TAMUC – Sports

THIS WEEK IN LION ATHLETICS
September 18-24, 2017

(V-Video, A–Audio LS–Live Stats)

THE WEEK AHEAD
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 18
Women’s Golf at Skyhawk West Regional Preview (hosted by Fort Lewis) – (LS)

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 19
Women’s Golf at Skyhawk West Regional Preview (Fort Lewis host) – (LS)
7:00 pm – Volleyball at Texas Woman’s * – (V, LS)

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 22
7:00 pm MDT (8:00 pm CDT) – Soccer at Eastern New Mexico – (V, LS)

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23
2:00 pm – Volleyball at Texas A&M-Kingsville * – (V, LS)
7:00 pm – Football at Texas A&M-Kingsville * – (V, A, LS) – Live on Lion Sports Network – KETR-FM 88.9

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 24
1:00 pm – Soccer at West Texas A&M * – (V, LS)

LAST WEEK’S ACTION
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12
Men’s Golf at Ryan Palmer Foundation Invitational (hosted by West Texas A&M) – 4th place
Women’s Golf at 19th Annual Northeastern State Women’s Classic – 4th place
Volleyball vs. Dallas Baptist – W, 3-1

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15
Volleyball vs. No. 5 Angelo State * – W, 3-2
Soccer at Harding – T (2OT), 1-1

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 16
Women’s Cross Country at Missouri Southern Stampede (5k) – 17th place
Men’s Cross Country at Missouri Southern Stampede (8k) – 21st place
Volleyball vs. No. 14 Tarleton State * – W, 3-2
Football vs. Eastern New Mexico * – W, 51-22

FOOTBALL

No. 3 Lions pick up 51-22 win over Eastern New Mexico to begin conference season

COMMERCE– The No. 3 Texas A&M University-Commerce football team remained unbeaten after a 51-22 win over Eastern New Mexico on Saturday. The Lion air attack went for 358 yards, and the Lions scored seven touchdowns in the game to give them their first conference win.

The win brings the Lions to 3-0 on the season and 1-0 in the Lone Star Conference. Eastern New Mexico falls to 2-1 on the season and 1-1 in conference play.

The Lions will head south next weekend as they face Texas A&M-Kingsville on Saturday. The game will be played at 7 p.m. at Javelina Stadium in Kingsville.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
– Luis Perez was 20-for-24 for 357 yards and five touchdowns. He threw for 328 yards in the first half. Perez also had a rushing touchdown.
– Kristov Martinez scored nine points on a field goal and six extra points. He moved into second place in school history in points scored.
– Darrion Landry had seven receptions for 112 yards and two touchdowns. He had a 64-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter.
– Buck Wilson had 72 yards on four catches and a touchdown. He made a 40-yard catch and also had a 15-yard touchdown.
-Vincent Hobbs had three catches for 63 yards, including a 56-yard touchdown catch in the first quarter. D’Arthur Cowan had two catches for 58 yards, including a 54-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter.
– Carandal Hale led the team with 64 rushing yards and a touchdown run.
– Dayne Douglass and Elijah Earls both had forced fumbles.
– Peyton Searcy led the Lions with ten tackles. Yusef Sterling-Lowe and Neema Behbahani had eight tackles each. Eight different Lions had tackles for loss.
– Buck Wilson had a 76-yard kickoff return to set up a late first-half Lion touchdown.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Lion offense had an explosive play right off the bat with Perez finding Wilson for a 40-yard gain. After two more Perez passes, it was Hale who rushed the ball in from the three-yard line. The Lions took an early 7-0 lead.

The Greyhounds took their first possession and drove down the field on the ground, cutting the Lion lead to 7-3.

The Lions again drove down the field for a touchdown on their second possession. It took just four plays, capped by a 56-yard touchdown catch from Hobbs. Hobbs drug two defenders with him for five yards as he fought his way into the end zone. The Lions led 13-3 at the end of the first quarter after they blocked the extra point.

The Greyhounds had a touchdown drive of their own, which included their only pass of the first quarter, a 17-yard throw. To begin the second quarter, the Greyhound running back took the ball 11 yards into the end zone. The Lions blocked the extra point and led 13-9.

The Lions had two quick touchdown drives on their next two possessions. Perez hit Landry for a 64-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the drive. After the Lion defense forced a punt, the Lions again had a one-play drive. This time the Lions used trickery, calling a flea-flicker play and Perez found a wide open Cowan for a 54-yard score. The Lions led 27-9 with 11 minutes left in the first half.

After another three-and-out forced by the A&M-Commerce defense, the Lion offense again drove down for a touchdown. Perez hit Marquis Wimberly for a 25-yard gain. Perez then hit Wilson for a diving 15-yard touchdown catch.

