19, was involved in an assault against a bouncer at The Palomino, a bar located on 110 E. Robinson Ave. on May 12, according to a police report from the El Paso Police Department.

UTEP Men's track and field team conquered the 2013 Conference USA Outdoor championships on May 12 at the Rice Track Stadium in Houston, Texas.

The Miners finished with a total of 166.5 points, ahead of Houston (152.5), and Tulsa (147). 

On May 9, UTEP Athletic Director Bob Stull announced that a search has begun for a new softball coach. Kathleen and James Rodriguez co-head coached the Miners from 2004-13. They were the first coaches for the program. 

   The UTEP track and field team is set to have a strong showing at the Conference USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships on May 9-12, which will be hosted by Rice University in Houston, Texas. “Right now we’re just getting ready, we don’t have too much time to prepare so we need to fix what we can,” said senior distance runner, Risper Kimaiyo.

   Walking into the women’s soccer locker room for one last time, seniors Tess Hall and Brittany Kindzierski, haven’t been hit with the realization that after four years of playing soccer at the collegiate level, it has finally ended for them.

   As a senior golfer Devin Miertschin approached the final 18th hole at the Conference USA Championships in Texarkana, Ark., realizing it would be the last time he made a putt for UTEP.  He said he was almost tearing up as he walked down the fairway with his coach of two years, Scott Lieberwirth.

   After suffering a bad motocycle accident, James Ketchell, 31, of London, UK decided he would row across the Atlantic. It was an unsual thought to run across the mind of someone who had just broken both of his legs and ankle. Doctors told him he would not be able to cope with strenuous, prolonged physical activity.

   The 2013 track and field outdoor season will be the last for senior distance runner Risper Kamaiyo, who said she is trying to close out the season as best as she can in her final three competitions. Kamaiyo, who did not compete in the 2012 outdoor season due to injuries, came out strong in her last outing.

   The UTEP softball team will look to end the season on a high note when they face the Marshall Thundering Herd in a three game series on May 4-5 at Huntington, West Va. The Miners will also be looking to end an 18-game losing streak. The Herd is currently tied for fourth in Conference USA with East Carolina at 11-9 in conference play, while the Miners sit in eighth at 1-19 and did not qualify for this season’s Conference USA Tournament in Tulsa, Okla.

   A native from Ijebu Ode, Nigeria, junior sprinter, Abiola Onakoya started running track at a very local level in his hometown. “Nobody ever thought something could come out, like an athlete from that area,” Onakoya said. “Which proved many people wrong.

   A new coach and a new attitude may not have won the Conference USA Championship for the UTEP women’s tennis team, but 12-season wins show that improvement and change are underway for Miner tennis. In the past two years, the Miners have only won a total of eight matches, including the only two matches won in the 2011-2012 season.

The Miners concluded a three-series match up over the weekend with a loss to Tulsa, 8-0, in five innings on April 28 at the Helen of Troy Softball Complex.

Head football coach Sean Kugler unveiled Scott Stoker as the new defensive coordinator for the Miners on April 24. This announcement comes a week after former UTEP defensive coordinator, Jeff Choate, departed to the University of Florida.

   This coming weekend will mark the last home game for the softball team’s seniors and the last chance for students and fans to watch them in the field.  UTEP will be saying goodbye to Kayleigh Walts, Charissa Ballesteros, Ashley Collazo, Kayla Oranger and Cynthia Villastrigo as they take on the Tulsa Hurricane April 27 and 28.

   Despite a series of challenges and injuries that senior sprinter Magen Del Pino had to face after she transferred to UTEP, she is determined to make the most out of her last year as a Miner. “The fact that this is my last year here is a very bittersweet feeling,” Del Pino said.

   Ramen Noodles are known to be one of the college favorites because they’re cheap and easy to make, but the popular food contains over 1,400 milligrams of sodium, which can be harmful to students’ health. Aida Moreno-Brown a dietician and professor at UTEP said that sodium is one of the major underlying problems of the American diet.

   Coming in as a dominant track and field high school athlete, freshman distance runner, Daniel Tarango knew the transition onto the collegiate level would be a different experience.  After a slow start at the beginning of his first season at UTEP, Tarango has picked up his pace and gained the momentum it takes to compete in Division I track.

   Senior jumper, Donovant Grant, gazed at the sunset during the UTEP invitational April 13 as he reflects on his last home track meet at Kidd Field and his journey at UTEP. “It is sentimental, I think I’ve really made a breakthrough here at UTEP,” Grant said.

