by By Brent Cahwee
(Lawrence, Kansas) – The gym is empty and quiet on a Saturday afternoon at the Coffin Sports Complex, home of the Haskell Indian Nations University women’s basketball practice and game facility. Most students have gone home for spring break at the all-Native American only college and most of the women’s team have scattered to be with family on the break to share their stories of the seasons accomplishments.
Haskell women’s head coach Shane Flanagan wasted no time, after the women were eliminated from the NAIA Division II National Tournament, and headed off to state tournaments all across Indian Country to look for the next round of recruits, hoping to build on a season of “firsts” for the Lady Indians basketball program.
Building on a foundation
Last year, in the 2014-2015 season, the Haskell women’s basketball program made significant improvements and for the first time since the 2010 season, under then head coach Phil Homeratha, the Lady Indians finished with a 20 win season but they were unable to capitalize on their success that season with an invite to the NAIA National Tournament and they were unable to advance in the MCAC conference tournament. They were improving as team but lacked something the 2010 team had who had qualified for the national tournament that season.
At the start of this season, the Indians begin with 7 straight wins that included wins over two Top 25 ranked teams. It was the idea start to the season and it would pay off because for the “first” time in the Haskell women’s basketball history, as part of the NAIA, they were ranked in the NAIA Pre-Season Top 25 Poll. Becoming a staple in the poll is a path that all colleges and universities at the NAIA level look to obtain and maintain as typically all are invited to the national tournament.
But starting in the poll and finishing there are two different things and with the Lady Indians losing their starting point guard and leading scorer from last season to graduation, the Indians had to find that replacement scorer to compliment the returning core players on the squad that included junior Keli Warrior and senior Arnetia Begay. Junior Kortney Meat was also a huge player off of the bench from last year’s squad. Haskell also had to navigate a new conference for this season as the previous conference they participated in folded but Haskell was able to join the Association of Independent Institutions (A.I.I.) conference along with a few other previous conference members.
As the season started, it would become clear that sophomore transfer forward Tyler Sumpter would become that missing scorer the Indians were needing. Sumpter had spent the previous season at Bismarck State junior college in Bismarck, North Dakota. Originally from Nixon, Nevada, and the Pyramid Lake Paiute reservation, in high school Tyler had set a state record for making 14 three-pointers in a game and beyond-the-arc shooting is what made Tyler become this year’s leading scorer for Haskell. She averaged 15 points per game this season in route to becoming the A.I.I. Conference “Newcomer of the Year”, another first for the Haskell program.
As the season progressed, the Lady Indians were able to string along more win streaks than losing streaks and play through various injuries and illnesses that all teams face throughout the season and finish with a (20-6) record before heading into the A.I.I. Conference tournament. It would be the first time that the women’s basketball program would have back-to-back 20 win seasons and it would also be the first time in a season that Haskell was ranked in the Top 25 poll all season long. The Indians would finish the last Top 25 poll in the No. 20 slot, but with all of the players back from injuries and illness they were wanting much more than just the twenty win season and top 25 ranking.
The A.I.I. conference would be an 8-team tournament with the top three finishers all getting automatic bids to the NAIA Women’s Division II National tournament that is held in Sioux City, Iowa every year. Although the Lady Indians were sitting in the No. 20 spot in the Top 25 poll, their record mirrored last seasons record with 20 wins and yet they were let off the guest list to the Big Dance in Iowa. Not wanting to take a chance on an at-large bid, coach Flanagan wanted to have his team ready for the conference tourney with a chance to grab one of the three available automatic bids.
Conference Confidence
The Indians would enter the A.I.I. conference tournament as the No. 3 seed and would face the No. 6 seed Northern New Mexico College who had in the previous week toppled the mighty Indians on their home court. The Northern New Mexico college Eagles were also last year’s A.I.I. Conference tournament runner-ups. Not wanting to make an early trip home like last season’s (MCAC) conference tournament, Haskell left no doubt in the first round as they easily disposed of Northern New Mexico by a final score of 83-64. Tyler Sumpter would finish with 24 points for Haskell.
In the second round of the tournament, the Indians would face a much tougher opponent in Indiana Northwest University. The RedHawks would battle the Indians down to the final seconds of the game but Haskell would advance to the conference championship final with a 83-81 win behind 23 points from Keli Warrior.
In the finals, the Indians would face a familiar foe, the College of the Ozarks Bobcats who were also once members of the MCAC conference that each team belonged until its demise. The Ozarks were the No. 3 ranked team in the nation and not only had Haskell lost to the Bobcasts twice already this season, the Lady Indians as a program had never beat the Ozarks in the previous 15 years as members of MCAC. But the something that was lacking last season for the Lady Indians was something that they couldn’t have obtained until this season and it is was what sent the 2010 women’s team to the national tournament and that was “experience”.
In the first quarter, Haskell found itself down 25-16 to the Ozarks in what started out as a familiar story for the Indians but the Lady Indians would not go away easy and outscored the Lady Bobcats by 9 points in the 2nd quarter to take a two point 41-39 lead heading into half-time. After the half, the Lady Indians would come out in the 3rd quarter continue to make big shots and they extended their lead on the Ozarks 62-53 behind the hot shooting of Tyler Sumpter and Cerissa Honena-Reyes. In the fourth quarter, the No. 3 Ozarks would rally but Haskell would hold on down the stretch to overcome the Ozarks for the first time in school history to win by a final score of 80-75.
It would be the first conference title for the Haskell women’s basketball program in school history since joining the NAIA. Tyler Sumpter would go on to be named the Tournament MVP and Senior Arnetia Begay, Junior Keli Warrior, and Junior Cerissa Honena would be named to the A.I.I. All-Tournament team.
With the 3 conference tournament wins it would also mark the first time the Haskell women’s team would have 23 wins in a season.
Head Coach Shane Flanagan said, “We had a lot of first times this year, winning 23 games, winning the conference championship and being ranked in the Top 25 for the whole year, so we had a very successful year and that’s not it for this team. We’re losing one senior and we want to continue down that path and every year we want to take steps forward we don’t want to take steps back.”
Final Thoughts
The Haskell Lady Indians would go onto the NAIA National Tournament were they were ranked as a No. 6 seed and they would face a No. 3 seed in Dakota Wesleyan out of South Dakota. Although the Indians fought to the very end, the size and length of the Tigers were too much for Haskell to over come and they would fall in the first round 64-75.
“There were a lot of positives to this year, and to be honest, the programs in a healthy state right now and I want to continue with that and I want to continue moving forward because I do want to come into this (national) tournament and I want to win some games and with this group I am excited” Flanagan said after the game.
While there hasn’t been much to cheer about with the athletic programs in recent years at Haskell Indian Nations University, the women’s basketball team brought a lot of proud moments this season for the University and they made a lot of fans online from all corners of Indian Country who followed their progress all-season long. With a new core of player’s returning next season and coach Flanagan going out and recruiting some of the best talent from the reservations, the sky will be the limit for next year’s team and eventually the “firsts” for the program will become the norm for the Haskell women’s basketball program.
Outstanding basketball program. Well Coached. A disciplined group of very talented young ladies who have all the basics down and follow the game plan to a T! Haskell will become an Indian Country basketball *talent magnet* and will attract a high quality of student there!
Congrats to the HASKELL women’s basketball team. You have made native America proud !!!!