TAMUC – Sports

 

No. 20 Lions defeat Angelo State 3-1 to earn first NCAA Playoff win since 1988, advances to semis.

STEPHENVILLE– The No. 20 Texas A&M University-Commerce volleyball team defeated Angelo State 3-1 in the first round of the NCAA Division II South Central Regional tournament on Thursday. The Lions won the first set and rallied from behind in both the third and fourth sets to get the victory. The set scores were 25-19, 14-25, 25-14 and 25-23.

The win brings the Lions to 29-5 on the season, and they advance to the semifinal round. Angelo State falls to 22-10 on the year, and they are eliminated. It is the first NCAA playoff win for A&M-Commerce since the 1988 season.

The Lions will face Colorado Mesa, the third seed in the tournament, on Friday at 5:00 p.m. The match will be played at Wisdom Gym in Stephenville.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

– Celeste Vela (Guadalajara, Mexico) recorded her ninth triple-double of the season with 13 kills, 18 assists, and 11 digs while hitting .296. She led the team in kills and assists.
– Jaryn Wacker (Austin – Vista Ridge) hit .300 with 12 kills and had a double-double with 12 digs.
– Shelley Chapron (Houston – St. Pius X) had nine kills and four blocks while Bina Njikam (Keller) had five kills and led the team with six blocks.
– Jaslyn Wacker (Austin – Vista Ridge) and Madison Luther (Sealy) had four kills apiece.
– Rylie Fuentes (Robinson) had a double-double with 17 assists and 14 digs. Savannah Rutledge (The Woodlands – College Park) also had 14 digs in the match.
– The win is the Lions’ 12th in a row, their longest winning streak of the season.
– The win is the Lions’ first NCAA Playoff since the 1988 season.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Lions struck first and took the lead before the Rambelles scored three in a row to take the lead. The teams began to trade points, with neither gaining more than two points in a row. Midway through the set, the teams were tied at 12. The Lions began a run from there, taking five points in a row to build a three-point lead. The Rambelles cut the Lion lead to one point, but A&M-Commerce finished the set on a 5-1 run to win the game 25-19. The Lions held ASU to a .088 hitting percentage in the set. Six different Lions earned kills in the set.

After the teams traded the first four points of the second set, ASU scored four of the next five to build a three-point lead. The Lions battled back with defense, with consecutive blocks from Jaslyn Wacker and Chapron to tie the match at eight. ASU began to take control of the set, scoring four points in a row. The Lions could not stem the tide and fell 25-14.

The Lions got off to a quick start in the third set, taking seven of the first 10 points. ASU then went on an 8-1 run to take an 11-8 lead. The Lion offense then exploded, winning 17 of the final 20 points of the set. Vela had four kills in the game. The Lion defense held ASU to a -.167 hitting percentage in the set.

ASU took three of the first four points of the set before the Lions tied the game at four. ASU scored four in a row again, but the Lions battled back to tie the set again, this time at 10. After a 3-0 run from ASU, the Lions came back with a 6-0 run of their own to take a 16-13 lead. ASU battled back to tie the match at 19 and then took the lead. The Lions locked in in the final points, winning six of the last seven to win the game in four sets. Vela and Jaryn Wacker each had six kills in the final frame.

QUOTES FROM THE PRESS CONFERENCE

Coach Craig Case
Thoughts on the match: “It was as good of a match as we thought. Angelo and us know each other very well. We know them well enough to know they have some outstanding volleyball players and we were going to see some things from them that we hadn’t seen yet. And we did, and they beat us pretty good in one set. But I really liked the way our team kept adjusting and made adjustments based on what Angelo was doing. That is just an excellent good volleyball team, and they are very well coached. It is tough to win in the regional tournament.”

Thoughts on the play of Celeste Vela: “She is really talented. She is a good hitter, a great setter, she is a good defender, good server, good blocker. One of the things we try to do is try to use her talent as much as we can. I thought there were some critical times where we were moving her and Rylie Fuentes back and forth from setter to DS. That was really critical for us. I thought we were able to take some pressure off their serves because they were trying to make Rylie pass the ball. If you don’t have talented players that can do a lot of stuff, it is hard to utilize that. Celeste was Freshman of the Year in our league for a reason. We are really proud of her and happy to have her on our team.”

Jaryn Wacker

Thoughts on the match: “They have an excellent program, and we have played them already this year. We knew we would see stuff that we had seen already and we knew we were going to see some new things. They have a good coach, and they make lots of adjustments. They were switching around their pin hitters and their middles. But when our team recognizes those substitutions, we can target different players and take advantage of that. We can take advantage of people coming in off the bench that is cold and not ready to play and target them. I think our team executed our game plan very well. We knew what we wanted to do headed into the match. We have played against them before, We have played in this gym before. And we executed our plan well. We got stumped up on one set, but we kept our cool and finished strong.”

