TAMUC – Sports

 

SOFTBALL

Lion Softball dips to No. 5 in updated regional ranks.

INDIANAPOLIS– The No. 13 Texas A&M University-Commerce softball team is ranked fifth in the second edition of the NCAA South Central Regional rankings. The South Central Region consists of the Lone Star, Heartland and Rocky Mountain Athletic conferences. The rankings were released on Wednesday by the NCAA. It is the second release of the official NCAA rankings this season. The Lions made the rankings in every regular season regional poll since the program’s inception in 2015.

A&M-Commerce is one of six teams from the LSC in the rankings. Angelo State is in the second spot, followed by West Texas A&M in third and Tarleton State in fourth. Cameron is in the seventh slot while A&M-Kingsville is 10th. The tournament champions of the LSC, HC, and RMAC, as well as five at-large teams, will advance to the NCAA Division II South Central Regional Tournament, set to begin May 10. The top two seeds in the region will host a four-team double elimination tournament, with the two winners meeting in the Super Regional Tournament the following week.

A&M-Commerce currently has a record of 35-8 and 20-7 in the LSC. The Lions are in a tie for third place in the conference standings with Tarleton State. The Lions have a current record of 9-7 against teams ranked in the South Central Region. The Lions swept Tarleton State, and A&M-Kingsville took two of three from Cameron and had a win over West Texas A&M.

The No. 13 Lions return to action on Friday as face Texas Woman’s on the road in the final series of the regular season. The teams will meet in a single game on Friday at 6 p.m. before playing a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m. All games will be at Pioneer Field in Denton. The Lions will then prepare for the LSC Conference Tournament, which is set to start on May 4.

NCAA DII South Central Region Rankings
as of April 25, 2018

Pl.	School	DII Record	In-Region
1.	Colorado Mesa	39-3	39-3
2.	Angelo State	41-6	39-6
3.	West Texas A&M	33-10	32-9
4.	Tarleton State	42-8	40-8
5.	A&M-COMMERCE	35-8	30-8
6.	Colorado Christian	38-9	38-9
7.	Cameron	29-15	29-14
8.	Regis (Colo.)	29-17	29-17
9.	Rogers State	33-15	33-15
10.	A&M-Kingsville	26-24	26-24

MEN’S TRACK AND FIELD

Rashard Clark named LSC Men’s Track Athlete of the Week after blazing races at Mt. SAC Relays.

RICHARDSON– Texas A&M University-Commerce, track, and field athlete, Rashard Clark, is now named to the Lone Star Conference Men’s Outdoor Track and Field Co-Athlete of the Week. The award was announced Wednesday by the conference office. It is the second time Clark has won the award this season.

Clark– a junior from Los Angeles, Calif.– sprinted to a fantastic performance at the Mt. SAC Relays. He smashed the A&M-Commerce school record in the 400m dash with an NCAA automatic qualifying time of 45.70 seconds. That is the second-fastest time in the nation in Division II this season and in the top 15 across all collegiate divisions. In the 4x400m relay, he anchored the Lions to a new school record of 3:07.47 – the fastest time in Division II this year by nearly two seconds.

Clark and the Lion track and field teams will compete in their final meets of the regular season this week before heading to the LSC Tournament. The teams will compete in the Oliver Jackson Twilight meet both today and Thursday. The teams will then compete at the Bobcat Classic in San Marcos on Friday and Saturday. The A&M-Commerce Track & Field teams will then travel to San Angelo for the LSC Outdoor Track & Field Championships beginning May 3.

LSC WEEKLY AWARDS
Men’s Track
M-22 Charles Greaves, Texas A&M-Kingsville
M-28 Javier Lopez, Texas A&M-Kingsville
A-4 Marcus Parker, Eastern New Mexico | Rashard Clark, A&M-Commerce | Javier Lopez, Texas A&M-Kingsville (2)
A-11 Malcolm Woods, A&M-Commerce
A-18 Quinton Sansing, West Texas A&M
A-25 Rashard Clark, A&M-Commerce (2) | Marcus Parker, Eastern New Mexico (2)

