SEWARD, Neb. – Another week of scoring outbursts kept the top-ranked Concordia University women’s basketball team unbeaten in the early going of the 2019-20 campaign. The Bulldogs totaled a combined 206 points in last week’s GPAC home wins over Midland and Briar Cliff. Head coach Drew Olson’s squad will continue conference play on Wednesday night by hosting College of Saint Mary. Concordia will then play an exhibition at Metropolitan State University of Denver (Colo.) on Saturday.
This Week
Wednesday, Nov. 20 vs. College of Saint Mary (1-5, 0-2 GPAC), 7 p.m.
--Live Webcast/Stats | 104.9 Max Country
Saturday, Nov. 23 at MSU Denver (0-4), 1 p.m. MT/2 p.m. CT (Exhibition)
--Live Webcast | Live Stats
Even for an Olson-led squad, the type of scoring outputs put forward by these Bulldogs (6-0, 2-0 GPAC) are extreme. The 2017-18 team owns the program single-season record for scoring average at 87.1 points per game. So far this season, Concordia is averaging 101.0 points and has cracked the 100-point mark in four of six games. The numbers are off the charts. Among all NAIA Division II teams, the Bulldogs rank first in steals per game (26.2), first in scoring margin (+45.7), first in turnover margin (+16.2), second in 3-point field goals per game (12.8), second in scoring average (101.0), third in field goal percentage defense (.305), eighth in field goal percentage offense (.484), ninth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.24) and 14th in defensive scoring average (55.3).
Although their minutes have been somewhat limited due to the lopsided nature of the games, senior Grace Barry and Philly Lammers have played like the stars they are. Barry is the catalyst for Concordia’s prolific offense. She totaled 29 points, 18 assists and eight steals last week. Meanwhile, Lammers recorded a season high 26 points versus Midland. Lammers now ranks eighth on the program’s all-time scoring list with 1,657 career points. There were plenty of other contributors last week. Freshman Taylor Farrell went 4-for-6 from 3-point range versus Briar Cliff.
The Bulldogs will take an active 18-game win streak into Wednesday’s action against College of Saint Mary, which has dropped GPAC games to No. 19 Morningside and No. 11 Northwestern. Now in his second season leading the Flames, head coach Kirk Walker is attempting to rebuild a program that last reached the national tournament in 2015. CSM’s scoring has been spread out with six players averaging 7.0 points or more.
MSU Denver is an NCAA Division II school affiliated with the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. The game on Saturday will be an exhibition for both teams. The Roadrunners went 16-13 last season. The program qualified for the NCAA Tournament as recently as 2018. MSU Denver was picked fourth in the RMAC’s preseason poll. Three of its players were selected as “players to watch” – Jaiden Galloway, Maggie Justinak and Bree Wellington.
During Thanksgiving week, Concordia will play once – Tuesday, Nov. 26 at No. 19 Morningside.