Oklahoma Panhandle State University

Box Score Goodwell, Okla.—Overpowered by the top-ranked team in NCAA Division-II, the OPSU women's basketball team endured some of the stiffest competition they've seen all year in Thursday night's Pink Out performance against Lubbock Christian University. The Lady Chaps claimed a 43-point victory over the Aggies, notching their 18th straight win by a score of 100-57 and preserving an undefeated season record.

A three-point shot off the tip by Brittany Alavinejad, sent  an early surge of energy through the Oscar Williams Field House; but seven turnovers and an 0-9 run left the Aggies in a deep hole, down 3-26 with under three minutes left in the first period. The Lady Chaps had secured a 34-11 lead after the first ten minutes of the game; the 23-point deficit was the largest seen by the Aggies in a single period this season.

Alavinejad sparked another flicker in the fans as she opened second-period scoring with another long distance shot good for three. The Aggies went on to miss eight of the next ten attempts from the field, while eight different LCU shooters added 16 points from the paint and back-to-back threes to edge over a 30-point lead by the break. At halftime OPSU was trailing 26-60, their greatest halftime debt of the year.

After two periods of play the Lady Jets had proved most-deserving of their number one ranking. LCU's scoring was spread among ten players, three of which totaled ten points each in the first half. The Aggies saw seven players put points on the board during the first two periods of play, with Tatyana Bell, Brittany Alavinejad and Hannah Southard leading the team with six points apiece. OPSU was held to a 25 percent shooting average in the first half, making 7-28 from the field and 2-12 from beyond the arc. Lubbock Christian averaged 55 percent from the field and landed six three-point shots; both teams went 10-11 at the line.

Failing to find a rhythm after the half, the Aggies fell to a 42-point gap from their opponent by the end of the third period. Five steals were counteracted by 12 OPSU player fouls (including one technical) which added 15 free points to LCU's lead. The Lady Chaps shifted back to the bench midway through the fourth and, while the Aggies remained persistent, scoring a game-high of 16 points in the final period, LCU broke the century mark of 100 points for the third time this season.

The Aggie women were outsized by an average of almost two inches as a team which was proven at the glass. Lubbock Christian hauled in an impressive 22 offensive rebounds alone, and totaled 33 defensive boards for the game; OPSU brought down a total of 21 rebounds, five on the offensive side. The Lady Chaps evenly distributed the pick-up work with two players taking game-highs of eight rebounds each (Tess Bruffey and Allison Szabo), one finished with seven and two had six rebounds each on the night; eight other players accounted for the remaining 20 LCU boards.

For the Aggies Tatyana Bell and Hannah Whitaker led in rebounds, combining for nine. Bell finished with a game-high of 16 points and Whitaker was credited with two of the teams' three steals. Leading the game with four steals, LCU's Nicole Hampton set a program record for career steals, and now holds 273. Hampton also earned the game-high in assists with eight and added 12 points and six rebounds to her stats. Lubbock Christian currently leads the Heartland Conference in scoring; all but one player from the Lady Chaps earned points in Thursday's matchup. Kelsey Hoppel and Haley Fowler led the team with 14 points each.

Proud of his team's effort OPSU Head Coach Charles Terry conceded, "I guess we know why they're number one. We were just outmanned." The 1-19 Aggies will have the weekend off to regroup and refocus on another conference opponent as they prepare to compete with Newman University on Thursday, Feb. 4 in Wichita, Kan. The team will continue down to Oklahoma City for a matchup with Oklahoma Christian on Saturday, Feb. 6 before returning to their home court on Feb. 11 when they host Rogers State. Fans can keep up with all the action at the only website for OPSU Aggie Athletics, www.opsuaggies.com.