Box Score Bethany, Oklahoma – The 10
th ranked Flying Queens suffered their first defeat of the season on the road at the hands of the Eagles of Southwestern Christian to snap their eight-game win streak to begin the season.
The Flying Queens opened tonight's game with a 12-4 run that was sparked by junior
Megan Nestor scoring the first six points of the game for Wayland Baptist followed by two buckets from senior
Linda Brice.
Kaitlyn Jerden would push the Queens lead to 15-6 with just over five minutes left in the opening quarter.
The Eagles responded to the Queens hot start with an 11-0 run to take a 17-15 lead with just over three minutes left in the first. The Eagles lead wouldn't last long as junior
Teodora Popovic sunk an open three to put the Queens back in front, 18-17. Nestor capped off the first quarter with a nice bucket off the feed from Jerden to give the Queens a 24-21 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Nestor would assert her dominance for the Queens again early in the second quarter by going on a personal 6-2 scoring run to give WBU a 33-27 lead over the Eagles. Popovic would later knock down her second three of the game to push the Queens lead up to 45-37 with just over a minute until the halftime break.
The Queens would carry a 47-39 lead over the Eagles into the locker room at the halftime intermission.
The Eagles battled back to begin the second half and trimmed their deficit to just two points after four minutes of play, trailing the Queens 51-49. The Eagles would then tie the game up at 53-53, but freshman
Brooklyn Hurtado put the Queens back ahead with a tough bucket to make it 55-53 with just over three minutes left in the third.
Nestor closed the third quarter for the Queens by scoring two straight buckets followed by two free throws from Popovic to give WBU a 62-57 lead heading into the final quarter.
The Eagles once again showed their fight and wouldn't let the Queens pull away late, fighting back to make it 68-66, Queens, with just over five minutes left in the game. The Eagles trailed 70-69, but they would answer with a 6-2 scoring run to take a 73-70 lead over the Queens with just over two minutes left in regulation.
The Queens would tie the game up at 73 a piece after sinking a few free throws, but the Eagles answered with a 6-0 scoring run to take a 79-73 lead with just over one minute left in the game. The Queens couldn't overcome their late deficit and fell short to the Eagles, 86-76, for their first loss of the season.
"I give all the credit in the world to Southwestern Christian," says Head Coach
Jason Cooper. "They played hard and earned that victory."
Coach Cooper continued, "Being undefeated is both a blessing and a curse. Going on the road for the first SAC trip is always a shock to the system. I think we were a little too comfortable. Our practice intensity, our sense of accomplishment and maybe a little arrogance got us tonight."
Nestor was dominant tonight, finishing with 29 points on 11-14 shooting from the floor, five rebounds, and three steals. Jerden added 13 points, five assists, and a steal. Popovic scored eight points with three rebounds and an assist.
"It's a hard lesson, but hopefully it turns into something good for us. May be a little bit of a wakeup call," said Coach Cooper.
The 10
th ranked Flying Queens will return to the court on Saturday, December 7
th when they take on the Stars of Oklahoma City University in Oklahoma City at 2:00 PM.
