Strong Second Half Propels Lady Cougars to 76-49 Victory


	Lady Cougar Basketball Game Recap Strong Second Half Propels Lady Cougars to 76-49 Victory written by Dave Parsons, Sports Information Director Game Boxscore DEERFIELD, Ill. (12-29-2011) - The Mount Vernon Nazarene University women's basketball team used a 35-7 run over the first 11 minutes of the second half to turn a two-point halftime lead into a 76-49 victory over host Trinity International (Ill.) University in the Lady Trojans' Holiday Tournament opener on Thursday night in the Meyers Sports Complex. The first half went back and forth with five ties and six lead changes. MVNU (9-3) took its biggest lead of the half with 11:03 left before the break when senior post Whitney Levering's jumper made it 21-14 in favor of the Lady Cougars. Trinity International (5-7) responded with a 15-5 run of its own to take a 29-26 advantage with 1:55 remaining in the half. However, the Lady Cougars closed the half by scoring the final five points as they took momentum and a 31-29 lead to the locker room at the break. Senior forward Alexis Harkins led MVNU with eight points in the first half, while senior guard Sierra Fletcher *(left)* and junior forward Emily Steveley each scored seven points. Sophomore post Amy Daniels also added five points and seven rebounds off the bench. The Lady Cougars shot 37.5 percent from the field (12-for-32), 28.6 percent from 3-point range (2-for-7), and 83.3 percent from the free throw line (5-for-6). Brittany Simon paced the Lady Trojans with 11 first-half points, while Jessica Switzer tossed in six points. Trinity International shot 37 percent from the field (10-for-27), 40 percent from 3-point range (6-for-15), and 50 percent at the free throw line (3-for-6). The momentum from the end of the first half carried over into the second half for MVNU as the Lady Cougars made six of their first eight field goal attempts including going 4-for-4 from beyond the 3-point arc. By the time the dust had settled, MVNU had taken a 66-36 lead with 9:11 to go as the result of a 35-7 run in which Fletcher scored 10 of the Lady Cougars' points. From that point on, it was just a matter of what the final score would be as the Lady Trojans were unable to get any closer than 26 points the rest of the way as MVNU prevailed 76-49. Fletcher finished with 19 points to lead all scorers in the game, while Harkins added 14 points. Daniels and Steveley each tossed in 12 points apiece with Daniels grabbing a game-high nine rebounds, and freshman forward Ainsleigh Krause contributed eight points off the bench. The Lady Cougars shot 43.5 percent from the field (27-for-62), 41.2 percent from 3-point range (7-for-17), and 78.9 percent from the free throw line (15-for-19). Simon was the lone Trinity International player to reach double figures as she finished with 11 points and five rebounds. Switzer also added nine points, and Clarissa Woodard tallied eight points and six rebounds. The Lady Trojans shot 30.4 percent from the field (17-for-56), 34.8 percent from 3-point range (8-for-23), and 58.3 percent from the free throw line (7-for-12). "This was a great team effort," said MVNU coach Jason Foster. "This was a high tempo, physical game, and our girls did not back down. The first half was a battle back and forth and (Trinity International) really put a lot of pressure on us and got us to turn the ball over. In the second half, we settled in more and really controlled the tempo better. We were able to attack the rim and finish, and we held onto the ball. However, the defense really did the job, holding a very athletic and high tempo team to just 20 second-half points." The Lady Cougars will return to action at 1 p.m. ET when MVNU will square off against NAIA Division II No. 6 Concordia (Mich.) University. The Lady Cardinals (12-2) are coming off a tough 65-64 loss to No. 14 Grand View (Iowa) College in Thursday's other first round action.

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