In 2004, the Sporting New s ranked Lubbock among the Top 100 Best Sports Towns in the United States. Indeed, the Lubbock Cotton Kings, a franchise of the Western Professional Hockey League (WPHL), have drawn quite a large fan base in their relatively short history. The team has fast, skilled and aggressive playing tactics. Home games are played at the Lubbock Municipal Coliseum, a multifunctional facility and first-class entertainment complex.

As for college sports, Texas Tech University (TTU) athletics has enjoyed great success since joining the Big 12 Conference. In 2003, the Red Raiders were one of only four NCAA Division I schools to reach post season play in football, baseball, and men’s and women’s basketball.

The Lady Raiders basketball program has been a standout in the past decade, winning the Big 12 Championship in 1998 and 1999 and NCAA Championship in 1993. Now with Coach Marsha Sharp’s retirement, Kristy Curry is set to guide the program after seven successful years as head coach at Purdue University. Texas Tech had the second-highest home game attendance in the nation among NCAA Division I women’s basketball programs in 2005-2006 and is perennially among the country’s highest.

Texas Tech athletes reach the top echelons of national sports. 2004 Olympian Jonathan Johnson was a Tech track star, garnering nine All-America honors before concluding his college career in 2005. And in summer 2006, sophomore baseball outfielder Roger Kieschnick joined Team USA to win the gold medal in the International University Sports Federation championships in Cuba.

In football, the Red Raiders under Mike Leach won three straight bowl games in 2002, 2003 and 2004. The basketball program under Bob Knight continues to be a Big 12 contender. TTU’s baseball team is frequently ranked in the nation’s top 20 teams. Volleyball, track, golf, tennis and softball teams also continue to please the local crowds.

The Lubbock Christian University (LCU) athletic program features exceptional men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, volleyball and men’s and women’s golf. The university boasts 25 national championships and consistently takes teams to post-season play. In 2005 the LCU Lady Chaps basketball team had a Cinderalla season, finishing the season at 23-12 . The team was runner-up in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Tournament. The Lady Chaps were the lowest-seeded team to make the finals of the NAIA Tournament in the 26-year history of the championship tourney. The LCU Chaps baseball club went 50-17, advancing to the NAIA World Series and finishing in third place there.