By: Mason Bua | Sports Writer

The No. 21 Texas A&M University-Commerce Lions split their two games, first a loss to Angelo State University Rambelles, then picking up a win against Lubbock Christian University Lady Chaps.

This weekend split has the Lions 11-4 with a 5-1 in LSC play. Friday’s loss against ASU came in a moderately competitive match with set scores of 25-17, 25-27, 25-13, 25-11.

The loss continues a trend of the Rams outplaying the Lions, with an all-time record of 5-16 since 2008 against ASU. ASU is now 14-1 and 6-0 in LSC play.

The game came with a lot of errors on the Lion’s part, with 25 total over the four sets, eight more than the Ram’s 17 errors. Offensively the Lions played below their usual high bar, garnering only 37 kills in comparison to the Ram’s 58. 

A large reason for the loss was the stellar blocking of the Rams, and the lack thereof for the Lions. The Lions were out-blocked 16-4. The backline of the Lion defense did their part with 55 digs to the Rams 60.

Offensively, the Lions top performers were Sydney Andersen with 10 kills, Shelley Chapron with eight kills, and Riley Davidson with four of her own.

According to Lion Athletics, Lions Head Coach Craig Case spoke about the loss saying, “It’s frustrating because these are the types of teams that we want to play against. Angelo State is really good. After those first two sets, they frustrated our hitters so much. They are one of the top defensive teams in the country”.

On Saturday, the Lions recovered and beat the LCU Lady Chaps in four sets, with scores of 25-15, 19-25, 25-19, 25-20. The match was competitive but the victory was hardly in doubt. LCU is now 8-8 and 2-6 in LSC play.

The Lions offense got back on track with 57 kills and 53 assists compared to the Lady Chaps’ 41 and 39. Defensively, the Lions did well with nine blocks compared to four for the Lady Chaps.

The Lion’s top offensive performers on Saturday were Sydney Anderson with 18 kills, Shelley Chapron with 14, and Keziah Williams had 10 herself. Celeste Vela had a very impressive game setting up the team’s hitters to succeed with 32 of the team’s 53 assists.

Lions Head Coach Case spoke about bouncing back from Friday’s loss, “I thought our hitters had better determination than we did yesterday. But I think the way we came out and played today, at times, is a good step forward to get all those things sorted out.”

Next Matchup

The No. 21 Lions will go on the road play the Cameron University Aggies (4-10, 1-5) on Friday, Oct. 11 at the Aggie Gym at 5:30 p.m. in Lawton, Okla. The Lions will look to win their 7th game in a row against the Aggies.