Lady Demons Come Up Short in WAC Opener in Liberal

LIBERAL, Kan. – Hailey Contreras scored 21 points and Shamari Lewis added 15 points and nine rebounds as the Liberal Redskins downed Dodge City 56-32 at the Big House.

Dodge entered the game on two game winning streak but hadn’t played a game in ten days due to a weather postponement the prior week. Their defense had carried them in both games, allowing just 43 points in the two games combined against Ulysses and Garden Plain.

Liberal was also dealing with a ten day layoff, having beaten Woodward in their first game back from the holiday break. The good news for the Redskins was that they got senior forward Elle Hatcher back after she was forced to miss the first eight games of the season with an injury.

The game started out as a back and forth affair which lasted until the end of the first quarter when Liberal went on a late run to open up a 14-7 lead after ten minutes.

Things fell apart for the Lady Demons in the second quarter when they were outscored 23-6, struggling particularly on the glass, as they were out rebounded 24-13 in the first half and allowed 11 offensive rebounds. The turnover issues also resurfaced for Dodge as they had 11 first half giveaways, which the Redskins turned into 14 points. Contreras scored 13 of her 21 points before halftime as the Redskins built a 37-13 lead at the break.

Dodge put together a much better second half with their defense improving significantly, especially because Easha Potts was able to get more minutes after sitting for portions of the first half with foul trouble. Potts finished the game with eight points and nine rebounds, both of which led the Lady Demons.

Both teams scored 12 in the third quarter and seven in the fourth which secured the 24 point victory for the Redskins, giving them back-to-back wins for the second time this season. The turnovers and offensive rebounds allowed were the biggest issues for Dodge as they took 25 fewer shots than the Redskins in the contest. The win gets Liberal off to a 1-0 start in conference play and moves them to 6-3 overall. Dodge City falls to 3-5 with the loss and is 0-1 in WAC play.

Dodge City will be in action again on Tuesday when they take on Wichita-Trinity at the field house at 6 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on Z98 with pregame coverage beginning at 5:40.