Lakeland College Rustlers guard Susan Ayaa holds her ground last Friday night in the Lakeland Gym as the Rustlers beat the Medicine Hat Rattlers 88-45. Taylor Weaver Meridian Source
The Lakeland College Rustlers women’s basketball team is in pursuit of another championship run after another weekend of back-to-back wins.
The Rustlers (6-0) hosted Briercrest College on Friday, besting the visitors 75-59 before tipping off against the Medicine Hat Rattlers on Saturday, defeating them 88-45.
Six games into the season, head coach Chris King is looking long-term, and for good reason; the Rustlers will be hosting the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Championships this March.
“Our goal is to perform in March when we host nationals,” said King after Saturday’s win.
“Every game is a dress rehearsal for us.”
After a 16-point win on Friday and a 43-point win on Saturday, King said he was happy with the performance, but noted there’s work to be done.
“Playing Briercrest yesterday, one of the top teams in the south, I thought we had a fairly strong performance. We came out of the gate really well and continued to play that well,” he said.
“Briercrest is very physical in size so it was a good test for us early in the year.”
“Tonight, I wasn’t as happy,” said King.
“Obviously we won by a big margin, but everything for us is about building for nationals, so we’re comparing ourselves against this goal of what it looks like to play at nationals, and a lot of these girls know what that is.”
By the numbers, the Rustlers can put up big points, but they also know the value of solid defense.
“I think we’ve kept everyone under 60, which is kind of our team goal,” explained King.
“We’re very long and very athletic, so we cause problems in the full-court defensively, and at half-court, we’ve got a few things to shore up but it’s been a strong effort from everyone.
“We have 12 girls that could start in any program, in my opinion, so we’re very blessed we have that depth, which really contributes to our defense.”
A long-time coach of the program, King’s bench has veteran presence when it comes to players and coaches with Marissa Lindquist and Tori Dugan.
“For me as a coach, it’s special to have two former players, Marissa and Tori coaching with me; it’s pretty awesome,” said King.
“Tori carries a lot of weight because people know her credentials, where she played and what she did … I’m just super blessed to have them, and one day, who knows, I may pass this program over to them to keep going.”
