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TAMUC – Sports

The No. 9 Lions split one-run games at Cameron.

COMMERCE – The No. 9 Texas A&M University-Commerce softball team split a pair of dramatic one-run contests on the road with Cameron University on Monday afternoon. 

The Lions were 2-1 winners in the opening game, while the Aggies took the second game 4-3. One run decided five of the Lions’ last six games and seven of their last ten. 

The Lions wrap up the regular season on Sunday, May 9, at 3:00 pm at home against St. Edward’s. 

GAME ONE: Lions 2, Cameron 1

Emily Otto (Lamar Consolidated) had another strong pitching performance. Avery Boley (Fort Worth – Nolan Catholic) drove home runs in critical situations to help the Lions snap a four-game losing streak. 

Otto moved her record to 11-5 with a complete-game effort, striking out four and allowing five hits. In the first inning, the Aggies got the first two runners of the game on base, and A&M-Commerce worked around it as Boley caught a runner stealing, and Otto struck out two. 

In the second, Alyssa LeBlanc (Katy) led off with a single, Serina Aguilar (Spring – Woods) singled, and a double steal put two runners in scoring position. Boley lifted a ball to the left-field, and the sacrifice fly gave the Lions a 1-0 lead. 

The Lions allowed only one Aggie to reach base from there until the sixth when Khmari Edwards tied the game with a two-out RBI double. 

LeBlanc reached on an error, and Aguilar walked with one out in the sixth. Boley converted on the opportunity with an RBI single to center for a 2-1 Lion lead. 

The Aggies were down to their final out and had the go-ahead run in scoring position with a single, hit batter, and wild pitch, but Otto induced a game-ending to fly out and hand the Lions the win. 

GAME TWO: Cameron 4, Lions 3

The Lions had the lead into the late innings, conceded the lead, and barely missed a chance for the late win. 

Cameron plated two unearned errors on an error in the bottom of the first, but the Lions continually chipped away. In the second, Aguilar singled and moved to second on a groundout, then scored on a dropped fly ball in the right-field to cut the lead to 2-1. 

In the third, Aguilar capitalized again, as she received a hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and two outs to tie the game at two-all.

Madison Schaefer (Frisco – Independence) gave the Lions the lead in the fifth, leading off the inning with her 11th homerun of the season, tying for the Lone Star Conference lead. She now has the LSC lead in homers and walks. 

Cameron had a runner on third with none out in the fifth, but LeBlanc struck out a pair and induced a groundout to get out of the jam. Boley singled, and Uxua Modrego (Burlada, Spain) doubled, but they stranded the duo in the sixth. 

The Aggies took the lead in the sixth with two outs as Breley Webb singled and Haley Castle boosted a two-run homer to left-center for a 4-3 lead to the hosts. 

The Lions loaded the bases in the seventh on a Schaefer walk, Mackenzie Dugi (St. Hedwig – East Central) bunt single, and Aguilar walk, but the right fielder caught a tricky ball, and the Aggies escaped with the split.

LeBlanc fell to 14-10 on the season with four runs allowed; two earned on three hits with four strikeouts and two walks.

 

Lion women in fourth headed to Moving Day at West Regional.

DENTON – The Texas A&M University-Commerce women’s golf team is in fourth place after the NCAA Division II West Regional opening at Wildhorse GC at Robson Ranch on Monday. 

The Lions shot a 12-over par 300 in Monday’s round and are in a position to make critical moves in Tuesday’s “Moving Day” round. St. Mary’s leads the tournament at 289, followed by West Texas A&M at 294 and DBU at 295. The Lions have a one-stroke lead on Arkansas-Fort Smith and a four-stroke advantage on Oklahoma Christian. 

Inma Ortiz Prieto (Huelva, Spain) leads the Lions with an even-par 72 in Monday’s round. She had two birdies, and two bogeys on the front nine, then closed with nine straight pars. Ortiz Prieto is fifth in the individual standings. 

