The game was close throughout the first 14 and a half minutes with the score knotted at 20-20 with 5:39 left in the first half. However, MVNU (22-7, 9-6 AMC) used a decisive 17-2 run to close the half as the Lady Cougars built a 37-22 lead at the break. Senior post Melissa Mastrodonato (left) led the way with six points, while sophomore post Amanda Himes added four points.

Freshman forward Alexis Harkins paced MVNU with 10 first-half points and five rebounds, while Himes added nine points and five rebounds. Mastrodonato came off the bench to score eight points, and senior guard Rachel Fiely contributed six points, three assists, and three steals with her steal at the 10:48 mark of the first half giving her 96 on the season to break the old school record of 95 set by Monique Maher during the 1995-1996 season. The Lady Cougars shot 41.2 percent from the field (14-for-34), 28.6 percent from the three-point line (4-for-14), and 71.4 percent from the free throw line (5-for-7).

The Lady Pioneers (11-14, 4-11 AMC) were led by Brittney Wilson with six first-half points, while Ashleigh Hays grabbed six rebounds. Point Park shot 30.0 percent from the field (9-for-30), 18.2 percent from three-point range (2-for-11), and 50.0 percent at the free throw line (2-for-4).

After Himes extended MVNU’s lead to 39-22 with a layup to start the second half, the Lady Pioneers used a 14-8 run to pull within 47-36 with 12:13 to play following a jumper by Marissa Reinhard.

At that point, the Lady Cougars rattled off nine straight points to push the lead back out to 56-36 with 8:25 to play to start what would be a 29-9 run to close the game as MVNU prevailed 76-45 and held Point Park to its second-lowest offensive total of the season trailing just a 51-43 loss to Northwood (Fla.) University on November 22.

“I am very proud of the workman-like approach that our team came with during our two-game swing through Pittsburgh,” said MVNU coach Steve Gregory. “Our kids worked very hard to get off to a good start and found themselves up by 15 at the half against a pretty solid team that gave Ohio Dominican University all they could handle on Friday evening.”

Himes (right) finished with a game-high 20 points to lead the Lady Cougars as she also grabbed nine rebounds. Fiely contributed 13 points, nine assists, seven rebounds, and four steals, and Harkins added 12 points and 10 rebounds. Sophomore guard Lauren Johnson tossed in nine points, while Mastrodonato tallied eight points. MVNU shot 43.1 percent from the field (28-for-65), 33.3 percent from three-point range (9-for-27), and 57.9 percent from the free throw line (11-for-19). The Lady Cougars out-rebounded the Lady Pioneers 48-40 and forced 19 turnovers while committing just 13.

“Rachel was again our catalyst,” Gregory said. “She does such an outstanding job of getting people to the right spots and leading them. She is a very intelligent player who makes plays on a constant basis for our team. She made big defensive plays to the tune of becoming our season steals leader in just 29 games. She also hit some big treys, found open teammates time and time again, and was pinpoint accurate in leading our fastbreak.”

“Amanda played big in the post for us,” Gregory continued. “Once again, our guards did a good job of finding her and Melissa and delivering good passes. Alexis helped us in so many ways and her rebounding was pretty big for us today along with her defense. Jessica (Lynn), Bethany (Hughes), and Ashley (Brown) also played crucial roles for us today. Their defense was outstanding and directly led to the lopsided victory.”

Wilson was the lone Point Park player to reach double figures as she scored 10 points. Hays grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds to go with eight pints, and Ashley Henderson also scored eight points. The Lady Pioneers shot just 28.1 percent from the field (16-for-57), 11.8 percent from three-point range (2-for-17), and 57.9 percent from the free throw line (11-for-19).

With the victory, MVNU secured the No. 5 seed in the six-team AMC Tournament that will get under way on Tuesday. The Lady Cougars will travel to No. 4 seed University of Northwestern Ohio (17-12, 10-5 AMC) for a 5:30 p.m. start with the winner advancing to face top-seeded Walsh University (19-11, 11-4 AMC) in the semifinals on Saturday. Tuesday’s other first round game will feature No. 3 seed Daemen (N.Y.) College (21-7, 11-4 AMC) hosting No. 6 seed University of Rio Grande (19-11, 9-6 AMC) with the winner advancing to play at No. 2 seed Ohio Dominican (17-11, 11-4 AMC) on Saturday. The championship game will take place on Tuesday, March 3, with the winner receiving an automatic berth into the NAIA Division II national tournament in Sioux City, Iowa. AMC regular season champion Shawnee State University (29-0, 15-0 AMC) and regular-season runner-up Cedarville University (21-7, 12-3 AMC) also received automatic berths and will not play in the AMC Tournament.

“We are very excited about qualifying for AMC postseason play and moving up another spot with today’s win,” said Gregory. “We are eager to begin postseason play.”