Improved Manhattan Christian Falls Short to Randall Despite Williams' Double-Double

 The Manhattan Christian Thunder hosted the Randall Saints on Tuesday, losing 77-62.


The Saints came out hot from three, taking an early 13-5 lead. But a fast break layup by Macayla Hines, a Nekayla Williams block, and a subsequential Williams turnaround midrange jump shot tied the game with just under thirty seconds left. The Saints hit one more shot before the quarter ended, stealing the lead back 20-18.

The second quarter opened with Randall going on a 20-5 run before Coach Dalton Miller called timeout in an attempt to stop the bleeding. Despite the adjustments made in the timeout, the hot shooting of the Saints continued- ending the quarter on an 11-5 run. The Thunder went into halftime down 51-28.

The Thunder came out of halftime with a strategic intention to feed Williams, resulting in her having the first three points of the half for either team. But the fourth quarter is where the team found a rhythm, cutting what was over a twenty point lead down to a thirteen point game, 71-58, with around two minutes to go. A few costly turnovers and fouls put the game out of reach, with the final resulting in 77-62.

Three point disparity and unforced errors killed momentum and kept the Thunder at arms reach for most of the game. In their previous exhibition match versus Southwestern, they gave up 11 turnovers and shot 13.6% from 3. In this matchup, they improved their three point shooting to 30.8% but still gave up 18 turnovers.

Despite the outcome, there are silver linings Manhattan Christian can be proud of and build on throughout the 2025-2026 campaign. Around this time last year, the Thunder went down to Moore, Oklahoma to face the Saints and lost 71-33. To increase their output by almost double and hold Randall to nearly the same score is a great sign for the future of this ball club. 

A huge part of that progression the team has taken is due to the increased depth and added talent. On top of that, Nekayla Williams has had a strong start to her senior year, posting tonight 16 points, 16 rebounds, 1 block and 1 steal. Macayla Hines also looks to lead the team after having a 16 point showing on 55% from the field and 75% from three. Elayna Wegner played with a ton of hustle and grit, adding 10 points, 7 rebounds, and a steal.

Manhattan Christian's season resumes this Friday as they take the court against Dallas Christian in Hot Springs, Arkansas for the Champion Classic.

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