Celeste Vela

“I’m so happy about her! I thought we played very good. We had our bad times, but we overcame those. When I came here, I was kind of scared because it is different. I am from Mexico, and it is totally different. But now that I’ve been here and have seen that I can do an outstanding job with my team and my coaches, I’m so happy.”

 

 

Jaryn and Jaslyn Wacker named Google Cloud Academic All-District.

COMMERCE – Texas A&M University-Commerce volleyball standouts Jaryn Wacker and Jaslyn Wacker have been named to the Google Cloud Academic All-District® Team, as announced by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) on Thursday.

First-team Academic All-District® honorees advance to the Google Cloud Academic All-America® ballot. First-, second- and third-team (if necessary) Academic All-America® honorees will be announced in early December.

Jaslyn Wacker is a senior accounting major from Austin (Vista Ridge) and earns Academic All-District honors for the second consecutive season. In 2017, she was named a second-team Academic All-America, becoming the first Academic All-America in Lion Volleyball history. She was also the 2017 Lone Star Conference Academic Player of the Year. She is a four-time all-Lone Star Conference selection, earning first-team honors in 2017, second team honors in 2018 and 2015, and honorable mention in 2016. She was also named second team all-region in 2017. She has 321 kills and 103 blocks this season. She has recorded double-digit kills in 17 matches this season and had 11 games with at least five blocks. She has been named to the President’s List six times and the Best In Class List six times. She has been named to the Lone Star Conference Commissioner’s Honor Roll six times and is a two-time recipient of Division II Athletics Directors Association Academic Achievement Award.

Jaryn Wacker is a senior finance and Spanish double major from Austin (Vista Ridge) and earns Academic All-District honors for the second consecutive season. This year she was named second-team all-Lone Star Conference and earned LSC All-Academic honors for the second successive season. She has posted a career-high 327 kills on the season with a career-high hitting percentage, recording double-digit kills in 19 matches this season. She has been named to the President’s List four times, the Dean’s List once, the Best In Class List five times, and the Athletics Director’s List once. She has been named to the Lone Star Conference Commissioner’s Honor Roll six times and is a two-time recipient of Division II Athletics Directors Association Academic Achievement Award.

The Wackers and the Lions won the school’s first Lone Star Conference Tournament Championship since 1987 last weekend is the second seed in this weekend’s NCAA Division II South Central Regional Tournament. A&M-Commerce takes on Angelo State at 2:30 p.m. Thursday in the regional quarterfinal round of the tournament.

NCAA DIVISION II – DISTRICT 6 (Heartland, Lone Star, Rocky Mountain)

Name	School	Yr.	Major
Brooke Clark	Dallas Baptist	So.	Biology
MacKenzie Edwards	Colorado Mesa	Sr.	Mass Communications
Adrianna Knutson	Tarleton	Sr.	Kinesiology
Malary Marshall	Dixie State	Sr.	Computer & Information Technology
Lindsey Smith	West Texas A&M	Jr.	Psychology
Abby Tiesman	Colorado School of Mines	Jr.	Mechanical Engineering
Jaryn Wacker	A&M-COMMERCE	Sr.	Finance / Spanish
Jaslyn Wacker	A&M-COMMERCE	Sr.	Accounting
Taylor Woods	Colorado Mesa	Sr.	Elementary Education

 

Blubaugh and Martinez named Google Cloud Academic All-District.

COMMERCE – Texas A&M University-Commerce linebacker Garrett Blubaugh and kicker Kristov Martinez have been named to the Google Cloud Academic All-District® Team, as announced by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) on Thursday.

First-team Academic All-District® honorees advance to the Google Cloud Academic All-America® ballot. First-, second- and third-team (if necessary) Academic All-America® honorees will be announced in early December.

Blubaugh is a senior biological science major from Keller. He adds Google Cloud Academic All-District honors to a lengthy list of accolades, as he was the 2017 NCAA Division II Football winner of the Elite 90 Award and a semifinalist for the National Football Foundation’s Campbell Trophy. He was named All-Academic by the Lone Star Conference in 2017 and has been named to the Dean’s List once, the President’s List four times, the Best In Class List four times, and the Athletics Director’s List once. He has been named to the Lone Star Conference Commissioner’s Honor Roll six times and is a recipient of Division II Athletics Directors Association Academic Achievement Award. In the 2018 season, he is the Lions’ second-leading tackler with 59 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, and 1.5 sacks.

