LUBBOCK, Texas (November 16, 2024) – No. 12 Lubbock Christian University capitalized on their home-court advantage, shooting an impressive 28-of-30 from the free-throw line and 8-of-16 from beyond the arc in their home opener Saturday, rolling to a 78-56 win over Colo. Colorado Springs (UCCS) at Rip Griffin Center.
 
The Lady Chaps (5-0) had three players score in double figures, led by Grace Foster, who had 20 points, seven rebounds and two blocks. Maci Maddox added 16 points, five assists and two steals and Audrey Robertson chipped in as well with 12 points.
 
Led by Kennedy Chappell's four offensive rebounds, Lubbock Christian did a great job crashing the offensive glass, pulling down 12 boards that resulted in nine second chance points. LCU had a 43-30 rebounding advantage overall five players posting at least five rebounds (Foster and Audrey Spurgin co-led LCU with seven boards).
 
Lubbock Christian forced 13 UCCS turnovers. The Lady Chaps turned those takeaways into 16 points on the other end of the floor (16-12 scoring advantage in the category).
 
The Mountain Lions, receiving votes in the D2CSC Top-25 National Poll, faced a challenging road trip under second-year head coach Misty Wilson. A familiar face in the Lone Star Conference from her tenure as Tarleton State's head coach, Wilson saw her UCCS squad drop to 1-2 on the season following a 73-49 loss to West Texas A&M on Thursday and Saturday's defeat. Despite the tough stretch, Maison White provided a standout performance with a 23-point, 12-rebound double-double.
 
How It Happened
After playing to a 7-7 tie early in the game, Lubbock Christian went on an 8-0 run with 4:38 left in the first quarter, culminating in a three from Taylor Thomas, to take a 15-7 lead. The Lady Chaps then added four points to that lead by the end of the period and entered the quarter break with a 22-10 advantage. Lubbock Christian relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down three shots to account for nine of its 22 points. LCU had an 8-0 scoring advantage in the frame in points-off-turnovers. Robertson (8) and Maddox (7) combined for 15 points in the quarter for LCU.
 
LCU built their first half lead to 32-19 before UCCS produced a 5-0 run and trimmed LCU's lead to 36-28 at the break. Lubbock Christian scored four of its 14 total points in the period on second chance opportunities created by pulling down five offensive rebounds. Foster led LCU with seven points in the quarter, while Robertson led LCU at the half with 10 points.
 
Lubbock Christian continued to preserve its halftime lead before going on a 10-0 run to expand its lead further to 50-33 with 5:42 to go in the third quarter. Foster was 4-of-6 from the field in the third quarter (2-of-3 from three-point range) and helped LCU enter the fourth quarter with a 60-41 edge.
 
Lubbock Christian kept its lead intact before going on a 6-0 run to grow the lead to 78-53 with 1:40 to go in the contest. Thirteen Lady Chaps hit the floor in the final quarter, with all players playing at least 1:23 and no player playing more than 7:40. Of the 13, eight Lady Chaps figured into the scoring, as LCU outscored UCCS 18-15 in the quarter.
 
Game Notes
 
» The Lady Chaps made half of their attempts from three-point range, knocking down eight of 16 shots. Foster led LCU with three three-pointers and was 3-of-6 from long-range. Audrey Robertson, 2-of-3 from deep, has 14 three-pointers on the season, which leads the LSC.

» The Lady Chaps held the Mountain Lions to only 34.5 percent shooting from the field (19/55). It was not a good shooting day for UCCS, who was also 18.8% (3-of-16) from three-point range and 15-of-29 (51.7%) from the charity stripe.

» LCU had the return of three players back from setbacks. Kennedy Chappell (6 rebounds, 4 points) returned to the starting lineup and Taylor Thomas (matched a career high with 9 points) returned after each missed both matches last weekend in Tyler, Texas. Also making her season debut was Martie McCoy, who was a regular starter last season until suffering a season-ending injury.

» The Lady Chaps had 28 points from the free-throw line, as they shot 93.3% (28-of-30) from the free-throw line. The last time LCU had more than 28 points from the line was Nov. 6, 2022, as they had 29 against Missouri Western (neutral site game in Kansas City, Mo.).

» Lubbock Christian had a 43-30 edge on the boards in the win, marking a third consecutive game in which LCU had at least a +10 rebound margin (averaging a +14 over a three-game span). LCU's best three-game stretch since February of the 2019-20 season in which they had a +17, +16, +15 in a three-game stretch.

» Grace Foster led the Lady Chaps with 20 points. She has scored at least 20 points in four of LCU's five games this season.

» The Lady Chaps returned to their winning ways in home openers, defeating UCCS 78-56 in this season's debut at Rip Griffin Center. The victory improved LCU's record to 20-2 in home openers under Steve Gomez. The Lady Chaps had previously seen their 11-game home opener winning streak snapped last season in an 87-78 loss to No. 17 Union, marking their first home-opening defeat since a 61-44 loss to Metro State on Nov. 5, 2011. Of their last five home openers, four have featured opponents either nationally ranked or receiving votes, including a 76-72 win over No. 1 Lander in 2021-22. UCCS entered this year's matchup receiving votes in the D2CSC Top 25 poll.
 
» LCU improved to 6-1 all-time against UCCS, as the win gave LCU consecutive wins in the all-time series and improved LCU's record against UCCS in Lubbock to 2-0 all-time.
 
Next Up
It may feel out of season, but LCU dives into Lone Star Conference play early, hosting St. Edward's for their LSC opener Thursday at 5:30 p.m. inside Rip Griffin Center.