EDMOND, Okla. - The Lady Eagles (3-3, LSC 0-2) entered into the juggernaut of Lone Star Conference play on the road last weekend. Unfortunately, OC stumbled across two roadblocks in Eastern New Mexico and West Texas A&M, coming back to the Nest looking for their first win in conference play when they host UT Permian Basin (5-3, LSC 3-0) and Angelo State (4-3, LSC 2-1)
Eagles Outlook
The Oklahoma Christian Lady Eagles continue to get most of their offensive production from the trio of veteran leaders: guards Kate Bradley, Nakia Cullom, and forward Taylor Jackson. They also see great production off the bench from guards Caitylnn Jordan and Ciara Harris.
Despite the tough losses last weekend, the Lady Eagles still lead the league in free-throw percentage, maintaining just under 80% as a team. This is highlighted by three players on the OC roster in the top-10 in the conference: Caitylnn Jordan, who holds the top spot with 90%; Elikya Baseyila, who is fourth with 85%; and Ciara Harris, who is ninth with 76% from the line.
Taylor Jackson counties to lead the Lady Eagles, coming off two double-figure performances, including going a perfect 8-8 from the charity stripe against WT. Jackson backs up her offensive production with physical and determined play around the basket, averaging 7.3 rebounds a game this season.
The Lady Eagles will look to get back in the win column, thanks to the leadership and shooting of Bradley and Cullom's front court play against two teams that come into the Nest and hold multiple game-winning streaks over OC.
Scouting the Falcons
Coming off the program's best season under head coach Rae Booth, where the Falcons found themselves in the LSC tournament championship and received an invite to NCAA Regionals, falling to Adams State, and returning ten players from last year's roster, the Falcons came into LSC play with confidence and were picked to finish fourth in the preseason polls.
The Falcons, behind the stellar play of fifth-year guard Taysha Rushton, averaging 18.3 points per game, 3.5 rebounds, two steals, and four assists, come into the second week of LSC with a 3-0 record.
Leading the Falcons in rebounding with 7.1 per game, Khiara Flugence is also a consistent source of scoring, averaging just over ten points.
UTPB holds a steady lead over the Lady Eagles in the all-time series, including winning the last four matchups. In the game last year in Odessa, the Falcons claimed the 71-61 victory behind the play of Avalon Munoz and Makala Bingley, scoring over 12 points and putting production on the defensive side of the ball.
Scouting the Rambelles
Head coach Alesha Ellis, in her fifth season with Angelo State, only returned five players from last year's 20-12 season. Despite a younger roster, with eight first-year students, the Rambelles were picked to finish in the top half of the conference behind Madeline Stephens's sole senior leadership.
The Rambelles find over 50% of their scoring from senior Stephens and freshman Majik Esquivel. Both are averaging over 12 points a contest behind stellar shooting from the foul line.
The Rambelles maintain a defensive game plan. They come into the match with a 4-3 overall record and a 2-1 conference record, with just a 2.7-point advantage over their opponents. Stephens and junior Keniah Williams lead the team on the defensive end. The two have combined to block 20 shots this season, and average just under ten rebounds a game.
Angelo State has won the last three matchups against the Lady Eagles, taking a 2-6 series lead. At Angelo's previous year, Madeline Stephens and Landry Morrow completed career performances against the Lady Eagles to cap off the Rambelles' 12-point victory.