Martinez is a graduate student from Edinburg, majoring in secondary education. He earned his bachelor’s degree in December 2017 in business administration. He was named the Lone Star Conference Scholar-Athlete for the 2017-18 academic year and has been named to the Dean’s List twice, the President’s List three times, the Best In Class list four times, and the Athletics Director’s List four times. He has been named to the Lone Star Conference Commissioner’s Honor Roll six times and is a two-time recipient of Division II Athletics Directors Association Academic Achievement Award.

On the field, Martinez is 14-for-19 on field goal attempts and 44-for-44 on PAT attempts in 2018. He is now 68-of-90 on field goal attempts in his career, which is tied for second in Division II history. He is the active career leader in Division II in field goals, PATs, and kick scoring. His 424 career points rank third in Lone Star Conference history, only 13 points away from the all-time lead. He has made 99 consecutive PATs entering the Division II playoffs. He was a third-team All-American in 2017 and a finalist for the Mitchell Award.

Blubaugh, Martinez, and the Lions travel to Minnesota this weekend for the regional quarterfinal round of the NCAA Division II playoffs. A&M-Commerce is the sixth seed in Super Region Four and kicks off at third-seeded Minnesota-Duluth at 1:00 p.m. Saturday.

NCAA DIVISION II – Super Region 4

Pos.	Name	School	Yr.	Major
QB	Layton Rabb	MSU Texas	Sr.	Finance
RB	Kevin Coy Jr.	Chadron State	Sr.	Sport & Recreation Management
RB	Austin Micci	Colorado State-Pueblo	Jr.	Business Management & Business Administration
WR	Brad Duran	Dixie State	Sr.	Recreation & Sport Management
WR	Brody Oliver	Colorado School of Mines	Sr.	Metallurgical & Materials Engineering
WR	Shane Zylstra	Minnesota State	Jr.	Biology: Biomedical Sciences
TE	Caleb Tingstad	Western Oregon	Sr.	Economics
OL	Nathan Belisle	Minnesota State-	Jr.	Accounting
OL	Rich Kelly	Concordia-St. Paul	Sr.	Biology / Exercise Science
OL	Dan List	Colorado State-Pueblo	Jr.	History
OL	Cody Ullestad	Colorado School of Mines	Sr.	Mechanical Engineering
OL	Jonah Wataru	Azusa Pacific	Gr.	MBA (G) / Business Management (UG)
K	Kristov Martinez	A&M-COMMERCE	Gr.	Secondary Education (G) / Business Admin. (UG)
ST	Kevin Ribarich	Colorado State-Pueblo	Sr.	Accounting & Economics
DL	Jon Dicke	Southwest Minnesota State	Sr.	Exercise Science
DL	Kolbie Foster	Wayne State (Neb.)	Jr.	Family Consumer Science / Fashion Merchandising
DL	Logan Huso	Minnesota-Crookston	Jr.	Criminal Justice
DL	Joey Newman	Augustana	Sr.	Athletic Training
DL	Kelly Pierce	Concordia-St. Paul	Sr.	Psychology
LB	Garrett Blubaugh	A&M-COMMERCE	Sr.	Biological Sciences
LB	Alex Goettl	Minnesota State	Jr.	Biology: Biomedical Sciences
LB	Kirby Hora	Augustana	Sr.	Biology
DB	Jordan Cardenas	Augustana	Jr.	Government
DB	Geoff Keating	Colorado School of Mines	Jr.	Mechanical Engineering
DB	Micah Scherbarth	Chadron State	Jr.	Rangeland Management
DB	Avram Tynes	Augustana	Sr.	Exercise Science
P	John Cummings	West Texas A&M	Gr.	Criminal Justice

 

 

Lions drop exhibition contest to hot-shooting North Texas.

DENTON – The Texas A&M University-Commerce men’s basketball team stepped out of the Division II realm Wednesday night for an exhibition game at the University of North Texas, falling 102-53 in The Super Pit.

The Lions’ regular season record remains steady at 3-0 entering this weekend’s action at the Comfort Inn Classic in Gunnison, Colo. A&M-Commerce’s first game in the tournament will be against Colorado Mesa (1-1) at 5:30 p.m. MST (6:30 p.m. CST).

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

– The Lions were led in scoring by Trey Conrod (Kilgore), who netted 12 points and grabbed 6 rebounds.
– Reggie Reid (Harlem, Ga.) scored 10 points in the game, passed out two assists, and grabbed two rebounds.
– Tyree Robinson (Fall River, Mass.) led both teams with eight rebounds. He also scored six points. Deonta Terrell (Chicago, Ill.) scored seven points off the bench.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Mean Green started the game off by making the first three shots before Conrod’s layup at the 17:38 mark put the Lions on the board. UNT’s Jorden Duffy had 10 early points to give the hosts the double-digit lead with three minutes gone.

