[Women's Basketball] WBB Gameday Preview: No. ...

The Lowdown: University of Saint Mary at No. 25 Friends University

Location: Garvey Center

When: Saturday, Jan. 13 @ 5 pm

Broadcast and Live Stats: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/friends/

Flying with the Falcons: The No. 25-ranked Friends University Falcons are now in sole possession of first place in the KCAC after winning a hard-fought 87-86 victory at Ottawa University on Wednesday evening (Jan. 10).  That win, coupled with No. 16-ranked Tabor College's second consecutive loss, has the Falcons in the top spot at 9-2 in the league.

Betty Akathiotou (SR/Nicosia, Cyprus) leads the 11-7 Falcons and is fourth in the KCAC in scoring this season with 15.6 points per game, while Makenzie Vining (SR/Caney, Kan.) is second on the Falcons in scoring with 13.8 ppg along with a team-high 47 threes. Yowana Posey (SR/Chicago, Ill.) is averaging a team-best 6.1 rebounds per game while also scoring 12.8 ppg.

Lexi Evans (JR/Austin, Texas) is averaging 9.9 ppg and is second on the team with 43 makes from beyond the arc.

Lauren Anderson (JR/Columbus, Kan. ) is also second in the NAIA in assist/turnover ratio (5.5).

Scouting the Spires: The University of Saint Mary Spires fell 77-69 at home to McPherson College Wednesday (Jan. 10) to drop to 8-9 overall and 5-6 in the KCAC. The Spires have now lost three of four overall and currently stand in eighth place in the league.  

Candy De Los Reyes leads the Spires with 17.8 ppg along with a team-high 41 steals.

Ashley Hinkle is second on the team in scoring with 12.0 ppg and leads the team with 66 assists. Tiani White also averages double-digit points with 10.1 ppg, with Sienna Brown recording a team-best 4.9 rebounds for Saint Mary.

The Series: The Falcons have enjoyed success in the recent history meeting with Saint Mary, winning eight of the last 10 meetings that includes the first matchup this season, 85-67 in Leavenworth, Kan. Friends has also bested the Spires 11 straight times at home, with the last Saint Mary win in Wichita coming in the 2007-08 season.

Stealing the Show: Both Betty Akathiotou and Lexi Evans have keyed the Falcons' chaotic defensive efforts this season.  Akathioutou (3.5 spg) and Evans (3.3 spg) rank 1-2 in the KCAC in steals per game, with Akathioutou currently sixth in the NAIA and Evans at eighth in the category. The duo's performance helps the Falcons check in at seventh in the NAIA in steals per game (14.6 spg) as a unit.

The Coaches:

Nicole Midder is in her first season as the head women's basketball coach at Friends University.

No stranger to the program, Midder has been a part of the women's basketball program as an assistant coach for the past six seasons, where she assisted in leading the team to three KCAC regular season championship titles and five NAIA National Tournament appearances, including a pair of "Sweet 16" appearances.

Midder is excited and count it as a privilege to be able to continue her journey with the program. She has done a remarkable job continuing a culture of success both on and off the court in just a short time and taking this already successful program to new heights.

Born in Okinawa, Japan and raised in Dallas, Texas, she proudly served her country for eight years in the United States Army. Midder also played four years of collegiate basketball.

In May of 2012, Midder graduated from Friends University with a Bachelor's Degree in Criminal Justice.

She is an active member of House of Faith Ministries and truly believes that "Hard Work Pays off Brick by Brick by Faith"

Bruce Erickson is in his fifth season as head coach of the University of Saint Mary women's basketball program and has amassed 24 years of coaching high school basketball in Kansas. Erickson is coming off a four-year tenure as the associate head coach at UMKC, where he helped the team achieve a 20-win season along with the program's first-ever appearance in the WNIT.

Up Next: The Falcons will play at (RV) Oklahoma Wesleyan University next Wednesday evening (Jan. 17) at 6 pm in Bartlesville, Okla.

It's shaping to be a big matchup in the league, as OKWU is currently tied for second with Tabor at 8-3, one game behind the Falcons. Friends won the first matchup between the two schools 89-80 back on Nov. 21 in Wichita.