Tag: Chris Dial

Marcus Thompson named OLLU men’s basketball coach

Marcus Thompson has been named Men’s Basketball Head Coach at OLLU. Thompson returned to OLLU as an assistant coach in 2021 and has been chosen as the Saints’ fifth head coach since the program’s inaugural season in 2009. He begins officially on April 1.

Thompson will take over from Chris Dial, who coached from 2018 through March. Later this month, Dial will start his head coaching position for the inaugural men’s basketball program at Texas A&M University—San Antonio.

Athletic Director Tom Norris said, “Coach Thompson has been a great assistant coach the past two seasons, and we are confident that he will continue to excel as the squad leader. He is an OLLU alumnus – both undergraduate and graduate programs – and played on very successful teams for four years. The players respect him and are eager to help him as he begins his tenure. He will bring passion, work ethic and energy to the team, and we look forward to his future with us.” 

Thompson started the assistant coach position in 2021 and helped guide the Saints to a Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) Tournament Quarterfinals. The team repeated as quarterfinalists in 2022 and this past season. In addition, for the first time in program history, the men earned NAIA Scholar Team recognition in 2022-2023, and they are on the path to accomplishing this impressive feat as the 2023-2024 season ends. The team has also been one of OLLU’s most active in the community. They have partnered with the San Antonio Spurs Youth Programs, Haven for Hope and the San Antonio Food Bank.

Thompson was selected to the OLLU Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2022 as well as the Red River Athletic Conference Hall of Fame Class of 2022.

Before coming to OLLU, Thompson was the head coach at Coastal Bend College in Beeville, Texas. He became the head coach at the junior college in 2019, and before that, he was the assistant coach there for one season. While at Coastal Bend, Thompson was also part of the faculty teaching business computer information systems and was an academic adviser.

Free Spurs tickets for game against Washington Wizards

Students, faculty and staff: OLLU men’s basketball coach Chris Dial has obtained 200 San Antonio Spurs tickets for Monday night’s 7 p.m. game against the Washington Wizards at Frost Bank Center.

Tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Students may pick up tickets in the cafeteria from 11:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. (or until supplies last). One ticket per student.

Faculty and staff may pick up tickets in the Office of Academic Affairs. Two tickets per employee.

Dial to become Texas A&M-San Antonio men’s basketball coach

OLLU men’s basketball Head Coach Chris Dial has accepted the men’s basketball head coaching position at Texas A&M University – San Antonio (A&M-San Antonio). Dial will complete the 2023-2024 season with the Saints and report to A&M-San Antonio in mid-March to launch the program that will begin competing in 2024-2025. Both OLLU and A&M-San Antonio are members of the Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC). 

A&M-San Antonio began its intercollegiate athletics program in 2019 and started competing in the NAIA and RRAC in 2020 with women’s softball, men’s golf and men’s and women’s soccer. In November 2023, the university announced that it would add men’s and women’s basketball. Former OLLU women’s basketball Head Coach Christopher Minner will launch the women’s program for the Jaguars. 

OLLU Athletic Director Tom Norris said, “We are sad that Coach Dial will be leaving us, but his legacy at OLLU will live on. He has brought much respect and prominence to the program throughout his five years here. His teams have been shining examples of servant leadership working with the San Antonio Spurs and the organization’s youth camps. The men have also been ardent volunteers with the Haven for Hope homeless community and the San Antonio Food Bank. In addition, his teams have consistently earned scholar-team recognition. We are proud of all his accomplishments both on the court, out in the community and in the classroom.”

Dial began his tenure at OLLU in the 2019-2020 season, and in his five years with the Saints, he has accumulated a record of 46-79. Two of his teams qualified for the Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) Championship Tournament. Eight of his players have received All-Conference and All-Tournament recognition. His teams have received NAIA Scholar-Team recognition, a first for the program since its inception in 2009.  He has had 124 student-athletes earn GPAs of 3.0 and above. 

Dial commented, “I am genuinely thankful for my time and experiences at Our Lady of the Lake. The past five and a half years have been extremely impactful and a lot of that has to do with the quality of people and the relationships I have developed here. OLLU is a terrific university and is continuing an exciting path under its new leadership. My family and I consider the Lake as a part of us, and I am thankful that I was entrusted with restoring faith in the program here. While this year’s work is not done, I am especially proud of our players and staff and all they continue to accomplish on and off the court. We have assembled a team that has been highly impactful on this campus and in our community and it really is a blessing to be a part of their journeys. I am sincerely appreciative of Dr. Chavez (President Abel A. Chávez, MBA, PhD) and Athletic Director Norris for their support in embarking on the next chapter in my personal journey and feel well about where our program is as we look into the new year.” 

