Goodwell, Okla. – The 12
th ranked Flying Queens took care of business Monday night after overpowering Oklahoma Panhandle State University, 90-56, to move to 11-1 in Sooner Athletic Conference play.
Wayland Baptist (14-1, 11-1 SAC) opened tonight's game by jumping out to an 11-4 lead after
Megan Nestor and
Emily Sigala combined for ten of the Queen's points to give them the early momentum.
The Aggies extinguished the Queens momentum by cutting their deficit to 15-11 with just over a minute remaining in the opening frame. However, the Queens would close the first quarter strong after a tough bucket from freshman
Brooklyn Hurtado followed by a three-pointer from
Teodora Popovic as time expired, giving Wayland Baptist a 20-11 at the end of the period.
The Aggies opened the second quarter strong by knocking down a couple of jumpers and going a perfect 4 for 4 from the free throw line to make it 24-19, Queens. The Flying Queens would quickly extend their lead to ten points after another bucket from Nestor followed by another open three for Popovic, making it 29-19 midway through the second quarter.
The Queens closed the first half by getting buckets from
Bobbie Fouquet and
Linda Brice to take a 40-26 lead and the momentum into the halftime break.
The third quarter was completely dominated by the Flying Queens, and it started by
Peyton North scoring the team's first five points to extend their lead to 45-28. Popovic later knocked down her third three-pointer of the night to push the WBU lead to 58-35 with just over two minutes left in the period.
Kaitlyn Jerden capped off the dominant quarter with back-to-back buckets to give the Queens a 64-35 lead heading to the final quarter. Overall, the Queens outscored the Aggies 24-7 and held OPSU to just 13.3% shooting from the floor and 16.7% from three-point range.
The fourth quarter began with the Flying Queens getting two early buckets from Jerden and Nestor, followed by an open three from North to make it 71-39. Sophomore
Jadyn Trusler sunk two late three-pointers down the stretch to seal the 90-56 victory for the 12
th ranked Flying Queens over the Aggies of OPSU.
Nestor dominated OPSU with 18 points on 7 of 9 shooting from the floor, 14 rebounds, two assists, and two steals in only 18 minutes. Popovic added 14 points, knocking down 4 of 5 three-point attempts, while dishing two assists in 23 minutes off the bench. Hurtado finished with 10 points, seven rebounds, and a perfect 8 for 8 from the free throw line in 18 minutes off the bench.
Head Coach
Jason Cooper recapped tonight's game saying, "Meg is playing very dominant and efficient basketball. She is tough to handle, and she is locked in. Teodora was a huge spark off the bench for us. She is shooting the ball very well. 14 big points and 4/5 from three."
Coach Cooper continued, "Brooklyn had one of, if not her best game tonight. 10 and 7 are the kind of numbers she's capable of. It was good to see her break out tonight. She did a good job attacking in the and incredible performance from the free throw line."
The 12
th ranked Flying Queens will take the floor on Saturday, January 11
th against #18 Mid-America Christian University in Oklahoma City. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 PM.
