OKLAHOMA CITY – The No. 19 MACU women's basketball team will officially open Sooner Athletic Conference play this week with a pair of road contests as the Evangels face Wayland Baptist inside the Hutcherson Center in Plainview, Texas at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 30 before heading to Goodwell, Oklahoma for a 2 p.m. contest inside Anchor D Arena against Oklahoma Panhandle State on Saturday, Dec. 2.
 
MACU SEASON REPORT

• Record: 6-0
• Last Game: Won vs. Our Lady of the Lake (Texas) – 89-48 – Nov. 20, 2023 – Gaulke Activity Center
• Stat Leaders:
  • Points: Shy Christopher (131, 21.8 ppg), Kylee Scheer (131, 21.8 ppg), Jaci Calavan (118, 19.7 ppg)
  • FG% (M-A, %): Sydney Savage (22-31, 71.0), Kylee Scheer (47-80, 58.8), Shy Christopher (53-97, 54.6)
  • 3FG% (M-A, %): Kylee Scheer (18-35, 51.4), Jaci Calavan (16-34, 47.1)
  • FT% (M-A, %): Jaci Calavan (20-20, 100), Kayla Highfill (10-10, 100), Kylee Scheer (19-21, 90.5)
  • Reb: Kylee Scheer (53, 8.8 rpg), Jaci Calavan (44, 7.3 rpg), Ashley Hopper (37, 6.2 rpg)
  • Assists: Mia Smith (29, 4.8 apg), Kylee Scheer (20, 3.3 apg), Sydney Adee (18, 3.0 apg)
  • Steals: Kylee Scheer (24, 4.0 spg), Jaci Calavan (10, 1.7 spg), Sydney Savage (9, 1.3 spg)
  • Blocks: Ashley Hopper (4, 0.7 bpg), Kayla Highfill (3, 0.6 bpg)
• Team Notes:
  • Mid-America Christian went an unblemished 6-0 in its non-conference schedule while putting together multiple dominant performances. MACU wrapped up its non-conference slate with an impressive 89-48 victory over Our Lady of the Lake for the program's first ever win over the Saints.
  • The Evangels enter SAC competition as the No. 2 scoring offense in the NAIA at 102.7 points per game while beating its opposition by an average of 40.9 points per game. On-top of its scoring prowess, the Evangels have been spectacular on the glass as well, ranking fourth in the NAIA in rebounds per game at 53.
  • While MACU's offense has overwhelmed the opposition, the Evangels defense has played a major factor in the scoring onslaught as the defense is allowing just 61.8 ppg and forcing the opposition into committing 24.0 turnovers per game, ranking 16^th in the NAIA in that category.
  • MACU has raked in the early season weekly awards as the Evangels have boasted the first two SAC Players of the Week in Jaci Calavan and Kylee Scheer while the pair of guards have also combined for three of the first four NCCAA Student-Athlete of the Week honors.

SCOUTING REPORT
Wayland Baptist (Texas)

