Lady Cougars Fall 71-67 at Daemen in AMC Tourney Opener


	Lady Cougar Basketball Game Recap Lady Cougars Fall 71-67 at Daemen in AMC Tourney Opener written by Dave Parsons, Sports Information Director Game Boxscore AMHERST, N.Y. (2-23-2010) - The Mount Vernon Nazarene University women’s basketball team fell 71-67 at Daemen (N.Y.) College in the first round of the American Mideast Conference Tournament on Tuesday night. The first half went back and forth with six ties and seven lead changes as the No. 5 seed Lady Cougars (19-9) held a slim 32-30 lead at the break behind the 18 points and eight rebounds from junior center Amanda Himes (left). The host Lady Wildcats twice led by five points in the first half including 25-20 with 5:22 to go in the half, and MVNU led by as much as three points. The Lady Cougars shot 34.6 percent from the field in the first half (9-for-26), 42.9 percent from three-point range (3-for-7), and 84.6 percent at the free throw line (11-for-13). Daemen was led by Sarah Soroka with 13 points and four rebounds, while Bridgette Burke tossed in nine points. The Lady Wildats shot 40.6 percent from the field (13-for-32), 18.2 percent from three-point range (2-for-11), and 66.7 percent from the free throw line (2-for-3). The second half got under way with Burke scoring the first four points to put Daemen on top 34-32, but a pair of free throws by Himes, a steal and layup by junior guard Lauren Johnson, and an offensive rebound and putback by junior wing Kelli Pollock gave the Lady Cougars a 38-35 advantage with just four minutes gone by. At that point, the Lady Wildcats went on a decisive 18-5 run to open up the biggest lead by either team in the game as Daemen built a 53-43 cushion with 9:11 to go. Soroka and Marybeth Nugent each scored five points apiece, while Tara Bailey and Megan Morrell hit a three-pointer apiece on back-to-back possessions. MVNU did not give in, though, as the Lady Cougars answered with a 14-3 run of their own to regain the lead 57-56 on a three-pointer by sophomore guard Sierra Fletcher with 4:57 remaining. Himes added six points during the comeback, and sophomore wing Alexis Harkins drained a trey. With MVNU holding a 59-58 lead, Bailey scored five straight points with a pair of free throws and a three-pointer to put the Lady Wildcats back on top 63-59 at the 3:52 mark. Himes answered with a jumper on the Lady Cougars’ next possession to cut the lead to 63-61 with 3:39 to go, but that was as close as MVNU would get the rest of the way despite several opportunities. After the Lady Cougars missed a three-point attempt that would have given them the lead, Burke hit two free throws to extend the margin to 65-61 for Daemen. Two turnovers and a missed layup later by MVNU and Nugent hit two free throws to expand the lead to 67-61 for the Lady Wildcats. Fletcher closed the gap to 67-63 with a jumper with 53 seconds still on the clock, and Nugent split a pair of free throws to make it 68-63 with 29 seconds remaining. After Harkins hit two free throws with 17 seconds left to make it 68-65, the Lady Cougars had a golden opportunity to pull even closer when Soroka missed two free throw attempts with 15 seconds still on the clock. However, MVNU did not box out Burke and she grabbed the offensive rebound off the second miss, and the Lady Cougars were forced to foul. This time, Burke hit both free throws with seven seconds to go to push the lead back to 70-65. Harkins pulled MVNU within 70-67 with an offensive rebound and putback with four seconds left, and Burke sealed the 71-67 victory for Daemen by hitting the second of two free throw attempts as the Lady Wildcats advanced to the semifinals of the AMC Tournament. "I am extremely proud of our team as they fought like crazy tonight and just came up a little short,” said MVNU coach Steve Gregory. "It was a game that could have gone either way. (Daemen) just made the right plays at the right time.” "The second half was a great battle,” Gregory added. "We just could not come up with enough perimeter offense. We didn’t hit the shots late when we needed them the most. Our kids did an outstanding job on defense, though. They really worked hard and made plays.” Himes finished with a career-high-tying 29 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Lady Cougars as she went 11-for-14 at the free throw line in the game and posted her 14th straight double-double and her 18th of the season overall. Harkins tossed in 11 points and grabbed six rebounds off the bench, and Fletcher also finished with 11 points. MVNU shot 36.2 percent from the field (21-for-58), 29.4 percent from three-point range (5-for-17), and 80 percent at the free throw line (20-for-25). "Amanda pulled off yet another double-double and had a big first half,” said Gregory. "She was a force down low on the blocks and shot the ball well from the free throw line. Sierra played well under tough circumstances. She has been really sick the past two days and put a great effort forward while not feeling her best. The same could be said for (junior forward) Kellie (Jokela) as she was puking before, during, and after the game. That didn’t prevent her from going out and putting her best effort forward. Alexis is also still recovering from an ankle injury that sidelined her for five weeks, and it was great to see her go out and be productive tonight.” Daemen was led by Soroka with 23 points and eight rebounds, while Burke posted a double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds. The Lady Wildcats shot 40.4 percent from the field (23-for-57), 27.3 percent from three-point range (6-for-22), and 63.3 percent from the free throw line (19-for-30). "While I am disappointed that we lost, I am very proud of the collective outstanding effort that our kids had tonight,” said Gregory. "Daemen is a very good team and they were a little better than us tonight.” The Lady Cougars will now await word as to when they will return to action in the National Christian College Athletic Association East Region Tournament as MVNU will look to try to defend its NCCAA national title. The Lady Cougars will most likely play at least one more home game and details will be released as soon as they become available.

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