GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Madonna University women's basketball team was not able to mount an impressive second half comeback following a strong third quarter, falling to Cornerstone University 74-67 at Mol Arena on Wednesday night. The crusaders fall to 0-10 and 0-5 in Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference play, while the Golden Eagles improve to 2-12 on the season and 1-5 in conference play.
HOW IT HAPPENED
-
Madonna fell to an early 8-0 deficit but quickly responded with a Sydney Brown layup and a fast break bucket by Cierra von Zittwitz followed by a free throw to close the gap. The Golden Eagles continued their strong start out-scoring the Crusaders 9-5 in the final five minutes of the quarter to lead 21-10 after one.
-
Brown heated up in the second quarter, dropping six points and helping reduce the CU lead to just seven points with 4:16 remaining in the half, although the Golden Eagles once again pushed late and increased their lead to 14 points by the buzzer, leading 46-32 at halftime.
-
The Crusaders entered the second half with a chip on their shoulder, beginning with a jumper by Claire LeRoux and a fast break jumper by Sheldon Bochenek. Brown continued her strong offensive performance with the next six MU points to make it 42-50 with five minutes in the quarter. A three-pointer by Ashleigh Ringstad brought the deficit down to four points and an Emily Huff layup with just 12 seconds would send the teams into the final quarter by a score of 57-52 in favor of Cornerstone.
-
Despite the strong third quarter push, the Golden Eagles were able to hold off the Crusaders in the final 10 minutes of play, out-scoring MU 17-15 and preserving the seven point victory.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
-
Bochenek posted 18 points to go along with four rebounds, three assists, and one block and Brown added 17 points with five rebounds and three assists.
-
Ringstad and Lex Davis combined for 15 points with three rebounds while von Zittwitz collected a team high six rebounds.
-
MU shot 38.3 percent (23-60) from the field, 14.3 percent (3-21) from beyond the arc, and 69.2 (18-26) percent from the free throw line. The Golden Eagles shot 48.1 percent (26-54) from field goal range, 50 percent (6-12) from three-point range, and 59.3 percent (16-27) from the line.
UP NEXT
-
The Crusaders will return to the court in Adrian, Mich. as they face Siena Heights University on Saturday, Dec. 8 at 5:30 p.m.
-
Live coverage, if available, will be posted at www.mucrusaders.com.
CONNECT WITH THE CRUSADERS: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube
SUBSCRIBE/DOWNLOAD TEAM SCHEDULES: Download Center