Colorado Christian Women's Basketball got a statement win at the Event Center Friday night. Thanks to big nights from seniors Christina Whitelaw and Kayla Fakelman, CCU cruised to a thunderous 72-38 victory over Western State. Whitelaw and Fakelman combined for 34 points in the heavy-handed win.
 
Still, while Christian's scoring efforts were important, it was a tenacious Cougar defense that turned the RMAC contest into a 34-point rout. Playing with a relentless energy on the defensive side of the ball, CCU limited the Mountaineers to just 15 first-half points. Impressively, Friday's contest marked the third-straight game in which Colorado Christian's opponent would hang just 15 on the first-period scoreboard.
 
"I think the biggest thing we were missing in the first half of the season was the mentality that we wanted to defend," reflected CCU Head Coach Tim Hays. "It took some time, it took adding a couple players, but now we're finding that place where we actually enjoy that end of the floor. When you get a team to buy into the mentality that they want to be a lock-down defensive team, a lot changes – from the way you play defense to the way you rebound to the way you help your teammates. The identity of the team changes. Instead of being driven by shots falling or not falling, you're driven by blocks and rebounds and charges taken and steals. We've given up about 54 points a game in the last six games – we just keep telling the girls that if you do that, you don't have to be the best offensive team in the league. We don't want to rely on offense to win games."
 
Indeed, the defensive numbers were impressive for the blue and gold. Thanks to five Whitelaw steals, Christian tallied 11 take-aways in addition to four blocks and 33 defensive boards. By the end of the night, a rattled Western team would only muster a 22% clip from the field and an 11% effort from downtown. After committing 20 turnovers, the Mountaineers managed just 11 buckets.
 
The numbers proved a satisfying result for a Cougar squad intent on meeting their defensive goals.
 
"Our focus is just not staying content with where we're at," explained Fakelman. "Each week we have a different goal that we attack, and we come into practice ready to attack that goal and just keep getting better and better."
 
In addition to a game and season-high 20-point showing, Fakelman recorded three boards, a steal and an assist.
 
Whitelaw's effort marked a break-out moment for the senior – her 14 points were capped off by nine boards, seven assists and five steals.
 
"It was nice to have players like Kayla and Christina stepping up and hitting shots," continued Hays. "Whitelaw is the person that puts the dagger in the other team. You can be going along, playing pretty decently, when all of a sudden she steps up and makes two or three plays that just break the other team's back. I think it's important that she keeps playing at a high level. The team feeds off that. Tonight, Kayla fed off four or five of Christina's steals and got some easy buckets. Offensively and defensively, she's our driver. Other players are going to continue to feed off that. If we can get one or two more to step up with her, I think we can compete with anyone.
 
"As for Kayla, all I care about is that she stays healthy and she enjoys the game. She's battled through so much injury and heartache, and tonight I saw her with the biggest smile on her face. She plays so hard because she enjoys being in the game with the girls again – she loves it."
 
Playing off the bench, guard Taylor Torres turned in a 12-point, three-assist effort, while Kate Louthan added nine points and nine boards. CCU finished the night with 49 rebounds, taking advantage of an eight minute second-half scoring drought from the Mountaineers.
 
The momentum will be important for Colorado Christian as they look ahead to Saturday night. Set to square off against the league-leading Mavericks of Colorado Mesa, the Cougars understand the task ahead of them.
 
"Mesa is well-drilled and well-coached," Hays remarked. "They can grind with anyone, and they've been getting progressively better. Tomorrow will be a great test for us. It'll be great to see if we've improved the way they have. The key for us tomorrow is that we're going to have to put the ball in the hole. We're going to defend, they're going to defend. The difference will be who is making shots."
 
CCU tips off against the Mavs at 5pm.