A trio of Lions – Sarah Wongsinth (Udon Thani, Thailand), Sophie-Charlott Hempel (Pirmasens, Germany), and Karlee Nichols (Smithson Valley) – are tied for 15th on the leaderboard at 4-over par 76. Nichols had four birdies in Monday’s round. Michelle Becker (San Antonio – Reagan) is in 29th place at 6-over par 78. 

The Lions’ tee times begin at 9:20 a.m. Tuesday in the second round, starting off the 10th tee with DBU and Oklahoma Christian.  

Rank Team Total Par
1. St. Mary’s 289 +1
2. West Texas A&M 294 +6
3. Dallas Baptist 295 +7
4. A&M-COMMERCE 300 +12
5. Ark.-Ft. Smith 301 +13
6. Oklahoma Christian 304 +16
7. Point Loma 307 +19
8. Westminster 317 +29
9. Western Washington 319 +31

 

A&M-Commerce 300 +12 4th
Inma Ortiz Prieto 72 E t-5th
Sophie-Charlott Hempel 76 +4 t-15th
Karlee Nichols 76 +4 t-15th
Sarah Wongsinth 76 +4 t-15th
Michelle Becker 78 +6 t-29th

The No. 9 Lions head to Cameron for weekday matinee twinbill

COMMERCE – The No. 9 Texas A&M University-Commerce softball team faces its final regular-season road trip of 2021 on Monday, taking on Cameron University in a two-game set. 

WHO: A&M-Commerce at Cameron

WHERE: Lawton, Okla. | McMahon Field

WHEN: 1 p.m. on Monday, May 3

RECORDS: A&M-Commerce is 25-14 overall and 18-8 in the Lone Star Conference. Cameron is 24-16 overall and 15-13 in the LSC.

RANKINGS: A&M-Commerce is ninth nationally in the NFCA Division II Coaches Poll.

LIVE VIDEO: LSC Digital Network

LIVE STATS: http://statbroadcast.com/events/statmonitr.php?gid=tame 

The latest

The Lions aim to snap a four-game losing streak in which three of the games were one-run games. A&M-Commerce’s batting average has dropped to .271, though many at-bats have seen good contact go straight to opposition defense. 

Emily Otto pitched a one-run complete game against UT-Tyler on Saturday, and claimed the school record for appearances, and recorded her 500th career strikeout in the contest. Her 2.76 ERA ranks as the 10th best season in school history at this point, and Alyssa LeBlanc’s 2.12 ERA is the third-best season in school history. The Lions’ opponent batting average of .226 tied for second in the conference. 

Madison Schaefer is still in the top ranks of the league in offensive categories, with a .407 average (10th), .729 slugging percentage (7th), .539 on-base percentage (2nd), 37 runs (8th), 48 hits (8th), ten homers (3rd), and 31 walks (1st). Kinsie Hebler is second in walks with 29. 

On the opponent

Cameron is hitting .323 as a team this season, which ranks sixth in the conference, and their team ERA of 3.62 is ninth in the league. Brenna Busby hits .376 to lead the Aggies, with Callie Busby right behind at .372. 

The Busbys have been the Aggies’ top offensive threats for a few years now, and Khmari Edwards leads the team with 35 RBIs. Callie Busby leads the league with 11 homers. 

Bethany Hines is 16th in the conference with a 3.04 ERA, and Jocelyn Bright is 10th in the conference with a .230 opponents’ batting average. Hines is ninth in the LSC with 81 strikeouts, and Breley Webb is 10th with 77. 

In the series history

Cameron has a 13-7 all-time lead in the series, and this is the first time the teams have met up in Lawton since 2018. The Aggies have a 4-3 lead in games at McMahon Field. The Lions won both ends of a doubleheader in the 2020 season just before the season shut down.

The No. 9 Lions celebrate grads and seniors before a tough doubleheader with No. 3 UT-Tyler.

COMMERCE – The No. 9 Texas A&M University-Commerce softball team showed mettle against the No. 3 UT-Tyler Patriots but fell in both ends of a Saturday doubleheader. 

The Lions fell 1-0 in the opener in a pitchers’ duel, then dropped an 8-3 decision in the nightcap. 

