Travis Brewster's tenure as the women's basketball coach at Chadron State College got off to a fast start Friday night when his team defeated College of St. Mary from Omaha 88-64 in Chadron.  

              The Eagles' own fast start made much of the difference. They jumped out to a 27-13 first quarter lead and remained ahead all the way. They made 11 of 24 shots from the field, including a trio of 3-pointers, and had no turnovers in the period.

              Chadron State never outscored the Flames by more than four points in any of the three remaining quarters, but maintained at least a 14-point lead the entire contest.  All 12 players in the scorebook played at least five minutes and 11 of them scored.

              Standout forward Shay Powers led the Eales with 19 points and nine rebounds while alternates Molly Cockburn and Kylie Krise tallied 13 and 11 points, respectively. 

              Cockburn was on the CSC roster last year but seldom played and never scored a point. She made all nine of her shots in the Friday night's opener, while sinking four field goals and five free throws.  Krise transferred from Western Colorado during the summer and made four of her five field goal attempts, including a trio of 3-pointers. 

              Tia Murray, a 6-foot-1 junior, led the Flames in scoring with 20 points while sophomore Madison Camden added 17 points and freshman guard Madison Guzman finished with both 11 points and 11 rebounds.

              The Eagles played at a fast pace and employed a three-quarters court press the entire game.  Perhaps they were too aggressive some of the time. While they were 12 of 15 at the free throw line, St Mary was 28 of 42 at the charity stripe.  

              The Flames were called for just 11 fouls and the Eagles for 31. However, Chadron State out-rebounded the visitors 46-30 and took 76 shots from the field and the Flames only 42. 

              The Eagles will take a long bus ride Saturday, going over 1,200 miles to play Texas A&M International in Laredo on Sunday afternoon.  They're next home game will be on Monday, Nov. 20 against York College. 

              St. Mary—Tia Murray 20, Madison Camden 17, Madison Guzman 11, Chainey Thompson 8, ShyAnne Mayhew 3, Jazmyne Villalobos 3, Skye Giddings 2. Totals: 15-42 (6-15) 28-42 64 points, 30 rebounds, 21 turnovers.

              Chadron State—Shay Powers 19, Molly Cockburn 13, Kylie Krise 11, Kyra Ganabe 9, Awoti Akio 8, Camren Morris 8, Kaydn Comer 5, Olivia Waufle 4, Allison Olsen 4, Megan Counts 4, Liberty Line 3. Totals: 34-76 (8-27) 12-15 88 points, 46 rebounds, 15 turnovers.

              St. Mary               13       16       17        18       ---64
              Chadron State     27       19       20        22      ---88
              3-pointers: St. Mary—Murray. Camden, Thompson, all 2.  CSC—Kruse 3, Morris 2, Tamabe 1, Line 1, Comer 1.

Texas team edges Chadron State men 80-78

The season-opener for the Chadron State College men's basketball team was a barn-burner, but it didn't turn out the way the Eagles and their fans wanted.  Texas A&M International from Laredo squeezed out an 80-78 in the Chicoine Center in Chadron on Friday night.

              A slow start was costly for the Eagles. They made just one of their first six shots and turned the ball over four times in the first five minutes, allowing the Dustdevils to jump out to 12-2 lead. The Texas team led 42-36 at halftime and remained ahead until Chadron State finally caught up at 55-55 with 12 ½ minutes remaining. 

              There were four lead changes and five ties the rest of the way. The Eagles went ahead 67-62  with 6:10 remaining when senior forward Josh Robinson hit a floater while on the run. But a 3-pointer and two free throws by International's Mike Rivera soon knotted the score at 67-67 and the Eagles never regained the lead. 

              With only eight-tenths of a second remaining, the hosts had a chance to take the lead or tie the score, but their shot at the buzzer did not connect.

              Both teams put four players in double figures. CSC guard Bryce Latimer scored just two points in the first half, but he made 10 of 13 field goal shots in the second half while finishing with a game-high 24 points. Robinson added 22 points and grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds. Both Dalton Peterson and Trey Ballard added 11 points for the Eagles.

              Guard Matthew Okoye led the Dustdevils with 18 points, Shannon Strickland contributed 13 points and John Achebe and Damian Watson each scored 10.

              Each team shot right at 55% from the field, but both were below par at the free throw line. The Eagles were just six of 11 and the Devils only 13 of 21.

              Saturday night, the Eagles will host Texas A&M-Kingsville and International will play at South Dakota Mines.  Kingsville edged the Hardrockers 54-49 in Rapid City on Friday night.  

              Texas A&M International—Matthew Okoye 18, Shannon Stickland 13, John Achebe 10, Damian Watson 10, Mike Rivera 9, Jalen Barnes 6, Jeremiah Washington 6, Olaverr Camacho 4, Esteban Roacho 2, Noel Scott 2. Totals: 31-56 (5-20) 13-21 80 points, 29 rebounds, 15 turnovers.

              Chadron State—Bryce Latimer 24, Josh Robinson 22, Dalton Peterson 11, Trey Ballard 11, Porter Anderson 6, Jalen Paterson 2, Martin Poznanovic 2. Totals: 34-63 (4-11) 6-11 78 points, 33 rebounds, 17 turnovers.

              TA&M Inter.       42        38        ---80
              Chadron State    36        42       ----78
              3-pointers: T&M Int—Strickland 3, Rivera 1, Barnes 1.   CSC—Peterson 3, Ballard 1.