Six Lone Star Conference women’s basketball teams are undefeated in 2020 with Angelo State, Lubbock Christian, Tarleton, Texas A&M-Commerce, UAFS and West Texas A&M all picking up conference wins last week. No. 2 LCU and No. 8 A&M-C both sit at 7-0 against LSC competition as the only undefeated teams in conference.
LSC women’s basketball teams are 120-94 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
Mar'Shalia Lollie, UAFS, JR, Criminal Justice, C, Kilgore, Texas, DeSoto High School
Lollie led the Lady Lions to 2-0 weekend on the road against St. Edward's and St. Mary's averaging a double-double with 27.5 points and 12.5 rebounds per game. The Kilgore, Texas native was extremely efficient over the weekend with a .727 field goal percentage (24-of-33) over the two games. She also set the all-time single-game scoring record in the UAFS Division II era with 39 points in the second game of the week as the Lady Lions defeated St. Edward’s on the road. Lollie also anchored UAFS defensively pulling down 25 total rebounds and picking up six steals over the week.
DEFENSIVE
Alexis Bryant, Texas A&M-Commerce, SR, Sports & Recreation Management, F, Pflugerville, Texas, Pflugerville HS
Bryant was disruptive in both contests last week for the Lions anchoring the A&M-C defense in a pair of wins. She averaged a double-double with 13.5 points and 14.5 rebounds per game, while also averaging four blocks and 2.5 steals per game. Against Cameron, Bryant set a career high with 19 rebounds to go with four blocks, three steals and 13 points, while helping the Lion defense hold Cameorn to just 34 percent shooting. Against Midwestern State, Bryant continued to be a menace in the lane, swatting four more shots and stealing two more balls, while also pulling in 10 rebounds and scoring 14 points. She did it all in just 24 minutes of action.
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
D-23 Nicole Heyn, Texas A&M International
J-7 Mar'Shalia Lollie, UAFS
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
D-23 Chania Wright, Texas A&M-Commerce
J-7 Alexis Bryant, Texas A&M-Commerce (2)
SELECTED NOTABLE PERFORMANCES
Chania Wright, Texas A&M-Commerce, had the most explosive week of her collegiate career last week. She set her career high in points on Thursday against Cameron, only to tie it in the first half against Midwestern State, and eventually surpass it on Saturday. Against Cameron, Wright had 25 points with 11 made baskets, including a three from beyond the arc. After setting her career high, Wright tied that in the first half against Midwestern State. She finished the game with 33 points in just 22 minutes of action. She scored 25 points in the first half, and 19 points in the second quarter. She went 12-of-17 from the field, and hit five threes and four free throws in the game. In all, she averaged 29 points per game.
Deijah Blanks, St. Edward’s, led the Hilltoppers in scoring and was second on the team in rebounds last week, averaging 27 points in 28.5 minutes per game while shooting 55.3% from the floor. Blanks also added four assists and three steals to her week.
De'Anira Moore, Angelo State, was the Rambelles most valuable player last weekend against UT Permian Basin and Western New Mexico. Scoring a total of 42 points over the weekend, Moore broke her previous career record of 24 by three points against the Mustangs with 27. Moore shot 13-17 from the field, shooting a .765 from field goal line, and 16-19 from the free throw line, shooting a .842 from the line. Moore registered two assists, one steal, and seven blocks to finish out her weekend.
Hannah Reynolds, Midwestern State, scored a career-high 24 points in Saturday's Lone Star Conference clash with No. 8 Texas A&M-Commerce. Reynolds went 8-of-14 from the floor, including 1-of-1 from deep and cashed in from the free throw line, finishing 7-of-10. The Prosper, Texas native also recorded three blocks against the unbeaten Lions, the third time this season the reigning LSC block champion has recorded three blocks in a game. Earlier in the week, Reynolds scored 10 points, grabbed three rebounds, and handed out three assists in a win at UT Tyler.
