LAKE CHARLES—McNeese women's basketball will make its 20^th overall Southland Conference Tournament appearance and second under head coach Kacie Cryer this Thursday when the no. 8 seed Cowgirls open up the women's side of the tournament with an 11 a.m. game against the no. 5 seed Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at the Leonard E. Merrell Center in Katy, Texas.
 
The first two rounds and semifinal round will be streamed live on ESPN3, available on WatchESPN.com and the ESPN apps. Sunday's championship game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.  
 
McNeese (12-17) will face the Islanders for the second time this season and it will be the second meeting in just over a week. The Cowgirls defeated the Islanders 70-64 on Feb. 28 in Lake Charles in a win that essentially sealed a tournament berth.
 
Sophomore Caitlin Davis who was the only Cowgirl represented on the All-SLC team as an honorable mention selection has led McNeese in scoring and assists all season. Davis will enter the tournament averaging 12.4 ppg. and 5.8 assists.
 
Senior Dede Sheppard is also averaging in double figures with 10.8 ppg. Senior Mercedes Rogers leads McNeese in rebounds with 7.6 ppg. while freshman Bre'Ashlee Jones is averaging 7.1 rpg.
 
Texas A&M-CC (18-11) ended the season tied for fourth place in the standings but earned the no. 5 seed due to the tiebreaker rule.
 
The Islanders have three players averaging in double digits with Emma Young and Brittany Mbamalu both averaging 12.4 ppg. Dalesia Booth is averaging 10.3 ppg. Young also leads the team with 7.2 rpg.
 
A win by the Cowgirls would pit them against no. 4 seed Nicholls at 11 a.m. Friday.