BEAUMONT, Texas – The Lamar University Cardinals look to extend their winning streak to three games when they host the Sam Houston State Bearkats in a Southland Conference women's basketball contest at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Montagne Center.
 
The Cardinals (8-11 overall, 4-4 Southland) saw five players average in double figures last week as LU claimed a 64-60 road win at Stephen F. Austin before posting a 77-70 home triumph over Houston Baptist. The two wins came on the heels of a disappointing 73-51 home loss to Northwestern State, a game that LU coach Robin Harmony believes may have been the turning point of the season.
 
"The players were all angry after that game," Harmony said. "They were sick of losing. They came together after that. They took ownership of the situation."
 
It's been a team effort for the Cardinals in the two wins. Baileigh O'Dell had a career-high 25 points in the win over SFA. Addesha Collins, who was held to just five points against SFA, exploded for 24 points, just two off of her career high, in the victory over Houston Baptist. Freshman guard Chastadie Barrs had 10 points against SFA and 14 points and nine rebounds while matching a career high with seven steals against Houston Baptist. Barrs is second in the nation in steals, averaging 4.00 per game.
 
Freshman forward Kiara Desamours had 15 points in each of the two games while averaging 8.5 rebounds. Sophomore forward Laka Blache averaged 11.5 points and 5.5 rebounds in the two games.
 
"We know that every game is important from now on," O'Dell said. "We don't just want to get to the conference tournament. We want to win the tournament and make it to the NCAAs. We know we all had to work harder and play better. We didn't like the taste of losing."
 
The Cardinals, who have a home-and-home series with conference-leading Abilene Christian after Wednesday's game against the Bearkats, could get a boost with the return of leading scorer JaMeisha Edwards, who has missed the last five games due to injury. Edwards averages 15.2 points per game this season and ranks 18^th in the nation in 3-point field goals with an average of 2.93 per contest.
 
The Bearkats (7-11, 3-5) are led by senior guard Shernise Robertson, who averages 18.2 points per game. Senior center Angela Beadle averages 14.2 points and 9.3 rebounds per outing.
 
LU leads the overall series 31-25. The Cardinals have won the last four meetings, sweeping the two-game series in each of the past two seasons.
 
The Cardinals head to Abilene Christian for a meeting at 2 p.m. Saturday. The Wildcats come to the Montagne Center at 7 p.m. Feb. 4.
 
LU students attending Wednesday's game will receive a free Lamar Cardinals beanie while supplies last. All LU student organizations will have the chance to win a cash prize based on attendance, school spirit and creativity. The student organization challenge is sponsored by Universal Coin & Bullion. Wednesday's game will be shown live on ESPN3. For ticket information, call 409-880-1715, or CLICK HERE.