CLINTON, Miss. --- The Mississippi College women's basketball team will open the 2014-15 regular season on Friday night by hosting Spring Hill College in A.E. Wood Coilseum. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.
The Lady Choctaws are in transition to Division II and the Gulf South Conference, playing their first full GSC schedule since the 1994-95 season. MC wrapped up their time in the American Southwest Conference with 12 trips to the conference tournament and an East Division championship in 2003.
Head coach
Paul Allen Duke begins his 20th season at the helm, compiling a 331-152 (.685) record as the winningest coach in school history. Former Lady Choctaw
Jalessa Taylor will begin her first year as the assistant coach after two years as a graduate assistant, while another former Lady Choctaw
Whitney Enis takes over the G.A. postition.
The Lady Choctaws return two regular starters from a season ago, as senior
Lauren Bethly (Baton Rouge, La.) and sophomore
Mollie Blair (Jackson, Miss.) are back after combining for 36 starts last season. Senior
Jaianah Matthew (Texarkana, Texas) also comes back after starting 11 games in 2013-14 and is the leading returning scorer after averaging 9.4 points per game last season.
MC had five newcomers start the final preseason game against LSU, and junior
Allie Hill (Plainfield, Ill.) led the way with nine points. The transfer from Texas-Pan American joined sophomore
Zaneta Kubicka (Wschowa, Poland) in being named to the GSC Top Newcomers List prior to the season. Senior
AnnMarie Harris (Miami, Fla.) is another Division I transfer from Florida A&M that will be expected to make an immediate impact. Copiah-Lincoln CC tranfer
Ashley Minor (Natchez, Miss.) and Meridian CC transfer
Kristen Sampson (Jackson, Miss.) also started last Sunday against LSU.
The Badgers come into Friday's contest off a 5-23 season in 2013-14. Head coach Karen McConico enters her fourth season at the helm after a seven-year tenure as an assistant coach at High Point University. Elissa VanderWaa is the team's leading returning scorer after averaging 8.2 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. She led the team with 115 assists last season.
This will be the first-ever meeting between the Lady Choctaws and the Badgers.
