By RYAN SHUMAKER, Student Reporter
Northwestern Oklahoma State steamrolled the Aggies of Panhandle State in their home opener by a final score of 83-54.
Head coach Tasha Diesselhorst earned her first collegiate win in style as the Rangers opened up a 20-7 lead in the first quarter of action and never looked back. The Rangers were paced by junior Kalea King, who produced her second straight 20 point effort with 23 points in essentially just three quarters of action. King was 10-15 from the field and also had five steals on the defensive side of the ball.
The Rangers stifling press defense continually caused major distress for Panhandle State, forcing 33 Aggie turnovers which led to multiple fast-break buckets. The Rangers had 11 team steals and held the Aggies to just 36 percent shooting from the field.
The scoring got underway with a three-point shot from King, who scored 18 in the first half alone. Panhandle answered with five straight points to gain their only lead of the game, before the onslaught of points got underway from the Ranger’s offensive attack. The first major run in the quarter started with a deep three from guard Taylor Cell, followed up by a steal-and-score from King, and then another quick bucket off an Aggie miss from Princeton, Texas native Jonae Issac. That run gave the Rangers a 12-5 lead not even half way through the first quarter.
The rapid scoring continued with back-to-back three-point shots from cell and guard Renee Contreras, followed up with another nice jump shot from King to bring the score to 20-7. The Rangers stalled on offense at the end of the quarter, but their full court pressure continued to harass the Aggies into multiple turnovers. In the first half alone, Northwestern shot 53 percent from the field as well as hitting four of seven three-point shots.
The Rangers kept the pedal to the medal in the second quarter and actually shot better at 57 percent from the field on 8-14 shooting. The fantastic shooting started early with a corner three from Isaac and continued with a shot from Bailey Forell that rattled high off the rim and still managed to find the bottom of the net. That wild shot gave the Rangers a 35-7 lead.
The Aggies were finally able to get back on the scoreboard when a rare Ranger defensive breakdown allowed an easy lay-up. Following the lay-up, two Ranger turnovers were still not enough to detour the Rangers from increasing their lead, as two more solid defensive stands led to a King jumper to bring the Ranger lead to 37-10. The Rangers finished off the half leading 42-17, causing a total of 19 Aggie turnovers while holding the opposing team to just 25 percent shooting from the field.
Northwestern opened up the third quarter with a 12-3 run, and continued to grow their lead, outscoring the Aggies 22-20 in the quarter. The Aggies did however have their best shooting quarter of the night, converting 58 percent of shots from the field. But the Rangers defense held tough enough for King and company to keep Panhandle at a comfortable distance.
The Aggies narrowed the lead to just 14 points at the 60-36 mark, but a quick jump shot from junior Jaylan Robinson and a nice defensive stand led to a beautiful drive and score from Contreras with just two seconds left in the quarter to set the Ranger lead at 64-37 going into the final quarter.
The Rangers got multiple players some playing time in the final quarter of action, but continued to pile it on the Aggies. Senior Relina Johnson and sophomore Jakeria Otey both hit three pointers in their return to game action, after both battling injuries throughout the beginning of the season, generating a huge ovation from the Rangers bench. Northwestern finished off the Aggies with an 83-54 final.
The Rangers will look to continue to defend their home court on Dec. 1 as they welcome Southern Arkansas to Percefull Fieldhouse in the conference home opener with tip-off set for 5:30 p.m.