Hot-shooting Lions earn an 81-68 victory over Cameron in the home finale.

COMMERCE – The Texas A&M University-Commerce used an excellent offensive performance to earn an 81-68 win over Cameron University in the Field House on Thursday evening. 

The Lions move to 7-6 overall in the Lone Star Conference with the victory, while Cameron is now 1-15. 

The two teams will meet again on Saturday at 4:30 pm in Cameron’s Aggie Gym in the regular-season finale. 

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

– The Lions connected on 55.2 percent (32-of-59) of their shots from the floor, including a sparkling second half where they made 17-of-29 (58.6 percent) of their field goals and 54.5 percent (6-of-11) of their three-pointers.

– JJ Romer Rosario (Hialeah Gardens, Fla.) led the Lions with 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting. He was 3-for-3 on three-pointers and added five rebounds.

– Augustine Ene (Carrollton – Creekview) scored 15 points with four rebounds and four assists, going 6-of-7 from the floor.

– Rodney Brown (Beaumont – West Brook) and Demarcus Demonia (Fort Washington, Md.) eas scored 10 points, with Brown leading the team with eight boards.

– Carson Tuttle (Mukilteo, Wash.) passed out nine assists.

– The Lions committed only seven personal fouls in the game and had a 41-31 rebounding edge. 

HEAD COACH JARET von ROSENBERG AFTER THE GAME 

HOW IT HAPPENED

After conceding the opening basket, the Lions scored ten straight points, spreading the scoring across four starters, with Ene and Tuttle each scoring three and Demonia and Brown notching buckets. Cameron calmed the run down and got the game back to single digits, even tying the contest at the 4:24 mark. 

From there, the Lions ended the half on a 10-0 run, including a pair of Romer Rosario three-pointers. Cameron missed its final seven attempts of the half, and the Lions took a 38-28 lead into the dressing room. 

The Lions used strong interior defense in the second half to keep Cameron from making a two-pointer for nearly eight minutes. Demonia had a pair of thunderous dunks, and Romer Rosario’s three-pointer at the 7:52 mark gave the Lions their largest lead of the game at 68-47. 

A brief Cameron rally cut the lead to 12 points, but the Lions could hold off the Aggies thanks to a Tuttle three-pointer and five points across the final 2:41.

The No. 7 Lions return to action this weekend to host No. 3 Augustana and St. Mary’s in a double round-robin.

COMMERCE – After two weeks of games scrapped by poor weather, the seventh-ranked Texas A&M University-Commerce softball team returns to the diamond this weekend, hosting a portion of the Irwin Classic. 

The No. 7 Lions will hosts defending champion from 2020 – No. 3 Augustana – and St. Mary’s in a double round-robin on Friday and Saturday. 

RECORDS: A&M-Commerce is 3-1, Augustana has not played yet this season, and St. Mary’s is 2-4.

LIVE VIDEO: LSC Digital Network

LIVE STATS: Direct Link 

SCHEDULE

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 26

1:00 pm – Augustana at A&M-Commerce

3:30 pm – St. Mary’s at A&M-Commerce

6:00 pm – St. Mary’s vs. Augustana

 

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27

11:00 am – Augustana vs. St. Mary’s

1:30 pm – Augustana at A&M-Commerce

4:00 pm – St. Mary’s at A&M-Commerce 

About the Lions

The Lions enter the weekend holding a 3-1 record and are ranked No. 7 in the NFCA poll. A&M-Commerce is hitting .343 as a team and has a 1.38 team earned run average. 

Madison Schaefer leads the team with a .636 batting average to rank second in the Lone Star Conference, while Samantha Dutton ranks seventh in the LSC with a .556 average. Kinsie Hebler’s .643 on-base percentage and seven walks rank third in the conference. 

Alyssa LeBlanc has a 3-0 record in the circle with a no-hitter and leads the LSC with a 0.00 ERA and a .089 opponents’ batting average, allowing only four hits in three appearances. 