Men’s Field
M-22 Trivett Jones, Angelo State
M-28 Nils Fischer, Angelo State
A-4 Florian Obst, A&M-Commerce | Richard Cervantes, Texas A&M-Kingsville
A-11 Nils Fischer, Angelo State (2) | Charles Greaves, Texas A&M-Kingsville
A-18 Andrew Perez, Texas A&M-Kingsville
A-25 Richard Cervantes, Texas A&M-Kingsville (2)

Women’s Track
M-22 Kara Bickham, Tarleton State
M-28 Minna Svaerd, A&M-Commerce
A-4 Kami Norton, Angelo State
A-11 Kami Norton, Angelo State (2)
A-18 Nele Heinrich, West Texas A&M
A-25 Valda Kabia, West Texas A&M

Women’s Field
M-22 Kaitlin Lumpkins, Angelo State
M-28 Jasmine Roberts, A&M-Commerce
A-4 Daisy Osakue, Angelo State | Fatim Affessi, West Texas A&M
A-11 Daisy Osakue, Angelo State (2)
A-18 Fatim Affessi, West Texas A&M (2)
A-25 Zada Swoopes, West Texas A&M

 

SOFTBALL

Softball jumps one spot to No. 13 in NFCA Coaches Poll headed into a final week of regular season.

LOUISVILLE, Ky.– The Texas A&M University-Commerce softball team is ranked 13th in the latest coaches poll released by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association as announced Wednesday. The Lions moved up one spot from last week’s ranking. The Lions are now nationally ranked for ten consecutive weeks.

The No. 13 Lions went 0-3 last week, losing all three games to No. 6 Angelo State, including two tightly-contested contests. The Lions are one of four teams from the LSC in the national rankings. Angelo State is ranked sixth, West Texas A&M is ranked 12th, and Tarleton State is ranked 15th. North Georgia is the top-ranked team.

The Lions are also highly ranked in three other rankings. They are No. 3 in the current rankings done by Hero Sports, which also takes into account strength of schedule, offensive and defensive ranking. The Lions are ranked No. 8 in the Massey Ratings and are No. 6 in the rankings by Fastpitch News.

The No. 13 Lions are currently 35-8 with a 20-7 record in conference play, which has them in a tie for third place with No. 15 Tarleton State. A&M-Commerce concludes the regular season with a three-game road series against rival Texas Woman’s University. The teams will play in a single game on Friday starting at 6:00 p.m. The teams will then meet in a doubleheader on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. All games will be at Pioneer Field in Denton. The Lions will then look forward to the LSC postseason tournament, which will begin May 4.

2018 NFCA Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll – April 25 (Week 10) 

Rank	Team (First Place)	Points	Record	Previous
1	North Georgia (14)	398	49-2	2
2	Chico State (1)	379	43-3	3
3	Colorado Mesa (1)	372	39-3	1
4	Southern Arkansas	347	43-5	4
5	North Alabama	343	40-4	5
6	Angelo State	319	40-6	6
7	Winona State	300	35-5	8
8	Palm Beach Atlantic	286	30-6	8
9	Lenoir-Rhyne	274	42-7	7
10	Grand Valley State	243	31-7	10
11	California Baptist	232	31-8	12
12	West Texas A&M	226	35-10	11
t-13	A&M-COMMERCE	193	35-8	14
t-13	Augustana	193	29-9	16
15	Tarleton State	152	43-8	17
16	Concordia Irvine	138	38-12	RV
17	Illinois Springfield	136	32-13	18
18	Alabama-Huntsville	130	31-12	16
19	Dixie State	125	36-8	18
20	Georgia College	72	33-11	25
21	UC San Diego	64	28-13	22
22	West Virginia Wesleyan	45	33-10	RV
23	Embry-Riddle	42	32-13	RV
24	St. Anselm	41	31-9-1	RV
25	McKendree	33	33-14	RV

Receiving Votes: Washburn (27), Colorado Christian (24), Saint Leo (17), Minnesota Duluth (11), Valdosta State (11), Southern New Hampshire (10), Indianapolis (7), West Chester (5), Arkansas Tech (2), Cameron (1), Limestone (1).

Josh Manck
Associate Athletics Director for Marketing and Communications | Texas A&M University-Commerce