Nichols Tests Her Kats Vs. Former Coach
2/6/2015 11:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Head coach Brenda Welch-Nichols will test her Bearkat women's basketball team against her former college coach when Sam Houston plays host to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in an important Southland Conference match-up Saturday.
The two teams meet at 2 p.m. at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum.
Royce Chadwick tutored the Bearkats' head coach during Sam Houston's first two seasons in the Southland in 1988 and 1989. A transfer from Western Texas College, Welch-Nichols scored 923 points in 52 games to produce the second highest career scoring average in Bearkat history (17.8 points per contest).
Chadwick now is in his third season at A&M-Corpus Christi. He has posted 593 career victories, following up his time at SHSU with stints at Howard, Marshall and Stephen F. Austin.
“It was a great experience playing basketball at Sam Houston State,” Nichols said. “That's why it was so great to come back to my alma mater as head coach. I always look forward to seeing Coach Chadwick.”
As Chadwick prepares his team to face Nichols' Bearkats, one of the key members of the SHSU women's squad his Islanders will have to stop is another Sam Houston player posting big numbers
Shernise Robertson, a 5-6 transfer from Tyler Junior College, leads the Southland Conference in scoring with 19.3 points per game. Scoring 20 or more points in each of the Kats' last seven games, Robertson sports an average of 23.4 points in league play alone.
Sam Houston has won three of its last four games and inserted itself back in the conversation for a berth in the Southland Conference Tournament in Katy in March.
“It's been a team effort,” Robertson said. “My teammates are making great passes and screens to get me the open look. And everyone on the floor has shown they're capable of stepping up and hitting the big shot.”
Taylor Dorsey, a 5-6 sophomore guard, adds 12.9 points per game to the SHSU offense. Morghan Day, a 5-6 sophomore has totaled 66 assists.
Junior college transfer 6-3 Shadijah Moore, 5-11 senior Jazmin Wiley and 6-1 freshman Saundra Guillory have combined to average 15.8 points and 16.7 rebounds inside for Sam Houston.
A&M-Corpus Christi enters Saturday's contest with a 10-10 overall record and a 6-3 conference mark. The Islanders are tied for third place in the Southland race. Sam Houston is 6-14 for the year. The Kats' 5-5 league mark has the Kats in seventh place.
The Islanders are led in scoring by 5-9 junior guard Shay Weaver and 6-0 forward Olivia Fouty who average 16.8 and 12.8 points, respectively.
