Lion women are LSC Championships runner-up to mark program’s best finish in 17 years.
ABILENE – The Texas A&M University-Commerce women’s golf team marked its best placement at the Lone Star Conference Championships in 17 years, earning team runner-up honors on Tuesday at Diamondback Golf Club.
The Lions scored a 589 (289-300, +21) to finish behind West Texas A&M. The Lions’ last LSC Championships runner-up finish came in 2002, and the performance marks A&M-Commerce’s best 36-hole score at the LSC Championships by 30 strokes.
“It’s obviously not the outcome we wanted, as we were hoping for our first-ever conference championship, but we didn’t give it away. We certainly played well and battled until the end. We just ran into a buzzsaw in West Texas A&M,” said head coach Matt Ward after the tournament. “I’m very proud of the way we finished off the regular season with another top-five finish for another solid event. Everybody showed some fight and some grit, and we had some solid rounds from players who have been working their tails off all year. I’m pleased to see us come through in a pressure situation. They held it together well for a team who is quite young. Now it’s time to prep and get ready for regionals and see if we can’t find some success in Amarillo.”
Paige-Lee Garris (West Palm Beach, Fla.) earned all-tournament honors with a 144 (68-75, +2), finishing in fourth place. It marks her third top-five finish and fifth top 10 finish of the season. She closed the tournament with one birdie in the final round.
Sarah Wongsinth (Udon Thani, Thailand) tied for fifth place to earn all-tournament honors at 145 (72-73, +3) for her sixth top-five placement and ninth top 10 finish in 10 events this season. She had a birdie in the final round.
Lauren Bentley (League City – Clear Creek) placed 12th at 149 (74-75, +7) and had three birdies in Tuesday’s round. Makena Thomas (San Antonio – Reagan) placed 18th at 153, and Sophie-Charlott Hempel (Pirmasens, Germany) put 23rd at 154.
A&M-Commerce will await the announcement of the NCAA West Regional field later this week, as the Lions have the opportunity to qualify for the NCAA postseason as a team entry for the first time in program history.
Rank | Team | Scores | Total | Par | |
1. | West Texas A&M | 291 | 278 | 569 | +1 |
2. | A&M-COMMERCE | 289 | 300 | 589 | +21 |
3. | Angelo State | 304 | 296 | 600 | +32 |
4. | MSU Texas | 302 | 302 | 604 | +36 |
5. | Cameron | 301 | 305 | 606 | +38 |
6. | Tarleton | 310 | 304 | 614 | +46 |
7. | Tex. A&M-Kingsville | 319 | 303 | 622 | +54 |
8. | Western N.M. | 312 | 314 | 626 | +58 |
9. | UT Permian Basin | 322 | 322 | 644 | +76 |
A&M-Commerce | 289 | 300 | 589 | +21 | 2nd |
Paige-Lee Garris | 69 | 75 | 144 | +2 | 4th |
Sarah Wongsinth | 72 | 73 | 145 | +3 | t-5th |
Lauren Bentley | 74 | 75 | 149 | +7 | t-12th |
Makena Thomas | 74 | 79 | 153 | +11 | t-18th |
Sophie-Charlott Hempel | 77 | 77 | 154 | +12 | t-23rd |
Lions’ furious charge back to third place sets up the battle to finish at LSC Championships.
ABILENE – A strong comeback effort for the Texas A&M University-Commerce men’s golf team set a fight to the finish after 36 holes at the Lone Star Conference Championships at Diamondback GC on Monday.
After sitting in the sixth and final spot during the first round, the Lions came back to take the lead in the second round and are only one stroke away from the top spot. A&M-Commerce’s 572 (288-284, +4) after 36 holes is good for third place behind MSU Texas and Western New Mexico (571) to set up an exciting battle for the conference championship.