About the Vikings

Augustana opens its season ranked No. 3 in the nation and is still defending national champions after the 2020 season was cut short. The Vikings are coming off a 16-3 2020 campaign and are on a seven-game winning streak. 

All-American Ashley Mickschl leads the Vikings in the circle, also the NSIC Preseason Pitcher of the Year. Mickschl twirled 72.1 innings in 2020 and tallied a 1.87 ERA while collecting 11 of the Vikings wins. In the batter’s box, Kendall Cornick was tabbed as the Vikings’ Preseason Player to Watch after hitting .365 with 18 runs scored and 14 RBI. 

Mary Pardo was the Vikings’ top run producer last season, totaling 19 RBI, much in thanks to a team-best eight doubles and four home runs. She hit .348 while starting all 19 games. 

About St. Mary’s

The Rattlers are 2-4 overall with wins over Tabor College, first a 10-2, five-inning affair, then an 8-0, run-rule contest. St. Mary’s was tabbed ninth earlier this season in the Lone Star Conference. 

Amber Gonzales owns the top batting average on the team at .429. Alex Moreno has tallied a pair of home runs in the six contests. Three different pitchers have started two games, while Alex McLennan and Julia Cruz each own one of the two victories this season. McLennan has the most innings pitched at 17.2 and owns a 0.4 ERA.

First Team

Athlete	School	Year	Points	Event winner
Johnathon Harper	Texas A&M-Kingsville	SR	22	Heptathlon, Pole Vault
Peniel Richard	West Texas A&M	JR	20	Long Jump, Triple Jump
Benjamin Azamati	West Texas A&M	SO	20	60 meters, 200 meters
Ezekiel Kipchirchir	West Texas A&M	SR	20	3000 meters, 5000 meters
Innocent Murwanashyaka	West Texas A&M	JR	19
Butare Rugenerwa	West Texas A&M	JR	16.5	Mile, Distance Medley Relay
Tyrin Lewis	West Texas A&M	SR	16
Trayveon Franklin	A&M-COMMERCE	JR	16
Lamarion Arnold	A&M-COMMERCE	SR	15.5	4×400 Relay
Nicodemus Rotich	A&M-COMMERCE	SO	14.5
Trpimir Siroki	Angelo State	JR	14
Taylor Chaney	Texas A&M-Kingsville	FR	11.5	400 meters
Jahmaal Wilson	West Texas A&M	SO	11	60 hurdles
Ayman Zahafi	Texas A&M-Kingsville	JR	10	800 meters
Decio Andrade	Angelo State	JR	10	Weight Throw
Marco Arevalo	Texas A&M-Kingsville	JR	10	Shot Put
Ushan Perera	A&M-COMMERCE	FR	10	High Jump
Arnaud Taki	West Texas A&M	SR	10.5	Distance Medley Relay
Malick Diop	West Texas A&M	SO	6.5	Distance Medley Relay
Ian Colbert	A&M-COMMERCE	SR	5.5	4×400 Relay
Calvin Allen	West Texas A&M	SO	4.5	Distance Medley Relay
Gage Marshall	A&M-COMMERCE	FR	2.5	4×400 Relay
Conner Stockerl	A&M-COMMERCE	FR	2.5	4×400 Relay

Second Team

Athlete	School	Year	Points
Micky Ferdinand	A&M-COMMERCE	JR	13
Ray Dixon	West Texas A&M	JR	11
Jorge Rios	Texas A&M-Kingsville	SR	11
Creed Goode	Angelo State	JR	10
Alex Samples	Oklahoma Christian	FR	10
Nicholas Ellisor	Angelo State	SR	10
Owen Pearce	Oklahoma Christian	FR	10
Diego Pettorossi	Angelo State	JR	10
Briggs Wittlake	West Texas A&M	SR	10
Dean Wallace	Texas A&M-Kingsville	JR	10
Hank Lemons	A&M-COMMERCE	SO	8
Canon Andrews	Angelo State	SR	8
Alex Rodriguez	UT Tyler	FR	8
Desmond Aryee	West Texas A&M	SO	8
Emmett Seals	Angelo State	JR	8
Jacobee Jones	Angelo State	SO	8
Jelte van Atten	Oklahoma Christian	SO	7
Dylan Burrows	Oklahoma Christian	SO	7
Kevin Roman	Angelo State	SO	4
Camden Miller	Oklahoma Christian	SO	2

