Midwestern State vs Texas Woman's

Tuesday, Feb. 8 – 5:30 p.m.
D.L. Ligon Coliseum (Wichita Falls, Texas)
All-Time Series: MSU leads 41-26

Midwestern State vs Western New Mexico

Thursday, Feb. 10 – 5:30 p.m.
D.L. Ligon Coliseum (Wichita Falls, Texas)
All-Time Series: MSU leads 11-3

WICHITA FALLS, Texas. -- Midwestern State, in the latter half of the Lone Star Conference season, is ready for two important match-ups this week. On Tuesday, Feb. 8, the Mustangs face Texas Woman's for the second time this season. Then MSU takes on Western New Mexico on Thursday, Feb. 10. Both games tip-off at 5:30 p.m.

SCOUTING THE PIONEERS

Texas Woman's currently holds fourth place in the Lone Star Conference standings. The Pioneers are 7-2 in LSC play and 14-6 overall. The team dropped to Midwestern State earlier this season on Jan. 20. The home side fell 83-76 to the Mustangs in a non-conference slate. Since then, Texas Woman's won four straight games before falling to No. 13 Lubbock Christian 70-62. The team sits sixth in the Feb. 7 South Central regional rankings.

Sadie Moyer leads the Pioneers with 45 assists on the season. The guard averages 13.6 points, gaining 19 last time out against the Mustangs. Moyer was 7-of-20 from the field with four steals in the Jan. 20 game. She had just five points and six rebounds against Lubbock Christian on Saturday. The junior is sixth in the LSC with 249 field goal attempts, landing a 36 field goal percent. Moyer shoots 33 percent from behind the arc and holds a conference-best 88 percent from the line. This sits in the top 20 of the NCAA as she only missed nine free throws. The Broken Arrow, Okla., product averages three rebounds and adds 34 steals.

Ashley Ingram is Texas Woman's top rebounder and scorer, averaging 6.5 rebounds and 13.8 points. The freshman tallied a career-high 30 points and 13 rebounds against the Mustangs for her second double-double of the season. She collected 22 points versus St. Mary's (1/06) and tagged her second 20-point game of the season. In the following match versus St. Edward's, Ingram picked up 18 points, hitting five of eight from the floor. These two performances earned her Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Week on Jan. 10. The forward shoots 52 percent from the field and 81 percent from the line. Ingram leads the Pioneers with 18 blocks. The Bridgeport, Texas, native tallied 25 assists and 24 steals.
 
Brielle Woods is one of the starting point guards for TWU, making 19 starts in 18 appearances. The guard averages 8.1 points and 3.2 rebounds. Against MSU, she was without any points, going 0-of-6 from the field. Woods posted a season-high 18 points against Eastern New Mexico on Feb. 3. She shoots 36 percent from the floor and 35 percent from behind the arc. The junior is 37-of-44 from the line. Woods earned LSC Defensive Player of the Week after helping the Pioneers hold UAFS to 24 percent shooting. She was influential in the Lions' scoreless third quarter. She also grabbed five steals, seven rebounds, and 11 points in the match. The DeSoto, Texas, product leads Texas Woman's with 35 steals and adds 26 assists.

Keslyn King is one of just two players to start in all 20 matches for the Pioneers. The junior averages 8.1 points and 3.9 rebounds. King recorded a career-high 15 points in the team's loss at LCU on Feb. 5. She totaled five points and two rebounds against the Mustangs on Jan. 20. The guard shoots 36 percent from the field and 20 percent from behind the arc. She is 42-of-68 from the line. The Burleson, Texas, native totals 20 steals and 28 assists for TWU.

Kayla Glover started the last three games for the Pioneers. The freshman averages 2.4 points and 3.2 rebounds. She tallied two points and three rebounds against Midwestern State earlier in the season. Glover shoots 27 percent from the floor and 17 percent from behind the arc. At the line, the guard is good for 44 percent. She has 29 assists and 16 steals in 17 appearances.

SCOUTING THE MUSTANGS

Western New Mexico sits below Midwestern State in the Lone Star Conference standings. The WNM Mustangs are 5-11 on the season and 1-7 in LSC play. The team ended their seven game losing streak with a 69-65 victory against UT Permian Basin on Feb. 5. Despite the dismal record, Western New Mexico is second in the conference and 19th in the NCAA with 4.8 blocked shots per game. The Mustangs are also second in the LSC and 33rd in Division II in allowing opponents to shoot 35.8 from the field. Their three-point defense of 24.5 percent also sits second in the league and 12th in DII.

