LCU women hold off Texas A&M-Commerce to advance to region championship

For the second time in as many days, the Lubbock Christian University women's basketball team turned a late third-quarter deficit into an NCAA Tournament win.

The Lady Chaps took the lead with a 12-0 run, which included the first five points of the fourth quarter, and held off a Texas A&M-Commerce push to down the Lions 69-67 Saturday in their South Central Region semifinal at First United Bank Center in Canyon.

The victory avenged a 66-62 loss on Jan. 13 and sends two-time defending champion LCU to the region championship at 7 p.m. Monday.

Ashton Duncan scored a game-high 25 points for the Lady Chaps, who led by three with seven seconds remaining. LCU (28-6) fouled Commerce's Chania Wright, who hit both free throws. Whitney Cox made 1 of 2 free throws with one second left, but the Lions were unable to get off a shot on their last possession.

Commerce (27-5), the No. 2 seed in the tournament, led 43-39 with 3:09 in the third quarter before LCU made its run. The Lady Chaps took their first lead with less than a minute before the final frame and went up by as many as eight.

Dyani Robinson scored a team-high 19 points to lead four Lions in double figures. But Commerce shot 40%, including missing the last seven shots of the third quarter while LCU took control.

The Lady Chaps hit eight 3-pointers, including Grace Foster's trey that put the team in front 61-56 with 1:34 remaining. Foster finished with nine points, second-highest on LCU.

LCU will face top-seeded West Texas A&M (25-10) at 7 p.m. Monday for the regional title and a spot in the Elite Eight. West Texas A&M beat Texas Woman's 78-73 in the other semifinal.

LCU baseball

Cayde Ward delivered a pinch-hit grand slam and Ethan Coombes struck out nine over 6 2/3 innings as Lubbock Christian University beat Texas A&M International 12-4 in the first game of a Lone Star Conference baseball doubleheader at Hays Field.

LCU (15-5, 13-5) won the second game 17-8 behind five runs batted in apiece from Jarred Gibson and Mason Donohoe. That game was tied 8-8 in the fifth before LCU subdued TAMIU (10-14, 10-12) by scoring the last nine runs.

Donohoe hit a three-run double in the fifth and Gibson delivered a three-run double in the sixth.

In the opener, Ward's slam touched off a seven-run sixth inning that Edgar Hernandez capped with a two-run single that made the score 12-2.

LCU took a 4-0 lead in third inning. George Mendazona and Luis Navarro each doubled home a run, and Larry Leitha hit his team-leading sixth home run of the season, a two-run shot.

Mario Chacon answered with a two-run homer in the fourth for TAMIU.

Coombes (2-1) came within one out of a complete game in the seven-inning game. the junior righthander walked six and gave up four hits.

After Antonio Buen's two-run single with two outs in the seventh, Stoney Rhodes replaced Coombes and got the final out.

WBU women's basketball

PLAINVIEW — Kaylee Edgemon scored 26 points and Wayland Baptist beat Lewis-Clark State 99-85 Saturday, earning one of 16 berths at the NAIA Tournament's final site in Sioux City, Iowa.

Jenna Cooper had 19 points and nine assists as Wayland (33-3) won its 13th game in a row. The Flying Queens got 16 points and nine rebounds from Kaitlyn Edgemon and 11 points apiece from Ashlyn Shelley and Taryn Schultz.

Callie Stevens scored 22 for Lewis-Clark State (28-5), which was a No. 6 regional seed in the 64-team bracket.

Hutcherson Center was one of 16 sites nationally hosting a four-team bracket in what the NAIA calls the Opening Round. The 16 winners advance to Sioux City for the remainder of the tournament from March 17-22 at the Tyson Events Center.

Wayland, a No. 3 seed, will play Rocky Mountain (27-4), a No. 2 seed, at 8 p.m. Thursday.

Wayland won its first-round game Friday night, beating Our Lady of the Lake 89-68 behind 22 points from Cooper and 21 points and nine rebounds from Kaitlyn Edgemon.

Kaylee Edgemon added 16 points and 10 rebounds.

Our Lady of the Lake, a San Antonio school, finished 20-11. Miranda Villegas from Levelland led the Saints with 23 points, followed by Natalia Trevino with 18.

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: LCU women hold off Texas A&M-Commerce to advance