19 Lions earn USTFCCCA Indoor All-Region honors

NEW ORLEANS, La. – The Texas A&M University-Commerce indoor track and field programs earned 19 All-South Central Region honors from the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), with two student-athletes earning triple honors. 

To earn All-Region honors, an athlete must be one of the top-five individuals in their events in their respective region. Also, they select each member of a region’s top-three relay teams for the distinction. 

On the men’s side, Lamarion Arnold (Montgomery, Ala.) earned All-Region honors in the 60-meter dash, the 200-meter dash, and the 4×400 meter relay. On the women’s side, Minna Svaerd (Karlstad, Sweden) earned All-Region honors in the 400-meter dash, the pole vault, and the 4×400 meter relay. Micky Ferdinand (Micoud, St. Lucia) was also a two-time honoree, excelling in the pole vault and high jump. 

The Lions’ national qualifiers were all recognized, with Svaerd, Arnold, Ferdinand, Dorian Andrews (Dallas – Skyline), and Ushan Perera (Mahabage, Sri Lanka) earning the honor. 

MEN

60 Meter Hurdles	Dorian Andrews
60 Meters	Lamarion Arnold
200 Meters	Lamarion Arnold
4×400 Relay	Lamarion Arnold
4×400 Relay	Ian Colbert
Pole Vault	Micky Ferdinand
High Jump	Micky Ferdinand
Triple Jump	Trayveon Franklin
400 Meters	Jordan Hollis
60 Meter Hurdles	Cameron Macon
4×400 Relay	Gage Marshall
High Jump	Ushan Perera
4×400 Relay	Conner Stockerl

WOMEN

4×400 Relay	Atiana Alexander
4×400 Relay	Danielle Nicholson
Pole Vault	Minna Svaerd
400 Meters	Minna Svaerd
4×400 Relay	Minna Svaerd
4×400 Relay	Dejanee Washington

Lions fall to UT Tyler in four sets.

COMMERCE – The Texas A&M University-Commerce volleyball team was close with UT Tyler in multiple sets but ultimately fell 3-1 in the Field House on Wednesday night. 

The Lions fall to 2-6 while UT-Tyler is now 10-0. The Patriots clinched the LSC North Division Championship. 

The Lions are next in action on March 9-10 at DBU. 

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

– The Lions hit .134 in the match with 54 kills, while UT Tyler hit .191 with 51 kills.

– Keziah Williams (Branson, Mo.) hit .333 with 13 kills and also had three blocks.

– Celeste Vela (Guadlajara, Mexico) had a double-double with 27 assists and 12 digs. She had nine kills to finish one short of a triple-double.

– Riley Davidson (Commerce) had 22 digs, and Lyric Hebert (Arvada, Colo.) had 18 digs. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

They made the first set tightly contested, though the Lions could edge out at an 18-13 lead. UT-Tyler cut into that lead, but Williams and Davidson combined on a block to put the Lions ahead 22-20. The Patriots then closed the set with five straight points, with three coming on Lion attack errors. Taryn Cast (Peaster), Maddy Rashford (Placentia, Calif.), and Williams all had three kills apiece in the set. 

The second set featured 11 ties and three lead changes, but a mid-set run by the Patriots turned the tide. The Lions had a 14-13 lead before UTT scored five straight points to go up 18-14. The Lions could not get closer than three points the rest of the frame and fell behind by two sets. Williams’ three kills in the Lions led, while Davidson had six digs and Hebert had five. 

The third set was a wild one, as the Lions battled back from an early five-point deficit, going on an 8-3 run to tie the set at 14-all. The Lions fell behind 23-20 but scored four straight points, earning a set point. The set’s balance went for seven extra points before Williams and Vela earned consecutive kills for a 28-26 set win. Vela had five kills and five digs in the set. 

They tied the fourth set as late as 13-all before a 3-0 run by UTT. The Lions were able to chip away and narrow the margin to one point at 20-19, but the Patriots scored three of the next four points. A&M-Commerce fought off match point twice but came out on the wrong end of a long rally for a UTT win.

Campuzano brace leads Lions to 2-1 over Oklahoma Christian.

COMMERCE – The Texas A&M University-Commerce women’s soccer team allowed an early goal but scored the final two en route to a 2-1 win over Oklahoma Christian on Wednesday night. 

The Lions move to 2-0-0 overall and in the Lone Star Conference with the win. The Eagles are now 0-3-0 overall and 0-2-0 in the LSC. 

