MISENHEIMER — Midway through USA South Athletic Conference play, the Pfeiffer women’s basketball team is hoping that it can flip a switch with eight conference games left to play.
The Falcons (5-8, 3-5 USA South) are now sitting in sixth place in their conference standings as they continue to aim for their first winning season since the 2017-18 campaign.
Second-year coach Vontreece Hayes’ team finished in sixth last year as it turned in a 8-16 (6-12 conf.) final record; Pfeiffer had 6-17 and 11-14 seasons in the two years leading up to Hayes’ time in Misenheimer.
The Falcons’ 3-0 start in the first lap of USA South play this season was the first time in years since the team opened its conference stretch with a pair of victories.
However, the squad is now 0-5 in its past five conference games as it has fallen in the USA South standings.
During this rough stretch, Pfeiffer has failed to score more than 66 points against a conference opponent and has been held under 40 points twice.
The team most recently suffered a 69-61 road loss to NC Wesleyan (9-6, 6-2 USA South) despite coming up with a 33-point performance from its bench.
The Falcons had a trio of players score in double figures in the game, headed up by senior Alexis Bynum’s 14 points. Freshman Ava Hairston added 13 points and five steals off the bench as freshman Kendyll Moore notched 11 points from the bench.
Bynum currently leads the Falcons in scoring (12.8 ppg) while Hairston (11.9 ppg) and senior Kenadie Hudler (8.0 ppg) round out the top-three. Meanwhile, sophomore Lola Cabaniss-Ali continues to lead the roster in rebounding with an average of 8.9 per contest, ranking third overall in the USA South.
After facing some of the top teams in the conference, Pfeiffer will look to make the most of its upcoming matchups against a few of the bottom-three squads in the USA South standings.
The Falcons were scheduled to travel to William Peace (4-10, 3-4 USA South) on Tuesday night before resuming conference play on Jan. 29 at home in Merner Gym against Methodist (9-7, 4-3 USA South).
Pfeiffer will then face off with Meredith (4-11, 2-6 USA South), Greensboro (4-10, 2-5 USA South), William Peace (4-10, 3-4 USA South), and Salem (0-13, 0-7 USA South) in the first half of February.