Zyan Smith leads Western New Mexico with 9.7 points per game, collecting a career-high 18 points against New Mexico Highlands on Nov. 12. The forward registered eight points and two blocks in the win versus the Falcons. Smith shoots 35 percent from the field and 26 percent from behind the arc. At the line, she is good for 82 percent. The junior averages 5.5 rebounds. She adds a team-best 38 assists and 17 blocks. The Queen Creek, Ariz., native tallied 18 steals as the only player to start all 16 games.

Cassandra Vickery started 13 of 16 games for WNM. The senior averages 5.5 points and 3.7 rebounds. She notched four points and 11 rebounds against UTPB. Vickery shoots 36 percent from the field and 31 percent from behind the arc. She is 18-of-24 from the line. The guard owns 24 assists and leads the team with 20 steals.

Alina Simon made an appearance in all 16 games, making 13 starts. The guard averages 3.9 points and four rebounds for the Mustangs. Against UT Permian Basin, she recorded two points on 1-of-4 shooting from the floor. Simon collected a career-high 11 points versus Texas A&M-Commerce on Jan. 20. The sophomore has 18 steals and 11 blocks on the year. She shoots 29 percent from the field and 18 percent from beyond the arc. At the line, Simon is 7-of-16 on the year. The Killeen, Texas, native owns six steals.

Kaela Chavez and Olivia Lee are the final players from the starting line-up against UT Permian Basin. Chavez led the team with 14 points, going 4-of-9 from behind the arc. Lee added ten points in the win. Chavez averages 5.6 points and 1.4 rebounds. The senior guard shoots 31 percent from the floor and 36 percent from range. Lee posts 6.4 points per game and 6.8 rebounds per game. The sophomore forward shoots 47 percent from the floor and 47 percent at the line. She owns 17 blocks and five blocks.

BLOCKED

Midwestern State added four blocks on Saturday against Eastern New Mexico to total 100 team blocks. This continues to lead the Lone Star Conference while holding a 13th rank in the NCAA. The team's average of five blocks per game also leads the league and sits 12th in Division II. The Mustangs' opponents average 2.7 blocks. MSU has at least one block in every game of the season. The best performance was on Dec. 16 versus Texas A&M-Commerce when they picked up ten blocks.

TOP SIX

MSU ranks in the top six of the LSC in five other categories. The team is sixth with 390 free-throw attempts and 274 makes, which rank 65th and 74th in the NCAA. Frances King leads the Mustangs with 85 makes in 104 attempts at the line. Midwestern State also sits sixth with 66.8 points per game. The team holds sixth place with 18.25 forced turnovers. Midwestern State won eight of nine games when opponents have 20 or more turnovers. Eastern New Mexico had 21 on Saturday. MSU is fifth in the league with a 32.6 three-pointer percentage. Morgan Lenahan leads with 43 percent from behind the arc while Sheridan Bostic shoots at 36 percent.

MUSTANG STARTING FIVE

Morgan Lenahan is the leading scorer for the Mustangs with a conference seventh-highest 14.7 points. The senior tallied 12 points and four steals at Eastern New Mexico. Her best performance on the scoreboard was 31 points at UT Permian Basin. Lenahan is ninth in the LSC with 242 field goal attempts and 98 makes. She shoots 40 percent from the field and 80 percent from the line. The guard averages 5.9 rebounds and sits eighth in the Lone Star Conference with 5.2 defensive rebounds per game. The Haddonfield, N.J., native holds 63 assists and leads the team with 36 steals. With a block against LCU, Lenahan has seven total blocks.

Frances King averages 13 points per game with a career-high 25 points posted against Texas Wesleyan (11/28). Against the Greyhounds, she had her 13th double-digit game of the season with 21 points. The sophomore recently set the single-game record for assists against St. Mary's on Jan. 8. With her 13 assists, King overtook Mindy Myers' 1994 record of 13. The guard's 94 total assists lead the league while sitting 26th in Division II. Her average of 4.7 assists also tops the Lone Star Conference and ranks 34th in the NCAA. King is 39 percent from the floor and 23 percent from behind the arc. Her 82 percent free throw shooting sits fourth in the LSC and her 85 free throws made leads the conference. She went 9-of-12 from the line against ENMU. The Rockdale, Texas, product averages 3.9 rebounds and holds 34 steals.

