Plainview – The #17 Flying Queens picked up the 76-60 win on Homecoming over the Stars of Oklahoma City University to improve to 22-2 on the season and 19-2 in Sooner Athletic Conference play with three games to go.
Wayland Baptist couldn't have asked for a better start in this one – starting the game with a 12-0 scoring run that started with
Peyton North knocking down back-to-back threes. North's scorching start continued as she knocked down her third three-pointer of the opening quarter to give the Queens a 15-2 lead. The Queens carried a 24-15 lead into the second quarter after a tough layup from junior
Teodora Popovic.
The Queens began the second quarter with a quick 6-0 scoring run featuring four points from senior
Linda Brice to take a 30-15 lead over the Stars. Senior
Emily Sigala would later knock down an open three followed by a tough bucket from
Brooklyn Hurtado to give the Queens a 21-point lead – their largest lead of the game. Wayland Baptist held a 44-27 lead at the halftime break.
The Stars started much stronger in the second half and began with an 8-2 run to trim their deficit to 46-35. The Queens pushed their lead back to 15-points after back-to-back jumpers from
Bobbie Fouquet and
Kaitlyn Jerden. The Queens lead gradually faded down the stretch of the third quarter, and they only led by nine points entering the final quarter, 57-48.
Nestor and Jerden got the Queens rolling to begin the fourth quarter as the duo combined for the first eight points to extend the lead to 65-52. North and Jerden then went back-to-back on successful threes to make it a 19-point game with just over five minutes remaining. The Queens were clutch at the free throw line down the stretch to secure the 76-60 victory over Oklahoma City to maintain their pace at the top of the Sooner Athletic Conference standings.
"I thought we had a pretty dominant performance all around. Our girls were locked in and battled hard," Head Coach
Jason Cooper said when talking about his team's performance. "Our first half effort put us in control early. I love how we are sharing the basketball. 24 assists and just 7 turnovers makes things very smooth."
Jerden recorded her sixth straight 20+ point game in the win – finishing with 20 points, three rebounds, and two assists. Nestor finished with 16 points, 17 rebounds, and three steals. North contributed 15 points on 5/9 shooting from three to go along with five assists and three rebounds.
After this afternoon's performances, Nestor now leads the SAC in points per game (18.9 pts/g), while Jerden is third in scoring (16.7 pts/g). Nestor is also second in the SAC in total rebounding (14.0 reb/g) and first in FG% (60.5%). Jerden is third in FG% (47.2%). North leads the SAC in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.9), and Sigala is right behind her in second (2.3)
As a team, the Queens lead the SAC in points per game (83.6 pts/g), total rebounds per game (47.4 reb/g), and assists per game (19.8 ast/g).
Coach Cooper highlighted a few performances, "It was great to see Peyton get going from the 3PT line again. She had a few tough shooting games in a row. In typical Peyton fashion, she spent a ton of hours shooting on her own these past few days. Megan was tough again and had another double-double, and she is really locked in. Kait played big, and I was glad to see her get another 20-point performance."
Up next for the #17 Flying Queens is a trip to Point Lookout, Missouri for a match-up with the Bobcats of College of the Ozarks. Tip-off is scheduled for Thursday, February 13
th at 6:00 PM.