Assistant Coach Marcus Thompson will be interim head coach upon Dial’s departure.

In The News

Recent media coverage that brought attention to OLLU:

On Jan. 12, a story in the Texarkana-Gazette about alumnus Chris Minner being hired to coach the women’s basketball team at Texas A&M-San Antonio:

https://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/2024/jan/12/am-san-antonio-hires-texarkanas-minner-to-lead-womens-basketball-program/

On Jan. 12, a story on HoopDirt.com about OLLU men’s basketball coach Chris Dial leaving for Texas A&M-San Antonio:

NAIA NEWS: OLLU opens as Dial becomes fist-ever Head Men’s Basketball Coach at Texas A&M-San Antonio

On Jan. 11, a story on KSAT-12 about OLLU men’s basketball coach Chris Dial:

https://www.ksat.com/sports/2024/01/11/texas-am-san-antonio-hires-first-mens-basketball-head-coach/

On Jan. 10, a story in the San Antonio Express-News about OLLU men’s basketball coach Chris DIal: 

https://www.expressnews.com/sports/article/texas-a-m-san-antonio-hires-chris-dial-launch-18601219.php

Men’s basketball defeats HTU for first conference victory

The OLLU men’s basketball team downed Huston-Tillotson University (HTU) 80-76 on Dec. 9 in Austin. The Saints earned their first Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) win of the season to move to 1-2 and 4-5 overall. The Rams drop to 2-7 overall and 0-3 in conference.

Head Coach Chris Dial said, “The players overcame quite a bit of adversity in this win and I was really proud of them for showing resilience. We were short-handed with injuries and struggled with rebounds early, but we stepped up the intensity, effort and energy. Xavier Purnell played excellent off the bench tonight, especially in the first half. Paul Minjoth started knocking down big shots and provided us with great rebounding. I’m proud we recorded our first conference win of the season and I’m looking forward to two tough matchups next week.”

Trey Law led the Saints with 16 points. Lonzo Rand finished with six rebounds. Rob Gil tallied nine assists for the Saints.

OLLU has welcomed international student-athletes for 17 years

The OLLU athletics program has welcomed and helped graduate international student-athletes for more than 17 years. International students are an important part of the OLLU community and help carry the OLLU experience to all parts of the world. According to 2022 data, of all the international students who attend OLLU, 75 percent of them are student-athletes and they marked a 3.6 GPA compared to the OLLU average of 3.2. 

Mary Scotka is OLLU’s Assistant Vice President for Administration and the F-1 Visa (academic student) Principal Designated School Official (PDSO). As the PDSO, Scotka provides recommendations to F-1 students enrolled at OLLU regarding maintenance of nonimmigrant status and to support timely and complete record-keeping to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. 

She commented, “OLLU provides our international students with services support resources and programs, so they have a strong, vibrant experience while studying in the United States. International students are encouraged to be engaged in their studies and to take advantage of the many co-curricular, on-campus activities and opportunities throughout San Antonio.” 

Other Designated School Officials (DSO) at OLLU are J. Carlos Laird from Undergraduate Admissions in San Antonio; Cindy Mata-Vasquez from the OLLU Rio Grande Valley campus; and Jamina Scippio-McFadden from the OLLU Houston campus. Information on the international admission requirements, admitted students, English proficiency requirement, credential evaluation, where students are from, the international team and other helpful resources, go here. 

Whereas other universities may have more international students, OLLU’s receive hands-on learning and have faculty who serve as mentors and guides, both of which are hallmarks of an OLLU education. They also receive invaluable support from the athletics and coaching staffs. 

The most popular majors for international students are kinesiology and business. All programs offered are designed to ensure their success during their time here and upon graduation. Scotka said, “We embrace them from the start, and we make sure we give them a good experience. We meet with them as soon as they come on campus and at the end of their semester. In between, we are available to help them along the way.” 

The men’s basketball team has the most international student athletes, largely because of the relationships fostered by Head Coach Chris Dial. He is the founder of The Basketball Embassy, a multinational, nonprofit organization that builds community through basketball and assists National Basketball Federations as well as other organizations in their quest to grow and develop the game of basketball in their country or region. He has been able to bring in student-athletes from throughout the world. 

