by The Lady Indians Dominate One of the Nation’s Best Teams
By Tyler Jones @TylerJonesLive
The feature presentation of Saturday’s matinee was a matchup starring the College of Saint Mary Flames and the Haskell Indians. Both teams came in with a lot to play for in this contest, as both of them find themselves in the hunt for the MCAC Championship, with 4-2 records in the league a piece.
Although both teams were in similar situations in overall record (Saint Mary 16-5 and Haskell 15-5) and in league play, the College of Saint Mary was viewed more highly amongst the critics, as they came into Saturday ranked 9th in the NAIA Division Two Top 25 Coaches’ Poll. Before Saturday, Haskell found themselves on the outside looking in of the Top 25.
In the first half, it was a one sided affair, as Haskell dominated on both sides of the ball. The Lady Indians forced 14 turnovers, while shooting 46% from the field in the 1st. With 12 points from Jenine Coriz and 11 points from Keli Warrior in the 1st, Haskell found themselves in complete control at the halftime break leading 37-28.
In the second half, Haskell continued their dominance, never trailing in the 2nd. The defense of Haskell was key, as they held Saint Mary’s to 39% from field goal range and forced 24 turnovers in the game overall. The scoring presence for Haskell continued as well. Haskell shot 51% from the field and managed to score 76 points in a 76-60 win over the College of Saint Mary.
Jenine Coriz led all scorers with 19 points for Haskell, while Keli Warrior scored 18 points and Kortney Meat accounted for 11 points off the bench. After the game, Coach Shane Flanagan spoke about beating the No. 9 ranked team in the land, “This game was a confidence booster for us. We are a good team. We can win the conference. We just have to believe.”
For College of Saint Mary’s, they fall to 16-6 on the year. The leading scorers for the Falmes included Tiffani Lewis and Deaundra Young, with 14 points apiece. Next weekend, they will try to avenge their loss from the past two days against the same teams they lost to this weekend (Oklahoma Wesleyan & Haskell) at home in Omaha.
Next week, Haskell will pack their bags and look to continue their four-game winning streak as they face the two teams they just beat this past weekend.Haskell will face-off with Waldorf College and College of Saint Mary next weekend with an improved 16-5 record and a possible slot in the Top 25 polls.