   Athletic Director Bob Stull decided to bring in a new head coach to change the team’s attitude. Last year, after the UTEP tennis team finished with two wins and 18 losses, Stull hired Mark Roberts, former assistant head tennis coach at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

   In his freshman year of college, Martin Simonsen moved to a different country, started at a new school and became one of the best golf players UTEP has ever had. “It took me a little while to get used to things,” Simonsen said. “From school, having class in English all day to even playing golf where little details in the game are different from back home, it was an adjustment, but a good adjustment.

   For almost 10 years, Jorge Hernandez worked as a player and an assistant coach for UTEP’s soccer club. Hernandez, a 2007 UTEP international marketing and International management graduate, now enters his first year as head coach of the club and looks forward to the opportunity to coach the sport he loves.

UTEP fell to Houston 10-1 Sunday afternoon at Helen of Troy Field, extending the Miners losing streak to 10 games. Freshman pitcher Jade Rodriguez pitched two scoreless innings to start the game before seeing Houston come alive.

On April 13, the Miners hosted the UTEP invitational on a nice Saturday at Kidd Field. This paved the way for the Miners to have a successful meet, defending their home turf.

In front of 2,500 fans, UTEP football head coach Sean Kugler led his players into the Sun Bowl for their first spring game of the Kugler era on April 12. 

The game, which was a little bit more of a scrimmage, had no kick offs or punts. It was primarily based on possible game time scenarios that the coaching staff wanted the team to get more practice at.

   On Feb. 23 at the Fair Park indoor facility at Birmingham, Ala., junior jumper Mark Jackson is about to attempt his final long-jump at the Conference USA Indoor Championships. He sets his mark, hears the horn and takes off.  Gaining speed and momentum in a matter of six seconds Jackson jumps, glades through the air and lands in the sand where a huge hole now appears.

   All the way from Campo Bom, RS, Brazil, senior tennis player, Martina Trierweiler has found success on the tennis court as a staple player of the UTEP women’s tennis team, proving that raw talent has no boundary. Taking her first lesson at the age of 4, Trierweiler picked up the sport after her brother became interested in it.

   Spring practice will come to an end as the Miners try to impress the new coaching staff and fans in the April 12 game at 7 p.m. at the Sun Bowl. “The scrimmages and the spring game are really important for us,” said senior quarterback Carson Meger.

   With the landscape of social media continuing to affect the way people communicate, it is almost impossible to find a student athlete without a Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or Instagram account. According to a February 2013 survey from Fieldhouse.

   During tryouts and throughout the football and basketball seasons, the UTEP cheerleading squad has worked on improving their technique while preparing themselves for the few minutes they will have to compete at nationals. From April 10-14, the UTEP cheerleading squad will compete in the 2013 National Cheer Association Collegiate Cheer Championship in Daytona Beach, Fla.

   During the course of a college athletic season, many student-athletes face the prospect of suffering an injury. Depending on the severity of the injury, some athletes rehabilitate much more quickly, which allows them to return to their sport shortly.

   Sometimes an alternative to get through a rough day is to fuel up on coffee, hour after hour. However, there are other healthy alternatives when it comes to stocking up on energy and avoiding a crash later that coffee and energy drinks can cause.

   As the final buzzer of the season goes off and the basketball players walk off the court, fans may assume that the season is over but it isn’t. During the off-season when the spotlight is turned off, athletes continue to put in countless hours on the court, working on a jump shot, practicing on a specific post move or just building muscle in the weight room.

   At the age of 10, Alanna Leasau began playing softball after receiving a slip in the fifth grade advertising softball tryouts. “I asked my mom, ‘what’s softball?’ and it kind of just rolled on from there,” Leasau, 20, said. A junior transfer from Tallahassee Community College, junior infielder Leasau is doing well in her first season with the Miners.

   Roger Canales, sophomore education major, did not see himself as a college prospect while growing up. “I was always that guy that people looked down on in high school…I didn’t want to go to college,” Canales said. “My parents registered everything for me, the orientation and application.

   UTEP ended the season with its second consecutive 20-plus win season, finishing at 22-10, going 14-3 at the Don Haskins Center. Starting the season with adversity, the women’s team lost two of its key players, senior center Kristine Vitola and sophomore guard Jenzel Nash in the first two weeks.

   While the Miners did not bring home a conference title, the season gave the young team experience, as they finished 18-14 overall. The team has grown and made progress both defensively and offensively, said head coach Tim Floyd in a press release.