Conrod netted the Lions first eight points of the night with contested scores. He and Carson Tuttle (Mukilteo, Wash.) strung together a pair of baskets to cut the lead back down to 17-8. Terrell and Rodney Brown (Beaumont – West Brook) would score three points apiece in the middle of the period.

Reid scored five points on consecutive possessions, but the Mean Green’s hot shooting allowed the home team to pull away. The Lions were held off of the scoresheet for the final three and a half minutes, and UNT took a 53-27 lead into the locker room. The Lions shot 35.7 percent (10-of-28) in the first half but made only 2-of-12 three-pointers. North Texas shot 56.3 percent (18-of-32) in half, including 9-of-19 (47.4 percent) on three-pointers.

The Lions took the floor with renewed energy in the second half, as Robinson drove for a layup, Reid drained a three-pointer, and Willie Rooks (Houston – North Forest) hit a jumper. The Mean Green then went on a surge to pull away further.

Multiple A&M-Commerce players showed toughness in the paint to score in the second half. Conrod, Vernon Lowndes (Charleston, S.C.), and Robinson all scored multiple baskets down the stretch.

 

 

Lions roll to 111-64 win over Our Lady of the Lake in the home opener.

COMMERCE– The Texas A&M University-Commerce men’s basketball team defeated Our Lady of the Lake 111-64 in the Lions’ home opener on Tuesday. A&M-Commerce got out to a quick lead and cruised to their third consecutive victory.

The win brings the Lions to 3-0 on the season. The game does not count against the Saints’ record.

The Lions return to action on Wednesday with an exhibition game against North Texas. The game will be played at 7:00 p.m. at The Super Pit in Denton. The Lions will then head to Gunnison, Colo. for a tournament beginning Friday.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

– All 10 Lions who saw action recorded points. A&M-Commerce led by as many as 50 in the game.
– Tyree Robinson (Fall River, Mass.) led the Lions with 20 points, going a perfect 9-for-9 from the field. He also had a double-double with 11 rebounds and added three blocks.
– Trey Conrod (Kilgore) had 19 points and eight rebounds and added a team-high four steals on the defensive end.
– Willie Rooks (Houston – North Forest) had 13 points, and Deonta Terrell (Chicago, Ill.) also had 13 points to go with nine rebounds.
Vernon Lowndes (Charleston, S.C.) had 12 points, and Carson Tuttle (Mukilteo, Wash.) also scored in double figures with 10 points and had five assists.
– Reggie Reid (Harlem, Ga.) led the team with eight assists.
– The Lions shot 52 percent from the field, including shooting 67 percent in the second half. A&M-Commerce scored 64 points in the paint.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Lions opened up the game with a dunk from Conrod, and the Lions did not look back, never trailing in the contest. Conrod scored the first eight points of the match for A&M-Commerce, including two triples. Robinson then had consecutive putback shots to push the Lions ahead even further.

The Lions pushed their lead to double digits midway through the half as the Lions scored 15 points in a row, which included three three-pointers. The Lions brought their lead to 30 points by the end of the half. Conrod had 12 points at halftime while Robinson and Terrell each had nine.

The Lions continued to have their way in the second half, shooting an out-of-this-world 67 percent in half. Conrod hooked up with Robinson for an alley-oop jam early in the half as the Commerce crowd got to its feet.

Lowndes and Tuttle got into the scoring in the second half as the Lions brought in their reserves for some action. Both made threes as the Lions pushed their lead to 40 points with 14 minutes to play in the game.

A three-pointer from Tuttle gave the Lions a 100-50 lead, their largest of the game, with five minutes left. The Lions were able to run out the clock for their first home win of the season.

 

 

No. 15 Lions open fourth straight playoff trip with a trek to No. 5 Minnesota-Duluth.

COMMERCE – The No. 15 Texas A&M University-Commerce football team has qualified for the NCAA Division II Playoffs for the fourth consecutive season and will take on undefeated and No. 5 the University of Minnesota-Duluth in the Super Region Four quarterfinal.

WHO: Texas A&M University-Commerce at University of Minnesota-Duluth
WHERE: Duluth, Minn. | James S. Malosky Stadium
WHEN: 1 p.m. on Saturday, November 17
RECORDS: The Lions are 9-2 overall and went 6-1 in the Lone Star Conference. The Bulldogs went 11-0 in the regular season and are the co-champions of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.
RANKINGS: Texas A&M-Commerce is ranked No. 15 in the AFCA Coaches’ Poll and No. 18 in the D2Football.com Media Poll. UMD is ranked No. 5 in the AFCA Coaches’ Poll and No. 5 in the D2Football.com Media Poll.