In addition, the women’s basketball, volleyball, tennis, golf and soccer teams have all had international student-athletes from such countries as Argentina, Australia, the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, Brazil, Canada, China, Columbia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Croatia, Czech Republic, England, Equador, Estonia, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Haiti, Honduras, Italy, Japan, Kosovo, Lithuania, Montenegro, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Syria, Sweden, Uganda, Venezuela, Wales and Zimbabwe. However, the majority have been from Mexico, the United Kingdom and Brazil. Sixty-six percent are male, 75 percent are undergraduates, 16 percent are pursuing a master’s degree and nine percent are in a doctoral program. Forty percent of the international students are employed on campus. 

OLLU men’s basketball hosts Spurs overnight camp for first time

The OLLU men’s basketball program, in conjunction with the San Antonio Spurs, recently hosted a youth camp at Mabee Gymnasium. The overnight event, held July 9-14, included 63 players ages 14-18 who received the full college experience, from dining at the cafeteria to staying in the Flores Residence Hall.

Saints Head Coach Chris Dial and Assistant Coach David Smith worked with various staff members from the Spurs to host the camp. Spurs Vice President of Youth Sports Joe Clark and Associate Director of Camps and Clinics Austin Peebles work with youth camps year-round and helped bring the clinic to OLLU for the first time. This season marks the 50th anniversary of the camps.

Clark and Peebles have been with the Spurs for many years and bring a wealth of knowledge to the participants. Clark started as an intern in ticket sales for the Spurs and has been with the organization for 38 years. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin prior to joining the program. He commented, “This was the first time we were able to work with the university to put together this camp. We have a great relationship with Head Coach Chris Dial and the men’s basketball staff. OLLU President Chávez (Abel Antonio Chávez, MBA, PhD) supported this idea to bring the Spurs brand to the community. We teach values off the court including being a good teammate and having respect for the game and opponents.” Clark added that players from throughout the United States and different countries are attending the camp.

Peebles has 15 years of experience and started as a coordinator. He also worked with the Chicago Bulls prior to joining the Spurs organization. The Illinois native handles setting up the coaching staff for the camps, managing the equipment, player appearances and more. He notes that having a solid structure of coaches helps the sessions run smoothly.

Men’s basketball surges into 13th season

Hear from Head Coach Chris Dial as he discusses the season: https://youtu.be/axK_ioop6vI

The men’s basketball team began its 13th year and fourth season under Head Coach Chris Dial. The Saints return to a normal schedule after a COVID-19 impacted season in 2020-2021.

2020-2021 season

The Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) was comprised of only five teams, excluding the Saints, during the shortened COVID-19 season. OLLU played a few regular-season games, plus some exhibitions. They lost to the NCAA D1 University of the Incarnate Word 71-84 and came back to defeat Texas State University – also an NCAA D1 school – 61-58. In their final game of the season, they lost to Rice University 77-80.

Returners

The Saints bring back nine returners, including eight seniors and junior Estevan Trevino (JR/San Antonio, Texas). The senior returners are Jordan Embry (SR/Paris, Texas), Charles Johnson III (SR/San Antonio, Texas), David Johnson (SR/Pflugerville, Texas), Lennox Jones (SR/Richmond, Texas), Darin Minniefield (SR/Houston, Texas), Ruben Monzon (SR/San Diego, Calif.), Joshua Williams (SR/Houston, Texas) and Marlon Williams (SR/Jacksonville, Fla.). Monzon led the team last season with 12.67 points per game and 43 total rebounds.

Newcomers

Three freshmen join the Saints for the 2021-2022 season. Tommie Law (FR/Semmes, Ala.) and Xavier Purnell (FR/Stafford, Va.) add guard depth to the roster, while 6’7″ Cedric Cook (FR/Houston, Texas) comes in as the second power forward on the team. OLLU also welcomes seven transfer athletes, including five seniors.

The group includes juniors Ellis Jones (JR/Houston, Texas) (Texas A&M University-Kingsville) and Oscar Maldonado (JR/Greeley, Colo.) (Northwest Oklahoma University). Senior transfers are Joseph Anderson (SR/Houston, Texas) (Albany University), Georges Darwiche (SR/Bucharest, Romania) (Siena College), Jamal Gaines (SR/Red Oak, Texas) (University of Texas Rio Grande Valley), Jonathan Sanchez (SR/McAllen, Texas) (Rice University) and Kesean Warren (SR/Atlanta, Ga.) (Waldorf University). Anderson, Jones and Sanchez are graduate students.