Mackenzie Hailey, Tarleton, averaged 14.7 points and 6.3 rebounds last week after leading Tarleton to three straight wins in five days. On Tuesday, the senior forward led the Texans to a dominate win over McMurry University, 82-47, at home. Hailey led the team with 11 points, seven rebounds, and three steals in the win. On Thursday, the Texans captured their second Lone Star Conference win of the season in Wisdom Gym after defeating Texas A&M-Kingsville, 81-38. Hailey tallied 12 points on 6-9 shooting from the field and added five rebounds and three assists. On Saturday, Tarleton won its third straight game by forcing a season-high 29 turnovers in a 73-69 win over Texas A&M International at home. The Texans were able to produced 29 points off of the 29 turnovers. Hailey led the Texans with a game-high 21 points, seven rebounds and four steals. The Burleson native moved into third all-time in blocked shots with 115 career blocks. She recorded two in the win against the Dustdevils. Hailey shot 6-8 from the field and 8-10 from the free throw line.
Ravae Payne led the Javelinas to a comeback win over Texas Woman's on Saturday as she recorded 21 second-half points, including 16 in the fourth, to guide the team to a 57-53 victory over the Pioneers. At one point, Payne had 14 of 16 points over a four-minute stretch in the fourth quarter that fully erased a 13-point, second-half deficit as she finished with 23 in the win on 8-for-15 shooting from the floor and a 4-for-9 clip from beyond the arc.
Ashton Duncan, Lubbock Christian, helped the Lady Chaps go 2-0 with LSC divisional home wins over Western New Mexico and UT Permian Basin by averaging 13.0 points a game. Her outburst on the week came in a 21-point performance Saturday against Texas-Permian Basin, as she matched a career high with a season-high five three-pointers on a 5-of-7 three-point shooting performance from long distance. She was 7-of-10 in the contest with a +29 plus/minus rating. On the week, Duncan was 8-of-15 from the field, going 6-of-11 (.545) from three-point range.
Juliana Robertson, Lubbock Christian, led LCU to a 2-0 week with LSC Division wins over Western New Mexico and UT Permian Basin. The Lady Chap defense combined to hold their opponents to a 27.2% shooting percentage. Juliana had four blocks on the week, producing three in their win over WNMU.
Marissa Escamilla, Tarleton, helped lead the Texans to three wins in five days. She filled up the stat line with eight points, six rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and two steals in a win over McMurry. The Texans forced 18 turnovers in the match-up and held the War Hawks to .333 field goal shooting. Tarleton outscored McMurry 44-19 in the second half. On Thursday, the Texans captured their second Lone Star Conference win of the season in Wisdom Gym after defeating Texas A&M-Kingsville, 81-38. The Burnet native tallied seven points, six rebounds, two blocks, and was perfect shooting from the floor in the win. The Texans forced 18 Javelina turnovers and held the opponent to .264 field goal shooting and .154 three-point shooting in the win. On Saturday, Tarleton won its third straight game by forcing a season-high 29 turnovers in a 73-69 win over Texas A&M International at home. The largest lead of the game was highlighted on a 7-0 run where the Texans went up by 17 on Escamilla's second-chance bucket in the final minutes of the first half. Escamilla had five of the seven points during the stretch. The sophomore finished with 13 points and a team-leading nine rebounds. She shot 6-9 from the field in the win. Tarleton recorded 18 steals in the match-up, which is by far a season high.
Abby Spurgin, West Texas A&M, dominated in the paint on Saturday afternoon for the Lady Buffs as the junior post led West Texas A&M to a 58-51 victory over the rival Greyhounds of Eastern New Mexico in Lone Star Conference action. The Fredericksburg, Texas product went 9-of-15 from the floor to go along with nine rebounds (two offensive, seven defensive) including five blocks in the victory. Spurgin scored 18 points in the game including 14 in the first half as the Lady Buffs held the Hounds to 51 points and a 30.8 shooting percentage to sweep the regular season series from ENMU.
Catara Samuel, Angelo State, continues to show her speed and sleight of hand with the basketball in the Rambelles’ two wins against the UT Permian Basin and Western New Mexico. Scoring 30 points for the Belles over the weekend, Samuel shot 12-30 from the field, 2-8 from the three point line, and 4-6 from the free throw line. Samuel registered 18 total rebounds for ASU, seven offensive and 11 defensive, along with six assists, and 10 steals. Samuel had a career-high seven steals against Western New Mexico.