A&M-COMMERCE PLAYOFF CENTRAL
LIVE AUDIO: Lion Sports Network — KETR 88.9 FM, Commerce (http://www.ketr.org)
LIVE VIDEO: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/umd/
LIVE STATS: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/umd/
TICKETS: https://umdbulldogs.com/sports/2013/8/20/Football%20Tickets.aspx

WE’RE GOING STREAKING!

• With their qualification for their fourth straight NCAA Division II Playoff berth, the Lions have the third-longest active playoff streak in the nation.

• Only Northwest Missouri State (15 straight) and Ferris State (five straight) have longer active playoff streaks than A&M-Commerce.

• In Lone Star Conference history, only A&M-Kingsville (1992-98, 7 straight) has a streak of more than four appearances.

• Don Carthel’s West Texas A&M teams qualified four straight times from 2005-08.

• This is the Lions’ seventh all-time NCAA Playoff berth, with an 8-5 record.

• Today’s game also marks the Lions’ 24th all-time postseason contest, with A&M-Commerce carrying a record of 15-7-1.

ALL-TIME AGAINST THE BULLDOGS/NSIC

• This is the second season the Lone Star and Northern Sun conferences have been paired up in a super-region, and with the size of the NSIC (16 schools), that league no longer plays non-conference games in the regular season.

• The Lions are 3-1 all-time against the NSIC.

• This includes the wins at Winona State and Minnesota State in the 2017 playoffs.

• A&M-Commerce split a home-and-home series with Upper Iowa in 2010 & 2011.

• A&M-Commerce won at Memorial Stadium in 2010, 30-10, and was edged by UIU in Fayette in 2011, 15-14. (Current receivers coach Yogi Gallegos passed for 220 yards and two touchdowns in the game).

• The Lions’ only other contest against a current NSIC member was in 1991 when ET beat Wayne State (Neb.) 54-16 at Memorial Stadium. The Wildcats were a Division II independent at the time.

MOVING UP THE RANKS      

• Head coach Colby Carthel now ranks fifth in A&M-Commerce history in coaching wins with 58 wins.
• He is now only five wins behind Lion and LSC legend J.V. Sikes, who sits in fourth place with 63 wins.

1	Ernest Hawkins	1964-85	132-92-6
2	Eddie Vowell	1986-98	74-71-1
3	Bob Berry	1935-41, 46-50	72-34-8
4	J.V. Sikes	1954-63	63-34-4
5	Colby Carthel	2013-pres.	58-17
6	M.A. Smith	1951-53	30-2-1

SENIORS SET SCHOOL RECORD

• The 2018 senior class has tied for the school record for wins in a four-year period with 42 games won in a four-year span.
• A win would give this year’s group sole possession of the record.

Years	Record
2015-18	42-9
2014-17	42-10
1951-54	36-5-2
2013-16	35-14
1957-60	34-7
1972-75	32-13-1
1936-39	31-8
1990-93	31-16-1

 

CONTINUED RECOGNITION NATIONALLY

• A&M-Commerce has been ranked in 51 consecutive AFCA polls, dating back to the 2015 preseason poll.
• This is A&M-Commerce’s 57th all-time appearance in the AFCA poll since its inception in 2000.
• In the polls recognized by Division II as the top rating system, the Lions have been recognized as a nationally ranked team 106 times since joining Division II in 1981.

LION SUPPORT FANTASTIC ONCE AGAIN

• In six home dates, A&M-Commerce drew 45,296 total fans in 2018. That total attendance ranked second in Division II.
• In terms of average attendance, the Lion faithful turned out at a rate of 7,549 per game. That ranked eighth nationally.
• Over the last five years (available in the NCAA rankings database), the Lions have nearly doubled their average turnout since the 2013 season. The next closest season since 2009 was over 2,400 fans per game fewer.

 

KICKIN’ IT WITH KRISTOV

• KickerKristov Martinez scored 11 kicking points with two field goals and five PATs in the win over Angelo State.
• The graduate student from Edinburg is now 14-for-19 on field goal attempts and 44-for-44 on PAT attempts in 2018,
• He is now 68-of-90 on field goal attempts in his career, which is tied for second in Division II history (first place is 82).
• Martinez is now the record-holder for most career field goals in Lone Star Conference history, eclipsing Sergio Castillo’s 62 career field goals.
• Martinez is the Division II active career leader in made field goals and tied for third in all NCAA divisions behind LSU’s Cole Tracy (90) and  Toledo’s Jameson Vest (70). Martinez is tied with Wisconsin’s Rafael Gaglianone.
• Martinez is on the preseason, September, and October watch lists for the Mitchell Award.
• For his career, Martinez has made 220-of-227 PAT attempts and is the Division II active career leader. Oklahoma’s Austin Seibert is the all divisions active career leader with 287 made PATs. Martinez is third in all divisions behind Seibert and North Dakota State’s Cam Pederson (231), and ahead of Ohio State’s Sean Nuernberger (216).
• In terms of overall scoring, Martinez (424 points) is chasing Castillo (437 points), and former Harlon Hill winner at Texas A&I Johnny Bailey (426 points) for the all-time LSC scoring record.
• Martinez was named second-team all-Super Region Four by the Division II Conference Commissioner’s Association and Don Hansen’s Football Gazette.
• He has been named a second-team preseason All-American by Lindy’s.
• Martinez was also named LSC All-Academic and A&M-Commerce’s male LSC Scholar-Athlete for 2017-18.
• Martinez has also connected on 99 straight PATs dating back to the Eastern New Mexico game in week three of 2017.

