PORTALES, N.M. – The Eastern New Mexico women’s basketball team will look to build of last year’s NCAA Tournament appearance when it tips off the 2019-20 regular season this weekend with games against New Mexico Highlands and Fort Lewis when it competes in the LSC/RMAC Conference Challenge.
SCOUTING THE COWGIRLS
The Cowgirls have yet to post a winning season in their 13 year history and have won four or less games the past four seasons. NMHU posted a 4-24 overall record a season ago which included a 3-19 mark in RMAC play on their way to a 16th place finish in the league. The Cowgirls have been picked to finish 16th again this season according to the RMAC Preseason Coaches Polls.
Highlands struggled on both sides of the ball last year, finishing with the RMAC’s worst scoring margin of -20.7. The Cowgirls averaged 53.1 points per game and would allow 73.9 per contest.
Hoping to help her squad improve on last year’s campaign is junior guard Jordyn Lewis. Lewis led the squad with 993 total points and led the RMAC with a .889 free throw percentage and ranked fifth in scoring, averaging 14.5 points per game. The Ramah, N.M. native also lit it up from beyond the arch, posting the seventh-best three point percentage (.359) and draining 2.5 threes per game on her way to being named All-RMAC Honorable Mention.
Looking to contribute offensively is senior guard Brianna Stewart who returns for her final collegiate season. Stewart averaged 7.3 points per game and shot 36 percent from the field
The Cowgirls are looking to start young as they brought in six freshman, all of which are from the state of New Mexico, and are looking to get them the experience they need in order to grow within the very competitive Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. Also joining the mix is Northeastern Oklahoma A&M transfer Kaitlyn Holl
New Mexico Highlands women’s basketball is under the leadership of fourth-year Head Coach Joseph Anders.
SCOUTING THE SKYHAWKS
The Skyhawks experienced a bit of a down year last season finishing with a 13-15 overall record and a 9-13 conference mark for a 11th place finish in the RMAC standings after winning 19 games or more the previous three seasons. Fort Lewis is predicted to finish in 11th place according to the RMAC Preseason Coaches Poll
The Skyhawks finished as one of the RMAC’s best scoring teams, ranking fifth with 1,839 points averaging 65.9 per game.
Poised to build off her solid sophomore campaign, forward Jordan Carter returns for the Skyhawks after averging 10.1 points and 4.2 rebounds per game during the 2018-19 season. Junior guard Syndey Candelaria made a name for herself last year as a lock-down perimeter defender totaling 43 steals but is expected to be one of FLC’s primary offensive weapons. As a sophomore Candeleria finished tied for third on the team in scoring at 10.1 points per game, and finished second on the team in three-pointers made converting on 30 of her 86 attempts. Carter and Candelaria have been dubbed as Players to Watch by the conference office as the season gets underway.
Also returning to the fold is senior guard Kayla Herrera-Flores who was the second leading scorer for FLC last season at 10.7 points per game. Herrera-Flores led the Skyhawks in made 3-pointers (34) while adding 5.2 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game as the team’s primary ball handler.
Fort Lewis will add Ottawa University transfer and NAIA Region Player if the Year Bailey Osmer, who posted 15.6 points and six rebounds per game last season. In total, the Skyhawks are bringing in four transfers and three freshmen to bolster their rotation.
LAST SEASON
Under sixth year Head Coach Josh Prock the Eastern New Mexico women’s basketball team finished the 2018-19 campaign with its second NCAA Tournament appearance in the past three seasons. The Greyhounds posted a 19-11 overall record and finished Lone Star Conference play with a 14-6 mark, earning a fifth-place finish in the league standings. The Hounds played especially well in front of their home supporters as they set the best home record in the program’s 45-year history, posting an impressive 12-1 record inside Greyhound Arena.
Eastern put together one of the finest statistical seasons in program history, as last year’s squad ranks second all-time with 2,103 total points and 289 total steals. The Hounds corralled 1,220 rebounds while dishing out 462 assists as a unit which are the third-highest marks in the ENMU record book. Last year’s team ranks fourth in field goals made (750) and three-point field goals made (175), fifth in blocked shots (107), seventh in free throws made (428) and ninth in scoring average (70.1).
