Lady Texans close out regular season with 54-41 rout of Midland Thursday

LEVELLAND — The South Plains College women's basketball team picked up their third conference win in as many games Thursday, drumming Midland College 54-41 at the Texan Dome to close out the regular season.

Improving to 17-8 on the season and 11-3 in league play, South Plains finishes the year in third place in the WJCAC, qualifying for the Region V Tournament, and will play as the No. 3 seed out of the West. South Plains will play either Grayson or Hill College out of the North at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, March 2 at the Tiger Pit at Frenship High School.

"Every game is a grind for us, and tonight really wasn't any different," South Plains College head coach Ara Baten said. "We played better in spots offensively than we have been and got out in transition well, and defensively we were aggressive and we played well on the defensive end."  

Celia Sumbane controlled the interior for South Plains, posting a game-high 14 points and seven boards as the Lady Texans edged Midland 51-43 on the glass. Sophomore Ashala Moseberry dropped in 11 points, grabbed eight rebounds, and picked a season-high six assists.

Viktoria Ivanova poured in 10 points over 35 minutes as South Plains shot 30.3 percent from the field, receiving 16 points from the bench. Matilda Soderlund netted seven points and three rebounds while Vitoria Carvalho recorded four points and a game-high 12 rebounds over 20 minutes.

"Right now I'm just happy for our kids and our sophomores, especially Ashala Moseberry who has been here three years," Baten said. "We have several kids who have been here two years, and they played well and beat a good team in their last game at home."

South Plains recorded just 10 turnovers offensively while forcing Midland into 21 turnovers resulting in 15 points on the offensive end. Midland shot just 29 percent from the floor in the contest and were 4 of 20 from the 3-point line.

"I'm starting to see more good offensive possessions, and we are getting close," Baten said. "When you start back near labor day and go through preseason workouts, all of the work you do is to get to now. Half of the teams will be turning in their stuff tomorrow, and we get to keep playing. I think we are good enough to beat anyone we will face, and if we are right mentally and ready to play, I think we have a good chance."