HARRIS AWARD NOMINEE IS TOP TACKLER

• The Lions’ leading tackler in senior Brucks Saathoff is also one of the leaders in the Lone Star Conference.
• The San Antonio native is averaging 7.7 tackles per game through nine contests, ranking 122nd nationally and 11th in the LSC.
• For his career, Saathoff has 294 tackles, which is the leading mark for the Lions.
• This ranks Saathoff in the top five in Lion history in tackles.

1.	Danny Kirk	1977-80	348
	Antonio Wilson	1996-99	348
3.	Brett Bertrand	1994-97	311
4.	Jesse Brooks	1999-2002	297
5.	Brucks Saathoff	2015-pres.	294
6.	Danny Mason	2009-12	280

UREVBU HITS CAREER HIGH FOR SECOND STRAIGHT WEEK

• Lion running back Ovie Urevbuhad his third consecutive and seventh career 100-yard rushing game against Angelo State.
• He earned LSC Offensive Player of the Week with his performance on his senior day.
• He had 30 carries for 184 yards in the win, notching touchdown carries of 35 and 15 yards.
• Urevbu now has 1,514 career yards on 230 carries, averaging 6.4 yards-per-carry for his career.

TAKE THAT AND LIKE IT

• The Lion kicking game has been spectacular during the 2018 season.
• A&M-Commerce ranks first nationally in kickoff return defense, as Lion opponents average 10.66 yards per return.
• UMD ranks third nationally in this category, allowing opponents only 13.35 yards per kickoff return.
• A&M-Commerce ranks No. 31 nationally in net punting. The Lions average 36.5 yards net per punt.
• Tristan Perry averages 40.2 yards per punt, which is third in the Lone Star Conference and ranks 42nd nationally.

STRENGTH ON STRENGTH

• This game matches up two of the top defenses in the country.
• UMD ranks first nationally in total defense, allowing 199.3 yards per game.
• A&M-Commerce ranks 22nd nationally in total defense at 298.6 yards per game.

RETURN TO SENDER

• Lion defensive back Dominique Ramsey had a 99-yard interception return for a touchdown in the third quarter of the win over Angelo State.
• Ramsey has three interceptions for 226 return yards, averaging 75.3 yards per INT return. This does not include an interception on a two-point conversion attempt in the A&M-Kingsville game, which the NCAA statistics policy does not count as an interception.
• Ramsey’s interception return yardage leads the nation.
• The Lions as a team average 47.1 yards per interception return on nine picks.
• Of the nine interceptions, four have been returned for touchdowns.
• On top of this, Ramsey ranks 26th nationally and second in the LSC in punt return average, averaging 10.8 yards per punt return.
• He has seven plays of over 20 yards this season – three punt returns, three interception returns, and a kickoff return. Three of those plays went for touchdowns.
• His six career interceptions are the most on the team.

NICE NIGHT TO BREAK A RECORD

• The Lions held UT Permian Basin to minus-69 rushing yards last week to establish a program single-game record for rush defense.
• The previous record of minus-48 yards was set against Angelo State in 1992.
• The Lone Star Conference record of minus-77 yards was set by McMurry against Abilene Christian in 1968.
• A&M-Commerce had nine sacks and held UTPB running backs to zero cumulative rushing yards. The Falcons did not have a rushing first down.
• This is the second-fewest rushing yards allowed in a Division II game in the last six seasons. Limestone allowed minus-79 rushing yards against Shaw in 2016.
• In all four divisions of NCAA football this season, the Lions have the best single-game rushing defense performance.

