By: Elijah Smith
The Missouri Western women’s basketball team finished the season with a 21-8 record for their third winning season in a row, and added an MIAA conference game to their resume.
Besides getting a bye in the first game of the MIAA tournament, some of the season’s highlights included beating nationally-ranked Emporia State University at home, and beating the University of Central Oklahoma on the road when that team was undefeated 18-0. Of course, sweeping Missouri Western’s rivals to the north was also a highlight for the team.
Head Coach Rob Edmisson said he believes the past two seasons are a sign the women’s basketball program has seen a turnaround, and considers this season a successful one.
“Playing in the toughest conference in the country, every game is pretty huge,” Edmisson said, noting that only two games separated the first and fourth place teams in the conference. “When you go through and look at conference games, the fact that we were very successful on the road – I think we were 11-3 on the road this year – that’s something that was a highlight; our ability to go win road games, because that’s tough to do in this league.”
Senior point guard Chelsea Dewey agrees that every game had its highlights. Dewey was the team’s top scorer, racking up 373 points during the regular season. She said the team’s winning record says a lot about their coach and the team’s chemistry.
“You can’t be successful without chemistry,” Dewey said. “Having players that are willing to buy in is also another key factor. He [Edmisson] definitely found some players like that.”
Associate Director of Athletics for External Relations Brett Esely said the team had some big shoes to fill after losing four starters that were instrumental in an incredibly successful 2015-2016 season. He says the increased interest of new recruits can be attributed to the coaches and what the team has built over these past several seasons.
“I think they went from being the hunter to being the hunted, when you have the season that we did,” Esely said. “When you have a year like we had in ’15-’16, where you win 27 games, all of a sudden the mentality of your team changes. . . now, every time we line up, we think we can win.”
Esely and Edmisson agree that recruitment will play a key role in the ongoing success of the women’s basketball program, and are optimistic that the team will see the same results, even if with some fresh faces.
“Now it’s on the next group to maintain that level,” Esely said. “And it’s never easy. But I think it’ll be easier, just because they’ve built a program to where people want to come play here again, which is a good thing.”
