Women's Basketball 11/11/2020 3:56:00 PM Adam Stanek - MACU Sports Information

Women’s Basketball Ready For Road Matchup At SAGU, Texas Wesleyan

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Mid-America Christian women's basketball team is prepared to hit the road for its first contest away from the Gaulke Activity Center. The Evangels will take on Southwestern Assemblies of God in Waxahachie, Texas at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday night before returning home to take on Texas Wesleyan for a 2 p.m. tip-off on Saturday.

LAST TIME OUT
Mid-America Christian (2-1) faced a tough challenge against nationally second-ranked Wayland Baptist at home on Nov. 5 as the Evangels dropped their first game of the 2020-21 season in a hard-fought 84-72 contest.

In the defeat, senior guard Lexi Hernandez played well, scoring a team-high 18 points on 7-of-16 shooting to go with eight rebounds and two assists.

After some stellar shooting in their firsts two games, the Evangels struggled against the Flying Queens defense, as MACU was limited to only 24-for-64 (37.5 percent) shooting from the field and 5-of-23 (21.7 percent) from the three-point arc.

SCOUTING THE LADY LIONS
Southwestern Assemblies of God will be playing their first contest since Oct. 27, as the Lions opened the season with a 92-81 home loss to Oklahoma Wesleyan. SAGU struggled offensively in the contest, shooting just 39.2 percent and 32.4 percent from the three-point arc while knocking down only 40 percent of its free throws.

Senior guard Sydney Meador led the Lions with 18 points on 7-of-21 shooting and 2-for-9 from the three-point arc while dishing out a team-high five assists. Freshman guard Layla Mendoza scored 17 points in her SAGU debut on 6-of-11 shooting and went 2-for-5 from three.

Senior forward Alexis Casher and freshman forward Rebecca Bryant will likely lead the Lions rebounding efforts after recording 13 and 10 rebounds respectively against the Eagles.

HISTORY WITH THE LADY LIONS
The series between the two teams has been a tight one since Mid-America Christian joined the NAIA in 2007 as MACU holds a slim 10-9 edge in the series. The two teams split the season series last year with the Evangels winning a tightly contested 86-83 home contest on Jan. 18 before dropping a 76-74 heartbreaker in Waxahachie on Feb. 13.

SCOUTING THE LADY RAMS
Texas Wesleyan will head into its Thursday night contest against Science & Arts with an 0-1 record after the Rams dropped a 58-53 stunner at Central Christian on Nov. 7.

In that matchup, TWU could only muster a 25.4 percent shooting clip against the Tigers, knocking down just 19.4 percent of its three-pointers and 50 percent of its free throw attempts.

Senior guard Hailee Walls led the offensive efforts for TWU, scoring 16 points on 4-of-14 shooting and going 2-for-7 from three. Senior guard Evie Whorley led the Lady Rams with 17 rebounds while Makayla Coy ripped down 13 in the loss to Central Christian. Alexus Brigham was TWU's top distributor, finishing with a team-best four assists.

HISTORY WITH THE LADY RAMS
Mid-America Christian has fared well against Texas Wesleyan since the two teams started facing each other in 2009 as MACU has taken 14 of the 18 matchups in the series. Last season, the Evangels faced the Lady Rams three times, falling in an 80-64 matchup on Jan. 18 in Fort Worth before bouncing back with an 83-77 victory at the Gaulke Activity Center on Feb. 15. The two teams faced each other in the SAC Quarterfinals on Mar. 3, where the Evangels survived and advanced with an 80-75 win.

ROAD RAGE
As great as the Evangels were at home last season, Mid-America Christian will be looking to improve upon its road record from a season ago. During the 2019-20 campaign, MACU went 14-3 inside the Gaulke Activity Center, but managed just a 6-6 record in road contests. It was the first time in Head Coach Hannah Moeller's tenure the Evangels didn't post a winning record away from the Gaulke Activity Center after posting a 24-18 combined road record in the previous three seasons under Moeller's guidance.

CRASH KRAUS
Through her first three games, freshman forward Shelby Kraus has provided a spark for the Evangels on the interior with her abilities to crash the glass and score in the paint. The Moore, Oklahoma native currently leads the team with 21 rebounds (7 rpg) and has blocked a team-leading four shots to go with four steals. Kraus also ranks third on the team in scoring, averaging 13.7 ppg on a blistering 68 percent shooting clip. The six-foot forward has also scored in double-figures in every game she's competed in this season after dropping 10 points on 5-of-9 shooting against the Flying Queens last week.

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