Staff

Former Saints point guard Marcus Thompson joins the staff as an assistant coach after a head coaching job at Coastal Bend College. Thompson played for OLLU from 2010-2014, and he holds the all-time NAIA record for steals in a game with 15 (2/15/14). He owns career records at OLLU for most games played (128), assists (630) and steals (315). In a season, Thompson has the best assists average (7.1 2012-2013) and most steals/average (131/4.1 2013-2014).

Dial addressed the hiring, “We couldn’t find a better person to come in and contribute to this program and culture. Coach Thompson brings a passion for basketball, and this is his home.”

The rest of the staff features assistant coaches. Fourth-year member BJ Alzaid, second-year member David Smith, second-year member Sean Patterson and third-year member Eric Bitoni will help guide the Saints.

Nonconference schedule

(Numbers after schools indicate series record.)

The Saints start the season on Oct. 30 at home against Southwestern Christian University (0-2). They travel to Arkansas shortly after to face two programs for the first time. Arkansas Baptist College hosts the Saints on Nov. 3 and Central Baptist College, who received votes in the NAIA Coaches’ Top 25 Poll, plays OLLU on Nov. 4.

Wayland Baptist University (4-2), who also received votes, comes to OLLU on Nov. 13. The Saints embark on a five-game road trip with games in Montana and Colorado next. They start with Carroll College (1-1) on Nov. 17, No. 10-ranked University of Providence (1-0) on Nov. 19, Montana State University-Northern on Nov. 20, Colorado Mesa University on Nov. 26 and Western Colorado University on Nov. 27.

OLLU plays at local NCAA D1 University of the Incarnate Word (1-2) on Dec. 1 to complete a lengthy road trip. They welcome North American University on Dec. 4 and head to NCAA D1 Lamar University on Dec. 5. The last three nonconference games are away at NCAA D1 University of Texas at San Antonio (0-1) on Dec. 22, St. Thomas University on Dec. 29 and Keiser University on Dec. 30 in Florida.

Conference schedule

The RRAC split into two divisions for the first time this season. The Saints will compete in the west division, which is comprised of Huston-Tillotson University (HTU), Paul Quinn College (PQC), the University of the Southwest (USW), Texas A&M University-Texarkana (TAMUT) and Wiley College (WC). OLLU will face these opponents twice while playing the east division programs once.

The east division includes RRAC newcomers Louisiana College (LC) and Xavier University of Louisiana (XULA). Texas College (TC), Jarvis Christian College (JCC), LSU-Alexandria (LSUA) and LSU-Shreveport (LSUS) round out the rest. The Saints were picked sixth in the RRAC Preseason Poll.

The Saints start conference play at home against HTU (19-3) on Dec. 18. OLLU goes to Louisiana a few weeks later to face LC on Jan. 6 and (RV) XULA on Jan. 8. The first homestand of the season includes games against PQC (20-2) on Jan. 13, USW (18-6) on Jan. 15, TC (16-7) on Jan. 20 and JCC (17-6) on Jan. 22.

OLLU takes a four-game road trip starting at WC (16-9) on Jan. 27, No. 17-ranked TAMUT (1-1) on Jan. 29, PQC on Feb. 3 and USW on Feb. 5. The schedule then flips to a tough four-game home series against No. 3-ranked LSUS (10-13), No. 19-ranked LSUA (2-12), WC on Feb. 17 and TAMUT on Feb. 19. The final game of the regular season is against HTU in Austin, Texas, on Feb. 22.

Fan attendance

“We bring a lot of joy and passion in what we do, and we think the fans will see that,” Dial said. Saints fans will be able to attend games in-person. Masks and social distancing are currently required. The admission price for games is $5 for adults, 12 years and older. Faculty, staff and students will receive free admission with their ID cards. The OLLU community will have the opportunity to join the OLLU Halo Club, which will include free admission to games, Saints gear, golf tournament admission and much more. Stay tuned for information that will be posted to the website and social media later this month.

Live-streaming

All Saints home games will be live-streamed at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/ollusaints/. “There are some silver linings that came out of the pandemic, and that includes remote viewing and engagement,” Dial said. “We will have entire subsets and populations who are over 7,000 miles away cheering for their local athletes on the team.”