A&M-Commerce is on the road for its next two matches, at Texas Woman’s on March 10 and at UT-Tyler on March 20. 

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

– Leslie Campuzano (Garland – Lakeview Centennial) scored both goals for the Lions.

– Skylar Sorrell (Monroe, La.) assisted on both goals, and Katie Givens (Rockwall) added an assist.

– The Lions outshot the Eagles 28-7 in the game.

– Jen Peters (Allen) and Lauren Banning (Pflugerville) made one save, with Banning picking up the win with a scoreless second half. 

HEAD COACH NEIL PIPER AFTER THE MATCH 

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Lions once again faced an early deficit, as OC’s Natalie Thomas scored on a counterattack breakaway less than two minutes into the game. 

A&M-Commerce peppered the Eagle goal with shots and tied the match in the 32nd minute when Campuzano sent a high looping shot to the back post from the right side over the Eagle’s reaching goalkeeper. 

Sorrell assisted on that goal via a throw-in and nearly doubled the lead when she rattled the woodwork after rebounding her shot in the 40th minute. The game tied at a goal apiece at halftime. 

The throw-in was a weapon for the Lions again in the 58th minute when Sorrell’s long toss found Givens’ head inside the six-yard box. Givens flicked the ball onto an uncovered Campuzano, who coolly finished for her fourth goal of the season and a 2-1 Lion lead. 

The Lions continued to push for a third goal for the final few minutes but had multiple attempts turned away, but the defensive effort kept OC from threatening, and the Lions claimed their second win in succession.

Five Lions earn all-LSC honors; Robinson & Kernal on First Team.

RICHARDSON – The Lone Star Conference North Division Champion Texas A&M University-Commerce women’s basketball team is represented by five players on the Lone Star Conference’s annual awards list, as released Wednesday. 

Dyani Robinson and DesiRay Kernal were named first-team all-LSC. Chania Wright and Juliana Louis were named third-team all-LSC, Agang Tac earned all-LSC honorable mention, and Louis added all-defensive team honors. 

Robinson and Kernal push the Lions’ all-time first-team count to 15, and this marks the first time since the 2006-07 season the Lions have had multiple first-team honorees. 

Robinson – a sophomore from Cypress (Langham Creek) – earns all-LSC honors for the second time after being named to the third team and LSC Freshman of the Year in 2019-20. Entering the LSC Championship semifinals, she leads the LSC in scoring at 18.3 points per game with a career-high 29 points in the regular-season finale against Midwestern State. Robinson scored in double figures in all 11 games she played, with over 20 points in five games. Robinson ranks ninth in the league in shooting percentage at 42.7 percent and 10th in the league, assisting at 3.6 dimes per game. 

Kernal – a sophomore from Newton, Kan. – earns all-LSC honors for the first time. Entering the LSC Championship semifinals, she ranks fifth in the LSC in scoring at 15.6 points per game. She scored a career-high 26 points at Midwestern State, scoring in double digits in 11 of 14 games with four games of 20 or more points. She also ranks seventh in the conference in rebounding at 7.5 boards per game, including a stunning 17 boards in the quarterfinal win over Oklahoma Christian. She had three double-doubles on the year and is in the top 10 in the league in free throw percentage. 

Wright – a senior from DeSoto – earns her third career all-LSC honor. She was a second-team honoree in 2019-20 and a third-team honoree in 2018-19. Wright averaged 12.3 points per game, with eight games in double figures, including exactly 16 points in each of the last three games. She ranks in the top 20 in the conference in scoring and is 10th in three-point shooting. 

Louis – a senior from Long Beach, Calif. – earns her first career all-LSC honor. She averaged 10.9 points and 8.7 rebounds per game and had three double-doubles on the year, with season highs of 15 points and 16 rebounds. Louis ranks fifth in the league in rebounding and free throw percentage and 12th in blocked shots. She is the fifth Lion to earn all-defensive team honors. 

Tac – a senior from Sachse – earns her first career all-LSC honor, averaging 5.6 points and 6.1 rebounds per game. She also ranked sixth in the conference in blocked shots and 14th in rebounds. 

The Lions are the second seed in the LSC Women’s Basketball Championship and face third-seed West Texas A&M at 6:45 p.m. Friday in Lubbock. 

