The Lowdown: Northwestern Oklahoma State University @ Mid-America Christian University
Time: Nov. 22 @ 6 p.m.
Location: Gaulke Activity Center, Oklahoma City, Okla.
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Live Stats:
The Dish on the Lady Evangels: The Mid-America Christian University Lady Evangels are 6-1 this season and are coming off a thrilling, 100-91 victory over the LSU-Shreveport Pilots last Saturday (Nov. 19) at the OCU Classic. It's a big win, as the Pilots just missed being ranked in the NAIA Top 25 Preseason Coaches' poll, finishing as the top vote-getter.
To get to overtime, the Lady Evangels needed some late heroics from Sarai Rodriguez, who nailed two treys in the final 21 seconds of regulation to help overcome a four-point deficit.
Rodriguez's first trey made it a one-point game and following two made free throws by the Pilots, she nailed another from long-distance to tie the score at 83-83 with 11 seconds remaining.
The Lady Evangels then got a crucial stop on the defensive end, including a timely block by D'Shala Powell to help send the game into the extra session.
Once in overtime, it was all Lady Evangels, who outscored the Pilots 17-8.
A free throw by Brittany Thompson started a run of eight straight points to begin the extra period.
Rodriguez scored four points of the 8-0 run that was sandwiched around a three by Nevada Denton.
Following a layup by Kourtney Pennywell for the Pilots, Mikki Flores stepped up with two at the charity stripe and then nailed a huge trey that pushed the MACU edge to 96-87 with just 1:27 left.
After the Pilots scored four straight to come within five, Rodriguez and Denton each hit two free throws over the final 16 seconds to put it away.
Sarai Rodriguez has been the offensive catalyst for the Lady Evangels, leading the team in scoring with 21.3 points per game that ranks second in the Sooner Athletic Conference. Rodriguez has already earned two National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) Player of the Week awards along with one OklahomaSports.Net honor.
Nevada Denton is second in scoring at 11.3 ppg, while Jamie Lamb (11.1 ppg) and Mikki Flores (10.0) are also scoring in double-figures. Flores has also dished out a team-high 44 assists on the season, which is tops in the SAC.
The Dish on the Rangers: The Northwestern Oklahoma State University Rangers, a former SAC member that now competes as an NCAA D-II school in the Great American Conference, are 0-4 this season. The Rangers most recently lost 81-35 at No. 25-ranked Arkansas Tech University on Saturday (Nov. 19).
Kalea King leads the Rangers with 9.8 ppg and Kori Barrios has a team-high 6.3 rpg. Ashli Robinson has recorded a team-leading seven assists on the season.
The Series: The Lady Evangels are 5-5 vs. the Rangers since becoming an NAIA school, with a 3-2 mark at home. This will be the first meeting between the two teams since NWOSU became an NCAA D-II program in 2012.
The Coaches:
Hannah Moeller has begun her first season 6-1 as head coach of the Mid-America Christian University women's basketball program.
Moeller is no stranger to MACU; she served as the assistant women's basketball coach during the 2010-2011 season for current Yale University assistant coach Roman Owen.
Moeller takes over the program after a four-year tenure at Hillsdale Free Will Baptist College, now Randall University. During her time at Hillsdale, Moeller was named the 2016 NCCAA National Coach of the Year, won two national championships, was twice named Southwest Regional Coach of the Year, coached nine All-American players and touted a 105-28 coaching record.
In her four seasons working with Hillsdale Free Will Baptist, Moeller accomplished the following:
2016 NCCAA National Coach of the Year
2016 NCCAA National Runner-Up
2013, 2014 ACCA National Champions
2015 ACCA National Runner-Up
2013 and 2016 NCCAA Southwest Region Coach of the Year
2016 season spent 14 weeks ranked #1 in the country
In addition, Moeller was responsible for the recruitment and development of the following student-athletes:
2016 NCCAA/ACCA National Player of the Year
Five NCCAA All-Americans, three for repeating years
Nine ACCA All-Americans, five for repeating years
Three NCCAA Southwest Region Most Valuable Players
Nine NCCAA All-Southwest Region players
14 NCCAA/ACCA Scholar Athletes
Moeller served as the associate head coach at Hillsdale Free Will Baptist during the 2011-2012 and helped lead the Lady Saints to the 2012 ACCA National Championship. Moeller is no stranger to MACU; she served as the assistant women's basketball coach during the 2010-2011 season for current Yale University assistant coach Roman Owen.
After signing to play basketball at the University of Louisiana-Monroe as a senior in high school, Moeller finished her playing career at Rogers State University where she was named the 2009 Rogers State University Female Student Athlete of the Year, a 2009 NAIA Academic All-American and the 2009 Distinguished Graduate of the Sports Management department.
Moeller holds an Associate of Arts from Southwestern Christian University and a Bachelor of Science in Sports Management from Rogers State University. Her graduate work is in physical education from the University of Central Oklahoma.
Hannah, her husband Marcus and their 10-month old son Owen reside in Oklahoma City and attend Frontline Church Downtown.
Tasha Diesselhorst is in her first season as head coach of Northwestern Oklahoma State University. Prior to NWOSU, Diesselhorst served a nine-year stint as head coach of Pond Creek-Hunter High School, where she guided the Lady Panthers to a Class A state championship in 2014 and a state runner-up finish in 2016. Diesselhorst oversaw a dominant stretch from 2010-16, leading the Lady Panthers to seven straight conference titles, with a perfect 49-0 record in conference play and a 170-29 mark overall.
Up Next: The Lady Evangels will open up Sooner Athletic Conference play at home on Dec. 1 against Texas Wesleyan University. Tip-off will be 6 pm inside the Gaulke Activity Center.