Third Team

Jared Gilley	DBU	SR	7.25
Axcel Santana	Angelo State	JR	6
Loic Rossignaud	Cameron	SO	6
Matthew Hahn	DBU	SR	6
Dorian Andrews	A&M-COMMERCE	JR	6
Guillaume Devries	West Texas A&M	SR	6
Loic Rodrigues	West Texas A&M	FR	6
Joshua Schutter	A&M-COMMERCE	FR	3.5
Cooper Miller	A&M-COMMERCE	SO	1.5
Axel Paolucci	A&M-COMMERCE	FR	1.5
Johnny Davila	Texas A&M-Kingsville	JR	1.5
Mikel Escobar	Texas A&M-Kingsville	JR	1.5
Joseph Swierc	Texas A&M-Kingsville	SR	1.5

WOMEN’S ALL-CONFERENCE PERFORMERS
SPECIAL AWARDS
Outstanding Female Track Athlete: Florance Uwajeneza, West Texas A&M
Outstanding Female Field Athlete: Antonija Radic, Angelo State
Women’s Track & Field Coach of the Year: Matt Stewart, West Texas A&M

First Team

Athlete	School	Year	Points	Event winner
Florance Uwajeneza	West Texas A&M	JR	32.5	3000-, 5000-meters, Mile, Distance Medley Relay
Summer Grubbs	UT Tyler	JR	28	200 meters, 60 hurdles
Antonija Radic	Angelo State	JR	24	High Jump
Minna Sveard	A&M-COMMERCE	SR	22.5	400 meters, Pole Vault, 4×400 Relay
Taylor Nelloms	West Texas A&M	SO	22	Triple Jump
Leah Belfield	West Texas A&M	SO	18	60 meters
Zada Swoopes	West Texas A&M	SR	18	Shot Put
Elliot Harrison	West Texas A&M	FR	18
Eleonora Curtabbi	West Texas A&M	SO	16.5	Distance Medley Relay
Madison Brown	DBU	SO	16
Raquel Chavez	West Texas A&M	FR	15.5	800 meters, Distance Medley Relay
Miriam Zanovello	West Texas A&M	SO	15	Long Jump
Sara Ramos	Angelo State	JR	10	Weight Throw
Johanna Stegmaier	Angelo State	SO	10	Pentathlon
Nyia Sena	West Texas A&M	JR	7.5	Distance Medley Relay
Atiana Alexander	A&M-COMMERCE	JR	7.5	4×400 Relay
Danielle Nicholson	A&M-COMMERCE	SO	5.5	4×400 Relay
Dejanee Washington	A&M-COMMERCE	FR	3	4×400 Relay

Second Team

Athlete	School	Year	Points
DeOndra Green	West Texas A&M	FR	12
Karlea Duhon	Angelo State	JR	11
Analynne Klotz	DBU	JR	10
Kenya Bailey	Oklahoma Christian	JR	10
Mia Van Oudsthoorn	Angelo State	JR	10
Shiean Walters	Angelo State	SO	10
Laiten Greeson	West Texas A&M	SO	10
Alana Wilson	West Texas A&M	FR	9
Daphne Pate	West Texas A&M	SO	9
Keeley Norris	A&M-COMMERCE	SO	9
MyKaela Alfred	UT Tyler	JR	8
Flore Gracia	West Texas A&M	JR	8
Kimberly Ortolon	Texas A&M-Kingsville	SO	8
Taylor Roberson	Texas A&M-Kingsville	SR	8
Paris Morrison	DBU	FR	7
Zykia McDaniel	Angelo State	SO	6
Sarah Porter	Angelo State	JR	4
Mia Roy	DBU	FR	3.25
Drew Warren	DBU	JR	2
Genevie Rivera	Angelo State	JR	2

