Women’s Basketball comes up short against Oklahoma Wesleyan

Jennifer Lamer -

The end result was not what anyone wearing purple and gold wanted.
 
Kansas Wesleyan overcame a fast start by Oklahoma Wesleyan in the first quarter, but dropped a 68-61 decision to the Eagles on Saturday night at Mabee Arena.
 
"It was incredible, we went from not being able to get a stop to not being able to get a bucket to fall all in the same game," KWU coach Ryan Showman said. "It was tough, it was disappointing."
 
KWU fell behind 12-2 to start the game, but battled back in the final five and a half minutes of the first quarter, drawing even with the Eagles behind a 10-0 run capped by a 3-pointer by Odessa Ozuna.
 
Just moments later after OKWU had grabbed the lead on a basket, the freshman Ozuna came up huge with another 3-pointer to give the Coyotes the lead 15-14 with 2:15 to go in the period. Another bucket by Ozuna capped an 8-0 personal run that gave the Coyotes a 17-14 lead with 1:52 left.
 
KWU led 18-17 after a quarter.
 
The Eagles outscored the Coyotes 18-11 in the second quarter sending the visitors into the locker room at the half with a 35-29 lead.
 
OKWU took a 48-37 lead with 2:27 left in the third, but the Coyotes battled back, getting the difference down to five at 48-43 before the Eagles took a 50-43 lead into the last.
 
It went back and forth in the fourth, but OKWU was able to push out to a 62-50 lead with 2:32 left and the Coyotes could get no closer than seven the rest of the way.
 
Showman felt like it was a missed opportunity on the floor for his Coyote team that fell to 9-9 overall and 7-5 in the KCAC.
 
"It was a very somber lockerroom because we felt like this was an opportunity we let go," he said. "But you look at the start and they came out 12-2 and that was the difference."
 
Ozuna scored 21 to lead all scorers as KWU went 21 of 56 shooting for 37.5 percent. Angel Lee was the only other Coyote in double figures with 14, while LaMyah Ricks added nine. Three different Coyotes – Brooke Strine, Lee and Kourtney Kaufman had six rebounds each to lead the way.
 
KWU is back in action next week with a pair of road contests as KWU completes the first trip through the KCAC schedule on Wednesday at Bethel. KWU heads to Friends next Saturday beginning the second conference circuit.