Angelina College Basketball Players Earn Postseason Honors

Dixon, Payia Lead Lady Roadrunners, Roadrunners

By GARY STALLARD

AC Athletics

The 2025-2026 basketball season may have ended for Angelina College’s hoops squads, but the postseason honors are just beginning to arrive.

Lady Roadrunner Aminah Dixon earned a 1^st Team All-Conference nod, while Roadrunner Clarence Payia made the 2^nd Team All-Region list on the men’s side.

Lady ‘Runner Timberlyn Washington was named Honorable Mention All-Conference, while ‘Runners Daemon Ely and Jordan Mathews picked up Honorable Mention All-Region honors.

Dixon, a freshman from Stephen F. Austin High School in Houston, Texas led the team with 381 points scored (a 14.7 points-per-game average) while finishing with 3.8 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. Dixon scored her season high of 23 points twice: against Temple College and again in the Region XIV Conference Tournament quarterfinals against Kilgore College.

Washington, a freshman from Lakeview High School in Clarence, Louisiana, averaged 12.6 points, 2.0 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game while leading the team in steals with a total of 78. Washington posted a season-high 26 points at Coastal Bend Community College on Feb. 25.

For the men, sophomore Payia (from Beaumont United High School in Beaumont, Texas) led team in scoring with 341 points in 31 games played (a 10.12 points-per-game average). Payia converted 37.5 percent of his three-point attempts and scored his season-high of 22 points in AC’s quarterfinals loss to Tyler Junior College on March 12.

Payia also was selected for All-American JUCO Showcase held in Atlanta in July of 2025.

Ely, another sophomore, is a product of Taos High School in Taos, New Mexico. He averaged 7.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per game while playing in all 32 AC games in 2025—2026, finishing the season with five double-doubles (scoring and rebounding). Ely earned Honorable Mention All-Region following his freshman season, when he led the Roadrunners to an Elite Eight appearance in the NJCAA Division I National Tournament in Hutchinson, Kansas

Sophomore Mathews, from Peabody High School in Alexandria, Louisiana, scored 7.9 points and grabbed 4.3 rebounds per game, with his season high of 17 points coming against Paris Junior College and Kilgore College.

Mathews also Honorable Mention All-Region honors following his freshman campaign and was part of the Roadrunners’ Elite Eight squad in the 2025 NJCAA Division I National Tournament in Hutchinson. Like Payia, he was selected for All-American JUCO Showcase held in Atlanta in July of 2025.

Payia, Ely and Mathews were part of a Roadrunner team ranked as the nation’s No. 1 defensive team in 2025-2026 – the second consecutive season AC’s men finished with the top ranking.

The email address for AC’s Sports Information Director is gstallard@angelina.edu.

Photo captions for action photos (attached headshots are named):

Aminah Dixon:

Young woman with braided hair smiles, wearing a white RUNNERS basketball jersey (#2), seated before a gray background.

Player in white jersey number 2 dribbles indoors, closely guarded by blue jersey number 1; blue bleachers in background.

Angelina College’s Aminah Dixon (2) recently was named to the Region XIV 1^st Team All-Conference list following the 2025-2026 season. Dixon is a freshman from Stephen F. Austin High School in Houston. (Angel Arevalo photo for AC Athletics)

Clarence Payia:

Basketball player in white holds the ball, guarded by two in green on indoor court; spectators and teammates in background.

Young male basketball player with tattoos, earrings, and dreadlocks wears ANGELINA 30 jersey, seated against gray background.

Angelina College’s Clarence Payia (20) recently was named to the Region XIV 2^nd Team All-Region list following the 2025-2026 season. Payia is a sophomore from Beaumont United High School in Beaumont. (Melissa Durham photo for AC Athletics)

Timberlyn Washington:

Smiling young woman with long curly brown hair in a white basketball jersey (#4), seated on a maroon chair, gray background.

Basketball player in white and blue Runners uniform dribbles past defender in black and yellow on indoor court toward the hoop.

Angelina College’s Timberlyn Washington (4) recently earned Region XIV All-Conference Honorable Mention honors following the 2025-2026 season. Washington is a freshman from Lakeview High School in Clarence, Louisiana. (Angel Arevalo photo for AC Athletics)

Daemon Ely:

Young male basketball player with short dark hair wears a white and blue ANGELINA 23 jersey, standing against a gray background.

Player in white jersey 23 jumps for a layup as orange team watches on indoor court with spectators in the background.

Angelina College’s Daemon Ely (23) recently earned Region XIV All-Region Honorable Mention honors following the 2025-2026 season. Ely is a sophomore from Taos High School in Taos, New Mexico. (Melissa Durham photo for AC Athletics)

Jordan Mathews:

Basketball player in white and blue leaps for a layup as a red-uniformed defender tries to block, gym crowd in background.

Young man with short dreadlocks in an ANGELINA #21 basketball jersey sits before a gray backdrop, smiling slightly at the camera.

Angelina College’s Jordan Mathews (21) recently earned Region XIV All-Region Honorable Mention honors following the 2025-2026 season. Mathews is a sophomore from Peabody High School in Alexandria, Louisiana. (Melissa Durham photo for AC Athletics)