Valdosta State’s Brittany Ferguson attempts a jump shot during Thursday night’s game against Columbus State. Ferguson recorded her second straight double-double in the Lady Blazers’ 54-51 victory.

 If there is a team that has been the Valdosta State Lady Blazers’ achilies heel in recent years it has been Delta State.

After all, the Lady Statesmen own a 29-4 all-time record against VSU, and they have ended the Lady Blazers’ season in each of the last three years. They also ended VSU’s season in 2001.

Tonight, the two Gulf South Conference powers will meet at the VSU P.E. Complex in the conference openers for both squads.

“Delta State is a legend across the history of women’s basketball,” Valdosta State head coach Kiley Hill said. “If you think of the history of women’s basketball, it starts at Delta. For us, every year since I have been here, you have to go through Delta to get to where you want to go. They have made our program better. But with that said, we are still in the hunt to be as good as they are or to be as dominant as they have been. We have been very fortunate that we have been able to play at a high level as them, but sometimes we have not been able to get over the hump like we need to be able to.”

The Lady Blazers (9-2) enter tonight’s contest riding a seven-game winning streak, racking up wins against Nova Southeastern and Palm Beach Atlantic on the final two days of 2011. As for Delta State, the Lady Statesmen jumped out to just a 3-3 start, but have managed to win their last three games by an average of 12 points.

“For us, we don’t talk about that at all,” Hill said. “The focus is to play the best team on that day and today is a day that we want to be better than any team in the country. If we focus on the process, the results and the outcomes will take care of themselves. That is something we have always done.”

Delta State is led by the play of its defense, which ranks first in the conference in points allowed this season with 53. Valdosta State is not too far behind, as the Lady Blazers are second in the conference in points allowed, giving up just over 54 points per game.

Offensively, the Lady Blazers are led by the play of senior Brittany Ferguson, who has scored in double figures in all 11 games this season. Ferguson enters the start of conference play as the fourth leading scorer in the league, averaging 16.1 points per game. Sczeny Hartry has been solid at the guard position, scoring just over 12 points per game while shooting a solid 41 percent from 3-point range.

“We are set for a unique set of challenges with this group, because preseason indications is that we have a bullseye on the front of us,” Hill said. “So, we have to be able to go out and compete at a very high level, and I feel like we have a chance to do that.”

While the play of Ferguson and Hartry has carried the Lady Blazers so far this season, the play of junior Brittney Nelson could be vital moving forward. After sitting out an entire calendar year due to NCAA regulations, Nelson injured her hand just days before her scheduled VSU debut in early December. After allowing the hand to heal, Nelson made her much anticipated debut in the 64-48 victory over Palm Beach Atlantic on Dec. 31. Nelson recorded eight points in 16 minutes of play.

“(Nelson) will bring us a shooter that can stretch the floor for us,” Hill said earlier this season. “For us, going inside is important, but being able to shoot from the perimeter to open the floor and give us opportunities for post isolation.”

For Delta State, Veronica Walker leads the charge. The two-time GSC Player of the Week, and preseason National Player of the Year candidate leads the conference in scoring, averaging 19.9 points per contest. Along with Walker, sophomore Brooke Rhodes has stepped up big for DSU this season at the guard position, replacing longtime starter Bug Cooper. So far this year, Rhodes is averaging 14.9 points per contest.

Following tonight’s game with Delta State, the Lady Blazers will face the struggling Christian Brothers Lady Bucaneers, who face West Florida tonight.

The Lady Bucs are just 3-9 on the season. The Lady Bucs are even worse on the road, as they are 0-6.