General 3/15/2023 5:00:00 PM Braden Mottor

2022-2023 Lady Eagles Basketball Wrap Up

The Lady Eagles came into the 2022–2023 season as the defending National Champions. Head Coach Jared Sellars said, "We lost… 48% of our scoring from last year, 50% of our rebounds, and 55% of our assists." After losing three of last season's starters, the Lady Eagles looked for new and returning players to step into new roles and learn to lead very quickly. Once again, the Lady Eagles team went with the "All-In" theme for this season. Although the Lady Eagles won the national title last season, they were unable to claim the regional championship in the 2021–2022 season. In the 2023 season, the Lady Eagles looked to reclaim their Regional Championship!

The Lady Eagles faced NAIA opponent Faulkner University to open their season on November 1. Although the Lady Eagles fell short, they quickly turned around and won three-straight games against Toccoa Falls, Ecclesia College, and Welch College. To close out their first semester, the Lady Eagles won four of their last six games.

Starting in early January, the Lady Eagles hit the road for a nine-day road trip to southern Florida. Starting off the trip, the team suffered a tough loss against NAIA opponent Warner University. After this loss, the Lady Eagles dominated the court for eight-straight victories! One of their wins came in overtime with a final score of 97–92 when the Lady Eagles faced the number five ranked NCCAA DII opponent Campbellsville University of Harrodsburg. Coach Sellars said "I am most proud of the overall 'never give-up' mentality of this team. Many times, this year we would be down at halftime, but this team has a lot of heart, and they would find a way to get it done."

However, the Lady Eagles winning streak came to a halt after a 15-point loss on the road to NCCAA South Region opponent Toccoa Falls College. After a slow first half, Toccoa Falls held on to defeat the Lady Eagles for the first time in school history. Fortunately for the Lady Eagles, this was not their final meeting of the season.

As the regular season began to wind down, the Lady Eagles defeated Welch College 74-65 at home. To close out the regular season, the Lady Eagles visited Laurel, Mississippi, where they faced NCCAA South Region opponent Southeastern Baptist College. After a back and forth second half, the game was forced into overtime where the front court combination of Montse Torres and Carissa Akin recorded all 9 of the Lady Eagles overtime points and pushed the team to their seventeenth win of the season.

With the loss to Toccoa Falls College in the regular season, the Lady Eagles went into the NCCAA South Region tournament as the No. 2 team. After defeating Bob Jones for the third time of the season, the Lady Eagles got another chance against the No. 1 team at the tournament—Toccoa Falls College. After a slow start to the game, the Lady Eagles entered the fourth quarter down 41–39. With the resilience and hustle, the Lady Eagles outscored Toccoa Falls 18–8 in the fourth quarter and reclaimed their title as South Region Champions!

With the NCCAA South Region title, the Lady Eagles punched their ticket to the 2023 National Tournament as the No. 4 team. In their quarterfinal matchup, the Lady Eagles faced North Central University from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Taking the victory by a final score of 62–53, the Lady Eagles entered the national semifinals facing off against the No. 1 team in the country, Champion Christian College. Unfortunately, the speed, size, and shooting from Champion proved to be too much for the Lady Eagles, resulting in their semifinal loss. With this loss, the Lady Eagles found themselves playing in the third-place game against the No. 6 team, Simmons College of Kentucky. Unfortunately, the Lady Eagles suffered another hard loss with a final score of 68–79. Although this was not the result that the Lady Eagles had hoped for, the team entered and exited the national tournament as the No. 4 team in the nation with an overall 20-8 record!

At the conclusion of the 2022–2023 season, the NCCAA South Region and National Tournament recognized four of the Lady Eagle players:

Leah Phelps: South Region Player of the Year and First Team All-American
Jenna Wolford: First Team All-Region, Second Team All-American, and Scholar Athlete
Montse Torres: Second Team All-Region
Alissa Brewer: South Region Honorable Mention

At the end of the season, Coach Sellars stated: "This team is a great representation for the Lord, the school, and their families. I am very proud of them as their coach and love the way they are continuing to grow the culture for the Lady Eagles basketball program. It has been a great year, finishing my twelfth season, and this has been one of my favorite teams to coach—they have been great both on and off the court."

Although the Lady Eagles were unable to repeat their national championship, they did participate in their tenth national tournament in a row. The Lady Eagles were able to win their seventh regional championship in ten-straight appearances! As the Lady Eagles look toward the next season, the team and coaching staff see a bright future with unlimited potential!

If you would like to keep up with the Lady Eagles' basketball team, follow @eaglespccwbb on Instagram. For complete coverage of all PCC Eagles teams, events, and schedules, follow @eaglespcc on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Players Mentioned

#33 Carissa Akin: F; 5' 10"; Senior

#24 Alissa Brewer: G; 5' 6"; Junior

#23 Leah Phelps: G; 5' 5"; Senior

#21 Montse Torres: F; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#14 Jenna Wolford: G; 5' 5"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#33 Carissa Akin
: 5' 10"; Senior
: F

#24 Alissa Brewer
: 5' 6"; Junior
: G

#23 Leah Phelps
: 5' 5"; Senior
: G

#21 Montse Torres
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: F

#14 Jenna Wolford
: 5' 5"; Junior
: G