CHADRON, Neb. – Fresh off their first win of the season, the Chadron State women's basketball team will try to build momentum and start a streak with two games on their home floor this coming week.
 
The Eagles (1-10, 1-5 RMAC) defeated Regis 68-53 last Saturday to get on the board for 2025-26 and give Jalen Little the first win of his head coaching career. Now, CSC will host Adams State (11-5, 5-1 RMAC) on Thursday night at 5 p.m. and New Mexico Highlands (6-7, 2-4 RMAC) on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m., both in the Chicoine Center.
 
Both games will be streamed live on the RMAC Network, accessible through daily, monthly or annual subscription options, or listen live on Double Q Country 97.5 and 105.9 FM and doubleqcountry.com with Dave Collins on the call.
 
Looking Back
Chadron State fell 81-55 to Colorado School of Mines in its first game of the week before snapping an 11-game program losing streak (dating back to last season) with a 15-point win over Regis.
 
RECAPS: Colorado School of Mines | Regis
 
Chadron State's 68 points against the Rangers were a season-high, 11 more than CSC's previous best. Chadron State used a 25-point third quarter to open up their advantage against Regis, while the Eagles were outscored 26-6 by Colorado School of Mines in the second quarter of that loss.
 
Promotional Notes
Saturday is Cowboy/Rodeo night. Fans are encouraged to dress up in their favorite Western-style apparel to watch the Eagles face New Mexico Highlands. 
 
Both Thursday and Saturday's games will feature halftime games sponsored by The Nest.
 
Access Denied
Amya Winfrey is emerging as one of the RMAC's premier shot blockers after putting up video-game numbers during last week's contests. 
 
Winfrey tallied five blocks and five rebounds against Colorado School of Mines, becoming just the third RMAC player with five in a game this season, and had one point in the first half where she recorded blocks on three consecutive Oredigger possessions. 
 
The Aurora, Colorado native added two more blocks two days later against Regis, a game in which she also scored seven points on 3 of 4 shooting plus six rebounds. Winfrey averaged 3.5 blocks per game during the week and did so while only playing 18 minutes in each game. Her seven blocks in 36 minutes played this past week averages out to nearly 0.2 blocks per minute on the court.
 
For the season, Winfrey ranks second in the RMAC with 1.2 blocks per game, while her 13 total blocks are fourth-most in the league. Chadron State ranks eighth in the RMAC as a team with 2.45 blocks per game.
 
Winfrey wasn't the only standout shot blocker against the Orediggers as Chadron State tallied 10 blocks as a team. That is the second-highest team total in the RMAC this season, behind only Colorado Mesa's 11 against Alaska on November 22. 
 
Beyond Winfrey's five, freshman Keziah Toran finished with three blocks against Mines, recording multiple blocks for the first time in her young career. Toran ranks second on the team in blocks for the season with five behind Winfrey's 13.
 
Finding a Rhythm 
Chadron State is coming off their best offensive week as a team, as the Eagles scored their most (68) and third-most (55) points in a game this season during last week's two contests. 
 
The win over Regis marked the first time that Chadron State had three double-figure scorers in a contest, with McKenzi Petersen scoring 14 and Audrey Quintana and Kenna Wagner adding 12 points apiece. 
 
Petersen shot 70 percent from the floor (7-for-10) with seven rebounds, including three offensive boards. Her seven field goals are a game-high for a Chadron State player in 2025-26.
 
Foul Shots, Fair Results
The Eagles also excelled at getting to the line in both outings, as CSC shot 16 of 20 from the stripe against Mines and 15 of 17 from the line against Regis. Those two games were the second-most and third-most free throw makes and attempts in a game for the Eagles this season. 
 
Continuing to earn free throw opportunities at the foul line would be a welcome change for the Eagles, as Chadron State currently ranks 14^th out of 15 teams in the RMAC in both free throw makes (104) and attempts (148), but the Eagles' .703 free-throw shooting percentage is eighth in the conference.
 
Dishing It Out
Evelyn Old Coyote led the Eagles with five assists on Thursday and tied for the team lead with three assists against Regis on Saturday. The forward, who hails from Garryowen, Montana, is second on the team with 22 total assists for an even 2.0 per game.
 
Old Coyote returned to the starting lineup for each of last week's games, giving her five starts on the season after the junior started the first three games for CSC before moving to the bench. Old Coyote is one of six players to appear in every game this season for Chadron State.
 
In the Polls
With new program leadership and a primarily new team, the Chadron State women's basketball program was picked 14^th in the RMAC Preseason Coaches Poll. 
 
Defending regular season champions Colorado Mesa were the preseason pick to win the league, receiving nine first-place votes plus five second-place votes for 191 total points. The other six first-place votes went to defending tournament champions UCCS, who also had four second-place votes and three third-place votes for 181 total points. 
 
Behind the top two, Adams State, Western Colorado and Colorado School of Mines rounded out the top five. The remainder of the RMAC Tournament places are occupied by Black Hills State, CSU Pueblo and New Mexico Highlands. MSU Denver is picked ninth, followed by Colorado Christian, South Dakota Mines, and Fort Lewis in the top 12. 
 
