COMMERCE – The first full weekend of Southland Conference play is here for the East Texas A&M University soccer team with the Lions playing at McNeese on Thursday night and hosting UIW on Sunday.
LIONS' WEEKEND SCHEDULE
90's DAY, 30 YEARS OF LION SOCCER CELEBRATION
Sunday is 90's day at East Texas A&M, all fans are encouraged to wear 90's themed apparel. During the match, East Texas A&M is also going to celebrate 30 years of Lion Soccer, with a recognition of all alumni in attendance.
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.
CRUCIAL DRAW ON THE ROAD
Last week in the conference opener at Lamar, the Lions came from behind to score two goals in less than two minutes to earn a draw against a team that won two of the last three conference titles. Both goals were scored by
Alana Lawless-Felarca (Dallas - Richardson).
LAWLESS-FELARCA EARNS SLC WEEKLY HONOR
Following a two-goal performance at Lamar, Lawless-Felarca was named the Southland Conference Offensive Player of the Week on Tuesday. She is the second Lion to earn an Southland weekly honor this season.
TWICE THE FUN
Sisters
Mya Mitchell and
Nya Mitchell (Dallas - Mesquite Horn) are entering their fourth season in the Blue & Gold. They are among 35 sets of sisters in NCAA Division I.
PACIONE NAMED SLC KEEPER OF THE WEEK
Veronica Pacione (Birdville) recorded 12 saves in 135 minutes of play in two weeks against Grambling and Abilene Christian, including career-best nine saves in the 1-0 shutout win over the Wildcats. As a result, she was named the Southland Goalkeeper of the Week, the first career weekly honor for the sophomore net minder.
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.
PROTECTING HOME FIELD
The Lions started 3-0 at home this season, which was its best start at home since 2017.
A FIRST IN THE DIVISION I ERA
East Texas A&M won three regular season non-conference matches this season, which is the most in the four seasons of Division I soccer. The Lions have not won four regular season non-conference matches in a season since 2015.
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.
MITCHELL CONTINUES TO MAKE 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 and then scoring in both wins at home against Grambling and Abilene Christian. The 2022 Southland Freshman of the Year has five goals on the season and the Lions are 3-1 in matches that she scores in.
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.
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 on August 23 as both teams are undefeated on their home fields over the last four seasons.
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
McNeese is 1-7-2 on the season, having lost four in a row going into Thursday's match in Lake Charles. The Lions are 5-1 against the Cowgirls all-time, including being 3-0 over the last three seasons. The lone win for the Cowgirls this season came against Southern. Rhiannon Maynes-Touround is the team leader with three goals and two assists, while Karlyn Judge has one goal and one assist. Celeste Marijnissen has started seven matches in goal and recorded 57 saves.
The Cardinals are off to a 3-3-2 start this season, having won over Prairie View A&M, Nicholls, and at North Texas on opening night. UIW tied Lamar, 2-2, on Sunday. This is the rematch of last season's Southland quarterfinal match, which East Texas A&M 2-1 on its way to reaching the Southland Championship match. UIW leads the all-time head-to-head 14-5-3. Individually, both Alex Knutson and Atiana Lara have three goals each on the season. Hannah Alexander has played 720 minutes in goal for UIW, having recorded 33 saves.
-ETAMU-
