Box Score OKLAHOMA CITY – The Wayland Baptist Flying Queens started in the clouds but ended in the dumps – and alternately were in one place or the other throughout the see-saw game – as they fell to Mid-America Christian in Sooner Athletic Conference play here Thursday night, 84-66.
"We started out good and did some good things, but we let some things affect us that we shouldn't have," Wayland coach Alesha Robertson said. "Mid-America is a good team and is really well-coached and has some great athletes, but we should have done the things we needed to win the game."
After leading by 12 points midway through the first half, the Queens (7-7, 3-2 SAC)
– ranked the equivalent of 32nd
– fell behind by 15 points six minutes into the second half. Wayland closed the gap to just two points before the Evangels (10-4, 3-2) went on a 19-2 run to seal the victory.
"We can't let the small things affect us, and I think we did that tonight," Robertson said. "When something goes wrong, we can't let that affect us the rest of the game. We have to have a short memory."
Wayland got 16 points and 10 rebounds from
Stephanie Afunugo, her fourth double-double of the season.
Shawna Monreal added 14 points,
Laura Castillo 11 and
Honesty Sullivan 10 off the bench.
Iesha Greer ended with eight points and 11 rebounds.
Four of Wayland's starters ended with four fouls.
"We backed off when we got into foul trouble," Robertson said.
"Our second-string went in and did some great things," added the coach, who singled out Sullivan and
Nina Sato. "All of them didn't play long, but they did some great things."
The Queens shot 31 percent (21-of-68) from the field, including just 25 percent (9-of-36) in the second half when they were outscored, 47-31.
"We didn't shoot the ball like we usually do," Robertson said. " if the ball doesn't go in the hole, we can't let that affect how we play elsewhere
MACU got 22 points and 16 boards from Alexia Kelley. Coming off the bench, Lindsey Mann and Alliyah Spatafora added 19 and 17 points, respectively. The Lady Evangels hit 41 percent (27-of-66) of their field goals, including 8-of-21 from 3-point range, which was five more than Wayland hit in 10 tries. MACU outrebounded Wayland, 52-44.
Wayland started the game on a roll, notching the first eight points. The Flying Queens were up by a dozen, 25-13, with 10:19 left before intermission. That's when things first went south.
MACU went on a 15-2 run as the Lady Evangels came all the way back to take a 37-35 lead at the break. The Lady Evangels continued their hot streak in the second half, going on a 17-4 run to break open a 15-point, 54-39 advantage.
Wayland immediately responded, though, scoring nine unanswered points to pull to within 54-48. The Flying Queens trimmed the deficit to just 62-60 with nine minutes still on the clock, but that's as close as WBU got.
Over the next five minutes, MACU outscored the visitors, 19-2, to put the game away.
"We played solid defense much of the game. We just have to get better in certain areas," Robertson said.
The Flying Queens next play University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma (6-7, 3-2) at 1 p.m. Saturday in Hutcherson Center. USAO defeated last-placed St. Gregory's on Thursday, 71-51.