“The guys got off to a rough start, but as always, they showed grit and determination and fought back hard. I am very proud of the way each of them handled their emotions and played,” said Lion assistant coach Lauren Mason. “With the expected weather conditions tomorrow I hope that we will be able to get a full 18 in so we can redeem ourselves and give it our best shot. We will go out their tomorrow and give it our all and see where that puts us.”
Blake Hartford (Spring – Klein Collins) is tied for second on the individual leaderboard at 140 (-2, 70-70), three strokes off of the lead. The second team all-LSC selection had six birdies in the first round, including three of the last four holes. He was ultra-consistent in the second round, with 17 pars and one birdie.
Joe Wolcik (Cleveland – Tarkington) is in fourth place at 142 (even, 71-71). He shot even par in both rounds with three birdies in each round.
Lucas McCubbin (Midland) and Zach Burch (Lubbock – Cooper) are also in the top 10 on the leaderboard at 145 (+3), tied for ninth. McCubbin had two birdies in the opening round on the way to a 74, then had four birdies in the second round on the road for an even-par 71. Burch had five birdies to come back from a rough start in the opening round for a 73, then had three birdies on the way to a second round 72. Garrett Landers (Sulphur Springs) is in 28th with a score of 154.
The Lions will be paired with MSU Texas and Western New Mexico in the final five groups of the tournament with a chance to win the sixth LSC title in program history. The Lions’ tee times begin at 9:30 a.m.
Rank | Team | Scores | Total | Par | |
1. | MSU Texas | 285 | 286 | 571 | +3 |
Western N.M. | 284 | 287 | 571 | +3 | |
3. | A&M-COMMERCE | 288 | 284 | 572 | +4 |
4. | Cameron | 286 | 297 | 583 | +15 |
5. | UT Permian Basin | 300 | 288 | 588 | +20 |
6. | West Texas A&M | 300 | 296 | 596 | +28 |
A&M-Commerce | 288 | 284 | 572 | +4 | 3rd |
Blake Hartford | 70 | 70 | 140 | -2 | t-2nd |
Joe Wolcik | 71 | 71 | 142 | E | 4th |
Zach Burch | 73 | 72 | 145 | +3 | t-9th |
Lucas McCubbin | 74 | 71 | 145 | +3 | t-9th |
Garrett Landers | 81 | 73 | 154 | +12 | 28th |
Garris and Lions lead after opening round at LSC Championships.
ABILENE – The Texas A&M University-Commerce women’s golf team and sophomore Paige-Lee Garris are in the lead after the first 18 holes of action at the 2019 Lone Star Conference Championships.
The Lions shot a 5-over par 289 on the par 71, 6,009-yard layout, and hold a two-stroke advantage over West Texas A&M.
“I’m very proud of the way the ladies played today. It was good scoring conditions, and we obviously scored very well today, led by Paige who’s in the lead. Leading as a team by two strokes over the No. 8 team in the nation with four players in the top eight on the leaderboard is a solid all-around performance for the day,” said head coach Matt Ward. “There’s obviously a lot of hope and excitement about the potential of bringing home our first conference championship ever. They were down a little bit and just kept fighting, and it worked out that we wound up in the lead at the end of the day. We’ve got some more work to do tomorrow to close the deal.”
Garris (West Palm Beach, Fla.) carded five birdies on the way to a 2-under par 69 to take the lead on the individual leaderboard with a two-stroke lead. Garris birdied two of the last three holes to help push the Lions in front.
LSC Golfer of the Year Sarah Wongsinth (Udon Thani, Thailand) is tied for fourth place at 1-over par 72. She had three birdies in her Monday round.
Lauren Bentley (League City – Clear Creek) and Makena Thomas (San Antonio – Reagan) are tied for eighth place at 3-over par 74. Bentley notched five birdies on the day to match with Garris for the tournament lead in that category, while Thomas had three birdies. Sophie-Charlott Hempel (Pirmasens, Germany) had two birdies on the way to a 77 to tie for 23rd on the leaderboard.
