After win over Wesleyan, Queens set for OCU

Two days after their triumph over Southwestern Assemblies of God University and five days ahead of their first-place showdown with Oklahoma City, the sixth-ranked Wayland Baptist Flying Queens gained another Sooner Athletic Conference victory as they faced off against the Texas Wesleyan Lady Rams on Saturday afternoon in Hutcherson Center, winning 80-53.
 
The third-place Lady Rams (6-8, 4-2 SAC) held the mid-first quarter lead, 11-6, but the Flying Queens (12-2, 6-0) quickly gained the momentum and were ahead the rest of the way.
 
For the second straight game, Wayland's scoring started on a 3-pointer by Kambrey Blakey, a newcomer to the starting lineup. After pouring in a career-high 25 points against SAGU, Blakey entered Saturday's game with enthusiasm and ended it again leading the Queens with 15 points on 6-of-8 field goal shooting and 2-of-4 from the three.
 
WBU coach Alesha Ellis had good things to say about Blakey.
 
"Kambrey had another big game for us. It's nice to have different players step up in different games and that's exactly what Kam has done for us in these past two games."
 
Having a 40-23 at halftime allowed the Flying Queens to give their starters a breather and a chance for some others to step up, and they did. Every player on the Queens' roster got to play, and nine out of the 10 put points on the board. Wayland, having 22 bench points compared to the Lady Rams' six, has proven it's strong beyond the starting five.
 
"Our bench stepped up today. We have a good bench this year, and it's nice to see them get in the game and play the way they do," Ellis said, "We don't lose much at all when we put any of our players in from the bench. They played well and looked like they had some fun."
 
In addition to Blakey, the Queens had three others score in double digits against the Lady Rams. Deborah VanDijk contributed 13 points, Morgan Bennett had 11 and Kaylee Edgemon got 10, just missing a double-double with nine rebounds.
 
"We had four in double figures, which is good. It keeps us well-rounded and just makes us tougher to guard," Ellis said.
 
Freshmen Cailyn Breckel and Caycee Holson combined for 10 points, making their coach proud of her younger players. "Our freshmen did well tonight. As a coach, the more I can get those young ones in just makes us better for the future."
 
The Flying Queens achieved their 80 points on 31-of-54 field goal shooting (57 percent), and went 9-of-23 (39 percent) from the 3-point line.
 
The Rams, led by forward Kyla Grant's 18 points, were held to 22-of-63 (35 percent) shooting from the field and 4-of-16 (25 percent) from the arch. Texas Wesleyan suffered 17 turnovers, while the Queens gave it away 14 times.
 
"We looked a little more relaxed shooting the ball, and I thought we executed our game plan a lot better today," Ellis said.
 
The Flying Queens now focus on preparing for the 10th-ranked Oklahoma City Stars, who are tied with Wayland atop the conference as the only other undefeated team in the SAC. The Stars (12-1, 5-0) – whose lone loss was at home, 89-81, to No. 15 Our Lady of the Lake, a team WBU defeated at the OCU Classic in mid-November, 101-77 – snagged a win Saturday against USAO, 64-38.
 
The Flying Queens and Stars, who first play Tuesday at Southwestern Christian, face off at 6 p.m. Jan. 10 in Abe Lemons Arena.