Longwood University Athletics

FARMVILLE, Va. — Freshman Kyla McMakin continues to prove week in and week out why she is the frontrunner for Big South Freshman of the Year as the Big South Conference announced this evening for the sixth time this season that McMakin had been selected as the Freshman of the Week for her performances against UNC Asheville and Presbyterian. 

McMakin adds to her program record with her sixth Freshman of the Week selection and gives the Lancers their ninth weekly honor from the league office. Dayna Rouse and Anne-Hamilton LeRoy join McMakin as the three Lancers who have received weekly honors from the Big South this season.

Longwood leaned on McMakin the previous week for offense as the Lancers split Big South play, defeating UNC Asheville for the second time this season and dropping an overtime thriller against Presbyterian College in which McMakin scored a DI-era record for Longwood with 36 points against the Blue Hose. In her two appearances this week, McMakin averaged 40 minutes, including a career-high 42 minutes against Presbyterian, 25.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, ad 3.0 steals per game. 

On the road against UNC Asheville, Longwood erased a 16 point deficit as McMakin matched senior Dayna Rouse with a team-high 14 points in the first series sweep for Longwood since the  '17-'18 season. McMakin flipped momentum after halftime against the Bulldogs with two treys and a point from the free-throw line with seven of her 14 total points coming in the third frame. In the Lancers' third Big South road victory of the season, McMakin backed her offensive performance with five rebounds, and one assist, while away from the ball swiping two steals and blocking one shot in the 54-51 victory in Kimmel Arena. 

In the rematch against the Blue Hose of Presbyterian, McMakin became the first Lancer this season to score 30+ points in a contest, and broke fellow Lancer Dayna Rouse's Longwood's DI era record for points in a game, as McMakin finished with 36 points on 11-of-22 shooting from the floor. McMakin recorded four career-highs against the Blue Hose in her record-breaking performance, setting personal bests in points (36), made three-pointers (6), made free-throws (8), and minutes played (41). Adding to her impressive offensive display, McMakin finished with four steals, and three rebounds in the overtime defeat to Presbyterian.

As the season winds down, McMakin has shown no signs of slowing down, raising her scoring average over the past seven games 1.9 points to the best average in the Big South Conference at 17.8 points per game. McMakin is one of two Lancers with 300+ points this season and is responsible for 26.7 percent of Longwood's points scored in the 21 contests this season. Scoring is not the only skill McMakin brings to the court for the Lancers as she ranks fifth in the conference and leads the Lancers with 44 steals on the season. McMakin's rebounding is also worth noting, as she is the second leading rebounder for Longwood, McMakin ranks No. 17 in the conference, with 5.5 boards per game. 

Longwood enters a crucial portion of their schedule in Big South Conference play as three of their next four games in league play are on the road, with Gardner-Webb kicking off the gauntlet of road games on February 11 in Boiling Springs, N.C. Expect a high-scoring contest between the Lancers and Runnin' Bulldogs as the two programs have two of the most potent offenses in the Big South with Longwood and Gardner-Webb ranking No. 2 and No. 3 in scoring. Tipoff in Paul Porter Arena is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. as the Lancers look for a repeat performance of their first matchup on December 28 when Longwood bested Garder-Webb 80-70 in Willett Hall. 

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