Hannah Reynolds leads Midwestern State in rebounding with 6.4 per game. The senior's 46 total blocks rank second in the LSC and 15th in Division II. She averages 2.42 blocks per game, which sits second in the league and 17th in the NCAA. Reynolds is the school's all-time leading blocker with 201 blocks. The forward recently joined MSU's 1,000-point club after inking ten points against LCU and adding eight versus Eastern New Mexico. She averages 9.7 points for the Mustangs. Reynolds shoots 46 percent from the field and 70 percent from the line. The Prosper, Texas, product adds 20 assists and 14 steals.

Shawnisay Millar has started all 20 games for the Mustangs. The junior averages 8.3 points and 3.9 rebounds per game. Against Eastern New Mexico, she clinched a season-high 15 points for the third time this season. Millar went 5-of-8 from the field and 3-of-6 from the line. On the year, the forward shoots almost 50 percent from the field and 30 percent from behind the arc. At the line, she is good for 65 percent. The Prestonpans, Scotland, native adds eight blocks and six steals.

Markayla Johnson rounds out the starting five for MSU. The sophomore averages 4.8 points and 3.0 rebounds. She shoots 38 percent from the floor and 30 percent from behind the arc. The guard knocked down 9-of-18 attempts from the free throw line. The team's defensive guru completed a career-high ten points against Texas A&M-Commerce on Jan. 23. Johnson secured six points and six rebounds at Eastern New Mexico. The Huntsville, Texas, native has 12 blocks and 23 steals on the season.

THE MAN IN CHARGE

Christopher Reay is in his second season at the helm of his alma mater. In the shortened COVID 2020-21 season, Reay guided the Mustangs to an 11-7 record. In his first year at the reins, the Mustangs went 11-5 in Lone Star Conference play. The team finished fifth in the standings and reached the quarterfinals in the postseason tournament. In addition, Reay led MSU to a 4-6 mark over the final 10 games in 2019-20 serving in an interim role following Noel Johnson's leave of absence to continue her fight against ovarian cancer. His career coaching record stands at 26-22 (.542). Reay served as the top assistant for 10 campaigns, guiding MSU to three consecutive NCAA Division II South Central Regionals from 2012-15. In that time, MSU claimed a Lone Star Conference regular and postseason tournament title in 2012-13. Reay competed two seasons at Midwestern State in 2006-07 and 2007-08. After transferring from SMU, he helped MSU to an LSC postseason tournament championship and a regional semifinal appearance in 2007.

ABOUT THE SERIES

MSU and TWU have a history spanning the last 40 years, in which the Mustangs have accrued a 41-26 advantage over the Pioneers. Since Midwestern State joined the Lone Star Conference in 1995, the team owns a 26-15 record against Texas Woman's in conference play. The Pioneers last came to D.L. Ligon Coliseum in 2019 and left with a 72-62 loss. Mica Schneider and Kityana Diaz led with 19 and 16 points each. Overall, MSU is 18-12 against TWU at home. In the Jan. 20 match against Texas Woman's, Frances King and Morgan Lenahan combined for 39 points and 12 rebounds in the 83-76 win. The Mustangs hold a three-game win streak since Jan. 22, 2021.
 
MSU owns an 11-3 advantage over WNMU, with the series starting in 1992. The two schools became Lone Star Conference foes in 2017. Midwestern State has six wins against Western New Mexico in league play, only dropping on the road on Feb. 14, 2019. The last time the Mustangs came to D.L. Ligon Coliseum, MSU took an 80-26 win on Jan. 12, 2019. Annette Dukes tallied 17 points on 5-of-10 shooting. In the 2019-20 season, Midwestern State took a 60-41 win in Silver City, N.M. Hannah Reynolds dropped 17 points and five rebounds.

UP NEXT

Midwestern State takes their last Lone Star Conference road trip of the 2021-22 regular season next week. The Mustangs kick off the week against Texas A&M-Kingsville on Thursday, Feb. 17 at 5:30 p.m. MSU then heads to Laredo, Texas, to face Texas A&M International. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.