• Record: 3-1
• Last Game: Won at The Master's (Calif.) – 62-58 – Nov. 25, 2023 – Santa Clarita, Calif.
• Series vs MACU (2008): WBU leads 25-6
• Last Game vs MACU: MACU won 96-68 – Jan. 26, 2023 – Gaulke Activity Center
• Series Streak: MACU won 1
• Players to Watch:
  • Linda Brice – JR – G
    • 66 Points (16.5 ppg), 22-68 FG (32.4%), 9-35 3FG (25.7%), 13-23 FT (56.5%), 15 Reb (3.8 rpg), 9 Assists (2.3 apg), 5 Steals (1.3 spg)
  • Megan Nestor – SO – F
    • 36 Points (9.0 ppg), 12-20 FG (60.0%), 12-16 FT (75.0%), 33 Reb (8.3 rpg), 5 Assists (1.3 apg), 6 Steals (1.5 spg)
  • Emily Sigala – JR – G
    • 33 Points (8.3 ppg), 10-26 FG (38.5%), 6-17 3FG (38.5%), 7-8 FT (87.5%), 10 Reb (2.5 rpg), 24 Assists (6.0 apg), 7 Steals (1.8 spg)
• Team Notes:
  • Wayland Baptist is coming off a strong showing at The Master's Thanksgiving Classic last weekend. After battling tough in a 69-56 loss to No. 9 Vanguard (Calif.), the Flying Queens rallied in the fourth quarter to defeat The Master's 62-58 to wrap-up the event.
  • Entering SAC play as the league's fourth-best scoring offense at 73.3 ppg, WBU's offensive attack has a far different look in 2023-24 after graduating Jenna Cooper-Jackson while Kaitly (Edgemon) Jerden has been on the shelf to start the season. The Flying Queens have an incredibly balanced lineup with seven players averaging more than 8.0 ppg.
  • Junior guard Linda Brice has led Wayland's offensive efforts as the only player on the team averaging in double-figures at 16.5 ppg while shooting 32.4 percent from the field. Megan Nestor has been a strong presence in the low post for the Flying Queens, averaging 9.0 points and 8.3 rebounds per game while Emily Sigala has been the catalyst in the point position, averaging 8.3 points and 8.0 assists per contest.
  • Mid-America Christian will be looking to snap a 14-game losing streak inside the Hutcherson Center as MACU's last win inside the venue came in an 84-80 result on Feb. 23, 2008. Last season, the Evangels nearly snapped the streak on Dec. 3, 2022, but MACU lost a heartbreaker when Kaitlyn Edgemon knocked down a buzzer-beating layup to allow WBU to come away with the 55-54 win.

Oklahoma Panhandle State

• Record: 0-2
• Last Game: Lost vs. Texas A&M-Texarkana – 85-59 – Nov. 11, 2023 – Plainview, Texas
• Series vs MACU (2018-): MACU leads 9-1
• Last Game vs MACU: MACU won 86-49 – Jan. 28, 2023 – Gaulke Activity Center
• Series Streak: MACU won 9
• Players to Watch:
  • Jana Radovanovic – JR – F
    • 19 Points (9.5 ppg), 7-13 FG (53.8%), 5-8 FT (62.5%), 11 Reb (5.5 rpg), 2 Steals (1.0 spg)
  • Sierra Tate – SR – G
    • 18 Points (9.0 ppg), 5-17 FG (29.4%), 7-10 FT (70.0%), 12 Reb (6.0 rpg), 7 Assists (3.5 apg), 5 Steals (2.5 spg)
  • Heidi Rodriguez – FR – G
    • 16 Points (8.0 ppg), 6-16 FG (37.5%), 3-10 3FG (30.0%), 11 Reb (5.5 rpg), 3 Assists (1.5 apg)
• Team Notes:
  • Oklahoma Panhandle State has primarily played exhibition contests as it enters its SAC opener against Southwestern Christian on Thursday night as the Aggies only countable contests of the season came in the Queens Classic hosted by Wayland Baptist on Nov. 10-11. In that classic, OPSU dropped a 65-45 contest to Haskell Indian Nations (Kan.) before wrapping it up with an 85-59 loss to Texas A&M-Texarkana.
  • Ball security has plagued Panhandle State in the early season as OPSU is turning the ball over at a rate of 34.5 giveaways per game. Offensively, the Aggies rank last in the SAC in scoring offense at 52.0 ppg.
  • The three-player tandem of Jana Radovanovic, Sierra Tate and Heidi Rodriguez has been the main contributors for the Aggies both in scoring and rebounding in their first two games of the season. The trio has combined to score 53 of OPSU's 104 points while pulling down 44 of its 88 boards.
  • Ever since Panhandle State defeated Mid-America Christian 74-59 inside Anchor D Arena on Jan. 11, 2018, the Evangels have dominated the all-time series by winning the last nine contests. However, their last meeting in Anchor D Arena last year was a nail biter as OPSU narrowly missed upsetting MACU as a last-second three fell short and the Evangels escaped with a 69-68 victory.