2021 LSC WOMEN’S BASKETBALL ALL-CONFERENCE AWARDS

SPECIAL RECOGNITION

Player of the Year: Lexy Hightower, West Texas A&M

Defensive Player of the Year: Nicole Heyn, Texas A&M International

Newcomer of the Year: Morgan Lenahan, Midwestern State

Sixth Woman of the Year: Braylyn Dollar, West Texas A&M

Freshman of the Year: Brooklin Bain, Oklahoma Christian

Coach of the Year: Steve Gomez, Lubbock Christian

FIRST TEAM

Maighan Hedge	Cameron	G	Jr.	Melbourne, Australia
Allie Schulte	Lubbock Christian	G	Sr.	Nazareth, Texas
Morgan Lenahan	Midwestern State	G	Sr.	Haddonfield, NJ
Brooklin Bain	Oklahoma Christian	G	Fr.	Comanche, Okla.
Nicole Heyn	Texas A&M International	F	Sr.	Spanish Fork, Utah
Dyani Robinson	A&M-COMMERCE	G	So.	Cypress, Texas
DesiRay Kernal	A&M-COMMERCE	F	So.	Newton, Kan.
Lexy Hightower	West Texas A&M	G	Sr.	Amarillo, Texas

SECOND TEAM

Sawyer Lloyd	Angelo State	G	So.	Wall, Texas
Ashton Duncan	Lubbock Christian	G	Sr.	Lubbock, Texas
Emma Middleton	Lubbock Christian	F	Sr.	Lubbock, Texas
Frances King	Midwestern State	G	So.	Rockdale, Texas
Maddison Collyer Ingraham	Oklahoma Christian	G	Sr.	Harrah, Okla.
Hannah Wilson	St. Mary’s	F	Sr.	Fredericksburg, Texas
Patrycja Jaworska	Texas A&M International	G	Sr.	Wroclaw, Poland
Brianna Pena	Texas A&M-Kingsville	G	Jr.	Weslaco, Texas
Jordan Jenkins	Texas Woman’s	G	Jr.	Tennessee Colony, Texas
Mar’Shalia Lollie	UAFS	F	Sr.	Kilgore, Texas

THIRD TEAM

Stephanie Peterson	Cameron	G/F	So.	Broomfield, Colo.
Juliana Robertson	Lubbock Christian	F	Sr.	Kerrville, Texas
Christina Mason	St. Edward’s	G	Jr.	Frisco, Texas
Charli Becker	St. Edward’s	G	So.	Kerrville, Texas
Juliana Louis	A&M-COMMERCE	F	Sr.	Long Beach, Calif.
Chania Wright	A&M-COMMERCE	G	Sr.	DeSoto, Texas
Sadie Moyer	Texas Woman’s	G	So.	Broken Arrow, Okla.
Ma’K’La Woods	Texas Woman’s	F	Sr.	Little Elm, Texas
Hannah Boyett	UAFS	G	So.	Muldrow, Okla.
Alexus Quaadman	UT Permian Basin	F	So.	Las Vegas, Nev.

HONORABLE MENTION

Whitney Outon	Cameron	F	Jr.	Oklahoma City, Okla.
Madelyn Turner	Lubbock Christian	G	Sr.	Abernathy, Texas
Hannah Reynolds	Midwestern State	F	Sr.	Prosper, Texas
Haevyn Risley	Midwestern State	G	Jr.	Canadian, Texas
Kendra Levings	Oklahoma Christian	F	Jr.	Edmond, Okla.
Tyra Peck	Oklahoma Christian	G	Sr.	Hunter, Okla.
Jazmine Jackson	St. Edward’s	F	Sr.	San Antonio, Texas
Eva Langton	Texas A&M International	F	Sr.	Opunake, New Zealand
Agang Tac	A&M-COMMERCE	F	Sr.	Garland, Texas
Mia Cherry	Texas A&M-Kingsville	G	Jr.	Brock, Texas

2021 LSC WOMEN’S BASKETBALL ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAM

Emma Middleton	Lubbock Christian	F	Sr.	Lubbock, Texas
Allie Schulte	Lubbock Christian	G	Sr.	Nazareth, Texas
Hannah Wilson	St. Mary’s	F	Sr.	Fredericksburg, Texas
Nicole Heyn	Texas A&M International	F	Sr.	Spanish Fork, Utah
Juliana Louis	A&M-COMMERCE	F	Sr.	Long Beach, Calif.

