Month: July 2020

Pursuing excellence and coping with changes to spring classes due to COVID-19, a total of 965 student-athletes earned the distinction of Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) Scholar-Athlete for the 2019-2020 academic year. OLLU is proud to announce its largest class of scholar-athletes – 147 – who have earned Scholar-Athlete recognition.

Each of the individuals on the list achieved a 3.0 GPA or better on a 4.0 scale while competing in one of the RRAC’s sanctioned sports. The total number of honorees reached a higher level than last year’s 938 total.

The cumulative GPA for all 147 OLLU students during the 2019-2020 season is also a historic best at 3.17. See below for a historical overview:

Of OLLU’s 147 student-athletes (some played two sports and are counted separately) honored in 2019-2020, 17 earned a 4.0, 70 earned between a 3.5-3.99 GPA and 60 earned between a 3.0-3.49 GPA. 

OLLU had the most scholar-athletes than other members of the conference. After OLLU was the University of the Southwest at 111, followed by LSU-Alexandria with 110, Texas A&M University – Texarkana with 105, Texas College with 98, Jarvis Christian College with 84, Huston-Tillotson University with 83, the University of Houston-Victoria with 77, LSU-Shreveport with 71, Wiley College with 48 and Paul Quinn College with 45.

Below is a complete list of the 2019-2020 OLLU Scholar Athletes:

The 2020 NAIA Indoor Track & Field Women’s All-Academic Teams have been announced by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

Senior Miki Romain was named to the All-Academic Team as part of the Our Lady of the Lake University (OLLU) Women’s Indoor Track and Field team after earning a 3.5 GPA. Only indoor was considered for the award this year due to the cancellation of the outdoor season.

Criteria for the award is a GPA of 3.0 or higher. In addition, winners from the indoor season must have achieved an “A” or “B” standard in a championship event, certified by their place on the NAIA descending order lists on TFRSS for Indoor Track and Field.

In addition, the Saints received the 2020 NAIA Indoor Track & Field Women’s All-Academic Team after earning a 3.4 GPA. Members of the team are listed below:

OLLU’s Kane Ybarra captured the 100th Annual Greater San Antonio Men’s Championship last weekend. The event was held at the Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort and Spa.

Ybarra, a 2019-2020 four-year student-athlete at OLLU, was granted another year of eligibility by the NAIA after the spring 2020 season was canceled due to COVID-19. He shot a three-day total of 214/2 under par.

Head Coach Arnie Martinez commented, “I am very happy for Kane and how he played. To win a prestigious event in San Antonio like this is a great accomplishment for him and for OLLU golf. The Hyatt Resort Course is no easy track and for him to go out and shoot two rounds under par is a testament to his ability. He has played an important role on our team since he arrived four years ago. It’s good to see his recent efforts pay off on the course. I am excited about the upcoming season and having him on our team for another year. Go, Saints!”

Ybarra marked 13 birdies and one eagle to top all golfers on the leaderboard. He shot a 71 in the first round for the lead. In the second round, he continued his dominance with an overall best 68. He closed out the tournament with a 75 in the third round. Jake Stevenson, who was a senior in 2019-2020 at St. Mary’s University, came in three strokes shy of Ybarra at this year’s event. In addition, former OLLU golfer Jerry Daniel (2017) placed 14th

In 2013, Coach Martinez (2017-2010) won the tournament.

In 2016, Steve Landry (started at OLLU in 2017) won, and OLLU alumnus Aaron Flores (2009-2013) got within one stroke, while Ybarra was two strokes behind with a 69-70-73/212. Also during that year, former OLLU player (2015) Ian Berrigan tied for 23rd place. OLLU alumnus Jeremy Gordan tied for 62nd place.

Berrigan captured the title in 2017. Ybarra took that year off and returned to the tournament in 2018 to finish one stroke behind Stevenson.  Ybarra shot a 70-68-69/207. Landry tied for 10th place. Former OLLU golfer Alan Crosswell-Karam (2017) came in 26th place, and Daniel finished in a tie for 36th place.

In 2019, Ybarra placed third, eight strokes behind first place with a 70-74-70/214. Raul Gutierrez tied for seventh, Crosswell-Karam marked a tie for 18th place.

The presidents of Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) member institutions, including OLLU President Dr. Diane E. Melby, have decided to move traditional fall conference competition athletics to the spring session of 2021 to support the safety and welfare of student-athletes and all students on campus. The resolution was made by the group on a conference call on Wednesday as the cases of COVID-19 infections continue to rise in the RRAC states of Texas, Louisiana and New Mexico.

The move pushes the typical RRAC fall competition of men’s and women’s cross-country, men’s and women’s soccer and volleyball to at least January. A decision on the start dates of the 2020-2021 men’s and women’s basketball seasons will be made at a later date. Traditional spring sports – golf, tennis, track and field, cheer/dance, softball and baseball – are on schedule for a normal return in 2021.

RRAC administrators and athletic directors will begin work on adjusting soccer and volleyball schedules to account for the changes. New RRAC tournament dates for those sports will be determined later. 

Given the changing nature of the COVID-19 crisis, the RRAC presidents also stated that they will continue to evaluate the situation and protocols necessary for the well-being of student-athletes. Conference administrators and athletic trainers will continue to refine a return to play and gameday procedures for the date when conference contests resume. 

Assistant Athletic Director Bryan Aughney commented, “As the COVID-19 pandemic situation is fluid, one thing we must ensure is the safety and well being of our student-athletes.  As information comes out, we have to keep our students’ best interests in mind; and while this decision may not be ideal for some, it still allows for conference competition. That is our goal, to give our student-athletes the best experience we can, even given the current situation that surrounds us all.”

OLLU plans to move forward with team practices this fall. Training and conditioning will be allowed. At the current time, OLLU expects all teams to play their full conference schedules during the spring 2021 season.