Div	Team	Opponent (Date)	Yds
FBS	Clemson	Florida State (Oct 27)	-21
FCS	Colgate	Fordham (Nov 3)	-50
II	A&M-Commerce	UT Permian Basin (Nov 3)	-69
III	Brockport	Utica (Oct 27)	-62

SUCCESS IN BUNCHES

• The Lions scored 34 points in the second quarter of the game at Western New Mexico, establishing a school record for points in a quarter.
• The previous record was 32, which the Lions scored in the second quarter of a 39-39 tie against Angelo State in 1991.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

• This is not just a Willie Nelson reference for coach Carthel, even though he will appreciate it.
• The 2018 Lions are 5-0 on the road.
• The 2018 season is the eighth time in program history that the Lions have won five or more true road games, including an 8-1 record away from Commerce in the 2017 National Championship season and a six-win road season in 2016.
• The Lions also had six road wins in 1951, 1953, and 1980. The Lions had five road wins in 1957 and 1990. Each of those seasons with the exception of 1951 concluded with a postseason appearance.

LIONS ALL-TIME IN THE POSTSEASON

Jan 1, 1953	vs. Tennessee Tech	W 33-0	Tangerine Bowl	Orlando
Jan 1, 1954	vs. Arkansas State	T 7-7	Tangerine Bowl	Orlando
Jan 1, 1958	vs. Mississippi Southern	W 10-9	Tangerine Bowl	Orlando
Dec 31, 1958	vs. Missouri Valley	W 26-7	Tangerine Bowl	Orlando
Nov 25, 1972	CENTRAL ST. (Okla.)	W 54-0	NAIA Semifinal	Commerce
Dec 9, 1972	CARSON-NEWMAN	W 21-18	NAIA Champion Bowl	Commerce
Dec 6, 1980	at Central Arkansas	W 27-21	NAIA Quarterfinal	Conway, Ark.
Dec 13, 1980	ELON	L 6-14	NAIA Semifinal	Commerce
Nov 17, 1990	at Grand Valley State	W 20-14	DII First Rd	Allendale, Mich.
Nov 24, 1990	at Pittsburg State	L 28-60	DII Quarterfinal	Pittsburg, Kan.
Nov 23, 1991	GRAND VALLEY STATE	W 36-15	DII First Rd	Commerce
Nov 30, 1991	at Pittsburg State	L 28-38	DII Quarterfinal	Pittsburg, Kan.
Nov 18, 1995	at Portland State	L 35-56	DII First Rd	Portland, Ore.
Dec 13, 2013	vs. Harding	L 3-44	Live United Bowl	Texarkana, Ark.
Dec 6, 2014	vs. East Central	W 72-21	Heart of Texas Bowl	Copperas Cove
Nov 21, 2015	at Ferris State	L 30-48	DII Regional Qtr	Big Rapids, Mich.
Nov 19, 2016	COLORADO MESA	W 34-23	DII Regional Qtr	Commerce
Nov 26, 2016	at Grand Valley State	L 32-55	DII Regional Semi	Allendale, Mich.
Nov 18, 2017	at Winona State	W 20-6	DII Regional Qtr	Winona, Minn.
Nov 25, 2017	at Central Washington	W 34-31 (2OT)	DII Regional Semi	Ellensburg, Wash.
Dec 2, 2017	at Minnesota State	W 31-21	DII Regional Final	Mankato, Minn.
Dec 9, 2017	HARDING	W 31-17	DII Semifinal	Commerce
Dec 16, 2017	vs. West Florida	W 37-27	DII National Champs	Kansas City, Kan.
Nov 7, 2018	at Minnesota-Duluth	—-	DII Regional Qtr	Duluth, Minn.

FREE FOOTBALL

• The Lions are 5-3 in overtime games all-time.

Date	Score/Matchup	OTs
10/1/2005	A&M-Commerce 35, at East Central 28	1
9/29/2007	Central Oklahoma 21, at A&M-Commerce 20	1
10/6/2007	A&M-Commerce 41, at Southeastern Oklahoma State 39	3
9/12/2009	Abilene Christian 20, A&M-Commerce 14 (at Cotton Bowl)	1
9/29/2012	at A&M-Commerce 21, Texas A&M-Kingsville 14	1
10/25/2014	at Midwestern State 40, A&M-Commerce 37	1
11/25/2017	A&M-Commerce 34, at Central Washington 31	2
8/30/2018	at A&M-Commerce 37, A&M-Kingsville 36	2

ON THIS DAY IN LION FOOTBALL HISTORY

• 1951 – The Lions trek to San Marcos and earn a 28-21 LSC win over Southwest Texas.
• 1956 – Southwest Texas is a 14-0 victor over ET in Commerce.
• 1962 – ET closes out the season with a 39-6 rout of Stephen F. Austin in Nacogdoches.
• 1973 – The Lions end the year on a four-game win streak with a 42-13 road victory at Tarleton.
• 1979 – ET’s season ends in a close one, with a 20-19 road loss at Angelo State.
• 1984 – The Lions’ season closes with a 24-14 home loss to Abilene Christian.
• 1990 – The Lions win their first NCAA Division II playoff game in their first appearance, taking down Grand Valley State, 20-14, in Allendale. The Lions took a 7-6 lead and didn’t trail again. Gary Perry had a rushing TD, Bob Bounds completed a 35-yard TD pass to Gary Compton, and Billy Watkins kicked field goals of 42 and 35 yards. Eric Turner, Steve Peters, and Terry Bagsby had interceptions. Linebacker Mick Still helped rescue a Grand Valley alumnae from an attack the night before the game, then was named USA Today Defensive Player of the Week with an 11 tackle performance.

