Setting the Stage- The Lady Bulldogs return home after a four-game road trip to face the East Central Tigers in Great American Conference action on Saturday inside the Pioneer Cellular Event Center at 1 PM
- Last month SWOSU travelled to Ada, Okla., and fell 67-62 despite
Kimmi Sawatzky's season-high 20 points
- After the game, the Class of 2015 Hall of Fame inductees will be introduced to the crowd
- Southwestern will play seven of their last nine games at home, and Saturday's game starts a three-game homestand
The OpponentEast Central (12-5, 8-3 GAC)- East Central is near the bottom of the conference in terms of scoring offense, putting up just 62.6 points per game. The Tigers are led by Dilan Webster, who is putting up 15.1 PPG. Taylor Fischer (11.2 PPG) and Ashleigh Kelman-Poto (11.1 PPG) also rank in the top 20
- What ECU lacks in offense they make up for in defense, boasting the 36th ranked defense in NCAA Division II. They've allowed opponents to score just 59.6 PPG while shooting .406 from the field and .299 from beyond the arc
- They hold the second-worst rebounding margin in the league at -3.9 and are averaging 34.6 rebounds per game. Jalyn Jackson is the team's top rebounder at 6.2 RPG and she is fifth in the conference for offensive rebounds at 2.6 ORPG
- The offense does a good job sharing the ball, assisting on nearly 60 percent of their made field goals. They lead the conference in assist/turnover margin at 1.3 and Erin Walling is second in the conference with a personal 1.7 assist/turnover margin
The CoachesSWOSU: Kelsi Musick (84-76, 6th season) -
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 one 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
East Central: Matt Cole (4-1, 1st season)- Matt Cole was introduced as East Central's fourth women's basketball in April 2014
- Served as an assistant coach at Northeastern State for 11 seasons, helping NSU to seven
NCAA Division II Tournament appearances, making the Sweet 16 twice
- During his time with the RiverHawks, Cole worked with the forwards, helping develop one
First Team All-American. He also served as the head scout and recruit
- Prior to NSU, Cole served as an assistant for three years at Crowley College
Last Time Out- SWOSU completed a four-game road swing against Southern Nazarene on Thursday night in Bethany, Okla., in the Sawyer Center
- The Lady Dawgs were looking to avenge a loss earlier this season in Weatherford that saw the Crimson Storm emerge 74-65 winners
- SWOSU started slow, down 17-4 at the first media timeout, but would pull even at 42-42 to end the first half thanks to a make from long range by
Korina Chapman- The Lady Dawgs rolled from there, building a lead of 11 points before SNU drew within three points with 7:24 remaining.
Morgan Vogt hit back-to-back 3-pointers to kill the run and SWOSU cruised to victory
- Chapman finished with 20 points and a game-high 13 rebounds.
Chelsea Bates (16), Vogt (15) and Sawatzky (14) also scored in double digits
Checking the Standings- Thanks to Thursday night's victory, SWOSU (6-11, 3-8 GAC) moved into sole possession of eighth place in the conference
- Harding (15-3, 11-1 GAC) was handed their first conference loss of the season by Henderson State, but retain their place at the top of the standings. Arkansas Tech (15-3, 10-2 GAC) had a chance to tie for first, but will have to settle for second after falling to Southern Arkansas
- East Central (12-5, 8-3 GAC) rounds out the top three, with Arkansas-Monticello (9-8, 7-5 GAC) close behind in fourth
- Southeastern Oklahoma State (13-7, 6-6 GAC) and Northwestern Oklahoma State (7-11, 6-6 GAC) are knotted up in fifth place after Southeastern dropped their fifth game in six
-Henderson State (7-11, 5-7 GAC) is just above SWOSU in seventh place
- Below the Lady Bulldogs in a three way tie are Ouachita Baptist (7-12, 3-9 GAC), Southern Nazarene (6-12, 3-9 GAC) and Southern Arkansas (5-13, 3-9 GAC)
SWOSU Notes- The 88 points SWOSU scored on the Crimson Storm was the second-highest total they've scored this season and the first time they've scored 80 or more points since January 8 against Ouachita Baptist
- Chapman recorded her third double-double of the season. She is tied for the team lead with
Jessica Penner- After being held to just 5.2 PPG over the last five games, Sawatzky found her range against SNU to put up 14 points. Chapman had suffered a similar scoring drought, putting up 5.8 PPG over the last five
- The Lady Dawgs boast the fourth-ranked scoring offense in the GAC, lighting up the scoreboard for 69.4 PPG. Bates is the team's leading scorer, and ranks in the top ten in the GAC, with 13.0 PPG. Penner is not far behind, ranking 12th in the conference with 12.5 PPG
- SWOSU has done well on the glass and hold the second-best mark for offensive rebounding with 41.5 RPG. Penner and Chapman are both in the top five in the category, with Penner pulling down 9.3 RPG and Chapman 8.5. Penner leads the conference in offensive rebounds at 3.7 ORPG
- Penner had just her third game of the season shooting below .500 against SNU, and is shooting .609. She ranks fourth nationally for field goal percentage and is second in the conference
- Vogt set career highs for points (15), 3-point field goal attempts (6) and 3-point baskets made (4) in the victory on Thursday night
- Bates leads the conference with a 1.7 assist/turnover ratio and ranks third in the conference in assists at 3.5 assists per game. She is stealing the ball 2.1 times per game, the top mark in the conference
Looking Ahead- The homestand continues as SWOSU welcomes ATU to the Pioneer Cellular Center. The Lady Dawgs will hope to even the series after a dismal trip to Russellville, Ark., in December