The Lions are now 25-14 overall and 18-8 in the Lone Star Conference, while UT Tyler is 33-5 overall and 27-1 in conference play. The Patriots clinched the LSC regular-season championship with the wins but are in their final year of transitioning to Division II and will not qualify for the LSC Tournament. 

A&M-Commerce has two doubleheaders remaining in the regular season, starting with Monday’s 1 p.m. twinbill at Cameron, followed by a Sunday, May 9, 4 p.m. doubleheader at home against St. Edward’s. 

HONOREES

Before the first game, four Lions received their degrees, which they could not receive at regular commencement ceremonies due to the game schedule. Kinsie HeblerKimber NealEmily Otto, and Alexis Velasquez received their degrees from Provost Dr. John Humphreys. Cally Pausewang and Bri Sims were also graduates this weekend, receiving their master’s degrees on Friday. 

They recognized the Lion seniors as Kynslee NoriegaAlexis VelasquezKimber NealCally PausewangTa’Lyn MoodyChealsea Slider, and Kinsie Hebler received special gifts from their team for their contributions to Lion Softball. 

GAME ONE

The Lions dropped the opening game 1-0 in a pitchers’ duel. Emily Otto (Lamar Consolidated) carried a no-hitter to the sixth inning, but two hard-luck plays allowed the Patriots to plate the only run. Otto allowed three hits and four walks and struck out seven, allowing only the one run. 

A&M-Commerce had two baserunners on walks, but neither Samantha Dutton (Tulsa, Okla.) or Madison Schaefer (Frisco – Independence) were able to score.

In the sixth, Schaefer knocked down a hard-hit ball, and another UTT single had runners in scoring position. A floater just out of Otto’s reach plated a run on a groundout to provide the game’s only run. 

The Lions were no-hit for the first time in program history in the team’s 332nd game. 

GAME TWO

They neutralized a Lion comeback attempt in the fourth inning, and the fifth as the Patriots won 8-3 in the nightcap. 

Mackenzie Dugi (St. Hedwig – East Central) went 2-for-2 in the game, and Ta’Lyn Moody (Mansfield – Legacy) had a three-run double. 

UT-Tyler opened the scoring in the second on a sacrifice fly. Still, strong defense by Jasmine Mott (Emory – Rains), Delaney Boley (Fort Worth – Nolan Catholic), and Chealsea Slider (Texarkana – Texas High) turned a double play to cut down any other threats in the inning. 

In the third, the Patriots pushed the lead to 4-0 with an RBI groundout, a two-run double, and the lead extended to six runs in the fourth with a sacrifice fly and a double steal. 

The Lions got the offense going in the bottom of the fourth when Kinsie Hebler (Cy-Falls) led off with a single, Slider walked, and Dugi earned an infield single to load the bases. Moody laced a hard-hit ball to left field and plated all three runners with the double, cutting the lead to 6-3. 

UTT pushed across two more runs in the fifth before Maya Shelby (Sabinal) came in for 2.2 innings of shutdown relief. The Lions had one base hit in the final two innings but could not narrow the margin.

Lion Athletics honors record 72 May graduates with special online recognitions.

Graduates will continue to be recognized online in the absence of traditional ceremonies

COMMERCE – While Texas A&M University-Commerce commencement ceremonies were unable to be held traditionally, with large gatherings of family and friends celebrating in the Field House, Lion Athletics was still able to celebrate its May 2021 graduates in a Best In Class fashion. 

On Thursday, the program-record 72 May graduates were honored with an online graduation reception over video conference with deans and other university leadership offering remarks and graduates updating the group on their upcoming plans. They had special access to a video featuring their athletic and academic accomplishments, with that video now released to the public. 

Each graduate would have customarily worn a special sash designating their athletic accomplishment (student-athlete, cheer team, athletic trainer) as they walked across the stage to receive their diploma. They delivered those sashes to each graduate, and their photos will be featured on social media in the coming weeks to ensure each graduate receives public recognition. 

72 student-athletes, spirit squad members, and student support staff are May graduates, marking the most known graduates from Lion Athletics in a single graduation cycle.