The Thunder women's basketball team would take the floor for the first time for the 2026-27 season under the leadership of Brad Willems on Monday night. The Thunder would be on the road against the Southwestern College (KS) Moundbuilders for an exhibition. The Thunder would fall behind 10-4 early in the first quarter, but would finish the quarter on an 11-6 run to trail by only one headed into the second quarter. The second quarter would be rough for the Thunder as they would be held scoreless over the 10 minute period and would trail 33-15 at the half. The Thunder would cut the Moundbuilder lead to 14 with 6:42 left in the third quarter, but as the quarter ended, the Moundbuilders extended their lead to 32. The Thunder would hold the Moundbuilders to 12 points in the fourth, but would not be able to capitalize and would fall, 71-35.

Junior, Elayna Wegner would lead the Thunder with 13 points and eight rebounds, while redshirt-junior, Chantyl Perry and redshirt-senior, Nekayla Williams would each have 10 points apiece. The Thunder would shoot 21.2% from the field, 31.3% from the three-point line, and 40.0% from the free throw line.

The Thunder play their first countable game on the road on Saturday, October 31st against the College of Saint Mary Flames at 7:00PM in Omaha, Nebraska.

How to Follow the Thunder: For complete information and to stay up-to-date with Manhattan Christian College Women's Basketball, visit www.mccthunder.com and follow the team's social media pages on X and Instagram.