The WT Lady Buffs have won their second straight regional championship after defeating the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs Mountain Lions on March 16.
The Lady Buffs have won 21 straight games en route to the Elite Eight. In the three regional tournament games, the Lady Buffs showed what got them to the dance in the first place. The Lady Buffs, who lead the nation in field goal percentage with a 49.1 clip, shot over 50 percent over the span of the three regional games. The Lady Buffs are also shooting at a very high percentage from beyond the arc, shooting at a 43.1 clip so far in the tournament. In the UCCS game alone, the Lady Buffs shot for an incredible 62.3 percent from the field, a performance Head Coach Mark Kellogg praised.
“We did shoot the ball really well tonight,” Kellogg said. “We were in a pretty good rhythm offensively and we have a lot of kids who can score and we wanted to play at a high pace.
Senior Haylee Oliver was one of the prime reasons the Lady Buffs offense was clicking on all cylinders against UCCS. She was perfect for the night, going 8 for 8 from the field and going 4 for 4 from beyond the arc. Oliver said she it was like a dream to hold the regional championship after playing the last three years at Angelo State.
“I watched (WT) online last year at the regional tournament,” Oliver said. “Now getting to experience and be a part of it, cutting down the net and holding the trophy it has been unreal. It is like a dream I didn’t know if I would ever have playing the last two seasons, but I couldn’t be more excited as the girls have embraced me and brought me in like I was their own. It has been an awesome experience.”
Seniors Chontiquah White and Jordan Vessels both hit team career milestones also after winning the regional title. White tied the school career games played record, held by Von Tucker and Vanessa Wells, with 128 games played, and will have the record after playing Emporia State on Tuesday. Vessels is now tied for fourth place all-time for career games played with Angela Seay with 125 games. Vessels said that her last game in the FUBC was special and thanked the fans.
“WT and Buff Nation have been so special to me and leave it with a win like that tonight,” Vessels said. “It has been very special to play for a group of girls like this and the crowd was great tonight and they were loud and really helped us.”
The Lady Buffs were scheduled to take on Emporia State in the Elite Eight of the National Championship Tournament in Sioux Falls, S.D. on March 24. Check the Prairie’s Facebook page for coverage.