   After a disappointing 2012 season for the Miners offense, head coach Sean Kugler and his new staff will try to get the offense going once again. After former head coach, Mike Price’s departure, Kugler named Patrick Higgins the new offensive coordinator in January.

   After losing most of the starters on defense, the 2013 season looms with challenges for the Miners new coaching staff. They will try to fill the voids, mainly with young players already part of the team. The defense took a harsh hit with the losses of starting defensive backs Drew Thomas, Darren Woodard and DeShawn Grayson.

   To kick off the outdoor season, the UTEP track and field team played both host and competitor at the UTEP Springtime Meet at Kidd Field March 23. Finishing in first place in 12 out of 36 events, the Miners showcased their strong foundation which will help lead them for the remainder of the outdoor season.

   The Miners will head into two home stands this week against non-conference team, Siena College, in two double headers March 26 and 27. Then they will face conference opponent, East Carolina, in a three-game series March 29 and 30. “We have Siena College coming in.

The Miners head back to Mississippi to face the Golden Eagles March 23 and 24 at Hattiesburg, Miss. This will be their second conference opponent since their matchup against Memphis, March 9 and 10.

The Miners are 9-14 overall and 0-3 in C-USA. Southern Miss is 10-20 overall and 0-6 in C-USA. UTEP is 11-9-1 all-time versus the Golden Eagles.

Women’s Basketball

   After a grueling 30-game schedule, the women’s basketball team will play to get a shot to be in the big dance, the NCAA Tournament.  The only way to guarantee a spot is to win their conference tournament which begins March 13 in Tulsa, Okla.

Men’s Basketball

   After beating Southern Methodist University 76-63, the UTEP men’s basketball team will make its eighth appearance in the Conference USA Championship tournament this year on March 13 at Tulsa, Okla. “This is really when the season gets fun,” said head coach Tim Floyd.

   Hockey may not be a hot commodity in El Paso these days, but on a Tuesday or Thursday evening at the Sierra Providence Events Center, you will find a group of UTEP students playing the game they love. The UTEP Ice Hockey Club was created two years ago by Jorge Villegas, junior industrial engineering major, along with his cousin Mario Ramirez, a senior mechanical engineer.

It was Senior Night at the Don Haskins Center, but it might as well been called Steinberga’s Night.  The women’s basketball team ended their three-game losing streak against Tulane, 71-52. 

Being honored before the game with her parents from Latvia was senior center Anete Steinberga, who delivered her best game of her collegiate career. She posted career highs in rebounds (17), blocks (3), and a game high 22 points.

Despite constant enthusiasm from a fan-packed Don Haskins Center, UTEP was unable to replicate last year’s upset that they handed to Memphis, as the Miners fell to the Tigers 56-54.

Word about head coach Tim Floyd's meeting with Pat Haden, Athletic Director at the University of Southern California, spread throughout El Paso immediately after an article in the Los Angeles Times revealed it.  

   Running a marathon seems almost impossible when thinking about running all those 26.2 miles. To prepare for the 26.2-mile journey or even a half marathon, which is 13.1 miles, more than just the daily running is required. Feb. 24, the El Paso marathon had about 2,400 participants, up 20 percent from last year.

   People usually debate over which quality is more important for an athlete to have, talent or hard work. But in the case of  21-year-old Janice Jackson, it is a combination of both and heart. The junior hurdler/sprinter practices with a knee brace on her right leg where she has no ACL.

   The morning of March 4 was the first day of spring drills for the Miners at Glory Road Field. It was like the tryouts scene  out of “Rudy,” but the only missing thing was the soundtrack by Jerry Goldsmith. The air was cool with a smell of freshly cut grass.

   After a good display for the track and field team at the Conference USA championships, two Miners will travel to Fayetteville, Ark., to compete at the NCAA Indoor Championships, March 8-9. Sophomore distance runner Anthony Rotich was UTEP’s most successful athlete.

   For the last home game of the 2012-13 season, the men’s basketball team will be matching up against the Memphis Tigers at 7 p.m. March 5, at the Don Haskins Center. When it comes to men’s basketball, UTEP and Memphis have always had an interesting interaction.

Under pressure and with time running out of the game, junior forward Kayla Thornton missed a 3-point shot that would have sent the game against Rice into overtime. The women’s basketball team was edged out by the Owls, 62-59, at the Don Haskins Center, Feb. 28.

"(Rice) did a good job on executing down the stretch. We had some costly turnovers at some key times. But the rebounding, that hurt us," said head coach Keitha Adams. "We gave up a lot of offensive rebounds. When we dominate the boards we win games, tonight we didn't dominate the boards and Rice did."