The Lions will be in the tournament’s final grouping on the hunt for the first LSC championship in program history. A&M-Commerce will be paired with Cameron and West Texas A&M for Tuesday’s 18-hole finale, with tee times beginning at 9:40 a.m.
Rank | Team | Total | Par |
1. | A&M-Commerce | 289 | +5 |
2. | West Texas A&M | 291 | +7 |
3. | Cameron | 301 | +17 |
4. | MSU Texas | 302 | +18 |
5. | Angelo State | 304 | +20 |
6. | Tarleton | 310 | +26 |
7. | Western N.M. | 312 | +28 |
8. | Tex. A&M-Kingsville | 319 | +35 |
9. | UT Permian Basin | 322 | +38 |
A&M-Commerce | 289 | +5 | 1st |
Paige-Lee Garris | 69 | -2 | 1st |
Sarah Wongsinth | 72 | +1 | t-4th |
Lauren Bentley | 74 | +3 | t-8th |
Makena Thomas | 74 | +3 | t-8th |
Sophie-Charlott Hempel | 77 | +6 | t-23rd |
McCubbin and Hartford bring home all-LSC honors.
· ABILENE – Texas A&M University-Commerce men’s golfers Lucas McCubbin and Blake Hartford repeated as all-Lone Star Conference selections, as honored at the LSC’s annual banquet Sunday evening.
“I’m very pleased for Lucas McCubbin making first team all-conference, and it’s always good to get recognized against such tough competition. I’m also happy for Blake Hartford to win both academic and athletic honors. That speaks to how he’s just a good, well-rounded young man both on the course and in the classroom,” said head coach Matt Ward.
McCubbin (Midland) was named first-team all-LSC for the second straight year. He is ranked 56th nationally in the GolfStat rankings and was the champion at the DBU Patriot Classic in April. He had three top-five finishes and four top 10 finishes this season with a 72.61 stroke average.
Hartford (Spring – Klein Collins) was named second-team all-LSC and was also named to the LSC All-Academic Team after earning first-team all-LSC honors in 2018. He was the champion of the UAFS Hardscrabble Invitational to close the regular season. He had one top-five finish and three top 10 finishes with a 74.35 stroke average. The mathematics major earned his first All-Academic award, having been named to the President’s List twice, the Dean’s List once, and the LSC Commissioner’s Honor roll twice.
McCubbin, Hartford, and the Lions are coming into this week’s Lone Star Conference Championships on a hot streak, winning both the team and individual championships in the final two tournaments of the regular season.
The Lions will compete in the LSC Championships at Diamondback Golf Club in Abilene on Monday and Tuesday.
2019 Men’s Golf All-Conference
FIRST TEAM | |||
Jake Doggett | Midwestern State | SO | Hutto, Texas |
Chance Craig | Midwestern State | SR | Llano Texas |
Lucas McCubbin | Texas A&M-Commerce | SR | Midland, Texas |
Gonzalo Pan De Soraluce | Western New Mexico | JR | Madrid, Spain |
Sam Ruston | Western New Mexico | SO | Birmingham, England |
SECOND TEAM | |||
Dario Gabriel | Cameron | SR | Felsberg, Switzerland |
Garrett Leek | Midwestern State | FR | Brock Texas |
Blake Hartford | A&M-Commerce | JR | Spring, Texas |
Eemeli Jarvinen | West Texas A&M | FR | Helsinki, Finland |
James Temple | Western New Mexico | FR | Dublin, Ireland |
HONORABLE MENTION | |||
Niels Sorensen | Cameron | SR | Korsoer, Denmark |
Austin Anderson | UT Permian Basin | JR | Plano, Texas |
Nolan Otto | UT Permian Basin | FR | Big Spring, Texas |
SPECIAL RECOGNITION
Player of the Year: Jake Doggett, Midwestern State
Freshman of the Year: Garrett Leek, Midwestern State
Coach of the Year: Jeff Ray, Midwestern State
MEN’S GOLF ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM
Dario Gabriel | Cameron | Sr. | Business |
Devin Whipple | Cameron | Jr. | Biology and Psychology |
Blake Hartford | A&M-Commerce | Jr. | Mathematics |
Brayden Cruth | West Texas A&M | Sr. | Management |
Harry O’Callaghan | Western New Mexico | So. | Business Management |
LSC Men’s Golf Academic Player of the Year: Dario Gabriel, Cameron
Wongsinth wins LSC Golfer of the Year; Garris is second team all-LSC.