After an ENMU downed their punt at the one, the Lions were backed up. Perez attempted a pass that went off his receiver’s hands and was intercepted by ENMU and returned for a touchdown. The Greyhounds attempted a two-point conversion that failed, and the score was 34-15 with 36 seconds left.

Wilson returned the ensuing kickoff 76 yards to the 23-yard line. Perez then hit another touchdown pass to Landry to give the Lions a 41-15 lead going into halftime. Perez was 16-for-18 in the first half for 328 yards and five touchdowns.

ENMU scored a touchdown on their first drive of the second half, driving 75 yards in 14 plays. The Lions responded with a touchdown drive of their own. Hale had 26 yards rushing on the drive, and the Lions completed a fake field goal pass to keep the drive alive. Perez rushed for a six-yard touchdown to bring the score to 48-22 at the end of the third quarter.

With the Lion reserves entering the fourth quarter, the Lions scored a field goal on their first drive of the quarter. Martinez moved into second all-time in school history in scoring on the kick. The Lion defense clamped down on ENMU’s final drives, and the Lions ended the game in victory formation.

VOLLEYBALL

Volleyball fights off multiple match points to upset No. 14 Tarleton State in five-set thriller

COMMERCE– The Texas A&M University-Commerce volleyball team picked up its second consecutive five-set conference win with a 3-2 win over No. 14 Tarleton State on Saturday. The Lions came from behind in an extra-points fifth set to pull off the upset. The scores were 25-23, 21-25, 25-18, 27-29 and 19-17.

The win brings the Lions to 6-5 on the season and 2-0 in the Lone Star Conference. The TexAnns fall to 7-4 and 1-1 in conference play. It was the Lions’ second win in a row over a top-25 ranked team.

The Lions will now have their first conference road match as they travel to face Texas Women on Tuesday. The game will be at 7:00 pm at the Kitty Magee Arena in Denton.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
– Newly inducted Lion Hall of Fame honoree Colleen Favaro made the honorary first serve in the match.
– Jaryn Wacker led the Lions with 19 kills. She had seven kills in the first set and hit .356.
– Layne Little had 17 kills and 11 digs. She had six kills in the second set.
– Jaslyn Wacker had 13 kills and five blocks.
– Shelley Chapron led the team with 11 blocks and added seven kills.
– Gabriela Rosa led the team with 31 assists. Rylie Fuentes added 25 assists and 11 digs.
– Savannah Rutledge led the team with 27 digs and four service aces. She had three consecutive aces in the third set.
– Mariyah Oliver had six kills, and Neka Nelson had two kills.
– The Lions defense had 18 total blocks in the match. The team had nine aces.
– The Lions have back-to-back victories over top-25 ranked teams to begin conference play.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Lions got off to an early lead behind the serving of Little. She had an ace, and the Lions were off to an early 3-1 lead. It was an even match early on as neither team could establish a significant run. With the Lions holding a 10-9 lead, Jaryn Wacker had two consecutive kills to give the Lions a three-point lead at the halfway point.

The TexAnns battled back, taking five straight points to take their first lead of the match. TSU built its lead to as many as four points in the first set before A&M-Commerce got themselves back into the set late, tying the game at 21-all. Oliver had consecutive kills in the rally, and the Lions retook the lead on an ace from Rutledge. The Wacker sisters ended the set. Jaryn had a kill, and Jaslyn added a block to give the Lions a 25-23 first-set win. Jaryn Wacker had seven kills on nine attempts in the first set.

The start of the second set was again evenly matched. Jaslyn Wacker had consecutive kills as the teams tied at five. The teams continued to battle back and forth until TSU went on a five-point rally to take a 13-9 lead. The Lions began to fight back into the set, making four of five points to cut the TSU lead to 18-17. Little began to have the hot hand late in the match as the Lions continued to try and take the lead back. However, the TexAnns went on a late rally to win the second set 25-21. Little had six kills for the Lions in the set.

The Lions got off to a strong start in the third set, taking a 10-3 lead. Rutledge had three consecutive aces for the Lions as they scored seven unanswered points. Jaslyn Wacker had a kill, and an ace as the Lions continued to build their lead to as many as 10 points. Little continued to hit well in the third set. The TexAnns stopped the point hemorrhage and began to battle back, cutting the Lion lead down to six late. However, A&M-Commerce finished the set-off, winning 25-18.

Jaryn Wacker had two early kills in the fourth set as the Lions again started out well. They built a quick 7-2 lead with six points in a row. It was part of a 9-1 run that saw the Lions take advantage of multiple TexAnn hitting errors. Halfway through the set, the Lions led 13-7.

