OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma City University women's basketball team kicked off 2017 with a 103-73 win over Mid-America Christian Thursday at Abe Lemons Arena.
Daniela Wallen, a senior from Caracas, Venezuela, led all scorers with 24 points. Oklahoma City, ranked eighth in NAIA Division I, moved to 12-1 on the year and 3-0 in Sooner Athletic Conference play while Mid-America dropped to 11-3, 2-1 SAC.
Wallen shot 11-for-16 from the field and produced seven rebounds and five steals. Five Stars scored in double figures to help OCU score over 100 points for the third time this season and the second time in SAC play.
"Mid-America is going to win a lot of games in this league, but I think we did a good job of executing our game plan to go inside early and often," OCU head coach Bo Overton said. "The guards did a great job of getting the ball inside to Brooke Irwin and Alexis Hill, and when they collapsed a little bit we were able to make some shots."
The Stars held a massive 52-22 advantage in points in the paint and outrebounded MACU 41-38 despite the Lady Evangels being the No. 1 rebounding team in NAIA Division I before the game started.
"Rebounding is a huge emphasis for us every time we play," Overton said. "Especially tonight against this team because they get a lot of second-chance points and make a lot of 3-pointers off of offensive rebounds."
With the game tied at 18, Oklahoma City used a 23-6 run over the first and second quarters to pull away and led by as many as 35 in the third quarter.
Daniela Galindo, a junior from Shattuck, Okla., scored 22 points, grabbed five rebounds and dished out two assists in the win.
Brooke Irwin had 14 points. Irwin, a junior from Mustang, Okla., also provided the Stars with six rebounds, one block and one steal.
Alexis Hill and Allison Frey both scored more than 10 points for the first time this season. Hill, a junior from Byng, Okla., scored 12 points and had three steals, while Frey, a junior from Mustang, Okla., provided 11 points, three rebounds and two assists.
Sarai Rodriguez led the Lady Evangels with 21 points, eight assists, two blocks and two steals.
OCU will continue conference play Saturday in Waxahachie, Texas against Southwestern Assemblies of God (Texas) at 3 p.m.