ABILENE – Texas A&M University-Commerce women’s golf celebrated one of its most successful seasons by winning the Lone Star Conference’s top award at the league’s annual banquet Sunday evening.
Sarah Wongsinth (Udon Thani, Thailand) won the Lone Star Conference Women’s Golfer of the Year, becoming the first Lion ever to win the award. She was also a first-team all-Lone Star Conference selection, and Paige-Lee Garris (West Palm Beach, Fla.) was a second-team all-LSC pick.
“I’m very proud of both Paige-Lee and Sarah. It’s hard not to be extremely excited about that with both of them being sophomores and having them here for two more years. I’m really happy for them and the way they’ve played and the hard work that’s paid off and that they’ve been recognized by the other coaches in the conference. It’s a very satisfying and gratifying experience, especially for Sarah to get Golfer of the Year in her first year here and in the conference,” said head golf coach Matt Ward.
Wongsinth is ranked 33rd in the individual Golfstat rankings nationally and was the individual champion at the UAFS Hardscrabble Invitational. In nine events this season, she finished in the top five of five tournaments, in the top 10 in eight games, and never finished worse than 12th in any event. She had seven rounds of par or better in 19 rounds played, with a 73.79 stroke average.
Wongsinth’s win of the Women’s Golfer of the Year award snaps a streak of 10 straight years of a golfer from Tarleton winning the award.
Garris is ranked 115th in the individual Golfstat rankings nationally and finished in the top five of two tournaments and top 10 of four matches. She had three rounds of par or better with a 76.21 stroke average for the season.
Wongsinth, Garris, and the Lions finished in the top five of all nine tournaments this season, including the team victory to close the regular season at the UAFS Hardscrabble Invitational.
The Lions will compete in the Lone Star Conference Championships at Diamondback Golf Club in Abilene on Monday and Tuesday.
2019 Women’s Golf All-Conference
FIRST TEAM | |||
Junie Khaw | Tarleton State | SO | Selangor, Malaysia |
Sarah Wongsinth | A&M-Commerce | SO | Udon Thani, Thailand |
Ueakarn Loukyee Songprasert | West Texas A&M | JR | Chiang Mai, Thailand |
Jelina Fernando | West Texas A&M | JR | Haywards Heath, England |
Holly Winter | West Texas A&M | JR | Hawera, New Zealand |
SECOND TEAM | |||
Iona Roska | Cameron | SO | Iverness, Scotland |
Juanita Gomez | Midwestern State | SO | Medellin, Colombia |
Paige-Lee Garris | A&M-Commerce | SO | West Palm Beach, Florida |
Kaylin Milholland | West Texas A&M | SR | Sachse, Texas |
Brenda Dominguez | Western New Mexico | JR | El Paso, Texas |
HONORABLE MENTION | |||
Katie Reeves | Midwestern State | SO | Rockwall, Texas |
Casey Leatherman | Tarleton State | JR | Huntsville, Texas |
Kristina Gutierrez | Texas A&M-Kingsville | SO | Laredo, Texas |
Shelby Turner | Western New Mexico | SR | Deming, New Mexico |
SPECIAL RECOGNITION
Player of the Year: Sarah Wongsinth, A&M-Commerce
Freshman of the Year: Anna Kittelson, Midwestern State
Coach of the Year: Meredith Jameson, West Texas A&M
Coby’s school record highlights split-squad weekend at LSU and Mt. SAC.
BATON ROUGE, La., and TORRANCE, Calif. – The Texas A&M University-Commerce’s track and field teams had a successful weekend with split squads at the LSU Alumni Gold and Mt. SAC Relays.
