Lady Tigers Take on USAO on Senior Night

Lady Tigers would give the USAO Drovers all they could handle on Senior Night. After a couple of lopsided games, the Tigers would look focused and ready to play against one of the top SAC teams in the conference. Central Christian College of Kansas was 3-16 entering today in conference play and USAO would be 3rd in conference with a 13-6 record in the SAC. This game would be decided by 5 points and come down to the final ticks of the clock.

The Tigers would come out with a chip on their shoulder knowing that this game has the deciding factor on making it to the NCCAA regional tournament. The Tigers would have their best 1st period of the year scoring 25 points and sporting a 7 point lead.

Tigers would get cool in the 2nd and 3rd quarter combining for 21 points while the Drovers would build a lead of 55-46.

Tigers and Drovers would be evenly matched to begin the 4th period, and Drovers would see their lead get to as many as 10 points with a little over 3 minutes left, but the Tigers would dig themselves out of that hole and get the game within one possession just under a minute left in the game. Tigers would scramble and try to force turnovers by the Drovers, but they wouldn’t be able to get the right bounces today and the Drovers would knock down clutch free throws and the Tigers sending the seniors out on a win would fall short 70-65.

Tigers would score 65 points, shooting 27.6 % (21-76) from the floor, 33.3% (8-24) beyond the arc, and 60% (15-25) from the charity stripe.

Tigers would have 4 players score double digits tonight including 2 senior guards! Zenith Hernandez would pour in 15 points, Holly Golden would score 14, Maria Cabello scored 11, and Tania Lowe dropped 10.

Central (65) – Zenith Hernandez (15) Holly Golden (14) Maria Cabello (11) Tania Lowe (10) Cheyenne Marshall (9) Cieara Carter (6)

Marc Golden said this about today’s performance:

“Our ladies knew that they had to beat USAO or at the very least play them close. A close game or a win would move us back into the top 25 in our region for the NCCAA postseason play opportunities. While we came up short with the five point loss, we did score big points in the NCCAA power rankings”

“Our team played very well together, they kept on believing and they continued focusing on being excellent in the moment. If we play like we did today in the postseason no one will be able to stop what these young ladies can do when they play with this kind of unity, excitement, and execution.”

“We will continue to work on the little things, like rebounding and defense. Hopefully we will be able to hang our hat on those things; and today was a very good step in that direction.”

Central finisher the regular season out going 8-20 (3-17 SAC). They will await the NCCAA to see if they will qualify for postseason play.

About Central Christian College of Kansas

Central Christian College of Kansas is a four-year collegiate institution that strives to offer Christ-centered education for the whole person through four core characteristics: heart, soul, mind, and strength. Its history dates back to 1884, and it is located in the friendly town of McPherson, Kansas. Central is a strategically small college that offers over forty areas of residential study and a thriving online program for non-traditional students. To learn more about Central, go to centralchristian.edu/about. Visit the Foundation of Central Christian College to see what projects and events are coming up.