After the teams traded points for the middle part of the game, the TexAnns battled back to cut the Lion lead to just one point late in the set, 20-19. It was a hotly contested finish to the match, with TSU tying the game at 22-all and again at 23-all and 24-all. After falling behind, it was the Lions who tied the set at 25. The lead changed hands multiple times in extra points before TSU scored four of five points to win the match 29-27.

After falling behind 2-0, the Lions scored three in a row to start the fifth. The energy of the fourth set continued in the fifth. However, the TexAnns went on a four-point rally to take a 6-3 lead. The Lions answered back to score three of the next four points to trail by just one at the halfway point.

The teams continued to battle down the stretch as the Lions tied the set at 12-all and again at 13-all. The game again went into extra points as the teams continued to traded points. The Lions faced match points five times but extended the set each time. A hitting error gave the Lions a chance for match point. The Lions took advantage with a kill from Little to win the game.

Volleyball knocks off No. 5 Angelo State in dramatic five-set upset

COMMERCE– The Texas A&M University-Commerce volleyball team defeated No. 5 Angelo State in five games on Friday night. After losing the first match, the Lions flipped the switch and won three of the final four sets to win the match. The scores were 14-25, 25-20, 25-19, 20-25 and 15-13.

The win brings the Lions to 5-5 on the season and 1-0 in the Lone Star Conference. The Rambelles fall to 8-2 on the season and 0-1 in conference play.

The Lions get right back on the court on Saturday with another top-25 opponent in No. 14 Tarleton State. The match will be at 2:00 pm at the Field House. The match will be part of the Lions’ Hall of Fame week as they add program kill-leader Colleen Favaro into the Lion Athletic Hall of Fame.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
– Layne Little led the Lions with 17 kills, with three coming in the final four Lion points of the deciding fifth set. She also had nine digs and an ace.
– Shelley Chapron had 12 kills with an impressive .667 hitting percentage. She also had five blocks.
– Jaryn Wacker had 13 kills. Jaslyn Wacker had six kills and led the team with seven blocks.
– Gabriela Rosa had 29 assists to lead the Lions. She also had 11 digs. Rylie Fuentes had 18 assists and eight digs. Savannah Rutledge led the team with 19 digs.
– Mariyah Oliver had four kills and two blocks. Neka Nelson had two kills and five blocks. Sydney Reyes also had a kill.
– Lacie Jessup had two aces and 15 digs. Fuentes and Chasiddy Hill also both had an ace.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Lions fell behind early in the first set, losing six of the first seven points. After the Lions got some momentum going, ASU again rallied to take an 11-point lead in the game. The Lions got a rally going late, winning four of five points but it was not enough as ASU took the first set 25-14.

The second set was back and forth to start. Jaryn Wacker had back-to-back kills for the Lions. After falling behind by three, the Lions responded with a three-point rally of their own to tie the set at 6-all. Jaslyn Wacker’s kills were back-to-back as the Lions took their first lead of the match, leading 8-7. The Lions again went on a run, scoring six points in a row. Chapron added two kills of her own during the Lions’ 9-1 run. A&M-Commerce led 12-7 midway through the set.

Chapron hit well for the Lions in the second set out of the middle, recording four kills in a five-kill stretch. ASU began to climb back into the set, cutting the Lion lead down to just two points, 17-15. The Lions responded to score four of the next five points to build their lead back up to five points. The Rambelles cut the Lion lead back down to two before the Lions scored the final three-point to win the second set 25-20.

The Lions fell behind in the third set before scoring four points in a row to take an early lead in the third set. Jaryn Wacker had three early kills as the Lions built an 8-5 lead. Midway through the third set, the Lions led 12-9.

The Rambelles began to rally, scoring four points in a row to take a 16-15 lead. After a timeout, the Lions regained their composure to score four points of their own to build their lead back up to three points. Little had two kills late in the set to keep the Lion momentum. The Lions took the third set 25-19.

The Lions scored the first two points of the fourth set, but it was back and forth early with a 5-5 score. Little had two kills for the Lions in the first part of the match, but both teams continued to trade points, with the score tied at 11.

The Rambelles started to rally midway through the game, taking a three-point lead. The Lions answered back. Chapron had two kills and a block to tie the set again at 17-all. ASU again began to rally, and this time the Lions could not recover. ASU won the fourth set 25-20.

ASU took an early lead in the final set, leading 6-3 after a four-point rally. The Lions responded with a four-point rally of their own to take a 7-6 lead. ASU had three consecutive hitting errors. Hill came in for the Lions off the bench and provided a spark in her lone appearance of the night.

