Oklahoma State University Athletics
COWGIRLS OPEN REGULAR SEASON IN TULSA AT BERTHA TEAGUE CLASSIC
April 15, 2003 | Cowgirl Basketball
Cox Communications, Ch. 9 in Tulsa and Ch. 3 in Oklahoma City, will carry Saturday night's contest. John Walls will handle the play-by-play duties, while Rod Thompson will serve as color analyst.
ABOUT ORAL ROBERTS The Golden Eagles opened their 2002-03 slate with an 82-47 exhibition win over Arkansas Tech at the Mabee Center in Tulsa. ORU was led by hot-shooting Stephanie Clark, who hit on seven of her 10 field goals for a team-high 15 points to go along with 10 rebounds. The Cowgirls and Golden Eagles have met 32 times previously, with OSU holding a 20-12 advantage in the series, including a current 14-game winning streak dating back to an 82-72 overtime loss on Dec. 20, 1986. The Cowgirls won last season's Bertha Teague matchup 83-52 in Stillwater behind a 21-point performance from guard Chantoya Hawkins, who earned tournament MVP honors. Friday's meeting will be the first of two for OSU against the Golden Eagles with the other scheduled for Dec. 17 at the Fun in the Sun Shootout in Cancun, Mexico. The two squads have met at neutral sites on four occasions with OSU winning three times.
ABOUT TULSA The Golden Hurricane (1-1) already have a pair of games in hand after competing in the Preseason WNIT. TU opened the season with an 81-80 win at Southwest Missouri State in front of 6,183 fans before falling 92-66 at Mississippi State. Guard Allison Curtin led the way offensively in both contests for Tulsa, finishing with 30 points in the opener before scoring 21 in the loss to MSU. OSU and TU have squared off 18 times on the hardwood. The Cowgirls own a 16-2 in the all-time series and have won two in a row. The two squads met in the first round of the Bertha Teague Classic last season with OSU coming out on top 70-58. OSU owns a 6-1 record all-time against the Golden Hurricane in Tulsa with the Cowgirls' lone setback coming in 1982.
THE TOURNAMENT'S NAMESAKE Bertha Teague is one of the most prominent female figures in Oklahoma sports history. During her 43 years of coaching at Byng High School from 1927-69, she compiled a 90 percent winning average with a career record of 1,157-115. Her record included eight state championships, and at one time, a 98-game winning streak. Teague was inducted into the Naismith National Basketball Hall of Fame in 1985 and was a member of the inaugural class enshrined in the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 1999.
LAST TIME OUT Oklahoma State defeated the Solna Vikings, 86-65, to close out the 2002-03 exhibition season. Once again, the Cowgirls rode a 21-point performance from junior Trisha Skibbe to the victory. In just her second game in the Orange and Black, freshman guard Lori Allen poured in 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting to go along with six rebounds and four steals. The Cowgirls jumped out to a 41-26 lead in the first half and never looked back, building the margin to 21 points on two occasions. Two other Cowgirls, Shelby Hutchens and Thia Willis, chipped in with 10 points apiece.
