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Lion women in 10th place after first-ever round in NCAA West Regional.
AMARILLO – The Texas A&M University-Commerce women’s golf team sits in 10th place after the opening round of the NCAA Division II West Regional tournament at Amarillo Country Club on Monday.
Making their first-ever NCAA postseason appearance, the Lions shot a 323 (+39) on the first 18 holes. The top three teams from the regional advance to the national tournament, with 36 holes remaining.
“Obviously we hoped for a better scoring day, but I’m really proud of how the ladies battled challenging winds and a really tough course,” said Lion head golf coach Matt Ward. “It played very long, and the greens were not very receptive which made scoring difficult, but they kept battling all day.
“I’m really proud of and happy for, Sophie-Charlott Hempel as she battled an illness she’s been battling for several days now. We definitely have work to do tomorrow and Wednesday, but I’m confident that we can make up some ground each day, and you just never know in tournaments like this with weather like this. We’ll just go out and battle tomorrow and see where we are at the end of the day.”
Sarah Wongsinth (Udon Thani, Thailand) leads the Lions in 23rd place at 79 (+8), carding birdies on her opening hole of the tournament and her 11th hole. Sophie-Charlott Hempel (Pirmasens, Germany) is in 34th at 9-over par 80, one stroke behind Wongsinth after closing her round with a birdie.
Paige-Lee Garris (West Palm Beach, Fla.) and Makena Thomas (San Antonio – Reagan) are in 44th place at 82 (+11), each notching one birdie on the day. Lauren Bentley (League City – Clear Creek) rounded out the Lion contingent in 55th at 84.
The Lions will look to rebound from their rocky start in Tuesday’s second round, teeing off of ACC’s first hole beginning at 8:50 a.m.
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| Rank | Team | Total | Par |
| 1. | Oklahoma Christian | 301 | +17 |
| 2. | Dallas Baptist | 303 | +19 |
| 3. | Academy of Art | 305 | +21 |
| West Texas A&M | 305 | +21 | |
| 5. | Simon Fraser | 309 | +25 |
| 6. | Cal State San Marcos | 310 | +26 |
| 7. | St. Mary’s | 316 | +32 |
| 8. | Sonoma State | 317 | +33 |
| 9. | St. Edward’s | 320 | +36 |
| 10. | A&M-COMMERCE | 323 | +39 |
| 11. | Colorado State-Pueblo | 326 | +42 |
| 12. | Cal State Monterey Bay | 327 | +43 |
| A&M-Commerce | 323 | +39 | 10th |
| Sarah Wongsinth | 79 | +8 | t-23rd |
| Sophie Hempel | 80 | +9 | t-34th |
| Paige-Lee Garris | 82 | +11 | t-44th |
| Makena Thomas | 82 | +11 | t-44th |
| Lauren Bentley | 84 | +13 | t-55th |
No. 7 Lions earn the second seed in the region, to host the regional tournament for the first time in program history.·
INDIANAPOLIS– The No. 7 Texas A&M University-Commerce softball team is the second seed in the South Central Region in the final edition of the NCAA Regional rankings, as released Monday. As the second seed, the Lions will host half of the Regional field in a double-elimination tournament. It is the first time in program history the Lions have hosted an NCAA Regional.
The Lions will host third-seed Tarleton, sixth-seed Cameron, and seventh-seed Dixie State. Texas A&M-Kingsville earned the first seed in the region and will host the other half of the South Central Region bracket, with games played May 9-11. The winners of both the Commerce and Kingsville brackets will advance to the South Central Super Regional Tournament, held May 16-17, hosted by the highest remaining seed.
The Lions earned their third berth into the NCAA Regional tournament, and their second in a row and achieved their highest ranking in program history. Lion Softball becomes the fourth team sport in school history to host an NCAA playoff series, after football (1991, 2016, 2017), men’s basketball (2005), and soccer (2014, 2016).
The Lions will begin the tournament facing Dixie State, the seventh-seed in the region. It is the first time in history the two teams will meet, and A&M-Commerce will host a minimum of six games until all but one has been defeated twice.
The No. 7 Lions are 38-12 on the season and finished the regular season in second place in the Lone Star Conference standings, their highest finish ever. They advanced to the LSC Tournament Championship game for the first time in program history.
Tickets to the NCAA South Central Regional Tournament will go on sale at 8 a.m. on Tuesday. They can be purchased at WeAreLionsTix.com, by calling (903) 468-8756, by visiting the Lion Sales & Service Box Office in the Field House or by purchase at the gates of the field.
NCAA Division II South Central Region Tournament 2
Commerce, Texas – John Cain Family Field
THURSDAY, MAY 9
3:00 p.m. – Cameron vs. Tarleton
5:30 p.m. – Dixie State at A&M-Commerce
FRIDAY, MAY 10
Noon – Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner
2:30 p.m. – Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser
5:00 p.m. – Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 winner
SATURDAY, MAY 11
Noon – Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner
2:30 p.m. – Game 6 winner vs. Game 6 loser (if necessary)
NCAA SOUTH CENTRAL REGIONAL RANKINGS
1. Texas A&M-Kingsville
2. A&M-COMMERCE
3. Tarleton
4. West Texas A&M
5. Colorado Mesa
6. Cameron
7. Dixie State
8. Oklahoma Christian
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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Marcus Jensen
Director of Athletic Communications | Texas A&M University-Commerce
Office: 903.468.3027 | Mobile: 801.624.8529
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Committed to a “Best in Class” student-athlete experience.