UTEP redeemed themselves in their second game against Houston, beating out the Cougars, 63-53. The Miners suffered a loss to the Cougars Feb. 13, 79-61.

“They got us really good last time so we wanted to counter that with tonight’s game, and tonight just felt right,” Bohannon said.

The player of the night was without a doubt junior center, John Bohannon, who had a double-double in points and rebounds by the end of the first half. He finished the game with 24 points and 17 rebounds, the most from either team.

   Assistant professor of marketing and management, Fernando Jimenez-Arévalo envisions that if Nike were ever to endorse UTEP, it would include a black and white image of Don Haskins talking to his team about the 1966 NCAA championship starting lineup, with the quote, “We’re going to do this” accompanied by the Nike mantra, “Just Do It.

   Most people associate his name with either the greatest basketball player of all time or with the iconic shoes and clothes he branded.  For 29 years, Hall of Famer and multiple NBA champion Michael Jordan, has made his brand “Jordan,” one of the most popular and successful apparel lines in the world.

   Protein is what many gym enthusiasts believe helps them gain muscle mass and helps the recovery process of the body. Protein intake also seems to be essential for getting into shape and leaning out right.   Although there is a limit to the amount of protein consumed by the average gym enthusiast, too much could be a bad thing.

   The 2012-13 UTEP season in sports has already seen a slew of various jersey designs in the different sport programs, which have included both modern and retro looks. The men’s basketball team kicked off their season in November in retro ‘80s uniforms to celebrate and try to recapture the team’s winning decade of the ‘80s,  In December, the team pulled out their Texas Western ‘60s attire as a tribute to the Miners’ 1966 NCAA championship for their game against the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

   While an athlete with tattoos is a usual sight today, the common art form comes to represent a unique story for each athlete. At UTEP, several athletes have embraced tattoos and several have several on their body. Sophomore guard, Chrishauna Parker’s decision to get her tattoos grew from an adoration of fashion, as they became a way to express her individual style.

As tradition would have it, the second round of the 2012-13 Battle of I-10 was anything but a routine game for UTEP and New Mexico State University.

Despite the score being tied five times, and the lead switching between the two teams 12 times throughout the game, the Miners were unable to replicate their success from the first match up, and the Aggies walked away with the win, 55-51.  

   The UTEP softball team is gearing up for its first home stand of the season by hosting the UTEP Invitational this weekend. The tournament will feature double-headers with rivals New Mexico State and South Dakota. After competing in back-to-back softball tournaments to open the season, the Miners are eager to open the home slate at the Helen of Troy Field.

   After having a week off since their last competition, the UTEP track and field team is ready for the Conference USA Indoor championships Feb. 23 in Birmingham, Ala. The Miners got their last rehearsal before the conference championships at the Texas A&M Invitational in College Station, Texas.

   The women’s basketball team is back at the Don Haskins Center, Feb. 21, to face the Houston Cougars after a tough, winless road trip that concluded with an overtime loss to UCF. “We just got to gather back and be mentally ready,” said junior forward Kayla Thornton.

   After breaking their two-game loosing streak with a home win against the University of Central Florida, the men’s basketball team heads out to Hattiesburg, Miss., for a road game against the University of Southern Mississippi. The two schools will play each other once in the regular season, so there is no chance of redemption, making it an all or nothing game.

   Jonathan Teicher, assistant director of intercollegiate athletics and assistant director of broadcasting, still enjoys going into his office decorated with countless UTEP memorabilia to prepare for the game he’s about to call.   Whether it is an exhibition game against Southeastern Oklahoma or a conference road game against Memphis, Teicher makes it a priority to give radio listeners the feeling of viewing the game at the arena.

   The NFL football season ended on Feb. 3 with the Baltimore Ravens hoisting up their second Lombardi trophy in team history. For football fans, it also marked the end of another fantasy football season. However, the activity of fantasy sports doesn’t end there as basketball, hockey and soccer are in full swing.

   A month and a half into the New Year and many are still looking for a way to lose those 10 extra pounds. Whether it is for summer, spring break or a wedding, we are all willing to try insane diets and weight loss regiments just to fit into a dress or pant size smaller.

Coming off two losses, the Miners returned home to the Don Haskins Center to match up with the University of Central Florida, and hopefully capture a much-needed win.

In front of a crowd of 8, 926 fans, the Miners got a spirit lift as they earned their 14th win of the season, beating out the Knights, 73-58.