Conq women get first win of season

The Dodge City Community College Conquistador women's basketball team got its first win of the season Tuesday with a 67-49 victory over the Tabor College junior varsity Bluejays at the Civic Center.
    April Weaver broke out in the game for 29 points and eight rebounds. She hit three of the four Conq 3-pointers as well.
    "When she gets up around the line, she can get really streaky," said DCCC coach Steve High. "It really helps us out because our two other best scoring options are Robin Parker and Samantha Askew in the post. When she's (Weaver) shooting it well, a team can't just squat down on us in the post."
    That theory played out in the game against Tabor, too. Parker had 19 of her own points to go along with 13 rebounds on the night.
    "She's very capable on the offensive end," High said. "That will help Samantha out, too, because everyone in the [Jayhawk] conference knows she's someone who is a presence and has some good moves in the post."
    Parker started out of the gates quickly, scoring the game's first three points. Just when the Conqs began to take control of the first half, though, they started turning the ball over.
    The Conqs turned it over 33 times on the night.
    With just over 12 minutes left in the half, Tabor was back in the game, down only 16-12. Dodge had built a 10-point early lead with strong moves to the hoop by Parker and Nekea Sims.
    "We have to work on passing and receiving the ball," High said. "An awful  lot of times if somebody isn't in good receiving position, things can go wrong. There's a lot of elements in how turnovers occur. I thought we had way too many travels as well."
    After letting the Bluejays back into the game, though, the Conqs finished the half on a 19-7 run that put them up 35-19 at halftime. Weaver finished the half on a tear from the perimeter.
    Another Tabor run to begin the half let Dodge know not to take its collective foot off the gas. The Bluejays scored 15 of the second half's first 21 points to get within seven at 41-34.
    Weaver ended the run and righted the ship with her second 3-pointer of the night that put the Conqs back up by ten, 44-34. After putbacks by Parker and Sims later in the half, the Conq lead had ballooned to 17, 58-41.
    The rout was on, and the Conqs never looked back. The Conqs shot over 52 percent from the field in the second half.
    "They'll probably be a lot more enthusiastic about coming to practice tomorrow," High said of the psychological effect his team's first win may have. "The most important thing for this team going forward is not playing games, but having good practices."
    High added that freshman point guard Marcella Sedoc improved drastically in Tuesday's game against Tabor. Though she went without a field goal and turned the ball over six times, High said that she played more tenacious defense and ran the team effectively on offense.
    "If you'd have seen her at Allen County's Classic and then watched her tonight, her play really improved, High said." She had a great game defensively, and I think having a point guard assert themselves and take control of the team — that's going to be critical for us."
    The Conqs (1-3) will play again Friday against Southwestern College's junior varsity at the Civic Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.