McPherson College Athletics

Photo by Natalia Ahrens
McPherson, Kan. – The McPherson College women's basketball team moved to 2-0 on the season, winning their home opener on Saturday over the Barclay College Bears 107-83. For the Bulldogs it was their first trip north of the century mark since their 115-55 win over crosstown rival Central Christian College back in November of 2017.

On Saturday, the Bulldogs led for 35 of the 40 minutes played. The Bears came out on fire, and hit several three pointers early, to 14-10 at the 6:16 mark in the first quarter. At the 4:50 mark, a layup by Erika Diaz (So. Houston, Texas) gave the Bulldogs their first lead of the game at 16-14, and from there they never looked back.

By the end of the first quarter, the Bulldogs led the Bears by 10, 31-21, and were on pace to score 120 points. In the second quarter, the scoring pace slowed down a bit, and the Bulldogs went into the break leading 58 to 42. Brittany Roberts (Sr. Mansfield, Texas) led the Bulldogs at the break with 22 points and 18 boards. She would finish the game with 33 points, a tie of her career best, and 24 boards, setting a new Bulldog single game rebounding record.

In the third quarter, the Bears made a run and at one point in the period, had outscored the home team by 10 and had trimmed the lead down to 7, 69-62. The Bulldogs got back on track late in the quarter, and finished  by winning the period 29-23 and taking a 87-65 lead into the final 10 minutes of action. In the fourth quarter, Coach Nichols was able to get his bench some valuable minutes, and the McPherson ladies won the final period 20-18 to finish with a 107-83 victory.

Joining Roberts in double figures in scoring were Maya Austin (Jr. Pueblo, Colo.) with 16, Maison Moseley (Jr. Woodward, Okla.) and Diaz with 10.

Coach Nichols commented, "I thought we pushed the tempo well tonight and that was a part of the game plane. Our Defense was great at times, but we have to be more consistent across the board." He lauded the play of a few individuals saying, "Brittany with another big night she continues to play at a high level." He also added, "Maya had an excellent game as well! Victoria and Molly both had good nights as well. Good overall effort."
 
Now at 2-0, the Bulldogs will open up KCAC play against defending KCAC tournament champs Avila University next Wednesday at home at 6:00 pm.
 
MC (107) – Roberts (33), Austin (16), Moseley (10), Diaz (10), Schultenhenrich (9), McElrath (8), Branscum (6), Ates (5), Wells (4), Upchurch (2), Potter (2), Joseph (2).