2021 LSC WOMEN’S BASKETBALL ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM

Madeline Stephens	Angelo State	F	Fr.	Lubbock, Texas
Katie King	Cameron	G	Fr.	Harrah, Okla.
Brooklin Bain	Oklahoma Christian	G	Fr.	Comanche, Okla.
Janessa Payne	Texas A&M-Kingsville	G/F	Fr.	Aledo, Texas
Jillian Sowell	West Texas A&M	G	Fr.	Southlake, Texas

Lions move up two spots to No. 5 in NFCA Coaches’ Poll.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Texas A&M University-Commerce softball team is ranked fifth nationally in the national coaches’ poll released by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association on Wednesday. It marks the 37th consecutive poll in which they ranked A&M-Commerce in the nation’s top 25. 

The Lions are 6-4 on the season with three wins over nationally-ranked teams in the last six games. A&M-Commerce defeated No. 3 Augustana last Friday, then swept Rogers State on Tuesday. They did not include the RSU wins in this week’s poll, and RSU rose to No. 12 in the country

A&M-Commerce has nine teams in the top 25 on this year’s schedule. No. 1 Southern Arkansas, No. 3 Augustana, No. 10 UT Tyler, No. 11 Oklahoma Christian, No. 12 Rogers State, No. 17 West Texas A&M, No. 19 Texas A&M-Kingsville, No. 23 Angelo State, and No. 25 Lubbock Christian. The Lions are currently 3-1 against teams in the national rankings. 

The Lions start Lone Star Conference play this weekend, hosting Eastern New Mexico on Friday at 4:00 pm and No. 17 West Texas A&M on Sunday at 1:00 pm.

2021 NFCA Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll
March 3

Rank	School	Points	Record	Last
1	Southern Arkansas (12)	396	2-0	1
2	North Georgia (4)	388	12-0	2
3	Augustana	356	4-2	3
4	Saint Leo	333	0-0	6
5	A&M-COMMERCE	311	4-4	7
6	Rollins	305	0-0	8
7	Concordia Irvine	290	4-1	11
8	Lincoln Memorial	283	11-0	14
9	Valdosta State	279	8-1	9
10	UT Tyler	276	6-4	4
11	Oklahoma Christian	236	8-2	10
12	Rogers State	228	4-0	16
13	Young Harris	203	8-3	5
14	UAH	180	9-3	15
15	Saint Anselm	175	0-0	13
16	Winona State	172	2-0	12
t17	Indianapolis	139	1-1	17
t17	West Texas A&M	139	12-0	RV
19	Texas A&M-Kingsville	110	5-1	18
20	Lenoir-Rhyne	90	6-2	21
21	Grand Valley State	89	3-0	20
22	West Chester	60	0-0	22
23	Angelo State	59	4-3	19
24	Tampa	34	0-0	23
25	Lubbock Christian	22	10-3	24

Dropped Out: No. 25 Saginaw Valley State
Receiving Votes: Saginaw Valley State (17), St. Cloud State (8), Newberry (6), Central Oklahoma (5), Colorado Mesa (4), Adelphi (2), Minnesota State (2), West Florida (2), Biola (1).

 

Ene, Demonia earn All-LSC honors.

RICHARDSON –Texas A&M University-Commerce’s Augustine Ene and Demarcus Demonia earned accolades from the Lone Star Conference on Wednesday, as the league announced its annual men’s basketball awards.

Ene – a senior forward from Carrollton (Creekview) – earned second-team all-Lone Star Conference honors. He averaged 14.3 points and 4.9 rebounds per game, including career highs of 22 points at Angelo State and 11 rebounds at Arkansas-Fort Smith. He ranked 16th in the LSC in scoring. 

Demonia, a junior from Ft. Washington, MD, earned all-LSC honorable mention. He averaged 12.7 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, including 23 points in the season finale at Cameron and ten rebounds at Arkansas-Fort Smith. He ranked 24th in the LSC in scoring and 23rd in rebounding. 

