Lions snap skid with a sweep at DBU.

DALLAS – The Texas A&M University-Commerce volleyball team snapped a six-match losing streak on Tuesday night in the Burg Center, earning a sweep of DBU. 

Set scores were 25-20, 26-24, and 25-16. The Lions are now 3-6 overall and in the Lone Star Conference Central Division, while DBU falls to 3-8. 

The two sides will meet Wednesday again at 6:00 pm in DBU’s Burg Center. 

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

– The Lions hit .147 in the match with 38 kills while limiting the Patriots to 29 kills and a .030 hitting percentage.

– Nicki Gonelli (Round Rock – Stony Point) lead the Lions with 11 error-free kills for a .579 hitting percentage.

– Maddy Rashford (Placentia, Calif.) hit .533 with nine kills.

– Natalie Sarbeck (Cy-Fair) had a double-double with 14 assists and ten digs, and Aislynn Shore (Hockley – Frassatti Catholic) passed out 13 assists.

– Lyric Hebert (Arvada, Colo.) led all players with 17 digs, while Riley Davidson (Commerce) had 15 digs. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

After conceding the first two points of the night, the Lions went on a run, scoring eight of the next nine points. Shelbi Sheppard (Emory – Rains) had an ace, and Maiya Dickie (Huntsville) pounded out two kills in that run. The Lions held the lead at 17-12 before the Patriots went on a four-point surge to cut the lead to 17-16. Andersen’s kill stemmed the tide, and the Lions scored four of the last five points to take the first set, 25-20. The Lions had 11 kills in the set, with five players earning multiple kills, led by Gonelli’s three. 

The second set was neck-and-neck down to the very end of the set. Neither team could get a lead of more than two points until the Lions scored eight of 11 to take a 22-18 lead. DBU answered with a five-of-six run to tie the set at 24-all. Gonelli closed out the Lions set with a block and a kill for a 26-24 win and two sets to none advantage. Gonelii had five kills in the set, as the Lions hit .163 in the frame. 

The Lions carried that momentum into the third set, going ahead early and never looking back. A&M-Commerce went on a few 3-1 runs, getting out to an eight-point lead at 19-11. After a pair of DBU points, the Lions put the hammer down, scoring six of the next nine points to close the sweep.

Soccer match at Texas Woman’s postponed

DENTON – Due to unforeseen circumstances in the Texas Woman’s program, the women’s soccer match between Texas A&M University-Commerce and Texas Woman’s University scheduled on Wednesday, March 10, has been postponed. There is not a makeup date determined.

The Lions’ next match is now at UT-Tyler on March 20 in non-conference action.

Stay tuned to LionAthletics.com and our social media channels for updates on schedules throughout the season.

Modrego and LeBlanc earn LSC weekly awards.

RICHARDSON – The Texas A&M University-Commerce softball team swept the Lone Star Conference weekly softball awards Tuesday, with Uxua Modrego winning Hitter of the Week and Alyssa LeBlanc winning Pitcher of the Week. 

The Lions went 6-0 last week with sweeps of No. 16 Rogers State, Eastern New Mexico, and No. 17 West Texas A&M. The previous five wins were shutouts, and the Lions are on a 33.1 inning scoreless streak, with each inning extending a program record. 

Modrego (Burlada, Spain) led the Lions at the plate, earning at least one hit in every game of the week with a batting average of .526. In the Rogers State sweep, she went 3-for-7 with three steals and two runs. In the two wins over Eastern New Mexico, she went 4-for-5 with three RBIs and three runs scored. In the tight sweep of West Texas A&M, she went 3-for-7 with two runs scored and a triple. For the season, she is hitting .442 with 19 hits, 8 RBIs, and 11 runs. 

LeBlanc (Katy) wins LSC Pitcher of the Week for the second time this season, going 4-0 without allowing a run and holding opponents to a .133 batting average. On Tuesday, she closed out a win in the first game over Rogers State with five strikeouts in two innings, followed by a one-hitter in a run-rule win with seven strikeouts. On Friday, LeBlanc struck out eight in 4.0 innings, allowing three hits in Eastern New Mexico’s shutout. On Sunday, she had a complete-game shutout of West Texas A&M, striking out six and walking one with four hits. LeBlanc also went .313 with five hits and three runs, driving in six with two home runs at the plate. For the year, she leads the nation with eight wins in the circle, an 8-2 record, 1.43 ERA, and 69 strikeouts in 49.0 innings. 

The Lions (10-4) hit the road for the first time this season for a pair of doubleheaders this week, traveling to Western New Mexico on Friday and UT Permian Basin on Sunday.

Date	Hitter of the Week	Pitcher of the Week
Feb. 9	Brooke Makemson, Lubbock Christian	Alyssa LeBlanc, A&M-COMMERCE
Feb. 23	Shanna McBroom, West Texas A&M	Taylor Franco, Lubbock Christian
Mar. 2	Ruby Salzman, West Texas A&M	Erika Cortez, A&M International
Mar. 9	Uxua Modrego, A&M-COMMERCE	Alyssa LeBlanc, A&M-COMMERCE (2)