OLLU will hold “A Celebration of San Antonio’s Pride of the Westside – OLLU Softball” today at 3:30 p.m. at the OLLU Softball Field.
The welcoming fete is to recognize and celebrate the NAIA national champion Saints softball team.
Confetti bombs, noise makers and signs will greet players as they enter the field.
Sports Information Director Patty Constantin will introduce each player. Coaches will be announced. A championship trophy and banners will be presented. Players and coaches will pose for photographs.
Come on out and celebrate the first national championship in OLLU history!
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.
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.
OLLU announced that 212 student-athletes from 18 athletics teams earned a 3.0 GPA and above for the fall 2023 semester. Last year, 183 student-athletes earned 3.0 GPAs and above.
Athletic Director Tom Norris said, “I am extremely proud of how our student-athletes performed in the classroom during the fall semester. Compared to last fall, 29 more student-athletes earned a 3.0 GPA or better, while 15 of our 18 teams earned a 3.0 GPA or better. This is a true testament to the work our coaches do to ensure academics is a top priority.”
Men’s Tennis, Women’s Tennis and Drumline had the best GPAs, with the women marking a 3.62 GPA and the men and drumline earning 3.51 GPAs. The women’s tennis team had all eight members of the team finish with a 3.0 and above – Lucia Popluharova and Saskia Vogelzang earned 4.0s. The men’s team had 10 out of 13 earn 3.0s and above – Joshua Alarcon, Malachi Farley, Luis Lanier, Jaroslav Majsajdr and Guido Picasso marked 4.0s. Drumline’s Ginobili Cobarrubias (Cheer), Sean Lin (Track and Field) and Brandon Wehman each earned 4.0s.
Volleyball recorded a 3.45 GPA. The team had 22 out of 24 team members record 3.0 GPAs and above, and four of those members – Julia Anguiano, Ariana Caldera, Madalyn Gonzalez and Victoria Urbanczyk (Track and Field) – had perfect 4.0s.
Women’s Soccer finished with a 3.38 GPA. Thirty-one out of 35 team members had a 3.0 and above – 12 of them earned 4.0s including Samantha Benne, Rachel Dziuba, Madison Herrera, Cassandra Jimenez, Samantha Nava, Sara Nishiyama, Kaitlyn Olivas, Haven Ortiz, Tess Pitcher, Lyndee Rheinberger, Jaylin Seto and Leah Tapia.
Women’s Golf marked a 3.37 GPA. Nine out of 10 had 3.0s and above. Four earned 4.0s including Alexis Calzada, Madelyn Miller, Annabelle Reyna and Christina Trujillo.
Men’s Basketball earned a 3.34 GPA. Finishing with 4.0s were Daniel Helterhoff, Kyonte Holder, Paul Minjoth, Xavier Purnell and Filip Radulovic.
Men’sGolf recorded a 3.28 GPA. Eight of the 11 members of the team earned 3.0s and above, and Oliver Gaisford and Alex Marshall marked a 4.0.
Baseball recorded a 3.13 GPA. Earning 4.0s were Criztian Delgado, Anthony Valle and Jimmy Valle.
Cheer finished with a 3.13 GPA. Seven out of 10 earned 3.0 and above. Ginobili Cobarrubias (Drumline) Brynlee Lloyd, Angelina Ochoa (Dance) and Ember Sandoval finished with 4.0s.
Dance marked a 3.12 GPA. Five on the team had 4.0s including Isis Almanza, Angelina Ochoa (Cheer), Viviana Reyes, Bianca Rodriguez and Madison Smith.
Softball marked a 3.08 GPA. Men’sSoccer earned a 3.02 GPA.
Men’sTrackandField and Men’sCross–Country finished with a 3.01 GPA. Justin Gould, Sean Lin (Drumline), Kruz Malesich, Rodolfo Morales and Joshua Veliz marked 4.0s.
OLLU has selected Tom Norris as its new Athletic Director. A seasoned athletic administrator with a proven track record of successful athletic programs, Norris will oversee the university’s 18 intercollegiate athletic teams. He currently serves as Indiana University Kokomo (IUK) Director of Athletics and will join OLLU on Oct. 2.
Before joining Indiana University, Norris served as Assistant Athletic Director at St. Mary’s University – an NCAA D2 school located less than three miles from the OLLU campus.
OLLU President Abel Chávez, PhD, MBA commented, “Aside from his strengths in athletic program development, Tom has impressive experience in athletic policy development and implementation, fundraising, community partnership, promotions and budget and staff management. I am confident he will provide strong leadership for athletics.”
At IUK, an NAIA university, Norris oversees all aspects of the university’s athletic program by supporting 230 student-athletes and 26 coaches and support staff. He worked closely with community partners and donors and collaborated with the university administration.
Norris comes to OLLU as only the third Athletic Director in school history. Jack Hank started the program in 2006, and a men’s soccer team and women’s volleyball team began competing in 2007 through the NAIA. The following year, the university added women’s soccer, men’s and women’s golf and tennis. In 2009, OLLU joined the Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) and added basketball, cross-country and softball. In 2014, OLLU added baseball and track and field teams. After Shane Hurley became Athletic Director in 2018, he led the addition of competitive cheer and dance in 2019 and drumline in 2022. Hurley returned to his roots to lead the men’s soccer team as Head Coach.
The university now boasts more than 400 student-athletes, 19 full-time coaches and three full-time athletic trainers.
Norris said, “I look forward to continuing the longstanding success of Our Lady of the Lake Athletics and immersing myself in the OLLU and San Antonio community.”