“Honestly it was a bit of a strange week for us being split up and a little injured,” said head coach George Pincock. “I’m really happy about the results from this week. Our trip to Baton Rouge was a success, and Eboni Coby’s performance really sticks out. She ran another sub 11.80 race in the 100 and them came back to break her own school record in the 200. She has been working really hard, and I think she is starting to see the fruit of that.”
“Robert Wood had a great pole vault, and so did Jake Graf. The entire vault group has made some big improvements in the last few weeks, and we should have some big numbers out of them in the coming weeks. I was also really happy to see the group out in California do well. I know they won’t be satisfied, but I know there was a lot of learning going on out there as well.”
Eboni Coby (Lancaster) earned a school record for her third consecutive meet, establishing a new top mark in the women’s 200-meter dash at 23.78. Her score in the event is the fifth-fastest in the nation and fastest in the Lone Star Conference this season.
The men’s pole vault was highlighted by Robert Wood (Wylie), who moved up to 13th on the national qualifying list at 5.00m (16-4 ¾), establishing a new personal best.
In southern California, Rashard Clark (Los Angeles, Calif.) had a good meet in his home territory, putting up a time of 21.35 in the 200-meter dash, and earning his first 400 meter dash qualifying time of the outdoor season at 47.23 seconds.
The Lions’ final scheduled regular season meet is the Oliver Jackson Twilight on Wednesday at Abilene Christian. The Lone Star Conference Championships will be in Portales, N.M., on May 2-4.
SCHOOL RECORD
Eboni Coby – 23.78 – Women’s 200 Meter Dash
PROVISIONAL QUALIFYING MARKS at LSU
Eboni Coby – 23.78 – Women’s 200 Meter Dash
Robert Wood – 5.00m (16-4 ¾) – Men’s Pole Vault
PROVISIONAL QUALIFYING MARK at MT. SAC
Rashard Clark – 47.23 – Men’s 400 Meter Dash
Night With Champions sets record support for student-athlete scholarships and wellness in the second year.
COMMERCE – Texas A&M University-Commerce’s second annual Night With Champions – dedicated to raising funds for summer school scholarships and student wellness – has once again generated record philanthropic revenue for the continued success of Lion student-athletes.
Table donations generated an astounding $99,390, with unique scholarship gifts, bucket bidding, silent/live auction proceeds, and Lion Champions Fund support.
“Thank you to everyone who made this event an exciting celebration of our student-athletes’ success and an impactful fundraiser enhancing their “Best in Class” experience. The support of our table sponsors and donors will continue to directly impact Lion student-athletes and contribute to their success as students, athletes, and community members,” said Taylor Phelps, Associate Athletics Director for Resource Development
Best in Class food offerings were once again provided by presenting sponsor Sodexo for those in attendance, and Intercollegiate Athletics received tremendous assistance from multiple departments on campus, including the Rayburn Student Center.
“This event once again affirmed that it could not be more appropriately named,” said director of athletics Tim McMurray. “Bringing our Champion partners from campus, our alumni base, and region together to celebrate our Best in Class student-athletes and invest in their academic and well-being. That is what championship programs do.”
National Champion partners for the night were KarolAnn and Chris DeLong, Ford Family Auto of Commerce, Texas A&M University-Commerce Office of the President, Rene’ Griffin, Dr. John and Gail Humphreys, and Lion Head Football Coach David Bailiff.
“This event is a celebration of our student-athletes, and their exceptional accomplishments,” A&M-Commerce President Mark Rudin noted during the event. “However, it is also a time to celebrate our tremendous coaches for all of our sports programs. I commend them as leaders, as counselors, as mentors, and as visionaries for their programs. We are fortunate to have the opportunity to celebrate and acknowledge their accomplishments.”
In the coming weeks, they will announce the 2020 Night With Champions date.
