Setting the Stage- The SWOSU Lady Bulldogs opened the 2014-15 season with a win over Arkansas-Fort Smith on Thursday night
- They now hit the road for Searcy, Ark., to face No. 15-ranked Harding in their conference opener on Saturday at Rhodes Field House at 1 PM
The OpponentHarding (3-0)- The defending Great American Conference regular season champions, Harding enters the season as the favorites to repeat as winners
- They return three starters from last season's squad, including reigning GAC Freshman of the Year A'ndrea Haney
- Already 3-0 on the season after claiming victories over Christian Brothers, Cameron and No. 22 Delta State
- The offense is averaging 83.3 points per game, thanks in large part to a 115-84 victory over Cameron. They are led by Arielle Saunders who is averaging 14.3 points per game on .607 shooting from the field. The Lady Bisons also lead the conference in 3-point percentage, connecting on 29 of 67 attempts from behind the arc
- The defense is conceding 60.0 points per contest, and their average margin of victory is 23.3 points
The CoachesSWOSU: Kelsi Musick (79-65, 6th season)Â Â Â
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Kelsi Musick is in her sixth season leading the SWOSU women's basketball program
- The two time GAC Coach of the Year has been the model of consistency, winning GAC Tournament titles in two of the last three years and earning back-to-back NCAA Division II National Tournaments. SWOSU is one of only four teams in the Central Region that have reached the national tournament each of the last two seasons
- Her high-energy style of play has led the Lady Dawgs to rank in the top four in the nation in scoring, and top ten in three points made in each of the last three seasons
- A great developer of talent, Musick has coached on All-American and 11 all-GAC selections, including one Player of the Year recipient
- Musick has also spent time as an assistant coach at Fresno State, where they won two Western Athletic Conference regular season and tournament titles, as well as qualified for the NCAA Division I National Tournament in the 2008-09 season
Harding: Tim Kirby (173-90, 10th season)- Tim Kirby enters his tenth season in charge of the Harding women's basketball program
- Set a program record in wins last season by going 29-3. His team only lost one game in the regular season before falling to SWOSU in the GAC Tournament championship game and Concordia-Saint Paul in the first round of the NCAA Division II Tournament in postseason action
- He has coached 15 all-conference players, as well as four Freshman of the Year honorees, including reigning Freshman of the Year Haney
- Prior to arriving at Harding, Kirby spent five years at Carl Albert State College in Poteau, Okla., where he served as an assistant coach for two years before taking the post of men's head coach for three
Last Time Out- The Lady Bulldogs welcomed the Arkansas-Fort Smith Lady Lions to the Pioneer Cellular Center for the home opener, recording an 83-73 win
- SWOSU trailed by as many as seven points in the first half before closing out the period on a 13-5 run to lead 44-40
- They began the second half on a 15-4 run, and led by as many as 20, to clinch their first win of the season
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Chelsea Bates enjoyed a fantastic night, scoring 25 points and pulling down 11 boards to collect the team's only double-double.
Jennifer Williams led the Bulldogs in scoring with 26 points on 9-20 shooting
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Kimmi Sawatzky filled up the box score nicely, contributing 13 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and two steals in 36 minutes
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Morgan Vogt, appearing in her first game for SWOSU as a freshman, chipped in ten points in 16 minutes off the bench
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Korina Chapman was a force on the glass, grabbing nine rebounds while also scoring five points and blocking two shotsÂ
- The Lady Dawgs ended the game with four players averaging ten or more points
Checking the Standings- SWOSU (1-0) is one of five teams in the GAC without a loss going into the conference opener against fellow unbeaten Harding (3-0)
- The other undefeated teams are: East Central (2-0), Southeastern Oklahoma State (4-0) and Arkansas Tech (1-0)
- Six conference teams have faced off against each other, with ECU, Southeastern and Southern Arkansas collecting their first conference wins
- Southern Nazarene, Henderson State and Arkansas-Monticello all lost in the opening round of conference action
- Northwestern Oklahoma State and UAM are the only teams in the conference still searching for their first win of the seaosn
SWOSU Notes- Williams and Bates lead the conference in scoring at 26.0 and 25.0 points per game, while Sawatzky is tied for 15th
- SWOSU ranks third in field goal percentage, connecting on 27 of 64 shots. The Lady Dawgs are eighth in 3-point makes after one game, shooting .346, but are limiting the opposition ti shooting just .261 from beyond the arc
- The Lady Bulldogs shared the ball well in their first game, assisting on 51.8 percent of their baskets. SWOSU enjoys a .8 assist/turnover ratio, the fourth best mark in the conference
- Sawatzky is the primary provider, accounting for 50 percent of SWOSU's total assists. She holds the third best assist/turnover ratio in the conference at 3.5
- SWOSU ranks second in total rebounds per game, while they are tied with Southeastern for sixth in rebounding margin
- Bates and Chapman both rank in the Top Ten in the GAC for rebounds at fourth and sixth respectively, while Chapman also ranks fourth in blocked shots
- Vogt account for 71.4 percent of SWOSU's points off the bench, after scoring ten of the Lady Bulldog's 14 bench points in the season opener
- The Lady Dawgs excelled at driving to the basket in their first game, outscoring UAFS 34-30 when close to the rim. Their 34 points in the paint accounted for 40.9 percent of their scoring output
- Bates' double-double against UAFS was the first of her career
Looking Ahead- The Lady Bulldogs return to action on Tuesday, November 25 to take on in-state rival and Central Region foe Central Oklahoma at 5:30 PM in the Pioneer Cellular Event Center. The Lady Bronchos won the only meeting between the two teams last season in Edmond, Okla.