2019-20 Preseason Story Lines
The Hounds return one of the most versatile post players in the LSC in Alivia Lewis. The 6’2, Albuquerque, N.M. native averaged 8.9 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game, which ranked second and third respectively amongst conference competitors. The second leading scorer for the Hounds last season, Zamorye Cox looks to improve off her stellar freshman campaign. The Portales High School standout averaged 9.6 points per game and showed an aptitude to create for her teammates dishing out 3.6 assists per contest. Looking to gain a full-time starting spot along the perimeter, shooting guard Chelsea Hunter returns for her junior campaign. Hunter, the Lubbock, Texas native, appeared in 27 games and made 20 starts while averaging 6.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. Hunter also got after the ball defensively, swiping 38 steals and was a sniper from beyond the arch shooting .294 (25-for-85) from three-point range.
SAME HOUNDS, NEW LOOK
The Greyhounds return 11 players from last year’s team including three starters while Coach Prock adds seven new players to the 2019-20 roster. With four transfers and three true freshman joining the team, the Greyhounds strengthen their lineup and bolster their depth coming off the bench.
Highlighting the incoming recruiting class are transfers Anasha Hurst and Natalie DeLonge. A 5-8 guard from St. Louis, Mo, Hurst joins the Green and Silver after spending the last two seasons at Kirkwood Community College. Hurst averaged 8.7 points, 2.7 assists and two steals per game as a sophomore and was named First Team All-Region and also led her squad to a NJCAA National Championship game. A 6-4 post player from Klamath Falls, Ore., Delonge joins the Hounds after spending the last three years at Western Oregon University. Delonge was named Second Team All-GNAC and earned Academic All-GNAC honors last season as a junior. In her final season with the Wolves, Delonge led the team with 15.1 points and 7.5 rebounds per game which ranked fourth and seventh respectively, throughout the conference. She averaged one block per contest which was tied for the seventh-highest mark in the GNAC.
Schedule Outlook
The Hounds will be tested early as they take on three NCAA Division I schools with exhibition games against UTEP, Arizona and the University of New Mexico.
ENMU’s regular season will begin on the road in Durango, Colorado to compete at the LSC/RMAC Conference Challenge. Eastern faces New Mexico Highlands on Friday, Nov. 8 and will finish with tourney host Fort Lewis the following day.
The Greyhounds conference opener is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 23 against rival West Texas A&M at 1 p.m. inside First United Bank Center. The Green and Silver return to Canyon, Texas the following week as they compete in the WT Pak-A-Sak Thanksgiving Classic, taking on Adams State Friday, Nov. 29 and CSU-Pueblo on Saturday, Nov. 30.
ENMU fans can get their first look at the team on Thursday, Dec. 5 when the Greyhounds host Northern New Mexico, at 11 a.m. in the home opener. Children from several local schools will be an attendance as the game will also be the program’s sixth annual Youth Day Game.
NEW LOOK LSC
The Lone Star Conference will expand from 11 teams to 18 schools with Lubbock Christian, St. Edward’s St. Mary’s, Texas A&M International, Oklahoma Christian, University of Arkansas-Fort Smith and UT Tyler joining the mix. The LSC will be divided into three divisions and will play 22 conference games with division foes playing home-and-away against each other and once versus the rest of the conference. The top four schools from each division will move on to the postseason tournament with the opening round being held on campus of the higher seed before the final eight teams battle it out at Comerica Center in Frisco Texas. The Hounds division will include Angelo State, Lubbock Christian, UT Permian Basin, West Texas A&M and Western New Mexico.
Hounds on the Road
Last season the Green and Silver posted a 5-8 mark when playing outside of Greyhound Arena, stumbling a bit in road contests towards the end of the season going 1-4 in their last five away games. The Hounds concluded the 2018-19 regular season with an important 71-63 road win at Texas Woman’s. The result moved the Hounds into a three-way tie for third in the LSC, securing the No. 4 seed in the LSC Tournament.