NATIONAL CHAMPION PARTNERS
Ford Family Auto, KarolAnn and Chris DeLong, Texas A&M University-Commerce Office of the President, Rene’ Griffin, Dr. John, and Gail Humphreys, and Lion Head Football Coach David Bailiff.
ALL-AMERICAN PARTNERS
Athletic Supply, Debby and Buddie Barnes, Hulsey Therapy Services, Texas Book Company, Vickie and Tim McMurray
BEST IN CLASS PARTNERS
Anita and Bobby Bounds, and Sue Davis, Lion Tailgaters
REFLECTIONS FROM NIGHT WITH CHAMPIONS
“Karol Ann and I are so happy to have recently completed our personal move back to Commerce and are blessed to aid the efforts behind the recent Night with Champions fundraising event. Providing our student-athletes with a quality summer school experience creates a very real point of difference for the Lions and a tangible advantage versus the balance of the Lone Star Conference across all sports. It’s our hope and vision that more personal donors will match our level of giving for future events to enable even more students to participate in their worthwhile venture.” – Chris DeLong
“Attending the Night with Champions Banquet was a remarkable experience. To see how much Texas A&M-Commerce cares for their students is breathtaking. Donating to a cause that we know goes back to your student body is what Ford Family Auto cares about and will continue to do so in the future.” – Chris Ford
“What better way to spend a Friday evening than being surrounded by friends, business associates, faculty members, administrators, coaches, and student-athletes, all celebrating an excellent year of sports competition? Add to that the additional benefit of helping these student-athletes succeed while at A&M-Commerce, and it was a fantastic event. Sign me up for next year…” – Rene’ Griffin
“Night with Champions is not only an exciting spring event that raises funds to support our student-athletes, but it is truly an eye-opening event of just how impressive our student-athletes are at A&M-Commerce. In only the second year it is a can’t miss event for myself, and I heard similar testaments from other Lion fans throughout the evening!” – Alicia Currin, Vice President for Business and Administration/CFO, Texas A&M-Commerce
“Our Lion student-athletes are without a doubt a phenomenal group of students in the classroom, in competition, and in life. The opportunity to support them at an exciting celebratory event is not only a fun evening of fellowship but a rewarding experience knowing that we can help them have a unique educational experience!” – Dr. John Humphreys, Provost, Texas A&M-Commerce
“Night with Champions is an event that not only helps raise funds for scholarships and programs for our student-athletes that are integral for success, but is fun and exciting for our fans, alumni, and supporters. I hope we can continue to grow this event, so more student-athletes can stay in Commerce over the summer to work towards their degree and prepare to win championships. Thank you to everyone that made that night possible!” – David Bailiff, Head Football Coach, Texas A&M-Commerce
Lion women head to postseason ranked No. 9 in West Super Region.
INDIANAPOLIS – For the third straight week, the Texas A&M University-Commerce women’s golf team is ranked in the official NCAA Division II Regional Rankings. The rank as announced by the NCAA on Thursday places the Lions ninth in the West Super Region.
The top 12 teams in the Super Region on April 29 will be selected to compete in the West Super Regional Tournament at Amarillo Country Club on May 6-8. The Lions have had individual competitors in previous regional tournaments, but have not sent a team entry.
The Lions finished in the top five of every event this season, including winning both the team and individual championships at the UAFS Hardscrabble Invitational to close the regular season.
The Lions are next in action at the Lone Star Conference Championships next week on April 22-23 at the Diamondback Golf Club in Abilene.
West Super Regional Rankings
as of April 18, 2019
1 | Dallas Baptist |
2 | Cal State San Marcos |
3 | West Texas A&M |
4 | St. Mary’s |
5 | Academy of Art |
6 | Oklahoma Christian |
7 | St. Edward’s |
8 | Sonoma State |
9 | A&M-COMMERCE |
10 | Cal State Monterey Bay |
11 | MSU Texas |
12 | Colorado State-Pueblo |
13 | Rogers State |
14 | Concordia Portland |
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
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