COMMERCE – The East Texas A&M University soccer team opens a three-match home stand with a pair of home matches this weekend, welcoming Grambling and Abilene Christian during Labor Day weekend.
LIONS' WEEKEND SCHEDULE
FULL DIVISION I MEMBERS
East Texas A&M University received approval from the NCAA in June 2025 for its expedited transition process to become full NCAA Division I members and become immediately eligible for NCAA sponsored postseason events. The Lion soccer team has played in the Southland Championship match twice in the last three seasons.
MODEL OF CONSISTENCY
East Texas A&M played in the Southland Tournament for the third straight year last year and made the championship match for the second time in three years.The Lions are the only team in the conference to be a top three seed in each of the last three conference tournaments.
TOUGH TREK TO OKLAHOMA
East Texas A&M fell in both matches last week in Oklahoma, falling to the No. 22 ranked Sooners on Thursday, 4-0, and at Oral Roberts, 3-0, on Saturday night. It is the first time the Lions didn't score goals in back-to-back matches since the end of non-conference play last season.
1-0 FOR SECOND STRAIGHT YEAR
The Lions picked up a 4-1 win over Little Rock to win their season opener for the second straight year. It is the first time since the 2014 and 2015 seasons that the Lions won their season opener in back-to-back seasons.
FOUR SCORE ONCE AGAIN
In the win over Little Rock, the Lions scored four goals, which is the second straight season opener that they tallied four. The four goals are also tied for the most in a match in the Division I era.
MITCHELL MAKES STATEMENT TO START 2025
After being held to just one goal in 22 matches over the last two seasons,
Mya Mitchell (Dallas - Mesquite Horn) scored twice in the win over Little Rock. The 2022 Southland Freshman of the Year totaled five points in the win.
WE KNOW EACH OTHER
The starting 11 against Little Rock featured nine players that were on the team last season. The two newcomers to start the match were
Alyssa Cox (Plano Senior), a transfer from Louisiana, and
Payton Joost (Wylie), a transfer from Lamar.
HELLO NEWCOMERS
Along with Cox and Joost, newcomers
Malaya Ring (
Malaya Ring), a transfer from Gardner-Webb, also appeared in the match against the Trojans, while freshmen
Grace Robertson (Fulshear - Jordan) and
Kelsey Lefever (Princeton) came off the bench to make their Lion debuts.
Newcomers
Makayla Gonzalez (South Grand Prairie),
Kaylee Humble (Harker Heights),
Brooke Shields (Wylie East), and Judtih Nandwa (Mumias, Kenya) did not appear in the match against Little Rock, but Gonzalez and Humble made their Lion debuts last weekend.
RAMIREZ MAKES HISTORY, NAMED SLC PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Kaydence Ramirez (Waxahachie) was named the Southland Conference Player of the Year and Forward of the Year in 2024, becoming just the second player in program history and first since Vicky Back in 2016 to earn conference player of the year honors. She led the conference in goals.
FOUR NAMED TO ALL-SLC TEAMS
Along with Ramirez, who was named first team all-conference, the Lions had three players on second team all-conference in
Hannah Bell (Duncanville),
Mindy Shoffit (Wichita Falls - Rider), and
Melissa Storey (Tyne and Wear, England).
THIRD TIME WAS THE CHARM
The Lions and Oral Roberts began the season against each other for three years. After a 4-0 ORU win in 2022, a 2-2 tie in Commerce in 2023, the Lions finally got over the hump to take their first win in the series last season. The Golden Eagles returned serve with a 3-0 win last Saturday as both teams are undefeated on their home fields over the last four seasons.
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
Grambling makes the return trip to Commerce following a 2-2 tie in Grambling last season. The Lions fell behind 2-0 in the first 12 minutes of the match, but bounced back to score two unanswered goals and secured the tie. This season, Grambling is 2-1-1 on the season, having won over SLC foe Nicholls, as well as Hampton. The Tigers fell 1-0 at HCU last week. Alana Aiken has scored four of the team's seven goals this season, while Kaia Bace has logged all but 56 minutes in goal this season, having recorded nine saves.
The Lions and the Wildcats meet for the 10th time, but the first matchup since 2012. ACU is 5-4 in the series that dates back to 2007 coming into Sunday, but the Lions are 3-1 at home thus far in the series. Eight of the previous nine matchups between the two teams were conference matches, the only other non-conference match was a 2-0 win in the postseason for the Wildcats in 2011. ACU is 3-1 on the season with all four matchups being 1-0 scores thus far. The Wildcats collected wins over UTEP on the road, while beating Tulsa and HCU at home. ACU plays at Oral Roberts on Thursday before coming over to Commerce on Sunday.
-ETAMU-
