Foresters Pull Away from Lady Cougars in Second Half
HUNTINGTON, Ind. – The Mount Vernon Nazarene University women's basketball team (4-5, 0-2 CL) continued conference play with a matchup at the (RV) Huntington University Foresters (5-3, 1-1 CL) on Saturday, November 22.
On the game's first possession, Angela Roshak made the basket plus a foul to give the Lady Cougars the first lead of the night. With 6:43 left in the first quarter, the Lady Cougars were up 13–4, taking advantage of the Foresters' slow start offensively. By the end of the quarter, the Lady Cougars held a 29–23 lead.
To start the second quarter, the Foresters chipped away at the deficit, pulling within two points. However, Kylie Leibacher, Anna Swisshelm, and Lily Shepard sparked a run that pushed the Lady Cougars' lead back to 10 with five minutes remaining. In the final minutes of the half, Huntington capitalized on turnovers by the Lady Cougars and managed to go on a 10-0 run to tie the game before the break. Both teams headed into halftime, knotted at 41–41.
The Lady Cougars managed to break the tie early in the third quarter, extending their lead to six points. However, with five minutes left in the quarter, Huntington battled back and pulled even with MVNU at 54–54. Late in the third quarter, MVNU's offense slowed, allowing the Foresters to make a run and pull ahead. Huntington closed the quarter on a 14-5 run and led 68-59.
MVNU tried to claw its way back in the fourth quarter but were unable to slow down Huntington's momentum it had gained in the second half. The Foresters outscored the Lady Cougars 17-11 in the fourth and would win by a final of 85-70.
Swisshelm led the Lady Cougars offensively, finishing with 20 points while shooting 50% from the field and a perfect 5-for-5 at the free-throw line. Shepherd followed closely with 19 points, five rebounds, and one assist. MVNU shot 40.4% from the field and 37.5% (9-24) from three. Huntington shot 43.3% from the floor and hit 31% of its threes (8-26). Turnovers were costly for MVNU as 20 miscues turned into 18 Forester points.
What's Next
The Lady Cougars will be traveling to the University of Rio Grande to take on the Red Storm on Wednesday, November 26 with the tip-off set for 1:00 p.m.
Mount Vernon Nazarene University is a private, four-year, intentionally Christian teaching university for traditional age students, graduate students, and working adults. With a 327-acre main campus in Mount Vernon, Ohio, MVNU emphasizes academic excellence, spiritual growth, and service to community and church. MVNU offers an affordable education both in-seat and online to nearly 2,200 students from 36 states, 1 U.S. commonwealth and 41 foreign countries.