Lady Cougars Drop 80-74 AMC Decision to Walsh


	Lady Cougar Basketball Game Recap Lady Cougars Drop 80-74 AMC Decision to Walsh written by Dave Parsons, Sports Information Director Game Boxscore MOUNT VERNON, Ohio (1-12-2010) - In a battle between two teams receiving votes in the latest NAIA Division II poll, the Mount Vernon Nazarene University women’s basketball team came up on the short end of the 80-74 score in an American Mideast Conference contest with Walsh University on Tuesday night in the Physical Education Center. With the visiting Lady Cavaliers (12-5, 5-1 AMC) leading 8-6 after the first five minutes, MVNU (8-4, 2-3 AMC) used a 13-1 run to take a 19-9 lead with 10:32 left before the half. Junior post Amanda Himes (left) led the way with six points and sophomore guard Gabby Fowler nailed a three-pointer off the bench. Walsh was able to cut the lead to 22-19 at the 8:45 mark, but the Lady Cougars answered with an 11-4 run to push the margin back out to 33-23 following a trey by junior guard Lauren Johnson with 5:25 remaining. From there, MVNU was able to trade baskets over the remainder of the half and take a 41-33 lead to the locker room at the break. Himes led the Lady Cougars with 15 points in the first half, while Johnson tossed in 10 points. MVNU shot 48.6 percent from the field (17-for-35), 40 percent from three-point range (4-for-10), and 50 percent at the free throw line (3-for-6). The Lady Cougars also held a 22-20 rebounding edge and forced nine first-half turnovers. Jessie Miller led the Lady Cavaliers with 10 points and six rebounds, while Cara Bedard and Katie Berry scored six points apiece. Walsh shot 40 percent from the field (14-for-35), 20 percent from three-point range (3-for-15), and 66.7 percent from the free throw line (2-for-3). With MVNU still leading 51-44 five minutes into the second half, the Lady Cavaliers went on a 29-8 run to take control of the game as Walsh built a 73-59 lead with 4:37 to play. The Lady Cougars committed seven turnovers and went 3-for-15 from the field during that span. MVNU closed the gap to 73-66 with three minutes left on a trey by Johnson, and following a pair of free throws by Berry, inched even closer to 75-69 on a three-pointer from sophomore guard Sierra Fletcher with 41.4 to go. However, the Lady Cougars would get no closer as the teams traded points the rest of the way with the Lady Cavaliers claiming an 80-74 conference road win. "I am very disappointed that we let this game get away,” said MVNU coach Steve Gregory. "We played an outstanding first half and went into the locker room with an eight-point lead. We were slow coming out of the locker room and allowed (Walsh) to get right back into the game.” "We only had seven turnovers in the first half which was good,” Gregory continued. "Then, we turned the ball over 14 times in the second half alone which essentially was the difference in the game. Our turnovers were the bad variety because they led directly to easy transition points as opposed to travels or throwing the ball out of bounds. At least you get a chance to go back and defend your end on those.” "Bottom line is that we need to string two good halves together,” added Gregory. "Playing 30 to 35 minutes of a 40-minute game just won’t get the job done against very good teams.” Himes led the Lady Cougars with 20 points and nine rebounds, while Fletcher added 18 points, five rebounds, and eight steals. Sophomore wing Alexis Harkins posted a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds to go with a game-high five assists, and Johnson tallied 13 points with four assists. Freshman post Courtney Swart also blocked four shots and grabbed five rebounds off the bench. MVNU shot 44.1 percent from the field (30-for-68), 30 percent from three-point range (6-for-20), and 57.1 percent from the free throw line (8-for-14). The Lady Cougars out-rebounded Walsh 41-37, they also committed 21 turnovers. "Amanda was dominant on the low block and in transition,” said Gregory. "Walsh couldn’t contain her and was forced to double-team her. Sierra played big all the way around with tremendous defense, rebounding, and scoring. She is a big sparkplug for us that we feed off of. Alexis was outstanding. She was aggressive with her moves and attacked the boards tonight. Lauren also stepped up and made several big plays with her three-point shooting and cut-aways to the basket.” Miller finished with a game-high 24 points and eight rebounds to lead Walsh, while Berry added 14 points off the bench. Cierra Burkes nailed three treys and finished with 11 points, and Bedard contributed 10 points and six rebounds. The Lady Cavaliers shot 46.2 percent from the field (30-for-65), 30.4 percent from three-point range (7-for-23), and 65 percent from the free throw line (13-for-20). MVNU will return to action on Thursday when the Lady Cougars will travel to Ohio State University-Newark for a non-conference game that will tip off at 7:00 p.m.

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