PORTALES, N.M. - The Eastern New Mexico football program will honor 11 seniors prior to kick-off at 1 p.m. against the Western Oregon Wolves in what will serve as the 2018 regular season finale for the Hounds.

Sponsored by the New Mexico Department of Transportation, the first afternoon game of the season inside Greyhound Stadium will pit the Hounds against non-conference foe Western Oregon in a mission to take home a victory in the final game of the season. The Hounds had their three-game win streak snapped last week on the road against Angelo State, but still have a lot to play for as they attempt to send the 2018 graduating class out on a high note. 

THE STREAK IS SNAPPED
• Eastern New Mexico was unable to pull off their fourth win in a row last weekend after facing a tough road challenge against Angelo State. The Hounds eventually dropped the contest by a final score of 34-17 and produced a season-low rushing output with just 193 yards on the ground.
• The loss dropped the Hounds down to sixth in the Lone Star Conference standings and will make this week's season finale non-conference match-up with Western Oregon that much more important to end the 2018 season on a high note and move into the offseason fresh off of a win.

SEND 'EM OUT ON A HIGH NOTE
• Eastern will recognize 11 seniors this Saturday before the game in a ceremony that will honor a senior class that finished their careers with a regular-season record of 25-17 and also made two appearances in bowl games in 2015 and 2016.
• The 2018 senior class ranks in the top five in all-time winningest classes in Eastern New Mexico football history and were instrumental in the program's best year since the beginning of the Division II era last year in which the Hounds finished with a record of 8-2. 

ALL  THE WAY FROM OREGON?
• The home finale and final game of the 2018 season will take place against the Western Oregon Wolves, a member of the GNAC and a perennial contender in one of the Super Region Four's conferences.
• The Wolves will serve as the third non-conference opponent of the year for Eastern after losing to both Missouri S&T and Colorado Mesa in the opening weeks of the season. The Hounds were a perfect 2-0 against non-conference opponents last season with wins over Southwest Baptist and West Liberty.

THERE'S A FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING
• Saturday's game will be the first ever meeting between Eastern New Mexico and Western Oregon and will serve as a golden oppurtunity to continue the Lone Star Conference's strong history of regional dominance. The LSC is 6-4 against regional foes this season.
• The Hounds are 5-12 historically speaking when facing off against new programs for the first time.  

HOW HAVE THEY BEEN SINCE
• The difficulty of the Eastern New Mexico schedule this season has been well documented, and with the final Saturday of the regular season just a few days away it is important to look back and see how the previous competition has fared this year. All of the previous 10 opponents for Eastern this season have combined for a record of 59-46, which includes two teams in UT-Permian Basin and Western New Mexico that have combined for a record of 2-17.
• The Hounds faced four teams ranked in the top 10 of their respective regions and have faced seven opponents that have been ranked or received votes in the national polls at some point throughout the season.  

TERRY TAKE US TO THE PROMISE LAND
• Junior Paul Terry generated a wealth of preseason hype accross the league after replacing some talented backs for Eastern from last season and has delivered week in and week out. Terry ranks fifth in the LSC with an average of 90.8 yards per game.
• The Amarillo, Texas native has rushed for the third most touchdowns (9) in the league and has tied for the second most carries with 185 throughout his 10 apperances. He needs just 92 yards to hit the 1,000 yard mark for the season.

SCOUTING THE WOLVES
•Although Western Oregon will be making the long trip down to Portales this weekend for their regular season finale, the Wolves will be no stranger to Lone Star Conference competition. Western Oregon has already faced Angelo State and Texas A&M-Kingsville this season and took on Western New Mexico and Tarleton State in non-conference games last year.
• The Wolves are a combined 2-2 against the LSC in the last two years, defeating Texas A&M-Kingsville this season and Western New Mexico last year.
• After starting out the season 0-3, Western Oregon will be looking to pick up a win in Portales and finish with a record of .500 or better for the first time in the last three years. Prior to those three seasons the Wolves had posted five consecutive years with a winning record. 
• Defense has been the key for a team that ranks at the top the GNAC and in the top-50 nationally in scoring defense with an average of 21.4 points given up a game. Bo Highburger sits atop the GNAC tackle leaders list with 8.5 per game and also leads the league with 4.5 sacks per game. 
• The Wolves are averaging 25.6 points per game on offense and will be captained by quarterback Ty Currie, who has tossed 17 touchdowns on the season. Freshman Omari Land leads the way on the ground and has averaged 5.6 yards per carry on 127 carries for a total of 749 yards on the ground. 
• The Wolves have struggled to punch the ball in the endzone this year on the ground, rushing for just six touchdowns, but have been especially tough against the run on defense, surrendering just 10 rushing touchdowns per game to opponents.

BLOCK PARTY 
•Eastern New Mexico's Uhi Mikaele blocked the first punt of the season for the Hounds last week against Angelo State, which was returned by Hayden Hill for the touchdown for Hill's first career touchdown as a Greyhound.
• Eastern blocked just two kicks all of last season. 

THE YEAR OF THE SWEITZER
• No defender in the LSC has been more impressive in the second half of the season than Eastern's Noah Sweitzer, who has now recorded 10 or more tackles in four straight games, including a career-high 13 tackles last week against Angelo State.
• Sweitzer has also totaled 10 tackles for loss over the past four games and now ranks eighth in the LSC in both tackles (8.0 per game) and total tackles for loss (12.5 per game).

NEED THE LAST ONE BAD
•Including the bowl apperances in 2015 and 2016, the Hounds have't won their final game of the season since a 55-45 win over West Texas A&M back in 2014.