WINFIELD, Kan. – The Southwestern College women's basketball team returned to the hardwood on Wednesday evening inside Stewart Field House against the Threshers of Bethel College. The Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference matchup marked the ninth such contest of the season for each squad. After putting up strong offensive numbers on the game's opening period, the Builders could not match the Threshers' output, falling 81-45 inside the friendly confines.

"It's great to be back on the court with our team," said head coach Whitney Corley. "We are still working on building consistency, so the first game back tonight was tough. We had a few players who stepped into bigger roles tonight and I'm excited how that experience will pay off for them in the long run."

The battle's first frame was one of gorgeous offensive displays. Southwestern was able to convert on five of their 12 shot attempts (41.7%) in the first quarter, and sunk 4-of-6 from long range, en route to 16 first-quarter points. Bethel was even more impressive, raining down 10 makes on 18 tries (55.6%). The Moundbuilders did turn the ball over eight times in the frame, which allowed several extra chances for the Threshers to capitalize, putting the score at 24-16 after one.

Act number two of the tilt was a setback for each side on offense. Neither of the two squads was able to eclipse the 40% mark from the field in the second quarter. Bethel had their worst shooting clip of the day with a 5-of-13 (38.5%) showing, while SC was unable to capitalize on the poor Thresher shooting with a 2-of-14 (14.3%) clip of their own. Only one three-point shot was made in the period, which came off the fingertips of a Bethel shooter. A 13-7 advantage over the course of the frame for the visitors put the Builders behind at the break by a score of 37-23.

Bethel came out ready to play in the third quarter, hitting more than 50% of their shots (10-of-19) and four three-pointers. The Lady Builders could not match that scoring, as they managed a 5-of-15 (33.3%) clip in the penultimate frame. With such a discrepancy in the shooting numbers, Bethel was able to score 12 more points than SC in the frame, which was the highest differential in a quarter in the tilt. The 24-12 stanza made it 61-35 for the guests with just 10 minutes to go.

It was another frame in the Threshers' favor to finish things off, as Southwestern could only drop in four shots out of their 17 attempts (23.5%). Bethel countered with an 8-of-18 (44.4%) showing, which put them up 20-10 over the course of the last period of the battle. The 81-45 final score looked more inflated after the visitors' prolific second half on offense.

"We were outmatched by Bethel's size, so we gave up more threes than we wanted to because we tried to pack the paint," declared Corley. "I'm proud, though, of our group's effort to battle against their post players. I liked our group's aggressiveness offensively once we settled against their full-court pressure. Most of our turnovers were from attacking the press and trying to make plays early in transition, so we will dive into film and clean those up before our match-up with Friends on Saturday."

Devyn Woods (3-of-6) and Denisha Anderson (4-of-7) tied for the team-lead in scoring with eight points apiece. It was a spread-out attack on offense for the Builders in this one, as they had 10 players score at least a single point in the battle. Takia Profit (3-of-8) had seven points off of the bench in her first action of the 2022-23 campaign, and both Heather Chiesi (2-of-10) and Macey Pond (2-of-11) scored six points for the Moundbuilders.

Chiesi's three dimes led the squad, while Pond's two was second-best on the team. Newcomer, Airalyn Frame was responsible for the only remaining assist for Southwestern.

"Heather Chiesi brought us a spark handling the ball in the open court and created some good shots for us when she attacked into the paint," opined Corley.

Anderson played amazingly on the boards for the Builders, as they missed the interior presence of D'Shonda Hunt. Anderson grabbed a total of nine rebounds, while three of those came on the offensive end of the floor. It was Emily McElroy who had the second-highest number of boards for the Builders, with five.

The Lady Builders did not block a shot on this night, but were credited with five steals. They came from five different defenders in the Builder squad, as Pond, Haven Matthews, Anderson, Hunter Garcia and Profit were the burglars.

"We are excited to have Airalyn Frame join us for second semester," Corley said. "A big thanks goes to our Faculty Athletics Representative, Ed Loeb, and our registrar office to help get her eligibility finalized so she could play today. She will add another scoring punch for us once she builds some chemistry with our returning players.

The Moundbuilders (3-12, 0-9 KCAC) will be back after it on Saturday, Jan. 7 inside Stewart Field House for a KCAC rivalry bout with the Falcons of Friends University. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m., as SC looks to get on track and jump into the win column in conference play.

--buildersports.com--