Editor’s Note: Above image courtesy of and provided by the UMHB Athletics Department
With 2020 drawing to a close, we decided to take a look at some of the best moments in Cru athletics from this past year.
Mike Stawski earns his first victory at the helm of UMHB Baseball
The UMHB baseball team played just 15 games in the shortened 2020 campaign, but that was enough for head coach Mike Stawski to earn his first seven victories as the program’s new skipper. The first of those seven came in an 11-2 victory over Schreiner in the season opener on February 14. A seven run seventh inning, highlighted by a three-run home run from Sal Camilleri, sealed the win for the Cru.
A new era begins with Acrobatics & Tumbling
The newest varsity athletics program on campus, the Acrobatics and Tumbling squad kicked off competition for the first time on February 1 in Belton. Head coach Courtney Pate’s team battled Baylor competitively, falling narrowly 266.305-225.655. The Cru would earn the program’s first win by beating East Texas Baptist three weeks later, 234.335-209.97.
Women’s Basketball Claims First-Ever ASC Championship
Behind the play of three seniors in Hannah Holt, Kendall Rollins and Alecia Blackwell, the UMHB women’s basketball team accomplished more than it ever had, claiming the program’s first-ever ASC Conference Title and advancing to the “Sweet Sixteen” in the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season, before the tournament was called off.
Clif Carroll era gets underway
After coming down to Belton from Alpine, Texas, where he led Sul Ross State, head men’s basketball coach Clif Carroll began his tenure at UMHB with a win, as the Cru narrowly defeated Hardin-Simmons on November 27. With 2.8 seconds left to play, clinging to a 82-80 lead, UMHB’s Kyle Wright broke free from his defender to grab the inbounds pass and seal Carroll’s first win with the Cru.
Men’s, Women’s Golf each ranked in top 5 at the end of fall play
Rebounding after a tough end to the 2019-20 season was the men’s and women’s golf teams, who found themselves ranked at No. 2 and No. 1, respectively, in Golfstat‘s final fall rankings. The men, head coached by Jordan Cox, earned wins at both the UMHB Men’s Invitational (1st out of 5 teams), and ETBU Tiger Fall Invitational (1st out of 4 teams). The women were just as successful, putting together four first place wins. At the Lady Crusader Stonetree Invitational, head coach Jackie Ralston’s squad earned a 13-stroke victory in an event featuring five teams.
