The No. 4 WTAMU Buffalo football team traveled down to Kingsville, Texas, for a matchup of 3-0 teams against the Texas A&M-Kingsville Javelinas on Sept. 28 at Javelina Stadium. The Buffs got touchdowns from their offense, defense and special teams en route to a 69-7 blowout of the Javelinas.
The first quarter ended with WT out front 7-0 after a one-yard run by senior Aaron Harris with 6:52 remaining. TAMUK answered with a 10-yard touchdown pass to tie the game 7-7 and scored their only points of the game with 10:47 to play in the second.
The Buffs offense began to find their groove when senior quarterback Dustin Vaughn threw a seven-yard touchdown to senior Trevor Hammargren to give WT a 14-7 lead with 7:38 left in the half. Sophomore Geremy Aldridge brought the Buffs lead up to 21-7 on a one-yard run with 4:11 to go. A 26-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown by senior safety Curtis Slater and a 41-yard field goal by senior Sergio Castillo, Jr. sent WT into the break with a 31-7 lead over the Javelinas.
Castillo’s field goal made him the highest scoring player in WT history with 335 points after the kick. Castillo finished the game with 343 points and still has seven regular season games left to increase his record.
The Buffs would increase TAMUK’s already large deficit to 38-7 on the opening kickoff of the second half as senior Nathan Slaughter returned the kick 95 yards for a score. After Slater forced a fumble that was recovered by the WT defense on the next Javelina drive, Harris scored on a two-yard run and again from 33 yards out on the next Buffs drive to give him three rushing touchdowns on the night, and give the Buffs a 52-7 lead with 6:49 remaining in the third.
WT would replace the starters for the rest of the game, and the team did not miss a beat. Junior quarterback David LeHockey replaced Vaughn and threw two touchdowns, a 26-yarder to junior Jeremy Watson and a 23-yard pass to sophomore Word Hudson for a 66-7 lead after three quarters. Castillo capped off the scoring explosion with a 36-yard field goal to complete the rout.
As a team, the Buffs ran for 118 yards and passed for another 301 yards. Vaughn was 25 of 33 passing for 227 yards and one score. LeHockey finished five of seven for 74 yards and two touchdowns.
Junior Jamison Sterns ran the ball six times for 44 yards in the latter part of the second half. Harris ran the ball seven times for 43 yards and three scores. Senior Jace Jackson led the receivers with six catches for 72 yards.
WT is now 4-0 for the first time since 2008, with a 2-0 record in the Lone Star Conference. The Buffs will return to Canyon for Homecoming on Oct. 5 against Central State at 3 p.m.