Westminster placed 13^th with 47 points in the poll, just one point ahead of the Eagles, who had 46. Regis rounded out the poll and was picked 15^th, receiving 21 points. 
 
The RMAC has one nationally ranked team in the WBCA Coaches Poll – Colorado Mesa at No. 9.
 
Stat Standouts
·      Chadron State is scoring 51.7 points per game and allowing 77.1 points per game. 
·      CSC is shooting 34.6 percent from the field (14^th in RMAC), 34.2 percent from three (13^th) and 70.3 percent from the line (8^th). 
·      Eagle opponents are averaging 46.4 percent from the field, 35.1 percent from deep and 73 percent from the line.
·      McKenzi Petersen is the Eagles' leading scorer (9.8 ppg) and rebounder (5.1 rpg, 24^th in RMAC).
·      Among qualified shooters, Ella Moser ranks sixth in the RMAC in three-point field goal percentage (.348) and fifth in made three-pointers per game (2.2).
·      Amya Winfrey ranks second in the RMAC in blocks per game (1.2) and fourth in total blocks (13). Winfrey leads the team in blocks and is second in rebounding (4.5 per game) despite ranking eighth in minutes played per game (16.3).
·      McKenzi Petersen and Audrey Quintana are the only Chadron State players to start every game so far this season.
·      The Eagles attempt 21.4 three-pointers per game (5^th in the RMAC) and make 5.7 per game (9^th).
·      Chadron State ranks eighth in the RMAC with 9.8 offensive rebounds per game.
 
Scouting the Opponents
Adams State
Picked third in the RMAC preseason poll, Adams State is 11-5 overall and tied for second place in the league standings at 5-1 in the RMAC. In conference play, Adams State has defeated Colorado School of Mines, MSU Denver, New Mexico Highlands, Fort Lewis and Westminster.
 
The Grizzlies will be coming off a bit of a shock to their system when they visit Chadron State on Thursday. After winning seven of their previous eight games, the Grizzlies entered a showdown against No. 10-ranked Colorado Mesa with identical 5-0 RMAC records, but Adams State lost 89-49 to the Mavericks last Saturday afternoon at home.
 
Adams State's one-punch of Taejhuan Hill (14.8 points per game) and Kiiyani Anitielu (14.6) rank ninth and 10^th, respectively, in the RMAC in scoring. Hill has 14 double-figure scoring performances in 16 games, led by a 31-point outburst against New Mexico Highlands, and also ranks third in the RMAC with 7.6 rebounds per game and second with a .574 field-goal percentage.
Anitielu has four 20-point games but played just five minutes last Saturday against CMU. Last season, Anitielu broke the RMAC women's basketball single-game scoring record with 52 points against Westminster.
 
Adams State head coach Mario Caetano is in his fourth season as head coach. In his first three seasons, Caetano has led the Grizzlies to a 77-45 overall record with a 58-28 RMAC mark. Caetano was named the RMAC Coach of the Year in 2022-23, then led the Grizzlies to a school-record 25 wins in 2023-24. Adams State has qualified for the NCAA Tournament in each of the past two seasons.
 
New Mexico Highlands
New Mexico Highlands is 6-7 overall and 2-4 in the RMAC entering this week's action. The Cowgirls are coming off a competitive week, losing by just a point (69-68) to No. 10-ranked Colorado Mesa and then defeating Western Colorado 85-74. 
 
Reigning RMAC Freshman of the Year Kapiolani Anitielu (the younger sister of Adams State standout Kiiyani) has avoided the sophomore slump, ranking eighth in the RMAC in scoring at 16.3 points per game. Anitielu is coming off a season-high 29 points against Western Colorado, shooting 11 of 14 from the field.
 
Kapiolani Anitielu also ranks tied for second in the RMAC with 2.4 steals per game, is sixth in the RMAC in rebounds per game (7.0) and has three double-doubles on the season. Fellow sophomore Aniya Johnson averages 11.7 points and 3.8 rebounds per game to rank second on the team in both categories. A third Anitielu sister, Kamalani Anitielu, is the only player to start every game for New Mexico Highlands after transferring from Northwest College.
 
Head Coach Lindsey Fearing is in her second season at New Mexico Highlands. In her first season, she went 13-14 as the Cowgirls snagged the No. 8 seed in the RMAC to qualify for the RMAC Tournament for the first time since 2004-05. Fearing also spent four seasons as the head coach at Central Wyoming College.
 
Coach's Corner
Jalen Little is in his first season leading the Chadron State women's basketball program. 
 
For the past five seasons, Little has served as the lead assistant women's basketball coach at RMAC foe CSU Pueblo. During Little's time on staff, the ThunderWolves qualified for four consecutive RMAC tournaments from 2022-25, including a fifth-place finish (18-11, 13-7 RMAC) in the league standings last year. 
 
Little began his coaching career by spending four seasons as an assistant coach with the Chadron State men's basketball program under Houston Reed, who coached Little as a player at Otero Junior College. 
 
As a student-athlete, Little played one season at Alaska Anchorage (Division II, GNAC) before transferring to Otero. He closed his playing career at the Division I level for Abiliene Christian University (Texas).