Third Team

Athlete	School	Year	Points
Breanna Despanie	Texas A&M-Kingsville	FR	7.5
Abby Zamzow	Angelo State	SO	7
Payton Duesing	Oklahoma Christian	JR	6.25
Raeana Mayo	Angelo State	JR	6
Joey Zimmerman	West Texas A&M	FR	6
Luisa Neumann	West Texas A&M	FR	6
Shadaria Hall	A&M-COMMERCE	FR	6
Katryna Hernandez	Texas A&M-Kingsville	FR	6
Katie Till	Midwestern State	SR	6
Iniuto Ukpong	A&M-COMMERCE	SR	6
Rylee Cristan	DBU	JR	6
Larissa Sanchez	Texas A&M-Kingsville	SR	4.25
Jezell Shows	Texas A&M-Kingsville	FR	3.5
Madelyn Merrell	Lubbock Christian	FR	2.5
Sydney Jones	Lubbock Christian	FR	2.5
Sophia Ramirez	Texas A&M-Kingsville	FR	2.25
Chloe Trull	Lubbock Christian	FR	1.5
Andrea Sanchez	Lubbock Christian	SR	1.5

20 Lions earn indoor all-LSC honors

RICHARDSON – The Texas A&M University-Commerce, track and field program had 20 student-athletes earn all-Lone Star Conference honors at last weekend’s LSC Indoor Track and Field Championships, with 13 men and seven women earning recognition. 

The all-conference first team includes event winners, including all winning relay teams and athletes scoring 14 or more points. The second team has all second-place relay teams and athletes scoring 8-13.9 points, and the third team is all members of third-place relay teams and athletes scoring 6-7.9 points.  

Trayveon Franklin (Montgomery) was the top scorer for the men, leading seven first-team all-LSC honorees. He scored 16 points with runner-up finishes in both the long jump and the triple jump. Lamarion Arnold (Montgomery, Ala.) was right behind him with 15.5 points for a runner-up finish in the 200-meter dash, fourth place in the 60-meter dash, and a member of the winning 4×400 meter relay team. He was with Ian Colbert (Frisco – Heritage), Gage Marshall (Windsor, Ontario, Canada), and Conner Stockerl (The Woodlands). 

Nicodemus Rotich (Eldoret, Kenya) scored 14.5 points with a runner-up finish in the mile and a fourth-place finish in the 5,000 meters, and Ushan Perera (Mahabage, Kenya) claimed first-team all-LSC with his outstanding gold medal performance in the high jump. 

On the women’s side, Minna Svaerd (Karlstad, Sweden) earned the first team all-LSC indoor honors for the fourth consecutive year with 22.5 points. She earned gold medals in the 400 meters, the pole vault, and anchoring the 4×400 meter relay with Atiana Alexander (San Antonio – Taft), Danielle Nicholson (McKinney – North), and Dejanee Washington (Houston – Eisenhower). 

The second-team honorees for the men were Micky Ferdinand (Micoud, St. Lucia), with a runner-up finish in the high jump and a fourth-place finish in the pole vault for 13 points. Also, Hank Lemons (Sanger) with a bronze medal in the long jump and seventh-place finish in the triple jump for eight points. 

Keeley Norris (Texarkana – Liberty-Eylau) was a second-team honoree for the women with fifth place in the long jump, sixth place in the triple jump, and seventh place in the high jump for nine points. 

Third team honorees for the men were Dorian Andrews (Dallas – Skyline), Joshua Schutter (Sachse), Cooper Miller (Big Spring), and Axel Paolucci (Lyon, France). Third team honorees for the women were Shadaria Hall (Mansfield – Lake Ridge) and Iniuto Ukpong (Mansfield – Summit). 

MEN’S ALL-CONFERENCE PERFORMERS

SPECIAL AWARDS

Outstanding Male Track Athlete: Benjamin Azamati, West Texas A&M

Outstanding Male Field Athlete: Johnathon Harper, Texas A&M-Kingsville

Men’s Track & Field Coach of the Year: Matt Stewart, West Texas A&M