No. 15 Lady Saints look to continue hot streak from first half of season at Coffeyville

LIBERAL, Kan. – The No. 15 Lady Saints basketball team hopes that the holidays do not slow down its momentum when it starts the second half of the season on the road against the Coffeyville Community College Red Ravens at 2 p.m. on Saturday.

"It could be a (trap game)," said Lady Saints head coach Austin Mefford. "We've tried to play it off to the girls that (Coffeyville) is tied for first in the East and undefeated at home. It's the first game back from break for both teams so who knows what to expect. (The questions are) 'how is your endurance?  how good of shape you're back in?' I think we're back in pretty good shape, but we'll find out when the game happens."  

Seward is 9-3 overall and 4-0 in conference play, tied for first in the Jayhawk West with Hutchinson. The Lady Saints have won four of their last five games, including a 65-58 victory at Cowley on December 11, the final game before the break.

While Mefford won't know how the effects of the break until they play on Saturday, he believes the Lady Saints are coming off a good week of practice.

"We got up and down a lot," he said. "We were able to put some new stuff in. We added a few things on offense that play to our strengths and worked on some things on defense that hurt us in the first half.

"I think we're ready," Mefford continued. "We're tired of practicing against each other. We've had a good week. We've played hard and competed against each other and at the point where we're ready to play someone else. "

Coffeyville is 13-2 overall and 3-2 in a four-way tie in the Jayhawk East. The Red Ravens are led by forward Faith Simpson, averaging 18.7 points a game. Simpson has played in only three games so far, joining the team late because she also participated in volleyball. Guard Alana Kramer is the only other Coffeyville player in double-digit scoring, averaging 10 points.

While Simpson has been the main scorer when she has played, the Red Ravens are predominantly guard-oriented.

"They play on the perimeter, dribble-weave, ball screens and do a lot of things to get to the basket," Mefford said. "They play a lot guards. They have different people score on different nights. They look to attack and shoot the mid-range and get to the basket.

"They're very physical and try to use their strength inside," he added. "We're more finesse. We Just have to use our athleticism and quickness, play to our strengths and try not to get into a half-court game where they can use their physicality."

Karolina Szydlowska (12.6), Vanda Cuamba (12.1) and Tianna Johnson (11.3) lead the Lady Saints in scoring.

While Seward continues to improve, it will be even better with the addition of Destiny Alston, who will be playing her first game in green on Saturday. Alston, a redshirt, has been sidelined all of 2018-19 and the first half of this season with a torn ACL, a meniscus and other assorted ailments.

Mefford has no doubt in Alston's basketball ability, but believes her initial contribution will come in the form of leadership.

"(Her leadership) is the biggest thing," Mefford said. "That's what she brings to this team that we haven't had. Even if she doesn't score and do other things, which I think she will, her leadership is what's going to help this team the most going forward because that's something we've lacked."

Alston's ability to shoot the three, hit the mid-range shot and get to the basket as well as play smart defense will give Mefford more depth.

"She can play multiple positions," he said. "She can play the on the wing and as a stretch forward."

As the second half begins, Mefford has been pleased with the young team's progress and the strides it has made.

"We knew it was going to be interesting with 10 freshmen and that we had a lot of work to do,"  Mefford said. "We started off with four games at home and played ok, played enough to win. It was good to get a lot of freshmen a lot of minutes."

While Seward was undefeated heading into the WNIT Midland Tournament, it soon found out that it had a lot to learn.

"We went to Midland and found out a lot more about the team." Mefford said. "We found out about our toughness or lack thereof and playing together as a team. That really exposed a lot about our team. In the end, I think it's going to be very beneficial – a learning experience.

"In the last wave of the semester, we've really come together, played together and played a lot better (winning four of the last five games)," he continued. "It's been a roller coaster ride but we knew that coming in. They have definitely improved when they first got here to the first game to Midland and then now."