The Lady Racers (9-9, 3-2 AMC) roared out to a 9-2 lead to start the game as Ashley Jackson scored five points and Amanda Francis added four points over the first two and a half minutes.

MVNU (14-5, 2-4 AMC) responded with a 12-2 run of its own as the Lady Cougars took a 14-11 lead at the 12:42 mark. Six different players made a basket during the surge.

With MVNU holding a 17-15 lead with 10:20 left in the half, Northwestern Ohio went on the decisive 32-13 run to take a commanding 47-30 lead to the locker room at the break. Francis and Jenna Blackburn both scored eight points to lead the way.

Sophomore forward Alexis Harkins (left) led the Lady Cougars with 10 first-half points, while senior post Melissa Mastrodonato added six points. MVNU shot 40.6 percent from the field (13-for-32), 30.0 percent from three-point range (3-for-10), and 25.0 percent from the free throw line (1-for-4).

Francis led the Lady Racers with 14 points in the first half as she went 6-for-7 from the field. Blackburn added 10 points off the bench. Northwestern Ohio shot a blistering 54.8 percent from the field (17-for-31), 62.5 percent from three-point range (5-for-8), and 88.9 percent from the free throw line (8-for-9).

The Lady Racers continued their run to start the second half as Northwestern Ohio out-scored MVNU 15-5 to expand its lead to 62-35 with 11:44 to play. Jackson led the way with seven points.

The Lady Cougars did not give in as they used a 20-10 run to close the gap to 72-55 with 3:54 left in the game. Senior guard Rachel Fiely led the comeback bid with six points, while freshman guard Lauren Johnson added five points.

However, that was as close as MVNU would get as the Lady Cougars were only able to trade points the rest of the way with the Lady Racers posting the 80-63 victory.

“I am very disappointed that we did not play better,” said MVNU coach Steve Gregory. “However, it was not a lack of effort on our part, but a combination of running into a very hot shooting team and not consistency for us on offense. We seemed to be unable to find the basket to mount any type of run. Our free throw shooting also left us tonight. Add those things up and mix in a hot shooting team that kept us off-balance all night and you come up with the right mix to win big.”

“Our kids did not overlook this team,” said Gregory, alluding to the fact that the Lady Cougars won 65-45 earlier this year at home. “We prepared hard for this contest and just did not bring our ‘A’ or ‘B’ game. (Northwestern Ohio) were a little more aggressive and their constant penetration hurt us.”

Harkins finished with 18 points to lead MVNU, while Fiely (right) chipped in with 15 points and two steals as she became the program's all-time leader in steals with 287 to break the mark of 285 set previously by Angie Trainer from 1998-2002.  Johnson added 10 points and five assists, and sophomore forward Kellie Jokela grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds. The Lady Cougars shot 38.2 percent from the field (26-for-68), 25.9 percent from three-point range (7-for-27), and just 30.8 percent from the free throw line (4-for-13).

Francis posted a double-double to lead Northwestern Ohio as she finished with 22 points and 13 rebounds while going 9-for-11 from the field. Jackson tossed in 19 points with six assists, and Blackburn added 16 points off the bench. Stacy Feathers also tallied 10 points off the bench. The Lady Racers shot 49.1 percent from the field (27-for-55), 33.3 percent from three-point range (6-for-18), and 95.2 percent from the free throw line (20-for-21). Northwestern Ohio also out-rebounded MVNU 45-31.

The Lady Cougars will return to action on Tuesday when MVNU will host Notre Dame College in another conference contest that will tip off at 5:30 p.m.