It was back and forth with the rest of the match as neither team would relent. ASU took a two-point lead before the Lions again rallied to tie the set at 12-all. The Lions took the lead on a kill from Little. Little had another kill to put the Lions one point away from the win. Hill served a rocket that bounced off the ASU defender to win the match for A&M-Commerce.

 

CROSS COUNTRY

Women’s XC finishes 17th; men finish 21st at MSSU Southern Stampede

JOPLIN, Mo. – The Texas A&M University-Commerce cross country teams competed in the MSSU Southern Stampede on Saturday. The Lion women finished in 17th place in the 5K, and the Lion men finished 21st in the 8K.

Brandi Stalder was the top finisher for the Lion women, finishing in 60th place with a time of 18:39.80. Laura Alicke finished in 67th place, and Jasmine Amo finished in 104th place. The field consisted of 279 runners from 33 schools.

On the men’s side, Evan Luecke finished in 121st place as the top A&M-Commerce finisher, with a time of 27:09.04. Trevor Montgomery finished in 127th place with a time of 27:14.47. The men’s field consisted of 267 runners from 27 different schools.

Both teams will next race in the Chile Pepper Festival race held on Sept. 30 at Agri Park in Fayetteville, Ark. The men’s 10K will begin at 9:30 am followed by the women’s 5K at 10:20 am.

SOCCER

No. 9 soccer posts 1-1 tie against Harding

COMMERCE– The No. 9 Texas A&M University-Commerce soccer team played to a 1-1 tie against Harding University on Friday in double overtime. The Lions scored a goal in the 23rd minute to tie the game but could not find the go-ahead goal.

The tie brings the Lions to 3-0-2 on the season. Harding goes to 0-3-2 on the season. It was the Lions’ second consecutive double overtime tie.

The Lions will begin their conference schedule with a road match against Eastern New Mexico on Friday night. The game will be played at 8 p.m. CDT at Greyhound Stadium in Portales, N.M.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
– The Lions outshot Harding 34-14 in the match, including a 17-5 advantage in shots on goal. Harding had just two shots on goal in regulation.
– Sophie Haywood scored the goal for the Lions in the 23rd minute. After getting fouled in the box, she netted the penalty kick. Haywood had taken 11 shots, with six coming on goal.
– Leslie Campuzano took eight shots and had three go on goal.
– Delaney Bunselmeyer and Sabrina Munguia both had two shots on goal. Kara Blasingame, Michelle Kotlik, Cora Welch and Tori Smith also had shots on goal.
– Izzy Ward, Jessika Coronado, and Kara Givens also took shots.
– The Lions took 12 corner shots in the game.
– The Lions received two yellow cards in the match.
– Caitlin Duty made four saves.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Lions had two early opportunities for goals. Rescued in the ninth minute, Haywood had a shot on a goal. Also, save in the tenth minute, Smith had one of her own. They also saved Campuzano’s early shot on goal.

While the Lions controlled the ball for much of the early going, it was Harding that got on the board first. A left-footed kick snuck past Duty and into the net.

The lead didn’t last long as Haywood scored on a penalty kick in the 23rd minute. After being fouled in the box on a corner kick, Haywood took a penalty kick and found the back of the net, tying the game at 1-1.

In the 28th minute, the Lions had two opportunities to take the lead. However, shots by Bunselmeyer and Haywood were both turned aside to keep the match tied. Campuzano had a shot on goal in the 34th minute, and Haywood had another shot on goal in the 38th minute. They saved both, and the match tied 1-1 headed into the second half.

The Lions dominated the ball in the early minutes of the second half. Bunselmeyer had a shot saved in the 48th minute. Campuzano then had two good chances. After having a shot saved in the 49th minute, Campuzano had a shot go off the cross bar in the 50th minute. Kotlik took the rebound, who shot the ball high and the match remained tied.

After Harding saved shots in the 55th and 56th minute, HU had its lone shot on goal in the second half. However, Duty made the save to keep the match tied.

Munguia had a shot saved in the 77th minute. Haywood looked to give the Lions the lead in the 82nd minute, but again a save was made by HU. The game went into overtime.

HU was the aggressor in the first overtime period, posting more shots on goal in the 10-minute period than in the previous 90 minutes of regulation. However, Duty saved all three shots on goal in the period. The final shot on goal came with one second on the clock. The Lions were unable to get a shot on goal in the period, and the game was still tied.

Haywood had a shot saved in the 102 minute. They blocked Haywood’s next shot in the final seconds of the match, Kotlik got the rebound and shot at goal. However, they made a save with two seconds on the clock and the game ended in a tie.