MVNU (6-1) got off to a quick start as the Lady Cougars built a 17-7 lead over the first five and a half minutes as junior guard Rachel Fiely (left) nailed a pair of three-pointers and junior post Melissa Mastrodonato added four points to fuel the early surge.

After the lead grew to 26-12 at the 9:56 mark on Fiely’s third trey of the half, Concordia (3-5) went on a 17-2 run to take a 29-28 lead with 5:35 left in the half. Jennifer O’Neil led the comeback with a pair of three-pointers, while Ashley Junga and Shannon Hull each drilled a trey and Jackie Marr converted a three-point play.

The Cardinals still held a 38-35 advantage with 56 seconds left before the break, but a pair of free throws by senior forward Amy Sebastian and a three-point play by freshman post Amanda Himes gave MVNU a 40-38 lead as the teams went to the locker rooms at the half.

Himes led the Lady Cougars with 14 first-half points as she went 5-for-8 from the field and 4-for-7 at the free throw line. Fiely added nine points on a trio of treys, and Mastrodonato scored six points. MVNU shot 48.4 percent from the field (15-for-31), 40.0 percent from three-point range (4-for-10), and 54.5 percent at the free throw line (6-for-11).

Junga paced Concordia with eight first-half points, while Hull added seven points. The Cardinals shot 50.0 percent from the field (14-for-28), 66.7 percent from three-point range (6-for-9), and made all four of their free throws. Concordia also posted a 19-13 rebounding edge, but the Cardinals turned the ball over 15 times.

A pair of free throws by Erika Grzybowski and a three-pointer by O’Neil helped the Cardinals take a 43-42 advantage with just over a minute gone by in the second half.

Then, the Lady Cougars rattled off 13 unanswered points as freshman guard Kelli Pollock (right) scored five points and Fiely added four points to give MVNU a 55-43 lead with 11:35 to play.

Following a pair of free throws by Jamie Rhodes for Concordia, the Lady Cougars started a 35-16 run to close the game as MVNU pulled away for the 89-61 victory. The Cardinals shot just 16.7 percent from the field (4-for-24) in the second half as Concordia was out-scored 49-23 over the final 20 minutes.

“We sputtered in the first half after getting off to a quick start in the first 10 minutes,” said MVNU head coach Steve Gregory. “We struggled for about six minutes and allowed (Concordia) to get back in the game and gain confidence. Then, we really played a solid second half and took control behind outstanding play by Rachel. She nailed big shot after big shot. Amanda and Melissa also came up big on the low block.”

“Our defense was much more intense in the second half and that enabled us to seize control of the game,” Gregory added. “We also did a nice job at the free throw line in the second half as we made 91 percent of our attempts to seal the game.”

Fiely finished with a career-high 25 points to lead the Lady Cougars as she went 5-for-6 from three-point range, nailed all six of her free throw attempts, and handed out eight assists. Himes added 24 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the field, while Mastrodonato contributed 10 points, six rebounds, and three blocked shots. Sebastian and Pollock also tallied nine and eight points respectively with Pollock grabbing a career-high seven rebounds. MVNU shot 50.9 percent from the field for the game (28-for-55), 42.1 percent from three-point range (8-for-19), and 78.1 percent from the free throw line (25-for-32) including 19-of-21 in the second half. The Lady Cougars also out-rebounded Concordia 36-31 and forced 27 turnovers by the Cardinals.

Hull led Concordia with 16 points, while Junga tossed in 10 points. Marr also added seven points and a team-high seven rebounds. The Cardinals shot just 34.6 percent from the field (18-for-52), 50.0 percent from three-point range (8-for-16), and 73.9 percent at the free throw line (17-for-23).

MVNU will return to action on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. against Pikeville (Ky.) College in the second and final round of the tournament.