—

Josh Manck

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

Committed to a “Best In Class” student-athlete experience.

Office: 903.886.5131  | Mobile: 817.487.5136 |

Mailing Address: P.O. Box 3011 | Commerce, TX 75429

Physical Address: 2600 Neal Street | Commerce, TX 75429

Connect with us on our Lions’ Den Social Stream.

 

 

Kotlik earns Second Team All-Region honors from D2CCA.

CANYON– Texas A&M University-Commerce midfielder Michelle Kotlik has been named to the Division II Conference Commissioner’s Association All-Region team. The All-Region teams were announced on Wednesday.

Kotlik– a senior from Grapevine– earns her second All-Region honor of the year after being named Google Cloud Academic All-District. Kotlik was named the Lone Star Conference Academic Player of the Year and First Team All-Conference and had a stellar season for the Lions. She played in and started 16 matches, scoring a career-high six goals, with three game-winners. She also had an assist and had 13 shots on goal. She finished sixth in the LSC in points, fifth in goals scored and fourth in game-winning goals.

Kotlik has been named All-Region by the D2CCA in three consecutive seasons. Also, during the 2017-season she was named First Team All-Region by the USC and was named the LSC Midfielder of the Year and a First Team All-LSC selection. During the 2016 season, she was named Second Team All-Region by both the D2CCA and the NSCCA, as well as a second-team All-LSC selection.

2018 D2CCA NCAA Division II Women’s Soccer All-South Central Region Team

First Team

Pos	Name	School	Yr	Hometown
GK	Shannon Mooney	Colorado Mines	Jr.	Broomfield, Colo.
D	Emily Townsend	Colorado Mines	Sr.	Katy, Texas
D	Maggie Scales	Dallas Baptist	Jr.	McKinney, Texas
D	Cheyenne Orozco	West Texas A&M	So.	Rio Rancho, N.M.
D	Khadisha Debesette	West Texas A&M	Jr.	Rousillac, Trinidad & Tobago
MF	Anna Gregg	UCCS	Sr.	Sacramento, Calif.
MF	Tarah Patterson	UCCS	So.	Colorado Springs, Colo.
MF	Avery McNeme	Angelo State	So.	Lubbock, Texas
MF	Nicole LaTourette	Colorado Mines	Jr.	Tualatin, Ore.
F	Jennifer Kendall	Colorado Mines	Sr.	Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
F	Trenadey Scott	Angelo State	Jr.	Fort Worth, Texas
F	Grace Linton	Newman	Sr.	Wichita, Kan.
F	Regina Banks	Metro State	Sr.	Bakersfield, Calif.

Second Team

Pos	Name	School	Yr	Hometown
GK	Nicole Rahman	Dixie State	Jr.	Palos Verdes, Calif.
D	Aleesa Muir	UCCS	Jr.	Colorado Springs, Colo.
D	Hanna Parado	UCCS	Sr.	Ponte Verda, Fla.
D	Katie Pullano	Lubbock Christian	Sr.	Bedford, Texas
D	Kyra Butler	Newman	So.	Rapid City, S.D.
MF	Michelle Kotlik	Texas A&M-Commerce	Jr.	Grapevine, Texas
MF	Vanessa Ortiz	Newman	Jr.	North Richland Hills, Texas
MF	Sabrina Cone	St. Edward’s	Sr.	Cedar Park, Texas
MF	Abigail Olmos	Dallas Baptist	So.	Kennedale, Texas
F	Hannah Kelley-Lusk	West Texas A&M	So.	Farmington, N.M.
F	Whitley Johns	Dixie State	Fr.	Gilbert, Ariz.
F	Haley Ward	Texas Woman’s	So.	Fort Worth, Texas
F	Colleen Howland	Newman	Sr.	Wichita, Kan.

South Central Player of the Year:
Anna Gregg, UCCS

 

Josh Manck
Associate Athletics Director for Marketing and Communications | Texas A&M University-Commerce
Committed to a “Best In Class” student-athlete experience.
Office: 903.886.5131
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 3011 | Commerce, TX 75429
Physical Address: 2600 Neal Street | Commerce, TX 75429

 

Marcus Jensen
Assistant Director of Athletic Communications | Texas A&M University-Commerce
Office: 903.468.3027
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