With the Lady Cougars (4-0) holding a slim 15-10 lead after the first eight minutes of the game, Johnson (left) came off the bench to score the next eight points for MVNU to extend the team’s lead to 23-10 with 9:37 remaining until halftime as she nailed a pair of three-pointers and a pair of free throw attempts.

After the Tomcats (1-2) trimmed the lead to 28-22 with 4:39 left before the break, Johnson hit a pair of free throws and a layup, senior guard Rachel Fiely also made a layup, and sophomore forward Kellie Jokela split a pair of free throws as the Lady Cougars took a 35-22 halftime advantage.

Johnson paced MVNU with 15 first-half points as she went 4-for-4 from the field including 3-for-3 from three-point range while also making all four of her free throw attempts. Sophomore post Amanda Himes added 10 points and five rebounds as she also went 4-for-4 from the field. The Lady Cougars shot 44.4 percent from the field (12-for-27), 33.3 percent from three-point range (4-for-12), and 77.8 percent from the free throw line (7-for-9).

Thiel was led by Amber Jenae Bodrick with nine points. The Tomcats shot 45.5 percent from the field (10-for-22), 50.0 percent from three-point range (2-for-4), and did not attempt a free throw.

After Thiel pulled within 37-26 less than a minute and a half into the final period, Himes split a pair of free throws, Johnson made a layup, and Fiely drained a three-pointer to extend the Lady Cougars’ lead back to 43-26 with 17:32 to play.

From that point on, the Tomcats could get no closer than 13 points. Meanwhile, MVNU continued to expand its lead with the final score of 77-49 also equaling the biggest margin in the game.

“This was a good win on the road and we’ve put ourselves right where we want to be which is in the championship game on Saturday,” said MVNU coach Steve Gregory. “Amanda did well in limited minutes (19), but was in foul trouble most the night and we needed somebody else to step up offensively. Lauren gave us a huge lift tonight. She shot the ball extremely well. She also had five steals and was solid all the way around. Rachel was steady all night on both ends of the floor. She gave us great minutes and was outstanding in all phases of the game. We saw zone tonight and were fortunate to hit several perimeter shots for easy looks against the zone.”

Johnson finished with a career-high 28 points on 9-for-14 shooting that included a 6-for-8 showing from behind the three-point arc and a 4-for-4 performance at the free throw line. She also added a game-high five steals. Himes just missed a double-double with 19 points and nine rebounds, while Fiely tossed in 14 points to go with four assists. Jokela (right) also grabbed seven rebounds. The Lady Cougars shot 42.4 percent from the field (25-for-59), 39.1 percent from three-point range (9-for-23), and 75.0 percent from the free throw line (18-for-24).

Michelle Warren led Thiel with 12 points, while Bodrick added 11 points and nine rebounds. Kim Stitt grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds to go with seven points, and Catie Seiber also tossed in eight points. The Tomcats shot 35.7 percent from the field (20-for-56), 38.5 percent from three-point range (5-for-13), and 40.0 percent from the free throw line (4-for-10). Thiel also committed 30 turnovers in the contest.

MVNU will now advance to the championship game of the tournament on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. when the Lady Cougars will square off with the unbeaten host Beavers. Bluffton (2-0) defeated St. Mary of the Woods (Ind.) College 92-62 in the other first round game on Friday night.