2021 LSC MEN’S BASKETBALL ALL-CONFERENCE AWARDS

SPECIAL RECOGNITION

Player of the Year: Parker Hicks, Lubbock Christian

Defensive Player of the Year: Chandler Jacobs, DBU

Newcomer of the Year: B.J. Maxwell, St. Edward’s

Sixth Man of the Year: Aamer Muhammad, Lubbock Christian

Freshman of the Year: Ricky Lujan, DBU

Coach of the Year: Todd Duncan, Lubbock Christian

FIRST TEAM

Chandler Jacobs	DBU	G	Sr.	Missouri City, Texas
Ricky Lujan	DBU	G	Fr.	Las Cruces, N.M.
Parker Hicks	Lubbock Christian	F	Sr.	Decatur, Texas
Lloyd Daniels	Lubbock Christian	G	Sr.	Colts Neck, N.J.
B.J. Maxwell	St. Edward’s	F	Gr.	Austin, Texas
Creighton Avery	Texas A&M-Kingsville	G	Jr.	Corpus Christi, Texas
Qua Grant	West Texas A&M	G	Jr.	Waxahachie, Texas
Joel Murray	West Texas A&M	G	Jr.	Rowlett, Texas

SECOND TEAM 

Paul Williams	Angelo State	G	Sr.	Southaven, Miss.
Carson Hughes	DBU	G	Jr.	Keller, Texas
Luke Hamilton	Midwestern State	F	Jr.	Austin, Texas
Daniel Venzant	St. Edward’s	G	Jr.	Midland, Texas
Augustine Ene	A&M-COMMERCE	G	Sr.	Carrollton, Texas
Will Chayer	Texas A&M-Kingsville	F	Jr.	Corpus Christi, Texas
Payton Brown	UAFS	G	Fr.	Waldron, Ark.
Trevion Lamar	UT Permian Basin	G	Sr.	Savannah, Ga.
Jordan Horn	UT Permian Basin	G	Sr.	St. Paul, Minn.
Jon’il Fugett	West Texas A&M	G	Jr.	Denver, Colo.

THIRD TEAM

Cameron Copley	Lubbock Christian	G	Jr.	Canadian, Texas
Rowan Mackenzie	Lubbock Christian	G	So.	Perth, Australia
Terrell Wilson	Midwestern State	G	So.	Houston, Texas
Jermane Carter	Midwestern State	F	Jr.	Mount Laurel, N.J.
Marco Foster	Oklahoma Christian	G	Fr.	Lancaster, Texas
Elijah Elliott	Oklahoma Christian	G	Fr.	Houston, Texas
Jake Krafka	St. Edward’s	F	Gr.	Austin, Texas
Tre Flowers	Texas A&M-Kingsville	G	Sr.	Bryan, Texas
Jordan  Wilson	Texas A&M-Kingsville	G	Jr.	Blytheville, Ark.
Micah Fuller	UT Tyler	G	Sr.	Bessemer, Alabama

HONORABLE MENTION

Devaughn Thomas	Angelo State	G	Jr.	New Orleans, La
Brock Schreiner	Cameron	G	Jr.	Choctaw, Okla.
William Heather	DBU	F	So.	Auckland, New Zealand
Jalen White	DBU	G	Jr.	Wichita Falls, Texas
Mamady Djikine	St. Mary’s	F	Jr.	Paris, France
Demarcus Demonia	A&M-COMMERCE	G/F	Jr.	Fort Washington, Md.
Matthew Wilson	UAFS	G	Sr.	Farmington, Ark.
Chris Rollins	UAFS	F	Sr.	Akron, Ala.
Emanuel Gant	UT Tyler	G	Sr.	Phoenix, Ariz.
Zach  Toussaint	West Texas A&M	G	So.	Johnsburg, Ill.

2021 LSC MEN’S BASKETBALL ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAM

Chandler Jacobs	DBU	G	Sr.	Missouri City, Texas
Creighton Avery	Texas A&M-Kingsville	G	Jr.	Corpus Christi, Texas
Will Chayer	Texas A&M-Kingsville	F	Jr.	Corpus Christi, Texas
Qua Grant	West Texas A&M	G	Jr.	Waxahachie, Texas
Joel Murray	West Texas A&M	G	Jr.	Rowlett, Texas

2021 LSC MEN’S BASKETBALL ALL FRESHMAN TEAM

Ricky Lujan	DBU	G	Fr.	Las Cruces, N.M.
Rowan Mackenzie	Lubbock Christian	G	So.	Perth, Australia
Marco Foster	Oklahoma Christian	G	Fr.	Lancaster, Texas
Elijah Elliott	Oklahoma Christian	G	Fr.	Houston, Texas
Payton Brown	UAFS	G	Fr.	Waldron, Ark.