Six Lone Star Conference women’s basketball teams went undefeated last week. St. Edward’s went 2-0 with wins over No. 16 West Texas A&M and Eastern New Mexico in Austin. Lubbock Christian, Texas A&M-Commerce, Oklahoma Christian and Cameron all remained undefeated in the conference with wins.
LSC women’s basketball teams are 75-50 overall this season and 20-11 against Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference teams, the other league in the NCAA South Central Region.
LSC schedule and results available here:
https://lonestarconference.org/calendar.aspx?path=wbball&
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSIVE
Deijah Blanks, St. Edward's, GR, Public Health, F, San Diego, Calif., Mount Miguel HS
Blanks led the Hilltoppers to a pair of conference wins this week including an upset of No. 16 West Texas A&M on Thursday. Blanks was the leading scorer in both games, hitting 50 percent of her shots from the floor and averaging 23.5 points per game. She posted 24 points against WT and 23 points against Eastern New Mexico to keep the Hilltoppers 3-1 in conference. Blanks also added 12 rebounds, two assists and four steals during the week.
DEFENSIVE
Sammie Dufek, St. Edward's, SO, Business Administration, F, Flower Mound, Texas, Marcus HS
Dufek was huge off the bench for the Hilltoppers, helping hold opponents 40.6 shooting from the floor while racking up 10 blocks during the week and putting up a double-double. Dufek played a huge role in the Hilltoppers upset win over No. 16 West Texas A&M turning away a game-high five blocks while pulling down six rebounds and a steal. She also helped force 26 turnovers, the second-highest of the season for the Hilltoppers. Against Eastern New Mexico, Dufek had another five blocks and a steal while posting a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds, seven of which were offensive boards.
WEEKLY AWARDS
Offensive
N-11 Mackenzie Hailey, Tarleton
N-18 Maddi Chitsey, Lubbock Christian
N-25 Ashton Duncan, Lubbock Christian
D-2 Mackenzie Hailey, Tarleton (2)
D-9 De’Anira Moore, Angelo State
D-16 Deijah Blanks, St. Edward’s
Defensive
N-11 Maddison Glass, Texas A&M-Commerce
N-18 Juliana Robertson, Lubbock Christian
N-25 Alexis Bryant, Texas A&M-Commerce
D-2 Juliana Louis, Texas A&M-Commerce
D-9 Sawyer Lloyd, Angelo State
D-16 Sammie Dufek, St. Edward’s
SELECTED NOTABLE PERFORMANCES
Ava Battese, Cameron, scored a career-high 29 points in the team's win of UT Permian Basin on Saturday. The program's record holder for three-point field goals made in a career and single-game was 7-13 from the perimeter in CU's 90-78 win, which was one shy of her single-game record. Battese was also 8-8 from the foul line and scored 16 points in the fourth quarter alone. She added five rebounds, two assists, and three steals in the winning effort. Through three games this season, Battese has averaged 17.3 points per game and is 12-30 from three-point range.
Ravae Payne, Texas A&M-Kingsville, led the offensive effort for the Javelinas in a 61-53 loss to Texas A&M International over the weekend. She put away 23 points shooting 8-of-14 from the field, a new career-high that surpassed her total of 18 against Oklahoma Christian on November 21. For the year, she is averaging 11.0 points per game on a .457 shooting percentage, both second-best for the Javelinas
Mykiel Burleson, Texas A&M-Commerce, had a career day from three against UT Tyler, hitting five triples. She finished the game with 19 points with seven baskets, shooting 54 percent from the field. She also had three assists as she helped the Lion offense have one of its most efficient games of the season. Burleson sparked the Lions in the second half, leading the Lions on a third-quarter run that helped them run away with a 71-38 win.
Maddison Collyer, Oklahoma Christian, played a critical role in OC's 74-63 win over Arkansas-Fort Smith, scoring a season-high 18 points to go with a game-high six assists, a career-high two blocked shots, two steals and three rebounds. Her 3-pointer with 4:13 left in the third quarter put OC ahead and the Lady Eagles never trailed again. She scored eight of her team's final 13 points over the game's final five minutes, including hitting four clutch free throws in the final 1:16. She finished 11 of 13 from the line for the game. OC is one of only three LSC teams that have started 3-0 in league play.
Maddi Chitsey, Lubbock Christian, led the way for the 9-0 Lady Chaps with 16 points, eight rebounds and four blocks while battling inside with Tarleton's Mackenzie Hailey. Maddie had 14 of her points in the opening half of play. She went 3-of-3 from the free-throw line, as LCU went a perfect 7-of-7 from the line, and Chitsey was one of seven different Lady Chaps to connect with a three-point field goal in the game. LCU claimed their 69th straight home win and 57th straight conference home win Saturday with a 58-49 win over Tarleton State.
Kylie Collins, Tarleton State, was perfect behind the arc during Saturday’s nine-point loss to No. 2 Lubbock Christian on the road. Collins hit 3-3 on three pointers and was 3-6 from the field during the match-up. Two three-pointers from Collins at the end of the third quarter cut the Lady Chaps advantage to three, 45-42. The Arlington native also added three rebounds and three assists.
Mar'Shalia Lollie, had another dynamic weekend as the junior forward scored 11 points and grabbed 13 rebounds in the Lady Lions' game against Oklahoma Christian on the road. Lollie also recorded two assists and six steals. Overall, Lollie shot 42 percent from the field and 83 percent from the free throw line.
Mackenzie Hailey, Tarleton State, led the Texans with 14 points in Saturday’s nine-point loss to No. 2 Lubbock Christian. The Burleson native also tallied a season-high three blocks and added nine rebounds and a steal. Hailey helped forced 10 turnovers, 16 total, in the first half against a team that averages 14 per game.
Anastacia Mickens, Texas A&M-Kingsville, took advantage of her time on the floor to grab a game-high eight rebounds against Texas A&M International over the weekend as the Javelinas fell to the Dustdevils, 61-53. She also added 11 points on a .444 shooting clip and finished with a team-high three assists.
Stephanie Peterson, Cameron, recorded the first double-double of her young Cameron career in the team's 90-78 win over UTPB on Saturday. The freshman scored 11 points and grabbed a team-high 14 rebounds, the most by a CU player this season. Peterson flirted with a triple-double by dishing out six assists while also contributing two blocks to Cameron's defensive effort, which held the Falcons to a .369 field goal percentage with four total blocks. Peterson is the first Aggie to record a double-double in 22 games and is averaging 8.0 points and 4.6 rebounds on the season.
Carolyne Lawley, Oklahoma Christian, matched her career-high with three blocked shots, grabbed a season-high six rebounds, scored a season-high 10 points and added a steal and two assists in OC's 74-63 win over Arkansas-Fort Smith. She played a key role as OC posted a 46-44 rebounding edge against the Lions, who have two of the LSC's top-10 rebounders, and limited UAFS to just 33.3-percent shooting. OC is one of only three LSC teams that have started 3-0 in league play.
Agang Tac, Texas A&M-Commerce, was outstanding on the defensive end all day for the Lions in their 71-38 win over UT Tyler. Tac helped run the Lions' full-court pressure that led to 15 steals and 29 total turnovers from the Patriots. Tac had three steals herself and also had a blocked shot and used her length to cause problems all day for UTT. The Lion defense held UT Tyler to just 27.5 percent shooting and only 11 field goals, both season lows for the Lion defense. The team tied a defensive program record with only 38 points surrendered, the fewest points they've given up in a conference game.